History of Norfolk County, Massachusetts, with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Part 93

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 93

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

Appropriations .- Schools, $6500; highways, $3200; State tax, $1300; county tax, $1000; poor, $4000; interest, $1300; town debt, $2000; cemeteries, $100; library, $800; town offi- cers, $1000 ; general expenses, $800; State aid, $500; fire de- | and its results he furnished indubitable proof of the partment, $1000 ; memorial day, $100; new roads, sidewalks, etc., $875; enforcing the liquor laws, $500; school supplies, $300; night police, $500.

It was voted that there be a vigorous enforcement of the liquor laws, and that the appropriation for the same be put in the hands of the Law and Order League. The selectmen and Messrs. J. T. Southworth and George W. Paine were appointed a committee to investigate the subject of water supply for the town.

Population .- In 1875, 1726; in 1880, 2130. Of the latter 1092 were males and 1038 females. By the census of 1880 there were in the town 11 white males and 12 white females, aged 21 and over, who could not write, and 23 persons aged 10 and over, who could not read.

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES.

E. N. HOLBROOK.

long course of his business life it has been remarked of him that he seldom, if ever, failed in any of his un- dertakings. For a period of nearly half a century he conducted a boot- and shoe-manufactory, always alone, until within a few years of his death he admitted his son, E. Everett Holbrook, as partner.

During the last twenty years of his life his interests outside his manufactory had grown to be so extensive as to demand most of his attention, and much of his time was spent as a dealer in stocks in Boston.

His methods of business were straightforward and direct ; scorning subterfuge and finesse, he met all issues squarely as they arose, and by his life's work

truth of the old adage, "Honesty is the best policy." He possessed in an eminent degree those qualities that command success, and to his infinite credit, be it said, he applied the results of that success to no selfish end. Not only the town hall, the beautiful Win- throp church edifice, to the erection of which he was so liberal a contributor, not only the public library which he endowed, but even the town itself stands as a monument to his memory, bearing as it does his name in token of the munificent donation of fifty thousand dollars to the new town (in event of its es- tablishment), in order, as he said, "that the people might be permanently benefited and begin their his- tory as a municipality free from debt, and in more propitious circumstances than most of the other debt- incumbered towns of the Commonwealth."

He was one of the prime movers and most active agents in securing the establishment of the new town, but unfortunately he did not live to see his wish fully consummated. His last visit to Boston, only a few days before his death, was to confer with the com- mittee appointed by the Legislature to determine as to the advisability of establishing the new town. The committee reported favorably, the town was set apart, but Mr. Holbrook had ceased his earthly cares and labors.

E. N. Holbrook was born in East Randolph (now Holbrook), Mass., Oct. 31, 1800. He was the second son and fifth child of Deacon Elisha and Anna Hol- brook. He came of an ancestry distinguished for energy of character, piety, devotion to principle, and zeal in their religious faith, and he united in his own He died Feb. 5, 1872, in the seventy-second year of his age. Nature had blessed him with a fine phy- sique, a genial, pleasant countenance, and command- ing presence. View his character in what light we may, it was such as to command admiration not only as a strong, successful man of business, as a philan- thropic citizen, but as a loving, tender husband and father. He married Relief, daughter of Samuel and Relief Linfield. She died March 19, 1883, aged seventy-nine years and seven months. Their children were two daughters and one son,-Relief L. (after- wards the wife of Rev. Charles V. Spear, principal and character those traits in a high degree. His oppor- tunities for an education in his youth were fair, and were well improved. Instead, however, of pursuing his studies through a collegiate course he early de- voted his attention to business, and at the age of twenty he, in company with others, engaged in the manufacture of boots and shoes. He soon withdrew from the firm, however, and established himself alone in the same line of business. He may be ranked as one of the pioneers in that branch of manufacture for which Massachusetts has since become so famous. From the outset he was successful, and during the | proprietor of Maplewood Institute, at Pittsfield, Mass.

438

HISTORY OF NORFOLK COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.

died April 26, 1883), E. Everett (married Mary J., daughter of Rev. Dr. Ezekiel Russell), and Mary W. The son and last-named daughter are still living.

THOMAS WHITE.

Thomas White was born in East Randolph (now , foresight and good judgment, Mr. White passed the Holbrook), Mass., April 30, 1816. He attended the | crisis and met all liabilities dollar for dollar. The war of the Rebellion following soon after, Mr. White, in common with other manufacturers, lost all his Southern trade, which had been quite extensive. Taking advantage of the demands of the occasion, however, he at once began making army boots and shoes, dealing sometimes directly with the govern- ment, but more largely with New York merchants. This branch of business was continued until the close of the war caused a cessation of the demand.

common schools of his town, and also the Pittsfield (N. H.) Academy, graduating from this institution in 1836. His father was a pioneer in the shoe manu- facturing industry, commencing that business in East Randolph in 1810. At that early day very primitive methods were in use, machinery for the purpose was unknown, and the unpretentious little shops where shoes were made by hand were very insignificant affairs compared with the vast establishments where, operated by steam, hundreds of odd-looking machines shape, fashion, and finish the foot-gear of the present generation. At the time of which we speak there were no railroads, and each manufacturer would make up a load of shoes or boots, and with his team pro- ceed to cart them to market to dispose of them, and having done so would return home to repeat the pro- cess. During his boyhood, when not attending school, Mr. White worked in the shop with his father, and upon his return from Pittsfield, at the age of twenty, he determined to follow boot and shoemaking as a business. For a few years he worked for others, but in 1839 he commenced business for himself. It was a very small beginning. All that was required in the way of an outfit was a cutting-board, a few patterns, and a knife. Mr. White had, however, youth, strength, energy, ambition and good business capacity, and all of these he put as capital stock into his busi- ness. From the beginning he was successful, and so rapidly did his business increase that in 1843 he found it advisable to admit a partner, and Samuel Whitcomb was admitted, the firm being White & Whitcomb. This relation was soon terminated by the death of Mr. Whitcomb. Though still a young man, Mr. White had come to hold a prominent place in the community. He employed quite a number of hands, and his factory became quite a source of reve- nue to the little village. In the mean time he had also established a general store in the village, having for partners during the eight years he was connected with it Mr. F. H. Keith, now a prosperous mer- chant of Philadelphia, and Mr. Adolphus Clark, who has since been successful in business in London, England. In October, 1842, he married Miss Harriet E. Keith, of Bridgewater, a sister of Mr. F. H. Keith,

his partner in the store. Mr. White was one of the few who successfully met and weathered the great financial storm of 1857-58. During those terrible months there were hundreds of level-headed, far-seeing business men unable, notwithstanding their most he- roic endeavors, to breast the tide, but having his business well in hand, and by the exercise of clear

In 1866, Mr. White took his brother, Edmund White, into partnership with him, the firm being T. & E. White. Up to about this time it had been the cus- tom of manufacturers to dispose of their goods through commission-houses or selling agents. Believing, how- ever, it would accrue to their benefit to distribute their own products, they opened a wholesale boot- and shoe-store on Pearl, near Milk Street, Boston, Thomas superintending the selling of the goods, while Edmund had charge of the manufacturing at East Randolph. Mr. White at once took rank as one of the leading business men of Boston. Under his man- agement the business during the next two years in- creased so rapidly as to necessitate increased facilities for production, and they purchased the large four-story steam-factory built by Spear, Sprague & Co., and which admirably suited their requirements. The firm had now become one of the largest and most in- fluential houses in the trade.

In 1871, Mr. Edmund White withdrew from the firm, and soon established a large business of his own in the same village. Upon the withdrawal of his brother, Mr. White admitted his two sons, T. Edgar and Henry M. White, as partners, assuming the firm- name of Thomas White & Co. In 1872 the great fire in Boston left their store, like all others situated in what is known as the " burned district," in ashes. Some of their stock was saved, but they experienced heavy losses by the failure of the insurance compa- nies. Although they suffered temporary inconveni- ence by their inability to secure advantageous quar- ters, yet their business continued to increase so rapidly that during that year they took another partner, Mr. Marcellus Walker, of Cambridge, who for many years had been their salesman, and who

Thomas White

439

MEDFIELD.

had proven himself an efficient business man. As soon

friendly disposition existing among the Indians all as possible they established themselves at the corner of | along his journey. It was only after the encroach- Pearl and High Streets, near their old quarters, and, in order to keep pace with the demands of their trade, they purchased and fitted for their use the meeting- house situated near their factory. At present theirs ranks among the largest factories of Eastern Massa- chusetts, and they turn out weekly from six to nine hundred cases of goods.

In 1880 they still further enlarged their business by securing a factory in Great Falls, N. H., one hun- dred and seventy-five feet long, three stories in height, and capable of turning out fifteen hundred pairs of shoes per day. In 1883 they secured a large factory in Boston, where they can produce from two to three thousand pairs of boots per day. The productions of this firm rank as standard goods throughout the United States.

Mr. White's business career has been in many re- spects an exceptional one. But few of those who are referred to to-day as our " self-made men" have passed through so many severe ordeals, met with so many heavy losses, and yet paid at all times and in full all obligations. While phenomenally successful from a business point of view, Mr. White has always been liberal and public-spirited, and has found time to fill honorably and creditably many positions of public trust. He has held many town offices, and twice represented his district in the State Legislature. In politics he was a Whig in ante-bellum days, and since the organization of the Republican party he has always given his support to that party.

Mr. White has done much toward making Hol- brook the beautiful village it is, and is justly regarded by the citizens of that place as one of their benefac- tors.

CHAPTER XXXV.

MEDFIELD.

BY W. S. TILDEN.

THIS region of country lying to the southwest of Boston was, when first known to white men, the home of several Indian tribes. Among these were the Naticks, the Neponsets, and to the westward of Norfolk County, the Nipmucks. These tribes were at the beginning of their acquaintance with the English settlers quite friendly to them ; indeed, when John Oldham and three others, in 1633, went overland as far as the Connecticut River, he found the same

ments of the whites upon their domain, and after some wrongs committed by the English, that the tem- per of the Indians toward them suffered a change. The aboriginal tribes scattered over this part of the country were known under the general designation of " Massachusetts ;" and Charles River was at first known to Englishmen as the " Massachusetts River." There is no account extant of any exploration of Charles River Valley during the first decade after the estab- lishment of the Bay colony, though doubtless it was not long before adventurous pioneers became ac- quainted with the general features of this region.

The territory south and east of Charles River was claimed by the tribe of the Neponsets, whose domain included the river of that name. Their sachem, Chick- atabot, was very friendly to the English from the first, forming treaties and agreements with both the Plymouth and Bay colonies. About 1632, William Pynchon, of Boston, afterwards of Springfield, pur- chased of Chickatabot the territory lying between Charles River and Neponset River. The town of Medfield was included in that purchase, together with several other towns of Norfolk County as far south as the Rhode Island line ; though the southern bounda- ries of that purchase were very indefinite, and misun- derstanding arose between the settlers and the Indians many years afterwards. It is doubtful if the limits were very clearly defined at the time of purchase, as, in 1635, the colonial government called for any persons who were present at the time of the purchase, or who knew where the boundaries were, to come for- ward and testify. There was no response, great num- bers of the Indians having been swept off by the smallpox in 1633, among them the sachem, Chicka- tabot.

Dedham was incorporated in 1636, and included " all the lands on the easterly and southerly side of Charles River not formerly granted to any Towne or particular person." Roxbury had been already set off from the Pynchon purchase, and Dedham, when it was founded, appears to have taken in all that was left of it, or the territory of nine or ten of the present towns of Norfolk County.

Medfield was a part of Dedham for fifteen years, but this part of the town is seldom mentioned in the early records of Dedham. Special attention seems to have been first drawn to this region on account of the wide expanse of meadows lying along Charles River, and at the mouths of its tributary streams near this place. The name given by the aborigines to the valley of Charles River above Natick, for several

440

HISTORY OF NORFOLK COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.

miles southward, was " Boggestow," variously spelled, as were most words in the ancient papers and records. From all that we can gather, the name seems to have been more particularly applied to the meadows and up- lands lying on the west side of the river, which were not in the Neponset lands, but belonged to the Naticks or Nipmucks, probably the Naticks. But the Dedham people were accustomed to speak of all this west end of their township as Boggestow ; sometimes desig- nating it as " lying near Boggestow." In 1642, Ded. ham granted to one of its citizens a farm of three hundred and fifty acres, " to lie in or about that place called Boggestow, or not far from thence." This farm lay on the east side of the river and was afterwards bought in by the selectmen of Medfield, no settlement having been made upon it.

The meadows in those days being much dryer than at present, and being kept clear of bushes by the an- nual fires of the Indians, produced great quantities of grass of such quality that it was very highly valued by the early settlers, as it furnished an available sup- ply of fodder for their cattle during the winter sea- sons. This was probably one of the chief induce- ments to men to look for a place of settlement in this immediate vicinity.

There were several open plains hereabouts before the land had been cleared by white men, as, indeed, there were in various portions of the Indian country. They are often mentioned by the writers of those days. The forests were quite open, and much grass for pasturage was found in them. .

During the fifteen years above mentioned, prior to the incorporation of the town of Medfield, there were no actual settlers upon its territory. In all the earli- est records there is not only no reference to any such fact, but everything indicates the contrary, though many persons have supposed that this part of Dedham had been previously overspread by settlers, and these " set off" as is the case now when new towns are formed. We are not to conceive of any buildings erected here in those days, except, perhaps, a cowpen and a rude shelter for the keeper of the herds that found pasturage here during the summer ; as we read in very early records of "herd-house plain," which was the level stretch of land lying along the Dedham road a mile east of the present village. It is also spoken of as " the cow-pen."

Settlement .- The first known movement for the formation of a new settlement here was made in 1649. It was started by Dedham men, though they were soon joined in the enterprise by people from other towns. The scheme was to make a new town out of a portion of Dedham and a corresponding portion of

land belonging to the colony and lying on the west side of the river, so including the river and the wide meadows on both sides.

A petition was sent to the General Court for a grant of land on the west side, four miles north and south by three miles east and west, which was granted and laid out. This land, which was long called " the old grant," corresponds very nearly to what is now East Medway. After this petition was granted, the town of Dedham set off a portion of its territory lying on Charles River, about four miles north and south and three miles east and west. This grant from Dedham corresponds very nearly (perhaps exactly) with the present extent of the town of Medfield. It is de- scribed as being in the " west end of the bounds. of Dedham next Boggestow." The men authorized by the town of Dedham to lay it out accomplished their work in the spring of 1650. The orders of the court in regard to the laying out of the land on the west side of the river were also obeyed about the same time by Robert Kayne and Edward Jackson. At the acceptance of their report by the General Court, in May, it is stated that the court, in answer to the request of the inhabitants of Dedham, " doe order that it shalbe called [Meadfield]." The brack- ets seem to indicate that the name had not then been decided upon, but that it was afterwards inserted. Various conjectures have been offered as to the reason for the selection of the name for the new town. One is that the open field where the village was afterwards built, lying on the way from Dedham to the Boggestow meadows and very near them, was called the " meadow field," and hence "Meadfield." Another is that, as there were open fields in the north and south parts of the town, the plain where the settlement was commenced, lying midway between them, was called the " mid field." The most proba- ble reason is that the towns of Medfield and Dedham in Old England, lying near each other, and many of the early settlers coming from that vicinity, the towns were named by them in honor of their former homes. We know that this was the case with Dedham, and there is little doubt that the name of this town was adopted for a similar reason.

It was decided at a Dedham town-meeting that "in consideration of their town rights in the meadows," the settlers should pay that town the sum of one hundred pounds. This was afterwards reduced to fifty pounds, but it goes to show in what estimation the meadows were held at that time. Nothing is said of the value of the rest of the land that was set off.

A committee was chosen by the inhabitants of the

441

MEDFIELD.

town of Dedham to manage all affairs relating to the " erecting, disposing, and government of the said vil- lage" of Medfield. It consisted of Ralph Wheelock, Thomas Wight, Robert Hinsdell, Henry Chickering, John Dwight, Peter Woodward, and Eleazar Lusher. The first three were men foremost in the new settle- ment ; the next three were men who proposed to stay in and act for the town of Dedham; and Eleazar Lusher was clerk of the town and kept the record of proceedings until the new town was fully recognized. Those records, in his characteristic handwriting, are still preserved among the town papers.

The "society for removing to Medfield" was organ- ized by the signing of a curious agreement, probably drawn up by Ralph Wheelock, the " founder of Med- field." This agreement provided, (1) That all per- sons receiving grants of land from the new town should become subject to all rightful orders of town government ; (2) that all questions or differences between them should be settled by reference or arbi- tration without carrying matters into court; (3)| that no person should be allowed to become a towns- man but such as were honest, peaceable, and free from

the inhabitants for seven years to come should let any piece of land received by grant from the town for the space of a year together, except by consent of the selectmen, unless it be to some member of the society.

How many signed the agreement at this time is unknown. It is certain that some of those whose | names are appended signed it years afterwards, at the time they were accepted as townsmen ; and some who signed at the beginning never removed to the new settlement.

about the same time, though there is no record extant.

The first thirteen house-lots were laid out June 19, 1650. These were scattered along Main, North, Green, Frairy, South, and Philip Streets. The first thirteen settlers were Ralph Wheelock, John Ellis, Samuel Bullen, Daniel Morse, James Allen, Joseph Clark, Francis Hamant, John Turner, John Frairy, Timothy Dwight, Robert Hinsdale, Thomas Wight, and John Wight. It appears that good timber trees near the village grew only along the brook, and strict orders were made in regard to the use of them, they having been reserved for the use of the town.

Dedham surrendered its jurisdiction to the settlers above named Jan. 11, 1651, and in May of the same year the town was incorporated by act of the General Court, the forty-third in the colony in the order of incorporation. During these months accessions to their number were being made and new house-lots granted on North, South, and Bridge Streets.

The first minister of Medfield was Rev. John Wil- son, Jr., who commenced his pastorate in December, 1651. He built his house where the town hall now scandal and erroneous opinions ; (4) that none of | stands. Public worship was conducted at the houses of the settlers for the first two or three years.

The first family to remove to their Medfield home was that of Samuel Bullen, whose house stood near Philip Street. The first mill was built by George Barber in 1652. It stood on Mill Brook, a little way below where it is crossed by Elm Street. It was sold the same year to Henry Adams, and a few years af- terwards superseded by a mill above the bridge on Elm Street, which was burned by the Indians and never rebuilt.

The first meeting-house was commenced about 1653. It was a small, plain building, with a thatched roof, and stood where the Unitarian house of worship now stands. It was not completed and furnished till 1656.

It was provided that no man's house-lot should ex- ceed twelve or fall short of six acres ; its size, between these limits, to be determined by his wealth and the size of his family. Also, that all who received house- lots should be settled at Medfield before the end of The meadows were laid out in grants to the owners of house-lots in 1652, and the following year the lands easily accessible to cultivation were also divided, according to the rules of division,-that is, by persons and estates, each member of the household being ap- praised at ten pounds. The same year the town clerk commenced his records of births, deaths, and mar- riages, and the town has an unbroken record from that year down to the present. May, 1651, and that no person should receive lands but those who intended to become actual settlers. The first highways were established preparatory to rendering the town capable of being suitably laid out in house-lots ; but all records of those earliest high- ways are lost. There was a bridge built across Charles River near the present town farm; a road from it eastward through the town to Dedham. It is impossible now to tell on which side of Mount Nebo In 1653 Mr. Wheelock took up a contribution in this town in aid of Harvard College. The same year we have a record of certain men being chosen to burn the woods. The custom of burning over all the waste the first road ran. From this road, at the centre of the town, a road ran northerly, now North Street, and another south, near what is now Pleasant Street. The meeting-house lot and the cemetery were laid out ' lands in November of each year, which was derived

Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.

History of Norfolk County, Massachusetts, with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Part 93

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