USA > New Hampshire > Coos County > Lancaster > The one hundred & fiftieth anniversary of Lancaster, New Hampshire, 1764-1914; the official report of the celebration held in August, nineteen hundred and fourteen; > Part 1
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Gc 974.202 L228 1252561
GENEALOGY COLLECTION
3 ALLEN COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY 3 1833 01096 2501
MT. PLEASANT AND MT. PROSPECT
One Hundred & Fiftieth Anniversary
of Lancaster, New Hampshire
1764-1914
Official report
Edited by
David M. White
Lancaster, The Committee 1914
1252561
TO
DAVID PAGE, SENIOR EMMONS STOCKWELL DAVID PAGE, JUNIOR EDWARDS BUCKNAM AND RUTH PAGE STOCKWELL
"WHO REDEEMED LANCASTER FROM THE WILDERNESS " THIS BOOK IS RESPECTFULLY DEDICATED BY THE CITIZENS OF LANCASTER A CENTURY AND A HALF LATER
Foreword
L ATE in the summer of 1763, David Page (Junior) and Emmons Stockwell, acting for David Page (Senior) of Petersham, Massa- chusetts, blazed a trail from Haverhill, New Hamp- shire, then held by the elder Page, to what was known as "Upper Cohos," and took possession of the table- lands, under a charter issued by Governor Wentworth for the opening of a new plantation named Lancaster. In the following spring, after a winter of hardship, the two youthful pioneers were joined by David Page (Senior), Edwards Bucknam, Timothy Nash and George Wheeler, forming the vanguard of the settle- ment. It has, therefore, been customary to date the settlement of Lancaster from the arrival of this little company of resolute men, joined later in the year by Ruth Page, a young woman of eighteen, destined to play a leading part in the infant colony.
The citizens of Lancaster, New Hampshire, assem- bled in town meeting an hundred and fifty years later, voted, upon motion of Merrill Shurtleff, Esquire, to observe the 150th Anniversary of the Settlement. In accordance with that motion a sum of money, later increased by private subscriptions, was appropriated and a managing committee of nine was appointed- three members by the Board of Trade, three by the Unity Club, and three by the local Granges.
The success of the Anniversary held upon August 9th, 11th, 12th and 13th, 1914, was such as to lead the Committee, in response to requests, to perpetuate the records in the form herewith submitted.
S
Anniversary Prayer
REV. WILLIAM PALMER LADD.
O
ALMIGHTY and everlasting God, in the midst of these our rejoicings we would lift up our heads to Thee, our Father, our Creator and Redeemer, the Source of every good!
We thank Thee that a century and a half ago our forefathers chose this beautiful corner of Thy universe to be their home and ours; and that they wrought here the beginnings of a Christian community which in the course of years has fallen to our lot. We thank Thee that Thy governing hand was over them, that to the generations since their day, and to us, Thou hast given so many proofs of Thy continuing favor. And, with hearts full of gratitude to Thee, and to them, we would here to-day dedicate ourselves anew to Thee and Thy service.
We pray that the rich heritage which has come down to us; these beautiful valleys and uplands; these streets and farms and homes; the blessings of Christian civilization, of law and justice and liberty; the innumerable and inestimable privileges connected with state and family and religion may not find us unworthy heirs. May we be ever mindful of the duties and responsibilities which such blessings entail. May they ever spur us on to higher and nobler attainment. And may we so live and labor in this our day and generation as to pass on to our sons and daughters a yet richer heritage of blessing and opportunity.
In this hour so joyful to us, but elsewhere so dark with war and threatening, when Christian principles have been trodden under foot and the brutal instincts of men are about to be let loose in widespread and awful carnage, we would remember that right- eousness alone exalteth a nation, that only in peace and good will is there any national honor and glory; and in the spirit of the founders of the republic we would resolve to strive and suffer and pray for a deeper and wider fellowship, a truer freedom, and an enduring peace among all the sons of men.
Grant that in the years that are to come this community may do its share loyally and unselfishly in the world's work. May it make some worthy contribution toward the solution of the problems, the bearing of the burdens, the achievement of the tasks which Thou in Thy goodness dost lay upon each successive generation of men. May its schools be fruitful to promote sound learning and good citizenship, its churches given to every good work, its family life pure, its social and political life marked by devotion to every lofty and worthy ideal. May its sons and daugh- ters, whether here or abroad, valiantly and faithfully play their several parts, so that from this place already hallowed by so many beautiful and sacred memories there may go forth mighty in- fluences for the increase and triumph of Thy kingdom in state and nation and throughout all the earth.
All which we pray in the name of Jesus Christ, Thy Son, our Lord. Amen.
Impressions from the Anniversary
"T HE Brave Men and Women Who Redeemed Lancaster from the Wilderness" were justly hon- ored on the ninth, eleventh, twelfth, and thirteenth of August, Nineteen Hundred and Fourteen, when, in response to a command by the citizens, the gates were thrown open and absent sons and daughters were bidden to return and unite with those "at home" in a gladsome celebration, that as far as possible the family might again be together, and in a spirit of thanksgiving join in the praises of those that had builded and passed on. It was believed also that these peans might be an inspiration to the youth of the Town, representing to a great degree the blood of the founders, and lead them to honor and respect to a higher degree the rugged honesty and simplicity of their ancestry, and thereby guard securely and unceasingly the welfare of the community.
An event, green in memory, may, if its impression be favor- able, induce exaggeration. Yet he that reads in the distant future these printed records of the 150th Anniversary of the Settlement of Lancaster may know that after the echoes of martial music had ceased and hall and temple had been stripped of their gala dress there still remains undimmed the glory of this home-coming and its attendant features. A calm and dispassionate judgment stamps it as a great success, and one which was, for its time, in every sense a fitting tribute to the settlement of a community that is especially happy in the loyalty of its citizenship.
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LANCASTER
*
The 150th Anniversary of Lancaster opened under most auspicious circumstances, for the sun from a cloudless sky smiled upon completed and thorough preparations. None of the little omissions that often mar a success was in evi- dence, and Lancaster was ready for its fete. Ideal weather, as necessary to success as it is beyond human control, marked the entire period although the opening concert of Tuesday evening followed a severe storm. Wednesday and Thursday were "the fairest of the fair, " proving the assertion ofttimes made that a perfect summer day in the land of the White Mountains cannot be excelled.
The event is worthy of record, not because of its greatness, but because of its quality and character and the spirit that permeated the whole. These three points above all else are what we would emphasize as the memorable features of Lan- caster's great holiday. The result of this trinity delighted Lancaster and charmed her guests. It might perhaps be said that these things were possible because, as must be the case in the city celebrations, they were not sacrificed to "magnitude." The personal element, ever predominant in a community of three thousand, is typified in an affair of this character by a series of events that indicate not the work of paid artisans, but of those inspired by keen interest and a desire to do well the task assigned. It is the natural conclu- sion of the foregoing remarks that the Anniversary was ably conducted by its Committee and heartily supported by the townspeople, who welcomed with open hearts their many guests, and entertained them with offerings of superior quality amid a charming setting and with no discordant note to blur the record or leave unhappy memory.
The enthusiasm of Lancaster's men and women had not been kindled and quickly exhausted at the outset. Rather it moved much as the plot in a story that carries the necessary action through the various chapters and reaches its climax at the end. There was much preliminary work to do and there were workers to do it, for the response was uniformly hearty.
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LANCASTER
1
/CELEBRATION COMMITT-
Inserts (left to right)-Mr. Savage, Mr. Wentworth, Mr. Whitcomb 1st seat-Mr. Moore; 2nd seat-Mrs. Smith, Mrs. Holton; 3rd seat-Mrs. Roberts, Mr. Damon Miss Rosebrook. Mr. L. G. Bailey is at wheel of his machine
ANNIVERSARY
Lancaster was eager to do honor to those men and women who gave the Town her birth, hence the Anniversary was the result of the willing and loving service of many.
For weeks the citizens had hoped that the warmth of their welcome might reach broadcast over the land and into the hearts and homes of those men and women whom duty had called to other cities and towns. They, as a people, wished once more to greet the former residents, and have them join in the tribute to a common ancestry. The hope was fulfilled, for Lancaster had a "home-coming" that will remain a bright spot in her history. Homes were thrown open and the very atmosphere was charged with a spirit of welcome and hospi- tality that in itself would have made the Anniversary a suc- cess. The welcome was genuine, and the joy of the returning son and daughter was reflected upon smiling faces. Families were united for the first time in years, while the embers of old friendships blazed anew as the days of the long ago were lived again. None needs attempt to record on printed page just what these meetings signified to some or to picture the joy of the home-coming at many Lancaster hearths. Yet it can be said that long after the glitter and glamour have been forgotten there will remain the recollection of this intimate gathering, for it resembled from first to last no one thing so strikingly as a family re-union, a meeting of people of common interests, all eager to honor the little band of first settlers. At such a time it was not strange that thought should stray from the scene of animated beauty to the past and to those that had helped create and maintain this Lancaster of to-day. But for these moments of tender reminiscence the resemblance to the family re-union would have been incomplete. Yet it was after all a period of joy and thanksgiving, and this was the dominating note of the re-union. Nor did Lancaster in her rejoicing forget "the stranger within her gates" for he, too, was made to feel the welcome and invited to participate in the festivities.
When Emmons Stockwell and the younger David Page
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LANCASTER
pitched their camp on what is now known as the Holton Homestead, perhaps utterly oblivious to the scenic charms of the environment, since sustenance was their chief concern, they chose an abode where nature had lavished her riches, and whose physical charms can be surpassed by few, if any, of the wonder spots in this wide expanse of rugged beauty. It was in such a setting as this that Lancaster was privileged to observe her Anniversary. Thus it was that inheritance willed the charming settlement, walled in by lesser mountain ranges with the more lofty peaks looming up as the outer background. Two rivers, following their snake-like courses through the valley and watering fertile fields rich with promises of a coming harvest, together with neighboring lakes and bordering groves, added the variety to a picture whose many colors cannot be reproduced but so striking as to cause the artist to hesitate in his travels and to admire. Before man had lifted his hand God had made Lancaster "a thing of beauty."
Blessed by what nature had accomplished in providing a regal setting, the citizens responded and the Town took on a gala appearance such as it had never before known. The red, white and blue, insignia of the holiday spirit, was every- where. Several professional decorators labored for ten days or more in putting Lancaster in a dress to match her mood. Every business block without exception in Lancaster was decorated for the occasion, thousands of flags and many thousands of yards of bunting being used. The public build- ings, including the Town Hall (and Masonic Temple), Court House, High School and Academy, Grammar School, and the old Court House led the way for an elaborate display of fes- toons and drapings. On either side of Lancaster's famous one- mile Main Street were placed, at intervals of about a rod, small arches made by festoons of flags. Centennial Park at night was ablaze with colored lights, and very many of the private residences were also gay with bunting and National colors.
The mountainous walls about Lancaster are not a token of
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ANNIVERSARY
seclusion. There are gateways at North, South, East and West through which one may enter at any time and be cor- dially received. At the Anniversary period huge banners of "Welcome" were suspended across each gateway, expressing to stranger and guest, as they entered, the sentiment of the community. It was the keynote of the occasion, the sincere hospitality that resulted in the spirit necessary to make the Anniversary an event of exceptional importance and enjoy- ment. The citizens of Lancaster, eager to do honor to the founders, anxious to welcome home the former residents, hopeful of entertaining many strangers, co-operated as a united people in making a success of the celebration. Where all lift and none retards, where cordiality rings true and the false note is hushed, there is sure success.
The hardihood and perseverance of the first settlers, with the touch of romance provided by the love of Emmons Stock- well and Ruth Page, and a most commendable record of achievement in the intervening century and a half, gave Lancaster an inspiring theme. Nature, not to be outdone, furnished a perfect background, and man, thus properly attuned, donned the colors of the fete, filled his heart with cheer and summoned the best talent at his command to en- tertain and to instruct; and thus it happens that the 150th Anniversary of Lancaster's Settlement is written as an honor to the men, women and children whose united efforts made it possible.
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The Celebration
L ANCASTER'S Anniversary opened with religious exercises, the pastors of local churches drawing lessons from the occasion as topics for their sermons on Sunday, August 9th.
Monday was a day of final preparation to receive the host of visitors that commenced to arrive the next day. The storm of Tuesday afternoon had cleared in time for the evening's opening concert when a thousand and more met under the elms of Centennial Park and listened to the excellent concert by Nevers' Second Regiment Band of Concord. Dances by Camp Fire Girls, scenes from "Cinderella," and other enter- taining features added to the enjoyment of all that were making the occasion a social gathering.
Bright sun and clear skies greeted host and guest on Wednes- day, and early in the forenoon many gathered in front of the Lancaster House to listen to another concert by the band that had so successfully entertained upon the previous even- ing. At ten o'clock in the forenoon the streets were lined with people awaiting the start of the great parade of civic and fraternal organizations, intended as one of the features of the program, and in reality surpassing expectations. The officials had the preliminary arrangements so complete that the line started promptly, proceeding to the upper end of Main Street and countermarching, while on either side stood men, women and children admiring the procession of floats and uniformed companies. When the column too soon had ended its march, residents and visitors appreciated that this Anniversary was to be no ordinary occasion and they were ready for the best
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Hon. Edmund Sullivan Miss Mary N. Brackett
Gov. Felker
Mr. F. W. Baker Mr. I. W. Quimby
ANNIVERSARY
that could be offered. Anything less in the remaining num- bers of the program would have been a disappointment- but there was no disappointment.
At noon the company with hardly an absent member gath- ered about a veiled pile on Centennial Park. On a nearby platform were seated members of Unity Club, Town Officers and others. The lifting of the veil revealed the Memorial, presented to the Town of Lancaster by Unity Club, with appropriate exercises. It was the culmination of years of earnest thought and effort on the part of these women, loyal to Lancaster and devoted to her traditions. It was the dedi- cation of the Memorial, a huge boulder surmounted by a bronze fox, that is for all time to stand as the expression of the honor paid to Lancaster's first settlers by their descendants. It was appropriate that at the conclusion of these exercises the company should form into little parties and family groups and enjoy a picnic luncheon on the beautiful Park.
At two o'clock the picnickers, augmented by many hundreds of others, moved to the space about the big platform and there listened to the principal literary exercises of the Anniversary, where the story of Lancaster's early days, the record of achieve- ment of her sons and daughters, the beauties of her environ- ment and the virtues of her people were extolled by eloquent tongues. The speakers, excepting His Excellency, the Govern- or, were either sons or former residents of Lancaster. There was a program of singing, dancing and instrumental music, and the mid-afternoon festival in a delightful setting closed, leaving in the hearts of all a little warmer affection for their Lancaster.
It was late afternoon when it became necessary to abbrevi- ate the afternoon program to permit a moment of rest before the "Olden Tyme" Party in the Town Hall (Opera House). This concert and dance in the hall, gay with its decorations and bright with its many lights, attracted a crowd that filled gallery and floor. The concert by the orchestra was followed by a program of old-time dances in which many participated.
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The spirit of the occasion made the dance one of wholesome enjoyment and brought to the dance floor many that had deserted it years ago with the advance of years and the advent of the newer dances. The closing dance was also the closing number of a memorable day, one rich in its opportunities for pleasure, instruction and reminiscence.
It was thought hardly probable that the program of Thurs- day could be in harmony with the excellence of the previous events, but it did in reality continue the same high standard.
The day opened with another band concert in which the talented musicians added to the good favor they had already secured. At eleven o'clock the streets were once more alive with an expectant people. The sounds of music heralded the approach of as pretty a sight as one could wish to see, nearly a score of motor cars, each one of which represented the artistic taste of designer and decorator and the expenditure of time and money without stint. Through Main Street and the principal thoroughfares of Lancaster the parade moved on amid shouts of applause, and terminated at Centennial Park before a living flag, depicted by about two hundred girls and boys in red, white and blue.
Once again upon the Park a picnic luncheon was held, and the afternoon program gave guests an opportunity either to drive to the summit of Mt. Prospect where Senator John W. Weeks has erected his summer home and the observation tow- er, or to attend the ball game. The former was for the few and the latter for the many. The charming view from Mt. Prospect and the equally charming hospitality of the hosts made the Mt. Prospect trip one of the notable events of a notable occasion to those that motored up the mountainside. Few baseball games have been played in Lancaster before a larger crowd than that which lined the field and filled the stand Thursday afternoon. It was a distinctly holiday crowd that cheered and appreciated the playing of "Union A. A." of West Stewartstown and "Lancaster" in a close and exciting con- test, won by the former by a score of 3 to 2.
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ANNIVERSARY
The Town Hall was again filled to the doors on Thursday evening to witness the rising of the curtain upon the drama, "The Founders, " which was to fall as well upon the concluding act of the Anniversary. No more fitting climax to the cele- bration could have been secured than this two act drama, telling the story of Lancaster's settlement, written by a citizen of Lancaster and interpreted by a Lancaster cast.
Thus was brought to an end Lancaster's 150th Anniversary that tested and approved the calibre, talent and ingenuity of her people. It will be remembered for its genuineness and the absence of sham and gaudy display. Its influence will remain for generations with its emphasis upon those qualities of manhood and womanhood that led the Stockwells, Buck- nams and Pages to build wisely and not in vain.
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Anniversary Sunday
T HE first settlers of Lancaster were God-fearing and God-loving men and women. The youth of many of them had been passed in settlements which had been established about the Church as a centre, and hence Chris- tianity was an active and not a passive factor in their lives. At the first proprietors' meeting a grant of land was set apart "for the first clergyman to settle in Lancaster." Even with this inducement there was no local preaching until 1787 when Rev. Lathrop Thompson was engaged to deliver sermons upon six consecutive Sundays "for five bushels of wheat per day." The interest however was such as to warrant the building of a church edifice in 1794 and here "Parson" Willard preached a creed that was broad enough to include all and to satisfy all.
It was natural, therefore, that the opening exercises of Anniversary Week should be of a religious character. Ac- cordingly on Sunday, August 9th, the four churches of Lan- caster held special services in which the lessons of the settle- ment or the intervening history of Lancaster was the theme. Although no special effort was made to draw larger congrega- tions than usual, the auditoriums were well filled and a large proportion of the citizenship listened to able sermons and delightful music. The latter was of an appropriate character, and the altars were profusely decorated with cut-flowers and plants. During the week the church buildings were also decorated and remained open for all those who might wish to enter.
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All Saints' Catholic Church
REV. D. ALEXANDER SULLIVAN, Preacher
(Synopsis)
Text: "What shall I render unto the Lord for all his benefits toward me?"-Psalm 116 : 12.
To press the duty of thankfulness to God there is no need. It is too deeply engraven in the heart. What an odious thing do we all esteem ingratitude to be! Every blessing we enjoy in the order of nature or grace is a gratuitous bounty of our Creator; "Every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights." The claims which Almighty God has on our gratitude are innumerable and infinite.
Like the angels that surround God's throne the blessings which God has given each one of us are an infinitude that no one can number. They are in the air and in the light. They are invisible, and in the kingdom of grace; they live in the past as we look back to-day on the small and humble beginnings of our good Town and community; they crown the present and we build confidently on their fertile futures.
Who shall count the blessings which God has showered upon this favored community? With truth indeed can God say of the land, "What is there I should have done for my vineyard and have not done?" All that men prize is here-broad fields, a fertile soil, a favoring climate, a wealth of streams and rivers and mountains that rise in majestic beauty.
If we are to learn from the centuries past, not vain fable, but practical truth, and not mere requiems over dead sins, but revelations which illumine the future, let us hear the voices which speak to us from the grave of strong men and faithful women, and draw inspiration from their lives.
Let its dead past bury its dead; but not all the past is dead. The cour- age, the self-sacrifice, the heroism of the founders of our good Town will never die. The glory of court and battlefield is but a gilded bauble com- pared to the lasting glory, which true moral greatness wears for those who in obscurity and hardship laid the foundation of our Town and community. They did their duty well-and now for ours.
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LANCASTER
Congregational Church REV. CLINTON W. WILSON, Preacher
"And Joshua said unto them, Pass over before the ark of the Lord your God into the midst of Jordan, and take you up every man of you a stone upon his shoulder, according unto the number of the tribes of the Children of Israel:
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