USA > Massachusetts > Norfolk County > Quincy > History of old Braintree and Quincy : with a sketch of Randolph and Holbrook > Part 47
USA > Massachusetts > Norfolk County > Braintree > History of old Braintree and Quincy : with a sketch of Randolph and Holbrook > Part 47
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).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63
March 6th, 1760, Mr. Cranch sold all his right at Germantown to Mr. Palmer, and in 1781, purchased thirty-two acres of land, with building thereon, of Ebenezer Thayer, Ebenezer Miller, John Bass, Esq., Norton Quincy and Nathaniel Wales, for 400
491
GLASS WORKS.
pounds. This land, which goes by the name of the Cranch farm and on which the relies of his old cellar can be seen to this day, was formerly called "Stony Field," and is now in the possession of the Hon. Charles Francis Adams; it is situated directly back of the "President's Hill," so called. Mr. Cranch subsequently sold his farm, and removed to the Virchild estate on School street, where he resided at a nominal rent until his death, when Mr. John Greenleaf bought the property. The place is now in the possession of Mr. James Edwards.
Mr. Cranch, being of a literary turn of mind and an extensive reader of books, became a learned man, especially in theology, and there were very few clergymen in New England at that time more familiar with ecclesiastical matters than he was; he received an honorary degree of A. A. S., in 1780, from Harvard University, and represented the town in the Legislature ; he was the Justice that called the first town meeting in Quincy after it was incorporated, and to him was given the honor of naming the town, which he called Quincy. Mr. Cranch was appointed the first postmaster in Quincy in 1795; he was also Judge of the Court of Common Pleas in Massachusetts.
Mr. Cranch married Mary, the eldest daughter of the Rev. Wm. Smith, of Weymouth, in 1762; she was sister to Abigail, who married President John Adams. The following traditional anecdote is related in reference to these marriages : - " Mr. Smith, upon the marriage of his eldest daughter, preached to his people from the text in the forty-second verse of the tenth chapter of Luke,-' And Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her.' Two years elapsed and his second daughter was about to marry John Adams, then a lawyer in good practice, when some disapprobation of the match appears to have manifested itself among a portion of his parishioners. The profession of law was for a long period in the Colonial history of Massachusetts, unknown, and after cir- cumstances called it forth, the prejudices of the inhabitants, who thought it a calling hardly honest, were arrayed against those who adopted it. There are many still living, who can remember how strong the bias was against lawyers even down to about the time of the adoption of the present Federal Constitution.
492
GLASS WORKS.
"Besides this, the family of Mr. Adams, the son of a small farmer of the middle class in Braintree, was thought hardly good enough to match with the minister's daughter, descended from so many of the shining lights of the Colony. It is probable that Mr. Smith was made aware of the opinions expressed among his people, for he is said, immediately after the marriage took place, to have replied to them by a sermon, the text of which, in evi- dent allusion to the objection against lawyers, was drawn from Luke VII: 33. 'For John came neither eating bread nor drink- ing wine, and ye say, He hath a devil.'"
Mr. Craneh died at his residence on School street, Oct. 16th, 1811, aged about eighty-five; his wife died the next day, the 17th ; both were buried on the 19th. The Rev. Peter Whitney preached a sermon on the occasion, which was published. Mr. Cranch left an honored and somewhat distinguished family ; his son William was born 1769, and graduated at Harvard Universi- ty in 1787. On leaving college he studied law in the office of Judge Dawes of Boston. After acquiring his profession, he began the practice of law in Braintree, near Quiney, where he remained but a few months. Considering that Haverhill would be a more successful place for the practice of law, he removed there, where he remained up to 1794. After having been sworn into the Supreme Court he took up his residence at Washington, D. C. On the last day of President John Adams' administration, he was appointed Justice of the District Court of Columbia. After the death of the Chief Justice of the Court, Mr. Cranch was selected to succeed him, which position he ably filled and administered the oath of office to all the Presidents of the United States from the time he was appointed until his death, which occurred Sept. Ist, 1855, at the age of eighty-six.
SHIP BUILDING.
Ship building was first carried on in Braintree at Ship Cove, Knight's Neck, now called Quincy Neck. The first vessel we find that was built there was the Unity, in 1696, and was con- strueted for the fishing trade, as most of the ketches were at that period. From that time to this, vessels at stated and various periods have been built in this neighborhood, but the greater amount of tonnage has been constructed at Quincy Point. The most noted master ship builders, who have been engaged in this business here, were Mr. Daniel Briggs, Mr. John Souther, James Brothers, Mr. Josselyn, Mr. Peleg F. Jones and the present Dea- con Thomas.
The most noted and largest ship built at this early date, in Massachusetts, was constructed at Germantown. Mr. Eli Hay- den was the contractor, and Capt. Wm. Hackett, of Amesbury, was the draughtsman. The master builder was Mr. Daniel Briggs, of the noted Briggs family who were largely engaged in ship building. This family originated in Pembroke, Ply- mouth County. Daniel and his five brothers were employed in the construction of the old Massachusetts. The building of so large a ship was quite an undertaking at this time, and so great was the novelty, that when the time came for her departure from her blockings and ways, hundreds of people came here from adjacent towns to see her launched. She dipped grace- fully into her mother element, amid the exultant congratula- tions of the assembled multitude, in September, 1789, and the bottle smasher christened her by the name of Massachusetts.
The dimensions of this ship were as follows, viz :- Length of keel, 116 feet; length of beam, 36 feet, 10 inches ; lower hold, 13 feet, 6 inches; depth of lower deck, 5 feet, 10 inches ; gun deck to upper, 6 feet, 6 inches; gunwale, 1 foot, 6 inches; length of foremast, 81 feet, and 27 inches in diameter ; mainmast, 84
494
SHIP BUILDING.
feet, and 28 inches in diameter; mizenmast, 70 feet, and 20 inches in diameter ; foretopmast, 48 feet, and 15} inches in diam- eter ; maintopmast, 50 feet, and 15} inches in diameter; mizen- topmast, 36 feet, and 12 inches in diameter ; fore yard, 68 feet ; main yard, 74 feet; mizen yard, 62 feet ; spritsail yard, 50 feet; foretopsail yard, 48 feet; maintopsail yard, 50 feet; mizentop- sail yard, 37 feet ; cross-jack yard, 50 feet.
The Massachusetts was built for Shaw and Randall, expressly for the Canton trade, and was pierced or arranged for thirty-six guns, but only carried an armament of twenty six-pounders and other musketry.
Sailors were at that time largely possessed of and influenced by superstitious notions, and Moll. Pitcher, of Lynn, a noted fortune teller, so played on their credulity that three crews were shipped before one could be procured to sail in her; as she had prophesied that all who should embark in her would bring up in Davy Jones' locker. This sort of a voyage the credulous sea- men desired to steer clear of; hence the trouble of getting a crew to man her.
The great benefit of ventilating ships' holds on long voyages, in this early time of navigation, was not so well known by ship- masters as it has been since. The hatches of the Massachusetts were caulked down and not opened until her arrival at Canton. On opening them, to their surprise, the air was found so impreg- nated with poisonous gas, that a lighted lamp, on being lowered into the hold, was immediately extinguished, and the four or five hundred barrels of beef stored there was found to be nearly boiled and ready for consumption. This voyage of the Massa- chusetts not being financially successful, she was sold to the Danish East India Company, at Canton, for $65,000, and Mr. Delano, her second officer, relates that he " hauled down her colors, for the Danes to raise theirs."
Jobe Prince, Esq., was commander of the Massachusetts on her first vogage, with the following officers and crew :- Four mates, one purser, one surgeon, three midshipmen, five carpen- ters, three boatswains, one gunner, two stewards, one cooper, four quartermasters, one servant of the owner, two cooks and forty-two seamen; making a total of seventy besides the captain.
495
SHIP BUILDING.
While in the port of Canton she was visited by the naval officers of England, France and Holland, and by them much admired for her naval architecture.
This account of the old Massachusetts is compiled from Capt. Amasa Delano's Voyages.
Mr. John Souther1 came to Quincy in 1815, and commenced ship building. He established his yard at what is called South- er's wharf, on Town River bay, where he for years successfully carried on business. The next shipwright of any note was Mr. Nathan Josselyn, who had learned his trade of Mr. Souther. Mr. Josselyn's yard was located a short distance above the Point bridge. Mr. Peleg F. Jones also carried on the business of ship building at the Point. Small crafts were occasionally built in this locality until Mr. Thomas, of Rockland, Maine, came to the Point and began the construction of vessels there in 1854.
During the twenty-four years Mr. Thomas has been engaged in the shipwright business at the Point, he has built nineteen fine large ships, some of which have not been surpassed in mak- ing rapid voyages ; he has also constructed one brig and six schooners. Their tonnage ranged from two hundred and twen- ty-five to two thousand two hundred, making in the aggre- gate about thirty-five thousand tons.
The following are the names of the vessels built at Quincy Point by Deacon Thomas :-
Ships,-King Philip, Shakespeare, Magdalen, Athena, Ger- bain, Logan, Upton, E. H. Taylor, Maritana, Dexter, C. Lulin,
1. Mr. John Souther was born at Hingham, Sept. 13, 1781, and received his education at the Derby Academy of that town. After leaving school he com- menced an apprenticeship with his father at the shipwright trade. On becoming of age he was admitted as partner with his father in the ship building business, in 1807, where he remained until 1815, when he came to Quincy and established business for himself. Mr. Souther was a careful and successful business man ; so much so was this the case, that the town selected him as one of the Select- men and Assessors for nine years; Representative to the Legislature five years; School Committee two years; and he served on many prominent committees in town affairs. On retiring from business, he removed to Boston and there pleasantly enjoyed the remaining portion of his days. Mr. Souther's death occurred March 28th, 1878, at the age of 96 years, 6 months and 15 days, and was buried at Hingham. He was married to Lydia Nichols Lincoln, of Hing- ham, Jan. 20th, 1805, who died in Quincy, July 19th, 1856, aged 73.
.
496
SHIP BUILDING.
Mauran, Geo. Griswold, Belle Creole, Imperial, Northern Light, Triumphant, America and Red Cloud.
Brig,-J. L. Bowen.
Schooners,-D. H. Bills, J. L. Newton, Nellie Brown, Addie Walton, Angie Amesbury, Lucy D. and Montana.
In 1877, Mr. Thomas, at the ripe old age of eighty-two, modeled and built a ship of twenty-two hundred tons, which is a remarkable instance of vitality and energy, considering the age of this gentleman. Mr. Thomas' yard is located on Granite wharf.
STONE QUARRYING.
Syenite and granite, for building and monumental purposes, have been used from a very remote period, as can be seen in old Thebes, a city famous for its antiquity, and long the capital of Egypt, which presents among its ruins the finest collection of ancient monuments, obelisks, magnificent temples erected for the dead, whose interior arrangements were supported by hun- dreds of immense sculptured stone columns. Back of these tem- ples were sepulchral caves, numerous as the cells of bees, close beside each other, either dng in the rocky plain, or hewn in the adjacent extensive limestone hills, and extending in space of time back thousands of years before the birth of Christ. Polish- ing stone was known to the ancients, as the material of which these old tombs at Thebes were built, was found to have been polished.
Syenite, which is the character of stone quarried in Quincy, is composed of quartz, felspar and hornblende. The difference between syenite and granite is, that the former contains horn- blende instead of mica, and received its name from the city of Syene, Upper Egypt, where large quarries of it can be found of a pinkish hue, but more recent investigations have proved that the ancient syenite is only granite with black mica, and not horn- blende, as was supposed. Syenite is of various colors, pink, gray, and white. The pink or red hue is produced by the predomi- nance of orthoclase, or a chemical combination of soda, potash and oxyd of iron ;1 the white, of albite; the gray, of the various
1. "Iron is Nature's universal dye. Without it the soil would be a dirty white, the color of snow in a time of thaw. Instead of the pretty, lively color of sand and pebbles, we should sce the dull and sombre hue of ashes; and instead of the glittering sands of the sea and lake shore, a plain drab or gray, which no wealth of sunshine or of spray could turn to beauty. The slates used for roofing have a warm rich tint; oxyd of iron puts vermillion into them as it
64
498
STONE QUARRYING.
combinations of felspar, which vary the shades of color from light to dark.
Ruskins makes the following allusions to the healthfulness and purity of the landscape in granite regions :- " It is remarkable how this intense purity in the country seems to influence the character of its inhabitants. It is almost impossible to make a cottage built in a granite country look absolutely miserable. Rough it may be,-neglected, cold, full of aspects of hardships, but it never can look foul, no matter how carelessly, how indo- lently, its inhabitants may live ; the water at their doors will not stagnate, the soil at their feet will not allow itself to be trodden into slime, they cannot so much as dirty their face or hands, if they try. Do the worst they can, there will still be a feeling of firm ground under them, and pure air about them, and an inher- ent wholesomeness, which will need the misery of years to con- quor. The inhabitants of granite countries have, too, a force and healthiness of character about them, abated or modified according to their other circumstances of life, that clearly dis- tinguishes them from the inhabitants of less pure districts."
The first building of any architectural pretensions constructed out of Quincy syenite, was King's Chapel, erected on the corner of School and Tremont streets, Boston, Massachusetts, in 1752. Divine service was first held, Aug. 21st, 1754. This church was built of coarse, rough boulders, scattered about and dug out of both the North and South Commons. Syenite of the North Commons, even at this early period, was considered more suitable for building purposes and a higher price was charged for it. The method of splitting this material for the construction of this church was in the most primitive and curious manner. It was accomplished by heating the stone, by building a fire upon it, and then letting large iron balls fall upon it. Mr. John Hay-
does into our bricks, which else would be only a plain pepper and salt. The ruddy hues of brown now seen in ploughing sandy fields, contrasting so richly with the green of woods and meadows, would be, without the iron, only the cold repulsive gray of clayey soils. Many marbles, too, are colored with this same familiar dye. The violet veinings and variegations of the marble of Sicily and Spain, the glowing orange and amber of Sienna, the blood-red color of precious Jasper that enriches the temple of Italy, are all painted with iron rust," as well as many other precious stones.
499
STONE QUARRYING.
ward and Mr. Hunt, of Braintree, received the contract for fur- nishing the material for the erection of this edifice.1
The old John Hancock house that stood just south of the State House, on Beacon street, Boston, was built of the same kind of stone. This house of Gov. Hancock was taken down some years since.
In 1774, the old powder house which stood on the northwest corner of a lot of land belonging to the celebrated artist, Cop- ley, in what was at that time called West Boston, near Pinckney street, was built of this material, and its walls were constructed seven feet in thickness.
Some years previous to this time, the method of disposing of these stones, and also preventing the exhaustion of these rough, coarse boulders for building purposes, was the great topic and exciting question at the annual town meetings, and gave the town orators an opportunity to display their powerful eloquence, and the magistrates and lawyers, with their usual profundity, to enlighten the citizens on the laws of trespass and the rights of commonage.
At length the inhabitants became somewhat alarmed that the drain created by the use of these boulders for building, would not leave them enough to build a common stone wall, or con- struct a house cellar. To protect themselves from these inva- sions upon their property, they established the following rules :- " 1715. Voted, That no person shall dig or carry off any stone
1. "The corner stone of King's Chapel was laid by Governor Shirley, Aug. 11, 1749. At this ceremony the Governor gave the workmen twenty pounds (old tenor) to celebrate his health in accordance with the custom of the times. This chapel, which was the second one erected by this society, (the first being built of wood, ) was to be of Quincy, or at that time, Braintree stone, and the material was taken from the boulders of the South and North Commons, and was to cost twenty-five thousand pounds, and the building of it was not to com- mence until ten thousand pounds were subscribed. Governor Shirley and Peter Faneuil were among the heaviest contributors. For the want of funds the construction of the church was delayed for some time before the chapel was completed; during this delay the society applied for the use of the old South Church on Christmas day. The prejudice of the times was so strongly opposed to the observance of this holy day of the church, that a verbal answer was returned to them, that they could have the church on the condition that they would not decorate it with spruce."
500
STONE QUARRYING.
on the said commons or undivided lands, upon any account whatever, without license from the committee hereafter named, upon penalty of the forfeiture of ten shillings for every and each cart-load so dug and carried away; one-quarter part to be to said committee in full satisfaction for the use of the town. The instructions to the committee were as follows :-
" First,-That the committee shall give no license to any and every person to dig or carry off any stone from said land, to make sale or merchandise thereof, without the town's direction.
" Secondly,-That the committee may and shall license to any and every person in the town for such a quantity of stone, as he or they shall stand in need of, for their own proper use in the town.
"Thirdly,-That the committee shall or may seize all stone that they shall find dug or carted on and off said common lands, the digger or carter whereof is not known, and the same dis- posed of to the best advantage for the town, by sale or other- wise, deducting one-quarter part thereof to themselves, in full satisfaction as above said."
For years after, the same complaint was made at the annual town meetings, that it was impossible for the town to enforce the rules they had adopted.
The inability to execute these regulations was probably caused to some extent by the more liberal views of its citizens who opposed it, and who were not in harmony with those who advo- cated and sustained these rigid rules. They doubted the feasi- bility and justice of passing such onorous laws, depriving them of the use of stone for common purposes, and at a meeting held in 1729-30, they were prompted to dissent from the action of the meeting. This, eventually, no doubt, was the cause why the town was obliged to sell the North and South Commons in 1762 and 1765.
1729-30. At this meeting it was voted, " That no person' be allowed from henceforth to take stone for his own use from off the common for building, fencing or the like, without first giving notice to a committee by the town appointed, of his so doing, and rendering a true account of their quantity, and how he dis- posed of them. Then voted, that there be five persons of a
-
501
STONE QUARRYING.
committee, any three of which shall be a quorum, and but three paid. The following persons being then nominated to be the committee, were voted for singly, viz. : - Mr. Thomas White, Mr. Benjamin Luddin, Mr. Benjamin Neal, Mr. Joseph Crosby and Mr. Ebenezer Thayer. Against the vote and order above said, after some of them had been decided by polling, and after one of the committee was chosen, the following entered their dissent :-
" Joseph Pray, Christopher Webb, Moses Belcher, Jr., Moses Paine, Thomas Copeland, Stephen Cleverly, Samuel Arnold, Joseph Tower, Samuel Cleverly, John French, Moses Belcher, Joseph Brackett, Moses Paine, Jr., Dependance French, William Belcher, Ephraim Arnold, John Curtis, Nathaniel Belcher, Elka- nah Wales, Abijah Allen, Benjamin Allen, Jr., Benjamin Paine,' Jonathan Hayden."
Not much thought had been given to the stone quarries until the early part of the present century, when Jackson Field, Jo- siah Bemis, Wm. Wood1 and Wm. Packard first began to open quarries for the purpose of carrying on the stone business. They may be considered the first persons who established the stone business in a legitimate manner in this town, but it was in a very small way, as there was no great demand for large building stones ; and if there had been, they would not have been able to supply the material for the want of proper apparatus and ma- chinery for lifting and hoisting large blocks of granite. The stone quarried at this time was principally for underpinnings, door steps, etc.
In 1822, the question began to be agitated in regard to erect- ing a monument on Bunker Hill, in commemoration of this American marathon. After the committee had been chosen on the design, they finally agreed with Mr. Willard? that it should
1. William Wood was accidentally killed by the falling of a stone upon him.
2. Solomon Willard was not a native, but a voluntary citizen of Quincy, coming here in 1825, to construct the Bunker Hill Monument-the great, and to him the greatest episode of his life. Mr. Willard was born at Petersham, Wor- cester County, Massachusetts, on the 26th of June, 1783. His father, known as Deacon William Willard, was a native of Biddeford, Maine. He received his early education at the country school of that day, which consisted of six months in the year.
502
STONE QUARRYING.
be in the style of an obelisk. This design having been agreed upon, the next question of importance was the selection of a suitable architect and superintendent for the construction of this patriotic and noble enterprise. At the first meeting of the com-
At the age of twenty-one, he bade his native home farewell, and in October, 1804, came to Boston, not as many do, " waiting for something to turn up," but rather to turn something up, and see what perseverance, energy and active in- dustry might accomplish. Here he commenced the trade of a carpenter, and with his broad axe and willing heart, he began with fitting a set of piles for the building of a wharf, at fifty cents per day and board. His employers were Pond & Gale, for whom he worked ten days.
The first year of Mr. Willard's residence in Boston, he worked for several parties; and after settling his personal expenses, as well as the purchase of tools, books, etc., Salmon Morton, on the 12th of Oct., 1805, paid him two hun- dred dollars for eight months' work. At this time he made his first investment by a loan of two hundred and five dollars, to William Willard, which was after- wards paid by installment.
In 1808, Mr. Willard was employed as a carpenter on the famous Exchange Coffee House, an immense and costly edifice extending from Congress to Dev- onshire street. " This building combined the Merchants' Exchange and Hotel. There were in this building three principal staircases, of which the grand spiral pile, on the southerly side of the building, which extended from the basement story to the roof, and intended especially for the hotel, was built by Mr. Wil- lard, and was the work of considerable calculation, judgment and skill, in the joiner's art. Probably there was no piece of joiner's work in the country at that time, which would compare with it in spaciousness, architecture or finish." This building was seven stories high, and most elaborately finished. It was destroyed by fire on the 3d of Nov., 1818, and the light of the conflagration was seen at a distance of one hundred miles from Boston. In the mean time, Mr. Willard had been improving his mind by the study of architecture and per- spective drawing; he also acquired a knowledge of the French language, and atteuded anatomical lectures. So noted had he become as a carver, that he was constantly employed. Among his works were the Ionic capitals for the Brighton meeting-house; Ionic and Corinthian capitals for Park-street Church, Boston; also, for Dr. Channing's Church, on Federal street, which has since been taken down. In 1810, he carved a colossal spread eagle, which was placed on the old Custom House in Boston. It is now to be seen on the United States Bonded Warehouse. He executed another eagle to adorn the Beacon Hill Mon- nment; when this monument was taken down, the eagle was suspended in the Representatives' Hall of the State Honse.
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.