USA > Massachusetts > Worcester County > Gardner > History of the town of Gardner, Worcester County, Mass., from the incorporation, June 27, 1785, to the present time > Part 7
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Then, too, we should not forget the good old days of our fathers, when every able bodied man, from eighteen to forty- five, was a soldier, subject to military duty, when the spirit of '76 still fired the hearts of the people, when every town had its May training, its quota of old, flint-lock muskets, powder house and other military furnishings, required by the state ; when regimental musters, in the Autumn, were grand occasions, to all the vicinity, when, as John Milton says, there were, " our trained bands, which are the trustiest and most proper strength of a free nation ;" when the boys, too young to train, went to the " battle field," not like David, to carry cheeses and parched corn, to their brethren, but to eat baker's gingerbread and candy, and to stare, with open mouths, at voluble hucksters, as they hawked their wares ; or to look, with wondering eyes,
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like Pickwick, upon the rhythmical movements of the battalions, as, with musket, knapsack, powder horn and canteen, they marched and countermarched, and performed their mysterious evolutions, upon the field where
" From the glittering staff unfurled The imperial ensign, which, full high advanced, Shone like a meteor, streaming to the wind, With gems and golden lustre emblazed."
How marvellously did the officers appear, as they marched at the head of their companies, or flitted across the campus on mettled steeds, with distended nostrils and foaming mouths, or prancing in side-long motions, excited by the music of
" Sonorous metal, blowing martial sounds,"
from all the assembled and tumultuous regimental bands. How these wondering boys watched the motions of "the general commanding," or other superior officer, who, with all " the pomp and circumstance of glorious war," galloped down upon some careless or straggling company, to utter, m guttural tones, the command, that brought them into military line again. How they gazed upon the cavalry, as they advanced, " on sounding hoofs," splendid in their burnished accoutrements fitted to " witch the world with noble horsemanship," and finally, how their nerves thrilled, with excitement, as they witnessed the " sham fight," between companies, selected for the high endeavor, of firing blank cartridges at each other, in imitation of battles more serious.
We may talk humorously of these days of May trainings, and annual musters, but let us not forget their wonderfully beneficial effect in keeping aglow, in the minds of our country- men, the military spirit, out of which, sprung the achievements connected with our national independence. With
" The drum And the vile squeaking of the wry-neck'd fife,"
our fathers kept alive, in themselves and their children, the determination to maintain their country's rights, in the face of all opposition, at home and abroad, and we honor them for so doing, for,
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" War is honorable In those who do their native rights maintain ;
In those whose swords an iron barrier are
Between the lawless spoiler and the weak."
They were living in times of great and general excitement throughout the whole nation, when, on all these hillsides and up and down these valleys, questions of state and nation were largely and intelligently discussed. Their town meetings were no tame affairs. The citizens had before them, for settlement, matters of vital concern to them, and grandly and heroically did they meet them. Hence, considering the times in which they lived, and the topics which they had to discuss and settle, in their town meetings, the exertions they were compelled to make for a livelihood, and for independent existence, as a town- ship, we may conclude that, in the veins of our fathers, there was no stagnant blood. We may say of our ancestors, consid- ering their necessities, that they were men and women of pro- digious industry, who ate not the bread of idleness. In heat and cold, seed time and harvest, they were busy and frugal, seeking, by all honest endeavors, to wrench, from a hard, unkindly soil, an honorable livelihood. Their children were taught how to work, within doors and without. They tolerated no idle drones.
Their sons were brought up in habits of industry and economy, and early made to feel the necessity of bearing some part in their own maintenance. They either worked on the farm, or were indentured, as apprentices, to some one, who should give them a good trade and, at their majority, a suit of clothes and whatever else might be specified in the indenture. Their daugh- ters were taught to spin and weave, and do all kinds of domes- tie work, and sometimes to help in the fields, in planting and harvesting. They were taught the rudiments of common learn- ing. They could read, write and spell, in a fashion, not excelled, nor even equaled, by their successors. They were not wanting, in a good knowledge of arithmetic, as far as the " Rule of Three." Thus furnished, these sons and daughters went forth, into the work of life, not to feed on already accumulated patri-
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monies, but to make their own way in the world, by the sweat of their own faces. If they were deprived of many things, now enjoyed by their children, they yet might say, with Gold- smith, that,
" Their best companions were innocence and health, And their best riches ignorance of wealth."
Our fathers were men who feared God and honored their rulers, over whom they dared to exercise a watchful care, and to whom, they sometimes hesitated not, to administer sound advice. They were accustomed " to look quite through the deeds of men," to know their civil and religious rights, and were determined to secure and maintain them, in a spirit of independence, scornful of all undue interference ;
" Contentment shares their desolate domain, With Independence, child of high disdain."
It is no matter ot surprise then, that, endowed as the early in- habitants of this town were, with independence, fortitude, industry, frugality and a high sense of honor, in the discharge of their obligations to God and man, they should have achieved the end they had in view, in establishing this town and making it an honored constituent of the state and nation. In their praiseworthy conduct, they have left, a heritage of blessing, to their children and have taught them a lesson of self-reliance, which they are not in immediate danger of forgetting ; while, they reverently cherish their memories, as worthy to be en- shrined in their own.
Ever since its incorporation, Gardner has been constantly increasing, in growth of population and in all the elements of municipal prosperity. As has been said, in the beginning of this chapter, the population, at the time of incorporation, was about three hundred and seventy-five ; in seventeen hundred and ninety, when the first United States census of the town was taken, there were five hundred and thirty-one; in eighteen hundred, there were six hundred and sixty-seven ; in eighteen hundred and ten, there were eight hundred and fifteen; in eighteen hundred and twenty, there were nine hundred and
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HISTORY OF GARDNER.
eleven ; in eighteen hundred and thirty, there were ten hundred and twenty-three ; in eighteen hundred and forty, there were twelve hundred and sixty ; in eighteen hundred and fifty, there were fifteen hundred and thirty-three ; in eighteen hundred and sixty, there were two thousand, six hundred and forty; in eighteen hundred and seventy, there were three thousand, three hundred and thirty-three; in eighteen hundred and seventy- five, there were three thousand, seven hundred and thirty-four. At the present time, this number is, probably, increased to about four thousand. Thus it will be seen, that Gardner has been constantly on the increase, in the number of its inhabitants, from the commencement of its history.
The early settlers were mostly English in descent, but within the past thirty years, there has been a gradual increase of Irish and French, till now the foreign born population and their descendants, constitute quite a per cent. of the whole number of inhabitants. Within the last twenty years the town has taken a fresh start, in its growth, having nearly doubled the number of its inhabitants. This increase has created a neces- sity for more houses and stores, as well as for new streets.
Going back fifty years, we should find only a few houses stand- ing upon the ground now occupied by the three villages of Gardner. Beginning at Gardner Centre, we should find, east of the common, the house of Mr. Francis Richardson ; where now stands the Town Hall, stood the house of Mr. Ben- jamin Heywood, since moved to a site south of the hall. Pur- suing our way westward, we should come to the house of Mr. William S. Lynde, on Lynde Street. Still advancing west, we should come upon the small, brown house, located just west of the Chapel, recently vacated by the Methodist Episcopal Church. Upon the side hill, west of Crystal Lake, we should find the house of Dea. Smyrna W. Bancroft.
Going south, on Pleasant Street, we should find the little, old, unpainted house, upon the hill, near the residence of Mrs. Eliza Wright. Upon the side of the Fitchburg Railroad, the house of Mr. Edward Greenwood. Coming back to the Centre,
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and going down Elm Street, we should find the house now owned by Francis P. Learned ; still farther south, that now owned by Dea. Henry Lawrence, erected by Rev. Mr. Osgood, the first pastor, for his own residence ; while on the left of Elm Street, south of the house of Simeon Howe, we should find the small, brown house near the railroad bridge ; crossing the railroad bridge, we should find, upon the east side of Kendall Hill, the house, which still retains its position, upon that slope. Going east from the Town Hall, we should find the house now owned by Mr. John Allen, and that of Mr. Webster Gates, in which the first chair was made, in this town. On Cherry Street, we should find the house now owned by Mr. William Austin. Most of these houses are in good repair and still occupied.
Comparing the town, then, with its present condition, we shall see a vivid and striking contrast. Where there were only a few, scattered houses, we have the three villages, iuto which, most of our population is crowded, whose locations seem to have been determined by the direction of the streams, upon which they are placed. At the commencement of the town's history, there were probably not far from sixty houses in town, . most of which could not have been, in any modern sense, very elegant. At the present time, the number of residences, in Gardner, is seven hundred, thirteen and one-half, the other half of one of the houses being in Westminster. Several resi- dences, in the town, at the present time, are both elegant and costly, having all modern appliances of hot and cold water, with all their rooms arranged, for lighting by gas. Among those deserving of special mention, in this class, are the houses of Messrs. Levi Heywood, Seth Heywood, Henry Heywood and Philander Derby at the Centre, while the beautiful and costly house of S. K. Pierce adorns the South Village. Some of the residences are beautiful for situation, as those of C. W. Conant and Jonathan L. Alger at the Centre and that of Milton M. Favor, upon the summit of Peabody Hill, while the dwellers upon Wright's Hill, in South Gardner, are no less fortunate in their location.
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Most of the neatly painted and blinded homes, now adorning our three villages, have been erected or purchased by their present occupants, whose industry and economy have enabled them to possess them. This is especially true of the Irish portion of our population, who, as a ride through the parts of the town occupied by them, will show, have not only builded themselves neat little cottages, but have subdued and made fertile the many tracts of land upon which their houses stand, whose beauty and verdure, remind one of the Green Isle, from whence they came. Aside from residences of comfort and beauty, the town boasts of a Town IIall at the Centre, erected in 1860, with an audience room capable of seating about nine hundred, beneath which, are several stores, and the Post Office. In all parts of the town, churches, of modern construction, school houses, well adapted to their uses, stores of all sorts and markets well supplied, together with many chair, pail, cane, toy and tin shops and photographic galleries, besides a foundry, machine shops and printing office, all in their varied ways, bear witness to the spirit of enterprise and thrift, which are characteristics of the sons, as they were of the fathers. The people of this town are, and ever have been, remarkable for their industry. Consequently there is but little idleness or loafing. The men, who are not engaged in farming, work in our many shops, while many of the women are employed in seating, or weaving cane into webs, with which chairs are seated. Wisdom, enterprise and skill are every where manifest, in all the business men of the place. Prudent and cautious, they have generally been able to bear themselves safely through all financial exigencies. There have of course been pecuniary reverses among the business portions of our population, in past times, as there have been in all communities, but resiliency of spirit, real pluck, and a determination not to be long baffled, in their plans for future success and final triumph, have gener- ally carried our citizens through all their troubles and failures, and brought them safely to a secure financial footing.
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HISTORY OF GARDNER.
The town is remarkable for the fact, that all its wealth has been developed out of its own brain and brawn. The wealthy men of Gardner to-day, have not become so by inheritance. They have, by hard labor, good management and careful hus- bandry of their resources, risen from almost absolute penury, to their present position of pecuniary strength. It is not easy to ascertain the amount of the valuation of the town, at its in- corporation, no record being accessible to the writer, but it must have been small. Upon the first day of May, 1877, the total valuation of the town was two millions, sixty-six thousand, five hundred and thirty-three dollars. This shows that our citizens have neither been idle nor prodigal. But while all the wealth of the town has been developed within its own borders, none having been brought from other towns or cities, it is also true, that much of the money made here, in former times, has been taken away to enrich other places, as, for instance, our neighboring city Fitchburg. It may, without boasting, be truthfully said, that the citizens of Gardner are an intelligent, contented, hardworking, undemonstrative and hospitable people. While they quietly rejoice in all signs of gradual, yet perma- nent growth, in all the elements of municipal strength, they are not given to sounding their own greatness, in the public ear. They are, nevertheless, willing to have all visitors, like Antipholus, " view the manners of the town, peruse the traders, gaze upon the buildings," and render their verdict concerning it.
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CHAPTER IV.
THE TOWN AS CONNECTED WITH STATE AND NATIONAL AF- FAIRS- SHAYS' REBELLION.
" Pride in their port, defiance in their eye, I see the lords of human kind pass by ; Intent on high designs, a thoughtful band, By forms unfashion'd, fresh from nature's hand, Fierce in their native hardiness of soul, True to imagin'd right, above control ;
While e'en the peasant boasts these rights to scan, And learns to venerate himself as man." -Goldsmith's Traveller.
" And every one that was in distress, and every one that was in debt, and every one that was discontented, gathered themselves unto him; and he became a captain over them."-1 Samuel 22 :2.
N O sooner had the town been established, than it began to be disturbed by those commotions, which grew out of state and national affairs. The Revolutionary war had but recently closed, leaving many of those baneful effects, which are the inevitable results of war. Among these results, was a depreciated, and constantly depreciating currency.
" Upon July 22d, 1775, the Continental Congress ordered two millions of dollars to be issued, on bills of credit, for carry- ing on the war, for the defence of the country. The same expedient was resorted to, by many of the particular states, so that the country was immediately flooded, with paper bills of every denomination, and specie was banished from circulation. The sudden issue of large sums and the financial distress of
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HISTORY OF GARDNER.
the government of the confederation, as well as the several state governments, soon destroyed the credit of the bills, so that they gradually ceased to circulate, after the 21st of August, 1781. This currency continued to be used until its bulk, for the common purposes of trade, became cumbersome to the person. A year before it ceased circulating, it required sixty dollars to purchase a bushel of corn and fifteen dollars to pur- chase a pound of butter, and much larger sums were afterwards necessary, to procure the same articles."*
These were times, in which, as Dr. Witherspoon once said, " debtors were pursuing their creditors," with their abundance of paper money. anxious to obtain their discharge before the value, of what was called money, should become less, or entirely worthless.
A little earlier than the times, of which we write, prices were thus reported, by John Adams, in one of his letters to his wife, in the following words : " Prices current, four pounds a week for board, besides finding your own washing, shaving, candles, liquors, pipes, tobacco, wood, etc. Thirty shillings a week for a servant. It ought to be thirty shillings for a gentleman and four pounds for the servant, because he generally eats twice as much and makes twice as much trouble. Shoes, five dollars a pair. Salt, twenty-seven dollars a bushel. Butter, ten shillings a pound. Punch, twenty shillings a bowl."
How enormous was the depreciation of the Continental Cur- rency, may be seen also, from the following waggish notice in the New York Gazette for Oct. 28, 1775: " Wanted by a gentleman fond of curiosities, who is shortly going to England, a parcel of Congress Notes, with which he intends to paper some rooms. Those who wish to make something of their stock in that commodity, shall, if they are clean and fit for the purpose, receive at the rate of one guinea per thousand for all they can bring before the expiration of the present month. Inquire of the printer. N. B. - It is expected they will be much lower.
*Robert Rantoul, Jr., on Banks.
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It is a fact, within the memory of those still living, that sharp, unfeeling men, in those days, came out into the country, from the cities, and purchased farms, paying for them in Con- tinental money, which soon became worthless to the receiver, so that, in reality, he lost his farm. But, if some men, who were in debt to others, were anxious to pay, because they had the money, there were, on the other hand, those in debt, who were not able to pay. Hence they were greatly distressed, by suits, brought against them. Creditors fell, without mercy, upon their debtors, and for want of better laws, regarding these matters, he who first laid suit, had his full claim allowed. If anything was left, the next who came, was, in like manner, served, till all were paid, or the man's possessions had been all taken away. Suits, at this time, were surprisingly numerous ; no less than two thousand actions were entered, during the year 1784, in the Court of Common Pleas at Worcester. This was, considering the population at that time, a great number, and serves to give us some clearer idea, of the troubles and incon- veniences, which the people of this country, were then called to endure.
Whoever shall take the pains to review the journals of the Massachusetts House of Representatives, for the period of which we are now speaking, will be struck with the frequency, with which petitions, from many of the towns of the state, are there found, praying for abatement of taxes, on account of ina- bility to pay. These petitions are an indication of the universal distress, that was then felt, on account of depreciated currency, combined with other causes.
The result was great and general distress and impending financial ruin. The people, thus disturbed, would naturally look to the state government for relief. It was with our fathers, as it is with us; if there are hard times, growing out of the unsettled condition of the currency, or from an overstocking of the markets of the world, or from whatever cause, there is always a feeling, resting in the public mind, that the government is responsible, and if one administration cannot remove the
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troubles, another must be substituted for it. In America, from the beginning, every man regards himself, as a political econo- mist, equal to Smith, Mill, Bowen, or Wayland, and fully com- petent to point out the causes of all financial difficulties, and the wisest manner, in which they may be remedied.
At all events, the average citizen is confident that the state, or general government is responsible for the results of those laws of political economy, which are as inexorable, in their action, as the law of gravitation, and to the discharge of this responsibility, he holds public officials with an unyielding grip. This disposition, manifests itself, in the early history of this town. Though a new and very obscure town, there was a de- termination, to make themselves heard, on the part of the early inhabitants. They were poor and but little known, yet they were not afraid to make such demands, upon the state or national officials, as they felt their circumstances demanded. They shared with other towns and counties, in the state, the feeling, that something should be done to redress their wrongs.
The spirit of discontent, so rife in all parts of the state, took palpable form, in County Conventions, which were held in 1786, at Concord, Leicester, Paxton and Hartfield. In these conventions, questions like these, had grave discussion, as is evident from the records of this and other towns : Sitting of the General Court in Boston ; the want of a circulating sys- tem ; the abuses, in the practice of the law, and the exorbi- tance of the fee table ; the existence of the Court of Common Pleas, in their present mode of administration ; the appro- priating the revenue, arising from the impost and excise, to the payment of the state securities ; the unreasonable and unneces- sary grants made by the General Court, to the Attorney Gen- eral and others; the servants of the government being too numerous, and having too great salaries ; the existence of the Senate .*
These were heavy grievances, upon the hearts of our early townsmen, which they sought, in what they considered, the best
*See Marvin's History of Winchendon, p. 107.
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way, to remove. If, from a misunderstanding of the real functions and powers of the government, or if from a too great jealousy of other, more densely populated, portion of the state, they, in the clearer light of our present knowledge, and expe- rience, conducted themselves impatiently and unwisely, we nevertheless, cannot fail to admire the manly spirit, with which they bore themselves, in those times. We must remember that they were, some of them, fresh from the achievements of their national independence, whose import, they perhaps did not fully comprehend. They were men of clear heads and intelli- gent minds. They had a broad sense, through which they were able to discern their troubles, if they were not able always to give a clear diagnosis of them. They were men, little learned, in the lore of a wise statesmanship. They could not produce a written document, whose grammatical merits, would leave nothing to be desired by Richard Grant White. And yet, they were not wanting in just that ability which enabled them to secure their ends. Indeed, what is generally called " book learning," is not always essential to the greatest efficiency, or highest success in life, so that a man has brains, and a suffi- cient amount of vital force to work them vigorously. It is said that, " as late as the fourteenth century, Du Guesclin, Consta- ble of France, the greatest man in the state, and one of the greatest men of his age, could neither read nor write."
With all their disadvantages, in matters of general culture, there is something of real manhood and lofty spirit, which our fathers have left recorded upon these murky records, that ehal- lenges our admiration. They were freemen, and as such, they felt it to be a solemn duty to see that the republic should re- ceive no detriment. For them, there was no need of the prayer of Cicero, for the Conscript Fathers, " that it might indeed be written, upon the forehead of every one of the citizens, what he thought concerning the republic," for every man was so full of interest, in public matters, that he found it easy to make known his feelings, upon matters of highest concernment in the state and nation.
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