USA > Maine > Knox County > Warren > Annals of the town of Warren; with the Early History of St. George's, Broad Bay and the Neighboring Settlements on the Waldo patent > Part 29
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following, by Bishop Cheverus, probably the first Catholic sermon ever heard in the place. In May, 1806, Barnabas Simmons, of Union, was killed, near Bradbury Boggs's, by a cart wheel passing over his head.
In the autumn of the same year, the community were called to mourn the death of Gen. Henry Knox, a hero of the Revolution, the companion of Washington, the first Secretary of War under the Federal Constitution, the pro- prietor of the Waldo patent, the liberal promoter of every laudable enterprize, and the generous contributor to the prosperity of this and the neighboring towns. He died Oct. 25th, at the age of fifty-six. On the 28th, his funeral was celebrated with military honors, a eulogy pronounced by the Hon. S. Thatcher, and a large procession accompanied his remains to the tomb, prepared beneath the favorite oak, where he, in his contemplative moods, loved to linger while living.
CHAPTER XVI.
FROM 1807 TO 1812; A PERIOD OF COMMERCIAL EMBARRASSMENT AND PARTY ASPERITY, TERMINATING IN THE WAR WITH ENGLAND.
1807 to 1812. We now enter upon a period as remarka- ble for the embarrassments and depression of commerce, as the preceding had been for its prosperity. The hostilities between England and France, so fiercely waged, created in those nations a jealousy of this country, which was reaping so liberal a harvest from their necessities ; and each, in turn, accused us of favoring her antagonist. Many perplexing questions grew out of this state of things ; and the various decrees and orders issued by the belligerent powers, fell heavily upon neutral commerce, and rendered it difficult for American vessels to sail to any part of the world without being exposed to capture on one side or the other. Many were taken ; and among them the brig Sumner, Capt. A. Malcolm, belonging to Col. Head of this town, which, in 1811, was sunk with a cargo of wheat bound to Spain. The government of this country vainly remonstrated against these acts of aggression, prohibited the importation of various British manufactures, and, as early as Dec. 22, 1807, im-
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posed an embargo of indefinite duration upon all American vessels. This last measure completely prostrated the com- merce of the country, and was viewed by the mercantile community as a greater injury than any inflicted by the con- tending nations abroad. Vessels were confined in port ; seamen were thrown out of employment; lumber found no sale; timber designed for exportation remained upon the shores, landings, or in the holds of vessels ; and a general embarrassment and stagnation of business ensued .. The only resource of merchants, was, to keep their vessels which were already abroad, from returning ; and some even ven- tured to get them abroad in violation of the embargo. The conduct of the administration was severely censured by the federal party, who believed that strict impartiality and a seasonable resistance to the pretensions of France, would have rendered easy the settlement of all difficulties with England ; and they imputed to a secret partiality for France, and to a jealousy in the south of the prosperity of the north- ern States, a measure, which, under the pretence of arresting foreign aggressions, only injured ourselves. The other party on the contrary, justified the measure as a means of co- ercing England into an abandonment of her pretensions, by depriving her of the supply of provisions, which, it was alleged, she could obtain only from this country. It was advocated, also, as a means of encouraging domestic, manu- factures, rendering us independent of England, and destroy- ing the influence which she exercised by the credit she afforded our merchants. To this influence, they imputed the opposition of the federalists, and were liberal in bestow- ing upon them the epithets of " British partizans," " British merchants," " tories and royalists." Party spirit acquired a new virulence ; the community was thrown into a ferment ; meetings were held, resolutions and petitions adopted, and other measures expressive of the public feeling, resorted to.
The people of this town shared in the common distress, and partook of the general indignation. On the 3d of Sept. 1808, at a meeting called for the purpose, a petition was adopted, requesting the President to remove the embargo, or in case of any doubt as to his authority to do so, to convoke Congress immediately, for that purpose. On the 23d of Jan. following, the town petitioned the State Legislature, to adopt some measures for the relief of the embarrassed state of the country. On the committee who drafted this petition, we find the name of M. Smith, Esq., who was considered as belonging to the democratic party ; but such was the public 24*
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indignation at the time, that nothing was more common than to find the more moderate adherents of that party, uniting with the other in opposition to the odious measure. Others, again, increased in asperity with the increasing distress, and became extremely sensitive on political subjects, and prone to imagine some disrespectful allusion in every remark. The Rev. Mr. Huse, in his Fast day sermon, April 7th, 1808, in discoursing upon " the cause that the former days were bet- ter than these," expressed himself with his usual caution ; but his language proved so offensive to one of his warmest adherents, that he more than once rose to leave the house, and declared his intention of never hearing him again.
The embargo producing no effect on the powers at war, Congress, March 1st, 1809, substituted for it an act of non- intercourse, between this country and the ports of France and England. This gave a partial relief, by opening the coasting trade, and, likewise, some of that to foreign coun- tries ; but the British continued to impress our seamen ; the French condemned our vessels ; and party animosity prevail- ed in this country, till Mr. Jefferson was, in 1809, succeeded by Mr. Madison, as president.
James Sullivan, who had been twice elected Governor by the democratic party, died Dec. 10, 1808. Among the salu- tary measures of his administration, the most important to the people of this region, was the betterment act ; by which, when a person was ejected from lands of which he had been in possession six years, a jury might be called upon to esti- mate the value of the improvements he had made upon the same, and the value of the land in case no such improve- ments had been made ; and the proprietor had his option to abandon the land to the tenant, at the price fixed by the jury, or, retaining the land, to pay the tenant the value of his im- provements. This measure was rendered necessary by the unhappy system that had prevailed, of settling on lands with- out a title, trusting to the promise, express or implied, that deeds should be given on the performance of certain condi- tions. Great inconvenience was also felt, in many places, particularly on the Pemaquid patent, from the conflicting claims of different proprietors ; and many in that region, after paying for their lands several times, to one claimant after another, determined to resist all demands of the kind, and formed combinations to frustrate any attempt to survey the lands or execute any process for their recovery. Col. Thatcher, attorney to one of these claimants, having, accord -. ing to the statute then in force, moved the Court to order a
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detachment of militia for the purpose of enforcing the sur- vey, was himself ordered to detail the requisite number from his regiment, and afford the assistance demanded. The whole number called for, was 500, who were drafted from the several companies in the fall of 1810. The quota of the eastern company in Warren was 1 ensign, 1 sergeant, and 18 privates ; and the draft was made Oct. 20th. A strong sympathy for the settlers was felt in various quarters ; and some doubts were entertained as to the part the militia would act when called out to perform this service. By the timely interference of the Governor, however, all action was post- poned, and the subject referred to the Legislature, which, by the aid of commissioners, in 1811 and '12, succeeded in quieting the settlers, and making a compromise with the pro- prietors.
The betterment act was rendered very acceptable to many inhabitants of this town ; inasmuch as Samuel Parkman, Esq. of Boston, to whom Knox had mortgaged his proprietary rights, had now come into possession, and was looking up his claims with all the astuteness of a money-lender. Suits were brought by him for the recovery, among others, of lands which had been sold for the payment of taxes ; and some of the purchasers compounded with him on the best terms they could get. Others combined to try the effect of a lawsuit ; and the case of Lore Alford was prosecuted to a final decision. While this suit was pending, the town, May 16th, 1812, petitioned the Legislature to confirm the doings of the assessors and constables of said town in relation to the assessment of taxes and the sale of lands for non- pay- ment of the same, prior to 1786. Without a direct refusal, the Legislature delayed acting upon this petition till too late to affect the impending suit, when it was abandoned. The suit was decided in favor of the proprietor against the settler ; less from any irregularity in the proceedings of the town au- thorities, than from want of evidence on the part of the defendant to substantiate their regularity, copies of the assessors' and constable's doings not having been duly pre- served.
It was during Sullivan's administration, also, that an attempt was made to procure by impeachment, or address of the Leg- islature, the removal of Moses Copeland, Esq. from his office of a justice of the peace and the quorum. A petition for that purpose, signed by George Wellington of Union, and others, influenced probably by a mixture of personal and party con- siderations, was presented at the June session, 1807, charging
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that magistrate with official misconduct. The petitioners so far prevailed upon the House of Representatives, that, on the 15th of June, it adopted an address to the Governor, pray- ing him to remove said Copeland from office. This address not being agreed to by the Senate, on the 20th of the same month, the House sent up to that body, articles of impeach- ment against said Moses Copeland, charging him, 1st, with bringing, in the name of Samuel Kingsbury of Balltown, a fictitious endorsee, an action to recover a note which Samuel Kelloch sold to the said Copeland and endorsed in blank, and thereupon entering judgment, when in fact the said note was the property of said Copeland ; 2d, with entering a default on two processes issued against Wm. Peabody and John Kieff before the time therein appointed for trial, and refusing to take off the same when the defendants appeared and request- ed it ; and 3d, with receiving from Daniel Randall $1,50 as a bribe to bias his judgment in favor of said Randall, in an action depending between him, as defendant, and Benjamin Hastings, plaintiff. Upon these articles, Mr. Copeland was put on trial before the Senate in January, 1808, and was ulti- mately acquitted. The cost of this affair to the State, was $171,75. Mr. Copeland, having thus at some expense and vexation got rid of this affair, on his return commenced a suit for defamation against the petitioners. The action was con- tinued from term to term, and when it finally came to trial, the jury not being able to agree on a verdict, the parties mutually consented to drop the matter, paying their own costs.
During this period, the old question of dividing the Com- monwealth and erecting Maine into a separate State, was again agitated ; and on the 6th April, 1807, the town gave a unanimous vote of 161 against the measure.
In 1809, C. Gore was chosen Governor, and the State gov- ernment was again in the hands of the federalists. In 1810, E. Gerry, the democratic candidate, was chosen Governor. The following year, 1811, both branches of the Legislature were of the same party ; and political exasperation reached its acme. In that year, courts were re-organized, a new State bank incorporated with a capital of $10,000,000, a re- newal of the charters of existing banks refused, and the then novel scheme adopted of forming Senatorial districts in arbi- trary and grotesque forms, for which the name Gerrymander was then first invented. But a re-action followed ; Gov. Strong was elected in 1812; and most of these measures were either abolished or counteracted. Among the subscri-
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bers for the stock of the State bank were H. Libbey, W. Lermond, E. Buxton, and perhaps others, of this town.
Among the semi-political measures resorted to in 1811, was a strong effort made by sundry persons in Thomaston and Camden, for the repeal of the law providing a general inspec- tor of lime for the towns of Warren, Thomaston, and Cam- den, on the ground that the office was a sinecure, and imposed a needless burden on the manufacturers. Capt. Ebenezer Thatcher, who then filled the office of inspector, and derived a handsome income from it, spared no pains to prevent its abolition. E. Buxton and 102 others of this town, signed a remonstrance against its repeal. Other remonstrances from lime-burners in Thomaston, and the masters of coasting ves- sels, were presented ; and a compromise was at last effected by a relinquishment on the part of the inspector, of one half his fees.
Another of these measures was a petition sent to the Legislature from sundry inhabitants of Cushing and St. George, praying for a repeal of the law, giving to the town of Warren the exclusive right of taking the shad and ale- wives within its limits. But in consequence of an error of the press in the order of notice, the whole matter was re- ferred to the next Legislature ; and, partly perhaps from the political change which that body underwent in 1812, no strenuous effort was made in support of the petition ; and the matter was dismissed. The fishery had been for some years unusually productive, and was regarded by the town as a matter of great importance.
The wolves having, of late, been on the increase and become troublesome, particularly in the woody tract between this town, Waldoboro', and Cushing, the selectmen were, in March, 1808, appointed a committee to concert with the neighboring towns for their destruction. A plan was adopted in consequence, and a sufficient force raised to sweep the whole tract, who marched within hailing distance of each other, from Warren down to the extremity of Friendship; where a few wolves were seen and shot at, but none killed. One was shortly after caught in a trap by J. Anderson ; and they were so harrassed during the winter as to quit the premises, and not appear again in that quarter till 1815.
The threatening aspect of our foreign relations at this time, having led to a more vigilant inspection of the military stores which towns were obliged to keep, and a complaint having been made against this town for a deficiency of pow- der, E. Thatcher, Esq., was, in Nov. 1810, appointed agent
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to answer to it. This gentleman, brother of S. Thatcher, after residing a few years in Thomaston and marrying a daughter of Gen Knox, removed to Warren, about 1807, and occupied, for several years, the Knox house at the upper falls. From the office of Capt. of the Artillery, he rose to that of Brig. General, and was subsequently appoint- ed a Judge of the Court of Common Pleas. He removed again to Thomaston, and after some years to Somerset County.
Among other names first appearing during this period, are those of Silas Hoar, who was chosen sexton in 1807; John Thomas, who built and settled on the farm near Rokes's, which he afterwards sold to J. Vinal ; John Harrington, who settled the farm now owned by Patrick Mehan ; Josiah Max- ey, who came from Union, and Rufus Russel from Waldo- boro', the first settlers near Mt. Pleasant ; Daniel Vaughan from Carver, who succeeded I. Davis, on the farm now own- ed by Robert Creighton ; Wm. Lamson, who married the widow, and took the farm, of Charles Sidensberger ; Wm. Watton, who lived some years on one of the lots sold for the support of schools, and then returned to Friendship ; Jonathan G. Benson, who lived some years in the S. W. part of the town, and removed to Hebron ; Samuel French, who settled and still lives on a part of the Hall farm ; Matthias Isley, a sea-captain in the coasting and foreign trade, who removed from Thomaston to the house built by L. Andrews, and long known as the ' Isley house,' where he kept tavern some years, and absconded ; Seth Lawrence, a stone-cutter from Mass., who lived in a small house, not now standing, near Dr. Ken- nedy's ; Robert C. Starr, who worked at the joiner's trade, taught singing-school, built the house subsequently owned by P. Coburn, was ordained as an evangelist by the Warren Bap- tist church in 1816, and has been a preacher of that denom- ination in Friendship, Woolwich and other places ; Theodore Wilson, a cabinet-maker, who built the house afterwards own- ed by T. Hodgman, and still remains at the village ; Stephen C. Burgess, who succeeded Mr. Gates in the saddler's business, afterwards engaged in trade, built the house now owned by Dea. Starrett, was Captain in the militia, and from 1830 to 1845, held the office of town clerk ; and John Miller, who, in 1811, opened a tavern in partnership with Seth Bryant, at the house built by Col. Thatcher and now owned by S. B. Wetherbee. Bryant did not long remain in town ; but Miller, besides his trade as a joiner, engaged in merchandise, com- menced the tanning business in company with Col. Thatcher
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on the east side of the river above the bridge, built the dwel- linghouse now occupied by his son, A. Miller, has been deacon of the Baptist church, filled various offices in town and coun- ty, and is still in active life. Wm. Mclellan came from Thomaston in 1811 ; opened a stock of goods in the Bracket & Davis store ; purchased the estate of R. Crane, who built and removed to the present Seiders house ; acquired an ex- tensive run of business by giving credit during the war that ensued, when it was withheld by most of the other traders ; engaged in ship-building at a fortunate time after the war; amassed wealth ; was twice chosen a member of the State Senate ; and, for the want of sufficient scope for his large capital here, in 1837 removed to Boston ; but in consequence of entering into the land speculations of that period, and the extraordinary revulsion which followed, became embarrassed and soon returned to this town. From the difficulty experienc- ed in settling his affairs, his health declined, his mind became disordered, and he ended his days in the Asylum at Augusta, in 1842. About 1812, Simeon and Daniel P. Noyce, Warren Knowlton, Allen Young, and Job Caswell, all from the town of Minot, took up their lots and settled on the road east of Crawford's Pond. The three first afterwards left the town.
Notwithstanding the embarrassments of commerce and the asperity of parties, some progress was made, during the period embraced in this chapter, in the cause of education, and other improvements. Warren Academy was incorporated February 25th, 1808, a fund having been raised by subscrip- tion to the amount of $3680, and half a township of land granted by the Legislature. It was opened for instruction on the 9th of October, 1809, by Elijah Morse of Medway, a popular and efficient preceptor, who on the occasion delivered a public address at the meeting-house. Mr. Morse first introduced Walker's pronunciation here. Prior to that time Perry's dictionary had been mostly used in schools, and, being considered a standard, had done much to deteriorate the old English pronunciation. The school was first taught, for a short time, in Col. Thatcher's, now S. B. Wetherbee's, hall, and afterwards in the upper story of the Court-House ; but in 1829 the present structure of brick was erected near the Baptist meeting-house. The half township of land was advantageously sold ; but some losses have been sustained by insolvency, negligence, and the statute of limitation. In 1828, before the Academy building was erected, the nominal amount of funds in real and personal estate was $6010,41,
er
it 3.
0
-
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of which, in the judgment of the trustees, $1000 was una- vailable. The funds now produce an annual income of $125. The average number of students, at present, does not exceed 30; as, from the establishment of similar schools in the neighborhood, a much fewer number than formerly are sent here from other towns. The following is a list of the precep- tors in this institution from its commencement to the present time. Elijah Morse, 1809-'10 ; Josiah J. Fiske, 1811 ; Arnold Gray, 1812; Amos Whiting, 1813-'14 ; Benjamin Dudley Emerson, 1815 ; Chandler Robbins, 1816 ; John S. Tenney, 1817 ; Phinehas Pratt, 1818; George Starrett, from Septem- ber, 1818, to December, 1821 ; Daniel Clarke, 1822 ; Otis L. Bridges, 1823; Hiram H. Hobbs, 1824; William Henry Codman, 1825; Hezekiah Packard, 1825-'6; Nat'l Haynes, 1826 ; Jonathan Cilley, 1826 ; William Tyng Hilliard, 1827 ; James T. Leavitt, from September, 1827, to August, 1839 ; A. Rogers Green, 1830 ; Cyrus Eaton, from December, 1830, to April, 1843 ; Calvin Bickford, from 1843 to 1846 ; Donatus Merrill, 1847 ; and C. Bickford again, from 1848 .*
A new impulse was also given, at this period, to the culti- vation of sacred music, by the example and instruction of Mr. Starr.
During the commercial difficulties of the time and the war that ensued, attention began to be turned to improve- ments in agriculture and manufactures. Lands from which the timber and wood had been cut, were now cleared up for grain and grass ; and the valuation of 1810 exhibits in the quantity of wheat raised in the town, an increase nearly four fold since that of 1800. The raising of apples began to be more attended to ; several young orchards were just coming into bearing ; and many more were planted about this time. A tree possessed by Dr. Buxton, called by him " the Demo- crat," remarkably hardy and prolific, was, in the unpropitious seasons that followed, extensively propagated by suckers, which, since the disuse of cider, have been grafted with fruit of a superior quality. Merino sheep were introduced by Capt. Toby, who brought a number from Cadiz in one of Mr. Cobb's vessels, and by Col. Thatcher, Mr. Paine, and others. These, by crossing with the native breeds, greatly improved the quality of wool. With the sheep, however, was imported a contagious disease called " the scab," which spread from flock to flock, greatly injuring the fleece as well as sheep.
Rec. of Warren Academy. S. E. Smith, Esq.
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From absolute inability to purchase foreign fabrics, domestic manufactures of wool and cotton were prosecuted with new skill and industry. The high price of cloth, wool, grain, and other agricultural products, together with the disuse of many of their wonted comforts, enabled the farmers gradual- ly to reduce their indebtedness to the merchants ; and many who were unable to do so, sold their farms and purchased cheaper ones farther in the interior. Great hardship was endured by the poorer class of laborers and mariners, who were deprived of employment, and at the same time compelled to give a high price for every article of consump- tion, foreign or domestic. In 1811 and '12, retail prices were as follows; flour, $11 per barrel; corn, $1.17 to $1,28; coffee, 20cts. per lb. ; tea, 75cts. to $1,33 ; brown sugar, ls. ; pearlash, 25cts. ; starch, 50cts. ; ginger, 33cts. ; raisins, 37cts. ; boots $7 a pair; and calico and American gingham, 42cts. per yard. In consequence of these high prices, substitutes were found for many articles of consump- tion. Coffee was made of pease, rye, or acorns ; pumpkins supplied the place of sugar, potatoes that of bread; and chocolate was made from the root of the Water Avens. The hardship of the times was aggravated by political bickering and ill-nature. On one occasion, Mr. Paine, applying to the town of Thomaston for approbation to obtain a permit to import corn from the Southern States, was refused, and re- taliated in his turn, by refusing to sell that article to any inhabitant of that town. Ship-building declined with the decline of commerce ; but among the few vessels built in this period, was the ship Gen. Knox, owned by J. Paine, which was launched at Robinson's shore, by Thomas Spear, Sept. 15, 1810, being the second ship built in town. The multiplication of pleasure carriages going on at the com- mencement of this period, was checked by the hardness of the times ; but a substitute was found in the one horse wagons, first introduced to this town by Wm. H. Webb. Though heavy at first and clumsily made, their convenience gradually brought them into general use.
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