USA > Massachusetts > Suffolk County > Boston > Sketches of Boston, past and present, and of some places in its vicinity > Part 17
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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
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1813
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45
63
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1844
158
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292
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49
63
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1845
119
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271
13
33
74
151
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1846
148
126
299
9
52
65
173
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1847
170
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313
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50
87
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1818
143
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1850
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102G
The Hon. William Appleton of Boston contributed $ 10,000 in Decem- ber, 1813, " for the purpose of affording aid to such patients in the McLean Asylum, as from straitened means might be compelled to leave the Institu- tion without a perfect cure." On the 9th of November, 1850, the same gen- man contributed the further sum of $ 20,000 for the purpose of erecting two additional edifices, sufficiently large to accommodate eight males and eight females, with such conveniences and facilities as shall enable each to have, not only the care, attention, and comforts, but the luxuries and re- tirement which they had enjoyed at home.
The superintendent states that the elevation and improvement of the en- tire establishment have, as usual, not been overlooked during the past year. A large and handsome hall, fifty feet long by twenty-five wide and fourteen high, has been constructed, by raising a story upon one of the buildings of the male side, which furnishes ample room for two billiard tables, - ever an interesting and useful exercise for the insane; and also makes a sort of conversation and reading room, where patients from the different sections may meet for some hours in the day for recreation and inter. course.
The expenses of the McLean Asylum for 1850 were $40,623, viz: For Stores $ 17,627; Wages $6,173; Salaries $ 4,500; Furniture, Repairs, and Improvements $ 10,310; Diversions $1,332 ; Miscellaneous $ 2,335. From which deduct the proceeds of the farm and garden $ 1,701.
It seems to be generally understood through the country that this insti- tution is the most safe as well as the most economical place of resort in all
Remain-
Year. Admitted.
Dis- charged. under care.
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THE STATE HOUSE.
difficult and dangerous cases, especially such as require operation ; one of the consequences of this general sentiment in regard to the Hospital, is, that many diseases are presented there which are in their nature incurable, - whence it has followed, that, as the reputation of the institution has in- creased, the number of cases reported incurable or not relieved has also in- creased. The patients, under the daily care of skilful, intelligent, and emi- nent surgeons and physicians, are watched over by faithful and attentive nurses, and in truth the minor officers and domestics, under the vigilant eye of the superintendent and matron, continue to give the sick poor all the comfort and relief, with all the chances of restoration, which the kind- ness of friends, or the influence of money, could command for those fa- vored with both.
THE STATE HOUSE.
This elegant and spacious edifice, situated in Boston, on elevated ground adjoining the Common, and near the centre of this ancient and flourishing city, was erected in 1795. The corner-stone was laid on the fourth of Ju- ly, by the venerable and patriotic Samuel Adams, then Chief Magistrate of Massachusetts (assisted by Paul Revere, Master of the Grand Lodge of Masons). He succeeded Governor Hancock, who died in October, 1793. Governor Adams made a short address on the occasion of laying the cor- ner-stone, and said, " he trusted that within its walls liberty and the rights of man would be forever advocated and supported." The lot was pur- chased by the town of Boston of the heirs of Governor Hancock, for which the sum of $ 4,000 was paid. The building was not finished and occupied by the Legislature till January, 1798; when the members of the General Court walked in procession from the Old State House at the head of State Street, and the new edifice for the government was dedicated by solemn prayer to Almighty God. The Old State House, so called from the time of building the other, was long the place in which the General Court of the Province of Massachusetts was holden. It has lately been well repaired, and was formerly the place of the meetings of the city authorities and for public offices.
The corner stone of the present Capitol was brought to the spot by fif- teen white horses, at that time the number of States in the Union. The building is seen at a great distance in all directions, and is the principal object visible when the city is first seen by those who visit it. The form is oblong, being one hundred and seventy-three feet in front, and sixty-one feet deep, or at the end. The height of the building, including the dome, is one hundred and ten feet ; and the foundation is about that height above
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THE STATE HOUSE.
the level of the water of the bay. " It consists externally of a besement story twenty feet high, and a principal story thirty feet high. This, in the centre of the front, is covered with an attic sixty feet wide, and twen. ty feet high, which is covered with a pediment. Immediately above arises the dome, fifty feet in diameter, and thirty in height ; the whole terminating with an elegant circular lantern, which supports a pine cone. The base- ment story is finished in a plain style on the wings, with square windows. The centre is ninety-four feet in length, and formed of arches which pro- ject fourteen feet, and make a covered walk below, and support a colonnade of Corinthian columns of the same extent above.
The largest room is in the centre, and in the second story (the large space below in the basement story is directly under this) ; it is the Repre- sentatives' Chamber; and will accommodate five hundred members ; and sometimes they have been more numerous. The Senate Chamber is also in the second story and at the east end of the building, being sixty feet by fifty. At the west is a large room for the meetings of the Governor and the Executive Council; with a convenient ante-chamber.
The view froin the top of the State House is very extensive and variega. ted ; perhaps nothing in the country is superior to it. To the east appears the bay and harbor of Boston, interspersed with beautiful islands; and in the distance beyond, the wide extended ocean. To the north the eye is met by Charlestown, with its interesting and memorable heights, and the Navy Yard of the United States ; the towns of Chelsea, Malden, and Med- ford, and other villages, and the natural forests mingling in the distant ho- rizon. To the west, is a fine view of the Charles river and a bay, the an- cient town of Cambridge, rendered venerable for the University, now above two hundred years old; of the flourishing villages of Cambridge- port and East Cambridge, in the latter of which is a large glass manufac- turing establishment ; of the highly cultivated towns of Brighton, Brook. line, and Newton ; and to the south is Roxbury, which seems to be only a continuation of Boston, and which is rapidly increasing : Dorchester, a fine, rich, agricultural town, with Milton and Quincy beyond, and still farther south, the Blue Hills, at the distance of eight or nine miles, which seem to bound the prospect. The Common, stretching and spreading in front of the Capitol, with its numerous walks and flourishing trees, where " the rich and the poor meet together," and the humblest have the proud consciousness that they are free, and in some respects (if virtuous), on a level with the learned and the opulent, - addy greatly to the whole scene.
Near the Capitol, on the west, is the mansion house of the eminent patri- ot, the late John Hancock, now exhibiting quite an ancient appearance; and on the east, about the same distance, was, until recently, situated the dwelling of the late James Bowdoin, another patriot of the Revolution. a distinguished scholar and philosopher; and who, by his firmness, in the critical period of 1786, contributed most efficiently to the preservation of
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THE STATE HOUSE.
order and tranquillity in the Commonwealth. Large sums have been ex- pended in repairs on the State House, both within and without, since it was erected, and in improving the grounds and fences about it ; and it is How in a condition of great neatness and elegance.
On the 12th of June, 1S27, the Legislature adopted a resolution "that permission be hereby given to the trustees of the Washing- ton Monument Association to erect, at their own expense, a suitable building on the north front of the State-House, for the reception and permanent location of the Statue of Washington by Chantrey.'
The building was erected and the trustees passed a vote as follows: "The trustees of said Association do confide and intrust, as well the said edifice erected at their expense, as the noble statute, the work of the first ar- tist in Europe, to the care and patriotism of the government of the State of Massachu- setts, for the use and benefit of the people of said State to all future generations."
In pursuance of which, a Resolve was passed on the 9th of January, 1823, " that the legislature of this Commonwealth accepts the Statue of Washington upon the terms and conditions on which it is offered by the Trustees of the Washington Monument As- sociation ; and entertains a just sense of the patriotic feeling of those individuals, who have done honor to the State by plac- ing in it a statue of the Man whose life was among the greatest of his country's blessings, and whose fame is her proudest inheritance."
This statue was procured by private subscription, and was placed in the State House in the year 1823.
The costume is a military cloak, which displays the figure to advantage. The effect is imposing and good : but, instead of confining himself to a close delineation of features, the sculptor, like Canova, has allowed some latitude to his genius in expressing his idea of the character of the subject.
The lot on which the State-House was built was conveyed to the Com- monwealth by the town of Boston, on the 2d day of May, 1795. The Commissioners on the part of Boston to make this conveyance were Wil- liam Tudor, Charles Jarvis, John Coffin Jones, William Eustis, William Little, Thomas Dawes, Joseph Russell, Harrison Gray Otis, and Perry
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MASSACHUSETTS HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
Morton. The ground is termed in the deed, the Governor's Pasture, or Governor Ilancock's Pusture ; and the dimensions were stated as follows. Running east wardly on Beacon Street, 513 feet 3 inches, thence northward. ly up a passage way to the snunuit 219 feet, thence westwardly to the a corner of the Jot, 235 feet 3 inches, thence to the first corner 371 feet.
1. msagomes of agents for the orection of the new State House were muined in the deed, viz. Thomas Dawes, Edward Hutchinson Robinson, ami Charles Bulfinch.
Owing to the present want of accommodation for the various public of- tices, the State library, and for other purposes connected with the execu- tive and legislative departments, it is proposed to enlarge the building. Plans for this enlargement have been submitted to the legislature by Mr. Bryant, architect of Boston.
The extension is proposed to consist of a building 41} feet wide and 58 long, 4 stories high, to be located back of the one story portion of the State House containing Washington's statue, and to extend from the rear wall of that portion back to Mount Vernon Street, to be built in style conforming to the present edifice. The lower story to be wholly above the surface of the sidewalk ; the second, on a level with the Doric hall or rotun- da of the present building, and to contain the library, statues, &c. The third story, on a level with the lower part of the Hall of Representatives, to contain two connnittee rooms, so arranged that they can be made into one by the removal of the partition at any time, as with folding doors. The fourth story to contain 4 committee rooms. There are two entrances proposed for the extension, one from Mount Vernon Street, another from the eastern side of the present rotunda, through the entry near the foot of the stairway leading to the cupola. Estimates prepared by competent mechanical judges make the cost to be about $ 15,000.
THE MASSACHUSETTS HISTORICAL SOCIETY,
AND THE PROVIDENT INSTITUTION FOR SAVINGS.
Both these institutions have rooms in the Granite Building in Tremont Street, near the Stone Chapel. The house is owned jointly hy the two Societies. 1. The Massachusetts Historical Society.
In 1790, the Rev. Jeremy Belknap and four others agreed to form such an Association. On the 21th of the next January, they and five more were fully organized. Their main object was to collect manuscripts and books to illustrate the history of their own Republic. Their beginning was small but their progress however gradual, has been succesful. At present, the Society have about 7,000 printed volumes and over 200 volumes of man-
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uscripts. They have had issued from the press, 30 volumes of their Col- lections. Formerly it was their endeavor, more than now, to gather other relics of the past. Of these, the three following are selected.
Carrer Sicord.
This is the memento of a worthy pilgrim. It was owned by John Carver, who was among the most valuable men that left England and em- igrated to Holland, for the conscientious enjoyment of their religion. He was a prominent member of John Robinson's Church in Leyden. He took an active part in obtaining the Patent, under which the settlers of New Plymouth came over. When these were intending to land and dwell on Cape Cod, his name headed the subscribers to the constitution, which they adopted for their civil government. They unanimously chose him as their first chief magistrate. As the guide of so small a commonwealth, sur- roundled by imminent perils, and especially by that of being destroyed by the adjacent natives, whose wrongs from some of the white race filled them with a thirst for revenge upon the whole of them within their reach, he and his associates felt the need of arms to protect themselves and fami- lies. Hence the reason why his sturdy blade was not beat into a plough- share, but was worn by him as an instrument of defence. While ready to use it as he thought obligation might require, he was summoned, April, 1621, to enter on eternal realities, and, as we trust, on the reward of a faithful steward.
The desk delineated in this cut was long used by the successive speakers of the Representatives of Massachusetts, in the old State House. It continued to be so em- ployed till the new edifice of this name was prepared for the legis- lature, whose first session in the latter was January 11, 1793. The desk was then laid aside, as too antiquated for modern taste. But, well for its preservation, members of the Historical Society had an eye of favor towards it, for the ful- ness of its past usefulness. They obtained it, and ever since it has Speaker's desk, and Winslow's chair.
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MASSACHUSETTS HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
held an honorable place. Were it endowed with speech, what thrilling tones of eloquence and what interesting facts could it repeat relative to the unwritten and forgotten proceedings of our colonial and provincial legislation !
The second article is a large oak chair, fitted for the patriarchal table around which it was often placed. When our eyes behold it, we think of the many, once buoyant with the hopes of life, who rested upon it when fa- tigued, and were cheerfully refreshed from the hospitable board, and took part in the varied topics of social conversation, but who, long since, have gone the way of all the earth. Among these, was its worthy proprietor, Edward Winslow. The tradition is, that, made in London in 1614, it was brought over by him in the May-Flower among the effects of the first em- igrants to New Plymouth. After having sustained the highest offices of the colony with honor to himself and usefulness to others, he died May Sth, 1655, aged 61, in the service of the crown, as commissioner to super- intend an expedition of the English against the Spanish West Indies. The chair and desk are now both in a good state of preservation, and are well worthy the attention of the antiquary.
This article of Indian antiquity awakens within us trains of thought, which partake more of sadness than of gayety. It carries us to the royal wigwam at Mount Hope in Rhode Island, introduces us to the family of its owner, busily occupied in satisfying their appetite with the corn and beans, which it often presented as the products of their own culture and preparation. Philip's Samp-pan. Around it, the joys of domestic intercourse, the expressions of affectionate hearts between children and parents, the gratulations of relatives and friends, abounded. But the crisis came, and the whole scene was convert. ed to utter desolation. The proprietor of such a relic was Philip, the Sachem of Pokanoket, the youngest son of Massasoit. He succeeded his brother, Alexander, 1657, renewed friendship with the English, 1662, and began a desolating warfare with them, 1675. His principal object appears to have been to arrest the progress of Christianity among his own people and other tribes, and thus prevent their assimilation to the principles and civilization of their European neighbors, and, as he feared, their final ex- tinction. After the exhibition of much physical and intellectual power, he was compelled to flee before the superior discipline of his opponents. He took refuge in secret places around his home. He was discovered and shot in a swamp, Aug. 12th, 1676. His head was cut off, placed on a pole, and shown publicly at Plymouth, as the punishment of a traitor. Thus fell one who was a hero in the estimation of his friends, while his foes de- nounced him as a powerful traitor. Though this difference may exist on
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BANKING INSTITUTIONS OF BOSTON.
earth, there is a tribunal where all will receive according to their deserts. The right, whether of barbarous or civilized, will there be acknowledged, confirmed, and rewarded.
Provident Institution for Savings.
The charter for this institution was granted on the 13th of December, 1816. Its first location was in the old Court House, then in Court street, afterwards in Scollay's buildings in Court street, and finally in the building erected for it and now occupied by the institution in Tremont street, a few yards north of the Stone Chapel.
The statistics of the Provident Institution for Savings indicate that it has been productive of great good to the community, and especially to the poorer classes, for whose benefit it was more especially intended. The amount deposited by customers during the last year (ending 30th June, 1351) was $1,181,182, and the amount withdrawn was $ 957,536. The aggregate of deposits on the Ist day of July, 1851, was $ 3,916,026.50.
BANKING INSTITUTIONS OF BOSTON.
There are now (July, 1851) thirty Banks established in the city of Bos- ton, with an aggregate capital of $ 21,760,000. Two others were chartered in the year 1851, which will probably commence operations during the present year.
None of these are remarkable for their architectural beauty or display. The Suffolk Bank is the point of redemption for nearly all the bank circu- lation of New England. This institution redeemed, in the year 1850, $ 221,000,000, and during the first six months of 1851, $ 120,700,000.
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BANK OF COMMERCE.
The accompanying engraving represents the front of the new Bank of Commerce on State street. The frontis of Connecticut sandstone, and the 'style of architecture, Italian. The ground floor is occupied by Insurance Offices, and the second or principal story by the Bank of Commerce ; the upper stories are used as offices for different purposes. The builder of the above Bank was T. W. R. Emery, Esq., and the design was furnished by Charles E. Parker, architect.
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The Bank of Commerce, - Erected 1850.
The building has a front on State Street of 274 feet, and is four stories in height ; with a depth of 63 feet to Doane street. The Cashier's room, fac- ing State street, is 25 by 14 feet, and the main banking room back of it, 54 by 25 feet. The banking rooms are all on the second floor.
As a model for new bank buildings this is deserving an examination, be- cause it combines economy in space with ample light for the officers, ele. gance of appearance, and many conveniences that are essential in the arrangement and construction of such an edifice.
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HANCOCK HOUSE.
THE HANCOCK HOUSE, BEACON STREET.
The annexed engraving exhibits a view of the mansion house of John Hancock, the celebrated governor of that name, and whose bold and manly signature is so much admired on the charter of our liberties.
It is situated on the elevated ground in Beacon Street, fronting towards the south. The principal building is of hewn stone, " finished, not altogether in the modern style, nor yet in the ancient Gothic taste." It is raised twelve or thirteen feet above the street ; and the ascent is through a gar- den, bordered with flowers and small trees. Fifty-six feet in breadth, the front terminates in two lofty stories. While occupied by Governor Han- cock, the east wing formed a spacious hall; and the west wing was appro- priated to domestic purposes, - the whole embracing, with the stables, coach-house, and other offices, an extent of 220 feet. In those days, there was a delightful garden behind the mansion, ascending gradually to the high lands in the rear. This spot was also handsomely embellished with glacis, and a variety of excellent fruit trees, From the summer-house, might be seen West Boston, Charlestown, and the north part of the town ; the Colleges, the bridges of the Charles and Mystic rivers, the ferry of Win- nisimmet, and " fine country of that vicinity, to a great extent." The south and west views took in Roxbury, the highlands of Dorchester and Brookline, the blue hills of Milton and Braintree, together with numerous farin-houses, verdant fields, and laughing valleys. Upon the east, the islands of the harbor, "from Castle William to the Light House, engaged the sight by turns, which at last was lost in the ocean, or only bounded by the horizon."
In front of this edifice is an extensive green, called " the Common," containing forty-eight acres, where, in the Governor's time, "an hundred cows daily fed." It was then handsomely railed in, except on the west,
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HANCOCK HOUSE.
where it was washed by the river Charles and the Back Bay. The mall, bordering the Common on the east, is ornamented with a triple row of trees ; and " hither the ladies and gentlemen resorted in summer, to inhale those refreshing breezes which were wafted over the water." Upon days of election, and public festivity, this ground teemed, as it does now on similar occasions, with multitudes of every description ; and here " the different military corps performed," as at the current day, "their stated exercise."
Governor Hancock inherited this estate from his uncle, Thomas Han- cock, Esquire, who erected the building in 1737. At that period, the " court part of the town " was at the " north end," and his fellow citizens marvelled not a little that he should have selected, for a residence, such an unimproved spot as this then was.
In the life time of that venerable gentleman, the doors of hospitality were opened to the stranger, the poor and distressed ; and annually, on the au- niversary of the Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company, he entertained the Governor and Council, and most respectable personages, at his house. The like attentions were shown to the same military body by Governor Hancock, who inlierited all the urbanity, generous spirit, and virtues of his uncle.
" In a word, if purity of air, extensive prospects, elegance and conven- ience united, are allowed to have charms," says one who wrote many years past, " this seat is scarcely exceeded by any in the Union." This statement, however, must be received with some qualification, in 1851. The premises are not entirely as they were. It is true, there is the same noble exterior, which the edifice possessed at its erection, nor have any important alterations been made in the interior. The greater part of the flower garden remains in front ; nor do we know of a want of pure air, ele- gance, or convenience in the establishment. But the " stables and coach house " are not to be found ; and the " prospect," though still very beau- tiful, has been materially abridged by the adjacent buildings.
The garden behind the mansion, glacis, fruit. trees, and summer house have all disappeared. Even " the high lands," beyond, have been much reduced, to make room for public avenues and stately dwellings, in that part of the metropolis. Among the many private residences upon the grounds in the rear, may be named that of the Hon. Benjamin T. Pickman, forinerly president of the Senate of Massachusetts.
Every governor of the commonwealth, from the time of John Hancock to that of the present chief magistrate, has been lodged or entertained, more or less, in this hospitable mansion. Indeed, it has a celebrity in all parts of the country ; and most strangers, on visiting the capital of New England, endeavor to catch a glimpse of " the Hancock House."
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