USA > Massachusetts > Norfolk County > Canton > History of the town of Canton, Norfolk County, Massachusetts > Part 49
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summer. At the first meeting in the autumn Ezekiel Capen was chosen president, and Jeremiah Kollock continued in the office of secretary. In November, 1839, Mr. C. K. Whitney was president. The month following it was voted " that the male teachers of the public schools be honorary members of the association." The last meeting of the year was closed by an appropriate lecture by the Rev. Mr. Kimball. The first business of 1840 was to inflict a fine of twelve and a half cents on absentees, or those who refuse to take part in the duties assigned then1.
On the 25th of January, Ellis Ames, Esq., delivered a learned and eloquent address on "Equitable Jurisdiction." On Sept. 7, 1840, Charles O. Kimball was chosen president, and A. E. Tucker vice-president. On the next week the meet- ing was held at the hall of Mr. Zadock Leonard, which was erected this year, and was called Union Hall. It is still stand- ing, at the junction of Church and Neponset streets. The hall was lighted, heated, and the use of it granted for sixty- two and one-half cents per night. In the cold nights of De- cember the fire was not sufficient, and seventeen cents more was paid for fire and the lighting of an additional chandelier. In September, 1841, Union Hall was decided to be an im- proper place, for the reason that many young men who came with the ostensible purpose of attending the Lyceum and receiving the benefit of the discussions on religion, politics, or history, finding that liquor was sold in the same building, " followed the example of the older ones," and contracted evil habits.
In October, 1840, Rev. C. O. Kimball, then pastor of the Baptist Church, was elected president, and Rev. Mr. Hun- toon was invited to become a member, which he did. The audience, during the latter part of the year, resolved them- selves into a committee of the whole, and Mr. Walworth was frequently called to the chair; and on November 14 he was chosen president, and re-elected the following month. This gentleman is now the head of the Walworth Manufacturing Company.
The following are some of the questions that were dis-
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HISTORY OF CANTON.
cussed during the meetings of this Lyceum: "Which is the most beneficial to the Country, Agriculture or Manufactures?" "Which is the greatest Sin, Intemperance or Slavery?" " Which has caused the most bloodshed, Political Discussion or Religious Fanaticism?" "Ought Capital Punishment to be abolished?" "Which is of the greater Importance, Education or Wealth? " " Is Tobacco beneficial to Health? " The last entry on the record books is on Sept. 20, 1841, when the President announced that the society would probably not meet in that hall again, and Mr. Huntoon then "delivered an interesting lecture." 1
In the old Friend Crane House, which stands on Washing- ton opposite Neponset Street, there was an unfinished room, which, in 1844, bore the name of "Carpenter's Hall." Here met a few young men who called themselves the Canton Young Men's Lyceum. Rev. Benjamin Huntoon lectured to them, and chose the most appropriate subject upon which to start them, -" Character." Whether it was as successful in its results as one on the subject of mesmerism, which sent the entire membership into a delightful sleep, we are not in- formed.2 At one of the early meetings it was decided that two opposition papers should be started in order to furnish fun for the meetings. Charles Endicott was selected as the editor of one, and Enos Upham, Jr., of the other. Mr. Endicott chose for the name of his paper, " The Orion," the first number of which appeared in September, 1844. Mr. Upham's paper came out on the 5th of October, 1844, under the style of " The Independent Emulator."
A lively meeting, which was held at the Stone Factory Chapel, is graphically described by one of the contributors of the "Emulator." It would appear that an Irishman named O'Brion, stated that there were certain clergymen who rented buildings for the sale of intoxicating drinks; being urged by a clergyman present to name his man, he, after some hesitation, said Rev. Dr. John Codman, when a storm of yells, clapping, and hissing arose that was deafening. Investigation subsequently proved that Mr. O'Brion's state-
1 See Appendix XXXIV. 2 See Appendix XXXV.
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LITERARY HISTORY.
ment was correct. These papers, following the custom of other newspapers, published marriages, also advertisements. Mr. Elijah Dunbar proposed to instruct a class in the theory and practice of vocal music, as his grandfather had done one hundred and twenty years before him. The lessons were to be given in Universalist Hall, and the charge was one dollar for twenty-four.
That strict attendance upon the meetings was not the rule would appear from the statement that the Lyceum came near falling through at one time by the appearance in the village of a "band of music and a monkey circus." The varied topics of the times were discussed. The Annexation of Texas, the Liberty Party, Native Americanism, Secret Socie- ties, Total Abstinence, Tobacco, Slavery, the failure of the Millerites to rise, the Whig Supper at Bent's, hard cider, log cabins, the admission of females to the meetings of the So- ciety, the mental ability of women, -. all had attention. We cannot say how much this was a preparation for the future. Two of the members were subsequently to take their place in senatorial halls. The writings of Mr. Endicott were char- acterized by boldness and enthusiasm. He appears not to have been afraid to say what he thought. His outspoken opinions won the respect of the people among whom he moved; and this was true as to Mr. Kaley. One peculiarity of the by-laws of this society was, that " After the question shall have been discussed, the merits of the disputants, not of the question, shall be decided by a vote of the society." Enos Upham, Jr., the editor of the "Emulator," established a mill on the turnpike for the manufacture of cotton goods. He was successful in his enterprise, but was taken sick, and died Jan. 23, 1849, at the age of twenty-four years. The property he had accumulated was not sufficient to pay his indebtedness. He had a brave-hearted sister, named Re- becca, who is recorded in the "Canton Gazette," of June 14, 1828, as having "woven in the Bolivar Manufacturing Com- pany, in one week, between bell hours, 1835 yards of cloth." Rebecca, after the death of Enos, determined to discharge her brother's debts. She worked at the Stone Factory,
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HISTORY OF CANTON.
walking to and from her home, near Gridley's Pond. By this method she succeeded in paying the entire indebtedness of her brother.
On the 9th of November, 1869, the young people connected with the First Congregational Parish organized a society, called the Young People's Union, with the same purpose as the lyceums of former days. It met in the old town-house, the high-school building, and finally in the Parish Hall. It was quite successful for some years, and from it sprung the Can- ton Dramatic Company.
In 1832 a number of ladies, members of the First Parish, formed an association for charitable purposes. The principal originator of the scheme was Mrs. Henry F. Edes, the wife of the pastor of the parish at that time. She was chosen the first president, and continued in that office until her removal from Canton. The office was then conferred on Mrs. Frederic W. Lincoln, who continued as its president until 1869. Dur- ing these years Mrs. Lincoln was a constant attendant upon the monthly meetings of the society when in Canton. She saw the necessity and the need of garments for the poor. Fairs and parties afforded money for the purpose of purchas- ing material, which the ladies cut and sewed into garments at their monthly meetings. Money was also applied for the purchase of books for the library, for the planting of trees in the cemetery; and beside these efforts at home, the society was engaged in clothing the naked and feeding the hungry abroad. The sum of twelve thousand dollars was by this course of unceasing labor devoted to various worthy purposes during a period of forty years. The Bunker Hill Monument Association, the Prisoner's Friend Society, the Freedman's Aid Society, the Meadville Theological School, the Chicago Sufferers, and the soldiers during the war, have all been the recipients of the bounty of this society. Mrs. Amelia How- ard Lincoln died on the 27th of March, 1874, and divided the fortune which her husband had bequeathed to her, with wisdom and judgment. Two hundred thousand dollars were given to the Massachusetts General Hospital; five thousand dollars, to the Children's Mission in Boston ; five thousand
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LITERARY HISTORY.
dollars, to the Massachusetts Infant Asylum; four thousand dollars, to the New England Hospital for Women and Chil- dren; four thousand dollars, to the Home for Little Wander- ers; five thousand dollars, to the Home for Aged Men; five thousand dollars, to the Home for Aged Females; two thou- sand dollars, to the Children's Hospital; two thousand dol- lars, to the Fatherless and Widows' Society; and twenty thousand dollars, to individuals.
For many years the Sewing Circle met at the houses of its members. Later, one of the lower rooms in the old Town House was carpeted, filled with bookcases, and properly lighted and heated. Since the Parish Hall was finished, the meetings have been held there.
The original members of the circle were -
Bazin, Miss Delicia.
Edes, Mrs. H. F.
Bazin, Miss Frances.
Endicott, Miss Hannah.
Bazin, Miss Jane.
Everett, Miss Almira.
Bailey, Miss Caroline.
Everett, Mrs. Leonard.
Bailey, Mrs. Elijah.
French, Miss Milla.
Billings, Ann W.
Fisher, Miss Eunice.
Blackman, Mrs. Ann P.
Fisher, Miss Sarah.
Burgess, Mrs. Almira.
Gerald, Mrs.
Chandler, Miss Polly.
Hixson, Miss Myra.
Crane, Miss Abby.
Horton, May.
Crane, Mrs. Elijah.
Jordan, Mrs. Joanna.
Davenport, Miss Maria.
Kinsley, Mrs. Lyman.
Downes, Mrs. Caroline.
Downes, Miss Dorothy.
Lewis, Miss Rebecca. Lincoln, Mrs. F. W.
Downes, Miss Roxa.
Shepard, Miss Chloe.
Downes, Miss Theoda.
Shepard, Miss Clarissa.
Dunbar, Miss Chloe.
Wales, Miss Milla Ann.
Dunbar, Miss Dorothy.
Wentworth, Miss Eliza.
Dunbar, Mrs. Sarah.
The fiftieth anniversary of the formation of the Sewing Circle was celebrated on the 3d of June, 1883, at the Parish Hall. There were quite a number of the original members present.
In an address delivered at Stoughton, Dec. 15, 1828, at the
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HISTORY OF CANTON.
installation of the officers of Mount Zion, Royal Arch Chap- ter, Rev. Benjamin Huntoon thus speaks of the early masons of Canton: " Our own Revere and Gridley, and many other names too numerous to mention that brighten the annals of our nation, were zealous masons." Paul Revere early became a freemason, and with Warren was the means of founding the Grand Lodge, and attended the constitution of Rising Star Lodge at Stoughton, in 1800. Revere was subsequently Grand Master of the Grand Lodge.
Richard Gridley received the degree of Master Mason, April 4, 1746. Ten years later the Right Worshipful Grand Master Jeremiah Gridley authorized the Right Worshipful Richard Gridley, Esq., to congregate all Free and Accepted Masons in the present expedition against Crown Point, and form them into one or more lodges, as he should think fit.
In September, 1756, at a meeting of the Provincial Grand Lodge, held in Boston, at which without doubt his Excellency, John, Earl of Loudoun, Commander-in-Chief of his Majesty's forces in America, was present, we find that Richard Gridley is styled " Master of the First Lodge." John Rowe ap- pointed Richard Gridley Deputy-Grand Master of St. John's Lodge, Jan. 27, 1769, and he in all probability continued in that office until 1788. Certain it is that he was Deputy-Grand Master in 1787, and no other name appears as holding the office in the interim. He was beloved and respected by all the members of the fraternity of Ancient Free and Accepted Masons. At the decease of his brother Jeremiah, he was unanimously chosen Grand Master of the Provincial Grand Lodge, - an honorable distinction, which he thought it ex- pedient from the pressure of other duties to decline.
During the great anti-masonic excitement which passed over this country between 1825 and 1830, the town of Canton was not without strong partisans on both sides of the ques- tion. Those opposed to the order were active and aggres- sive. The masons refused to discuss the matter; but in December, 1831, a declaration appeared, which stated among other things that " the obligations of the institution require of its members strict obedience to the laws of God and man.
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LITERARY HISTORY.
Every citizen who becomes a mason is doubly bound to be true to his God, his country, and his fellow-man."
Previous to 1862 the masons of Canton were connected with Rising Star Lodge of Stoughton, and those who desired to enter the order or participate in the work or festivities of the association were obliged to drive to Stoughton. Two of the Canton masons were charter members of Rising Star Lodge. Col. Nathan Gill and Amos Upham deeming it too far to go on winter nights, a nuniber of gentlemen who were affiliated with Stoughton, but resided in Canton, met at the office of the Kinsley Iron and Machine Company, and considered the advisability of forming a new lodge. It was deemed expe- dient so to do, and in due time application was made to the Grand Lodge for a warrant, which was granted in 1863. The same year a portion of the upper story of the Massapoag House was suitably arranged as a lodge-room. The hall was duly dedicated. A charter was obtained the year following.
In 1872 the room, low, narrow, and unventilated, was aban- doned, and the upper story of the building on Church Street, known as the Armory, was converted to the uses of the lodge. In 1881 the lodge removed to the new and commodious hall in Brooks's block.
Revere Post, Grand Army of the Republic, was organized in 1869. In 1874 the organization consisted of forty mem- bers, and the meetings were held in Temperance Hall. The headquarters were subsequently removed to the hall in the Massapoag House, formerly occupied by the Masonic Lodge. From this place the Post moved to Wentworth Hall, then in 188 1. to the Armory Building on Church Street.
It has been the custom of this Post to have an oration de- livered in connection with the annual decoration of the graves of the soldiers who fell in the War of the Rebellion. These orations have been printed, and furnish a series which scarcely any other town possesses. They begin in 1871. In 1869 the services were performed by the citizens. In 1870 Mr. Wil- liam E. Endicott delivered the address. The subsequent ad- dresses were delivered in 1871 by Henry B. Miner; 1872, by Charles Endicott; 1873, by J. Mason Everett; 1874, by John
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HISTORY OF CANTON.
D. Billings; 1875, by D. T. V. Huntoon; 1876, by Henry F. Buswell; 1877, by D. T. V. Huntoon; 1878, by Rev. William H. Savary; 1879, by Samuel B. Noyes; 1880, by Thomas E. Grover; 1881, by Sandford Waters Billings, of Sharon; 1882, by William E. Endicott; 1883, by Edward M. Lancaster, of Hyde Park; 1884, by Rev. Richard Eddy.
At a fair held in Memorial Hall in 1879, for the benefit of the Grand Army Post, a feature of great interest was a col- lection of curiosities of the ancient time. This loan collec- tion embraced articles of interest, representing the aboriginal, colonial, provincial, revolutionary, and later periods of our country's history, from the rude implements manufactured and used by the Ponkapoag Indians, down to the tattered remnants of rebel battle-flags, brought home by Canton boys from the bloody fields of the South. Here were arrow and spear heads, pestles, sinkers, all turned up by the plough of some Canton farmer. Here were old corroded coins used by the early settlers, which have been dug upon the site of the " May Tavern " and other ancient hostelries, after having been buried in the soil for nearly two centuries. The faces of William and Mary, the four Georges, and the pillars of Spain, appeared in the cases. Here were the faces of Roger Sherman and Paul Revere and other worthies of Canton. In one case we saw the autographs of the first five ministers of Canton, and sermons preached by them in the old meeting- house, erected in 1747; elsewhere was a portion of the pulpit stairs of the old meeting-house itself. Here was the auto- graph of Samuel Dunbar, his manuscript sermons, the pic- tures that once hung on the walls of the old parsonage, an old shoe buckle found in the garret of the house where he died. Here was the autograph of his successor, and his silhou- ette, and the autograph of William Sherman, father of Roger Sherman. Here also we see a portrait and autograph of his illustrious son, the signer of the Declaration of Independence. This is Deacon Joseph Tucker's handwriting, one of the first settlers of Canton. This bold signature is Isaac Royall's, a great man in his day. Against the wall hung the bill of sale of a slave, and a chain made from the gold beads which once
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LITERARY HISTORY.
adorned the neck of a slave. Here was a beautifully em- broidered christening dress, in which four generations had been carried to the font, knee and shoe buckles, and high- heeled satin slippers, and an old pipe taken from a British officer as a souvenir during the Revolution. Beautiful speci- mens of wrought work and old-fashioned samplers adorned the walls. Here was a chair once owned by Deborah Samp- son, the female soldier of the Revolution. One case was made from the wood of the frigate " Constitution," and this rough piece of wood was shorn from
" The 'Somerset,' British man-of-war."
Here is the chair that General Gridley sat in, an adze he made, with his monogram and name stamped upon it; here is a piece of the quilted petticoat the blushing Hannah Dem- ming wore when he led her to the altar; and here is the queue that was braided for the last time when they laid him in his unmarked grave over eighty years ago. Here are weapons which have seen service in the French and Indian wars, hal- berds, swords, rapiers, and cutlasses, rusting in their scab- bards, which have seen service against the invading hosts of Britain in two wars. Here is an original account of the meeting at Doty's Tavern, the original broadside of the Suf- folk Resolves. On one of the tables is a teapot from which Mrs. Doty poured tea in the ancient inn under the Blue Hill. Here are the scales used by Paul Revere when a silver- smith; his portrait is here. Here were his flintlock pistols, and his autograph receipting for powder which Major Thomas Crane had delivered at the Castle, from the Canton powder- mill, also here the cumbersome machine with which the powder was tested. In the corner stands a tall clock, running accu- rately, and made by Simon Willard. Here is a pile of Conti- nental paper money, and a fine collection of early Provincial coins. Here is the Massachusetts cent and half-cent, the Vermont, Connecticut, and New Jersey cents, and almost a complete set of the coins issued by the United States since the establishment of the mint in 1792. Pewter platters, por- ringers, bellows, and other articles used one hundred and
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HISTORY OF CANTON.
fifty years ago, and forming part of the household economy of those times, are plainly displayed. Here are two pianos, imported from London, the keys worn thin by gentle fingers. Here are carved mahogany chairs and inlaid card-tables.
Oct. 17, 1845, was instituted Blue Hill Lodge, No. 93, of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. Its hall was dedi- cated July 17, 1846. The Rev. Benjamin Huntoon delivered the address. This organization had for its seal a picture of the viaduct with an engine coming into view. Behind was a hill and a large eye overlooking the whole prospect. This society went to pieces in a few years, a few unworthy mem- bers appropriating all the assets. It has since been revived, and occupies the former Massapoag Hall.
Jan. 3, 1849, was instituted the Massapoag Division Sons of Temperance. The meetings were held in a hall on the corner of Washington and Mechanics streets. It has been defunct many years, but another like organization takes its place.
In March, 1871, was organized the Canton Historical Society. It was composed of gentlemen who had been members of the Gibbon Club, -a club which had met for some years for the purpose of reading ancient history. These gentlemen were mostly natives of Canton. They formed a society for the purpose of obtaining and preserv- ing all material that would throw light upon the history of the town. They proposed to transcribe all records, not copied; to take a copy of the inscriptions on all the older gravestones in the town; to obtain all documents, sermons, diaries, account-books, town and school reports, -in fact every document that could throw light upon the life, charac- ter, or times of Canton persons. Their first appeal contained these words: -
" We want to treasure up all the old traditions from the time of the Indians to the present day. We should like, above all things, to rum- mage in forsaken attics, to ransack those mouldering papers which the good-wife has declared time and time again she will sell to the ragman. We have reason to believe that bushels of this 'old stuff' are yearly given to the flames, and we desire to save it, and that immediately ; for if we of the present generation allow these precious memorials of the past to be lost, no industry, no wealth, can supply the deficiency."
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LITERARY HISTORY.
Daniel T. V. Huntoon was elected president and Frederic Endicott secretary in 1871, and continued in their respective offices. The original object of the society has not been strictly carried out; but the society, soon after its organiza- tion, established the " Fast-Day Walk." Some portion of the town was annually visited. All the traditions of the past, all the old maps and deeds, were produced. Some one fam- iliar with the territory was invited to accompany the society, and a long tramp to view old cellar-holes and the sites of an- cient farm-houses was taken. Excursions were also made to the neighboring towns, where the society were met by the local antiquaries.
In 1879 it was decided to erect a trough which should per- petuate the fact that John Eliot preached to the Indians of Ponkapoag, and at the same time furnish a convenient water- ing-trough for man and beast, serving also as a permanent guide-board. The leading citizens of Canton cheerfully con- tributed a sufficient sum, and a substantial granite trough was erected (1880) at the corner of Washington and Randolph streets, bearing the following inscription: " In memory of the labors of the Apostle Eliot among the Indians at Pon- kapoag, 1650-1690." Several gentlemen also erected free watering-troughs in the town, at the suggestion of members of the society, - Elijah A. Morse in 1877, and William O. Chapman in 1880, and. later, Edwin Wentworth and Miss Caroline T. Downes.
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HISTORY OF CANTON.
.
CHAPTER XLIII.
TOWN-HOUSES. - MEMORIAL HALL.
U TNTIL 1831 the town-meetings were held in the meeting- houses. The old Town House, situated at Canton Centre, was erected by the Baptist Society during the years 1819 and 1820. The land was purchased for the sum of eighty dollars, from Alexander French. The building was 40 X 36 feet, and cost two thousand dollars. It was formally opened for worship, Jan. 14, 1821. The first town-meeting was held in this house on May 3, 1824.
In 1836 the Baptist Society built its present house of wor- ship, and a committee was appointed to purchase the old Baptist meeting-house for a town-house; the sum paid being $650. The following year it was recommended to the town to close up the open space between the galleries, making the building of two stories. This the town voted to do, and the building remained in this condition, with the exception of the granite door-steps, added in 1842, to the time of its demolition. In 1884 the town voted to sell it at public auction, and in July it was sold for thirty-one dollars. Its timbers were re- moved to the Farms, and used in the building of a barn.
At a town-meeting held June 17, 1878, it was voted to build a new town-hall; a lot was chosen at the corner of Washington and Sherman streets; the land was given to the town by Elijah A. Morse.
Memorial Hall was dedicated Oct. 30, 1879, the Governor of the Commonwealth being present, and the address was delivered by Charles Endicott. A full account of the build- ing, with the address, was published in the annual town-book of 1880. The brick work is laid in black mortar, and black brick is used to a considerable extent for decoration. Pressed
.
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TOWN-HOUSES.
brick has been used for the two fronts. The roof is covered with the best black Maine slate. The main building is IOI X 62 feet on the foundation. The main front has a projection of seven feet by thirty-one feet in width, which rises five feet above the walls of the main building. On each side at the front are projections of eighteen inches. The building covers six thousand five hundred square feet. Its extreme height is eighty feet above the grade line. The basement is eleven and a half feet high, first story twelve feet, and second story twenty-six feet in the clear. The building is entered by a flight of six steps of hammered Concord granite ten feet wide, twenty long, and partly cov- ered by a porch. The marble-tiled vestibule is entered by two sets of double black walnut doors, opposite which are ash doors with glass panels. On the right is the ticket-office, on the left a door to the basement stairs. The stairway hall is 22 X 28. On either side are flights of stairs six feet wide. On the right is a lobby, doors from which enter the town- clerk's room, and the selectmen's room; and on the left is the librarian's room. In the centre, and opposite the prin- cipal entrance, is a wide double-door to the corridor. On either side of this door are placed the Memorial Tablets, a description of which we give further on. The corridor is 8 X 44. On the right are doors to the selectmen's room and school committee's room, which is 1614 X 24, and a side corridor sixteen feet long leading to the side entrance. On the north side is the library 24 X 44 feet. At the east end is the small hall, 3012 X 481/2 feet. The side entrance has steps similar to those on the front of the building. Doors from this entrance enter the school committee's room, corri- dor, small hall, and the private stairway hall which leads to the hall stage above. From this stairway are doors to basement stairs and officer's toilet. The landing at the front stairs is 1372 X 28. Opposite the stairs are two sets of folding-doors to the audience hall. On the left is a passage-way to the audience hall and ladies' private room; on the right are stairs to the gallery, and a door to the lobby, which is 1434 X 16 feet. The audience hall is 58 X 57
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