USA > New Hampshire > Hillsborough County > Weare > The history of Weare, New Hampshire, 1735-1888 > Part 68
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The academy was closed from 1847 to 1851. It opened the latter year, Aug. 27th, with a celebration by the alumni. About eight hundred were present, and Cartland was the principal speaker. He spoke of the place as having been early dedicated to the spirit of freedom, and hoped it would preserve its character. Then Henry Thorndike, a former pupil, had charge of it till 1855. Josiah G. Dearborn followed for a short time, and Ned Howe, afterwards principal of the high school in Somerville, Mass., taught one term. Elbridge H. Dearborn succeeded, and taught a few months in 1860. There were several others who labored as teachers at Clinton Grove academy.
In 1866 three school districts - eleven, twelve and twenty-three - united and bought the academy buildings, being authorized by a special act of the legislature to purchase the whole property.
Charles H. Jones, of Maine, took charge of the school and board- ing-house in March, 1871, and had a tolerable degree of success. In the fall of 1872 the buildings were burned, and only a part of the furniture was saved, and the school was continued in the Friends' south meeting-house. A large district school-house was built in the spring of 1874, and Mr. Jones that year had one hun-
601
SINGING-SCHOOLS.
1847.]
dred and seventy pupils, as is shown by the handsome catalogue he published. Harvey Cowell, of Maine, then taught one year, when the academy was discontinued, and there has since been only a district school at Clinton Grove.
HIGH SCHOOLS or private schools have been kept in Weare almost since its first settlement. Master Robert Hogg had one as early as 1772; Master Donovan kept one before the Revolution; Master Richard Adams taught one for many terms from 1790 to 1801.
James Adams, from 1820 to 1825, kept a high school at South Weare, first in Daniel Bailey's hall, and then in Thorp's hall. Hon. John L. Hadley attended his school before he was fifteen years old. Adams also taught several terms in the Friends' meeting-house. Addison Goodhue taught a high school at South Weare in 1843 in the old school-house that stood near the entrance to the cemetery. He had an excellent school of about sixty scholars. James Smith taught one there a year or two later. A select school was taught in 1846 by Dr. H. Hilyard for two terms, at East Weare in the Freewill Baptist meeting-house. Joseph C. Abbott, of Concord, in 1849, kept one in Dr. Lemuel W. Paige's hall. Joseph C. Kimball taught in the winters of 1849, 1850 and 1851, and a spring term at the Center the latter year. All these schools were highly successful.
From 1864 to 1868 there were several terms of high school at North Weare. Edward S. Huntress kept it first, and then Rev. Sullivan Cicero Kimball, the poet, followed by Rev. Clarion Hazen Kimball. At some time these schools published a printed paper, the Journal of Improvement. Early the present century the Quakers had sectarian or denominational schools; but in time they wearied of them, and returned to the public schools.
SINGING-SCHOOLS early flourished in town, but who were the teachers and who were the pupils has not come down to us. Since 1847 Imri S. Whitney, a professor of music in Manchester, has taught many terms at North Weare, East Weare, South Weare and Oil Mill .* Professors Allen, of Newport, and Lyman Heath have
* OTHER MUSIC TEACHERS.
Richard Morgan, of Hopkinton.
Joseph Marshall, of Weare.
Louis F. Eaton, of Weare. Timothy Gay, of Francestown.
GOOD SINGERS.
Lavina A. Eaton,1 Lorette Smith,
Sabra Corliss Davis, Lucinda S. Gould.
Thomas E. Fisher, George L. Hadley, Susan Cross,
Seventy-five years ago Amos W. Bailey, with his big bass viol, was a prominent figure in all musical circles.
1 Afterwards Mrs. Elijah Johnson.
602
HISTORY OF WEARE, NEW HAMPSHIRE.
[1793.
also taught several terms in recent years. Among the many ex- cellent singers Weare has produced may be mentioned Mrs. Oliver E. Branch, of North Weare, and Miss Hattie Chase, now Mrs. Herbert W. Lull.
At the present time may also be named the male quartette of North Weare, consisting of Warren L. Collins, Daniel Hanson, William C. Warren and Oliver E. Branch, whose services are in constant demand by the community around them, and whose duties are so satisfactorily performed as to be a great credit to themselves and an honor to the town where they reside.
VITTY'S ORCHESTRA, another musical organization, com- posed of William C. Vitty, Albert W. Vitty and Lizzie D. Davis, have an excellent and widely-extended reputation, and are universal favorites in social circles.
LIBRARIES. The South Weare Social Library was incorpo- rated Dec. 7, 1793, and began with ninety volumes. The directors, in 1823, were Hezekiah D. Buzzell, John Bartlett, John Baker and Cyrus Lufkin, and it then had about two hundred volumes of what would now be termed old-style books. The books were kept first by Samuel Bailey and then at the house of Amos W. Bailey, at South Weare. John Corliss had charge of them a short time. They were of ancient date, and would not be much in vogue now. Tytler's History of the United States; Belknap's History of New Hampshire, three volumes; Wirt's biographies of Patrick Henry and Commodore Perry; Weem's biographies of Washington, Frank- lin, Penn and Marion; Josephus, several volumes; Scottish Chiefs and Thaddeus of Warsaw, - were the most popular and much read. After a time the property and books were sold at auction, and John L. Hadley now has some of them, and also the old book-case in which they were kept.
The Friends' Library was established March 3, 1809, and con- tained at first sixty-eight volumes.
The Weare Union Library of Weare Center was incorporated June 25, 1829, by the legislature, and was located at Weare Center.
The North Weare Library Association was established in 1884. Warren L. Collins is president, Daniel P. Woodbury * is secretary
* DANIEL PETERSON WOODBURY, son of William and Philinda H. (Blanchard) Woodbury, was born in Weare, April 3, 1827. He attended Cartland's school at Clinton Grove, Dyer H. Sanborn's school at Washington and Pembroke academy, in all about five years, and acquired a good education. He, about the same time, taught school fourteen terms. IIc then learned the machinist trade at Goffstown and Manchester, and worked for Isaac Adams, on printing presses in Boston, for
603
CELEBRATIONS.
1821.]
and treasurer, and Abner P. Collins* librarian ; the books, about three hundred, are kept at his house.
CELEBRATIONS. There was a Fourth of July celebration at South Weare, in 1821, at which Samuel B. Philbrick delivered a radiant toast on " Liberty," as was the custom in those days.
July 4, 1825, was celebrated at East Weare with much spirit. The whole town turned out, and many came from neighboring towns. They had a band of music, a procession and a great din- ner; Elder Ezra Wilmarth delivered an oration in the old church on the hill, and among a great many other things, he said no nation on earth could conquer us. When he had concluded, Maj. Caleb Stark, son of Gen. John Stark, " took it up" and said, "All the nations on earth can not conquer us." An account of the meeting was given in some paper, in which he was made to say, " No nation dare cross our border."
The Fourth of July, 1827, was celebrated at East Weare; Dr. Samuel A. Shute delivered the oration. There was a toast-master, many toasts, and the old meeting-house on the hill was packed with an immense audience.
There was an impromptu celebration at South Weare, July 4, 1828. It was at the opening of the presidential campaign when Andrew Jackson was first elected president. Without any pre- vious arrangement, at about one o'clock, the citizens assembled in respectable numbers, Capt. Jacob Sargent was made president of the day, Capt. Moses Mudgett, vice-president, Capt. Peter Dearborn,
eight years. Returning to Weare, he engaged in farming, dealt much in wood, and has done a large probate business, having probably settled more estates than any other man who ever lived in Weare. Although a member of the minority-party in the past, he has been five times elected selectman, and has been chairman of the board three years.
He married Abbie M. Taylor, of Stoddard, daughter of Jacob Taylor1, May 27, 1859, and to them have been born two children, - William H. and Frank T. Woodbury.
* ABNER P. COLLINS was born in the west part of Weare, Feb. 16, 1816. His parents were Samuel and Hannah (Peaslee) Collins. He attended the academy at Clinton Grove three terms, taught school ten terms, has always worked on a farm, that of liis father, or his own, and has kept tavern for the last thirty years. He has been collector of taxes six years, one of the selectmen three years and a member of the legislature two years. In 1881 he was chosen a member of the committee to prepare the history of Weare, and has compiled the excellent genealogy connected with the same.
He married Abiah Muzzy, June, 1840, and to them have been born two children, - Warren Lovell and Abner Herbert Collins.
1 HON. JACOB TAYLOR has resided in Weare since 1869. He was born in Dunsta- ble, now Nashua, Jan. 10, 1797, and was one of a family of eleven children who lived to maturity. His parents moved to Stoddard when he was a year old, and he resided there till he came to Weare. He was a prominent citizen of that town, served as moderator at nine annual meetings, was selectman thirteen years, being chairman of the board twelve years, was six times elected as representative to the General Court, was twice road commissioner for the county of Cheshire, and for two sessions a member of the honorable senate of New Hampshire.
He married Mary Harndon, of Wilmington, Mass., in 1828.
604
HISTORY OF WEARE, NEW HAMPSHIRE.
[1836.
marshal, Amos W. Bailey and Langdon Hadley, toast-masters. A procession was formed, and escorted by " Infantry with good mu- sick," they proceeded to the meeting-house, where Amos W. Bailey read the Declaration of Independence, then to the green in front of the house, where twenty-seven sentiments were read, and " re- sponded to by the cheers of the company, accompanied by musick, and the discharge musquetry."
The Fourth of July was celebrated in South Weare, in 1836, in a very unique way. A large concourse assembled near the meeting- house, and an orator who lived in the south-west part of the town and prided himself on his eloquence (but could be easily duped), was invited to make a speech. For a platform, a barrel was pro- cured, the hoops of which had been loosened. A large committee was appointed to conduct him to it, he mounted, was introduced, and commenced with a mighty flourish. But at the first gesture the barrel collapsed, and he fell to the ground. There was a great cheer, and the crowd thought it good fun. Other festivities fol- lowed, and it was a joyful occasion.
There was a rousing Fourth of July celebration at East Weare, in 1858. Sylvester C. Gould* read the Declaration of Independence, Anson S. Marshall, a young lawyer of Concord, delivered an ora- tion, and several other gentlemen made speeches.
The democrats of Weare and surrounding towns, March 4, 1885, had a grand presidential inauguration supper and ball at Weare Center. The entertainment was free to all, and over seven hundred of both political parties were present.
* SYLVESTER CLARK GOULD was born in Weare, March 1, 1840. His parents were James and Hannah B. (Webster) Gould. From 1854 to 1858, he was employed as clerk in a dry-goods and grocery store. In 1859 and 1860 he attended school at Boscawen academy, of which Jonathan Tenney was principal. He entered the office of the daily and weekly American, Feb. 24, 1862, where he learned the printers' trade. In 1863 he purchased an interest in the paper, and became the clerk and telegraphic reporter. He soon sold his share in the American, and entered the Mirror office as compositor, job-printer and temporarily as reporter, where he remained till Dec. 24, 1868. With several associates he began the publication of the Daily News, Jan. 1, 1869, but soon sold his interest. He was then connected with the Daily Union, as compositor, and afterwards with the Mirror, as job-printer, till May 1, 1871. Mr. Gould entered the service of the Concord Railroad May 27, 1871, and in 1874 became depot-master at the passenger station, and has continued in that capacity to the present time. Since 1882, he has edited and published with his brother, Leroy M. Gould, Notes and Queries, which has a considerable circulation. He has written correspondence for several New York and Pennsylvania papers, -the Mathematical Magazine, of Erie, Pa., the National Educator, Pa., Educational Notes and Queries, of Sa- lem, O., and the Liberal Freemason, of Boston, Mass. He has contributed to the press of Manchester on various subjects, together with some poetical cffusions, under the pseudonym of "Godfrey." He has published several addresses and a " Biblio- graphy of Manchester." He has a large collection of state literature, containing many rare and choice works. Jan. 17, 1883, he was elected corresponding secretary of the New Hampshire Press Association, and has been continued in that office since.
He married Fannie E. Sherburne, July 27, 1868, and to them has been born one child, - Annie L. Gould, Feb. 8, 1876.
605
DEBATING SOCIETIES.
1825.
There have been many other celebrations by Sabbath schools, public schools, Masons, Odd Fellows, Granges, Army post and churches, all of which have been happy festivities, nothing having ever occurred to mar the occasion.
DEBATING SOCIETIES. One was formed in town as early as 1825. Ezra Wilmarth, Jr., and twelve associates* organized un- der the name of the Weare Oratorical and Debating society. The constitution required every member to declaim at each and every meeting of the society, and the president to give out a subject to be discussed at the next meeting, and every member "to give his opinion on it in as lengthy or concise a manner as he pleases." This society lasted only a few winters.
A society for mutual improvement was organized at Weare Cen- ter, in 1838, after the manner of the legislature. They had a speaker and clerk, and appointed a large number of committees: John Chase was chairman of the committee on elections; Simon P. Colby, judiciary ; Moses G. Dow, state prison ; Amos W. Bailey, banks; William B. Gove, public lands; Nathan Breed, agriculture; David C. Breed, finance ; Capt. William Woodbury, military affairs; Jonathan D. Clement, roads and bridges; Moses A. Hodgdon, towns and parishes; Moses A. Cartland, education ; Simon G. Gove, incorporations ; John L. Hadley, bills in second reading; Capt. Cyrus Lufkin, military accounts ; and many others. This organi- zation ran well for a season. It was lively, wide-awake, afforded social intercourse and made the winters enjoyable.
The East Weare Alpine society was started Dec. 17, 1858, with nineteen members. It had a constitution and by-laws, and was a well conducted lyceum. Lectures, discussions, dialogues, declama- tions, recitations and the reading of a paper made up its various or- ders of exercises. John F. Chase, Sylvester C. Gould, Enos Hoyt and William S. Foster, were prominent members. Misses Sarah J. Day, Clara C. Leach, Lucy A. McAlpine, S. Jennie Preble, Susan D. C. Hamilton, Harriet M. Locke, Annette Ring, Martha Straw, Hattie M. Locke, read papers. Hon. John H. Goodale, William H. Gove, Elder Thomas M. Preble, Jonathan Marshall, Moses A. Cartland, William M. Pattee and others delivered lectures. The Alpine society flourished three winters, then disbanded.
* MEMBERS.
Ezra Wilmarth, Jr., Moses Hazen,
Sam'l B. Philbrick,
Cyrillus Page,
Solomon Bailey,
Clifton Hadley,
Langdon Hadly,
Jackman Tenney, Amos W. Sargent, Asa C. Sargent, Jesse Pattee, Jonathan Wheeler, Clark Colby.
606
HISTORY OF WEARE, NEW HAMPSHIRE.
[1828.
Some people had strange ideas of a lyceum. Joseph C. Kimball taught school on Barnard hill, and boarded at William Favor's. Kimball asked Mr. Favor one night to go with him. Mr. Favor de- clined, it was so stormy, but his wife persuaded him, and he went. But few were present, and they did not have any exercises. When they got home Mrs. Favor asked her husband how he liked ; he re- plied, "It was so stormy hardly any were there, so Joe did not take his instrument out at all." Mrs. Favor saw his mistake and said, " Lor', father, the lyceum ain't a musical entertainment at all, it's to free the niggers."
There have been many other debating societies connected with the schools. At present the lyceum is not so popular as in old times. May it soon revive, for it was an institution promotive of great good.
SUICIDES. Weare has had but few suicides compared with the whole number of the population.
Samuel Boynton hanged himself on Barnard hill, July 2, 1828, aged thirty-four years.
Clark Bailey hanged himself March 18, 1830.
Moody Haskell hanged himself with a sheet about 1830. He was insane; lived on Sugar hill. His father, before him, also hanged himself.
Lucian B. Hovey was found hanging by the neck, dead, Sept. 2, 1831, aged fourteen. It was said he took some watermelons with- out leave, and that they frightened him so badly he committed suicide.
Samuel Baker hanged himself in 1860, at North Weare.
S. Otis Hanson hanged himself March 5, 1875.
Cleora J. Wallace hanged herself June 27, 1876.
John Paige, deacon of a Baptist church, hanged himself May 6, 1879.
Mrs. James Hurd, insane, killed her little boy, and then hanged herself in 1877.
Herbert I. Felch, of unsound mind, hanged himself on a tree in the woods, Feb. 21, 1886.
James Bailey shot himself.
Jonathan Porter Whittle hanged himself.
James Eaton, fifty years old, was melancholy and cut his throat.
William Heath hanged himself one Fourth of July, at Peasley's tavern.
1828.]
607
CRIMINALS.
Mrs. Tristram Eaton hanged herself with a skein of yarn.
Sylvester Nichols hanged himself.
Enos Baker hanged himself at North Weare.
Robert Haskell hanged himself on Sugar hill.
Peter Whittaker hanged himself at South Weare.
Mrs. Cleaveland Cram drowned herself in a well.
CRIMINALS. Weare has been unusually free from the criminal class. The Friends had a good influence on the morals of the town. Then the land was good, and the people who came to our town to live were generally of the better sort. Yet it is an ancient saying, that there are always some black sheep in every flock, and Weare was no exception.
It is told that some wicked counterfeiters once lived in town : Ste- phen Lee, who hid his tools in Dyer Dow pond, on Dustin brook, when he fled from town, was one of them. Amos W. Bailey had a cop- per still down in his field, where he made apple-brandy. When he rose one morning he saw the door of his distillery open ; went to it, and found that the still was gone. They hunted, found a wagon-track and followed it into a grove of red pines near Gove's pond on Otter brook. They mistrusted the still was in the pond; made a drag with hooks, and found it. Richard Hadlock, an ingenious black- smith, who could make almost any thing, lived near by, and he and two men - David and Stephen Brown, brothers of Nathan Brown, of Deering, who was afterwards tried for murder - were arrested for stealing it. Hadlock and the Browns were very intimate, and it was thought they were making counterfeit coin and wanted the still to work up. Sufficient evidence was soon found to bind them over, and for want of bail they went to the jail in Hopkinton. Chandler kept it, and it was made of oak logs a foot thick. He, with his family, occupied one end of it, the prisoners the other. Hadlock was put into a cell with a stranger. To amuse themselves and create a noise, they made nine-pins and balls. Some one passed them in an auger. Hadlock knew how to use it. While his com- panion played with the nine-pins, he bored forty holes nearly through the oak wall, to cut out a piece and make an opening through which they could crawl out. The first stormy night he finished the boring, shoved out the block and got through. The other man was larger, so Hadlock had him take off his clothes, grease himself, and then pulled him through the rough hole, although it hurt terribly. This man, who was in for debt, was caught the
608
HISTORY OF WEARE, NEW HAMPSHIRE.
[1829.
next day. Richard Hadlock came to his sister's in Weare, wife of Jacob Barrett, and they concealed him. The officers mistrusted he was there, surrounded the house and .searched it; but they could not find him. He was between the floors, and his sister, " quite sick," lay in bed over the spot. Barrett would keep him no longer. He left in the night, went to New York and, it is said, got rich. The Browns each served terms in the state prison.
One of the stages that first began to run was a great six-horse coach, with a rack behind for the baggage, which was fastened on with a stout leather strap and buckle. John Barnard, on horseback, followed the stage one day from Peasley's tavern toward Hopkin- ton, when there was a valuable trunk on the rack. He rode up behind, cut the strap, the trunk fell off, and when the stage was out of sight, he took it to the woods, broke it open and rifled it of forty silver dollars and many other things and then hid it in the rubbish beside a wall. Of course the trunk was missed, and Barnard, fool- ishly paying out the silver dollars, was arrested and sent to jail. After some time he wrote a pitiful letter, saying he was sick and going to die. His friends raised money, settled the matter, and Barnard, getting released, moved from town.
In the fall of 1829 a man by the name of Williams passed through Weare. He was a desperate character; had been stealing, and two officers were following to arrest him. They were afraid of him, and got Samuel Gove to assist them. He put his hands on Wil- liams' shoulder, when the latter stabbed him in the groin with a large knife, and then went on his way unmolested. The next day Mr. Gove's brother-in-law, Hills Welch, tracked Williams to Merri- mack, got the sheriff there to assist and went to the house where Williams was stopping. He jumped out of the window to escape, but was surrounded; he then flourished a large knife and threatened to kill any man who laid a hand on him. The sheriff sent for his gun to shoot him, but before the messenger brought it, Welch gave Williams a blow with a club and knocked him senseless. It was three hours before he recovered. He was sent to the state prison for twenty years. Mr. Gove survived his injury, and lived to be ninety years old. He left eight children, all of whom are now (1887) living; and his sister, Mrs. Elsic Eastman, is in good health at South Weare, aged ninety-three years. Hills Welch, aged eighty- two, still lives in Weare.
William Stevens, often called William Stevens Bowles, in 1837
1
609
BRASS BANDS.
1836 ]
set the Thomas Stevens house, in the east part of the town, on fire. It was about the time friction-matches came into use. The people found some half-burned ones thrown away ; they found that Bowles had just bought similar matches ; they measured the tracks near by and his boots ; he was arrested, confessed and said he did it to please John Edmunds. That did not excuse the foolish fellow, and the court sent him to the state prison for life. While at Concord, his sister Sally, who lived to be eighty years old, went there after his wages. She said he ought not to work so long for nothing. This same Sally imagined she was sick, and sent for Doctor Paige. He said all she needed was a little encouragement; she said she would take a dose. He gave her some simple thing, which she thought did her much good. Then she went all about, bright as a dollar, recommending the medicine, " encouragement." Stevens was pardoned out at the end of eight years.
There have been some other cases of petty larceny, assault and battery and the like, but the above are all the serious cases that are remembered.
BRASS BANDS. The first one in Weare was organized in 1836. Samuel and Carlos Blake played bugles; Jacob Clark and Samuel Chase, key bugles; Ebenezer Peaslee and Alfred Boynton, bass horns ; John L. Cheney and Joseph C. Emerson, tenor trombones ; Edward Chase and Robert Peaslee, French horns; John Starritt, trumpet; William Dow, bugle (extra); Thomas E. Paige, bass drum; Samuel Sargent, snare drum ; Charles Kenney, fife or piccolo, and Josiah Gove, triangle. Samuel Blake was band-leader; Kilburn Smith, of Nashua, was teacher, and they used to meet for practice at Chase's hall. They played at trainings, musters, celebrations, and once went to the village of Amoskeag and furnished music for a Fourth-of-July celebration. This band was disbanded about 1851, when trainings and musters were discontinued.
A band was formed at South Weare and Oil Mill, about 1840, and continued for nearly ten years. It furnished music for train- ings, musters and political meetings. The names of all its members have not been preserved .*
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