USA > Massachusetts > Hampshire County > Northampton > Northampton, the meadow city > Part 5
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There are now nine college dwelling houses besides the pres- ident's and the doctor's. The smallest of these accommodates about twenty-one, the largest, from fifty to sixty. These houses are attractively arranged, espec- ially the newer ones, with their large square entrance halls and open fire-places. Each house has its own parlors, dining-room, kitchen and corps of servants. What is more important, each house has at its head a cultured woman, whose influence secures the home- life and refined atmosphere so indispensable to the rounded development of the student.
The college is Christian in its aims and influences but entirely undenominational. Prayers are held each week day morning in Assembly Hall, and on Sunday afternoons there is a Vesper service in the same place. There is no college church ; students are free to attend any church in the city. The religious life of the students finds practical expres- sion in a number of societies devoted to different kinds of Christian work. The Bible is systemati- cally studied throughout the course.
Constant stress is laid upon the necessity of caring for the health. The Alumna. Gymnasium gives ample provision for indoor exercise. It is well lighted and ventilated, and thoroughly equipped with the newest appliances for physical culture. The old system of free gymnastics has given way to the more scientific Swedish system. Every student who enters for work is thoroughly examined both by the college physi- cian and by the instructor in Gym- nastics. There is also a Gymnastic and Field Associ- ciation which
VIEW OF CAMPUS FROM EPISCOPAL CHURCH SPIRE
VIEW OF CAMPUS FROM EPISCOPAL CHURCH SPIRE
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NORTHAMPTON,
control the tennis courts and boats, and in general regulates the out-door athletic life of the students.
The social life at Smith is many-sided. The literary, scientific and dramatic societies, the lectures of the Art school, the recitals and con- certs of the Music school, the Athletic sports, and the enter- tainments offered both by the college and by the city -all these permit an unusually complex and interest- ing social life.
Smith opened with one college house, one academic building, and fourteen students. It took up its work in the fall of 1894 with nine college dwelling houses, seven aca- demic buildings, and eight hundred and four students.
No account of the college, however brief, is at all adequate which does not emphasize its indebt- edness to Northampton. The city is singularly
PARLOR IN WALLACE HOUSE
rich in opportunities for a varied culture. Its many advantages are freely offered to the college. Its citizens have always been most generous in their hospitality and courtesy. No alumna who knows well her Alma Mater, can fail to appreci- ate the grace and dignity given it by its connec- tion with the beautiful and historic city in which it is located.
SOCIAL LIFE AT SMITH
A shrewd young Westerner recently said to the writer : "Smith College is not run on the convent plan ; and for that reason I think it will be the best place for my sister. She is a diffident girl, and if she spends four years in an atmosphere of books only, at the end of that time she will be about as well fitted for the world as she is now. The girls at Smith have some social life ; and that is a necessary part of a liberal education."
ASSEMBLY HALL
The speech showed not only a sense of proportion, but also an appreciation of one of the characteristic feat- ures of Smith. While the aim of the college is, first and always, education, the term is felt to include something broader than mere book- knowledge. Smith therefore provides for her daughters a social life as nearly normal as the peculiar conditions of the case permit. In a great assemblage of young women, certain social functions are impossible, while study renders others expedient. There are, however, many social experiences left to the college girl by which she may secure poise, and, at the same time, needed relaxation from the strain of study.
The afternoon tea enables her to give a cordial welcome to the timid new-comer from her native
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INTERIOR ALUMNA GYMNASIUM
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THE MEADOW CITY.
-
GLIMPSES IN THE HILLYER AKT GALLERY
town, to extend a courtesy to a guest from Vassar or Wellesley, and to pass her own friends in review before her visiting mother or sister.
Among college girls, as among light-hearted girls everywhere, dancing is in high favor ; and from a contra dance on a tennis court, hastily improvised to the strains of a wandering band, to the more carefully planned affairs in the gym- nasium, given every fall by the Sophomores to the incoming Freshmen, and every spring by the
Juniors to the outgoing Seniors, the absence of young men does not lessen the enjoyment of the dance.
Dramatics add much to the entertainment of the students. Each of the larger houses has an informal dramatic organization, and the three smaller cottages have one in combination. Only one play is allowed in a term, and as the societies act in rotation, no house has its turn often enough to interfere seriously with work. The plays,
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NORTHAMPTON,
ranging from a society farce to a comedy of Shakespeare, are produced on the stage of the gymnasium, before a lenient audience made up of ladies from town, whose hospitality has been extended to the girls, the women of the faculty, and the students themselves. The literary societies, at their frequent open meetings, offer varied programmes, more or less literary in character but always original ; and the Glee and
MEMORIAL HALL AND UNITARIAN CHURCH
Banjo Clubs often contribute their quota of entertainment on formal and informal occasions.
In all affairs conducted by the students, three points are insisted upon by the faculty, simplicity, economy, and early hours.
Concerts and lectures, at the col- lege and in town, provide another sort of diversion ; and a particularly good play in the beautiful Academy of Music, is sure to draw a large representation from the college.
Out of doors, tennis has many devotees ; while the charming scenery offers a constant invitation to walking and driving parties. Now and then, on a half-holiday, the sound of a horn and a flourish of flags gaily mark the departure of a coaching- party, duly chaperoned, to witness a game of foot-ball or base-ball at Amherst.
So the college year of mingled effort and relaxation rolls around to Commencement ;
By the time she reaches her own Commencement, the diffident sister of the shrewd Westerner will have learned not only that there is joy and health in simple pleasures, but also that a good time, that healthy aspiration of the youthful heart, is most readily secured by graciousness and social helpfulness.
Some over-anxious critic, reading these lines, will ask, " But is there not too much of pleasure in all this ? Will it not make solid work impossible ? "
To this I answer, " No, for three reasons : the merely frivolous girl seldom comes to college at all ; the girls who do come are of an age to discriminate between just enough and not too much of a good thing, and to use self-control ; and finally, behind it all lurks the truth of the old song :
"Your merry heart goes all the day, Your sad one tires in a mile-a !"
FREE PUBLIC LIBRARIES
The Northampton Free Public Library was established in 1860, the Northampton Young Men's Institute
FORBES LIBRARY
giving its books for that purpose, on certain conditions. Early in this century, the " North- ampton Social Library" was formed ; this was followed by the " High School Lyceum Library," which was afterwards merged in that of the
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THE MEADOW CITY.
Young Men's Insti- tute. In 1867, the first steps were taken to obtain a Library Building. A site was purchased the follow- ing year, and in 1869 the town appropriated $25,000 for erecting a Memorial Hall in hon- or of our fallen heroes, and a Public Library Building, when a like amount should have been raised by volun- tary subscription. Within two years this condition was complied with, and the structure commenced. The first appropriation was insufficient and the town voted an additional amount, giving a total of $42,229. 19 for this purpose. In 1874, the Library was re- moved to the new building. A spacious Reading Room, open every day in the week, is connected with the Library.
The Memorial Hall contains a list of the names of all soldiers from Northampton known to have served in any war since the settlement of the
ACADEMY OF MUSIC
DICKINSON HOSPITAL
town. The second story is designed for a mu- seum. It already contains the nucleus of what it is hoped will become a valuable collection of the relics of early days.
Mr. John Clarke, who died in 1869, bequeathed to the town, $40,000 for the benefit of the Libra- ry. The income from this fund maintains in a great measure, the Library and Reading Room.
On the death of Judge Charles E. Forbes,
which occurred in 188 1 the town came in pos- session of not less than $300,000, for Library purposes. The will provided that $50,000 should be set apart for a building fund, and $20,000 for the payment of running expenses. In order to increase the build- ing fund, the entire bequest was, if con- sidered advisable, to remain at interest for ten years, when the accumulations were to be divided in equal parts between the building and book funds. Three yearsago this decade expired, and the Trustees under the Will have since erected a handsome fire-proof building near the junction of Main and West streets. It has been recently turned over to the city. The services of Mr. C. A. Cutter, formerly at the head of the Boston Athenæum, have been secured as Librarian.
Another important donation was that of Dr. Pliny Earle, who died in 1892. He be- queathed $50,000 to the city, the income of which is to be applied for the payment of all expenses in the Forbes Library, except the salaries of Librarians.
In 1871, a branch of the Public Library was established at Florence, the books of the Free Congregational Society of that village, being given for that purpose. In 1889, Mr. A. T. Lilly erected a Library building there, at the cost of $13,000, giv- ing at the same time $5,000 which was expended for the purchase of books.
ACADEMY OF MUSIC. - Another gift not less munificent than any yet recorded, is that of Mr. Edward H. R. Lyman. In 1890, he built on Main street, at the corner of South street Boulevard, the elegant, complete and capacious " Academy of Music," and within a year presented it to the city. It is constructed in the best style of modern architecture, and has a seating capacity of 1200. It is without doubt one of the finest buildings of its class in this sec- tion of the state and cost about $100,000.
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NORTHAMPTON,
ROBERTS BROOK - NORTHAMPTON'S WATER SUPPLY
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THE MEADOW CITY.
DICKINSON HOSPITAL. - Not least among the public bequests to the city, is the Dickinson Hospital, the gift of Caleb Cooley Dickinson of Hatfield. He left by will $100,000 for the founding of a Hospital for the treatment of all except chronic diseases. His relatives contested the will, and the costs of the litigation reduced the sum available for the charity to $87,000. The town sold ten acres of the Denniston Farm to the Trustees for the nominal sum of $100, and they erected the building, which was opened to the public January 1, 1886. Its founder stated that his purpose was "to establish and put in operation in Northampton, a hospital for the sick poor of the towns of Hatfield, Whately and Northampton," where they will receive such nursing and care as they may require, "either gratuitously or at a moderate charge according to the cir- cumstances of each."
THE HOME FOR AGED AND INVALID WOMEN IN NORTH- AMPTON. - Mrs. A. L. Williston, Pres. ; Mrs. Wm. M. Gaylord, Mrs. Sarah M. Butler, and Miss Caroline R. Clarke, Vice-Pres. ; Mrs. Henry Lathrop, Sec'y; Miss Frances Brewer, Treas. This institution was incor- porated under the laws of Massachusetts in 1887, although it had existed as a charitable institution for three years previous.
THE HOME - SOUTH STREET
Its aim is to give a pleasant home to those who from advanced age, or physical infirmity, cannot care for themselves, or have no friends with whom it is possible for them to live.
The officers of the corporation under the name of a Board of Managers, consist of a Pres- ident, three Vice-Presidents, a Secretary, a Treasurer and twenty-four advisory members.
A Committee of two of these members for every month, visit The Home at least once a week, to see the inmates, to inquire into their condition, and to give encouragement or advice as is required. A Matron administers the inter- nal affairs of The Home, who by kindness and
attention secures the comfort and happiness of those under her care.
Through the kindness of the original owner of the estate, and the generous contributions of many friends, in the autumn of 1887, the cor- poration were able to buy an attractive place on the corner of South and Olive streets.
The house soon proved too small to accommo- date the old ladies begging for admittance. Kind friends, prominent among whom was Mr. George Bliss of New York, formerly a resident of South street, subscribed $3,000 and the next year extensive repairs were made, doubling the capacity of the house.
The institution is dependent for funds to carry on its work, on a weekly stipend paid by the inmates themselves or by friends outside ; by an annual collection taken in each of the different churches in town (it being wholly undenominational in character), and by the contributions of gen- erous individuals.
As yet there is no endowment worthy of the name, although a few thousand dollars have been left to The Home which the man- agers hope to receive when the various es- tates are settled. It has proved a most worthy charity, affording a pleasant, quiet home to those stranded on the pathway of life, or to those waiting for the sum- mons to enter into the life beyond.
WHITING STREET POOR FUND. - Still another bequest is that of Whiting Street, who died in 1878. He left an estate valued at $500,000. Of this sum $112,500 was set aside as a fund, the in- come of which was to be used for the benefit of the worthy poor who are not paupers, in twenty- two towns in the counties of Hampshire, Hamp- den and Franklin. Northampton received $25, 000, and from it an income varying from $1,500 to $1,375 has been paid to the deserving poor of the city. The money is disbursed by the Board of Almoners chosen from the different wards by the city government.
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NORTHAMPTON,
3
BURNHAM HOUSE
THE MARY A. BURNHAM SCHOOL FOR GIRLS
This school commemorates in its name its honored founder.
Miss Burnham came to Northampton in 1877, and established what was especially designed to be a preparatory school for Smith College, under the name of the "Classical School for Girls." She purchased from Mr. John Huntington Lyman his fine old resi- dence on Elm Street, and the first pupils were received in September of that year. The attendance rapidly increased. In 1880, Miss Bessie T. Capen became associate principal, and after occupy- ing for two years the Hall House on Elm street, bought the Talbot estate on Prospect street, where she now re- sides, having personal oversight of the largest of the three school-families.
Miss Burnham died at Ventnor, Isle
of Wight in 1885. At that time Miss Capen gave the school its present name, and became its sole principal.
In 1889, to meet the increasing needs of the
WHITCOMB HOUSE
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THE MEADOW CITY.
school, a commodious building on Prospect street was erected, containing a gymnasium with all modern appliances, an art studio, and nine school rooms; and in the fall of 1893, a third house for boarding-pupils was opened on Park street.
At the opening of the school in 1877, twenty- two pupils were registered ; the number of names on the roll for the year 1894-'95 is 175. The number of teachers employed has increased
NORTHAMPTON AS AN EDUCATIONAL CENTRE
When the Puritan founded his towns in the wilderness, the first public building was the church, and one of the earliest acts of the new town-meeting was to provide for the support of minister and schoolmaster. It is therefore not surprising to find that Northampton, often cited as a typical New England town, is an educational
CAPEN HOUSE
from four to twenty-three. Since its organiza- tion the school has steadfastly pursued the objects proposed by its founder, following closely the plans and methods which she so intelligently devised.
Its full preparatory course embraces four years of study, but the time consumed is proportioned to the needs of individual pupils. A large num- ber of its graduates have entered Smith College, and have constantly been found among its most successful students.
centre. It would be difficult to find in any city of four or five times her population, so large a number of educational institutions of the first rank, as lie within a radius of seven miles of the green meadows, out of which her streets stretch backward toward the hills. And the institutions of this larger Northampton, shortly to be united by a converging system of electric roads, are not mushroom growths ; they rest upon ample foun- dations. Millions of property are behind them. Of the educational institutions in this circle, nine
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NORTHAMPTON,
stand out pre-eminent. Smith College for women
was founded in 1870, by Miss Sophia Smith of Hat- field, and has enjoyed a prosperity almost une- qualled in the history of
educational institutions. Beginning twenty years ago with twenty students, it now has 804 students, and a faculty of forty-four. Its invested funds amount to $500,000 and its real estate and collections to as much more.
It offers courses of four years in Classics, Litera-
ture and Science, and confers upon graduates, the titles of Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Letters. It also possesses a School of Art, and a School of Music. The price of tuition is one hundred dollars a year.
Clarke Institu- tion for Deaf Mutes was organized in 1867, and is a pio- neer in the work of teaching the deaf to talk. By a course of instruction founded on general princi- ples, but skillfully adapted to individuals, deaf children are taught to speak through mechanical imitation of the motions of the throat, while at the
same time they are given educational opportunities equal to that of our High Schools. Its results are among the most striking examples of modern success in breaking the chain of silence which binds the deaf, and opening to them the gates of the pleasant fields of literature, science and art. About 150 stu- dents enjoy the advantages of the institution.
The Florence Free Kindergarten, on a foun- dation established by S. L. Hill and A. T. Lilly, provides instruction for children accord- ing to the most im- proved methods. A corps of nine teachers conduct the teaching of the institution.
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0
The Northamp- ton High School, under the able management of its principal, Mr. Clar- ence B. Roote, is sustaining with power the reputa- tion won by its past success in preparing young men and women either to enter immediately upon productive work, to pursue in other institutions academic or professional studies.
Two libraries provide for the education of Northampton citizens. The first is the North-
VIEWS OF THE EXTERIOR AND INTERIOR OF THE GYMNASIUM OF THE MARY A. BURNHAM SCHOOL
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THE MEADOW CITY.
ampton Free Public Library, established in 1860. It began a new and more vigorous life in 1874, when its model library building, erected at a cost of $75,000, was opened. It has a reading- room, well supplied with papers and periodicals, and a carefully selected circulating library of over twenty-five thousand volumes, to which constant additions are made.
The second foundation is the Forbes Library fund of $406,000, since increased by the sum of $60,000 for its maintenance. The additional income necessary to the support of the library is given by the city. Of the foundation, $100,000 has been invested in a fire-proof building, just completed, and $30,000 of accumulations, as well as about $12,000 a year of annual income, are devoted by the terms of the trust to the pur- chase of books. The appointment as libra- rian, of Mr. Chas. A. Cutter, for twenty-four years librarian of the Boston Athenæum, gives assurance that the funds will be skill- fully used, and within a few years Northamp- ton will possess a col- lection of books which will be an ornament to the state.
Williston Seminary, at Easthampton, has long possessed the rep- utation of one of the best equipped preparatory schools for boys in this country. Its ample foundation is administered by wise trustees, and the faculty of nine teachers provide strong courses for the one hundred and fifty students.
Amherst Agricultural College is largely sup- ported by the state of Massachusetts. It has demonstrated its value as an experiment station, and provides instruction in all the sciences which control the art of farming, as well as practice in the details of the management of agriculture and grazing lands.
Of Amherst College, situated seven miles distant, it is superfluous to speak. She owes her honorable reputation to the success of her
graduates, who by their ability to do good work both in church and state have given the best possible testimony to the excllence of the instruction received from their Alma Mater.
Across the river in the pleasant village of South Hadley, lies Mt. Holyoke College. This pioneer institution for the higher education of women was established by Mary Lyon in 1837, and for fifty years was known as Mt. Holyoke Seminary. On its seventy acre campus are the original dormitory and recitation building, the finely equipped Lyman Williston Hall, the Physical and Chemical Laboratories, and the Observatory.
It is fortunate that with so many colleges, Northampton is also well provided with prepara-
Path of the flowery woodland ! Oh, whither dost thou lead ?- W. C. Bryant.
tory schools. The list must be closed with the mention of The Mary A. Burnham School for Girls, which has twenty-three teachers and one hundred and seventy-five scholars. Those of its graduates who enter our colleges, evidence the excellence of their preparation by their success.
The charms of the surrounding country,- her institutions, the beauty of quiet streets shaded by elms noble enough to support a title and a coat of arms- distinguish Northampton as a city destined to become a favorite home for those who love nature, letters, science and art, and desire to teach their children to love them.
PAUL VAN DYKE.
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NORTHAMPTON,
NORTHAMPTON LUNATIC HOSPITAL
The development of the hospital for the insane during the past five hundred years, would be a matter of historic interest to any one who cared to pursue it. About the year 1400, we have the first intelligent account of the custody and treat- ment of the insane, in the Bethlem Hospital in London. The idea of demoniacal possession prevailed at that time, and the methods of treat- ment, which were very crude, were in accordance
by the State has continued.
properly wards of the State. The laws which The insane are
regulate their admission and discharge to the
public institutions are made by the State. In all cases of commitment, the patient must be exam-
ined by two regular physicians, who sign certifi-
cates giving their opinion of the condition of the
patient. Public notice is then given to the overseers of the poor, and an order is issued by the judge of some court for commitment, if in his opinion it is deemed best. This publicity
with that idea. It was not until the present century that the more enlightened and humane
ideas prevailed. Connolly in London, Pinel in Paris, and others, brought about great reform, and established the present methods of non-restraint, greater freedom, pleasant surroundings and sal- utary moral influences. It is almost universally recognized as the duty of the State, to provide for the comfort and support of its insane. The result is that nearly all the United States have provided hospitals for the insane, and placed
in the management of hospitals, the supervision time has passed and years have added experience large and populous to assume the expense. As were built, there were no communities sufficiently this arrangement is, that when these institutions them under public authority. One reason for
affords protection to the patient, and places the responsibility of the commitment in hands which
are competent and disinterested. The State
amply provides also for supervision and inspec- tion of the hospitals. The government of each of the State Lunatic Hospitals is vested in a
board of seven trustees appointed and commis-
sioned by the Governor and Council. They are
a corporation holding in trust all lands and
property belonging to the institutions. They
take charge of the general interests of the hospital.
establish by-laws and regulations for the internal
visits to the hospital at least once a month. The appoint the officers, fix their salaries and make government and economy of the institution, State Board of Lunacy and Charity who are ap- pointed by the Governor, consists of nine members
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