USA > Massachusetts > Plymouth County > History of shipbuilding on North river, Plymouth county, Massachusetts, with genealogies of the shipbuilders, and accounts of the industries upon its tributaries, 1640 to 1872 > Part 31
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VESSELS BUILT BY C. O. & II. BRIGGS.
It showed how much he knew about treenails ; but he did know a good vessel when he saw one.
Henry Briggs was master carpenter in 1820 of the brig "OAK," 150 tons, of Boston ; her length was 79 feet, breadth 20 feet, depth 10 feet ; owners, Thomas B. Wales and Nathan- iel H. Emmons, Boston, Henry Briggs, Scituate. The follow- ing are some of the voyages made by the " Oak" while she was owned by T. B. Wales & Co: 1826, from St. Petersburg with hemp and sundry merchandise. 1828, Philadelphia to Rochelle with staves, hides, bark, etc. ; also voyage to Amsterdam, with 9 hogsheads, 44 tierces of sugar, also oil, etc. 1832, New 'Bedford to Hamburg with oil. 1833, New Bedford to Bremen with oil. 1834, Charleston to Antwerp and to Amsterdam. 1835, St. Iago to Trieste with sugar, coffee, etc. In 1836, she made three voyages, Charleston to Amsterdam with cotton and rice, Richmond to Amsterdam, and from Amsterdam with gin, oil, madder, beans, wine, seed, barketts, tenzel, nutmegs, sappan wood, etc. 1837, Richmond to Rochelle, and Charles- ton to Havre. 1838, to Rochelle, from Rochelle with brandy, vinegar and ochre, Charleston to Amsterdam, and from Rochelle again. 1839, to Havana with gin; cargo from Havana to Cowe, etc. ; Charleston to Havre, and from Savannah to Liver- pool. She sailed from Liverpool, Apr. 24, arriving in Boston May 25th. 1840, Matanzas for Cowe and a market ; Boston to Rochelle. 1841, from Matanzas to Rotterdam. 1842, from Rio de Janeiro to Charleston ; from Charleston to Amsterdam. 1843, from New Orleans to Hamburg; from Matanzas to Trieste ; and New Orleans to Boston with pork, ham, lard, cotton, etc. Henry Briggs built vessels that curved from how to stern, being very low at the centre with bow and stern high,* and as the style changed he asked Mr. Wales if he would not have the bow and stern dropped a little to make a straighter vessel. Mr. Wales replied, "If you drop the bow and stern, you drop me ;" but afterward, in building the "Oak," he had her bow and stern dropped.
Henry Briggs was master carpenter, in 1822, of the brig "LAPWING," 176 tons, of Boston ; length 84 feet, breadth 22 feet, depth 10 feet. She was owned by Henry Hovey, Francis Fisher, Francis Stanton, Ezra Hyde, Boston, Jesse
* It was the custom until 1815 and later to build vessels with crooked gunwales and stern high.
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VESSELS BUILT BY C. O. & II. BRIGGS.
Dunbar, Jr., Scituate, Orrice King of Brewster, Gustavus Locke and James Sizor, Richmond, Va. This vessel was sold at Canton, China in 1826. C. O. & HI. Briggs built, in 1823, the brig " OCEAN," 173 tons of Boston ; owners were Nathan- iel H. Emmons and Thomas B. Wales, of Boston, Cushing O. and Henry Briggs, Scituate. In 1826 the brig "Ocean " made a voyage to Rochelle, returning with brandy, wine and mer- chandise ; and in 1828 from Charleston to Bremen with rice. She was later used as a Boston and Baltimore packet, and in 1852 was in the North Atlantic, whaling. In 1856 she was changed to a bark ; she was not very successful, and in 1864 was sold to David C. Osborn, Sag Harbor. In 1867, she is said to have been lost in the South Atlantic, though the report gives the loss of a much larger vessel. Henry Briggs, in company with his brother Cushing O. was master carpenter, in 1824, of the brig "BILLOW," 160 tons, of Boston ; owners, Nathaniel H. Emmons, and Thomas B. Wales, Boston. Her length was 80 feet, breadth 21 feet, depth 10 feet. The following are her voyages for nearly fifteen years : from 1827 to 1830, she sailed between Rochelle, Boston, New York, and Philadelphia, taking from the home ports, oak, timber, staves, rice, cotton, etc., and bringing back dry goods, liquors, etc. In 1830, she went to Palermo with staves. 1831, St. Iago to Trieste. In 1832, she made three voyages, Mobile to Matanzas with 74,500 feet of board, plank and scantling and back with 29,700 gallons of molasses, and 60 boxes of sugar, and to Rochelle and back. In 1833, from Antwerp to Rochelle and back, and to Rochelle and return again. 1834, Norfolk to Rochelle with staves, and back to Boston with 48 pipes, 265 hogsheads, 267 barrels of brandy, and 260 baskets of champagne. 1836, to Rochelle and back.
1837, Norfolk to Rochelle. 1837, Norfolk to Rochelle. 3 1838, Rochelle and Bremen, and to Amsterdam ; cargo, tobacco, mahogany, etc. 1839, Charleston to Amster- dam. In 1840, four voyages : Rochelle to New York with brandy, back again with flour, staves, etc. ; returned again with brandy and from Norfolk to Rochelle with staves, etc. At what port the "Billow " ended her days is not known, but she proved to be a very successful vessel for her first owners and made some remarkably quick passages. It will be seen that the Briggses built a vessel for T. B. Wales & Co. about every two years and usually built for other firms in Boston or Scituate Harbor the alternate years.
Henry Briggs, in company with his brother, was master
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Harry Briggs
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VESSELS BUILT BY C. O. & H. BRIGGS.
carpenter in 1825 of the sch. " ADAMS," 111 tons, owned by Nathaniel HI. Emmons and Thomas B. Wales, Boston. Capt. Henry Vinal, of Scituate, says that about 1825, C. O. Briggs built the sch. "ONTARIO," for him. The Briggs brothers built, in 1826, the brig "OREGON," 200 tons of Boston, length 89 feet, breadth 22 feet, depth 11 feet. Her owners were Henry Hovey of Boston, Jesse Dunbar, Sr. and Jr., of Scituate. The next year they built another vessel for T. B. Wales & Co. 1827, the brig " BOSTON," 242 tons, of Boston. She was a two decker, with two masts and a billet head, 95 feet long by 22 feet, by 11 feet, and owned by Nathaniel H. Emmons and Thomas B. Wales of Boston. There was a " Boston " built at the Wanton Yard, which has been incorrectly stated as being this vessel. The " Boston " made many voyages similar to the " Billow," the "Wave," ete. In company with Cushing O., Henry Briggs was master carpenter, in 1828, of the brig "IVANHOE," 192 tons, of Boston ; owned by Joshua Blake, Francis Stanton and George Hallett of Boston. For a time in Briggs's Yard they missed large amounts of the chips, which were excellent for kindlings. One night they employed an old captain to watch the yard as they mistrusted a man who lived down the river. After waiting for several hours the suspected man came rowing up the river and soon began to load his boat with chips. The captain who was on the watch called out, "I am here." The man replied, "So am I," but it frightened him so, that he did not come again.
Cushing O. & Henry Briggs built of oak, in 1829, the brig "CRONSTADT," copper and iron fastened, 273 tons register : length 100 feet, breadth 24 feet, depth 12 feet, with two decks and two masts and full model. Her owners were Nathaniel H. Emmons, Thomas B. Wales, Samuel Quincy and Moses Wheeler of Boston. There is a water-color painting of the brig "Cronstadt," hanging in the office of Thomas B. Wales & Co., 40 Water street, Boston, representing her ashore on Falsterbo Reef, off Sweden, Aug. 12, 1840, then under the command of Capt, Hatch, from which painting the following cut is engraved.
318
BRIG " CRONSTADT."
The "Cronstadt " was engaged chiefly in the Russian trade. The following are some of the voyages made by her while she was owned by Thomas B. Wales & Son. In 1831, she made a voyage to Matanzas and Russia with a cargo of coffee and sugar. In 1832 she made three voyages : New Orleans to Boston with cotton ; Matanzas to St. Petersburg with 1866 boxes of white sugar, 15 tons of logwood, 419 hogsheads of tobacco, 109 boxes of sugar; and from Alexandria to Amsterdam. 1834, two voyages : Cuba to St. Petersburg, with sugar; Charleston to Marseilles with cotton. 1835, Matanzas to St. Petersburg. 1836, Charleston to Rotterdam and Matanzas to St. Petersburg. 1837, three voyages : two from Rio de Janeiro to Hamburg, one with $10,000 worth of coffee; the other voyage, coffee valued at £1962, 13s, and from Charleston to Amsterdam. 1836, Matanzas to St. Petersburg. 1839, Mobile to Amster- dam, and Charleston to Amsterdam. 1840, Matanzas to St. Petersburg, and from then until 1845 she made seven voyages between the ports of Matanzas, St. Petersburg, Antwerp and Charleston with sugar, rice, and cotton. In 1845, she also made a voyage from Matanzas to London. 1846, from New Orleans to Liverpool with cotton, wheat and staves ; and from New York to Glasgow with flour and oil. 1847, she made a voyage from Havana to St. Petersburg with oil. Of course she always made her home port, Boston, at the end of nearly all of the above voyages. In 1861-63 she was owned by C. H.
ft. 89
"
BRIG " CRONSTADT," 273 TONS Built at Briggs' Yard, Hobert's Landing, in 1829, by C. O. & H. Briggs.
319
VESSELS BUILT BY C. O. & H. BRIGGS.
Rogers at Gloucester, and was under Captains Higgins and Herrick respectively. She was soon afterward sold to persons in South America, and in 1865, was owned by Capt. Lewin at Montevideo.
In 1829, the sch. "BILLOW," 83 tons, of Scituate, 65 feet long, 18 feet broad, and 8 feet deep, was built by C. O. and H. Briggs, and owned by Jesse Dunbar, Sr. and Jr., Lemuel Webb, her captain, James S. and Shadrach Briggs. The " Billow " was built square stern and had a billet figure head. C. O. & H. Briggs still owned in the "Billow" in 1836. In 1837, William T. Briggs bought into her, and about 1838, Charles C. Briggs took his father's interest. In 1844, the Briggses still had an interest in her. She was always used coast- ing in the winter and mackerel fishing in the summer. The "Billow " was built mainly for Capt. Lemuel Webb, who went master of her for many years and afterwards took a larger vessel. The last voyage made by the "Billow " was under Capt. Eaton Vinal, to the West Indies. While there the crew contracted fever, of which Capt. Vinal died on shore, and his mate Mr. Jacobs died the second day out. She was then in charge of two men, one of whom Abijah Otis, of East Stough- ton, is now living. They drifted about for some days, when they were obliged to leave her, and took to their boats and went ashore on one of the islands. The American Consul put them in prison for several months, thinking that they were pirates or had mutinied on board, and they were not released until they could get word from Boston, to prove their state- ments were true. The vessel drifted ashore and was broken up by wreckers.
About 1830, or a little later, Cushing O. and Henry Briggs dissolved partnership and built on yards adjoining, as previously stated. The following is a copy of an old letter :
SCITUATE, Nov. Sth, 1830.
MESSRS. BENJAMIN RICH & SON,
Gents :
We have got our brig down the river and have been waiting five days for a wind to go out. The season is so far advanced we think it more prudent to get her insured if we could get it done for $20.00. If you could get five thousand insured on the vessel for sixteen or twenty dollars, we should like to have it done. If not, we would like to know the
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VESSELS BUILT BY C. O. & H. BRIGGS.
lowest it could be done for. You may send us an answer by the bearer of this. The vessel has two masts, three sails, chain, cable and anchor.
Yours, etc.,
brushing @ Buggys
This letter probably referred to the brig of which Cushing O. Briggs was master carpenter in 1830, the brig "HAMIL- TON," 164 tons, Elisha Cushman, master ; owned by John M. Pearson, Benjamin Humphrey and Robert G. Shaw, Bos- ton. Henry Briggs was master carpenter in 1831 of the bark "AVON," 299 tons of Boston. Her length was 108 feet, breadth 24 feet, depth 12 feet; owned by Nathaniel H. Emmons, Thomas B. Wales, Sr. and Jr., Samuel Quincy and Moses Wheeler of Boston. John Foster in a letter, descrip- tive of an exciting meeting of the Franklin Association, dated at South Scituate January 15, 1831, and addressed to " Hon. Cushing Otis, M.D., Boston," adds the following postscript : " One thing I have omitted which is of more consequence than anything I have stated. Mr. Cushing O. Briggs met with a painful accident a few days since in the yard ; falling on a plank he struck a large nail in his knee, or rather just below it, and he has not been able to move it since. I think, Dr., he needs your advice and help. Dr. James attends him ; he is well otherwise but I understand it pains him very much. Yr. J. F., Jr." Mr. Briggs was confined some time, but later was able to resume work at the yard. Barnabas W. Briggs,* who has given me much information, writes, "Nov. 28, 1831, is the first date I have in an old account book for work for Cushing O. and Henry Briggs, although I worked for them before. I also find dates of Sept. 13, 1832, Dec. 28th, 1835, at which time I was working for them." Henry Briggs was master car- penter, in 1833, of the brig "OAK," 208 tons of Boston ; owned by Nathaniel H. Emmons, Thomas B. Wales, Sr. and Jr., Samuel Quincy and Ebenezer Sears of Boston. In 1834 the sch. "COLUMBIA," 75 tons of Scituate, length 65 feet, breadth 18 feet, depth 7 feet, was built by Cushing O. Briggs, and owned by John Beal, Peleg Jenkins, William Vinal, Henry
* See Scituate Harbor Yards.
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CUSHING O. BRIGGS & SONS.
Vinal, Albert Clapp, Henry Bowers and Cushing O. Briggs. In 1836 the Briggses still owned in her and she was under Capt. Peleg H. Collier coasting and mackerel fishing. Cushing O. Briggs was master carpenter in 1835 of the brig " COLUM- BIA," 131 tons of Boston ; owned by Ephraim Lombard and Amme C. Lombard of Boston and William and William H. Fowle of Alexandria, Va. Henry Briggs was master carpen- ter, in 1836, of the bark "VERONA," 238 tons, of Boston. She had two decks and three masts. Her length was 102 feet, breadth 22 feet, depth 11 feet, and owned by Nathaniel HI. Emmons, Thomas B. Wales, Sr. and Jr., Joseph Perkins and Samuel Quincy of Boston. This was a very good sized vessel for this yard. At one of the launchings on the Briggs Yard Michael Ford, Jr. says that he remembers the vessel going off all right on only one bilgeway. She went as straight as with two. Of course it was by accident. Cushing O. Briggs was master carpenter, in 1836, of the brig " ANGEL," 157 tons, of Boston ; owners Jeremiah B. Thompson, Charles B. Fessenden and Benjamin Hurd Skinner of Boston. This proved to be a very unsuccessful vessel for her builder, Cush- ing O. Briggs, who, paying his men, delivered her to Thomp- son & Fessenden who failed before they paid him for her. The loss fell heavily on Mr. Briggs, who soon after turned his ship- building business over to his two eldest sons, Charles C. and William T. Briggs, keeping but a small interest in the firm himself. The last vessel built on the Henry Briggs yard was the brig "STAR," which was begun by him, but he died while she was building. Elijah Barstow, his son-in-law, was at his death bed and almost the last thing Mr. Briggs said was, " Elijah, you must help George finish that vessel." George Briggs was Henry's son, and, although Mr. Barstow was build- ing a vessel at the same time in Hanover, he went to the Henry Briggs Yard nearly every day and assisted George. The ves- sel was launched in the spring of 1838.
William T. Briggs was master carpenter in 1838 of the bark "EMMA ISADORA," 213 tons of Boston, Edward Fletcher, master, and owned by Henry W. Fletcher, of Bos- ton. In 1848 she was owned by Joseph Swift of Gloucester, and in 1849 by Sanford Henry of Chelsea. This vessel was engaged originally in the Smyrna trade, and was noted for her fine sailing qualities and for the number of missionaries and the quantity of New England rum she carried to Smyrna.
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CUSHING O. BRIGGS & SONS.
Charles to Briggs
and William T.
Briggs were master carpenters, in 1840, of the brig " SENA-
TOR," 193 tons of Boston, Bangs Pepper, Master. She was owned by him and Elkanah Bangs of Boston, Jeremiah Mayo, Theodore Berry, Joseph Sampson and Joseph Crocker of Brewster and Charles C. and William T. Briggs of Scituate. Her builders sold her March 20, 1840, for $8300. Some of the men who worked on her were Otis Briggs, Moses Rogers, James N. Sparell, Beia Lewis, Paul Litchfield, Harvey Litch- field, Ebed Hersey, Benjamin R. Jacobs, Samuel Hatch, Joseph Northey, Waterman Bailey and many others. G. and S. Manly and Eliphalet Kingman furnished timber at $12 per M. Thomas Simmons and Experience Curtis also furnished timber. The "Senator " was finally sold at Rio de Janeiro, South America. Charles C. and William T. Briggs built, in 1840, the brig " MICHIGAN," 130 tons of Scituate. She was engaged in the foreign trade and owned by Perry P. Coleman, Elijah Jenkins, Jr., Seth Webb, Francis Thomas, Charles C. and William T. Briggs of Scituate. Alexander Anderson worked painting on the Briggs yard in 1840.
Cushing O. Briggs & Sons built, in 1841, the bark " SUSAN JANE," 274 tons, one deck and three masts; owned by Edward Fletcher, her master, and Henry W. Fletcher, Boston. This was the last vessel built on this yard. The "Susan Jane " was used in the Mediterranean trade. Capt. Edwin Fletcher was in command of her on a voyage from Boston to the Medi- terranean, during which voyage she experienced a severe storm, and while running before the gale one morning a heavy sea washed the man at the wheel overboard, but he was got on board again. In the evening of the same day in the second " dog watch," while Capt. Fletcher and the mate were on the quarter deck they, together with the man at the wheel were washed overboard and lost. This was about 1843. Being without any one competent to navigate her, she was put into Gibraltar. In 1848 she was in Malta dismasted, and about 1859 she was off Sebastopol, one of the wrecking expedition raising guns, etc., from the Russian men of war which had been sunk before that city by the Russians to prevent them from falling into the hands of the enemy. John H. B. Lang, of Boston, who owned the "Susan Jane," at one time, says she was a " saucy
Charles Co Briggs
323
CUSHING O. BRIGGS & SONS.
little craft and would sail like the wind." He sold her to the Fayal trade. After she returned from Sebastopol she sailed between New Bedford and Fayal. She was built of oak, was copper and iron fastened, had a deck cabin, was 90 feet long, 24 feet broad, and drew 11 feet. In 1863 she was owned by W. H. Topham and others, New Bedford. The same year she was rebuilt and yellow metalled. In 1865 she was owned by John Ferris of St. John, N. B., and under Capt. Huzford. In 1874 she was still owned in St. John, N. B., and sailing under the British flag, Capt. Hucksford, master.
Of the sons of Cushing Otis Briggs, Charles C., who died April 11, 1843, of consumption, was a noble young man of great promise and exemplary character, bearing his long illness with courage and resignation. When but eleven years of age he received the following recognition from his teacher :
REWARD.
This certifies that Master Charles Briggs has committed to mem- ory Cumming's Modern and Ancient Geography once, and given correct answers to 665 questions, relating to places &c. on the maps. Woodbridge's Geography nearly once. 40 columns of Dictionary. 34 verses in the New Testament. 36 pages of definitions. Multi- plication Table, and 10 pieces on different subjects.
By obedience and good behaviour he has secured the esteem of his Instructress. (Signed) T. F. FOSTER, IS24.
William T., as stated elsewhere, together with his brother Charles, succeeded their father at the yard. William's common school education was supplemented by brief academic courses at Hanover and Weymouth. Through the kindness of an honored uncle he was led to leave the ship-yard in 1841-2, and enter Oneida Institute, at Whitesboro', N. Y., from which college he graduated in 1845. He then entered Andover Seminary, and while there received a call to the Congrega- tional Church at North Andover where he was ordained and settled in 1846. Later he accepted a call to Princeton where he was installed in 1855, resigning in 1863 to take charge of the Educational Department at Newbern, in the military dis- trict of North Carolina, which position he held until the close of the war. He was installed in the Congregational Church in East Douglas, in 1866, resigning in 1887 after a pastorate of uninterrupted harmony of twenty-one years. By vote of the said church, he is still "Pastor Emeritus." His services are
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CUSHING O. BRIGGS' SONS.
sought by several societies, but so far he has held to his reso- lution to spend his declining years in rest and quiet, free from labor, enjoying the competence it has been his fortune to accumulate.
JAMES EDWIN and HARRISON O. learned the art of shipbuild- ing at their father's yard on North River, and when Edwin (as he was usually called) had attained his majority, the balance of Harrison's time was given him by his father, and together they went to Boston and engaged as journeymen shipbuilders. Subsequently they built in company with Capt. Noah Brooks at his yard at the foot of F. street. In 1847 this partnership was dissolved and E. & H. O. Briggs removed to South Bos- ton Point, near the rolling mills, where they built in company until after the war, employing mostly men from their native town whose skill in building vessels on the banks of the North River was recognized by the Messrs. Briggs, who built some of the fastest and most famous clipper ships that have ever been launched in the United States. The following are some of the ships built by them : the "Newton," 450 tons burthen ; " Reli- ance," 450 tons ; "Oxenbridge," 580 tons ; "Mary Glover," 650 tons ; "Berkshire," 650 tons; "Southern Cross," 1,000 tons ; " Northern Light," 1,050 tons, which was built for Capt. James Huckins. She made the quickest passage ever made between Boston and San Francisco around Cape Horn. (See report Secretary of Board of Trade for 1882.) Frank H., son of H. O. Briggs, owns a fine painting of the "Northern Light." E. & H. O. Briggs also built the "Cape Cod," 850 tons ; " Winged Arrow," 1,150 tons ; "Meteor," 1,150 tons ; "Golden Light," 1,150 tons, which was struck by lightning when only a few days out on her first voyage, and burned to the water's edge ; the " John Land,"1,150 tons ; "Bonita," 1,150 tons ; "Cyclone," 1,150 tons ; "Boston Light," 1,180 tons ; "Starlight," 1,180 tons ; "Grace Dar- ling," 1,240 tons ; "Saracen," 1,300 tons; "Cossack," 600 tons ; " Vitula," 1,185 tons ; "Mamaluke" 1,300 tons ; "Fair Wind," 1,300 tons ; "Alarm," 1,200 tons ; "Joseph Peabody," 1,200 tons ; " Asa Eldridge," 1,300 tons ; "Dreadnaught," "Colorado," and many others. About 1865 the Briggs Bros. dissolved partnership and went out of business, each having secured a competence. J. Edwin Briggs never engaged in active busi- ness again. Harrison O. Briggs was elected a member of the Board of Aldermen in 1860, and was chairman of the commit- tee that received and entertained the Prince of Wales on behalf of the City of Boston. Soon after he gave up ship-
Sincerely yours. William . Briggs
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CUSHIING O. BRIGGS' SONS.
building he was appointed manager of the Bristol line of steamers, which position he held until in connection with his brother, Lloyd Briggs, he opened a bankers' and brokers' office at 60 State street, Boston. At the time of his death he was president of the National Bank of the Republic, of Boston.
LLOYD BRIGGS worked on the shipyard until 1846, when he went to Boston, and in 1847 entered the machine shop of Jabez Coney, who gave employment to about two hundred men, twenty being apprentices, and served his time as machinist. He was on the Portsmouth Navy Yard about a year and a half, and assisted in "setting up" the engines in the U. S. S. "Sara- nac." This vessel was afterward lost off California. He also assisted in "setting up" the engines for the floating dry dock at that yard. He was afterward on the Charlestown Navy Yard engaged in the same kind of work. In 1853 he left the machine shop and went into the Broadway National Bank, then located on Broadway, South Boston, and in 1858 into the National Bank of the Republic, where he was teller during the War of the Rebellion, and during which time the work was so heavy that, in 1868, on account of his failing health, he removed to Hanson, giving up all business for three years. In 1870 he built his present residence in Hanover Four Corners, Mass. In 1872-3 he entered into the stock-brokerage business with his brother Harrison O., also doing the notary work for several banks. He is now notary for twenty-three banks, three Trust Companies and numerous bankers, his son L. Vernon, being associated with him.
CHAPTER XVIII.
SCITUATE MISCELLANEOUS YARDS AND BUILDERS 1694-1868.
ASA ROGERS, ELISIIA MERRITT, SAMUEL TURNER, JR., WILLIAM BROOKS, SAMUEL ROGERS, LEONARD LITCHFIELD, FOSTER LITCHFIELD, CUMMINGS LITCHFIELD.
S CITUATE is indebted to the substantial character of some of her first founders, many of whom came from Kent, for so soon taking the lead in rates and levies of men, which superiority it maintained until the time of the latest annals of the colony. Samuel Deane so ably wrote the history and genealogies of her early inhabitants that to-day in many fam- ilies his book is prized more than any other in their possession. He touched on so many subjects that it was not possible for him to do cach justice. This volume is devoted to but one subject, but every subject referred to by Deane in his history, if properly written up before it is too late, would fill a volume as large as this. Let us hope that this work will inspire some one to study other subjects in the town's history, and publish the result of his labors. Rev. Samuel Deane gave instruction to many of Seituate's young men, for which he received fifty cents per week. He was quite a poet, as well as a teacher, and wrote many hymns for the churches. The following poem is from his pen :
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