USA > Massachusetts > Norfolk County > Dedham > Proceedings at the celebration of the two hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the incorporation of the town of Dedham, Massachusetts, September 21, 1886 > Part 6
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spoken to by Franklin Dexter, his great-grandson, an eminent lawyer. There were also present a few surviving soldiers of the Revolution; and among these the venerable Ebenezer Fisher, then in his eighty-sixth year, who had filled high political offices, and who was the great-grandson of Daniel Fisher, - the same who had the affair with Sir Edmund Andros in 1689. The orator of the day, Mr. Haven, was a son of Dedham, and the lineal descendant of two ministers of the Dedham church, - Dexter and Haven. He was then a critical student of Massa- chusetts history, and afterwards during a long life he held a position which enabled him to attain a wide reputation as an historical scholar. His cen- tennial address was a learned, concise, and accurate survey of our history. Thus was the memory of Ded- ham men of nearly every generation honored here by their distinguished descendants fifty years ago.
Two notable church anniversaries also occurred in the bi-centennial year of the town. By a some- what remarkable coincidence, on the tenth day of January the Third Parish completed the first cen- tury of its corporate existence, and on the twenty- third day of June the church of the Second Parish had been formed for a century.1 Both of these oc- casions were appropriately observed by historical discourses from the pastors, which were printed.2
1 No allowance is made here for the difference between old and new style.
2 Centennial Discourse, by Rev. John White, Jan. 17, 1836. Cen- tennial Discourse, by Rev. Calvin Durfee, June 26, 1836.
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They were prepared with great care and fidelity, and were complete and succinct histories of the churches in those parishes. The two hundredth anniversary of the church of the First Parish came two years later, Nov. 18, 1838, making allowance for difference of style. For this occasion Rev. Dr. Lamson prepared and delivered three historical dis- courses, which embodied a full and comprehensive history of the church down to his own time. These were afterwards printed with copious notes, in which were collected many historical facts from original sources by the patient investigation of the learned pastor. These sermons have an especial value, since they cover a period of two hundred years, when the history of the town was so largely merged in the history of the church. Rev. Dr. Burgess also delivered a concise and accurate his- torical discourse upon the history of the church, which he afterwards printed in a unique volume, containing a sermon of every minister of the church to his own time, collected with much difficulty, that they might serve as a memorial of the event for the generation living at the end of the third century. Certainly on this anniversary we must all recognize the pious reverence for the memory of the fathers, which prompted all the pastors of the Puritan churches of the town thus to perpetuate its ecclesi- astical history in discourses which together form the best memorials we have of the close of the second century.
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The opening of the railroad in 1834 was the prelude to another period of change in Dedham village. The people made contributions of lands and money to build the branch to Readville. They thought it would be like a turnpike over which any line of coaches might run upon the payment of tolls. They were pleased with its novelty, but failed to comprehend its great possibilities. For a time a two-horse compartment car was drawn to Boston. Then a connection was made with the Providence trains, but it was some time before a locomotive drew a train of cars from Dedham to Boston. The stage-coaches for a time competed with the railroad, and as late as 1841 an omnibus was driven regularly from Dedham to Boston. But the day for stage-coaches was soon over, and with them went out the busy shops and the old-time tavern life. Nothing ever took their places. But the railroad doubtless led to the removal from Bos- ton to Dedham of some valued citizens. In 1839 the Dowse estate came into the hands of Edmund Quincy, known to the world as an accomplished author, and to us who knew him here as an ideal gentleman. The Riverdale estate about the same time was purchased by Thomas Motley, Sr., and here his son the historian dwelt for a time. The fine houses on East Street were built soon after, and occupied by gentlemen who became honored citizens of the town. While the local industries had declined, the town still maintained its position
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as a centre for the interests of the county. The great political procession of July 4, 1840, estimated to include seventy-five hundred persons, was a no- table event among the boys of that day. In the days of the anti-slavery agitation, all its leaders whose names have become historical were accus- tomed to attend their annual county conventions here, and there were some excited sessions in the old Town House. In 1849 the Norfolk Agricul- tural Society, organized and directed by its efficient president, Marshall P. Wilder, held its first exhibi- tion, at which Daniel Webster and a rare company of distinguished men made addresses. The exhi- bitions of this society for many years were great events, and are among the pleasantest memories of thirty years ago.
In the autumn of 1848, during the presidential campaign, there was a political meeting which de- serves to be commemorated. It was held by the friends of General Taylor in the old hall now stand- ing on Court Street. It was an ordinary political meeting, but held in the afternoon and during the session of the court. The hall was but half filled. The speaker was a Western member of Congress, who had come to Boston to make campaign speeches. Probably few of his audience had ever heard his name. He spoke but a half-hour, as he was obliged to take the train. He was a tall, gaunt man, whose free manner and careless disposition of attire bespoke the Western stump-speaker. His
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speech was enlivened by a peculiar humor, and it went directly home to the understanding and appre- ciation of his audience. Probably all recollection of the speech and the speaker soon faded from the memory of many of his hearers. But there was one of them1 who in after years loved to recall the fact that the plain man whom he heard that day was a man who will be remembered while Ameri- can liberty shall last. It was Abraham Lincoln of Illinois.
In the spring of 1861 Dedham was enjoying a good degree of prosperity, partly from local indus- tries and partly from being the residence of business men from Boston. No event had occurred during the preceding decade to disturb its harmony, and the outlook ahead disclosed no reason for apprehen- sion. There had been no military company here since 1842. Few of our young men had been drilled in the manual of arms, or knew anything of military tactics. They were looking forward to a peaceful career in their respective callings. Even the quasi-military organizations of the presiden- tial campaign in the preceding autumn had not in- spired in them any thought or desire of becoming real soldiers. For a number of years the military
1 Hon. George H. Monroe, of Roxbury, a native of Dedham and a resident here in 1848. He escorted Mr. Lincoln to Dedham, and gave an interesting narrative of his visit and speech in the " Boston Herald," April 22, 1885. Mr. Lincoln was entertained during his brief stay in the mansion of Freeman Fisher, now the residence of John R. Bullard.
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spirit had to some extent been under the ban of public sentiment in Massachusetts. Many good people indulged the belief that wars had ceased to be necessary for the arbitrament of difficulties. The coming shadows of a possible conflict after the presidential election did not arouse them from the dream of peace. Even when the clouds began to thicken, and the sky to grow dark, and the rumbling of the distant thunder to be heard, they did not real- ize that the tempest was at hand. It was only when the bolt of war fell that they were startled into action ; but then they sprang to their feet, ready to do battle for Union and Liberty.
It was my great privilege eighteen years ago this month, on a public occasion,1 while yet the memories of the war were fresh, though the mate- rials of authentic history were meagre, to give an historical account of what Dedham and Dedham men did in the Civil War. It was such a story as might be told in many a Massachusetts town, but it had a peculiar pathos and interest for us. Year by year, ever since, the comrades of the Grand Army have called us to refresh our memories over the grave of the soldier. We need not linger over them to-day. The events of those years were too deeply impressed upon all who in any way par- ticipated in them to be soon forgotten.
But it would be an unpardonable omission not to say of old Dedham, on her two hundred and
1 Dedication of Memorial Hall, Sept. 29, 1868.
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fiftieth anniversary, that in the Civil War she was thoroughly, nobly true to her traditions. In una- nimity of action, without regard to political affilia- tions; in the alacrity and steadfastness of her sup- port to the National Government in every call for men; in the tenderness and interest with which she followed her soldiers to the field and cared for their families at home ; in the readiness of her citizens to make any required contributions of money, - and, above all, in the precious sacrifice of her sons on a score of battle-fields, she paid the full tribute of patriotism, "in good measure, pressed down and shaken together and running over." She was as faithful and true in 1861 to 1865, as in 1675 and 1775. The centuries had not abated her spirit, though they had changed her habits and opinions. When the day of trial came, she was the same town still.
We have already reached the boundary-line be- tween the domain of history and the memory of the present generation. Perhaps the greatest social revolution in the history of the American people began with the close of the Civil War. But no man living can now foresee its issue, or rightly estimate the true proportions of its events. As
the soldier amidst the din and smoke of battle knows little or nothing of the grand movements in which he is bearing a part, so we cannot un- derstand the real meaning of what transpires in our own time. The accomplished historical scholar
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who stood in this place fifty years ago, closed his retrospect of the history of Dedham with the War of the Revolution, and so we will close ours with the War of the Rebellion.
Surely we cannot leave the contemplation of this honorable and inspiring history without being in some measure touched with a sense that we who have succeeded to the heritage have a weight of obligation resting upon us. We have seen to- day, in the light of authentic history, how, in the two hundred and fifty years since civilization and Christianity were first planted here, one period has been evolved from another; and though great changes have been wrought in habits, opinions, and systems, yet, after all, as a community, we bear the family likeness. The most striking im- pression one gets from a close study of the history of any old Massachusetts town is of the wonder- ful stability of its people. If we sometimes com- placently reflect, in the pride of our material prosperity, that the early days were days of small things, we have seen that they really were days of great achievement. If we regard ourselves as more tolerant in our forms of religious faith, let us never forget that the Puritan fathers believed what they professed, and practised what they be- lieved. If we think ourselves emancipated from the restraints of their narrow and provincial views of life, still we must acknowledge that they knew,
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better than we, how to lay strong and deep the foundations of civil society. But let us forbear to draw parallels to our own advantage. Let us rather prove our fidelity to the sacred trust committed to our hands, by striving to see how far we can excel the fathers in public spirit, in devotion to the common interests of society, and, if need be, in heroic self-sacrifice in the day of trial. As we step forward to-morrow into another half-century of our history, we can find no better formula to embody our best aspirations than those simple words, written for all time, that Edward Alleyn put into the Town Covenant two hundred and fifty years ago, and to which the townsmen of the first century subscribed.
Let us " become freely subject to all such orders and constitutions as shall be necessarily had or made, now or at any time hereafter, from this day forward, as well for loving and comfortable society in our said town, as also for the prosperous and thriving condition of our said fellowship, especially respecting the fear of God, in which we desire to begin and continue whatever we shall by His loving favor take in hand."
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VII. FORTY-FOURTH PSALM. (BAY PSALM BOOK, 1650.) TUNE-"St. Martin's." ( The audience are requested to rise and join in the singing.)
WE, with our ears have heard, O God, Our fathers have us told, What works Thou wroughtest in their days Ev'n in ye days of old.
How Thy hand drave ye heathen out, Displanted them Thou hast ; How Thou ye people did'st afflict, And out them Thou did'st cast.
For by their sword they did not get The land's possession, Nor was it their own arm that did Work their salvation.
But Thy right hand, Thine arm also, Thy countenance of light ; Because that of Thine own good will Thou did'st in them delight.
VIII. BENEDICTION.
BY REV. SETH C. BEACH.
REV. ARTHUR M. BACKUS, to whom this part had been assigned, was detained by illness.
THE DINNER.
THE DINNER.
A T the conclusion of the exercises in the church the procession re-formed and marched to the large tent on Richards Field, which was filled with eleven hundred ladies and gentlemen. Upon the platform were seated the presiding officer, Hon. FREDERICK D. ELY, Gov. GEORGE D. ROBINSON, Mayor O'BRIEN, President DWIGHT, Hon. JOHN D. LONG, Dr. GEORGE E. ELLIS, Dr. WILLIAM EVERETT, Lieut .- Gov. AMES, Hon. GEORGE WHITE, Hon. A. W. BEARD, Hon. R. R. BISHOP, Ex-Governor FAIR- BANKS, of Vermont, Hon. J. Q. A. BRACKETT, Hon. GEORGE W. WIGGIN, and many others.
After the company was seated, the President rose and said : -
LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, - At the dinner given in honor of the two hundredth anniversary of the in- corporation of this town in 1836, Rev. JOHN WHITE, then a settled minister at West Dedham, invoked the divine blessing. I now invite you to join with his successor, Rev. GEORGE W. COOKE, in invoking the divine blessing on this occasion.
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THE INVOCATION.
OUR FATHER'S GOD, we invoke Thy blessing on this occasion. Bless us as Thou hast blest our fathers, with high thoughts and pure motives and noble purposes. Bless, our Father, in the future, this town, as Thou dost bless it on this occasion. We thank Thee for these blessings Thou hast given us; help us to be worthy of those Thou wilt give to us in the future. Amen.
After an hour spent at dinner, the President addressed the audience as follows : -
ADDRESS OF HON. FREDERICK D. ELY.
LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, - By the courtesy of the Committee who have this celebration in charge, it becomes my delightful privilege to speak the word of welcome on this occasion. To the Honorable Representative of the National Administration; to His Excellency the Governor, and His Honor the Lieutenant-Governor of the Common- wealth; to His Honor the Mayor of the city of Boston; to the President of the Massachusetts Historical Society ; to the distinguished principals and teachers of institutions of learning ; to the respected officers and citizens of this county and of neighboring cities and towns; and especially and supremely to the sons and daughters of Dedham who to-day return to the old homestead from their chosen abodes in other parts of the country, - I tender, in the name of our town, a cordial and hearty greeting. We appreciate the honor of your presence; we shall treasure the words of wisdom and good cheer that you will speak ; we trust that you will carry away with you favorable impressions of our ancient but vigorous municipality ;
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and when this day shall be numbered with the days that are past, may its recollections inspire us all with a more deep and lasting appreciation of the character and strug- gles of those plain but thoughtful men who two hundred and fifty years ago cut a pathway through the forest, and first planted the seeds of civil government on the spot where we now stand.
Frequent as celebrations similar in character to the present have been in recent years, they have never failed to awaken a lively interest in the minds and hearts of the people. Their novelty has indeed disappeared, but their significance remains undiminished and unobscured. The lapse of time consigns the ordinary transactions of human life to the realm of oblivion; it brings into clear perspective the great achievements of valor, of endurance, of masterly common-sense. The former are buried out of sight by the ever-busy processes of Nature; the latter stand out more and more in insulated grandeur, and become memorial columns in the majestic progress of human society. To them the people look back as plen- teous sources of present prosperity and happiness, and at stated periods imprint them on the memory of succeed- ing generations by fitting and appropriate ceremonies.
Perhaps few events in the public life of the American people are more worthy of commemoration than the founding of a New England municipality. In our com- plex system of government the town is the unit which lies at the foundation of the entire fabric. In theory indeed it is the creature of the State; practically it is the safeguard and support of the sovereignty to which it owes allegiance. United by proximity of residence, asso- ciated in the school, the church, and the town-meeting, the inhabitants of a town readily and effectively meet any emergency to which the State may be exposed. In peace, these pure democracies furnish to the Commonwealth its
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revenues ; and when war comes, its revenues and fighting men. It is the achievements of men leagued by the tics of town associations and town government which have enkindled the pride of our beloved Commonwealth, and crowned her name with glory and honor. It was the men of Lexington who with heroic and fervid patriotism stood on the village green, and received the fire of the British soldiery. It was the minute men of Concord and Lincoln and Acton who
" Fired the shot heard round the world."
It was the men of Dedham who swiftly responded to the cry of alarm, "in such numbers," says Bancroft, "that scarce one male between sixteen and seventy was left at home."
This admirable frame of local administration is only one of many conspicuous monuments of the wisdom and pru- dence of the colonists of New England. Scarcely was
" A clearing cut From the walled shadows round it shut,"
when the meeting-house and the school-house arose at the side of the humble dwelling of the settler. From these rude, unpretentious buildings piety and education went forth hand in hand to Christianize and civilize the land. Beneath their benign influence an active, brave, resolute, intelligent, and moral population, imbued with independ- ence and enterprise, sprang up, subdued the wilderness, wrung bountiful harvests from the stubborn soil, and laid deep and sure the foundations of a State whose abundant and abounding blessings it is our happy privilege to enjoy.
Two hundred and fifty years ago, on the banks of yon- der river bordered by meadows of waving grasses and fragrant flowers, the founders of Dedham planted these beneficent institutions. Their deeds of valor, of wisdom,
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of prudence, of enterprise, of devotion to liberty have this day been recounted by more eloquent lips than mine. Around you on every hand behold their monuments. They breathe in the rippled waters of the Charles, flowing through strange channels to unaccustomed labors; they live, not in obelisk or pyramid, but in vast cathedrals of industry, whose busy shuttles, singing songs of praise and rejoicing as they fly, bear plenty and comfort and con- tentment to hundreds of peaceful homes; they greet the eye in time-worn memorials of a sagacious, discrimina- tive, but fearless patriotism; "they stand immutable and immortal in the social, moral, and intellectual condition of their descendants; they exist in the spirit which their precepts instilled and their example implanted."
THE PRESIDENT: Fellow-citizens, although the honorable gentleman who was to respond to the first toast (the Hon. JOHN E. FITZGERALD) is ab- sent, I will read it to you :-
The President of the United States ! Vested with the executive power of a nation of sixty millions of people, occupying a domain continental in extent, who can measure his responsibilities or weigh in a balance the burden of cares and anxieties inseparable from his supreme office? May he be blessed with wisdom, with strength, with courage, and with abundant success !
Having paid our respects to the President of the United States, it is our next duty, as well as the next impulse of our hearts, to pay our respects to the Governor of the Commonwealth, both officially and personally. I will read a toast to which I will in- vite him to respond :-
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" The Commonwealth of Massachusetts ! The protection, safety, prosperity, and happiness of her people have been conserved and promoted by a long line of wise, devoted, and far-seeing supreme executive magistrates."
Ladies and gentlemen, I have the very high honor of introducing to you the Hon. GEORGE D. ROBINSON, Governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
ADDRESS OF GOVERNOR ROBINSON.
Mr. PRESIDENT, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, - When, after many years of wandering, the traveller turns his steps homeward and traces back the familiar paths to the old homestead that rests on the hills that were so well known to him in his boyhood, he stops by the way- side as he nears the dear old place, and drinks again at the spring that delighted his youth and slaked his thirst, and finds there the water sweeter and brighter and fresher than all the land elsewhere brings forth; and be- neath the grateful shade of the old trees that he loved so well he sits, and drops the tear and breathes the sigh for the past. All through him run the warmth of recollec- tion and the deepness of inspiration that thrill him again with the scenes and delights of his early life. Coming back here to-day, travelling down over a quarter of a thousand years, we sit again at the origin of this settle- ment, at the beginning of its power; and though we drew not the natural breath at the beginning of its ex- istence, we shall find, and do find, in its history and growth abundance of thought and recollection that strengthen and encourage and cheer.
All over this land that is now occupied by your busy people, where on every hand, not in name as was hoped
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for as of yore, but in reality " contentment" is found; here where these streets are now formed from the once untrodden plain, by the river that yet as then flows on to the sea, - we find these associations attaching us to the past that is abundantly dear. And so too, when all Na- ture smiles bountifully, when never was it brighter before than it is to-day, when we have an abundant harvest ready to enrich the husbandman, and over the head of it all Nature's resplendent glories to be enjoyed freely by every person, - in the midst of this wealth of experience we come back here to revive the past, and to renew our devotion to the associations of the great men and women that made that past and rendered their future and our present possible. Taking it altogether, it seems as if the poet wrote of this time when he said: -
" It is a bright September morn, The earth is beautiful, as if new born ; There is that nameless splendor everywhere, -
That wild exhilaration in the air, That makes the passers in the busy street Congratulate each other as they meet."
How true it is of what has been seen by every one to- day in the associations of this happy occasion. And yet the change strikes us with wonderful power. Then, the sounds of the forest, - it might be the threatening of the hostile savage; now, the abundant harmonies of peace, and, instead of the war-whoop, the cheerful strains of hundreds of children standing before the sanctuary of God, and chanting the national anthem of free America. And all this comes to us not through any dim tradi- tion; fortunately the youth of the present time find their early history written out of well authenticated records, if not perpetuated even in the testimony of the living.
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