USA > Massachusetts > Essex County > Municipal history of Essex County in Massachusetts, Volume I > Part 45
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"Buy in Beverly" is the slogan adopted by the Chamber of Com- merce, and it is taken up by every dealer in the city, not merely on ac- count of its being Beverly, but because the stores offer superior values and service. A Merchants' Carnival was inaugurated in October, 1920, and proved to be a big trade event; it brought thousands of visitors and customers.
This Chamber of Commerce affiliates with other organizations as follows: Chamber of Commerce of the United States, Essex County Associated Boards of Trade, National Association of Commercial Execu- tives, National Association of Retail Secretaries.
A Community Christmas Tree set up and loaded with suitable gifts for the young, especially the needy of the community, was brought about solely through the efforts of the Chamber of Commerce in its first year's work. The housing, rooming and boarding place propositions have each found place in the careful deliberations of this organization. The annual report for 1920 shows receipts and disbursements to the amount of $15,- 836.43. Officers, 1920-21-Chester C. Pope, president ; John H. Newell, A. Scott Fraser, vice-presidents ; Arthur K. Story, treasurer; C. S. Nice, secretary and manager. The directors are Messrs. James W. Blackmer, Albert Boyden, Arthur A. Forness, A. Scott Fraser, Walter E. Hubbard, Peer P. Johnson, Charles F. Lee, John H. Newell, Chester C. Pope, Charles R. Pritchard, Robert Robertson, George H. Vose. The amount of funds on hand in the bank April 1st, 1921, was $2,913.
On other pages of this work will be found a narrative concerning the great United Shoe Machinery Company. The following concerning Beverly's greatest industry is from the pen of an excellent authority:
In the history of Beverly, shoes and shoemaking have always been identified with her success, and many of her most prominent men have been connected with the craft. The people of this and the preceding generation have watched with ever-increasing interest the development of the shoe factory right here in our midst from the little shop in the door yard of almost every home to the large and well-equipped modern shoe factory of today. With the growth of the shoe industry, there has been a corresponding growth of city and property. Today we point with pride to the large and well-regulated shoe factories in the manufacturing district.
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It was the custom in the early history of our country for journeymen shoemakers or "tramping jours," as they were called, to travel from house to house, repairing shoes, and not unfrequently they took orders for shoes made to measure. These shoemakers, or cordwinders and cordwainers, as they were called in those days, boarded with the men for whom they were working, staying at the house until all necessary repairs were made in their line, then going on to the next place, and so on. In the winter they traveled on snow shoes. The earliest cordwainer of whom we have any knowledge in our city was Andrew Elliott, who lived on Cabot street, above the Gloucester Crossing, near what is now the corner of Simon street.
This part of the town at that time was called "Haymarket," also "The City," and was a very important place and a center of trade. Mr. Elliott was the first town clerk of Beverly, and from him descended many prominent men, including President Eliot of Harvard College. We find that a shoemaker of note, Thomas Beard, resided in Salem in 1629. Also that Thomas Edwards, a name familiar to Beverly people today, resided in the same town. This was in 1649, and in 1652 Jongas Fairbanks was brought before an Essex county court and charged with "wearing great boots."
Just before the Revolutionary war, Joseph Foster moved to Beverly from Ipswich. He was deacon and also town clerk. He settled on Cabot street, near the way now known as Chestnut street. He was one of those who supplied the Continental army with shoes during the war. His shop was afterward occupied by Thomas Herrick, who with his sons, Joseph H., Sidney, Emerson, Thomas F. and Oliver, carried on the busi- ness. Thomas Herrick was the grandfather of Representative Joseph E. Herrick. This shop was afterward moved to the corner of Cabot and Myrtle streets.
Joseph Foster's son Daniel had a shop just below the Samuel P. Lovett estate, on Cabot street, where he manufactured thick, heavy boots, calfskin jackets and petticoat trousers for fishermen. The principal re- tail trade in shoes was done by the grocery stores at that time, and Mr. Foster supplied these stores with men's shoes of various designs. He also shipped shoes, as was customary in those days, to the West Indies and the southern states, receiving in return all kinds of produce, beans, corn, grain, etc. In connection with shoes, hats, furniture and New England rum formed part of the shipments. These men would occasion- ally accompany the shipment, both for the sake of the trip and to superin- attend the sale of the cargo. The following anecdote will illustrate the pluck and fearlessness of these men. During the war of 1812, several of these shoemakers chartered a schooner, loaded her at Essex during the night, ran the blockade successfully, and disposed of their cargo at an immense profit, thus securing for themselves a good round sum of money as the result of their venture and the reward of their daring.
Daniel Foster's three sons, James, Seth and Joseph, all worked with him, and later, under the firm name of Daniel Foster & Sons, they owned the patent for manufacturing pegged shoes in Essex county. James Fos- ter manufactured shoes in the Gorham Howard building, still standing on the corner of Bartlett and May streets, also in the original part of the shop, where William Cullivan's store now stands. His son Daniel, for many years an assessor of Beverly, succeeded him in the business until 1841, when he retired to engage in the fishing business. Seth Foster worked in the business until 1824, when he removed to Marblehead and
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continued the trade there. Many of the older manufacturers of that town learned their trade from him. In 1829 he moved to Ithaca, New York, and devoted his time to the manufacture of custom shoes, in con- nection with his retail store there. In 1830 he removed to Newark, New Jersey, and in the year following to Elizabeth, the same state, where he remained until his death in 1833. It was said of Mr. Foster that he was the first to introduced pegged shoes into New York State. He was the father of William A. Foster, who was so long in active business on Park street, and who was the first to introduce steam machinery in connec- tion with the manufacture of shoes in Beverly. He was also the father of Daniel Foster, who did a successful shoe business on the corner of Railroad avenue and Rantoul street for many years. Joseph Foster, if we are not mistaken, left no children. He worked with his father some- what, but paid more attention to out-of-door matters, and experimented largely in the culture of the mulberry, with a view to the raising of silk worms and the manufacture of silk. For this purpose he set out the orchard of trees near the corner of West Dane and Cabot streets, from which Mulberry street derives its name. His experiments were both in- teresting and curious, and he was commended by the agricultural depart- ment at Washington for his intelligent attention to the subject. But, as it required more capital to develop his experiments than he was able to command, he was never able to meet his expectations in this particular.
Among those who learned the trade of the elder Daniel were Cap- tain Daniel Cross, Olphert Tittle and Osman Gage, all seafaring men. Mr. Tittle carried on an extensive business where the drug store of John H. Moore is located. Deacon Nehemiah Roundy had a shop near the northerly corner of the Kittredge estate on Cabot street, now occupied by the Mason building, which houses the Almy, Bigelow & Washburn store and other business concerns.
At that time it was customary for apprentices to serve seven years and to board with their masters. Some were bound out at a very early age and served until they were 21. One little orphan lad was bound to a shoemaker at the age of seven. When he was fourteen, he remarked to a companion that he was the happiest boy alive, for he had but seven more years to serve.
Deacon Roundy introduced the system of apprentices serving four- teen months. At the end of that time they considered their trade learn- ed, and received journeymen's wages. He had many apprentices under this system, and some of them have been among our most noted and in- fluential citizens. Out of the many we will mention but one, the first mayor of Beverly, the late Hon. John I. Baker. Mr. Roundy manufac- tured the celebrated Wellington boot, which was a very popular and lead- ing style at that time. He shipped shoes to Africa and other foreign countries, and also had a very successful home trade in Boston, and for many years made his weekly trip over the road with his one-horse team. He at one time manufactured shoes in the house on Cabot street directly opposite the head of Elliott street. Three of his sons, John P., Augustus and George, worked with him. Among others who worked in this shop was Joseph Woodbury (2d), who for many years manufactured shoes on the corner of Railroad avenue and Hardy street, and who after his death was succeeded by his son, Myron, who conducted the business until his death in the factory on Rantoul street occupied by E. F. Bell & Co.
George A. Woodbury (2nd) another son, was for years located on the corner of Park and Bow streets, and did quite an extensive business there.
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Joseph Masury is another who worked in this same shop. He afterward did a large and successful business in Cleveland, Ohio, and other western cities. James Hill, who for many years was town clerk and prominent in town affairs, was another of Deacon Roundy's employees.
William Goodridge carried on the business in the Luke Goodridge house, which was located on Cabot, near the corner of Dane street. His sons, Charles, Luke and William, worked with him. About the year 1819 Captain Thomas B. Smith bought the Benjamin Roundy estate, adjoin- ing the William Goodrich house. He enlarged and altered the house and built a large factory, where he did an extensive business in the manu- facture of heavy boots and shoes. This shop was for many years a sort of reform headquarters, where anti-slavery, temperance and other meas- ures were discussed, many of which found earnest support and able ad- vocates. His brother, John G. Smith, worked with him. This shop was moved down on Railroad avenue near the depot, and afterward to River street, across the tracks. In 1830 David Lefavour began the manufac- ture of women's morocco and walking shoes in the shop then located on the Captain Issachar Foster estate at Beverly Cove. He found a market for his goods through a kinsman in Providence, Rhode Island, and gained for them an excellent reputation. His business increased until he was obliged to build larger at the Cove. When his son, Joseph W., became of age, and was associated with him, the business increased still more, and he was ultimately obliged to build the large and convenient factory which is still standing on Rantoul street, opposite the foot of Wallis street, where after the father's death the business was carried on by the son until the death of the latter.
John Lefavour, a brother of David, commenced the manufacture of shoes in 1847. He was, during the early part of his life, a seafaring man, being engaged in the merchant marine and bank fishing. For some two years he manufactured shoes for the Cuban trade, his shop being on Ober street, at Beverly Cove. In 1864 he moved the business to Park street, near the depot, and took his son, John H. Lefavour, into partner- ship, continuing in the business until his death, in 1872. Nearly opposite the David Lefavour shop at the Cove stood the little shop where the name Woodbury Brothers, which stood for many years on the factory of the Woodbury Shoe Company, had its origin. Here Thomas Woodbury, with his brothers, Elisha, Luther and Stephen, worked at their trade. The present firm, so well known in the shoe trade throughout the coun- try, started here also, but were soon obliged to build larger, and during their long career have probably manufactured more shoes and employed more help than any other shoe concern in Beverly.
Next to the John Lefavour shop at the Cove was the Boden shop, where Warren Boden, an early apprentice of Deacon Roundy and his brother Porter, worked at the trade. Opposite that shop was the Gal- loup shop, where several of the Galloup brothers worked at the trade. Another shop there was that of Philip Hammond, at Ober's Point. An- other was the shop of John K. Fielder, on Hale street, just below Lothrop street. This shop was a sort of rendezvous for the boys, who used to meet there evenings, where they learned to play the violin and other musical instruments, and many a good time was there enjoyed.
Israel Foster had a shop at Chapman's corner, and did considerable business there. There were several other of the little shops in that neighborhood. There was one on the corner of Dane and Essex streets, one on Cabot street, near the corner of Pond street, and another on
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Knowlton street. One of these shops, which stood on the corner of Cabot and Davis streets, was afterward removed to Dane street. Jere- miah Trask, Sr., had a shop on the Joshua Trask estate, near the Glouces- ter Branch railroad crossing on Cabot street, where he, with his sons Jeremiah, Nathaniel and Manasseh, did quite a little business. Later Manasseh made shoes to measure in a shop on Cabot street, near Milton street. The store of Jeremiah Trask, Jr., on Cabot street, near the cor- ner of West Dane street, was a busy place. Among the apprentices in this shop were the late Seth Norwood, father of former Senator Francis Norwood, and George S. Millett, who was one of the largest manufactur- ers in the city at one time.
Not far from the year 1830, Ebenezer Moses came here from Malden and established himself in the shoe manufacturing business on the corner of Cabot and Essex streets. With him came William D. Crossfield and William Larrabee. Mr. Moses manufactured mostly run-rounds and pumps for both ladies and gentlemen. He built a large factory accom- modation on the corner of Federal and Chapman streets, and was the first to introduce the division of labor with one to fit the sole, one to sew the shoe, and another to finish. He did a large and successful business up to the panic of 1837, and continued for several years afterward with varied success.
It is interesting to know, in this connection, that Samuel Preston, of Danvers, the inventor of the first pegging machine, was a school teacher in the old brick school house on School street, and after he had removed to Danvers and engaged in the business there, many Beverly persons, in- cluding some of his old pupils, were in his employ.
A large number of Beverly people in the eighteenth century and the early part of the nineteenth, were fishermen, who worked at shoemaking during the winter, their work being brought mainly from Lynn and Dan- vers. At the present time, instead of depending on these two places for employment, our city furnishes work in our large factories for scores from those places.
A family that has long been identified with shoemaking is the Wallis family. Nathaniel, the first of the name, came here from Cornwall, England, and settled at Falmouth, now Portland, Maine, remaining there until driven off with the rest of the population by the Indians. He seems to have first come to Manchester and immediately afterward to Beverly, settling near the corner of Cabot street and what is now Columbus ave- nue. Several of his sons were shoemakers, of whom Caleb, afterward Deacon Caleb, married, in 1687, Sarah, a daughter of Nathaniel and Re- member Stone, the latter being a daughter of Ensign Samuel Corning, who owned all the land west of Cabot street, from Milton street to Pond street and Corning's Cove, near the Herrick grain warehouse. Deacon Caleb built a shop on the corner of Cabot and Wallis streets, which was afterward occupied by another Caleb of the next generation. Of the brothers of this latter Caleb, who worked in the old shop, were Josiah and Henry.
Another shoemaker was Bartholomew Wallis, who lived on the cor- ner of Cabot street and Wallis streets, opposite the factory built by the elder Caleb. His sons, Bartholomew, Andrew, Israel and Levi, worked with their father for some time, and afterward for themselves. Bar- tholomew and Andrew built the three-story house on Cabot street just this side of Fayette street; the former had a shop in the yard, the latter made custom shoes to measure, and lived in the house across the street
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from Bartholomew, now owned and occupied by Mrs. Jesse G. Trask. Israel bought the estate on the corner of Cabot and Judson streets, where is now the Ware Theatre.
Ebenezer, who lived on Wallis street-and by these names we see that Wallis street was rightly named-also made shoes, as did his sons, Ebenezer, Jr., Joshua and Eleazer. His cousin, whose house stood on the site of the A. C. Lunt block, corner of Cabot and Bow streets, had a shop between his house and the house adjoining the Lovett house, which occupied a portion of the site of the Rogers block, where he worked at the business with his sons, Ebenezer, Jeremiah, William and Joseph. A bright and tonguey member of the craft was Jonathan Herrick, whose wife was from the Wallis family. He served during the war of 1812 under Harrison at "Tippecanoe," which appellation he bore ever after- ward. His shop was known as "Tar Bay," and stood on Water street until it was removed in the latter part of the nineteenth century, when Michael Harrington erected his new house on its site.
Another character was Harry Ellingwood, who learned his trade of Deacon Roundy ; he was lame, and during his youth was a pretty reckless fellow, but was afterward converted and became quite a zealous Christian. He emigrated to Kentucky and was for many years a successful and in- fluential preacher there.
Lewis Eliot, who married in North Beverly, and who kept a shoe store in Salem, advertised extensively, believing, as our wide-awake and energetic dealers do today, in a liberal and judicious use of printer's ink. Some of his advertisements were attractive for their originality and . uniqueness. Many of them were in rhyme. One of his verses reads thus:
Cheap, cheap, cheap was the cry From Buffum's corner to the neck; Shoes to buckle, shoes to tie Neatly will your feet bedeck.
Another loyal character who served during the war of 1812 was Josiah Foster, known as "Cape Sire." He lived on Essex street and worked with Jeremiah Trask, Jr. In some conditions and on some oc- casions, while telling of scenes through which he had passed, he would imagine himself on board a man-of-war. Those associated with him were all Englishmen, and he would often "clear the deck" of the whole shop's crew.
A very tall shoemaker known as Jack Ayers, who lived on the Charles H. Patch estate at Centerville, had an entry built on to his shop, in order, it was said, to accommodate his legs, and the boys took special delight in twitting him of it, serving to provoke him beyond endurance. This was one of their songs of annoyance:
It was long tall Jack Said his Whip he would crack On the wicked boys' back Who persisted in calling him "Lofty." But "Aloft what's the weather?" They all answered together, And then they would change his name to "Softy."
Mr. Ayers was a soldier in the militia, and of such great length of leg that no one else could keep step with his enormous strides, hence he
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was allowed to fall out on the march. Had he lived in these modern days, he would no doubt have been a champion pedestrian.
More than seventy-five years ago, a boy by the name of Abner tried to learn the shoemaker's trade at Deacon Roundy's shop, where then worked Thomas L. Pickett, a bright and witty character, who one day, examining the production of this young struggler, said: "Well, Abner, you have made something we can all worship, for it is the likeness of nothing in the heavens above, or the earth beneath, or the waters under the earth." And the best part of this was that Abner took the credit of the joke to himself and really thought that its brightness offset any short- comings in the shoe manufacturing line.
One of the early Wallis shoemakers was Daniel, who lived in a square one-story house, in the then open field, where is now the junction of Rantoul and Wallis streets. He, too, was a cordwainer, and reared a large family, including several who worked at that trade. In the later years of his life, he came under the delusion that he was dead, and in constant association with those who had gone before. Hence he was known as "Deadman Daniel," to distinguish him from another Daniel Wallis. It may be there was something akin to Spiritualism in the con- trolling influences which thus developed themselves in those early days.
It may be of interest to know that the first shoe factory in the United States was located in the neighboring town of Danvers. It was estab- lished by Zerubbabel Porter, who waxed prosperous by making brogans for heavy slaves in the South. These were made by hand and in the cheapest possible manner. Following the establishment of this shop in Danvers, other small shops sprang up about the beginning of the eigh- teenth century. The uppers, soles and linings were cut by hand and given out to residents of the vicinity to be finished, the women doing the stitching, the rest being done by the men, who were mostly farmers or fishermen, and worked at shoemaking during their spare time. Hun- dreds of families added to their scanty incomes in this way. One spe- cialty was fishermen's boots, which the local shoemakers would make up and take to the local wharves and the neighboring seaport towns, where they would find a ready sale for them on the arrival of the fisher- men from a successful trip.
The following is the list of the principal shoe manufacturers in Bev- erly today: The Baby Comfort Shoe Company, The J. H. Baker Shoe Company, Bartlett & Trask, E. F. Bell & Co., Bray & Stanley, Criterion Shoe Co., P. A. Field Shoe Co., Flint Brothers, Kane & MacDonald, Mil- lett, Woodbury & Co., F. A. Seavey & Co., Peabody Shoe Co., Reliance Shoe Co., M. Shortell & Son, Woodbury Shoe Company.
Beverly has always been noted for the number of its churches, and today the list includes the following: Unitarian, Congregational, Bap- tist, Episcopal, Methodist, Universalist, Penticostal, Jewish Synagogue, Roman Catholic and Salvation Army Post.
The Second Church of Beverly is connected with the Congregational denomination. The meeting-house, at the junction of Cabot and Conant streets, is a handsome and imposing specimen of colonial architecture. Considerable difficulty was encountered in separating from the First Parish, but permission was finally obtained from the "Great and General Court." The first meeting of the new precinct was held at the house
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of Captain John Dodge, on November 13, 1713. At this meeting it was voted "to proceed forthwith to ye building a meeting hous for ye public worship of God; to choose a committee of nine persons to manage ye af- fair of building and finishing ye sd hous, any fine of them agreeing; ye hous to be 48 feet long, 38 feet wide, and 22 feet stud; and unanimously agreed that ye meeting-hous should be set up by ye county road, neare ye hous of Mr. Jabez Baker." The house originally stood about thirty feet farther north and faced Cabot street. The first religious service was held on December 14, 1714.
The first pastor was Rev. John Chipman, who had been graduated from Harvard in the class of 1711. During his pastorate of almost sixty years the church enjoyed uninterrupted success and prosperity. On the morning of December 28, 1715, a "Preamble and Covenant" was duly drawn up, publicly acknowledged, and signed by fifteen males, thereby instituting a "Church of Christ" in the northern section of the town. Later that day, Mr. Chipman "was set apart to the gospel min- istry in this place by solemn ordination." In 1753 Mr. Robert Hooper, Jr., presented the first bell, which continued to be used until 1822.
Mr. Chipman's long pastorate closed in the turmoil of the Revolution. It appears that, like many of the older men, the good pastor had Toryish sympathies. But it is not surprising to find that the young man who was called to assist the aged pastor, Rev. Enos Hitchcock, was a fiery patriot, and perhaps the extraordinary fervor of the inhabitants of the Upper Parish in the cause of the Revolution was somewhat due to his brave and enthusiastic spirit. On July 14, 1774, the fast appointed by the authority of the people to supplicate the divine favor for the liberties of America, was observed with solemnity by the ministers and congrega- tions in the lower and upper parishes in Beverly. A collection for the poor of the town of Boston was taken up, and a very generous sum was
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