USA > Massachusetts > Worcester County > Worcester > Reminiscences of Worcester from the earliest period, historical and genealogical with notices of early settlers and prominent citizens, and descriptions of old landmarks and ancient dwellings, accompanied by a map and numerous illustrations > Part 28
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37
The first engine house of the Boston and Worcester railroad, used until the consolidation with the Western railroad in 1867, was built by H. N. Tower, Tilly Raymond and S. D. Harding, and stood in the angle made by the train houses of the Foster street depot, and was used by both the Boston and Worcester, and Norwich and Worcester roads, until the latter in 1852 built their present engine house in the rear of the freight house on Park street.
The first person in charge of the Foster street station was Mr. Dennis, succeeded in 1837 by Edwin Moody, who was suc- ceeded as ticket agent in 1840 by R. P. Angier, and as station agent in 1858 by Abram Firth. Mr. Angier was succeeded as ticket agent in May, 1852, by Calvin Dyer, who had thus near- ly completed a quarter of a century of service as ticket agent of the different roads entering the Foster street depot, when it was finally abandoned Feb. 21, 1877; the Worcester and Nashua, and Norwich and Worcester roads being the last to run their trains into it, the Boston and Albany road having
294
Reminiscences of Worcester.
ceased using it for their trains, Sept. 4, 1875, and the Boston, Barre and Gardner road, June 10, 1876. Mr. Dyer had pre- viously run as conductor on the Boston and Worcester road six years. He is now engaged at the Union depot.
Abram Firth, afterwards superintendent of the Boston and Worcester railroad, who succeeded Edwin Moody as agent of the road at Worcester in 1858, acted in that capacity until 1866, from which time Walter H. Barnes, (now assistant super- intendent of the Boston and Albany road,) was station agent at Worcester until the consolidation with the Western railroad, in 1867, since which time Henry P. Nichols, who had previous- ly been agent of the Western railroad for twenty years, has been agent of the consolidated road.
The first conductors of the Boston and Worcester railroad were Wm. F. Harnden, (originator of Harnden's express,) Caleb S. Fuller, Jos. H. Moore, Thos. Tucker and G. S. Howe.
The first cars were small coach-like affairs, not over 20 feet long, of capacity to hold not more than a dozen persons each, in two compartments entered by a side door, with one row of seats around the inside. The conductors passed from one to another by a railing around the outside.
Jan. 1, 1836, the board of directors arranged with David T. Brigham to have a man occupy one seat in the " Belvedere car," and carry a box 2 1-2 by 1 1-2 feet in size in the baggage car, for express matter, at the charge of $8 per week, this be- ing the first " express" arrangement made. He did not long continue, however, the conductors doing all this kind of busi- ness until Mr. Leonard started his express in 1840.
Alvin Adams, father of the old " Adams Express Company," now residing in Watertown, started the first railroad and steam- boat express from Boston to New York through Worcester and Norwich, at the opening of the Norwich and Worcester railroad in the spring of 1840. Wm. F. Harnden's New York and Bos- ton Express, started in 1839, was by way of Providence.
The veteran express proprietor of Worcester, Samuel Smith Leonard, started the first regular accommodation express be- tween Boston and Worcester, in September, 1840, the previous
295
Reminiscences of Worcester.
enterprise of David T. Brigham in this line not proving suf- ficiently successful to establish it. Mr. Leonard had been previously conductor on this road nearly a year. He sold out to the Adams express company in 1862.
William H. Hovey, (son of William Hovey,) for twenty years past of Springfield, but for many years engineer on the Boston and Worcester railroad after its opening, ran the first locomo- tive, (a Stephenson engine,) on that road out of Boston, in 1834, before the road was finished farther west than Brighton. The man sent over with it from England, proving incompetent to manage it, it was successfully done by Mr. Hovey.
WESTERN RAILROAD OPENING.
The Western railroad was completed from Worcester to Springfield, and regular trains began running Oct. 1, 1839, a little over six hours being occupied between Boston and Spring- field, including stops at seventeen other places besides Worces- ter. The first conductors were James Parker and Charles W. Rice and Joseph T. Turner of Worcester. Erastus Knowlton of Worcester was one of the first baggage masters on this road. He was father of Samuel Knowlton, now baggage master at the Union depot. James Parker, who had previously been general stage agent for many years in Worcester, officiated as conductor for thirty years. Oliver Harrington was the first station agent and ticket master at the Western depot, succeeded as ticket agent by Truman G. Bancroft, and as station agent by H. P. Nichols. Maj. E. A. Harkness succeeded Mr. Bancroft as ticket agent, followed successively by George F. Whiting, Adam L. Harrington and Justin E. Wood; the latter, the present ticket-agent for all the roads, has officiated as ticket agent about twenty years. A public celebration of this opening took place in Springfield, Oct. 3. The extension to Albany was completed in 1841.
The first depot of the Western railroad, at Washington Square, built in 1839, and afterwards enlarged, gave place to the present Union depot in 1875, when the old structure was removed to its present location on the corner of Vernon and Water streets, where it is occupied for stores, &c.
296
Reminiscences of Worcester.
NORWICH AND WORCESTER RAILROAD OPENING.
The Norwich and Worcester railroad was completed, and the trains first began running regularly over the whole line, April 1, 1840. Until 1853, when the freight house on Park street was built, its freight accommodations were confined to the south wing of the old Foster street station, or that part of it fronting on Mechanic street, and the switching was done chief- ly by horse power. Edwin Moody was freight and station agent of this road from its opening until 1848, when he was succeeded by John H. Knight and Ira Wood till 1851. At the opening of the Norwich road was established the first through railroad and steamboat line between Boston and New York, which soon became so popular, the first through conductor over the route being Thomas Tucker, afterwards landlord of the " American House" and " Lincoln House." He alternated as conductor with Joseph H. Moore.
Charles S. Turner was Worcester agent of the Norwich and Worcester railroad for fifteen years from 1851, until his ap- pointment to his present position of superintendent of the Wor- cester and Nashua railroad in 1866. Wm. H. Turner, now superintendent of the New Haven and Willimantic (Conn.) railroad, succeeded his brother as agent of the Norwich and Worcester road from 1866 to 1873, and E. E. Andrews has of- ficiated since the latter date.
PROVIDENCE AND WORCESTER R. R. OPENING.
The Providence and Worcester railroad was completed, and trains began running Oct. 25, 1847, when the first train over it from Worcester left the Norwich depot at 7 1-2 o'clock, A. M., in charge of Conductors John E. Taft and Wm. H. Jourdan. A grand celebration of the opening of this road took place in Worcester, on Thursday, Nov. 4, 1847. A numerous party in- cluding the directors and officers of the road from Providence came up in an excursion train, arriving here at 11 o'clock, A. M., after two and one half hours' ride, and were escorted around the town, by a committee of our own citizens in company with the officials of the other roads centering here, to the Town Hall, where a large number of citizens of Worcester had met to
297
Reminiscences of Worcester.
receive them. Here, Ex-Gov. John Davis, in behalf of the citi . zens of the " Heart of the Commonwealth," welcomed the vis- itors in an eloquent, congratulatory address. A response followed by Mayor Thomas M. Burgess of Providence. The company were then marshalled by Hon. John W. Lincoln, chairman of the committee of arrangements of Worcester, to Brinley Hall, where dinner was provided by Messrs. Tucker & Bonney of the American House. Gov. Levi Lincoln presided with his accustomed ability and grace, aided by the following vice presidents : Gov. John Davis, Judges Thomas Kinnicutt, Emory Washburn and Charles Allen, and Hon. Stephen Salis- bury. At this august banquet, President John Barstow of the Providence railroad sat upon Gov. Lincoln's right, and Pre- sident Nathan Hale of the Boston and Worcester railroad upon his left ; and the Rev. Dr. Wayland, president of Brown University, sat at the right hand of Gov. Davis, and Mayor Burgess of Providence at his left. After an eloquent address of welcome by Gov. Lincoln, speeches followed by President John Barstow of the Providence and Worcester railroad, U. S. Senator James F. Simmons of Rhode Island, Mayor Burgess of Providence, President Wayland and Professor Gammell of Brown University, President Nathan Hale of the Boston and Worcester railroad, Hon. George Bliss of Springfield for the " Western railroad," Judge Charles Allen for the Boston and Providence railroad, Judge Thomas Kinnicutt for the alumni of Brown University, Hon. Stephen Salisbury for the "town of Worcester," and by Hon. Wm. Jackson of Newton, John Wright of Lowell, Gov. Davis, Judge Washburn, and E. H. Derby of Boston, who read a letter from Mayor Quincy.
The Providence trains continued to run to and from the Norwich section of the old Foster street depot for about a year, when, on account of a disagreement concerning the joint use of the old turn-table, used in common for so many years by the Boston and Worcester, and Norwich and Worcester railroads, the Providence and Worcester company used the east end of their old freight-house building on Greet street for a passenger depot, until their new brick passenger depot was built about 1854. Their old freight depot has since been enlarged to 38
298
Reminiscences of Worcester.
double its former capacity, and their new brick passenger sta- tion, abandoned Feb. 16, 1877, when their trains began to run into the Union depot at Washington Square will soon be need- ed to accommodate their increasing freight business. The Worcester agents of this road (in charge of their depot and other interests here) have been : E. S. Jackson, Isaac H. Southwick, (afterwards superintendent,) Wmn. H. Jourdan, and A. E. Quackenbos, the latter having officiated since 1863, besides seven years previous connection with the road as clerk. The oldest conductors on this road are John E. Taft, who will complete his thirtieth anniversary of service in Octo- ber next, having run ever since the opening with the exception of a brief interval, and William Capron, who has run continu- ously from April, 1850, besides two years previous service as baggage-master.
WORCESTER AND NASHUA R. R. OPENING.
The Worcester and Nashua railroad was opened December 18, 1848, using the old Foster street depot till Feb. 14, 1877, when their trains began running to and from the Union station. The first conductors were John C. Stiles, Wm. Leggate and Charles Tarbell. Lyman Brooks was conductor twenty- seven years from April 1, 1849, to July 1, 1876, when he resigned to assume his present position as superintendent of the Union de- pot. Aaron King was conductor twenty years from October 1, 1852, to October 1, 1873, when he became general agent of the Nashua and Rochester road. He was conductor three years on the New London (Ct. ) and Palmer road, from 1849 to 1852. Waite M. Benedict has been conductor since 1870, and Charles H. Hurlburt and William Mitchell since 1873. Wm. A. Wheeler was superintending agent and builder of the road at the beginning.
The presidents of the Worcester and Nashua railroad have been from among the most distinguised citizens of Worcester, as follows: Gov. John Davis, who resigned when he was elected United States Senator ; Judges Thomas Kinnicutt and Pliny Merrick ; Hon. Alexander De Witt, afterwards member of Congress ; Hon. Stephen Salisbury, George T. Rice and
299
Reminiscences of Worcester.
F. H. Kinnicutt. Mr. Rice served twelve years, and F. H. Kin- nieut has officiated for eleven years, since the deccase of Mr. Rice in 1866. The superintendents of this road have been : J. W. Stowell to 1854 ; George W. Bentley, (now superintend- ent of the New London Northern railroad,) twelve years to 1866 ; and Charles S. Turner, eleven years to the present time. Timothy W. Hammond has been clerk and treasurer since July 23, 1849. Since November, 1874, when the Nashua and Roches- ter railroad was opened, trains have run through to Portland, Me. Direct through connection with New York both by rail and boat is made over both the Norwich and Worcester, and Providence and Worcester railroads.
FITCHBURG AND WORCESTER RAILROAD.
The Fitchburg and Worcester railroad (fourteen miles long between Fitchburg and Sterling Junction with the Worcester and Nashua road,) was first opened Feb., 1850, through the enterprise of its first president and superintendent, Dr. C. W. Wilder of Leominster, succeeded by Col. Ivers Phillips till the consolidation with the Boston, Clinton and Fitchburg road in 1866, when H. A. Blood of Fitchburg became superintendent, succeeded in 1872 by S. A. Webber. Henry H. Penniman has been baggage-master and conductor of this road since 1852.
BOSTON, BARRE AND GARDNER RAILROAD OPENING.
The Boston, Barre and Gardner railroad was opened for pub- lic travel between Worcester and Gardner, Sept. 4, 1871, and the extension to Winchendon, Jan. 5, 1874. The trains run to and from the old Foster street depot till June 6, 1876, when they began to use the Union station. The presidents of this road have been Col. Ivers Phillips and Hon. Ginery Twichell, and the superintendents have been Col. Phillips, T. B. Sar- geant, Col. I. N. Ross, and H. M. Witter, formerly for many years general ticket agent of the Worcester and Nashua rail- road. Wm. E. Starr has been clerk and treasurer of the road from the beginning. Dircet connection with Concord, N. H., and at other points in that direction will soon be opened by the extension of the Monadnock railroad to Hillsborough- Bridge, N. H.
PRINTERS AND NEWSPAPERS.
CHAPTER XIX.
ISAIAH THOMAS AND HIS DISTINGUISHED APPRENTICES.
As Worcester was a grand centre of patriotic operations in revolutionary times, one hundred years ago and more, and the place whence issued those appeals which fired the heart of the country, through the utterances of the Bigelows and others on the various committees of that period, and through the columns of " THE MASSACHUSETTS SPY," in which office the first printing was done for the Provincial Congress, a brief notice of the founder and conductor of that organ of the patriotic cause through those perilous times, and of some of his distinguished apprentices in the art of printing, may be appropriate in this connection. Conspicuous among those who regularly grad- uated at the printing business, in the SPY office, under Isaiah Thomas, were Hon. Timothy Bigelow, son of Col. Timothy Bigelow, and grandson of Daniel Bigelow, (noticed on page 45 ;) Hon. Benjamin Russell, afterwards of the " Columbian Centinel," Boston, for many years a member of the House of Rep- resentatives, Senate and Executive Council of Massachusetts, and holding other prominent positions, who died Jan. 4, 1845, aged 83, his wife being a daughter of the deputy sheriff, Lem- uel Rice, who kept the old stone jail and jail tavern from 1790 to 1799 ; Isaiah Thomas, Jr., (father of Judge Benjamin F. Thomas,) who succeeded his father in business ; Rev. Leonard Worcester, brother of Rev. Dr. Noah Worcester ; and Charles Tappan, a distinguished bookseller of Boston, who died about a year ago, aged over ninety, a brother of Arthur and Lewis Tappan, distinguished merchants and anti-slavery pioneers of
301
Reminiscences of Worcester.
forty five years ago, and also brother of Benjamin Tappan, United States Senator from Ohio. Among other graduates from this same office, who worked for Isaiah Thomas, were Nathaniel Maccarty, (son of Rev. Thaddeus Maccarty,) and Daniel Greenleaf, son of William Greenleaf, sheriff of the coun- ty from 1778 to his death in 1788, and father of the late Wil- liam Greenleaf of Worcester. Hon. Timothy Bigelow and Benjamin Russell worked together in the printing office, and ever remained warm and attached friends during their long service together in the State councils.
THE FIRST WORCESTER PRINTER.
ISAIAH THOMAS, LL. D., born in Boston, Jan. 19, 1749, was the youngest of five children of Moses and Fidelity (Grant) Thomas, and served an eleven years' apprenticeship, from the age of 6 to 17, with Zachariah Fowle, on old Middle street, in the provincial town of Boston, the boy being so small, when he began to set type, that he had to stand upon a stool eighteen inches high to reach his " case." Graduating at the early age of 17, he went to Nova Scotia, where he had charge of both the printing and editing of the " Halifax Gazette" until his rebellious criticisms of the British " stamp act" policy necessitated his leaving, and after trying his fortunes for a while in Portsmouth, N. H., Wilmington, N. C., and Charleston, S. C., he returned in 1770, at the age of 21, to Boston, and entered into partnership with his former master, Fowle, in company with whom he began the publication of " THE MASSACHUSETTS SPY," the first number of which, a little sheet, seven inches by ten, was issued " Tuesday, July 17, 1770." This was published for three months every other day, soon after which Thomas became sole pro- prietor, and changed it to a semi-weekly, and March 7, 1771, to a weekly, with the same heading the paper has ever since borne. The character and principles of the proprietor and manager made it the organ, in Massachusetts, of the patriot cause, both preceding and during the revolutionary struggle.
As Thomas strenuously resisted, during the progress of the controversy be- tween the Whigs and the Tories previous to the revolution, all the overtures made by the friends of the British government to induce him to conduct the paper in their interest, an attempt was then made to force a compliance, or to deprive him of his press and types. Many and severe were the contests he had with the executive authorities for articles published in criticism of the measures of the government, infringing upon colonial and individual rights. The grand juries of Suffolk county failing to indict him for libel in obedience to behests of the Attorney-General appointed by the crown, attempts were made to procure bills against him by the grand juries of the adjoining counties, on the ground that the paper circulated in those counties ; but the fallacy of such a procedure soon became too apparent to be long persisted in. To vent the malignity of the tories, some of the British soldierly openly threat- ened the printer of the paper with violence. For these, among other reasons, Thomas was induced, as the contest became hotter and hotter in the month of April, 1775, to pack up, privately, his press and types, and send them, in the night time, over Charles River, to Charlestown, whence they were con- veyed to Worcester, a few days before the battle of Lexington. Gen. Joseph Warren and Col. Timothy Bigelow, in behalf of the General Committee of Safety, assisted Thomas personally in getting his press and types across
302
Reminiscences of Worcester.
Charles River. and in starting them safely on the road to Worcester, Thom- as remaining himself in Boston until an early hour on the morning of the battle.
On the night of April 18, 1775, it was discovered that a considerable num . ber of British troops were embarking in boats on the river, near the common, with the manifest design to destroy the stores collected by the provincials at Concord, eighteen miles from Boston ; and Thomas was engaged, with oth- ers, in giving the alarm. At day break on the morning of the famous 19th of April, 1775, he crossed over to Charlestown, went to Lexington, and join- ed the provincial militia, musket in hand, in opposing the king's troops. On the 20th, he went to Worcester, and opened a printing house with such materials as he could procure in addition to the press and types conveyed from Boston, and re-commenced the publication of his newspaper, "THE MASSACHUSETTS SPY," the first number of which appeared from the press in Worcester, May 3, 1775. This was the first printing done in any inland town in New England. The provincial Congress, then assembled at Water- town, at first proposed that Thomas' press should be removed to that place ; but, as all concerns of a public nature were then in a state of derangement, it was finally determined that his press should remain at Worcester; and that post-riders should be established to facilitate intercourse between that place, Watertown, and Cambridge; and at Worcester he continued to print for Congress, until a press was established at Watertown and at Cambridge.
Having been an eye witness of the battle of Lexington, Thomas published an account of it, reported by himself, in the first issue of his paper at Wor- cester.
To show the interest maintained in behalf of the conductor of the "Spy" by the General Committee of Safety, after his expulsion from Boston, it may be stated that John Hancock, as chairman, gave Isaiah Thomas an order, dated April 26, 1775, on that committee for supplies for his printing estab- lishment, specifying " fifty reams of crown printing paper, forty reams of demi do., twenty reams of foolscap do., and five reams of writing paper," these supplies being granted for the reason stated that the necessities of " the public service" required it to be done.
As early as February previous, Thomas had been solicited by the Whigs of Worcester to establish a newspaper here, and proposals were issued for sub- scribers to the same, so that the crisis in April found him partially in readi- ness for his change of base from Boston to Worcester, as he would undoubt- edly have established a paper here, whether he removed that one from Bos- ton or not. In 1773, he established the first newspaper and printing office in Newburyport, with which he was connected for several years, in addition to his printing operations in Boston, Walpole, N. H., and other places, includ- ing the " Farmer's Journal" printing office established by him at Brook- field, Mass., afterwards continued by Ebenezer Merriam. At one period Thomas had, under his personal direction and that of his partners, sixteen presses in constant motion, doing a larger business in this line than any oth- er person in the United States. Besides this, he was book-seller, book-bind- er, and manufacturer of paper, starting at Quinsigamond Village in 1794, for his own accommodation, the paper mills long managed by him, after- wards carried on by Elijah Burbank, on the site of the present Quinsigamond Iron Works. His publishing business included the printing of numerous editions of the Bible, of which he issued more copies than any other person of his time as well as most of the standard historical, geographical and scientific works of that period. He founded, in 1812, the American Anti- quarian Society, to which he gave his own voluminous collections of books, and other valuable materials, as a nucleus of the present vast library. He gave the land, and erected thereon the first building for their accommodation,
303
Reminiscences of Worcester.
on Summer street, in 1820, at his own expense. He was the first president of the society, serving in that capacity for nineteen years, until his decease, April 4, 1831, aged 82. He received the degree of Master of Arts from Dartmouth College in 1814, and that of LL. D. from Alleghany College in 1818.
Soon after he came to Worcester, Dr. Thomas was appointed, November 15, 1775, the postmaster here, by his brother printer, Benjamin Franklin, who was postmaster general under the authority of the Continental Con- gress at Philadelphia. Thomas continued to hold the office of postmaster for over a quarter of a century, until the appointment of James Wilson in 1801. Before the introduction of staging, in 1782, but one mail each week was sent or received, which was conveyed on horseback, east and west ; Dr. Thomas opening the route north by sending his apprentice, Nathaniel Mac- carty, to Fitchburg every Wednesday, the day of the publication of the SPY, with letters and papers for that section of the county.
In 1802, Dr. Thomas relinquished his printing business to his son, Isaiah Thomas, Jr., but did not himself, as it plainly appears, remain idle, after- wards devoting himself almost wholly to matters of a kindred public nature. His " History of Printing," in two large volumes, first published in 1810, necessitated years of laborious research.
Isaiah Thomas married Dec. 25, 1769, Mary, daughter of Joseph Dill of the Isle of Bermuda, and had : 1. Mary Anne, born March 27, 1772, and was three times married, the last time, to Dr. Levi Simmons : 2, Isaiah, Jr., born Sept. 5, 1773, married Mary, daughter of Edward Weld of Boston, was educated as a printer, and succeeded his father in business, and lastly resided in Boston, where he died June 25, 1819. The children of the latter were : 1, Mary Rebecca, married Judge Pliny Merrick of Worcester; 2, Frances Church, born Aug. 12, 1800, married Wm. A. Crocker of Taunton : 3, Augusta Weld, born Aug. 1, 1801, died Aug. 19, 1822, at Taunton ; 4, Caroline, born Sept. 26, 1802, married Hon. Samuel L .. Crocker of Taunton, member of the 33d Congross ; 5, Hannah Weld, married June 14, 1825, Hon. Samuel L. Crocker of Taunton, and died Nov. 22, 1827 ; 6, Isaiah, born Dec. 11, 1804, died Oct. 14, 1805 : 7, Isaiah resided in New York, re- ceived an appointment to a foreign, and was lost at sea ; 8, William, mer- chant in Boston ; 9, Edward Weld, born Feb. 15, 1810, died Oct. 5, 1810 : 10, Edward Isaiah, merchant in New York, married a daughter of Bishop Brownell of Connecticut ; 11, Benjamin Franklin Thomas, born Feb. 12, 1813, graduated at Brown University in 1830, studied law at Harvard University Law School and with Judge Pliny Merrick in Worcester, where he was admitted to practice in 1833, was Representative in the General Court in 1842, Judge of Probate from 1844 to 1848, Judge of the Supreme Judicial Court from 1853 to 1859, removed to Boston, and was chosen Re- presentative to Congress in 1861, serving on the cominittee on the judiciary and on the special committee on the bankrupt law. Judge Thomas is now in a lucrative practice of his profession in Boston. His wife is a daughter of the late Dr. John Park of Worcester. All his brothers and sisters have deceased.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.