History of Norfolk County, Massachusetts, with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Part 202

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) ed
Publication date: 1884
Publisher: Philadelphia, J. W. Lewis & Co.
Number of Pages: 1534

USA > Massachusetts > Norfolk County > History of Norfolk County, Massachusetts, with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men > Part 202

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Ch. E. Bootman, Co. A, 4th Regt .; buried at Port Hudson ; killed June 14, 1863.

Thomas Curran, 42d Regt .; buried in Canton; died Aug. 19, 1863.

L. B. Crowther, Co. A, 4th Regt .; buried at Baton Rouge; died Aug. 28, 1862.

George Cobbett, Co. G, 29th Regt .; buried in Stoughton 1862. Walter Davenport, unknown.

James Donahue, 20th Regt .; killed in battle.

William Foster, Co. A, 4th Regt .; buried at Brashear City ; died April 21, 1863.

Charles O. Fuller, Co. A, 4th Regt. ; buried at Foxborough ; died at New Orleans Jan. 28, 1863.

Andrew L. Hill, Co. F, 18th Regt .; died in service February, 1863.

John Geddis, Co. A, 4th Regt .; died in service April 12, 1863. Walter S. Glover, Co. K, 22d Regt .; died in service July 1, 1862.

Joseph Jenkins, Co. A, 4th Regt. ; died at Baton Rouge Aug. 29, 1863.

Charles C. Knaggs, Co. A, 4th Regt .; buried at Canton ; died at Brashear City Aug. 22, 1863.

George W. Kehr, Co. K, 20th Regt .; killed at battle of An- tietam.

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CANTON.

Henry U. Morse, Co. A, 4th Regt .; died at Canton and buried here.

John McGinley, Co. G, 16th Regt. ; killed at second battle Bull Run.

Timothy O'Flaherty, Co. A, 4th Regt .; died at Canton, out of service.

John O'Brien, Co. F, 58th Regt. ; killed at Wilderness May 5, 1864.

Anthony Pollard, 4th Cav. ; died in service Sept. 12, 1864 ; New York man.

Franklin L. Ramsell, Co. G, 29th Regt .; died in hospital, Bal- timore, Md.

Edw. H. R. Revere, buried at Mt. Auburn.

David F. Sherman, Co. A, 4th Regt. ; died out of service.

Owen Shaughnessy, Co. A, 4th Regt .; buried in Canton; died June 6, 1863.

Jerome B. Snow, Co. A, 4th Regt .; buried at New Orleans; died July 10, 1863.

Charles D. Slattery, 14th Battery ; died Jan. 13, 1865.

Stephen H. Smith, Co. A, 4th Regt .; killed at Port Hudson June 14, 1863.

William Spillane, 15th N. Y. Regt .; died at Harrison's Land- ing July 14, 1862.

William D. Tennant, 4th Cav .; died in service; New York man.

Asahel White, Co. A, 4th Regt .; died at New Orleans July 26, 1863.

F. B. Howard, Co. A, 4th Regt .; died 1868 ; buried here.

John M. Pooler, Thomas M. Mullins, and Edward Fox, buried here.

Revere Encampment of the Grand Army of the Republic .- That name reaches back to the pre- revolutionary years of the republic, and for three generations has been associated with patriotism and military glory. Revere Encampment, Post 94, Grand Army of the Republic, was organized in 1869. Much interest was at once manifested in the work ; it grew from year to year, and at the present time is in a very prosperous condition. The Commander in 1883 was Alexander R. Holmes, M.D.

The present officers are as follows : C., Jonathan Linfield ; S. V. C., John T. Pitman ; J. V. C., George B. Hunt ; Adj., Horace D. Seavey ; Q. M., I. E. Wentworth ; Surg., A. R. Holmes ; Chap., A. A. Harrington ; O. D., R. L. Weston ; O. G., James H. Crane ; S. M., J. F. Bisbee ; Q. M. O., F. Z. Leonard. The following are the present members of the En- campment :

Bailey, Robert, 13th Pa. Cav. Barlow. L. E., 26th Me. Inf. Bisbee, Jos. F., 4th Mass. Inf. Billings, John D., 10th Mass. Battery.

Bolles, Benj. S., 41st Ill. Inf. Bowditch, Asa W., 44th Mass. Infantry.

Bryant, C. F., 33d Mass. Inf. Buckley, Timothy, 20th Mass. Infantry.

Burleigh, E. P., 5th N. H. Inf. Byam, R. S., 16th Mass. Inf.

Capen, H. S., 33d Mass. Inf. Carr, Patrick, 10th Mass. Inf. Carroll, D. W., 4th Mass. Inf. Christopher, J. K., 20th Me. Battery.

Cram, Jas. H., 29th Mass. Inf. Davenport, S., 14th Mass. Batt. Davis, Jas. N., 33d Mass. Inf. Didot, Armand F., Navy.

Emery, Wm., Ist Mass. Light Artillery.

Eddy, S. D., 3d Mass. Inf. Estey, E. H., 29th Mass. Inf.

Farrell, Wm., 15th Mass. Inf. Flood, Owen, 4th Mass. Inf.

Freeman, H. A., 4th Mass. Inf. Godfrey, J. W., 33d Mass. Inf. Hall, J., capt. 4th Mass. Inf.

Harwood, Elbridge G., 42d | Morse, Albert, 33d Mass. Inf. Mass. Infantry. Parks, John, 4th Mass. Inf.

Harwood, Harrison E., 42d Mass. Infantry.

Harrington, Andrew A., 11th Mass. Infantry.

Hewins, B. L., 2d Mass Inf. Hodson, H., 30th N. Y. Inf.

Mass. Infantry and Navy.

Hunt, Geo. B., 35th Mass Inf. Kinsley, Adam, 1st lieut. 10th Mo. Infantry.

Lawrence, John, Ist N. J. Cav.

Linfield, Jona., 3d Mass. Inf. Lewis, George, 12th Mass. Inf. Lynch, John, 20th Mass. Inf. McCorkee, William, 57th Mass. Infantry.

McPherson, David, drummer 24th Mass. Infantry.

Morse, Elijah A., corp. 4th Mass. Infantry.

Morse, S. H., 4th Mass. Inf.

Partridge, C., 24th Mass. Inf. | Peach, Henry, 23d Mass. Inf. Perry, J. W., 33d Mass. Inf. Pettee, Albert, 19th Mass. Inf. Pitman, J. T., Ist Mass. Cav. Seavey, H. D., 4th Mass. Inf.

Holmes, Alex. R., surgeon 3d | Seavey, F. E., 9th Me. Inf.

Shepard, H. S., 31st Mass. Inf.

Holbrook, F. L., 33d Mass. Inf. | Silloway, Jacob, Jr., Ist lieut. Hixon, Edward R., sergt. Co. 6th N. Y. Infantry. B, 33d Mass. Infantry.

Smith, S. L., 5th Mass. Inf. Tolman, Otis S., 4th Mass. Inf. Webster, F. G., 44th Mass. Inf. Wentworth, Larra E., 4th Mass. Infantry.

White, N. S., 24th Mass. Inf. Witt, Hardin, 56th Mass. Inf. Wyeth, J. J., 44th Mass. Inf. 1

The following are names of soldiers whose graves were decorated May 30, 1883 :

C. F. Adams, 20th Mass. Inf. F. O. Bullock, 13th Wis. Inf. G. W. Bailey, 18th Mass. Inf. C. E. Bootman,1 4th Mass. Inf. W. E. Brewster, 4th Mass. Inf. R. Blackburn, Jr., 20th Mass. Infantry.

J. A. Bullard,1 2d Eng., U. S. Navy.

| Jeremiah C. Breslyn, gunboat " Osceola."

John O'Brien, 58th Mass. Inf. Martin Cary, 7th Me. Inf. Stephen Clary, 3d R. I. H. Art. D. W. Croude, 5th Mass. Cav. Thos. Curran, 42d Mass. Inf. W. Davenport,1 35th Mass. Inf. T. O'Flaherty, 4th Mass. Inf. Patrick Flood, 23d Mass. Inf. Edward Fox, 19th Mass. Inf. John Geddis,1 4th Mass. Inf. W. S. Glover,1 22d Mass. Inf. Wm. Heath, 22d Mass. Inf. A. L. Hill,1 18th Mass. Inf. F. B. Howard, 4th Mass. Inf. Dennis Hanlon, U. S. Navy. John Howe, 4th Mass. and 11th U. S. Infantry. E. Horton, Jr.,1 4th Mass. Inf.

| Maj. C. D. Jordan, U. S. Army. Geo. W. Kehr, 20th Mass. Inf.

1 C. C. Knaggs, 4th Mass. Inf. | John McCready, U. S. Navy. J. McGinley,1 16th Mass. Inf. W. McKendry, 22d Mass. Inf. William McKendry, U. S. Rev.

Marine.

Geo. W. McGinty, 29th Maine Vet. Vols.

Lieut. Henry U. Morse, 4th Mass. Inf.

T. M. Mullen, 29th Mass. Inf. S. W. Meserve, 4th Mass. Inf. J. M. Pooler,1 Ist Mass. Batt.

J. H. Proctor, Ist Mass. Band Leader.

J. Reardon, Ist Mass. H. Art. Edward Robbins, U. S. Navy. Owen Shaughnessy, 4th Mass. Infantry.

D. F. Sherman, 4th Mass. Inf. S. H. Smith,1 4th Mass. Inf. Zebah Thayer, 18th Mass. and 2d H. Art.

J. K. Webster, 5th Mass. Inf. W. G. White, 48th Mass. Inf. Asahel White, U. S. Navy.

Blue Hill Lodge, F. and A. M., is located here. Samuel H. Capen is present Master.

1 Buried elsewhere.

Leonard, F. Z., 4th Mass. Inf. ! Weston, Richmond L., gun- boat " Pequot."

956

HISTORY OF NORFOLK COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.

REPRESENTATIVES FROM 1776 TO 1884.

Benjamin Gill, 1776.

Thomas Crane, 1776, '77, '78, '81.

Elijah Dunbar, 1780, 'S2, 'S7, '93.

Christopher Wadsworth, 1780. John Kenney, 1783.

Capt. James Endicott, 1784, '85, '86, '90.

Capt. Frederick Pope, 1787, | John Endicott, 1843, '44. '88, '89, '91, '92, '96.

Elijah Crane, 1795, '97.

Lyman Kinsley, 1849. Charles Endicott, 1851, '57,'58. | Charles HI. French, 1853, '54.

Joseph Bemis, 1500, '01, '02. '03, '04, '05, '06, '07, '11, '12, | George Capen, 1855.

'13.

Samuel Davenport, 1856.

Benjamin Tucker, 1808, '09, | John S. Eldridge, 1859, '60. '10.

Oliver S. Chapman, 1863, '64. Joseph Leavitt, 1868.

Lemuel Whiting, 1811, '12, '13. · Abel Wentworth, Sr., 1812. Friend Crane, 1814.

Frank M. Ames, 1869. James S. Shepard, 1871, '72.

Elijah A. Morse, 1876.

John Bailey, 1815, '16, '17. Samuel Capen, 1819, '20, '29. Jonathan Leonard, 1823.

Thomas Lonergan, 1877.

Thomas French, 1824, '26, '27.

Thomas Tolman, 1828, '36. Elijah Spare, 1830. James Endicott, 1832, '33. James Blackman, 1834, '35. Michael Shaller, 1834, '35. Nathaniel French, 1837. Abel Wentworth, 1836, '37, '38. Isaac Horton, 1838, '39. John Gay, 1840, '41, '42.

They derive themselves, at least the old families of the town, mainly from English stock, and had, like so many of their neighbors, the energy, industry, and intelligence which belong to that blood. They were originally, too, of the Puritan religion, and heirs of the social life and manners, mixed good and evil, with the good predominant, as most of us are used to think, and this fourfold formative force of stock and faith shows unmistakably to this present time.

Other more modern influences have, of course, modified these influences, but the roots remain. The first settlers were mainly farmers, whose habits were determined by their occupation, and till a comparatively recent date Canton has been primarily an agricultural town ; and as soil in such cases de- termines property, even to the size of houses, since only rich land gives the farmer crops adequate to generous houses, and as property is the material basis of advance in civilization, it may not be amiss to note that Canton soil, albeit in spots rugged and thin, has always been as good as that of its neighbors, and in some cases surpassing it, the historical Canton farmer has always had rather better than an average chance to improve his condition.

shaped by the factory-life which has for a long time existed here. Leaving out of the question all inquiry as to the economic value of a factory population in furnishing a home-market to the farmer, and it can- not be denied that the mechanic's keenness and rapidity of mental measurement stimulates the general town social life wherein he is found, Canton has been for- tunate in the character and ability of its leading me- chanics and manufacturers, so that it is safe to say that its mechanical industries have gone to the formation of certain mental activity which is favorable to progress and thrift, as the present economic condition of its citizens shows.

When we add to these considerations the fact that Canton folk have always lived in easy communication with a large city, in fact, more or less a suburb of Boston, and that some of the most respectable of city society have made their summer homes here, it is evi- dent that one cannot speak of Canton merely as a country town, or as one would speak of a rural popu- lation among the hills of New Hampshire or Maine. Canton folk have all the qualities of a people who, living in the country, have the city for a near neigh- | bor, and the rural character belonging always to a people so located everywhere shows itself. Canton folk, like some of their neighbors, have put on cos- mopolitan characteristics and manners. Underneath

Neither should it be forgotten that this primitive but, nevertheless, imperfectly sketched. From the | moral character has been modified and, to a degree,

Conclusion .- The religious history, the parochial history, the civil history, the military history, the | business history, and the manufacturing history of the town of Canton have thus far been graphically, time when the territory between Blue Hill, on the | northeast, and Moose Hill, on the southwest, was a wilderness to the time when the forests leveled, the water-courses dammed and changed, the hills tun- neled and the rivers crossed by railroads, the ponds " preserved," the one church of rude architecture, which stood on Packeen Plain " solitary and alone," or sparsely surrounded near and far by the wigwams of the Indians, whom the great apostle, John Eliot, gathered from time to time within its narrow walls, or on the grassy mounds, for religious instruction, with its surroundings, have all passed away, and its place occupied by stately edifices of wood and brick and of stone, for religious worship, prayer, and praise, for education of youth, for civil government and legis- lation, and the barren fields are changed into fertile farms, and the silence of the wild and unpeopled valleys is broken by the sound of whirring wheels and ponderous hammers and rattling machinery, the hum of busy industrial life and labor, and all the sights and sounds of advanced civilization, the life of the swarming descendants of those who two centuries and a quarter since begun the settlement of the present township of Canton.

In attempting any analysis of Canton folk it is necessary first of all to note three things about them, to wit : their origin, their history, and their locality.

Edward R. Eager, 1881. Frank M. Ames, 1882.

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CANTON.

is the old stock and Puritan qualities, but the color- ing of their social life is of this century, and the ideas which prevail in the great world.

They have the ancestral energy, thrift, and self-re- liance, also a bias to daily economy, until it blossoms out into some startling display of gathered money lavishly spent on house or factory ; but the main fact about the Canton man of to-day is that he is an American citizen, full of American ideas, and, like so many of his fellow-citizens, intent on making his mark and stamping his will upon the social and eco- nomic life about him. In a word, he is no other man than an American, and a pretty good represen- tative of a people who seldom rest from attempting something which pleases himself and instructs the world of which he forms an energetic and usually an useful part.

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES.

NAHUM CAPEN.

Nahum Capen was born in Canton, Norfolk Co., Mass., April 1, 1804. His family were among the earliest settlers in Dorchester. Bernard Capen and his wife Jane were supposed to be the ancestors of all of the name of Capen in New England, if not in America. Bernard died in 1638. The stone which marked his grave, and which is said to be the oldest in America, is deposited in the Dorchester Historical and Antiquarian Society. Robert Capen, " gentle- man," as he is styled in the commission as an officer of the militia in Massachusetts, which he received | from George III. in 1763, and again in 1768, was the grandfather of our subject. His father, Andrew Capen, a man of independent thought and a true gen- tleman, was born in Stoughton, Norfolk Co., Nov. 22, 1757, and died June 1, 1846. His mother was Hannah Richards, of Sharon, Mass., a lady of char- acter and energy, who died Nov. 23, 1843, aged seventy-three years.

At an early age Mr. Capen showed a marked tend- ency towards literary pursuits. At school he was always at the head of his class, and at nineteen he rewrote " Plutarch's Lives" as an exercise. He in- tended, in early youth, to become a physician, and began the study of the profession ; but delicate health prevented his completing this plan. At twenty-one he became a publisher and bookseller, and established a leading house in Boston, under the firm-name of Marsh, Capen & Lyon, with a branch in

Concord, N. H. He also became early interested in the various systems of theology and the history of religious sects. In 1828 he began to investigate the nature and condition of man, devoting himself to the study of biography and the investigation of the great problems of government. He favored Andrew Jackson as a candidate for the Presidency, and was secretary of the Democratic party of Boston. He also became interested in metaphysics, and, de- voting himself to the subject with great industry, he soon mastered all the ancient as well as modern systems.

In 1827 and subsequently he published several works anonymously. Among these was "The Men- tal Guide," which was complimented and approved by the celebrated William Wirt, Attorney-General of the United States, and by Rev. Henry Ware, D.D., of Harvard College, and others, to whom its author- ship was never made known. He had an aversion to notoriety.1 In 1827 he was made the honored re- cipient from the Masonic institutions of Boston of all the degrees both of the lodge, the chapter, and the encampment, the Grand Master and the principal officers of the Grand Lodge and other institutions presiding on the occasion. It was an extraordinary event, and one singularly calculated to illustrate Mr. Capen's sense of honor and great firmness of pur- pose."

In 1830, Mr. Capen was united in marriage with Eliza Ann Moore, a lady of great worth and accom- plishments.3

In 1832 he first became acquainted with Spurz- heim, with whom he contracted the closest intimacy, though at that time he was but twenty-eight years of age, while Spurzheim was fifty-six. When Spurz- heim died in Boston, after a brilliant career in that city, Mr. Capen had in his hands several thousand dol- lars belonging to him, besides his papers and personal effects of value. He immediately requested the ap- pointment of a committee to take charge of the prop- erty, which was done. A biography of Spurzheim was prepared by Mr. Capen, and published as a part of Spurzheim's "Phrenology in Connection with the Study of Physiognomy," royal 8vo. He also wrote

1 It was dedicated to Levi Hodge, LL.D., Professor of Logic and Metaphysics, Harvard University.

2 See history of Columbian Lodge, by Grand Master Heard. Mr. Capen delivered a Masonic oration in Dedham, June 24, 1829, a public address before the Grand Lodge of Massa- chusetts, in 1837. He was corresponding secretary of the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts from 1833 to 1840. He wrote much during the anti-Masonic controversy, but anonymously. 3 This year he published. anonymously a pamphlet entitled " An Inquiry into the Nature and Design of Music."

958

HISTORY OF NORFOLK COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.

a life of Spurzheim's friend and coadjutor, Dr. Gall, In 1831, Mr. Capen was consulted by a committee of and edited his works translated from the French, in six volumes. He aided in revising Spurzheim's works. He was his chosen critic. He also edited Dr. Combe's works on Insanity, and the " Annals of Phrenology," in two volumes.1 In 1835, Mr. Capen .visited Europe for the purpose of making contracts with leading authors for advanced copies of their works for republication. He succeeded with the most eminent, but the equitable rights of his firm were not

Congress in respect to a revision of the copyright law, and in 1837, in letters to Daniel Webster and Henry Clay, he urged the passage of an international copyright law. He acted up to his convictions con- sistently, being the first publisher in the United States who proposed to pay a premium to foreign living authors, and his firm was the first to perform that duty. The memorial he addressed to Congress on the subject, in 1844, was eloquent and exhaustive. respected by American publishers. On his return he | Horace Mann said of it, that it contained all that was prepared an extended essay on the subject of educa- worth knowing on the subject. It was approved by Dickens, who, in a letter to Mr. Capen, predicted that both would be in their graves before government acted upon the subject. tion, and designed plans for a model school, to be called the " New England Academy," to be succeeded by a university; his object being to elevate the standard of education. Ilis plans and sugges- In 1846 he projected a United States statistical journal, to be published every two months. This project was earnestly favored by President Polk, the members of his cabinet, most of the United States senators, and other distinguished men of the nation ; but it was laid aside to enable him to devote himself exclusively to the great work of his life, " The History | of Democracy." tions received the approbation of some of the most distinguished men and educators in this country, among whom were John Quincy Adams, Daniel Web- ster, Edward Everett, Horace Mann, and George Combe, of Edinburgh. "If executed according to the plan," Mr. Combe said, " it would be the most perfect school in the world." It was never carried out because Mr. Capen could not spare the time to He edited the Massachusetts State Record from 1847 to 1852, inclusive, a work which was highly appreciated, and was then published under the sanc- tion of the State Legislature. In 1850, Mr. Capen. made up the " Record' of Inventive Genius" of the country, from the statistics of the Patent Office from 1790 to 1849. This was printed by the government and extensively circulated. It was a remark of Rev. Dr. E. M. P. Wells, that Mr. Capen "had the capacity to make statistics speak." collect the necessary funds. Having furnished the plan, he thought the moneyed men of the community should procure the means of executing it. On his return from Europe, Mr. Capen brought documents from England on the subject of life insurance, and was the first to propose a mutual company in Boston, but the proposition was looked upon as impracticable by leading men, and nothing was done. The interest he manifested in education led the Board of Educa- tion of Massachusetts to select the firm of which he

In 1848 he wrote and published the " Republic of was a member to publish the school library. This | the United States," which he dedicated to the Hon. project of the board required a great outlay of capital, James Buchanan, of Pennsylvania. In 1850 he and resulted in great pecuniary loss to the publishers and to Mr. Capen personally. | prepared the papers of Judge Levi Woodbury for publication in three volumes. Mr. Woodbury refused to have his papers placed in the hands of any other person, and gave him full authority to alter or omit

Mr. Capen, however, did not lose interest in the great cause. From 1838 to 1846 no citizen of Massachusetts spent more time and labor without | any inaccurate expression or doubtful opinion.

compensation in aiding the movements which resulted in the establishment of the Board of Education and the system of normal schools, which have given to that State the position of pioneer in the noble cause.

Mr. Capen has been through his whole life a most consistent follower, both in word and deed, of the principles of Democracy. In regard to slavery, he agreed with the expressed views of Washington, Jef- ferson, and Franklin. He was in favor of its abolition whenever it could be accomplished without violating the Constitution or endangering the Union. At an early period (1842) he advised Mr. Calhoun and other prominent men in his section to inaugurate and lead an anti-slavery party at the South, that the country might be spared the calamities of war. In 1861 he wrote an extended letter to Peter Cooper, in

1 In a letter of George Combe to a gentleman in the United States, dated Edinburgh, Nov. 26, 1833, he says of Mr. Capen, " He is securing for himself an honorable place in the annals of his country's philosophy by his own exertions. I am con- vineed that he is at this moment doing more substantial and permanent good to America than any individual engaged out of the pale of phrenology, however brilliant his reputation may be."

959

CANTON.

reply to one asking opinions respecting the Union. His improvements in the postal service were varied 1 and extensive. There is scarcely a household in the large towns and cities in the land who are not daily This was published in pamphlet form, and was ex- tensively circulated. It was highly complimented by leading men and journals of all parties as one of the | gladdened by the arrival of the postman free of charge ablest produced on the subject. The learned Bishop at their door, or does not find a daily convenience in the letter-boxes at the corners of the streets, and yet few of them know that it is to Mr. Capen that they owe these blessings. It was through his exertions Stevens, of Pennsylvania, said concerning it, " Rarely, if ever, have I read a paper which exhibits such pro- found analysis, such extensive learning, such true philosophy, such comprehensive views." He declared that the system was first introduced into America. that the destruction of the American Union was " a ' It was necessary both for the convenience of the pub- moral impossibility."

In 1849, at the request of a member of the Na- tional Committee, he wrote a pamphlet entitled " One Hundred Reasons" in favor of electing Gen. Lewis Cass to the Presidency,-a remarkably spirited docu- ment which was circulated by hundreds of thousands. In 1849, as the result of a letter which led to the establishment of the Census Board, he was tendered the office of the superintendent of the census, which he declined.

lic and the health of the officials to change the loca- tion of the office. The government not being ready or willing at that time to erect a new post-office in Boston, the Postmaster-General proposed that if Mr. Capen or his friends would erect a building the De- partment would rent it. With this understanding a new building was erected with accommodations ample for twenty years. When it was completed, Mr. Capen advised the government to pay the cost of the build- ing and take it; and if his advice had been followed, a large sum would have been saved to the public treasury. The removal was violently opposed by the real estate owners and money institutions near the old site. Memorials for and against the change were posted for signatures, from which it appeared that four hundred and eighty-seven firms and names of firms favored the old location, and nearly eight thou- sand, headed by Governor Everett and Rufus Choate, the new. At the expiration of Mr. Capen's term of office it was carried back to State Street, but Mr. Capen's foresight and judgment were speedily vindi- cated, by the fact that within eighteen months they endeavored to get back the building which he had erected. Of his management of the post-office there was but one opinion. Rufus Choate pronounced it " beautiful." The Department at Washington at- tached great weight to his opinions. The oldest official declared that he made more improvements in four years than had been made in the present century.1

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History of Norfolk County, Massachusetts, with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Part 202

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) ed Publication date: 1884 Publisher: Philadelphia, J. W. Lewis & Co. Number of Pages: 1534

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) ed
Publication date: 1884
Publisher: Philadelphia, J. W. Lewis & Co.
Number of Pages: 1534