History of Worcester County, Massachusetts : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Vol. II, Part 36

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton)
Publication date: 1889
Publisher: Philadelphia : J.W. Lewis & Co.
Number of Pages: 1464

USA > Massachusetts > Worcester County > History of Worcester County, Massachusetts : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Vol. II > Part 36

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NATHAN SPARHAWK, Col.

This company was in the battle of Bennington, and afterward captured in New Jersey a British detach- ment, one less in number, withont firing a shot. In the terrible conflict of White Plains two of its men were killed who bore the Athol names of Morse and Goddard. The first pastor of Athol, Rev. James Humphrey, has lett this record respecting them : "Mr. Earl Cutting, their townsman and messmate, was be- tween them when they fell." Tradition adds that one of them, when wounded, leaped over a fence and died without uttering a word.3

The following will throw light on the distribution of the Athol soldiers in the Continental Army, as well as upon the nnselfish spirit by which they were actu- ated in this service. Their wages were paid by the town :

Athol, in the State of Massachusetts bay ; the men for the war for the years 1775, 1776 & 1777. Minute men who went to Cambridge were paid 6 shillings each :

Eight months' men to Cambridge, Gs. per month.

Six weeks' men to Roxbury, 4s. per month.

Two months' men to Dorchester, 68. per month. Twelve months' men to Dorchester, 10s, per month.

Seven months' men to " Nantastick," 2s. per month.

Five months' men to " York," 18s. per month.

Four months' men to Ticonderoga, 26s. per monthi.

2 So far as known, New Hampshire is the only one of the original thirteen States that has entered systematically and thoroughly upon the work of arranging and printing its ancieut State papers and Revolu- tionary rolls. Many of these were edited and carried through the press under the supervision of the late Rev. Dr. Bouton, of Concord, N. I., while the work npon the old documents of the Revolution is now ably conducted by Hon. Isaac W. Hammond. A copy of each volume as printed is deposited with the clerk of each town and city.

3 Capt. Stockwell was the grandfather of the late George Sprague, of Athol, who had in his possession, in 1859, the original document from which the order inserted above was copied. The lieutenant of the company was Benjamin Townsend, grandfather of the late Col. Thomas Townsend.

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Four months' men to Dorchester, 4s. per month. Two months' men to Tarrytown, 208. per month. Three months', men to "the Jerseys," 20s. per month. Two months' men to Rhode Island, 88, per month. Six weeks' men to Bennington, 208. per month.

" Larrum " men to " Williamston," 8 days, 88. per month. Three months' men to "(Sarratogue," 15s. per month. To Fort Edward, 4 weeks, 188. per month.

The farther they went from home the greater were their wages, but these were small at the best.

It appears from the town records that soldiers were furnished, equipped and paid in like manner through all the years of the war; and before it ended it was doubtless true of Athol, as it was of many towns of New England, that nearly every able-bodied man was, at some period of the struggle, enrolled in the army. It may be added that this service embraced, very often, young men who had reached the age of fifteen or sixteen years only. In 1778 more than fif- teen hundred pounds were raised at one time to pay wages to the soldiers. The requisitions of the prov- ince upon the town for beef and other supplies for the army were cheerfully and, in general, promptly met.

How all these burdens were sustained for so many years without financial ruin it is not easy to under- stand. Only the strictest economy in household ex- penses, and untiring industry and frugality on the part of all the people, could have enabled the town to meet such a crisis. It is to be borne in mind that at the close of the war the population at Athol could not have much exceeded five or six hundred. The cur- rency of this, and of the neighboring provinces, had depreciated to sueli an extent that as many as ninety dollars in paper money were often exchanged for a single dollar in silver. The proposed improvements upon the farms had been seriously interrupted by the absence of so many of the men in the army, while every uecessary article manufactured elsewhere, could be purchased only at an enormous price. Athol was then far from any large and regularly supplied mar- ket. The people were mostly farmers, but to trans- port the surplus products of the farm and the forest to market was a slow and expensive process. The hills over which the highways passed-especially on the east and west roads-were long and steep; and the roads themselves were narrow and poor ; yet the town was, on the whole, prosperous. Before the close of the century it could meet its liabilities, and debt pressed less heavily upon the people. The farms showed signs of permanent improvements ; small manufacturing establishments were projected-if not" actually built-upon the banks of the streams, school- houses were provided for the several " squadrons," and the range of studies enlarged, while the military spirit was not suffered to die out in the town for want of organizations and publie encouragements.

CHAPTER CXXXV.

ATHOL-(Continued.)

ATHOI .- 1801-1888.

Condition of the Town before the Civil War-Excitement in 1861-Aots of the Town to Encourage Enlistment of Soldiers-Enlistments-Bounties Of- fered-Military Companies Organized-Private Munificence to Obtain Recruits-Aid to Soldiers' Families-Number of Soldiers from Athol -Expense Account of the War.

THE present century opened with Rev. Joseph Estabrook as the minister of Athol, who had been ordained November 21, 1787. His predecessor, Rev. James Humphrey, had been dismissed about five and a half years before, viz. : February 13, 1782, after a pastorate of about thirty-two years, and had died May 8, 1796, in the seventy-fifth year of his age. The town was gradually recovering from the disturb- ance, if not the breaking up, of its most important business interests, and from the great losses occasioned by the Revolutionary War. Its population had in- creased but slowly-only one hundred and seventy- five between 1790 and 1800-and now numbered nine hundred and ninety-three. The conditions for gene- ral improvement in the near future, though not as good as could have been desired, were, on the whole, fair, and the town entered upon the work of the nineteenth century with increasing courage and hope.

There was little to disturb the general quiet of the place until the war with Great Britain commenced in 1812. As is well known, this was very unpopular throughout New England. The majority of the peo- ple in this part of our country were not at that time in sympathy with the national administration, and strenuously maintained that the war must prove disas- trous to their shipping and other interests. To this intense feeling expression was given August 31, 1808, in a petition to the President of the United States, which was accepted by the town. Iu 1814, January 31st, the town again took action upon the same matter in a petition to the Legislature, which was couched in very significant language. But the general prosperity of the town was not seriously interrupted by this excitement. In those days the electoral votes of New England were not usually cast for the successful ean- didates for the Presidency ; and that fact may have had something to do with the strong opposition which prevailed in this part of the country to the War of 1812.

During the sixty years from 1800 to 1860 the popu- lation of Athol increased from nine hundred and ninety-three to two thousand six hundred and four, and there was a steady gain in financial strength and business enterprise. During this period agricultural interests received more and more attention, while factories and mills for manufacturing purposes were erected in considerable number, as will presently appear.

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The construction of expensive county roads and other highways, largely for the accommodation of the inhabitants of the neighboring towns, has for many years made heavy drafts upon the treasury of Athol, but the debts thus created have been paid in part by the town becoming a business centre for not a little of the adjoining territory.

From its beginning the people of Athol have had an almost passionate regard for civil freedom and in- dividual liberty, and oppression in any form has always been looked upon as a crime. The repeal of the Missouri Compromise, and the desperate attempts to fasten the institution of slavery upon Kansas, that made memorable the years just preceding 1860, aroused the deepest indignation here, and did much to prepare the way for the unanimity, steadfastness of purpose, and spirit of sacrifice that characterized all the proceedings of the town when the Civil War began.

" Athol in Suppressing the Great Rebellion." This is the title of a volume of two hundred and sixty- four pages, the entire contents of which belong to the history of Athol. The book originated in this man- ner : in the warrant for the town-meeting of Athol for April 7, 1862, Article 4th was as follows :

To see if the Town will choose a Committee to collect and preserve facts and incidents which may have a historic interest to the people of the Town as showing the part they have taken in aiding to suppress the Great Rebellion.

At the town-meeting held under this warrant it was " voted to choose a committee of three to collect and preserve such facts as they may think best ; and said committee will work free of charge to the town. Chose Rev. John F. Norton, John M. Twichell and Dr. A. G. Williams ; and then voted to add one, and chose Dr. James P. Lynde."

This committee was organized by the appointment of Rev. J. F. Norton, chairman, and Dr. J. P. Lynde, secretary.

Dr. A. G. Williams having accepted a commission as a surgeon in the army, at a town-meeting March 2, 1863, Mr. Charles W. Bannon was added to the committee at the request of the other members. He had previously rendered much assistance in collecting and arranging many of the facts that relate to the early history of recruiting in Athol.

At the town-meeting November 7, 1865, on motion of Nathaniel Richardson, Esq., it was " voted that the Town authorize its Committee in charge to publish by subscription the Record entitled 'Athol in Sup- pressing the Great Rebellion,' with such changes as said Committee may deem desirable.

"Voted that the Selectmen he authorized to sub- scribe in the name of the Town for Fifty Copies of the Record, provided it can be furnished at a price not exceeding two dollars per copy."

The committee at once entered upon its work (the chairman making the entries in the record) and prose- cuted it till the close of the war. Nearly every soldier

from the town, who lived to return, was visited as soon as possible after his discharge and his personal expe- rience recorded. All reliable documents concerning the killed and wounded were examined. The infor- mation contained in the volume is deemed in every respect reliable, and a summary of it is here given :1

The people of Athol, in common with all their loyal countrymen, were filled with amazement and the most gloomy apprehensions by the bomhardment of Fort Sumter, a fortress of the United States in the harbor of Charleston, S. C. The attack upon this fort, which was the opening scene of the Great Rebellion, was made April 12, 1861; and the little garrison, under the heroic Colonel (afterwards General) Robert An- derson, surrendered to the rebel host that assailed it after a bold resistance for about thirty-six hours.

Washington was at once menaced by an army of rebels that poured into Virginia. But a few days elapsed hefore Massachusetts men were shot in the streets of Baltimore while on their way to rescue the National Capitol. The whole South was in commo- tion; and every hour the rebel cause gained strength till it assumed frightful proportions.

The news of these events aroused all the patriotism of the North; and the people of Athol determined to do their part for the support of the government against the mighty combination that threatened to destroy it. From all parts of the town men, women and children came together to raise and honor the glorious flag of our Union, and to determine on the course of action which the crisis demanded. Processions were formed; and the gatherings in different parts of the town were large and enthusiastic. At a public meeting in the Town Hall, on the evening of April 19, 1861, forty or more young men offered themselves for the formation of a military company.

A town-meeting was at once called, at which five thousand dollars were appropriated to encourage vol- unteers and to provide for the families of such as were married, in their absence.

Enlistments now commenced, the first name upon the roll being that of Leander W. Phelps. Then came the names of David E. Billings, J. B. Billings, Delevan Richardson, Hubbard V. Smith, Edward L. Townsend, Charles H. Hill, Charles S. Green, Colum- bus Fox, William L. Clutterbuck, Horace Hunt, Wil- liam Nute, Frederic Cummings, John D. Emerson, Thomas Johnson and Anrin B. French ; and, a little later, John F. and James L. Merrill went to the seat of war in the Tenth Massachusetts Regiment. July

10, 1861, the town made still more liberal offers to those enlisting as soldiers, especially with regard to such as might be dependent upon these for support, and numerous enlistments followed. Twenty-three men soon joined the Twenty-first Regiment, and were

1 As the author of the volume noticed above is also the author of this historical sketch, the utmost freedom with its contents is allowable. It may be added that it was printed and distributed under the personal responsibility of the chairman of the committee.

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HISTORY OF WORCESTER COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.

connected with Company A, under command of Captain (afterwards Major and Lieutenant-Colonel) George P. Hawks, of Templeton.

Mr. Adin W. Caswell now undertook to recruit a company chiefly from Athol, and in the short space of ten days obtained the requisite number of men. On the 4th of October, 1861, which was the day of the annual cattle show and fair, a dinner was given to this company on the Common at Athol; and the men were addressed from the balcony of the Summit House. Dr. James P'. Lynde presided and addressed the soldiers and the immense audience assembled. A sword, sash, etc., were presented to Captain Cas- well, Hon. Charles Field making the presentation address. Captain C'aswell responded, and addresses were afterwards made by Hiram Woodward, Esq., of Orange; James Brooks, Esq., of Petersham ; J. H. Goddard, Esq., editor of the Barre Gazette; Rev. I. S. Lincoln, of Warwick ; Rev. A. Harding, of New Salem ; Calvin Kelton, Esq., chairman of the Board of Selectmen ; Rev. Ira Bailey and Rev. John F. Norton, of Athol. A patriotic poem, which he had prepared for the occasion, was recited by Rev. D. J. Mandell, also of Athol. Bouquets of flowers were presented to all the soldiers composing the company by young ladies who volunteered for this service, while patriotic songs, in which a multitude of voices joined, enliveued the occasion. The exercises at the Summit House were closed with prayer by Rev. J. F. Norton ; and almost the entire assembly went with the company to the depot, where the soldiers took the cars for the camp at Springfield. The Athol Cornet Band was present during the day and added to its interest, while the Athol High School Gnard, under the command of the master of the school, Mr. An- drew J. Lathrop, with fifty mounted men of Athol and nearly the same number from Royalston, did escort duty. The company left with the cheers and benedictions of the assembled multitude. At Spring- field the men were mustered into the service of the United States, and constituted Company B of the Twenty-seventh Regiment, Massachusetts Volun- teers.

At the close of 1861 Athol had ninety eight men in the army and navy as volunteers and seven others in the regular army.

left March 21st with two hundred and twenty-seven dollars, contributed in a few hours, and was joyfully welcomed at Newbern. Of money there was scarcely any in the regiments, and all the suffering shared alike in the food and medicines purchased by Mr. Morse. He slept, rolled in his blanket, on the floor of the hospital and was ready to act at a moment's call.

Then came other calls for soldiers, six hundred thousand in the months of July and August, one-half to be raised by draft. Town and citizens' meetings were now held, bounties were offered for enlistments and soon Company E, of the Fifty-third Regiment, was recruited, largely from Athol, with Farwell F. Fay as captain. This regiment endured great hard- ships, but did good service in Louisiana and was in the fight at the capture of Port Hudson.

In 1863 the first draft was made of sixty-six men from Athol. Only twenty of these were found fit for service, of whom fourteen procured substitutes, two paid the commutation (three hundred dollars each) and four reported for service.

To fill the quota for Athol under the five calls for soldiers that followed, in which one million eight hun- dred thousand men were asked for, substantially the same process was adopted. Men and money did not fail. According to the reports of the Adjutant Gen- eral, Athol had, December 1, 1864, a surplus of ten men, and nineteen days later, of twenty-eight men.

In the record will be found the names of three hundred and thirty-five men furnished by Athol. Of these, nineteen re-enlisted and seventeen others re-entered the service after recovering from the dis- abilities for which they had been discharged; four musicians were included in the number, who had been discharged under an order discontinuing regi- mental bands of music. In arriving at the sum total, the re-enlisted men must, of course, be counted twice. There may be added fifteen who were credited to Athol through the enlistments of Massachusetts men in the navy, and one more was also credited to the town of whom nothing further is known. The whole number furnished by Athol was, therefore, three hundred and eighty-seven.

The speedy suppression of the Rebellion seemed certain at the opening of 1865. April 3d, of that year, General Grant's army entered Richmond, and soon after the soldiers began to return home. Fifty- one Athol men died from wounds or diseases con- tracted in the service; Captain Fay's company, in the Fifty-third Regiment, lost seventeen men.

Near the opening of 1862 sixty-eight men from Athol encountered the perils and losses of the Burn- side Expedition to North Carolina. In the battle of Roanoke Island they suffered severely in the miry swamps and while fighting the enemy were standing up to their knees in water. William Hill, the first In general the soldiers from Athol proved them- selves brave and patriotic, but this cannot be said of some obtained through brokers. Athol furnished fifteen commissioned officers, viz .: George H. Hoyt, lieutenant-colonel Fifteeth Kansas Cavalry ; James Oliver, Jr., surgeon in the Twenty-first and Sixty- first Regiments; Alfred G. Williams, surgeon in the Athol soldier who fell in action, was there killed. In the battle of Newbern, a few days later, James C. Parker and William H. Johnson were killed, while many others were severely wounded. The sufferings of the Athol men in North Carolina were so great that the citizens of Athol at once raised funds and dispatched Laban Morse, Esq., for their relief. He | Eleventh Regiment; John N. Mars, chaplain of the

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ATHOL.

First North Carolina (Colored) Regiment; Farwell F. Fay, captain in Fifty-third Regiment; Adin W. Coswell, captain in Twenty-seventh Regiment; Ran- som Ward, captain in First Kansas (Colored) Regi- ment; Daniel W. Larned, captain in Twenty-seventh Regiment ; George R. Hanson, captain in Fourteenth United States (Colored) Heavy Artillery ; Albert D. Pond, first lieutenant Twenty-seventh Regiment ; John O. Mowry, first lieutenant Fifty-fifth (Colored) Regiment ; Lovell H. Horton, second lieutenant Twenty-seventh Regiment ; Asa L. Kneeland, first lieutenant Thirty-second Regiment ; John D. Emer- son, second lieutenant Second New York Heavy Ar- tillery ; Seth F. Hale, second lieutenant Massachu- setts Militia.

Of the families in Athol that made great sacrifices to aid the Government, many deserve an honorable mention.

James L. Merrill furnished five sons for the army, all courageous and faithful soldiers. Three of them were severely wounded, while a fourth nearly sacri- ficed his life to save that of a wounded brother.

The family of Leander Phelps gave four to fill the quotas of Athol, two of whom re-enlisted, and an- other entered the service a second time and was se- verely wounded.

Franklin Oliver had four sons in the service, one of whom was severely wounded, and another died in the rebel prison at Andersonville, Ga.

Isaac King had also four sons in the service, two of whom died.

Albert Simonds followed two of his sons into the ranks, and one of the latter was a prisoner at Ander- sonville and in other rebel prisons.

Laban Morse, Esq., was the agent for the relief of the town's sick and wounded at Newbern, N. C., and sent two sons to the war.

George Morse went himself, and two sons went also.

Edward Nickerson had three sons in the army, one of whom was imprisoned at Andersonville and in other places.

Widow Dorinda Foster sent three sons, one of whom died in the service and another not long after his discharge.

William Hill went into service with two sons. He was killed at Roanoke Island, and one son died at the same place.

The citizens of Athol raised by subscription, to fill the various quotas, the sum of $12,777.78. Hospital supplies were sent to the soldiers without stint. About $350 were forwarded to the Christian Commis- sion. The Ladies' Society in the centre of the town dispatched supplies valued at $1,223.47, while the Soldiers' Aid Society of the Depot Village sent through the Sanitary Commission stores valued at $808.43. Large sums were contributed for the com- fort of the soldiers in a less public manner. The total indebtedness incurred hy the town on account

of the war was $18,880.94. The credit of the town continued good, notwithstanding these heavy ex- penses.

Just before the breaking out of the war, or Janu- ary 1, 1861, the net indebtedness of Athol was $6,672. Six years later it was but $8,200, the people having willingly submitted to increased taxation to keep the debt as small as possible. The valuation of the town in 1867 was $1,194,559. 1n 1870 the net indebtedness was $14,775. In 1876 the ordinary debt was $28,571 and the railroad debt was $90,600.

In 1880 the total indebtedness on town notes was $96,680, which was reduced January 1, 1888, to $64,- 500, with interest at four and one-half per cent.

The period since the Civil War has been one of general prosperity. Agricultural products have been in good demand at fair prices, while the manufactur- ing interests of the town have acquired very large proportions, as will be seen in the sequel.

Among the town officers elected in March, 1888, were the following : J. D. Holbrook, town clerk ; C. F. Richardson, Ira Y. Kendall and A. J. Nye, select- men ; Samuel Lee, treasurer; William W. Fish, James W. Hunt and James F. Whitcomb, assessors ; Calvin Miller, collector of taxes ; L. B. Caswell, A. J. Nye and E. V. Wilson, School Committee.

May 1, 1888, the number of polls in Athol was 1490: viz., males, 1486 ; females, 4. The value of personal estate, excluding resident bank stock, was $529,452. The value of resident bank stock was $102,185. The real estate was assessed at the same time at $1,813,667 in buildings, and $828,388 in land, making a total valuation of $2,773,692. The taxes laid amounted to $47,353,07, the rate per cent. being $16 per thousand. The number of dwelling-houses taxed was 1021. The number of acres of land as- sessed in the town was 18,777. The number of tax- payers was 1910: viz., 1236 on property, and 674 paying a poll-tax only.

The population of Athol in 1790 was 848; in 1840, 1591; in 1860, 2604; in 1870, 3517; in 1880, 4307; in 1885, 4758. It is supposed at this time, January, 1889, to exceed considerably 5000.

The Athol representatives in the General Court during the last ten years have been as follows, Roy- alston having had the member in the years 1883 and 1886: J. Sumner Parmenter, 1878; L. B. Morse, 1879; Russell Horton, 1880; Ira Y. Kendall, 1881; Henry M. Humphrey, 1882; C. F. Richardson, 1884; Washington H. Amsden, 1885; Sidney P. Smith, 1887-88 ; J. D. Holbrook, 1889.

Benjamin Estabrook was a member of the Senate in 1843, Charles Field in 1858-59, and Alpheus Har- ding in 1879.

In politics the town of Athol is strongly Republi- can, and has been ever since the organization of the Republican party. The same is true of Royalston which town with Athol constitutes a Representative district. As a matter of course, it is generally expect-

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HISTORY OF WORCESTER COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.

ed that this district will be represented in the General Court by a Republican; usually this has been the case ; but occasionally, through discordant opinions and wishes in the dominant party, or the nomination of an exceptionably able and popular candidate by their opponents, or both combined, a Democrat may be elected, as was in true in 1879.

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History of Worcester County, Massachusetts : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Vol. II, Part 36

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) Publication date: 1889 Publisher: Philadelphia : J.W. Lewis & Co. Number of Pages: 1464

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton)
Publication date: 1889
Publisher: Philadelphia : J.W. Lewis & Co.
Number of Pages: 1464