History of Worcester County, Massachusetts : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Vol. I, Part 178

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton)
Publication date: 1889
Publisher: Philadelphia : J.W. Lewis & Co.
Number of Pages: 1576

USA > Massachusetts > Worcester County > History of Worcester County, Massachusetts : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Vol. I > Part 178

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).

One of the first saw-mills erected in the town was known as " Howe's Mill," and was situated two and a half miles southerly from the village. The working of lumber has been carried on there until the present time. The location of the mill, however, has been changed and also the ownership, but it has never passed out of the possession of the Howe family. Ebenezer Howe is the present owner and proprietor. He has been engaged in the manufacture of cloth, boot and shoe boxes for twenty-five years or more, and has produced 30,000 annually, using uearly 750,000 feet of lumber.

MANUFACTURE OF LEATHER .- Tanning and curry- ing was an enterprise commenced in the early part of the present century and carried on by Ebenezer Mason. These works were located upon the site of the "Heywood block." Mr. Mason was succeeded by

Thomas Pierce, who occupied them from 1825 to 1832, then Pierce & Barnes from 1833 to 1834 and Barnes & Muzzy in 1835. Following them, some years later, was Joseph W. Morse and Josephus Muzzy, under the firm-name of Morse & Muzzy. Their shop was located at the corner of Lake and Powers Streets, and was owned by the former. They carried on the business here until the build- ing was destroyed by fire, in 1858. Iu 1859 a new one was erected, and the works were again operated by Mr. Morse until his decease, in 1860. In 1862 Edward E. Kent leased the establishment for one year, and in 1863 purchased it, carrying on the same business until 1864, when he turned it into a boot-factory. It was, after this date, operated by Mr. Kent, then by Kent & R. S. Watson, and lastly by Mr. Watson alone, until his death, in 1875. The building was then converted into a tenement-house, and is now known as "Condrick's block."

In 1851 Edward Proctor began currying rough leather in a shop near his present residence, and continued the business until 1868. In 1864 Isaac Prouty & Co. erected a building for this enter- prise on North Street, which was run about two years, when it was closed up and the building moved away and this was made into a dwelling.

In 1837, 800 hides were used, valued, when fin- ished, at $3,000; in 1845, 2,000 hides, at $4,500; and in 1865, 3,200 hides, valued at $19,000.

Boot and Shoe Heels .- In 1865 a Mr. Rice started a small business in the manufacture of heels for women's, misses' and children's shoes. About this time William A. Barr, of Spencer, made eight dollars' worth of these goods, and taking them to Lynn realized sixty dollars for the lot. He returned home, and on October 1st of this year bought Mr. Rice out and continued the business, which, under his man- agement, has proved to be a prosperous one. On October 1, 1883, he took his son into partnership, and the firm has been, since that date, William A. Barr & Son. They have a manufactory now, sixty by forty, three stories high, well equipped with rollers, presses and all the latest improved machinery, with steam-power for the business, and employ fifty girls in the works. Their sales have reached seventy thousand dollars annually. In connection with this business they have oil ex- tracting work, and the sales of " chip aud naphtha grease " have reached twelve thousand dollars annu- ally.

WIRE WORKS .- From a very small beginning, the wire industry has grown to be an important enter- prise in the town. At the commencement of the War of 1812 with England, the importation of wire ceased, and "Yankee ingenuity " was called into requisition. The card-factories of Leicester prom- ised to be a market for the article, and being convenient and near at hand, the genius of some

666

HISTORY OF WORCESTER COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.

of the citizens of Spencer was exercised with very favorable results. The first experiment in this line was by Windsor Hatch and Charles Watson, about 1812, at the house of Jacob Watson (later known as the Warner Livermore house), and the wire was drawn from two tubs by hand. This was a small seed from which a larger plant was to spring in the future. About this same date Elliot Prouty began the business below what is now the "Sugden lower mill," but it was not until 1820 that wire- drawing became an industry, and then, only in a small way. Mr. Russell Prouty commenced it this year, in connection with his brother Elliot, and they were followed by Foster & Roswell Bisco, and in 1847 Myrick & Sugden succeeded the Bisco's. Below, on the same stream, was the small works of Eli Hatch, in 1830, and in 1840 this mill passed into the hands of David Prouty, and in 1846 he sold the same to Liberty Prouty. Mr. Prouty's sons, Jonas R. and Joel E., succeeded him, and they built up a large and prosperous business after a labor of about twenty years.

In 1876 this concern was consolidated with that of Myrick & Sugden, and made a stock company, called the Spencer Wire Company. In 1837 the total pro- duct of four wire-mills was 19 tons, valued at $10,000 ; in 1845 two wire-mills, 32,000 pounds, value $8000; and in 1888 the product of the consolidation was 1200 tons, valued at $160,000. .

SCYTHES, HOES AND CUTLERY. - Joel Wright came to Spencer in 1809 and began the manufacture of scythes, and in 1812 Ziba Eaton came to work in his mannfactory for him. The latter purchased the works of Mr. Wright, continuing the scythe busi- ness and, a little later on, adding hoes and cutlery. These works were situated near the " Wright house," northeast from the "Upper Wire Village." Mr. Wright soon after started the manufacture of hoes and cutlery. Eli Putnam was early connected with this business. These works were closed about 1853. In 1837 eighteen hundred scythes were manu- factured, valued at $1200, and in 1845 two thousand and forty scythes, at a value of $1530. In 1850 car- riage-springs were manufactured in one of these shops by Sibley & Belcher.

POWDER .- The manufacture of powder was one of the early industries of the town, and was first carried on by Isaac & Lemuel Smith, from 1812 to 1815; by the latter from 1815 to 1824; by Smith & Walton Livermore from 1824 to 1831; and by Livermore & Lewis Bemis to 1835. For two years Mr. Bemis car- ried on the works alone, and from 1838 to 1851 his partner in the business was Edward Hall, the firm being Bemis & Hall. In 1837 there were manufac- tured at the two mills 162,500 pounds of powder, val- ued at $14,500; in 1845 one mill produced 132,500 pounds, valued at $15,000; and in 1865 the produc- tion was valued at $12,500. But little, if anything, was done at this business after this latter date. Du-

ring the year 1840 two mills blew up, killing three persons, and in 1853 another explosion took place, in which five men lost their lives.

CENTENNIAL .- The centennial of our national his- tory was appropriately observed by a grand display of various organizations iu the town, on parade; an address by Hon. George H. Loring, and a public dinner.

BY-LAWS .- Previous to 1875 by-laws had been adopted by the town at various times, but on the 2d of November of this year a full code, regulating the town, was accepted in town-meeting, and on the 8th following were approved by the Superior Court. Ad- ditional ones were made and approved in 1887 con- cerning dogs, and minor alterations were made in them in 1881.

SALARIES .- The number of salaried persons em- ployed during the year ending June 3, 1885, was nineteen, and the amount of salaries paid was $16,969.

WAGES .- The total amount of wages paid in the business establishments for the year ending as above was $694,908, and the average number of days of actual running time worked in sixty of them was three hundred and seven.

GROWTH .- In the census of 1880 there were thir- teen cities and towns in the State which presented most striking instances of growth, independent of annexation. Upon this list Spencer stood third, and her rate of gain was eighty-eight and a fraction per cent.

OLD CUSTOMS .- One of the oldest customs of the town was to allow the swine, horses and cattle of the iuhabitants " to run at large, yoked and ringed as the law directs " Strangers' cattle were charged two shillings eighteen pence per head, and sheep one shilling, " to run on the Common."

In 1757 it became a question how the voters should be notified of the town-meetings, and it was decided that "in the future they be warned by the constable going from house to house ;" and at a later meeting, by vote of the town, they were allowed "to keep on their hats while in meeting," if they pleased to do so.

In 1759 the ministerial and school lands were sold, the former bringing £100 14s, or $357.67, and the latter £130 16s. 10d. or $436.14. On the 6th of May, 1822, the-e moneys were divided and loaned as fol- lows, viz .: To Jeremiah Watson, $183.00 ; to Nathan White, $152.87; and, being the ministerial fund, these amounts were made payable to the Congregational Society. Of the school fund $113.33 was loaned to Joseph Prouty ; $93 33 to E-tate of Elisha Prouty ; 8165.28 to Charles Watson, and $64.41 to John Muzzy.

In 1794 the General Court ordered a survey of the town to be made, and the work was let out to the lowest bidder. John Sumner, being the lowest, was made chief, at 58. 6d. per day, and Levi and Zerub-

667

NEW BRAINTREE.

abel Baldwin were assistants, at 2s. Sd. and 28. 5d. per day, respectively. In 1830 a second survey was made by William Baldwin, under the same authority.

SMALL INDUSTRIES .- Braiding palm leaf hats and labor upon hand cards were about the only industries that furnished employment for the women and chil- dren in the early part of this century, by which they were able to earn a little " spending money " for extra occasions. Hand cards were mann factured in Leicester from 1758, and until machinery superseded the nim- ble fingers, the setting of card teeth by hand consti- tuted the " small work " of many families in Spencer. This was especially children's work, and no "time off" could be had by either boy or girl until the " stent " at card-setting had been performed.

Braiding the palm leaf was more of an industry, and was " farmed out " to the workers of straw in the same manner as were the cards. The number of palm leaf hats manufactured in Spencer in 1837 was twenty- nine thousand eight hundred, valued at seven thou- sand dollars.

OLD LANDMARKS .- Of the twenty-five buildings 'exclusive of barns) located upon the Great Post Road between Brookfield and Leicester lines in 1800, eight were standing in 1888, six of them but little, if iny, chauged from their original appearance and con- lition outwardly. These are the Pope Mansion, Mason House, Emerson Shepherd's, Aaron Watson's, Edward Proctor's and Israel Taft's. There are two off of the great road, on Ash Street, viz., Alford Wilson's ind the old house of Thos. B. Clark.

CHAPTER LXXXVI.

NEW BRAINTREE.

BY GEORGE K. TUFTS.

INTRODUCTORY .- New Braintree is nearly in shape f an isosceles triangle, with sides of six miles and ase of nine, nearly in the centre of the State, ounded by Oakham and Barre on its northeast ide and Hardwick, from which it is separated by Vare River on its northwest side, and by Brookfield nd North Brookfield on its base or south line. It ontains 19} square miles. The surface is uneven nd hilly. Its highest elevation is "Tufts Hill," in he eastern part, 1179 feet above sea level. It as made up of the territory of three towns- Braintree Grant," a tract of 6000 acres, lying be- ween Rutland and Brookfield, designated by the riangle C B A on the annexed plan ; all that part of ambstown (Hardwick) east of Ware River marked ) E B, and about 1200 acres from the north part f Brookfield, south of line O M. That part, 400 cres north of Ware River, C D X, was annexed to

Hardwick in 1814. N is the common land, in the centre of which the church stands. A, point of in- tersection with Spencer, Oakham, North Brookfield ; E, with Ware and Brookfield. A tract of 320 acres,

- E

PLAN OF NEW BRAINTREE.

lying the whole length of line AM, and omitted by error in original survey, was afterwards given to John Quincy, Speaker of the House, and assigned to New Braintree.

Before its settlement fires made in the woods had destroyed almost its entire growth of wood and tim- ber ; so it was feared there would not be a sufficient supply for the settlers, but Whitney writes, 1796, that "through their care and prudence there had, within a few years, sprung np fine growths of wood." At that time there were two hills of note-" Mo- hawk," probably "Tufts " Hill, and "Rattlesnake's Rocks," in the west part, a name that has passed away with its occupants. A plain extends across the west part, at the extreme south end of which, on land of W. & E. Pepper, is the narrow pass referred to by Capt. Wheeler in his "narrative," where, on his way under Capt. Hutchinson, with twenty men, to treat with Philip, August 2, 1675, he was surprised by the Indians, and eleven killed or mortally wound- ed. "Meminimisset was the name given by the Indians to the low lands at the upper end of this plain, once a hideous swamp." Here was formerly an Indian town of considerable importance and a military stronghold, the headquarters and chief place of rendezvous of the Indians when Brookfield was destroyed. Here Mrs. Howard, taken captive at Lancaster in 1679, was brought with two children, and one died. On the hill rising east from the plain is a small stone monument, resembling a tomahawk, which tradition affirms marks its grave. The town is well watered with springs and brooks. At the base of Tufts Hill, on its north and west sides, are the sources of the two brooks which, afterwards meeting at " Webh's" Pond and flowing southeast and west under the name of Sucker Brook, supply the water "privileges " at Wait's Corner and "Pepper's Mills," and empty into Quaboag Pond. The first saw-mill erected in Brookfield, in 1709, was in that part of it afterward set off and

668

HISTORY OF WORCESTER COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.

forming a part of New Braintree, and located just above the bridge, east of "Pepper's Pond." A com- pany of nine, headed by Thomas Barnes, received a grant of forty acres for their encouragement to build the mill. This privilege was afterwards used for a malt-mill.

Pepper's Mills were used as a blacksmith forge and trip-hammer. The first mill erected by an inhabitant of "Braintree Grant" was at what is now "Webb's Pond." Daniel Mathews, Jr., of Southboro', a mill- wright, bought the privilege in 1749, and erected a saw-mill soon after. His house was on site of present residence of J. T. Webb. The general appearance of the town is attractive. Whitney writes of it, "Excel- Jent for grass and good roads. Its homes are neat and commodious." It has surely gained in these attrae- tive features since 1795, and added, on miles of road, lines of shade trees of maple, ash and elm. It has many really fine residences, especially that of Mr. Francis Shaw. The first road' built in town was in 1730, from the "Old Furnace," by Pepper's Mills to Brookfield.

The population was, in 1776, 798; 1790, 939; 1800, 875; 1810, 912; 1820, 888; 1830, 825; 1840, 752; 1850, 852; 1860, 805; 1870, 640; 1880, 610; 1885, 558. Its valuation 1776,-real, £3226; personal, €1435, includ- ing 272 head of cattle and horses. Highest valuation, 1871, 8590,430; number of heads of stock, 1340.

BRAINTREE GRANT .-. In 1666 the freeholders and other inhabitants of Braintree, in town-meeting, passed the following resolution : "Whereas, much of the best and most available arable surface is held by non-resi- dents and citizens of Boston as a matter of speculation and by others in large farms, that it is a source of great inconvenience to the permanent inhabitants of the town, as they in their poverty are not able to pay the high rents asked, nor the necessary expenses of the town; therefore, Resolved : To petition the General Court for an additional grant of land." In answer to this petition the court, in consideration of the reasons therein expressed, judged meet to grant them "sixe thousand acres of land in some place, limited to one place, not prejudicing any plantation or particular grant." In 1670 Braintree selected a traet lying between Braintree and Plymouth, which was not confirmed by the court. No further action was taken until 1679, when Braintree again petitioned the court that "since the Lord out of his rich grace had made them lords of the heathen land" (referring to their victory over Philip) "they might have an op- portunity to have ratified the former grant." In answer to this petition, October, 1679, the court al- lowed the petitioners "to lay out their sixe thousand acres of land in any vacant place within the Court's jurisdiction." Here the matter rested for thirty-four years, until June, 1713, when Braintree chose a com- mittee to ascertain if the former grant had "lapsed," and if not, to find and lay out the six thousand acres granted in 1666, and do what is needful to be done in

the space of one year and have for their work, if effec- tive, thirty pounds ; otherwise nothing.

The treasurer was evidently never called upon to pay the money, for in June, 1714, we find Colonel Edmond Quincy, iu behalf of Braintree, petitioning the court for the appointment of a surveyor to lay out the land. The petition was granted and a surveyor, Samuel Jones, Jr., appointed.

December 17, 1715, in the House of Representatives it was ordered that "a Plot of six thousand acres of land, lying in angle between Brookfield and Rutland, be accepted, and land confirmed to Braintree as by plan annexed, in fulfillment of original grant." This six thousand acres was nearly in form of a right- angled triangle, with right angle B at a point just southeast of the present residence of Alfred Boyden ; the upper acute angle C included the farm recently occupied by Colonel Joseph Robinson in Hardwick. The perpendicular B C of the triangle is identical with the west line of our present common, while the base A B extended to O would be identical with the present boundary between lands now owned by Mr. J. B. Fobes and Mrs. S. W. Peckham. For twelve years after the "Braintree Grant " was confirmed, it was a constant source of contention in Braintree town-meetings. A vote to sell it would be passed at one meeting, only to be reconsidered and reversed at the next, and sometimes the same meeting, and vice versa. No rule of division of the laud could be agreed upon. A question arose as to the ownership, whether it belonged to the town in its corporate capa- city, or to its inhabitants in 1666 (the time of the original grant) and their posterity, or the inhabitants

of 1715, when the grant was confirmed, and we find the town on record at different times as in favor of each of these views. Finally, in 1727, a vote was passed that, to promote peace, the land be divided as equally as possible between the two precinets of Braintree, to be henceforth managed, improved and further divided or disposed of as each should decide, from henceforth and forever. Here "Braintree Grant" disappears from Braintree records, and does not again reappear uutil 1749, when it appeals to the Gen- eral Court to be admitted into the sisterhood of towns.

For some years portions of the "Grant " were used for pasturing of stock during the summer season by residents of Braintree, and hence came the title of " Braintree Farms." It seems reasonable to suppose that previous to 1738 it was extensively settled, as the inhabitauts in Lambstown, east of Ware River, peti- tioned the General Court in that year to be annexed to the " Grant " without success.

March 20, 1749, George Shaw, James Robinson, John Wilson, James Thompson, Jona. Cobleigh, John Blair, Jacob Nichols, Jona. Higgins, William Baxter, Edward Ruggles, John Barr, Roger Sprague, Abram Joslyn and Andrew Shaw (total, fourteen), all ocen- pants of Braintree Farms, with John Peacock, Joseph

669

NEW BRAINTREE.

Little, Eleazer Warner, Beriab Hawes, James and Edward Blair, David and James Woods, Matthew Barr, Josiah Benet, Samuel Steele, David Ayres, Phineas Warner, William Anderson, Israel Day, Samuel Ware, Hugh Barnes and Wareham Warner (total, eighteen), from Hardwick, east of Ware River, and Joseph and Jacob Pepper, and Joseph Pepper, Jr., Moses and Obed. Abbot, David and Solomon Gil- bert, Joseph and Sarah Barnes, Thomas Hammond, Eben. Spooner and Roger Haskell (twelve), from the north part of Brookfield, met and chose their "well- beloved and faithful " friend, James Thompson, to convey their petition to the proprietors of the land known as " Braintree Farms," that inasmuch as the petitioners make a body large enough to support the gospel, and were a long way off from any preaching, and for the interest of said proprietors, they would unite with them in a petition to the General Court to be set off as a separate district.

May 31, 1749, James Thompson, in behalf of said petitioners, memorialized the Governor, Council and House that, being of sufficient ability to make a town or district, being of one mind and having obtained the full consent of the non-resident proprietors, humbly prayed their excellencies and honorables to consider the premises and order therein as they should deem best.

The names of the non-resident proprietors were, Thomas Hovey, Nathan Goodell, John Weeks, Joseph Tidd, Wm. Wheeler, Edmond Quincy, Wm. Torrey, Thomas Cutler, Joseph and Thomas Crosby, Richard Faxon, Moses Belcher, David Rawson, Josiah Ruggles, Samuel Paine and Eben Adams.

March 6, 1749, Hardwick in town-meeting op- posed this petition, and August 11th chose an agent to present their reasons for it to the General Court ; but October 8th, of the same year, voted its " willing- ness" to the annexation. In June, 1749, a counter- petition, signed by James Craig, Samuel Crawford, Alex. Bothel and others from the west wing of Rut- land (now Oakham), and Adam Homes and Robert Hunter, from Braintree Farms, was presented to the court praying that inasmuch as the two tracts of land aforesaid laid in a commodious form for a township, being about five miles square, capable of a sufficient number of settlements to support a minister, and neither could ever be accommodated for public wor- ship as it was or by annexation to any town, that they might be set off as a separate township. On both these petitions the court ordered the usual notices served on all parties interested to appear at its next sitting and show cause, if any existed, why they should not be granted. The proprietors of Rut- land warmly favored the plan.

In August following a committee, consisting of James Minot and John Otis, with three others added by the House in December, was appointed to take the several petitions into consideration and report. December 9th this committee reported that the west

wing of Rutland and Braintree Farms ought to be set off with their inhabitants into a separate district, with all powers then conferred upon towns except the right of representation in the General Court. This report the Council accepted and sent down to the House for concurrence ; but that body refused to con- cur and ordered the several petitions and the report upon them back to the committee for further con- sideratiou. January 3, 1750, the same committee again reported to the Council that after another care- ful review of the situation they saw no reason to change their opinion, but reaffirmed their former one, and further recommended that the petitioners for a union of Braintree Farms and portions of Hardwick and Brookfield be dismissed. This report was also accepted by the Council and sent to the House for concurrence, but the House again refused to concur and referred the whole matter to the next General Court To this the Council agreed. It is well to state here that the religious preferences of the petitioners had much to do with their choice of their future townsmen ; those desiring a union of the west wing with the Farms being Presbyterians, while the petitioners for a union of the Farms with portions of Brookfield and Hardwick were nearly all Congrega- tionalists.

The latter party, defeated twice in the Council and as many times victorious in the House now went to work with renewed zeal and vigor. March 22, 1750, they again sent a petition to the Council, desiring a speedy answer by the sending of a committee to view the lands designated unless it saw fit to grant the pe- tition without such viewing. To this the Council re- plied by the appointment, April 20th, of another committee of which Samuel Watts was chairman and who were instructed to repair to the land, view it aud report in following May.

To this committee the inhabitants of the Farms pre- sented the following reasons against a union with West Wing : 1st. The quality of the land in the West Wing was so inferior to that in the Farms it could not pay its share of the common expenses. 2d. They hoped the Court would not impose upon their con- sciences by forcing them to unite with a society dif- fering so much in religious views ; that the boast had already been made by some of their neighbors of the Wing that they would soon have a Presbyterian min- ister over them. 3d. A union with a part of Hard- wick was much more desirable, because they were better able to pay common charges and were well- agreed to unite. The inhabitants of Hardwick, east of Ware River, informed the committee that, having been annexed to Hardwick for want of a better place, they were not essential to its support; that in the lo- cation of Hardwick meeting-house no regard was paid to their interests, as it was understood they would at some future time be annexed to the Farms.

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 Worcester County, Massachusetts : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Vol. I, Part 178

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) Publication date: 1889 Publisher: Philadelphia : J.W. Lewis & Co. Number of Pages: 1576

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton)
Publication date: 1889
Publisher: Philadelphia : J.W. Lewis & Co.
Number of Pages: 1576