USA > Maine > Cumberland County > New Gloucester > New Gloucester, Maine, centennial, September 7, 1874 > Part 7
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The precious names here brought to view, To History's page belonging,
Are mentioned with unfeigned respect, With no intent of wronging.
Peace to their ashes-every one! May their descendants flourish,
And children's children call them blest, As long as earth shall nourish.
Mr. WOODMAN added :
I wish to speak a moment in relation to WILLIAM WIDG- ERY. Mr. THOMAS, of Portland, has given us a brief but interesting biographical sketch of his ancestor, and if I mis- take not, his statements have been very opportune, unless
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LETTER OF B. H. CORLISS, ESQ.
others have been more successful than myself in finding out the history of Mr. WIDGERY.
In looking over not long since some old town papers, my attention was specially directed to some beautiful speci- mens of Mr. WIDGERY's handwriting, resembling in some respects at least the bold signature of JOHN HANCOCK, and I was determined if possible to learn more respecting the man. I knew he had in several instances represented this town in the General Court of Massachusetts, but of his origin and history I knew but little. I immediately called upon our worthy fellow citizen, THOMAS JOHNSON, ESQ., who had been well acquainted with Mr. WIDGERY. Mr. JOHNSON said : "Mr. WIDGERY was a fine, noble man, but of his early history I have never been able to ascertain much. On one occasion, however, WIDGERY did say, ' The first thing he could recollect about himself was, that he was wheeling a wheel-barrow in the streets of Philadel- phia ! '"
The following letter from BENJ. H. CORLISS, EsQ., of Gloucester, Mass., was then read.
GLOUCESTER, MASS., September 7, 1874.
To the Committee of Arrangements for the Centennial Celebra- tion of New Gloucester, Maine.
GENTLEMEN :
I thank you most heartily for your kind invitation to be present at the Centennial Anniversary of your town on the eighth instant.
It would have given me great pleasure to have been with you and participated in the services incident to the occasion, but a
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RESPONSE BY ELDER OTIS SAWYER.
recent severe family affliction will necessarily prevent my doing so.
The early settlers of New Gloucester, many of them, went from this vicinity, and in consequence there have always been strong ties of affiliation and friendship between the two places, possibly a little weakened by time, but which I fondly trust will be renewed and strengthened in the future.
A celebration of this kind is always productive of good results, inasmuch as it furnishes the opportunity to bring together fam- ilies and friends, who in many cases have been widely separated, to renew and quicken old friendships, to review the past, and by an interchange of kindly sentiment and greeting, serve as an in- centive to new purposes, and a more earnest desire to promote the interests of the town.
Such, I doubt not, will be the result of this re-union ; and that the occasion may be a happy one, pleasant and full of interest and profitable enjoyment to all concerned, is my sincere wish. In closing permit me to offer as a sentiment :
NEW GLOUCESTER. May the favorable auspices under which it enters upon a new era in its history, be regarded as the guar- antee of its future prosperity.
With the assurance of my personal regards,
I remain truly yours,
BENJ. H. CORLISS.
THE UNITED SOCIETY OF SHAKERS. May their numbers never be less.
Response by OTIS SAWYER, the presiding Elder of the Community :
Mr. President, Ladies and Gentlemen :
Unfortunately we Shaker brethren are sometimes stigma- tized, by those who know no better, as old bachelors and
.
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ORIGIN OF SHAKERS.
hating the women. In the name of the whole community, I repel the charge. There may be some women that we do not love quite so well, but, without fear of shame, we de- clare that we do love our good Shaker sisters.
What we have to offer may sound very tame after listen- ing to so much eloquence from learned gentlemen, who ap- pear to have omitted only one item of interest pertaining to the history of the town, and that is in regard to the Shakers ; and as it is a matter of astonishment to many people that a society, based upon such principles as underlie our institu- tion, could exist so long-ninety-two years-in this town, and still be increasing in vigor, to such and to the historian a brief history of the origin of Shakers and progress of the Society may be of interest.
There are but two towns in the State of Maine that can claim the honor of having within their corporate limits a Society of that law-loving, law-abiding, peaccable Christian people called Shakers, this, the town of New Gloucester and the town of Alfred, in York County, and evidently a history of the past could not be complete without a special notice of this peculiar people.
FIRSTLY-ORIGIN OF SHAKERS .- It is well known that we acknowledge a woman to be the founder of what is called the Shaker Society. Ann Lee, of Manchester, Eng- land, born in February, 1736, who firstly became a disciple of James and Jane Wardly, Friends or Quakers, who be- longed to the sect called the French Prophets, was early endowed with uncommonly deep religious feelings, and under their teachings became deeply inspired, and was blessed with many divine gifts, heavenly visions, revelations and prophecies, until they, James and Jane Wardley, her Elders and the Society to which she belonged, all acknowl-
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ORIGIN OF SHAKERS.
edged that she had received greater light and gift of God than they possessed, and instinctively looked to her for counsel, and called her Mother; an endearing title which all her faithful followers repeat with pleasure.
Her testimony was so sharp, keen and powerful against the root of human depravity that it aroused the enmity of the wicked, and she and her few followers were bitterly persecuted for their faith and for the testimony which they bore. At one time they led her out into a valley and attempted to stone her to death; but as she declared she was shielded by the power of God and they were not able to injure her, exasperated by failure to accomplish their fiendish design, her persecutors fell into contentions among themselves and she escaped. At another time she was placed in the stone prison of Manchester, in a cell so small she could not straiten herself, and there kept fourteen days without food or drink, except once in twenty-four hours a lad by the name of James Whittaker would insert the stem of a pipe through the key-hole of the prison door, and pour a little wine and milk into the bowl of the pipe ; in this way she obtained all the nourishment she received during that time. At the end of the fourteen days the prison door was opened with the hope and expectation of finding her dead, but to the surprise of all she walked off as smart and strong as on the day she was put into prison.
After that she received a revelation to come to America, and on the 19th of May, 1774, she and eight of her followers embarked in a vessel called the Maria, which had been condemned as unseaworthy. During the passage Mother Ann told the captain he should not know whereof to accuse them, except it were concerning the law of their God, es- pecially in the manner of their worship, which did prove
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FIRST SHAKERS IN NEW GLOUCESTER.
offensive ; and when they went forth to praise God in songs and dances the captain was greatly enraged, and threatened to throw them overboard if they repeated the offense. But she, believing it better to obey God rather than man, again went forth in the same manner to worship Him. This so enraged the captain that he attempted to put his threats into execution. This was in the time of a storm and the ship sprang a leak. All hands were called to the pumps. Mother Ann herself and her companions took their turns. The storm was so violent and the leak so bad, that the captain turned pale as a corpse and told them there was no hope of safety, that the ship must go down and all on board perish ; but Mother Ann said "Nay captain, be of good cheer, not one hair of our heads shall perish ; we shall all land safe in America. I just saw two bright angels of God standing by the mast from whom I received this promise." Immediately a huge wave struck the ship, closing the plank into its place, which had started off, and which caused the leak ; the storm abated, and after that the captain said to Mother Ann, " To you we owe the safety of the ship and our lives ; henceforth worship God as you please, you shall not be molested," and ever after treated her with great kindness. And, as Mother Ann predicted, they did all land safely in New York, on the 6th day of August, 1774, just one hundred years ago. They soon settled in Niskayuna, now Watervliet, N. Y., seven miles westerly from the city of Albany, from whence their testimony went forth and many believed ; which is the origin of Shakers in America.
FIRST SHAKERS IN NEW GLOUCESTER .- In November, 1782, ELISHA POTE, NATHAN FREEMAN and JOSEPH STONE came from Gorham, Me., into what was then called Thomp- son Pond Plantation, and held meetings in the house of
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FIRST SHAKERS IN NEW GLOUCESTER.
GOWEN WILSON, SR., which was situated in the field just south of our large garden, on the west side of the road. They were all preachers and singers. ELISHA POTE took the lead in speaking, whose reasonings were clear and con- vincing, and his voice mild and persuasive. After preaching they sang and went forth in the dance with much power. After singing and laboring one song, they gave liberty for any one to unite with them who wished to, when DOROTHY POTE and MARY MERRILL were simultaneously inspired by the power of God, their bodies were mightily agitated and they turned swiftly round like tops for the space of one hour. They both received faith, and with many others, like the multitude who went with Jesus to John the Baptist confessing their sins, were baptized in Jordan (which signi- fies judgment), so they confessed their sins and were bap- tized in the spiritual Jordan, which we believe is coming to Judgment.
Among the heads of families who early embraced the faith in Christ's second appearing may be named GOWEN WILSON, NATHAN, JAMES, and EDMUND MERRILL, JOSIAH, SIMEON, and GERSHAM HOLMES, THOMAS POTE (Father of ELISHA POTE), SAMUEL POTE (ELISHA's eldest brother), BARNABAS and EPHRAIM BRIGGS, and THOMAS CUSHMAN. These, with their wives and most of their children, besides many individuals, males and females of various ages, were organized into a Society under the leadership of Elder JOHN BARNES, from Alfred, whose associates were ROBERT Mc- FARLAND, from Gorham, Me., Eldress SARAH KENDALL and LUCY PRESCOTT, from Harvard, Mass. ; these composed the Ministry, and presided over the Society at Alfred as well as this.
Here is an interesting fact for the advocates of woman's
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A SOCIETY ORGANIZED, 1794.
rights, which they suppose is a new thing in the earth, but which has been acknowledged by the United Society of Shakers, cocval with their existence, when woman, the rep- resentative of the Mother in Dcity, is permitted to take her place in the order and government of the Church of Christ co-equal with man.
The Shaker Society in this town was organized on the 19th of April, 1794. The first Trustees appointed were NATHAN MERRILL and BARNABAS BRIGGS ; they then com- menced to build the present settlement. Two years prior to this time timber was cut and hauled to Poland Corner to be sawed. This they used in building the meeting house and central dwelling. The meeting house was raised the 14th day of June, 1794, patterning the old Dutch style then in vogue in New York. It was finished and ready for occu- pancy on Christmas Day of that year. The bricks for the two chimneys, of which they used ten thousand in each, were made near the foot of Sabbath Day Pond and were somewhat smaller in size than those made nowadays.
All the nails used in its construction were made by JOSEPH BRIGGS (son of EPHRAIM BRIGGS) and a young apprentice. The shingles that were put on it that year are on it now, but after eighty years' exposure and wear, some few of them decayed or were blown off, and this scason the roof received a slight patching. The old central dwelling house, which sits opposite the meeting house, was built the next year, 1795.
The first grist mill in this section of the town was built by the combined labor of the brethren in 1786, on a little stream about forty rods east of our present stately mill, the foundation of which can now be seen. It was a little one- story building, 14 feet by 18, with one run of granite stones,
8
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THE GRIST AND SAW MILLS.
in which was ground wheat, rye, corn and all kinds of grain. Its propelling power was what was called an undershot or flutter wheel. The bolt was made of linen cloth, spun on the linen wheel, and woven by the expert hands of the old Shaker Sisters. It was not propelled by machinery, but any one carrying a grist to the mill who was so fastidious and delicate as to want bolted meal, could turn the bolt by hand and bolt his own grist. Bolting was no part of the miller's duty. At one end of the shaft a little wedge-shaped piece of wood was glued on to the bearing, and at every revolution of the bolt there would be a jolt as it dropped from the thick end of the wedge, which was designed to keep the meshes clear.
In 1796 the Society built a saw-mill on a stream that crossed, at the foot of the hill, the old road leading from Shaker Village to Upper Gloucester, which was well pat- ronized by the people living in the surrounding neighbor- hood. The Shaker brethren opened and built the present traveled road leading from Shaker Village to Gray Corner. In 1808 and 1809 the Society built quite a large grist-mill, just a little south of where our present mill stands, in which were two runs of stones and a good bolt made of imported cloth. To this mill a great many farmers living in the back towns of Poland, Hebron, Paris, Norway, &c., would bring their grain, have it ground, and then take the meal to the Portland market. For a few years the mill did good busi- ness ; through the fall and winter months it was kept running all through the day and many times through the night, there being a house near by where the teamsters could find lodg- ing. In the same building were turning lathes, and in the attic were card machines for making woolen rolls. Nearly the whole machinery was made by the brethren, assisted by
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GARDENING AND GARDEN SEEDS.
old friend Mayall, of Gray ; these were well patronized, as hitherto the most of the wool manufactured in this section was carded by hand. When our present mill was erected, in 1853, this machinery was removed from the old mill, clothed with new card cloth, and has been in constant use ever since. Although it was said to be the second or third set of machine cards put in operation in this State, yet under the skillful hands of our present carder, Bro. JOSIAH NOYES, the old ladies who spin the rolls give his the prefer- ence over all others.
The members of the Society were many of them poor, and their combined acres formed at first but a small farm for so many, but by industry and prudence, additions have been made from time to time, until the real estate of the Society at large comprises some eighteen hundred acres, more than one thousand of which lies in the town of New Gloucester.
Attention was early given to gardening and the raising of garden seeds, and the Shakers in New Gloucester were the first in this State to prepare garden seeds in small paper bags, and pack in boxes for the market, which was done under the supervision of JAMES HOLMES, eldest son of JOSIAH HOLMES. The Society early commenced to manu- facture wooden ware, tubs, pails, churns, dry measures, oval boxes in nests, hair sieves, linen and woolen wheels.
The Sisterhood would purchase cotton in Portland, wash and card it by hand, spin and weave it, not only for home use, but to make sheeting, shirting, bed-ticking and checked blue and white for aprons, for Portland market. After machinery was introduced into New England to manufac- ture cotton yarn, the merchants of Portland would furnish yarn, and the Sisters would weave many hundred yards
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WEAVING-LONGEVITY-ANTI-WAR SPIRIT.
yearly, for which they received a certain percentage. Twenty cents per yard for weaving and whitening No. 20, thirty cents per yard for No. 30, and so on, more or less, according to the number of yarn. One of the old merchants, EDWARD HOWE, still lives (now over 90 years of age), for whom they manufactured cloth, to be retailed out to the ladies of Portland.
It may be interesting to the young ladies of our day who spend much time playing on the piano, to learn that the young ladies of that day would weave on a hand loom from ten to eighteen yards of plain coarse sheeting in a day, and smart hands would weave ten yards of firm bed-ticking in a day.
To show that the Shaker life and habits are productive of longevity, we look over the records and find there have been one hundred and five deaths in the Church Family, at the average age of fifty-eight years and a half, dating back to the year 1787.
It has been said, "To test a man's conscience touch his purse." As a proof of the Shakers' anti-war spirit and unselfishness as a people, we note the fact, that at the com- mencement of the late civil war many reasons were presented the War Department at Washington, why Shakers should be exempt from bearing arms or performing military duty, and after setting forth many vital conscientious reasons the following fact was shown, that had the members of the United Society been permitted to draw pensions for military services to which they were legally entitled, the Society at New Gloucester alone would have received from the United States Government in pensions, to say nothing of bounty land, which, had it been put at six per cent. compound inter- est, would have made the snug little sum of $89,572.66, that
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RESPONSE BY AUGUSTUS P. MARTIN.
was refused for conscience sake, and this kind of reasoning was appreciated.
In conclusion we offer this apology to those who ate of the Shakers' baked beans to-day, and were disappointed in not finding death in the pot in the shape of pork: that in the year 1848, the Shakers, from purely physiological rea- sons, discarded the use of pork and pork fat as an article of diet, and no good Shaker, any more than a good Jew, will make use of it as such, not even in that good old Puri- tan dish, baked beans.
THE LADIES OF NEW GLOUCESTER. Known by their works. Response by the Band.
THE SOLDIERS OF THE LATE REBELLION.
Response by AUGUSTUS P. MARTIN, of Boston. Mr. Chairman, Ladies and Gentlemen :
I am very glad to have the opportunity of being present upon this interesting occasion and of joining with you in the celebration of the one hundredth anniversary of the incorporation of this town ; and while I cannot claim to be a citizen of New Gloucester, nor can I claim it as my birth- place, yet my childhood and early boyhood was passed in this town, and my first and earliest recollections are associ- ated with "Bald Hill." Its yonder height looms up in the distance and must be familiar to every one here to-day. It was there that I first heard a mother's prayer. It was there that I first knew what it was to exist. It was there that I first learned as a child to appreciate the companionship of my young friends and playmates. My mind and my heart
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RESPONSE BY AUGUSTUS P. MARTIN.
often reach out to the scenes of those days when I had no responsibility but that of pleasure.
I cannot claim New Gloucester as my birth-place, but I have always called it my native town, for I never knew any other place of nativity except by record and tradition, and I never intend to cease claiming it as my native town so long as you do not object to my so doing ; besides, my father and mother were both of them born and raised here, and the family name on either side is familiar to the ear of every resident of this place, and has been as far back as any one here can recollect ; names that have always stood among the foremost on the roll of citizens of the town for nearly, if not fully one hundred years.
As we go journeying through life, our minds often reflect upon the past and take a retrospect of our lives and deeds. These make a perfect chain with innumerable links, one end of which is firmly fixed at the point or place where we first comprehended our being, and stretches out day by day, link upon link, and is not complete until our earthly career is ended. And as we wander along through the rough and rugged paths of life, our thoughts often run back with more than lightning rapidity over this chain to our early childhood, and there we seek and enjoy the pleasant recollections of days when we were not burdened with care, and our minds scarcely knew anything beyond the endearments surround- ing the home of our youth. Such a place is " Bald Hill" to me. Hence I feel it is proper and fitting that I should be present here to-day and join in this Centennial Celebration.
While it was many years ago that I took up my residence in a distant city, there has not been a year that I have not made a pilgrimage to these hills and valleys, to the scenes of my childhood, and have kept informed of the changes that
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RESPONSE BY AUGUSTUS P. MARTIN.
were constantly going on among you. I have been familiar enough with the history of this town and its people for more than a quarter of a century to know, that as private citizens you have sustained the precepts and examples of former generations, and whenever you have been called upon to go out from your homes to defend the flag under which we live, your citizens have responded with alacrity.
It was my privilege to serve in the late rebellion side by side with the troops from this State and Town, and I can bear testimony to the noble and heroic manner in which your vol- unteers discharged their duty. They were always brave, always reliable, always persevering, always loyal and always successful. Wherever they were put, or whatever duty they were called upon to perform, they always acquitted them- selves honorably. No troops fought better for the cause of the Union, or deserve higher praise than the soldiers from Maine. I could relate to you many instances to which I was an eye witness, of the personal courage of many individuals from your State, and of the valor of many of your battalions in defence of the national life and character; but it must be sufficient on this occasion for me to say from personal experience, what you already know by the record, that the reputation of the Maine soldiers, in every emergency, came out of the fiery ordeal untarnished, and I am sure that their heroism in the past will constitute an influence hereafter in the hour of danger, which will be a power in itself, and must serve to make this country enduring and powerful as a united and independent people.
The brief hour allotted to us here may not be without its fitting lessons of profit, that shall gladden our lives with its treasured sweets, in strengthening and enlarging those golden cords of sympathy that are found in friendship's
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REMARKS BY ALFRED HASKELL, ESQ.
shining circle, and more firmly bind us together as citizens, friends and brothers.
Whose heart does not stir with quicker pulsations for being present here to-day ? The history that has been pro- nounced upon this occasion by the gentleman who has filled the position of Orator and Historian, will be cherished by every citizen of this town who shall come after us, to the latest day of their lives. He has given us cherishing words, full of hope, full of generous memories, full of proud aspira- tions, to which, in the providence of God, we can turn our eyes and thoughts to-day with pleasure and satisfaction.
Sir, I rejoice that I am here to-day, and I wish to say, Honor to the families of this town ! honor to those stern and gallant men who have upheld it through every vicissitude of fortune ! honor to you for what you are doing here to-day, for the transmission of this history, as I hope, for hundreds of years to come !
ALFRED HASKELL, EsQ., of Portland, a native of New Gloucester, being called upon, said :
Mr. Chairman, Ladies and Gentlemen :
I have been looking forward to this day with unusual interest, anticipating a very happy re-union, and I can most truly say, that my anticipations have been fully realized.
I have been living over again the happy days of my childhood, going back to the period when many of us were children together, some of us attending the same school, sliding down the same hill, playing upon the same lawn, and, if I mistake not, sometimes brought under the discipline of the same rod, which was so faithfully and so feelingly applied to our young shoulders by our good and faithful
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OLD ASSOCIATIONS.
teachers. How very fresh in my memory are the services of our first teacher, who, when our little limbs became so fatigued with sitting upon those old hard benches, and our little eyes became so dull and heavy that they would scarcely turn in their sockets, made up her little cots and put her younger pupils to bed. God bless her! I shall ever remember her with grateful recollections, not only for her offices of kindness, but also for her discipline. Aye, I shall ever remember her, for she "first taught my young idea how to shoot." It affords me much pleasure to know that she is still living, and I presume is present to-day. If not present herself, she has her representatives here, one of whom is the Orator of the day.
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