USA > Massachusetts > Worcester County > Worcester > The Worcester book : a diary of noteworthy events in Worcester, Massachusetts, from 1657 to 1883 > Part 5
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302
1821. Rev. Arætius B. Hull ordained Pastor of the Old South Church.
Mr. Hull died in Worcester, May 17, 1826.
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303 1852. Hope Cemetery consecrated.
The City Council and a large concourse of citizens were present. Mayor Bacon made a short address, detailing the reasons for the purchase of the ground. Prayer was offered by Rev. E. E. Hale, and Rev. Elam Smalley delivered an address. The exercises closed with prayer by Rev. S. Sweetser, and singing by the choir.
Hope Cemetery originally comprised 50 acres, and was purchased in 1851 for $1,855. Additions have been made to the original tract.
May 23.
304
1776. "The Town voted unanimously that if the Con- tinental Congress should declare the American Colonies in- dependent of Great Britain that they will support the measure with their lives and fortunes."-Worcester Town Records.
May 24.
305
1856. Indignation Meeting in consequence of the assault on Senator Sumner.
At the City Hall. J. S. C. Knowlton presided; and speeches were made by P. Emory Aldrich, Dr. Cutler, Judge Allen, Dexter F. Parker, J. B. D. Cogswell and Rev. Horace James. Resolutions severely con- demning the outrage were adopted.
May 25.
306 1767. Dwelling house of James Barber burned.
307 1861. First New Hampshire Regiment passed through the city, bound for the seat of war.
It was received by local military companies and escorted to Mechanics Hall, where a welcome was extended by Mayor Davis, and a collation served.
May 26.
308
1876. Samuel J. Frost executed.
For the murder of his brother-in-law at Petersham the previous July. When the drop fell, the force of the fall was so great that the rope cut nearly through the neck, almost severing the head from the body.
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NOTEWORTHY EVENTS.
May 27.
309
1845. Laying of the corner stone of St. John's Church, Temple street.
310 1854. Indignation Meeting in consequence of the seizure in Boston of Anthony Burns, an escaped slave.
At the City Hall. Speeches were made by W. W. Rice, Dr. O. Martin, Thomas Drew, T. W. Higginson and S. S. Foster. It was "voted unan- imously to lay aside business Monday, [this meeting was on Saturday evening] and proceed to Boston en masse to meet the friends of liberty ... . to take counsel upon the emergencies of the times." 900 per- sons went to Boston on the 27th; and on Monday the 29th, there was a special train with tickets at half-price, of which a large number availed themselves.
May 28.
3II 1791. "Saturday night last, Stephen Burroughs, Stephen Cook, Stephen Cook, Jun. and Simon Wetherbee, who were confined in the gaol in this town, effected their escape by sawing a passage for themselves through the grates. . .. . One hour in the pillory, thirty stripes, and about seven weeks imprisonment were yet due to Burroughs."-Spy, Thursday, Fune 2, 1791.
Burroughs had, for immoralities committed, as was alleged, in Charlton where he was teaching school, been sentenced to receive one hundred and seventeen stripes on the naked back; to stand two hours in the pillory; to sit one hour on the gallows with a rope around his neck; to remain confined in prison three months; and procure bonds for his good behavior for seven years. His conviction appears to have been un- warranted by the evidence, which was questionable and slender, while the sentence imposed by the judges, whose minds were evidently biased by the former reputation of the prisoner, was unreasonably severe and out of proportion to the offence. There is some evidence to show that the public sympathy in his behalf, openly expressed, was finally mani- fested in a practical manner. In the published memoirs of Burroughs, the statement is made "that many people in the vicinity were of opin- ion that he was too severely punished, among whom were some of the first characters in the county. Burroughs was aware of this, and cher- ished secret hopes of deliverance. One night about 12 o'clock, he says
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his prison door was forced open, and he was requested to depart. He walked out, and passed between two ranks of people to a great dis- tance; the number appearing to him not less than a thousand. All this time there was a profound silence; and he departed, ignorant of the names of his deliverers."
312 1833. Exhibition of the Blind by Dr. S. G. Howe. In the Old South Church. A collection was taken which amounted to $200.
313 1875. Taylor's Building burned.
On Main street, opposite the Common. This building was erected on the site of the Gardner Chandler mansion by R. C. Taylor in 1870, at a cost of $160,000. The fire began at sunset and burned fiercely until midnight, being confined mostly to the upper stories. In the pecuniary loss, this conflagration was exceeded, of those which have occurred in Worcester, only by the Merrifield fire of 1854.
May 29.
314
1868. Ex-Governor Levi Lincoln died, aged 85.
He was born in Worcester, Oct. 25, 1782. Graduated at Harvard Col- lege in 1802, and was admitted to the bar in 1805. State Senator, 1812; Representative, 1816-23; Speaker, 1822; Lieut .- Governor, 1823; Judge of Supreme Court, 1824; Governor, 1825-34; Member of Congress, 1835-41; Collector of Boston, 1841 to Sept. 1843; State Senator, 1844- 45; President of the Senate, 1845; and first Mayor of Worcester, 1848.
May 30.
315 1868. First observance of Memorial or Decoration Day by the Grand Army.
May 31.
316 1812. [Sunday] Ordinance of Baptism by Immersion first administered in Worcester.
317 1813. "In Memory of Dea" John Chamberlain who died May 31, 1813. Æt. 68.
"Dea. John Chamberlain was the eldest son of Dea. Jacob Chamberlain. Was disarmed by the Committee of Correspondence in May, 1775. Se- lectman from 1785 to 1802, three years excepted. Was Deacon of the First Parish twenty-two years from 1791 to 1812. He married Mary,
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NOTEWORTHY EVENTS.
daughter of Capt. John Curtis; and his son, Hon. John Curtis Cham- berlain, was a distinguished lawyer of Charlestown N. H., and a Mem- ber of Congress from that state. Another son, Gen. Thomas Cham- berlain, was Crier of the Courts for seventeen years previous to his death, and was the first President of the Common Council of the city of Worcester. He filled most of the military offices from corporal to brigadier general with the highest honor to himself, and to the satis- faction of his command. Another son, Levi, a lawyer of distinction at Fitzwilliam, N. H., afterwards at Keene, where he died, was a member of the Peace Congress. Another son, Henry, was also a lawyer, who practised law in Maine and Georgia."-Inscriptions from the Old Bur- ial Grounds.
June I.
318 I865. Eulogy on Abraham Lincoln by Alexander H. Bul- lock.
Delivered in Mechanics Hall before the City Government and citizens of Worcester. The Eulogy was printed by order of the City Council.
319 1872. Edward A. Sothern as Lord Dundreary, at the Theatre.
320
1881. Rev. Roland A. Wood installed Pastor of the Church of the Unity.
The sermon was preached by the Rev. Dr. H. W. Bellows of N. Y.
32I 1883. Mrs. Langtry, the Jersey Lily, at the Theatre.
The play was Gilbert's comedy of Pygmalion and Galatea; and the prices of admission were $1,00, $1,50 and $2,00. The audience was not a large one.
June 2.
322 1776. "Here lies Buried the Body of Capt. James Good- win, who departed this life June 2nd 1776, in ye 62ª year of his age.
"Capt. James Goodwin was captain of a company of men under Col. John Chandler, which left Worcester on the alarm for the relief of Fort William Henry in 1757. In 1760 he was captain of a company of militia numbering forty-eight men. Selectman, 1759. A signer of the royalist protest of 1774."-Inscriptions from the Old Burial Grounds.
323 1854. Business suspended in consequence of the rendition of Anthony Burns.
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Stores were closed and draped in mourning; bells were tolled; and flags displayed reversed and at half-mast. A meeting was held on the Common, and adressed by W. W. Rice, Rev. Mr. Adams, Dexter F. Parker and Adin Thayer.
324 1856. Lincoln House opened.
The rear portion of this block was erected by Hon. Levi Lincoln, about 1812, and occupied by him as a residence until 1835, when it became the "Worcester House." In 1843, James H. Wall and Edward H. Hemenway purchased the property, which comprised 33,000 sqr. ft. of land, for $14,000, and erected a one-story building in front, divided into seven stores known as the "tombs." These were removed in 1854 and the present Lincoln House Block erected, to which the old build- ing in the rear was joined. The front portion has not been used as a hotel for nearly twenty years.
325 1874. Worcester Firemen's Relief Association organized.
June 3.
326
1841. Universalist Society formed.
327 1862. Gottschalk, the celebrated pianist, at Washburn Hall.
Louis Moreau Gottschalk was born at New Orleans in 1829, and died at Rio de Janeiro in 1869. He was educated in Paris; and made his first appearance in Europe. He returned to America in 1853, where his performances were attended with great success. "His touch com- bined extreme delicacy with force and dash; and his style of playing had a dreamy and sensuous charm." He composed more than fifty pieces for the piano.
June 4.
328 1834. Worcester Academy or Manual Labor High School dedicated.
329
1854. [Sunday morning] Four Effigies of parties con- cerned in the rendition of Anthony Burns, were discovered hanging on the Common.
They were labeled as follows: I. "Pontius Pilate Loring, the Unjust Judge." 2. "Ben Hallet, the Kidnapper." 3. "Caleb Cushing, the Bloodhound." 4. Franklin Pierce, Satan's Journeyman."
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NOTEWORTHY EVENTS.
June 5.
330 1877. Inspection and acceptance of the new Lynde Brook Dam.
June 6.
33I 1804. First public parade of the Worcester Light Infantry, Capt. Levi Thaxter.
332 1876. Anna E. Dickinson as Anne Boleyn, in her play "A Crown of Thorns," at the Theatre.
June 7.
333 1812.
[Sunday] Rev. Dr. Austin preached two sermons against the Baptists, who were getting a foothold in the town. "In the first of these two sermons the Baptists were called 'a sneaking set who hovered about the suburbs, not daring to come into the center of the town,' in allusion to their meeting in outer district school houses. In the other discourse, (records Dea. Wilson) 'the Rev. Dr. railed against what he was pleased to denominate the audacity of the Baptists in approaching the droppings of his sanctuary,' alluding to their hold- ing a meeting on the Common."-Wall's Reminiscences.
334 1827. Rev. Rodney A. Miller ordained Pastor of the Old South Church.
He was dismissed April 12, 1844. This was Mr. Miller's only pastorate. He died at Troy, N. Y., Sept. 29, 1876, aged 79.
335 1861. Funeral honors to Stephen A. Douglas.
Business was suspended from 10 to II A. M .; bells were tolled, and flags displayed at half-mast.
June 8.
336
1782. Grievances enumerated in instructions to the Rep- resentative to the General Court.
Printed in the Collections of The Worcester Society of Antiquity, Vol. IV., PP. 423-4.
337 1864. Webster Park dedicated.
A pleasure ground opened at New Worcester for the purpose of in- creasing travel over the horse railroad. Tame bears and other animals were among the attractions. The Park was closed after a few years.
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June 9.
338 1862. William G. Brownlow, the noted Tennessee refugee, addressed a meeting in Mechanics Hall.
Parson Brownlow died April 30, 1877, in his 72d year.
June 10.
339 1747. Rev. Thaddeus Maccarty installed Pastor of the Church.
340
1866. Henry T. Weikle shot.
While arresting a drunken man the officers were set upon by a mob which followed them to the City Hall. A thousand or more gathered about the Police Office, throwing stones and indulging in other violent conduct. An officer named Lowell, on being hit by a missile, fired his revolver into the crowd, fatally wounding Weikle, an inoffensive Ger- man, who had been attracted by the disturbance. Lowell was tried, and sentenced to imprisonment for one year. The widow of Weikle was paid $1000 by vote of the City Council.
34I 1879. Tornado on Main street.
Most of the force was manifested near the Central Church. Trees were broken, chimneys blown down, a building demolished, and two or three roofs torn off.
June II.
342 1793. Morning Star Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons consecrated.
By Most Worshipful Grand Master John Cutter and officers of the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts. A procession marched from Masons' Hall to the North Meeting House, where a sermon was preached by the Rev. Aaron Bancroft.
This Lodge was chartered March 11, 1793, and was the first one in Worcester. The charter members were Nathaniel Paine, Nathaniel Chandler, John Stanton, Ephraim Mower, Clark Chandler, Samuel Chandler, Charles Chandler, Benjamin Andrews, Joseph Torrey, John White, Samuel Brazer, John Stowers and Samuel Flagg. Isaiah Thomas was the first master.
Other Lodges have been chartered as follows: Montacute, June 9, 1859; Athelstan, June 13, 1866; Quinsigamond, Sept. 13, 1871.
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343 1871. Death of John S. C. Knowlton.
He was born at Hopkinton, N. H., in December, 1798. A graduate of Dartmouth College. He established the Worcester Palladium in 1834, of which he was editor until his death. State Senator, 1852-3; Mayor of Worcester, 1853-4; and Sheriff of the County, 1857 to 1871.
June 12.
344 1751. "Here lies Buried the Body of Capt. Benjamin Flagg, Esq who died June 12th 1751, in the 61st year of his age.
"Benjamin Flagg was Selectman of the town for many years; Sheriff of the County from 1743 to 1751; also Representative to the General Court. He was a son of Benjamin Flagg who came from Watertown to Worcester."-Inscriptions from the Old Burial Grounds.
345 1845. Ex-President Martin Van Buren, accompanied by one of his sons, arrived in town and remained at the Ameri- can House over night.
He was visited by many citizens. Mr. Van Buren was again in Worces- ter on the 18th of June, 1858.
346 1879. Polly Stearns Tucker died, aged 82.
Familiarly known as "Aunt Polly Tucker." She was eccentric and unsociable; and for the last twenty-five years of her life, lived with no company except her numerous family of cats. Her house stood on a little triangular piece of land at the corner of Belmont and Plantation streets. She was a daughter of Daniel Stearns.
June 13.
347
1800. "On Tuesday the 10th inst. Gen. Alexander Ham- ilton, and his suit arrived at Oxford, to settle the business relative to the discharge of the troops stationed there ; and on Friday last he passed through this town on his way to Boston." -- Spy, Fune 18, 1800.
June 14.
1722. Worcester incorporated a town.
348 349 & 1848. Salem Street Church organized.
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350 1854. Merrifield's Buildings burned.
On Union, Exchange and Cypress streets. A large number of manu- facturing establishments were destroyed, and nearly 1000 men thrown out of employment. The loss was $500,000.
35 I
1864. Young Men's Christian Association formed.
June 15.
352 1825. Second visit of Lafayette.
He arrived at 2 A. M. and departed at 8 A. M., on his way to Boston to take part in the ceremony of laying the corner stone of Bunker Hill Monument. For notice of his first visit to Worcester, see under date September 3.
353
1870. The Cardiff Giant exhibited in Worcester.
This stone humbug was manufactured from a block of Iowa gypsum in a stone-cutter's shop in Chicago, and taken to Cardiff, N. Y. and buried. After a year in was unearthed and placed on exhibition. Eminent scientists and archæologists were deceived, pronouncing it of great an- tiquity, and one of the most important discoveries of the age. Its true character was, however, soon exposed. The originators of this ingen- ious imposition sold a three-fourths interest in the image for $30,000, besides making a large sum by its exhibition.
June 16.
354 1777. "The Selectmen presented a list of the names of persons whom they Esteemed Enemies to this and the other United States of america. . . ... The list of their Names is as follows viz Nahum Willard, David Moore, Samuel Moore, Cornelius Stowell, Jacob Chamberlain, John Curtis, Gardner Chandler, Micah Johnson, Joshua Johnson, William Curtis, Nathan Patch, Joseph Blair, John Barnerd, Palmer Goulding, Jacob Stevens, Joseph Clark & James Hart Jun"."-Worces- ter Town Records.
355 1791. "Sacred to the Memory of Mr. Jonathan Rice, who died June ye 16th 1791 in the 56th year of his age.
Selectman, 1780. A member of the Committee of Correspondence, 1778-9. A member of the American Political Society. Was one of a committee appointed by the court to offer the agreement or covenant
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for the non-consumption of British goods to the people for signature. He was voted by the town £2, 12s., Iod. for his trouble and expense in secretly conveying, with the assistance of others, four cannon pur- chased by the town, out of Boston in 1772. He was a deputy sheriff, and went on the night of the second of February, 1787, with 20 horse- men and 150 infantry, to capture or disperse a body of Shays's insur- gents who had assembled at New Braintree. The rebels were found posted behind a stone wall, and in the charge upon them, Sheriff Rice was shot through the arm and hand."
356 1858. Reception of the Boston Light Infantry.
By the Worcester City Guards. They were reviewed by Mayor Davis at the City Hall. A street parade followed.
June 17.
357 1840. Great Harrison Celebration.
A salute was fired in the morning. A log cabin 100 by 50 feet had been erected on Salisbury street in which the Whig state convention was held during the forenoon, and John Davis and George Hull were nominated for governor and lieutenant governor. A procession num- bering 10,000, comprising delegations from all parts of the state, formed on the Common and marched to the cabin, where speeches were made by distinguished characters. See the Spy of June 24th.
358 1863. State Guards formed.
Ivers Phillips was captain; Dana H. Fitch, first lieutenant; and John R. Green, second lieutenant. This company succeeded the Home Guards. For a history of its organization and services, and the names of those enrolled, see Rev. A. P. Marvin's History of Worcester in the War of the Rebellion, pp. 430-449. The last public appearance of the State Guards was at the dedication of the Soldiers' Monument, July 15, 1874.
359 1863. Gen. John C. Frémont in Worcester.
360 1869. Visit of President Grant.
The President arrived at the Lincoln square station from Groton, where he had been the guest of Secretary of the Treasury, George S. Bout- well. A military and civic procession escorted him through the prin- cipal streets to the Bay State House, where dinner was served. Gen. Grant left for New York late in the afternoon.
1871. Fire Alarm Telegraph first operated.
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June 19.
362 1783. William Huggins and John Mansfield executed for burglary.
363 1841. [Saturday] Gov. William H. Seward of New York arrived in town, and remained at the Worcester House over Sunday.
June 20.
364
1774. Tory Protest rejected.
The Loyalists of the town offered a protest against the instructions given the Representative, which severely criticized the attitude of the British Government, and required him to oppose, by his vote, payment for the tea destroyed at Boston. The protest was published in Boston papers; and Clark Chandler, the Town Clerk, recorded it in the town book. This entry he was forced to expunge in open meeting. See under . date Aug. 24. The instructions, protest, and proceedings are printed in the fourth volume of the Collections of the Worcester Society of An- tiquity.
June 21.
365 1843. Corner Stone of Holy Cross College laid.
1843. President John Tyler and Suite passed through Worcester, on their return from the Bunker Hill celebration.
A few hundred persons, who hastily gathered at the station, were grat- ified with a sight of the Chief Magistrate. It was not generally known that the President would stop in Worcester.
1848. Free Soil Meeting.
In the City Hall. Albert Tolman was Chairman, and William A. Wal- lace, Secretary. Hon. Charles Allen made a speech in vindication of his action in repudiating the nomination of Zachary Taylor at the Phil- adelphia Convention. Henry Wilson, of Natick,also made a brief ad- dress. At the close of the meeting, Rev. George Allen offered the following resolution, which excited great enthusiasm, and was after- wards adopted by Free Soil meetings throughout the state.
"Resolved, that Massachusetts wears no chains, and spurns all ' bribes; that Massachusetts goes now, and will ever go, for free soil and free men, for free lips and a free press, for a free land and a free world."
366 367
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NOTEWORTHY EVENTS.
June 22.
368 1849. Worcester Gas Light Company formed.
369 1867. President Andrew Johnson and suite passed through Worcester to Boston.
June 23.
370 1845. First Daily Paper.
.
The DAILY TRANSCRIPT was the first daily paper in Worcester. Julius L. Clarke, subsequently State Auditor and Insurance Commissioner, was editor. The Transcript was purchased by John Milton Earle, May I, 1847, and incorporated with the "Daily Spy"; the consolidation be- ing continued for a year as the "Transcript," when the name "Daily Spy" was resumed.
June 24.
37I
1772. 'First Stage from Boston to New York passed through Worcester.
372 1848. Mass Meeting to ratify the nominations of Taylor and Fillmore.
.
Hon. Ira M. Barton was Chairman, and J. C. B. Davis, Secretary. Gov. Lincoln announced that he should, at some future time, reply to the charges made against himself and Gov. Davis by Judge Allen, in his speech of the 21st. Gen. Leslie Combs of Kentucky then addressed the meeting in defense of the Whig nominations.
373
1878. Removal of the Remains of Isaiah Thomas from the Mechanic Street Burial Ground to Rural Cemetery.
The City Government, the Masonic fraternities, and the American An- tiquarian Society took part in the dedication of the removed tomb. At Mechanics Hall addresses were made by Mayor Pratt, Hon. Stephen Salisbury, Hon. John D. Baldwin, Hon. H. O. Houghton, Hon. Mar- shall P. Wilder and Hon. Charles W. Slack; "after which the assembly, with the escort of many Masonic fraternities, followed the remains of Dr. Thomas to the Rural Cemetery, where the re-interment was made with solemn masonic rites, and a graceful eulogy was spoken by M. W. Grand Master, Charles A. Welch."
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374 1878. Edison's Phonograph or Talking Machine exhibited.
June 25.
375 1860. A salute of 100 guns was fired in honor of the nom- ination of Stephen A. Douglas for President.
June 26.
376 1799. "During a severe tempest, resembling in violence the hurricanes of the West Indies, the lightning struck a build- ing directly back of the Court House, then occupied by Isaiah Thomas, in which were stored the types for the 12mo edition of the Bible. The electric fluid, in four distinct veins, per- vaded the whole structure, splintering spar and stud, scatter- ing bricks and mortar, and bursting away boards, laths and plastering."-Lincoln's History.
June 27. 1862. Accident at Court Hill.
377
Three ladies were driving down State street in a chaise, when the horse, taking sudden fright, jumped over the embankment into Main street, landing in a load of shingles which was passing, and breaking its neck. The occupants of the vehicle were buried in the debris, but escaped with slight injuries.
378
1862. Causeway through Lake Quinsigamond completed. Dr. John Green was the first person that passed over. The cost of the causeway, and the improvements in the road leading to it, was $25,997.
June 28.
1818. Hon. Edward Bangs died, aged 62.
He was born in Harwich, Mass., Sept. 5, 1756. He entered Harvard College in 1773, which he left to participate in the Battle of Lexington. After graduating in 1777, he studied law with Theophilus Parsons, and in 1780, removed to Worcester. During Shays's Rebellion he served under Gen. Lincoln as a volunteer. He was County Attorney for some years; and in 1811, was appointed a Justice of the Court of Common Pleas. He lived on Main street, opposite the Court House.
379
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380 1837. Brinley (now Grand Army) Hall opened. A con- cert was given.
This building was erected by George Brinley and Benjamin Butman. The work was done by Mason H. Morse, from plans by Capt. Lewis Bigelow, who also made the plans for Butman Block, south of Elm st.
381
1848. State Convention : Free Soil Party organized.
Hon. Samuel Hoar of Concord was President. An address endorsing the action of Charles Allen and Henry Wilson at the Philadelphia Con- vention was adopted. Speeches were made by Joshua R. Giddings and Lewis D. Campbell of Ohio; Charles Sumner, Henry Wilson, Charles Francis Adams, and other prominent anti-slavery leaders.
382 1861. Camp Scott, at South Worcester, occupied by the Fifteenth Regiment.
383
1863. [Sunday.] Funeral of Gen. George B. Boomer.
At the Third Baptist Church. The City Government, State Guards and Highland Cadets attended. Gen. Boomer was killed at the Battle of Champion Hill, on May 22d. He was a resident of Missouri; but was brought to Worcester, where his father, the Rev. Job B. Boomer, was then living, for interment. A fine monument inarks his resting place in Rural Cemetery.
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