USA > New Hampshire > Merrimack County > Concord > History of Concord, New Hampshire, from the original grant in seventeen hundred and twenty-five to the opening of the twentieth century, Volume II > Part 36
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HISTORY OF CONCORD.
lettered. One thing led to another, when Mr. Hoit having informed his partner that " he was so green that he would be calling a cow pasture a cow minister," the firm forthwith ended.
The Gazette, under the direction of Mr. Tuttle, lived several years. Printed on the rough paper of the period, the Gazette is an interesting sight to modern eyes. The shape of the paper was oblong, measuring about twenty inches by ten, and folio in plan. The four pages con- tained six columns each. Following the custom of the time, these columns were picturesquely diverse in their contents. The original communications signed by " Videx " or " Publius," berating the Mad- ison administration for cowardice and want of patriotism, stand out prominently ; then come several columns devoted to news by mail, and to foreign items taken from exchanges. Poctry, also, liad gener- ous space, while the editorial, mingled with short comments on public affairs, both state and national, was conspicuous. Quaint were the advertisements. In large letters was set forth the " 20000 dollar" lottery established for the benefit of Harvard college, with whole, half, and quarter tickets for sale at the store of William Kent, and italicised is the injunction that "adventurers would do well to make instant application." Another singular advertisement was one offer- ing one cent reward for the return of an indentured apprentice of tall size and light complexion. One of the longest advertisements called attention to the merits of Rogers' Vegetable Pulmonic Detergent for colds, coughs, and consumption, bottles of which could be bought at the Gazette office. Then the post-rider had his space wherein to remind delinquents that they must make good their engagements with the printers, " who bear the burden and heat of the day in order to supply the public with news untainted with scandal," followed by the suggestion that " those whom this coat fits are desired to take notice, and govern themselves accordingly."
The Gazette was Federal in politics, and for several years exerted considerable influence through the communications of strong and ver- satile contributors. In 1815 Mr. Tuttle disposed of his interest to W. S. Spear. The suecessor managed the business under the firm of Thayer & Spear until 1819, when the publication ceased.
Meanwhile, Mr. Hoit entered into a business arrangement with certain Jeffersonian leaders, which introduced a new paper to the community called The American Patriot. This was the last of Mr. Hoit's ventures, and a few months later the paper passed into the hands of a man destined to become one of the great newspaper edi- tors of the age,-Isaac Hill.
The political situation in 1809 furnished abundant reason why a strictly partisan newspaper should be established at Concord; and,
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moreover, the business prospects of such an undertaking were, con- sidering the abandoned condition of journalism in and around the town, singularly promising. Some of the Republican leaders were willing, not only to advise, but to make substantial contributions to such an organ, thus adding a strong inducement for the right editor. The man was found in young Isaac Hill, who had just reached his majority, and at the same time had completed a seven years' appren- ticeship in the office of the Amherst Cabinet. Mr. Hill came to Con- cord, conferred with the leaders, looked over the ground, and within a fortnight entered upon that remarkable career which was to make him a senator in congress, a governor of New Hampshire, and one of the leaders of the Democratic party. Mr. Hill was born in a part of old Cambridge, now Somerville, April 6th, 1788. Toil and self-sacri- fice were his early lot, his schooling was limited, and at the age of fourteen he began his apprenticeship in Amherst. On April 18th, 1809, was issued, under his editorship, the first number of the New Hampshire Patriot. This number, designated " No. One, new series, whole No. 27," contained four pages, with four columns to the page, and measured eleven inches by seventeen. An extract from Madison -"Indulging no passions which trespass on the rights of others, it shall be our true glory to cultivate peace by observing justice "- constituted its motto.
The first page contained a few advertisements, one announcing the new firm of Low & Damon, corner of School street ; then followed a long list of letters remaining in David George's post-office, and direct- ed to persons living in neighboring towns. In another column was a speech by Senator Giles of Virginia. Then came mention of foreign intelligence, auction sales, and judicial notices; but scarcely a line was devoted to anything like local news. The brisk young editor also presented his salutatory to the public, setting forth the purpose of the paper, and suggesting his own political creed. Three hundred dollars represented Mr. Hill's investment, which embraced a time- worn Ramage press, with a font of type to match. The work of the office was done by the editor, his brother Walter, and one apprentice; and among them they turned off job printing, set the type, ran the press, solicited advertisements and wrote them, addressed the wrap- pers, and delivered the papers to the village subscribers.
For a few months the scene of these labors was in a building on the site of what is to-day the Abbot House on South Main street, but a removal was soon made to the lot now occupied by the Gover- nor Hill block. There, in a two-story structure, the Patriot had its home for nearly twenty years. About that time, the need of a book- store became apparent, so Mr. Hill opened such a store in the new
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quarters. Establishing his presses and editorial room on the upper floor, he gave the ground floor to the new enterprise and called it the Franklin Book Store. Meanwhile, with an eye to the future, the editor-bookseller bought the land north of his office, and built upon it a dwelling-house, setting it back two rods from the street, and there he began his married life in 1814.
Concord, in 1809, contained nearly twenty-four hundred inhabi- tants, of whom scarcely a third lived in the main village. In a busi- ness point of view, the town was of growing importance ; public attention was beginning to be directed towards it, and it had already practically become the capital of the state. The situation of Con- cord, favorable as it was, was soon to be made more so by the open- ing of the Middlesex canal and the establishment of numerous stage lines. The influence of a citizen like Isaac Hill was certain to ben- efit the community. Nervously energetic, tireless and persistent, he entered heartily into the material development of his adopted town, becoming a leader in its business and social features, spending freely of his own means and encouraging others to spend and help by his stimulating example. Starting his paper with six hundred subscrib- ers, he saw the list increase month by month, until its circulation embraced every locality in the state. With the enlargement of his newspaper he sought other paths of activity, so that in less than ten years from the day he arrived he was a foremost leader in the public and private interests of Concord.
The War of 1812 afforded a great opportunity for Mr. Hill, and made his newspaper not only the mouthpiece of the administration, but one of the leading journals in New England. So sharp and hard- hitting were his editorials that the Patriot increased greatly in circu- lation and importance, and actually shaped for many years the Repub- lican-Democratic policy.
It was only natural that public offices should accompany such con- spicuous ability, therefore party honors began to be bestowed on the intrepid editor. In 1819 he was clerk of the senate; in 1822, 1823, 1824, and 1827 he was a state senator; in 1829 he was named as sec- ond comptroller of the treasury by President Jackson, whose intimate friend he was, but the senate rejected the nomination. The following year he was chosen a senator in congress, and in 1836, 1837, and 1838 he was governor of New Hampshire.
To carry on the growing business of the newspaper, Mr. Hill asso- ciated with him his brother, Walter R. Hill, who remained from 1811 to 1815, when a brother-in-law, Jacob B. Moore, became interested, his connection with the paper extending from 1819 to 1823. Pros- perity continuing to attend the Patriot, a larger and more convenient
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building became necessary. Accordingly, in 1826, a large three-story brick block was built at the southeast corner of the old state house yard, which was to be the home of the paper and of the " Franklin Book Store " for many years.
In its day this block was one of the sights of the town, because of its imposing size and citified aspect. Although the block remained in the possession of Mr. Hill for twenty years, he disposed of his interest in the Patriot and in the book-store in 1829. The Patriot passed into the hands of his brother, Horatio Hill, and Cyrus Barton, while the book-store was conducted un- der the name of Horatio Hill & Co.
Horatio Hill was an energetic man of affairs, who, after leaving Concord in the forties, soon made his home in Chicago, where he achieved success. Mr. Hill is best remembered in Concord from his connection with the famous book-store and his successful advocacy of the char- ter for the Concord Railroad.
Franklin Book-store and N. H. Patriot Office.
Cyrus Barton was a practical printer and hard-working editor all his days. Born in Croydon, he attended the town schools, and began while in his teens an apprenticeship in the office of the Vermont Re- publican at Windsor. In 1823 he went to Claremont, where he start- ed the short-lived Spectator, only to discover that Claremont politics were not favorable to the undertaking. Newport, however, offered a more promising field, so Mr. Barton moved his newspaper to that vil- lage, remaining there until his connection with the Patriot in 1829. From the day Mr. Barton came to Concord to live, to the day of his death, a quarter of a century later, he was prominent in the affairs of the town and a leader in Democratie politics. After Horatio Hill's re- tirement in 1834, Mr. Barton carried on the Patriot alone until 1840, when Henry H. Carroll became his partner. A year later another change took place, when Mr. Barton sold his interest to Nathaniel B. Baker.
In the legislative sessions of 1833-'34, Mr. Barton was a senator from the old Concord district, No. Four, and in 1842 he was a mem- ber of Governor Hubbard's council. This appears to be the extent of Mr. Barton's office-holding, but he was, notwithstanding, an active and influential party man. He evinced much interest in the charter contests preceding the city organization, and in return therefor, at the first city election, 1853, he was chosen a member of the common
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HISTORY OF CONCORD.
council from Ward five, and was its president. In the state councils of the short-lived "American party " Mr. Barton took a conspicuous part, thereby separating himself from the Democrats, with whom he had long been a leader. He now, 1855, became exceedingly active with pen and voice, and bitterly denounced President Pierce and the Democracy and particularly the Patriot. He entered into the state campaign of that year with unwonted energy, speaking in various places and arousing enthusiasm.
On the 17th of February he met Walter Harriman in joint debate at Loudon. The hall was crowded. Mr. Harriman had spoken for an hour, when Mr. Barton rose to occupy his part of the afternoon. He soon became greatly excited, and assailed his former associates with vehemence, when suddenly reeling, with an unfinished sentence on his lips, he dropped lifeless into the arms of Mr. Harriman.
The growth of Concord in population and material prosperity, together with its increasing prominence politically, invited the estab- lishment of a rival newspaper to the Patriot. Consequently, in 1823, Concord saw the beginning of the present Statesman. This was due to the enterprise of Luther Roby, a native of Amherst, who became its first printer and publisher. The first number of the Statesman appeared on the 6th of January, 1823, under the editorship of Amos A. Parker, who six months later became its owner. For the next two decades the history of the Statesman was as follows: On the 17th of October, 1825, Mr. Parker transferred the subscription list of his paper to George Kimball, then the editor of the Concord Register, who, merging both papers into one, continued the publication under the title of The New Hampshire Statesman and Concord Register. In De- cember of that year, Thomas G. Wells, owner of the Amherst Herald, bought an interest in the consolidated papers, and added his list to the enterprise. In January, 1826, Mr. Wells sold his interest to Asa McFarland and Moses G. Atwood, the firm then being Kimball, McFar- land & Atwood. In July Mr. Kimball disposed of his share to George Kent, and a year after, on the withdrawal of Mr. Atwood, the paper became the property of Kent & McFarland, continuing as such until the 31st of May, 1831, when still another paper, the New Hampshire Journal, was taken into the concern. The united papers were now issued as The New Hampshire Statesman and State Journal, Asa McFarland and George W. Ela having assumed the proprietorship. January 1st, 1834, Mr. McFarland retired from the business, leaving Mr. Ela the sole owner.
The immediate results of this Statesman-Journal consolidation were described by Mr. McFarland as follows: "The united paper was enlarged and its contents somewhat increased ; but its circulation
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NEWSPAPERS AND THEIR EDITORS.
was not augmented to such a degree as to meet the expectations of those who brought about the union. A large hand-press was pur- chased, which was so hard to work as to cause the workmen to grumble, the anticipated subscription list turned out very unsub- stantial and discontinuances were lamentably frequent. At this time the forms of the paper were conveyed to a power press then located in a room connected with Breed's tan-yard, on State street near the First Baptist church. However, the paper held its own and managed to exist. The circulation began to mend, until there were twenty-five hundred subscribers, who paid from a dollar and a quarter to a dollar and a half, the post-riders taking their profit at all over a dollar, which was the price paid by them for the paper."
In 1838 John W. Flanders became a partner, retaining his inter- est until 1840, when his share passed into the hands of Mr. Ela. From August, 1841, to May, 1842, the publishers were George W. and Jacob H. Ela, then Augustus C. Blodgett appeared as partner, and in rapid succession came the names of John P. Osgood, Frank S. West, and A. C. Blodgett as connected with the paper. Finally, in July, 1844, the property passed to George O. Odlin, John C. Wilson, and John R. Osgood, under the style of George O. Odlin & Co.
In July, 1851, the Statesman gained reputation and stability by passing into the possession of Asa McFarland and George E. Jenks, who, with Henry McFarland, who was a partner from 1858 to 1871, controlled its destiny until it became the property of the Republican Press association in 1871.
In Asa McFarland's "Outline of Biography and Recollection " is an interesting side light on the negotiations whereby he became a part owner of the Statesman in 1826: "In February I received a note from Thomas G. Wells, inviting me to call upon him. I am not able to give all the particulars, but this is certain, that in connec- tion with Moses G. Atwood, the half share owned by Mr. Wells was bought by Mr. Atwood and myself for one thousand dollars. It is hardly necessary to say that this transaction small as was the sum of money invested could not be held in light regard by me. I was in only my twenty-third year, and Mr. Atwood was my junior. The other half of the Statesman was nominally owned by George Kim- ball, a gentleman who had no knowledge of the printing business, and, although with the advantage of what is styled a liberal educa- tion, not a desirable partner, for he was indolent, without aptitude for business, and an incessant snuff taker." After describing the persons connected with the office, Mr. McFarland continues : "The apartment in which the Statesman was printed was very low studded, exceedingly warm in summer and cold in winter. Room was made
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for the ' friskets' of two hand presses by constructing a recess in the ceiling overhead. A room in the second story was the editorial apartment, where the accounts were also kept."
The home of the Statesman was in those days in the Farley build- ing, an unsightly wooden structure standing on the lot occupied at the present time by Merchants' Exchange block, next south of the New Eagle. For the third story and the business office below it was paid an annual rental of one hundred dollars. Mr. McFarland was connected with the Statesman in all for more than thirty years, and was its editor most of that time.
An interesting picture of the printing-office of that period has been left by John C. Moore, himself. one of the veterans of the press, whose life continued to times very recent. "The type in the Patriot office consisted of few varieties, and nearly everything was coarse, clumsy, and uncouth. The Ramage press was then the best in use ; it com- pelled the pressman to move the bed twice and to take two impres- sions on one side of a demy sheet of twenty by twenty-four inches, and the same for the other side. The inking apparatus consisted of a board say fifteen inches square, upon which the ink was spread, and two balls (about ten inches in diameter made of well-trodden sheep's pelt stuffed with wool), which required considerable strength to handle, offered the means of distributing the ink when taken from the table, which was done by vigorously beating them together with a sort of rolling movement, turning them a little at a time, so as to make the ink cover the entire surface, and so as to beat the press- form so perfectly that neither ' monks' nor ' friars' should appear on the printed sheet. About two hundred and fifty sheets were thus printed on one side in an hour, one man working the press and another the balls, and changing places every hour. For press-work the pay of a journeyman was twelve and a half cents a token, say two hundred and fifty sheets." In those good old days of the Hoits and Hills and Tuttles sixteen smart hours often made up a day's work.
September 11th, 1826, Concord saw the first number of the New Hampshire Journal. Its publisher was Henry E. Moore, and its edi- tor Jacob B. Moore, one of the most accomplished literary men in the state. This paper started under favorable conditions, and before long its circulation was the largest of any in town. It so happened that its opening number arrested wide attention by a vivid descrip- tion of an event so tragic and terrible as to become of absorbing in- terest throughout the country. It was the great slide at the Willey house. Editor Moore, who was traveling among the White Moun- tains at the time, was an eye-witness of the devastation and loss of life. In fact, he and his party narrowly escaped destruction in the
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engulfing flood, having barely time to seek safety from the rapid waters of the Saco as they rushed through the Notch. An article of that description, written by one on the spot, was a rare event in those days, and looked upon as an achievement almost miraculous. An occurrence so wonderful and impressive set forth in glowing words was indeed a feature well calculated to stimulate circulation and win subscribers. And this. the Willey house article seemed for a while to do. But, notwithstanding so favorable an introduction, the paper was not long maintained. Various reasons were ascribed regarding the matter, but the result was the merging of the Journal in the columns of the Statesman in 1831. It was near the close of its carcer that Richard Bartlett, a Concord lawyer, became connected with the Jour- nal as editor.
Jacob B. Moore was one of the prominent citizens of Concord dur- ing the early years of the nineteenth century. He was born in Ando- ver, October 31st, 1797, and learned the printer's trade in the office of the Patriot. He was more than a printer, he was distinctively an edi- tor and literary man, and also a bookseller. His tastes were historical, and he gave to the public many articles and publications on local and state annals. He and John Farmer published the " New Hampshire Historical Collections," while he alone wrote or compiled various works, among which were "Annals of Concord," 1824; "Laws of Trade," 1840 ; and " Memoirs of American Governors," 1846. This work, left uncompleted, was intended to embrace all the prerev- olutionary governors. Mr. Moore was sheriff of Merrimack county 1829-'33.
Leaving Concord Mr. Moore resided in New York city, where he edited (1839) the New York Whig. Afterwards he lived in Washing- ton as clerk in a department. Finally taking up his residence in Cal- ifornia, Mr. Moore became postmaster of San Francisco, 1849-'53. He died at Bellows Falls, Vt., September 1st, 1853.
During the ten years from 1828 to 1838 Concord saw the begin- ning and end of several newspaper ventures. There were The Times Mirror, The Spirit of the Republican Press, Concord Advertiser, and The Olive Branch. Not one of these enterprises attained more than a year or two of publicity when it passed into oblivion. The first of these papers, The Times Mirror, began existence in 1828 under the editorship of Hugh Moore, an Amherst printer and a man of consid- erable ability. The following year brought the last issue of the paper. Dudley S. Palmer figured more or less conspicuously in the journal- ism of those days, through the publication of various newspapers or periodicals devoted to social and political reforms. Colonel Palmer, as he was called,-his title being derived from service on the staffs
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HISTORY OF CONCORD.
of Governors Pierce and Bell,-was connected at one time with The Patriot, The Courier, and the temperance sheets known as Truth's Defender, Plain Dealer, and Voice of the Masses. He was also corre- spondent for the Boston Traveller, the New York Tribune and other leading journals. He served as deputy secretary of state, succeeding to the secretaryship in 1827, holding the office several years. He died in Newbury, Vt., in 1886.
The Concord Semi- Weekly Advertiser made its appearance in 1831. Henry E. Moore, one of the well-known family of printers, was its manager during its existence of scarcely ninety days. Mr. Moore, however, deserves passing mention, for it was owing to his enterprise that a collection of church music and musical publications called the "Northern Harp," "The Musical Catechism," "The National Choir," and "The Merrimack Collection of Instrumental Music," were pub- lished and printed in Concord as early as the thirties.
The Olive Branch, a four-page quarto weekly, made its appearance in January, 1832. The owner and editor was Jacob Perkins. The price was one dollar if paid in advance. The motto, somewhat out of proportion to the subscription, read as follows: "Peace is our watchword, usefulness our aim-pledged to no party, by no sect enslaved." The office whence issued this candidate for public favor was over the "Green Store," at the northeast corner of the old state house yard. The paper was well made up and ably edited, first by Mr. Perkins, then by John LeBosquet, a practical printer. In spite of the suggestive vignette decorating its first page-a dove perched on a sunshiny limb, bearing in her beak an olive branch-this paper disappeared from circulation long before its first summer was half spent.
If relationship among newspapers could be traced as in the human family, there might be found an affinity between a certain paper first issued in Concord during the thirties and the Statesman of to-day. The baptismal name of the former publication was The New Hamp- shire Courier, and its sponsors were Dudley S. Palmer and Wood- bridge Odlin. The date of the first number was December 14th, 1832. Some changes in the management and name took place August 8th, 1834, when Mr. Chadwick became a partner. The name of the paper was changed to The Courier and Inquirer. This continued to be the name as long as the publication survived, or until May, 1842, when the end came. But, in October, 1844, the publication was revived by Augustus C. Blodgett, formerly connected with the Statesman, and under the direction of its new owner the paper was kept alive for several years. In January, 1846, Mr. Blodgett united his paper with the fortunes of the Concord Gazette, recently started by Charles F.
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