USA > Massachusetts > Hampshire County > Northampton > The Northampton book; chapters from 300 years in the life of a New England town, 1654-1954 > Part 28
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Northampton's pride in having sent one of its citizens out into the world of politics was great. When our period starts, Mr. Cool- idge was in his first term as Governor. Of his address at his second inaugural, the Gazette said, "More than a state inaugural address, it was a strikingly strong appeal to the nation to conserve its re- sources." When in November 1920 Harding and Coolidge swept the country there occurred one of those spontaneous celebra- tions that happen when a town's son distinguishes himself. Crowds began to collect in front of the City Hall, drum corps appeared, Smith girls joined in with cymbals. Mayor Fitzgerald led the line up Main Street to North Elm and back to City Hall. The Gazette said, "There was nothing formal about the parade, but it did ex- press our satisfaction."
The town's pride in Mrs. Coolidge shines repeatedly through delightful incidents. In May 192 1 the Gazette tells us, "Mrs. Cool- idge, unchanged, finds it good to be home." She said, "This morn- ing I went down town shopping with Mrs. Hills as we have done for years, rain or shine, and it seemed so natural. I could hardly realize that I'd been away more than a week or two." When Mr. Coolidge succeeded to the presidency, the Gazette lets us see that "Mr. Coolidge and the new First Lady slipped almost unnoticed into the Executive Mansion." From then on began a long series of visitors to the White House from Northampton. Not long be- fore his recent death Mr. L. L. Campbell spoke of his own visit to the White House with warm appreciation.
The Gazette's rollicking account on March 5, 1925 of the trip to Washington for the Inauguration has a quality of spontaneous enjoyment that makes one wish it were a signed article. The reader feels that he too is on the Northampton Special that had "prefer-
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ence over all other trains." "Already 2 ordinary express trains have been switched off to let us sweep by." The Northampton party headed the line of guests at a reception at the White House and were cordially greeted by the Coolidges in the East Room. Northampton men burst into a song written by Mr. Purrington to the tune of "Lord Jeff," "Oh! Calvin, deep Calvin, t'was a name known to fame."
Quite a different kind of celebration marked the Massachusetts Tercentenary. John M. Greene Hall was filled for the civic cere- mony. Miss Helen Watts represented Freedom and welcomed both early and later pilgrims to America. The newer pilgrims, Lithuanians, Hebrews, Syrians, Italians and Poles came in na- tional dress. The ceremony closed with the Salute to the Flag.
In 1919 and 1920 Christmas pageants were held at the Academy of Music sponsored by the cooperating churches under the chair- manship of Miss Helen Story. So large an audience gathered at the first one that the doors had to be closed 15 minutes before the performance began.
It is sad now to recall that the Lithuanians celebrated recogni- tion of their Republic by a most colorful parade in August 1922. All Lithuanians in town were either in the parade or at City Hall where their red, green, and yellow flag was carried. John Vichulis presided, and the speakers were Mayor Bicknell and Monsignor Cummings.
A gathering showing great enthusiasm and offering much ora- tory was held in 1923 to decide what to do with the old City Hall. "Wind and rain will wash the old building away," protested one speaker. It was voted to spend $25,000 on its repair rather than rebuild. Thus we retained one of our unique landmarks.
Three events of the Twenties are worth particular mention here. They were the result of community leadership of a high order. In May, 1924, occurred the formal opening (in a down- pour) of the Veterans Administration Hospital. General Hines spoke for the Veterans Bureau. This hospital has brought much to Northampton in the intervening years.
Then on April 18, 1927, occurred the formal opening of the Hotel Northampton, marked by a dinner and dance. This com- munity project could never have been carried out without the work of two men, Karl Ullman and Oliver B. Bradley. This fine hotel has always paid regularly on its bonds, and because of sound
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management its finances have run counter-clockwise to those of many other hotels.
The third event was the Made-in-Northampton Exposition under the direct auspices of the Chamber of Commerce. It was held in Memorial Hall and showed the history of concerns large and small then operating. The Exposition was opened on Febru- ary 21, 1927, when Mr. Coolidge, a former Mayor, pressed a golden key in the White House which by wire rang a bell in front of the Hall. Almost 12,000 persons visited the exhibit which played its part in the efforts of business leaders to keep North- ampton's industries functioning.
Responsibility for civic and welfare projects led to increased discussion of the need for a Community Chest in 1921-22. Joint campaigning with elimination of many appeals was one of the chief reasons the idea took hold. Formal action establishing the Chest took place in the Chamber of Commerce rooms. No execu- tive on a year-round basis was installed for many years, but the Chest became part of Northampton's life.
Fine benefactions were added to Northampton's facilities dur- ing the 1920's. Mrs. Frank N. Look, in 1920, gave the new Lath- rop Home in memory of her mother, Mrs. Sarah M. Burr, "a woman of strong personality and wide charities." It was built on the Charles N. Clark property on South Street. The Wright Home for Young Women was opened in 192 1, the Wright sisters leaving their homestead on Bridge Street comfortably furnished.
The Thomas M. Shepherd Memorial Museum was projected in the will of Mr. Shepherd, filed in 1923. The Homestead built in 1792 was "to provide a safe place and suitable maintenance to keep, on free public exhibition, articles of historical and educa- tional interest." Mr. Shepherd had already given the large surgery at Cooley Dickinson Hospital supplemented by $20,000. He now established a $ 100,000 endowment for a future museum.
On December 12, 1926, the voters of Northampton were asked to vote Yes or No, on the acceptance from Fannie B. Look of 60 acres known as the Warner Farm together with endowment funds to support it. The city in turn was to appropriate $4000 annually. It seems astonishing now, when one sees the full use made of this fine gift, that there should have been any discussion about accept- ing it, but as usual the matter was fully aired. Mrs. Look's gift finally amounted to over half a million dollars.
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All through this period the Cooley Dickinson Hospital re- ceived gifts. Among them, in 1920, were the Nurses Home in memory of Alexander McCallum, and the small surgery given by Mr. and Mrs. C. E. Childs. In 1927 a campaign raised $365,000. By 1936 the hospital had 156 much-needed beds.
The downward spiral in business and industry began in 1929, as who does not remember! Those were anxious times for employers and employees alike. The 1930 census listed 10,015 as gain- ful workers of whom 1252 were already unemployed. By 1932, the Connecticut Valley Unemployment Committee (of which Mrs. Harold Faulkner was Secretary) reported that the situation had further deteriorated. And yet Northampton, because it was less dependent on industry, was in a favorable position in com- parison to nearby towns. Chicopee was the hardest hit with one- third of its workers jobless. Holyoke and Springfield were but slightly better off. Northampton probably never had more than one-fourth of its workers unemployed.
What facilities did Northampton have to meet this disaster? When this period, 1919-1936, opened, assistance offered by the city was still dispensed by the Overseers of the Poor as in most American cities. In 1928, the Overseers became the Board of Pub- lic Welfare, but it was not until 1930 that the number of families receiving assistance was even mentioned in town reports. Up to then (except for the City Home) the amount of money spent, not the number of families helped, was the focus in reports.
In addition to the B.P.W. and the small amounts the private agencies had, the town girded up its loins, as one would expect it to do, to fight the depression. The Mayor's Committee, under the chairmanship of Alderman Rose Hayes, spent $47,300 in 1930 and $98,300 in 193 1, in furnishing work. Many organizations took a hand; among them the Civic Welfare Committee of the Wom- an's Club operated a Welfare Shop offering clothing and food. The PTA in Florence had a distributing center. There was a Free Milk Fund. Ultimately with the development of the Federal So- cial Security programs a different kind of coverage of financial need was possible.
What its schools and institutions meant to Northampton dur- ing this period was summed up for us recently by a business man who had gone through those days. Quite directly he said, "Smith College is our best industry." Regular institutional payrolls helped
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the community through the depression. In 1930 the State Hospi- tal had 264 employees, the Veterans Hospital 275 and the annual payroll in 1930-31 at Smith was $1,390,000. The College made no cut in wages or time throughout the depression. Northampton, according to the Unemployment Committee report of 1932, had 7 per cent of its total families on relief, whereas Chicopee had 15 per cent.
One of the buildings put up during the depression years was the beautiful new Hall of Records. Judge Field held court No- vember 2, 1932 in the new building. At the same time he was pre- sented with an onyx desk set from the County Bar Association. It was said that "this marked the fine relations between the court and the profession."
During the balance of years between the depth of the depres- sion and our terminal date of 1936, there was a slow recovery. The town and its individuals fought their way back to business and financial competency. High courage, hard work, and fine leader- ship locally and in the nation turned the tide.
We will end our brief review of these years with an account of the 50th Anniversary Celebration of Northampton as a City. On July 4, 1933, Major A. G. Beckmann led a procession through the town to City Hall. Invited guests were Governor Ely, both Congressmen, W. J. Granfield and A. T. Treadway, County Commissioners and Judges. President Neilson was present, as so often, taking his part in the town's life. Many children marched. Floats followed one another. The Anniversary Address was given by Judge Thomas J. Hammond on "Incidents out of the Good Old Days." It is pleasant to end our part of the story with this celebration so characteristic of the town. Northampton never for- gets its past, but brings it forward into the living present.
Chapter Thirty-Seven
World War II and After 1937-1953
By ELEANOR S. UPTON AND LUCY O'MEARA
T HE Northampton official seal puts in a nutshell our city's sources of pride. Scenery, history, industry, and churches are pictured; but the words for "justice," "charity," and "education" are spelled out. Of these, Education (Knowledge), as the chief goddess, is shown thanking Charity for her aid. In our hands now is the attractive brochure, "See Northampton," sponsored by the Chamber of Commerce with the Pioneer Valley Association, which received its name in 1939 during the period covered by the present article. On page 2 of this brochure the number of institutions listed as educational almost equals that of the churches.
As we look back over the latest of our yesterdays, the years from 1937 through 1953, events in the field of education and cul- ture appear next in importance to Northampton's part in World War II. First, as to education, the year 1937 opened with a dinner welcoming William R. Barry, the new Superintendent of Schools, successor to Fayette K. Congdon, who had died the previous year. The chief speaker of the occasion was William Allan Neilson, President of Smith College. During this year Frederic W. Plum- mer retired as Principal of the Northampton High School, after 19 years of service, and was succeeded by Ronald J. Darby, who still holds the position at this writing.
The first 16 of a course of 40 lectures for teachers were given in 1938 in the High School Hall by professors from Smith Col- lege, Mount Holyoke College, and Massachusetts State College, now the University of Massachusetts. The speakers included the presidents of the respective institutions. It was a striking demon- stration of the richness of the intellectual resources of this corner of the Connecticut Valley and their availability to the teachers in our schools.
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In the fall of 1940 the $780,000 High School at Elm and North Elm Streets opened its doors. The erection of a new and larger school had been agitated since 1931. Finally it was assured at a stormy meeting in September, 1938, when it was voted to accept a federal grant and issue bonds to finance the construction. The building is beautiful and well-equipped and its facilities are much used by the community, particularly the Little Theatre and the auditorium seating 994 persons.
Another educational event was the appointment to the presi- dency of Smith of Herbert John Davis, graduate of Oxford and native of Northamptonshire, England. He succeeded President Neilson, whose retirement in 1939 had closed a 22 years' service to the College and the City as well as to education in general. In 1949 President Davis resigned and was succeeded by Benjamin Fletcher Wright of the Harvard Faculty.
In May, 1950, Joseph Leroy Harrison died after 38 years as Librarian of the Forbes Library. He was succeeded in October by Lawrence E. Wikander of Temple University Library, Phila- delphia. A joint undertaking of the Library and the Daily Hamp- shire Gazette was begun in the same year: the microfilming of the Gazette, believed to be the oldest newspaper in Massachusetts having a continuous existence. Today, by means of a "reader" set up in the Reference Room, the story of Northampton and the surrounding towns may be followed from 1786 through 1922 and again from 1951 to the close of 1953. This in itself has been a valuable preparation for the celebration of the Tercentenary.
In addition to the Gazette, radio station WHMP, installed in 1950, is a chief means of dispensing the live local news of this an- niversary year.
In 1952 "released time" for religious education was extended to Senior High School students, having been introduced a decade earlier for Grade VI and Junior High School.
In 1953 two new elementary schools were opened, to prepare for the education of the greatly increasing number of children who had been born in the post-war period. The Leeds and Jack- son Street Schools are examples of the modern style of flowing, functional architecture. Another event of importance in 1953 was the opening of the new machine shop at Smith's Agricultural School.
So much for education.
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The most important event of 1938 in this area was, of course, the great hurricane and flood of September 2 Ist. The Connecticut River has known floods from time to time, but never has had in addition a 100-mile gale leaving widespread destruction in its path.
As a provision against a repetition of such damage, the Flood Control and Diversion Project was begun in earnest in February, 1939, and practically completed in 1940. It gave protection to all business and residential districts and included construction of 6500 feet of dike, 500 feet of sea-wall, 10,000 feet of new channel, 2 bridges, and a pumping station. The effects of this project can most easily be seen south of the Smith College campus, in the "rip- rapping" of the sides of the channel which carries the river across the meadows and through Holbert's Pond to the Ox Bow, in- stead of under South Street and along the railroad to the Connecti- cut. This work was financed by the United States Government, with the cooperation of the City Board of Public Works, under the supervision of Army Engineers.
Then there was the new Calvin Coolidge Memorial Bridge, built so high that the Connecticut River, no matter how swollen by floods, could never reach it. On October 12, 1939, 10,000 per- sons jammed this bridge and the approaches to it in celebration of its official transfer to Hampshire County by the State Commis- sioner of Public Works. Governor Leverett Saltonstall of Massa- chusetts reviewed a procession of floats, bands, and organizations from all over the county and speeches were made by U.S. Senator David I. Walsh and Congressmen Clason and Treadway as well as by the Governor himself.
With the outbreak of World War II there was established by city ordinance, January 5, 1942, at the suggestion of Mayor O'Donnell, a Committee on Public Safety. It was "to have charge of civilian defense of lives and property" by the "conduct of blackouts, air-raid warnings, and other defense activities, and the appointment, training, and equipping of volunteer, unpaid, pro- tection units."
Through the welter of shortages and rationing, the salvaging of fats, metals, and waste paper, standing in queues, walking instead of driving to work, watching for enemy planes, blacking out of street lights and house lights, and in general submitting to regi- mentation from the President down to the warden in one's block,
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all almost unheard of in carefree America, there stand out a few notable features of war days in Northampton.
There was, for instance, the Victory Book Campaign, carried on from January to November, 1942. At the Forbes Library, dis- tributing center for this area, 11,061 books were received, as part of the national drive to furnish reading matter to every branch of the fighting services.
Teachers conducted registration and issuance of war ration books here, as in other communities; boys were permitted to be absent from school to work on farms in this county; Smith Col- lege girls became "farmerettes" in vacation; a drive engaged in by school children in 1942 produced 100 tons of scrap metal.
Then there were the WAVES. Those blue-and-white columns of briskly marching young women were seen here from late in the summer of 1942 until January 1945, for Smith College had been chosen by the United States Navy as the place for the train- ing of commissioned officers from all over the country, in the first of the women's services to be made a part of the national armed forces in this war. Three Smith College dormitories and one hall, part of the Alumnae Gymnasium and a wing of the Alumnae House were turned over to the school. All the midshipmen were fed at the Hotel Northampton and a large majority lived there. Mrs. Calvin Coolidge graciously turned her house over to Captain Herbert W. Underwood and Mrs. Underwood while he was in command. Nine thousand WAVE officers were sent out from here to tours of duty in this country and in Hawaii. Over the Bedford Terrace entrance to the Alumnae House still remains the inscrip- tion:
Headquarters, Naval Reserve Midshipmen's School (W.R.) August, 1942-January, 1945
The death of President Roosevelt, April 12, 1945, the signing of the charter of the United Nations in June, and still more, the exploding of the atom bomb at Hiroshima in July, brought home to Northampton as to communities elsewhere that a dramatic new era in its own history had begun. "V-E Day," May 8, when Ger- many surrendered, was, by word from the White House, not to be an occasion for unrestrained celebration. The war was still on. A service of thanksgiving, open to the public, was held in John M. Greene Hall at Smith College that evening, followed the next Sunday by the observance in all churches of a day of prayer.
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"V-J Day," the announcement of the surrender of Japan on August 14, was different. Even the armistice of November, 1918, did not bring out such spontaneous demonstrations as the im- promptu parade, the shouts, horns, whistles, and shreds of paper that made Main Street a "wild and woolly" scene that evening. Nevertheless, next day preceding the parade of 15,000 people, mainly in veterans' and religious groups, and the serious program at the Fair Grounds, services were held in nearly all churches in recognition of the solemnity of this ending of the greatest of all wars.
To the war Northampton had sent about 4000 men and wom- en. At that time the entire population of Northampton was only 25,000. A remarkable record of the participation of Hampshire County in the war is at the Forbes Library, filed in a special cabi- net which was given by the Fat Salvage Committee of the Ameri- can Home Department of the Northampton Woman's Club. The very day that war was declared, the library had begun to collect material covering the part played by city and county in the war. On some 31,000 indexed cards can be found all the data regarding 10,000 service men and women that could be gathered from many sources and verified through questionnaires. There are also 23 scrap-books of clippings devoted to the same subject.
The importance of normal community life in the midst of world tension was recognized on May 18, 1944, by the establish- ment by city ordinance of the Recreation Commission, succeed- ing the former Recreation Committee. At the end of less than 10 years it now finds itself operating 8 playgrounds, 4 indoor recrea- tion rooms, a ski run on Hospital Hill, and skating rinks. A great variety of sports, entertainments, and other activities for young and old is carried on in these facilities and also in Look Park. The Young Men's Christian Association kept up its important work for boys and girls and the People's Institute did the same for vari- ous ages.
After the war, of course, cultural events were resumed on a larger scale. For example, in 1953 talented amateurs inaugurated the Hampshire Choral Society and the Circle Players.
An act of private generosity was the purchase in 1943 of Ar- cadia Bird Sanctuary by Professor Zachariah Chafee, Jr. of Har- vard Law School, as a memorial to his son, Robert Searle Chafee. Later it was transferred to the Massachusetts Audubon Society.
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Another such permanent addition to the resources of the com- munity for rest and recreation was Childs Park. Mrs. Annie H. Childs, who died in February, 1950, appointed Trustees to carry on its operation in perpetuity, its quiet and beauty to be at the disposal of the general public.
The post-war period has been marked also by other advances in industry, housing, and health. The Kollmorgen Company, manufacturers of many types of optical lenses, moved here in August, 1951. They had been attracted by the raising of $100,000 through the efforts of members of the Chamber of Commerce and others. The company now employs from 300 to 350 persons.
Not so welcome was the strike, called August 21, 1951, by the drivers for the Northampton Street Railway. Hundreds de- pended upon these bus lines for transportation within Northamp- ton and to surrounding towns. Until January 21, 1952, a period of five months, taxis, private cars, and "shank's mare" had to substi- tute for the buses.
The Chamber of Commerce announced an increase of mem- bership from 145 in 195 1 to over 300 in 1952. The first radio tele- phone came into use here in 1952.
In accordance with a state law that went into effect in Oc- tober, 1951, women began serving on juries and, through 1953, 60 have done so, in this county on the Grand Jury as well as the Traverse Jury.
In 1947 the number of births in Northampton families reached 561, the highest in the period from 1937 to 1953. This had a defi- nite bearing on the provision not only for adequate schools, but for increase in housing. Two Veterans' Temporary Housing Projects of 24 units each, one on Damon Road and one on Kear- ney Field, constructed under the Federal Housing Administra- tion, were completed in 1947. In accordance with the provision that they should eventually be pulled down, demolition has now begun. Meanwhile a state-aided Veterans' Housing Project of 80 units, Hampshire Heights, was completely occupied by July, 1950, and 41 units of the 50-unit garden-type Florence Heights Project were taken over by the end of 1952.
In 1949 the new wing of the Cooley Dickinson Hospital, which had been standing unfinished for several years, was finally com- pleted. This meant more efficient functioning of several depart- ments. In 195 1 the Red Cross opened a blood center on the prop-
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erty of the Hospital. This center has been supplying 26 hospitals all the way from Worcester through Franklin County.
Beginning in 195 1 a minute quantity of fluoride was introduced into the city water supply. The purpose was to prevent decay of children's teeth. At the election of 1953 it was voted by refer- endum to discontinue this process; but controversy regarding fluoridation has not yet ceased.
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