USA > Maine > Knox County > South Thomaston > History of Thomaston, Rockland, and South Thomaston, Maine, from their first exploration, A. D. 1605; with family genealogies, Vol. I > Part 41
USA > Maine > Knox County > Rockland > History of Thomaston, Rockland, and South Thomaston, Maine, from their first exploration, A. D. 1605; with family genealogies, Vol. I > Part 41
USA > Maine > Knox County > South Thomaston > History of Thomaston, Rockland, and South Thomaston, Maine, from their first exploration, A. D. 1605; with family genealogies, Vol. I > Part 41
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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
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384
HISTORY OF THOMASTON,
CHAPTER XX.
EVENTS OF 1657 AND 1888, DEATH OF CILLEY, &C.
1837. AFTER the division before. related, the remaining 59 members of the church worshipping in the old Mill River house, were, Dec. 10, 1836, constituted a new church by the name of the First Baptist Church in West Thomaston, - amended in 1848 by dropping the word west. Comparatively poor and depressed in spirit, they settled no minister till Nov. 19, 1837, when Rev. Daniel Bartlett, last from Dexter, ac- cepted a salary of $400, and remained with them one year, their numbers being increased to 75. In 1839, Nov. 6th, Rev. Daniel Small from Bradford was ordained, and in 1842 there was quite a revival, -meetings being held almost every evening from Dec., 1841 to May, 1842 , resulting in the ad- dition of 50 members to the church. But, from the gradual removal of business from Mill River and the deaths of Messrs. H. Prince, K. Bartlett, and Dea. Robbins, together with some difficulties among other substantial members, the church be- came weakened in ability ; and Mr. Small's salary diminished from $400 down to $300 tardily collected, till his request for dismission was, July 1, 1854, reluctantly complied with. His successors have been, Jan. 1, 1855, Rev. Andrew W. May- hew, a graduate of Bangor Theological Seminary, 1832, who died Jan. 25, 1856; Rev. Sumner Estes, last from Sidney, Jan. 10, 1858 ; and Rev. Nat. Butler through the winter of 1860. But this church for a number of years past has been sensibly declining ; and its venerable house on Mill River hill, there is reason to fear, will ere long be deserted. It re- ported in 1863, resident members, 38 ; whole number, 57. Its deacons have been Abel Hildreth before the division ; C. Mitchell and T. P. Howard, 1837; Daniel Williams, 1839 ; Oliver Robbins, 1850; and Samuel Allen, 1858; and the whole number of members embraced in its bosom since its separation from the 2d Baptist church has been 152.
On the 14th of March, this year, E. S. Hovey, James and John C. Cochran, with their associates, were incorporated as the East Thomaston Marsh Marble and Lime Rock Quarry Company, for managing the lime and marble business in con- nection with the quarry at the Marsh in South Thomaston ; but, we believe from some defect in the limestone there. nothing of importance was accomplished. At this time, and some years earlier and later, the steamboat Bangor, Capt. S.
385
ROCKLAND AND SOUTH THOMASTON.
H. Howes, regularly plied between Boston and Bangor, touch- ing at Owl's Head, South Thomaston, where, as a fashiona- ble watering place and tavern, good accommodations, were furnished the public at the Adams House. This house, after the death of its builder, and after being kept awhile by his son-in-law, Capt. T. Mclellan, Jr., was at this time under the care of Padelford & Reed, or later, Padelford & Paine; - and, since their time, has been occupied by S. H. Fuller, Elisha Brown, and the present owner, Capt. Jeremiah Sleeper. The fare, by steamer, from South Thomaston to Boston, was, in 1837, six dollars.
The two political papers in this town having now become extinct, a new weekly was commenced at West Thom- aston, Aug. 23d, by Hezekiah P. Coombs, printer and pub- lisher. It was called THE RECORDER, -devoted to no party or sect, but friendly to religion, morality, temperance, and the diffusion of correct information. Conducted on these princi- ples, it gave general satisfaction, and was liberally patronised ; till, partly in consequence of the declining health of the pub- lisher, undermined by his severe and often unaided labors, it was brought to a close, Oct. 1, 1846, after an existence of nine years. It was edited, the first year at least, by H. Prince, Jr. This paper was revived for a short period by D. J. Starrett, under the name of the STAR AND RECORDER, but was discontinued in 1848, and its subscribers transferred to the Rockland paper.
Maine's proportion of the United States' surplus revenue, deposited with the several States of the Union, having been distributed among the several towns on condition of its being refunded when called for, this town, April 17, 1837, chose H. Prince, agent, to receive its share of the same, to be di- vided among the inhabitants agreeable to the census taken in March. This vote, after several modifications and the choice of Oliver Fales as special agent to receive and pay out the money, was substantially complied with and the fund distribut- ed per capita, according to a new law passed April 16, 1838. The amount of revenue thus received by the town in three several installments, the two first April 19th and the last July 5th, 1837, was $10,544; and the shares thus distributed in this time of general distress and stagnation of business, af- forded a very acceptable relief to many poor [families.
In the spring of 1837 an occurrence took place which ex- cited strong feeling among our citizens. Capt. Daniel Phil- brook of Camden, and Edward Kelleran of Cushing, master and mate of the schooner Boston, being at Savannah, em- Vor. I. 33
385
HISTORY OF THOMASTON,
ployed James Sagurs and his slave Atticus to make some re- pairs upon the vessel. While thus employed, Atticus had an opportunity of talking freely with the sailors on board, and, learning the facilities of getting a living in the free States by his trade, contrived to conceal himself in the vessel just be- fore it sailed, and was not found till after many days at sea. After his arrival at this port, no obstacles were thrown in the way of the fugitive's escape ; and he remained working for a time at Mr. Kelleran's. In the mean time his master arrived in pursuit of him ; and, after some difficulty and delay, ob- tained a warrant from H. C. Lowell, Esq., for his arrest. This was committed to D. N. Piper, who, not finding the man, and perhaps not feeling any strong desire to do so, returned the warrant. An advertisement was then issued, offering $20 for the slave's apprehension. For this sum, two men, it was thought, under pretence of befriending Atticus who had now become alarmed and knew not what course to take, in- duced him to hide in Swan's barn, where, probably by their direction, he was arrested and delivered to his master. The names of these men, though probably known to the officer who made the arrest, have never been divulged by him. Sagurs re-embarked with his human property at East Thom- aston, but not without strong marks of natural sympathy and just indignation from the crowd who there witnessed the scene. Philbrook and Kelleran were subsequently demanded by the Governor of Georgia to be given up as criminals for trial in that State ; but this demand was refused at the time by Gov. Dunlap and afterwards by Govs. Kent and Fairfield on legal and constitutional grounds .*
In September, Aaron Austin, so long one of our most wor- thy and active citizens, was run against by a wagon furiously descending a hill near Mill River, and so badly injured as to cause his death in a few days.
1838. This year, Hon. John Holmes, who had, the pre- ceding year, married Mrs. Swan, daughter of Gen. Knox, came to reside with her in the time-honored seat of her fam- ily; bringing with him the reputation of eminent abilities as a lawyer and statesman. He was born in March, 1773, in Kingston, Mass., graduated at Brown University in 1796, and commenced practice in what is now Alfred, Maine. He mar- ried Sally Brooks of Scituate, and being much employed by the landed proprietors in their conflicting claims with the squatter settlers, soon rose to distinction and eventually took
* Thomaston Recorder, Capt. D. N. Piper, &c.
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ROCKLAND AND SOUTH THOMASTON.
the lead among the members of York County bar. Not be- ing satisfied with this, however, he soon entered the arena of politics, at first as a federalist, changed sides suddenly in 1811, was twice elected representative to Congress, and was one of Maine's first senators in that body; but, at the end of his second term, 1833, having cut adrift from the Democratic party and bid defiance to its instructions through the legisla- ture, he returned from the political field to the more quiet practice of the law. The prestige of his character and celeb- rity, together with his ready wit and companionable good qualities, procured him a moderate share of practice here, which he conducted for a short period in company with L. H. Chandler. He was inspector of the State Prison; entered with some spirit into the improvement of his wife's estate, enriching the grounds with rockweed and other manures; took a lively interest in the affairs of the town, the condition of the schools and the Theological Seminary ; and bade fair, by the aid of his accomplished wife, to restore her residence to something of the lustre possessed in the days of her father. This estate, though diminished, still consisted of fifty or sixty acres immediately surrounding the venerable mansion, divided between park and lawn, with walks and avenues, lovely even in decay. Great pains were taken, however, to preserve all in its ancient order, not permitting the vandal hand of modern improvement to disturb so much as the tapestry that adorned the window or a brier that grew beneath it. Having occasion to erect an out-building on the spot where grew a fine old tree, rather than prostrate the noble monument of the past, Holmes caused an aperture to be left in the roof, through and above which the time-honored trunk was allowed to project and lift its branches to the breeze. The busy mind of Mr. Holmes employed itself also, whilst residing here, in com- posing a digest of public and private law, which he published in 1840, under the name of "the Statesman," in one octavo volume .*
A Baptist Seminary first established in Charleston, Maine, was this year removed to this town, the following year was in- corporated by the name of the Thomaston Theological In- stitution, and the Knox Hotel was rented for its use. It was under the care of Prof. Calvin Newton ; commencing with nine students in the 1st and 2d courses, together with some in the preparatory course. But the institution languished for want of funds, and after a few years was discontinued.
* Portland Advertiser, Law Reporter, &c.
383
. HISTORY OF THOMASTON,
A patrol or night watch was for the first time established at East Thomaston, Nov. 12th. It was got up by individ- uals, who agreed to serve themselves or procure substitutes, in regular rotation. through the winter, and to patrol from R. Penny's to and through Pleasant street as far as Chas Spear's, thence by the Methodist meeting-house to J. Lovejoy's, and to the town pump. A similar patrol was established in the . Western village the following year, as it had been, we believe, once or more, on some former occasion. East Thomaston was now rapidly growing in business and prosperity ; - two churches, the First Baptist and Universalist, with forty other buildings, mostly dwellings, being this spring in the process of construction ; and, notwithstanding the late commercial revulsion and the suspension of specie payments at the banks, other parts of the town exhibited signs of increasing or return- ing prosperity. Of the bounties this year paid by the State for " the encouragement of agriculture, this town received $40,38, for 4592 bushels of wheat, and, in the year following, $91, 86 cents, for 1027 bushels of wheat, together with $34, 50 cents, for 718 bushels of corn, or maize. This quantity, however, seems small compared with the demand for home consumption, since Wheaton's mill alone, under the superin- tendence of Mr. Blood, ground not less than 6000 bushels of grain during the year. A Dry Dock, near the Central wharf, at West Thomaston, was this year commenced by Capt. L. Andrews, in the spring, completed early in the fall, and the first use made of it was for the ship Ferax. But the work proving imperfect and subject to leakage, yielded little or no profit, and was abandoned or converted to other uses by the company who started it.
In November, a sad disaster occurred. The new schconer Potomac, Capt. Ulmer, of this place, was capsized in Long Island Sound, and all on board perished. She was seen just before dark, with four men moving on her side, making sig- nals for aid; but no boat could reach her through the break- ers, darkness and storm, till next morning, when only one lifeless body was discovered lying across the ratlines and sheet- ed with ice. Those lost, besides the young and enterprising master, were Atwood F. Post, Silas M. and Henry T. Penni- man, and - - Henderson, mostly of East Thomaston.
While the friends and party of Mr. Cilley were exulting in the high stand he had taken in Congress, the talents he had displayed, and the fearlessness and unconcern with which he met the menaces and discourtesy of some of his opponents, the community in general, and this town and vicinity in par-
389
ROCKLAND AND SOUTH THOMASTON.
ticular, were startled and shocked by the news that he had fallen in a duel. This event took place at Bladensburg, near Washington, D. C., on the 24th of February, 1838 ; and orig- inated in an attempt of Henry A. Wise of Virginia, to get up an investigation into the charges of corruption made against some member of Congress by an anonymous writer in the New York Courier and Inquirer. This investigation Cilley opposed on the ground that the charge was loose, indefinite, and without the name of the author; and, in his remarks, alluded to the editor of the Inquirer, James Watson Webb, as one, who, from the nature. of his transactions with the United States bank, should be the last to bring charges of corruption. This language was resented by Webb, who, in consequence, sent him a challenge by the hands of William J. Graves, a member from Kentucky. Cilley refused to receive this challenge; not, he said, from any disrespect to Mr. Graves, but because he wished to be drawn into no contro- versy with newspaper editors; and particularly with Col. Webb. This, Graves affected to construe into a reflection upon his own honor, as being the friend of one considered dishonorable; and requested Cilley to state, categorically, whether he " declined to receive his communication on the ground of any personal exception to Webb as a gentleman ?" But Cilley determined to hold his ground of not being ac- countable to newspaper editors, nor entrapped into an en- dorsement of Webb's character ; and refused to modify his answer. Then followed, Feb. 23d, a challenge from Graves by the hands of Wise, his second, and Cilley's acceptance on the afternoon of the same day, by his second, Gen. Geo. W. Jones of Iowa. The parties met at the Anacosta bridge, on the road to Marlborough in Maryland, between one and three o'clock P. M. - Cilley being the first to arrive, and each party accompanied, as agreed, by only two friends and a surgeon. All then proceeded to the ground; the weapons, (chosen by Cilley as the challenged party) were rifles; the distance was fixed at 80 yards ; and the parties took their respective posi- tions, the choice of which fell by lot to Graves, and the word " fire" to Cilley's second. Three shots were exchanged. After the first, and again after the second shot, a suspension took place, and a conference was held between the seconds and friends of the parties. Various propositions were made to induce Cilley to modify the grounds of his rejecting Webb's communication, but in vain ; he still replied that by such re- jection he meant no disrespect to Mr. G., towards whom he ' entertained, then and now, the highest respect and the kindest
33*
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HISTORY OF THOMASTON,
feelings, but that it was made because he chose to be drawn into no controversy with Webb. This answer, which was given after the second shot, Wise said, left Mr. G. precisely where he stood before, and asked if Mr. C., to relieve him from his position, could not say that by such rejection he meant no dis- respect to Mr. G., either directly or indirectly, -to which the statement agreed upon and signed by the seconds at the time, says, that " he, Jones, answered affirmatively." Here, then, the difficulty would seem to have been over; yet, without assigning any reason, the statement goes on to say, " after further explanatory conversation, the parties then ex- changed the third shot, fairly and honorably, as in every in- stance.". Prior to this third fire, Wise had proposed to Jones, " if it proved ineffectual, to shorten the distance." But there was no necessity for this ; Cilley was already dead. The fatal ball had pierced his noble heart; and the young, brave, and successful candidate for honorable renown was thus cut off at the commencement of his career ; and the bright hopes of his friends, the envy of his rivals, and the bitterness of his foes, expired with him.
The news of this event agitated the nation in all its mem- bers. There was a general burst of indignation against the getters up and blood-thirsty prolongation of a contest, com- menced with scarcely a shadow of excuse, and continued, no one knew why, to its fatal termination. In the preceding re- lation, the writer has confined himself, for fear of party pre- judices, to the statement made out and published by the seconds who managed the work of butchery. Different ac- counts were given, and different opinions formed upon this transaction amid the heat of party strife which then prevail- ed; but, after the lapse of twenty-six years, it is difficult to see how, even upon the principles of the cruel code of duel- ling itself, the conduct of this affair can be justified. On those principles, Wise, who had already a quarrel with Cilley and had before striven to force him into a duel, should never have taken the office of second ; if a duel was necessary, he should himself have given the challenge ; which, it seems, he was only deterred from doing because it would give Cilley a choice of weapons, who was thought to be skilled in the use of the rifle, as Wise was in that of the pistol. He, however, preferred to make use of Webb, and a Kentuckian more em- inent for skill in the rifle than for mental ability, to get Cil- ley into a conflict which he contrived to manage for the grat- ification of his own revengeful feelings. Why, after the second shot had been exchanged and the proposition of Wise
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ROCKLAND AND SOUTH THOMASTON.
assented to by Jones, the latter should have consented to a renewal of the combat, has never been explained. Jones ought to have taken his friend off the ground, leaving the adversary who had not the honor to abide by his own propo- sition, as unworthy of any further notice.
.
The event was followed by public meetings and resolutions of condemnation in the leading towns and cities of this and several other States of the Union. In this town, a meeting, without distinction of sect or party, was held at the new Bap- tist meeting-house, West Thomaston, on the afternoon of March 7th, at which strong resolutions, reported by a com- mittee of 43, of which John S. Abbot was chairman, were unanimously adopted, expressive of the intense feeling of sorrow and indignation that pervaded the community. These were published and sent to our members of Congress and the State Legislature. The meeting was opened with prayer by Rev. J. Washburn, and by singing an ode composed for the occasion by Mrs. Sarah F. Woodhull, five stanzas of which we give.
" Weep for the dead; aye, weep and wail ; 'Tis meet that tears should flow ; There's in our ears a murd'rous tale, And in our hearts deep wo.
Indignant grief and vain regret Sweep o'er us like a flood ; For Passion fierce, and Pride have met, And bathed their hands in blood.
Where now is he whose mind late soared To meet his country's calls ? Where, the rich eloquence he poured Amid our crowded halls ?
Where is his noon of life, whose morn Was bright and wondrous fair ? Oh, where are love's fond visions gone ? Our hearts re-echo - where ?
Thou God of Grace, thou Prince of Peace, Aid us, for grief is strong ; And passion yearns for full release Amid this deep-hushed throng."
Speeches were made by Messrs. L. H. Chandler, Hermon Stevens, J. O'Brien, J. S. Abbot, P. Keegan, Beder Fales, S. C. Fessenden, and Wm. J. Farley. Some extracts from the remarks of the latter, imperfectly reported from recollec- tion, are here inserted, not only in justice to the memory of the slain, but also to that of his accomplished friend and gen- erous rival. . .
" Mr. Cilley was one whose loss was by everybody felt and
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HISTORY OF THOMASTON,
lamented. He was a townsman of whom we were fond - a neighbor whom we all esteemed -a citizen whom we all respected. But, it is as a friend that I speak of him. Con- curring circumstances drew us into almost daily contact and collision with each other. We were within a few months of the same age- we came to Thomaston in the same month - we were always political opponents, and professional rivals- but, amid all the bitterness of party strife, in all the warmth of professional controversy, our personal friendship was never for a moment interrupted. Mr. Cilley had been, politically, a warm partisan. Of an ardent temperament- burning for distinction - conscious of the powers with which God had endowed him, and fearless in the expression of his feelings, it was impossible that he should not have had ene- mies as well as friends; and it is with no small satisfaction that I recollect the part taken by me, both personally and professionally, in vindicating my friend from the groundless slanders, and the malicious libel which had been published against him. But, highly as I esteemed Mr. Cilley, deeply as I lament his loss, I cannot justify him in the course he took in accepting the offered challenge. It was a fatal, an unjustifiable error.
" Still, with regard to the principals in the lamentable affair which had called together the present assemblage," Mr. Farley said he believed " they had acted under sincere, though erroneous, notions of the requirements of honor. Dearly have they expiated their error. One had been cut off in the prime of life ; his high hopes all blasted ; his usefulness des- troyed ; the fond anticipations of his friends all blighted, and his soul ushered into the presence of his God without a mo- ment's warning, prayer, or preparation. The other - may God forgive him, but he can never forget ! But those who deliberately planned and aided in this murderous affair-the seconds and friends of the parties-what shall be said of them ? of men who, themselves secure, could stand calmly by and witness and encourage two of their fellow-beings, be- tween whom there was no animosity, in repeated attempts to take each other's lives ?" Mr. F. said his " first feelings had been those of unmingled indignation, but they had given way to others. He pitied those men from the bottom of his heart. They could never escape from their own recollections, and alike in the hurry of business, in the halls of legislation, and in the solitude of the study, the bleeding corpse of Cilley must be constantly before them ; and if at night they sleep, I (said Mr. F.) do not envy them their dreams !"
.
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ROCKLAND AND SOUTH THOMASTON.
Mr. F. concluded with an expression of his "sincere sym- pathy for the afflicted relatives of the deceased, and his ยท ardent desire that effectual measures might be taken to banish from our land a practice so unjustifiable in principle, and so fatal in its effects, as modern duelling." >
In the sentiments thus expressed, Farley did not stand alone. Many others regretted that Cilley should have de- scended from the high ground of moral principle to the bar- barous code of duelling. He however thought differently, as he expressed himself substantially to his friends on the morn- ing of the fatal encounter. "I am driven to this meeting by a positive compulsion. I have done all that an honorable man can do to avert it. Why should I acknowledge that man to be a gentleman and man of honor? In truth and conscience I could not do so, and still less can I have it so unreasonably extorted from me by force and threat. I have no ill-will nor disrespect towards Graves. He knows it, and I have repeatedly and fully expressed it. I abhor the idea of taking his life, and will do nothing not forced upon me in self-defence. The pretext of the challenge is absurd. I un- derstand the conspiracy to destroy me as a public man. But ' New England must not be trampled on ;' and I go to this field sustained by as high a motive of patriotism as ever led my grandfather or my brother to battle, as an unhappy duty, not to be shrunk from, to my honor, my principles, and my country." Perhaps he was right. Perhaps that insolence which the unrestrained indulgence of passion and cruelty toward the defenceless slave from early childhood so naturally begets, had already so far displayed itself in Congress as to be no longer supportable. Perhaps the elevation of Andrew Jackson to the chief magistracy, and the effort made to place Henry Clay in the same station, both of whom were duellists, had so far reconciled the public mind to this relic of barbar- ism that nothing short of a victim from their midst could arouse the New England spirit to resist its further encroach- ments. Perhaps, too, it was well that so worthy a victim was found -well that the magnanimous Cilley fell ; that Graves escaped to die a lingering death of remorse; and Wise, to complete the climax of his infamy, by proposing as governor of the once illustrious commonwealth of Virginia, to pay her State debt by seizing and selling into slavery a most valuable portion of her free population, and by engaging in the unnat- ural rebellion against the laws, liberties, and life of the nation.
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