USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Malden > Memorial of the celebration of the two hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the incorporation of the town of Malden, Massachusetts, May, 1899 > Part 30
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31
VIEW OF BOSTON (1723). Mr. Melville.
PICTURE. " HOLY FAMILY." After Del Sarto. Painted on copper, 17th century. Mrs. Eleanor R. Shea.
PICTURE. "MAGDALENE." After Titian. Painted on copper, 17th cen- tury. Mrs. Eleanor R. Shea.
PEWTER PLATTER. 100 years old. From Manchester, Mass. Bertram Cheever Gould.
TEA CHEST. Mrs. Henry C. Lord.
314
TWO HUNDRED AND FIFTIETH ANNIVERSARY
WHALE OIL LAMP. Frank S. Collins.
LIGNUM VITAE VASE. Brought from West Indies early in 18th century. Mrs. Caroline M. Shea.
SMALL IRON SKILLET. Used by Mordecai Lincoln, Hingham, an ancestor of Abraham Lincoln. Mrs. Daniel P. Wise.
TINDER BOX, FLINT, AND STEEL. 100 years old. Mrs. James H. Burgess. TINDER BOX AND FLINT. 100 years old. Used by owner's great-great- grandfather. Bertram Cheever Gould.
MINIATURE TRUNK. Used by Polly Carter of Charlestown, before the Revolution. Frank S. Collins.
POWDER HORN. Used in 1699. Mrs. R. M. Yale.
OLD HAND-MADE SHUTTLE. Mrs. Geo. L. Gould.
CARPET BAG (1825). Geo. Howard Fall.
QUART CIDER BARREL (1765). Used by David Lawrence. Mrs. Geo. L. Gould.
POCKET BOOK. Of Chas. Hill (1826). Miss Helen M. Hill.
BRITANNIA TEAPOT. Old and of odd design. James H. Burgess.
ANCIENT FLASK. Lizzie Lawrence Gould.
PEWTER PLATTER. Brought from London by the Green family in 1635. Dexter Pratt, Melrose.
PEWTER PLATTER. J. Langdon Sullivan.
PEWTER PLATTERS. Curtis S. Pease.
HAND-MADE SHEARS. 75 years old. Mrs. James H. Burgess.
SMALL PEWTER PORRINGER. Mrs. James H. Burgess.
BRITANNIA TEAPOTS. "S. L." " R. G." Mrs. Chas. G. Waitt.
PEWTER CUP. Miss Mary E. Upham.
TOASTERS, Swing and Turn-over. Mrs. Geo. L. Gould.
OLD FIREPLACE CRANE. Mrs. Geo. L. Gould.
SILVER SPOON. 125 years old. Belonged to Affia Thyng. Mrs. Geo. L. Gould.
BOSTON DIRECTORY, 1798. Edward G. Wise.
WROUGHT IRON NAILS FROM OLD FANEUIL HALL. Wm. H. Winship. THE MASS. GAZETTE, 1788. Herbert G. Porter.
THE NEW ENGLAND PRIMER, 1777. Herbert G. Porter.
BLACK LETTER BOOK. Printed 1497. Miss Mary E. Foster.
THE GARDENER'S LABYRINTH. Published in 1652. Miss Mary E. Foster.
THE WORLD TO COME. By Isaac Watts, 1748. Belonged to Betsy Bailey. Geo. T. Bailey.
STEAM GAUGE. From the Spanish Cruiser "Viscaya," destroyed by our fleet in the battle of Santiago. James H. Burgess.
ANCIENT SILVER PEPPER BOX. Mrs. James Bartlett.
" APOSTLE " SPOON (1799). Dr. Godfrey Ryder.
ACTS AND LAWS of his Majesty's Province of Mass. Bay in New England, 1699. Very interesting volume. Edward G. Wise.
PROCLAMATION, 1712. By Joseph Dudley, Gov. of the Province of Mass. Bay. Joseph B. Hooton.
PETER PARLEY'S GEOGRAPHY, 1832. For children. Miss Mary E.
Upham.
MURRAY'S ENGLISH GRAMMAR, 1820. An Abridgment. Miss Mary E. Upham.
315
THE HISTORIC LOAN EXHIBITION
AN OLD LATIN GRAMMAR. Miss Mary E. Upham.
TEASPOON (1799). Dr. Godfrey Ryder.
OLD SILVER PITCHER. James Bartlett.
IVORY FAN. Mrs. Caroline M. French.
Two TABLESPOONS. Made by Paul Revere. Mrs. James Bartlett. Two SILVER TEASPOONS (1620). Mrs. Sylvester Baxter.
SILVER TABLESPOON AND TEASPOON (1630). Curtis S. Pease.
HOME-MADE NEEDLE. Over 200 years old. Dexter Pratt.
COLONIAL MIRROR. Mrs. Chas. H. Knapp.
RUSSIAN SAMOVAR. Geo. L. Bliss.
AMERICAN EAGLE. Mounted. Shot by Simon Hall Barrett. S. Hall
Barrett.
Two SILVER CANDLESTICKS. G. D. B. Blanchard.
VENEZUELA WATER JUGS. C. H. Grant.
MILITARY WARRANT, 1764. To Samuel Winship, Jr., member of Troop
of Horse. Brig .- Gen. Royal, Commander. Wm. H. Winship.
OLD-FASHIONED OIL LAMP. Rare shape. Mrs. Chas. L. Eaton.
FIRE BUCKETS (1822). John S. Nichols.
COPPER WARMING PAN. G. D. B. Blanchard.
WARMING PAN. Mrs. Sarah E. Mansfield.
COLLECTION OF SILVER AND COPPER COINS. Geo. L. Gould.
SURVEYOR'S CHAIN. Used by Abraham Lincoln in running the state line in Arkansas. John Taylor.
THE BOSTON GAZETTE, 1775. Also Boston Evening Post, 1760, and New England Chronicle, June 29, and July 6, 1775. Mrs. Joseph R. Atwood. CHILD'S SILVER RATTLE. Taken from the ruins of Pompeii. Mrs. Frank J. Bartlett.
THE BOSTON GAZETTE, 1770. Geo. R. Presby.
A PIN WORN AT LAFAYETTE'S BALL. Mrs. Chas. H. Sprague.
ROSE JAR. Said to have been handed down twelve generations. Mrs. Ruth D. Sanderson.
NATHANIEL AMES' ALMANAC FOR 1760. Dexter Stevens.
ANCIENT PADLOCK. Dexter Stevens.
POWDER HORN. Used in the Revolutionary War. Samuel G. Dexter. BUTTONS FROM GENERAL KNOX'S MILITARY COAT. Worn in Revolutionary War. Mrs. Joseph R. Atwood.
BANNER. Carried in the procession which escorted General Washington on his visit to Boston. Louis D. Starbird.
ENGLISH WATCH. Owned by Thomas Hallworth and brought from England early in the century. Wm. L. Hallworth.
PINE TREE SHILLING. Wm. L. Hallworth.
FURNITURE.
MAHOGANY HALL TABLE. Colonial Period. Mrs. James Bartlett.
DINING ROOM TABLE. Over 100 years old. Mrs. James Bartlett.
SECRETARY (1811). Made by Joseph Carter at the time of his marriage. Frank S. Collins.
CHILD'S MAHOGANY BUREAU (1801). Very pretty piece of old furniture. Mrs. Chas. H. Sprague.
1
316
TWO HUNDRED AND FIFTIETH ANNIVERSARY
ARM-CHAIR. Belonging to Joseph Carter, who resided on High St., Charles-
town, near Bunker Hill Monument. This chair was used at all celebra- tions there for many years. Has been occupied by Lafayette, Daniel Webster, Presidents Harrison, Tyler, and others. Frank S. Collins. MAHOGANY WRITING DESK (1801). Mrs. Chas. H. Sprague.
HIGHBOY. Miss Alice P. Lord.
LOWBOY. W. B. de las Casas.
CARVED MAHOGANY WORK TABLE. Miss Alice P. Lord.
SECRETARY (1733). Mrs. Chas. H. Sprague.
SECRETARY (1790). With collection of China. Miss Helen M. Hill.
WINDSOR CHAIR. Colonial period. Miss Mary E. Upham.
CHAIR. With cushioned seat. 18th century. Miss Mary E. Upham.
OLD COLONIAL MIRROR. Ornamented with the English crown. Geo. L. Gould.
Two CHAIRS (1785). John S. Nichols.
OLD MIRROR. Mrs. Franklin M. Miner.
Two DINING CHAIRS. About 100 years old. Mrs. Franklin M. Miner.
SPINNING WHEEL. Malden Public Library.
ARM-CHAIR (1725). Mrs. George L. Gould.
WRITING DESK (1725). George L. Gould.
TABLE (1710). Mrs. George L. Gould.
ROUND STAND TABLE. Date about 1800. Used in the Colesworthy family for three generations. Mrs. Frank E. Woodward.
CHAIR. Formerly belonged to the father of Oliver Wendell Holmes. Uphol- stered from the draperies of the pulpit of the Harvard Church in Charles- town. 105 years old. Mrs. Wm. W. Winship.
OLD DUTCH CHAIR. Brought from Holland by a member of the Greenleaf family. Miss Josephine Briggs.
Two TALL CHAIRS (1765). Mrs. George L. Gould.
HALL CLOCK. Made by Stephen Asselin, London. Mrs. David Turpie. MAHOGANY ARM-CHAIR (1750). Mrs. Richard Dexter.
MAHOGANY CHAIR. Beautifully carved. Dr. J. Langdon Sullivan.
OLD ENGLISH MAHOGANY SOFA. Mrs. Chas. H. Sprague.
MAHOGANY CARD TABLE. Beautifully carved. Mrs. Jas. Bartlett. MAHOGANY DINING TABLE. Miss Sophia H. Barrett.
SIDE BOARD. Miss Helen M. Hill.
WINDSOR CHAIR. Roswell R. Robinson.
CHILD'S CHAIR. Very old. Roswell R. Robinson.
FLAG BOTTOM CHAIR (1719). Mrs. R M. Yale.
OLD MAHOGANY ARM-CHAIR. Mrs. Chas. H. Sprague.
FAULKNER SCHOOL COLLECTION.
LOAN EXHIBITION - FAULKNER SCHOOL COLLECTION
317
HISTORIC SPOTS
HISTORIC SPOTS.
The committee on marking historic spots prepared inscriptions which were placed upon the several sites which are here mentioned.
At the Engine House, Main Street -
THE MILL POND. BOUNDED BY MAIN, PLEASANT, MIDDLESEX, AND CENTRE STREETS. FILLED IN, 1850.
South corner of Main and Pleasant Streets - HERE WAS BUILT
THE FIRST SCHOOL HOUSE, 1712. ITS DIMENSIONS WERE 20 FT. BY 16 FT. AND IT WAS SOMETIMES USED AS A WATCH HOUSE.
At the City Hall -
HILL'S TAVERN.
1657-1804 THE ORIGINAL HOUSE STOOD FARTHIER SOUTH. THE LATER HOUSE WAS BUILT HERE ABOUT 1725, AND WAS REMOVED TO IRVING STREET IN 1857. NEAR BY STOOD THE STOCKS AND WHIPPING POST.
No. 24 Irving Street -
HILL'S TAVERN, OR THE
RISING EAGLE.
BUILT ABOUT 1725. FORMERLY STANDING ON THE SITE OF THE CITY HALL.
No. 380 Main Street -
TO THIS SPOT WAS REMOVED FROM BAILEY'S HILL IN 1850
THE HOUSE OF THE FIRST CHURCH.
IT WAS DESTROYED DURING THE GREAT GALE OF SEPT. 8, 1869.
318
TWO HUNDRED AND FIFTIETH ANNIVERSARY
First Parish Church, Main Street- -
HERE BY THE CLAY PITS, ON LAND GIVEN BY WM. AND DOROTHY SPRAGUE, WAS BUILT THE THIRD MEETING HOUSE, 1730. THE PRESENT HOUSE WAS BUILT IN 1802.
On the south side of the First Parish Church -
NEAR THIS SPOT STOOD THE
CENTRE SCHOOL HOUSE, 1758-1790. NEAR BY THE TOWN POUND.
At the railroad crossing, Main Street -
HERE OVER PEMBERTON'S CREEK, AFTERWARDS CALLED HARVELL'S BROOK, WAS BUILT BEFORE 1649 THE BRIDGE LONG KNOWN AS LEWIS'S BRIDGE.
South corner of Main Street and Eastern Avenue -
HERE ON BAILEY'S HILL WAS THE MEETING HOUSE OF THE FIRST CHURCH AFTER THE WITHDRAWAL OF THE CHURCH FROM THE FIRST PARISH. ERECTED, 1833. REMOVED, 1850.
Main Street, between Ellis Avenue and Wigglesworth Street -
BELL ROCK. THE FIRST MEETING HOUSE WAS ON THE WEST SIDE OF THE ROCK, 1649.
THE SECOND HOUSE STOOD NEAR THIS SPOT, 1660-1730.
THE BELL WAS FIRST HUNG IN A FRAME UPON THE ROCK.
319
HISTORIC SPOTS
No. 145 Main Street -
THE PARSONAGE. THE FIRST HOUSE BUILT, 1651. BURNED, 1724. THE PRESENT HOUSE BUILT, 1724.
HERE WAS BORN ADONIRAM JUDSON, AUG. 9, 1788.
No. 51 Appleton Street -
THE OLDEST HOUSE IN MALDEN. WITHIN THESE WALLS, TRADITION SAYS, EXIST THE REMAINS OF A HOUSE BUILT BY JAMES GREEN ABOUT 1649.
South-west corner Green and Medford Streets -
THE BURIAL GROUND OF SANDY BANK, NOW BELL ROCK CEMETERY, OPENED BEFORE 1649. THE EARLIEST STONE IS THAT OF ALICE BRACKENBURY, 1670. FORTY REVOLUTIONARY SOLDIERS ARE BURIED HIERE. FORTY-EIGHT PERSONS BURIED IN CEMETERY PREVIOUS TO 1700.
Note. - This inscription was faulty. The graves of forty Revolu- tionary soldiers are marked by stones. Many others lie here whose graves cannot be identified. There are forty-eight gravestones bear- ing dates previous to 1700 ; but there were many more burials.
On High Street, near Ashland Street -
ON THIS SPOT LIVED REV. MICHAEL WIGGLESWORTH, SECOND PASTOR OF THE FIRST PARISH AND AUTHOR OF "THE DAY OF DOOM," AND HERE HE DIED, JUNE 10TH, 1705.
320
TWO HUNDRED AND FIFTIETH ANNIVERSARY
East of Unitarian Church, Eastern Avenue
NEAR THIS SPOT DWELT SIMON KNIGHTS. HE WAS BORN A SLAVE IN MALDEN IN 1770. DIED, 1847 THE LAST SURVIVOR OF ENFORCED SERVITUDE IN MALDEN
At the bridge, Middlesex Street -
NEAR THIS SPOT WAS COYTMORE'S
GRIST MILL. 1640.
Nos. 67-71 Pleasant Street -
THIS BUILDING WAS THE SECOND MEETING HOUSE OF THE
CENTRE M. E. CHURCH, 1842-1874.
Nos. 72-80 Pleasant Street --
HIERE WAS THE OLD BRICK SCHOOL HOUSE, 1822-1848.
No. 213 Pleasant Street -
HERE WAS HELD THE FIRST SERVICE, OUT OF WHICH GREW THE CENTRE M. E. CHURCH, AUG., 1816.
No. 7 Elm Street -
THE WASHINGTON ELM. HERE AT THE HOUSE OF CAPT. JOHN DEXTER WASHINGTON WAS ENTERTAINED, 1775.
321
HISTORIC SPOTS
Corner Main and Salem Streets -
NEAR HERE DWELT DR. JOHN SPRAGUE, 1788-1803. HE WAS A DISTINGUISHED SURGEON OF THE NAVY OF THE REVOLUTION.
Corner Main and Salem Streets -
NEAR THIS SPOT LIVED JOSEPH HILLS
A PROMINENT MAN IN CHURCH AND STATE. HE CAME FROM MALDON, ENGLAND, TO NEW ENGLAND, 1638.
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF DEPUTIES, 1647; COMPILER OF THE MASSACHUSETTS LAWS, 1648.
HE DIED AT NEWBURY, 1688.
Main Street, near entrance to First Baptist Church -
HERE WAS LOCATED THE FIRST HAND ENGINE, ALERT NO. 1, 1820-1847.
Corner Main and Barrett Streets -
FORMERLY BARRETT'S DYE HOUSE, 1804-1882. '
No. 554 Main Street -
HERE STOOD THE FIRST MEETING HOUSE OF THE CENTRE M. E. CHURCH, 1826-1842.
Northeast corner Main Street and Mountain Avenue-
HERE LIVED AND DIED CAPT. JOHN WAYTE, 1647-1693. SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF DEPUTIES, 1684.
21
322
TWO HUNDRED AND FIFTIETH ANNIVERSARY
At the bridge on Mountain Avenue -
HERE WAS THE MILLDAM OF THOS. COYTMORE, 1640. 'IN THE VALLEY BELOW WERE THE ODIORNE ROLLING AND NAIL MILLS, 1806-1838. HERE THE FIRST PERFECT CUT NAILS WERE MADE.
Nos. 1-11 Salem Street -
COLUMBIAN TAVERN. HERE WAS THE FIRST POST OFFICE. JOHN SARGENT, POSTMASTER, 1821-1830.
First Baptist Church, Salem Street -
THE FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH.
.
THE FIRST HOUSE WAS BUILT ON THIS SPOT, 1843. BURNED, 1855. THE SECOND HOUSE WAS BURNED, 1862. THE THIRD HOUSE DEMOLISHED, 1891. THE FOURTH AND PRESENT HOUSE WAS BUILT, 1891.
No. 70 Salem Street -
[IN A BARN NEAR THIS SPOT WAS GATHERED THE FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH, DECEMBER 17TH, 1803.
West corner Salem and Sprague Streets -
THERE WAS THE THIRD CENTRE SCHOOL HOUSE, 1790-1822.
East corner Salem and Sprague Streets -
IN A HOUSE NEAR THIS SPOT BUILT BY JOSEPH HILLS BEFORE 1665, WAS THE TOWN WORK HOUSE, 1772-1786
323
MARKED GRAVES
Salem Street Cemetery -
HERE STOOD THE HOUSE OF THE FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH.
1804-1843.
SALEM STREET CEMETERY, OPENED, 1832.
East corner Salem and Porter Streets -
HERE WAS THE
HALF MOON TAVERN. NEWHALL'S, 1707-1769. PORTER'S, 1769-1775. HIERE WERE BROUGHT WOUNDED SOLDIERS FROM BUNKER HILL.
Salem Street, opposite Webster Street
WAITE'S TAVERN, 1719-1809. THE ORIGINAL IIOUSE WAS ON THE SOUTH SIDE OF THE ROAD AND WAS BURNED ABOUT THE BEGINNING OF THE REVOLUTION. THE SECOND IIOUSE WAS BUILT UPON THIS SPOT AND WAS DEMOLISHED IN 1891.
Salem Street, west of Columbia Street -
HERE WAS BUILT ON LAND GIVEN BY THOMAS WAITE THE FIRST SCHOOL HOUSE IN EAST MALDEN, 1771.
MARKED GRAVES.
Forty soldiers of the Revolution, whose places of interment are known, lie in the Bell Rock Cemetery, while many others rest there in unknown graves. In the Salem Street Cemetery two others are buried. The known graves were marked by bannerets of buff and blue, the continental colors, inscribed, - REVOLUTIONARY SOLDIER. An interesting ceremony took place at the Bell Rock Cemetery on the afternoon of Saturday, May 20, when the graves were marked. On this occasion a delegation of the Deliverance Munroe Chapter,
324
TWO HUNDRED AND FIFTIETH ANNIVERSARY
Daughters of the Revolution, Mrs. Mary C. Eastman, regent, was present and rendered appropriate music at the commencement of the exercises. Besides those of the soldiers, five noteworthy graves were marked by white bannerets.
BELL ROCK CEMETERY.
[SANDY BANK.]
ALICE BRACKENBURY, [This is the oldest stone in the cemetery.]
December 28, 1670.
Capt. JOHN WAYTE,
September 26, 1693.
Rev. MICHAEL WIGGLESWORTH,
June 10, 1705.
Rev. JOSEPH EMERSON,
July 13, 1767.
Rev. ELIAKIM WILLIS,
March 14, 1801.
Lieut. JOHN VINTON,
September 24, 1781.
Capt. EBENEZER HARNDEN,
July 8, 1786.
Capt. JOHN DEXTER,
May 17, 1790.
BENJAMIN SPRAGUE,
February 15, 1791.
Dea. JOSEPH PERKINS,
July 23, 1793.
Capt. ISAAC SMITH,
December 13, 1795.
EDWARD NEWHALL,
October 8, 1797.
JOSEPH LYNDE,
July 4, 1798.
Capt. JOHN DEXTER,
October 28, 1798.
Capt. NATHAN SARGEANT,
December 1, 1798.
NEHEMIAH OAKES,
November 8, 1799.
JOHN PAINE,
September 20, 1801.
DAVID SARGEANT,
June 2, 1803.
JOHN GROVER,
July 22, 1803.
Dr. JOHN SPRAGUE,
October 21, 1803.
Capt. NALER HATCH,
July 14, 1804.
JOSEPH LYNDE, JACOB PARKER,
May 26, 1805.
PHINEAS SPRAGUE,
December 29, 1805.
Lieut. FRANCIS PHILLIPS,
December 31, 1805.
Capt. SAMUEL BURDETT,
April 21, 1809.
JOSEPH BARRETT,
July 10, 1809. December 24, 1811.
WILLIAM DEXTER [ Tomb No.3],
THOMAS SARGEANT,
May 16, 1812.
SAMUEL WAIT,
January 10, 1815.
STEPHEN PAINE,
December 18, 1815.
JONATHAN OAKES, Esq.,
August 16, 1818.
NATHAN LYNDE [Tomb No. 1],
January 12, 1819.
Capt. EDWARD OAKES, JOHN NICHOLS,
November 10, 1819. January 23, 1821.
[It has been ascertained that the marking of a tomb for this name was incorrect. John Nichols was buried in a grave which cannot now be identified. ] MICAH WAITT, JOHN WAIT,
November 20, 1822. January 9, 1825.
January 20, 1805.
325
CORRESPONDENCE
Dea. JOHN RAMSDILL,
February 7, 1825.
Lieut .- Col. JOHN POPKIN [Popkin Tomb], May 8, 1827.
THOMAS WAITT,
August 13, 1828.
STEPHEN TUFTS,
March 12, 1832.
BERNARD GREEN, Esq. [Green Tomb], July 15, 1834. Capt. AMOS SARGENT [Sargeant Tomb], August 12, 1836.
JOHN PRATT [Pratt Tomb],
DAVID WAITT,
August 22, 1842. November 11, 1843.
SALEM STREET CEMETERY.
Capt. JOSEPH CHEEVER, MICHAEL NEAGLES,
October 23, 1830. April 22, 1836.
Besides those officially distinguished in the Bell Rock Cemetery, a grave without a stone, supposed with good reason to be that of Lieut. Phineas Upham, was marked by a descendant.
LIEUT. PHINEAS UPHAM, 1635-1676. DIED FROM THE EFFECTS OF A WOUND RECEIVED IN THE GREAT SWAMP FIGHT, KING PHILIP'S WAR, JAN. 6TH, 1676.
CORRESPONDENCE, ETC.
FROM a mass of material, which collected during the preparation and continuance of the celebration, the following have been selected as of general interest.
From the Mayor of Maldon, England.
BRICK HOUSE, MALDON, ESSEX, 22nd April, 1899.
Dear Sir : - Thank you much for your cordial invitation to join in the celebration of the two hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the incorporation of your town. Should like much to be present, but dis- tance and time will prevent. By this mail I send for your acceptance a short account of our old borough ; and if you could give me any in- formation of your early settlers, I would try to trace them.
Yours very truly, EDWARD A. FITCH.
326
TWO HUNDRED AND FIFTIETH ANNIVERSARY
Mayor Dean to the Mayor of Maldon.
MALDEN, MASS., May 13, 1899.
Hon. EDWARD A. FITCH, Mayor of Maldon, Essex, England :
Dear Sir : - Your valued communication of April 22nd duly received, also a copy of your book entitled, Maldon and the Black- water. I appreciate your kindness and am grateful for the trouble you have taken. I regret that you will not be able to be with us on our birthday, but you may be assured that the people of Malden in New England will not forget the old mother on the Blackwater at that time.
Our historian has given me the following items of information in regard to the old settlers ; and I hope that you may be able to trace some of them as coming directly from your borough.
A leader in the settlement of our town was Joseph Hills, who was married at Burstead Magna, Billericay, in 1624. He was of your parish of All Saints in 1631, and the births of his children are recorded there. In 1638 he came to New England with others. His son-in- law, John Wayte, who was a leading man here, was from Wethers- field, Essex. Another of our early settlers, Richard Pratt, is said to have been a son of John Pratt of your borough, where he was baptized in 1615. The authority for this statement is not known. Salmon, History of Essex, 424, says that John Pratt, an alderman of Maldon, was buried in All Saints in 1619. Thomas Ruck, an early landholder but not a settler, is said to have come from Maldon.
It may interest you to know that out of the little settlement of 1649, which was named Maldon (now changed to Malden), have grown three cities with an aggregate population of about seventy thousand people.
Again expressing our regret that you will not be able to be present at our anniversary exercises, I am, with kind regards,
Very truly yours,
CHARLES L. DEAN, Mayor.
From Howard M. Holden, Kansas City, Mo.
KANSAS CITY, May 12, 1899. Hon. CHARLES L. DEAN, Mayor, Malden, Mass. :
Dear Sir :- I have deferred acknowledging your kind invitation to the two hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the incorporation of Malden as a town, hoping to be able to accept; but I regret that my engagements otherwise will deprive me of that pleasure. For indeed it would be a pleasure, tempered with the memories of scenes and faces of the elder days of Malden that are no more.
327
CORRESPONDENCE
As a native of Malden and one whose ancestry was identified with the place from its earliest years, I have felt an especial affection for it. As I write, the past rises before me like a dream. The old country roads, the mill-pond in the centre, the big square farmhouses, the rugged hills and mysterious woods, the old-time meeting-houses, and the ancient church yards where the "forefathers of the hamlet sleep," are the living memories of my boyhood. While I cannot remember so far back as the closing years of the matchless history written by your distinguished townsman, Mr. Corey, the pictures of the town which he so vividly drew for the last century are true to the life of fifty years ago, so little had modern innovations then trans- pired. And while every loyal son of Malden rejoices in the develop- ment and growth of later years, an enchantment covers the Malden of those earlier days, and one can but feel with Wordsworth, when he contemplated the scenes of his childhood, " that there hath passed away a glory from the earth."
The history of Malden is a segment of the best of the history of the settlement, the civilization, and the political life of this continent. It was settled by some of the earliest of the adventurous and heroic men and women, who, in the fulness of time, were led by an Invisible Hand to these unknown shores for the founding of a nation upon the new basis of the rights of man. In all succeeding years, through colonial times, the Revolutionary struggle, and the subsequent events which have marked the formation and development of our government, Malden has ever borne an honorable part, along with her sister New England towns, in the establishment and maintenance of those prin- ciples which are the foundation of our greatness and material progress. The influences that have gone forth from New England, including the example of the most democratic of all institutions, the New England town-meeting, have moulded the national character and given virility and strength to the national life.
While on this occasion we take a retrospective view of the cen- turies that are passed, we may well cast the horoscope of the future of Malden and of our common country. In proportion as we hold to those principles which distinguished the earlier days, to the simplicity of democratic forms and methods of government, to an inviolable ballot and the purity of elections, to universal freedom and education, and to a high standard of individual, municipal, state, and national life shall our greatness increase and endure, and our influences for good over other peoples of the world be augmented.
With renewed loyalty to these principles, let us trust that, directed by the same benign Hand that guided our fathers to these shores, the mission of our country shall be to lead in the world's advancement through the centuries that are to come. Upon that country, and par-
328
TWO HUNDRED AND FIFTIETH ANNIVERSARY
ticularly upon Malden as a constituent part of it, let us in the sublime words of our New England poet, invoke the benediction of -
" Our fathers' God, from out whose hand The centuries fall like grains of sand."
Sincerely thanking you for your invitation, I remain,
Very truly yours,
HOWARD M. HOLDEN.
From the Rev. John Coleman Adams, D.D., Brooklyn, N. Y. BROOKLYN, N. Y., May 15, 1899. CHARLES L. DEAN, Mayor of the city of Malden :
My dear Sir :- I deeply regret that I shall be unable to accept the invitation extended me to be the guest of the city on the occasion of the coming celebration. It would give me the keenest pleasure if it were possible, and there are especial reasons why I should have a deep interest in the exercises. Not only am I a native of Malden, whose affection for his birthplace has always been warm and constant, but my grandfather, William Barrett, was one of its most honored citizens. Moreover, my father, the Rev. John G. Adams, was pastor of the First Parish Church for fifteen years, and was prominent on the occasion of the bi-centennial exercises in 1849. All these things draw me strongly towards Malden next week. But imperative duties prevent my attendance ; so I can only send my hearty congratulations to you, and an expression of my affectionate loyalty to the town of my birth. May her people know and enjoy the privileges of pure homes, enlight- ened schools, and devout churches. "Peace be within her walls, and prosperity within her palaces."
With the most sincere regret, I am, my dear sir,
Very cordially yours, JOHN COLEMAN ADAMS.
From Robert W. Merrill, Grand Rapids, Mich.
GRAND RAPIDS, MICH., May 20, 1899.
Mr. Chairman :- If I could follow my fondest wish, I would be with you on this important anniversary day of my native town. Several years ago I was among that class of Malden adventurers who left you ; and like others I have remained away to see my country grow. Still my love goes back to the spot which gave me birth ; and the echoes of my voice in childhood from those old granite and porphyry rocks across the valley between Wayte's Mount and Sprague's Hill still reverberate in my fondest memory, as I shouted while I roamed over those beautiful hills, gathering hickory nuts in
329
CORRESPONDENCE
those primeval forests, or quenching a weary thirst at its cooling spring, after chasing some timid rabbit through the scrub oaks on the plateau above, or coasting down the old cart-path, between the bars, into Jerry Lord's fields below. . . .
Here it was that my early days passed most happily and many of my most valued friends reside ; and here lie the remains of Charles Merrill, my revered father. ...
As I cannot be with you, I send you all the greeting of an absent son of Malden and glory with you in her illustrious anniversary.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.