USA > Massachusetts > Bristol County > Acushnet > History of the Town of Acushnet, Bristol County, State of Massachusetts > Part 19
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Taber, Asa, ship Globe, Nov. 16, 1850; the ship was lost on East Cape, Behring Strait, Aug. 1851; ship Thomas Dickerson, June 26, 1852; ship Adeline, Oct. 22, 1856. Taber, Cyrus. Taber, George. Taber, Hum- phrey. Taber, Jacob .* Taber, Joseph, Jr., ship Isabella, April 13, 1831 ; ship Geo. Howland, Dec. 5, 1834. Taber, Joseph, Condor, July 7, 1846. Taber, Joseph R., bark Dryad, Rochester, May 29, 1833, and July 13, 1834. Taber, Marcus. Taber, Mason. Taber, Pardon, Jr .* Taber, Stephen. Taber, Walter, ship Louisiana, Aug. 15, 1850. Taber, William, sloop Industry, 1794; schooner Swan. Tinkham, Silas, died on his second voyage in the Juno.
West, Bartholomew, bark Emigrant, June 1, 1848; the ship was found in 1849 bottom up, none of the crew ever heard from.
Whelden, Alexander. Whelden, Joseph; Captain Whelden was a boatsteerer on the famous old whaler Rebecca, built in 1785 for Joseph Russell of New Bedford and named for his wife. Wing, Andrew J., ship Canton, Ang. 10, 1852; the ship was lost in the Pacific ocean with 1,300 barrels whale oil on board; ship Kutercoff, Nov. 14, 1855. Wing, James A .*
The writer has made earnest efforts by advertising in newspapers, by letters and circulars to obtain a more complete list of the Acushnet born who became the ranking officer of a whaler's quarter deck and learn more of the voyages and lives of these brave, successful men, with the above meagre result.
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A few figures about whale oils will be of interest. The lowest price paid for oil since the industry commenced was in 1823 when sperm oil sold for forty-three cents per gallon and whale oil for thirty-two cents. The highest price, which was a few years ago, when one dollar was paid for sperm and fifty cents for whale. The greatest imports of oil into New Bedford was in 1851-53-54-57 when it amounted to from 10,000.000 to 11,000,000 barrels per annum.
This town has the distinguished honor of having a whaleship bearing the same name. The ship Acushnet was built in Fairhaven in 1840. Bradford, Fuller & Co., were the agents. She sailed on her first voyage June 3, 1841. Four years from that date she brought home 850 barrels sperm oil, 1,350 barrels of whale oil, and 13,500 pounds of bone. On the next voyage one of her boats in pursuit of a whale was stove and John Taber, first mate, and four of the crew were drowned. Her next voyage was in the Pacific ocean where she was lost on St. Lawrence Island, August 16, 1851.
PRECINCT CHURCH AT ACUSHNET VILLAGE
The religious society of the First Precinct of Old Dartmouth which flourished for a century and worshipped in a house which stood where the cemetery near Parting Ways now is, began its existence, according to traditions, in 1696. This tradition, in the writer's judg- ment, is supported by facts. This organization was composed of men and women of the faith and doctrine of the Plymouth church with the forms and government of the Presbyterian sect, similar in many particulars to the Congregational denomination of today. Many of the strongest men in this community were among its original and future membership. This society does not appear as such in the "Minister law" struggle between the town and the General Court till 1708. On May 1st of that year Doctor Cutler declined an invitation of the Court to be a minister of the town, and June 3d of the same year Samuel Hunt of Weymouth, Mass., was commissioned by the Governor and Council "as Minister of Dartmouth"- not of this society-with the assurance from them of pecuniary support in part from the Province treasury. Dartmouth people saw victory in this act. The mechanism that brought about this appointment of young Mr. Hunt, who was then but twenty-two years of age, no records disclose. But from the facts that he was a Congregationalist, that he at once became the recognized pastor of the Precinct society, and that he subsequently married a daughter of Colonel Seth Pope, who was a leading man in the Precinct society and had considerable influence with the executive officers of the Province, one may conjecture how the scheme was conducted.
This act of the officials made Samuel Hunt the first of the four pastors of the Precinct church with a long, interesting, useful history. The erection of a house of worship was commenced at once-by the society,
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not the town-on a lot subsequently conveyed to them, "the people of God called Presbyterians," by John Jenne, in a deed, a copy of which is given on another page. This is proven by a statement in Mr. Jenne's deed that the lot is "where the meeting house now stands;" and from the vote of the General Court on June 15, 1709, that "fifteen pounds be Allowed and Paid out of the Publick treasury to Seth Pope, Esq., towards finishing the Meeting House lately erected in Dartmouth."
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When Dartmouth found that the sum paid out of the Province treas- ury towards the support of Mr. Hunt was assessed to them they were wroth beyond description. Protests were sent to the General Court against this procedure, and the selectmen refused to collect the tax and were imprisoned eighteen months therefor. An embassy was sent to England by the town in 1724 and represented the case and their grievances before the King and his Council. This resulted in a royal order that the disputed taxes should not be collected and the imprisoned officers be released. The town's victory was complete. An outcome of this act of the king was the enactment of a law by the General Court of 1729 exempting Quakers and Baptists from paying taxes for town churches. Another triumph !
There remained in force, however, the obnoxious rule of electing a minister in town meeting. This was loyally performed by Dartmouth, but the successful candidate was invariably a Quaker or Baptist for whose support no appropriation was required. In 1723 Nathaniel Howland, a "much respected Quaker preacher," grandson of Henry mentioned above, was chosen in town meeting as the minister-fifty-five votes were cast for him and twelve for Samuel Hunt. The' town was remarkably generous in 1730 when two ministers "were chosen and approbated for the town's ministers' to dispense the word and promote the Gospel of Christ"- Nicholas Davis of Acushnet and Philip Taber of Westport: But Davis was a Quaker and Taber a Baptist. The Precinct minister, Richard Pierce, was not even a candidate for the position.
Not till 1747 were church matters eliminated from town meeting, where they had been a bone of contention and caused much bitter contro- versy for more than three quarters of a century. This was done by an act of the General Court dividing the town into two precincts-all the territory around the Acushnet river including this town being made the ' second precinct. Each precinct, however, had the power to tax all the inhabitants within its bounds for its religious needs and to attach and sell property of persons who refused to pay such tax. This authority was exercised many times by the officials of Acushnet precinct. A quantity of hay was seized from Samuel Pope of Sconticut Neck, in this vicinity, who refused to pay the minister rate. One whose father was an attendant at the Parting Ways church related to the writer that to his personal knowl- edge a cow belonging to a Baptist minister was seized to pay his tax
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towards the support of the Congregational minister there. The following is a copy of an advertisement of seizure and sale under this practice in this locality :
Thefe are to give Public Notice that there is to be Sold at out cry or Publick Vandu to the highest bider next Fryday at 10 of the Clock in the fore Noon at the Dwelling House of me * or three & vantage Heffer with calf which I have taken by Destrant from * to Pay His Part of our ministers Rate Dated at Rochester oct the 31st 1757.
Got me
precinct collector.
The lot on which the above mentioned house of worship was erected, now the cemetery located a few hundred feet west of Parting Ways, was originally known as "Meeting House Green," and later the rise of ground on the top of which it stood was called Burial Hill. The building was a small structure and stood a few feet back of the present entrance to the lot. Where the highway is now there was then only a cart path, which was on a level with the surface of the ground on both sides of the present road. An increase in population and in religious matters made it neces- sary to build a larger house which was done in 1743. The only record of this act in existence is doubtless this entry in an ancient family Bible which is vouched for on reliable authority as referring to this second meeting house :
"The dedication of the new meeting-house was the fifth of January 1744. The first Sabbath was the eighth day."
This fixes the date of dedication, Thursday, January fifth, 1744. The latter house was about fifty feet square and its exterior as pictured in the accompanying half tone. There were entrances on the east and west ends, besides the front. Galleries extended along three sides of the interior which was elaborately finished for the times. The pulpit was of the latest style, semi-circular, high, with fancifully carved trimmings, and reached by steps at its rear. Suspended over it by a rod from the ceiling was a sounding board. At one end of the east gallery were reserved seats for slaves and other Negroes. The pews on the main floor were square and high back, the "Deacon's Pue" being in the front row before the pulpit. Near the front corners of the house were two horse blocks at which the attendants at the services mounted and dismounted their horses. for in the earlier years every one who did not walk from their homes came on horseback, women riding on a pillion behind the men. No arti- ficial heat was permitted in these houses except foot stoves brought from the homes for women and children who did not use foot bags of fur. Men would not indulge in them, that would be too effeminate, and they bravely sat through the usual two hours' service in zero temperature clad in cowhide boots, yarn mittens and homespun overcoats. This was the practice everywhere. Judge Sewell wrote that he recollected a sermon two hours and a half long; that Rev. Zachery Symmes was known
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to preach from four to five hours; that he had attended a communion service where the "Bread was frozen at the Lord's Table." In this Acushnet meeting house there were but few books with psalms for sing- ing, no written music, only about a dozen tunes, and no instrument but the pitch-pipe. The opening of the service was indicated by the minister turning the hour glass, and the young people doubtless watched the falling sands with greater interest than they listened to the "deaconing" or "lining" of the psalm to be sung, and the long sermon. There was no Sunday school and the noon hour was passed in refreshing the inner man, in rehearsing the affairs of everyday life, in baiting the horses, and in winter refilling the foot stoves with live coals, preparatory to another long service.
Faithful ones walked up from lower Fairhaven, and down from Rochester where there was no Orthodox church, a round trip of ten to twelve miles, with surprising regularity, to these services. Shoe leather was expensive and one who wished to economize in footwear came bare- footed, with shoes in his hands, to the so called "shoeing places." Here men, women and children dressed their feet and proceeded on their way. One of these shoeing places was at a rock or ledge on the west side of Fairhaven road about five hundred feet south of Parting Ways; the other was at the top of the hill about a quarter of a mile north of Parting Ways. This practice was related to me by one whose grandparents were among the actors. He said when the audience filled the old church the boys were allowed to sit on the gallery stairs, which they greatly enjoyed. Perhaps the permit for this was worded like the one of which the follow- ing is an exact copy :
"All ye Boyes of ye towne are appoynted to sitt upon ye three paire , of stairs at ye Meeting House and * is appoynted to looke after ye Boys on ye pulpit stairs."
This was in force only on special occasions as announced from the pulpit.
The old church building was sold in 1837 to Isaac Vincent, a trader, who tore it down and used some of the material in the construction of a dwelling house. Therefore for almost a century this beacon of Chris- tianity stood on the top of Burial Hill. And for more than ten decades the Christ has been lifted up in its pulpit and that of its predecessor, and His promise that when this was done He would draw men unto Him had been wonderfully fulfilled.
This society had a long, eventful and remarkably interesting history. Its officials were among the intelligent, able men of the community, and its record must have been voluminous and complete. My efforts through correspondence and wide newspaper advertising to find them have been unsuccessful, excepting the few fragmentary leaves of a record book of the church in possession of the Unitarian society at New Bedford. These have a few items of business and some vital statistics. This and a
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few public documents in the office of the Secretary of this Commonwealth is about all we have, excepting what little has recently been learned from aged descendants of members of the society or congregation. It appears that four pastorates comprised the little over one hundred years of this history.
Rev. Samuel Hunt, twenty-one years. Rev. Richard Pierce, sixteen years. Rev. Israel Cheever, A. M., three years. Rev. Samuel West, D. D., forty years.
All of these men were graduates of Harvard University.
Mr. Hunt came here from his birthplace at Weymouth, Mass., in May or June, 1708. He was graduated from Harvard in 1700, and at once entered upon the Christian ministry. Mr. Hunt came here in the midst
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THE PRECINCT MEETING HOUSE, 1744-1837.
of the struggle between the town and the Plymouth Court on the minister law subject, but he evidently did not permit himself to be entangled in the controversy. Mr. Hunt's salary the first year was but $100 per annum, and his "Bed and Table maintenance." He frequently appealed for financial aid from the Province treasury, which was granted in every instance. On the death of his father, Ephraim, and his father-in-law. Col. Seth Pope, he became possessed of considerable property, and later bought the estate northwest corner of Bridge street and Acushnet avenue, at Lund's corner, where he lived. At his death his real estate amounted to 210 acres. His headstone in the Precinct cemetery bears this inscription :
""'Here lieth ye body of the Revd Samuel Hunt, ordained minister over the church of Christ in Dartmouth, who died Jany ye 25th, 1729, in ye 48 year of his age."
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Richard Pierce was the immediate successor of Mr. Hunt, whose youngest sister, Mercy, he married. Mr. Pierce was graduated at Har- vard in 1724, at the age of twenty-four. He was called at a church meeting held June 19, 1730, and served as pastor for sixteen years, but continued to reside in the town till his death, March 23, 1749. Little is known of him or the value of his pastorate, but one may form an opinion of these from the facts that he remained with this people so many years; that a new church was built meantime, and that on his headstone in Pre- cinct cemetery are these words: "A gentleman of unspotted character in the office he sustained who lived greatly beloved and died much lamented."
Israel Cheever, A. M., was installed here in 1751. From Richard Pierce's resignation in 1746 till Mr. Cheever came there is no evidence of a settled pastor. It is said that Rev. Joseph Roberts, minister at the "Prisbiterian" church in Little Compton, R. I., was called in this interim, but declined to accept. Mr. Cheever was born in 1720, and was graduated at Harvard in 1749. This was his first settled pastorate. That he remained here till 1759 indicates his faithfulness.
Samuel West, D. D., succeeded Mr. Cheever. His pastorate of forty- two years here, all of his Christian ministry, was the crowning era of this ancient parish. He was born in Barnstable town, Mass., in 1730; grad- uated at Harvard College in 1754; was cordially invited to the pastorate of this church September 25, 1760; ordained June 3, 1761; relinquished his pastoral duties on account of age in June, 1803; died at Tiverton, R. I., September 24, 1807, and was buried beside the old church in which he had preached the gospel for forty-two consecutive years.
.From the cradle to the grave this man had a remarkable career. There is room in this book for only a brief allusion to his brilliant record. He was called "one of the giants of his time." And this he was physi -. cally and mentally. He was over six feet tall and weighed at his best two hundred pounds. Whether in society, or in the pulpit, or in political debate, he manifested a winning personality.
My knowledge of Dr. West, gained' from numerous interviews with his grandson, who was a physician in the family of my father; from others of his descendants; from his writings; from those who were mem- bers of his congregation and came in personal touch with him, leads me to the conclusion that he possessed a vigorous, highly educated mind, was a keen observer, a hard student, an ardent patriot, a zealous Chris- tian, a genial associate, and had few equals in the pulpit and pastorate. He was especially helpful to the federal cause in the Revolutionary War period, in army camps and in political councils and state conventions, where his eminent ability was publicly recognized. He was a member of the Massachusetts Constitutional Convention of 1788, in which Gov- ernor Hancock manifested his appreciation of Dr. West's excellent judg-
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ment and merits as a leader in that dark crisis. He was paid the distin- guished honor of being chosen to deliver a sermon before "The Honorable Council and the Honorable House of Representatives of the Colony" at Boston, May 29, 1776, in the midst of our struggle for Independence. This was his text: "Put him in mind to be subject to principalities and powers, to obey magistrates and to be ready to do every good work." The sermon may be found in a book called the "Pulpit of the American Revolution."
Dr. West was an able, interesting, drawing preacher. Among the large membership of the church were leading men and women of the community. His full congregations were due mainly to his personality, but there was less then to tempt one to neglect attendance upon public worship on the Lord's day and to lead to Sabbath desecration than now. The sacred ( ?) concerts on the Sabbath, the Sunday newspapers, the Sunday vaudeville, the Sunday base ball, the Sunday cock fight, and the indulgence in all varieties of pastime on Sunday, were fortunately for them and us not in existence in those days. Then it was the fashion and habit to "go to meeting" on the Lord's day-now the fashion and habit to remain away from the house of worship on that day largely prevails.
Notwithstanding Dr. West's ability and high standing his salary was always a meagre one. Much of the time it was largely in arrears. This was the recorded complaint of his predecessor, Richard Pierce, who, near the date of his resignation, declared over his own signature that there was due him as unpaid salary "sixteen hundred pounds of lawful money," which he stated was his entire salary for the sixteen years of his pas- torate of this church. He demanded the payment of this indebtedness, but there appears no record that he ever collected the sum due. There was promised for the first year of Dr. West's pastorate only 66€. 13s., 4d., and his salary evidently did not exceed over $400 per annum during his ministry here. He made a statement at each yearly meeting of the society of the sum received and balance due him on account of salary. It appears that the arrearage in 1785 was 541f., 12s., 11d. Hopeless of getting this from the parish he adds :
"This account I desire may be laid before the Quarter Session of the Civil Court which sits at Taunton this week, that they may order the Precinct officers to collect the money for me. My reasons for this request are: First, I owe money which I want to pay. Secondly, I want bread-corn for my family, and I can neither get money to purchase it nor the promise of it from those who owe me. Thirdly, I want clothing for myself and family. These are important articles for which, if they cannot be obtained, my family must suffer."
His parishioners were not altogether to blame for this apparent injustice. This was soon after the pinching times following the Revolu- tionary War, and most of his parishioners were as poor and needy as their reverend minister. There is no record to show that the precinct was free of debt to the Doctor till June, 1803, at the close of his ministry here,
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when it was voted to pay him the sum of "$800 in full of all demands. Jonathan Swift, Precinct clerk."
In the latter years of. Dr. West's ministry he had no sympathy with taxing the people for the support of the ministry, and at his request con- tribution boxes for collecting the money for salary and church expenses were introduced, and on these and the "sounding board" were inscribed at his suggestion the following quaint, comprehensive and now historic couplet :
"Those who debate to pay by rate to end dispute may contribute."
Doctor West's home was the farm at the northeast corner of Matta- poisett and Long Plain roads. His residence there is now standing about two hundred feet north of the corner .* Here he kept open house and entertained many distinguished persons.
Dr. West was married first at Plymouth, Mass., by Rev. Jacob Bacon, to Experience5, daughter of Consider4, (Thomas3, Joseph2, John1 of the Mayflower,) Howland, b. 1748, d. 1789. (See Howland Genealogy). Ex- perience Howland's sister married Thomas Crandon, who became a promi- nent citizen of this town. Experience was very tall of stature and an ex- cellent home maker. The doctor would playfully remark to his friends that he had "learned from experience what it was to have a good wife," and "one long for this world." But she died when but forty-one years of age, leaving an infant son, Samuel, who with his son John, became popular physicians at Tiverton, R. I., where Samuel died June 15, 1838, age 64 years. Their daughter Hannah was a popular school teacher of this town. Dr. West married second, Louisa, widow of Capt. Benjamin Jenney. His decease occurred at the house of his son Samuel at Tiverton, R. I. On his headstone in the Precinct graveyard, just in the rear of the house of God in which for near half a century he proclaimed the gospel as "the power of God unto salvation unto everyone that believeth," is the following inscription :
"Samuel West, D. D.,
the son of Dr. Sackfield West, by his wife Ruth Jenkins, was born at Yarmouth, C. C., March 3d, 1729-30, O. S. Ordained in this place June 3, 1761. Relinquished his pastoral charge June, 1803. Died at Tiver- ton, R. I., Sept. 24th, 1807."
The death knell of this society whose remarkable history had covered a period of a hundred years was sounded when the resignation of Doctor West, in consequence of infirmity of seventy-nine years of life, was ac- cepted in June 1803. This blow was supplemented by the moving of many of the congregation and supporters into New Bedford and Fair- haven, which were offering great inducements for such migration. So fatal to the future welfare of this precinct were these conditions that regular religious and business meetings ceased at once to be held. From this time till the old house disappeared, in 1837, the only gatherings *See "Dr. West home" in appendix.
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held there were occasional series of religious services by brief transient supplies and by traveling evangelists; a Sunday school conducted by a resident physician named Finney ; a few meetings of the Methodist church society after it was organized in 1807, and town meetings of New Bed- ford and later of Fairhaven. One of the itinerant preachers, who always drew a congregation that packed the house whether he was there in the day time or evening, was the eccentric, everywhere popular Lorenzo Dow. On his last appearance there the building being old and really unfit for such use, in the midst of his fervent address, one of the crowded galleries began to crack. This created an alarm and stampede which it was im- possible for Dow to prevent. Dow cried out in his characteristic manner : "If you are so frightened at a noise like this, what will you do at the crack of doom announcing the judgment day!" He rushed across the highway through the terrified crowd where there was a pile of lumber from which the house now standing there was being constructed. He hastily mounted the pile and shouted to the throng before him: "I have preached in dwellings and in barns and in meeting houses, but I've always found the most room out of doors," and proceeded with his interrupted discourse, holding the throng till its close an hour later. One of my two in- formers of this memorable event to the villagers who were present, was in the gallery and the other, a small boy, was dropped out of a win- dow to the ground by his anxious mother, whom he joined at one of the outer doors of the building.
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