USA > New Hampshire > Grafton County > Littleton > History of Littleton, New Hampshire, Vol. I > Part 27
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In the autumn of 1828, while making the trip from Plymouth, the stage was overtaken by a severe snow-storm, and when it reached the present site of the Flume House it was stuck in a drift from which the horses with the assistance of the driver and his passenger could not extricate it and it was abandoned. The horses were unhitched, Houlton mounted one and led another, while the passenger rode the leader, whose backbone was promi- nent, and as sharp as the edge of an inch board. Thus mounted, they continued the trip to Littleton. When he came to pay his fare, the passenger claimed that in consequence of the manifest inconvenience to which he had been put and the injury sustained, a reduction from the usual rate should be made ; to this Holton assented, and discounted a ninepence (12} cents). This seems to have satisfied the passenger who rode "Crazy Isaac" from the Flume to this town. On the return trip the wagon was found where it had been left, but the heavy canvas top was missing, evidently having been borne away by the wind. Search was made in every direction for it, but without avail. The following spring it was dis- covered some rods distant from the scene of the accident, lodged in the top of a tall tree. In 1829 a four-horse coach built at Rum- ney by Robert Morse was put on this route, and its first arrival was the occasion of another celebration in this town.
Before the close of 1840 Littleton had grown to be a stage cen- tre. From here routes extended in many directions, -to Lan- caster, Conway, Plymouth, Haverhill, and Danville in Vermont.
1 " PLYMOUTH, FRANCONIA, LITTLETON, N. H. AND WATERFORD, VT. MAIL STAGE. Leaves Col. Wm. Websters Stage House, Plymouth, Tuesday and Saturday at 1, P. M. after the arrival of the Concord Stage, and arrives in Franconia at 6, P. M. leaves Gibb's Hotel, Franconia, Wednesday and Saturday morning at 5, and arrives in Littleton at 6 A. M. and in Waterford at 7, A. M. leaves Pike's Hotel Waterford, Thursday and Sunday evening and stops over night at Franconia. leaves Franco- nia Monday and Friday at 4, A. M. and arrives in Plymouth at 10 A. M. and in Con- cord at 6 P. M. via Campton, Thornton, Peeling, Lincoln, the celebrated Old Man of the Mountain, the artificial (?) Rock Basin, Minerals, two large Iron Manufactories all of which are in Franconia ; and Littleton to Waterford, Vt. Intersecting at Lit- tleton with the Lancaster Stage, and at Waterford with the Danville Stage ; . . . Fare from Plymouth to Franconia $1.50 to Littleton $1.75 to Waterford $2. Badger & Porters Stage Register. No. 11, p. 17, Boston, 1827.
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The drivers were men of distinction in their vocation. Among them were Major Ceplias Brackett, Lucius A. Russell, Curtis and Damon Y. Clark, Phineas Cook, Stephen B. Hale, Horace Camp- bell, and other knights of the whip of less renown. Some of those named were in demand in distant parts of the State on occasions of ceremony when a large number of horses were to be handled by the driver.
Another and more ambitious effort was made to add to the means of communication with the sea-board. In January, 1826, a delegate convention representing the towns in the Connecticut valley between Barnet and Canada line, was held at Lancaster " to concert measures for the promotion of the great object of improv- ing the navigation of the Connecticut River to Lake Connecticut and opening a canal by the way of Nulhegan and Clyde Rivers to Lake Memphremagog." Dr. William Burns and William Brackett were delegates from this town, and Nathan Pike and Lyman Hib- bard represented Waterford. A series of resolutions, setting forth the great advantages to the States immediately interested and the nation at large, were adopted, and committees raised to execute the plans of the Convention. Gen. David Rankin was a member of that on a memorial to the General Court to aid the project.
When the question of increased mail communication with the world was under discussion, a kindred matter, that of enlarged hotel accommodations, was discussed, and the result was the building of the Union House by Silas Hosmer, in 1826. Mr. Hosmer had been landlord of the " Tavern," or old Bowman House, and found its capacity unequal to the demands of a constantly increasing busi- ness. The new hotel stood for many years upon what is now a vacant lot on Main Street, now owned by D. C. Remich, directly north of the present location of the hotel which was moved back in 1893 or 1894 and rechristened the Littleton House. In front of this house was a frog-pond, and the street was filled in, first with logs and brush and then with earth, until it was made passable. The present site of the Bellows Store and the grounds in front of the residence of H. H. Southworth constituted a part of this marsh. As late as 1848 this condition continued, and at that time an old disused coach body was cast into its waters on the eve of tlie Fourth of July by some mischievous boys, and its remains now re- pose beneath the well-kept sward of Mr. Southworth's lawn. The opening of this hotel, like the completion of nearly every enterprise in those days, was a matter of ceremony. A public meeting was held in the hall, connected with the house, which was opened with
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prayer by the Rev. Drury Fairbank ; remarks were made by the clergyman, Nathaniel Rix, Jr., Bliss N. Davis, of Waterford, and others. One of the speakers declared the new house to be the finest tavern in the State north of Concord. After the speeches the party repaired to the dining-room, where a bountiful repast was spread for their entertainment. As the tavern then stood, it was of two-thirds its present frontage. The west third was added by Lucius A. Russell in 1839.
The Union House was the first building erected in the village for use as a tavern. The Bowman House having been primarily a dwelling, was converted into a tavern as a matter of necessity, as both man and beast must be lioused and fed ; and it seemed for some years the only place adapted to their accommodation. It was in these years a favorite stopping-place with the farmers journeying from Northern Vermont to Portland with their " pod teams " loaded with the products of the farm to be exchanged for the stock of the merchant. As many as one hundred and thirty of these teams have been known to pass through the village in a day. The round trip of 226 miles from the village was usually made in eight days. But occasionally it was traversed in much less time. Col. Joseph W. Morse once started from his place at the north end with a single team loaded with butter, which lie sold for groceries, and was home again after an absence of but five days. Henry Bemis also made the journey in the same time.
One of the great events in the life of old and young in the days of long ago was the celebration of the Fourth of July. The mar- tial spirit which had its birth in the trying period of the Revolu- tion still survived, and had been intensified by the events of the war for " free trade and sailors' rights " in 1812-15. With rare exceptions the people still believed that England was in the wrong in both of these contests ; that she had attempted in the first instance to subvert the liberty of the colonies for commercial gain, and in the second to assert her claim to dominion over the seas by might alone without reference to questions of right. Under these circumstances, animated by an intense love of lib- erty, they were accustomed to assemble on the birthday of the nation, and celebrate that great event in the spirit foretold by John Adams soon after the proclamation of the Declaration of Independence.
The people of Waterford and Lunenburgh, Vt., and of Littleton were accustomed to unite for the purpose of celebrating the day, in each town alternately. The rule was not always observed ; but
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the day, under this arrangement, was celebrated in Littleton in the years 1824, 1827, and in 1830. In the last-named year the occasion was observed at the north end. General Rankin acted as marshal of the day, and Rev. Drury Fairbank as chaplain. The Declaration of Independence was read by Henry A. Bellows, and Hon. Nathaniel Rix, Jr., was the orator. It is said that the orator did not spare Great Britain ; while he extolled the glories of our own land with patriotic fervor.
In 1827 the day was becomingly observed at the village. It was ushered in with a national salute at dawn, fired from a two-hun- dred-pound weight.1 The people from this and surrounding towns assembled in a field, then owned by Capt. Isaac Abbott, now the grounds surrounding the residence of Charles F. Eastman. At that time it was used, in part, as a lumber yard. Boards were arranged in suitable piles in a semicircular form, to serve as seats. They faced a platform on which were seated the officers of the day and soldiers of the Revolution and of the War of 1812. Gen. David Rankin was again the marshal of the day, and Charles Davis, of Waterford, Vt., the orator.2 The exercises were of the usual order, including singing. At their conclusion the people repaired to a building which stood near where the old brick store now is ; then a large wooden structure occupied the site, which was used by Silas Hosmer as a storehouse and chair-shop. Here a bountiful repast loaded the tables, to which all were invited. General Rankin officiated as toastmaster, and in that capacity offered this senti- ment : " President Adams, - may he be our next President." Col. Timothy A. Edson, an ardent Jackson man, was on his feet at once, and countered with this toast : "John Quincy Adams, -- may he be the President long enough to fill up the measure of his
1 In those days, before the invention of the Fairbanks scales, heavy articles of merchandise and produce were weighed by being placed on a platform suspended from one end of a balance-rod, froni the opposite end of which was hung another platform, on which the weights were placed. The principle of this scale is still adopted in those manufactured for use by goldsmiths and apothecaries. Some of these weights weighed one and two hundred pounds. In adjusting their weighing capacity, holes were frequently bored to remove sufficient iron to make the weight correct. One of the largest of these weights was used on this occasion. A heavy charge of powder, with a fuse, was inserted; then it was packed with earth and grass, much after the fasliion of a blasting charge, when it was ready for the live coal. This, in those days, was used as a substitute for a cannon.
2 Mr. Davis was a young lawyer who had but recently begun practice. He subse- quently removed to Danville, Vt., tlien the county seat. It was commonly believed that the defeat of his aspirations to represent Waterford in the Legislature had something to do with his removal. The fact probably is that Danville was a better field for the practice of his profession. He was a skilful practitioner, and subse- quently became a judge of the Supreme Court.
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father, and then wait until his betters are served -the People and Andrew Jackson." These sentiments, and many of like chiar- acter, were enthusiastically received by the partisans of the re- spective candidates. But Esquire Ephraim Hinds felt it his duty to rebuke the gentlemen for desecrating an occasion so sacred by allusions to party politics. Thus did the local politicians inaugu- rate the campaign of 1828 in this town.
The small boy was in evidence then, as now, on all patriotic occasions. Every instrument or utensil capable of sound or noise was brought into service and made to contribute a share in making night hideous. The Chinese firecracker was unknown to the urchins of those days ; but soon after Major George Little brought, on his return from a visit to Newburyport, a box of these dis- turbers of the public peace, which were used on the following Fourth of July. It was many years before they again added to the terrors of such a celebration. It is believed that no other formal celebration of the day was had during these years. But in 1834 it was observed by a military display. A militia company from Sugar Hill (Lisbon) was invited by the citizens of the village to train here. The invitation was accepted, and the company dis- played its proficiency on Main Street, and then, with invited guests, dined in an artificial grove constructed near the east side of the Union House. It was an informal banquet, and the company be- came so hilarious that real war was one of the consequences, and it was deemed prudent not to repeat the experiment.
The boys, without distinction of age or growth, were sure to gather in force when a circus or caravan came to town. The first visit of one of these entertainments was in the summer of 1821. It was a small affair. The shows of these days, great establish- ments which traverse the land in special trains, compared with those of 1825, are in many ways typical of the immense advance the country has made in material things. This show of 1821 had but one cage, which contained a young lion. Still it created a sensation and gathered a crowd of sightseers from all quarters. The small tent under which it exhibited was pitched in Silas Hosmer's yard, where Opera Block now stands. The same com- pany came again in 1826, much enlarged. It then comprised a cage of leopards, one of llamas, another of monkeys, and two buffalo. The chief attractions, however, were the lion of 1821 with two whelps but a few months old, and a monkey which rode a pony about the ring. It gave no evening exhibition but re- mained for two days, and the advertising it received from the attendants of the first day largely increased that of the second.
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The first circus to tour this section of the State visited this town in 1825. The cavalcade constituted one of its great attractions. It consisted of six or eight horses, gaudily caparisoned, ridden by men bedecked with tinsel and silks and velvets. The clown, one of the few institutions time has not changed, stood upon his horse and entertained the spectators in many characteristic ways. This exhibition would not compare favorably with many of those which followed it in succeeding years, but it created an impression upon the mind of at least one youth which survived for three-quarters of a century, and is still regarded by him as one of the remarkable incidents witnessed during his long life.
Another red-letter day in the olden times was the annual May or June training. The martial spirit ran high, the men composing the different companies were the sons or grandsons of Revolu- tionary sires or of men who had marched to the music of fife and drum in the War of 1812. The most vivid recollections of their childhood were the tales told and retold by men who had partici- pated in the stirring scenes of those contests, as the family gathered before the huge kitchen fireplace in the long winter evenings. The mustering and evolutions of the mimic warriors were some- thing more than a show to all who assembled on the training-field, whether men or boys; they were an inspiration, a rekindling of the fires of patriotism that glowed with fervor in the hearts of their ancestors. When this spirit ceased the militia was doomed ; though it lingered in form and existed on the statute book until 1854.
There were three companies in this town during most of this period, - the Fifth, Eleventh, and an independent company of light infantry, all belonging to the Thirty-second Regiment. The Fifth Company was officered and made up of residents of the west end of the town, the Eleventh with those living at the north end and in the village, while the Light Infantry was composed mostly of village residents. Trainings were held in the section best accommodating the men. The Eleventh Company usually assembled in one of the fields near the " Old Meeting House," the village company on Bowman's Meadow or in the field on the south side of Meadow Street. The men were not uniformed, but the officers wore the regulation dress of blue with silver epaulets, and Bonaparte hats with waving plumes or pompons. They presented a brave appear- ance, and were the principal attraction for the small boys, who outnumbered the men-in-arms at the training.
The military officer of any grade was a man of note in the brave days of old. Among the commanders of companies were Isaac
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Abbott, Joseph Pingree, Ira Caswell, David Page Sanborn, Roby C. Town ; Job Pingree, Tillotson Wheeler, David Page Sanborn, and Elisha Burnham held the rank of Major ; Salmon H. Rowell, Gilman and Thadeus B. Wheeler that of Lieutenant-Colonel, while Ephraim Miner, Joel Briggs, Alden Moffett, and Cyrus Eastman were in command as colonels of the Thirty-second Regiment. David Rankin was a brigadier-general, and was the only person to reach that rank among our citizens. Gen. E. O. Kenney held that position before he became a resident while living at Beth- lehem. Training day was among the important days in the calen- dar down to about 1850, when for numerous reasons, chief among which were the great expense to the State of maintaining the militia establishment, the diminution of military ardor, and the growing sentiment among all classes in favor of the cause of temperance.
One of the chief social occasions of those days was the singing- school. These were much in vogue from 1822 to 1840. The first school was held at the schoolhouse in the Peabody district, old No. 3, near the present residence of Frank Albee, and was taught by a Mr. Ruggles, of Dalton, who also, about 1827, had a school at North Littleton. Another old-time teacher of repute was Nathaniel Rix, Jr., who was proficient in many things, not the least notable of which was his knowledge of music and his skill as a teacher of the art. His children were fine musicians. Narcissa, who married Nathan Underwood, and Persis, subsequently the wife of Aaron Gile,1 were widely famed as singers. Soon after their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Underwood removed to Boston, and the wife having secured a position in a church choir at a salary of fifty dollars a year, the fact of the salary was soon known here and was long a subject of remark, and she was regarded by her old neighbors as one of the most fortunate of mortals.
Another teacher of the time, who was afterward known through- out the State, was Lyman Heath, born in Lyman. He married a daughter of Alexander Albee, and came to Littleton in 1834 and resided here until 1840. He was a shoemaker, and worked at that trade a part of each year, teaching a singing-school during the winter months. His early advantages had been very limited ; but his natural ability - not to say genius - soon raised him above his surroundings, and he became widely celebrated as a composer and song-writer. A verse from his " Grave of Napoleon " is em- balmed in the amber of " Bartlett's Familiar Quotations." 2 It was
1 She was the mother of Gen. George W. Gile, of Pennsylvania.
2 Several of his poems are to be found in the collection of "New Hampshire Poets," collected and edited by Bela Chapin, 1883. Both Bartlett and Chapin are in error in giving Mr. Heath the Christian name of Leonard instead of Lyman.
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his practice in winter to organize and teach schools at Franconia, Sugar Hill, Lisbon, Lyman, and Littleton. The school here was held in the new hall over Brackett's store. They were subscrip- tion schools, each pupil paying one dollar for twelve lessons. With rare exceptions, only sacred music was taught. That composed or arranged by Lowell Mason, Henry K. Oliver, and others, then new, but now old, comprising their familiar but enduring compo- sitions, was most frequently used. Few are now living who of erst assembled in the old hall and mingled their voices in songs of praise or listened to the music of Mornington, Olivet, Cowper, the Missionary Hymn, and Federal Street, as their soft and swelling strains wafted their souls from scenes of stern reality to realms of fancy and spiritual enjoyment; but their children's children, with vastly greater opportunities for musical culture and a wider knowl- edge of the immense musical wealth of the great masters, still sing the old songs and keep alive the soul-refreshing hymns of three generations ago.
Lyman Heath removed to Nashua about 1840, but for many years it was his annual custom to visit this section and give a con- cert. His programme comprised only his own productions both of words and music. A melodion was the musical instrument used by him.
The first piano brought to town, in 1824, was the property of the wife of Major George Little. It had but recently been manu- factured at Boston by Jonas Chickering and G. D. Mackay. Its arrival was one of the events of the season, and an invitation to listen to its music was highly appreciated by all the villagers.
Mrs. Little was an accomplished woman, and received the approval of Mrs. Anne Royall, who visited this part of the State about 1828. Mrs. Royall earned considerable notoriety by the publication of two books of travel. One was entitled the " Red Book," the other the " Black Book," these names being derived from the color of the respective bindings. Slie was a woman of strong prejudices, who did not withhold her opinions, but recorded them in graphic and sometimes over-strong language. It appears that she was enamored of Littleton and of nearly all the persons whom she met here. She gives interesting portraits of some of our citizens, and incidentally throws a strong side light on the village of that period. She writes: -
"On my arrival from Bath, as I advanced through the passage of the tavern,1 where I stopped in Littleton, my eye caught a middle-aged woman 2 sitting in the kitchen, the door of which was open. Her eye
1 Union House.
2 Mrs. Silas Hosmer.
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met mine at the same time ; but such another eye and such a counte- nance I had never seen before, so mild, so sweet ; she smiled a cordial welcome which thrilled my very heart. I gazed at her some time to discover whether she was not an old acquaintance - her countenance and full soft eye being familiar to me. But no, though I had often seen her like ; she was one of the first Boston ladies reduced to keep a tav- ern. I looked at her during my stay, being unable to withdraw my eyes from such attractions. It was her daughter who travelled with me that morning. There is one advantage in having an education, above all others, which is that in the event of misfortune it leads those who have children to give them an education, if nothing else. This lady had sev- eral daughters, accomplished and charming as herself, but amongst her boarders I found another amiable female, Mrs. Malvina Stevens,1 of Ver- mont. I was astonished, after hearing what I had of Vermont, to find so accomplished a female from that State. She had but recently been mar- ried, and I think to a mechanic, also a very genteel man ; but the lady at once astonished and surprised me. To meet with a female of her courtly manners, but little over sixteen years of age, educated, as she told me, in Vermont, led me to enquire into her story ; which is that she is an only child, lost her father in infancy, who left a handsome little prop- erty. Her mother refused to marry a second time, and spent her time and the property upon the education of her daughter, who was naturally fond of learning. It is much to be lamented that all mothers do not imitate the mother of Malvina. I never knew but two Malvinas, and both were learned ; my niece was the other. Mrs. S. was very hand- some withal.
" Littleton abounds with fine women. Here I found the daughter-in- law of my friend, Colonel A. Sumner of Charlestown, Mrs. Jane S. Lit- tle, Colonel S. being married to her mother; of this, however, I was ignorant, till looking at my subscription,2 she exclaimed, 'There is my father's name ;' ' then your father is one of the best men in the world,' I replied. 'Yes,' said she eagerly, ' he is the best man in the world.' I afterwards heard he was only her step-father. She is beautiful, as well as an accomplished female. I had not the pleasure of seeing Mr. Little, he being absent. I met with so little encouragement from my own sex, that I should not have thought of calling on Mrs. L. had it not been for my accomplished landlady, who doubtless wished to show me all the treasures of her little town. Dr. William Burns was the only gentle- man who honored me with a call. He appears to be a very amiable man, of young appearance, a tall stout figure, fair complexion, with an oval face and keen blue eye."
A description of a journey to the White Mountains follows, which is also of value, as is her final allusion to Littleton : -
1 Mrs. Truman Stevens.
2 It appears that she was canvassing for subscriptions to one of her books.
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" I had intended to go to the White Mountains, but no stage running from Littleton thence, I concluded to go still higher up the river to Lancaster and take another view at that town and pursue my way through Vermont, many parts of which were said to embrace still bet- ter views of those magnificent steeps. But while I was at breakfast, who should arrive at the tavern but Mr. Crawford, the patron of the White Mountains, and the nearest citizen to them. He had an elegant sleigh and fine buffalo robes, and was just establishing a line of stages to run thro' the winter from Portland to Vermont, in which stage I could return to Littleton, and off I went with Mr. Crawford and had the White Hills in view near the whole way.
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