USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Townsend > History of the town of Townsend, Middlesex County, Massachusetts, from the grant of Hathorn's farm, 1676-1878 > Part 23
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Albert L. Fessenden.
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Scotia and Newfoundland, as a drummer, to sell goods. with the promise that the proceeds of the sale of all the shooks which he sold over a certain number should be placed to his credit as a partner. He appeared at the objective points at just the right time, and the amount of his sales largely exceeded the expectation of either him- self or his father.
The manufacture of shooks. during the first decade of the partnership of this firm, was an exceedingly bulky, as well as profitable trade. That a person outside of a coopering town may have some idea of what "shooks" are, it may be proper to put in a short description. The staves of a barrel, knocked down, and tied up in a bundle, after the cask is set up, levelled, howelled and worked off. would be a shook. Those made at that time were of hard wood, either maple, birch, or oak. with staves about twenty-one inches long, and heads, perhaps eighteen inches in diameter, and when set up and hooped, were "quarter fish drums." The heads to be used in these casks were fitted by a machine, and packed in drums to accompany the shooks, which, on arriving at their desti- nation were set up, hooped with iron, and filled with dry fish ready for market. We nearly lost sight of the man in describing the shook. He conducts the correspondence and attends to the operatives, for the most part, while his father has generally been the travelling salesman. Since the erection of the steam mill, he has given his personal attention to the preparation of the stock, and the running of the engine and machinery. As a man, he is deliberate and circumspect, never excited under reverses, or jubi- lant over success. He is a good presiding officer at a
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public meeting, or can express his views before an audience in an acceptable manner. He is a prominent member of the masonic fraternity, and popular in that order, having passed the chairs in an intelligent and appreciable manner ; besides, he is a "past eminent com- mander" in the order of knighthood, the degrees of which he conferred impressively. He is a bachelor, though not yet "an old bachelor."
The Townsend Bank was chartered in 1854. At the organization of the grantees, in September of that year. John M. Hollingsworth, of Groton, was elected president. and Edward Ordway, cashier. The following October. Mr. Hollingsworth resigned the office of president, and Walter Fessenden was chosen to fill that office. Mr. Ordway was only nineteen years of age. Both of these officers have been at their post since that time. having gained and held the most implicit confidence of the busi- ness men of the Commonwealth, and in fact, of the government and nation.
The first board of directors consisted of Walter Fes- senden, Daniel Adams, Charles B. Barrett and Samuel Adams. of Townsend, John M. Hollingsworth, of Groton, Stephen Wyman, of Ashby, Luther Tarbell. Jr., of Pep- perell. Nelson Howe and Edwin C. Bailey, of Boston. It had one hundred and fourteen shareholders, and one hundred shares was the largest amount taken by one person. The capital stock is one hundred thousand dollars. It has literally been the people's bank. quite a number of the stockholders owning less than ten shares. It was changed to a National Bank, in April. 1865. While
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it was a state institution, its bills contained some cunningly drawn figures and sparkling embellishments, calculated at a glance to reveal the contents of the notes of the differ- ent denominations.
In 1869, burglars made an attempt to rob this bank. They succeeded in opening the outer door to the vault, but the inside door, made of steel, foiled their plans, and they could go no further. They applied gunpowder to the doors, probably by placing it between them, expect- ing to drive the inside door into the vault, but without the desired effect. The explosion awakened the neighbor- hood, and the would-be burglars took to their teams and fled. The direction which they took being soon learned. they were followed by a gentleman, with a fast horse. and their sweaty and panting team, consisting of a pair of fleet horses, was found, just put up in one of the stables in Lowell. The bank now has a surplus fund of about forty thousand dollars.
The Ladies' Benevolent Society, consisting of ladies worshipping with the congregationalists, is deserving of a special notice. Many a thankful heart has bestowed a secret blessing on the efforts of these persons, in their labors of love and philanthropy. Their work has been done very quietly, without any passwords. ostentation. regalia, or high-sounding titles. Without doubt, this pas- sage of the divine word has been kept constantly in view : "And the King shall answer and say unto them ; verily I say unto you ; Inasmuch as ye have done it unto the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me."
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The following is extracted from the proceedings at the semi-centennial gathering of this society, in 1876 :-
"1826. Officers of the Ladies' Benevolent Society : Mary Palmer, president ; Chloe Stephens, vice-president : Mary Adams, secretary ; Abigail Going, treasurer. Man- agers-Hannah Clement, Hannah Hart, Jane Sanderson, Polly Spaulding.
"1876. Mrs. Jonas Spaulding, Jr., president ; Mrs. William P. Taylor, vice-president ; Mrs. Asa K. Tyler, secretary and treasurer. Managers-Mrs. Lorenzo Hil- dreth, Mrs. Noah Adams, Mrs. Benjamin F. Lewis, Miss Maria Winn, Mrs. Aaron Hildreth, Mrs. Thomas F. Seaver.
"In ancient Scripture times-when events occurred which the people wished to keep in mind, we are told they arranged in some way as many large stones as they could conveniently move, and let them stand as a memorial of the event, leaving it to those who knew, to explain from time to time to others. We are invited at this time to bring something to serve the purpose of memorial stones, with reference to our Ladies' Benevolent Society.
"One afternoon, during the spring of 1826, a large company of young ladies from different parts of our town, assembled in the Centre school-room. The motive which brought them together, may be best learned by those records, which have been handed down to us: 'We, the subscribers, believing it to be the duty of all to assist in the great work of spreading the gospel, and feeling it likewise to be a privilege to aid so noble a cause, do agree to form ourselves into a society, and subscribe to the
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following articles. First-This society shall be called The Young Ladies' Reading and Charitable Society of Townsend-whose object shall be to meet at stated times and places, for the purpose of braiding straw, knitting and sewing, the avails of which shall be appropriated to some benevolent purpose, expressed by the members of the society.' After the six articles of the constitution are recorded, we find the names of the officers, and the names of the sixty ladies, who were present at that first meeting : very few of whom are now among the living. In 1828. we find this resolution adopted at the annual meeting : 'Any individual neglecting to meet with the society as often as once a quarter, and making no return of work at the annual meeting, shall no longer be considered a mem- ber.' Labor with a purpose, was evidently a ruling motive in the early years of this society, though the avails of their labor were necessarily small. The channels of com- munication, with every part of our own country, were not open as now, and they sent their money or boxes directly to the missionary rooms, in Boston, to aid in foreign work. In 1833, Mrs. William M. Rogers was chosen president ; Miss Caroline Wright, vice-president : Mrs. John Bertram, secretary. After this year, until 1838, we find the labors of the society, as such, suspended, and the efforts of the ladies mainly directed to purposes of local interest. They prepared and kept on hand for the purpose of loan- ing to the needy sick, articles of bedding, wearing ap- parel, etc. The first record of a box sent west by our society, was made in 1841, when one was sent to Michi- gan, valued at fifty-four dollars. During this year, a vote was passed to invite the gentlemen to attend the meetings and co-operate in the efforts of the society.
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"In 1844, Mrs. Luther H. Sheldon became our presi- dent and secretary, which position she held for twelve years-a longer period than any other person. The American Home Missionary Society organized the same year as our own, and later, the American Missionary Association, have afforded facilities for aiding the laborers on our western frontier, and also the freedmen of the south. The exact number of boxes and barrels sent west and south, by our society, we are not able to state; but responses have come to us of such a character, as should stimulate to continued and increasing effort.
"In 1870, Mrs. George H. Morss was chosen presi- dent, and Mrs. Asa K. Tyler, secretary and treasurer. Since that date, our financial record appears better than in any part of our history for the same period of time. Our donations in money and clothing, for home missions and the freedmen, being nearly $450, with a parsonage fund of $1,400. The society took its present name in 1845, when the constitution was amended.
" As the years have rolled on, we find attention turned from time to time to local interests-sometimes in repairs about our house of worship-sometimes in assisting needy families. At different times we find a committee appointed in the school districts, to see if there were children need- ing aid to fit them out for Sabbath service. During the war, the soldiers received quite a large share in the interest and labors of this society. While we have not intentionally overlooked home interests, in our efforts for those abroad, we have desired to act on the principle that one should be done-the other not left undone."
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Miss Mary Palmer, the president of this society at its inauguration, is still among the living. She is nearly an octogenarian, in the full possession of her intellectual faculties, "of sound mind and memory," and has furnished the writer with many facts embraced in this work. She is the daughter of Rev. David Palmer. The secretary at that time, Miss Mary Adams, daughter of Dea. Joel Adams, now the widow of John Bertram, M. D., is also alive, and as active in the service as in the days of yore. Miss Myra Proctor, daughter of Dea. John Proctor, was an efficient member of this organization. For the past seventeen years she has been a missionary, stationed at Aintab, Syria. She translated Cutter's Physiology into the Armenio-Turkish language, published at Constanti- nople, in 1868. She has much energy of character, is genial, and possesses excellent culture. But not to par- ticularize further, it must be acknowledged that all these ladies have been benefactors to their race. "Who can find a virtuous woman ? for her price is far above rubies."
Townsend has every reason to feel proud of its musical ability, both vocal and instrumental. Prominent among the latter, stands the Townsend Cornet Band, consisting of eighteen pieces, under the direction of Stephen A. Tyler. The band was organized, in 1838. with Luther Adams, as leader. Previous to this time, quite a number of musicians had met together, at different times, for the purpose of practice, but without any regular organization. At first the band consisted of twenty members, and without. varying much from that number, it has passed down through subsequent years, under the successive direction of George Warren, Adams Reed,
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William Taylor, and Henry L. Butler, to the year 1865, when the present leader, Mr. Tyler, was chosen. He has held the position since then, with the exception of about eight months, during which time his place was filled by his brother, A. Parker Tyler. The band has ac- quired, as it justly deserves, more than a local recogni- tion, receiving calls from the neighboring cities and towns, whenever an occasion, demanding music, arises. It has numbered among its instructors, Messrs. S. E. Hopkins, M. G. Gilpatrick, and Alonzo Bond. The following is the present membership of the band : Stephen A. Tyler, E flat clarionet ; Eugene Wetherbee, B flat clarionet ; Fred A. Larkin, E flat cornet ; A. Parker Tyler, solo B flat cornet ; Charle's E. Robinson, first B flat cornet ; Augustus A. Gerrish, second B flat cornet ; Wallace L. Maynard, solo alto : Andrew Drum, first alto ; W. L. Bartlett, second alto : John Arlin, B flat tenor ; John Boutelle, baritone : Charles Cram, B flat bass ; Martin Whitcomb, tuba ; A. K. Tyler, tuba ; William Coffee, bass drum; Edward Gonier, snare drum ; Elmer Winn, cymbals.
During the past year an orchestra was formed, com- posed of members of the brass band, with the exception of Charles Cox, Edward A. Walker, and Edward Walker, violinists, consisting of ten pieces. This orchestra discourses sweet music and is well united.
Communications in writing, among the people, at a distance, one hundred years ago, were circulated and travelled much slower than one would suppose. Most all the letters, written in New England, were sent by the market men and teamsters to a general post-office in
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Boston, and most of them were advertised in the Boston Gazette, a newspaper duly authorized for that purpose. There were some subscribers to that paper in this town, at that time. In 1777, among the letters advertised in a copy of that paper, is one for a man in Lyndeborough, New Hampshire, one for Colonel William Prescott, of Pepperell, and one for "Mary Reed, of Townshend."
In 1794, a man by the name of Balch was a courier between Keene and Boston, travelling on horseback. He came through Townsend, and was an expressman, in a small way, for two or three years, carrying letters and messages, and doing errands.
The Boston and Keene stages began to run in 1806. making three trips a week, at first, but soon after they commenced changing horses so frequently, that the entire distance was made daily. The horses were changed at Concord, Groton, New Ipswich (at the Wheeler tavern, ) and Jaffrey, New Hampshire. The coaches met at about noon, in this town, and during a part of the time, the horses were changed and the passengers dined at West Townsend.
The monotony of the long, summer days, in these rural towns, was very pleasantly broken by the noisy axle-trees of these vehicles ; and the busy husbandmen and toilers, in the roadside fields, would pause in their labors. to catch a view of those messengers of civilization as they moved briskly along. Some of the stage drivers are well remembered at the present time. Kimball Danforth was very popular, and later, Walter Carlton and Stephen Corbin were for a long time in the service. These men studied to make every thing agreeable to their passengers,
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and were very accommodating to all wishing to send errands or packages. Their hardships in occasionally encountering the deep snow-drifts on the hills, and the pinching northwest winds which January sweeps over the Townsend plains, are not forgotten. After the rail- roads were made, some of these drivers were placed upon the cars, as conductors, but they always appeared out of their element, and as though they greatly preferred the excitement afforded by their pet animals, rather than the unnatural snort of the iron horse.
The following is a list of the postmasters at Town- send Centre, and the time of their appointments :-
MOSES WARREN, July 1, 1808. JOHN W. LORING, July 1, 1811. WILLIAM A. BANCROFT, February 17, 1817. AARON KEYS. August 23, 1826. Office discontinued, October 29. 1834. Re-established. April 11, 1835. JOSEPH ADAMS, JR., April 11, 1835. THOMAS FARRAR, July 20, 1839. WALTER FESSENDEN, November 12, 1846. JOHN BROOKS, September 15. 1849. GEORGE A. WOOD, September 13, 1851. CHARLES OSGOOD, August 12. 1852. WILLIAM P. TAYLOR, April 12, 1861. EDWIN A. LARKIN, September 27, 1866. CHARLES OSGOOD. August 5, 1868. WILLIAM P. TAYLOR, April 8, 1869.
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The following is a list of the postmasters at Town- send Harbor, and the time of their appointments :-
JAMES S. WALTON, DAVID B. LIVERMORE, July 31, 1832. PAUL GERRISH, February 23, 1835. EBENEZER P. HILLS, April 17, 1839. CHARLES GERRISH, February 23, 1842. CHARLES EMERY, February 8, 1843. OLIVER WHITCOMB, January 3, 1850. CHARLES EMERY. September 15. 1855.
The following is a list of the postmasters at West Townsend, and the time of their appointments :-
SILAS BRUCE, July 20. 1849. AUGUSTUS G. STICKNEY, June 25. 1855. ALBERT HOWE, April 22, 1861. AUGUSTUS G. STICKNEY, July 17. 1862. ALBERT HOWE, October 1. 1862.
There was a mail route established between Lowell and Worcester, in 1832, which gave the Harbor a post- office, at this early date, that point being on the route.
The post-office at Townsend Centre was discontinued in 1834. from the cause, that the returns to the department were not made as promptly as was required, so that all mail matter for this town, from October 1834, to April II. 1835, came to the Harbor.
CHAPTER XV.
TOWN OFFICERS.
Some Remarkable Votes of the Town-Good Sense of the Town About Taxes-Names of the Town Clerks. Moderators. Select- men, and Representatives, from the Time the Town was Char- tered to 1879-Justices of the Peace-County Road Through Groton-Deer Reeves-Ilog Reeves-Tithing-Men.
The names of the town officers, from the date of its incorporation to 1879, are contained in this chapter, and it is hoped that they are arranged in a manner that will be agreeable to the reader. These men all entered upon the discharge of their several duties, clothed with a solemn oath, and it is due to each and every one of them, to assume that their best abilities were enlisted in the interest of the town. Their acts have passed into history, and the relative position that Townsend now holds, compared with her sister towns in this Commonwealth, in the scale of wealth, morality or religion, is traceable to the manner in which they have discharged the duties committed to their trust. A tinge of melancholy has shaded the records, during the generations, as able and experienced boards of officers have fallen behind to give place to others, who also in their turn have melted into the shadowy past.
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without the personal remembrance of either kindred or friends.
"And others rise to fill our places ; We sleep, and others run the races; And earth beneath and skies above Are still the same ; and God is love."
For more than a century, after the town received its charter, the selectmen charged nothing and received nothing for their services, except the honor of being the " fathers of the town." One instance on record where pay was received for services rendered is as follows : In 1771. (town records, page 138,) "Voted to give Thomas Hubbort two pounds for a peculiar favor he has shone the town." What that peculiar favor, was is unknown, this being the entire record on that subject. It may be inferred that it was of considerable consequence to the town, for although the amount Mr. Hobart received would appear insignifi- cant in the eyes of a public servant of the present day, he undoubtedly regarded it as a goodly amount of "the filthy lucre." It was customary to pay the assessors a small sum for their services, who, during the time above mentioned, constituted a board entirely separate from the selectmen.
The practical good sense and judgment of the people who were here more than one hundred years ago, appeared in the act of the town, in 1777, when the money was appropriated by the town to pay the revolutionary soldiers. and different quotas were awarded different amounts ; after the several sums were agreed upon by the assembled citizens, "Voted that all the above estimates be made into a rate on the several inhabitants of this town, and that the polls pay one-half of said rate." This has the appearance of fair play and justice, and is more
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consistent than the present method. A poll-tax for some time past has been, and is at present, two dollars. The tax on a male animal, of the canine species, is two dollars ; that on a female animal, of the same species, is five dollars ; so that occasionally a man will pay two and one- half times as much for the existence of a worthless pet dog, as he has to pay for his own head and all the advan- tages of good roads, good schools, and every thing that makes civilized life superior to barbarism. The polls in Townsend for some time have paid about one-sixteenth of the entire tax, when one-fifth would have been a fairer proportion.
It will be observed, in the following catalogue, that Townsend omitted to send a representative to the General Court, many times during the first fifty years after the acquisition of our national independence. Probably this may be accounted for from the fact that each town for most of that time, paid its own representative, and the neglect was regarded as economy. A law suit (James Locke vs. The inhabitants of the town of Townsend, ) was commenced in 1786, concerning a bill which James Locke brought against the town for services as a representative. The town considered the charges, in his account, exces- sive, and refused to pay it, which after the usual delays of the law was finally compromised and adjusted.
Townsend has guarded her interests invariably with a jealous eye, and maintained her legal rights, "asking for nothing but what was right, and submitting to nothing that was wrong."
The records for 1732 are lost, so that it is impossible to give the officers for that year. Samuel Manning was the town clerk, as appears from a part of the record, for that
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year. There is not much doubt but that the town had the same officers, in 1732, as in 1733 :-
I733. Moderator, Joseph Stevens ; Clerk, Samuel Man- ning. Selectmen-Joseph Stevens. Joseph Bald- win,-Samuel Manning.
1734. Moderator, Jasher Wyman ; Clerk, Samuel Man- ning. Selectmen-Joseph Stevens, Joseph Bald- win, Samuel Manning.
I735. Moderator, Jasher Wyman ; Clerk, Samuel Man- ning. Selectmen-John Stevens, Jasher Wy- man, Daniel Taylor, Jeremiah Ball, Samuel Manning.
1736. Moderator, Samuel Manning ; Clerk, John Ste- vens. Selectmen-John Stevens, Jasher Wyman. Daniel Taylor.
I737. Moderator, Daniel Taylor ; Clerk, Samuel Man- ning. Selectmen-Samuel Manning, John Ste- vens, William Clark, Amos Whitney, Jacob Baldwin.
1738. Moderator, Jasher Wyman ; Clerk, Samuel Man- ning. Selectmen-Daniel Taylor, James Hos- ley, Amos Whitney, Isaac Spaulding, Samuel Manning.
I739. Moderator. Nathaniel Richardson : Clerk, Samuel Manning. Selectmen-Samuel Manning, Daniel Taylor, Jasher Wyman, Ephraim Brown, Amos Whitney.
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HISTORY OF TOWNSEND.
1740. Moderator, Ephraim Brown ; Clerk, Samuel Man- ning. Selectmen-John Stevens, Daniel Taylor, Amos Whitney.
1741. Moderator, Daniel Taylor ; Clerk, Samuel Man- ning. Selectmen-William Fletcher, John Stev- ens, Nathaniel Richardson.
1742. Moderator, John Stevens; Clerk, Samuel Man- ning. Selectmen-Samuel Manning, John Stevens, Daniel Taylor, Ephraim Brown, Wil- liam Fletcher.
1743. Moderator, Daniel Taylor ; Clerk, Samuel Man- ning. Selectmen-Samuel Manning, John Ste- vens, Benjamin Brooks, Ephraim Brown, Daniel Taylor.
1744. Moderator, Daniel Taylor; Clerk. Samuel Man- ning. Selectmen-Samuel Manning, Benjamin Brooks, Nathaniel Richardson, Josiah Robbins, Daniel Taylor.
1745. Moderator, John Stevens; Clerk. Samuel Man- ning. Selectmen-John Stevens, Benjamin Brooks, Nathaniel Richardson, John Conant, Amos Whitney.
1746. Moderator, John Stevens; Clerk, John Stevens. Selectmen-John Stevens, Benjamin Brooks, Na- thaniel Richardson.
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1747. Moderator, John Stevens; Clerk, John Stevens. Selectmen-John Stevens, Benjamin Brooks. Jeremiah Ball, Isaac Spaulding, John Wallis.
1748. Moderator. Nathaniel Richardson ; Clerk, Samuel Manning. Selectmen-John Stevens, Jonathan Hubbard, Amos Whitney.
1749. Moderator, Jonathan Hubbard; Clerk, Samuel Manning. Selectmen-John Stevens, Jonathan Hubbard, Amos Whitney.
1750. Moderator, Jonathan Hubbard; Clerk, Samuel Manning. Selectmen-John Stevens, Jonathan Wallis, Amos Whitney.
175I. Moderator, Daniel Taylor; Clerk, Samuel Man- ning. Selectmen-Samuel Manning, Benjamin Brooks, Amos Whitney.
1752. Moderator, Daniel Taylor ; Clerk, Samuel Man- ning. Selectmen-Samuel Manning. Amos Whitney, Jonathan Hubbard.
1753. Moderator, Jonathan Hubbard; Clerk, Samuel Manning. Selectmen-John Stevens, Jonathan Hubbard, Benjamin Brooks, Amos Whitney, Isaac Spaulding.
1754. Moderator, John Stevens; Clerk, Samuel Man- ning. Selectmen-John Conant, Daniel Adams. Zacheriah Emery.
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HISTORY OF TOWNSEND.
1755. Moderator, Daniel Taylor: Clerk, Samuel Man- ning. Selectmen-Samuel Manning, Daniel Adams, John Conant, Zacheriah Emery, Eph- raim Brown.
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