USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Chelmsford > Town annual report of Chelmsford 1925 > Part 6
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$1200
$1600
$1111.00
$6666 $2000
$24,027.00
1929
Apr. 1, July 20
July 1
July 6
May 1, '29 June 1 June 1
$3250
$5000
$1600
$1111.00
$6666 $2000
$21,627.00
July 1
June 1 June 1
$6666 $2000
$18,916.00
1931
Apr. 1, July 20 $3250 $2000
June 1 June 1 $6666 $2000
$13,916.00
1932
Apr. 1, July 20
June 1 June 1 $6666 $2000
$13,916.00
1933
Apr. 1, July 20
June 1 June 1
$3250
$2000
$6666 $2000
$13,916.00
1934
Apr. 1, $3250
June 1 June 1 $6666 $2000
$11,916.00
1935
Apr. 1
June 1 June 1
$3250
$6666 $2000
$11,916.00
1936
Apr. 1,
June 1 June 1
$6666 $2000
$11,916.00
1937
June 1 June 1
$6666 $2000
$8,666.00
1938
June 1 June 1
$6666 $2000
$8,666.00
1939
June 1 June 1
$6666 $2000
$8,666.00
1940
June 1 June 1
$6666 $2000
$8,666.00
Totals
$35,750 $16,000
$25,000 $3,600
$3,600 $2,000
$4,800 $1,140
$2,680 $2,400
$1,106 $6,400
$2,200 $4,444
$100,000 $30,000
$241,120
1925
Centre, 1925
Totals
Int. Rate
Building, 1916
Addition to East
House, 1923-1924
Building Westland
School House, 1921
Construction of Groton
Road Loan No. 2, 1923
Construction of Boston
Road Loan No. 2, 1923
Construction of Groton
Road Loan No. 1, 1922
Construction of Acton
Road Loan No. 1, 1922
Purchase of Land and
Construction of East
Chelmsford Fire House
Purchase of Fire Ap-
Construction of North
Road Loan, No. 3, 1921
School Truck Loan
"White Truck," 1923
Construction of Acton
& Boston Roads and
Repairing River Neck
&Carlisle-Concord Rds.
Purchase of Stone
Crusher, 1924
Purchase of Highway
Trucks, Federal and
International 1925
New Grade School at
Centre,
New Grade School at
78
1930
$2000 Apr. 1, July 20 $3250
July 1
$1000
$2400
$570
$2680
$2400
$1106
$1600
Sept. 1 May 1, '26 June 1 June 1 $1100 $1111.00 $6676 $2000
$35,293.00
$3250 $2000
$5000 $1200
$1200
$1000
$2400
$570
July 6
May 1, '28 June 1 June 1
$3250
$2000
$2000
$5000
July 1 May 29
Dec. 1
July 1
July 14
July 6
Sept. 1 May 1, '27 June 1 June 1
*
paratus 1921
1922
* Outside Debt Limit.
$3250
$2000
$3250
Chelmsford School
1924
INTEREST PAYMENTS OF TOWN DEBT TO BE RAISED ANNUALLY BY TAXATION
New High School
I Year
1926
$1430
$760
$1500
$171
$171
$90
$216 $51.30
$140.70 $144
$52.535 $272
$93.50 $199.98
$4,000.00 $1,200
$10,492.01
1927
1300
665
1200
114
114
45
108
25.65
204
46.75
149.99
3,732.96
1,120
8,825.35
1928
1170
570
900
57
57
136
99.99
3,466.32
1,040
7,496.31
1929
1040
475
600
68
50.00
3,199.68
960
6,392.68
1930
910
380
300
2,933.04
880
5,403.04
1931
780
285
2,666.40
800
4,531.40
1932
650
190
2,399.76
720
3,959.76
1933
520
95
2,133.12
640
3,388.12
1934
390
1,866.48
560
2,816.48
1935
260
1,599.84
480
2,339.84
1936
130
1,333.20
400
1,863.20
1937
1,066.56
320
1,386.56
1938
799.92
240
1,039.92
1939
533.28
160
693.28
1940
266.64
80
346.64
Totals
$8,580 $3,420
$4,500
$342
$342
$135
$324 $76.95
$140.70 $144
$52.535
$680
$140.25
$499.96 $31,997.20 $9,600
$60,974.595
* Outside Debt Limit.
Construction of Groton
Road Loan No. 2, 1923
Construction of Boston
Road Loan No. 2, 1923
Construction of Groton
Road Loan No. 1, 1922
Construction of Acton
Road Loan No. 1, 1922
Purchase of Land and
Chelmsford Fire House
Purchase of Fire Ap-
Construction of North
Road Loan, No. 3, 1921
School Truck Loan
"White Truck," 1923
Construction of Acton
Repairing River Neck
&Carlisle-Concord Rds.
Purchase of Stone
Crusher, 1924
Purchase of Highway
International 1925
New Grade School at
Centre, 1925
New Grade School at
Centre, 1925
Totals
79
Building, 1916
Addition to East
1923-1924
Chelmsford School House,
Building Westland
School House, 1921
1924
Trucks, Federal and
*
1922
Construction of East
paratus 1921
and Boston Rds. and
REPORT OF THE ASSESSORS For the Year Ending Dec. 31, 1925.
Value of buildings .$3,952,480.00
Value of land
1,602,305.00
Total Value of real estate
Total value of personal estate
Total value of assessed estate
$7,360,800.00
Number of polls assessed 1,969
Assessed on polls only
655
Residents assessed on property : Individuals
1,832
All others
40
1,872
Non-residents assessed on property :
Individuals
297
All others
. 30
327
Total number assessed
2,854
Number of horses assessed
306
Number of cows assessed
870
Number of sheep assessed
5
Number of neat cattle other than cows assessed
94
Number of swine assessed
134
Number of fowl assessed
10,942
Number of dwellings assessed
1,560
Number of acres of land
12,832
Appropriations voted at Annual Meeting,
Feb. 9, 1925
$237,288.95
Appropriations voted at Special Meeting, May 6, 1925
697.00
State Tax
16,920.00
State highway tax
5,256.22
State Merrimack river sewage
227.24
State audit
28.97
County tax
12,887.71
Loans and interest
39,136.00
Overlay
2,000.00
. .
$314,442.09
Estimated Receipts $ 53,638.89
Free cash
25,000.00
1969 polls at $2.00 each
3,938.00
Tax on property
231,865.20
$314,442.09
HERBERT C. SWEETSER, WILLIAM J. QUIGLEY, WARREN WRIGHT,
Assessors.
80
.
$5,554,785.00 1,806,015.00
Rate $31.50 per $1000.00
CEMETERY COMMISSIONERS' REPORT
Chelmsford, Mass., Jan. 4, 1926.
Board of Selectmen, Chelmsford Mass.
Gentlemen:
The Cemetery Commissioners submit their annual report on all cemeteries.
At the new cemetery between North and West Chelmsford, the front section has been laid out and developed, and we feel that we have made a very good beginning. If the Town votes to relocate Twviss Road, as on the plan, we can do more work this year.
At Riverside Cemetery the lots are very nearly all taken up, but we intend to move the tool house back to give more space for lots. We have repaired and painted the tool house, also doing the general work on lots and paths.
At West Cemetery we did more work on the new section and the general appearance is good. Owing to the fact that our late superin- tendent, Mr. Whidden, passed away, we have lost a man that took great pride in his work and always kept the cemetery in excellent con- dition.
At Forefather's Cemetery the principal improvement is the instal- ment of the water. It was badly needed and will be much appreciated by the lot owners. Besides cleaning paths and regrading of sunken graves the cemetery has had its general care.
At Hart Pond Cemetery, the fence has been repaired and painted. The old section dug over and regraded, this has added much to the general appearance.
At Pine Ridge Cemetery, a number of the pines have been cut and sold, for the purpose of developing the section on Billerica Road, also the section for single graves has been cleared up. We need to gravel all the drives as they are almost impassable in the spring of the year. There has been ten lots sold this year. Some of the places re- served for plants and flowers have been dug over and are ready for planting.
The Commissioners feel that all the superintendents have done their work well and have taken great pride in keeping the cemeteries in as good condition as possible with the appropriation.
Respectfully submitted,
ARTHUR O. WHEELER, BAYARD C. DEAN, RALPH P. ADAMS.
81
REPORT OF FOREST WARDEN
January 1, 1926.
To the Board of Selectmen of Chelmsford.
Gentlemen:
The Forest Warden and Board of Fire Engineers have continued the same plan of co-operation as in the past two years.
The District Chiefs have been appointed Deputy Forest Wardens with authority to have charge of forest and grass fires in their respec- tive districts.
Five Deputy Wardens have been appointed beside the District Chiefs: Allan Adams, Ray Sargent, Fred L. Fletcher, Walter Merrill and Fred Merrill.
Permits for fires in the open air are required between March 1st and Dec. 1st, and may be obtained from the District Chiefs in the vari- ous fire districts with the exception of District No. 1, where they must be obtained from Allan Adams.
About 600 permits have been issued during the past year.
There have been 125 fires during the past year, located as follows: District No. 1, 65; No. 2, 16; No. 3, 1; No. 4, 19; No. 5, 24.
The fires in Districts No. 1 and No. 5 have been caused largely by engine sparks, while the majority of the rest have been caused by care- less smokers and by children.
There were several serious fires in the Ledge Hill section at North Chelmsford which caused an unusual expense to the Town. It will be necessary this year to replace a part of the forestry equipment. Sev- eral of the extinguishers are useless through hard usage and others are in such a condition that they are unsafe to use.
SIDNEY E. DUPEE,
Forest Warden.
REPORT OF INSURANCE FUND COMMISSIONERS
January 1, 1926
On Deposit:
Central Savings Bank
$1,553.25
Five Cent Savings Bank 1,332.17
Mechanics Savings Bank 1,022.50
Lowell Institution for Savings
1,528.13
Merrimack River Savings Bank
1,390.46
City Institution for Savings 1,736.16
Liberty Bond
1,000.00
$9,562.67
WALTER PERHAM, Treasurer, Insurance Sinking Fund Commissioners.
82
A REPORT OF THE WORK DONE BY THE MIDDLESEX COUNTY EXTENSION SERVICE IN THE TOWN OF CHELMSFORD FOR THE YEAR 1925
An appropriation of $400.00 was made at the annual meeting in sup- port of the Middlesex County Extension Service in Agriculture and Home Economics. The following is a report of the work done by this organiza- tion in Chelmsford for the year 1925:
Agricultural work for the year centered around fruit and poultry subjects. Two orchard meetings were held, one on pruning and one on spraying and both were largely attended. An illustrated talk was given at the movies on Apple Pests.
In home economics a talk was given at a Grange meeting on food habits. Two canning demonstrations were given and were well at- tended.
In the 4-H club activitie 199 boys and girls were enrolled in the clothing, poultry, garden, canning, pig and calf clubs. Achievements were shown at the spring achievement program given at one of the moving picture shows and by exhibiting at the Chelmsford Grange Fair. Mary Cassidy, Thadde Ducharme and Robert Fay were awarded the Two-Day Trip to the Massachusetts Agricultural College. Grace Paig- non was selected as the only person representing Middlesex County at Camp Vail, Eastern States Exposition. Stacey Krasnecki attended Camp Field, Brockton Fair. The United States Department of Agriculture selected Chelmsford as one of eight towns in the United States in which to make a study of 4-H club work.
Motion pictures were shown ten times to a total audience of 3740.
A total of 33 farm visits have been made in the town and help was given on the individual problems of various farmers. Many of the fruit growers in the town profited by receiving the spray service postal cards which were sent out from time to time during the spray season. Judges were furnished for the Fair, judging agricultural as well as Home Eco- nomics exhibits.
In addition, several county-wide meetings, such as the County Picnic at Concord, the Annual Extension Service meeting at Waltham, meetings for fruit growers and poultrymen and Leaders' Training meet- ings for homemakers have been held during the year and were at- tended by many of the Chelmsford people .
PERLEY W. KIMBALL, Local Director.
REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES OF THE ADAMS LIBRARY
The Trustees met for organization on Feb. 14, 1925, with the follow- ing result: Chairman, Albert H. Davis; Secretary, Mrs. E. R. Clark; Treasurer, Rev. Wilson Waters; Purchasing Committee, Mrs. E. R. Clark; Prudential Committee, A. H. Davis, Rev. Wilson Waters; Com- mittee on Periodicals and General Oversight, Miss Frances Clark, Miss Lottie L. Snow, Rev. Wilson Waters. Mrs. Ida A. Jefts was appointed Librarian.
Additional shelves to hold several hundred books have been placed in the basement of the Library.
Thomas Carlyle said, the true university today is a library. The library is an important factor in the education of grown-up people, and
83
in the welfare of society as a whole. The haphazard of life experience is an education, but is apt to be narrow and one-sided, unless it be supplemented and controlled by the wider knowledge supplied by liter- ature, history, science and religion. The average age at which our young people leave school is about fourteen years, when their intel- lectual faculties have scarcely begun to develop. People who have had the advantage of a much longer period of mental training and the acquirement of knowledge realize what others have missed. But the fulness of modern life is not favorable to what is called solid reading. Young and old occupy their leisure with the movies, radio, newspapers, trashy novels and "wek-ends." Comparatively few people, therefore, know how to enjoy or benefit from serious and scholarly books. This is evident from the increasingly large per cent of fiction called for in our libraries. But the Adams Library aims to supply a good proportion of solid and thoughtful books-history and biography, lives and letters of statesmen, scholarly essays, the Englih classics, the best mono- graphs on special subjects, such as art, science, horticulture, garden- ing, antiques, histories of the neighboring towns, old shipping days in Massachusetts, and so forth, and many of our patrons are availing themselves of the opportunities the Library offers for self-improvement. The Board of Free Public Library Commisioners of Massachu- setts arranges for section meetings of the Trustees of Public Libraries. Mrs. E. R. Clark is a member of one of the committees having matters in charge. Others of our Trustees have attended similar meetings in this part of the state, at which the discussion of topics relating to the con- duct and welfare of free town libraries has resulted in much benefit. Interchange of ideas on practical subjects is always enlightening. Pub- lications such as "The Bookman" and "Public Libraries" also give helpful information.
Number of books in the Library 11,778
Circulation for the year:
Fiction
10,494
Non-fiction
3,188
Total 13,682
New books added
.278
New books to replace those worn out 120
Books rebound 160
New borrowers 100
The Trustees acknowledge gifts of books from Mrs. John Parker and Mrs. E. T. Adams, and Mrs. Rose Parker and Mr. John Fairburn have deposited in the Library for safe keeping a number of deeds and wills of Chelmsford people, some of them dating back more than two hundred years.
LOTTIE L. SNOW, A. HEADY PARK, FRANCES CLARK, LUELLA H. S. CLARK, WILSON WATERS, A. H. DAVIS,
Trustees.
84
REPORT OF THE TREASURER OF THE ADAMS LIBRARY
RECEIPTS
Balance on hand, Dec. 31, 1924
$ 9.79
From the Town Treasurer
2,000.00
$2,009.79
EXPENDITURES
Librarian
$ 400.00
Books
651.89
Fuel
324.00
Janitor
159.15
Care of Grounds
54.25
Gas
81.95
Water
12.00
Periodicals
105.35
Transportation of Books to So. Chelmsford
25.00
Transportation of Books to West Chelmsford
32.00
Supplies
7,05
Improvements
51.68
Binding
90.50
Treasurer's Bond
2.50
Balance on hand Dec. 31, 1925
12.47
$2,009.79
WILSON WATERS, Treasurer.
85
REPORT OF THE BOARD OF HEALTH
Early in the year there was a scare in the West and North villages due to Scarlet Fever. Prompt measures were taken with the result that no new cases resulted from these cases. In all instances the cause was tmced to out of town cases.
During the Schick test 298 children were examined. This clinic will soon be repeated and it is hoped that there will be a large number of children to be Schicked. There is no ill effect from the test and the assurance of being immune from Diphtheria is so great that the Board fails to see why all parents do not have all their children Schicked.
The school nurse was appointed agent of the Board of Health and has not only filled that capacity, but has conducted the Tuberculosis, Pre-School Age and Schick Clinics. All the Clinics are under the super- vision of the Board of Health. Home visits have been made by the agent if defects are found and all adult Tuberculosis cases followed up. No salary has been allowed for this work. The reports of the agent of the Board of the Milk Inspector and the Animal Inspector follow. Each is worthy of careful study.
During moste of the year the work was the usual routine work of which we feel the citizens are beginning to see the need. The Board feels that many of the citizens do not realize the number of cases of Tuberculosis there are in town or the danger from them. There were six deaths from the disease and nine new cases reported during the year. Chelmsford being near a large city will always be a place to which those who have Tuberculosis will naturally come. This, with the in- creased cost at a sanatorium and the large increase of the County Tax due to the Contract law, make it very important that all these cases be followed up and proper measures be taken in every case. The Board wishes to call the attention of all citizens to the quarantine regulations. The law requires all Physicians to report in writing all contagious diseases, it also requires all householders to report these diseases if no Physician is called. The law gives the Department of Public Health, the power to prepare regulations for the control of contagious diseases which local Boards are recommended to follow in their regulations as far as conditions will allow. But when the citizens wilfully neg.ect to obey the regulation for the simple reason that they do not wish to be incon- venienced by these quarantine regulations, it is high time that the Board enforced the law. For example, when a Doctor is called early in a con- tagious disease and before the case is fully developed, the Board allows one or more members of the family, either students or wage-earners, to live away from home during the period of quarantine; but when a citizen returns home before the quarantine is over, that person lays himself liable to a heavy fine. You are all alike to the Board ,and in the future all who break quarantine regulations will be obliged to take the consequences. Many citizens act as if they thought the Board very strict about the digging of new wells for water to be used for domestic purposes, also about the location of dry wells and septic tanks. Too much care cannot be used in either case as is well illustrated between the North and West villages. Here adjoining each other are two places where the dry well on one place and a cement cesspool on the other are so near the well used for domestic purposes that an analysis which the Board had the Department make, showed both wells so badly
86
poluted with sewerage as to be unfit for use and recommended that the wells be condemned and the people occupying these places be forbidden to use the water from these wells, which has been done. There would be very great danger of Typhoid Fever if this water from these wells was used even a short time.
In the Milk Inspector's report which we hope you will read care- fully, you will see that one dealer had a sample which contained 2,752,000 bacteria per cubic centimeter, and he had a session with the inspector; anothar dealer had a sample with only 4,000 bacteria per cubic centimeter which is very low. The average of all the samples is very good, both as to solids, fat and bacteria count. It is only fair to say the improvement in the last two years is at least 100%, and that the town now has one of the best milk supplies of any town in the state. For more than two years the Board had tried to have the sanitary con- dition at the Centre Town Hall corrected, but were met with promises only; finally the Board named a day on which these conditions must be corrected or the Board would close the entire building; the required changes were made before the day set. The Board could wish for more co-operation from the Selectmen; many of their actions seem to the Board to be childish. There has been a marked improvement in the way swine are kept in the town. Those who keep swine are learning that others have rights which they must respect, and conditions while far from perfect are very much improved.
You are all familiar with the outbreak of Scarlet Fever on the outskirts of the Center and at the East villages in December. A scholar was found in the Cenetr school peeling, another was out from the High School. The buildings were each thoroughly disinfected daily, also the school barge. It was necessary to quarantine three families. It spread from one case to three oases in one family, in another from one to eight. The father in this case begged to be allowed to leave home and he would care for his family without any aid from the Board. We were obliged to refuse his request and in four days he, too, was sick in bed with the disease and one of the three bad cases in this family. In the other family one child came down. All had been exposed and it was necessary to quarantine the entire family; in the end four children had the disease.
In all measures taken by the Board we were ably assisted by the School Committee and the Superintendent of Schools and every sug- gestion by the Board was immediately carried out by the School Depart- ment with the result that the schools lost no time.
The Board takes this opportunity to thank the School Committee, Superintendent of Schools, Agent of the Board, teachers and janitors for their co-operation at this time. State officials tell the Board that in their opinion, it was the quick, thorough work done at once and fol- lowed up which kept the disease from spreading, and so allowed the schools to continue in session.
A few very scattered cases have occurred in other parts of the town, none of which can be traced to any Chelmsford case, all of which the Board feels came from out of town. The steam cars and the electric cars, by their very nature, must always be a constant means of spread- ing contagious diseases.
At Christmas time these families were all quarantined. It seemed to be the duty of the Board to come to the aid of the children; you were asked to give these families such gifts as you saw fit and the re- sponse was most generous. If you could have seen, as we did, the eager faces of the little ones Christma morning a at each home they crowded
87
around the window while their share of a machine load was left at ench home, you would have felt well repaid for your share of the gifts, as the Board were. We wish to thank you one and all for the help which you gave.
It may not be strictly Board of Health work, but still we want to ask you why not make this an annual custom for all shut-ins, sick, and needy in all sections of the town? It need not be done by the Board, better by a union of all organizations; but done.
Signed : J. C. OSTERHOUT E. G. BROWN GEORGE A. MCNULTY
REPORT OF AGENT OF BOARD OF HEALTH
Mr. J. Clark Osterhout, Chairman of the Board of Health.
Dear Sir:
I am submitting the following reports for your approval:
Report of Schick Clinic:
No. of Children Tested 298
No. of Children Tested, positive 108
No. of Children Receiving T. A. T. 102
No. of Children Reschicked 91
No. of Children Reschicked, positive
34
Report of Underweight Return Clinic:
Examination given by Mass. Dept. of Public Health Division of Tuber- culosis.
Held at North and Centre, January 13, 1925.
No. of Children Examined 16
No. of Contacts 4
No. of Children Given Tuberculin Test 11
No. of Children Who Reacted to Tuberculin Test 3
No. of Children With Enlarged Tonsils and Adenoids 5
No. of Children in Need of Dentistry 4
No. of Cases of Hilum Tuberculosis 1
No. of Cases Classified as Suspicious 1
No. of Children X-Rayed 4
No. of Children X-Rayed N. R. S. S. 2
Report of Tuberculosis for the Year Ending December, 1925:
No. of Old Cases 26
No. of New Cases
9
No. of School Cases 7
No. of Veteran Cases
3
No. of Female Cases
20
No. of Male Cases
15
No. Married 14
No. Single 21
No. in Sanatorium
6
No. nt Home 29
No. Who Have Private Physician 21
No. of Arrested Cases 24
No. of Active Cases 11
88
,
Ages :
10 to 20 9
20 to 30 9
30 to 40 8
40 to 50 4
50 and over 5
Nationality:
American 27
Greek 1
Russian 1
Irish
1
Swedish
2
Italian
1
Portuguese
1
French
1
No. of Cases Who Have Been in Sanatorium 23
No. of Cases Who Have Been in General Hospital 4
No. of visits by Board of Health Nurse
30
No. of Patients Given Sputum Cups 5
No. of Deceased During Year 6
Report of Pre-School Age Clinic:
Clinic Held at the East School, June 6, 1925.
No. of Children Examined 19
No. of Boys Examined
7
No. of Girls' Examined
12
Ages between 5 mos. to 51/2 years.
Defects Found:
Carious Teeth 4
Slow Dentition
2
Coryza 2
Discharge of Eye
1
Enlarged Tonsils-Adenoids
6
Prominent Lumbar Vertebrae
1
Poor Posture
2
Flare Ribs
2
Flat Feet
1
Pigeon Chest
1
Knock Knee
1
Enlarged Glands
2
Other Defects 5
Underweight 6% 1
Each child was weighed; family history and past illness of child recorded, also diet and habits of bowel, bladder, sleep, fresh air and bathing tabulated. A complete physical examination was given by Dr. S. M. Coffin of Mass. Dept. of Public Health, Division of Hygiene for Pre-School Age children.
Dr. Coffin advised all mothers in diet.
Dr. Coffin advised all mothers in habits.
Dr. Coffin gave special recommendations to 11.
Dr. Coffin referred eight to family physicians.
One child had no defects.
Home visits made by nurse since clinic 15
It is my hope to establish such a clinic in each section of the town. Thanking everyone for their co-operation.
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