USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Groton > Tercentenary, 1655-1955, Groton, Massachusetts > Part 2
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In 1839-40 the building was turned, the north end to face the west and made the front, which brought what had been the main entrance to the south. Two galleries were removed, one remaining for the organ and singers. A floor was built between the two tiers of windows, making a two story building. Thus, the church services could be held upstairs, with entrance at the west, and town meetings held on the first floor, with entrance at the south side door.
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In 1877 the interior was again altered. The remaining gallery and high pulpit were removed and the pews were changed to make a center aisle with rows of pews on each side.
In January 1916, the Parish voted to "restore the interior of the building so that it will be in harmony with the exterior." To date this has been altered very little, and the present auditorium is a large, oblong room, with the organ at the west end, and the pulpit opposite, a center aisle with two rows of pews on either side, and aisles along the outer sides. Along the walls are placed, on the north side a tablet containing the names of the eight ministers chosen by the town from 1662 to 1826, and tablets placed in memory of former church members, namely, Judge Samuel Dana, a son of one of the town ministers, and his wife, Rebecca; Major Joseph Moors, who served during the Revolutionary War in Col. Prescott's regiment; and Harriett Elizabeth Edmands Dix, a president of the National Alliance from 1891 to 1901. Opposite, on the south side, are the ministers chosen by the Parish, from 1826 to the present, and to the left and right of the pulpit are memorials to Joshua Young, D.D., the minister who became unpopular in his own church because he con- ducted John Brown's funeral service, but was afterwards twenty-seven years minister in Groton and George Sewall Boutwell, a former Gover- nor of Massachusetts.
The first floor has undergone changes at various times and at present is arranged and used as a vestry and class rooms for Sunday School.
The town clock in the belfry was made by Francis Ridgeway, and placed in position in 1809 and the bell was cast by Paul Revere in 1819. At first the clock did not strike but later the clock and bell were con- nected and made to strike the hours.
As in other New England towns, town meetings were held in the meeting-house. It was not until 1859 that the Town Hall was built and town meetings were transferred to that building. During the Revolu- tionary War period, the Court of General Sessions sat here in the meeting-house for eleven years.
The Church has been Unitarian since 1826, but has maintained its traditional organizations of church and parish with parish meetings called by a warrant as are town meetings. The records of the town and church meetings reveal to the reader a fascinating excursion into old New England. Many and spirited were the meetings, occasionally the comments terse. For example:
"April 5, 1803 - At a church meeting in the centre school house, . . . Voted to attend to the cases of delinquent members on the approach- ing Fast, either at noon or night, as the Pastor may think most con- venient."
"March 21. 1775. - Chh Met according to appointment and after a few hours Spent in Saying but little and doing Nothing adjourned to next Monday 2 o'clock P. M."
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UNION CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH
Until 1825, the First Parish Meeting-House was the only church in Groton. At that time, Rev. Daniel Chaplin had been minister here for forty-nine years, and had become quite feeble. On a hot Sunday that summer, Dr. Chaplin fainted in his pulpit, was led out of the meeting- house, and never preached there again. Soon a young man from Andover Theological Institu- tion, John Todd by name, at the request of Dr. Chaplin, came to conduct the church services.
In November, the Church voted to give Mr. Todd a call to become colleague pastor with Dr. Chaplin. Soon afterward, at a town meeting called to see if the Town would concur with the Church in its vote, it was voted "to pass over the article," and to appoint a committee to hire preaching, if Dr. Chaplin was unable to preach himself. In those days, the minister was hired and paid by the town, and it was the feeling of the townspeople that they should choose the min- ister.
At the same time within the churches of New England there had developed a deep sectarian feeling, which caused dissension and in many cases divided the parishes. As the result of this religious agitation that was common in this part of the country and doubtless was reflected in the Groton church, and the controversy over the minister, there was a division within the Groton First Parish. A majority of the Church and a minority of the Town left and formed a new society. At first, meetings of the group were held in Lawrence Academy hall with the Rev. John Todd as their leader. In time, there was built a new church, the corner- stone of which was laid July 4, 1826. The society was organized as the Union Church of Christ in Groton in the fall of the same year with the Rev. John Todd as the pastor. The church was often referred to as the Orthodox Church.
Since then many changes have been made in the building. Mr. James Lawrence in 1850 gave an organ to replace the bassoon, viol and bass viol, which till then had furnished music for church services. Fifteen years later, the meeting-house was renovated and the gallery lowered, and in 1887 the structure of the building was raised several feet. In 1933, the Andrew Robbins Memorial organ replaced the old organ, and the John Robbins Memorial window was installed.
In 1874 the Adams estate across the street was purchased to be used as a parsonage. In 1896, the church and society were incorporated under the name of the Union Congregational Church.
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In more recent times we find the lighting of the steeple at Christ- mas an outstanding project, which has, since 1950, been continued throughout the year.
For about ten years, the minister of this church has also been the minister of the Christian Union Church in West Groton and has con- ducted services in both churches each Sunday.
In 1950, Rev. Margaret Blair Johnstone received a call to the two churches, and is the present minister.
THE FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH OF GROTON
"Baptist preaching commenced in Groton by Rev. Amasa Sander- son on Lord's day, November 6, 1831, and thus continued every third Sabbath until April following, when the society gave him a call to become their stated pastor, which call was accepted, and he entered upon his labor among them on the first of April, 1832." This note in the earliest known records of the church, presenting, as it does, the bare statistics of Baptist beginnings, indicates little of the human interest which attended the first efforts of Baptists to establish themselves in an organized church. Following so closely upon the dissolution of the "parish church," it was natu- ral that there should be general feeling in the community that there was no room in Groton for another church. Moreover, those were the days when the Baptist movement was still seen as a despised sect, and it is recorded that passers-by would look up at the first Baptist meeting place to "wonder what kind of creatures those Baptists were."
The first meeting place was in the upper story of the house which is presently the home of Dr. Ayres. However, when on December 5, 1832, a counsel of neighboring Baptist churches met to give recognition to the group as a distinct Church, the use of the Congregational meeting- house was generously extended to the council. The initial membership of the church consisted of twenty-eight persons, including Pastor San- derson.
Mr. Sanderson continued as pastor of the little group for twelve years. During this time the church grew, the first baptisms having taken place in September of 1832 in an outdoor ceremony in the brook located on the left of Breakneck Road on property then in the possession of Warren Clark. On November 4th, 1840, the little group undertook the task of erecting the present church building. This was completed, free of debt, and dedicated on February 2nd, 1842. A fitting memorial to Mr. Sanderson's memory exists in the church building in the form of a beautiful stained glass window which depicts the "Sower of the good
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seed" from Jesus' parable, "The Sower and the seed." This memorial was made possible by Mrs. Susan Blood, a daughter of Mr. Sanderson, who patiently saved over a period of many years for this purpose.
In 1873 the church building was extensively renovated and en- larged. The original building had been erected on a small hill; this was removed from beneath it to make possible the present vestry and other ground-floor rooms. The interior of the sanctuary lost much of its original simplicity during this time, but fortunately, the exterior of the building still retains its plain white dignity so characteristic of old New England Churches.
Through the years the Baptist church property has been extended to include the parsonage on Main Street, beside the church building, and the cottage on School Street, thus giving the church complete owner- ship of the triangle of land between Main Street and the two branches of School Street. The Howard clock in the steeple of the church was the gift of Dr. Samuel Green, and since 1897 its faithful striking of the hours of our days has been one of the friendly and comfortable sounds of our peaceful community. Within the last three years all of the build- ings have been freshly painted and stand today in clean white dignity as a suitable center for the activities of the First Baptist Church of Groton.
SACRED HEART CHURCH
In 1855, a mission was established in South Groton (Ayer), four miles from Groton village, served by priests from Fitchburg. In 1858, the first church edifice was erected in this area, servicing the village of Groton, among others. In 1868, this pastorate numbered 3000.
By the year 1890, there were enough Catholic families in Groton to warrant a mission priest coming over from Ayer to say Mass, so a group obtained permission from the Groton Selectmen to use an aban- doned school house for religious services.
In 1903, the Groton School chapel had outgrown its usefulness to the School, and when a new stone chapel was built, Dr. Endicott Pea- body, with the approval of the Trustees, gave the original chapel to the Roman Catholics of the town. It was moved to Groton on rollers, horse drawn, and the sides of a narrow bridge over which is crossed, were removed to allow passageway.
Some of the stucco was damaged, so that clapboards were used to partially cover it when repaired. The foundation was dug by Catholic men of the community on a Main Street corner lot purchased from Mrs. Jennie R. Hemenway. It was consecrated in October, 1905, as a Roman Catholic Church, The Sacred Heart Church, by Archbishop John Williams, and was used as a
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mission Church serviced by priests from Ayer until January, 1907, when a permanent pastor, Rev. Charles Finnegan, was sent here. For a while he roomed and boarded in various homes of the town until the rectory was built on the lot of land across the street from the church. At the present time there are about five hundred Catholic people in Groton.
ST. JAMES CHURCH - WEST GROTON, MASS.
In the section of Groton known as West Groton, stands the beautiful field stone church of St. James the Apostle. Situated on the northerly side of West Groton, its sloping slate roof and buttressed tower stand some fifty feet above the ground. A huge bronze cross overlooks the entire village, making the complete structure an im- posing edifice.
For a number of years the Catholic population of the whole town of Groton was numbered among the parishioners of the Sacred Heart Parish in Groton Center. For years the priest would come on Sunday to say Mass in the Town Hall at West Groton. Around the year 1927 Father Mitchell, who was then Pastor in Groton, conceived the idea of building a Mission Church in West Groton to take care of the increasing Catholic population of that section of town. Land for the new church was donated by Mrs. Ellen Fallon, a resident of West Groton. Work was soon started and due to the untiring labor and great zeal of Father Mitchell, who worked daily as a laborer in the construction of the church, the building was com- pleted and finally dedicated by Bishop John B. Peterson, then Auxiliary Bishop of Boston, in June of 1929. A fitting celebration was held this year in honor of the Silver Anniversary of the completion of St. James Church.
Shortly after the Most Rev. Richard J. Cushing became Archbishop of Boston he decided that West Groton should become a parish by itself. So in 1945 it became an independent parish with the Rev. Francis C. Egan as its first Pastor. After less than a year he was succeeded by the Rev. Francis McGrath who in turn was succeeded by its present Pastor, Rev. Charles H. Hyland.
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CHRISTIAN UNION CHURCH, WEST GROTON
Public religious services in West Groton date back to the year 1865, when a Sunday School with about fifteen members was organized at a private house in the village.
In a short time the membership increased to sixty and the meetings were conducted in the Dana school house. Later that same year Rev. J. T. W. Barnes, a Methodist minister of Boston, became interested in West Groton and began preaching occasionally at the school house.
During the next nineteen years, preachers of various denominations conducted services at the little school house until the year 1884 when, with the consent of the Town Fathers, the meeting place was changed to the school on Main Street.
In December of the same year, a group of men met and formed the Christian Union Society of West Groton for the purpose of erecting a church building and for "the support of public worship in West Groton."
The Building Committee raised the sum of $1,500.00 and a roll of eighty-five names of donors was among the records placed in the corner stone. The new building was dedicated on October 7, 1885. The church members at that time and up to the present day have always welcomed new members from all faiths and creeds.
In 1907, realizing the need of a resident minister, the Society purchased the house on Pep- perell Road and Bixby Hill to be used as a parson- age.
Extensive repairs were made to the church in 1927 and at the rededicatory service on November 18th, two memorial windows were presented by Mrs. Lilla J. Shepley and Clifford E. Bixby. The church was renovated in 1943. At this time, by rearranging the pews, the broad center aisle re- placed the two aisle arrangement. On November 15, 1948, the Church and Society merged and a new set of by-laws was voted.
As the church grew there was evident need of a building for the Sunday School and activities of the Parish. With the same minister serving the Christian Union Church and the Groton Congregational Church in 1943 there was no further use for the parsonage. It was sold and plans were made for a new Parish House. Following a building fund drive in November 1950, with a total result of $4,077.00, the work on the building was started. The Ladies' Aid was entirely responsible for the modern kitchen, but it was the combined efforts of members and friends of the church in work and money that made possible the Parish House connected with the church. It consists of a large auditorium with a fireplace and stage, two classrooms upstairs and one classroom down- stairs, and a large room with a fireplace in the basement. The new build- ing was dedicated on May 3, 1953.
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CONVENT OF THE HOLY UNION OF THE SACRED HEARTS
In 1947, with the authorization of His Excellency Archbishop Richard J. Cushing, the Congregation of the Holy Union of the Sacred Hearts purchased the former property of the Lowthorpe School of Land- scape Architecture. The Congregation established a convent, a novitiate, whose official name is the Sacred Heart Teacher Training School, and a grade school called the Country Day School of the Holy Union, which opened in September 1949, with fifteen pupils for pre-primary, and Grades 1, 2, and 3. Since that time a new building and one grade a year have been added. There are now eight grades and one hundred eighty pupils from Groton and surrounding towns.
Although the Convent has been in Groton only a few years, the spot where it is located has some interesting history. There was another house there before the present one was built. The original house was the home of Dr. Oliver Prescott, and was sold to a Mr. Wethered, who owned it only three months when it was burned. Dr. Prescott's grandniece, Miss Susan Prescott, built the present house on the same site and made it her home. There she established, about 1820, a school, which continued for ten years. A building was erected expressly for the school in the yard north of her home. This school building was subsequently removed to Hollis Street, and is the last house on the west side before reaching the old cemetery.
The school had a wide reputation and a large number of scholars. In the library of Harvard College there is a catalogue of the institution for the year ending November 1826, which gives the names of one hundred pupils. Miss Mary Oliver Prescott, a sister of the teacher, was the assist- ant teacher, and there were art and music teachers. Miss Prescott was married in 1829 to John Wright of Lowell, and at that time the school was discontinued.
It was at this school that Margaret Fuller, the authoress, passed two years of her girlhood. A few years later, her father, the Honorable Timothy Fuller, impressed with the natural attractions of the town. bought the place on Farmers Row, now owned by Mrs. William F. Wharton, and brought his family to Groton. He remained here as long as he lived, which was two years, and his family remained about five years more.
For many years, thereafter, Miss Susan Prescott's house remained a private home, and for a short period was a tavern. In 1901, Mrs. Ed- ward Gilchrist Lowe, sister of Col. Thomas Motley, bought the property and started a school of landscape architecture, gardening and horticul- ture for women. It was known as Lowthorpe School, and flourished for several years. In 1945, it closed its doors, and became incorporated in the Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, Rhode Island. A few years later, the place became the Convent of the Holy Union of Sacred Hearts.
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SCHOOLS
THE NEW ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
The first indication of schools in the Town of Groton is contained in the instructions given to the Selectmen in 1681: "They are to take care that there be a school, or college, of learning of children the English tongue to read." During the next century a system of "angles" or "squa- drons" developed wherein inhabitants living in the same portion of the town belonged to that "angle" or "squadron" for educational purposes.
In the year 1805 the Town adopted a by-law separating the town into twelve school districts. Later two of these were divided, making fourteen. The inhabitants of each district became responsible for build- ing a suitable schoolhouse and maintaining it.
About 1827 and for several years thereafter, there was considerable agitation about the condition of these buildings, and they were replaced by brick structures, often on the same site or in the same vicinity as the previous wooden houses. A few of these one-room brick schools still stand; Number 2, "Moors School," on Old Ayer Road; Number 3, "Lawrence," on Farmers Row; Number 7 on Chicopee Row; Number 10, "Prescott School" on Boston Road (now used as a dwelling) ; Number 15, "Winthrop" (now a dwelling) on Main Street near the old paper mill; and Number 11, "Sandy Pond School." This last mentioned school house was closed as a school in 1906. It was soon bought by a group of former pupils, teachers and interested friends, who formed the Sandy Pond Schoolhouse Association which has since maintained the place, kept it in repair and held there many parties, suppers, social gatherings and reunions. The first house for this district stood nearer Sandy Pond,
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and the second was on the present site; both were wooden buildings. In 1820, the second school was moved away and a brick building erected. This burned and the present schoolhouse was built from material sal- vaged from its predecessor.
One-room schools took care of educational requirements for many years, attended, however, by various difficulties. Families asked to be changed from one district to another; school buildings fell into disrepair causing a reprimand by the central committee; some districts had finan- cial troubles and asked for help, and there were the usual complaints of "apathy" and "indifference."
In 1869 the Chaplin School (Legion Hall) was built to take care of the central part of the village. Gradually the need was felt for a high school and for several years there ensued a controversy over its advis- ability or necessity. By 1860 some sort of high school had been organized and met in the lower town hall, and one term in Gerrish's store. The town hall arrangement was not entirely satisfactory, as the noise when the hall above was in use interfered with the concentration of the pupils below. In 1871 the Butler High School was erected on land on Main Street purchased from Andrew Robbins, and presently the high school was moved there. On September 22, 1874 Music Hall, on the third floor of the Butler School, was dedicated as quarters for a public singing school for children and adults. It was said that very soon the quality of group and church choir singing improved.
As conditions changed, it was deemed advisable to bring students to the central schools, and the "little red schoolhouses" were closed. For a time Chaplin School took care of several grades, the Butler High the
rest. In 1913 a brick schoolhouse was built in West Groton (Tarbell School), and in 1914 one on Hollis Street in Groton (Boutwell School). the latter said to be of the very latest design and efficiency.
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By the early 1920's it was becoming evident that the Butler High School was outmoded and overcrowded. In 1927 the present Groton High School was erected on the site of Butler High, and has since served high school needs. Two years ago a modern ele- mentary school was completed, near the corner of Champney and Main Streets. Boutwell School was sold and is now occupied by Groton Associates, Inc. Each of these new schools is equipped with classrooms, administra- tion quarters, gymnasium, cafeteria, playgrounds. Students are brought by buses from all parts of the town to the three central schools, one in West Groton and two in Groton.
No history of a public school system is complete without mention of the patient labors of its school committees. In early times there was a central committee, plus a local one for each district. The local com- mittee's troubles were brought before the central body, and many are the reports of action taken after due investigation of "lack of funds," inability to find a sufficiently rugged teacher "for the winter term," or to replace the loss of a good teacher. The early committees were all men, Miss Clarissa Butler and Mrs. Mary Shumway were the first to break this tradition in 1873, and at the present time it is quite customary for a woman to be elected to this office.
GROTON MAIN STREET
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THE LAWRENCE ACADEMY
The Academy was incorporated by the General Court, September 25, 1793. For fifty-two years, it was known as "The Groton Academy"; and then, in consequence of the munificent gifts of William Lawrence and Amos, his brother, the name was changed by legislative enactment to "The Lawrence Academy at Groton." From 1807 to 1898, the school was maintained for both sexes, then, by vote of the trustees, the policy of the school was changed and it became a school for boys only. At the time of its centennial in 1893, it had instructed eight thousand boys and girls.
The Dr. Samuel A. Green Foundation, 1918, added appreciably to the present endow- ment.
In recent years, the plant has been enlarged and modernized. In addition to the Shumway Field, the Spaulding- Stearns Playing Field now provides thirty-seven acres of playing area and a pond for hockey. Bigelow Hall and five former residences, which have been converted to dormitories, house the boarding students. In the Fred C. Gray Building, completed in 1949, are the dining hall the MacNeil Lounge, and the gymnasium with its complete facilities for the athletic program.
GROTON SCHOOL
Groton School was founded in 1884 by the Rev. Endicott Peabody, who had been educated in England and at the Episcopal Theological School, Cambridge, Mass., and who had previously established a church in Tombstone, Arizona. He was a man of great ability and force of char- acter and proved to be a great headmaster.
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