USA > New Hampshire > Cheshire County > Chesterfield > History of Chesterfield, Cheshire county, N.H., from the incorporation of "township number one," by Massachusetts, in 1736, to the year 1881; together with family Histories and genealogies > Part 12
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The next year, he received $400 for his salary ; but the tuition fees were probably collected by the trustees.
The number of "adventurers" was, in 1814, one hundred, and the deficiency to be made up by them amounted to $88.67. It cer- tainly speaks well for the public spirit of the leading men of the town, that so many were willing to assist in maintaining the school.
There was another way of obtaining funds which, at the present day, would be deemed quite novel in the case of an educational institution. Sept. 11, ISI8, the trustees voted "that Capt. Benj. Cook sell to the highest bidder the privilege of selling liquor on the common, on exhibition day, and that the money so raised be applied to building the stage and paying Mr. Hardy a balance of about $9, due him for arrearages of board for the last year."
In 1806, the trustees of the Academy adopted by-laws for the institution. The following abridgement contains all of their most important provisions :
ART. 1. No student was to be admitted for a shorter term than six weeks, nor to pay less than $1.50 for tuition.
ART. 2. Any student absent without permission, or unable to give a satis- factory reason for his absence, was liable to pay a fine of 25 cents for each day's absence, or be otherwise punished.
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ART. 3. Every student was to pay 25 cents per week for tuition, and was to be held accountable for any damage done to the property of the Academy, or of any person.
ART. 4. Students were forbidden to dispute or contradict the preceptor, or use indecent language in his presence.
ART. 5. When the preceptor entered or left a room, whether in the Acad- emy building or elsewhere, all students present were to rise, and stand until he had taken a seat, or until they were permitted to sit.
ART. 6. Students were required to observe the same conduct toward the trustees as toward the preceptor. Any student refusing to do so, was to be dismissed as " unworthy of a seat within the walls devoted to science."
ART. 7. Students were obliged to keep themselves clean and neat; their apparel must be decent; "their conversation chaste, and their diversions polite." They were not to keep cards or dice, nor play at " games of hazard," nor frequent public houses.
ART. S. Students were required to attend church, if practicable, on the sabbath. They were forbidden to have any play or sport on that day, or " to treat with contempt any religious institution, sect or denomination of Christ- ians, the sacred scriptures, or any divine ordinance whatever."
ART. 9. Students were commanded to cultivate friendship with one another, and kindly feelings "toward mankind in general."
ART. 10. Diligence in studies, and good order in the school-room, were to be observed.
ART. 11 .. No student who had not had previous instruction, under a com- petent teacher in the art of declaiming, was to be allowed to take part in the exhibitions of the Academy, until he had been a member for at least twelve weeks.
ART. 12. All students to whom parts might be assigned in any public exhibition, were obliged to make careful preparation, "in order to perform their parts accurately and preserve the reputation of the Academy."
ART. 13. No student was permitted to attend any other school without the consent of the preceptor or trustees.
The article regulating the price of tuition was changed from time to time ; but no other important change was made in the by-laws till 1834, when that portion of article 5, which required students to rise and stand when the preceptor entered a room not in the Acad- emy building, was repealed. Some other changes were also made.
The seven persons empowered by the Act of Incorporation to serve as trustees, chose, during the year 1790, three additional trus- tees, namely, Alpheus Moore, Rev. Aaron Hall and Dr. John Campbell. Rev. Aaron Hall was of Keene. He was ordained pastor of the First Congregational church of that town, Feb. IS, 1778, and died Aug. 12, 1814. He resigned the office of trustee of the Academy about 1810.
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Of the seven original trustees, Rev. Abraham Wood seems to have resigned only a few months before his death, which took place in October, 1823; Dr. Harvey, in 1794; Moses Smith, in 1806; Zur Evans, in ISO1 ; Simon Willard, in 1808 ; Abner Johnson, in 1811. Silas Richardson was removed by death in 1803. Dr. Oliver Baker was chosen to fill the vacancy in the board of trustees caused by Rev. Mr. Wood's resignation ; Oliver Brown, Benj. Cook, Jacob Amidon, Dr. Oliver Atherton, John Putnam and Benj. Jos- lyn, to take the places of the other members of the original board.
The property held by the trustees for the use of the Academy seems to have consisted almost wholly of real estate. This estate consisted, about the beginning of the present century, of a part, if not all, of the glebe-land. Lot No. I, in the first range, was after- wards (if not at the same time) held by the trustees. No other prop- erty, except the Academy building and its appurtenances, is men- tioned in the records of the institution.
The names of all the preceptors have not been ascertained, owing to the imperfect condition of the record, but some of them were as follows :
The first preceptor appears to have been Sheldon Logan. Mr. Logan may have been engaged to teach previous to 1794 ; but, be that as it may, it is certain that, Aug. 14, 1794, he began to teach in the Academy building, having been engaged for the term of one year, at a salary of 100 pounds, to be paid quarterly.
John Noyes was preceptor two years, commencing Sept 1, 1795. Mr. Noyes was born at Atkinson, April 2, 1764 ; graduated at Dart- mouth College, in which institution he was, for a while, a tutor. From 1800 to '17, he resided in Brattleboro, where he engaged in trade. In 1817, he removed to Dummerston, where he resided until '21, when he removed to Putney. In 1815, he represented the southern district of Vermont in the Congress of the United States. . He died Oct. 26, 1841. (For sketch of his life see History of Brattleboro, Vt.)
Broughton Wright(?) was preceptor one year, from Aug. or Sept. 1797.
Levi Jackson was engaged for one year, commencing Sept. 16, 1799, at a salary of $166.66. The engagement was renewed in ISoo, and in 1801 ; after which, he was engaged for the term of three years. (See Family Histories.)
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Daniel Hardy taught one year, at least, beginning in the autumn of 1805.
Isaac Fletcher, a student of Dartmouth College, was preceptor in 1808. Mr. Fletcher afterwards practised law at Lyndon, Vt. In 1812, he married Abigail, daughter of Peter Stone, Sen., of this town.
Jonathan Hartwell was preceptor in 1809.
Asa Keyes was preceptor two years, commencing April 16, IS10. He was born in Putney, Vt., May 30, 1787, and fitted for college at the Academy of which he was afterwards preceptor, as above stated ; graduated at Dartmouth College in 1810; studied law, and was admitted to the Windham (Vt.) county bar in 1814. In 1833, he removed from Putney to Brattleboro, where he died June 4, 1880, at the great age of 93. At the time of his death he was the oldest living graduate of Dartmouth College, and the oldest lawyer in Vermont. He was a man of great ability and strength of intellect. He married, in 1815, Sarah, daughter of Asa Britton, Esq., of Chesterfield. (For a pretty complete sketch of his life see History of Brattleboro.)
M'Conihe appears to have taught six months in 1812.
Otis Hutchins was preceptor two years, at least, commencing in the autumn of 1812. In the spring of 1820, he was engaged again for the term of three years. His salary was to be raised, in part, by subscriptions, which could be paid in cloth, provisions, wood, etc. In 1814, he remitted the amount of his wages for three months, after deducting the cost of board for that time, on condition that the trustees would devote the same to repairing the Academy building. Mr. Hutchins was the son of William and Sarah (Whitman) Hutchins, of Westmoreland, and was born Jan. 10, 1781. He pre- pared for college at the Academy of which he was afterwards pre- ceptor ; was licensed to preach in ISO8, but was not ordained. From 1815 to '19, he was principal of the Kimball Union Academy, at Meriden. He died in Westmoreland, Oct. 6, 1866.
Elisha S. Plumb, was preceptor in 1815 and '16.
Thomas Hardy was preceptor in 1817, '18 and '19. Miss Han- nah W. Mead was his assistant in 1817; Miss Mary B. Read, in 18IS. Mr. Hardy was again engaged in 1834 for the term of ten years, beginning the first Monday in April of that year. He was
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to receive, as salary, all the tuition fees, and was to have the priv- ilege of selling books and stationery to the students. On the other hand, the trustees agreed to furnish fifty dollars' worth of apparatus for the use of the Academy, and to provide twenty-five days' work, each year, for Mr. Hardy's farm. He was, however, released from his engagement, at his own request, Feb. 6, 1838.
Mr. Hardy was one of the most efficient and respected teachers ever connected with the Academy, and the following brief sketch of his life may be of interest to the reader.
Thomas Hardy was born in Dublin, this State, Oct. 23, 17S4. He fitted for college, in part at least, at the Chesterfield Academy, and graduated at Dartmouth College in 1812. After a year spent in reading law, he began to teach and, as already stated, was en- gaged to teach in the Academy in this town in 1817, '18 and '19. From 1819 to '29, he was a successful teacher of large private schools in Boston. He next spent four years in Dover, where he had, for a time, a private school for large scholars, and was princi- pal of the Franklin Academy. From Dover he removed to Keene, where he taught a private school in the winter of 1833 and '34. In the spring of the latter year he came to Chesterfield again, to teach in the Academy, as has already been stated.
He did some of his best work in this town, and taught very little after leaving it.
Six thousand seven hundred persons were under his instruction during his career as a teacher, in all the schools under his care. He was an excellent Latin and good Greek scholar, and was faithful and thorough in the discharge of his duties. He died March 3, 1864.
George Freeman was preceptor three months in IS22 (after Aug. 20.)
Rev. John Walker taught at least six months in 1823.
John Chamberlain was preceptor in IS24.
Josiah W. Fairfield was preceptor in 1824, '25, and perhaps in '26. He was a native of New Boston, this State, and graduated at Dartmouth College in 1827; read law in this town, and with Hon. Elisha Williams, of Hudson, N. Y., where he settled, becoming a prominent and wealthy citizen. In 1829, he married Laura, daugh- ter of Asa Britton, Esq. He died at Hudson, Dec. 3, 1878.
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Edward P. Harris was preceptor in 1827 and '28; Oliver M. Smith, in '30 ; James W. Emery, in '31.
Charles L. Strong was preceptor in 1832, and probably in '33 ; and again in '41, '42, '43 and '44(?) (See Family Histories).
John E. Butler, of Jamaica, Vt., was an assistant teacher in 1833. He afterwards became a distinguished lawyer and prominent man in that State.
Samuel H. Price was preceptor in 1838 and '39; Nathan Ken- dall, in '45, '46 and '47.
Since 1850 the school has been in a comparatively feeble condi- tion, and has usually been in operation only one term each year.
For many years after its incorporation, the Academy was regard- ed as one of the best schools in the State, ranking second, it is said, for a number of years, to Phillips Academy, at Exeter. It was attended by students from all the neighboring towns, and some came from great distances, even from the Southern States. Many of those who sought instruction within its walls, became, later in life, emi- nent in the various trades and professions.
The institution was fortunate in securing the services of some very able teachers ; and to this circumstance must, in great part, be attributed its popularity and success. Those of its students who still survive, look back with pleasure to their student days, and hold in grateful remembrance the "Old Academy." A physician who now resides in one of the great western states and who attended the Academy in his boyhood, writes as follows: "The Chesterfield Academy will always be held dear to memory, as more of the remembrances of those days of youth come fresh to my mind, when I think of my native town." With regard to his school- mates, he adds : "Many of them are dead, and others distributed in various directions over this wide world. Occasionally I hear of some one of them, but less and less frequently as years roll by."
The exhibitions that were given by the students of the Academy, during its period of greatest prosperity, are recalled to mind by the older inhabitants of the town, and by those of the participants who survive, as notable incidents in the history of the school, and even of the town. The earliest exhibitions took place at a period beyond the memory of all but the very oldest inhabitants ; but that they
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were creditable to the school, is inferred from the careful prepa- ration that the students were obliged to make, " in order to perform their parts accurately and preserve the reputation of the Academy." (See By-Laws, Art. 11 and 12). The exhibitions usually took place in the old meeting-house, at the Centre Village, and were attended by large numbers of people, many coming from the neigh- boring towns. A temporary stage was built in front of the pulpit and enclosed in curtains. On this stage were acted tragedies, com- edies and farces ; and the master-pieces of the great orators of all nations, were recited. 3 Few theatres were probably ever more popular with the dwellers in a large city, than were these exhi- bitions with the inhabitants of Chesterfield and the neighboring towns.
The program was often very extensive, and sometimes consisted of three parts,-for the forenoon, the afternoon, and the evening, respectively. The following synopsis of the " Order of Exercises" for an exhibition given Nov. 19, 1846, will serve to illustrate this point :
Forenoon (beginning at 9 o'clock)
1st. Prayer.
2d. Music.
3d. Salutatory Oration (Latin).
4th. Introductory Piece.
5th. Comedy - " Lost and Found." (Fifteen characters.)
6th. Declamation.
7th. Declamation.
Afternoon.
1st. Oration.
2d. Dramatic Play-"Lady of Lyons." (Twelve characters, officers and servants.)
3d. Declamation.
4tlı. "Cantilena."
5th. Farce - "State Secrets." (Six characters.)
6th. " Facetia."
7th. Declamation.
Evening.
1st. Oration.
2d. Farce-" Rendezvous." (Nine characters.)
3d. Declamation.
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4th. Tragedy -" Venice Preserved." (Seven characters, officer, guards
and conspirators.)
5th. " Cantus."
6th. Declamation.
7th. Comedy -" Rip Van Winkle." (Fourteen characters, and mountain demons.)
8th. Closing piece.
9th. Valedictory.
In 1819, the trustees decided to abandon the custom of having annual exhibitions, stating as their reason for such decision, that the time spent in preparing for them could be more profitably devoted to the regular studies. But a practice that had become so firmly established, could not easily be done away with, and was afterwards resumed. The following sketch written by Mr. Chas. C. Hardy, of Dover, son of Prof. Thomas Hardy, so faithfully describes the exhibitions given by the Academy students about half a century ago, that it is inserted here :
"It should be understood that a great portion of the students were grown up persons- I remember one who was twenty-seven years of age- who had gone through all the studies of the common schools, and were, many of them, nearly fitted for college. Discussions as to whether there would be an exhibition that term, its advantages, its disadvantages, and the details of the affair, were rife in the early autumn, and went forward with cumulative interest as the days passed on.
" The decision having been made, the plays to be enacted were at once selected, the parts assigned, and written out,-there being generally only one book for the use of all who had parts in any one play.
" Then followed rehearsals of a very informal character, at any odd time, when a few of the actors could be brought together.
"A fortnight, or more, before the great day, the old meeting-house would be taken possession of, square timbers laid on the tops of the old-fashioned 'pen' pews, a good floor laid on the timbers, posts erected at the corners, from the tops of which wires were strung for the curtains. Then the rehearsals began in good earnest. Wednesday and Saturday afternoons, and sometimes evenings of the other week days, and every available moment of time, except Sunday hours, were improved; the lower windows of the church being darkened, and its doors secured. These rehearsals were, to those
engaged in them, the very best part of the whole affair. 3 When the day was close at hand, a carpet was borrowed and spread over the stage. (I do not think there were more than five carpets in the whole town, in those days, and it was almost impossible to get one.) Frames of wood, covered with cloth, with two light doors for entrance and exit, were set up for scenes; and, 'the
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night before,' a grand full-dress rehearsal, to which a favored few were admitted, was had. By nine o'clock of the following morning, not an inch of sitting or standing room could be had in the church. I remember that, on one occasion, the galleries had what a sailor would call 'preventer posts' set up, to keep them from falling.
" At a little after nine, the curtains of three sides of the stage would be drawn back, and the whole board of trustees, black-coated and solemn, could be discovered sitting in awful dignity on a row of chairs at the back of the stage. Then followed a prayer-which we always thought too long-by some clergyman of the place; then a few short recitations- we called them ' single pieces '- and at last the real business of the day began.
"I remember that the tragedy of 'Douglas'; the tragedy of 'Pizarro' : that grand, old high-comedy, 'The School for Scandal'; the ' Golden Farmer'; the ' Omnibus ' ; Goldsmith's ' She Stoops to Conquer' ; and some scenes from Shakespeare's ' As You Like It',- were put on the boards in what I consid- ered, and now consider, pretty good style.
"The performances lasted till nearly eleven o'clock at night, and were closed by a valedictory from one of the oldest and best scholars."
The original Academy building, which appears to have been occupied for the first time in 1794, stood on the south-eastern part of the common, at the Centre Village, a few rods from the old meeting-house. It was a two-story building, and somewhat larger than the present Academy building and school-house, which stands on about the same place. It had a belfry but no bell. April 9, 1859, it was burned to the ground, and a new one was erected the same year by school-district No. 5 and the trustees of the Academy, on condition that the same should be used both for the district school and for a high school or academy.
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CHAPTER VIII.
The Churches.
FIRST CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH.
The First Congregational Church of Chesterfield was probably organized in 1771. The oldest records of this church have been lost, but considerable light is thrown upon its early history by the records of the town. ( See Chap. II.) The first settled minister was Abraham Wood, who came from Sudbury, Mass., at the age of about twenty-four years. (See Family Histories). As has already been stated, John Eliot had preached "on probation" before Mr. Wood came to Chesterfield. For some reason which he did not see fit to make public, Mr. Eliot declined to accept the invita- tion to become the settled pastor of the church. The following was his letter of declination :
" To the Selectmen of Chesterfield, in the Province of New Hampshire.
GENTLEMEN :- I have received a call from the inhabitants of Chesterfield to settle among them, in the gospel ministry, and having taken the same into most serious consideration, for various most important reasons that have their residence in my breast, you receive an answer to said call in the negative. So, wishing that all the dealings of Divine Providence might be sanctified to you and the people of this place, I rest yours in the fellowship of the gospel. JOHN ELIOT.
Chesterfield, 20th Jan'y, 1772."
Mr. Wood having received an invitation to become the pastor of the church, in accordance with the vote of the town passed Oct. 12, 1772, accepted the call, and wrote the following letter of accept- ance :
" To the Church and Congregation of Chesterfield.
GENTLEMEN :- As you were pleased sometime past to give me an invitation to settle among you in the work of the gospel ministry, I have taken the mat- ter into mature deliberation and serious consideration, and because I esteem it an affair of the utmost importance, I have been asking that wisdom from
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above which is profitable to direct; and because in the multitude of counsel- lors there is safety, I have asked the advice of my Reverend Fathers in the ministry, as well as the advice of other Christian friends, -and now am ready to inform you that I accept of your invitation.
Being sensible of my inability for such an important undertaking, and con- fident of your good will toward me, I ask an interest in your applications to the Throne of Grace, that I may have that wisdom imparted to me from above, from time to time, that may be necessary rightly to conduct in this im- portant service; that I may be the happy instrument of promoting the Re- deemer's Kingdom in this place where Satan's seat so lately was; that the wil- derness may be made to blossom as the rose; that here many sons and daugh- ters may be born unto God, and that I may be a great blessing unto you and your children yet unborn; that I may be so happy as to save both myself and those that hear me.
So, wishing you the divine presence and direction in all your proceedings, I conclude, assuring you that, however I may be wanting in other respects, you shall never have just reason to suppose but that your best interests and wel- fare lie near my heart. In token hereof, I subscribe myself your friend, etc. ABRAHAM WOOD.
Sudbury, Nov. 17th, 1772."
Mr. Wood was ordained the 31st day of the next month, and for half a century was the sole pastor of the First Congregational Church. Not till he had entered upon the fifty-first year of his ministry, did he have any assistance in his labors. Having become, a few months before his death, unable to attend to his pastoral du- ties, Rev. John Walker was installed as colleague-pastor, April 30, 1823. Mr. Wood retained his ministry, however, till his death, which took place Oct. IS, the same year. During his pastorate, 324 persons united with the church, either by profession or by let- ter, including those who were members when he was ordained. Of this number, 131 were males, 193 females. The number of per- sons baptized was 765. The largest number baptized in one year (1819) was 64. The same year, 47 persons were admitted to the church,-which was the largest number admitted in one year. At the time Mr. Walker was installed as colleague-pastor, the church had 113 members, and eight more were admitted during the year.
For the first nineteen years of his ministry, Mr. Wood received an annual salary of 65 pounds. At the annual town-meeting in March, 1792, it was voted to make his salary 80 pounds. From
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I Soo to IS22, the average sum raised yearly by taxation for the sup- port of preaching, was about $275. After the latter date, no taxes were assessed for the support of religious instruction. The Bill of Rights adopted by the people of New Hampshire in 1783, declares that " no person of any one particular sect or religious denomina- tion shall ever be compelled to pay towards the support of the teacher or teachers of another persnasion, sect or denomination." Persons had occasionally been exempted from paying minister-rates before the adoption of the Bill of Rights, on producing a certificate showing that they were members of some other evangelical church : but about the beginning of the present century, many persons took advantage of the declaration quoted above, and refused to be assessed for the support of the Congregational church. In the year ISoo, the names of 47 tax-payers were recorded in the records of the town as being the names of persons who were members of the " Universal Restoration Society," and consequently exempted from paying minister-rates. In ISO2, the names of 31 tax-payers were recorded as being members of the "Republican Society," and there- fore "not holden by law to pay taxes for the support of Congrega- tional ministers." After IS22, considerable difficulty was experi- enced, some years, in raising money enough to pay the salaries of the pastors, and several of them asked to have their pastoral rela- tions with the church dissolved, on account of the inability of the latter to pay the stipulated salaries.
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