History of Plymouth county, Massachusetts, with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Part 98

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton)
Publication date: 1884
Publisher: Philadelphia, J.W. Lewis & co.
Number of Pages: 1706

USA > Massachusetts > Plymouth County > History of Plymouth county, Massachusetts, with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men > Part 98

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Such is the trust and confidence in the ability, honor, and integrity of Mr. Savery by those who know him, that he is, and has been, the custodian of many trusts, both public and private, and none can be found who will say he has in any sense proved himself incapable or unworthy. He settled the large estate of Hon. Jesse Murdock, being the executor named in the will, and is at present the financial agent and confidential adviser of Miss Susan E. Murdock, the only sister, heir, and residuary legatee under the will. He has been justice of the peace about thirty years, was a director of Plymouth National Bank about twelve years, and is one of the auditors of the Old Colony Railroad. Mr. Savery is a man who is whole-souled and ardent in whatever he undertakes. Cautious and critical in his investigations, once his judgment is convinced and his course marked out, he pursues that course regardless of opposition or adverse opinions of others. Such is his native force of character that he at once impresses cven a stranger with his earnestness and honesty, and independence of thought and action. He belongs to no church, but has charity for and believes there is good in all. In his religious opinions he is broad and liberal to a degrec that is considered by some heretical. For a period of more than ten years he devoted all of his income, beyond ordinary i expenses, to charity, mostly to schools, school libra- ries, churches, etc. Having met with some reverses

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HISTORY OF PLYMOUTH COUNTY.

through duplicity and infidelity of others, he was com- pelled to restrict his donations, but still gives with a liberal hand all that his means will allow.

Ilc married Sept. 10, 1840, Mary Page Van Schaack, daughter of Stephen and Harriet (Dunnell) Van Schaack, of Albany, N. Y. They have three children living, one son and two daughters. The son succceded his father in the iron business in New York City. Mr. Savery is an ardent sportsman, and spends many happy hours with dog and gun, rod and recl. He has a beautiful home on the banks of a pleasant little lake in his native town, a well-chosen library, and a family who honor and love him. Such has been his life, and such are the surroundings of his declin- ing years.

MAJ. THOMAS B. GRIFFITHI.

Maj. Thomas B. Griffith was born in Middleboro', Mass., May 17, 1823. He is the son of Ellis and Lucy M. (Bent) Griffith, and grandson of Obed and Rebecca (Maxim) Griffith. Obed Griffith was a farmer, and a native of Rochester, Mass., his father being one of the early settlers of that town, where he lived a long and useful life, attaining the great age of ninety years. Maj. Griffith's maternal great-grand- father was Bartlett Murdoek. His maternal grand- father, John Bent, was one of the oldest manufacturers of the town of Carver, commencing business at what was known as Benson's Forge, making wrought-iron bars, drawing them out with a hammer. This was not far from 1792. In 1798 or 1799 he went to Pope's Point and ran a blast-furnace until about 1817, when he sold out, and in company with Timothy Savery hc purchased the Federal Furnace, and had charge of that works till about 1830, making hollow-ware, such as pots, kettles, etc.

Maj. Griffith was brought up on a farm till he was seventeen years of age, when he went on a whaling and merchant voyage to South America. Returning, he was employed as a clerk in Cineinnati, Ohio, in 1842-43, when he eame home to Massachusetts, and being somewhat out of health he embarked on another whaling voyage, from the town of Wareham, in the bark " Montezuma," this time to the Indian Ocean, eruising most of the time along the eastern coast of Africa, calling at the different villages along the coast, which were mostly inhabited by Arabs and Hotten- tots. During this voyage they stopped at the Isle of St. Helena, and Maj. Griffith visited the tomb of Napoleon. He also assisted at the burial of Mrs. Judson, one of the India missionaries. This lady,

with her husband and two children, had taken pas- sage to India on the ship "Sophia Walker," com- manded by Capt. Codman, son of Rev. Mr. Codman, of Dorchester.

Upon Maj. Griffith's return from this voyage he was offered a clerkship in New York City, which he accepted for a short time, when he returned to Carver and took a similar position with Benjamin Ellis & Co., where he continued eight years. In 1852 he headed an enlistment roll for a military company, which was chartered as Company K, Third Regiment Massachusetts Volunteers. Matthias Ellis was cap- tain, and his father, Benjamin Ellis, exhibited much interest in this, as he did in all things tending to improvement or progress in his town. Maj. Griffith was still a militiaman when the war broke out, and in 1861 he started to Fortress Monroe, but was ordered back as a recruiting officer to fill the Third Regiment. In 1862 he was mustered into this regi- ment as captain of Company B, nine months' vol- unteers. He served his time in North Carolina, stationed much of the time at Newberne, was in the battles of Kingston, Whitehall, Goldsboro', and Blount Creek, and did sueh other duty as the regi- ment was called on to perform. The regiment was mustered out in 1863, at the expiration of their term of enlistinent, and Maj. Griffith returned to Carver and again devoted himself to manufacturing, having in 1853, in company with George W. Bent, Jesse Murdock, and Matthias Ellis, under the firm-name of Bent, Griffith & Co., engaged in the manufacture of parlor grates. This partnership continued till 1868, when Bent retired, and the firm was called Murdock & Co. This copartnership was terminated in 1875 by Mr. Murdock's death. A stock company was then formed, with Maj. Griffith president and Samuel Shaw treasurer. Maj. Griffith gave his personal supervision to the manufacturing department, getting up such patterns as were required, and furnishing designs and supervising construction. Changes were frequent and radical in the style of goods, which embraced everything in the line of iron goods for furnishing dwelling-houses, hotels, stores, and any institution where stoves, fireplaces, or other iron fur- nishings were required. He gave much of his time to fixing and setting grates and fireplaces where the best results were desired in the way of heat and draught. When Franee, England, and Germany began putting on the market brass goods to supply the place of those formerly made of iron, Maj. Grif- fith was one of the first in the United States to give attention to that branch of manufacturing. In 1877, before much progress had been made in the matter,

Tw. B. Griffith

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HISTORY OF CARVER.

he went to Europe, inspected and familiarized him- self with the various processes, and gained such in- formation as was likely to prove beneficial to the business of the firm. Upon his return to the States he at once applied the knowledge he had gained, and it is not saying too much when we assign to this establishment a front rank in the vanguard of prog- ress in their specialties. It is their aim not only to keep pace with the requirements of the advanced taste of the age. but to lead and cultivate the popular taste to a still more advanced standard, in combining the beautiful and artistic with the useful in the fur- nishing and ornamentation of their homes. A visit to their beautiful salesrooms in Boston will justify in the mind of the beholder the most extravagant praise we could bestow on their wonderful handiwork.

Maj. Griffith's military record did not end with his service in the war. In 1868 he was commissioned captain of what was denominated the Eighty-sixth Unattached Company. In the fall of that year they were placed in the Third Regiment, and in 1870, Capt. Griffith was elected major of the regiment. He held this position till 1875, when he resigned. In his political views Maj. Griffith has not suffered him- self to be the blind adherent of any party name or alliance, but has endeavored always to vote for the men and measures he deemed purest and best. His first vote was for Gen. Taylor for President. He then

voted for Bell and Everett, but when the Stars and Stripes were fired on at Fort Sumter, he entered the contest a defender of the banner that his forefathers had reared and sustained. Prior to this he had, in unison with other generous-minded men of the North, advocated the idea of a governmental emancipation of the slaves with a reasonable compensation to their owners. Since the war he has affiliated with the Republican party in most elections, provided the can- didates were men he could indorse. In religious belief he is a convert to the doctrine denominated Spiritualism, having, as he believes, received proofs which he cannot ignore that there is a medium of communication existing, however imperfectly devel- oped at present, between the spirits of those who have crossed the dark river and those remaining on the shores of time. He accepts this as to him the most reasonable explanation of that wonderful phenomena of life and death, which has baffled the wisdom of sage and scientist alike.

Maj. Griffith has been selectman and assessor in the town of Carver, and is a director in the Stand- ard Navigation Company. He was a member of the State Legislature in 1870, and has held various minor positions. He married Hannah M. Dunham, daughter of Isaac L. Dunham, of Carver, Dec. 22, 1852. She was born Dec. 15, 1827. They have but one child living, Hannah B., born Nov. 14, 1855.

HISTORY OF ABINGTON.

BY CHARLES F. MESERVE, A.M.

THE first grant of lands in this town was made by the Plymouth Colony, in 1654, to Nathaniel Souther, who was the first secretary of the colony ; afterwards grants were made to various persons, among whom was Peregrine White, the first person born in the colony. The first settlements commenced about the year 1668. Its Indian name was Manamooskeagin, which signifies many beavers.1

The first settlement in town is said to have been in the north part. The colony granted to Nathaniel Souther two hundred acres of land on the west side of Hatherly grant, running in Hatherly range two hundred rods nearly south and one hundred and sixty rods nearly west. James Lovell, of Weymouth, for himself and Andrew Ford, purchased Souther's title to this grant of land, and subsequently (1679) Lovell conveyed to Ford his part of this grant, which was at the time of conveyance, and always had been, in the possession of said Ford, and was known and called by the name of Ford's farm.

In Lovell's conveyance to Ford this land is de- scribed as lying " by the road that goeth from Wey- mouth to Bridgewater." It seems that this convey- ance was thirty years after the first purchase of the title from Souther. At that time there were other inhabitants on the Ford farm, for in 1692 the in- habitants on Ford's farm were taxed fifteen shillings by the colony. This tract of land was situated west- erly from Deacon J. Cleverly's. The ancient house of the Fords, or one of them, was near a broken pile of rocks, a little westerly from a brook which runs by said Cleverly's house.

Abington is very pleasantly situated on the highest lands between Narragansett Bay and Boston harbor. The centre of the town is abont equidistant from Boston, Plymouth, and Taunton, a little over cigh- teen miles from each, eight miles from Weymouth Landing, twelve from Hingham harbor, and seven from North River, in Hanover. There are in this

town two large intervales, of about five hundred acres each, surrounded by high lands, mostly covered with water in the winter and beautifully green in the summer; around them, and overlooking them, are many of the principal settlements. At the easterly part there is a range of elevated lands, comprising over two thousand acres, called Beach Hill, a beauti- ful tract of land, susceptible of great improvement. From this hill the waters flow northcast and south- west. No large rivers water the town, though Beaver Brook, Streamc's and Herscy's River and French's stream afford good mill privileges. A part of Accord Pond is in this town; the remainder of it is in Hingham and Scituate.

The soil of the town is strong, and good for pro- duction, though rocky and hard of cultivation. It is generally better for grazing than tillagc. The sur- face is rough and broken. The meadow land abounds in peat. Some bog-iron ore has also been found in it. The blue-slate stone prevails on some parts of the upland.

The population of the town in 1790 was one thou- sand four hundred and fifty-three; it was in 1880 ascertained to be over three thousand six hundred and ninety-seven, and is rapidly increasing.

The Old Colony Railroad passes through the whole length of the town, over six miles, running north and south, which was completed and in full operation in January, 1846. This road brings Boston or Plym- outh withiu less than one hour's ride of Abing- ton.

East Abington is a very flourishing part of the town recently built up; its location is very central and inviting, the centre of which will be but a little over a mile from the railroad.

There are ten school districts iu town. The number of scholars from four to sixteen years of age is about niuc hundred. Two thousand seven hundred dollars is annually appropriated for public schools, and nearly one thousand dollars is expended in private schools, including an academy or high

1 From Hayward's "Gazetteer of Massachusetts," in 1846. 464

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HISTORY OF ABINGTON.

school, established by a private company, they having erected an elegant building for that purpose.

The population of Abington is strictly of the Pil- grim family, as there is scarcely an inhabitant in the town of any other race or nation. Perhaps no other town in the vicinity of Boston holds out greater in- ducements for country-seats and settlements, for men of business or leisure who wish for quiet retirement or a summer residence.

As early as July 4, 1700, an order was passed re- quiring "the proprietors, purchasers, and inhabitants" to ascertain what they were willing and able to pay annually "for the support of an able, learned, and orthodox minister." In 1710 the erection of a meeting-house was effected, and " on the Sth of De- cember, 1711, Mr. Samuel Brown came to Abington, by a unanimous call from the people there, to settle." He was ordained Nov. 17, 1714.

This town has been celebrated for introducing sev- eral important iron manufactures. Meeting-house bells were cast here as early as 1769. A deserter from the British army, a bell-founder, was employed by Col. Aaron Hobart in this business, which was continued by him for years. The bell now in Centre Abington meeting-house was cast by him. When he gave up the business he sent one of his sons and a blacksmith, and taught the late Col. Paul Revere, of Boston, to mould and cast the first bell which he ever made. The copper company in Boston is named after this individual.

In the year 1775-76, Col. Aaron Hobart con- tracted with the State to make cannon and shot, and the State furnished him with a large amount of mate- rials to begin with, as pig-iron and coal; this was a bold undertaking. Col. Hobart had no knowledge of the business. He cast bells, it is true, and was the owner of a blast-furnace for casting hollow-ware, etc., but the exigency of the times required a powerful effort. The Revolutionary war had just commenced, and there were but a very few cannon in the country ; hundreds of merchant ships were in want of cannon to go out as privateers. The first attempts (and they were the first that were ever made in the country) proved very unsuccessful. In proving the cannon, they split ; the iron could not be kept sufficiently hot ; it chilled too quickly. So disastrous was the ex- periment that all the stock provided by the State was expended, and his own fortune besides. This disap- pointment was severely felt by him and by the public. But, providentially, at this dark hour, the cause of his failure was discovered. A Frenchman, in passing through the town and stopping at a public-house, hearing of the colonel's want of success, inquired the 20

cause, and being told, he said there was no difficulty in keeping the iron sufficiently hot. On inquiry he stated that he had worked in a cannon-foundry in France. He was instantly invited to inspect the fur- nace, and stated at once the cause of the failure, which was that the flue or draft of the chimney was made large and the chimney above small. He said the re- verse ought to be the case,-the flue small, and the chimney large above. No time was lost in making the change, and the success was complete, the con- tract with the State was fulfilled, and individuals were supplied extensively. About three years after this the concern was disposed of to the State, under the care of the late Col. Hugh Orr, of Bridgewater, and removed to that town.

Another important manufacture took its rise early in this town,-the manufacture of cut tacks and brads. In this manufacture a large capital is in- vested, and from seventy-five to one hundred hands are employed. It is computed that about three hun- dred tons of iron are annually wrought.

To show the necessity of protection on American inventions and domestic industry, we give a brief his- tory of the manufacture of these useful and indis- pensable articles.

The making of tacks by hand commenced very early. The first attempt was to cut up old iron hoops into points, by a very imperfect kind of shears, and take them up, one by one, and place them in a common vise, and screw up and unscrew for the pur- pose of heading each tack with a hammer. From this process they were called "cut tacks;" but the mode of making by hand was much improved by movable dies, placed in an iron frame, in the shape of an ox-bow, the two ends, in which were placed the dies, being brought together by a lever pressed by the foot. In the first process a man might make a thousand tacks per day ; in the latter, eight thousand per day. This was a great improvement, and the inventor, Mr. Ezekiel Reed, was entitled to a patent. He made some attempts to conceal the operation, but it was so simple and so easily applied that others soon got it, and it came into general use.

With machines, or "tack tools," as they were called, thus improved, from three to four hundred men and boys were employed making tacks in this town and vicinity.

In 1815 and 1816 a machine was invented by Mr. Jesse Reed, son of Ezekiel Reed, to make tacks at one operation. Mr. Melvil Otis, of Bridgewater, claimed and received a considerable share in the in- vention. Soon afterwards the machines were much improved by the inventions of Messrs. Thomas Blan-

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HISTORY OF PLYMOUTH COUNTY.

chard, of Springfield, and Samuel Rogers, of East Bridgewater. For the exclusive patent-rights of these inventions, Elihu and Benjamin Hobart, Esqs., paid thirty thousand dollars, in the first instance, to com- mence the business of making tacks. The price of tacks was reduced over fifty per cent. immediately, and one man could make more tacks in a day on one of the patent machines than fifteen could by hand, even in the last improved mode, by movable dies. One machine has turned out over two hundred and fifty thousand in a day.

When they had just got their machines into oper- ation they learned, with astonishment, that a large consignment of tacks had been received in this coun- try from England. On inquiry they found that a model of their " patent tack-machine" had been taken from this country and patented and the tacks sent here for sale. One or two individuals went from this country to England for that purpose. The effect of this was to stop the manufacture of this arti- cle here entirely and ruin the proprietors of the patent.

Under these circumstances they were led at once to look to our government for relief and protection. It was asked, "Shall the British take our inventions and our market without paying for them to the ruin of our own citizens ?" They referred to their models in the Patent Office, and stated that the price of tacks was already reduced fifty per cent., and that machines could be easily multiplied, not only to supply the United States, but all Europe.

A bill was immediately passed fixing the duty on importation of tacks at five cents per thousand, up to sixteen ounces to the thousand; after that at five cents per pound, and also including brads and spara- bles.

Without this tariff the business must have been given up in this country. Iron and labor were lower in England than in this country, and the English had nothing to pay for patents, and, having silenced competition here, they would have charged their own prices. It would have been difficult to have revived the business. Indeed, it never would have succeeded without protection in its infancy.

The boot and shoe manufacture is the most exten- sive business done in the town. By a statistical ac- count lately made it is found that over one million two hundred and fifty thousand pairs of boots and shoes are made annually, of the value of one million two hundred and fifty thousand dollars, and that eighteen hundred and fifty persons are employed in this busi- ness, including women and children. There are other extensive manufactures in the town, such as brads,

tacks, sprigs, shoe-nails, leatlier, boxes, etc. The value of the whole manufactures in the town amounts to at least one and a half millions of dollars annually. The amount paid for the transportation of goods and passengers to and from Abington is estimated to exceed twenty-five thousand dollars annually.

Old French War .- This war was waged between England and France, continued seven years, and was terminated in 1763. Massachusetts contributed largely to carry on this war for the defense of the colonies and the conquest of the dominions of France on this continent and in the West Indies. She had, in 1758, six thousand nine hundred and twenty-five men in the field actually engaged in this war, and about the same number through the whole period of its continuance, besides a large number of artificers and seamen. This force was about one-third of the whole effective force of the province. The State expended in this war over four millions of dollars, and received, by way of reimbursement from the mother-country, about three millions.

The provinces were stimulated in their great exer- tions by opposition to the French. On the ocean they were our rivals, in the fisheries on the coasts and on the Great Banks, whilst our settlements, from Nova Scotia around to the lakes, were subject to alarms through their influence, by which the Indians were excited to war, murder, and continual depredations. There were, too, deep-rooted prejudices against them on account of their religion.

Abington contributed largely of her strength to carry on this war. The following persons were in the service, and died therein or on their way home: Abraham and Humphries, sons of Capt. John Bur- rill ; Joseph Clark ; Peleg Cain; David (colored), son of Anthony Dwight; Noah, son of Jacob Ford ; James, grandfather of the late Col. D. Gloyd ; Jacob, son of Capt. Elijah Hearsey, drowned near Cape Sable harbor ; Nathaniel Joy ; Noah, son of Gideon Parkman; Asa, son of Deacon Samuel Pool, died at Halifax, 1762; Ichabod, son of Capt. Ebenezer Reed; Ezekiel, son of John Reed ; Samuel, son of William Sprague ; Job, son of Samuel Tirrell, killed by the Indians while crossing Lake Ontario in a ba- teau ; Jonathan Torrey, Jr .; Robert Townsend, Jr., died of a wound received in the Crown Point expe- dition ; Jacob White.

The following persons survived the service : Chris- topher Askins, Jr. ; George Askins ; Jeremiah Camp- bell, at St. Johns, N. S., 1759 ; Caleb Chard; Jona- than Chubbuck, at Newfoundland, 1762; Greenwood Cushing, at Halifax and Newfoundland ; Elisha Her- sey, captain of a company in the Western expeditions ;

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HISTORY OF ABINGTON.

Edmund Jackson, Jr .; Abraham Josselyn ; Peter Nash; Samuel Noyes; Jacob Pool, at the taking of Fort Frontenac, under Col. Bradstreet, 175S, and at St. Johns, N. S .; Samuel Pool; Joseph Richards ; Isaac Stetson, under Gen. Wolfe at the taking of Quebec ; Jacob Tirrell, at Halifax, 1759; Prince Stetson ; Ezekiel Townsend ; Robert Townsend, en- sign of Capt. Benjamin Pratt's company, at the west- ward ; Jeremiah White.

This list is very incomplete, as will appear by the following, extracted from the journal of the House of Representatives :

" Dec. 28, 1763. There was presented a petition of Elisha Hersey and sixty others, all of Abington, who had been in his Majesty's service in the late wars, praying for a grant of land for a township, eastward of the Penobscot River, in consideration of their services rendered."

Slavery.1-Slavery once existed in this town. There were slaves here before the Revolutionary war under the British colonial government. My grand- father, Isaac Hobart, had several. My father in- herited two of them ; they were made free soon after and left ; but in a few months returned and requested to be taken back, saying they could find no employ- ment and no place that looked like their old home. They (Jack and Bilhah, man and wife) were per- mitted to take up their old quarters, and occupied them for many years. They lived to a great age, over ninety years each. They were maintained by the family many years after they were past labor. They had several children, none of whom are now known to be living.

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History of Plymouth county, Massachusetts, with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Part 98

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) Publication date: 1884 Publisher: Philadelphia, J.W. Lewis & co. Number of Pages: 1706

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton)
Publication date: 1884
Publisher: Philadelphia, J.W. Lewis & co.
Number of Pages: 1706