USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Woburn > Proceedings 1892 at the two hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the incorporation of the town of Woburn, Massachusetts > Part 2
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INVITATIONS. - George F. Bean, Chairman ; Parker L. Converse, John Cummings, Henry C. Hall, John M. Harlow, Edward D. Hayden, Edward F. Johnson, Joseph G. Pollard, Law- rence Reade, Edward E. Thompson, Leonard Thompson, Edwin F. Wyer.
BANQUET. - Edward F. Johnson, Chairman; William E. Blod- " gett, D. Wilbur Brown, John C. Buck, William F. Davis, Joseph F. DeLoriea, Herbert B. Dow, Luke W. Fowle, George F. Hosmer, William C. Kenney.
MUSIC. - P. Elverton Bancroft, Chairman ; Francis A. Buckman, Patrick Calnan, Jr., James H. Conway, Everett P. Fox, Cyrus T. Lang, Francis A. Partridge, Abijah Thompson, Moses W. True.
MILITARY AND PARADE. - Edwin F. Wyer, Chairman ; James H. Carton, Horace N. Conn, Edmund C. Cottle, A. B. Dimick, James H. Doherty, Jacob M. Ellis, Albert A. Ferrin, William T. Grammer, Frank W. Graves, William T. Kendall, John Maloney, Thomas Moore, John K. Murdock, William C. Parker, F. B. Richardson, George A. Simonds, Frank E. Tracy, Frank E. Wetherell, Alonzo T. Young.
DECORATION. - Winthrop Hammond, Chairman ; Heber B. Clewley, Hubbard Copeland, Lawrence J. Cullen, Charles T. Dearborn, Frederic A. Flint, Fred E. Lovell, Thomas F. McCormick, John O'Donnell, Edward B. Parkhurst, Eliphaz Prior, C. Willard Smith.
PRINTING. - Philip K. A. Richardson, Chairman ; Albert P. Bar- rett, S. Edgar Kendrick, B. Frank Kimball, Byran Mc- Sweeney, John J. Walsh.
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PHILIP K. A. RICHARDSON, Chairman of Committee on Printing.
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CARRIAGES AND TRANSPORTATION. - Elwyn G. Preston, Chairman ; William H. Bowers, Thos. Caulfield, Geo. C. Conn, John Ferguson, Jacob A. Ham, Caleb H. Jaquith, Gilman F. Jones, James McAvoy, Jas. B. Mclaughlin, Frank Meehan, Charles H. Nichols.
SALUTES AND ILLUMINATIONS. - William Beggs, Chairman ; Fred J. Brown, Charles W. Bryant, William P. Cutler, William F. Greenough, Edward J. Gregory, Dennis J. Kelley, Frederic H. Lewis, Charles J. Quigley, Edward H. Walsh.
LITERARY EXERCISES. - John W. Johnson, Chairman; Charles D. Adams, Parker L. Converse, George A. Crawford, Her- bert B. Dow, Thomas D. Hevey, Joseph G. Pollard, Law- rence W. Slattery.
SCHOOL CHILDREN'S ENTERTAINMENT. - John R. Carter, Chair- man; Warren P. Adams, Oliver F. Bryant, Miss Eliza- beth M. Brown, Mrs. Josephine H. Carter, Mrs. Ellen C. Hayden, John F. Larkin, Andrew R. Linscott, Daniel F. Murphy, George H. Perkins, Mrs. Sarah C. Phinney, Mrs. Emma M. Wright.
LOAN EXHIBITION AND MEMORIALS. - Parker L. Converse, Chair- man ; Mrs. Parker L. Converse, Mrs. William R. Cutter, Mrs. Jane F. Davis, Henry M. Eames, Mrs. Henry M. Eames, Nathan W. Eaton, Mrs. B. F. Flagg, Ward W. Hart, Marcellus Littlefield, Mrs. Sullivan Simonds, Albert Thompson, L. Waldo Thompson, Mrs. Abby W. Watson, Alva S. Wood.
RECEPTION OF THE PRESS. - William F. Kenney, Chairman; Charles K. Conn, James E. Cutler, George S. Hudson, Charles S. O'Neil, Elmore A. Pierce, Frank E. Wetherell. PUBLICATION OF PROCEEDINGS. - Frank B. Richardson, Chairman ; John Jameson, Edward H. Lounsbury, William. A. Lynch, Samuel W. Mendum, Philip K. A. Richardson, Frank E. Wetherell.
SPORTS. - Francis P. Curran, Chairman; Dennis D. Begley, William W. Crosby, William H. Doyle, John H. Finn, Thos. F. Kelley, Edward C. Leathe, Percy W. Linscott, Michael Meagher, Milton Moore, Hugh D. Murray, Edward J. Phillips, Stillman Shaw, Charles M. Strout.
HISTORIC PLACES. - Leonard Thompson, Chairman ; Albert F. Converse, William R. Cutter, George E. Fowle, Edward E.
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Parker, Frank P. Richardson, Edward Simonds, Leander Thompson, Samuel A. Thompson, Marshall M. Tidd, Arthur B. Wyman.
RECEPTION AND INFORMATION. - John G. Maguire, Chairman ; Montressor T. Allen, John P. Crane, William F. Davis. Patrick Donahoe, W. Frank Fowle, Alexander Grant, John I. Munroe, David F. Moreland, Francis M. Pushee, Chester R. Smith, Charles E. Tripp, John T. Trull, S. Franksford Trull, B. Frank Waldron, Edward F. Johnson, George F. Bean, William I. Clewley, Parker L. Converse, John Cum- mings, John M. Harlow, Edward D. Hayden, Joseph G. Pollard, Lawrence Reade, Leonard Thompson, Edward . H. Lounsbury, Robert J. W. Phinney, James Begley, Jr., Edward A. Dow, Albert P. Barrett, Alva S. Wood, John J. Mahern, Marcellus Littlefield, S. Edgar Kendrick.
REGISTRATION. - William R. Cutter, Chairman ; Henry L. Andrews, Thomas J. Callahan, Frederick B. K. Marter, Herbert S. Riley, John E. Tidd, William S. Whitford.
RECEPTION AND BALL .- Wm. F. Davis, Chairman; John W. Johnson, S. Franksford Trull, John T. Trull, John G. Maguire, W. Frank Fowle, B. Frank Waldron, Richard H. Chamberlain, Fred J. Brown, Henry M. Aldrich, Wm. E. Blodgett, Winthrop Hammond, David F. Moreland, Squire B. Goddard, E. G. Clough, Heber B. Clewley, Herbert W. Munn, H. Eustis Smith, J. Fred Leslie, William L. Mur- dock, Frank A. Partridge, Edward J. Gregory, Jos. Henry Parker, Alonzo T. Young, John I. French, Frank H. Elliott, John Duncan, Jr., Thomas J. Mulhearn, John J. Mahern, Robert J. W. Phinney, Marcellus Littlefield, Thomas J. Feeney, Jeremiah F. Carey, John J. Walsh, James H. Doherty, Charles R. Brown, Michael J. McCormick.
FINANCES.
The matter of providing ways and means for the expenses of the celebration received prompt attention from the City Council, which passed the following
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BENJAMIN HINCKLEY, Chairman of Committee on Finance.
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order as recommended in Mayor Thompson's inaug- ural address.
Be it ordered : That the mayor be and is hereby authorized and requested to petition the Legislature in the name of the City, for the passage of an Act to authorize the City Council of this city to appropriate, not to exceed seven thousand five hundred dollars, the same to be expended under the direction of the City Council in the celebration of the Two Hundred and Fiftieth Anniversary of the Founding and Incorporating of Woburn, and in publishing the proceedings connected with said celebration.
[Approved, Jan. 28, 1892.]
The authority asked for was granted by Act of the Legislature, approved April 13, 1892. At a joint meeting of the Executive and Finance Com- mittees of the Two Hundred and Fiftieth Anniver- sary, the following resolve was adopted : -
Resolved, That his Honor, the Mayor, be requested to com- municate to the City Council that it is the sense of the meeting of the Executive and Finance Committees, that the sum of $7,500 be raised and appropriated in such manner as the City Council may determine, so that it be paid during the current fiscal year, for the purpose of defraying the expenses of the celebration of the Two Hundred and Fiftieth Anniversary of the Incorporation of Woburn.
In response to this resolution, the City Council passed the following appropriation order : -
Be it ordered : That for the purpose of providing for the ex- penses attending the celebration of the Two Hundred and Fif- tieth Anniversary of the Incorporation of the Town of Woburn, there be raised in accordance with the provisions of law, on the polls, property, and estates taxable in the city of Woburn, the sum of five thousand dollars; and that said sum, together with the further sum of two thousand five hundred dollars, if required,
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from moneys to be received during the year and credited to the miscellaneous department, be and are hereby appropriated for the purpose above named.
Be it further ordered: That the above appropriation be ex- pended under the direction of the General Committee appointed by authority of the City Council to have charge of the celebra- tion aforesaid. [Approved, April 30, 1892.]
The task of dividing the appropriation among the various committees devolved on the Committee on Finance. The original apportionment was sub- sequently modified so that the amounts finally placed at the disposal of the several departments were as follows : -
Ambulance and Emergency Hospital
$25 00
Ball .
Banquet (see note on page 33).
Carriages and Transportation .
675 00
Decorations
650 00
Historic Places
50 00
Invitations
225 68
Literary Exercises
300 00
Loan Exhibition
150 00
Military and Parade .
1,850 00
Miscellaneous .
294 70
Music
1,051 36
Printing (see note on page 33).
Publication of Proceedings
600 00
Reception and Information
350 00
Reception of the Press
150 00
Registration
25 00
Salutes and Illuminations .
325 00
School Children's Entertainment Sports
335 85
400 00
$7,500 00
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CHARLIE A. JONES, Auditor.
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NOTE. - An appropriation of one hundred dollars was made for the ban- quet, but the receipts of that department exceeded the expenditures so that the amount was returned to the miscellaneous fund. Several other depart- ments showed unexpended balances. The original appropriation for printing. was returned, the several committees paying their own printing bills. A detailed account of the expenditures for the celebration may be found in the report of the Auditor of Accounts, published with Woburn City Documents. of 1892.
The general features of the celebration having been decided, the committees appointed, and the ways and means provided, little remained for the Executive Committee to do save to exercise a general supervision over the arrangements. Monthly meet- ings were held, but the field of labor was transferred to the several committees, upon whose hard, persis- tent, painstaking work the success of the celebration would in large measure depend.
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THE CELEBRATION.
1214078
THE
WOBURN
LOCATED 1640.
1642'A CITY 1889.
INCORPORATED I
1642
1892
CITY OF WOBURN
WILL CELEBRATE the 250"ANNIVERSARYof
her Incorporation as a Town on Thursday and Friday, October 6h & 7h 1892.
"The citizens earnestly desire that absent sons and daughters of Woburn, and all others interested in her history or the occasion shall unite with them in the celebration .
Edward E. Thompson, Mayor
Geo. F. Bean Chàitman. Edward D. Hayden.
Parker L Converse Edward F. Johnson. John Cummings. Joseph G. Pollard Henry C. Hall." Lawrence Reade John M.Harlow. Leonard Thompson
Edwin F. Wyer. Committee on Invitations
OFFICIAL PROGRAMME.
SUNDAY, OCT. 2, 1892.
COMMEMORATIVE SERVICES at the different churches.
THURSDAY, OCT. 6.
ATHLETIC SPORTS in the forenoon.
LITERARY EXERCISES in the forenoon.
CHILDREN'S ENTERTAINMENT in the afternoon.
RECEPTION AND BALL in the evening.
FRIDAY, OCT. 7.
GRAND MILITARY, CIVIC, AND TRADES PROCESSION in the forenoon. BANQUET in the afternoon.
BAND CONCERTS, SALUTES, AND BELL RINGING.
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1892
1642 WELCOME TO OUR QUARTER-MILLENNIAL
THE ARCH - WEST VIEW.
STORY OF THE WEEK.
F OR four months the various sub-committees, appointed to prepare for the two hundred and fiftieth anniversary of Woburn's incorporation, had been quietly but persistently at work. The usual obstacles were encountered but they had been met with such determination and patience, that when the sun went down on Saturday, Oct. 1, 1892, the work of preparation had been largely accomplished, and all eyes were turned towards the week to come. It was to be a week of interest not only to the in- habitants of the city itself, but to many beyond its borders, since from the old town had gone out a goodly number of its sons and daughters to settle in other and newer communities.
Sunday morning dawned clear and cool. The Sabbath stillness was unbroken by any unusual sound, yet in the hush there seemed to be a feeling of expectancy. New faces, wearing a look of inter- est, were met upon the streets ; former residents who had not been seen for a generation walked slowly almost tenderly along, dwelling with affectionate regard upon such ancient landmarks as remained untouched by the hand of progress.
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As the morning wore on and the church bells rung out their accustomed call to prayer, a new note of invitation seemed to thrill though their brazen melody, and in response many turned their steps towards the First Congregational Church, where the celebration was to be opened by a recognition of the establishment of divine worship two hundred and fifty years ago. The services were long but inter- esting, and held the undivided attention of the large audience present. A detailed account will be found elsewhere, but it is safe to say that none went away without realizing more deeply the value and power of this ancient organization, and understanding more clearly the steadfast faith of the seven, who, so many years ago, stood up in the wilderness and con- secrated themselves and theirs to the kingdom of God.
Other churches in the city held fitting recogni- tion services in the forenoon, but in the evening united with their elder sister whose birthday ante- dated the town itself. The exercises on that occa- sion were even more interesting than in the morn- ing. The brilliantly lighted auditorium, the profuse and tasteful decorations, the familiar voices of former pastors, uttering words of commendation and encouragement, all united to make it a day memorable in the history of the church, and a fitting preliminary to the civic celebration later in the week.
During the interval between Sunday and Thurs- day the various committees were busy adding a
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WINTHROP HAMMOND, Chairman of Committee on Decoration.
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finishing touch here and there, the streets were swept and garnished, and the decorator was at work with his streamers and bunting. Almost every house had on a holiday dress. Some were covered with rich and costly designs, others had only a simple banner or two contrasted dates, but on every side the eye fell upon emblems suitably recognizing the occasion.
On Tuesday rain fell in torrents, and on Wednes- day leaden skies hung over the drenched city; but Thursday morning opened without a cloud, and the bright autumnal sunshine seemed an invitation to every citizen and stranger to bestir himself and bear his part in the old town's gala day.
At ten o'clock the athletic sports were held at the Park, and a large and interested gathering of the younger people witnessed the base-ball game with absorbed eagerness. Later in the day the programme was continued on the St. Charles grounds (Salem Street), where the various events were sharply contested, and well-deserved applause greeted the winners.
At eleven o'clock the literary exercises were held in the new Armory at the corner of Montvale Avenue and Prospect Street. Although the building was not yet out of the contractor's hands, the drill hall had been practically finished and provided with tempo- rary seats. Bunting and other suitable decorations were gracefully draped from stringer and cross tie and hung upon the sides with generous hand, until the bare walls and spreading roof took on a holiday
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appearance that betokened some unusual event. During the gathering of the audience an orchestra rendered appropriate musical selections and the floor of the house was gradually filled, while on the plat- form were seated many prominent citizens and those of the invited guests who were present. The exer- cises, which formally opened the civic celebration, lasted two and a half hours, and were listened to with marked interest. At the close the Mayor tendered a reception and lunch to the invited guests who were taken to his house in carriages directly from the Armory, and afterwards were driven to the various points of historic interest in different parts of the city.
The afternoon was devoted to an entertainment for the children, and even the youngest members of the schools had their tickets of admission to Lyceum Hall and found the programme such as would inter- est them. All who looked into the happy young faces on that afternoon knew that pleasant memo- ries of this day would linger long with the rising generation.
The evening presented a varied programme. The older children had a delightful treat of music, reading, and tableau in Lyceum Hall; the social element attended the reception and promenade con- cert, followed by a ball in the Skating Academy, while those who preferred the keen, crisp, out-of-door air found an attraction at the band concerts in differ- ent parts of the city, or watched the flickering glow of the bonfires that lit up the surrounding hill-tops.
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WILLIAM BEGGS,
Chairman of Committee on Salutes and Illuminations.
Fully occupied by these forms of amusement, the throngs passed to and fro until the small hours of the morning, when the last reveller wended his way home, leaving the streets silent save for the rustle of the flags and streamers as they tossed their weird arms in the night breezes, and the first day of Woburn celebration was done.
Friday morning began with music. The crowd had been large on Thursday, but the second day found it more than doubled. The Committee on Reception and Information had established a booth near the railroad station, where every stranger received prompt and courteous replies to any ques- tions he might wish to ask, as well as an official programme upon which was printed the order of events for the celebration. The different elements of the procession made their way to the appointed places, while the visitors wandered up and down the streets listening to the bands, or visited the library to register their names and inspect the large and interesting collection of ancient relics that presented a vivid picture of the conditions under which life was lived in former generations. Strong wires had been strung from tree to pole and pole to post on both sides of the street, and behind these barriers the good-natured crowd surged and swayed, but stayed there. With the aid of this simple contriv- ance the officers kept the streets clear from curb to curb, thus affording every one a better view of the parade.
Soon after half past ten the long column left Cen-
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tral Square and started on its three-mile march. For more than two hours the spectators watched the kaleidoscope of the procession as one spectacle after another passed by them. Well to the front, the sturdy blue ranks of the Fifth Regiment caught the eye; next, the First Corps of Cadets won unmeas- ured applause by their splendid marching, as they escorted Gov. Russell and his staff; then followed carriages with distinguished guests, the boy soldiers of the High School, the gray-haired veterans of the War, societies in uniform, historic representations, floats loaded with school children, the fire depart- ment, and, finally, a long line of teams devoted to Woburn's industries. The day was perfect. The mild power of the Indian summer sun had tempered the chill air and made it not too cool for the little chil- dren in their white costumes, nor too warm for the marching soldiers with their equipment. After the review upon the common, the parade was dismissed, and the military organizations sought their quarters for refreshments. At two o'clock there was a recep- tion in the Skating Academy, where the holders of banquet tickets were presented to Hon. John W. Foster, Secretary of State of the United States, and to His Excellency, Gov. Russell. An hour later the company filed into the Armory through a cov- ered passageway over Montvale Avenue, and seated themselves at the tables which were arranged length- wise of the hall, with a transverse guest table at the head. The caterer had provided a tasteful and gen- erous service. Each guest found beside his plate a
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JOHN G. MAGUIRE,
Chairman of Committee on Reception and Information.
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handsome souvenir card, bound in ooze calf, and bearing the city seal and appropriate inscriptions in gilt. After an hour devoted to the menu, came addresses from distinguished guests who responded most happily to the call of the toast-master, and entertained the audience with an eloquence and humor that made the banquet a fitting close to the events of the week. When the last toast had been responded to and the final strains of " America " died away, the guests reluctantly quitted their seats at the table, regretting that the celebration had come all too quickly to an end.
Those who were unable to obtain tickets to the banquet found much pleasure in watching the evolu- tions of the Fifth Regiment, on the fields enclosed by Montvale Avenue, Bow and Salem streets. A mock battle had been arranged and was well carried out. The advance and retreat of the troops, the lively rattle of musketry upon the skirmish line, the heavy volleys, as the contending bodies came into closer quarters, furnished a spectacle that was viewed by thousands. At the close of the battle came a review and dress parade of the First Corps of Cadets which was as picturesque as the battle scene had been dramatic. The long lines of white uniforms that stretched away over the green sward and stood as still as statues amid the marching and counter- marching of the music and the formal exercises of the review, made a most interesting and impressive picture, and one not easily forgotten.
During the evening band concerts were held in
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various parts of the centre for the entertainment of the fast diminishing throng of sight-seers, who crowded every conveyance that left the city. By midnight the last one had disappeared and Woburn's Two Hundred and Fiftieth Anniversary was a thing of the past.
The undoubted success of the celebration was due, in large measure, to careful preliminary prepar- ation by the various committees who had matters in charge. Nothing was left to chance, but the minutest details which could minister to the conven- ience of invited guests were arranged and placed in the hands of some individual who then became per- sonally responsible for their proper fulfilment.
The press arrangements were hospitable and complete. Commodious quarters had been pro- vided, and generous provision made for the mate- rial comfort of visiting scribes, as well as their convenience while at work. As far as possible advance manuscripts had been obtained and put into type, thus materially lightening the task of the reporter, and insuring an accuracy of account which was remarked by all attending the exercises of the week.
The Committee on Transportation, by means of an admirable system of carriage checks, transferred guests from place to place without delay or con- fusion, and added much to the enjoyment of the occasion.
It is impossible, within the limits of this sketch, to touch upon or even mention all of the excellent
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ELWYN G. PRESTON, Chairman of Committee on Transportation.
features of the week, but an attempt has been made to register as faithfully as may be in the following pages what was said and done at each of the formal exercises. To these the reader is referred, and at the same time reminded that the printer's art can- not catch and transfer the animation and local color of such an event. If he misses the sermon's his- toric thrill, or the charm of wit and eloquence at the banquet table, or the touch of carnival in the procession, let him not blame the recorder, but sum- mon forth from memory's deep hiding-place the shifting scenes of the days, and read between the lines all of the grace and beauty and excellence that should be there.
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[Sunday,
SUNDAY. FIRST CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH.
The anniversary celebration was very properly opened by services commemorating the establish- ment of this time-honored church in the primeval forest, two hundred and fifty years ago.
The interior of the vast auditorium was tastefully decorated for the occasion. The choir-rail, pulpit platform, and gallery approaches were decked with potted palms and ferns. The towering organ pipes bore the figures " 250" composed of hydrangea blossoms. The national colors surmounted by im- mortelles formed a bright screen for the conductor's pedestal. Upon each of the flanking walls was a banner of white bordered with golden-rod, bearing respectively the words : " Our Mother Charlestown sends us forth with God's blessing," and " We wel- come our daughters, Burlington, Wilmington, Win- chester, North Woburn." Over the former was an evergreen trimmed cross in red with the word " Bear- ing." " Over the latter, a crown made of marigolds with the word " Rejoicing.' The dates " 1642 " and " 1892 " were placed above these symbols.
The front of the gallery showed fourteen vari- colored medallions framed in evergreen, each of
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FIRST CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH.
October 2.]
which bore the name of a pastor of the church with the extent of his pastorate. These covered the en- tire history of the church, were arranged in order of service, and read as follows : " 1642, Carter, 1684 "; " 1679, Jabez Fox, 1703 "; "1703, John Fox, 1756 " ;-
" 1729, Jackson, 1754 , · 1756, Sherman, 1775 " " 1785, Sargeant, 1799"; " 1804, Chickering, 1821 " ;; " 1822, Bennett, 1847"; "1848, Edwards, 1856 "; "1856, March, 1862 "; " 1862, Bodwell, 1866"; " 1868, Dennen, 1871 "; "1873, Kelsey, 1876"; " 1876, March, 1892." Between the medallions were festoons of evergreen. In the vestibule, the word " Welcome " in frame of evergreen greeted the visitors, and mas- sive tablets of red marble showed the pastoral record.
The extensive preparations for the day included a choir of fifty voices under direction of Mr. Grant Drake, the regular organist. The vocal work was supplemented by Mr. J. Dudley Hall, assistant organist; Mr. Thomas L. Cushman, tenor soloist ; Mrs. D. W. Brown, pianist; Messrs. William W. Crosby and Fred. H. Rogers, cornetists. Artistic programmes with a fine half-tone picture of the church edifice were distributed throughout the pews, as were also sheets containing the words of eight hymns written expressly for this occasion by the pastor, Rev. Daniel March, D. D.
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