USA > Massachusetts > Suffolk County > Boston > The Pilgrims of Boston and their descendants: with an introduction by Hon. Edward Everett, LL. D.; also, inscriptions from the monuments in the Granary burial ground, Tremont street > Part 3
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* The Right Honorable Henry Fynes, Knight, Lord Clinton and Say, Earl of Lin- coln, died in September, 1615. His son, Thomas, was his successor, dying January, 1618, whose son and successor was Theophilus, the fourth Earl of Lincoln, who was descended by his great-grandmother, the Countess of Lincoln, from Edmund Dudley, the great lawyer and statesman of Henry VIII.'s time.
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THE GRANARY BURIAL GROUND.
desired." He was one of the five undertakers of Massachusetts, as they are called, who came over with the Charter in 1630. On board the Arbella, before the sailing of the fleet * from the harbor of Cowes, at the Isle of Wight, Mr. Dudley was chosen Deputy-Governor. In 1632 some misunderstanding arose between him and Governor Winthrop, which led him, in April, to resign his offices of Deputy-Governor and Assistant of the Colony. But the Court of Assistants refused to accept his resignation, and the ministers and magistrates succeeded in bringing about a reconciliation.
In May, 1634, Mr. Dudley was chosen Governor. "This," says Moore, in his lives of the Governors, "was the beginning of a new era in the history of the colony. It was the first Legislature in which the representative principle was recognized." The General Court, at this session, also established a military commission to dispose of all military affairs. Governor Dudley was placed at the head of this commission, having Winthrop, Humphrey, Haynes, Endicott, Coddington, Pynchon, Nowell, Bellingham, and Bradstreet for his associates. In 1640, Mr. Dudley was again chosen Governor. In 1644, it was ordered that there should be a general officer in time of peace, with the title of Sergeant Major-General. Dudley was elected to this office, though sixty-eight years of age. He was chosen Governor in 1645 and 1650. Having always held the office of Governor, Deputy Governor, or Assistant from the time of his arrival in America, he was esteemed one of the principal pillars of the new Commonwealth,
" Who spent his state, his strength, and years with care,
That aftercomers in them might have share."
He died at his house in Roxbury, the 31st of July, 1653, in the seventy-seventh year of his age. Governor Dudley was a wise, energetic, and public-spirited man, of the most inflexible integrity, and democratic in his political principles and practice. None ever blamed him for aught but for his zeal. Even that can be excused, when we consider the spirit of that age, which always esteemed religion as a political concern. He
* The fleet consisted of four vessels, viz : the Arbella, Jewell, Ambrose, and Talbot.
1
27.
GOVERNOR DUDLEY.
was well skilled in the law, and an excellent writer of both prose and verse-having an extensive acquaintance with the world and with books.
The Rev. Ezekiel Rogers composed a Latin epitaph on Gov. Dudley, containing the following sentiments :
"In books, a prodigal they say;
A living Cyclopedia; . A table-talker, rich in sense, And witty without wit's pretence ; An able champion in debate, Whose words lacked numbers, but not weight, Both Catholic and Christian too, A soldier, trusty, tried, and true ; Condemned to share the common doom, Reposes here in Dudley's tomb."
NOTE .- For an account of Governor Dudley's descendants, see "The Dudley Genealogies," and the New England Historical and Gen. Register, vols. viii. and ix.
In the foregoing sketch, free use has been made of an ancient manuscript life of Governor D., written by an unknown hand, in the time of his son, Governor Joseph Dudley, of whom the author says : "His eldest son by the second marriage is yet sur- viving, and may be likely to inherit the father's honor and dignity, as well as his name, place, and virtues."
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THE GRANARY BURIAL GROUND.
[Hard sandstone slab, with lozenge of slate, bearing ARMS, and beneath (on sand- stone), as follows :]
LYES INTERRED YE BODY OF
MARY TUTHILL,
YE RELICT OF JOHN TUTHILL, AGED * * YEARS,
WHO DEPARTED THIS LIFE SEPTEMBER YE 19TH, 170 *.
HERE LYES INTERRD YE BODY OF
DEA. THOMAS HUBBART,
WHO * *
DEPARTED THIS LIFE YE 7TH DAY OF
NOVEMBER, IN YE YEAR
OF HIS AGE, 1717.
HERE LYES INTERRED YE BODY OF
MRS. MARY HUBBART,
* OF DEACON THOMAS HUBBART,
DEPARTED THIS LIFE,
AUGUST YE
,
* * DOMINI, 1720,'
IN
YEAR * OF HER
HERE LYES INTERRED YE * * * * OF
ZECHARIAH TUTHILL.
[At the bottom of the tablet,]
HIS
*
HERE
HERE LYES BURIED
THE BODY OF
MRS. MARY BRAZER,
YE WIFE OF MR. EDWARD BRAZER, AGED 38 YEARS AND 11 MO. DIED APRIL YE 7TH, 1750.
29
INSCRIPTIONS.
[The half of a gravestone, split longitudinally, thrown from the mouth of tomb No. 107 (1809), where it had been used for filling up, 12th July, 1850.]
LYES INTERRED YE
OF
r
MRS. ANNA,
DAUGHTER OF YE JOSEPH AND BETH GREEN,
A VILLAGE * * *
WHO ** THIS LIFE YE 8TH *** ST ANNO DOMINI ** *
AGED 25 * 8 MONTHS.
IN MEMORY OF MARY GYLES,
GRANDDAUGH'R OF THE LATE WILLIAM WARLAND, DEC'D,
WHO DIED JUNE 27TH, 1791, AGED 20 YEARS.
THE SWEET REMEMBRANCE OF THE JUST, SHALL FLOURISH WHEN THEY SLEEP IN DUST.
-
SACRED TO THE MEMORY OF ISAAC STEVENS, ESQ.,
WHO DIED JULY 22, 1839, ÆT 62 YEARS.
A MERCHANT OF PROBITY AND ASSIDUITY ; -
A KIND HUSBAND, GENEROUS FATHER,
AND WARM FRIEND.
[White marble slab on granite foundation, one side giving way.]
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THE GRANARY BURIAL GROUND.
[This is a broken foot stone, bearing CAPT. THOMAS SMITH,-leaning against preceding.]
[Hard sandstone slab on brick foundation.]
ENOCH PATTERSON
AND
ISAAC ADAMS' TOMB, 1808.
[Here is a hard sandstone slab on brick foundation, lozenge slate, on which nothing is to be seen. Large square cavity below.]
JOHN YE SON OF JOHN AND MARY COLESWORTHY, AGED 2 MO. AND 1 DAY, DIED NOVE'M YE 19, 1696.
HERE LYES YE BODY OF JOHN COLESWORTHY, SENOR, AGED 39 YEARS, . -
DIED FEBRUARY YE 7TH, 1705-6.
HERE LYETH BURIED YE BODY OF RICHARD HUNT, WHO SOMETIME LIVED IN PORCHMUTH, IN OLD ENGLAND. AGED ABOUT 48 YEARS, DEC'D YE 26 OF SEPTEMBER, 1682.
HERE LIES THE BODY OF MR. DAVID GARDINER, WHO DIED OCTR. YE 28TH, 1760, AGED 37 YEARS.
31
INSCRIPTIONS.
[A very thin double stone.]
WILLIAM
WILLIAM
ELLIS
ELLIS
WILLIAM
WILLIAM
ELLIS
ELLIS.
[No other inscription apparent.]
1
HERE LYETH YE BODY OF
EDWARD ELLIS,
AGED 74 YEARS, DEC'D APRIL YE 23, 1695.
[By the side of the preceding.]
[Hard sandstone slab on brick foundation. Lozenge of slate bearing ARMS, and beneath, on hard stone :]
REV. JOSEPH ECKLEY. -
[Here is a hard slate-stone slab on stone foundation-slab broken in two-with a slight, lozenge-shaped depression above end, but neither inscription nor ARMS.]
HERE LIES YE BODY OF MRS. MARY NAZRO, THE WIDOW OF DOCTOR MATHEW NAZRO, WHO DIED SEPT'R 12TH, 1759, IN YE 88TH YEAR OF HER AGE.
32
THE GRANARY BURIAL GROUND.
HERE LYES BURIED THE BODY OF MRS. MIRIAM BELL,
THE WIFE OF MR. DANIEL BELL, JUNR., WHO DIED JULY THE 1ST, 1750, AGED 37 YEARS.
[Hard stone (red) slab, with lozenge of white marble, bearing] THE TOMB OF
WILLIAM DOWNES CHEEVER'S FAMILY.
REPAIRED BY
JOHN DERBY, IN 1803.
[Foundation of brick, with a small oblong slate tablet in the end, bearing]
JOHN DERBY.
[Heavy red stone slab, (on foundation of cobbled slate), a square stone let in at the end, bearing a finely chiselled coat of arms, and beneath, in small caps,]
THE ARMES OF JOHN AND ELIZABETH FREKE.
ANNA, YE DAUGHTER OF EDWARD AND SARAH ELLIS, AGED ABOUT 20 YEARS.
DYED YE 4TH OF DECEMBER, 1678.
THOMAS WALLEY
WALLEY.
THOMAS WALLEY was born in England, A. D. 1616, and was settled in London as rector of St. Mary's, White Chapel; he was ejected as a non-conformist under Charles II. and came to America, arriving here 24th of 3d month, 1662, in ship " Society," Captain John Pierce.
He was admitted a townsman in Barnstable in 1662, and ordained pastor of the church in 1663, " where the Lord was pleased to make him a blessed peace-maker, and improve him in the work of his house there till March 24th, 1678, being on Lord's day morning, about forenoon 3
34
THE GRANARY BURIAL GROUND.
meeting time, and then he called him out of this earthly tabernacle, into a house not made with hands; he having preached his last sermon March 3d, from Ephesians, 5th chapter, 1st and 4th verses." His widow, Mrs. Hannah Walley, married Rev. George Shove, of Taunton, and died in 1685.
It appears, by the records of St. Mary's Church, Whitechapel, London, that John Walley, probably grandfather of Thomas, was buried 2d April, 1602,* and that two daughters of Thomas and Margery, his wife, were born in London, named Mary and Lydia, while Thomas was rector of that church. Lydia was baptized April 11, 1650.
Rev. Thomas Walley preached the annual sermon before the old colony Government, 1669. This sermon is still in print.
Some printed verses, published at the time of his decease, are in possession of S. H. Walley. He was twice married, but his descendants are by his first wife, Margery, to whom he was married in London, and who came with him to this country. Two children were born to them after they came to Barnstable, viz : Thomas and John.
His sons, THOMAS and JOHN, were both married and had children. Thomas had a son of the same name, who died without issue. John, called Major John Walley, was first elected an Assistant in the Govern- ment of Plymouth Colony in 1684. He commanded the land forces in the disastrous expedition under Sir William Phipps, in Canada, in 1690. He was one of the four purchasers of Mount Hope lands. He lived awhile at Plymouth and Boston, and removed from Boston in 1680, and laid out the town of Bristol on the Mount Hope lands.
HANNAH married Mr. Samuel Allyn, of Barnstable, May 10, 1664. She died December 23, 1700.
JOHN was captain of the Ancient and Honorable Artillery company, 1679; member of the old South Church, 1679; of the Council, 1687 and 1692; Commander in Canada expedition, 1690; Judge of Massa-
* Timberly's Encyclopedia of Literature, &c., Anecdote, pp. 386-7, states that John Walley died January, 1586 . He was a printer in London ; he left a son, Robert, of the Court of Assistants. His will has been examined in London. He left an only son. Thomas, who may have been the Barnstable minister. This is dated A. D. 1651.
35
THOMAS WALLEY.
chusetts Supreme Court, June 7, 1700; resigned, 1711; died at Boston, January 11, 1712, aged sixty-nine. His wife was Sarah.
Their children were Sarah, John, Hannah, Mary, Elizabeth, Lydia, and John. His will is long and full; gives £100 to Harvard College, for pious students. His property was much injured by speculation in lands in the county of Bristol.
His second son, JOHN, was a merchant of Boston, born in Bristol, September 11, 1691, and died in Boston, March 6, 1745. He had two sons and five daughters. The name of his wife was Bethia Eyre .* Their son John was minister at Ipswich, and died at Roxbury without children. Their other son, named Thomas, was twice married. His first wife was Mary Kneeland, by whom he had one daughter, who survived him, and was married and left children and grandchildren. "Her name after marriage was Langdon. His second wife was Sarah Hurd, by whom he had four children, viz. : Thomas, Sally, Charles and Samuel Hall; all of whom married and survived their parents. Thomas had six sons and six daughters. Sally married John Phillips, President of the Senate of Massachusetts, Mayor of Boston, etc. She had six sons and three daughters. Charles had one daughter. Samuel Hall married Miriam Phillips, and had three sons and three daughters; two sons died in in- fancy. Samuel Hurd was born August 31, 1805, and married Mehetabel Sumner Bates, daughter of Hon. I. C. Bates, of Northampton. They had ten children, five sons and five daughters ; of these four sons and three daughters survived their mother. She died December 2, A. D. 1853. He married January 1, 1855, Annie Gray, daughter of Prince Hawes, Esq., of Boston. He was member of Congress in 1854 and '55, and was one of that noble band of patriots who voted to the last against the repeal of the Missouri Compromise, and was candidate for Governor in 1855.
It is a remarkable fact, that there have been no surviving collate- rals in the male line, but that the descent has been direct from the first Thomas Walley to the children of Samuel Hurd Walley, in the male line, viz :
* All the children (seven) of John and Bethia Walley, were born in Boston; all the daughters died unmarried.
-
36
THE GRANARY BURIAL GROUND.
THOMAS, minister of Barnstable, born 1616, died 1677-8.
JOHN, Judge of Supreme Court and Major-General, born 1643, died 1711.
JOHN, merchant, lived in Boston, born 1691, died 1745.
THOMAS, merchant, born and died in Boston; born 1725, died 1806.
SAMUEL HALL, merchant, born and lived in Boston; born 1778, died 1850.
SAMUEL HURD, lawyer, born in Boston 1805.
THIS TOMB OF THE WALLEY FAMILY
WAS REPAIRED BY
THOMAS WALLEY, NOV. 1786.
[Hard sandstone slab, on brick foundation. ]
37
INSCRIPTIONS.
[Rough marble slab, at one end (chiselled) an altar, bearing on its face I H S, and surmounted by a cross. At the right of the altar, a monumental stone, bearing the initials, M. M., and at the left of the altar, a similar representation, with initials, E. M. Beneath these ornaments is as follows :]
ELIZABETH MAGNER,
DIED OCT'R 3D, 1798, AGED 21 YEARS.
MARY MAGNER,
DIED OCT'R 26TH, 1803, AGED 27 YEARS.
MARGARET MAGNER,
DIED NOV'R 2D, 1806, AGED 36 YEARS.
CATHERINE MAGNER,
DIED APRIL 2D, 1812, AGED 38 YEARS.
MARY MAGNER,
WIFE OF JOHN MAGNER, AND MOTHER TO THE AFORESAID, DIED DECEMBER 15TH, 1813, AGED 66 YEARS.
BLESS'D ARE THE DEAD, WHEN IN THE LORD THEY DIE; THEY FROM THEIR LABORS REST, THEIR WORKS ASCEND ON HIGH; LIKE THOSE WHO HAVE NO HOPE, THEN DO NOT WEEP, FOR THOSE YOU LOVE WHO IN THE LORD DO SLEEP.
[These few lines of poetry are one size smaller than the preceding portion of the inscription, in italics ; the lines begin even and end uneven.]
38
THE GRANARY BURIAL GROUND.
JOHN MAGNER,
DIED JAN. 14, 1816, AGED 81 YEARS.
[Foundation of hammered granite; in the west side thereof a tablet of polished white marble, bearing as follows :]
EXPECTANTES BEATAM SPEM ET MAGNI DEI, HIC JACENT
GULIELMUS JOHNSON MACDONELL,
OBIIT DIE III JAN. A. D. MDCCCXLVIII. ÆT. LXXIII. ET EJUS UXOR,
LUCIA WATERS MACDONELL,
OBIIT DIE XV DEC. A. D. MDCCCXLV. ÆT. LXVII. QUORUM ANIMABUS PROPITIETUR DEUS. AMEN.
[Granite slab on foundation of same.]
JOHN BROOKS AND JAMES HOOPER, 1812.
[Leaning against back of preceding.]
HERE LYES YE BODY OF
JOHN CUNNINGHAM,
DIED JAN'RY YE 31, 1718, IN YE 34TH YEAR OF HIS AGE.
HERE LYES YE BODY OF CAPT. JOHN ENGLISH, OF LONDON, AGED 33 YEARS, DIED MAY YE 10TH, 1721.
39
INSCRIPTIONS.
HERE LYES BURIED YE BODY OF MRS. JOAN BOWRMAN, AGED 75 YEARS, WHO DEC'D NOV'R YE 11TH, 1729.
HERE LYETH BURIED YE BODY OF MR. WILLIAM HARRIS, AGED ABOUT 40 YEARS, DEPARTED THIS LIFE YE 17 OF MAY, 1684.
IN MEMORY OF MR. PETER ROBERTS, WHO DEPARTED THIS LIFE NOV'R 12TH, 1775, ÆT. 67.
HERE LIES BURIED THE BODY OF MRS. HANNAH ROBERTS,
WIFE OF MR. PETER ROBERTS, AGED 37 YEARS, DIED MARCH.
[One of two stones sunk in the ground, against the back of Peter Roberts.]
WILLIAM WRIGHT, SON TO MR. SAM'L AND MRS. MARY WRIGHT, AGED 17 YEARS, DIED OCT'R YE 31ST, 1747. [Leaning against the back of this stone is the footstone of Mr. ANDREW CUN- NINGHAM.]
40
THE GRANARY BURIAL GROUND.
HERE LYES BURIED THE BODY OF MRS. SARAH PIMM, AGED ABOUT 68 YEARS, DEC'D MAY YE 5, 1732.
HERE LIES YE BODY OF MRS. HANNAH PAINE, WIFE TO MR. WILL'M PAINE, DEC'D OCT'R YE 17TH, 1735. AGED 55 YEARS.
HERE LYETH BURIED YE BODY OF JOHN DOWNING,
AGED ABOUT 53 YEARS, DEC'D APRIL YE 29TH, 1694. [Space, then in small characters,]
I BARGAIN WITH CHRIST FOR ROOM BELOW,
HE GRANTS A MANSION IN HIS UPPER STORIE;
THUS GOD GIVES MORE THAN WE DO ASK OR KNOW, INSTEAD OF GRACE UNINTERRUPTED GLORIE.
[Two footstones against the back of preceding, one bears,
MR. CHARLES MORRIS.
·
41
INSCRIPTIONS.
HERE LIES BURIED
YE BODY OF
CAPT. DANIEL PECKER,
WHO DEPARTED THIS LIFE
OCT. YE 2D, 1750, AGED 60 YEARS.
HERE LIES BURIED YE BODY OF
MRS. ELIZABETH PECKER,
YE WIFE OF
MR. DANIEL PECKER, DIED APRIL YE 26TH, 1752, IN YE 28TH YEAR OF HER AGE.
HERE LYES YE BODY OF
MARY MORRIS,
DAU'R TO MR. CHARLES MORRIS, AGED ABOUT 24 YEARS,
DEC'D MAY YE 24 TH, 1730.
HERE LYES BURIED
THE BODY OF
MR. CHARLES MORRIS, DEC'D NOV'R YE 8, 1730,
IN THE 54 YEAR OF HIS AGE.
HERE LIES BURIED THE BODY OF
MRS. ESTHER MORRIS,
WIFE OF MR. CHARLES MORRIS, DEC'D SEPT. 12TH, 1755, AGED 79 YEARS. [By the side of preceding, all even caps, and the lines wide apart.]
HERE LYES YE BODY OF
MARY POLLARD,
LATE WIFE TO SAMUEL POLLARD, AGED 56 YEARS AND 6 MO. DIED SEP'R YE 30, 1706.
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THE GRANARY BURIAL GROUND.
LEVERET AND PHILLIP'S TOMB.
MR. NICHOLAS BUTOLPH'S TOMB.
-
HERE LYES YE BODY OF MR. NICHOLAS BUTOLPH, AGED 68 YEARS, DEC'D JAN'RY YE 29, 1736-7
MR. KNIGHT LEVERETT,
DIED JULY 11TH, 1753, AGED 50 YEARS.
HERE LYETH ****** YE BODY OF
M **. MARY,
WIFE TO MR. NICHOLAS BUTOLPH,
AGED 51 YEARS, DEC'D AUGUST YE 1ST, 1728.
MARY,
DAUT. TO
JOHN AND MARY PHILLIPS,
AGED 9 MO.
DEC'D JUNE YE 19, 1726.
MARY PHILLIPS,
AGED 4 YEARS AND 8 MO.
DEC'D
MARCH YE 20TH, 1735-6.
JOSEPH PHILLIPS,
AGED 5 WEEKS, DYED MARCH 4TH, 1744-5.
ABIGAIL PHILLIPS,
AGED 7 MONTHS,
DEC'D APRIL 15TH, 1733.
MARY PHILLIPS,
AGED 25 DAYS,
DIED SEPT. 27TH, 1738.
GOVERNOR JOHN LEVERETT.
" His words were laws, his laws were put in force,
" His force was justice, & ye noble source
" Of all his actions was his noble soul,
" In wh all vertues Liv'd without Controul."
JOHN LEVERETT, of whom the poet sings so bravely, was a man of no small renown, and figured largely in the early history of the colony of Massachusetts. He was the only son of Elder Leverett, and was born in England, in the year 1616. At the age of eighteen, he came with his father to Boston. In 1639, he was married to Miss Hannah Hudson, who died some time in 1643. In 1645, he was again married, his bride being Miss Sarah Sedgwick, daughter of Major General Robert Sedg- wick, by whom he had twelve children. This " daughter of Asher," as Cotton Mather styles her, in his sermon preached on the occasion of her interment, outlived her husband many years, and died at the great age of seventy-four.
Mr. Leverett was admitted to the freedom of the Massachusetts colony in 1640, from which time to his decease he took an active part in its politics and military proceedings, and passed through every grade and rank on the list of each. His early life was passed in mercantile pur- suits; but this did not hinder his entering into the military profession, and as early as 1639, " he became a member of the Ancient and Honor- able Artillery Company," having previously been a member of the " Boston Train Band." His rise was rapid, passing through every grade from sergeant to captain. For ten years previous to 1673, when he was
44
THE GRANARY BURIAL GROUND.
elected governor, he served in the important rank of major-general of the Massachusetts militia.
As a military commander he was brave and grand, and disported himself at the head of his troops, in their bloodless forays, " with great becomingness, and with the air of one bent on conquest ; " and had there been occasion for the display of valor on the battle field, he would, doubtless, have been the bravest among the brave.
But his gift at cut and thrust and other military accomplishments, seems not to have been his only forte. His pen earned him many lau- rels, and his voice was powerful in the councils of the colony, as well as at the head of an army. In 1651 he was chosen selectman for the town of Boston. For six years, from 1660 to 1665, he served as delegate to the General Court, two of which years he acted as speaker of the House of Delegates. In 1665, he was called from that body to serve as an assistant, and on the 31st of May, 1671, he was elected deputy-governor. This office he held but two years, and on the demise of Governor Bel- lingham, he was called by the unanimous voice of the freemen of the colony to occupy the gubernatorial chair-a seat which he filled until his death, in 1678.
The robes of office were worn by Governor Leverett with great dig- nity, and without ostentation, while he discharged the duties which devolved upon him with such a combination of firmness and prudence, as to justify the eulogy contained in the quaint verse at the head of this article. He was a man of great modesty, and ever lived, as he died, one of the straitest of the puritanic church, of which he was for nearly a half century a consistent member.
He died on the 16th of March, 1678-9, in the midst of his laborious and honorable usefulness, and in the full strength of his ripening man- hood, and was interred in a state of pomp and ceremony, which, while its description is amusing to us, was, doubtless, "imposing and solemn " to the mourners on that sad occasion. Over the grave of this modest man was placed the following inflated and high-sounding epitaph, which, could the good governor himself have read, would doubtless have brought the crimson into his face.
TO YE SACRED MEMORY OF N. E.'s HEROE, MARS HIS GENERALL, VERTUE'S STANDARD-BEARER, & LEARNING'S GLORY, YT FAITHFULLY PIOUS, & PIOUSLY FAITHFULL SUBJECT TO YE GREAT MAJESTY OF HEAVEN & EARTH,
YT EXPERIENCED SOULDIER IN YE CHURCH MILITANT, LATELY LISTED IN YE INVINCIBLE TRIUMPHANT ARMY OF YE LORD OF HOSTS, YK DESERVEDLY WORSHIPFULL
JNº LEVERETT, EsQR,
YE JUST, PRUDENT & IMPARTIALL GOVERNOR OF YE MATTACHUSETTS COLONY IN N-E,
WHO SURRENDRED TO YE ALL CONQURERING COMMAND OF DEATH,
MARCH. 16. ANNO DOM: 1673
ET ÆETATIS SUÆE 63.
1
URIAH COTTING.
URIAH COTTING was the only son of Uriah Cotting, an innholder of Waltham, Mass., and was born at that place Sept. 29, 1766. His pa- rents died when he was young, and he was left to the care of his uncle, Dr. Amos Cotting, of Marlborough, with whom his early life was spent. With no extraordinary advantages of wealth or education, he possessed buoyant spirits, invincible good-humor, genius of the highest order, and mental endowments, rarely found united.
Removing to the metropolis, he formed a co-partnership with Mr. John Amory, and was for some years in business at the southerly part of the city.
But he could not long remain contented with so limited a sphere of activity and usefulness.
It has been well said of him, that he was " an industrious and prac- tical philosopher," and his tastes led him to devote his life to projects for the improvement of Boston.
These were so vast and novel, as at first to excite doubts and preju- dice, but his minute and thorough knowledge of all details connected with their successful execution, his indomitable energy in overcoming, and his exhaustless ingenuity in avoiding obstacles, never failed at last to awaken confidence and inspire enthusiasm. Of the strictest integrity and the most liberal disposition, his sagacity, enterprise, and public spirit were unrivalled.
The resources of the community were at his command, and they were used for the noblest ends. Had he lived, he would himself, doubtless,
47
URIAH COTTING.
have become one of our wealthiest citizens. But excessive labors under- mined a constitution naturally delicate, and exhausted a frame which was always slender, and in the midst of many unfinished plans, admira- ble as those he had lived to execute, he fell a victim to consumption, at the age of 53 years (May 9th, 1819); and such was the extreme depres- sion of property at the time of his decease, that his estate proved insol- vent, though a few years before, and also a few years afterwards, a very large surplus could have been realized from it after payment of all his debts. Thus unfortunate, for himself and his family, was the final result of all his far-reaching thought and his life of unwearied activity.
But rich, indeed, is the harvest which the community has derived from his labors. Our city has been beautified, its commercial facilities extended, and its area and its taxable property increased through his in- strumentality. Faneuil Hall will bear down to the latest times the name of a private citizen, in acknowledgment of a single munificent act. QUINCY Market will ever be a memorial of our most efficient public offi- cer. THIS STONE is the only monument of URIAH COTTING. But as long as traffic shall find a home on the extensive wharves which he built, with their ranges of warehouses,1 and in the spacious streets which he laid out and constructed,2 or which, after his death, others completed in almost · exact accordance with his designs made a quarter of a century before,3 and, above all, as long as the Western Avenue shall stand, redeeming from old ocean a vast tract of land for the habitations of our citizens, and itself the most beautiful approach to our city, so long shall URIAH COTTING be gratefully remembered as the Chief Benefactor of Boston.
1 Central Wharf, with its 54 stores, and India Wharf with its 62 stores.
2 Broad street, India street, and Cornhill.
3 Commercial street, from State street to Lewis's Wharf.
48
THE GRANARY BURIAL GROUND.
MRS. LYDIA KNEELAND, 1768.
[Footstone against back of Charles Morris.]
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