USA > Maine > Washington County > Dennysville > Memorial of the 100th anniversary of the settlement of Dennysville, Maine, 1886 > Part 1
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(Washington Co.) Gc 974.102 D42
ic 974.102 042 1149146
M. L.
GENEALOGY COLLECTION
ALLEN COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY 3 1833 01092 2307
74.10 042 114914
Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2014
https://archive.org/details/memorialof100tha1886denn
MEMORIĄL
OF THE
100TH ANNIVERSARY
OF THE
SETTLEMENT
OF
THE PUBLIC -PURDEY
. DENNYSVILLE, MAINE
1886
PORTLAND, MAINE B. THURSTON & COMPANY, PRINTERS 1SS6
CONTENTS.
PAGE
ACCOUNT OF THE CELEBRATION, BY REV. CHAS. WHITTIER, 5
LETTERS FROM PERSONS INVITED, 10
MEMORIAL ADDRESS, BY GEORGE F. TALBOT, 17
POEM, BY MRS. IDA S. WOODBURY, .
48
REVIEW OF EDUCATION, MORALS, AND RELIGION, BY REV. C. WHITTIER, 51 MUNICIPAL AND STATISTICAL HISTORY, BY P. E. VOSE, EsQ., 66
POEM: FOUNDERS OF DENNYSVILLE, BY P. E. VOSE, EsQ., 87
SPEECH OF WILLIAM H. KILBY, ESQ., OF BOSTON, 90
94
POEM, BY REV. A. J. RICH, FALL RIVER, MASS., . APPENDIX,
GENEALOGIES OF PRINCIPAL FAMILIES, ·
99
TAX-PAYERS, 1807, 114
LIST OF VOTERS, 1815,
115
1149146
CENTENNIAL COMMEMORATION
OF THE SETTLEMENT OF
DENNYSVILLE, MAINE,
MAY 17TH, 1886.
$3. 0 0
Jyson-
At the annual town meeting, held March 30th, 1885, the propriety of observing the one hundredth anniversary of the settlement of the town was presented, and the town voted to appoint as a committee to make the preliminary arrange- ments, and to report at the next annual town meeting, the following persons, viz., Benjamin Lincoln, T. W. Allan, S. L. Jones, Charles Whittier, Richard H. Dudley, Eben A. Wilder, Fred Gardner. Mr. Dudley having died before the close of the year, Alfred Kilby was, at a later meeting, added to the committee.
For the public exercises of centennial day, the committee selected the following persons: Hon. George F. Talbot, to give the general historical address ; P. E. Vose, Esq., to give the municipal history of the plantation and town, including the population and wealth at the several decades, its town officers, its part in the War of the Rebellion, and the gene- alogy of its older families; Rev. Charles Whittier to give a sketch of the moral, educational, and religious interests of the town; and Mrs. C. A. Woodbury to give a poem.
At the town meeting, held March 29th, 1886, the town approved the suggestions of the committee, and appropriated one hundred dollars for the expenses of the centennial, and instructed the committee to make further arrangements.
2
6
DENNYSVILLE CENTENNIAL.
The following circular letter was sent to all the absent sons and daughters of the town, and to all former residents, whose address could be obtained : -
1786. CENTENNIAL OF THE 1886.
SETTLEMENT OF DENNYSVILLE.
DEAR SIR : - On the 17th day of May, 1786, the first permanent settlement was made in this town. At the annual town meeting one year ago, the undersigned were chosen a committee to make the pre- liminary arrangements for the observance of the centennial on the 17th of May, 1886. At the town meeting held this week, the com- mittee reported that Geo. F. Talbot, of Portland, would give the historical address ; Rev. Charles Whittier, and Mr. P. E. Vose would give additional historical and genealogical sketches, and Mrs. C. A. Woodbury would contribute a poem, and that circulars would be sent out, inviting all natives and former residents of the town now living abroad, to return to the old town, and join us in observing our cele- bration. The report was accepted by the town, and further arrange- ments were made.
You are respectfully invited to be present and participate in the services of commemorating the first one hundred years of our history.
In behalf of the town, respectfully your friends,
BENJAMIN LINCOLN, T. W. ALLAN, S. L. JONES, CHARLES WHITTIER, EBEN A. WILDER, ALFRED KILBY, FREDERICK GARDNER,
Committee.
DENNYSVILLE, April 1, 1886.
EVENTS OF THE DAY.
The 17th of May dawned with a cloudless sky. The bells on the church, school-house, and vestry rung out their merry peals at sunrise. It had been proposed, if the day should be warm, to have the public exercises on the green, near the original landing. But on account of the rain of the
7
DENNYSVILLE CENTENNIAL.
previous day, and the cool air, it was decided to use the Congregational Church for that purpose. The town was decorated with flags. Sign-boards were put up, marking the landing, the site of the first school-house, the old road along the river, and the stump of an old tree that was felled in 1786.
The public services began at half-past ten in the morning, and the meeting-house, with extra seats in every availa- ble part, was filled to overflowing. Mr. Benjamin Lincoln was president of the day. Upon the platform were seated Messrs. Theophilus W. Allan, Samuel L. Jones, of Dennys- ville, E. C. Wilder and L. T. Reynolds, of Pembroke, and Mariner H. Wilder, of New York, elderly descendants of the original settlers. In the gallery was the Dennysville Cor- net Band, which, though only recently formed, added much to the interest of the occasion by the excellent and appro- priate music which they executed.
The opening prayer was made by Rev. Charles Whittier, pastor of the church. The historical address was then given by Hon. George F. Talbot. The poem by Mrs. Woodbury was read by Miss Lillie C. Vose, as Mrs. Woodbury was unable to be present.
The audience then adjourned for dinner. Many of the visitors were entertained at the homes of the citizens. Many others, who came from the surrounding towns, took their lunch at the town hall. Ample provision, including tea and coffee, had been made for the comfort of visitors.
The people assembled at two o'clock for the afternoon exercises. After music by the band, letters were read by Miss S. G. Lincoln, from absent natives of Dennysville, and. others who had been invited to witness the celebration.
The following telegram was sent to Mrs. Sarah L. Tink- ham, of Boston, the only one of Judge Lincoln's children
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DENNYSVILLE CENTENNIAL.
now living,* whose age and feeble health prevented her from being present: -
DENNYSVILLE, May 17, 1886. To Mrs. Sarah Lincoln Tinkham,
371 Marlboro St., Boston.
The people of Dennysville, met to celebrate the 100th anniversary of its settlement, send to the only surviving child of its honored founder, a message of sympathy and affection.
CENTENNIAL COMMITTEE.
Later in the day the following reply was received and read to the audience : -
BOSTON, May 17, 1886.
To the Centennial Committee, Dennysville:
Many thanks for the kind remembrance of me by the friends of my old home. My children join me in wishing a happy and pros- perous second century for Dennysville.
SARAH L. TINKHAM.
Mr. Whittier gave a historical sketch of the moral, religious, and educational interests of the town. Mr. P. E. Vose gave the municipal history of the town, its work in the War of the Rebellion, and the genealogy of the leading families. Mr. W. H. Kilby, of Boston, was called upon for a speech, and responded with brief remarks. An invitation was given to all to visit the old Lincoln mansion, built in 1787. The exercises of the afternoon closed by singing Auld Lang Syne, and the benediction.
In the evening there was an informal social gathering at the town hall. A poem of one hundred lines, written for the occasion, by Rev. A. J. Rich, of Fall River, Massachu- setts, was read by Mr. Whittier. Speeches were made by George Eastman, George F. Talbot, A. N. Davis, of Milford, Massachusetts, W. W. Mclaughlin, Dr. A. R. Lincoln,
* Mrs. Tinkham died at her home in Boston, July 23d, 1886, at the age of 79 years.
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DENNYSVILLE CENTENNIAL.
Thomas Robinson, Dr. J. P. Sheahan, W. R. Allan, N. S. Allan, and Mr. Whittier. These speeches contained many incidents, reminiscences, congratulations, personal tributes, etc., etc. Mr. Benjamin Lincoln, who presided, added much to the interest of this meeting by the felicitous manner in which he introduced the speakers, and by the contributions which he gave to the unwritten history of the town. At a late hour the Doxology was sung and the benediction given.
The Committee of Arrangements had provided for an exhibition of centennial relics at the vestry, and invited the people to loan for the day any articles of interest which they might have, and were surprised at the large and valuable collection which was sent to them in response to their invitation. Among the many relics and curiosities, the more noteworthy are named in the following list: -
A sword presented to General Lincoln by General Washington.
The service sword worn by General Lincoln in the War of the Revolution.
General Lincoln's certificate of membership in the Society of the Cinnati, signed by General Washington as President, and by General Knox as Secretary of the society.
The pink satin slippers worn by Mrs. General Lincoln at her wed_ ding in 1755.
General Lincoln's watch and snuff-box.
The certificate of the publishment, and also of the marriage of Theodore Lincoln and Hannah Mayhew, in 1799.
Portraits of General Lincoln and wife, and of Judge Lincoln and wife, and of Samuel Jones, the father of B. R. Jones.
A musket taken from the British at the surrender of Burgoyne at Saratoga.
The powder-horn carried by Sergeant Isaac Hobart at the siege of Louisburg, in 1745.
A flax wheel over one hundred and fifty years old.
A brass candlestick over two hundred years old, once the property of Rev. Thomas Thatcher, first pastor of old South Church, Boston.
10
DENNYSVILLE CENTENNIAL.
Account book of Colonel Allan, in which is found the sale of a gallon of rum to the traitor, Benedict Arnold.
A copy of the first edition of Watts's Psalms.
Judge Lincoln's first account book.
Benjamin R. Jones's chart of Passamaquoddy, published in 1810. Ancient laces from the Allan family.
A looking-glass brought away by David Copp at the evacuation of Boston by the British.
A toll measure made in 1792, by Isaiah Hersey, for his son-in-law,
Isaac Hobart, and used by him for many years in the grist-mill at Little Falls.
Also warming-pans, andirons, foot-stove, tin kitchen, ancient crockery, glass, and silver, etc., etc.
Thus ended Dennysville's first centennial. It need hardly be added that the day afforded rare enjoyment, pleasure, and profit to both young and old. The occasion brought vividly to mind many things of sad and pathetic interest. It also awakened gratitude and pride for the good and noble record which the review of the century revealed. It is hoped that this Centennial History, so rich and instructive in fact and incident, in story and song, respecting the fathers and moth- ers of the first century, may help to guide those who are called to do the work of making the history of Dennysville's second century.
CHARLES WHITTIER, In behalf of Com. of Arrangements.
The following are some of the letters received from those who were unable to be present.
FROM REV. J. H. STEARNS.
EPPING, N. H., May 9, 1886.
Messrs. Benj. Lincoln and others, Committee, etc .:
DEAR SIRS: - The copy of your circular should have had an earlier answer, could I have spoken as I would in respect to probabilities of my being able to go or not. Duties here now evidently forbid.
11
DENNYSVILLE CENTENNIAL.
The first thirteen years of my labors in the Gospel ministry were in Dennysville, from the autumn of 1843 to June, 1857, with a friendly, harmonious, enterprising people. There I witnessed the growth of the church, congregation, and Sabbath-school.
A bell was put in the tower of the church edifice, and other mate- rial improvements were made.
There I witnessed improvements in educational privileges. Wise men opened an academy, which did a good work for several years, till it was rendered unnecessary by the erection of a commodious building for graded schools.
It was my privilege to be a member of the school committee dur- ing my entire stay there; and I am happy to say that the work was rendered pleasant by the united interest of the people generally, as well as by agreeable, capable colleagues.
The early settlers of that town were men and women of marked nobility of character, and their children bore pleasing marks of the same, in respect to religion, morals, and business enterprise, render- ing the town a desirable place for a home.
I was once a member of a National Council of Congregational churches held in Boston, when a delegate from Paris, France, began a speech by saying, -" If I was anywhere else, I would wish I was in Boston." Though I must be in Boston on the seventeenth, I am sure I shall wish I was in Dennysville -to listen to the histor- ical address and the remarks of other appointed speakers -to look into the faces of former residents, and greet the present happy inhabitants.
I hope to see a copy of the published doings of the day.
Your friend, very truly, J. H. STEARNS.
FROM VICTOR AUDUBON WILDER.
NEW YORK, May 10, 1886.
Gentlemen of the Committee and Fellow Townsmen:
I regret most sincerely that your invitation to attend the ceremo- nies commemorative of the Centennial of Dennysville reaches me at a time when circumstances preclude my participation in the ex- change of the amenities of so interesting an occasion.
I cannot, however, refrain from greeting you through the only me- dium at my command, and I embrace the opportunity to express to
12
DENNYSVILLE CENTENNIAL. 1
you my warmest sentiments of devotion to the place of my childhood.
I shall always experience a sense of regret that I am debarred par- ticipation in your commemoration of an event so full of interest to us all, - and I salute you in the fraternity of the memories - peace- ful and pleasant - as well as heroic and historic - that will be awak- ened as you recount the events of the life of the beautiful village that has sent so many of her sons into the great world's stream of human endeavor, to do her honor.
I remain, very sincerely yours,
V. A. WILDER.
FROM HON. WILLIAM W. RICE, OF MASSACHUSETTS.
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, WASHINGTON, D. C., May 5, 1886.
MY DEAR MR. LINCOLN: - I have your circular of invitation to the Dennysville Centennial.
I thank you for remembering me as a former resident of the town.
It is now forty years ago that I was there less than three months, but the events of those three months are among the most deeply graven on my memory.
I would be very glad to look in upon you at the celebration, but of course it will be impossible.
Please remember me to those still living, who knew me once, and accept for yourself my most kind regards.
W. W. RICE.
FROM JUDGE JOHN A. WATERMAN.
GORHAM, ME., May 14, 1886.
DEAR FRIENDS: - I thank you for your courteous invitation to attend your Centennial celebration, which I most heartily wish I could accept.
My recollections of Dennysville and its warm-hearted and hospit- able people are very fresh and very pleasant.
Many years have passed away since I lived there for a little while, but I assure you I have not failed to revisit it in my dreams; and even now, when I speak in my family of having had a very pleasant dream, the standing question is, -" Was it about Dennysville ?"
13
DENNYSVILLE CENTENNIAL.
Wishing you great success in your celebration, and that it may be an occasion to be remembered with pleasure and pride by all who participate in it, I am,
Very sincerely yours, JOHN A. WATERMAN.
Messrs. Rice and Waterman were principals of Dennys- ville Academy.
FROM CHARLES W. PORTER, ESQ., FORMERLY OF MACHIAS.
HUDSON, WIS., May 8, 1886.
GENTLEMEN: - Thanks for the kind thoughtfulness that sends me an invitation to your Centennial celebration.
Though not a native of Dennysville, I have an inherited interest in the village, as the home of near and dear friends of my ancestors, as well as of warm friends of my own.
From the days when Gen. Benjamin Lincoln of Hingham, and William Cooper of Boston, counseled together on the Colonial " Com- mittee of Safety," down to the fifth generation of their descendants, there has been a bond of friendship between the families that has never failed or weakened.
And the beautiful village, that nestles so peacefully along the banks of its sparkling river, has always had a peculiar charm for me, - not only for its lovely situation, and air of homelike comfort and cheer - but for the sterling worth and practical common sense of its inhabitants.
Little affected by periodical seasons of booming speculation and sickly depression, such as have marked the history of so many of our eastern - as well as western -towns, Dennysville has grown slowly and surely in its own quiet, thrifty way; not so quiet but it has always been one of the most influential towns in the county; not so thrifty but that at the call of the country's need its best and noblest sons have been ready to drop the tools of peace for the abhorred arms of war, and offer their lives to perpetuate the union, and to free the slave.
That your festival may be as successful as the anniversary is inter- esting, and that it. may prove but a waymark in continued progress in all that makes a prosperous and happy village, is the prayer of
Yours, very truly,
CHAS. W. PORTER.
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DENNYSVILLE CENTENNIAL.
FROM THE CHILDREN OF DR. A. R. LINCOLN.
FERGUS FALLS, MINN., May 10, 1886.
DEAR SIRS AND KIND FRIENDS: - We acknowledge with pleas- ure the receipt of your kind invitation to attend the exercises of the Centennial of the settlement of our native and adopted town.
In reply, can only say, that while with you in heart and warmest friendship on that happy day and auspicious occasion, we can only regret that an allwise Providence has withheld from us the pleasure of sharing, in bodily presence, the festivities of the hour.
We join with you in congratulations and kindly greetings of the day, as well as in the hope that as Dennysville enters upon the sec- ond century of her existence in such a prosperous condition, she may go on increasing - materially, socially, and spiritually.
May her sons and daughters ever cherish, as we, a warm spot in the heart, filled with pleasant memories and loving thoughts of the dear old home in the Pine Tree State, and the beautiful town of Dennysville.
With kind regards, Your friends, BERTIE L. FOSTER, LIZZIE M. ELKINS, AUGUSTUS J. ELKINS.
FROM HON. D. K. HOBART, U. S. CONSUL, WINDSOR, N. S.
BANGOR, ME., May 17, 1886. Telegram.
Benj. Lincoln, and others of Centennial Committee:
Accept thanks for kind invitation, and regrets for non-attendance.
May the prosperity of the good old town continually increase for all coming centuries.
D. K. HOBART.
FROM MR. E. B. KILBY.
WASHINGTON, D. C., April 23, 1886.
To the Centennial Committee, Gentlemen:
It would give me great pleasure to be with you on the 17th of May next, not only to witness the celebration, but to meet my old friends and relatives.
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DENNYSVILLE CENTENNIAL.
It will be impossible for me to leave at the time mentioned. May success attend the occasion.
Yours respectfully, E. B. KILBY.
FROM THE WIFE OF REV. A. J. RICH, FORMERLY
HARRIET L. ALLAN.
FALL RIVER, May 5, 1886.
To the Chairman of Centennial Committee:
Your circular was received in due time, and should have been answered immediately, but I have delayed, hoping to decide to be present on that interesting occasion. I regret that it seems hardly practicable. It will certainly be a day of interest to all who partici- pate in the services; and the thoughts of many others, with memo- ries both sad and joyous, will center in Dennysville on that day.
Wishing you in every respect a pleasant and successful time,
I remain as ever, Yours truly, HARRIET L. RICH.
FROM MR. ALDEN KILBY.
NEWTONVILLE, MASS., May 1, 1886.
GENTLEMEN: - Pleasant memories of the old town and home make me regret that I cannot be present and take part in the cele- bration. That it may be a successful and pleasant occasion, is my sincere wish.
Your friend and townsman, ALDEN KILBY.
FROM MR. S. T. WHITTIER.
LOWELL, MASS., April 29, 1886.
Benjamin Lincoln, Esq., Chairman Centennial Committee:
DEAR SIR: - Your invitation is at hand, and it is with much re- gret that I must say in reply, that owing to the demands of business, I fear it will be impossible for me to be present at the Centennial celebration of the town.
I assure you that nothing would give me greater pleasure than to be present on that occasion, and assist by tooting a horn, or in any other manner, were it possible.
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DENNYSVILLE CENTENNIAL.
I continue to feel as much interest in the old town as though I still resided there; and I am sure no other place can ever seem as much like home to me.
I am confident that in most respects Dennysville has no equal - surely not in the character of its inhabitants; and I am always proud to claim it as my native place.
Hoping that you will have a rousing celebration, that will do credit to the town,
I remain, with best wishes for the welfare of the town,
Yours, very sincerely, STEPHEN T. WHITTIER.
FROM MRS. SPAULDING, FORMERLY MISS ABBY T. STEARNS. EPPING, N. H., May 7, 1886.
Gentlemen of the Centennial Committee:
DEAR FRIENDS: - It is with sincere regret that I am compelled to decline the invitation to your celebration. I am always ready to acknowledge that your lovely town has a charm for me which no other place contains; and so I may subscribe myself a loving and loyal native of Dennysville, and your sincere well-wisher.
ABBY T. SPAULDING.
MEMORIAL ADDRESS
AT THE COMMEMORATION OF THE 100TH ANNIVERSARY
OF THE
SETTLEMENT OF DENNYSVILLE, ME.
MAY 17TH, 1886.
BY GEORGE F. TALBOT.
A CENTURY is a long period in the life of an individual; it is only equivalent to a year in the longer life of a community; and we meet here today to commemorate the first birthday of this little town. In the brevity of all our personal experiences, in the pitiful results which our toils and studies achieve of personal happiness or personal good, it is salutary and reassuring to transfer our interest to the larger life of our State, our country, our race, and to become aware that, though we as men grow old and die, the nation lives on, practi- cally immortal, and our good work, if we do any, our worthy char- acters, if we have builded such, are perpetuated in the institutions, laws, customs, modes of thinking, and moral traits of our posterity, in a scheme, wherein good things tend to survive, and evil things to perish.
So while with gratitude and respect we remember the pioneers, who a hundred years ago came to seek in this wilderness new homes for hard-working and God-fearing men, who with their worthy suc- cessors have smoothed these stumpy slopes into fertile meadows, who have laid out and kept in repair these splendid roads that connect their homesteads with each other and with the outside world, who have built these pleasant dwellings, filled with the comforts and - many of the luxuries of modern life, who have generously devoted, from carefully saved incomes, liberal donations for the school-house and the church, and who have maintained in the community the
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DENNYSVILLE CENTENNIAL.
practice of honest dealing, of domestic fidelity, of temperance, and of all the sterling virtues of a Puritan ancestry; we will not allow ourselves to be saddened by the thought that they are not here to participate in our commemoration. In a sense they are here. Their venerable forms move grandly across the silent fields their toil had plowed. The tinkle and swish of the river as it breaks over rocks in its flow, mingled with the sough of the pines that hang their dark plumes above it, and the deep bass of the waters that plunge over the mill-dam -do they sound in our ears alone, and not charm still the souls that once lived upon those banks, and loved them so well ? Whatever voices of men and women and glad children float out of open windows upon the summer air, do we not in our minds and memories hear among them the tones of those gone from us, whose presence will forever haunt and make sacred these places where they once lived ?
How can we better entertain this goodly company of our ancestors here with us in spirit, than by recounting the simple story of their work. Here is the town, theirs as well as yours, which they founded for you, and which you have built upon, and will yet build, till chil- dren and grandchildren gather again to celebrate and honor you. It is no great Babylon, certainly, to boast over, and so we shall not in- cur the punishment that fell upon the proud Assyrian king for his presumption. Dennysville has not grown fast and furious, like a town in Minnesota or Kansas, which have been reclaimed from the savages, and peopled each with more than a million of inhabitants, since our frontier eastern village got its full growth. It has not progressed in wealth and numbers like a Connecticut or Massachu- setts manufacturing village, into which promiscuous labor, speaking all languages, has rushed, to introduce guilds, orders, and strikes, with all their tyranny, to change old manners for the worse, and to blot out all individuality of character in the creation of a cheap and common type. We know that the whole trend of emigration as of empire is westward, and that the easily plowed fertile prairies of Iowa and Nebraska offer terms of income to the laborer far easier than do the rocky soil, the rugged woods, and the late springs of Eastern Maine. What wonder that with the knowledge of the re- sources of all the country, which education and correspondence give, the feet of ambitious young men turn so readily toward the setting sun!
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