USA > Massachusetts > Berkshire County > Pittsfield > The history of Pittsfield (Berkshire County), Massachusetts, from the year 1800 to the year 1876 > Part 56
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69
The duties of these later commissioners have by no means been confined to the mere management of the water-works. The large increase of the population of the village has rendered great and costly enlargement necessary ; and, lacking the aid of that indispensable teacher, experience, the early committees made
569
HISTORY OF PITTSFIELD.
errors, the correction of which has not been without cost. They over-estimated the size of Lake Ashley, and neglected to take into account the evaporation from its surface, which in summer is much larger than would be believed without actual experiment. They underrated, also, the ordinary wastefulness of water-takers, and the great drain necessary in winter to keep the water in such motion as will prevent its freezing in the pipes. A "cold term " does more to exhaust the lake than a "dry spell." They did not anticipate the constant decrease of water in Lake Ashley-which has a very limited water-shed-on account of the destruction of forests around it, nor the diminished flow of Ashley brook, arising from a similar cause. And, yet again, the projectors of the water-works, although they believed the lake capable of supplying a city of fifty thousand inhabitants, did not in their plans for its use count upon the rapid growth of the village, requiring the extension of the pipes until they are several times their original length, and into streets whose existence was not dreamed of in 1855. The cost of the water-works, as they were reported com- pleted in 1857, forms a comparatively small portion of the con- struction-account as it stood in 1875.
Although the water has never failed, or fallen short of the ordi- nary wants of the people, there have been several times when economy in its use has been deemed prudent; and liberal meas- ures have been taken to augment the sources of supply, and hold it more largely in reserve. In 1867, the dam at Lake Ashley was raised twenty-eight inches at a cost of two thousand one hundred and eighty-seven dollars. In 1868-9, a reservoir with a capacity of over one million gallons was built near the old reservoir, three miles from the village; and the old dam, which was carried away by a freshet in October of that year, was rebuilt with improve- ments ; the entire expenditure being eleven thousand one hun- dred and seventy-three dollars.
Sackett brook, which unites with the Ashley below the reser- voir, has an ordinary daily flow of nearly one million gallons of water, characterized by that purity which distinguishes all the streams of this silicious slope; and it was long looked upon as likely at sometime to afford a valuable re-enforcement to the water- supply of Pittsfield. No near necessity for its use was antici- pated; but in 1873, an opportunity occurring to purchase the Merry mill-privilege, which covered the right to the water of the
72
4
570
HISTORY OF PITTSFIELD.
brook, it was purchased at a cost of four hundred and fifteen dol- lars.
Authority to use the brook for the water-supply of Pittsfield, was obtained from the legislature of 1874; and, in reporting the fact to the district, the commissioners said : "The Ashley lake and brook are fully equal to the present wants of the town, unless a very dry summer should be followed by an unusually long and cold winter." And this contingency happened in the years 1874 and 1875, although there were heavy rains in the early summer of the former year. The commissioners did not wait for the succession of unfavorable seasons to be completed; but, in December, 1874, when the price of iron-pipe had fallen from sixty or seventy dol- lars per ton, to forty, they advised the district to take advantage of the market, and at once connect Sackett brook with the Ash- ley. This combination, they represented, would furnish a suffi- cient supply for ordinary seasons; leaving the lake wholly in reserve for exceptionally dry terms. And, even in these, they thought, only a small part of its water need be used.
They proposed to effect this junction by laying a ten-inch iron- pipe from the Merry mill-dam, to a point in the twelve-inch iron- main, five thousand feet below the reservoir; the whole extension being ten thousand eight hundred and fourteen feet; making the distance from the Elm-street bridge to the Merry mill-dam, four miles. At the latter point, they proposed to build a substantial dam of uncemented mountain-stone, the level of which should be forty feet higher than that of the reservoir.
The district adopted the recommendations, and they were car- ried into execution during the summer of 1875, at a cost of eighteen thousand dollars, being seven thousand dollars less than the estimates.
The winter of 1874-5 was excessively cold; and the frost pene- trated the earth deeper than at any other time since the building of the water-works. More pipes than ever before, were burst by freezing; but the commissioners did not attribute this altogether, or chiefly, to the intensity of the cold. The authority to fix the grade of the streets belongs to the town and not to the district ; and had been exercised in some instances without regard to the safety of the water-pipes. And to this the commissioners attrib- uted a majority of the cases of freezing ; the pipes having been laid sufficiently deep before the reduction of grade. They add,
571
HISTORY OF PITTSFIELD.
however, that "the main pipes are generally much deeper than the service-pipes (which are laid by the water-takers) ; andt he mains have not frozen, until the larger share of the service-pipes have frozen and stopped the current of water." It was found necessary to re-lay many of the street-mains, and it was done at an expense of about seven thousand dollars.
The total length of the main and distributing pipe laid in 1875 was nine miles and a quarter. Between that date and 1868, there was an increase of fourteen miles and a half. And every succeeding year has brought a new extension, generally of thou- sands of feet.
A ten-inch cement-pipe was originally laid from the reservoir to the village; and a new twelve-inch iron-main has since been laid, parallel with it, at a cost of about $46,000.
These several items of improvement and addition have increased the cost of the water-works, from fifty thousand dollars to one hun- dred and ninety-three thousand four hundred and seventy dollars and thirty-one cents. The following is an abstract of
THE CONSTRUCTION-ACCOUNT.
Original construction, .
$50,000 00
Expended for re-laying and extending pipe prior to 1866,1 14,000 00
Extension of pipes after 1866, . 22,917 53 .
Re-laying street-mains after 1866,
28,772 63
New twelve-inch mains, including land· damages,
45,423 32
Raising dam at Lake Ashley,
2,186 88
Lower reservoir and dam in 1873,
13,172 60
Addition of Sackett brook to water-works,
18,329 94
Total, .
. $194,802 90
The following is the
AMOUNT OF WATER-RATES RECEIVED IN DIFFERENT YEARS.
To January 1, 1857,
$787 81
1, 1858,
1,546 98
April 1, 1859,
· 2,098 56
1, 1860, 15 months,
3,212 04
1, 1861,
3,098 92
1, 1862,
. 3,150 00
1 Prior to 1866 no separate account of extension and re-laying was kept.
572
HISTORY OF PITTSFIELD.
To April
1, 1863,
. $3,450 00
1, 1864,
. 3,970 00
1, 1865,
· 4,212 10
1, 1866,
4,788 43
66
1, 1867,
.
4,901 21
1, 1868,
5,514 02
1, 1869,
6,165 04
6€
1, 1871,
8,371 21
66
1, 1873,
. 10,303 14
66
1,1874,
. 10,630 48
1, 1875,
. 10,801 36
1, 1876,
. 13,054 98
The legislature of 1867 authorized the district to choose three commissioners of main-drains, common sewers, and sidewalks, in the same manner and for the same terms as are prescribed in the case of the water-commissioners. Under their direction, in accordance with the votes of the district, an excellent system of drainage has been in part established; and the sidewalks, which were defective in grade and construction, have become uniform and well built, as a rule. The commissioners have been George S. Willis and Charles T. Rathbun, from 1867 to 1875. George W. Foote, from 1867 to 1869. D. C. Munyan, from 1869 to 1875.
Since 1863, the district has appropriated money for lighting the streets, increasing from three hundred dollars in that year to two thousand five hundred in 1867; the whole amount being paid for gas ; the posts being provided by individuals, at points approved by a committee of the district.
. 8,202 32
1, 1870,
1, 1872,
9,354 00 ·
CHAPTER XXIV.
BERKSHIRE JUBILEE.
[1844.]
Origin of the jubilee-Preparatory measures-Reception and public exercises -Farewell-addresses-Biographical sketches of George N. Briggs, Julius Rockwell, and James D. Colt.
O F the events in Berkshire county which have obtained a national celebrity, and whose memory is most cherished at home, with the exception of the first cattle-show, perhaps the most noted, and certainly the most unique, was the gathering of the sons of the county, held in the year 1844, and known as the Berkshire Jubilee. There probably was never a nobler family- reunion. The following account of its inception was given by Rev. R. S. Cook, in his response to the address of welcome :
A gentleman whose official relations led him to travel extensively iu this country, and who was brought into contact with a great number of intelligent men, found those in influential and useful stations, in nearly every principal city and state, who hailed from Berkshire. Returning to the county, as he always did once or twice a year, he found the people of a particular town ignorant of the fact that distin- guished men had emigrated from adjacent towns ; the emigrants them- selves were unaware of the Berkshire origin of men with whom they were familiar in commercial, political, or ecclesiastical circles. The idea was conceived, five or six years ago, of bringing together the emi- grants from this county, with the view of forming a band of brother- hood between them; awakening on the part of the citizens of the county an interest in the fame and usefulness of its sons, and furnish- ing an illustration of the influence which New England is exerting on the country and the world.
Wherever the idea has been suggested, it has been cordially ap- proved. The time for its realization has been delayed for various rea- sons, but chiefly with the hope of such relieving prosperity as the coun- try now enjoys. A year ago last April, he had the pleasure of meeting
574
HISTORY OF PITTSFIELD.
our respected orator (Hon. Joshua A. Spencer) in the rail-cars west of Albany, and the thought occurred that he had been named as one of . Berkshire's honored sons. The inquiry was made whether he retained any affection for his native county. "Yes," said he, " it is a part of · my religion to go back there once a year." The plan for this gather- ing was suggested, and he entered into it with all his heart. The pro- gramme for the occasion was made, on a card, essentially as it is now arranged. On the return of the individual of whom I speak, to the city of New York, he mnet the late lamented Colonel Stone, who prom- ised, and gave, the aid of the Commercial Advertiser in forwarding the plan. When preparing an article for the Journal of Commerce, suggest- ing a meeting of the emigrants residing in New York, it became nee- essary to have a title, and " THE BERKSHIRE JUBILEE " was first writ- ten.1
At the meeting in New York, called through the Journal of Commerce, the plan prepared by card in the ears, by Messrs. Cook and Spencer-viz., a sermon, a poem, an oration, and a dinner or a great tea-party, " where talk might be ad libitum"-was sug- gested and approved. And Rev. Dr. J. C. Brigham, in behalf of a committee appointed by this meeting, addressed a letter to a gentleman in Pittsfield, asking him, after a consultation, to give information on the following points :- 1st. Is such a social gath- ering desirable and practicable ? 2d. Would the citizens of the county take an interest in it? 3d. If yea, when and where should the meeting be held ? 4th. What, in your opinion, should be the exercises ?- " That such a meeting, at some time," said Mr. Brigham, "would be attended with pleasing and useful results, I can hardly question. It would make that old Ameri- ean Piedmont (Berkshire county) still more honorable than she now is."
This letter was communicated to a respectable meeting, which unanimously resolved that the proposed gathering was highly desirable and practicable, and that it should be held at Pittsfield at as early a day as possible.
The following gentlemen were chosen to communicate with the committee in New York : Rev. John Todd, Thomas B. Strong, Julius Rockwell, Lemuel Pomeroy, Jason Clapp, James D. Colt, E. R. Colt, Edward A. Newton, Rev. Edward Ballard, George N. Briggs, Henry H. Childs, Phinehas Allen, Oliver P. Diekinson,
1 Mr. Cook was himself the gentleman indefinitely mentioned in his speech as first suggesting the jubilee.
·
575
HISTORY OF PITTSFIELD.
and Thomas A. Gold. The letter to the committee in New York was written by Rev. Mr. Todd, who, although he had very recently become a resident of the town, was made chairman of the Pittsfield committee. We reprint the concluding paragraphs.
The pride of Massachusetts is.her sons and her daughters. They consti- tute her glory, whether they remain here to beautify and enrich the old homestead, or whether they go out to expend their indomitable ener- gies under sunnier skies and on richer plains. Among these, Berkshire has furnished her full share-sons who would honor any parent. These we should rejoice to see gathered in the bosom of their mother, to hold a day of congratulations and sweet reflections. We love these sons and daughters none the less because they have gone from us, and we wish to have the home of their childhood live green in their memories. We would bind them, through their affections, to the place of their birth, and have their memories linger among these scenes, and their hearts warm at the thought of their early homes. The chain that binds them to us is more than golden, and we would have its links grow brighter and stronger. We would cordially respond to your pro- posal then, and, at the unanimous request of our fellow-citizens, respect- fully invite your committee to call such a meeting, to be held at Pitts- field, at as early a day as possible.
Of the convenience and suitableness of holding the meeting here, we need not speak. In making this invitation we are certain that we express the mind and feelings of the inhabitants of this town, while we most cordially invite the meeting to share our hospitality, to command our aid, and to feel that they come among none but warm friends.
While we thus extend this invitation, and express it as our opinion that this is the most convenient and suitable place, we trust that we should not be the less ready to co-operate, should your committee judge otherwise.
We would have it an occasion of deep cherished joy, such as will move old Berkshire-the memory of which will thrill in after days. We hope it will be every way worthy of her glorious soil, and of her sons and daughters. Let it be the lighting of a beacon on these bills that will show that the watch-tower of affection is still tenanted, and that the flame of love has not yet begun to grow pale.
The New York committee was composed of the following gen- tlemen : .
Samuel R. Betts, Marshall S. Bidwell, J. C. Brigham, D. D. Field,
Mason Noble, Thomas Egleston, Robert Center, H. P. Peet,
576
HISTORY OF PITTSFIELD.
R. S. Cook,
Joseph Ilyde,
Theodore Sedgwick,
Ruel Smith,
William C. Bryant,
Drake Mills,
Orville Dewey,
Edward Williams,
Russell C. Wheeler,
William Sherwood.
A meeting of the citizens of the different towns in the county was held, which elected a county-committee as follows :
Rev. John Todd,
E. R. Colt,
Thomas B. Strong,
Edward A. Newton,
Julius Rockwell,
Rev. Edward Ballard,
Lemuel Pomeroy,
George N. Briggs,
Jason Clapp,
II. II. Childs,
James D. Colt,
Phinehas Allen,
O. P. Dickinson,
James D. Colt, 2d,
Thomas A. Gold,
Theodore Pomeroy,
Ezekiel Bacon,
Henry Colt,
Nathan Willis,
Thaddeus Clapp,
Hosea Merrill, Jr.,
George S. Willis,
Thomas F. Plunkett.
Phinehas Allen, Jr.,
James Koot,
Robert Colt,
Elijah Robbins,
William M. Walker,
John Weller,
David Campbell,
Abel West,
E. P. Little,
Henry Root,
George P. Briggs,
Jared Ingersoll,
Gordon Mckay,
Theodore Ilinsdale,
Timothy Childs,
Jabez Peck,
Charles Bush,
Richard C. Coggswell,
Robert Pomeroy,
Parker L. IIall,
Alanson P. Dean,
Titus Goodman,
Edwin Clapp,
James Francis,
Samuel A. Churchill,
Charles Churchill,
Ethan Janes,
Otis Peck,
Oliver S. Root,
Henry Hubbard,
George W. Campbell,
Walter Laffin,
Robert Campbell,
Ensign II. Kellogg,
Franklin Root,
Calvin Martin,
Robert Francis, Jr.
Subsequently auxiliary town-committees were appointed. It was determined that the jubilee should be held at Pittsfield, on the 22d and 23d of August, 1844. Julius Rockwell, Ensign H. Kellogg, and Phinehas Allen, Jr., were selected as a financial committee in Berkshire; and Thomas A. Gold, Dr. O. S. Root,
577
HISTORY OF PITTSFIELD.
Ezekiel R. Colt, George P. Briggs, and Robert Colt, as a com- mittee of reception.
The citizens of Pittsfield, and adjoining towns, agreed to offer their hospitality without stint of labor, time, or money. The programme of public exercises was an oration by Hon. Joshua A. Spencer of Utica, a poem by Rev. William Allen, D. D., of North- ampton, and a sermon by Rev. Mark Hopkins, D. D., of Williams College. Odes and poems by several authors.
The following officers for the jubilee were selected :
President, Gov. GEORGE N. BRIGGS.' Vice Presidents,
IIenry H. Childs,
Henry Hubbard,
George Hull,
Samuel Rossiter,
Ezekiel Bacon,
Wilbur Curtiss,
Samuel R. Betts,
Henry W. Bishop,
Doddridge Crocker,
James D. Colt,
Marshall S. Bidwell,
Keyes Danforth,
William P. Walker,
John Mills,
Charles A. Dewey,
Oliver P. Colt,
Nathan Willis,
Calvin Martin,
John Whiting,
Rodman Hazard,
Lemuel Pomeroy,
Jason Clapp,
Cyrus Stowell,
Isaac Hills,
Edward A. Newton,
Charles Sedgwick,
Josiah Q. Robinson,
John Chamberlin,
Phinehas Allen,
Harvey P. Peet,
Russell Brown,
James Larned,
William Porter, Jr.,
Daniel N. Dewey,
Horatio Byington,
Thomas Robinson,
Lester Filley,
Increase Sumner, -
Parker L. Hall,
Homer Bartlett,
Edward Stevens,
Samuel Gates,
Eleazer Williams,
Josiah Quincy, Jonathan Allen,
Deodotus Noble.
Secretary, James D. Colt, 2d.
Chaplains,
Rev. Samuel Shepard, D. D., Rev. James Bradford,
Rev. John Alden, Rev. D. D. Wheedon,
Rev. Samuel B. Shaw.
The emigrant sons of Berkshire were formally received at the
73
Thomas F. Plunkett,
578
HISTORY OF PITTSFIELD.
town-hall at eleven o'clock, on the morning of Thursday, August 221; Thomas A. Gold, Esq., making the address of welcome, and Rev. R. S. Cook responding. Mr. Cook said :
The occasion which assembles us is altogether unique. The elements of interest differ widely from those of ordinary gatherings. No secta- rian or partisan zeal; no selfish or ambitious purpose has ealled us from our business and our homes. We have left all political preju- dices and animosities, and all business-cares and troubles, behind us ; aud have devoted these few days to social and patriotic feeling. We have come from the mountains of the north, and the plains of the south ; the cities of the east and the prairies of the west; from the four quarters of the land, we have come to our Berkshire home, to revive the friendships and associations of boyish years, and live over again in memory and imagination the days of our youth.
After other remarks in a similar strain, Mr. Cook said in con- clusion :
In behalf of the New York committee and the cmigrant sons of Berkshire, I accept and thank you for the generous welcome with which we are received. The preparations are on a scale of characteristic hos- pitality. The greeting we have received is more than a compensation for the sacrifices made in coming, as many of us have, a thousand iniles or more to attend this festival.
At two o'clock in the afternoon a procession was organized at that grand local center, the park, and moved to the eminence west of the village, since known as Jubilee hill. This elevation which commands a superb view of the Berkshire valley, although now thickly populated, then had but a single house, the homestead built by the patriotic Dr. Timothy Childs, and then occupied by his widow. On this hill a stand for speakers, and seats for an audience of several thousand had been erected, and between five and six thousand persons, a large portion of them ladies, were speedily collected.
An anthem, "Wake the Song of Jubilce," was sung, and a prayer was offered by Rev. Dr. Shepard of Lenox. But at this point the clouds, which for several hours had threatened rain, poured down showers which dispersed the assembly "in most admired disorder," to reassemble, however, very soon, in the old First church. The services were re-commenced by the singing of a psalm, after which Rev. Dr. Hopkins preached the sermon,
579
HISTORY OF PITTSFIELD.
occupying about an hour and a quarter in the delivery. It was such as was to be expected from its author.
" And this," he began, " is the Berkshire Jubilee ! We have come- the sons and daughters of Berkshire-fromour villages, and hill-sides, and mountain-tops; from the distant city ; from the far West ; from every place where the spirit of enterprise and of adventure bears men, we have come. The farmer has left his field, the mechanic his work- shop, the merchant his counting-room, the lawyer his brief, and the minister his people, and we have come to revive old and cherished associations and to renew former friendships; to lengthen the cords and strengthen the stakes of every kind and time-hallowed affection. Coming together as natives and citizens of a state, on the eastern border of which is Plymouth Rock, what so suitable as that our first publie aet should be to assemble ourselves for the worship of the God . of our fathers, and our God. This is a local thanksgiving in one sense, but extended in another sense. This day our family affection is thrown around a whole country. It is fit then that we should adopt the language of the psalmist in the words which I have chosen for my text : 'Return unto thy rest, oh, my soul, for the Lord hath dealt bountifully with thee.' Psalmn cxvi : 7."
The reverend doctor then proceeded to notice the agency of God in the affairs of men, and what was meant by dealing bountifully with man, and applied the language of the text as peculiarly applicable to those present on the occasion. God had dealt bountifully with them in granting them those aspects of nature and influences of society by which they were surrounded. He gave a graphic description of our loved Berkshire; bestowed high compliment upon the industry and benevolence of its citizens, and upon those who had achieved a distin- guished and enviable fame in the walks of literature. " It is remark- able," he said, "secluded as this county has been, that the three American writers most widely and justly celebrated in their several departments, have lived and written here. It was in the deep quiet of these seenes that the profoundest treatise of our great metaphysical writer was produced. It was here that the powers of our ' truest poet,' -one who, in his own line of poetry, has not been excelled since the world stood-became known and came to their maturity; and here are still entwined, greener by time, the home-affections of one whose pecu- liar social qualities have given her a place as eminent in the hearts of her friends, as her power and grace of style, and her universal sympathy with all that is human, have given her as an author, in the public esti- mation."1
The speaker coneluded by a word of welcome to those who had vis-
1 Jonathan Edwards, William Cullen Bryant, and Catharine M. Sedgwick.
580
HISTORY OF PITTSFIELD.
ited their old homes: " Natives and former citizens of Berkshire, I wel- come you-not to Bacchanalian revelry, not to costly entertainments, not to the celebration of any party, or national triumph, but, to the old homestead ; to these scenes of your early days, to these mountains and valleys, and streams, and skies, to the hallowed resting-places of the dear departed. I welcome you to the warm grasp of kindred and friends, to rational festivity-to the BERKSHIRE JUBILEE."
Rev. Dr. Allen then read a poem of a hundred and eight stan- zas, alluding to many historical events and personages of Berkshire.
Hon. Julius Rockwell read two graceful poems by William Pitt Palmer, entitled " The Mother Land's Home Call," and " The Response of the Home Comers," after which the public exercises of the day closed with the doxology and a benediction.
The evening being very stormy, visitors from abroad were pre- vented from calling, as generally as had been contemplated, at the residences of citizens, where generous preparation had been made for their reception.
Interesting informal meetings were held on the morning of Friday. The weather became pleasant at eleven o'clock, and a still larger assemblage than upon the previous day collected upon Jubilee hill. The exercises commenced with the singing of an ode written by Hon. Ezekiel Bacon.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.