PUBLICATIONS OF THE
RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY
NEW SERIES
VOLUME II. 1894
PROVIDENCE
PRINTED FOR THE SOCIETY BY THE STANDARD PRINTING Co.
1894
Eoitor,
AMOS PERRY.
publication Committee:
JAMES G. VOSE, AMASA M. EATON,
WILFRED H. MUNRO, JOHN H. STINESS,
AMOS PERRY.
656K50
PROCEEDINGS OF THE
RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY
1893-1894
PROVIDENCE
PRINTED FOR THE SOCIETY
1894
PROVIDENCE,
INDEX.
PAGE.
Adams, Charles Francis 15, 24-29
Address of the President 17-29
Annual Meeting 13
Beckwith, Henry T., death of 1 1
Bowen, Clarence W 8, 9
Burdick, James, paper read by 7
By-Laws changed 9, 10
Cabinet, renovation of 9, 17, 31, 40
Carmichael, George 12
Carpenter, George M n
Clark, Rev. Dr. George H., paper read by 12,13
Corresponding institutions 40-42
Davis, William T., address by 12
Drop-Scene of 1812 49
Dyer, Charles, 3d, portrait of 1 1
Gardiner, Asa Bird, paper read by 7
Genealogical department and its wants 46-48
Greene, Maj.-Gen. Nathanael, original papers of 10, n, 15
Hall, Mrs. Emily A., thanks to 1 1
Individuals, gifts from 105, 106
Institutions, etc., gifts from 103, 104
Local History 52
Massachusetts : Its Historians and Its History. By Charles
Francis Adams 15, 24-29
Massasoit Monument Association 8
Members, Corresponding, deaths of 23
" elected 10, 23
" " list of 112
Member, Honorary 112
Member, Life, death of 1 1
" " elected 13
Members, Life, list of in
" Resident, deaths of 12, 22, 23
" " elected 8,10,11,13
" " list of 107-110
Miscellaneous articles 48, 49
Munro, Wilfred H., elected assistant editor 8
Museum 43
NECROLOGY 68, 97
Beckwith, Henry Truman 72-75
Buttre", John Chester 101, 102
Campbell, Daniel Gordon 78, 79
INDEX.
PAGE.
Carpenter, Miss Esther Bernon 90-95
Day, Daniel Eugene 75~77
Fisher, Charles Harris 87-89
Goddard, Thomas Poynton Ives 68-72
Jones, Charles C, Jr 100, 101
Jones, Horatio Gates 97-100
Knight, William 89, 90
Littlefield, Alfred Henry 95~97
Nicholson, William Thomas 84-87
Parsons, Charles William 80-83
Staples, William 97
Tillinghast, Charles Elisha 79, 80
Newport of ye Olden Times. By George C. Mason 53
Newspaper-room 44
Noteworthy books 51
Officers of the Society 5, 6
Papers read, list of 21, 22
Parsons, Charles W., bequest of 12
Proceedings 7-16
Public records, preservation and perpetuation of 17-21
Quarterly meetings 8, 9, 1 1
Quarterly publication 8, 14, 24
Record Commissioners 18, 19
Report of Committee on Genealogical Researches 38, 39
" " " on Grounds and Buildings 30
" " Librarian and Cabinet Keeper 4°-53
" " Library Committee 31-37
" " Publication Committee 54, 55
" " Treasurer 56-60
Rhode Island men in the Revolution 45
Rhode Island Society of Sons of the American Revolution. . 15
Sheffield, William P., paper read by 7
Stiness, John H., paper read by 7
Stone, Alfred, illustrated lecture 12
Tooker, William Wallace, communication from 13, 61-67
Town records 32
Treasurer's report 14, 56-60
Votes of thanks 10, 1 1
Weeden, William B., paper read by 7
Williams, Alfred M., paper read by 12
Woodbury, Rev. Dr., paper read by 9
Young, Edward R., portrait of 9
Young, George T., thanks to 10
Young, Nicholas B., thanks to 10
OFFICERS
OF THE
RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY,
ELECTED JAN. 9, 1894.
President. HORATIO ROGERS.
Vice-P residents. GEORGE M. CARPENTER, E. BENJAMIN ANDREWS.
Secretary and Librarian. AMOS PERRY.
Treasurer. RICHMOND P. EVERETT.
STANDING COMMITTEES.
Nominating Committee.
ALBERT V. JENCKS, JAMES E. CRANSTON,
EDWARD I. NICKERSON.
Library Committee.
WILLIAM D. ELY, HOWARD W. PRESTON,
AMOS PERRY.
RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
Lecture Committee.
REUBEN A. GUILD, WILLIAM B. WEEDEN.
Publication Committee.
JAMES G. VOSE, AMASA M. EATON,
WILFRED H. MUNRO.
Committee on Grounds and Buildings.
ISAAC C. BATES, ISAAC H. SOUTHWICK, JR.,
EDWIN BARROWS.
Committee on Genealogical Researches.
HENRY E. TURNER, JOHN O. AUSTIN,
GEORGE T. HART.
Committee on Necrology.
WILFRED H. MUNRO, SAMUEL H. WEBB,
AMOS PERRY.
Finance Committee.
ROBERT H. I. GODDARD, CHARLES H. SMITH,
RICHMOND P. EVERETT.
Audit Committee.
LEWIS J. CHACE, JAMES BURDICK,
FERDINAND A. LINCOLN.
Procurators.
For Newport, GEORGE C. MASON.
Woonsocket, LATIMER W. BALLOU.
Pawtucket, SAMUEL M. CONANT.
North Kingstown, DAVID S. BAKER, JR.
Hopkinton, GEORGE H. OLNEY.
PROCEEDINGS
OF THE
RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY, 1893-94.
At a meeting held Jan. 24, 1893, Mr. James Burdick read a paper entitled, " Foot-prints of the California Argonauts."
February 7th, Hon. Asa Bird Gardiner, LL. D., read a paper entitled, " Remarkable Providences in Crises of the Revolutionary War for American Independ- ence."
February 2ist, Hon. William P. Sheffield, LL. D., read a paper on " Samuel Gorton, one of the original settlers of Warwick."
March yth, Mr. William B. Weeden read a paper entitled, " The World's Commerce in 1492."
March 2ist, Hon. John H. Stiness read a paper entitled, "A Century of Lotteries in Rhode Island."
At each of the above-mentioned meetings the thanks of the Society were extended to the speaker of the evening.
8 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
The first quarterly meeting of the year was held April 4th. After reading the record of the last annual meeting, the secretary presented a letter from Mr. Clarence W. Bowen, expressing thanks to the Society for the honor of his election as a corresponding mem- ber. A letter was also read announcing the formation at Warren of a Massasoit Monument Association.
Reports from different committees were then read and received. The librarian reported additions to the library, and on recommendation of the nominating committee the following persons were elected active members: Messrs. John Byron Diman and Joseph C. W. Cole of Providence, and Mr. Henry Whitman Greene of Warwick.
Rev. E. B. Andrews, in behalf of the publication committee, read a report in regard to the advisability of the Society's issuing a quarterly publication. By recommendation of this report it was finally
Resolved, That the publication committee is hereby instructed to pub- lish the quarterly proceedings of the Rhode Island Historical Society for the year 1893, at a total cost not to exceed $500 (five hundred dollars), the first number of which shall consist of the usual annual transactions, the other three numbers to consist of such matter as they may select; a pros- pectus in the first number to set forth the purpose of the Society in under- taking this publication, and soliciting subscriptions at one dollar per an- num, or fifty cents per number. A copy of No. i shall be delivered to each member of the Society, and 300 copies of each number issued during the year shall be set aside for exchange with, or as gifts to, other societies or public institutions.
On motion of Dr. Andrews, Prof. W. H. Munro was elected assistant editor.
Ex.-Gov. Taft, in behalf of the committee on grounds and buildings, submitted plans and an estimate of the
PROCEEDINGS. 9
cost for renovating the old part of the Cabinet, together with certain other needed changes. After much dis- cussion this committee was authorized to make the proposed improvements and draw on the treasury to the amount of $1000 (one thousand dollars). A com- mittee consisting of Messrs. Charles H. Smith, James Burdick and the secretary, was also appointed to raise the funds necessary for this object.
At a meeting held April i8th, Rev. Dr. Woodbury read a paper entitled: "Journalism and Journalists," receiving the thanks of the Society for his scholarly essay.
The second quarterly meeting of the Society was held July 3d. Reports were read from the secretary and the librarian. Mention was made of gifts to the Society, notably an admirable portrait of the late Edward R. Young, presented by the sons of Mr. Young, and the " History of the Centennial of the Inauguration of Washington," presented by Mr. Bowen.
In response to a call for unfinished business, Prof. Wilfred H. Munro brought forward a proposed change of Sections 12, 1 6 and 20 of the by-laws of the Society, notice of which change was duly given at the annual meeting, Jan. 10, 1893.
The Sections as revised read as follows :
SEC. 12. The officers shall be chosen at the annual meeting in each year, and shall serve until the next annual meeting, and until others shall be chosen in their places ; but in case the Society fails to elect at the annual meeting, it may do so at any other regular meeting, and it may fill any vacancy in any office at any regular meeting. When an officer receives a salary the amount of the salary shall be determined by the Society.
IO RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
SEC. 1 6. The Librarian and Cabinet Keeper shall be a member of the Library Committee. He shall have imme- diate charge of the cabinet and its contents and shall safely keep, under the direction of the Library Committee, in the cabinet of the Society, all books, manuscripts, papers, docu- ments and other articles committed to his charge.
SEC. 20. The Library Committee shall have the general charge of the books, manuscripts and other collections, and of the property of the Society within the cabinet building, and shall make all needful rules and regulations for the use of the library. They shall expend all moneys received from the State of Rhode Island, in accordance with the acts of the General Assembly applicable thereto. They shall aid and direct the Librarian in his duties and shall have power to appoint and employ proper persons to assist him, and espec- ially for copying records, documents, manuscripts, or other similar work, and shall fix their compensation. They may expend for the library itself from the general funds of the Society, without further authority, a sum not exceeding three hundred dollars in each year.
On recommendation of the nominating committee, Mr. Wm. S. Granger of Providence was elected an active member of the Society, and Rev. Alfred Man- chester of Salem a corresponding member.
A report from the library committee in reference to the heating apparatus was read and referred to the committee on grounds and buildings.
The thanks of the Society were presented by vote to Messrs. George T. and Nicholas B. Young, and to Clarence W. Bowen, Ph. D., for the gifts previously mentioned.
The librarian made a brief report in regard to the original papers of Maj.-Gen. Nathaniel Greene, and on his motion it was
PROCEEDINGS. 1 1
Voted, That a committee be appointed to memorialize the General Assembly for the purchase of these papers.
On motion of Mr. Richmond P. Everett, the following preamble and resolution were unanimously adopted by a standing vote.
Whereas, This Society has lost by the death of Mr. Henry T. Beck- with a member of long standing, who had held the office of secretary ten years, had been a member of some standing committee about forty years, and had during this long period sedulously promoted, in various ways, the best interests of the Society ; therefore
Resolved, That this minute be entered upon the records of the Society, and that a copy of the same be communicated to Mr. Beckwith's sister, Miss Abby G. Beckwith.
The third quarterly meeting of the Society was held October 3d.
The secretary read a letter from Rev. Alfred Man- chester, thanking the Society for the honor of his election as a corresponding member.
The librarian reported additions to the library, spe- cial mention being made of the portrait of the late Charles Dyer, 3d, and of the Journal of Moses Richard- son from 1807 to 1813. This latter was copied by vice- president Carpenter and by him presented to the Society. Mention was also made of a valuable gift of four well-bound volumes of the Dial from Mrs. Emily A. Hall, for which she received the thanks of the Society.
Mr. Alfred Stone made a brief report in behalf of the committee on grounds and buildings.
Messrs. Thomas Backus and Pardon Fenner Brown were elected active members.
12 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
The president announced the death of ex-vice- president Charles W. Parsons, M. D., and made brief mention of his valuable services to the Society. In reference to a clause in his will conditionally giving four thousand dollars to the Society, it was
Voted, That ex-Chief Justice Durfee, Judge George M. Carpenter, and Messrs. Charles H. Smith and Amasa M. Eaton be a committee to confer with the executors of Dr. Parson's will, and to act in behalf of the Society in securing the bequest named.
In response to an invitation from Hon. George Car- michael for the members of the Society to visit as his guests the historic sites in the town of Charlestown, the thanks of the Society were extended to Mr. Car- michael and his invitation was referred, with power to act, to the committee on field days and hospitalities.
October 3ist, Mr. Alfred Stone gave a lecture illus- trated by stereoptican views of the buildings and grounds of the Columbian Exposition, which was highly appreciated by an audience completely filling the lecture-room, and in part the galleries.
A meeting was held November i4th, at which Hon. Wm. T. Davis of Plymouth, author of " Landmarks of Plymouth," addressed the Society on " The Pilgrims and the Plymouth Colony, with some reference to the controversy concerning the boundary line between the Colony and Rhode Island."
November 28th, Mr. Alfred M. Williams read a pa- per entitled, " The Expedition of Xavier Mina to Mexico in 1817."
December i2th, the Rev. Dr. George H. Clark of
PROCEEDINGS. 13
Hartford, read a paper entitled, " The Rev. John H. Wheelwright, the first heretic of the Boston pulpit." At each of these meetings the lecturer of the evening received the cordial thanks of the Society for his enter- taining and scholarly paper.
The seventy-second annual meeting of the Society was held January 9, 1894, the president in the chair.
The secretary read the records of the last quarterly meeting and of four special meetings held thereafter.
The librarian read his annual report, after which the secretary laid before the Society several communica- tions from individuals outside the State ; notably, one addressed to the editors of the Providence Journal, from Mr. S. M. Hamilton of the Department of State, Washington, offering to furnish copies of letters of Dr. Waterhouse and lists of Revolutionary soldiers for a small consideration. This was referred to the library committee. Another communication was from Mr. William Wallace Tooker, entitled : " Roger Williams Vindicated, or an Answer to a Key-Hole for Roger Williams Key." After remarks by the president this was referred to the publication committee.
The following persons were elected active members : William Lincoln Bates, Oliver Sawyer Cressy, Frank Leslie Day, Oliver Dyer, Mrs. Mary H. B. von Gotts- chalck, David Francis Lingane, Samuel Mowry Nich- olson, Stephen Nicholson, John Simmons Palmer, George Henry Pettis, Gardner Taber Swarts.
William Butler Duncan was elected life member.
The president read his annual address which was received and referred to the publication committee.
14 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
The treasurer presented his annual report of which the following is a summary : —
Receipts, . . $4,675 85
Expenses, 4,656 06
Cash on hand, ..... 19 79
Life Lembership Fund, . . . 2,093 ?6
Publication Fund, .... 3,330 50
Investment Fund, .... 23,000 oo
The report of the committee on grounds and build- ings was read by Mr. Charles H. Smith. This report stated that $1078 63 had been expended for renovating the old building above the basement, and $201 45 for other improvements.
Mr. William D. Ely then read the annual report of the library committee-
The report of the publication committee was pre- sented by Rev. Dr. Andrews. In accordance with the recommendation of that report, the following resolu- tion was adopted : —
Resolved, That the treasurer, when sending out the annual bills this year, add thereto a statement that for one dollar more the "Publications " for 1893 will be delivered to the subscriber, and enclosing therewith a copy of the appeal or statement issued by the publication committee.
And unless the members subscribe sufficiently to this project by April i, to pay the deficiency, the publication committee is authorized and di- rected to discontinue the " Publications."
After much discussion, the secretary, treasurer and Mr. Asa Messer Gammell were appointed a committee to raise for the Society the necessary funds, $25 of which were promptly subscribed by the mover of the
PROCEEDINGS. 15
resolution, Mr. C. H. Smith, to which he has since added $75.
Mr. John O. Austin read the annual report of the committee on genealogical researches, emphasizing the need of larger additions to the library in the genea- logical department.
On motion of Mr. Richmond P. Everett it was
Voted, That the committee on publications be authorized to print 700 copies of the Proceedings for 1893-94, to include the president's address, the treasurer's report and other papers which the committee shall select, the whole not to exceed #150, the expense to be charged to the general fund.
On motion of Mr. Amasa M. Eaton, the following resolution was adopted : —
Resolved: Permission is hereby given to the Rhode Island Society of the Sons of the American Revolution to meet in the Cabinet of this So- ciety on the 22d of February next, subject to such restrictions as the cabinet keeper may impose.
The resolution adopted at the last July quarterly meeting for the appointment of a committee to memo- rialize the General Assembly for the purchase of the General Nathaniel Greene papers having been called up, the president announced that the said committee would consist of the Hon. Henry E. Turner, M. D., of Newport ; Hon. David S. Baker, Jr., of North Kings- town; and Prof. J. Franklin Jameson of Brown Uni- versity.
A motion for the purchase of extra copies of Charles Francis Adams' work entitled, " Massachusetts, its
1 6 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
Historians and its History," was referred to the library committee.
The officers of the Society for the ensuing year were then elected. A list of them will be found on pages 5 and 6.
ADDRESS OF THE PRESIDENT.
Gentlemen of the Historical Society:
After five years of agitation and tardy progress our cabinet building has at last attained completion. Though the new portion was practically finished two years ago, it was only during the past summer and autumn that the old part was renovated, the wood- work having been repainted, the walls and ceiling retinted, the old staircase removed, new window sash substituted for the old, the front door replaced by a more modern and tasteful one, and various other improvements effected, necessary to conform the old and new portions of the structure into a congruous and harmonious whole. Never has our Society dur- ing its existence been so well housed as now, and it is pleasant to be able to add that never before has it been in so prosperous and satisfactory condition, and never was it exerting a more salutary and wide spread influ- ence than at the present time.
Particularly is its wholesome influence observable in the matter of public records, in the preservation and perpetuation of which this Society has ever taken an active and conspicuous part. As long ago as 1845 the
1 8 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
City Council of Providence passed a resolution con- fiding to the custody of this Society a large number of its ancient papers and documents, thus constituting the Society the keeper, at least in part, of its archives. The richness of the possessions of this Society in mat- ters relating to the municipality of Providence has occasioned surprise to visitors from away, and even to many of our members until the last report of the Rec- ord Commissioners of Providence called attention to that resolution, the existence of which had been well- nigh forgotten. Now under the supervision of the Record Commissioners and by authority of the City Council all the papers and documents here belonging to the city, are being put in the best possible order and condition according to modern methods, and will be suitably bound together, while the papers and docu- ments belonging to the Society that had become mingled with and were formerly bound with them, will be put in like good order and condition and bound by themselves, so that the MSS. in the keeping of the Society will soon be in a condition for preservation and accessibility never before equalled. There is no intention of removing any of the municipal documents from the custody of the Society, — indeed those docu- ments have been so well preserved and cared for in that custody that it is not impossible that still more of like character will be entrusted to the same keeping. The interest of this Society in the old town records has also been otherwise evinced, for at its instigation the oldest record books of Providence were bound ; and though various citizens had urged upon the City Coun-
ADDRESS OF THE PRESIDENT. 19
cil the desirableness of taking some steps towards the better preservation of the old records and the perpetu- ation of the contents of the oldest thereof in type, it was not until this Society pressed the matter upon the attention of the City Council three years ago that municipal action was taken, when the president, the first vice-president and Mr. Edward Field, another member of this Society, were appointed a Record Commission to perform the task. The results of the Commission's labors thus far have been four printed volumes issued, another being partly in type, and thousands of papers repaired, bound and indexed.
The interest thus aroused has extended to other municipalities, and the Mayor of Newport in his recent inaugural address has recommended to the Council of that city that action be taken towards preserving its old records and papers, and that the Newport His- torical Society be selected as a fitting instrumentality for the work. It is earnestly to be hoped by all inter- ested in the history of our commonwealth that Mayor Fearing's recommendation will be heeded without delay, for the historical material contained in the old Newport town records now being permitted to rapidly perish, is unsurpassed in interest and value by those of any of its sister-towns.
The valuable report of our secretary and librarian upon the character and condition of the records of the various towns in the State, which was printed during the past year in the Society's publication, has mate- rially aided in increasing the interest in such records, now fortunately aroused.
2O RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
It is earnestly to be hoped that the General Assem- bly will ere long take some broad and adequate action looking to the publication of the valuable historical material belonging to the State. The ten volumes of the Rhode Island Colonial Records leave much to be regretted as well as much to be desired. Though it is not pleasant to admit, yet, unfortunately, it cannot be truthfully denied, that the editorial part of that work was very faultily performed, that the inaccuracies in the records printed are inexcusably numerous, while the omissions of records that should have been em- braced in such a work are simply inexplicable. Perhaps it is too much to expect, — though no one interested in such matters can refrain from indulging the hope,— that a second and revised edition of that work may at some time appear. But it is not too much to ask that supplemental volumes should be printed, picking up missing links and supplying unfortunate omissions. Especially should the State see to it that the origin and progress of its laws can be readily traced, and to this end all its public laws from the earliest day down to the adoption of the constitution of 1842, should be reprinted in a series of volumes by themselves. Copies of the earliest Digests of our laws are so scarce that they either cannot be bought at all, or only at most exorbitant prices. But a very few copies of the first printed Digest, that of 1719, are known to be extant. A copy of the Digest of 1767 was sold in Boston at auction in October last for seventy dollars. But two or three copies of the original edition of the Supple- ment of 1772, being the acts passed since those in the
ADDRESS OF THE PRESIDENT. 21
Digest of 1767, are in existence, and within a few weeks an edition of fifty fac-simile copies of this Supplement has been printed by private enterprise, the subscrip- tion price being fifteen dollars, the work itself being a folio of but forty-one printed pages. A man of mod- erate means can scarcely hope to own the volumes necessary to trace the origin and progress of the laws of Rhode Island even so far as they have been printed— a condition of things that should not be allowed to exist. During the year just closed there have been fourteen meetings of the Society, at ten of which papers have been read. The following is a list of the subjects and authors of those papers : —
1. Jan. 24, 1893. "Foot-prints of the California Argonauts," by Mr. James Burdick.
2. Feb. 7, 1893. " Remarkable Providences in Cri- ses of the Revolutionary War for American Independ- ence," by the Hon. Asa Bird Gardiner.
3. Feb. 21, 1893. " Samuel Gorton, one of the orig- inal settlers of Warwick," by the Hon. William P. Sheffield.
4. March 7, 1893. " The World's Commerce in 1492," by Mr. William B. Weeden.
5. March 21, 1893. "A Century of Lotteries in Rhode Island," by the Hon. John H. Stiness.
6. April 18, 1893. " Journalism and Journalists," by the Rev. Dr. Augustus Woodbury.
7. Oct. 31, 1893. "The Buildings and Grounds of the Columbian Exposition," with stereopticon views, by Mr. Alfred Stone.
8. Nov. 14, 1893. " The Pilgrims and the Plymouth
22 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
Colony, with some reference to the controversy con- cerning the boundary line between the Colony and Rhode Island," by the Hon. William T. Davis.
9. Nov. 28, 1893. "The Expedition of Xavier Mina to Mexico in 1817," by Alfred M. Williams.
10. Dec. 12, 1893. "The Rev. John H. Wheel- wright, the first heretic of the Boston pulpit," by the Rev. Dr. George H. Clark.
Eleven active members of the Society have died during the past year, viz.: Henry T. Beckwith, Daniel G. Campbell, Esther B. Carpenter, Daniel E. Day, Charles H. Fisher, M. D., Thomas P. I. Goddard, Wil- liam Knight, William T. Nicholson, Charles W. Par- sons, M. D., Charles E. Tillinghast, and ex-Governor Alfred H. Littlefield. Mr. Beckwith had been a mem- ber of the Society for forty-three years, having held many official positions, and having given generously of his time and money to advance its interests. Until comparatively recently he was a constant attendant at its meetings and few men have taken so active a part as he during so many years.
Miss Carpenter was an earnest student of Rhode Island history and has read several papers before the Society.
Dr. Fisher at the time of his death was, and for many years prior thereto had been, one of the procu- rators of the Society.
To Mr. Goddard our Society is indebted for a dona- tion of one thousand dollars towards the enlargement and improvement of our cabinet facilities.
Dr. Parsons has been a very prominent member of
ADDRESS OF THE PRESIDENT. 23
the Society, having at one time been active as chair- man of the library committee, having served as vice- president for several years, and but for rapidly failing health, which withdrew him from further active partici- pation, he would have succeeded our late president as the official head of the Society, an election to which position he felt obliged to decline. At his death he was the senior member of the Society in length of membership.
Three corresponding members of the Society have likewise died during the past year: the Hon. Horatio Gates Jones, Colonel Charles C. Jones, and John C. Buttre.
The Hon. Horatio Gates Jones of Philadelphia, Penn., was elected a corresponding member of this Society, October 5, 1858. He has devoted much time to historical matters and his publications have been numerous. Having married a resident of Rhode Island and possessing a country residence within the borders of our State, where he lived a portion of each year, his interest in Rhode Island affairs was active, as frequent visits to our cabinet demonstrated.
Colonel Charles C. Jones of Augusta, Ga., became a corresponding member of the Society, July 2, 1872. The history of his State and the antiquities of southern Indians have been his favorite studies, and to them he has devoted much time and research. During the late Civil War he was a colonel of artillery in the Confed- erate service.
John C. Buttre of New York City was elected a cor- responding member of the Society, October 8, 1880.
24 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
He was a well-known engraver and he published vari- ous portrait galleries. Probably no man in America issued so many portraits of persons of more or less celebrity, as he.
The project of a quarterly publication by this Society was inaugurated last April and already four numbers have been issued, but as this subject will doubtless be fully presented to you in the report of the publication committee, which has the work in special charge, fur- ther mention of it here will be omitted.
The year just closed will ever be famous in the his- tory of America as marking the existence of the World's Columbian Exposition, holden in the city of Chicago for six months ending on the thirtieth day of last October. The Exposition was gigantic in concep- tion, a marvel of beauty in execution, and formed a fitting finale to the imposing celebration of the four hundredth anniversary of the discovery of America.
Publications during the last twelve months referring to Rhode Island have been few in number ; but there has been one, so interesting in character, that I cannot refrain from directing special attention to it. During the latter part of 1893 there was published in Boston a little book of but one hundred and ten pages, entitled, "Massachusetts: Its Historians and Its History: An Object Lesson : By Charles Francis Adams." We of Rhode Island have had such frequent cause to wonder and regret that Massachusetts historians as a class should feel constrained by filial duty, or by some other cause inexplicable to us, to defend the religious perse- cutions of their ancestors, and, as a consequence, to
ADDRESS OF THE PRESIDENT. 25
detract from and belittle, if not actually to asperse, Roger Williams and the other religious exiles from that State who founded this commonwealth, that we cannot fail to be attracted by the expression of opinions by a member of one of the famous old historic Massachu- setts families — himself a lineal descendant of the Rev. Thomas Shepard and the Rev. John Cotton — pervaded by a spirit utterly at variance with those ordinarily entertained by the class to which he belongs.
Referring to Religious Toleration, Mr. Adams says : " Upon that issue, indeed, not only has Massachusetts " failed to make herself felt, but her record as a whole, "and until a comparatively recent period, has been " scarcely even creditable. This, too, was the case " from the beginning." After referring to the events in Massachusetts in 1637, — to the contested charter elec- tion which took place in Cambridge on the 27th day of May, as a result of which Governor John Winthrop replaced Governor Sir Harry Vane as chief executive of the colony; to the first Synod of Massachusetts churches, also held in Cambridge, four months later ; and to the trial, likewise in Cambridge, of the arch- heretic Mistress Anne Hutchinson, wherein on the i8th of November, 1637, she was condemned to banish- ment, — Mr. Adams proceeds in this wise : " 'As the "twig is bent, the tree inclines.' The Massachusetts " twig was here, and then bent ; and, as it was bent, it " during hard upon two centuries inclined. The ques- " tion of Religious Toleration was, so far as Massachu- " setts could decide it, decided in 1637 in the negative. " On that issue Massachusetts then definitely and finally
26 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
"renounced all claim or desire to head the advancing " column, or even to be near the head of the column ; " it did not go to the rear, but it went well towards it, " and there it remained until the issue was decided. " But it is curious to note from that day to this how the " exponents of Massachusetts polity and thought, " whether religious or historical, have, so to speak, " wriggled and squirmed in the presence of the record. " ' Shuffling,' as George Bishop, the Quaker writer, ex- pressed it in 1703, 'and endeavoring to Evade the " Guilt of it, being ashamed to own it : So that they sel- " dom mention to any purpose, even in their Histo- " ries.' They did so in 1637, when they were making " the record up ; they have done so ever since. There " was almost no form of sophistry to which the founders "of Massachusetts did not have recourse then, — for " they sinned against light, though they deceived them- " selves while sinning, and there is almost no form of " sophistry to which the historians of Massachusetts " have not had recourse since, — really deceiving them- " selves in their attempt to deceive others. And it is " to this aspect of the case — what may perhaps be not " unfitly described as the jilio-pietistic historical aspect " of it — that I propose to address myself. For in the " study of history there should be but one law for all. " Patriotism, piety and filial duty have nothing to do " with it ; — they are, indeed, mere snares and sources " of delusion. The rules and canons of criticism applied ': to one case and to one character, must be sternly and " scrupulously applied in all other similar cases to all " other characters ; and, while surrounding circumstan-
ADDRESS OF THE PRESIDENT. 27
" ces should, and, indeed, must be taken into careful " consideration, they must be taken into equal consid- " eration, no matter who is concerned. Patriotism in " the study of history is but another name for provin- " cialism. To see history truly and correctly, it must " be viewed as a whole."
Mr. Adams speaks of Roger Williams and young Sir Henry Vane, as follows :
" But, in reality, Massachusetts missed a great des- " tiny, — and missed it narrowly though wilfully, — ' it, " like the base Judean, threw a pearl away, richer than " all his tribe ;' for, both Roger Williams and young Sir " Henry;Vane were once part of the Commonwealth, — " they had lain, as it were, in its hand.
" Roger Williams, as all know, was the prophet of " complete religious toleration in America. Into the " causes of his banishment from Massachusetts, and " the circumstances attending it, I do not propose now " to enter. That as a man he was ' conscientiously con- " tentious' I should naturally be among the last to " deny ; most men who contribute materially towards " bringing about great changes, religious or moral, are " 'conscientiously contentious.' Were they not so they " would not accomplish the work they are here to do. " Such men are an essential element in the economy of " nature ; and the logic which defends the expulsion of " Roger Williams from Massachusetts in 1635, is only " consistent when it expresses regret that William " Lloyd Garrison was not banished from the United " States, exactly two centuries later, instead of being " dragged through the streets of Boston with a rope
28 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
" around his neck. The situations were much the " same; nor were the two men unlike.
" So also as respects Sir Harry Vane. * * * * " Young Henry Vane, like Roger Williams, was in ad- " vance of the fathers of Massachusetts, and they rudely " displaced him and drove him away ; and, again, the " stones which the builders refused became the head- " stones of the corner ! "
Time will permit of but one more quotation from this book — a book which is as valuable as it is remark- able. In comparing Governor Winthrop and the Rev. John Cotton with Roger Williams and the younger Vane, and referring to the expressions of Bishop, the Quaker martyrologist, to them, Mr. Adams thus writes :
" Suffice it to say, Winthrop and Cotton were not " made of the same stuff as the younger Vane and " Roger Williams. They were men of calmer, less tur- " bulent disposition. They could bear to be suppressed ; " and they were suppressed. When a man thus submits "to be suppressed, — conforms outwardly to tenets in " which he does not wholly believe, — the verdict of the " moralist and the historian is adverse to him. He is " held to be derelict, — unequal to the test ; and his " course in life is compared with that of the martyr, who " bore fearless evidence regardless of consequences, " whether imprisonment, exile or death. Especially is " this true of the non-conformist who later becomes, as " did Cotton, a conformist. In such case, the inference " is inevitable that, as the man grew older his courage " failed him, — the desire for peace and the comfort of an " accustomed life prevailed over the love of testifying
ADDRESS OF THE PRESIDENT. 2Q
"to the truth; and then follow the words, 'It was not " so with Roger Williams ! ' That is all true, and pos- " terity has most properly taken cognizance of the " fact."
It is earnestly to be hoped that the spirit pervading this book of Charles Francis Adams will leaven the work of all future Massachusetts historians, — so far, at least, as relates to the founders of Rhode Island.
3O RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE ON GROUNDS AND BUILDINGS.
The committee on grounds and buildings report their expenditure for the year as follows, viz. :
For changing the old building to correspond with the new part, was paid to
Henry M. Horton, $739 27
Alex. Grant, 339 36
$1,078 63 Exceeding the appropriation by the sum of $78.63.
For expenditures chargeable to income:
Rhode Island Concrete Co., .... $25 oo
L. Vaughan & Co., inside work on cases, etc., 20 65
W. G. Heath & Co., gas fixtures, etc., . . 14 35
H. W. Ladd & Co., curtains, . • . . 25 04
L. A. O'Brian, furniture, etc., . . . 44 75
J. C. Shirley & Son, gas fixtures, . . . 12 80
Boston Glass Store, glass in desk in museum, 10 oo
O. Johnson & Co., paint for cabinet, . . 12 41
W. S. Hogg, care of grounds, . . . 17 70
Water tax, 10 oo
Columbia Ladder Co., ladder for cabinet, . 6 oo
Manchester & Hudson, lime, . . . 2 75
$201 45 ROYAL C. TAFT,
For the Committee. Providence, Jan. 9, 1894.
REPORT OF THE LIBRARY COMMITTEE. 3!
REPORT OF THE LIBRARY COMMITTEE.
The library committee, on this seventy-second annual meet- ing of the Society, beg leave to report : That the library has been open through the year, except during the month of August, — Mr. Amos Perry, secretary of the Society, being librarian.
During the months of July, August and September the auditorium was closed to allow the work of renovation and alteration therein to be carried on.
The liberality of our citizens, who had just erected the new building, reached out again to aid in completing the restora- tion of the original cabinet also.
Every volume, pamphlet, map, paper, curiosity and relic in it was removed, and from floor to roof, the building was refin- ished, giving a new ceiling to the audience-room, with win- dows of large plate glass ; new doors and a lighted, warmed vestibule, with two complete ante-rooms, and the whole unob- structed by the old and useless staircases.
The mustiness and dust of ages was supplanted by the odor of cleanliness, and when the rooms were finished ready for use, it was hard to distinguish the old from the new.
With this change comes a new inspiration to the Society. The outward institution has become a complete and well rounded whole ; one, perhaps, more practically fitted for the actual work and uses of the Society than an entirely new building would have been ; for in too many modern library buildings, it would seem, that the internal and working uses have been sacrificed, in a large measure, to external archi- tectural display.
32 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
During the remainder of the year the work of arranging and classifying the books and property of the Society and cataloguing the volumes of the library has been steadily ad- vanced, and it is still in progress.
For the accessions to the library, portrait gallery and mu- seum of the Society, during the year, reference may be had to the report of the librarian, in which all statistics as to the cabinet and its contents should hereafter be found.
TOWN RECORDS.
The preliminary work already undertaken and accomplished by the Society in reference to town records, is too important to be passed by without notice. The results of this work, so far, are of high value to the State, and have laid the founda- tion on a solid and reliable basis for future investigation and progress in this important line of historic investigation. These results are clearly exhibited in the report of your secretary, printed in a separate pamphlet of eighty-two pages (No. 2 of the new series), showing the number, character and condition of the volumes of records now existing in each of the towns of the State. The value of such records to his- toric truth is admirably illustrated in the contents of this pamphlet, and by the late work of Charles Francis Adams, — "The History of the Town of Quincy."
In this connection it is also proper to refer to the action of the Society in 1845, in taking charge of a large number of neglected papers and records of the town of Providence.
Unarranged, unclassified and unindexed, they were packed in bags, and so remained until arranged and preserved in portfolios, under the direction of Albert C. Greene, Esq., then president of the Society. A receipt was given for them, but lost by the authorities, and now only, after nearly half a century has expired, has the city, through its able and ener- getic record commissioners, called attention to their exist- ence and assumed their charge.
This care and work of preservation, inaugurated by the Society, has its abundant reward in the acknowledgments of the City Council; and these papers, an integral part of the history of Providence, are to be arranged chronologically,
REPORT OF THE LIBRARY COMMITTEE. 33
repaired, bound and indexed with the greatest care, at the expense of the city, and returned to the custody of the Society.
The work of the Society, as to the records of all the towns, is in the same line, is sanctioned and aided by the State, and will result in corresponding benefit to both.
The special objects to be kept in view, with regard to the library, now that your building is finished, seem at present to be:
I. To complete all imperfect sets of volumes, both of inde- pendent publications and of our regular serials, a work requir- ing time, rather than expense, and to supply a fuller list of books of reference, so important and valuable to every reader and student of questions relating to. our history.
II. To enlarge the collection of genealogical works, which are in constant demand, as this department is yearly assuming new importance in its relation to the history of the families and citizens who constitute the State.
III. According to our original programme, to harmonize and give a greater unity to the somewhat miscellaneous and fragmentary character of the library in the past, and to enrich it in the history of North American discovery, colonization and civilization, especially as related to the character and institutions of Rhode Island and her influence and action upon other States.
IV. To carry forward the work begun as to town history, both as regards all official and unofficial records, manuscripts and personal notices, or memoirs, of those who founded, and of those who later gave character to the several towns.
V. To introduce a proper system of classification of the historic curiosities and relics of the past, now collected in the museum of the Society, and to arrange them, each as its nature may require, in historic order or on scientific lines.
With regard to volumes presented to the Society your com- mittee have to remark, that, the increase in their number, as well as in the business of the Society, is such, that the time and space allowed to the library department in our business meetings, is now so limited that little or no opportunity is given for critical notices of such works.
34 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
These volumes will, however, be specially entered in the records, or mentioned in the detailed report of the librarian- Attention may indeed, from time to time, be drawn to such works, as, from their special subjects, or relations to the objects of the Society, call for examination by members en- gaged in special departments of investigation ; even if little more can be done than to state their general plan and scope, or indicate the limits of the field to which their authors have confined their study and research. We cannot, however, omit to notice that, within the last four years, five important histories of the United States have been published.
I. Two additional volumes of Von Hoist (1890), — an exten- sion of his original work, — "The Constitutional and Political History of the United States," and now embracing a history of the years 1859-61, immediately preceding the Rebellion; with an index volume, by another hand (1893).
II. That of Mr. Schouler (Dec. '91), in five volumes, cov- ering the period from 1783 to 1861 ; that is, from the close of the Revolution to the opening of the great Rebellion.
III. That of Mr. Rhodes (Dec. '92), in two volumes, cov- ering the period from the adoption of the "Compromise Bill" of 1850 to 1860; that is, the decade preceding the Rebellion.
IV. Still another, " The History of the People of the United States from the Revolution to the Civil War," by John Bach McMasters ; the first three volumes of which are already published (the third in 1892), leaving two volumes only, yet to appear.
V. That of Goldwin Smith (1893), in one volume, "The United States : An Outline of Political History ;" 1492- 1871.
This unusual list of twelve so recent volumes, by five differ- ent writers, illustrates the fresh and vigorous interest in historical investigation, awakened among our scholars and our people. It is also a happy augury for the future, not only of a clearer understanding of the principles and action of the founders of our government, but of a manly progress towards a better application of their principles and a purification of their practices.
REPORT OF THE LIBRARY COMMITTEE. 35
While the field of " Bancroft's History" is limited to the Colonial and Revolutionary periods, these later works embrace, between them, the era of the Constitution and Rebellion, reaching over, in fact, the first century of our development as a Nation, under that Constitution.
While criticism here is precluded, it is important to notice, that elaborate biographies, multitudinous papers of public men, published during the last half century, and a freer ac- cess to the archives of our own and foreign governments, have furnished a fund of material for true history quite inaccessi- ble to those who wrote one and two generations ago. Of all this, these various writers have largely availed themselves. The difference in this respect and in the spirit and use of modern historical methods, give a new aspect to these recent histories. The historian now does not so much dwell on the great and striking events, which in wars and tumults strike the public eye and ear, as upon the antecedent causes, in the development of human reason, human conscience, or human passion, which led to and produced these events.
It is the working of the public mind and heart as to public acts, which attracts their notice, — the rushing tide, as it were, of public sentiment, whether moving upon the charac- ter or action of an administration, — upon a great measure of finance, — upon a great public wrong, — or upon a point of national honor and the avoidance of national disgrace.
At the same time, a work like that of Goldwin Smith, who aims to bring the written annals and recognized history of our territory within the compass of a single volume, requires most comprehensive generalization. It is a masterpiece of condensation, and with its division into the Colonial and the Revolutionary periods, as well as those of the Constitution and of the great Rebellion, presents a series of graphic views which must stamp a new and clearer image of the develop- ment of our country on the minds of many who have been too busy, or too indifferent, to follow the various events, reverses and triumphs of the past, by which the country has been edu- cated, disciplined and established.
The works treating of the earlier periods under the Consti- tution are especially interesting, as they exhibit the conflict-
36 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
ing interests, jealousies and struggles between the thirteen original and independent Colonies, when brought and held together under a Constitution, and first feeling the tension and check of a new and rigid bond which neither of them had the power to disrupt.
This new experience, so different from that under the loose and elastic ties of the confederation, which a life and death struggle with a foreign foe could hardly hold together, is one of the most striking and interesting exhibits of our early con- stitutional life. The situation was one of constant surprises and complications.
Questions as to mutual relations and obligations of a thousand kinds were then new and untried. There were no precedents, no decisions, no rules or judgments of any con- stitutional tribunal, like those to which a century in judicial harness leads us implicitly to yield. All new questions were then serious and grave, environed often with uncertainty and fear ; both parties looking with doubt and anxiety as to the possibility of any practical or peaceful solution of conflicting claims. For the first time, perhaps, in the history of nations, the judicial power had been made independent of the legisla- tive and of the executive power, but the problem of its suc- cess or failure was far from being solved. We must always remember that the new system was then absolutely unproved and untried. The knowledge of its success for one hundred years is ours ; but we cannot read history aright, or justly judge the contentions or contestants of the early days of the Republic, in the light of our present knowledge of this su- preme success.
But, while rendering due houor to the living authors of these modern works, we cannot close this paper without no- ticing a recent loss to history and historic truth, in the death of Francis Parkman, which can hardly be repaired. To any one who knew him as a friend and correspondent, it is not necessary to say, that the personality of the man was a con- stant attraction, owing to the simplicity and naturalness of his character.
As a scholar, investigator and master of historic composi-
REPORT OF THE LIBRARY COMMITTEE. 37
tion, he was preeminent in his sphere, not only in his own country but in the literary world.
To write the history of New France and its momentous re- lations to his own country, was an object which occupied his mind from the days of his youth, and his many volumes are a noble contribution to American history, unsurpassed in fidelity to truth, in beauty of description and in grace of style.
A life of ill health and suffering, of fading eye-sight, of painful days and sleepless nights, could not shake his forti- tude, nor cool the ardor of his aspirations.
For depth of research into the archives of the Nations and for personal study of the life and the customs of the Indians his works are almost without a parallel ; while his clearness of expression and love of nature give a wonderful charm to the features of every landscape which it came within his province to describe. His works are a living portraiture of early North American colonization and will remain such for all future time. They extend over more than a century of conflict, and the lover of romance, or of dramatic art, will find in their pages the exhibition of all human characters and all human passions, from princes to peasants, and from can- nibal savage to martyr priest. Wars and truces, massacres and burnings are but interludes of the story, — the victors of one generation are the vanquished of the next. Though kings and nations sustain the conflict, the fruits of bloody conquests are thoughtlessly surrendered, or bartered for a trifling gain.
In the triumph of victory it seems often to have been for- gotten, that the stake at final issue was half of the New World. Well might such a subject challenge his devotion ; and well did he respond to it, with the gift of his life. It is for us to be thankful that he was spared to round out the se- ries of volumes he had planned, and complete the record by his own master-hand.
WILLIAM D. ELY.
HOWARD W. PRESTON,
AMOS PERRY. Providence, Jan. 9, 1894.
Library Committee.
38 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE ON GENEA- LOGICAL RESEARCHES.
The committee on genealogical researches respect- fully report : Decided progress has been made in fur- nishing facilities for the work of genealogical students.
The printed index now gives a ready reference to the genealogies possessed, and shows how many more are needed. It is hoped that members will hand to the librarian lists of books which it may seem especially desirable to add to the genealogical collection.
We welcome heartily the advent of the Society's magazine, which adds so much to the usefulness of this institution. Comparatively few persons can attend meetings, but hundreds can find time to read the maga- zine. If at a future time the editors should find it pos- sible to give a little space to genealogical sketches, many persons would doubtless eagerly embrace the opportunity to have their manuscripts printed. Arti- cles have already appeared that aid the genealogist, notably the report on the condition of the town rec- ords.
In your committee's last two reports the importance was emphasized of printing the marriages and deaths from such early newspapers as the Newport Mercury and Providence Gazette. It is gratifying to learn that
REPORT ON GENEALOGICAL RESEARCHES. 39
this work will be included in an additional volume of the Vital Records, which will also contain the ex- tremely valuable church records of this State, so far as they relate to baptisms, marriages, etc. For the Committee,
JOHN O. AUSTIN.
4-O RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
FOR THE YEAR 1893.
An outline of the work that was carried forward during the year 1893 is contained in the librarian's report, rendered a year ago and brought out in the last printed Proceedings of the Society. That report gave some idea of the multifarious material contained in the cabinet and explained the system of classification adopted and to what purposes the several rooms in the building are devoted. Some hopes that were enter- tained when that report was written have been disappointed and some objects have been accomplished which, though greatly desired, were hardly expected. Of the latter class is the renovation from the basement upward of the old cabinet. Parts of this structure had gone on forty-nine years unchanged except by accumulated dust, rubbish and cobwebs.
Though important, nay, indispensable to the well-being of the Society, the change that has been effected has interfered with carefully laid plans. It has absorbed funds that would otherwise have enriched the library. It has occupied for a long time the entire library force in removing back and forth the material that had been carefully arranged on shelves. Yet despite these and all other drawbacks, the Society has taken a step forward which it can never regret. It has entered upon the year 1894 with its cabinet in better condition than ever before. At this seventy-second annual meeting it is in a better way to accomplish the end for which it was established than at any previous period in its history.
It may be of interest to some of our members to be assured that their Society is associated with advanced and progressive institutions far and near. It is in correspondence with most of the leading historical societies of this country and with several eminent institutions of the Old World. The full num-
REPORT OF LIBRARIAN AND CABINET KEEPER. 41
ber of corresponding institutions is nearly one hundred. As the Society has grown up on Rhode Island soil and is per- meated with the spirit of the founders of the State, it is a source of satisfaction that its relations outside of the State are extensive and cordial.
The system of exchanges and correspondence carried on by it involves no small amount of labor on the part of the secre- tary and librarian. A book is kept, entitled, " Records of Exchanges." In this are briefly recorded, in the account with each institution, on one page whatever books, pamphlets, maps, charts, etc., are sent to that institution, and on the op- posite page whatever are received from it. These correspond- ing historical institutions constitute a bond of union and friendship that now and then results in great good. The sev- eral libraries are replenished without serious loss.
Among the foreign institutions with which our Society is in correspondence, are —
1. The Royal Historical Society, London. In their appro- priate place in our library are nearly a score of interesting and valuable volumes, together with several unbound vol- umes. Learning by the last annual report of the librarian about the printing of the Records of Providence, the London Society made a special application to be furnished with copies of those records. That application was reported to the secre- tary of the Providence commission on early town records. The request was granted, the volumes were sent and grateful acknowledgments were returned.
2. The Royal Society of Northern Antiquaries at Copen- hagen has been in correspondence with this Society for more than half a century. The relations were for a long time inti- mate and have always been cordial.
3. The Royal University at Christiania, Norway, has exchanged publications with this Society many years.
4. Early during the last year the president of the Royal Academy of History at Stockholm, Sweden, addressed a letter to the president of this Society, requesting that the name of that institution might be placed on our exchange list. It seemed ungracious to say no. Our quarterly publications have been sent there together with several volumes which we
42 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
could spare, and that institution has sent back grateful acknowledgments, together with a liberal supply of its his- torical publications.
It is due to say here that while the members of the last three societies named appear to understand our language and to appreciate our publications, unfortunately most of our members lack the power to understand and appreciate their works. We have upon our shelves two series of publications of the Danish Society that are now of great value. These are occasionally sought and consulted by eminent scholars, who make grateful acknowledgments of the privileges here en- joyed.
Attention is called to the foreign department of our library with a view of enlisting in our Society some scholarly gentle- men who, with a critical knowledge of the languages referred to, are now citizens of our State and country and would be welcomed as members of this Society.
In this cursory glance across the ocean and to different parts of our country, we do not overlook the fact that the primary object of our Society is local history. Indeed, we believe that by an extended and broad survey we are better prepared to enter our special field of labor and cultivate it with renewed vigor. It is a matter of observation that few of the institutions to which our attention has been directed have succeeded in sustaining much life and in efficiently promoting the cause of history without maintaining one or more stated publications. The Virginia Historical Society, with which we have long been in correspondence, has recently begun a quarterly publication with the view of securing, the end for which it was organized, and excellent results are already apparent.
It is a matter of satisfaction that the Society has, within a brief period, succeeded in obtaining a report from every town and city clerk's office in the State, and that that report is cir- culated in print and is read far and near. The Society has engaged to send a copy of its publications to town and city clerks, and it hopes to receive in return their respective tax books, which constitute part of their local history. A cordial
REPORT OF LIBRARIAN AND CABINET KEEPER. 43
relation is courted with a view to mutual helpfulness and use- fulness.
In the absence of a State commissioner of public records, this Society can and should, with State aid, suggest and facilitate improvements that are needed in various directions. It would be recreant to its own principles if it did not put forth a decided effort to collect and save the official papers of the most eminent citizens of the State during the Revolu- tionary War — if it did not try to have various Revolutionary papers looked after, catalogued and indexed with the view of honoring the memory of those to whom we are indebted for the blessings that fall to our lot.
The reception-book shows that there were received during the last year 284 bound volumes, 1,324 unbound, and 184 miscellaneous articles.
These figures are given out of respect to custom, — not be- cause we think them the best indexes of progress, work or character. These acquisitions are, to a certain extent, indi- cations of interest, work and progress. If the Society were in a morbid state, no such record would be found. It is not, however, the number of acquisitions that speak, but their value. A general and widely extended interest in our work can hardly fail to bring about such favorable results as these figures indicate.
THE MUSEUM.
The most marked accomplishment of the last year, aside from the renovation of the old cabinet already referred to, is the beginning of the historical museum, an outline of which was given in the librarian's report last year. The import- ance,— the necessity, of this measure was conceded. Historic materials of a certain class had been gathering from the time when the Society was founded, and had remained, most of them, packed away out of sight. They are now spread out, most of them in the upper room on the west side of the cabi- net, and other articles that are coming in give promise of an historical museum that will by and by serve a very important purpose in connection with our system of public instruction. The acquisition of an industrious and faithful assistant in this
44 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
department has rendered the establishment of this museum possible.
It may as well be said here that there are several depart- ments of labor in this cabinet that require special tact, skill and talent. We have rare old deeds, records, official docu- ments, pictures, memorials and keep-sakes of various kinds that can be safely entrusted only to well-trained specialists. Aid and counsel are solicited from persons who have had ex- perience in the kinds of work here indicated.
At this time it is easier to point out the work that needs doing than that which has been done. With such an over- turn as we have had, a very large amount of labor devolves on the library force. The work of cataloguing under the new order of things is little more than begun. A step only has been taken in the right direction. Fourteen thousand bound volumes need to be catalogued and a still larger number of pamphlets. Also, a large amount of material in the basement of the building needs to be assorted and an account of it taken.
THE NEWSPAPER-ROOM.
The newspaper-room needs to be thoroughly overhauled. Its more than eighteen hundred bound volumes need to be re-arranged. Some of them need to be re-bound. Many of them need to be labeled and to have their bindings repaired. Imperfect sets should be completed. The shelves all need to be numbered and labeled. Then the work of cataloguing can go on, and an account taken of duplicate volumes.
The value and importance of the newspaper department of this library can hardly be overestimated. The Society early put forth earnest efforts to obtain complete sets of the news- papers of the colony and the State. The fruits of its labors are now seen in the newspaper-room. In 1875, the legisla- ture inaugurated a plan the results of which are most favor- able to the cause of Rhode Island history. Any citizen of the State has the right to examine newspapers and books be- longing to the State under the rules of the Society, but this does not include free access to every part of the library as many visitors seem to imagine. It is painful to report that some of the choice, rare old volumes of the last century have
REPORT OF LIBRARIAN AND CABINET KEEPER. 45
been treated unhandsome by persons admitted to the privi- leges of this room. Other injuries have resulted, showing that closer supervision is required to prevent the clipping of paragraphs where the privilege of copying only has been granted.
BOOKS AND PAMPHLETS.
Though several hundred bound and unbound volumes were added to the library during the last year, there is a pressing demand not for ponderous historical works, but for family genealogies, town histories, biographical dictionaries, ency- clopaedias and statistical works, pertaining especially to our revolutionary and colonial periods. The movement is mani- festly in this direction. The Sons and the Daughters of the Revolution, and the Colonial Dames want information, and thus a field of inquiry is opened which we cannot afford to ignore or neglect.
To furnish the desired information, two lines of research must be pursued. One is through the annals of the revolu- tionary and colonial periods of our State, and the other is through such works as are to be found in our genealogical- room, in biographical sketches, town histories and magazines whose special purpose is to supply this kind of information.
While Cowell's "Spirit of 76," Bartlett's "Colonial Rec- ords," Arnold's " History of Rhode Island," the Historical Society's four volumes of "Military Papers," orderly-books and other similar works at our command are important sources of information, they often fail to serve their full purpose for the lack of indexes.
The fact is beyond question that to duly honor the memory of our revolutionary and colonial soldiers, there must be pre- pared an indexed compilation of pertinent authentic records from every available source. Some of these records are in this cabinet, some in our State House, some in the Massa- chusetts and New York State Houses, some in the archives of different departments of our national government, and some in private hands.
The State of Connecticut has admirably done its work of this kind. It has brought out two thick imperial 8vo volumes, one entitled, "Record of Connecticut Men in the War of the
46 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
Revolution, the War of 1812 and the War with Mexico." The other is entitled, "Record of Connecticut Men in the War of the Rebellion, 1861-1865." New Hampshire has its revo- lutionary rolls well arranged and well printed. Massachusetts is engaged in the same line of labor. Rhode Island is doing honor to its soldiers of the last war in the work compiled and edited by Adjutant-General Dyer — a work, which, though its title does not properly indicate its character, is creditable to the State and to its editor.
Yet though no State did itself more honor and the country better service in the war for Independence than Rhode Island, no adequate measures have been adopted for honoring the memories of the men who fought its battles and won its victories. The work is the more difficult on account of its having been so long neglected.
While this Society cannot enter upon so great and respon- sible an enterprise, it can and should, in the opinion of the librarian, authorize the employment of a specialist to index its four volumes of military papers. This would be a step pre- paratory to the greater work. It can and should procure copies of our revolutionary rolls that are in other States. It can also with propriety memorialize the General Assembly to inaugurate the great work that is so much needed.
GENEALOGICAL DEPARTMENT.
The credit of inaugurating this department of the library belongs primarily to Dr. Henry E. Turner of Newport, whose well-directed efforts to collect and preserve the records of Rhode Island families date back to the period of his youth. He brought to Providence many years ago his valuable genea- logical collections and explained at a large meeting of this So- ciety his mode of classifying and arranging various family records. He has counseled and encouraged younger persons who have engaged in genealogical pursuits ; notably, the com- piler of the volumes of "Vital Statistics of Rhode Island," referred to elsewhere.
It is a pleasure to be able to report the following acquisi- tions to this department of the library during the year 1893. This list does not include such genealogical sketches as are
REPORT OF LIBRARIAN AND CABINET KEEPER. 47
contained in town histories, biographical dictionaries, and such magazines as are not devoted to genealogical pursuits.
Armstrong Family (The) of Windham, N. H.
Barber Family. Genealogy of the. The Descendants of Robert Barber
of Lancaster Co., Penn.
Chandler Family (The). Descendants of William and Annis Chandler. Farnsworth, Matthias, and his Descendants in America. Plymouth Colony Families.
Poole, Edward, of Weymouth, Mass. History of Tanner, Sr., Thomas. Genealogy of the Descendants of Tower Genealogy. Descendants of John Tower. Van Rensselaers. Annals of the
American Ancestry, Munsell, Vol. VIII.
Americans of Royal Descent, by Browning.
Hand-book of American Genealogy, by Whitmore.
New York Genealogical and Biographical Record. By exchange, 23 of
the 24 vols. (Vol. VI., 1875, wanted.) New England Historical and Genealogical Register, 1893.
VITAL STATISTICS OF RHODE ISLAND, BY ARNOLD.
Vols. 2, 3 & 4. This series of "Vital Statistics" merits more than a passing mention. It does credit to the persevering in- dustry of its compiler and to the intelligence of our legislators who have aided in a worthy and commendable enterprise for the public good.
PAMPHLETS.
Green, Percival and Ellen. Account of, and of some of their Descend- ants.
Hooker, Rev. Thomas. (A paper read at the Hooker gathering, 1892.)
Dana Family, i
Dana Genealogy, J
Dana, Richard. Memoranda of some of the Descendants of
Tompkins, Sr., Edward. Record of the Ancestry and Kindred of the Children of
The foregoing list of genealogical works received during the last year is small compared with the list for which there is an earnest call by visitors at the genealogical room. We give below a few titles to which our attention is forcibly di- rected.
48 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
WANTED.
The Rodman Genealogy.
The Earle Genealogy.
The Capron Genealogy.
Pearson's First Settlers of Albany.
The Walker Genealogy.
The Rice Genealogy.
Burke's Extinct Peerage.
The Harleian Society Publications, 55 imperial 8vo vols.
The Alumni Oxonienses, 1715-1886, 4 vols. in two.
So great and so general is the interest in genealogical studies that the librarian suggests that some space be devoted in three numbers of the Society's quarterly publications for the promotion of this branch of our local history. There are among our manuscripts two volumes of Foster papers, and one volume of Moses Brown papers, which though strictly of a genealogical character and replete with interest to numer- ous Rhode Island families, are known only by a few members of the Society.
MISCELLANEOUS.
The following are a few of the many acquisitions classed in the accession list as miscellaneous: —
Portrait of Edward R. Young. Artist, Arnold. Gift of George F. and Nicholas B. Young.
Fac-simile of the original record of the order of the banish- ment of Roger Williams. Gift of Franklin W. Smith, Boston.
Portraits of Charles Dyer, father and son, and of two other members of the Dyer family. Gift of Charles Sowle Dyer.
Deed of Christopher Lippitt to Owners of Hope Furnace Company, 1785.
Deed, 1774, with autographs of Stephen Hopkins, Nicholas, Joseph, John and Moses Brown, Jabez Bowen and others with their respective wives, from Edward Congdon.
Fac-simile of the original Declaration of Independence. Gift of the Department of State, Washington, D. C.
Likenesses of Col. Christopher Greene and of Com. Esek Hopkins.
Diploma of the late John P. Knowles as U. S. District Judge of the District of Rhode Island.
REPORT OF LIBRARIAN AND CABINET KEEPER. 49
A description of the scene near the Great Bridge during the gale, Sept. 27, 1815, taken from the lips of an eye-witness by Mrs. Esther Hoppin E. Lardner of Philadelphia, and placed here by Mr. H. F. Richards.
Description of the Gaspee House in Providence, by Edward D. Morris.
Five original documents relating to layouts of land in Prov- idence.
ist laid out by Mr. Hopkins in 1705. 2c[ « « (t Thomas Fenner, 1719. 3d " " " Daniel Abbott, 1724. 4th " " " " " 1724.
5th " " " Elisha , Surveyor, 1728.
The gift of Marsden J. Perry.
Many old charts used by mariners during the early part of this century. The gift of Miss H. D. Sheldon.
Many photographs of historic buildings in Providence, con- tributed by George H. Burnham and Gustine L. Hurd.
Many historic antiquities and illustrations of Rhode Island colonial life and customs, now arranged in the historical mu- seum, including our grandmothers' New England Kitchen.
THE OLD DROP-SCENE.
Special attention is invited to one of the most remarkable pictures in the cabinet, — a picture that was painted ten years before this Society was organized, and represents Providence as it was eighty-two years ago. The old drop-scene is not in its place though often inquired after by visitors. It had to be taken down to make way for repairs in the auditorium and is now rolled up in the basement of the building. It needs re- lining and retouching. Competent judges have expressed the opinion that it should not again be suspended upon our walls until it has been properly restored. The librarian awaits instruction upon this matter.
BOOKS AND PAMPHLETS.
Our reception-book shows that 1608 books and pamphlets were received last year. Some of them were obtained by exchange and some by purchase, but the larger number are
5O RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
recorded as gifts. It is due to say that in this record every- thing received from an institution with which this Society is in correspondence, and everything sent to that institution, appears as a gift, though the idea of an exchange is involved. In the accounts with great living and life-giving institutions, examples of which are at hand, the balance is not in our favor. We have upon our shelves their valuable series of historical works, while our contributions to their libraries are compara- tively small. On the other hand, many institutions with which this Society is in correspondence make but slight returns for favors received.
Still this manifestly loose system of exchanges works well as a whole. Members of this Society are thus enabled to learn what is going on elsewhere, — what kindred institutions are doing and how they carry on their work, and just what relation our Society sustains to them.
It hardly need be said that the issue of our quarterly pub- lication is a step forward and upward, and the librarian may be pardoned for saying that the movement should be sustained by friends far and near sending to the treasurer their dollar subscriptions. Instead of the annual tax of three dollars, it is suggested that members send (without being asked) four dollars and thus ensure the continuance of the quarterly.
Some of the books and pamphlets received are upon the foregoing genealogical list. Some idea of the character of other acquisitions may be gained by looking over the two lists of givers inserted further on. The acquisitions comprise a great variety of subjects and objects. Many friends far and near are looking after the interests of the Society, sending, as they have the opportunity, contributions that enrich its shelves and promote its usefulness. Different departments of our national government made valuable contributions to our library last year. The aid rendered by associate insti- tutions is appreciated. The librarian is indebted to our various charitable and educational institutions for their annual reports.
In the New England room are a few shelves devoted to the publications of New England colleges and universities. This department is in a formatory state. Thus far Harvard and
REPORT OF LIBRARIAN AND CABINET KEEPER. 51
Yale are the best represented. The publications of Brown University belong in the main room of the building.
In looking over records made in the reception-book during the past year, the following are a few of the many books and pamphlets that attract our attention :
Maryland Archives. Vol. XI.
Adams' Handbook of American Authors.
Hough's Biographical Dictionary.
History of the Bank of North America.
Parkman's Histories. Parts 4, 5, 6, 7. 6 vols.
History of the Town of Hingham. 4 vols.
Defence of Edgar Poe.
Introduction to the Study of Indian Languages. By Powell.
Dedham Records. Vol. III.
German Allied Troops. By Rosengarten.
Early Records of the Town of Providence. Vols. II, III, IV.
History of Spencer, Mass.
History of Canton, Mass.
History of Ancient Windsor, Conn. 2 vols.
Correspondence of Samuel B. Webb. 2 vols.
Battery F, R. I. Light Artillery.
Battery E, R. I. Light Artillery.
New York Society of Colonial Wars.
Year-Book of the Connecticut Society of the Sons of the American Revolution.
Rhodes' History of the United States. 2 vols.
Schouler's History of the United States. 5 vols.
History of Elections in the American Colonies. By Bishop.
Rhode Island Woman's Directory.
Life of Ferdinand De Soto.
Annals of the Army of the Cumberland.
Constitutional History of the United States. By Von Hoist.
The Iroquois Trail.
Historical Collections of South Carolina. By Carroll. 2 vols.
Familiar Quotations. By Bartlett.
Memorial of the Inauguration of Washington. Edited by Clarence Winthrop Bowen.
52 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
Burgoyne's Ballads. By Stone.
Record of Connecticut in the War of the Rebellion.
Privateer Providence. By Albert Holbrook.
LOCAL HISTORY.
A request is made by the lecture committee that papers be prepared to be read at meetings of the Society, — papers that have a direct bearing on some branch or topic of Rhode Island history ; for example, the suffrage question in Rhode Island ; slavery in Rhode Island and the slave trade by Rhode Islanders; privateers and privateering; eminent statesmen, judges, lawyers, writers on international law, senators and representatives in congress, diplomats and consuls, poets, orators, artists, soldiers, merchants, divines, physicians, edu- cators, scholars, inventors, or men who have made their mark in some branch of industry ; together with sketches of the religious, educational, philanthropic, . philosophic, scientific and artistic institutions that indicate the life and character of our people.
Every town in the State has a variety of topics worthy of special attention and note, as seen in the chapter of the Rhode Island State Census of 1885, pages n-68. Some of the topics suggested at random are bridges, ferries, town clerks and town clerk offices, postmasters and postoffices, pauperism, insanity, taverns, turnpikes and tollgates, stages, packets, Indian trails, customs and names. To bring about a better acquaintance with our local history, local historical topics should be more frequently discussed at the stated meet- ings of the Society, and to this end the lecture committee invite interested persons to secure for them carefully pre- pared essays on some of the many subjects that have a direct bearing on the history of the State.
SPECIAL NOTE.
Since the foregoing report was ready for the press, the death of Mr. George C. Mason, an accomplished student and writer of Rhode Island history, who has done so much for the bene- fit of this Society and to make his native city and State known and respected, has been announced. • Seven volumes of his
REPORT OF LIBRARIAN AND CABINET KEEPER. 53
works, all of them well bound, and some of them large and admirably illustrated, are upon the shelves of this Society, with book-marks showing that they were his gifts. The crown- ing work of his life, however, is not here. That work required a large expenditure and occupied much of Mr. Mason's time during eight consecutive years. It consists of six thick folio volumes (i2x 15 inches), as yet unbound, and comprises treas- ures gleaned from the homes of illustrious ancestors and dis- tinguished citizens, all pertaining to the history of Rhode Island. The work is entitled, —
" Newport Historical and Social Reminiscences of Ye Olden Times. With more than 550 illustrations, autograph letters, documents, colonial commissions, bound sheets and other original papers, dating back more than 175 years, 200 portraits, etc., etc."
Mr. Mason, although generous to a fault, could not give this work to the library. It was his desire, however, that it should remain in his native State, the property either of a worthy institution or of a public-spirited citizen.
When last seen by the librarian, Mr. Mason had received from a gentleman residing out of the State, a standing offer of one thousand dollars ($1000) for the work. He said, unless a larger sum were raised in Rhode Island, the work would be claimed by contract and removed from the State. This situa- tion is unchanged by his death.
Two members of this Society have offered to give towards the sum required, each $100, and several smaller sums are promised for the same object. It is hoped that patriotic and liberal-minded gentlemen and ladies will organize a movement that will result in placing this work where it will be accessible to the students of Rhode Island history who reside in the State. Neither this Society nor the citizens of the State can afford to let this work be carried away for the lack of little more than half the sum originally asked and expected by the eminent historian and biographer of Gilbert Stuart.
AMOS PERRY, Librarian and Cabinet Keeper.
54 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
REPORT OF PUBLICATION COMMITTEE.
The publication committee of the Rhode Island Historical Society, reports as follows : —
In pursuance of the vote passed at the meeting of the So- ciety, January 10, 1893, they have issued during the year last past the "Publications of the Rhode Island Historical So- ciety, new series."
No. i was issued in April, and consisted of the usual an- nual transactions and accompanying reports.
No. 2, issued in July, consisted of Mr. Perry's report on the Town Records of Rhode Island.
No. 3, issued in October, contained the plea of the Paw- tuxet purchasers, etc., with notes, the Tax List of the town of Providence, July I, 1679, and original papers never before printed on the Indian Slaves of King Philip's War, with notes.
No. 4, issued in January, 1894, consists of papers on Rhode Island History by Charles Stickney (Know-Nothingism in Rhode Island) ; Neil Andrews, Jr. (The Development of the Nominating Convention in Rhode Island) ; and Mary E. Wool- ley (Early History of the Colonial Post Office).
The following is a statement of the expenses and receipts for 1893, of this undertaking: —
The cost of printing No. i was . . $135 24 " " " " " 2 " . . 161 10
(( « (I (( (t -2 « -IT-) i-i?
J • • LO* /O
" " " " " 4 " . . 96 60
Paid for copying, 1 5 45
i 14
To meet this we have 43 subscriptions, . $43 oo Int. account on the publication fund, . 287 50
$329 50
REPORT OF PUBLICATION COMMITTEE. 55
This shows a deficiency of . . . $211 64
It is evident, that unless more members of the Society re- spond to the appeal to subscribe to the "Publications," its issue must cease.
In order that the members may have an opportunity to pass upon this matter, we recommend that the treasurer when he sends out the annual bills this year, add thereto a statement that for one dollar more the "Publications" for 1893, will be delivered to the subscriber, enclosing therewith a copy of the appeal or statement issued by your committee.
In this way every member will have the opportunity to de- cide whether to pay only the annual due, $3.00, or to take the last year's issue of our " Publications " for one dollar more.
And unless by April I, the members subscribe sufficiently to this project to pay the deficiency, we recommend the discon- tinuance of our "Publications."
Your committee are much indebted to Professor W. H. Munro, whose cooperation as assistant to the committee they requested early in the year, for his valuable services in connec- tion with their work.
E. BENJ. ANDREWS, .. JAMES G. VOSE, plication
AMASA M. EATON, Committee-
At the annual meeting, January 9, 1894, the following reso- lution was passed: —
Resolved, That the treasurer when sending out the annual bills this year, add thereto a statement that for one dollar more the " Publications " for 1893 will be delivered to the subscriber, and enclosing therewith a copy of the appeal or statement issued by the publication committee.
And unless the members subscribe sufficiently to this project by April i, to pay the deficiency, the publication committee is authorized and directed to discontinue the " Publications."
56 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
REPORT OF THE TREASURER.
GENERAL ACCOUNT.
Richmond P, Everett, Treasurer, in account with the Rhode Island Historical Society.
Dr.
1893.
Jan. 10. Cash on hand, . . . . . $394 55
1894.
Jan. 9. State of Rhode Island, .... 1,500 oo Income from Investment of Samuel M. Noyes
and Henry J. Steere legacies, . . 1,332 37
Taxes from 269 members, .... 807 oo
Taxes from 13 members, overdue, . . . 39 oo
Subscriptions for repairs of Cabinet as follows : Julia Bullock, ..... $100 oo Horatio Rogers, . . . 50 oo
Charles H. Smith, . . . 50 oo
Charles Fletcher, . . . 50 oo
William Callender, . . . . 25 oo
John E. Troup, . . . 25 oo
Samuel Foster, . . . 25 oo
William D. Ely, . . . 25 oo
Marsden J. Perry, . . . 25 oo
Nicholas Sheldon, . . . . 20 oo
Charles H. Child, . . . .1000
Edwin D McGuinness, . . 5 oo
James H. Bugbee, . . . 2 oo
412 oo
Interest from life membership fund, . . 89 53
Fees for Admission, n members, . . . 55 oo
Interest, . . . . . . 33 4°
Sale of books, . . . . . 13 oo
#4,675 85
REPORT OF THE TREASURER. 57
CR. 1894.
Jan. 9. Salaries of librarian and janitor, . . . $1,480 oo
Building and grounds :
For repairs on Cabinet, . . #1,078 63
For Sundry Expenditures, . . 201 45
1,280 08
Fuel and gas, . . . . . . 335 3 »
Postage, meetings and express, . . . 332 74
Printing, . . . . . . 214 69*
Library Committee, ..... 1,013 24
Cash on hand, . . . . . 19 79-
Deposited in the Rhode Island Hospital Trust
Co., $19.79.
$4,675 85
Providence, Jan. 8, 1894.
We have examined the above account, and find it correct.
LEWIS J. CHACE, JAMES BURDICK, FERDINAND A. LINCOLN,
Audit Committee.
58 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
INVESTMENT FUND.
Legacy of Samuel M. Noyes, . . . . $12,000 oo
" " Henry J. Steere, ..... 10,000 oo
" " John Wilson Smith, ..... 1,000 oo
$23,000 oo Invested as follows : Mortgages, ... . $13,250 oo
Bonds, ...... 9i35o oo
Rhode Island Hospital Trust Co., . . 400 oo
$23,000 oo
PUBLICATION FUND.
$3,000. Restricted ; only the interest to be expended for publications in this department.
Legacy of Ira B. Peck, ...... $1,000 oo
" " William Gammell, ..... 1,000 oo
" " Albert J. Jones, . . . . 1,000 oo
Cash on hand, ....... 330 50
3,33° So Rhode Island Hospital Trust Co., participation acct., $3,330.50.
Providence, Jan. 8, 1894.
We have examined the above account, and find it correct.
LEWIS J. CHACE, JAMES BURDICK, FERDINAND A. LINCOLN,
Audit Committee.
REPORT OF THE TREASURER. 59
PUBLICATION FUND.
Richmond P. Everett, Treasurer, in account with Rhode Island Historical Society.
DR. 1893.
Cash on hand, ..... $3,460 24
May 10. Interest from Rhode Island Hospital Trust Co.,
Participation account, . . . 69 20
Nov. 10. Interest from Rhode Island Hospital Trust Co.,
Participation account, . . . 67 36
1894. Jan. 9. Forty-three subscribers for the Publications, . 43 oo
80 CR. 1893.
July 7. C. M. Gallup, for copying for Publications, . $15 45
29. Standard Printing Co., for 1000 copies, . . 161 10
Nov. 10. Standard Printing Co., for 1000 copies, . . 132 75
1894. Jan. 9. Cash on hand, ...... $3,330 50
Deposited in Rhode Island Hospital Trust Co., Participation account, $3,330 50.
The income of $3,000 can only be used for ex- penses of this department.
$3,639 80 Providence, Jan. 8th, 1894.
We have examined the above account, and find it correct.
LEWIS J. CHACE, JAMES BURDICK, FERDINAND A. LINCOLN,
Audit Committee.
6O RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
LIFE MEMBERSHIP FUND.
Richmond P. Everett, Treasurer, in account with Rhode Island Historical Society.
DR.
1893.
To cash on hand, ..... $2,093 7^ Aug. 22. Interest from Mechanics Savings Bank for Janu- ary and July, 1893, . 45 49 Interest from Providence Institution for Savings,
for January and July, 1893, . . . 44 04
$2,183 29 CR. 1893.
Interest from Mechanics Savings Bank, . . 45 49
Interest from Providence Institution for Savings, 44 04
carried to general account. 1894. Jan. 9. Cash on hand, . . . . $2,093 7^
Providence Institution for Savings, $1,090 90 Mechanics Savings Bank, . . 1,002 86
$2,093 76
$2,183 29 Providence, Jan. 8, 1894.
We have examined the above account, and find it correct.
LEWIS J. CHACE, JAMES BURDICK, FERDINAND A. LINCOLN,
Audit Committee.
ROGER WILLIAMS VINDICATED, ETC. 6 1
ROGER WILLIAMS VINDICATED; OR, AN ANSWER TO "A KEYHOLE FOR ROGER WILLIAMS' KEY."
BY WILLIAM WALLACE TOOKER.
"A Keyhole for Roger Williams' Key; or, a study of sug- gested misprints in its sixteenth chapter, ' Of the Earth and the Fruits thereof, etc.,'" a paper read before the Rhode Island Historical Society by Wm. D. Ely, Esq., now lies before me.
The suggested misprint is, that the meaning of the words auqunnash, "barnes," and necawnduquanash, "old barnes," in the last but two of the Indian words in that chapter, should read, "beanes," and "old beanes."
In taking the opposite view of this supposition, I do it with no spirit of carping criticism ; but simply to show how, with different eyes, another person will look at these interesting problems. A remark made a few years ago by Dr. Horatio Hale, the eminent philologist, "that we can all find enough to do in this field, without finding minute faults in the work of others," is true enough. I do not wish to find fault with Mr. Ely or to criticise his work. He, evidently, has devoted much time and research to it. The question at issue is this : is Roger Williams right or not? This is the basis of Mr. Ely's paper, and this will be the basis of my few remarks on the subject; although I shall have to use certain portions of his essay for illustration. The Rhode Island Historical Society, in this era of scientific investigation, desires the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. This undoubtedly is what Mr. Ely desired in starting the ball a-rolling. As he has invited me through Dr. Amos Perry, secretary of your Society, to enter the field, and to present
62 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
the reasons for my opinion lately expressed, that Roger Wil- liams made no mistake in translating this word as "barn," I will endeavor to give it as plainly as I possibly can. Probably no one, — I say it with no egotism, — has devoted more time and study to Roger Williams' Key, especially to this particular chapter, for the past six years, than I have. So many words, or parts of words, in this chapter enter into the composition of Indian geographical names occurring upon Long Island, N. Y., made it necessary for me to be very careful and thorough in studying each and every name given therein by Roger Williams.
Therefore all of the evidence here presented against Mr. Ely's hypothesis, is not the result of the publishing of his essay, but is the condensed memoranda of some years. The study of Indian nomenclature is an interesting one. It needs care, acute research, and unlimited patience. The student is very apt to present false analogies, and thereupon plunge into a pit full of errors and disappointments. Our studies must be so plain that he who runs may read. They must be in accord- ance with Indian usages and customs. A single deviation from the line will develop errors which no logic of reasoning will bolster up in the light of critical investigation. There are very few who will take the pains to go to the fountain head, where these studies ought to begin, and trace out the story told.
As every Indian name was invariably descriptive of the ob- ject or subject to which it was applied, on that basis I shall endeavor to show that Roger Williams made no mistake; and that auqunnash means "barnes," necawnauquanash, "old barnes." Mr. Ely in his anxiety to prove Roger Williams, or his printer, Gregory Dexter, to be in error, overlooks many important items bearing directly upon the points at issue- He says in his summary (p. 37), "ist. Considering that barns have no affinity to vegetables or to the fruits of the earth, any Indian word meaning barns, or old barns, may well be deemed out of place in chapter XVI. of Roger Williams Key." In direct contradiction of this statement, in that very chapter Roger Williams remarks, "Obs: The Indians have an art of drying their chestnuts, and so to preserve them
ROGER WILLIAMS VINDICATED, ETC. 63
in their barnes for a daintie all the year." And again he says, " Obs : The women set or plant, weede, and hill and gather and barne all the corne and Fruits of the Field" These two passages, together with one which I shall quote further on, proves that barns were collateral to this chapter, and "barnes" and "old barnes" were brought in at the end as a necessary sequence.
"2d. While the word barn, storehouse and garner are fre- quently used in scripture, there is not a place in Eliot's Bible where the word au-qun-nash, which in the 'Key' is defined 'barnes,' is used to describe either one or the other."
It was not necessary, for it would have been a misnomer. In Eliot's word for "barn," as in many other words used in his Bible, he simply endeavors to illustrate the Bible from the old world's standpoint to an Indian's mind and under- standing, to whom all these things were previously a blank. Many examples of this fact can be quoted ; therefore, mee-chu- muk-o-muk, "storehouse," simply refers to the white man's idea of a barn, and not to the aboriginal one. This is proven by Eliot's use of the word barnash, to impress the fact on the Indian's mind.
" 3d. In Cotton's vocabulary the word au-qun-nash is not used to signify 'a barn.' On the contrary, Cotton gives a very different word for barn; viz., me-chi-muk-o-muk." Cot- ton's father was a clergyman who preached to the Indians, and the same reasons apply as in the preceding paragraph.
"4th. Eliot also, in his Bible, uses the same word which Cotton uses, viz., me-chi-mtik-o-mtik, as meaning a barn and storehouse." A better division of this name would be me-chi-mii-ko-muk, and it is also answered under the second paragraph.
"5th. When on the theory that "barnes" and "old barnes" are misprinted for "beans" and "old beans," we examine Eliot's Bible, where beans are spoken of, we find the only Indian word he uses for beans is tupp-uh-qua-mash ; and it has also been shown that in the Algonquian language this word means a high-twining bean, the prefix tupp, giving some indication of its character." There is absolutely no affinity between this word and that used by Roger Williams for barn,
64 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
providing Dr. Trumbull is correct in his interpretation, and I have no doubt he is. Eliot here, evidently, uses a word of his own coinage in order to describe the European plant, for an Indian never would have described a plant when its fruit was intended. The bean itself was the fruit separate and distinct from the plant ; this fact is to be observed in the name of every fruit mentioned by Roger Williams. Besides, the American native bean was not a high-twining bean, but a low bush, which never grew to the height of a corn stalk, although planted among them for support as is still done to this day. Dr. Trumbull, no doubt, fully recognized the truth of this, although I have never seen his study. He evidently derives it from tuppt — the root of which is appu, "he sits," "remains," "abides;" hence, secondarily, "twines," or "clings ;" uhqua, from qunnuhqui, "high;" giving us with its inanimate plural affix tuppuhquamash, " that which twines or clings high."
" 6th. Eliot and Cotton both wrote at a later period, and when writing, either had or did not have before them Roger Williams' Key, which was published previous to either of their works. If they had it, why was not the clearly printed au-qun-nash used for barnes, instead of me-chi-muk-o-muk, and instead of the frequent Indianizing of the English word barns, as in barns-ask, etc.?" Because the Indian barn was an en- tirely different thing from the barn of the Bible.
"Why, too, did Eliot translate beans by tupp-uh-qua-mash, and not by mon-as-qus-se-dash, used in one instance by Roger Williams when speaking of cooked beans, but not at all in Chapter XVI. of the 'Key'?" This question has been par- tially answered under the fifth paragraph. Monasqussedash was probably the only name by which the Indians called beans. This name corresponds to the Moh. Mushqttissedes, Mass. Monasquisseet, Unkechaug, L. I., Maiscussett, Montauk Mauqueseets, "beans;" literally, "those that are much boiled." It must be remembered that either of these names indicated the article to an Indian's mind just as much as if he had said "beans." For it is not to be expected that an Indian could give the etymology of every word he used any more than we can give the derivation of every English appellation.
ROGER WILLIAMS VINDICATED, ETC. 65
" If they did not have the 'Key,' by what chance did both translate barns so uniformly and constantly by me-chi-muck-o- muck, and not once by au-qun-nash, the word of Williams' * Key' ?" There was no chance about this, Cotton was familiar with Eliot's Bible, besides, his father assisted Eliot in his translations, and because, as I have previously remarked, au- qun-nash is the Indians' barn, separate and distinct in every particular from those of the settlers or that of the Biblical story.
Mr. Ely remarks (p. 35), " It is, however, a matter of re- gret that Dr. Trumbull did not in that connection, refer to the existence of the word aii-qun-nash as a word in common use in the Narragansett language as recorded by Roger Wil- liams." The reason is plain that Dr. Trumbull did not regard it as meaning "beans;" and that he undoubtedly believed Roger Williams to be right. Had it been otherwise he would have referred to it in his instructive notes accompanying the Narr. Club Edition of Roger William's Key, as well as in the other work referred to by Mr. Ely.
Mr. Ely has described the Indian barn from Wood's " New England Prospect," "which be great holes digged in the ground, in form of a brass pot, sealed with rinds of trees, wherein they put their corn." Another description is, " they were holes in the ground lined with the bark of trees, and covered with rushes or mats."
Au-qun-nash, "barnes," ne-cawn-du-qua-nash, "old barnes." Mr. Ely did not undertake to study out the primal meaning of this name, which meaning clears away all of the uncer- tainty. The root duqiian, or auqun, means "to cover," or " to shelter ;" as in the Massachusetts uppuhquan, " he cov- ers it;" uppuhquos, "his covering;" uppuhquonsinit, "his tent;" literally, "his cloth shelter" (Exodus xxxvi. 19); also in auhaqut, "mantle" (R. W's Key, Chap, xx.); au-qun-nash, "coverings," or "shelters;" Necawn (Eliot, nukkori), "old," "ancient," "passed by." This prefix, if there was nothing else, would prove the accuracy of Roger Williams' inter- pretation, for the reason, that it is never used, except to give the sense of being old in use, and therefore could not have been applied to beans, necawn-duquan-ash, "old or ancient
66 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
coverings, or shelters." Roger Williams remarks in the same chapter about drying their corn, " Which they do carefully upon heaps and mats many dayes, before they barne it up, covering it up with mats at night and open it when the sun is hot"
Mr. Ely remarks (p. 25), " But further, while as to barns there could have been little cause for distinction between old and new, the distinction between new beans and old beans is natural and material." This deduction does not follow. I doubt if the Indians would keep the old beans of a previous year's growth until the new crop had grown and been gath- ered. They were too improvident for that. To be sure, they might have done it in rare cases ; but not enough to make it an object to be noted by Roger Williams. If they did, it was simply for seed, as in the last name of that chapter. Then it would have been given as "beans" and "new beans," and not "beans" and "old beans." There was cause, and a very strong cause, for distinction between "old " and "new barns," so much so, as to be noted in this instance by Roger Wil- liams and by other settlers at this early period of New Eng- land history.
Old abandoned Indian barns were so numerous in the vi- cinity of the former homes of the Indian, as to make them a constant menace to the growing hamlets as long as they were in existence, on account of the cattle falling into them. They are frequently mentioned in the early records of Long Island and I have no doubt can be found referred to in other early records of the New England Colonies.
A year after the settlement of Southampton, L. I., we find the following order, dated : "Apr 6th 1641, Yt is ordered that any person whatsoever hath any Lott or Lotts upon Shinecock playne in the which there are any Indian Barnes or Welles lyeing open whereby cattle have or may take hurte or harme, the owners or overseers of such Lotts shall fill up all such Barnes and Welles by the tenth day of this month upon payne of payeing all such damage as arise, by their neglect, and further answer for their contempt at next court." (Pub. Southampton Rec., Vol. L, p. 22.) These lots were on the spot where the first settlers found the tribe of Indians known
ROGER WILLIAMS VINDICATED, ETC. 67
as the Shinecocks. Their name denotes " at the level coun- try," and refers to the "playne." Frequently in the records these places formerly planted by the Indians are called " old ground," in distinction to localities broken up for cultivation by the whites called "new ground."
The two following orders from the published records of East- hampton, L. I. (Vol. I., pp. 302-3), give us alone corroborative evidence enough to show that Roger Williams did not make a mistake in writing "barnes :" "Dec iQth 1668., It is agreed upon by the inhabitants of this town of Easthampton and the Indians of Montaucut that for the future that the Indians yt live at Montaukut shall fill up all their old barnes, and for the new ones they shall secure them from danger of cattell or horses, but if any barne through want of knowledge shall es- cape filling or securing & any beast of ye English fall in, the Indians to doe the utmost they can to preserve the sd beast & they shall be well paid for their labour giveing timely notice thereof, but if any Indian hereafter shall neglect wilfully to secure his barne & any beast or horse shall perish thereby they that one [own] ye barn, shall pay double dam- mage." "Dec 2ist 1668, It is agreed upon by the Inhabitants of this town of Easthampton & the Indians of Montaukut that for the future every man shall secure his barne att Mon- taukut from all dammage of cattell or horses, & that if any Indian shall neglect so to doe and any beast perish thereby, they shall make good the dammage & what old barns are there wch have no particular owner they shall shew them in convenient season yt so they may be filled up."
All of whigh is respectfully submitted to the Rhode Island Historical Society with the assurance that Roger Williams never wrote " barnes " for " beans."
68 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
NECROLOGY.
THOMAS POYNTON IVES GODDARD was born in Provi- dence, R. I., August 14, 1827. He died in Providence, which had always remained his home, March 30, 1893. He was a son of William Giles and Charlotte Rhoda Goddard, being the third of seven children who lived to mature age ; namely, Charlotte Hope (Binney), Wil- liam,Thomas Poynton Ives, Elizabeth Anne (Shepard), Moses Brown Ives, Francis Wayland, and Robert Hale Ives. His father was a son of William Goddard, the first comptroller of the post office, and was, from 1825 to 1842, a professor in Brown University; for the first nine years, of moral philosophy and metaphysics, and afterwards, of rhetoric and belles-lettres; and was also an elegant and accomplished literary and po- litical writer. On his mother's side the family was connected with the larger business interests of the city. His grandfather was Thomas Poynton Ives, junior part- ner in the great mercantile firm of Brown & Ives. His grandmother was a sister of Nicholas Brown, senior partner in that firm. In the next generation his uncles, Moses Brown Ives and Robert Hale Ives, together with John Carter Brown, a son of Nicholas, continued the firm and added to its wealth and fame. It thus hap- pened that the best thought, in regard to both literature
NECROLOGY. 69
and business, pervaded the atmosphere of his home and could not but impregnate his growing mind and character.
Mr. Goddard fitted for college at the University Grammar School, and in September, 1842, entered Brown University, and graduated from it in due course in 1846. He immediately entered upon what was to be his life work by service for many weeks with the Hope Company at the Hope Mill, where he aided in setting up and starting the new machinery for the mill, learn- ing while he served. After further study of the theory and practice of cotton manufacturing at Lonsdale, he went to New York, where he was for several months with the house of Lawrence, Trimble & Co., acquaint- ing himself with mercantile procedure and with the methods then prevalent for transacting the business to which he intended to devote himself. In March, 1848, he went abroad with his brother William, and spent nearly a year and a half in European travel. They returned in September, 1849; and April i, 1850, formed a copartnership under the name of Goddard Brothers, the same day being appointed agents for the Lonsdale and Hope companies. The firm was subse- quently enlarged by the successive accessions of Rob- ert H. I. Goddard and Robert H. I. Gammell, and as thus enlarged continued unchanged until the death of Mr. Thomas Goddard, a period of forty-three years.
The Goddard Brothers, by virtue of their agency, had charge of an immense manufacturing business which greatly prospered and increased under their management. It is impossible for an outsider to know
7O RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
how much was due to the partners severally for their joint success. Probably theirs was one of those fortu- nate partnerships in which each partner enhances his own faculty by working in concert with the other. It may be safely assumed, however, that the broad, sound judgment and imperturbable common sense of Mr. Thomas Goddard was of great avail. He had a mind which was singularly honest with itself. It did not per- mit itself to be blinded by prejudices or prepossessions, but, in determining a business question, looked the facts squarely in the face, and then with patient study and reflection drew its conclusions. He thus prepared himself to act energetically and without vacillation, and to inspire others with the confidence which he had himself. He was enterprising, yet conservative. He cherished the business traditions of his ancestors and regarded their unsullied reputation for honorable deal- ing as a most precious heritage, disdaining the profits which accrue from questionable practices or oppressive exactions.
Mr. Goddard, though very public spirited, neither held nor aspired to any political office. He performed, however, much valuable service of a quasi-public char- acter, as director in railroad companies, banks, savings institutions and the like, and was, when he died, the president of the Boston & Providence Railroad Com- pany. He was also specially interested in the educa- tional and charitable institutions of the city. He gave ,to the Providence Athenaeum ten thousand dollars as an income-producing fund for the purchase of books of permanent value. The gift was very characteristic of
NECROLOGY. 7 1
the donor. He wanted it to go not for books that quickly perish and are forgotten, but for books that endure for the improvement of generations of readers. He was a member of the Board of Fellows of Brown University and gave to it generously in money and real estate. He contributed frequently to the Butler Hospital for the Insane. He was one of the founders of the Rhode Island Hospital, and at his death, he was the senior member of the board of trustees, and the only member who had served as such from the begin- ning. He gave to it largely during his lifetime, erect- ing the hospital for out-patients at his own cost, and left to it by will a bequest of $100,000, payable, subject to a life annuity of $2500, after the death of his widow. He was profuse in private giving. It has been well said of him that, "although his modest nature restricted his activities to the sphere of private station, the State and the city of his birth are higher in the scale of civi- lization, gentler in culture and more fully endowed for fostering a true manhood, by the fruits and the exam- ple of his noble life."
Mr. Goddard was in religion an Episcopalian. He worshipped at St. John's, where he served as one of the vestrymen. His benefactions to the Church were many and large He was a member of the standing commit- tee of the Rhode Island Diocese, and in years past had been a delegate to the General Episcopal Convention. There was no sectarian narrowness in his nature. His mind and heart were open to good men of all persuasions. Socially, while rather reserved with strangers, he was exceedingly genial with his friends and ready to oblige
72 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
them. He had a very pleasant vein of wit and humor, and excelled in brilliancy and keenness of repartee. What has been said of his course of life depicts his character. By his fruits you can know him.
October 19, 1853, he married Ann Elizabeth, a daugh- ter of William and Sarah (Burrill) Fearing, of New York, and a granddaughter of the eminent lawyer and United States senator, James Burrill of Rhode Island. His wife survives him. They have had no children.
Mr. Goddard became a life member of the Rhode Island Historical Society in 1883. He contributed one thousand dollars to the fund for enlarging the cabinet.
HENRY TRUMAN BECKWITH, son of Truman Beck- with, was born in Providence, December 22, 1818. His life was mainly passed in Providence, where he died April 7, 1893. He used to value his birthday as the anniversary of the landing of the pilgrims at Plymouth, for as such it was always observed until 1850, when it was found that the twenty-first of December was the true date and he lost the honor. His father was a native of Lyme, Conn., the seat of the Beckwiths, as most of them in this country originated there, and was the son of Amos and Susan (Truman) Beckwith, who removed from thence to New Hampshire and afterwards to Vermont. Mr. Beckwith's mother was Alice, daughter of Isaac and Amey (Dexter) Brown, of Providence, a descendant of Chad Brown and of Gregory Dexter, two of the earliest ministers of the First Baptist Church in this city, and she was one of the best of women, a consistent, devoted member of that ancient church.
NECROLOGY. 73
He attended first the school of Mrs. Elizabeth Bowen, commonly called " Marm Bowen," then the schools of Gustavus A. DeWitt, Peter P. Goode, Roswell C. and Asher Smith, and perhaps others. He also went in the summer of 1829 to Day's Academy, Wrentham, Mass., and in 1832, for six months, to Pawtuxet to the Rhode Island Classical, Agricultural and Mechanical School, as it was called, of which Rev. Asa Drury was principal. This school lasted two years, occupying what were formerly the fair building and grounds of the Society for the Encouragement of Domestic In- dustry, and was conducted on the salutary plan of requiring the pupils to labor a part of the time, either in the carpenter's shop or in the field or garden. Many Providence boys attended it and spent their Sundays at home, usually walking there and back, and it was quite a different walk then from what it is now, as four miles of open country then intervened between the two places. After a couple of years passed in college at Providence, Mr. Beckwith went, with and in the employ of the late Joseph Rogers of this place, to Macon, Ga., and subsequently to Mobile, for the purchase of cotton.
Having a love for the sea, he next made two voyages from Boston to Calcutta and back in the ship Concordia, as supercargo's clerk. The time on shipboard was profitably spent in reading, for the first time, many standard works in English and American literature, and while on shore the pleasure of witnessing foreign scenes was greatly enhanced by the fine climate of the winter season. When he was there the thermometer ranged from about 65° in the morning to 80 at mid- day, and the sky was usually very clear.
74 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
Returning to Boston from the first of these trips, when he had not heard of anything that had happened at home for five or six months, he found this com- munity in the midst of the " Dorr War," the attack on the arsenal having occurred six days before. Yet he was not wholly surprised at it, from his recollections of some meetings in the old town-house the preceding year. .Joining in this as a member of the Marine Ar- tillery, he participated in the march from Providence to Chepachet in June, 1842.
After the voyages to Calcutta, he went to Macon again, with his brother Amos, for the purchase of cotton, and was for three years in the employ of Dr. Stephen Harris, cotton manufacturer. In 1849 he be- came his father's clerk, which position he had held once or twice before, and that position he held with brief interruptions until his father's death in 1878. He passed his summer vacation in 1867 in Europe.
Mr. Beckwith early took an active part in several societies. In the Franklin Lyceum, which he joined in 1837, he held at different times all the offices except those of librarian and treasurer. From 1866 (and with one exception from 1860) until his decease he was the senior member of it. He joined the Rhode 'Island His- torical Society in October, 1849, and was secretary of that and treasurer of the Providence Athenaeum for ten years at the same time, and did a great amount of work for them, besides discharging the duties of those offices. He united with the Franklin Society in 1846, and the Rhode Island Horticultural Society (more recently formed) in January, 1866, and remained
NECROLOGY. 75
in all these until his death. He was a member of the Providence Horse Guards from 1846 until it dis- banded in 1849, and from its revival in 1861 till 1871. His records as the secretary and as acting librarian of the Society for a long period are models of neatness and order. Slow in his movements, but loyal to his convictions as to what was manly and right, and he stood as a tower of strength where he enlisted.
On his father's death the responsibility of settling the estate in accordance with the will devolved on him. He performed his part well in life and his memory is honored by a good circle of friends.
A part of the above is an autobiographical sketch drawn up, nearly twenty years before his death, at the request of a friend.
DANIEL EUGENE DAY was born in Killingly, Conn., May 28, 1820, and died in Providence, April 27, 1893. He was of the seventh generation from Anthony Day, who was born in England in 1616, and is recorded in 1647 as settled with his wife' in Gloucester, Mass.
His family line is as follows: —
1. Anthony Day, born 1616.
2. Nathaniel, son of Anthony, born 1665.
3. Benjamin, son of Nathaniel and Ruth, born 1691.
4. Jonathan, son of Benjamin and Margaret, born 1720.
5. Israel, son of Jonathan and Bertha, born 1753.
6. Harvey, son of Israel and Mary Wilson, born 1780.
7. Daniel Eugene, son of Harvey and Olive Dorrance, born 1820.
Mr. Day's father was a deacon, and his grandfather was for forty consecutive years the pastor of the South Killingly Congregational Church. His mother was a
76 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
descendant of Rev. Samuel Dorrance, the first pastor of the church in Sterling, now Voluntown, Conn.
Mr. Day's early opportunities for attending school were limited, as were those of many other sons of Con- necticut who came to Providence half a century ago. He worked long and hard to enjoy the privileges of a brief winter school. Yet at the age of eighteen he began teaching school, and for eight successive winters he was regarded as a successful teacher. He enjoyed good social privileges and some of the advantages of the Fruit Hill Seminary, in North Providence, R. I.
At twenty-six years of age he entered the country store of Mr. W. C. Bacon, at Danielsonville, Conn., and when he was thirty-two years old (1852) he removed to Providence and established a grain and flour business at Peck's wharf, on Dyer street. During the same year he took into partnership with him Mr. S. S. Sprague (also from Connecticut), and the business was carried on under the firm name of Day & Sprague. In 1856 this firm was located at the corner of South Water and Crawford streets, and among the business names near by were those of Israel H. Day, Seth Adams and Rathbone & Gardner. At that time most of the grain and shipping business was done on South Water street.
In 1876 the firm of Day & Sprague was dissolved, and Mr. Day with his two sons, Henry G. and Charles R., continued the business under the firm name of Day, Sons & Co. While in business Mr. Day became widely known and was highly respected for the posses- sion of those virtues and traits of character that con- stitute a good citizen, a good merchant and a worthy man.
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In 1870 he became a director of the Commercial National Bank, and in 1885 he became the president, which office he held at the time of his death. He was associated in the management of the People's Savings Bank, and was a vice-president from 1888 until, in con- sequence of failing health, he tendered his resignation.
Mr. Day's interest in good government was pro- nounced. During six years he served as a representa- tive in the General Assembly, and during five of those years he was the chairman of the finance committee.
He was five years a member of the City Council. Serving as one of the joint standing committee on finance, he labored much to secure proper legislation in connection with the introduction of water and sewers for the city.
He was one of the original commissioners of the sink- ing fund of the city of Providence, and that position he continuously held till the time of his death.
He was a member and a deacon of the Union Con- gregational Church, succeeding in the latter position the late Theophilus Salisbury.
In social life Mr. Day's genial and hospitable dispo- sition was manifest. The death of his beloved wife in 1886 was the dark shadow of his life.
He married, in 1844, Lydia Wilbur, of Raynham, Mass., who died in 1886, leaving four children : Sarah Adelaide Eames, now of Buffalo, Henry G., Charles R. and Olive Dorrance, all of Providence.
Mr. Day became a member of this Society in 1874. Though unable to attend many of its meetings, he manifested a high appreciation of its character and usefulness.
78 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
DANIEL GORDON CAMPBELL was born in Volimtown, Conn., October 23, 1816, and died in Providence, R. I., July 8, 1893. He was the son of Winthrop and Susan Dorrance (Gordon) Campbell, and the grandson of John Campbell, who took part as a soldier in the Revo- lutionary war. His father was a farmer and his son thus had the benefit of an open country where he ac- quired physical strength and habits of industry and economy that were favorable to his success in after life. He had the advantages of a district school and of some instruction from the clergyman of his town. After a brief experience as a teacher, he began his business education with his elder brother in the store of Rowse Babcock, in Westerly, R. I., where he remained two years. For several years thereafter, he was in the em- ploy of Isaac and Rowland G. Hazard, of Peacedale, R. I. In 1848, he went to the city of New York and was engaged in the dry goods commission business until 1865, when he came to Providence and became a mem- ber of the firm of J. P. Campbell & Co., in the manu- facture of woolen goods. From that time till his death, Mr. Campbell resided in Providence and was engaged in various manufacturing enterprises. Though he was a manufacturer, success in that line of business was not his highest ambition. He read good books. He en- joyed good company. He was sociable and companion- able, taking pleasure in promoting the happiness and comfort of those about him. It was apparent to those who knew him well that he was more ambitious to be a manly man than a successful manufacturer. He was deeply interested in religious subjects and was a life-
NECROLOGY. 79
long member of a Christian church. He thus acquired a high standard of thought and action. Never married, he lived with his sisters, and he had a warm affection for relatives and friends that will cause his memory to be sincerely cherished. He became a member of this Society in 1880, and from that time forth attended many of its meetings and manifested much interest in its usefulness and prosperity.
CHARLES ELISHA TILLINGHAST was born in Provi- dence, July 10, 1812, and died in Wickford, July 27, 1893, at the home of one of his daughters, while making her a brief visit. He belonged to one of the historic families of the State, tracing with just pride his family line back to Elder Pardon Tillinghast, one of the early pastors of the First Baptist Church, of Providence. His home was always on his native soil. He saw Providence change from a town of 11,000 inhabitants to a city of 140,000. He could trace the various changes as they occurred, and could readily recite to his friends what he had witnessed seventy years before.
After receiving the advantages of the common schools of the place, he began his business career in the employ of Moses Potter, in a crockery store on North Main street. Subsequently, he became asso- ciated with Pratt & Elliott, and for many years the new firm of Pratt, Elliott & Tillinghast carried on an extensive business in crockery and glass ware, both wholesale and retail, at the store No. 79 Westminster street. Finally he purchased the interests of his part- ners and carried on the business alone. He retired
8O RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
from business at the beginning of the civil war, when he was among the oldest merchants of the city.
Mr. Tillinghast was twice married. A daughter by his first wife and a son and two daughters by his sec- ond wife survive him.
Though never active in politics, he served, at the request of fellow-citizens, four years as a member of the Common Council of the city. During the later years of his life he became deeply interested in genea- logical matters, tracing out various branches of his family. He was of the sixth generation from his American progenitor, Elder Pardon Tillinghast, whose memory he warmly cherished, even by being a worthy member of the ancestral First Baptist Church. He became a member of this Society in 1890, and left here marked expressions of appreciation and interest.
DOCTOR CHARLES WILLIAM PARSONS, who died at his residence, No. 29 Brown street, September 2, 1893, was born in Providence, September 6, 1823, — the only child of Dr. Usher and Mary Jackson (Holmes) Par- sons. His mother was daughter of Rev. Dr. Abiel Holmes, of Cambridge, Massachusetts, and sister of Dr. O. W. and Mr. John Holmes, in whose family much of the lad's childhood was passed after the death of his mother in 1825.
Entering Harvard College before he was thirteen years of age, he was graduated in 1840, the youngest member of his class, and he at once began the study of medicine with his father in Providence ; afterwards attending lectures in New York, Philadelphia and
NECROLOGY. 8 1
Paris, where he passed two years. In 1845 ne to°k the degree of M. D. at the Harvard Medical School, re- ceived the honorary degree of M. D. from Brown Uni- versity in 1848, and in that year he commenced practice with his father at their office on President, now Water- man street, the present site of the Rhode Island School of Design.
Always interested in the charitable and literary in- stitutions of his native town, and always concerned in its welfare, Dr. Parsons lost no opportunity to exert his influence for beneficial results. His first public service and his only military experience was in 1842, when he, with his father, accompanied the Light In- fantry on their march to Federal Hill, where Dorr's adherents had made a stand. In 1846 he joined the Rhode Island Medical Society, and was its president from 1860 to 1862. He read a number of carefully pre- pared papers before the Society, and was the author of several annual reports on the registration of births, marriages and deaths in the State ; also of a valuable " Report on the Medical Topography and Epidemics of Rhode Island." In 1867 he was appointed one of the four attending physicians of the Rhode Island Hos- pital, where his service of seven years thoroughly in- terested him in its noble work.
His first official connection with Brown University was in 1865, when he began a course of lectures on physiology, which continued for six years ; and in 1874, when he retired from the active practice of medicine, he was appointed professor of physiology, a chair which he filled until the summer of 1882, when failing health compelled him to resign.
82 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
At the time of his death, Dr. Parsons was senior member of the Rhode Island Historical Society, which he joined in 1847, and to him the Society has been in- debted for much time and thought devoted to its wel- fare and for many excellent papers, usually prepared from original sources, to be read at its meetings. For many years he was chairman of the library committee and vice-president ; and in 1889 he was elected presi- dent, but he declined to act in that capacity, owing to increasing physical infirmity. Deeply impressed with the importance of this Society as a means of education and incentive to good citizenship in our community, he was eager to increase its usefulness ; and by his will he made bequest of four thousand dollars to be applied to its use.
As a director in the Providence Athenaeum, as a manager of the Providence Dispensary and a trustee of the Fiske Fund, his attention was cheerfully and punctually rendered, the faithful service being its own reward.
Taking up an arduous profession very early in life, Dr. Parsons brought to its duties the results of most careful training, together with the deepest sense of re- sponsibility, and so endeared himself to those with whom he came into the most intimate relations, that his memory will be cherished while memory shall en- dure. His delicate intellectual organization, his quick perception and appreciation of the beautiful in litera- ture and art, his ready wit and keen sense of humor, rendered him a delightful companion and added much to his success as a skilled physician.
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As remarked by one who knew him well, " Dr. Par- sons was a good man, and to the social, intellectual and religious life of Providence his death must necessarily be a serious loss. Memories of his kindness, wit, good judgment and unfailing courtesy will always be cher- ished, and he lives again in the affection and cordial esteem of friends and associates. His conversation was a stimulus to good and high thinking, and his life was very useful and beneficent in all directions."
With marked intellectual traits inherited from a long line of educated ancestors, and developed by many opportunities of special culture, it could be no surprise that Dr. Parsons should find companionship with the best writers of all ages an unfailing resource and relief in many otherwise weary hours. Carefully discrimi- nating in his choice of reading, to the very last, he pre- ferred the classics; and the New Testament, and Homer in Greek, Virgil in Latin, Dante in Italian and Moliere in French were constantly in his hands, con- tinually affording new enjoyment, though not to the exclusion of the best modern authors, with whom he kept even pace. With a decided preference for the poems of his uncle, Dr. Holmes, from which he gave many an apt quotation, he had a familiar acquaintance with the English classics, which were not unfrequently recalled in the conversation by his cheerful fireside.
In 1853 Dr. Parsons married Mary Hallowell, daugh- ter of John Lane Boylston, of Princeton, Mass., who died December 31, 1887, leaving no children.
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WILLIAM THOMAS NICHOLSON died in Providence, October 17, 1893, having been stricken with apoplexy at his home the day before. He was born in Pawtucket, R. I., on the twenty-second day of March, 1834. His parents soon after removed to Whitinsville, Mass., and such advantages as the village school afforded were en- joyed by him until he reached the age of fourteen. At this age he was apprenticed to Paul Whitin & Sons, to learn the machinist's trade, remaining with them three years for that purpose. Soon after this he came to Providence, the young man reasoning that this city furnished a much better field for the development of his talents in his chosen -calling, with a better prospect of advancement than was offered in the shops where he had learned his trade.
His first employment was with Halsey Hadley, one of the pioneers in the manufacture of machinery for making screws, then with Arnold & Barber for a short time, and in 1852 we find him in the employ of Jos. R. Brown, afterward Brown & Sharpe, with whom he re- mained for six years, having entire management of their shop for the last two years of his service with them. This firm, now known as the Brown & Sharpe Mfg. Co., was then, as now, engaged in the manufacture of fine and exact tools.
It was always a delight to Mr. Nicholson to examine and inspect a nice and exact piece of work in machin- ery or tools, and it was this class of work which more nearly accorded with his innate mechanical tastes, and the bent of his early training.
While with Brown & Sharpe, he devoted his even-
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ings to the study of mechanics and mechanical draw- ing, and soon acquired a proficiency which enabled him to meet the wants of his employers in this class of work.
In 1858 he entered into partnership with Isaac Brownell in the manufacture of light machinery, but bought out his partner's interest in 1859, and in 1860 moved into larger quarters, and added materially to the productive capacity of his plant.
The Civil War, which began in 1861, created an enor- mous demand on the part of the Government for all classes of warlike material and for machinery used in their manufacture, and Mr. Nicholson early turned his attention to the making of machines for producing the small arms required by the Government.
In addition to carrying on his machine shop, we find him associated with the late Henry A. Monroe in the manufacture of the small parts of rifles, having devised special machinery for that purpose. In the spring of 1864 he sold this branch of his business to his partner.
He was thus enabled to give more of his attention to his machine shop, and to developing an idea which had for some time occupied his mind, — the cutting of files by machinery.
The successful completion of a machine for this pur- pose soon followed, and the organization of the Nichol- son File Co. was the result.
How great a task he had undertaken was not then fully realized by himself, or those associated with him. The mechanical burden rested on his shoulders, and when we reflect that if files could be cut by machinery, it was necessary that machinery should be devised for
86 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
the other operations in making a file, we shall have, even then, only a partial conception of the magnitude of the undertaking which his successful cutting ma- chine had brought upon him.
After months of hard labor, and many anxious peri- ods when the combination of mechanical and financial problems almost overcame even his indomitable will, the successful establishment of a plant for the manu- facture of files by machinery was an accomplished fact.
Again, success was but the forerunner of another task which taxed his energy and perseverance, in as great measure as his mechanical labors had done.
Now that machine-cut files could be made, it was necessary that they should be sold ; and rarely, if ever, has the successful marketing of any tool been accom- plished against greater prejudice and a fiercer opposi- tion. But still the story is one of success achieved, and the stock of the Company afterward became a profit- able investment, and to-day it is the largest and best- equipped establishment of its kind in existence.
The entire control of every department connected with the business soon passed into his hands, and though trained to mechanical pursuits alone, he proved himself equal to the new duties he had assumed, and showed that a good mechanic could also be a good financial and business man and a good executive offi- cer in every way.
We have said that Mr. Nicholson delighted in a nice and exact piece of mechanical work; it was natural that he should do so, for exactness and thoroughness
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were traits of his character to a marked degree, and furnished the basis upon which his success in whatever he undertook rested.
To these traits he added an innate love of work, and an energy and perseverance, which even his success and advancing years, seemed hardly to diminish, and thus we find him laboring with as much devotion as ever in the week before his death, to promote the in- terests of the corporation, whose faithful servant he had ever been. Mr. Nicholson had served the city as an alderman, had been an active member of the old Mechanics Association, a trustee of the Providence Public Library from its organization, and for several years its treasurer, a director in the Rhode Island National Bank, an active member of the Rhode Island Historical Society, and of some other organizations.
He leaves a widow, two sons and two daughters, having lost his youngest son, Col. William T. Nichol- son, Jr., a few years ago.
CHARLES HARRIS FISHER was born in Killingly, Con- necticut, June 30, 1822, and died October 21, 1893, in Buffalo, New York, where he had paused on account of severe illness on his way home from a health con- gress in Chicago. His ancestors are well known in the annals of our country. He was the son of George Clinton and Harriet (Cady) Fisher, and the grandson of Barzillai, who took an active part in the war of 1812. His great-grandfather, Barzillai Fisher, and five sons, were prominent in the Revolutionary war. Losing his father when only eight years of age, his early school
88 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
privileges were very limited. He, however, made up for this disadvantage by acquiring habits of self-reliance and earnest effort, that enabled him to attain eminence in some scientific pursuits and a respectable standing as a classical scholar. He studied medicine with Dr. Hammond, of Connecticut, and Professor Post, M. D., LL. D., of New York. He was a student in the hos- pital and University of the City of New York, as well as at Dartmouth Medical College, where he received the degree of M. D. He afterward attended lectures at the medical school of Harvard University. He then settled in Scituate, Rhode Island, where he engaged in general practice, and was for several years principal consulting physician.
He served the Rhode Island Medical Society for a number of years as censor, vice-president and presi- dent, and represented the Society before the American Medical Association.
Few men in our State have held as many offices of trust and responsibility. He has been State senator, town superintendent of (public schools, trustee of the State Normal School, president of two banks, and was one of the presidential electors in 1876. During the war of the Rebellion he was medical examiner.
In 1878, upon the establishment of the State Board of Health, he was chosen secretary, and held that office till the time of his death. In 1880 he removed to Providence. From that time his office became a place for consultation and counsel in regard to various char- itable and reformatory institutions. He visited every town in the State in the interest of the Board of
NECROLOGY. 89
Health. His annual reports and monthly bulletins were most carefully prepared. He was highly esteemed at home and abroad as a medical statistician, as is proved by the fact that several of his reports were translated into other languages.
He was married February 22, 1849, to Sophia R. Smith, who passed away before him. He had four children, three of whom survive him. He became a member of the Rhode Island Historical Society in 1878. He was soon appointed procurator for Scituate. He read two papers before the Society and collected a good number of valuable manuscripts.
WILLIAM KNIGHT was born in Providence, July 27, 1828, and died there October 22, 1893. He belonged to a family most favorably known in the annals of the city and the State. He was the son of Thomas and Betsey (Fenner) Knight. Early deprived of a mother's care, he spent several years with relatives in the country. Having to depend on his own efforts, his school privi- leges were limited to the old Summer-Street Grammar School, which was where the public High School is now situated. He acquired his earliest training for a business career in the Merchants National Bank. His first official position was as cashier in the Butchers and Drovers Bank. While discharging the duties of that post, he was elected treasurer of the Mechanics Savings Bank, which position he maintained with honor and success for nearly twenty-six years. During that period weighty responsibilities devolved on him. His judg- ment and integrity stood the test to which they were
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subjected. He discharged his duties in a way to reflect credit on the institution in whose service he had enlisted.
Mr. Knight was married first to Miss Emeline, daughter of Benjamin Wood, by whom he had three daughters, two of whom survive him. After her death he was married to Mrs. (widow) Sarah C. H. Day, who survives him.
His usefulness as a man extended far outside his business career into spheres of active beneficence, where his chosen companions cordially cooperated with him. He was from early life to the close a consistent member of a Christian church. He became a member of this Society in 1890, and manifested interest in its usefulness and prosperity.
ESTHER BERNON CARPENTER. This accomplished scholar was born at Wakefield, April 4, 1848, and died there October 22, 1893. She was the daughter of the Rev. James Helm Carpenter and Mary (Hazard) Car- penter. Descended from Esther Powell, the daughter of Gabriel Bernon, and his Huguenot wife, Esther Le Roy, her lineage gave bent to her mind, affected her imagination and colored her whole development and culture. The memorials cherished for some two cen- turies,— the " psalter of the version of Marot, given him " (Bernon) by a fellow-prisoner," the embroidery with its hanging, unsewn threads, snatched up in the flight from La Rochelle, — these sacred mementos of high purpose and of lives of sacrifice, profoundly affected an eager child coming forward in the confined and some-
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what prosaic life of New England in the middle of our century. The old Willett homestead in Narragansett was a fitting cradle for these influences. In her own words, " the gray old walls of the familiar homesteads, " fast crumbling under the touch of time, plead for a " longer continuance in our kind recollections. When " I last looked upon the ancient house which had been " the dwelling of five generations, I fancied that a cloud " of shadowy forms gathered dark in the pale winter " Sunshine, while their faint voices panted, ' Give us " back our home ! ' '
All artists had not the power of Hawthorne, but many have been impelled by the same mystic force that drove that sombre genius into penetrating the myster- ies of the old New-England life. In a sketch of her own childhood Miss Carpenter said : " No one ever told " me that the darkness was peopled by all the gloomy " shapes which thronged my imagination when I " thought of that fearful place, the dark garret (the " light one was a cheerful apartment), approached by a " winding stairway, which I actually never had the " courage to mount. * * * A child brought up " under the protecting care of the earlier faiths would " have invoked the saints and slept in peace. But in " me the religious sentiment was not highly developed, " and I had breathed only the rarefied atmosphere of " a chill Protestantism. Yet some vague impulse " taught me to exorcise the ugly phantoms of my imag- " ination by calling upon the greatest necromancers in " the realm of the unseen. In my dim intellect-wor- " ship, I sought to calm my fears by repeating the " sacred names of Shakespeare and Milton."
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The outward story of such a life is meagre in events, and not unlike the experience of thousands of women of " Brahmin stock " in New England, whose daily work is constant duty. She attended school at Bur- lington, New Jersey, and at Mrs. Buel's, in Providence. She left school at the age of thirteen, and her father taught her quite as much as the teachers did. She became a member of a society centred at Boston for study at home, and the kindness of Oliver Wendell Holmes and other scholars influenced her studies. She studied much alone and worked out matters for herself. She read and wrote French, Spanish, German, and had some knowledge of the Italian language. She was confirmed in the Protestant Episcopal Church at Wickford when she was thirteen, and worked earnestly in the church.
Miss Carpenter became a member of this Society in 1890, and her admirable discourse on the " Huguenot Influence in Rhode Island," having been read in our course of lectures, was printed in the Proceedings, 1885-86. She delivered a lecture on "John Saffin : his Book," before our Society, also at Newport and in other places. She wrote on several occasions verses and short poems. These were conceived with great delicacy and set forth with fine imagery in words well discriminated, but the natural avenue for the expression of her thought was in prose.
Esther Bernon Carpenter's place in literature will be assured by loyal work in one of the by-paths of his- tory, which she made her own. One of the most racy corners of New England is the South County of Rhode
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Island, or the Narragansett country. About the time Gabriel Bernon and his Huguenot friends emigrated to America, this district was being settled chiefly by English and Welsh immigrants. Bernon lived at New- port, at Kingston, and for two periods at Providence. The characteristics of Narragansett were drawn from old England, and deeply rooted in the social soil, which was slightly affected by the Indians on one side, and the Negroes on the other. The result was a stock of people strongly marked and perpetuating their features generation after generation. They had an old English dialect, modified by the circumstances of the place. Our associate sketched and made elaborate studies of these people, — their peculiar ways and manners, the social atmosphere in which they dwelt, — especially in the humbler families. These papers, printed in the Providence Journal, attracted attention immediately, by their essential truthfulness and strong local flavor. They were afterwards. published by Roberts Brothers, in a volume entitled, " South-County Neighbors." They show dramatic force and much literary skill. The author worked over her material — warm and glowing under her hand — with a zest and a forceful enthusiasm that knew no limits. The Calvinism of rude districts and of revivals found little sympathy in the mind of the seri- ous Huguenot churchwoman. But she rises into genu- ine eloquence in describing a thunder-storm at the " Evening Meeting at Uncle Sias's " when " suddenly " at this crisis of awe, the mood of the people passed at " once from the ecstasy of fear to the ecstasy of devo- " tion ; a change effected by the sign and voice of one
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" among them who now assumed the place of a leader."
And the prophet revealed real visions when he de- scribed his idea of heaven, and " thought that every " drop of light and love that God bestows is to be re- " turned to Him again."
Every Calvinistic community carried within it a cer- tain number of latent rationalists, and of these Sally was the type. " Why, they'm all coming back to reign " a thousand years." " Shall we be here then, Sally ? " " Land o' cakes ! yes, child. We'm the wicked, 'n' the " wicked has all got to be burnt up, you know ; 'n' we " shall be ashes under the soles of the feet of the " righteous in them days — by their tell. I d'n know's " I know."
And our author's catholic spirit breathes forth in, " Poor dear Sally, how good you were, in your way, and " what an unlovely way it was ! but the last word " spoken of you shall be the frank confession that your " young companion of those days would have done well " if she had studied the example afforded by the rude " strength of a nature that was generous in deeds of " diligent service."
The present writer has known at least a half-dozen individuals whose vigorous personality would have made a clear study for Sally.
Another sort of pungent criticism is expressed in, " I never see no sech do-little coot ez that Jim Fones. " He aint what I call work-brittle." And the gentle malice of the female friend prompts Mis' Tift, when, after years of absence, her salutation is, " Why, Nabby, " heow you'm broke ! " Any South-County man could
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fill these pages with similar racy sayings, as when one said, "Women! why, Sonny, them's she-critters, and " them's allays balky."
It is melancholy, thajt a scholar so gifted and trained to solid. work, goes out in middle life in the full tide of her strong personality. She had the impulse of an artist, and in zealous fervor looked forward to bringing out her own highest capacity. Perhaps the fire burned too fiercely at the centre and consumed this intense spirit too rapidly, before the allotted span of human life could run its fair course. This Society may well commemorate one who spent her powers and did such loyal service in illustrating and preserving the sources of the history of Rhode Island.
ALFRED HENRY LITTLEFIELD was born in Scituate, Rhode Island, April 2, 1829. He died in Lincoln, R. I., December 21, 1893. He was the son of John and Deborah (Himes) Littlefield, and was descended from that Edmund Littlefield who came from England to Boston in 1637. His ancestors settled on Block Island in the early part of the last century, but were forced to flee for shelter to the mainland during the stormy years of the Revolution. Mr. Littlefield was educated for the most part in the public schools of Natick. His business career began in 1845, when he became a clerk in the dry goods store of Joseph M. Davis, at Central Falls. In 1851 he became one of the firm of Littlefield Brothers, the firm to whose business, in June, 1889, the Littlefield Manufacturing Company succeeded. As a business man he was always trustworthy, and conse-
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quently for the most part successful. With many of the corporations of Pawtucket he was intimately con- nected, being president of the Littlefield Manufacturing Company, a director (from its organization) of the Pawtucket Hair Cloth Company, and also a director in several banks.
In politics he was a Republican, his first public ser- vice being as a member of the Town Council of Lin- coln, in 1873. In 1876 he was sent to represent the town in the General Assembly, and in 1878 he was elected a member of the Senate from Lincoln. In March, 1880, being still a senator, he was made the Republican nominee for governor. There was no choice by the people, but the Assembly elected him by a large majority. For the next two years he was reflected by the people, after which time he refused again to become a candidate for public office.
February 9, 1853, he married Rebecca J. Northup, of Central Falls. Two sons survive him.
He was a quiet man, firm in convictions, honest of purpose. His firmness was well illustrated by the position he took respecting the entertainment of the French officers, who came to this State after the cen- tennial celebration at Yorktown. As governor he notified the entertainment committee beforehand that he would not approve any wine bills the committee might contract. He believed in prohibition, and by this manly stand he disarmed those whose views were not like his own, and induced them to carry out his wishes. We need just such honesty of purpose in our public men.
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Governor Littlefield became a member of this Society in 1 88 1. Though residing at a distance, he attended many of its meetings and did much by word and example to promote its interests.
WILLIAM STAPLES was born in Providence, February n, 1834, and died there January 20, 1894. He was the son of the Hon. William Read (LL. D.) and Evelina (Eaton) Staples. He was educated in the public schools of Providence. He inherited the historical tastes of his father, who was one of the founders of this Society, and for many years one of its most efficient officers. He early became a communicant of the Protestant Episco- pal Church, and was, to the close of life, a member of either St. John's or St. Paul's Church. In the latter Church he served as a warden, and was occasionally a delegate to diocesan conventions. He was of a kindly nature and had a wide circle of friends who appreci- ated his virtues and now cherish his memory. He be- came a member of this Society in 1869, and was, for many years, a member of one of its standing commit- tees. About a year previous to his death he had a severe attack of pneumonia, from which he but par- tially recovered. The thread of life was finally severed without any apparent suffering or regret on his part.
HORATIO GATES JONES, an honorary member of the Rhode Island Historical Society, elected in 1858, was born in Roxborough, Philadelphia, January 19, 1822, and died March 14, 1893. He was the son of an emi-
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nent Baptist minister of the same name in full. His grandfather, the Rev. David Jones, also a distinguished minister of the Baptist denomination, is, from an histori- cal point of view, worthy of special mention. In April, 1775, he became pastor of the Great Valley Church, Chester Co., Pa. The Continental Congress having recommended a day of fasting and prayer, he preached a sermon before Col. Dewee's regiment, entitled, "Defensive War in a Just Cause Sinless," which was printed and extensively circulated. We are told that he took high ground, even at that early day, in favor of independence. In 1776 he was appointed a chaplain in Col. St. Clair's regiment, and was at Ticonderoga, where, just before battle, he delivered a patriotic ad- dress, which roused the courage of the soldiers to a high degree. Subsequently he served under Gen. Hora- tio Gates and Gen. Wayne, and was in many battles, and always proved himself to be a wise counsellor and a devoted patriot. While the army was at Valley Forge, he frequently showed his devotion to the cause, and was highly trusted by Washington. He continued in the army until the capitulation at Yorktown. His patri- otic services did not end with the Revolution. When the war of 1812 broke out, although seventy-six years of age, he again volunteered his services, and was ap- pointed chaplain and served until peace was declared. An evidence of the great respect and esteem in which he was held is shown in the honor which was conferred upon him in 1774, by Brown University, which gave him the title of Master of Arts.
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The subject of this sketch graduated at the Univer- sity of Pennsylvania in 1841, and was admitted to the Philadelphia bar in May, 1847. His tastes for his- torical research were developed in early life, and his love for studies of an historical character became almost a passion. He was chosen a member of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania in 1848, and in the following year was elected its secretary, and held that office for eighteen years. In 1867 he was chosen one of its vice- presidents. In 1865 he was elected one of the directors of Girard College. In 1874 he was elected to the State Senate from Philadelphia, and reelected in 1876 and 1878. While in the Senate he showed himself to be the advocate of the "soul liberty" which was the special birthright of Rhode Island. He did all in his power to secure freedom from the penalties of the Sunday law of April 22, 1794, for all persons who ob- served the seventh day as the Sabbath. As has been observed, " Mr. Jones cherished an enthusiastic love for soul liberty; he understood the subject thoroughly, his efforts in its behalf having been well planned and valiant. He might justly have been called the Ameri- can champion of religious liberty."
Among the many societies to which Mr. Jones was elected may be mentioned such historical societies as those of Rhode Island, New York, Delaware, Wiscon- sin, Minnesota and Florida. Also the Moravian His- torical Society, the New England Historic-Genealogi- cal Society and the American Antiquarian Society. In 1877 he was chosen an Honorary Fellow of the
IOO RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
Royal Historical Society of Great Britain. Brown University conferred upon him, in 1863, the honorary degree of Master of Arts, and in 1880 he received from a literary institution in Arkansas the honorary degree of Doctor of Civil Law. •
For Rhode Island and its institutions he cherished an abiding interest. By marriage he was connected with one of its prominent familes, "The Mauran Family," his wife, Caroline V. Babcock, eldest daughter of the Rev. Dr. Rufus Babcock, being a great-grand- daughter of Joseph Charles Mauran, the founder in America of the family. He showed a practical regard for the Rhode Island Historical Society in the valuable gifts he made to its library, especially when he was a member of the Pennsylvania Senate. It gives us pleasure to record the virtues and worth of one who conferred as much honor upon the Society as he re- ceived from it, when he was elected into its member- ship. His memory will ever be cherished with sincere satisfaction.
CHARLES C. JONES, JR., LL.D., was born in Savannah, Ga., October 28, 1831, and died at Montrose, near Augusta, Ga., July 19, 1893. He was a leading member of the South Carolina Society of the Cincinnati, and was president of the Confederate Survivors' Associa- tion, whose annual reunions were always attended by the officers of the United States Arsenal. Dr. Jones was one of the most prolific and accomplished authors Georgia has produced.
His antiquities of the " Southern Indians," and " His-
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tory of Georgia" are among his memorable works. Dr. Jones was elected a corresponding member of this Society in 1872, and the shelves of this library attest his interest in the objects for which this institution was founded and is sustained.
JOHN CHESTER BUTTRE was born in Auburn, N. Y., June 10, 1821, and died at Ridgewood, N. J., December 2, 1893. He was the son of William Buttre, born in Perthshire, Scotland, August 9, 1782, died in New York City, October 2, 1864; and Mary Ann (Lothrop) Buttre, born in Fairfield, Herkimer Co., N. Y., April 2, 1800, died in Ridgewood, N. J., May 7, 1882.
Mr. Buttre was one of the oldest and most widely known of the publishers, engravers, and plate-printers in America. He commenced business in Auburn in 1838, and removed to New York in 1841, being of late years at 32 Cortlandt street. He published the "Amer- ican Portrait Gallery," of which there have been several editions issued. His daughter, Miss Lillian C. Buttre, assisted him in the work. The work was given to this Society as ' it was issued from the press, and appears now in three volumes. The biographical sketches are cleverly told, and therefore possess an abiding interest. He was a general engraver and plate-printer, and for many years has made a specialty of engraving fine portraits on steel, several being of Rhode Islanders.
The old diploma plate, engraved on copper, by J. J. LeVeau, of Paris (France), for the Society of the Cin- cinnati, in 1783-1784, was found to be very badly cor- roded in May, 1888, and Mr. Buttre, from motives of
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patriotism (his father having been an officer in the war of 1812-1814), devoted many days to its restoration, thereby meriting the thanks of the General Society of the Cincinnati, at its triennial meeting in 1890.
Mr. Buttre was a corresponding member of the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society, as also of the Rhode Island Historical Society since 1880.
GIFTS RECEIVED. 103
INSTITUTIONS, CORPORATIONS, AND COPARTNER- SHIPS FROM WHICH GIFTS HAVE BEEN RECEIVED.
American Antiquarian Society, Worcester, Irrepressible Society, Providence.
Mass. Kansas State Historical Society, Topeka,
American Catholic Historical Society, Phila- Kansas.
delphia. Langworthy Public Library, Hope Valley,
American Congregational Association, Bos- R. I.
ton. Laval University, Quebec, Canada.
American Historical Association. League Roads Improvement Bureau, Boston.
American Numismatic and Archaeological Long Island Historical Society, Brooklyn,
Society, N. Y. N. Y.
American Philosophical Society, Philadel- Longmeadow Centennial Committee, Long-
phia. meadow, Mass.
Amherst College, Amherst, Mass. Maine Historical Society, Portland, Me.
Andover Theological Seminary, Andover, Maryland Historical Society, Baltimore, Md.
Mass. Massachusetts Board Railroad Commission- Baltimore Public Library, Baltimore, Md. ers, Boston.
Bostonian Society, Boston. Massachusetts Historical Society, Boston. Boston Public Library. Massachusetts State Library, Boston. Boston Record Commission. Mercantile Library Association, San Fran- Brooklyn Library, Brooklyn, N. Y. cisco, Cal. Brooklyn Society of Old Brooklynites, Michigan State Library, Lansing, Mich.
Brooklyn, N. Y. Minnesota Historical Society, St. Paul,
Brown University, Providence. Minn.
Buffalo Historical Society, Buffalo, N. Y. Missouri Medical Association, Kansas City,
California University, Berkeley, Cal. Mo.
Canadian Institute, Toronto, Canada. Montana Historical Society, Helena, Mon-
Cayuga County Historical Society, Auburn, tana.
N. Y. Nebraska State Historical Society, Lincoln,
Chicago Board of Trade, Chicago, 111. Neb.
Connecticut Historical Society, Hartford, New England Historic-Genealogical Society,
Conn. Boston.
Coombs, H. M. & Co., Providence. New Jersey Historical Society, Newark, N.J.
Dedham Historical Society, Dedham, Mass. New London Historical Society, New Lon-
Denmark Royal Society of Northern Anti- don, Conn.
quaries, Copenhagen, Denmark. New York Genealogical and Biographical
Dominion Land Surveyors' Association, Ot- Society, N. Y.
tawa, Canada. New York Mercantile Library Association,
Essex Institute, Salem, Mass. N. Y.
Freeman, E. L. & Son, Providence. New York Meteorological Observatory, N.Y.
Georgia Historical Society, Savannah, Ga. New York State Library, Albany, N. Y.
Hartford Theological Seminary, Hartford, North Carolina State Library, Raleigh, N. C.
Conn. Norwegian University, Kristiania, Norway.
Harvard University, Cambridge, Mass. Ohio Historical and Philosophical Society,
Home for Aged Men, Providence. Cincinnati, Ohio.
Indiana Historical Society, Indianapolis, Ind. Ohio State Archaeological and Historical
Iowa Geological Survey, Des Moines, Iowa. Society, Columbus, Ohio.
Iowa State Historical Society, Iowa City, Open Court Publishing Company, Chicago,
Iowa. 111.
IO4
RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
Pawtucket Evening Times, Pennsylvania Historical Society, Philadel- phia. Philadelphia Library Company, Philadelphia.
Providence Athenaeum.
Providence City Government.
Providence Journal Company.
Providence Public Library.
Providence Record Commissioners.
Providence Young Men's Christian Associa- tion.
Redwood Library, Newport.
Rhode Island Medical Publishing Company, Providence.
Rhode Island Medical Society, Providence.
Rhode Island Peace Society, Providence.
Rhode Island State Agricultural School, Kingston, R. I.
Rhode Island State Board of Health, Provi- dence.
Rhode Island State Government, Providence.
Rhode Island Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, Providence.
Rhode Island Women's Club, Providence.
Royal Academy of Belles-Lettres and His- tory, Stockholm, Sweden.
Royal Academy of Science and Arts, Lisbon, Portugal.
Royal Commission, British Section, Jack- son Park, Chicago, 111.
Royal Historical Society, London, Hanover Square, W.
St. Louis Mercantile Library Association, St. Louis, Mo.
St. Louis Public Library, St. Louis, Mo.
Salem Public Library, Salem, Mass.
Sampson, Murdock & Co., Providence.
Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D. C.
Society of Colonial Wars, New York.
Society of the Sons of the American Revolu- tion, Connecticut.
Society of the Sons of the American Revolu- tion, Iowa.
Society of the Sons of the American Revolu- tion, New York.
Society of the Sons of the American Revolu- tion, Washington, D. C. Southern California Historical Society, Los
Angeles, Cal. Tennessee State Board of Health, Nashville,
Tenn.
Tuft's College, College Hill, Mass. United States Bureau of Education, Wash- ington, D. C.
United States Bureau of Ethnology, Wash- ington, D. C.
United States Commission of Labor, Wash- ington, D. C. United States Department of Agriculture,
Washington, D. C. United States Department of the Interior,
Washington, D. C.
United States Department of State, Wash- ington, D. C.
United States Department of War, Wash- ington, D. C. United States Geographical and Geological
Survey, Washington, D. C. United States Geological Survey, Washing- ton, D. C.
United States Treasury Department, Wash- ington, D. C.
University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Mich. University of the State of New York, Albany,
N. Y.
University of Vermont, Burlington, Vt. Vermont Historical Society, Montpelier, Vt. Virginia Historical Society, Richmond, Va. Watertown Historical Society, Watertown,
Me. Westchester County Historical Society,
White Plains, N. Y.
Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleve- land, Ohio.
Women's Medical College, Philadelphia. Worcester Society of Antiquity, Worcester,
Mass.
World Almanac Company, New York. Yale University, New Haven, Conn.
GIFTS RECEIVED.
105
PERSONS FROM WHOM GIFTS HAVE BEEN RECEIVED.
Alden, Mrs. Charles L., Troy, N. Y.
Aldrich, Nelson W., Providence.
Allen, Edwin R., Hopkinton, R. I.
Andrews, Byron A., Slatersville, R. I.
Andrews, Rev. E. B., Providence.
Arnold, Benjamin H., Lonsdale, R. I.
Arnold, Edward B., Lonsdale, R. I.
Arnold, Stephen H., Providence.
Austin, John O., Providence.
Bailey, Joseph Trowbridge, Philadelphia.
Barrows, Miss Hepsa Blake, Providence.
Bartlett, Thomas Edward, New Haven, Conn.
Beckwith, Miss Abby G.( Providence.
Bennett, Charles P., Providence.
Bennett, Herbert F., Bristol, R. I.
Birdson, James C., Raleigh, N. C.
Bishop, Cortland F., New York.
Bowen, Clarence Winthrop, New York.
Bowen, William M. P., Providence.
Bradlee, Caleb Davis, Boston.
Briggs, Osmond H., Pawtucket, R. I.
Brown, Mrs. Isaac, Providence.
Burnham, George H., Providence.
Burroughs, Frank M., Providence.
Carnegie, Andrew, N. Y.
Carpenter, George M., Providence.
Chace, Elizabeth Buff urn, Valley Falls, R. I.
Chace, Lewis Jenkins, Providence.
Chapin, William W., Providence.
Chase, Philip S., Providence.
Childs, George W., Philadelphia.
Clark, Franklin C., Providence.
Clark, Rt. Rev. Thomas M., Providence.
Clarke, Samuel C., Marietta, Ga.
Cobb, J. S. G., Providence.
Coggeshall, Mrs. James H., Providence.
Conant, Hezekiah, Pawtucket, R. I.
Congdon, Edward, Providence.
Cranston, James E., Providence.
Cressy, Mrs. O. S., Providence.
Curtis, Chester B., New Castle, N. H.
Dailey, Miss Charlotte Field, Providence.
Danforth, Charles, Providence.
Darling, Gen. Charles W., Utica, N. Y.
Darling, M. V. B., Providence.
DePeyster, J.Watts, Tivoli, Duchess Co.,N.Y.
Doggett, Samuel B., Boston.
Draper, Daniel, Ph. D., New York.
Drowne, Henry T., New York.
Drowne, Rev. T. Stafford, Flatbush, N. Y.
Dyer, Charles Sowle, Providence.
Dyer, Gen. Elisha, Providence.
Eaton, Amasa M., Providence.
Eddy, Miss Mary E., Providence.
Eddy, Rev. Richard, East Providence, R. I.
Everett, Richmond P., Providence.
Field, Edward, Providence.
Field, Henry F., Rutland, Vt. .
Fisher, Charles H., M. D., Providence.
Flagg, Charles O., Kingston, R. I.
Folsom, Albert A., Brookline, Mass.
Foster, Bertha Victoria, Wakefield, Mass.
Foster, L. S., New York.
Frost, Walter B., Providence.
Gamwell, Edward F., Brown University.
Gorton, Charles, Providence.
Green, Arnold, Providence.
Green, Samuel A., M. D., Providence.
Greene, Henry A., Providence.
Guild, Miss Olive L., Providence.
Guild, Dr. Reuben A., Providence.
Hall, Mrs. Emily A., Providence.
Ham, Franklin B., Providence.
Harris, George W., East Providence, R. I.
Hegeler, E. C., Chicago, 111.
Hersey, George D., M. D., Providence.
Hewes, David, San Francisco, Cal.
Hill, Nathaniel P., Denver, Colorado.
Holbrook, Albert, Providence.
Hopeli, Ulrio, Milan, Italy.
Hopkins, Charles W., Providence.
Housatonic— (pseudonym) .
Hoyt, David W., Providence.
Hoyt, Mrs. David W., Providence.
Hudson, James S., Providence.
Jackson, Henry R., Augusta, Ga.
James, Mrs. Charles T., Providence.
Jecht, Richard, M. D., Gorlitz, Prussia.
Johnson, Joseph C., Providence.
Jones, Charles C., Augusta, Ga.
Jones, Charles W., Jacksonville, 111.
King, Marquis F., Portland, Me.
io6
RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
Kinion, P. F., Valley Falls, R. I.
Knowles, Edward Randall, Worcester, Mass.
Knowles, John P., St. Paul, Minn.
Landers, Albert C., Providence.
Leverich, Daniel T., Brooklyn, N. Y.
Lincoln, Frederick W., Boston.
Little, C. A., Providence.
Logan, Walter S., New York.
McCabe, Anthony, Providence.
Manton, Joseph P., Providence.
Mitchell, Thomas Spencer, Providence.
Mosley, W. H. T., Providence.
Nightingale, Mrs. E. J., Providence.
Nisbet, William D., Providence.
Noyes, Isaac P., Washington, D. C.
Palmer, Mrs. Fanny Purdy, Providence.
Paul, David E., Olneyville, R. I.
Peckham, Samuel W., Providence.
Pegram, John C., Providence.
Pell, Rowland, New York.
Perry, Amos, Providence.
Perry, Marsden J., Providence.
Perry, Rt. Rev. William S., Davenport, la.
Pettee, Rev. J. T., Meriden, Conn.
Pettis, Robert, Providence.
Poole, Murray Edward, Weymouth, Mass.
Potter, William H., New York.
Pratt, Enoch, Baltimore, Md.
Reed, Mrs. James H., Providence.
Reynolds, Rev. Wm. J., Providence.
Rhodes, Edward S., Providence.
Rice, Franklin P., Worcester, Mass.
Richards, Henry F., Providence.
Rider, Sidney S. Providence.
Rogers, Horatio, Providence.
Rose, Henry B., Providence.
Rowell, B. W., Boston.
Shedd, J. Herbert, Providence.
Sheldon, Miss Huldah D., Pawtuxet, R. I.
Sibley, Alden W., Pawtucket, R. I.
Smiley, Albert K., New Paltz, Ulster Co., N.Y.
Smith, Franklin W., Boston.
Stryker, Gen. William S., Trenton, N. J.
Swan, Robert T., Boston.
Tillinghast, James, Buffalo, N. Y.
Tompkins, Edward, Oakland, Cal.
Tooker, William Wallace, Sag Harbor, Long
Island, N. Y.
Van Rensselaer, Rev. M., New York. Wadlin, Horace G., Boston. Wainwright, C. F., Kansas City, Mo. Waterhouse, S., St. Louis, Mo. Watson, William H., Utica, N. Y., Webb, Rev. Samuel H., Providence. Webb, William Seward, New York. Weeden, William B., Providence. Whitman, William H., Providence. Wilbour, Mrs. Linda O., Bristol, R. I. Wilcox, Nathan B., Westerly, R. I. Williams, Alfred M., Providence. Williams, J. Fletcher, St. Paul, Minn. Williams, Zephaniah, Providence. Winslow, William C., Providence. Winsor, Justin, Cambridge, Mass. Wood, William G., Providence. Woodbury, Rev. Augustus, Providence. Wright, Carroll D., Boston. Young, George F., Providence. Young, Nicholas B., Providence.
RESIDENT MEMBERS.
107
RESIDENT MEMBERS — JANUARY, 1894.
ELECTED.
1874. Aldrich, Nelson Wilmarth 1890. Allen, Miss Candace
1890. Allen, Edward S.
1891. Almy, Herbert
1875. Ames, William
1885. Andrews, Elisha Benjamin
1876. Angell, Edwin G. 1893. Angell, Walter F.
1880. Anthony, John B. 1891. Armstrong, Henry C. 1889. Arnold, Fred. W.
1889. Arnold, Newton Darling 1874. Arnold, Olney
1874. Arnold, Richard James
1877. Arnold, Stephen Harris
1890. Atwood, Charles H. 1893. Backus, Thomas
1881. Bailey, Richard Arnold 1853. Bailey, William Mason
1 88 1. Baker, David Sherman, Jr.
1891. Ball, Nicholas
1890. Ballou, William Herbert 1884. Ballou, Latimer Whipple
1891. Barker, Frederick Augustus 1890. Barker, Henry R.
1872. Barrows, Edwin
1886. Barstow, Amos C., Jr. 1890. Barstow, George E.
1888. Bartlett, John Russell 1879. Barton, William T.
1889. Bartow, Evelyn Pierrepont
1893. Bass, Miss Bertha 1883. Bates, Isaac Comstock
1894. Bates, William L. 1858. Binney, William
1889. Binney, William, Jr.
1887. Blake, Eli Whitney
1892. Blake, Mrs. Elizabeth Vernon
1890. Blodgett, John T.
1878. Bogman, Edward Young
1891. Bourn, George W. B.
ELECTED.
1881. Bradley, Charles
1893. Briggs, Benjamin F.
1883. Brown, D. Russell
1883. Brown, H. Martin
1893. Brown, Pardon Fenner 1876. Bugbee, James H.
1884. Bullock, Jonathan Russell 1884. Burdick, James
1891. Burgess, Edwin A.
1891. Calder, Albert L.
1859. Calder, George Beckford
1876. Campbell, Horatio Nelson
1873. Carpenter, Charles Earle
1874. Carpenter, Francis Wood
1886. Carpenter, George Moulton
1889. Catlin, Charles Albert 1888. Chace, James H. 1880. Chace, Jonathan 1880. Chace, Julian A.
1879. Chace, Lewis Jenkins
1892. Chace, Mrs. Lucretia G. 1868. Chace, Thomas Wilson 1857. Chambers, Robert B.
1884. Chapin, Charles Value 1892. Chapin, William W. 1883. Child, Charles H.
1887. Claflin, Arthur W. 1878. Clark, Thomas March
1880. Coats, James
1877. Codman, Arthur Amory
1885. Collins, George Lewis 1892. Colwell, Francis
1890. Comstock, Louis H.
1886. Comstock, Richard W.
1891. Conant, Samuel Morse 1872. Congdon, Johns Hopkins
1892. Cooke, Henry W. 1877. Cranston George K. 1874. Cranston, Henry Clay
1881. Cranston, James E.
1894. Cressy, Oliver S.
io8
RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
ELECTED.
1891. Crins, William H.
1891. Cummings, John E.
1876. Cushman, Henry I.
1890. Danforth, Charles
1886. Dart, Edward Merrill
1891. Davis, Henry R.
1887. Day, Albert C. 1881. Day, Daniel 1894. Day, Frank L. 1881. DeWolf, John James 1886. Dews, Joseph
1893. Diman, John B.
1881. Dixon, Nathan Fellows
1877. Doringh, Charles H. R. 1877. Dorrance, Samuel Richmond
1888. Douglas, Samuel Tobey
1882. Douglas, WilliamWilberforce 1875. Dunnell, William Wanton 1877. Durfee, Charles S.
1849. Durfee, Thomas
1890. Dyer, Elisha
1894. Dyer, Oliver
1873. Eames, Benjamin Tucker
1886. Earle, Charles R.
1856. Ely, James W. C.
1891. Ely, Joseph Cady 1862. Ely, William Davis
1892. Farnsworth, John P. 1891. Field, Edward 1891. Fifield, Henry Allen 1891. Fifield, Moses
1890. Fiske, George McClellan 1885. Fitzgerald, O. Edward
1893. Flint, Mrs. Susan A.
1891. Foster, John
1888. Foster, Samuel 1881. Foster, William E.
1892. Fredericks, William H. 1855. Gammell, Asa Messer 1875. Gammell, Robert Ives
1884. Gammell, William 1891. Gardner, Clarence T.
1889. Gardner, Henry Brayton 1889. Gardner, Rathbone
1885. George, Charles H. 1891. Gifford, Robert P.
ELECTED.
1881. Goddard, Moses Brown Ives
1880. Goddard, Robert H. Ives 1850. Goddard, William
1883. Goodwin, Daniel
1894. Von Gottschalck, Mary H.B.
1891. Granger, Daniel L. D. 1893. Granger, William S.
1875. Grant, Henry Townsend 1891 Grant, Henry T., Jr. 1893. Greene, Charles William 1893. Greene, Edward A.
1876. Greene, Henry L.
1893. Greene, Henry Whitman
1887. Greene, Thomas C.
1877. Greene, W. Maxwell
1892. Gross, J. Mason
1872. Grosvenor, William
1887. Guild, Reuben Aldridge 1890. Hall, Mrs. Emily A.
1882. Hall, Jenison C.
1878. Hall, Robert 1878. Harkness, Albert
1874. Harrington, Henry Augustus
1883. Harson, M. Joseph
1889. Hart, George Thomas 1892. Hayes, Henry W.
1890. Hazard, George J.
1888. Hazard, Rowland Gibson
1881. Hersey, George D.
1873. Hidden, Henry Atkins
1874. Holbrook, Albert 1892. Hopkins, Charles W. 1874. Hopkins, William H.
1887. Hopkins, William H., 2d 1871. Hoppin, Frederick Street
1889. Hoppin, William Jones
1890. Howard, Hiram
1891. Howe, Marc Antony DeWolf,
Jr.
1885. Howland, Richard Smith
1882. Hoyt, David Webster
1889. Hudson, James Smith 1882. Jackson, William F. B.
1888. Jameson, John Franklin 1867. Jencks, Albart Varnum
1890. Jepherson, George A.
RESIDENT MEMBERS.
109
ELECTED.
1880. Jones, Augustine
1891. Joslin, Henry V. A.
1889. Kelly, John B.
1883. Kendall, Hiram 1880. Kenyon, James S.
1892. Kimball, Horace A.
1876. Kimball, James M. 1892. King, Henry M.
1884. King, William Dehon
1879. Knight, Edward B. 1883. Ladd, Herbert W.
1890. Leete, George F. 1892. Lincoln, Ferdinand A. 1894. Lingane, David F. 1878. Lippitt, Charles Warren
1880. Lippitt, Christopher
1891. Lord, Augustus M.
1892. Luther, George Edmund
1891. Manly, John M.
1892. Mason, A. Livingston
1877. Mason, Earl Philip 1892. Mason, Mrs. Edith B. H. 1877. Mason, Eugene W. 1877. Mason, John H.
1891. Matteson, Charles
1889. Matteson, George Washing-
ton Richmond
1891. McGuinness, Edwin D.
1891. Mead, William B. 1883. Meader, Lewis H.
1890. Metcalf, Alfred 1876. Metcalf, Henry B.
1875. Miller, Augustus Samuel
1 88 1. Miner, Francis Wayland
1892. Mitchell, Thomas 1892. Mott, Herbert
1891. Moulton, David C. 1890. Moulton, Edmund T. 1886. Mowry, Raymond G. 1880. Munro, Wilfred H. 1880. Nichols, Amos G. 1894. Nicholson, Samuel M. 1894. Nicholson, Stephen
1876. Nickerson, Edward I. 1874. Nightingale, George Corlis 1889. Nisbet, William Douglas
ELECTED.
1890. Olney, Frank F.
1879. Olney, George Henry
1888. Packard, Alpheus S. 1885. Page, Charles H.
1889. Paine, Charles E. (C. E.) 1894. Palmer, John S.
1890. Parker, Edward D. L. 1887. Peck, Walter A.
1849. Peckham, Samuel Wardwell
1875. Pegram, John C.
1858. Perry, Amos
1880. Perry, Marsden J.
1874. Persons, Benjamin Williams
1891. Phillips, Gilbert A.
1873. Phillips, Theodore Winthrop
1878. Porter, Emory Huntington 1891. Potter, Asa K.
1887. Preston, Howard Willis
1889. Reynolds, William Job 1891. Richards, Henry F. 1891. Richmond, Miss Caroline 1877. Richmond, Walter
1891. Ripley, James M.
1881. Roelker, William G.
1888. Rogers, Arthur
1890. Rugg, Henry W. 1856. Sabin, Charles 1877. Seagrave, Caleb
1874. Shedd, J. Herbert
1881. Sheffield, William Paine, Jr.
1889. Sheldon, Charles Henry, Jr. 1885. Sheldon, Nicholas
1879. Shepley, George L. 1877. Slater, Horatio Nelson 1883. Slater, John Whipple 1888. Smith, Benjamin West
1875. Smith, Edwin Augustus 1869. Southwick, Isaac H. 1885. Southwick, Isaac H., Jr.
1880. Spicer, William A.
1890. Spink, Joseph Edwin
1881. Spooner, Henry Joshua 1888. Stark, Charles Rathbone 1879. Stiness, John Henry 1881. Stone, Alfred
1891. Studley, Thomas E.
IIO
RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
ELECTED.
1886. Sturges, Howard O.
1894. Swarts, Gardner T.
1856. Taft, Royal Chapin
1883. Talbot, Frederick
1874. Taylor, Charles Frederick 1881. Thomas, Charles Lloyd
1890. Thornton, George M.
1891. Thurston, Benjamin F.
1889. Tillinghast, James 1891. Tourtellot, Amasa C.
1890. Tower, James H.
1891. Traver, Mrs. Adelia E. A.
1875. Trippe, Samuel Gardner 1874. Turner, Henry Edward 1885. Updike, Daniel Berkeley 1890. Vincent, Walter Borodel 1 88 1. Vose, James Gardner
1 86 1. Waterman, Rufus
ELECTED.
1890. Webb, Samuel H.
1868. Weeden, William Babcock
1887. Welling, Richard WardGreene
1891. West, George J.
1890. Whitaker, Nelson Bowen
1889. White, Hunter Carson 1884. White, Stillman
1874. Whitford,George Washington
1884. Wilbour, Joshua
1891. Wilbur, George A. 1881. Williams, Zephaniah 1891. Wilson, Edmund R.
1886. Wilson, Ellery H.
1888. Wilson, George G.
1890. Wolcott, Henry
1887. Wood, William H. 1876. Woods, Marshall
LIFE MEMBERS.
Ill
LIFE MEMBERS — JANUARY, 1894.
ACTIVE. |
LIFE. |
1867. |
1872. |
1849. |
1872. |
1866. |
1872. |
I836. |
1872. |
1872. |
|
1872. |
|
1857. |
1873- |
1873- |
|
1870. |
1873. |
I87S- |
|
[876. |
|
I877. |
|
1844. |
l879. |
I879. |
|
1879. |
|
1878. |
1880. |
1874. |
1880. |
1841. |
1880. |
1877. |
1883. |
1883. |
|
I873- |
1884. |
1885. |
|
1885. |
|
1885. |
|
1885. |
|
1886. |
|
1888. |
|
1889. |
|
1890. |
|
1890. |
|
1890. |
|
1890. |
|
1890. |
|
1890. |
|
1890. |
|
1890. |
|
1881. |
1892. |
1858. |
1892. |
1885. |
1892. |
1892. |
|
1894. |
|
1882. |
1894. |
1871. |
1894. |
1866. |
1894. |
1874. |
1894. |
1891. |
1894. |
DIED.
George T. Paine, Providence.
Henry T. Beckwith, Providence. 1893.
William Greene, Warwick. 1883.
Rowland G. Hazard, S. Kingstown. 1888.
Holder Borden Bowen, Providence.
Amasa Mason Eaton, N. Providence.
James Y. Smith, Providence. 1876.
James B. Swan, Providence.
Benjamin G. Pabodie, Providence. 1880.
Albert G. Angell, Providence. 1884.
William Ely, Providence.
Hezekiah Conant, Providence.
Samuel G. Arnold, Portsmouth. 1880.
Amos D. Lockwood, Providence. 1884.
Royal Woodward, Albany, N. Y. 1882.
Charles Gorton, Providence.
John Pitman Walker, Providence. 1887.
Alexander Duncan, Scotland. 1889.
John T. Mumford, Providence. 1891. Thomas Poynton Ives Goddard, Providence. 1893.
Henry G. Russell, Providence.
William G. Weld, Newport.
John Nicholas Brown, Newport.
George Peabody Wetmore, Newport.
Harold Brown, Newport.
John W. Danielson, Providence.
Le Roy King, Newport.
Charles Fletcher, Providence.
Miss Julia Bullock, Providence.
Joseph Davol, Providence.
Mrs. Mary H. Knowles, Providence.
Joseph Banigan, Providence.
Walter Callender, Providence.
Arnold Green, Providence.
Lucian Sharpe, Providence.
John L. Troup, Providence.
John O. Austin, Providence.
Richmond P. Everett, Providence.
George Gordon King, Newport. Mrs. Belinda Olney Wilbour, Bristol.
William Butler Duncan, New York.
Charles H. Smith, Providence.
Rowland Hazard, Peacedale.
Horatio Rogers, Providence.
Thomas Jefferson Hill, Providence.
Elizabeth C. Hill, Providence.
112
RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
HONORARY MEMBER.
ELECTED.
1888. James Burrill Angell, LL. D.,
Ann Arbor, Mich.
CORRESPONDING MEMBERS.
ELECTED.
1888. James Tillinghast,
1888. William Frederick Poole, LL. D.,
1888. Samuel Smith Purple, M. D.,
1888. Edward Amasa Park, D. D.,
1888. Abby Isabel (Brown) Bulkley,
1889. William Henry Watson, M. D.,
1890. Rev. William R. Bagnall, 1890. Franklin Pierce Rice,
1890. William Harden,
1891. Henry Fitz Gilbert Waters, 1891. William Warner Hoppin,
1891. Isaac Pitman Noyes,
1892. Henry Herbert Edes,
1893. Clarence Winthrop Bowen, 1893. Alfred Manchester,
Buffalo, N. Y. Chicago, 111. New York. Andover, Mass. Brooklyn, N. Y. Utica, N. Y. Middletown, Ct. Worcester, Mass. Savannah, Ga. Salem, Mass. New York. Washington, D. C. Charlestown, Mass. New York. Salem, Mass.
For list of Honorary and Corresponding Members elected at previous dates, see Pro- ceedings, 1887-88.
SLAVERY IN RHODE ISLAND
BY
WILLIAM D. JOHNSTON, A. B.
PROVIDENCE
PRINTED FOR THE SOCIETY
1894
JINTINQ iMPANY PROVIDENCE,
CONTENTS.
PARTI. INTRODUCTION: SLAVERY BEFORE 1755.
I. THE LAW AND THE SLAVE.
Page
Introduction 113
Legislation in i7th century i 14
Results of this legislation ; manumission 114
Legislation from 1700 to 1755 1 16
Character of this legislation 117
White slave and black slave 119
II. THE CHURCH AND THE SLAVE.
Activity and teaching of the Church of England 119
Attitude of the Quakers toward slavery 121
Influence of the church upon the status of the slave 121
III. THE SLAVE TRADE AND THE EXTENT OF SLAVERY.
Growth of the slave trade 122
Reasons for the decline of the slave trade 125
Extent and distribution of slavery 126
.PART II. SLAVERY BETWEEN 1755 AND 1776.
I. SLAVE LEGISLATION.
Laws between 1755 and 1774 129
Law of 1774 ; origin 130
Character of slave legislation 133
II. SOCIAL LIFE OF THE SLAVES.
The sale of negroes 134
Social attainments 135
Knowledge of trades 136
Occupations 136
Care for slaves ; amusements 137
Election day 139
Free negroes 141
III. THE CHURCH AND THE SLAVE.
Page
Changing attitude toward slavery 141
Church of England ; sermons 142
Results ; education 143
The Quakers ; John Woolman 144
Action by the Quakers ; sentiment against slave trade 146
Progress of the movement ; sentiment against slave-holding 151
Other ecclesiastical bodies ; Samuel Hopkins 152
The unorthodoxy of reform 155
Moral and economic reasons for decay of slavery 156
IV. ANTI-SLAVERY AGITATION.
Anti-slavery literature 157
Object and success of the agitation 159
Will of Moses Brown 160
The movement in Narragansett 163
Conclusion 164
EDITORIAL NOTES.
SLAVERY IN RHODE ISLAND, 17^-1776.*
PART I.
INTRODUCTION: SLAVERY BEFORE 1755.
I. THE LAW AND THE SLAVE.
Introduction. The history of slavery in Rhode Island, from 1755 to 1776, is the history of the decay of the institu- tion in that colony. Anti-slavery sentiment and agitation may be traced back to the time of Roger Williams, the founder of the colony. Moore speaks of " the humane efforts of Roger Williams and John Eliot to abate the severity of judgment against captives, and mitigate the horrors of slavery in Massachusetts." Beside these, several of the leading spirits of the seventeenth century had raised a protest against the institution of slavery, but it was not till 1717 that any or- ganized effort against slaveholding was made, and it was not until the time of the approaching revolution that this feeling and this thought became at all general.
During these years many forces, economic and social, were active, undermining the institution of slavery, and modifying public opinion with regard to slavery and the slave trade. A consideration of these forces and their varied manifestations is necessary.
*The sources of this account of slavery in Rhode Island in the last gen- eration preceding the Revolution are, besides the books and pamphlets referred to in foot-notes, the contemporary newspapers, the manuscript records of Providence (town meeting, town council and probate), those of the N. E. Yearly Meeting of Friends, those of certain churches in Rhode Island, and the Moses Brown Papers.
114 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
Legislation in the Seventeenth Century. May 18, 1652, the following act was passed by the representatives of Providence and Warwick : * " Whereas there is a common course practiced among Englishmen, to buy negroes to the end that they may have them for service or slaves forever, for the preventing of such practices among us, let it be ordered that no black mankind, or white, being forced to covenant bond or otherwise, serve any man or his assigns longer than ten years, or until they come to be twenty-four years of age if they be taken under fourteen, from the time of their com- ing within the liberties of the Colony, and at the end or term of ten years to set them free as the manner is with English servants, and that man that will not let them go free, or shall sell them away elsewhere, to that end that they may be en- slaved to others for a longer time, he or they shall forfeit to the Colony forty pounds."
In March, 1675-6, another law of like nature was passed. 2 The New England colonies were in the habit of selling as slaves the Indian captives they took in their frequent wars. Rhode Island enslaved few, perhaps none ; still there were Indian slaves carried into Rhode Island, and it was with ref- erence to these that the act of March, 1675-6, was passed. This provided that " no Indian in this colony be a slave but only to pay their debts, or for their bringing up, or courtesy they have received, or to perform covenant, as if they had been countrymen not in war."
Results of This Legislation; Manumission. What Wil- liams has said 3 of the law of 1652 is true both of that law and the law of 1675-6 just quoted. They were both admir- able laws, but they were lacking the public sentiment to give them practical force in the colony. They were the expres- sion of a part of the colony rather than the whole, and that part, it will be observed, was the northern. The principle, however, embodied in these laws, persisted ; masters some- times gave slaves their freedom, and slaves took advantage of
1<l R. I. Colonial Records," I., 243.
2Wilkins Updike, "History of the Narragansett Church," p. 171.
3 G. W. Williams, " History of the Negro Race in America," I., p. 263.
SLAVERY IN RHODE ISLAND. 115
it where possible, to secure their freedom. The result was that at the beginning of the eighteenth century there was a considerable number of free negroes. Emancipation became more and more common, and the colony began to fear that it would have to support negroes whose years of usefulness had been spent in work for their masters, and who were manu- mitted by them when old and helpless. To prevent this abuse, an injustice to slave and to commonwealth, the Rhode Island legislature in 1728-9 passed a law, x providing that when aged or helpless slaves were manumitted, security in the sum of not less than one hundred pounds should be given to the town treasurer.
Yet, in spite of the seeming demand for a law, it must be said that these abuses were comparatively rare. Manumitted servants were usually given a small establishment with their freedom, and were generally able to care for themselves. " A negro man and woman, in 1735, by Ind'y & Frugality, scrap'd together £200, or £300. They sailed from Newport to their own country, Guinea, where their savings gave them an in- dependent fortune."2 With the growth of Providence, many emancipated slaves shared in the increase of general prosper- ity, and left behind them effects sufficient to attract the at- tention of the town council. Among many others was "Jack Harris, a negro man, so called," who died December 21, 1745, and left one hundred and forty-five pounds eleven shillings and five pence, much of it, unhappily, in colonial bills ; also John Read, who died December 21, 1753, and left one hun- dred pounds ; Andrew Frank, 3 who died intestate, October 6, 1755, and left to the town two hundred and twenty-nine pounds and six pence, besides an old Bible and farming imple- ments. These facts indicate that the position of the slave in Rhode Island, partly because of public opinion as expressed in the two acts already quoted, and partly for economic rea- sons, was practically the same as that of the apprentice or in- dentured white servant. The position of the free negro or Indian was determined as among the colonists themselves by
1 R. I. Laws, 1730, p. 162.
2" Boston Evening Post," 1735.
3" R. I. Historical Tracts," No. 15, p. 177.
Il6 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
family, wealth and social attainments. It has been asserted, however, 1 that an examination of the legislation of this period will lead one to believe that there existed some jealousy of the negro, and a desire to infringe upon the acquired liberties of the free negro. Let us consider the truth of this proposition.
Legislation from IJOO to IJ$5- ^n I7O42 on account of thefts committed after nightfall, negroes were forbidden to be abroad after nine o'clock, on penalty of whipping. No housekeeper was to be allowed to entertain them after this time, on penalty of five shillings fine. An act of I7o83 in- creased this fine to ten shillings. In 1714,* slaves having run away under pretense of being sent by their masters and hav- ing on this account been carried out of the colony and often lost to their masters, it was enacted that no person should transport any slave over a ferry or out of the colony without a certificate from the master, on penalty of twenty shillings fine ; that all ministers of justice and others should aid in arresting and returning all slaves seeking to escape in this manner. An act of 1718 6 provided that all slaves who should be found purloining or stealing should be tried and punished by a court consisting of two or more justices of the peace or town officers of the town where the offence was committed, instead of in the general courts of trial and gaol delivery as before. There was the right of appeal to the higher court only in case the owner of the slave should desire it and would give bond to prosecute the appeal. In 1743,° there was an Act "for the more effect- ual punishment of negroes that shall attempt to commit rape on any white woman." In March, 1 750-1, 7 an Act was passed, supplementary to the acts of 1704 and 1708, "to prevent all persons Keeping house within this colony, from entertaining Indian, Negro or Mulatto servants or slaves : "
1 Williams, " History of the Negro Race in America," I., 264.
2 R. I. Laws, 1730, p. 50.
3 "R. I. Colonial Records," IV., 50.
4 R. I. Laws, 1730, p. 72. 6 R. I. Laws, 1719, p. 101. 6R. I. Laws, 1745, p. 263.
' R. I. Laws, 1752, pp. 92-3.
SLAVERY IN RHODE ISLAND. 117
" Whereas great disorders and Burglaries are oftentimes raised and committed by Negroes, Indians and other impudent Persons, entertaining such Indian, Negro and Mulatto serv- ants and slaves, and selling them strong Liquors and receiving and bargaining with them ; by Means whereof such servants and slaves are induced and tempted to pilfer and steal from their Masters and Mistresses, to the utter Ruin of such Serv- ants, and to the great Injury of the Public," it is therefore enacted, that no one shall sell liquor to any Indian, mulatto, or negro servant or slave, under penalty of a fine of thirty pounds, one-half to the informer ; no householder shall enter- tain any such without the owner's consent, nor furnish op- portunities for dancing or gaming, under penalty of fine or imprisonment ; transgressors (if not whites) shall have their housekeeping broken up and be set to work for the town ; colored servants or slaves abroad after nine o'clock shall be apprehended and, in the morning, whipped, unless the owner will pay ten pounds ; trading with slaves was also forbidden.
Character of this Legislation. None of these laws, I think, indicate that the negro was treated with particular severity.1 The attempt was made to prevent the numerous thefts which were committed by slaves, though seemingly with little success. A law was also passed to prevent the escape of slaves from their masters, but this, it must be remembered, was as much in the interest of the public as of the master. A poor stranger was always liable to become a charge upon the town, and it was therefore by no means an uncommon thing to return a poor white person to his or her place of le- gal residence. By this law for the return of fugitive slaves, therefore, no peculiar discrimination was made against the slave or against the negro. It is true these laws, unlike the laws of 1652 and 1675-6, do not prohibit slavery but are per- missive and regulative. The interests of the owner of land and of slaves had become important since the opening of the
1 Slaves were never subjected to severer punishments than whites for the same offences, as has been the case in some states ; and they enjoyed the protection of the laws for offences against their persons equally with the whites. — E. R. Potter, Report to R. I. Legislature, 1840.
Il8 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
century, and were now deemed worthy of consideration. The laws of 1652 and 1675-6, as has been said, were the ex- pression of the northern and democratic part of the colony ; the slave laws of the eighteenth century, on the other hand, were the expression of the wealthier southern counties, and were based not on grounds of principle but on grounds of interest and expediency. This change was occasioned by the growth of the Narragansett Plantations, and the increase in maritime trade, which centered in Newport. These laws, however, were not cruel ; they simply expressed what were commonly recognized as the rights of the master over the slave. As Williams says,1 negro slaves were ratable at law as chattel property, and could be taken in execution to satisfy debts as other personal property. He cites this instance : —
"In October, 1743, Comfort Taylor of Bristol sued and ob- tained judgment against a negro named Cuff Borden for two hundred pounds and cost of suit for a grievous trespass. Cuff was a slave. An ordinary execution would have gone against his person ; he would have been imprisoned and nothing more. In view of this condition of affairs Mrs. Taylor peti- tioned the General Assembly praying that authority be granted the sheriff to sell Cuff as other property to satisfy the judg- ment. The Assembly granted her prayer as follows :' upon consideration whereof, it is voted and resolved, that the sher- iff of the said county of Newport, when he shall receive the execution against the said negro Cuff, be, and is hereby fully empowered to sell said negro Cuff as other personal estate ; and after the fine of twenty pounds be paid into the gen- eral treasury, and all other charges deducted out of the price of said negro, the remainder to be appropriated in sat- isfying said execution.' " 2
This procedure was not, however, peculiar to the legal treat- ment of negroes. It was not a rare occurrence to sell poor white debtors in similar cases. For example, Julian Wei- ford and Christina Renshen, two women convicted of theft in Newport, not having an estate, were sold to pay the costs,
1 " History of the Negro Race in America, " II., 278. 2"R. I. Colonial Records," V., 72-3.
SLAVERY IN RHODE ISLAND. 119
" but they scarcely sold for enough to pay the person who whipped them." l
White Slave and Black Slave. This was the legal status of the servant or slave, black or white, in 1755, as nearly as we can determine. The essential difference between the white slave and the black was that there was usually a limit to the white man's servitude, and his children were not sub- ject to the same condition of servitude. The reason for this lies in the cause of the servitude in each case. In the case of the white, this was debt or crime for which the penalty was transportation with service. In the case of the negro and In- dian, this cause was a one-sided war, with ensuing captivity and servitude for the weaker race. With none of the same race or family to care for his interests, there would necessa- rily not result in the condition of the negro or Indian slave, the same modifications as in the condition of the white slave. Accordingly while we find the treatment of all classes of slaves to be practically the same, public opinion among the colonists, and first of all among Englishmen in the old coun- try, did not go so far as to allow condemnation of their fel. low-countrymen to life-long servitude save rarely, and so far as I know rarely allowed the enslavement of children on ac- count of the enslavement of a parent, at least when one par- ent was left to support the children.
II. THE CHURCH AND THE SLAVE.
The Activity and Teaching of the Church of England.. We will now examine into the relations of the slave with the church, for these even more than his legal status deter- mined his future social position, and a clear understanding of these relations is necessary to a complete comprehension of the social position of the slave in 1755, and the movement of the following years which ended in the abolition of the slave trade and the emancipation of the slave.
In 1730 Mr. Usher, missionary at Bristol, wrote the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts : " I have
1 " Newport Mercury," 1761.
I2O RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
had sundry negroes -make application for baptism that were able to render a very good account of the hope that was in them, and their practices were generally agreeable to the principles of the Christian religion. But I am not permitted to comply with their request and my own duty, being forbid by their masters."1 In 1740 one negro is reported as bap- tised. In 1746 thirty negroes and Indians are reported as belonging to the congregation, but complaint is still made of opposition from masters to the baptism of their slaves. 2 Masters felt that baptism was inconsistent with a state of slavery, and therefore made strenuous opposition to the bap- tism of their slaves, not only here but elsewhere.
Dean Berkeley wrote in 1731 with reference to the negro slaves,3 "The religion of these people, as is natural to sup- pose, takes after that of their masters ; some few are bap- tised, several frequent the different assemblies, and far the greater part none at all."
Mr. McSparran, missionary in Narragansett, in 1741, re- ports that he has begun the catechetical lecture for the negroes, and spends one hour immediately preceding divine service in catechising and instructing these poor wretches, who for the most part are extremely ignorant ; and whether from the novelty of the thing, or as he hopes from a better motive, more than fifty slaves give their attendance. His journal contains this entry under date of August 2, 1741 : " Dr. McSparran catechised the negroes, and there were pres- ent on that occasion at church, near about or more than one hundred." In 1743 Mr. Honeyman at Newport reported "an hundred negroes who constantly attend the public worship of God."4
The Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts, already referred to, though owning a plantation in the Barbadoes and being " under the necessity of purchasing fresh hands from time to time to keep up the stock," early began to take an interest in the religious instruction of the negroes,
1 Updike, 454.
- Updike, 459, 463.
3 Updike, 177.
4 Updike, 460, 1 68, 461.
SLAVERY IN RHODE ISLAND. 121
and when they could not send special catechists wrote to their missionaries "to use their best endeavors at proper times to instruct the negroes," and " to recommend it zeal- ously to their masters to order their slaves at convenient times to come to them that they might be instructed." 1 In "an address to masters and mistresses of families in the En- glish Plantations abroad," issued by this society, we find the following : " Let me beseech you to consider them not merely as slaves, and upon the same level with laboring beasts, but as men slaves and women slaves, who have the same frame and faculties with yourselves, and have souls capable of being made happy, and reason and understanding to receive instruc- tion in order to it."
The influence of such publications was undoubtedly great in mitigating the severity of slavery, especially among Church- men in the colonies. It was through such publications and through its missionaries that the English church materially modified the relations of master and slave.
The Attitude of the Quakers Toward Slavery. The sec- ond ecclesiastical force operative at this time was the So- ciety of Friends. They were the first, so far as we can learn, to put forth an organized effort against slavery. In 1717 the Friends' Yearly Meeting Record says : " The subject of slaves considered and advice given that letters be written to the Islands and elsewhere not to send any more slaves to be sold by any Friend." In 1727 the practice of importing negroes was censured ; and by the middle of the eighteenth century the emancipation of slaves had gradually become a matter of action by the whole Quaker body. " Similar attempts in other sects were rather the acts of individuals." z Yet slavery was still permitted by the Friends as by other religious bodies, and by the State. This marks the difference between the middle and the end of the century.
Influence of the Chtirch upon the Status of the Slave. Slavery in 1755 was among many recognized as an evil,
1 Humphrey's History of the Society.
2 Von Hoist, " History of the United States," I., 279.
122 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
yet it was permitted ; toward the close of the century it was felt as an evil and was prohibited. In 1755 the slave in his relation with his master was treated under law as chattel property. He could be bought and sold, punished or emanci- pated at the will of his master so long as this did not inter- fere with the interests of the colony. Yet in his relations with the State, on the other hand, the slave was more than chattel property, for he could be arrested, tried and punished according to the ordinary procedure unless the master inter- fered, and the master could be prevented from manumitting a slave where the slave would be liable to become a charge upon the community. These relations to the State, and espe- cially the relations to the master, were modified, we have seen, by the teaching and activity of the church. The church, perhaps more than any other one thing, determined the status of the slave in 1755, economic causes more than any other determined the extent of slavery at this time.
III. THE SLAVE TRADE AND THE EXTENT OF SLAVERY.
The Growth of the -Slave Trade. It is necessary for us next to ascertain the extent of slavery in Rhode Island in 1755, and first to consider the development of the slave trade, which determined largely the extent of slavery.
In the earlier history of the colony there was a demand for labor which could be met only by the immigration of free labor, or the importation of slave labor. England encouraged it because it was more profitable to her commerce, and ex- pressed herself as anxious "for the well supplying of the plantations and colonies with sufficient numbers of negroes at reasonable prices." * The colony engaged in it, on the other hand, because her merchants also found it profitable for them. They could get molasses in the West Indies, convert it into rum in their Rhode Island distilleries, exchange the rum in
1 "The assiento, a contract with the old French Guinea Company for furnishing Spanish America with negro slaves, was conveyed to the En- glish by the treaty of Utrecht (1713) and assigned to the South Sea Com- pany, who thereby agreed to land 4,800 slaves annually for thirty years in the new world." Arnold, History of Rhode Island, //., 48.
SLAVERY IN RHODE ISLAND. 123
Guinea for slaves and gold-dust, trade some of their slaves for more molasses again, and make after all a very handsome profit. For these reasons the slave trade in Rhode Island grew rapidly during the early years of the eighteenth century. Previous to this " Barbadoes was the source whence Rhode Island received most of her slaves. From twenty to thirty was the average annual supply, and from thirty to forty pounds each the usual price. No more than these could be disposed of, owing to the general dislike our planters have for them, by reason of their turbulent and unruly tempers, to the natural increase of those already here, and to the inclina- tion of our people in general to employ white servants before negroes." 1 In 1708 Governor Cranston said that from 1698 to December 25, 1707, no negroes were imported into Rhode Island from Africa. That same year, however, the colony laid an import tax of three pounds on each negro imported, 2 and other acts followed which showed that the trade with Africa direct, or by way of the West Indies, was by this time well established. February 27, 1712, because the tax imposed in 1708 had been evaded, "for preventing clandestine impor- tations and exportations of passengers, or negroes, or Indian slaves into or out of this colony," an act was passed providing that masters of vessels should specify the number, sex and names of the slaves in their cargo, and the persons to whom they were consigned.3 July, 1715, an act was passed to pro- hibit the importation of Indian slaves, because " divers con- spiracies, insurrections, rapes, thefts, and other execrable crimes have been lately perpetrated in this and the adjoining governments by Indian slaves, and the increase of them in this colony daily discourages the importing of white servants from Great Britain."4 Another act similar to the act of 1712 was also passed, regulating further the importation of negro slaves. This provided that persons importing slaves " shall enter their number, names and sex in the naval office," and
1 Arnold, " History of the State of Rhode Island," II., 32, quoting " R. I. Colonial Records," IV., 54.
2 " R. I. Colonial Records," IV., 34. 3R. I. Laws, 1730, p. 64.
4 R. I. Laws, 1730, p. 82.
124 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
shall pay to the naval officer a tax of three pounds per head. This act applied to persons also, bringing negroes from ad- joining provinces, excepting travelers who did not remain in the colony more than six months, and excepting slaves im- ported directly from Africa. It directed a portion of the income from this tax to be expended for repairs on the streets of Newport. An act of 1717 l ordered one hundred pounds more to be paid out of the impost duty fund for paving New- port streets. An act of June, 1729,2 ordered that half of the income from this duty be applied to street improvements in Newport, and half to the building and repair of "great bridges on the main." The impost law of 1712 was repealed in May, 1732, by order of the king.3 It had been an important source of revenue to the colony, but its effect had been to restrict the slave trade to some extent, and so to injure the English interests. It was for this reason that it was repealed. The result of the repeal seems to have been favorable. Governor Hopkins stated 4 " that for more than thirty years prior to 1764 Rhode Island sent to the coast annually eighteen vessels carrying 1,800 hhds. of rum. The commerce in rum and slaves afforded about ,£40,000 per annum for remittance from Rhode Island to Great Britain." As the trade grew Newport became more and more the central market. Captain Isaac Freeman, with a coasting sloop, in 1752, wanted a cargo of men and molasses from Newport within five weeks. His correspondent wrote that the quantity could not be had in three months. "There are so many vessels lading for Guinea we can't get one hogshead of rum for the cash." 5 It is prob- able that the trade in Rhode Island was much more exten- sive than in the other New England colonies. Dr. John Eliot says : " The African trade was carried on in Massachusetts and commenced at an early period, but to a small extent com- pared with Rhode Island." Samuel Dexter says : "Vessels from Rhode Island have brought slaves into Boston. Whether
1UR. I. Colonial Records," IV., 225.
2 R. I. Laws, 1730, p. 183.
3" R. I. Colonial Records," IV., 471.
4 " R. I. Colonial Records," VI., 380.
6 "American Historical Record," I., 316; Geo. C. Mason.
SLAVERY IN RHODE ISLAND. 125
any have been imported into that town by its own merchants I am unable to say." In the latter half of the century Rhode Island still maintained this pre-eminence, and its chief mart, Newport. During this period Bristol also became noted as a slave port, and Captain Simeon Potter, one of her famous slave traders, flourished about 1764; but before this, by 1755, the trade to Rhode Island had begun to fail.
Reasons for the Decline of the Slave Trade. The decline of the slave trade and of slavery as an institution in Rhode Island in consequence, is due to both moral and economic causes. Some historians assert that slavery was wrong and therefore fell ; others that it fell because it was unprofit- able. In Rhode Island it fell both because it was wrong and because it was unprofitable ; public sentiment, usually expressed in religious terms among the colonists, pronounced it wrong ; public, and often individual action in this matter, was based on grounds of expediency, profit and loss. The motive of their procedure was moral, the method of their pro- cedure was calculative and utilitarian.
The strongest moral force antagonistic to slavery was that presented by the faith and conduct of the Quakers, who for half a century dominated in the politics of the colony, and exerted a stronger influence upon the thought and activity of the colony than any other sect. It may, indeed, be ques- tioned whether the high moral spirit and endeavor of Roger Williams would not have been without conspicuous results had he not been followed by this Quaker succession. An- other strong moral force at work against slavery was that of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts. The activity of this society in the colony, already de- scribed, and the reading of the annual sermons delivered be- fore the society, a kind of literature at that time most influ- ential, did much to modify the relations of master and slave, and finally to do away with the system of slavery altogether.
The physical and economic reasons for the decay of slavery in Rhode Island are more important. " The climate was too harsh, the social system too simple to engender a good eco- nomic employment of black labor. The simple industrial
126 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
methods of each New England homestead * * * made a natural barrier against an alien social system including either black or copper-colored dependents. The blacks soon dwindled in numbers, or dropped out from a life too severe for any but the hardiest and firmest-fibred races." 1 Added to these were two other, distinctly economic, causes : first, the diminished demand because of the multiplication of labor- ing white people, and second, the diminished supply and the increasing difficulty in getting slaves, especially good ones. Captain David Lindsay writes from Anamaboe in 1753 : " The Traid is so dull it is actuly a noof to make a man Creasy. * * * I never had so much Trouble in all my Voiges."2 Increased competition also acted with the diminished supply and demand to make the risks in the trade greater and the profits consequently less.
Extent and Distribution of Slavery. These changes in the slave market determined the extent of slavery in Rhode Island from time to time.
The following is a table of the population of Rhode Island at different dates :
White Negroes,
population, slave and free.
1708 7,i8i 425
1730 17,935 1,648
1749 32,773 3,°77
1756 35,939 4,697
I774-- 59,707 3,668
Two explanations of this table are necessary. The census of 1730 did not include the towns east of the Bay, which were not added to the colony until 1746. This will account for a part of the increase of negroes appearing in 1748. Beside this, about 1730-48 Rhode Island merchants had traded largely to the West Indies, bringing back negroes as a part of their cargoes, and in 1732 the impost tax had been re- pealed. The falling off in the increase of negro population
1 Wm. B. Weeden, " Economic and Social History of New England," P- 45i- 2 "American Historical Record," I., 339.
SLAVERY IN RHODE ISLAND. 127
in the period between 1748 and 1756 is due to the fact that negroes, who made excellent seamen, were often induced by the masters of vessels to run away and go to sea. Allowing for these facts, an examination of the table shows that the negro population increased somewhat more rapidly than the white population during the first half of the eighteenth century.
How then was this negro population distributed ? " Of the negroes and slaves in Rhode Island," says Potter,1 "the greater part were in a very few towns, Newport, North and South Kingstown, Warwick, Bristol, Portsmouth and James- town. By the census of 1748-9 the town of South Kingstown had more negroes in it than any other town except New- port. This is also true of the census of 1774 and 1783." In 1774, out of a population of 3,668 negroes, Newport had 1,246, South Kingstown 440, Providence 303, North Kings- town 211, Jamestown 131, Portsmouth 122, and Bristol 114. Earlier than this " King's county (now Washington), which contained one-third of the population of the State, numbered more than a thousand slaves. The census of 1730 gives a less number, but it was popular to conceal numbers from the observation of the home government. Families would aver- age from five to forty slaves each. They owned slaves in proportion to their means of support. The slaves and horses were about equal in number ; the latter were raised for ex- portation. Newport was the great slave market of New England. There were some importers of slaves in Narra- gansett ; among them were Rowland Robinson and Colonel Thomas Hazard."2 In Newport there were twenty-two still- houses. "The large exportation of New England rum to Africa, which in return brought slaves, increased the wealth of the place to an astonishing degree. There were but few of her merchants that were not directly or indirectly inter- ested in the traffic. Some forty or fifty sail of vessels were in this employment, and it was thought a necessary append- age to have one or more slaves to act as domestics in their
1 Report to R. I. Legislature, Jan., 1840.
2E. R. Potter, Report to R. I. Legislature, Jan., 1840.
128 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
families." l Newport was then the centre of the trade, while the Narragansett Plantations were the stronghold of the institution of slavery.
We have now given the nature and extent of slavery in Rhode Island in 1755, as determined by preceding thought and legislation, by existing institutions, and by the develop- ment of the slave trade. This discussion has been necessary to a clear understanding of the subsequent history of slavery in the colony. In fact, because of the paucity of material, this is not only a wise but the only possible presentation of the conditions of slavery in Rhode Island in 1755, for of legal records, public documents, literary remains, or private mem- oranda or correspondence for the year 1755, defining the nature and extent of slavery in the colony, there may be said to be nothing. We have next to consider how these condi- tions were modified by the different forces and institutions in the few years preceding the Revolution.
1 Peterson, " History of Rhode Island," p. 104.
SLAVERY IN RHODE ISLAND. 1 29
PART II.
SLAVERY BETWEEN 1755 AND 1776.
I. SLAVE LEGISLATION.
Laws, IJ55-IJJ4. As has been said, negroes made excel- lent seamen, and were often induced to go to sea on privateers and merchant vessels, without consent of their owners. To prevent this an act was passed in 1757 1 which provided that commanders of privateers or masters of any other vessels, carrying slaves out of the Colony without consent of their masters, should be fined twenty-six pounds ; owners of slaves carried off to recover double damages where the master of a vessel shall be deemed to have knowledge of a slave's being carried off ; masters of vessels resisting search to be judged knowing of such carrying off. In 1765 another act was passed regulating the manumission and freeing of negro and mulatto slaves. This act provided that the slave freed should pro- cure sufficient security to indemnify the town from charge. 2 In 1770 an act was passed " for breaking up disorderly Houses Kept by free Negroes and Mulattoes, and for putting out such Negroes and Mulattoes to Service." After repeating the provisions of the act of 1751, for "breaking up from housekeeping " any free negro or mulatto who shall keep a disorderly house, "or entertain any Slave or Slaves at unrea- sonable Hours or in an extravagant Manner," the statute proceeds :
"And if such free Negroes or Mulattoes have been Slaves, and manumitted by their Masters, the respective Town- Councils are hereby empowered (if they shall think proper) to put out, and bind them as Servants for a Term of Time not exceeding Four Years, upon such Conditions as they shall think most for the Interest of the Town : And to commit
1M R. I. Colonial Records," VI., 64-5. 2 R. I. Laws, 1767, p. 234.
I3O RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
them to the Work-House until suitable Places can be had for them," and " that the Wages of every free Negro or Mulatto, so bound out, which shall remain after the Expiration of his Servitude, and which shall not have been expended in main- taining him and his Family, be paid to such Servant, unless the Town-Council shall think it most for the Interest of the Town and of such Servant, to reserve the same for the Main- tenance of himself and his Family." 1
September 10, 1770, the laws for restraining Indian and colored servants, and regulating the manumission of slaves in Newport, were revised. Those found abroad after nine o'clock at night were to be confined in a cage, instead of the jail, till morning, and then to be whipped with ten stripes, unless redeemed for a small sum by their masters. In cases of manumission the owner was to give proper security that the subject would not become a public charge, and the free papers were to be recorded. Suitable penalties were imposed for violation of this law, and a failure to conform thereto in- validated an act of manumission.2 The statute applied only to Newport, where, however, the greater portion of the slaves in the colony were held. A bill was also ordered to be prepared, to prevent the further importation of slaves into Rhode Island, but no action was had upon it at present. 3
The Law of IJJ4 ; Origin. In June, 1774, the most im- portant act* yet proposed was introduced into the Rhode Island legislature and passed. It read as follows :
" Whereas the inhabitants of America, are generally engaged in the preservation of their own rights and liberties, among which that of personal freedom must be considered as the greatest, and as those who are desirous of enjoying all the advantages of liberty themselves should be willing to extend personal liberty to others," etc., it is enacted that all slaves thereafter brought into the State shall be free, except slaves of persons traveling through the colony, or persons coming
1 R. I. Laws, 1772, pp. 24, 25.
2 Laws of 1772, pp. 34, 37.
8 Arnold, II., 304.
* " R. I. Colonial Records," VII., 251-2.
SLAVERY IN RHODE ISLAND. 131
from other colonies to reside, and that citizens of Rhode Island owning slaves shall be forbidden to bring any slaves into the colony, except they give bond to carry them out again in a year.
As we have seen, in 1770, a bill had been ordered to be pre- pared to prevent the further importation of slaves into Rhode Island, but nothing further had been done. Meanwhile, in 1772, the Sommersett decision had been given in England. l "The effect of this decision upon the colonies," says Arnold, 2 " was to confirm the views already expressed by many writ- ers, to stimulate legislation against the system, and to hasten the emancipation of slaves in New England."
At the Providence town meeting, May 17, 1774, Jacob Schoemaker having died intestate, and having left six negroes upon the town, it was voted " that it is unbecoming the char- acter of freemen to enslave the said negroes ; and they do hereby give up all claim of right or property in them, the said negroes, or either of them, and it is hereby recommended to the town council to take the said negroes under their protec- tion, and to bind the small children to some proper masters or mistresses, and in case they should not be personal estate of the said Jacob Schoemaker, sufficient to pay his just debts, it is further recommended to said council to bind out either or both of the adult negroes for that purpose," and " Whereas, the inhabitants of America are engaged in the preservation of their rights and liberties ; and as personal liberty is an essen- tial part of the rights of mankind, the deputies of the town are directed to use their endeavors to obtain an act of the General Assembly, prohibiting the importation of negro slaves
1 In this case Lord Mansfield decided that the slave Sommersett must be discharged because there was no positive law sanctioning the institution of slavery in England.
" The importance of the case for the colonies lay not in the assertion of the principle that slavery depended on positive law, for the American statute books were full of positive law on slavery ; the precedent thus es- tablished determined the future course of England against the delivery of fugitives, whether from her colonies or from other countries." Marion McDougall, " Fugitive Slaves" p. /.?.
2 History of Rhode Island," II., 321-2.
132 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
into this colony ; and that all negroes born in the colony should be free, after attaining to a certain age."
Of the town deputies Stephen Hopkins was one, and to him has been given the credit for the passage of the subse- quent act in the legislature. Mr. Sidney Rider says : on this point, " There is nothing contained in the town records to show that Mr. Hopkins was present at the meeting, nor can we find anything to connect him with the passage of the pre- amble or with the law itself ; nevertheless the style is very like his style, and the mode of reasoning is his favorite mode. He may have written it." Mr. Foster says2 that "at the direct instance of Stephen Hopkins (himself for many years an owner of slaves, though a most humane master), the Gen- eral Assembly ordained " that slaves thereafter brought into the colony should be free ; * * " The letter of Moses Brown to Robert Wain distinctly states that 'Governor Hopkins was a member of the Assembly from Providence, and was the person who dictated to me the following pream- ble to the act.' " It is probable that Hopkins was an active factor in the formulation, the introduction and the passage of the act. The fact, however, that strong pressure had been brought to bear upon him by the Society of Friends to set at liberty one of his own slaves, that he did not accede to this demand, that subsequent efforts, continued from month to month, appear to have been equally unavailing, that he was finally dropped from membership in the society, and that he did not emancipate his slave until his will in 1781 ; these facts, I say, together with our knowledge of the state of the public mind at the time, and the restless activities of Moses Brown, lead me to believe that Hopkins was not the most active factor, but that the individual who did most for the passage of the act was Moses Brown. But while Moses Brown, with the assistance of Stephen Hopkins, formulated the measure, the immediate reason for its formulation and introduction was the action of the Providence town meeting, and the reason for the passage of the measure lay in the state of public opinion at the'time regarding slavery. Now, as in 1652, we see that
1 " R. I. Historical Tracts," No. 9, p. xix.
2 " R. I. Historical Tracts," No. 19, pp. 99, 249.
SLAVERY IN RHODE ISLAND. 133
it was in the northern and more democratic part of the colony that the anti-slavery sentiment was most developed, and ex- ercised the strongest influence upon legislation, first in re- gard to the slave trade, and afterwards in regard to the insti- tution of slavery itself. Neither to any one individual nor to the colony as a whole is due this act against the importation of slaves, but largely to the economic and moral conditions of the northern half of the colony.
November, 1775, a bill for emancipation was introduced into the legislature. The abolition of the slave trade had been accomplished more than a year before. It was now pro- posed to terminate the system of chattel slavery by declaring free "all negroes as well as other persons hereafter born within this colony," and to provide for the liberation of exist- ing slaves at the will of the owners by proper regulations. This bill was referred to the next session of the legislature, and it was voted " that in the meantime a copy thereof be published in the Newport and Providence newspapers, and that the deputies of each town in the colony lay the same be- fore their constituents in town meeting, and obtain their opinions thereon and present the same to the General Assem- bly, at their next session." In accordance with these instruc- tions the Smithfield deputies were ordered by their constitu- ents to make the bill a law. In this same year the amount necessary as security in case of manumission was made one thousand pounds. This change was probably necessary on account of the depreciation of currency.
Character of Slave Legislation. Slave legislation in Rhode Island may be divided into three classes. The first was char- acteristically in the interest of the master. Laws were made to prevent slaves escaping from masters, and to prevent their being absconded by masters of vessels. The second class was in the interest of the colony. Negroes were forbidden to be abroad after nine o'clock at night, security was to be given for negroes upon their being freed, strong liquors were not to be sold to them, disorderly houses kept by negroes were to be broken up, and a revenue was to be derived from the im- portation of slaves. The third class of legislation was that
134 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
enacted in the interests of the slave himself. This consisted of laws regulating and then abolishing the importation of slaves, and laws restricting or prohibiting the holding of slaves. Legislation of the first kind continued until active legislation began against slaveholding. The first and third forms of legislation are accordingly distinct in time, though they are not as distinct in time as they are in form, for even before- it was thought necessary to legislate in the interest of the master, two laws had been placed on the statute books in the interests of the slave, namely the laws of 1652 and 1675-6. This fact leads me to believe that the interests of the owner of slaves were never considered of paramount importance ex- cept where they were one with the interests of the colony itself. The number of owners of slaves was comparatively so small, moreover, that, although their social influence was great, it could not be expected that legislation would be di- rected by them, and in their interests alone. The interests of the slave importer and those of the colony were, perhaps, even less nearly allied. Slavery was the life of trade, but it was not therefore necessary that slaves should be brought to Rhode Island, it was argued. So the law of 1774 must be considered not so much a blow at slave trade as a blow at the ownership of slaves in Rhode Island. The slave trade carried on by Rhode Island vessels flourished many years after this date, and slavery itself flourished for a time, but such limita- tions were already placed upon it as insured its final extinc- tion. There was no emancipation proclamation, there were no distinct slavery and anti-slavery parties, but there were other anti-slavery conditions, economic, social and moral, which made the abolition of slavery in the course of events an absolute necessity.
II. SOCIAL LIFE OF THE SLAVES.
The Sale of Slaves. The social life of the slave in Rhode Island was similar to that of a servant in an old English family of that period. Our knowledge of the slave's social position and social attainments is derived largely from news- paper advertisements of the time, and from family records.
SLAVERY IN RHODE ISLAND. 135
Upon the arrival of a cargo of slaves they were put up at auction by the master of the vessel, or by some merchant of the town. These auction sales were held at the old inns. October 14, 1766, a negro was advertised for sale by auction, at the Crown Coffee House opposite to the Court-House in Providence.1 In the case of private sales of slaves the printer often acted as broker. For example, an advertisement in the Providence Gazette, March 4, 1775, reads, somewhat face- tiously, " to be sold, a young negro girl born in this town, about 1 6 years of age, very active, strong and healthy. Would do exceedingly well on a farm, is good natured, has other good qualities, and like the rest of the world has some bad ones, though none very criminal."
Social Attainments. Some of these advertisements indi- cate considerable ability in the slaves, especially the adver- tisements for runaway slaves. These advertisements were often headed by the rude cut of a black man, hatless and with frizzled head, running. One advertisement in the Newport Mercury, November 3, 1761, speaks of an escaped negro who speaks good English, and is " very artful and insinuating." Others maybe mentioned: July 9, 1763, "ran away Sarah Hammet, a lusty mulatto slave, about thirty eight, wore a dark colored camblet short wrapper, old grey petticoat very much patched, brown camblet bonnet, is polite, ingenious at drawing, embroidering, and almost any kind of curious needle- work." October 16, 1773, "ran away Caesar * * plays well on the violin."
Newport Gardner was one of the most celebrated negro characters of this time. "In his person he was tall and straight and well formed ; in his manners he was dignified and unassuming." He was a man, too, of superior powers of mind. "He taught himself to read after receiving a few lessons on the elements of written language. He taught himself to sing, after receiving a very trivial initiation into the rudiments of music. He became so well acquainted with the science and art of music that he composed a large number of tunes, and was for a long time the teacher of a very numer-
1 " R. I. Historical Tracts," No. 15, p. 207.
136 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
ously attended singing school in Newport." 1 He could also write, cipher, and speak French. His one failing in common with many other negroes was a love for drink.
Knowledge of Trades. In the trades many acquired some proficiency. The Newport Mercury, April 27, 1772, advertises a negro blacksmith who makes anchors ; May 13, 1775, a negro who has worked in a rope-walk and spins a good thread. The Providence Gazette, July 28, 1770, advertises as missing " Quam, aged thirty, by trade a cooper, strayed probably in a delirious condition, is of a serious thoughtful turn of mind, and inclined to talk but little." November 7, 1775, "ran away, Guinea, a clothier by trade, sometimes pedlar of choco- lat, gingerbread, Indico and sieve buttons." Advertisements often recommend servants as capable of either town or coun- try service. Advertised wants indicate to some extent the demand. Mercury, February 15, 1773, "wanted two negro boys from twelve to seventeen for gentlemen in towns ; " August 7, 1773, wanted, negro from sixteen to twenty-five, " free from bad smell, strait limbed, active healthy, good tem- pered, honest, sober, quick at apprehension, and not used to run away." These advertisements do not indicate a demand for slaves in any particular locality, or for any particular pur- pose other than general service. The slaves received their industrial and social training in the home of their first master, and if they learned easily and were faithful, were seldom sold. This fact, together with the fact of the increasing competi- tion of free labor, shows why there were apparently so few slaves acquainted with the trades, and why in reality this number became less and less as the population of the colony increased.
Occupations. In the domestic work of the colonial house- hold the slave boys were given the errands and the light service about the house. Some of the families in Providence, for example, had rain-water cisterns for their chief supply of water, " but these were few, and it fell to the lot of the boys, some of whom were negroes, to go with two pails and a hoop
1 Ferguson's " Memoir of Hopkins," p. 90.
SLAVERY IN RHODE ISLAND. 137
across the bridge for a supply at the town pump." 1 Another common watering place was the Mooshassuc, which was the only accessible fresh stream. " The murmurs of ancient in- habitants against the brawls and disturbances of boys and negroes, who, morning and evening, congregated near the mill, with their masters' cattle, assure us that the early days of Providence had a delightful experience of patriarchal man- ners. * * The annoyance had become so great that an act of the Assembly, 1681, was passed in order to give some check to the disturbances. By a communication in the Gazette, March 30, 1765, however, it appears that the nuisance was still unabated. The boys and negroes still disturbed the quiet of the Town street by ' riding in droves ' to Mill River (the Mooshassuc), every morning and evening, racing as they went, without hindrance from the constables of those days." 2 In the south country " every member of the family had his particular horse and servant, and they rarely rode unattended by their servant to open gates and to take charge of the horse."3 In Narragansett we find that Robert Hazard had twelve negro women as dairy women, each of whom had a girl to assist her. " Each dairy maid had the care of twelve cows, and they were expected to make from one to two dozen cheeses every day." 4 Slaves were sometimes hired out when there was nothing at home for them to do. Hezekiah Coffin writes to Moses Brown, October 29, 1763, "send us word by the first opportunity what the negroes wages was, that we may settle with his master."
Care for Slaves ; Amusements. The quarters of the slaves were in the garrets of the large old mansion houses and in the outhouses. They were generally comfortable, if we can judge anything from the scanty figures regarding mortality.5
The slaves were dressed very much as the circumstances
1 Stone, " Life of Rowland," p. 25. 2"R. I. Historical Tracts," No. 15, p. 57. 8 Charming, "Early Recollections of Newport," p. 91. 4 Higginson, " Larger History of the United States," p. 237. 6 Newport " Mercury," December 28, 1772, gives the mortality for New- port, 1760, whites 175, blacks 52 ; 1772, whites 205, blacks 51.
138 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
of their masters and the nature of their occupations would permit. Advertisements of runaway slaves gave descriptions of the clothing worn at the time as a means of identification. The Mercury, February 23, 1773, advertises a runaway negro man "Jack, wore striped flannel shirt, buckskin breeches, dark striped waistcoat, butternut barkcolored lappelled jacket, grey homemade bearskin great coat, new with large metal buttons, one pair of blue yarn stockings, one pair black ribbed worsted stockings, calfskin turned pumps, pinchbeck buckles, felt hat." Another runaway negro is described as having taken with him several articles of apparel so as not to be de- scribed by that. This was probably true of many who ran away. For this reason the description of the clothing worn by runaways cannot be relied upon as an exact account of the clothing generally worn by slaves.
The amusements of the slaves were like those of the English servants. The old corn-huskings of Narragansett were greatly enjoyed by the negroes. For these, invitations were sent out to all the friends in the neighborhood, and in return the invited guests sent their slaves to aid the host by their services. "After the repast the recreations of dancing commenced, as every family was provided with a large hall in their spacious mansions, and with natural musicians among their slaves. These seasons of hilarity and festivity — some- times continuing for days — were as gratifying to the slaves as to their masters, as bountiful preparations were made, and like amusements were enjoyed by them in the large kitchens and outhouses, the places of their residence." 1 Holidays were also observed by the negroes, often independently of master or mistress. " I remember," says Mr. Hazard, "when on the spacious kitchen being removed from the old John Robinson house, there were sixty ox-cart loads of beach sand taken from beneath the sleepers, which had been used to sand the floor, a large portion of which, no doubt, had been danced through the cracks by the jolly darkies of the olden time, who in some instances permitted their masters' families to be present at their Christmas and holiday pastimes as a matter of favor only." Often the distinctions between master and
1T. R. Hazard, " Recollections of Olden Times," p. 119.
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slave disappeared altogether. " The children of the two," says Mason,1 " grew up together. The ties thus formed were often stronger than life. The loss sustained by the master was felt by the slave, and the disappointment of the one was a matter of regret with the other. And frequently the slave, rather than see his master turned out of doors, placed at his disposal the little that he had saved of his earnings. The servant expected to work for his master as long as he was able, and when he grew old and infirm he relied on being cared for by some member of the family. In this he was rarely mistaken. Those persons who can call to mind the kitchens of a former generation will remember the old pen- sioners who gathered in them. * * The slaves took the names of their masters. When they were ill the family physician attended them. When the girl who first played with her young mistress and then became her maid, was about to be married, she had a becoming outfit, and the cler- gyman who united the daughter united the maid. And when at last death claimed a victim, black and white mingled their tears at the open grave." This care which masters had for their servants is indicated in a letter which Jabez Brown wrote to his brother Moses, September 21, 1770: "Your negro boy Pero was knocked down by a paving stone hitting him on the back part of the head. He was taken up for Dead. But by bleeding etc pretty soon came to. He seems very comfortable, this morning and am in Hopes he will get about in a few Days, the Affair was perpetrated by an Irish man a Hatter by Trade, he has Secreted himself for the Pres- ent. I shall endeavor to have him apprehended if possible."
Election Day. One of the most interesting social customs among the Rhode Island slaves was the observance of elec- tion day. " In imitation of the whites, the negroes held an annual election on the third Saturday in June, when they elected their governor. When the slaves were numerous each town held its own election. This annual festivity was looked for with great anxiety. Party was as violent and acrimonious with them as among the whites. The slaves assumed the
1 " Reminiscences of Newport," p. 106.
I4O RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
power and pride, and took the relative rank of their masters, and it was degrading to the reputation of the owner if his slave appeared in inferior apparel, or with less money than the slave of another master of equal wealth. The horses of the wealthy land-owners were on this day all surrendered to the use of the slaves, and with cues real or false, head poma- tumed or powdered, cocked hat, mounted on the best Narra- gansett pacers, sometimes with their masters' sword, with their ladies on pillions, they pranced to election, which com- menced generally at ten o'clock. The canvass for votes soon commenced, the tables with refreshments were spread, and all friends of the respective candidates were solicited to par- take, and as much anxiety and interest would manifest itself, and as much family pride and influence was exercised and interest created, as in other elections, and preceded by weeks Qi parmateering (parliamenteering). About one o'clock the vote would be taken, by ranging the friends of the respective candidates in two lines under the direction of a chief marshal, with assistants. This was generally a tumultuous crisis until the count commenced, when silence was proclaimed, and after that no man could change sides or go from one rank to the other. The chief marshal announced the number of votes for each candidate and in an audible voice proclaimed the name of the Governor elected for the ensuing year. The election treat corresponded in extravagance in proportion to the wealth of his master. The defeated candidate was, accord- ing to custom, introduced by the chief marshal, and drank the first toast after the inauguration, and all animosities were forgotten. At dinner the Governor was seated at the head of the long table under trees or an arbor, with the unsuccess- ful candidate at his right, and his lady on the left. The after- noon was spent in dancing, games of quoits, athletic exercises, etc. As the slaves decreased in number these elections be- came more concentrated. In 1795 elections were held in North and South Kingstown, and in a few years, one was held in South Kingstown only, and they have for years ceased." l
1 Updike, " History of the Narragansett Church," p. 177.
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Free Negroes. We have already spoken of the condition of the free negro during the first half of the century. In the latter half of the century the manumission of slaves was a far more common occurrence, and the number of free negroes was consequently much greater. The most conspicuous among these, beside Newport Gardner, was Emanuel, an emancipated slave of Gabriel Bernon. " Turning to account the hereditary talent of his race, he established in Providence the first oyster house of which there is any record. It was in the Town street, near the site of the Old Custom House of a later day. To satisfy the craving of a thirsty generation he provided twenty-three drinking glasses, four ' juggs,' twenty- eight glass bottles, two bowls, with pewter plates, spoons, and cooking apparatus in proportion. The knowledge which he had acquired during his former service, ensured his pros- perity. He was the first of a long line of such ministers to the public wants. Dying in 1769, he left a house and lot in Stampers street (where his wife carried on the trade of wash- ing), and personal estate valued at £539, los. His grave- stone in the North Burying ground is as substantial a memo- rial as those of most of the wealthier white men of his day." l
III. THE CHURCH AND THE SLAVE.
Changing Attitude Toward Slavery. During the years pre- ceding the Revolution the attitude of the church toward slavery changed materially. Negro slaves came to be re- garded less as heathen and subjects for missionary effort, and more as men, with rights to equal liberties with other men. On this point, the right of slavery, the position of the church became now more clearly defined. The Church of England, the Society of Friends, and Samuel Hopkins' church, were the ecclesiastical bodies most prominent in this movement. The position of the Church of England is best determined by an inspection of the annual sermons preached before the So- ciety for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts, and of the records of the same society.
1 " R. I. Historical Tracts," No. 15, p. 177.
142 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
Church of England ; Sermons. In 1755 Bishop Hayter preached the annual sermon. After showing that there could be no property in souls, he continued : " Let us administer to them the comfort of knowing, what good things God hath laid up in store for them if they act a right part, in that trying state of labor, in which God hath placed them under us. By thus alleviating their hard lot, and rendering it more easy and supportable to them we shall gain an advantage for ourselves, for it is the natural effect of such instruction to turn the eye- service of slaves into the conscientious diligence of servants. If we are not sufficiently actuated by the spirit of the gospel to be influenced by motives of humanity, let prudential rea- sons incline us to administer this Christian consolation to our fellow creatures, who are so strictly our property and so ab- solutely in our power that no one else can take upon him to help them without our leave and direction." In 1759 Bishop Ellis said : " The advantage of making good Christians even of the negro slaves, will also be very worthy of consideration. For in proportion as their obstinacy, sullenness, and eager- ness for revenge shall come to be abated and altered by reli- gion they will make better servants : And instead of need- ing to be always watched in order to prevent their doing mischief they may become guards and defenders of their masters, and there will be no longer any such revolts and in- surrections among them as have sometimes been detrimental, if not even dangerous, to several of the colonies." In 1766 Bishop Warburton said in the course of his sermon, " The cru- elty of certain planters, with respect to the temporal accom- modations of these poor wretches, and the irreligious negli- gence with regard to their spiritual, is become a general scandal." In 1769 Bishop Newton said : " As it is now gen- erally known and understood that Christianity maketh no alteration in men's civil rights and conditions, but every man is to abide in the same calling wherein he was called, whether to be bond or free, it is to be hoped that the proprietors and planters will be less jealous of their slaves being instructed in the true religion, which will soften and improve their manners, and make them subject not only for fear but for conscience sake, with good will doing service as to the
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Lord and not to men ; " still, he adds, slavery is to be much lamented.
Results. The results of this prudential reasoning upon the policy of the church in the colonies, and upon the attitude of masters toward their slaves are evident. The best illustra- tion, perhaps, of the effect on the policy of the church, is the well known anecdote of the good elder whose ventures had uniformly turned out well, and who always returned thanks on the Sunday following the arrival of a slaver in the harbor of Newport, " that an overruling Providence had been pleased to bring to this land of freedom another cargo of benighted heathen to enjoy the blessing of a gospel dispensation." * In very much the same spirit Dr. Waterhouse said : "To see the negro women in their black hoods and blue aprons, walking at a respectful distance behind their master, to meeting, was not an unpleasant sight on those days." Its effect on the re- lations of master and slave was similar. In the earlier years of the century, as we have seen, masters were opposed to the baptism and to the education of their slaves. This opposi- tion became less pronounced, in time, and less noticeable, and missionaries no longer made complaint of the masters. Still the number of slaves baptised did not increase percepti- bly. The records of St. John's Church, Providence, then King's Church, show that three slaves were baptised in 1758, three in 1759, one in 1760, two in 1762, one in 1764, two in 1765, one in 1766, and two in 1775. The reports of Trinity Church, Newport, show in 1763 one baptism, in 1765 one. In the latter year the total number of communicants was 120, seven of whom were blacks, " who," the report says, " behave in a manner truly exemplary and praiseworthy."
Education. Efforts made to educate the slaves were not more successful. In 1731 there had been a bequest of land and four hundred pounds to build a school-house in Newport. January 9, 1763, the Reverend Marmacluke Browne, rector of Trinity Church, wrote the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts, and said that at the instance of the
1G. C. Mason, in "American Historical Record," I., 312.
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associates of the late Dr. Bray, and with the hearty concur- rence of the society he had opened a school for the instruc- tion of negro children. This school, he said, was to consist of fifteen of each sex, was to be under his inspection, and would, he trusted, answer the intentions of the charitable persons concerned in it. August 3, 1772, the Newport Mer- cury gave notice of " a school opened by Mrs. Mary Brett, at her home, for the instruction of thirty negro children gratis, in reading, sewing, etc., agreeable to a benevolent institution of a company of gentlemen in London. N. B., satisfaction will be given to those who may send their young blacks." These three records are probably made respecting one institution, but whether they are or not, the fact that masters did little to encourage the education of their slaves cannot be doubted, especially in view of a subsequent item in the Mercury. This appeared March 29, 1773, and stated that on account of the difficulty in getting thirty negro children for the school, the project would be given up in six months if still unsuccessful.
Quakers. In contrast with the calculative philosophy which actuated the dominant thought, both economic and political and religious, of the time, stood the faith and activity of the Society of Friends. The Friends acted rather upon grounds of principle than for prudential reasons. They did not ques- tion so much as to whether slaves should be admitted to church membership and education, but fundamentally as to whether they should be free.
In 1729 the practice of importing negroes was censured. In 1758 a rule was adopted prohibiting Friends within the limits of the New England Yearly Meeting from engaging in or countenancing the foreign slave trade.1 In 1760 John Woolman visited the yearly meeting held in Newport. " He saw the horrible traffic in human beings, — the slave ships lying at the wharves of the town, — the sellers and buyers of men and women and children thronging the market place. The same abhorrent scenes which a few years after stirred the spirit of the excellent Hopkins to denounce the slave trade and slavery as hateful in the sight of God to his con-
1Whittier's introduction to John Woolman's "Journal," p. 9.
SLAVERY IN RHODE ISLAND. 145
gregation at Newport, were enacted in the full view and hearing of the annual convocation of Friends, many of whom were themselves partakers in the shame and wickedness." J "The great number of slaves in these parts," says Wool- man, "and the continuance of that trade from thence to Guinea, made a deep impression on me, and my cries were often put up to my Heavenly Father in secret, that he would enable me to discharge my duty faithfully in such way as he might be pleased to point out to me. * * * Under- standing that a large number of slaves had been imported from Africa into that town, and were then on sale by a mem- ber of our society, my appetite failed, and I grew outwardly weak and had a feeling of the condition of Habakkuk, as thus expressed : ' When I heard, my belly trembled, my lips quiv- ered, I trembled in myself, that I might rest in the day of trouble.' I had many cogitations and was sorely distressed. I was desirous that Friends might petition the Legislature to use their endeavors to discourage the future importation of slaves, for I saw that this trade was a great evil, and tended to multiply troubles, and to bring distresses on the people for whose welfare my heart was deeply concerned. But I per- ceived several difficulties in regard to petitioning, and such was the exercise of my mind that I thought of endeavoring to get an opportunity to speak a few words in the House of Assembly, then sitting in town. This exercise came upon me in the afternoon on the second day of the Yearly Meeting, and on going to bed I got no sleep till my mind was wholly resigned thereto. In the morning I inquired of a Friend how long the Assembly was likely to continue sitting, who told me it was expected to be prorogued that day or the next. As I was desirous to attend the business of the meeting, and perceived the Assembly was likely to separate before the business was over, after considerable exercise, humbly seeking to the Lord for instruction, my mind settled to attend on the business of the meeting ; on the last day of which I had pre- pared a short essay of a petition to be presented to the Leg- islature, if way opened. And being informed that there were some appointed by that Yearly Meeting to speak with
1 Whittier's introduction to John Woolman's " Journal," pp. 25, 26.
146 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
those in authority on cases relating to the Society, I opened my mind to several of them, and showed them the essay I had made, and afterwards I opened the case in the meeting for business, in substance as follows :
" ' I have been under a concern for some time on account of the great number of slaves which are imported into this colony. I am aware that it is a tender point to speak to, but apprehend I am not clear in the sight of Heaven without doing so. I have prepared an essay of a petition to be pre- sented to the Legislature, if way open ; and what I have to propose to this meeting is that some Friends may be named to withdraw and look over it, and report whether they believe it suitable to be read in the meeting. If they should think well of reading it, it will remain for the meeting to consider whether to take any further notice of it, as a meeting, or not.' After a short conference some Friends went out, and looking over it, expressed their willingness to have it read, which being done, many expressed their unity with the proposal, and some signified that to have the subjects of the petition enlarged upon, and signed out of meeting by such as were free, would be more suitable than to do it there." 1
Action by the Quakers ; Sentiment Against the Slave Trade. As a result of the words of Woolman, the London Epistle for 1758, condemning the unrighteous traffic in men, was read, and the substance of it embodied in the discipline of the meeting as follows : " We fervently warn all in profession with us that they be careful to avoid being any way concerned in reaping the unrighteous profits of that unrighteous practice of dealing in negroes and other slaves ; whereby in the orig- inal purchase one man selleth another as he does the beast that perishes, without any better pretension to a property in him than that of superior force, in direct violation of the gospel rule, which teaches every one to do as he would be done by, and to do good unto all ; being the reverse of that covetous disposition which furnishes encouragement to those poor, ignorant people to perpetuate their savage wars, in order to supply the demands of this most unnatural traffic, whereby
1 Woolman's "Journal," pp. 162-5.
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great numbers of mankind, free by nature, are subjected to inextricable bondage, and which hath often been observed to fill their possessors with haughtiness and tyranny, luxury and barbarity, corrupting the minds and debasing the morals of their children, to the unspeakable prejudice of religion and virtue and the exclusion of that holy spirit of universal love, meekness, and charity, which is the unchangeable nature and the glory of true Christianity. We therefore can do no less than with the greatest earnestness impress it upon Friends everywhere that they endeavor to keep their hands clear of this unrighteous gain of oppression. * * It is also re- commended to Friends who have slaves in possession to treat them with tenderness, impress God's fear on their minds, promote their attending places of religious worship and give those that are young at least so much learning that they may be capable of reading."
The following query was adopted in agreement with the foregoing, to be answered by the subordinate meetings : "Are Friends clear of importing negroes, or buying them when im- ported ; and do they use those well, where they are possessed by inheritance or otherwise, endeavoring to train them up in principles of religion ? "
At the close of the yearly meeting John Woolman called together some of the leading members about Newport who held slaves. "About the eighth hour the next morning," says he, "we met in the meeting-house chamber, the last mentioned country Friend, my companion, and John Storer, 1 being with us. After a short time of retirement, I acquainted them with the steps I had taken in procuring that meeting, and opened the concern I was under, and we then proceeded to a free conference upon the subject. My exercise was heavy, and I was deeply bowed in spirit before the Lord, who was pleased to favor with the seasoning virtue of truth, which wrought a tenderness amongst us ; and the subject was mutu- ally handled in a calm and peaceable spirit. At length, feel- ing my mind released from the burden which I had been under, I took my leave of them in a good degree of satisfac-
1 John Storer was from England. It was probably through him that the London letter was introduced.
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tion ; and by the tenderness they manifested in regard to the practice, and the concern several of them expressed in rela- tion to the manner of disposing of their negroes after their decease, I believed that a good exercise was spreading amongst them." '
In 1769 the Rhode Island Quarterly Meeting proposed to the Yearly Meeting such an amendment of the query of 1760 as should not imply that the holding of slaves was allowed. This was an important step, for before this no one had gone farther than to censure the importing of slaves. The Yearly Meeting, accordingly, was not ready to do more than express its sense of the wrongf ulness of holding slaves, and appoint a committee to visit those members who were concerned in keeping slaves, and endeavor to persuade them from the practice.
June 7, 1770, the committee appointed at the previous yearly meeting announced that they had visited most of the members belonging to the Yearly Meeting who possessed slaves, " had labored with them respecting setting such at liberty that were suitable for freedom, and that their visits mostly seemed to be kindly accepted. Some Friends mani- fested a disposition to set such at liberty as were suitable, some others, not having so clear a light of such an unreason- able servitude as could be desired, were unwilling to comply with the advice given them at present, yet seemed willing to take it into consideration, a few others which we have with sorrow to remark were mostly of the Elder sort manifested a disposition to keep them still in continued state of bondage."
An example of the first class of men is to be found in the records of the South Kingstown monthly meeting for 1757, when " This meeting Received a paper of Richard Smith as his testimony against Keeping Slaves and his Intention to free his negro girl which paper he hath a mind to lay before the Quarterly meeting all which is Referred for further con- sideration." 2 These persons freed their slaves either of their own accord or at the first suggestion from Friends, but per-
1Woolman's t; Journal," pp. 167-8.
2 MS. Records of South Kingstown Monthly Meeting, I., 82, quoted by Miss Caroline Hazard, " College Tom," p. 169.
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sons of the third class who were possessed with the ideas of the previous century were very slow about manumitting their slaves. "One of the Rodmans, a few years later, was in trouble over a slave. He was condemned by his own meet- ing, but appealed to the quarterly meeting, which confirmed the judgement of the monthly meeting given against him, 'on account of his buying a negro slave,' and 'it is the mind of friends that there ought to go out a publick Testimony & Denial ' of the purchaser, which was accordingly done, and a solemn ' paper of f rd8 Testimony of Disowning ' was read at the end of a First-day meeting." 1 Another famous slave case was that of the Rathbuns, which was before the Kingstown monthly meeting eight years. Joshua Rathbun, having bought a slave, is brought to confess his error, as follows :
" WESTERLY the 27th of ye 12 mo 1765 To the monthly meeting of friends to be held at Richmond next
DEAR FRIENDS. I hereby acknowledge that I have acted Disorderly in purchasing a Negro Slave which Disorder I was Ignorant of, at the time of the purchase, but having conversed with several friends upon the Subject of Slavery have gained a Knowledge that heretofore I was Igno- rant of, both as to the Rules of our Society, as well as the nature & incon- sistancy of making Slaves of our fellow Creatures, am therefore free to condemn that Inconsiderate act and Desire Friends to pass it by, hoping that I may be preserved from all conduct that may bring Uneasiness Upon friends for the future am willing likewise to take the* advice of Friends both as to the bringing up and Discharging of the Aforesd negro.
JOSHUA RATHBUN." 2
This, as Miss Hazard justly says, expressed very clearly what must have been the general feeling of the day in regard to slavery, and sounds like an honest change of heart. Yet half a dozen years later it appears that Rathbun had assigned the negro girl to his son, who had promised to free her at a suit- able time, but had afterward sold her out of the colony. He had done this without his father's consent ; but the father had not mentioned the matter to Friends. The son was read out of the meeting, and the father advised to proceed against
1 Miss Hazard, "College Tom," p. 170.
2 Records of Meeting, quoted by Miss Hazard, p. 171.
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him. As he did not, the meeting heretofore held at his house was discontinued, and finally he also was denied his membership.1
This incident shows the untiring effort of Friends toward the abolition of slavery in its very stronghold, nor did it cease with a few cases. John Knowles and Stephen Richmond in 1771 " Appears of a disposition to comply with friends rules in liberating their slaves." Three Friends "discovers some- thing of a Disposition to comply," while four " Did Shew the Contrary Disposition." They were informed on the 29th of 7th mo., 1771, that all who did not free their slaves may ' expect to be Denied Membership.' Two months afterward a sturdy Friend appeared in meeting and ' saith that he shall not comply with the Rules of the Society, Respecting his Slaves to Liberate them,' and he and three others are there- fore denied membership. On the "28th of 6th mo., 1773, Frds Appointed to Visit Slave Keepers made report that they don't find their is any held as Slaves by Frds and there are some y* are set at Liberty and no proper manuamission given therefore said committee are continued to see that they are manuamitted and make report thereof as soon as they con- veniently can." z
Let us now turn again to the proceedings of the Yearly Meeting in 1770. We have seen that the committee appointed in 1769 to visit Friends who were owners of slaves reported at the meeting in 1770 the completion of their task. Another committee was accordingly appointed to consider the expedi- ency of making the alteration in the tenth query proposed by the Rhode Island Quarterly Meeting the previous year. At an adjourned session the committee proposed the following : " Are Friends clear of importing, buying, or any ways dispos- ing of negroes as slaves, and do they use those well that are under their care, not in circumstances through nonage or incapacity to be at liberty, — and do they give those that are young such an education as becomes Christians and are the others encouraged in a religious and virtuous life, and are all
^'College Tom," pp. 172-176.
2 Miss Hazard, p. 176, quoting Records of South Kingstown Monthly Meeting.
SLAVERY IN RHODE ISLAND. 15!
set at liberty that are of age, capacity and abilities suitable for freedom ? " The query as thus read, was approved and recommended to the several quarterly and monthly meetings with the exhortation " that they take care it be duly complied with."
The epistle from this meeting to the Friends in London reads as follows : " This meeting hath been under a weighty concern for some time on account of enslaving and keeping in bondage our fellow creatures, and after much exercise and deep travail of spirit on that account have come to this con- clusion that Friends ought to be no ways concerned in im- porting, buying or any ways disposing of negroes as slaves, and that they set all at liberty that are of age, capacity and ability suitable for freedom."
Progress of the Movement ; Sentiment Against Slavehold- ing. The next information we have as to the progress of this movement among the Friends in Rhode Island is found in their epistle to the London Meeting dated June 12, 1772. It reads as follows : " We also have to inform that the conclu- sion this meeting came to some time past respecting the en- slaved negro, we are gradually endeavoring to affect, and have the satisfaction to inform that a few friends amongst us have freed them from their bondage, and with sorrow that some have been so reluctant hereto that they have been disowned for not complying with the advice of this meeting in that re- spect." In 1773 another epistle similar to that of 1769 was sent from the Rhode Island Quarterly Meeting to the Yearly Meeting proposing the freeing of all slaves. It read as fol- lows : "It is our sense and judgment that truth not only requires the young of capacity and ability, but likewise the aged and impotent, and also all in a state of infancy and non- age among Friends, be discharged and set free from a state of slavery ; that we do no more claim property in the human race, as we do in the brutes that perish, notwithstanding it is to be understood that the aged and impotent and also infants and those in their nonage be provided for, brought up and instructed as required by our loth query."
In accordance with this recommendation the Yearly Meet-
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ing amended the tenth query as follows : " Are Friends clear of importing or in any ways purchasing, disposing of or holding mankind as slaves ; and are all those who have been held in a state of slavery discharged therefrom ; and do they use those well who are under their care, that are in circum- stances through nonage or incapacity to minister to their own necessities and not set fully at liberty, and do they give those that are young such an education as becomes Christians and are the others encouraged in a religious and virtuous life ? "
The epistle to the London meeting for this year reports the following progress : " We also inform that Friends' labor for the freedom of the enslaved negroes is still continued, and some Friends have manumitted them, others give encour- agement of taking Friends' advice to free them, and when there hath appeared unrelenting obstinacy some such have been disowned since last year." The Epistle to the London meeting dated June 14, 1774, was written in very much the same spirit. It says : " By accounts brought into the meet- ing it appears that several among us have manumitted their slaves since last year, and some encouragement is given to expect the freedom of others, so that we are in hopes that those who have hitherto neglected it may be prevailed upon to let the oppressed go free." Their hopes were not without reason, for by 1782 no slaves were known to be held in the New England Yearly Meeting.1
These facts indicate that fourteen years before general col- onial action was taken the importation of slaves was forbidden by the Society of Friends among its members, and fifteen years before a colonial law was made against the ownership of slaves, measures were taken by the Friends to abolish it, at once and altogether. The influence of such procedure can scarcely be over-estimated. The strong social influence of the Friends, and the high moral character of their faith and of their activity, both tended to produce a strong impression upon the thought and activity of the community.
Other Ecclesiastical Bodies ; Samuel Hopkins. There were no other ecclesiastical bodies so well organized in Rhode
1 Whittier, introduction to Woolman's " Journal," p. 28.
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Island as the English Church and the Society of Friends, accordingly other efforts toward the amelioration of the con- ditions of the slave or toward his emancipation were made by individual churches.
In Dr. Stiles' church at Newport there were, among eighty communicants in 1770, seven negroes. "These occasionally met by his direction in his study where," says his biogra- pher,1 "he discoursed to them on the great things of the divine life and eternal salvation ; counselling and encourag- ing them, and earnestly pressing them to make their calling and election sure, and to walk worthily of their holy profes- sion. Then falling on their knees together, he poured out fervent supplication at the throne of grace, imploring the divine blessing upon them, and commending himself and them to the Most High."
The most prominent clergyman, however, connected with the movement inaugurated by the Friends, was Dr. Stiles' opponent in theology, Dr. Samuel Hopkins. Some time after the settlement of Dr. Hopkins in Newport he " became impressed with the state of the town in reference to the slave trade. There were some conscientious exceptions, but it was the general employment of men of business, so as to be the source of the support and prosperity of the people. There were more than thirty distilleries in operation, and more than an hundred and fifty vessels engaged in prosecuting the trade."2 Newport was at this time the most important "mart for slaves offered for sale in the north, and the point from which they were shipped to southern parts if not taken di- rectly there from the coast of Africa. If, too, a Dutchman in New York wanted a few slaves to work his land, he opened a correspondence with a Newport merchant, or if the market was dull in Newport, a portion of the cargo was sent to Boston."3
Cargoes of slaves were often landed near the church and home of Dr. Hopkins. His congregation was deeply in- volved in the guilt of slave trading and slave holding. " On
1 Holmes, " Life of Ezra Stiles," p. 157.
2 Patten, " Life of Hopkins," p. 80.
3Geo. C. Mason in "American Historical Record," I., 344.
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the subject of emancipation, Dr. Hopkins was an advocate for slaves remaining quietly and peaceably in bondage, and dili- gently and faithfully performing as unto God the labors of their station, whether to masters who were kind and indul- gent, or to those who were froward and severe ; till there might be an opportunity in divine Providence for them to be- come loyally and with the consent of their masters, free." l This opportunity Dr. Hopkins sought to bring about. He visited from house to house and urged masters to free their slaves ; he also preached several times against slavery, be- tween 1770 and 1776. "His sermons offended a few, and made them permanently his enemies. One wealthy family left his congregation in disgust ; but the majority of his hearers were astonished that they of themselves had not long before seen and felt the truths which he disclosed to them," 2 and a few years later, as a church, passed this resolution, " that the slave trade and the slavery of Africans, as it has existed among us, is a gross violation of the righteousness and benevolence which are so much inculcated in the gospel, and therefore we will not tolerate it in this church."
Dr. Hopkins, further, took a deep religious interest in the slave as well as an interest in his emancipation. Soon after his installation at Newport in 1770, he formed a plan for sending the gospel to Africa. After he had matured it in his own mind, he communicated it to Dr. Stiles. About this, Dr. Stiles records in his diary, April 8, 1773, " Yesterday Mr. Hopkins came to see me and discourse with me on a design he is meditating, to make some negro ministers and send them to Guinea. * * * There are two negro men communicants in his church, that he is disposed to train up for this end. The one is Quamine, 3 a free negro, and the other Yamma, a servant. * * He wants, therefore, to contrive that these two negroes should be taken under tui-
1 Patten, p. 82.
2 Park, " Life of Hopkins," p. 116.
8 Quamine had been delivered about 1750 by his father to a sea captain to bring him to Rhode Island for an education. After sending him to school a while the captain sold him for a slave. Stiles* Literary Diary, April fj, 1773, quoted by Park.
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tion, perfected in reading the scriptures, and taught system- atical divinity, and so ordained and sent forth. * * Mr. Hopkins desired me to talk with Quamine, and examine his abilities, which I said I was ready to do." Another record, dated April 13, contains the following: "Last evening Quamine came to see me, to discourse upon the scheme of his becoming a minister. * * He reads but indiffer- ently ; not freely but slowly, yet distinctly, and pretty accur- ately. * * He has had but little time for reading ; seldom any but Lord's days. I did not try him as to writing, but he said he had begun to write last winter. He is pretty judicious but not communicative and I am doubtful whether he would be apt to teach. He certainly wants much improve- ment to qualify him for the gospel ministry, if indeed such a thing were advisable."
The two men, though ill prepared in many respects, " still retained a Knowledge of their native language, and were intelligent, discreet and pious." The two pastors, therefore, finally decided to give them the necessary education, and to this end issued a circular dated August 31, 1773, and signed by them, and distributed it among the churches of Massa- chusetts and Connecticut. This circular stated that Bristol Yamma was fifty dollars in debt because he had not been able to purchase his freedom under two hundred dollars, that he must procure this by his own labor unless relieved by the charity of others, and that for this reason, both to pay this debt and to support the two men at school, money was de- sired. To this appeal immediate and encouraging response was made, and the next year the two negroes were sent to Princeton for instruction.1
The Unorthodoxy of Reform. Another plan formulated by Dr. Hopkins a few years later, for the colonization of Africa, shows the breadth of his intelligence and sympathies. Yet it is a curious fact that, respecting both him and the Friends, it was the unorthodox party that did most for the slave. The utilitarian philosophy was everywhere prevalent. In the
1 This project was given up at the opening of the war because of the removal of Dr. Hopkins and the lack of money.
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church, it was, quite naturally, formulated in Biblical terms, so that it seemed truly to have a divine sanction. The phil- osophy of the church was the same as that of the time, it was only the expression of it that was different. With this phil- osophy, however, Hopkins and the Quakers seem to have broken as the Methodists did in England about the same time. It was, perhaps, their ability to think away the formu- las of the dominant party that enabled them to discover what they thought to be a universal right to freedom, and further to believe in it, and act upon it. And, if it is agreed that it was the unorthodox party in Rhode Island that brought about the abolition of the slave trade and the emancipation of the slave, we may go farther and say that it was because Rhode Island was from the first quite unorthodox and inde- pendent, that she was the first among those prominently en- gaged in the slave trade, to abolish the trade and emancipate the slave.
Moral and Economic Reasons for the Decay of Slavery. That there were economic reasons for the decay of slavery in Rhode Island, is very true, but it is also true that before the Revolu- tion these reasons, in part were not recognized, and in part did not exist. Slavery was still the life of trade, many of the most influential citizens and planters still owned slaves, and private individuals often engaged in small ventures in this profitable business. For example, in 1762 a hogshead of rum was sent to the coast and the following receipt was given for it : "Newport, April 24th, 1762. Received on Board the sloop Friendship, one Hoggd Rum, marked W. H. No. 2 which on my arrival on the Coast of Africa, I promise to dis- pose of on the Best Terms & Invest the proceeds in Negro man slave and ship back the first convenient opportunity, on the proper account & risk of William Gifford, per me Wil- liam Hudson."1
In spite then of the economic value of slavery up to the time of the Revolution, anti-slavery sentiment increased in force and was throughout the history of the colony so strong that Potter in his report to the legislature in 1840 dared
1 Geo. C. Mason, in •' American Historical Record," I., 344.
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even to say that slavery was never countenanced by the leg- islature, perhaps never by public opinion.
But while it was for moral reasons that the slave trade and slavery were abolished in Rhode Island as early as they were, and in Rhode Island earlier than in the other colonies referred to, it was for economic and prudential reasons that the slave trade in Rhode Island was abolished before slavery, and the final abolition of slavery in the colony took the form it did. The law of 1774 against the importation of slaves into Rhode Island affected the slave trade but little. The only real dif- ference was, that Rhode Island merchants sold their slave cargoes in other ports, especially the southern ports, where already the market was becoming much more valuable. The profit still continued to come largely to Rhode Island, if the slaves did not. For economic as well as for moral reasons, therefore, the law of 1774 was made possible. It did not affect so large a class of people as the later law against the ownership of slaves, nor did it affect even that class seriously. Its motive and spirit satisfied the moral demand, its form and letter satisfied the economic. But while this measure was not so important nor so far-reaching in its results, the law of 1784 against the ownership of slaves was quite important, and the forces which determined its enactment as a law were strong and numerous. We must now examine what was more distinctively the anti-slavery agitation which led up to the act of 1784.
IV. ANTI-SLAVERY AGITATION.
Anti-Slavery Literattire. Much has already been said of the attitude of the church toward slavery, and the consequent abolition of the slave trade, in Rhode Island. The moral force thus aroused was also one of the strongest influences against the institution of slavery ; but there was beside this and in addition to the organized effort of the church, an anti- slavery literature and the voluntary efforts of individuals.
Some of this anti-slavery pamphlet literature was made up of the sermons before the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts, which have already been mentioned.
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Besides these there appeared in 1762, " Considerations on Keeping Negroes," by John Woolman. " Some of these pamphlets," he writes, " I sent to my acquaintance at New- port." In this paper he says : " When trade is carried on productive of much misery, and they who suffer by it are many thousand miles off, the danger is the greater of not lay- ing their sufferings to heart. In procuring slaves on the coast of Africa, many children are stolen privately ; wars are encouraged among the negroes ; but all is at a great distance. Many groans arise from dying men which we hear not. Many cries are uttered by widows and fatherless children which reach not our ears. Many cheeks are wet with tears, and faces sad with unuttered grief, which we see not. Cruel tyranny is encouraged. The hands of robbers are strength- ened. * * Were we for the term of one year only to be eyewitnesses of what passeth in getting these slaves ; were the blood that is there shed to be sprinkled on our garments ; were the poor captives, bound with thongs, and heavily laden with elephants' teeth to pass before our eyes on the way to the sea ; were their bitter lamentations, day after day, to ring in our ears, and their mournful cries in the night to hinder us from sleeping, — were we to behold and hear these things, what pious heart would not be deeply affected with sorrow ? " a
May 14, 1768, the Newport Mercury contained an extract from the Boston Evening Post. The burden of this article was similar to that of Woolman's essay ; that while seeking liberty themselves, the colonists ought not to enslave others, and that masters ought to do to slaves as they would have slaves do to them. March 21, 1772, the Providence Gazette contained an advertisement for " proposals for printing by subscription a dissuasion to Great Britain and her colonies from the slaye trade to Africa, shewing the Contradiction that the Trade bears to Laws divine and provincial ; the Dis- advantage arising from it, and Advantage from abolishing it, both to Europe and America, particularly to Britain and her Plantations ; also shewing how to put the trade to Africa on a just and lawful Footing, By Jonas Swan, a Friend to the Welfare of the Continent." The Newport Mercury, Decenr
1 Whittier's Woolman's "Journal," pp. 38-39.
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her 4, 1773, contained " Observations on slave Keeping, an extract from a pamphlet printed in Philadelphia," probably John Woolman's. September 24, 1774, the same paper con- tained " reflections on slave keeping," also from Woolman's pamphlet ; and on January 28, 1775, it printed a poem enti- tled, "To the dealers in slaves." March 4, 1775, the Gazette advertised a pamphlet by the editor, John Carter, for sale at the distill house. The title of this pamphlet was : " The po- tent enemies of America laid open, being some account of the baneful effects attending the use of distilled spirituous liquors and the slavery of the negroes." August 26, in the same year, the following communication was sent to the printer of the Providence Gazette : " Please to insert the following resolve of the Provincial convention for the large and popu- lous county of Worcester in the Massachusetts bay, which may serve to show that while America is conflicting for the greatest of human blessings, liberty, the members of that benevolent body are not inattentive to the cause of the poor enslaved African." Then follow the Worcester resolves.
Object and Success of Agitation. Of these pamphlets and newspaper articles it is remarkable that only one treats of the slave trade. The real point of discussion was not the slave trade, but the principle involved in both the trade and the ownership in slaves. If the negro was a man and not a chat- tel, the only logical conclusion was that he must be treated as such. For years he had been, tacitly at least, recognized as a man, now he must be explicitly recognized and treated as such. A number of times, as we have seen, this feeling man- ifested itself and resulted in the manumission of slaves by their masters. These cases of manumission became much more numerous just before the war. The records of these are to be found in many town clerks' offices.
March 14, 1753, Obadiah Brown makes his will as follows : " My will is and I do hereby Order that my negro man Adam serve one whole year after my decease and after such one years servis to be free. I give him my said negro Adam 20 acres of land to be laid of on the North west corner of my farm in Gloucester." The will of John Field, dated June 26,
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1754, was this : "As to my negro man Jeffery I do hereby order and my will is that he shall Chuse which of my Children or Grandchildren he shall think proper to live with, and so far give him his time as to chuse any of them, or any other Person as he thinks proper to take him — provided, that they he shall so chuse, give Bond to Keep my Heirs, Executors and Administrators from all . Cost, Charge and Trouble that shall from thence accrue by reason of said negro, Jeffry's Maintainence, and in case none of my children shall see cause to accept of said Negroe, then he shall be kept and main- tained by my executors hereafter named." A will of Casco ie Favor, free negro, dated November 9, 1762, reads as fol- lows : " In the first place, I confirm and grant unto my Be- loved wife, Judith, her Freedom, willing and requiring that she may enjoy the same without any Lett or Molestation." The will of Richard Browne, October 30, 1765, provides that his girl Phillis be freed after she is forty years old, his girl Sylvia at his decease, his girl Anna at forty, his old negro women not to be sold out of the family, his boy Peter to be freed at forty-five. The will of John Merrett, November 24, 1769, was : " I desire and direct my executors that if my Negro woman, Frank, be living at the time of my decease, a sum of money be given by them to some good honest person to take all kind care of her during her life, that she may be treated with all humanity and tenderness, she having been a very faithful servant, and if my negro man, Tom, may be thought by my executors, of ability sufficient to take care of himself, that they give him his freedom, if not that they dis- pose of him to a master to his own content, and touching the rest of my negroes that they may be disposed of so that there is good appearance of their passing the remainder of their days comfortable."
Will of Moses Brown. Our discussion would be incom- plete without a notice of the will of Moses Brown. This was dated November 10, 1773, and read as follows : "Whereas I am clearly convinced that Ihe Buying and Selling of Men of what Colour Soever as Slaves is Contrary to the Divine Mind Manifest in the Conscience of all Men, however some may
SLAVERY IN RHODE ISLAND. l6l
smother and neglect its Reproveings, and being also made Sensible that the Holding Negroes in Slavery, however Kindly Treated by their Masters, has a Great Tendency to Incourage the Iniquitous Traffick and Practice of Importing them from their Native Country, and is contrary to that Justice, Mercy and Humility Injoined as the Duty of every Christian ; I Do therefore by these presents for my Self my Heirs etc Manumitt and set Free the following Negroes being all I am Possessed of or am any ways Interested in Viz. Bonno an african aged about 34 years, Caesar aged 32 years, Cudjo aged 27 years Born in this colony, Prince an African aged about 25 years, Pero an African aged about 18 years, Pegg born in this town aged 20 years. And One Quater being the part I own of the three Following Africans viz. Yarrow aged about 40 years, Tom aged about 30 years, and Newport aged about 21 years. And a child Phillis aged about Two Years born in my Family she having the same Natural Right, I hereby give her the same power as my own chil- dren to take and use her Freedom, Injoining upon my Heirs a careful watch over her for her Good and that they in case I be taken hence give her suitable education or if she be bound out that they take care in that and in all other respects as much as to white children, hereby expressly prohibiting my Self and my Heirs from Assuming any further power over a property in her. And as all prudent men lay up in Times of health and strength so much of their Honest earnings as is over and above their needful expenses for Clothing etc so it is my direction and advice to you that you deposit in my Hands such a part of your Wages as is not from Time to Time Wanted, taking my Receipt therefore, to put to Interest and to apply it for your Support when through Sickness or other- wise you may be unable to Support Your Selves, or to be applyd to the Use of your Children (if Free) and if not to the purchasing their Freedom and if not wanted for these Useses to be given in your Wills to such Persons or for such use as you may think proper. And for your encouragement to such Sober Prudence and Industry I hereby give to the first Six Named (the other three having good Trades) the use of one acre of Land as marked off on my Farm as long as you im- prove it to good purpose. I now no longer consider you as
162 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
slaves nor myself as your Master but your Friend and so long as you behave well may you expect my further countenance, support and assistance. And as you will consider this as an instrument of extending your Liberty so I hope you will always remember and practice this my earnest desire and advice that accompanys it, that you use not the liberty hereby granted you to Licenciousness, nor take ocation or oppor- tunity thereby to go into or practice the lusts of the flesh, the lusts of the eye or pride on any ocation or Temptation, but be more consious than heretofore and with love serve one another and all men, not only to please Men but as fearing and reverancing that Holy God who sees all the secret actions of men And receive your liberty with a humble sense of its being a Favor from the Great King of Heaven and Earth who through his Light that shines upon the consciences of all men, Black as well as white, and thereby sheweth us what is Good, and that the Lord's requirings of each of us to do Justice, to have Mercy and to walk humbly with our God is the cause of this my duty to you, be therefore watchful and attentive to that divine teaching in your own minds that convinces you of sin and as you dutifully obey the enlighten- ings and teachings it will not only cause you to avoid pro- faneness and wickedness, as stealing, lying, swearing, drink- ing, lusting after women, frolicking and the like sinful courses but will teach you and lead you into all that is necessary for you to know, as your duty to the great master of all men, for he has said respecting mankind — universally, I will put my law into their inward parts, and write it in their hearts and they shall All Know me from the least, to the greatest, and therefore you can't plead ignorance that you don't know your duty to the God that made you, because you can't all read his mind and will in the scriptures, which is indeed a great Favor and Blessing to them that can understand and obey. But there is a Book within you that is not confined to the En- glish or any language, and as you silently and reverently wait for its openings and instantly it will teach you and you will be enabled to understand its language and as you are careful to be obedient thereto and often silently read it, you will be able to speak its language with African as well as English }ongues to your poor Fellow countrymen To the glory of
SLAVERY IN RHODE ISLAND. 163
him who has wrought your deliverance from slavery to whose gracious care and protection I commit and fervently recom- mend you and bid you farewell." *
The occasion of this will of Moses Brown, as well as its na- ture, is curious. It was after " returning from the grave of his wife, and meditating upon the Lord's mercies and favors, and seeking to know what the Divine will was concerning him ; " he says, " I saw my slaves with my spiritual eyes as plainly as I see you now, and it was given me as clearly to understand that the sacrifice that was called for of my hand was to give them their liberty."2
Another will, dated August i, 1775, made by Eve Bernon, provides for the emancipation of her woman Amey, and the latter's son Marmy, and their keep in case they become dis- abled through sickness or otherwise.
The Movement in Narragansett. These manumissions we have recorded were mostly confined to Providence. There were also manumissions, as we have seen, in the cases of Friends in Newport and in the Narragansett country. Thomas Hazard, "perhaps the first man of much influence in New England," says his biographer, " who labored in behalf of the African race, when a young man on coming home from college was set by his father to oversee the negroes whilst they were engaged under a scorching sun in cultivat- ing a field of corn. As he sat reading in the shade of a tree his mind went out in sympathy toward the poor slaves who were thus forced to labor for others in the heat of the sun, when he himself could scarcely keep comfortable while quietly sitting in the shade. This led to a train of thought that finally resulted in a conviction that it was wrong to hold slaves," and when he was being established by his father he refused the slaves that were offered him. 3
A similar anecdote is told of another Narragansett magnate, Rowland Robinson : " Previous to establishing his house-
1 Probate Records, VI., 73.
2 Augustine Jones, "Moses Brown: a Sketch," p. 13.
3 " Recollections of Olden Times," T. R. Hazard, p. 102. Miss Caroline Hazard, " College Tom," pp. 42-44, gives another story of the causes of his conversion.
164 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
hold Mr. Robinson engaged with others of his friends in sending a vessel from Franklin Ferry to the Guinea coast for slaves, out of his portion of which he proposed to select most of his domestic servants and farming hands and dispose of the remainder by sale as was the custom in those days. Up to the time of the return of the vessel — such was the force of education and habit — the cruelty and injustice involved in the slave trade seemed never to have entered Mr. Robinson's mind, but now when he saw the forlorn, woebegone looking men and women disembarking, some of them too feeble to stand alone, the enormity of his offence against humanity presented itself so vividly to his susceptible mind that he wept like a child, nor would he consent that a single slave that fell to his share — twenty-eight in all — should be sold, but took them all to his own house, where though held in servi- tude they were kindly cared for." 1
Conclusion. These were the conditions and the modifica- tions of slavery in Rhode Island during a part of the last cen- tury. We have seen that the church largely determined the status of the slave, and that the economic conditions of the colony determined the extent of slavery. We have seen the growth of the sentiment against slavery, and its first result in the abolition of the slave trade. In the next few years this sentiment was strengthened by the anti-slavery agitation in England and the other colonies, and by the revolutionary spirit, and in 1784 an act was passed which provided that all children born of slave mothers after the first of March should be free, and that the introduction of slaves for sale upon any pretext whatever should be forbidden.2
^'Recollections of Olden Times," T. R. Hazard, p. 121.
Higginson's version of this story is as follows : " Rowland Robinson, said impulsively one day, ' I have not servants enough, fetch me some from Guinea.' Upon this the master of a small packet of 20 tons belong- ing to Mr. Robinson, fitted her out at once, set sail for Guinea and brought home eighteen slaves, one of whom was a King's son. His employer burst into tears on their arrival, his order not having been seriously given." Larger History of the United States, pp. 237-8.
2 Rhode Island's legislation respecting slavery in the period from 1775 to 1785 has been treated in an essay by Dr. Jeffrey R. Brackett, entitled "The Status of the Slave, 1775-1789," in a volume of "Essays in the Constitutional History of the United States," edited by Professor J. F. Jameson.
RHODE ISLAND MANUSCRIPTS IN THE NATIONAL ARCHIVES AT WASHINGTON.
[ The following letters are literal copies of their Originals deposited in the historical manuscripts division of the Department of State with the files and records known as "The Archives of the Federal Convention"].
Newport June i8th- 1787 Sir —
The inclosed address, of which I presume your Excellency has received a duplicde was returned to me from New York after my arrival in this State. I flatterd that our Legislature, which convened on monday last, would have receded from the resolution therein refer'd to, and have complied with the recommendation of Congress in sending deligates to the federal convention — The upper house, or Governor, & Council, embraced the meas- ure, but it was negatived in the house of Assembly by a large majority, notwithstanding the greatest exertions were made to support it. Being disappointed in their expectations, the minority in the administration and all the worthy citizens of this State, whose minds are well informd regreting the peculiarities of their situation place their fullest confidence in the wisdom & moderation of the national council, and indulge the warmest hopes of being favorably consider'd in their de- liberations. From these deliberations they anticipate a politi- cal System which must finally be adopted & from which will result the Safety, the honour, & the happiness of the United States.
167
1 68 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
Permit me, Sir, to observe, that the measures of our pres- ent Legislature do not exhibit the real character of the State. They are equally reprobated, & abhor'd by Gentlemen of the learned professions, by the whole mercantile body, & by most of the respectable farmers and mechanicks. The majority of the administration is composed of a licentious number of men, destitute of education, and many of them, void of principle. From anarchy and confusion they derive their temporary consequence, and this they endeavor to pro- long by debauching the minds of the common people, whose attention is wholly directed to the Abolition of debts both public & private. With these are associated the disaffected of every description, particularly those who were unfriendly during the war. Their paper money System, founded in oppression & fraud, they are determined to Support at every hazard, And rather than relinquish their favorite pursuit the trample upon the most Sacred obligations. As a proof of this they refused to comply with a requisition of Con- gress for repealing all laws repugnant to the treaty of peace with Great Britain, and urged as their principal reason, that it would be calling in question the proprety of their former measures
These evils may be attributed, partly to the extreme free- dom of our own constitution, and partly to the want of energy in the federal Union ; And it is greatly to be apprehended that they cannot Speedily be removed but by uncommon and very serious exertions. It is fortunate however that the wealth and resources of this State are chiefly in possion of the well Affected, & that they are intirely devoted to the public good.
I have the honor of being Sir, with the greatest veneration & esteem, Your excellencys very obedient &
most humble servant — His excellency
Gen1- Washington
R. I. MANUSCRIPTS IN NATIONAL ARCHIVES, ETC. 169
[ Endorsed} N°- 6.
LETTER TO GENERAL WASHINGTON DATED NEWPORT JUNE 18. 1787.
[ Memorandum. Under the endorsement some one has written in lead pencil " From Genl Varnum "] .
[The "Committee" to The Hono* the Chairman of the General Convention Philadelphia." Duplicate Original inclosed in the Newport letter\ .
Providence, May IIth 1787,
Gentlemen,
Since the Legislature of this State have finally declined sending Delegates to meet you in Convention for the purposes mentioned in the Resolve of Congress of the 21st February 1787, — the Merchants, Tradesmen, and Others of this Place, deeply Affected with the evils of the present unhappy times, have thought proper to communicate in writ- ing thier approbation of your Meeting, And their regret that it will fall short of a Compleat representation of the Federal Union. —
The failure of this State was owing to the nonconcurrence of the Upper House of Assembly with a Vote passed in the Lower House, for Appointing Delegates to attend the said Convention, at their Session Holden at Newport, on the first Wednesday of the present Month. —
It is the general Opinion here, and we believe of the well informed throughout this State, that full power for the regu- lation of the Commerce of the United States, both foreign and Domestick, ought to be vested in the National Council. And that Effectual Arrangements should also be made for giving operation to the present powers of Congress in thier Requisitions upon the States for National purposes. —
I JO RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
As the object of this Letter is chiefly to prevent any impres- sions unfavourable to the Commercial Interest of this State, from takeing place in our Sister States, from the Circum- stance of our being unrepresented in the present National Convention, we shall not presume to enter into any detail of the objects we hope your deliberations will embrace and pro- vide for, being Convinced they will be such as have a Ten- dency to strengthen the Union, promote Commerce, in- crease the power, and Establish the Credit of the United States.
The result of your deliberations, tending to these desireable purposes, we still hope may finally be approved & adopted by this State ; for which we pledge our Influence & best ex- ertions. —
This will be delivered you by the Honourable James M. Varnum, Esquire, who will communicate (with your permis- sion) in person, more particularly our Sentiments on the Subject matter of our Address.
In behalf of the Merchants, Tradesmen, &c,
We have the Honour to be, with perfect Consideration And Respect,
Your most Obedient and
Most Humble Servants, John Brown, Jabez Bowen,
Jos. Nightingale, Nicho8- Brown,
Levi Hall, John Jenckes,
Phillip Allen, Welcome Arnold,
Paul Allen, William Russell,
S o
Jeremiah Olney, William Barton, Thos- Lloyd Halsey,
[Endorsed} No. 5.
DUPLICATE LETTER FROM SEVERAL GENTLEMEN
OF RHODE ISLAND DATED PROVIDENCE MAY u. 1787.
(Original noted to have been read in Convention May 28. 1787.)
R. I. MANUSCRIPTS IN NATIONAL ARCHIVES, ETC. IJl
[Extract from the Original Journal of the Proceedings of the Federal Convention].
Monday May 28. 1787.
*** #*# ***
a letter from sundry Persons of the State of Rhode Island addressed to the honorable the Chairman of the General Con- vention was presented to the Chair by M' G. Morris and,
being read, ordered that the said letter do lye upon the table for further consideration.
*** *** ***
DR. BENJM. WATERHOUSE TO THOMAS JEFFERSON.
[From the Original preserved with the Jefferson Papers in the Department of State].
Newport Rhode Island, Sept. 14th '22. Dear Sir,
I read your letter of the 19th July with pleasure, and though at first disappointed, I cannot wonder at your reluctance to its publication seeing, as I find by your letter, that our brethren in the South are yet slumbering from the opiates of past ages. As times change how some sort of men change with them ! Less than 20 years ago, those who gov- erned our University quarrelled with me, & finally cut me off from among them because I would not join them in abu- sing, & accusing of atheism the then President of the U. S. and now those very men desire above all things to make pub- lic use of the sentiments & opinions of that personage to give popularity to their views of the Christian religion ! Neither Theophilus Parsons, Geo. Cabot or John Lowell expressed so virulent a spirit as Jonathan Jackson. His son was my immediate successor in the chair of the theory & practise of physic. Some person, with no bad intention, quoted from memory a passage of your letter, which caused me to have it corrected, as in the enclosed extract. The calvanistic news- paper remarked upon it, that they were very glad to find Mr- J. had arrived, at what Mr. Wilberforce calls "the halfway
172 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
house." I was startled a year or two since, on hearing that Dr- Pettigrew in his memoirs of Dr- Lettsom of London had inserted a dozen or more of my letters to that gentleman, even to my poetry ! !
As you will only have the trouble of reading this, for I am not so unfeeling as to expect a return, unless it should be at the rate of exchange between the value of your letters & mine, at the rate of what we used to call here " old tenor" (when a dollar was eight pounds) and sterling. I may possibly this once, amuse you by writing, without exacting a return. I aim to give you a just idea of our religious, & perhaps po- litical condition at Cambridge, & of course Boston. —
Between my house & the colleges is a level piece of ground of 20 acres. About 100 yards from my door is the episcopal church : 50 yards farther is the University chapel or Unitarian church, where go my wife's family, her father and sister : an 100 yards beyond that is the old calvanistic meeting house, [erected 150 years ago, in which the "com- mencements," & public instalations of the University are always held. Except now & then when we attend the episco- pal church, we pass by the two first every week, & attend the services in the old calvanistic meeting house, whereof A. Holmes, D. D. & LL. D, author of the American annals, is pastor. We do this from respect to the Man, an old friend, & a very worthy character. As his congregation is dwindling, my leaving it, would be removing a single brick, that would loosen several others near it. As we are known to differ in sentiment, we never dispute, nor even mention the public con- troversy. Intimate as he has always been in my family, he never asked me why I never offered my children to anyone for baptism, & I never ask him how he could believe in "Calvin's five points." Dr- H. is an honest man, born & educated in Connecticut, & by far the richest clergyman in New England & may give 50,000 dollars to his favorite Andover. In case of sickness, or absence of Dr- Holmes, Dr- Ware, the Profr- of Divinity, & the great champion of unitarianism preaches for him, while the calvanistic Dr- occasionally officiates, in the University or Unitarian chapel, & the President preaches in the old meeting house. The Sunday before I left Cam-
R. I. MANUSCRIPTS IN NATIONAL ARCHIVES, ETC. 173
bridge, — H. Ware Junr- my son in law, preached in the Unita- rian episcopal church, built in Boston, by royal patronage & called the Kings chapel, while its pastor, Dr- Freeman, preached in my sons church, being the very structure wherein Cotton Mather, of magnalied celebrity, poured forth the troubled stream of his eloquence, in the 17th century. What will be the end of this theological net-work ? Add to this, Mr- Holley, Pres'- of the Transylvania college is now in Boston, preaching long & loud in a stile that puzzles people to know whether he incline most to Socrates or Jesus. I asked one who had attended him, what he had said of the latter, he re- plied nothing at all, yet have his admirers in Boston, subscribed 20,000 dollars to build him a church, so easy are those people carried about by every wind of doctrine. A Bostonian is "full of notions," and to be found on the top of every wave. While these efforts are made in the daytime, a very eloquent & newly imported methodist collects a vast crowd in the evening, & it is not long since they held a camp-meeting. It is remarkable that there is not a single quaker in Boston & but one Jew.
The writer of the journal of the Dartmore prisoner, in his definition of a New England man, calls him " a go to meeting animal" You would think so, were you to attempt to ride through the streets of Boston of a Sunday, at the hour, when the churches are just out. The sidewalks, or bricked way cannot contain the people. This is a matter of curiosity to strangers, especially when they take into the account the re- markably well dressed people, which has given rise to the remark of strangers that " Boston has no rabble. "-
In this state of things & condition of the people, is the religion of reason raising her head in the midst of a sensible race. It is next to impossible that fanaticism, or calvanism can maintain its footing here, especially while the preachers of "the One all perfect God" retain their present great weight of character. The Roman Catholics have a vast congrega- tion in Boston, & over them a Bishop of inestimable worth, & prudence. No clergyman is there more respected, for his learning, eloquence & goodness. His removal would be a public loss.
That you may see what sort of sermons the people of Bos-
174 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
ton & Cambridge listen to, I send you a copy of one preached by the younger Mr Ware, and written while on a visit to New York, where his younger brother is settled, in anew and tasteful structure, built almost entirely by New England men & their descendants I contemplate the improvement of education with pleasure. When I was a young man, 1 had not any acquaintance of 26 years of age, who could, away from his own study, on a visit in a distant city, write such a sensible discourse is that on three important questions relating to the Christian name & character. Some of his discourses are more brilliant, but none less sensible. From such a specimen in such young men, you can judge of the effects fifty years hence. The Apostle at Baltimore, the chaplain of Congress, who is now preaching in Boston, is under 30 years of age. The famous Osgood, who is certainly a very able & eloquent man, & who is now probably on his death bed, is well aware that he will be succeeded by an Unitarian. He, as well as his coadjutor, Parish have undergone a great change since Presi- dent Monroe visited Boston. Both of them have confessed some of their political mistakes, & partly atoned for their abuse. It is remarkable that both of them disapprove the high handed conduct of the calvanistic convention, and have predicted the consequences. Even Andover groans out loud at the prospect around her. She dreads the effect of reason. It is somewhat remarkable that even here on Rhode Island, they almost shudder at the name of an Unitarian. Although the founder of the Sect of Hopkinsians issued all his dogmas from this town, where he had little or no influence, yet I could have hardly imagined that every pulpit on the Island is shut against every man bearing the name of Unitarian. The Epis- copal church is here the most numerous, next the Quakers ; then the Baptist, with a few Methodists & Moravians. The Jews are become extinct & the lamp of their synagogue gone out. I remember them here very numerous ; in general rich & respectable. On the approach of war, & decay of trade, they fled. They follow not the usual laborious trades of the Christians, but pursue those callings which are generally ex- ercised in secret among themselves. Twenty years ago, one of their tribe commanded a very handsome military company, or corps of volunteers, in Boston.
R. I. MANUSCRIPTS IN NATIONAL ARCHIVES, ETC. 175
As to politics, the notorious federalists in Boston very gen- erally, talk & act like republicans, while most of the repub- licans talk as the federalists once did. They speak of our administration in a stile that proves their ignorance, and of the navy, & some of its officers as worse than useless. The fact is, the parties are so nearly amalgamated, that the great brawlers on both sides have lost their usual stimulus, & hav- ing no longer occasion to rave at the opposite party they have now turned upon their own. A middling interest is rising out of the extremes of these associations, but they are all so languid that nothing very honorable will come of it. When a people "are full of idleness & full of bread," it does seem as if the whole they constitute stood need of some tub to play with. The Bostonians must have military parades, cattle shows — agricultural projects, great personages, or sea serpents or religious controversies or a great conflagration to keep them from looking sour and making faces at one another. But enlist them very heartily in any cause, and they can hate, or be benevolent equal to any set of men upon earth.
Being on a visit to my native place, I cannot employ the forenoon of a rainy day more agreeably than by recording a few particulars of my natale solum. Is it truth, or am I blinded by partiality when I say that this small state of Rhode Island has been fertile in events, and by no means destitute of distinguished characters.
Between the years 1720 & '25, this Island was the residence of the famous Dean Berkley, afterwards Bishop of Cloyne. It is even said that he wrote his immortal work in this Island The house he built, called Whitehall, still remains, & is shewn as the Dutch shew that of Erasmus at Rotterdam. This cele- brated philosopher & his companions left behind them traits of their brilliant characters. The Dean left his library to Yale college, as well as the estate he possessed here, where Mr Keyes erected & endowed a Latin school for youth of the episcopal church. You doubtless recollect that Berkley & his associates came out to establish a College at Bermuda, for the convertion & education of our North American In- dians ; but they could not find the Summer Islands, or mis- took Rhode Island for Bermuda.
176 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
About the year 1754 Abraham Redwood a benevolent & opulent gentleman of the Society of Quakers, established a public library, containing the best English books, & Latin classics of that day — accessible on very easy terms to every inhabitant. The structure is, at this moment, one of the best copies of Grecian architecture I ever saw in America. When the Redwood Library was founded, there were but two col- leges in New England, one at Cambridge, the other at New Haven. A college in Rh. Island was not then contemplated. The very learned President Stiles was Librarian of the Red- wood collection nearly thirty years ; and he has often de- clared that he owed his great attachment to literature, which was extraordinary, to that fine library.
It was the "Redwood Library" that rendered reading fash- ionable throughout the little Community of Rh. Island during 70, or 80 years, wc- advantage was not then enjoyed in Mass15- New Hampshire, or Connecticut. It diffused a knowledge of general & particular history, geography, ethics, & poetry & polite literature. It opened to the youth of both sexes an acquaintance with antiquity : it gave them a knowledge of Greece & Rome, of Asia, modern Europe, the English classics & belles lettres. It sowed the seeds of that science and ren- dered the inhabitants of Newport, if not a learned yet a bet- ter read, & inquisitive people than any other town in New England. When the British army occupied Rh. Island, they, in a manner, destroyed the Redwood Library, by carrying off books of entertainment as English poetry, voyages & trav- els ; all the books on medicine, leaving behind little else than folios on serious subjects. So much we owe to Abraham Red- wood, the William Logan of Newport. He first established a fine garden here well stored with curious foreign plants in hot houses, greenhouses, & extensive open grounds for indig- enous ones. Nor was his liberality confined to such things ; — industrious young men struggling on to obtain comfortable livlehoods, were objects of his benevolence. I am now writing this in the house of his grand daughter Mrs Champlin, the seat of elegance & opulence.
Next to Dean Berkley, we must mention Callender in the line of theology, who wrote the best account of the Colony of
R. I. MANUSCRIPTS IN NATIONAL ARCHIVES, ETC. 177
Rh. Island & Providence Plantation. Then comes Dr Stiles afterwards President of Yale college ; nor must we pass over Dr Hopkins founder of the Sect called after him Hopkins- tans, — Dr Arthur Browne, who died President of trinity college Dublin, was born, and received the ground work of his education in this town, where his father was episcopal minister.
In the department of physic, it behoves us to record that the first public lectures ever given in North America on anatomy, physiology & surgery, were by Dr Wm- Hunter, in the court house at Newport, and father to the gentleman of the same name now in the Senate of the U. S. — This was prior to the existence of the medical school of Philadelphia.
In experimental, or mechanical philosophy, the name of Joseph Brown can never be forgotten here. This self taught genius, amongst other useful things, constructed and put into complete operation the British invention of the steam engine for freeing a mine, belonging to his family from water. Nor ought we to pass over, in our catologue of eminent men his friend Stephen Hopkins, the Samuel Adams of Rh. Island, whom you knew in Congress, & who is immortalized by his Signature.
Among military commanders, our little State may boast of General Green, and of Oliver Hazard Perry, whom Nelson, were he living, might envy. We can almost boast of Decature, for his father and mother were born here. —
In the "fine arts," so called, we enumerate my old friend & school fellow Gilbert Stewart, who every body knows, stands preeminent as an head painter.
After thus boasting of our great men, before the braggado- cia spirit evaporates entirely, I must speak of the Island itself. I have seen not a little of other countries, but I never saw any Island that unites finer views, rendered pleasant by variety, of hill & vale, rocks, reefs beaches, Islands & perennial ponds than this. Until I saw other parts of the world I did not suffi- ciently appreciate this. I have always heard it praised by strangers, and long remember it the resort of the opulent inva- lid, since I can remember anything, but I never duly estimated its beauties until this visit ; when I have explored it from shore
178 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
to shore in every direction, & cease to wonder at its celebrity. Before the discovery of our mineral springs Rh. Island was in one view the Bath of the American world, & the lumber room of the colonial faculty. What they could not cure they threw in a heap here. This and the "Redwood Library" gave it both a literary & a genteel air ; and rendered it the best bred society in N. England. But — alas! — how changed! — The British destroyed, for fuel, about goo buildings, of be sure the poorer sort ; yet it has never recovered the delapida- tion. The town of Providence has risen to riches & elegance from the ruins of this once beautiful spot ; while Newport resembles an old battered shield — Its scars & bruises are deep & indeliable. Commerce, & all the Jews are fled. The wharves are deserted & the lamp in the synagogue is extinct ; and the people are now so poor, that there are not more than 10, or a dozen people who would have the courage to invite a stranger to his table. General Dearborn has demonstrated to me that it never can be a safe naval station ; and that it can never be so fortifyed as to resist a powerful attack by sea. They must therefore stick to the spirit of their ancient motto — In Domine speravimus.
You owe to an easterly storm of rain the tedious task of reading this long epistle. Should I keep it till tomorrow I shall probably burn it, from a second thought of why I should impose such a task as reading this upon a person who may loathe the sight of another letter from anyone ? Its preser- vation from the flames now arises from the reflection, that reading a letter is somewhat different from being obliged to notice it by any sort of acknowledgement or answer. — I con- sider the effects of an old dislocation, & that gradual, but very natural irksomeness of arranging & committing thoughts to paper, at a period of life when a man ought to be relieved from every labour but thinking — What a life the antient Patriarch must have led ! — So many years old — ooo, ooo, ! and no books, and if they had, no spectacles — no tele- scopes — no tobacco — no rum — wine like our cider — no commerce — no post office — outlived love & fighting — their vale of life must have been what we in this day can scarcely imagine — a sort of valley of the shadow of death ! — But how
R. I. MANUSCRIPTS IN NATIONAL ARCHIVES, ETC. 179
blessed are you ? How differently situated & circumstanced — a mind stored from reading and every convenience from art to aid declining nature and with this consolatory reflection that you have not served an ungrateful public. That your rewards may increase, until you receive the great one, in an- other & a better world is the prayer of
B. WATERHOUSE.
[Indorsement in the handwriting of Thomas Jefferson.]
Waterhouse D* Benj: Newport Sep. 14. 22.
recd Sep. 26
[Jefferson was then at Monticello.J
MILITARY RECORDS PERTAINING TO THE
HISTORY OF RHODE ISLAND, FROM THE
ARCHIVES OF THE DEPARTMENT OF
STATE, WASHINGTON, D. C.
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1 82 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
[ The Copy of a letter of Gov. Cooke, dated Providence, Nov. 6, 1776, is here omitted, as it is printed in R, I. Col. Rec., Vol. 8, pp. S4~5-~\
[The following is enclosed in Governor Cooke's letter of Nov. 6, 1776.]
State of Rhode-Island and Providence Plantations In General Assembly. October Sessions A. D. 1776. —
Both Houses being resolved into a Grand-Committee made Choice of the following Gentlemen as Officers in the two Battalions or Regiments to be raised by this State agreeable to requisition of Congress
I. BATTALION.
James Mitchel Varnum Esq Colonel. Adam Comstock Esq Lieut Col°. Henry Sherburne Esq Major.
Captains
Ebenezer Flagg. Silas Talbut. Thomas Cole, John S. Dexter. Simeon Martin. Jonathan Wallen.
Is* Lieutenants.
Joseph Arnold. William Belcher. Timothy Lock. Samuel Bissell. Wilson Rawson. William Potter. Handy. Thomas Noyes.
2d. Lieutenants. Ichabod Prentice, John Chapman. John Remington.
Ensigns Zephaniah Bowen
Staff Officers
Clarke Brown Quarter Master. Jonathan J. Hazard, pay- master.
R. I. MANUSCRIPTS IN NATIONAL ARCHIVES, ETC. 183
2° BATTALION.
Daniel Hitchcock Esq Colonel. Israel Angel Esq Lieut Col. Christopher Smith Esq Major
Captains.
Jeremiah Olney, William Tew. Coggeshal Olney. Ephraim Bowen. William Bradford. John Carr. Abimelech Riggs —
Ist Lieutenants
Stephen Olney. William Allen. William Littlefield. Gilbert Grano. Joseph Whitmarsh. Daniel Peirce. Amos Crandell. Micah Moulton.
2 Lieutenants Thomas Hughes. Duty Jerrald.
Ensigns
Ebenezer West. Holliman Potter. Thomas Waterman. Oliver Jencks. Richard Hunniwell.
Staff- Officers
Cyprian Sterry Quarter Master. Charles Holden Pay- Master.
A true copy
Witness HENRY WARD Secry.
1 84
RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
RETURN OF OFFICERS RECOMMENDED FOR THE NEW ESTABLISHMENT.
FIELD OFFICERS, RECOMMEND?
DANIEL HITCHCOCK, Colonel. ISRAEL ANGELL, Ll. Colonel. CHRISTOPHER SMITH, Major.
OFFICERS IN SERVICE RECOMMENDED
Captains
Jeremh Olney William Tew Coggeshall Olney Ephraim Bowen Simeon Thayer Willâ„¢ Bradford Carr Riggs
Ist Lieuten1*
2d Lieuu
Stephen Olney William Allen Will-? Littlefield
Grant
Joseph Whitmarsh Daniel Peirce Amos Crandall Micah Moulton
Thomas Hughs James Webb Wâ„¢ Humphrey
Duty Jerrald
Ensigns
Ebenr West Holiman Potter Tho" Waterman
Oliver Jencks Richd Hunnewell
STAFF OFFICERS RECOMMENDED
Chaplain Adjutant
CYPREAN STERRY Qr Master Surgeon Mate
FIELD OFFICER RECOMMEND £
CHRISTOPHER GREENE Colonel ADAM COMSTOCK L'. Col? HENRY SHURBUNE Major
MILITARY RECORDS IN NATIONAL ARCHIVES, ETC. 185 OFFICERS IN SERVICE RECOMMENDED
Captains
Samuel Ward John Topham Ebenr Flagg Silas Talbut Tho" Cole John S. Dexter Martin Wallin.
i* Lieut1.'
2* Lieut1.".
Joseph Arnold Will"1 Belcher Timothy Lock Sam1 Bissell Rawson Willâ„¢ Potter Handy Noice
Ichabod Prentice
John Chapman
Edward Slocum John Remmington
Ensigns
Zepheniah Browne
STAFF OFFICERS RECOMMENDED
Chaplain Adjt
CLARKE BROWNE Qr Master Surgeon Mate
On the back of this list the following remarks appear :
" Colonel Varnum would have been recommended for a Colonel of one of the Regiments but he refuses to serve."
" Recommended from the different Regiments the within Arrangement for constituting the two Rhode Island Regiments upon the new Estab- lishment."
" Included in this Arrangement the following Officers now prisoners of War — Ll. Col° Christopher Greene Cap*. Samuel Ward — Cap1. John Topham — Capt*. Simeon Thayer— Ll James Webb — L4. Willm Hum- phreys and Ensign Edward Slocum."
" N. B. It is not meant that the within Arrangement shall determine the Rank of the Captains and Subaltern Officers."
[Endorsed] Recomd of Officers Transmitted
GovB COOKE
n, 12 & 13 Octr.
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ROGER WILLIAMS' KEY: — BEANES vs. BARNES.
Not long ago, a member of this Society, while pursuing a subject of Natural History, was forced to ask the question, —
"Why are Beans omitted from the ' Catalogue of Fruits of the Earth,' given by Roger Williams, in the i6th Chapter of his Key?"
In a paper read before the Historical Society, the reasons for the question and the manner in which it arose, were plainly stated, without any pretence of learning as a philolo- gist or familiarity with the Indian language.
It occurred to the writer, as a possible answer to the ques- tion, that the word "Barnes," by a misprint in the Key, might have been substituted for "Beanes." In support of this hypothesis, such reasons and evidence as seemed appro- priate, were adduced; and in its closing paragraph the final decision was referred to the philologists, to whose province it especially belonged.
Recently, Mr. Tooker has undertaken to defend the printed text, claiming as a reason an invitation from Mr. Ely to do so. This is a mistake. No invitation was needed, and none was given by him, directly, or otherwise.
Mr. Tooker appears also to have mistaken the aim of the writer when he charges — "anxiety in Mr. Ely to prove Roger Williams or his printer, to be in error."
On the contrary, the writer's hypothesis relieves Roger Williams from the charge of error, which Mr. Tooker's theory fixes upon him, in omitting from his Catalogue of Fruits of the Soil, the greatest vegetable product of the Indians, ex- cept corn, namely, beans.
189
RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
This omission Mr. looker does not explain or excuse, and while he rightly calls the views of the writer an " hypothesis," seems to forget, that as such, it necessarily admits that Au- qun-nash may mean either Barnes, or Beanes.
Mr. Tooker also claims to be an expert in the Indian lan- guage : — roots, primals and etymologies.
He declares himself "almost as familiar with Eliot's Bible as with Roger Williams' Key " — and says that, "probably no one has devoted more time and study to Roger Williams' Key — especially to this particular [i6th] Chapter, for the past six years than he has."
Now Dr. Trumbull, to whom Mr. Tooker appeals and wisely defers, is admittedly the most accomplished New England scholar in the Indian languages. There are also to be found in the works of Dr. Trumbull, his opinions as to certain words and passages on which Mr. Tooker has given his own theo- ries and opinions ; and by these may be tested, in a good measure, the etymologies, deductions and assertions which Mr. Tooker places before us.
As to Mr. Tooker's statement, that, " there is absolutely no affinity" between the word Tiipp-ith-qua-nash, and Au-qun- nash, denned in the Key as Barnes, "providing Dr. Trumbull is correct in his interpretation," — the language seems strong, but Mr. Tooker's proviso nullifies it all. It is an assertion with an If, and amounts merely to this : if Au-qun-nash really means " Barnes," and if Dr. Trumbull is correct in leaving the printed text unchanged (as Mr. Tooker thinks), then there is no affinity between the words. But the very question is as to the correctness of the printed word thus left unchanged. So, the whole argument of Mr. Tooker at this point, is a mere "begging of the question."
The fact that the printed words were left as Dr. Trumbull found them, is no evidence that they were examined critically, or deliberately studied and approved. All we know is that he reprinted them. There is no note or reference to these, as to many other words, to indicate a study of them. And Dr. Trumbull says, " it was his constant aim to insure the literal accuracy of the reprint, even to the reproduction of typo- graphical errors of the original."*
*Key Narr. ed., Editor's preface, p. 15.
BEANES VS. BARNES. 1 9.!
If the gross misprinting of the running titles of the Chap- ters escaped notice, it seems an insignificant oversight that two words theretofore unquestioned and little used, were left in the text unchanged.
But further, in his fifth paragraph, Mr. Tooker comments on the word Tupp-uh-qua-nash, and digs up a set of roots and primals from which he represents it as derived. He also de- nies that the native bean twined high — and declares that Eliot, in this case, used a word of his own coinage, and was de- scribing the European bean. This, he says, "is evident," and admits of no doubt. Dr. Trumbull, however, has spoken on this matter, and his views and etymologies directly contradict those of Mr. Tooker.
What to Mr. Tooker is " evidently" true, is evidently error to Dr. Trumbull. While Mr. Tooker, to make out his case against Tupp-uh-qua-nasht asserts that, " Eliot here evidently uses a word of his own coinage, in order to describe the Euro- pean plant," — that, the "native bean was a low bush," — and that Dr. Trumbull no doubt recognized the truth of this, and evi- dently derives it from tupp, the root of which is ap-pu, he sits, and uh-gua, from gun-nuh-qui, high : — we have the explicit statement of Dr. Trumbull to the contrary.* Dr. Trumbull ig- nores the roots and primals, on which these claims of Mr. Tooker are based, and says, " Besides the name Mon-as-quis-set and its variants [for beans] there is another, in the Northern Al- gonquin language for Kidney [native] beans, which must have originally belonged to some high-twining variety." Dr. Trum- bull also says that, "Eliot used it, in the plural for beans, II. Samuel, xvii., 28, — Tupp-uh-qua-mash, which literally signifies twiners:" and then, referring to the etymology, he says, — " Rasle gave in the Kennebeck-Abnaki, of Maine, for 'faseole [the native bean], a'-te-ba'-kwe, from the same root :" — but not a word of ap-pu, he sits, — or gun-nuk-qui, high, as any root or source of the word. Dr. Trumbull also quotes Jocelyn's Cata- logue with approval: — "Here is reference to at least two species of American beans, one proper to New England, the other from Roanoke;" and adds, "as to the American origin
•Scientific Works of Dr. Asa Gray, by C. S. Sargent, I., 350.
1Q2 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
of the Lima bean and its varieties, there seems to be no question."*
Dr. Trumbull thus gives no support to the theories of Mr. Tooker ; on the contrary, he directly refutes his assertion that, " Eliot was using a word of his own coinage, to describe the European plant." Dr. Trumbull represents Eliot as describ- ing a native bean and not the European ; that there were a number of varieties of the native beans, and that some did twine and grow high.
Again, on another point, Mr. Tooker says, "the reason why Eliot translated beans by Ttipp-uh-qua-mash, and not by Monr as-qus-se-dash, once used by Williams for cooked beans, but not at all in Chapter XVI., is partially answered under his fifth paragraph. But we find that Dr. Trumbull has already nullified the argument of that portion of Mr. Tooker's paper, so that the partial answer fails on that point.
In fact, Mr. Tooker's statement as to the word, Mon-as-qus- se-dash, under his sixth paragraph, singularly strengthens and confirms the position of the "Key-hole," that Mon-as-qus- se-dash and its variants were used only for beans cooked and ready to be eaten, — or as Mr. Tooker gives it, "those that are much boiled."
As to Indian "Barns," they are described in the "Key- hole," as Mr. Tooker admits. But there is no reason to be- lieve that the barn of the Bible — the English barn and the Indian barn were so essentially different in idea as Mr. Tooker claims.
On the contrary it seems they were the same in idea and purpose, while their difference was mainly one of construc- tion and extent.
All and each were "repositories for any sort of grain," or products of the soil. The conception of a barn as a shelter for horses or cattle of any kind, was of a much latter date, and did not obtain in England before the middle of the i8th Century. f
To give the fact that " Cotton was the son of a clergyman who preached to the Indians," as a reason for his never using
*Scientific papers of Asa Gray — C. S. Sargent, I., 350, 351. |Bailey, Diet. 1749.
BEANES VS. BARNES. 193
the Key word au-qun-nash, for barns, is unique, if the word really meant "Barnes," as Mr. Tooker claims; or, if Mr. Tooker supposes that, " to an Indian's mind and understand- ing" the Bible idea and the white man's idea of a Barn were "things" which he was incapable of grasping, he would seem to underrate Indian intelligence.
Roger Williams expressly observes of the Indians, — " For the temper of the braine in quick apprehension and accurate judgments, to say no more, the most high and Sovereign God and Creator hath not made them inferior to Europeans."* And so as to their coinage. Dr. Trumbull quotes Jocelyn, as saying, " They work their bead money out of certain shells, so cunning, that neither Jew nor Devil can counterfeit."!
And even on the higher plane of " Soul Liberty," (the great distinction of Roger Williams) he tells us, that the natives held the same doctrine. " They have a modest persuasion, not to disturb any man, either themselves, English, Dutch, or any, in their conscience or worship : — and therefore say, — ' Peace : hold your peace ! ' "\
In another paragraph, Mr. Tooker takes up the verb au- quan, au-qun, and gives his method of evolving Au-qun-nash therefrom. This appears to be done by doubling n, and add- ing to the verb the affix " ask" — which Dr. Trumbull says is the plural affix for an inanimate noun ;§ thus coining for his pur- pose, a plural noun. This seems an original method in ety- mology,— that it is aboriginal does not so clearly appear.
But to reach those primal sources, " which clear away all uncertainty," we may take the word, Au-ha-qut, mantle, which Mr. Tooker represents as derived, as well as other words, from au-quan, au-qun. Here we can again contrast the views of Mr. Tooker and Dr. Trumbull ; and we find the latter speaking with the same positiveness as in the previous case of Mr. Tooker' s " ap-pu, he sits ; gun-nuh-qui, high." Dr. Trumbull ignores Mr. Tooker's au-quan and au-qun, as its root and primal ; and on the contrary says it is derived from
*Key, Narr. ed., p. 77. •{•Key, Narr. ed., p. 181. JKey, Narr. ed., 153. §Key, Narr. ed., 53.
IQ4 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
hog-kut, or hog-ki, to cover; and further, that "hock" (Iwg-ki, hack-ee) is the generic affix for "a shell."* The strict signifi- cance of the word is therefore, to cover as with a shell.
This being so, it does not require much imagination to con- ceive that the bean-plant might derive its name, as a variant, or secondarily, from the same primal with Au-ha-qut, if au-ha- qut and au-qun-nash are, as Mr. Tooker states, cognate words : — the "cover" being of the bean, and not of a hole in the ground, — and so like the shell of a clam or mussel, that in English there seems to be no word for getting out the fruit by human hands, except as it is " shelled."
But in leaving au-qnan and its variants, even Mr. Tooker seems doubtful of the etymology; his argument being quali- fied by the remark, that "this prefix (Ne-cawn, Nuk-kon), if there was nothing else, would prove the accuracy of Roger Williams' interpretation, for the reason that it is never used except to give the sense of being old in use, and therefore could not have been applied to beans." But this proposition fails ; for the same prefix (which as Mr. Tooker shows is spelt in different ways) is actually used, as stated in the "Key- hole," to distinguish between "old birds "and young birds; and even Mr. Tooker would hardly claim that parent birds were spoken of or distinguished only "as being old in use."
Mr. Tooker's doubt and assertion that the Indians would not have kept beans of the previous year's growth in quanti- ties enough to be noted by Roger Williams, is mere assertion and doubt. The evidence of history appears to be that as many beans in proportion to corn were raised among the In- dians for their own consumption as among the whites at the present day. The universal cultivation of both, from the St. Lawrence and the lakes to the farthest south, and from the Atlantic to the Pacific coasts, no one can deny. Williams finds it " almost incredible what burthens the poor women carry of beanes."f In time of famine at Plymouth, two little villages on the Cape, each turned out to Gov. Bradford, "hogsheads of corn and beans ;"$ and Hendrick Hudson
*Key, Narr. ed., 144, 175. i
fKey, Narr. ed., p. 66. JYoung's Chronicles, XIX., 301-2.
BEANES VS. BARNES. 1 95
found, on the river which bears his name, at Schodack, in the Spring of 1609, beanes of the last year's growth.* If they were not habitually stored along with their corne, and if none were kept over, "except occasionally for seed," it is impossible to believe they would have been given by the hogsheads to Bradford, or freely furnished as a feast and food-stores for Hudson and his crew, — or that, as Ruttenber states, "above a hundred pits of corn and beans were burned" at a time.f
As to the holes in the ground, described as " barnes, or welles," abounding on Shinnecock Playne, the presumption is very strong that they were mostly welles, from the constant and universal need of fresh water on sandy, flat and almost seagirt regions, wherever a wigwam was set up or changed in place.
At all events there was no such condition of things in the Providence Plantations. The geologic features of the two lo- calities were entirely different. The Narragansetts put their barnes on hillsides, and had no need of welles in a country with so many springs and which Roger Williams describes as "full of brooks and rivers and abounding in fresh ponds." No evi- dence has been brought to show that welles or barnes, or old barnes caused any trouble to call for notice in their domains, while the immense sacks and baskets of their skillful handi- work (each holding several bushels), doubtless rendered their barnes fewer and smaller in size.
The fact remains, that the hollows and holes in the ground, whether "welles " or " barnes" or both, were not fruits or prod- ucts of the soil, and in a catalogue of such fruits were out of place.
Whether Au-qun-nash means beanes or barnes, one cannot, in view of the authority of Dr. TrumbuH's statements, accept the etymologies of Mr. Tooker.
With all his study, he does not answer the main ques- tion,— "Why are beanes omitted by Roger Williams in his Catalogue of the Fruits of the Earth, in the sixteenth Chapter of the Key ?"
*Hudson's Journal, in de Laet, 1625, Lib. III., Chap. 10. fTribes of Hudson's River — 150.
1 96 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
The whole inquiry is thus relegated anew to the philolo- gists. Of these there seem to be but two organizations in a position to decide. One, the Indian Section of the American Philological Society; the other, the Indian Bureau of the Smithsonian Institute. The latter has been for years study ing the hundreds of Indian languages of the East and West, and is in constant session. To it, therefore, the writer has submitted for consideration, both the " Key-hole" and Mr. Tooker's paper, in print.
It is left for the Institute to decide these questions ; and if Roger Williams omitted Beanes from his list of vegetables in the Key, we trust it will make clear to us, not only the fact, but also the reason why.
Its investigations will doubtless evolve the truth, and its decision will bear a stamp of authority.
WILLIAM D. ELY.
May, 1894.
GLIMPSES OF ANCIENT SOWAMS.
REMINISCENCES OF THE ABORIGINES — THEIR SAYINGS AND DOINGS.
" Warren ! where first beside the cradled nation The old chief stood, we love thy storied past.
' Sowams is pleasant for a habitation — '
'Twas thy first history — may it be thy last."
Near neighbors to the Plymouth settlers were the Indians of the Wampanoag tribe of whom Massas^it or Osamequin was the principal sachem. The domain of Massasoit extended over a considerable territory embracing nearly all the south- eastern portion of Massachusetts from Cape Cod to Narra-
GLIMPSES OF ANCIENT SOWAMS.
gansett Bay ; but the villages of the Wampanoags were prin- cipally located within the limits of a tract of country called by the Indians "Pokanoket." Pokanoket comprised the region now occupied by the towns of East Providence, Barrington, Warren and Bristol in Rhode Island ; together with portions of Seekonk, Swanzea, and Rehoboth in Massachusetts, the headquarters of the chief being at the village of Sowams or So warn set.
For many years the location of Sowams was a disputed point, authorities variously fixing it at Barrington, Warren, and Bristol. Gen. Guy M. Fessenden was the first to prove it to have been on the site of Warren near the spring which still bears the sachem's name. The facts which determined Gen. Fessenden in arriving at his conclusions are given at length in his "History of Warren." This history was pub- lished in 1845. Several years after its publication Gen. Fes- senden obtained additional proof of the correctness of his theories. The student of Indian history is aware that, at the close of King Philip's war, the remnant of the Wampanoags fled to Maine and sought refuge from their white foes among the Penobscots, with whom they ultimately became blended. In 1860, a company of Indians, under the leadership of Father Beeson, the "Indian's Friend," made a tour of the United States giving a series of entertainments in the principal cities and towns. The object of their enterprise was a threefold one.
"1st. To prepare the public mind for a National Conven- tion of Representatives from the Principal Tribes and their Friends in the States.
"2d. To devise and present for Congressional action, a plan for a protective policy between the two races.
"3rd. To prevent the proposed Border War."
Among the towns visited was Warren, where a prolonged stay was made. The Indians encamped upon some vacant lots on Franklin Street, just east of the railroad track. At their wigwams they sold bows and arrows, baskets and other implements of war and peace. Evening entertainments con- sisting of songs, dances, readings, and illustrations of various Indian customs were given at Armory Hall, and were at- tended by large audiences.
198 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
The sojourn in Warren was made with a special purpose in view. A member of the company, Mr. Frank Loring, known also by the Indian name of " Big Thunder," was a Penobscot by birth, but claimed descent from the Wampanoag tribe. The ancient traditions of his people declared Sowams to have been located within the limits of the town of Warren, and he sought for traces of the vanished home of his ancestors. He was provided with a rude chart of Sowams — the origin of which is unfortunately unknown — and by its means he was enabled to locate many of the most famous haunts of the ab- origines. " Big Thunder" was a man of considerable intelli- gence, and a splendid specimen of his race, colossal in stature, of commanding presence and possessing features of statu- esque beauty. Though advanced in years, he is, I believe, still living at Indian Old Town Island, Maine. It is to be regretted that the chart mentioned was, many years ago, de- stroyed by fire.
Among the historic spots located by " Big Thunder," was a gentle eminence on the farm now owned by Mr. Edward Mason. This farm is situated on the " Birch Swamp Road," in the northeasterly part of the town. The hillock referred to had always been known to its white possessors as " North Hill." "Big Thunder" gave its Indian name as "Wigwam Mountain." It greatly resembles a wigwam in shape. A little to the west of it is an Indian burial place, in which, even now, the outlines of six or eight graves are discernable. Mr. Loring exhumed two or three skeletons and several pipes and arrowheads. He also located two other burial places, one on the farm of Mr. Loring Coggeshall at the "narrows" of the Kickemuit River; another at " Burr's Hill," in South Warren. About two years ago, several skeletons were unearthed at the latter place. These were, generally, in a fair state of preser- vation. One peculiarity is deserving of attention. With one exception, every skull was surmounted by the remains of an inverted copper kettle, placed like a crown upon the brows. The exception was a trunkless head which had been carefully placed in a large iron dinner-pot.
The boundary line separating Warren and Swansea passes through a ledge of conglomerate generally known as "King's
GLIMPSES OF ANCIENT SOWAMS. 199
Rocks." Here, according to Mr. Loring, Philip was in the habit of convening his warriors during the period immedi- ately preceding the war. From this point he despatched scouts and raiding parties to Swansea, Mattapoisett, and other localities. Mr. Loring knew that one of the rocks in this ledge had been used as a mortar for pounding maize by the Wampanoag squaws. Assisted by Gen. Fessenden, he instituted a search, which resulted successfully. Nothing, however, now remains of this interesting monument of the past, save a fragment of stone built into the wall which skirts the roadside. The mortar has been carried away piecemeal by "relic fiends."
Among the traditions carefully preserved by the Pe- nobscots was one declaring that, during Philip's War, the Wampanoags buried a quantity of wampum in Birch Swamp. "Big Thunder" brought with him directions for finding this hidden treasure. These directions had been handed down, in his tribe, from father to son for generations. They are curi- ous as illustrating the Indian method of determining distan- ces. A gentleman who accompanied him upon several excursions, states that, as nearly as he can recollect, they were as follows :
" From ' Margaret's Cave ' 10 paces towards the sun at noonday, then 20 paces toward the setting sun in June.
" From the highest point of the ledge of rock in Birch Swamp 50 paces due west in September."
Mr. Loring spent three days searching for the buried hoard, but his efforts were fruitless, although he dug several holes at each location. Doubtless the wampum is still in the place where it was hidden, unless the devil, who formerly made the swamp one of his places of residence and whose hoofprints imbedded in the solid rock are to be seen there even to this day, has spirited it away to the lower regions.
"Margaret's Cave," of which only a portion now remains, derived its name from having been, for many years, the home of an Indian man, probably of Wampanoag origin, "Margaret" being undoubtedly the anglicised pronunciation of an Indian name. In Birch Swamp dwelt also "Old Hippy," another abo- riginal. Just when these two red men lived I have been una-
20O RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
ble to ascertain ; but, presumably, it must have been nearly if not quite a century ago. Both lived to old age. "Hippy " died peacefully in his bed, but " Margaret " perished in the flames of his summer wigwam which he accidentally set on fire. Near the cave are two rocks said to be the devil and his wife turned to stone by some influence more powerful than their own. At a little distance, on the top of the ledge of which the cave forms a part, is a wide and deep groove in the rocks closely resembling the track of a huge wheel. Tradition says it was caused by the devil who, having quarreled with her, trundled his spouse over the ledge in some kind of an in- fernal vehicle and "dumped" her into a hollow many feet below. The legend is probably of Indian origin.
There were two other Indian villages in close proximity to Sowams, "Kickemuit," situated around the spring of that name, and " Montaup " at the hill now known as " Mount Hope." The old Indian trail, a portion of which now consti- tutes " Metacom Avenue," led from the latter place through Kickemuit to Swansea. Along this trail Philip's warriors hastened on that memorable June Sabbath when the houses of the Swansea colonists were raided. At a point on the right bank of the Kickemuit near the present pumping sta- tion, the Indians, a few days later, set up on poles the heads of eight Englishmen whom they had captured at Mattapoisett (Gardner's Neck in Swansea). The white men who pursued them, took down these ghastly remains of their murdered comrades and buried them by the river. The eight skulls were accidentally exhumed some years ago. A few miles be- low, at "Weypoisett" or the "narrows" of the river, the English, against the advice of Capt. Benjamin Church, built a fort "to maintain the first ground they had gained by the Indians leaving it to them." While this fort was in process of construction, Philip and his warriors, who had retreated to Mount Hope, escaped in their canoes to Tiverton.
On the 29th of March, 1653, "Osamequin and Wamsetto his son, for and in consequence of thirty-five pounds Stirling," sold Sowams and parts adjacent to the English. The original proprietors were Thomas Prince, Thomas Willet, Myles Standish, Josiah Winslow, William Bradford, Sr., Thomas
GLIMPSES OF ANCIENT SOWAMS. 2OI
Clark, John Winslow, Thomas Cushman, William White, John Adams, and Experience Mitchell. Settlers rapidly loca- ted in the Sowams territory. The proprietors' record gives the names of more than forty persons who owned land in 1670. Among these names, appears that of Hugh Cole. Mr. Cole settled, at an early date, in what is now Swansea, upon the banks of the river which still bears his name. He purchased his land of King Philip, and a warm friendship sprang up be- tween the two men which endured until Philip's death. Once when asked the cause of his affection for Mr. Cole, Philip re- plied, "He is the one Englishman who has never told me a lie." The following anecdote will illustrate the depth of the esteem cherished by the sachem for his white friend. Prior to the actual breaking out of the war, the Indians fre- quently raided the houses of the English. One evening, as Mr. Cole's family sat around the supper-table, an Indian run- ner was observed approaching the house. Philip's men being frequent visitors, the family felt no uneasiness. The Indian paused at the door of the house for a moment, then darted quickly away. Upon investigation, Mr. Cole found affixed above the entrance, three eagle's feathers — the royal insig- nia of the savage monarch. That night many homes were burned and plundered, but that of Hugh Cole remained un- molested. A few days later, Mr. Cole's two sons, John and Hugh, were captured and taken to Mt. Hope. Philip treated the boys with great kindness and sent them home with a message advising their father to flee to Aquidneck, as he could no longer restrain his warriors. Mr. Cole at once acted upon this advice, and his boat had hardly entered Mt. Hope Bay before he beheld his house in flames. At the close of the war he returned to Sowams settling upon the left bank of the Kickemuit.
It was towards Pokanoket that the exiled Roger Williams turned his weary steps. "Sowams is pleasant for a habitation," he wrote, and truly it would be difficult to find a fairer spot. It seems a pity that the aboriginal name was ever discarded. And how strange that its meaning is unknown. It is notice- able that the early writers generally speak of the Sowams as "the great river." Does "Sowams" mean "Great River"?
2O2 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
Who can tell ? Year by year the past fades farther from us. Of the red men, who once peopled these shores, nothing re- mains but a few rhythmical names, a few shadowy legends, here and there, at our feet, a shattered pipe of clay, a broken stone vessel, a splintered arrowhead and — the land we wrested from their grasp.
"A buried world lies close beneath our feet, O'er a whole peoples sepulchre we tread ;
Yet who of all the living may repeat The story of the dead ? "
VIRGINIA BAKER. Warren, R. I., September, 1894.
THE GREAT GALE OF SEPT. 23,
A SKETCH BY MRS. ESTHER HOPPIN E. LARDNER OF PHILA-
ADELPHIA, A SISTER OF THE LATE GEORGE HOPPIN OF
PROVIDENCE — CONTRIBUTED BY MR. HENRY F. RICHARDS.
When this wonderful storm* occurred, our mother, born in 1784, was just thirty-one years old and was the mother of seven children. Our father was five years older. He had been educated for practising medicine, but not liking the profes- sion, he devoted himself to the drug and chemical business. At the time of the gale he had just finished a large (for those days) laboratory and lead house for the making of dyestuffs and chemicals of all kinds, large retorts and carboys for vit- riol, &c. When set in proper order and all ready for begin-
*In the Art Gallery are two pictures of the scene at the Great Bridge during the gale of Sept. 23, 1815, an account of which may be found on the 69th page of the Society's publications of 1893 (Ed.)
GREAT GALE OF SEPTEMBER 23, 1815. 2O3
ning work, he found it necessary to go to New York for needful articles for the business.
Our father sailed from Providence only a few days before the storm, leaving our mother with her little flock and one servant in their pleasant home at the corner of Pine and Rich- mond streets, not far from the river which had never been filled up to make wharves. Consequently the river was very near our house in those days. Diagonally across on the cor- ner where the old Tin Top Meeting House now stands, or very near to it, the lead house had been built.
The weather was fine when our father sailed from Provi- dence, but it soon became cloudy and towards sundown the wind began to blow and all night it howled and roared, in- creasing in violence as the night wore on. Our mother could not sleep, naturally thinking of her husband on his long voy- age of those days on the "great deep." She arose early in the morning to begin the family duties. As day wore on she ob- served the peculiar appearance of the sky full of dark and wild clouds whirling about in a terrible way. Soon these clouds changed to a red, copper color and began to cast a lurid light around, when the wind increased in violence and nothing could stand before it. Trees were uprooted, branches, boards and shingles were flying through the air. Fences went down, pig pens lay flat, out-buildings fled away. Worst of all, the river soon began to overflow its banks and creep steadily up Pine street, to our corner.
With her children, our mother watched the gradual approach of the river, becoming each moment more raging and violent. As it reached the laboratory they saw it and the new lead house begin to move and tremble with every bang of the fierce wind and surging water.
The head man who had charge of the works had come to her aid and stood beside her. Suddenly, she said, " William, look at the heavy roof of the lead house." He turned with an exclamation of terror as he saw a corner of the roof lifted up, and then, almost immediately, the whole roof rolled up like a sheet of paper, and sailed off through the air. Then the lower part of the building shivered, tottered and sank into the wa- ter and all was over and the houses gone.
2O4 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
After this she knew her husband was ruined. She cared only to get her children into a place of safety and they were taken one by one into a neighbor's house farther up the street. My mother waded through the water above her hips.
By the time the wind began to fall and the floods abate, most wonderful sights came into view. Destruction and deso- lation were everywhere. In place of the trim and pretty gar- den with its fruit trees, bushes, corn and flowers, was a mass of mud and rubbish, the ground covered with boards, fences and pig pens.
In Westminster and other streets near the river, the tide | had risen to a wonderful height, carrying away the bridge f and rushing and surging up the streets, carried barrels of all ' sizes. Houses, boats and trees were tossed and tumbled about in dire confusion. The ship "Ganges," made its way far up the cove and was left high and dry when the water abated.
Our grandparents lived on Hydraulion street, near the river, with our great -grandmother, Lydia Mason (Family Lan- caster), the widow of Noah Mason. She was over ninety years of age and too feeble to be moved out of the house, but she was taken on her bed to the attic where all the family assem- bled. When the violence of the storm had abated, our grand- father made his way over mountains of rubbish to a street opening into Weybosset street, some distance from the house, and there he fortunately met our eldest brother who had been sent out by his mother, his hat tied upon his head. The boy had climbed over rubbish and ruins of all kinds to try to learn news of our grandparents. When the two sighted each other they found it impossible to climb over the barriers between them, but they were near enough for grandpa to call out it through his hands, " Ship ahoy ! Stay where you are. All's / well!"
V. Afterwards, our grandfather told the story of his family sufferings. The water rose around his house above the first story windows and they escaped to the attic, having only time to carry a few necessary articles with them, among them a clothes-horse filled with newly ironed clothes, with some food, &c. Then they watched till the river returned to its natural bounds and they could descend to the wreck and ruin of their rooms below. It was long before they were restored to order
GREAT GALE OF SEPTEMBER 23, 1815. 2O5
and cleanliness. One carpet was saved after being dug out of the ruins (mud), and was cleansed with shovels. Afterwards it was renovated and became the cover of a best bedroom floor.
Our grandfather, Thomas Weld Philbrook, lost all his val- uable papers. Among them was the account of his life during the war of 1776, his imprisonment in the old "Jersey Prison Ship," with journals of his long voyages to the ends of the earth, visits to Russia, France and other foreign countries ; — not a trace of them was left.
All sorts of queer things had happened while they were shut up in the garret room. One among many others was the finding of Aunt Harriet's best white satin bonnet with its long white veil hanging to the crane in the big old kitchen chimney. Another was the finding of a blue dey pitcher rest- ing between the walls of the house and its stone foundation. The house had been tilted sufficiently by the water, as it broke against it, for the pitcher to roll into a corner where it rested and was taken out uninjured.
We had for many years a picture of the Great Gale, which we used to study with awe. The escape of our Uncle Benja- min [Hoppin] was wonderful. He had just reached the end of the bridge when it was swept off and he saved his life by clinging to the railing of the old Insurance Office, nearly tearing his nails off while clinging and scrambling to land.
Mr. William Aplin* was another attractive sight ; also the man in the whip-shop who was carried away while busily en- gaged in his shop ; also the small house with the old woman who was baking her bread, and, unwilling to leave until the batch was done, was carried away.
When the storm abated, a cow was found in Mr. Pettis' front chamber on his wife's bed, and Abner Kingman found in his best china closet five or six young pigs.
*In each of the pictures referred to in a previous note is the rude repre- sentation of a human being clinging to a plank for dear life, as he was borne up into the cove basin with ships, boats, out-buildings, lumber and a mass of heterogeneous rubbish. This person was the late Judge Wil- liam Aplin, who subsequently played a conspicuous part in the politics of his native town and city. His sisters Frances and Emily Aplin, served here the cause of Christian charity. His son Charles, who was long a useful member of this Society, once spoke to the writer of this note of this incident in his father's life, and particularly of his painful emotions on being so long at the mercy of the angry waves.
2O6 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
GENEALOGICAL NOTES.
JACKSON.
Stephen Jackson, of Providence, R. I., was born in 1700, in Kilkenny, Ireland. He came to America, it is said, in 1724, to escape political persecution. He married 1725, Aug. 15, Anne Boone, daughter of Samuel and Mary Boone, of North Kingstown, R. I. He hired land in Providence in 1745, and at this period is called "schoolmaster." He bought and sold several parcels of land subsequently. In 1762, he and his son Samuel bought of Stephen Hopkins, land on the new street, called Benefit street, where they were then living. Stephen Jackson died 1765, July 22, and was buried in the North Burial Ground. His wife Anne was born 1709, Sep. 1 8. She died at Pomfret, Ct., 1782, Jan. 30.
Stephen and Anne (Boone) Jackson had children as follows :
1. George, b. 1727 ; m. Lydia Harris, daughter of Toleration and Sarah
(Foster) Harris. He died 1769, Mar. i. His will mentions wife Lydia, daughter Lydia and son Joseph. He was a " noted commander."
2. Samuel, b. 1729; d. 1811, Sept. 6.
3. David, b. m. Deborah Field, 1751, Oct. 9.
4. Richard, b. 1731, May 10 ; m. Susan Waterman, 1760, Dec. 31, daugh-
ter of Nathan and Phebe (Smith) Waterman. He died 1818, Dec. 29. His seven childrens' births are upon record. His son Nathan W., was many years town clerk ; Stephen was cashier of Exchange Bank ; and Richard was Presi- dent of Washington Insurance Company. (Richard, Jr.'s son Charles was Governor of Rhode Island.)
5. Anne, b. 1736, May 12 ; d. 1753, Nov. 20.
6. Judith, b. 1738, Nov. ; m. Simeon Thayer, 1759, Feb. 7- She died
1771, April 28.
7. Mary, b. m. Ezekiel Burr, 1759, Nov. 7, son of David and
Sarah.
8. Elizabeth, b. 1743, May 23; m. William Lanksford, 1766, April 21.
She died 1812, Jan. 27.
9. Susannah, b. d. 1772, June.
GENEALOGICAL NOTES. 2O7
10. Thomas, b. 1747 ; m. Mary Brown, 1778, Sept. 14, daughter of Rich-
ard. He died 1807, March 17. His widow's will (in 1834) mentions son Samuel, grandchildren, &c.
11. Sally, b. 1753; m. Tilly Merrick Olney, 1772, Feb., daughter of Jo-
seph and Elizabeth (Mawney) Olney. She died 1785, Sept.
12. Nancy, b. 1756, Nov. 8; m. (i) John Angell, 1785, April 3 ; m. (2)
Simeon Thayer ; m. (3) Darius Daniels. She died 1803, March 9.
The above is not contributed as by any means a complete record, but simply as suggestive, and to save some stray memoranda part of them found in archives of R. I. Historical Society.
Query (A). Is there not a manuscript account of this family in existence, and if so, where ?
Query (B). Was Daniel Jackson, who was born in Boston, but who lived in Providence, a relative of this family ? His record was as follows :
Daniel Jackson, b. 1742, April 2; m. Roby Hawkins, 1765, Nov. 4. He died 1806, May 21. His will mentions children Samuel, John T. (father of Daniel, Ephraim and Benjamin M., &c.), Benjamin M., Amey (wife of Bernon Dun), Ruth (wife of Lewis Bosworth), and Polly.
CHECKLEY AND PAGET.
Rev. John Checkley, born 1680, in Boston, Mass., was mar- ried to Rebecca Miller, 1713, May 28, at Milton, Mass., by Rev. Peter Thatcher. Mr. Checkley's wife was a sister of Rev. Dr. Miller, of Braintree, Mass. For several years Mr. Checkley was rector of St. John's Church, Providence, R. I. He died 1754, Feb. 15. In his will he leaves all his property, both real and personal, to his wife, except legacies of £20 each to his granddaughters Ann and Rebecca Paget. His widow was buried in St. John's Church yard, 1775, Nov. 27. Deborah Checkley, born 1717, Oct. 13, daughter of Rev. John and Rebecca (Miller) Checkley, married Henry Paget, of Providence, R. I. He was born 1715, April 15, and died 1772, Jan. 15. She died in 1793, April 15. Both were buried in St. John's Church yard. They had children as follows :
i. Ann, b. m. Joseph Olney, 1762, Nov. 28, son of Joseph and
2O8 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
Sarah (Pierce) Olney. Their daughter Rebecca married Dr. Henry Malcolm, of Philadelphia.
2. Rebecca, b. m. Joseph Harrison, 1776, June 2.
3. Henry, b. 1750; buried, 1760, Oct. 10.
4. Angelica, b. 1754; buried 1760, Sept. 28.
NOTE. — "Updike's History of Narragansett Church," gives a good account of Rev. John Checkley, and something relative to his son John, who died before his father. It errs however in giving the name of his daughter as Rebecca, instead of Deborah.
AUDLEY (ODLIN).
John Audley, of Boston, cutler and armorer, was born in 1602, and died in 1685, Dec. 18. His wife, Margaret, died be- fore 1685. His will was dated 1685, March 3, — proved 1686, Jan. ii. Executor, son Elisha. He mentions sons Elisha, John and Peter, and granddaughter Hannah Bumstead. Though he does not mention daughters, it is known that he had at least two, who married Rhode Islanders. John Aud- ley and wife Margaret had children as follows :
1. John, b. 1635, June 3 ; d. young.
2. Hannah, b. 1638, Feb. 9; d. young.
3. Elisha, b. 1640; m. Abigail Bright, 1659, August; daughter of Henry
and Ann (Goldstone) Bright. He died at Boston about 1724.
4. John, b. 1642, Feb. 3 ; m. Martha . He died at Newport, R. I.,
1711, Dec. 13.
5. Hannah, b. 1643, October; married Jonathan Davol, son of William
Davol. He lived at Newport, R. I., and later at Dart- mouth, Mass.
6. Peter, b. 1646, July.
7. Ann, b. m. Jeremiah Clarke, son of Jeremiah and Frances
(Latham) Clarke. He died at Newport, R. I., 1729, Jan. 16. She died 1732, Dec. 15.
j. o. A.
FINNEY OR PHINNEY FAMILY.
Information in regard to the descendants of John Finney, the Pilgrim, who settled in Bristol, R. I., in 1680, on both male and female sides. Full dates of births, marriages and deaths are desired. F. C. Clark, 186 Benefit street, Providence, R. I.
BRIEF SKETCHES, NOTES AND CULLINGS.
Under some appropriate heading will appear, it is hoped, in each quarterly publication, paragraphs suited to the needs of persons of various tastes. To this end contributions are solicited. Genealogists, antiquarians and searchers after vari- ous kinds of information may well take part in determining the character of this department. Notes and queries will be in order.
NOTE ON MANUSCRIPTS FROM THE NATIONAL ARCHIVES.
In this number of the Society's quarterly is the beginning of a collection of papers that pertain to Rhode Island Revo- lutionary history — papers that are here printed for the first time. The Society is indebted to Mr. S. M. Hamilton, who is connected with the Department of State at Washington, for selecting these papers from a mass of material in the national archives and for certifying the exactness of the copies made under his supervision. Mr. Hamilton's interest in the work in which he is engaged, his understanding of what is needed and his realization of the responsibility devolving on him are manifested in several letters addressed to the Secretary of the Society. He regrets his inability to present these papers with due regard to chronological order or relation of subjects. Several of his brief notes in brackets shed light on the sub- jects under consideration. His readiness or rather his desire to revise and correct proofs evinces devotion to his work.
Two communications that relate in some way to Rhode Isl- and not being represented in the constitutional convention of 1787, can hardly fail to be read with interest. The first of these on the printed page is dated Newport, June 18, 1787, and is addressed to General Washington. Though not signed, a pen- cil mark indicates its probable author. The second one, dated Providence, May nth of that year, is addressed to the chair-
209
2IO RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
man of the convention and is signed by thirteen well-known citizens of that town.
The letter of Benjamin Waterhouse to Thomas Jefferson, written at Newport thirty-five years after the communica- tions just named, and seventy-two years ago, has for its sub- ject not politics, but religion. Giving a vivid idea of the religious condition, public institutions and distinguished men of Newport and Boston at that time, it is sure to interest a large class of readers.
The military papers are preserved among the papers of Washington. Mr. H. says, "This particular class is composed of weekly or monthly returns of the army ; reports of inspec- tors, the quartermasters and other officers for superintend- ing the arrangement of the different lines. Washington kept these reports constantly by him in the camp. Thus their value from so intimate association with him is increased a hundred fold.
" Possibly little that is not already known respecting names and rank will be afforded by the papers I now send ; but the details are new and the manner in which they are given meets (so it seems to me) more fully the necessity for absolute ex- actness in historical work than the mere adaptation of manu- scripts by editor or compiler. Many of the lists might appear useless repetition ; but my view is that each and every scrap of paper is of unquestionable utility to the student of history. It requires often each duplicate or triplicate to show the pro- gressive stages in the consideration of the subject or each movement in the execution of a plan as exhibited and formu- lated by its author."
The first military paper here is the fac-simile of the oath of Nathanael Greene as quartermaster, and the second his oath as major-general, yet these are the third and the fourth on the original record, Washington's oath being first and General Charles Lee's, second. The whole of one long letter of Mr. Hamilton should be printed as it does honor to numerous Rhode Island worthies of that period.
The military papers sent by Mr. Hamilton, are numbered from i to 1 8. Of these only the first five are printed. The numerical order of these has been slightly changed for con-
BRIEF SKETCHES, NOTES AND CULLINGS. 211
venience in tabulation. The letter of Governor Cooke, dated Nov. 6, 1776, is omitted by vote of the committee for the reason there stated. These are by no means the most inter- esting papers, but they are given because they come first on the list.
The library and publication committees have expressed their appreciation of the copies furnished by Mr. Hamilton and their opinion that the work should be carried forward as begun. No opinion has been expressed as to whether a part or all of these papers should be printed, or, if printed, when and how. The action taken will doubtless depend on whether the requisite funds are provided. Friends of action should then show their interest in this matter by substantial aid.
THE SOCIETY'S QUARTERLY.
This publication was begun with the understanding that it should embrace " Proceedings (as in years before), origi- nal and meritorious papers read before the Society and rare and meritorious manuscripts in its possession." Since then a change in its conduct has been suggested and at the last July quarterly meeting a resolution was adopted, virtually requiring a change. The publication is still to embrace the kinds of material in the original programme. But the articles are to be, as far as possible, brief, with the view of having some variety in each issue. To this end, the most successful historical quarterlies exclude long articles. One editor ex- cludes every article that exceeds eight pages, except on the condition that its author pay $2 for every additional page. All the editors with whom the writer of this note has com- municated adopt various devices to secure brief, crisp arti- cles, and thus interest in their publications a larger number of readers and patrons. It is fair to infer that this Society must adopt business rules or fail to secure the best results. The way is open for a well-organized movement in the inter- est of the Society and of the State. There is need of a pub- lication that shall serve as an organ of earnest and judicious workers in our historical field.
212 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
Difficulties in the way cause some members of the Society to shrink from the enterprise. Funds are needed. Our treas- urer gives words of warning. He says, " get the money before you spend it." But we say, let the interest be felt and the needed funds will be forthcoming. Our quarterly must be sustained. To this end it must be conducted — not by a com- mittee of three, five or ten. It must have an editor with those around him on whom he can depend for contributions, coun- sel and aid. This quarterly has, despite its triple head, accom- plished good in many ways. The Society is better known than ever before. Interest in its ability to help solve important historical problems is strengthened. The way is paved for a step upward.
The Society lived virtually from hand to mouth during a period of sixty-seven years. Within the last five years, how- ever, it has received into its treasury about fifty thousand dollars, one-half of which has been expended upon its build- ing, and the other half is a fund whose interest alone can be touched. The Society was never in so good a condition as at [present ; yet it never needed funds so much as now. These funds are needed to secure a competent clerical force to put in order accumulated material ; to bind and pur- chase books, and to carry forward publication enterprises that are imperatively demanded. A publication fund of one hun- dred ^thousand dollars is needed, and will in our opinion be provided if proper efforts be made to this end. Rhode Island- ers are disposed to stand by their institutions. They are proud of their history and wish to see it set forth by persons " to the manor born." They wish to obtain accurate infor- mation about the founders and benefactors of their State. This Society is bound by its origin and antecedents to help them in their researches. Its quarterly may do something to this end. Its publication is worthy of consideration as a busi- ness enterprise. Quickening the life and enlarging the sphere of influence of the Society it can hardly fail to cause many names to be added to the roll, and thus replenish the treasury by initiation fees and annual taxes.
The membership of the Society has been doubled within a comparatively few years. It can be doubled again with ad- vantage to all concerned.
BRIEF SKETCHES, NOTES AND CULLINGS. 213
PUBLIC RESERVATIONS.
This phrase is invested with renewed interest by several hundred of the most intelligent and public-spirited citizens of Massachusetts incorporated as Trustees of Public Reser- vations. A hundred of these citizens met at the Massachu- setts Institute of Technology, in Boston, in 1891, with the special object of facilitating the preservation and dedication to public enjoyment of such scenes and sites in Massachsetts as possess either uncommon beauty or historical interest. This organization has already issued three annual reports of much interest and value. It has secured for public use im- portant reservations and exerted an influence for the well- being of people who dwell far outside the Bay State.
Workers in a like field of labor are needed in Rhode Island. We have many scenes and sites that, possessing uncommon beauty and historic interest, should be preserved. Some of our hills and forests should be dedicated to public enjoyment. Some sites of aboriginal or Revolutionary scenes and events, should be appropriately marked and a knowledge of them thus handed down. The cause of history, civilization and hu- manity can be sustained and promoted only by organized efforts in this direction.
Our Public Park Association ; our Advance Club ; our im- provement societies ; our mechanical and agricultural associ- ations ; our societies that seek to perpetuate the memory of the founders and benefactors of this republic — these and other organizations, educational, philosophical and religious, that have in view the public weal, promise much good, and this Historical Society cannot afford to stand aloof. Nay, it can and should turn its benevolent eyes towards their fields of labor, and second the efforts they are putting forth to ennoble the life and increase the happiness of the denizens of this little portion of God's earth. It can facilitate their work by preserving their records and they can help the Society by furnishing it with complete sets of their published reports. A similar relation is sustained between the Society and the town and city governments of the State. Its ability to help them depends on their furnishing it with their published re- ports, and this favor is respectfully asked.
214 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
PROVIDENCE STATISTICS.
[From R. I. Hist. Societ3*'s MSS., No. 410, Vol. II., p. 155. The sig- nature of W. G. Goddard, implies that the paper once belonged to him.]
" Providence January th 1768
Account of the houses and the number of the inhabitants the West Side the Bridge
the houses 102
Men above 21 Years of age - 186
Women above 21 years of age 185
Men from 14 to 21 97
Women from 14 to 21 60
Boys from 5 to 14 82
Girls from 5 to 14 107
Children to 5 years 147
Negros mails 21
and femails 26
Total 911
White Peopel 864
Negros 47 Children from 5 to 7 Which are Fit for
schooling 189
This is a true account" (On the back of the paper is the following).
"Bought in Providence December 12, 1767 Price Six Pence. L. Mony"
QUERIES.
In March, 1823, a publication was begun in Providence, entitled: "'The Ladies' Magazine,' intended to aid in the cause of piety, religion and morality. Edited by a Lady. Printed by John Miller. Price, $2 a year." This library con- tains only the first nine numbers. Queries. — Who was the lady editor ? How many numbers were printed ? Can a com- plete set of the publication be furnished the library ?
INFORMATION AS TO THE SOCIETY'S QUARTERLY.
Annual subscription, one dollar ; single copies, fifty cents each ; Richmond P. Everett, Treasurer. Communications for insertion to be addressed to Amos Perry, editor of the next number. P. O. Box, 1275, Providence, R. I.
MILITARY RECORDS IN NATIONAL ARCHIVES, ETC. 215
APPOINTMENTS OF THE OFFICERS IN THE FIRST RHODE ISLAND BATTALL1ON, 1777.
CAMP, December i6th, 1777 SIR —
The within List contains a true account of the appoint- ments of the Officers of the first Rhode Island Battalion according to the present Establishment, and their present Ranks ; and we desire they may receive Commissions ex- pressive thereof.
J VARNUM B. Genl. C. GREENE Coin I. ANGELL Colo. His Excellency Genl Washington.
Time of appoint.
Col : Christopher Greene ist Jany
Lt. Col. Adam Comstock do
Major Saml Ward do
Capt. Ebenr Flagg do
Capt. Silas Talbut do
Capt. Elijah Lewis do
Capt. Oliver Clarke nth Febr
Capt. Thorn5 Cole ist Jany
Capt. John S. Dexter do
Capt. Thorns Arnold 2ist March
Capt. Jonathan Wallen ist Jany
Lieut. Joseph Arnold do
Lieut. Joseph Whitmarsh do
Lieut Edward Slocum do
Lieut Daniel Pierce nth Febr
Lieut William Davis do
Lieut Micah Whitmarsh I4th do
Lieut Sam' Hicks i7th Apl
Lieut Elias Hull ist Jany
zd Lt Elias Thompson igth Feb
2l6 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
Time of appoint.
2d Lt. Robert Rogers zoth do
2d Lt. Sami- Arnold nth Feb
2d Lt. Zephaniah Brown do
2d Enoch Stanton 2oth do
2d Lt. Gideon Casey do
2d Lt. John Pierce iyth do
2d Lt. David Johnson i ith do
Ens. Charles Pierce do
Ens. Elias Blanchard do
Ens. Joseph Cornell 20 June
Ens. Stephen Briggs 20 Feby
Ens. John Bowls 24 June
Ens. Daniel P. Tillinghast nth Feby
Ens. Dan Greene nth Apl
Ens. Simeon Smith 7th June
STAFF.
Chapn Charles Thompson ryth March
Surgeon Peter Turner icth May
Mate James Palascum 26th do
Adjt. John Holden ist Jany
Q* Mr. John Cooke ist May
P. Mas'- Griffin Greene 18 July
[Endorsed] Arrangement of Colo. Greenes R. Isld Reg1 Commis- sioned except the Staff.
ARRANGEMENT OF THE RHODE ISLAND BATTALIONS.
FIRST REGIMENT.
Colo. Christopher Greene Captain Lieu* Edward Slocum
Lt Col Adam Comstock Lieutenants —
Major Samuel Ward i Joseph Arnold
Captains — 2 David Johnson
1 Ebenezer Flagg 3 Elias Thompson
2 Elijah Lewis 4 Robert Rodgers
3 Thomas Cole 5 John Holden
4 John S. Dexter 6 Zephaniah Brown
5 Thomas Arnold 7 Enoch Stanton
6 Daniel Peirce 8 Samuel Arnold
MILITARY RECORDS IN NATIONAL ARCHIVES, ETC. 217
Ensigns — Ensigns —
1. Daniel Tillinghast 8
2. John Cook 9
3. Charles Pearce Adj1 John Holden
4. Elias Blanchard Paymaster
5 Joseph Cornall Surgeon Peter Turner
6 Griffin Greene Mate John Parish
7 John Coole
N. B. Oliver Clarke Cap. to be restored to his rank if released on the first vacancy.
SECOND RHODE ISLAND REGIMENT.
Colonel Israel Angell. L* Col. Jeremiah Olney Major Simeon Thayer Captains —
1. William Tew
2. Coggeshall Olney
3 Stephen Olney
4 William Allen
5 Thomas Hughes Wâ„¢ Humphrey
6. William Pullei
Capt. Lieut. William Humphrey WE? Littlefield - i Jan ~ 1777. Lieutenants —
i EbuiiAU- Ma&umbtr Duty Jarald n Feb 1777.
2. Ebiiiu.il Wul Tho. C. Waterman do do
j Duty Jfti'ald Ebenezer Macumber June 12, 1777.
4 William Littlefield David Sales do do
5 Thomoa Waterman Oliver Jenks 25 June 1777.
6 David Salea Benedict Tew — Jan i, 1778
7 Oliver Jcnko Abel Carpenter — do do
8 Benedict Tew Thomas Waterman Jr. do. do. Ensigns —
1 Beth'del Curlis rank as 2 Lt
2 Abyl Ccuyuiiim D°
3 Oliver DcAlci D°
4 TliuuiasWaleiiiiaiiJuui
i 5 Benjamin Peckham July n, 1777.
O JL.lij~dii rdctvv Rini
7 i-) ctviu. L d w 1~ 1 11 C £
8 Jului Vedl (?)
y Jusiali Thuiuluu Adjutant Thomas Waterman Paymaster
Surgeon Samuel Tenny Mate Elias Cornelius
218
RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
ARRANGEMENT OF THE RHODE ISLAND BATTALIONS.
[Arrangement at White Plains known as the " Arrangement of Nov. , '7*-"]
FIRST REGIMENT.
RANK.
NAMES.
DATES OF COMMISSION.
Colonel Christopher Greene.
Lt. Colonel Adam Cumstock
Major Samuel Ward .
1. Ebenezer Flagg
2. Elijah Lewis . . .
3. Thomas Cole . . , Captains < J , , c „
4. John S. Dexter .
5. Thomas Arnold
6. Daniel Pierce . . . Captain Lieut. . Edward Slocum.
1. Joseph Arnold. . .
2. David Johnson..
3. Elias Thompson .
4. Robert Rodgers. Lieutenants..^ T , „ ., °
5. John Holden
6. Zephaniah Brown. .
7. Enoch Stanton
8. Samuel Arnold
1. Daniel Tillinghast.
2. John Cook
3. Charles Pierce. ...
4. Elias Blanchard . . . Ensigns -^ 5. Joseph Cornal
6. Griffin Greene.
7
8
9
Pay Master.
Adjutant John Holden .
Quarter Master.
Surgeon Peter Turner .
Mate John Parish
N. B. Oliver Clark Cap. to be restored to his Rank if released upon the first Vacancy.
MILITARY RECORDS IN NATIONAL ARCHIVES, ETC. 2IQ SECOND REGIMENT.
RANK.
NAMES.
DATES OF COMMISSIONS.
Colonel
Lt. Colonel. . . Major ,
Israel Angell. . . Jeremiah Olney Simion Thayer.
1. William Tew
2. Coggeshaell Olney.
3. Stephen Olney. Captains •< ITT-II- An '
4. William Allen . . .
5. Thomas Hughes.
6. WE Potter
Captain Lieut.. William Humphrey.
1. Ebenezer Maiumber.
2. Ebenezer West
3. Duty Jarold
4. William Littlefield . . Lieutenants.. > ~, ,,, .
5. Thomas Waterman
6. David Sales
7. Oliver Jenks
8. Benedict Tew
1. Bethuel Curtis Rank as 2* Lieut.
2. Abel Carpenter do
3. Oliver Dexter do
4. Thomas Waterman Jr
Ensigns •{ 5. Benjamin Peckum.
6. Elijah Hawkins..
7. David Laurence.
8. John Vial
9. Jonah Thornton .
Pay Master Thomas Waterman.
Adjutant
Quarter Master.
Surgeon Samuel Tenny
Mate Elias Cornelius.
22O
RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
RHODE ISLAND ARRANGEMENT.
OFFICERS ON THE SUPERNUMERY LIST. To be specially Recommended. Supernumy not Recommended.
Ist Reg'- Cap. Jonathan Wallen
2. Lt. Elias Hull
3. Lt. Gideon Oakes
4. Lt. David Johnson
1. Dan. Box Brigr Major —
Wounded, and unfit for the Service
2. Nathan Wix Lt. lost an
Eye in the Service
1. Lt. Mical Whitmarsh
2. Lt. Wj? Davis.
2d Reg1.
1. David Dexter Cap.
2. Lt. Simeon Jennings.
[Endorsement] Arrangement of New Hampshire — Massachusetts and Rhode Island — and Connecticut —
By Committee at White Plains with some few alterations. Copy.
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222 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
CAMP 22d Dec? 1777 SIR —
Ensign Bowles of Colo. Greene's Battalion applies for a Discharge from the Army. Since his ingaging this Cam- pain, his Father died, and left a Widow, whose whole De- pendence is upon the Ensign, he being her only Son. The Colo, recommends him to me, and I am persuaded it will be best for him to obtain his Request.
I am your Excellency's most obd1 Serv1.
J VARNUM His Excellency Genl Washington.
[Endorsed] Ensign Bowles Colo. Greens Regt from R. Island resigned Dec 27th 1777
CAMP VALLEY FORGE March 7* 1778 SIR
This may certify that Lt. Joseph Whitmarsh is not in- debted to the United States.
I am Sir your Humble Serv'.
ISRAIL ANGELL Colo.
To His Excellency "I Genl Washington j
CAMP Feby 15th, 1778
SIR —
Lt. Samuel Hicks of Colo Greene's Battalion applies for Liberty to resign his Commission ; I am acquainted with him and the Seperation of his Family, & know that Neces- sity, not choice, impells him to the measure.
I am your Excellency's most obdt. Servant
J VARNUM Excellency Genl Washington.
MILITARY RECORDS IN NATIONAL ARCHIVES, ETC. 223
CAMP VALLEY FORGE Febry iQth 1778. SIR
These may certify that Lt. Samuel Hicks of Colo Greenes Reg1, is not indebted to the Reg1, nor Continent-
I am Sir your most obedient,
and most Humble Serv'.
ISRAEL ANGELL Colo.
To His Excellency General Washington
CAMP VALLEY FORGE 3rd May 1778. To WHOM CONCERN'D
This Certifies that Lieut Bethuel Curtis is not Indebted to the State, or Continent, to my knowledge.
JERE" OLNEY Lt. Col?
CAMP VALLEY FORGE May 2d 1778.
MAY IT PLEASE YOUR EXCELLENCY :
I have served three Campaigns without Censure, and have bin obliged to spend a Considerable sum of money more than my Wages amount too : My Private fund is now almoste Exhausted and my helth Grately impaired ; which renders me unfit to indure the Fatigues of the insueing Campaign —
I do therefore moste Earnestly beg that his Excellency would be pleased to grant me leave to resign my Commis- sion which will Ever exite the Gratefull thanks of of your moste affectionate
Moste Humb1. Serv
BETHUEL CURTIS 2d Lieut
In Colo. I. Angells Regiment
His Excellency Gen1. Washington.
224 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
CAMP VALLEY FORGE March 8th 1778 SIR
Whereas Lt Joseph Whitmarsh of Colo Greens Regt. has apply'd to me for a Recommendation for a discharge from the Service, for the following reasons, ist as the Settlement of the Rank in the Regt. now stands, seems agreeable to the Field officers, and he would by no means wish to create any uneasiness in the Reg1, as it would Destroy the end and de- sign of his Entering the Service. 2? under his present Situ- ation he cannot be easy, and the Removal of the cause would be very Disagreable to many of the Officers in the Reg1, by which means it would make his case unhappy, for these Reasons he choses to retire from the Servis [although Lt. Whitmarsh is a good officer] Considering the above Circum- stances Shall Reccommend him to your Honour for a dis- charge, and give it as my opinion he ought to have an Honourable one.
I am Sir your most obl. Humble Serv1.
ISRAEL ANGELL Col.
To Genl. Varnum
CAMP March 8th 1778 Lt. Whitmarsh is hereby recommended for a Discharge
from the Service
J VARNUM
His Excell Genl Washington.
(Endorsed) Lieut. Joseph Whitmarsh of Colo. Greenes Regt from the State of Rhode Island = Resignd = 8th March 1778
CAMP (Paramies) July 13th 1778 —
Ensign Hawkins of my Regiment being dissatisfied in re- maining in the Service ; as his Wages are not sufficient to maintain him in the Character he at present sustains, and he not being in Debt to the Publick I do recommend him to Your Excellency for a Discharge.
ISRAEL ANGELL Col. His Excellency Genl. Washington
MILITARY RECORDS IN NATIONAL ARCHIVES, ETC. 22$
VALLEY FORGE Decr 27, 1777.
This may sertifie that I have as much money in my hands of Ens. John Bowles's as will pay all the Debts due to the Contenent from him as far as I know from the nature of
my office.
GRIFFIN GREENE P. Mas. Col° Christopher Greene's Regt.
NOTE. — Though these military papers are brought out without regard to chronological order or connection of subjects, they are examined with interest by persons who desire to understand the military history of the State during the Revolutionary War. In the absence of such official rolls as are ordinarily kept and preserved by a State, they serve an important purpose, at least as side lights to a picture. Names have been found on these lists by persons studying their ancestral history — names which are not in " Cowell's Spirit of '76," nor found elsewhere, and facts are com- municated that give a clearer idea of the way in which the war was con- ducted. The history of our continental regiments cannot be properly written without the aid of these papers. These are some of the consid- erations that lead to the printing of these papers, word for word and letter for letter. [Ed.]
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N. B. Abel Heldrick Lt. Infy Compy Michl. Plafford ist Compy Wm. Butts 5th Do Jno. Whipple 2nd Do Private Soldiers Inlisted for 3 years recom- mended to be discharged from the Service on acct. of their old Age & their being Afflicted with Rheumatism & gout their time of Service being expired next May |
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ON HAND NOT ISSUED |
,.55 Arms 60 Bayt? 59 Bayt Belts 59 Scabbards 59 C Driver 200 Flints 365 Cartges good . . 106 Coats IDS Waistcoats IOT wool" Overalls 106 |
55 Epaulets DEFICIENCES SINCE LAST INSPECT |
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counted for ,.13 Coats 13 Vests 23 Breeches 61 Shirts n pr Stocl Service & 14 Blankets not accounted for |
REMARKS. |
This Regiment is Well Disciplined & well Clad their The above is a true State of the Reg1 as Ins by me March 2»d 1780 P. REGNIER Sub : |
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228
RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
RETURN OF OFFICERS RETAINED IN SERVICE IN THE RHODE ISLAND BATTALION.
NAMES. |
RANKS. |
Jeremiah Olney |
Lieut Colonel Commandant |
John S. Dexter |
Major |
William Allen |
Captain |
Captain |
|
John H olden |
Captain |
William Humphrey |
Captain |
Captain |
|
Daniel S. Dexter |
Captain |
John Hubbart |
Lieutenant |
Chandler Burlingame |
Lieutenand & Pay Master |
Joseph W'heaton |
Lieutenant |
John M. Green |
Lieutenant |
Lieutenant |
|
Lieutenant |
|
Henry Shearman |
Lieutenant |
Jeremiah Greenman |
Lieutenant and Adjutant |
William Pratt |
Lieutenant |
John Rogers |
Lieutenant |
William Knnis |
Lieutenant |
John Welch |
Lieutenant and Quarter Master |
Robbert Hunter |
Ensign |
Ephraim Kirby |
Ensign |
Samuel Tenny |
Surgeon |
April 1 8th I783
[A. R. NO 41. p. 99]
P Coggj" Qlncy Major Com^
R I Battalion
Jereh Olney Lieu* Col. Com? R. I. B.
MILITARY RECORDS IN NATIONAL ARCHIVES, ETC. 2 29
RETURN OF OFFICERS RETAINED IN SERVICE IN THE RHODE ISLAND BATTALION.
NAMES. |
RANK. |
Jeremiah Olney |
Lieu1 Col. Comd' |
John S. Dexter |
Major |
William Allen |
Captain |
Captn |
|
John Holden |
Captn |
William Humphrey |
Captn |
Zephaniah Brown |
Captn |
Daniel S. Dexter |
Captn |
John Hubbart |
Lieu1 |
Chandler Burlingame |
Lieutenant & Pay-Master |
Joseph \Vheaton |
Lieutenant |
Lieutenant |
|
Joseph Massury |
Lieutenant |
Benjamin Sherburn |
Lieutenant |
Henry Shearman |
Lieutenant |
Lieutenant and Adjutant |
|
William Pratt |
Lieutenant |
John Rogers |
Lieutenant. |
\Villiam Ennis |
Lie utenant |
John Welch |
Lieutenant and Quarter Master |
Robert Hunter . |
Ensign |
Ephraim Kirby |
Ensign |
Samuel Tenny |
Surgeon |
April i8'J? 1783 P Cuggs'.i Olney Majui Cuiii^
R. I. DdlUliuii Jere*1 Olney Lieu1. Col? Com?
R. I. B.
[Endorsed] Return of Officers continuing in Service Rho Isl<? Regimt
230
RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
RETURN OF THE OFFICERS, SERVING IN THE RHODE ISLAND
BATTALION, WITH THEIR NAMES, AND RANK, AS
THEY STAND IN THE BATTALION.
NAMES. |
RANK. |
||
Teremiah Olney |
Ll Col° Comd1 |
14* May 1781 |
|
John S Dexter |
Major |
14 May. 1781 |
|
William Allen |
Capt. |
Ist Tan 7. 1777 |
ling, till isth of Apl, |
Thomas H ughes - |
DO |
2'jd Tune 7777 |
now sick at Wood- |
John Holden |
DO |
IOth Octr 1777 |
ury. |
William Humphrey... Zepheniah Brown Daniel S. Dexter John Hubbart |
D? D? D? Lieut |
22 Octr 77 II* Novr. 79 14th May 81 18 Mav 7Q |
j at Rhode Island, Commd.by Majr.Ohney |
Chandler Burlingame . Joseph Wheaton Tohn M Green |
D? & P. M. D? DO |
9th June 79 30* Augs* 79 Ist May 80 |
at Head Quarters, order of Majr. Olney at Albany order Colo. Olney |
DO |
24th June 80 |
||
Benjamin Shearburne. Henry Shearman Jere Greenman |
DO D° & Adj1 |
i4tn May 81 |
|
William Pratt |
DO |
14* May 81 |
|
John Rogers |
DO |
3^ Feby 82 |
|
\Villiam Ennis |
DO |
1 7th March 82 |
|
John Welch |
DO & Q. M. |
Ist May 82 |
|
Robert Hunter |
Ensn |
2nd July 8l |
SFurlowed by Lord Stir- |
Epraim Kirby |
DO |
23^ Aug' 82 |
ling till isth of April |
Samuel Tenny |
Surgeon |
jst Jan 7 77 |
|
[Endorsed] Rhode Island Battalions
N. B. the officers are all present except those
accounted for in the Remarks
Saratoga 25* April 1783
Jereh Olney Lieu* Col. Comd
&
WANTING TO COMPLETE |
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232 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
OFFICIAL RECORD OF THE GREAT GALE
OF i8i.
BY MOSES BROWN, WITH AN EXPLANATORY NOTE BY JOHN
ROWLAND.
At a Town Meeting of the Freemen of the Town of Prov- idence on the tenth day of October A. D. 1818
Voted. That Moses Brown, Tristam Burges, Samuel Eddy, George Jackson and John Rowland, Esquires, be a committee to draw up an Historical and topographical ac- count of the Great Storm in this Town, September 23^ A. D. 1815. In order that there may remain a Record in the Town descriptive of an Event so important in its Annals A true copy
Witness NATHAN W. JACKSON Town Clerk.
In pursuance of the above recited Resolution of the Town, Moses Brown, first named therein, drew up the following Statement (which is copied from his Manuscript)
Agreeable to our appointment on the IO1.1? of October 1818, we have collected such facts respecting the Great Storm which occurred on the 23"?. of September A. D. 1815 as ap- peared to us most proper to be Recorded for the information of Posterity, and descriptive of so important a Providential Event.
The Storm of Rain commenced on the 22n.f from the N. E. moderate through the day, but at Night the Wind increased. On the morning of the 23! the Wind blew with increased severity from the East and about 9 it veered to E. S. E. at 10
OFFICIAL RECORD OF THE GREAT GALE OF 1815. 233
or before, South East, and from this time to half after Eleven the Storm was most Tremendous and destructive, beyond, far beyond any in the memory of any man living. Before twelve O,clock the wind Veered to the South west and greatly abated, and the dread of our Citizens, and the Destructive Awful Effects were thus happily checked. The Ebb tide commencing nearly an hour before the regular time of high water, relieved the minds of our Inhabitants from their Ap- prehensions of a more Overwhelming Calamity. It appeared a great Mercy that the Calamity occurred in the day time, for had it been in the Night season the distress and loss of Lives must have been an Indiscribable addition to a Calamity yet awful to a Reflecting mind.
The Damage by the Extreme Violence of the Wind ex- tended to driving from their Anchors and fastenings all the Vessels save 2 or 3 that lay in the Harbour and at the Wharves, some against the Bridge with such force as to open a free passage for others to follow to the Northern Extremity of the Cove above the Bridge, to the number of between 30 and 40 of various descriptions from 500 tons downwards, among the immense Quantity of Lumber and goods from the wharves and Broken Houses and Stores with their contents. Other Ships and Smaller Vessels were lodged below the place of the Bridge on each side of the River. On the Wharves scarcely a Store that stood below Weybosset Bridge on both Sides of the River, round the Harbour to India Bridge but what was damaged or entirely broken to pieces. Many Houses and Stores Blown down by the excessive vio- lence-erf the wind, and many others removed or broken by the height of the tide and violence of the Waves ; by which India Point Bridge was wholly, and the East and Lowest End of Central Bridge were carried off, and by their Joint Influence the 21?? Baptist Meeting House on the West side of the River was destroyed from the foundation where the new one lately erected now stands. The wind alone blew down, unroofed, and damaged many Houses that stood out of the reach of the water, beyond any thing ever known before in the Town. The trees that were blown in the streets, with the lumber floated up in the low parts of the streets, rendered them im-
234 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
passable with Carriages till removed ; a number of people were wounded, and two lost their lives, (David Butler and Reuben Winslow) by the height of water and its violent mo- tions, a number were taken out of houses by Boats. A Sloop of about 60 Tons floated across Weybosset Street and was Lodged in Pleasant Street, her Mast Standing above, and She by the Side of a three Story Brick House as a Monument for a Season by which our Country friends could ascertain the Height of the Tide. They indeed had full evidence of the violence of the Wind for their fruit trees as well as ours, with considerable of their Forest timber were laid prostrate through the country, with much other damage from Boston westward towards New York. One farmer had 140 fruit trees torn up by the Roots. The wind and tide extended their destruction more or less in every Town and Village on the Sea Shore. The amount of damage has never been as- certained but was Estimated to be nearly a Million of Dollars in this Town. It has been considered by Judicious people that the damage in the country by destruction of Timber, fruit trees, Fences, Sheds, etc., was nearly equal to the dam- age in Town by the violence of the Wind. The Rain was not so heavy as in many Storms, measuring about 2J^ Inches, but there was a Remarkable appearance and effect in the thickness of the Atmosphere by reason of the extreme vio- lence of the wind taking up the Spray of the Sea water and wafting it through the Air to that degree as to appear on Glass Windows salt to the taste 40 miles into the country, even to Worcester, and lying on our Windows in this Town for a week so as to taste salt.
This storm seems to have affected all classes of men more or less, and has verified the maxim that no man is out of the reach of the Elements whatever his situation or calling may be, and it Should Humble us under a sense of our dependence on Him who can rule the Wind and the Sea to effect his Providential purposes both in Judgment and in Mercy. Which may we Reverence and Adore.
It may be proper to Observe that although no instance of a Similar Storm has occurred in the memory of any man living. Yet we find in Hutchinsons History of Massachusetts that
OFFICIAL RECORD OF THE GREAT GALE OF 1815. 235
on the fifteenth of August 1635 a violent Storm occurred, when, it is said the tide rose 20 feet perpendicular, the Indian natives of our land were obliged to take themselves to the Trees, and yet many were Drowned, the tide of Flood return- ing before the usual time. And in GoV!r- Winthrops Journal was a very great Tempest or Hurricane, which about Narra- gansett raised the tide 14 or 15 feet above the ordinary Spring Tides.
Thus we See What has been may be again. On Measuring the Height of the tide from a well known mark of the highest Tide before known by our oldest people this tide of 1815 ap- peared to be Seven feet and five inches higher than any be- fore known by them.
To be particular in Ascertaining individual Sufferings or the particular cases or circumstances would require a Volume. The committee think that here are Sufficient Facts related to perpetuate the General Idea of the Great Storm they were desirous to communicate.
NOTE BY JOHN HOWLAND.
Had the committee been appointed three years before the date of the resolution, there can be no doubt the object of their appointment would have been fully accomplished, but after the lapse of that time the feelings and the impressions had in a great measure abated. After repeated trials to con- vene the Committee, the whole number comprising it never got together, the Statement written by the Chairman, was by him handed to me, and no report was ever made to the Town. I have in many cases Seen the folly of a large Com- mittee. If only one had been appointed the business would have been done — My purpose was to have monuments fixed in several places on permanent buildings or otherwise to mark the height of the tide. Mr. Brown's statement has remained in my possession more than 16 years, and I now in- tend to deliver it to the City Authorities and place the fore- going Copy in the Cabinet of the Historical Society.
JOHN HOWLAND.
January i, 1835.
236 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
i
NOTE. — Few things in the picture gallery of the Society attract more attention than the representations of the scene at the Great Bridge during the gale above described. The Librarian has not only witnessed manifestations of interest and heard remarks as to what should be done to commemo- rate that event, but has received letters on the subject, one of which is reproduced as follows :
HISTORICAL TABLETS.
MIDDLEBOROUGH, Mass., Nov. 5, 1894. GENTLEMEN OF THE R. I. HISTORICAL SOCIETY :
While recently examining your interesting and instructive collection of portraits and pictures, my attention was attracted to the representation of the great gale of 1815, when vessels were driven up Westminster street and the tide rose to a great height on Market square. It seemed to me, as I gazed at this picture, that tablets erected at various points, show- ing the height to which the water rose on that occa- sion, and the places where vessels were carried and left on dry land, would prove interesting and instructive to young people, and indeed to one generation after another that will pass through this section of the city. I am the more impressed with the importance of the measure here suggested as I have noticed in Boston, Baltimore and some other cities tablets erected here and there that gave me a clear idea of some striking historical event. For example, at Griffin's wharf in Boston is a tablet that refers to the time and place of the famous Boston Tea Party. Another tablet shows where the fire of 1872 was stopped. In Cambridge is a tablet showing the site and date of the first school-house ever erected in that place. It seems fitting that one of the most remarkable events that ever oc- curred in Providence should be suitably commemorated.
Yours respectfully,
ELISHA T. JENKS.
The writer of the letter above expresses the object which Mr. Howland had in view when he said : " My purpose was to
THE KEY. 237
have monuments fixed in several places on permanent build- ings." Mr. Brown says "a sloop of about 60 tons floated across Weybosset street and was lodged in Pleasant street " (now Eddy street). The great ship Ganges was wrecked against the Washington building, and the widow of its com- mander, Capt. Joseph Herlitz, left here, a few years ago, his watch as a memorial. Half a century ago the hulk of a vessel of a large size was at the north end of the cove basin. One tablet only now indicates the height to which the water rose, and that is not on a permanent building. It seems reason- able that as visible traces of the great storm are obliterated, records of it should be placed, as suggested by Mr. Rowland, on permanent buildings, where they can be read by all who pass by. Another suggestion about "the folly of a large committee " is worthy of attention. [Ed.]
THE KEY:— FACT VERSUS THEORY.
Mr. Wm. D. Ely, in his last dissertation on the subject of Roger Williams' Key, Beanes vs. Barnes, has misconstrued as far as possible, nearly every paragraph in my " Roger Williams' Vindicated, or an Answer to a ' Keyhole for Roger Williams' Key.' ' Like all similar methods of procedure, they create in the minds of many an erroneous impression, which, as in similar cases, can be quickly dispelled in a very few words.
The reasons for my defence of Roger Williams were cor- rectly expressed in the " Vindication," therefore it is unnec- essary to repeat them here. The result has been, to prove to the satisfaction of almost all — if not all — of those dis- interested, that Roger Williams made no mistake in giving " barnes " as the English equivalent of the Narragansett auqunnash, in the i6th chapter of his "Key." As I have pre-
238 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
viously set forth (see Roger Williams Vindicated, Prov., R. I. Hist. Soc., Vol. II., p. 61), the use of this word was the main theme of Mr. Ely's " Keyhole," and was the main question open for discussion, all the others being simply subordinate thereto. Consequently I do not propose to answer all the points in his last essay ; but there are some assumptive de- ductions given therein, which deserve my personal notice and consideration.
These are as follows : First. Mr. Ely asserts that Dr. Trumbull contradicts me in two very material points, when in fact the contrary is the case. For instance, Dr. Trumbull translates the word Tuppuhquamash as "twiners." I go into the word a little deeper than he does, and from its seeming radicals, for it is a compound word, translate it as " that which twines or clings high" (Ibid., p. 64) — which surely does not show a contradiction, but simply a distinction with- out a difference. But Mr. Ely misses the main point I made, in connection with this word, that it describes the plant itself, and not the bean or fruit, therefore the name has no bearing on the subject at issue.
Second. Mr. Ely remarks : "In another paragraph Mr. Tooker takes up the verb auquan, au-gun, and gives his method of evolving Au-qun-nash therefrom. * * * But to reach those primal sources, ' which clear away all uncer- tainty,' we may take the word, Au-ha-qut, mantle, which Mr. Tooker represents as derived, as well as other words, from au-guan, ait-qun. Here we can again contrast the views of Mr. Tooker and Dr. Trumbull ; and we find the latter speak- ing with the same positiveness as in the previous case. * * Dr. Trumbull ignores Mr. Tooker's au-guan and au-gun, as its root and primal ; and on the contrary says it is derived from hog-kai, or hog-ki, to cover ; and further, that ' hock ' (hog-ki, hack-ee) is the generic affix for 'a shell."1 Dr. Trumbull is correct, but Mr. Ely's lack of knowledge of the Algonquian language leads him astray. Hogkw and auqun are both vari- ants of the Algonquian verb " to cover," and Dr. Trumbull's note 265 (Narr. Club ed., R. W.'s Key, p. 144), to which Mr. Ely refers in a foot note, agrees with me, and absolutely con- tradicts Mr. Ely's assumption as follows : " Hogkoj, it clothes
THE KEY. 239
or covers ; (passive) he is clothed ; suppos., dgguit, when he is covered ; ne agquit, that which covers or clothes (El.comp. ocquask, 'put on,' and auhaqut mantle." The variation in form, and in connotation, of this Algonquian radical is won- derful and far reaching. For instance in chapter 6, " Of the Family and Businesse of the House" (Narr. Club ed., R. W.'s Key, p. 64), we find auquiegs, housholdstuffe,=mats or cover- ing things, also adqunnish, "let goe," (p. 67). The latter word has the terminal of the second person singular in -isk, and means literally "cover ye" ; hence by metonymy to "let goe " ; that is, to drop the mat, which hangs over the entrance of the wigwam (see "Obs." at top of page 67), "which being lift up, falls downe of it self e," and covers the door. There is no necessity to multiply these facts any further. They exist and can be drawn upon to a much greater extent, and are an interesting study.
The question which Mr. Ely desires answered, "Why beans are omitted from the chapter ' On the Earth and Fruits Thereof ? ' " is really not material. We might ask the same, of a hundred simple things omitted entirely. But Roger Willi- ams, as I have before remarked, has given it in the second chap- ter " Of Eating and Entertainment." Its variants in kindred dialects show that it was the common name of the bean fruit. The same fact applies to Roger Williams' Opponeauhock (=he is roasted or baked whole, i. e., in the shell, clothed or cov- ered), the common name for " oysters."
In conclusion, Mr. Ely's " Keyhole " and my " Roger Wil- liams Vindicated " were both submitted to Dr. Daniel G. Brinton of Philadelphia for his opinion. With the kind per- mission of Dr. Amos Perry, Secretary of this Society, and Dr. Brinton himself, I am able to present his letter in full as follows :
PHILADELPHIA, April I2th, 1894. Mr. AMOS PERRY, Sec'y:
DEAR SIR : — I have been able to give attention to the question of Roger Williams' "Key" sooner than I antici- pated and forward you my results. The discussion between Mr. Ely and Mr. Tooker turns on the real meaning of the word — auqunnash. Did it mean "barns " or "beans " ?
240 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
There is no question but that Mr. Tooker is right in assign- ing it the former meaning, and is correct in tracing it to the verb signifying "to cover." This verb is very much the same in all Algonquian dialects ; as in Cree awand (Lacomb, Dic- tionaire de la langue Crise) : Otchipwe agwana (Baraga's Dictionary). But the conclusive evidence is furnished by the Dictionary of the Abnaki composed by Father Rasle, in which we find the very word given by Roger Williams and with the same meaning: — " une cache dan la terre, aganJ." (In his alphabet the a = our w in with, but more forcibly.) This reference places the meaning and derivation beyond doubt.
Yrs truly,
D. G. BRINTON.
There is nothing more to be said, and this ends the discus- sion so far as I am concerned.
WM. WALLACE TOOKER.
EDITORIAL NOTE. — When Mr. Ely's first paper appeared in print, a copy of it was sent to Mr. Horatio Hale, who has the reputation of being well acquainted with various aborig- inal languages of our country. Mr. Hale made a grateful ac- knowledgment of the paper, and complimented Mr. Ely's learning and scholarship. When Mr. Tooker's paper ap- peared in print a copy of it was sent to Mr. Hale with the request that he should act as umpire in deciding the question at issue. Mr. Hale declined to act in that capacity, but rec- ommended that the case be referred to Dr. D. G. Brinton of Philadelphia, whom he regarded as the most competent man of his acquaintance. To Dr. Brinton the case was accord- ingly referred. Dr. Brinton first replied as follows :
2041 CHESTNUT STREET, PhiLADELpniA, April n, '94. Mr. AMOS PERRY, Sec'y :
DEAR SIR : — Your favor of 8th, with the two pamphlets, duly rec'd. I shall give the questions involved a careful study, and report at an early date — certainly before the close of the month. Truly,
D. G. BRINTON.
THE SUSQUEHANNA PURCHASE. 24!
His answer then came as given by Mr. Tooker above. Mr. Ely's second paper, and also Mr. Tooker's second paper, were submitted to Dr. Brinton with the request that he should give a final word. His reply is thus :
MEDIA, Pa., Oct. 19, '94. DEAR SIR : — Thanks for copy of Quarterly. Inasmuch as Father Rasle gives the identical word as Roger Williams, with substantially the same meaning as in the " Key," I do not see what further is to be said. Mr. E.'s side-issues are not to the point.
Truly yours,
D. G. BRINTON.
THE SUSQUEHANNA PURCHASE.
In 1753 about 600 inhabitants of the colony of Connecticut associated themselves under the name of " The Susquehanna Company" for the purpose of planting a new colony within what they supposed to be the charter bounds of that colony west of the Delaware River. They bought out the Indian rights along the Susquehanna River in July, 1754, at which time among 694 grantees in the deed 33 were from Rhode Island. Their purpose was to obtain a charter from the King, but the monarch never acted favorably on their appli- cation. Surveyors were sent out in 1755, and a settlement was made on the Delaware in 1757, but the French and Indian War prevented further action till 1762. In July of that year many of the Susquehanna Company took possession and cleared ground near Wilkes-barre. This settlement was exterminated by Indians in October, 1763. In January, 1769, certain lessees of the Penns, who also claimed this territory by charter rights and Indian deeds, occupied the lands near
242 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
Wyoming. Hither, one month later, came an advance guard of forty settlers from Connecticut. In April came 200 more. Among these immigrants were " some excellent Quakers from Rhode Island." By the end of the year all had been driven out by the Pennsylvanians ; but they rallied and se- cured possession of their homes in the Spring of 1770. The settlement now increased steadily and a township, and later a county, of Connecticut was erected there with the name of Westmoreland. It had 3,000 inhabitants in 1775, and three companies of troops were raised there as a part of the Twenty-fourth Regiment of the Connecticut line in the Rev- olutionary War. In July, 1778, came the massacre at Wy- oming. The controversy about the lands went on, and was made a matter of discussion by the Continental Congress, so far as the jurisdiction of the two States was concerned. In
1782 Commissioners rendered a decision adverse to Connec- ticut. By this time the Yankee settlers numbered 6,000 and were scattered through seventeen townships. In resisting the attempts of Pennsylvanians to seize their lands during
1783 and 1784, they shed some blood, and instituted legal contests which went on for many subsequent years. Finally, by the Compromise Act of the Pennsylvania Legislature, April 4, 1799, the conflicting claims were all adjusted and the controversy was happily ended. The most compact account of the whole contention that I have seen is a pamphlet of 145 pages by Henry M. Hoyt, entitled "Brief of a title in the Seventeen Townships in the County of Luzerne : a Syllabus of the controversy between Connecticut and Pennsylvania. Harrisburg, 1879.
R. G. H.
NEGLECT AND DESECRATION OF THE GRAVE
AND GRAVE-STONE OF GOVERNOR
BENEDICT ARNOLD.
[ The following letter, written by a member of this Society, who represents one of the historical families of the State, is commended to the attention of members of the Society of Colonial Dames and of other patriotic Societies of the State.— Ed.']
PROVIDENCE, Nov. 12, 1894. To THE RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY :
Visiting Newport a week ago to-day, I inquired after the grave-stone of one of my ancestors, Governor Benedict Arnold. I was told where the grave-stone was, but could not find it without the assistance of the custodian of the Newport Historical Society, Mr. R. H. Tilley and another citizen of the place. When found, the slab was covered with at least four inches of earth, presumably with the purpose of getting quiet possession of that consecrated spot. In Gov. Arnold's Will, made Dec. 2Oth, 1677, is the following clause : " My body I desire and appoint to be buried at the north-east corner of a Parcel of ground containing three Rod square, being and lying in my land in or near ye line or path from my dwelling house, leading to my Stone built Wind Mill, in ye town of Newport above mentioned." " And I desire that my dear and loving wife Damaris Arnold, after her decease, may be buried near unto me on ye south side of ye place aforesaid ordered for my own interment."
This piece of land thus referred to passed into the hands of the late Gov. Van Zandt and is now in the possession of another citizen of Newport who is presumed to be responsible for burying the grave-stone containing the inscription handed down for more than two centuries. Beneath that grave-stone
244 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
are or were the mortal remains of Gov. Arnold, which I was told had been once dug up and then tumbled back, where they are now claimed to be the property, of a private citizen. I was pained and chagrined at the discovery of the facts which are here reported in the hope of causing some appro- priate action to be taken for the honor of my native State.
JAMES F. NOYES, M. D.
A GENEALOGICAL "FIND."
Last August, while visiting the beautiful Wilcox Memorial Building in Westerly, I was kindly shown some bundles of historical papers that had come into the possession of the newly formed Pawcatuck Valley Historical Society. Several of these had a personal interest for me, but one of them was so useful in settling a doubtful point in genealogy that I here record it, in the hope that other searchers into family history may find it of value. It was a small scrap of time-stained paper, without date or signature, bearing these words :
" Cornell hung, killed mother with spindle, his daughter Innocent m. a Borden. his d. m. Robert uncle of Thos. B. Hazard, his d. Sarah m. Stephen Champlin father of Smooth Stephen, Jeffrey, Thomas, and dau. who married Sam Cong- don and was father of George Congdon. Smooth Stephen m. a Perry."
For some years I had been searching for the parentage of Innocent, the wife of Richards (John2, Richard1) Borden of Portsmouth. The husband was born Oct. 24, 1671, and died July 12, 1732. If this fragment told the truth, the mystery was solved. With eagerness I began to trace the scrap of paper back to its author. Inquiry of the Librarian at the Wilcox Memorial elicited the information that the paper was one of several contributed by Hon. Richard Wheeler, of Ston-
A GENEALOGICAL "FIND." 245
ington. Further inquiry of that gentleman brought word that he had found the fragment among some papers that had belonged to the late Hon. Elisha R. Potter of Kingston. This was as far as I could go, but it was enough to satisfy me of the probable truth of the statements the paper contained. I conjecture that it was a memorandum jotted down at the request of Judge Potter by some one whose memory had been jogged by a curious question from this patient investigator.
Next I set about finding any possible confirmation of the statement. Among my own records I found at once that Sarah Borden, the oldest daughter of Richard and Innocent,
born July 31, 1694, married Hazard, of Newport. This
was something to the point, confirming the third statement of the fragment, and explaining the reason for the first name of the daughter Sarah mentioned in the fourth statement. Further investigation in Austin's Genealogical Dictionary showed that Thomas2 (Thomas1) Cornell, who was executed May 23, 1673, had a daughter Innocent, and also that Richard Borden's mother, Marys Earle (William2, Ralph1), was first cousin of Innocent Cornell, as the latter's mother was Sarah2 Earle (Ralph1). A further search among those inter- ested in Cornell genealogy made clear the fact that no other marriage has ever been ascribed to this Innocent. One cor. respondent, in declaring his assent to the identification of Innocent Cornell with Innocent Borden, ventured the inter- esting conjecture that Innocent, whose birth must have been near 1673, may have been a posthumous child, and that her name may have been her mother's indignant protest at the cruel judicial murder of the father of the babe. Certainly no man would in these days be executed on such evidence as the records contain in this case.
The incident is only one of many evidences of the value of local historical collections. Little by little they attract to each other the old documents which to the owner are of little account, but to one who can interpret them and fit them into place, are of untold value. I should be glad to know of such centres of collection in every Rhode Island town.
RAY GREENE HULING.
Cambridge, Mass.
246 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
THE JOHN CARTER FAMILY.
Acknowledgments are due to Mr. Charles Danforth for the following communications, together with the journal of a voyage to Canton and back on the ship Ann and Hope in 1799 and 1800. The writer of the letter, who also kept the journal, and the person to whom the letter was written, were brother and sister of the first wife of the late Nicholas Brown. Also, the writer of the letter, Benjamin Bowen Carter, was graduated at Rhode Island College in 1786, was elected an honorary member of this Society in 1823 and died in 1831. [Ed.]
FAMILY RECORD.
The following is copied from a M. S. given me by David Jones of Philadelphia, in August 1819. He transcribed it, at my request, from the family Bible of his mother. It had been previously transcribed into this Family Bible, by the Rev<? William Rogers D. D. from a manuscript, preserved in an old Family Bible.
John Carter died April — 1745.
Elizabeth Carter died February 2O'.h 1760, in the 47^ year of her age. She was born in England. Her maiden name was Spragg or Sprague.
An account of their children is, as follows :
Mary Carter was born August 2i?1 1733. — died May 22$ 1784.
James Carter was born February 2? 1735-6. — died Octo- ber 29^ 1784.
Elizabeth Carter was born October 3? 1738. — died March 25»h 1 80 1.
Rebecca Carter was born September 7l.h 1741. — died Octo- ber 15^ 1793.
THE JOHN CARTER FAMILY. 247
Ann Carter was born September 41.11 1743. — died March I?1 1768. John Carter was born July 21^ 1745. — died in Providence —
Folwell married Elizabeth Carter.
Account of their children. John Folwell — died August 2&h 1809. Samuel Folwell — died November — 1813. Richard Folwell — died May I2*h 1814. Rebecca Folwell
David Jones was born December iol.h 1740. — died January i8!h 1785. Rebecca Carter was born Sept. 7* 1741. — died Oct. 15^
1793-
The above David Jones & Rebecca Carter were joined to- gether, in the holy bonds of matrimony, Oct. 27l.h 1785, by the Rev<? M^ Sturgeon, at Philadelphia.
An account of their children is, as follows.
Sarah Jones was born Sept. 25^ 1766. — died March 7^h 1769.
John Jones was born Feb. i8*h 1768. — died August 26^ 1770.
Daniel Jones was born March 8'.h 1770 — died August i8l.h
1773- Elizabeth Jones was born Sept. 13^ 1772. — died Nov.
3? 1785.
David Jones was born Nov. 22<? 1774.
Rebecca Jones was born Nov. I9l.h 1777.
Margaret Jones was born Dec. i^ 1780.
Catharine Jones was born May 3"? 1783. — died April 29l.h 1787. -
Observations on the above, by B. B. C. — John Carter, the head of the Family, was born in Ireland, and emigrated to America. He sailed from Philadelphia, as Lieutenant of an armed vessel, and was killed in April — 1745, in an engage- ment with a French vessel ; a ball having passed through his breast. This was told me by his daughters, Elizabeth & Re- becca, in 1791 & 92. John Carter left a widow, at Phila- delphia, with five children. His youngest child John was a
248 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
posthumous son, having been born the July following, three months after the death of his Father. — John Carter's age, at the time of his death is not stated ; but if we suppose his age to have been nearly the same with that of his wife, as she died in 1760, in her 47l.h year, his age in 1745, when the action took place, that is fifteen years before, must have been about thirty-two years.
Elizabeth, wife of John Carter was the daughter of John Spragg or Sprague, who emigrated from England, at an early period and settled on Long Island. John Spragg was the proprietor of a considerable landed estate on Long Island, which is now lost to the family.
Elizabeth, daughter of the above John Carter married
Folwell, by whom she had a numerous family. Three sons and one daughter lived to grow up. Samuel was an eminent painter, and studied under Sir Benj. West of London. Rich- ard went to Providence, about the year 1781, to learn the Printing business of his uncle ; he quit Providence about the year 1785. John was a printer. Rebecca is still living at Philadelphia. — Mrs. Folwell afterwards married Col. Robert Roberts of Philadelphia.
Rebecca, daughter of the above John Carter married David Jones. They had eight children, three of whom lived to
grow up, viz. David Jones who married — He has a
son Theodore Jones, now about 19 years of age & other
children. His wife is dead. — Rebecca Jones married
Ferguson. She has several children. M* Ferguson is dead, and his widow now lives at N? 18 Elfreth's alley, Second street. Margaret Jones is unmarried.
NEW YORK, April Ist 1820. Miss HULDAH M. CARTER,
DEAR SISTER, Many years ago, when I was a student at the university of Philadelphia, our departed sister M? Brown wrote me, and requested me to procure some information, re- specting our relations in Philadelphia. By frequent conver- sations with our aunts, M? Roberts & , M1.5 Jones, I collected some family traditions, which I related to our sister Brown,
THE JOHN CARTER FAMILY. 249
on my return. — When I was in Philadelphia, last august, I requested our cousin David Jones to copy from his mother's bible, the family record, which he willingly did. Thinking you might have a curiosity to inspect it, I have transcribed it for your perusal. Our relations in Philadelphia are poor, but honest and industrious. — David Jones told me, that he had been a patient in the hospital, during four years, for some mental derangement. He has now perfectly recovered his reason and health of body ; but lives very retired. In the hospital, he was a room mate of the late Judge Jabez Bowen, whom he described as an outrageous madman at times, with frequent intervals of perfect reason.
Yours of Jan i/th inclosing M^ Putnam's letter and Edward K. Thompson's receipt came duly to hand. In a letter which I wrote to our nephew, N. Brown Jun. soon after the receipt of yours, I desired him to return you my thanks for your at- tention to this business, which in case he should have for- gotten, I beg leave to repeat. I wrote to Benj. P. Putnam, that the last year's taxes had been paid, at the Providence bank, according to his order, and suppose he has received my letter ; but I have not heard from him since. The Ohio share having been long in the family, I wish to pay the taxes punctually, in order to preserve it unbroken and unmort- gaged. One lot of 100 acres extends nearly two miles on the river Ohio : it must of course be narrow. If a town should be built at or near this place, (as new towns are laid out fre- quently on the river side,) such a length of wharves might be in time very valuable to some of the family, though if now sold, it must be sacrificed and would produce but little. Nahum Ward of Marietta wrote me some time since, that he wished to bup the 8 acre lot, and would give 250 dolls, for it ; though it was not worth that, (as he said.) In reply I told him, that I had made up my mind not to sell. I sometimes wish myself on the banks of the belle riviere, as the French call the Ohio, and regret that James had not gone there from New Orleans, as I advised him when he sailed from London.
After a hard winter, I congratulate you on the return of spring. The weather has been uncommonly fine of late, which has given an opportunity to the beaus and belles to
250 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
promenade Broadway, and to make a most brilliant display of taste and fashion, in their costume and equipages. Broadway may be considered as the Bond-s1. of N. York ; but the Bond-s^ of London is a mere alley, compared with the Broad- way of this city.
I have nothing new. I regret the numerous disasters, which have occurred of late on our coast, by shipwreck, as well as the death of Decatur. The deaths of Geo. Ill, the dukes of Kent and Berri will not, I think, produce any explo- sion in Europe, though they have more than enough of com- bustible materials, in France and England. Produce here
is low, and all complain that business is dull. — M* Judah Hayes frequently invites me to call and see him : he enquires in a friendly manner, after the family. — I am, dear sister, your affectionate brother,
BENJ. B. CARTER, to whom please to write soon. -
GENEALOGICAL NOTES AND QUERIES.
Some extinct Rhode Island surnames, with name of the last known male representative :
Daniel Abbott, of Providence, d. 1760, Nov. 7 (3d of the name).
William Baulstone, of Portsmouth, d. 1678, Mar. 14.
Gabriel Bernon, of Providence, d. 1736, Feb. I.
Edmund Calverly, of Warwick, d. 1687+
John Clarke, of Newport, d. 1676, Apr. 20.
William Jefferay, of Newport, d. 1675, Jan- 2 (son Thomas alive in 1674).
Edward Pelham, of Newport, d. 1741 (nephew John alive in 1720).
Nicholas Power, of Providence, d. 1844, Apr. 28 (6th of the name).
Benjamin Smiton, of Bristol, d. 1728+
Christopher Unthank, of Warwick, d. 1680+
William Wickenden, of Providence, d. 1670, Feb. 23.
GENEALOGICAL NOTES AND QUERIES. 25!
English ancestry of Rhode Island settlers. Of nearly five hundred families who settled in Rhode Island before 1690, only about ten per cent, have been traced to their English homes.
A gentleman, born in Rhode Island in 1846, states that his father served during part of the Revolutionary War. Can any other man in the United States, only forty-eight years of age, fairly state as much in regard to his father ?
J. O. A.
QUERY. Who were the parents and grandparents of Dorcas Smith who married 1777, March 30, Stephen Olney, of Revo- lutionary fame ?
Who was Desire Kent's grandmother ?
In the October number of New England Historic and Genealogical Register allusion is made to this inscription on a gravestone : " Mrs. Desire Kent, widow of Samuel Kent, of Barrington, was the first English woman's grand-daughter on New England. Died Feb 8, 1762, aged about 94 years." An explanatory note follows wherein it is stated that she was grand-daughter of Mary Chilton, who married John Winslow, and whose daughter married Edward Gray. Now the Desire Gray alluded to was born in 1651 not 1668, died in 1690 not 1762 and was married Jan'y 10, 1672, to Nathaniel Southworth, not to Samuel Kent.
Hence the query arises who was Desire Kent's grand- mother? J. O. A.
Preserved Braytons, son of Stephen2 (Francis1) and Ann (Tallman) was born March 8, 1685. Died May 21, 1761. He married Content . It has been claimed that Con- tent's maiden name was Gardner, but proof is lacking. Can any one furnish information respecting her ? The date of the marriage is also desired.
Warren. V. B.
252 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
ANSWER TO QUERIES.
Query (A) Jackson.
I do not know of any complete account of this family, but papers of interest concerning some branches, were left by the Hon. Richard Jackson, Jr., and the Rev. Dr. Henry Jackson, which are now in the possession of Mr. Richard Jackson Barker, of Warren, R. I.
Oct. 23, 1894. E- H- L- B-
BRIEF SKETCHES, NOTES AND CULLINGS.
THE PUBLICATION.
In 1872 the first number of the "Proceedings of the Soci- ety" was issued. It was prepared and brought out by a member of the Society who was then its Secretary, — a mem- ber (Mr. George T. Paine), who had made a success of pub- lishing on his individual responsibility the six great volumes that constitute the exceedingly valuable Narragansett Club publications. The importance of that pamphlet of 38 pages was readily seen, and for twenty-one successive years the publication entitled, " Proceedings of the Society," was stat- edly issued. That publication was an important means of sustaining and promoting the life of the Society, and finally led to a demand for a larger work.
Another movement of the same general character was made at the annual meeting in 1893, when, on motion of Mr. John O. Austin, a resolution was adopoted that had for its object the conversion of the annual publication into a quar- terly. At the ensuing April business meeting the proposed measure was endorsed by the Society. In the course of the year 1893, the four numbers that constitute Volume L, were ssued substantially in accordance with the programme
BRIEF SKETCHES, NOTES AND CULLINGS. 253
marked out. That volume contained nearly 300 pages. Its cost exceeded the estimate, and the subscriptions fell short of the estimate. Thus the treasury was heavily drawn upon, and the committee recommended that the quarterly be sus- pended unless the required amount was raised within a given time. By a special appeal and generous contributions by a few persons, a considerable sum was raised and it was deci- ded to try the experiment another year. The present issue (number 4 of Vol. II., whole number eight) completes volume II., and is therefore a fit occasion for members to look over this field of labor and consider what ought to be done.
It has been found expedient, as stated in the last issue, to insist on brief articles with the view of introducing more vari- ety in the subjects discussed, and it was also decided to invite practical workers in the historical field of the State to occupy space in these columns and discuss questions of interest. The effect of this change has been to enlist more patrons, secure more readers and awaken more interest in the objects of the Society. Still, in a financial point of view, the publication of the quarterly is not a success. By this we mean merely that the cash paid was more than the cash received. The same remark might be made of the annual publication during each year of its issue. The Society acted according to the script- ural rule : " Cast thy bread upon the waters and thou shalt find it after many days." The experiment entered upon is not likely to prove a failure in the proper sense of that term. The quarterly has attracted attention and won favor for the Soci- ety and for the objects for which the Society was founded. The publication is, then, in a moral point of view, a success. It is a means of influence and a medium of communication that should be sustained.
A pertinent inquiry is whether it cannot be improved and thus made to accomplish more good ; if not at less expense, at least, with reasonable assurance of a satisfactory return for the expense incurred. To this end there is need of delib- eration. The business must be conducted on business prin- ciples. There must be tact, skill and enterprise and plans laid to secure the desired results. Suggestions are solicited. One member of the Society has expressed his views as fol-
254 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
lows. It will cost comparatively little more to print 1000 copies of the quarterly than the present number — 700. With this change, each active and life member can be supplied with a copy, and thus, it is presumed, made more interested in the Society and its objects, apd more ready to exert influence to secure subscriptions for its publication and applications for membership.
The idea has somehow got afloat that the Society publishes for gratuitous circulation. Copies of the quarterly are often solicited without compensation. This idea should be checked.
Other suggestions relate to editorial management, the make-up and size of the publication and the times of its issue. Irregularities are pronounced unfavorable to the success of the enterprise. The resolution adopted at the last July quar- terly meeting calls for information about the Society. In re- sponse to that call
A CATALOGUE OF THE PORTRAITS IN THE PICTURE GALLERY
was compiled in season for insertion in this number of the quarterly, but is kept out by the pressure of other matter.
THE DIARY OF DR. MCSPARRAN,
which, though used by Mr. Updike in writing the history of the Narragansett Church, is deemed worthy of being printed in full, will appear by-and-by in these columns, duly annotated. Another paper of much interest, prepared by Mr. Henry C. Dorr, is entitled,
" THE CONTROVERSY BETWEEN THE PROPRIETORS AND THE FREEHOLDERS OF PROVIDENCE."
This, too, will be printed, as soon as space can be spared for it. Among the papers which members desire to see in print is one by the Hon. John H. Stiness, entitled,
"A CENTURY OF LOTTERIES IN RHODE ISLAND."
Another is by the Hon. Asa Bird Gardiner, entitled,
BRIEF SKETCHES, NOTES AND CULLINGS. 255
"REMARKABLE PROVIDENCES IN CRISES OF THE REVO- LUTIONARY WAR."
Members will, it is hoped, aid in promoting, as they have opportunity, the success of the publication enterprise, by calling attention to such other papers as are worthy of being printed, and by suggestions on a variety of subjects that de- serve consideration.
WHERE ARE THEY?
The Military Rolls of Rhode Island during the Revolu- tionary War — where are they? This inquiry is often put. Long journeys have been made to get the information which these records contain. Some persons go to the office of our Adjutant-General ; some to the office of the Secretary of State, and very many come to the historical cabinet, ex- pecting there to be shown the precious original documents.
In each case the reply is very unsatisfactory. The Adju- tant-General can make a good show of the Military Records of our Civil War. He has done credit to himself and to his State by collecting, arranging and publishing those records. But he can do next to nothing to satisfy numerous applicants for information as to the Revolution. The Secretary of State is the custodian of some of the records that are wanted and he is getting more whenever he can. He has, however, pressing duties that prevent his furnishing inquirers with the information they seek. He is ready enough, therefore, to send them with his compliments to the Librarian of this So- ciety, and so it comes about that this latter person is occa- sionally pretty seriously plied with the question — Where are they ?
New Hampshire Revolutionary Rolls, printed several years ago by that State, are contained in four of its eighteen vol- umes of State Papers, where they are readily found and con-
256 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
suited. Connecticut has performed a task of the same gen- eral character in a very satisfactory manner, having brought out an imperial 8vo volume entitled : " Record of Service of Connecticut Men in the, I., War of the Revolution ; II., War of 1812 ; III., Mexican War." Massachusetts is engaged in a similar line of labor. Most of the old States are moving for the accomplishment of this work except Rhode Island. Here inquiries cannot be satisfactorily answered at present.
One reply that is sometimes heard is substantially as fol- lows : — The official rolls so much sought were sent to Wash- ington by the State before 1812 with the view of establishing its claims and obtaining from the National Government com- pensation for services rendered in the War for Independence* and being in Washington when that city was burnt in 1812 by the British, these records were destroyed together with other valuable property. This reply is given just as it has been heard. If any person is prepared to refute it or to con- firm it he will confer a favor by addressing a note to the editor of this quarterly.
Another reply is to the effect that while Rhode Island took a very active and creditable part in the War for Indepen- dence, as in previous colonial wars, there was always a lack of care in making and in preserving records of what was done. According to this theory the military records of our colonial and revolutionary periods were, at best, very defect- ive, and being but little prized or cared for, were readily scattered and lost. Some of these records are in our State House ; some in our historical cabinet ; some in our City Hall ; some in Massachusetts State House ; some in New York State House ; some in the War Department at Wash- ington ; some in the office of the Secretary of State at Wash- ington ; and some in private hands. We know that some other highly prized official documents are in private hands and are regarded by those who hold them as stock in trade.
In conclusion, any person who is prepared to refute or to confirm the above explanation, to give a more satisfactory re- ply to the inquiry, or to otherwise aid inquirers in their researches, is invited to avail himself of space in the columns of this quarterly for that purpose.
BRIEF SKETCHES, NOTES AND CULLINGS. 257
WHAT MUST BE DONE ?
It is not enough to repeat the old refrain. The pertinent inquiry now is, taking things as they are, what must be done? We know enough about our revolutionary and colonial records not only to justify action in their behalf, but to make neglect of an organized movement for collecting, arranging and utilizing them for historical purposes inexcusable. True, it will cost money, and the State has no right to enter upon any enterprise without counting the cost and guarding against imposition. It must take held of no "put up job." It must, however, move right here. It cannot dodge its responsi- bility as the guardian and protector of records that interest many of its citizens and affect its reputation and standing as a State. It cannot afford to be inactive. It is bound to do what it can to rescue from destruction what remain of records that pertain to its revolutionary and colonial history, and to show what part its citizens took in the War of 1812 and in the Mexican war, and the State is sure to have the cordial cooperation and support of all its loyal citizens in its efforts to this end.
This Society is doing what it can to aid in this work. It is drawing from the Department of State at Washington and printing certain papers that not only interest individuals and families, but shed light on the history of the State. With its limited resources, it will require considerable time to collect, arrange and index its various authentic records of the revo- lutionary and colonial periods, such as regimental and com- pany rolls, diaries kept by officers, orderly books, quarter- masters' accounts, and four bound volumes of military papers.
It is pleasant to report, in this connection, that the services of an experienced indexer have been secured and will be con- tinued as long as the financial condition of the Society will justify the expenditure. It is not easy to over estimate the value of such an index as is just begun. The four volumes of Military Papers will, when indexed, be much consulted, whereas now they are rarely looked at. The nine volumes of newly arranged manuscripts that have been recently put upon our shelves will acquire, when indexed, an importance
258 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
of which few persons have any adequate conception. The value of the Society's twenty-one annual " Proceedings," and of its first four volumes of " Collections," would be greatly enhanced by an index.
If this branch of our clerical force can be sustained, as it ought to be, a marked improvement in the usefulness of our historical manuscripts, and of some of our printed documents, will be effected, and a step will be taken towards the accom- plishment of a work of much interest and importance, namely, putting in order, as well as collecting, records that give some idea of what was accomplished by citizens of Rhode Island, at a very critical period, to establish the na- tion to which they belong, — a work devolving primarily on the State and which cannot be accomplished without its direct agency.
A PUBLICATION FUND.
Half a century ago, more or less, the leading historical so- cieties of this country were engaged in raising publication funds. New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Massachusetts, and several other like institutions, moved forward in this line of action, and are now enjoying and diffusing the benefits of their wise foresight and their well-directed efforts. This So- ciety so far fell into line as to get up a subscription paper to raise a publication fund of twenty-five thousand dollars. Five thousand dollars were subscribed on that paper, but not a dol- lar of it was paid into the treasury, on account of a conditional clause requiring the whole sum to be subscribed in order to secure any part of it. It is hoped that in raising the sorely needed publication and working fund, the subscription paper will contain no such conditional clause as that referred to. Some of the above-named societies have publication funds that have the distinctive names of the givers, and the publi- cations thus brought out are accredited to the so-named funds. The Connecticut Historical Society has recently been equipped for service by public-spirited citizens of Hartford, and it is hoped that the Rhode Island Society will not long be left without such a fund as will enable it to move abreast
BRIEF SKETCHES, NOTES AND CULLINGS. 259
with its worthy sister-institutions, and efficiently aid in extend- ing a knowledge of Rhode Island history among its citizens and throughout the country. The Society's committee that has charge of invested funds, consists of Robert H. I. God- dard, Charles H. Smith, and Richmond P. Everett.
The importance of the measure to which attention is here invited is not readily overestimated. The Society has now, according to the last report of the treasurer, a publication fund of $3,000. This was given $1,000 at a time, by three of its late members (William Gammell, Ira B. Peck, and Albert J. Jones), whose names will be repeated in each annual report of the treasurer through all time. Additions to this fund are earnestly solicited. Indeed, they must be forthcoming to ena- ble the Society to carry forward work upon which it has en- tered. Rather than settle back into a state of comparative inactivity, it had better move forward and rely, like a neigh- boring institution, on a guaranty fund raised by its friends. The best course, however, is that pursued by the societies named above, whose wise foresight and generous provision for usefulness command respect and are amply rewarded.
The Society has a distinctive mission that concerns the well-being of the State. To worthily fulfill that mission, it must have what are familiarly termed the "sinews of war" - money to enable it to sustain and enlarge its publications, and make its valuable collections available and extensively useful.
THE INDEX OF PERSONS.
Appended to this issue of the quarterly is a feature in the publication that can hardly fail to be appreciated. This is, however, but the beginning of improvements that are called for. If this quarterly is kept up and enlarged, as it ought to be, it must soon have, also, an index of subjects and an index of places. The main question is as to whether there is enough of interest, intelligence and enterprise to get up and sustain a periodical that is abreast with the times.
260 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
REV. OLIVER DYER
Has read before the Society, during the year 1894, three very interesting and instructive papers, which were grate- fully acknowledged at the time. These papers are worthy of being repeated in the largest audience-rooms in our city and State. The Society solicits from him two more papers, one on Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry, the hero of Lake Erie, and the other on the great anti-slavery campaign, with sketches of some of its distinguished leaders.
RHODE ISLAND INSTITUTE OF INSTRUCTION.
Its $oth anniversary was celebrated on the 25th, 26th and 27th days of October last. Among the invited guests at a numerously attended banquet held at the Trocadero on that occasion was the Hon. Henry Barnard, LL. D., whose instru- mentality in getting up the present system of public instruc- tion in the State is gratefully recognized, and whose portrait adorns the walls of the picture gallery of this Society.
COMMODORE ABRAHAM WHIFFLE,
The leader of the party that destroyed the Gaspee and made its commander a prisoner, was born within the limits of the present town of Lincoln, R. I. This statement is made on the authority of one of our most careful and reliable investi- gators, Mr. Albert Holbrock. The question is here submit- ted whether a suitable tablet ought not to be erected on the site of this hero's birthplace while the presence and testi- mony of Mr. Holbrock are available. A full size portrait of Commodore Whipple, taken while he was in the vigor of manhood, belongs to his great-granddaughter, who resides in Middleboro, Mass. This lady (Mrs. Agnes C. Tribon) has also colonial and Revolutionary articles, memorials and doc- uments of various kinds, the mere sight of which would repay a visit to that historic town, that was long the scene of the labors of the historian Backus and of the late Prof. J. W. P. Jenks.
BRIEF SKETCHES, NOTES AND CULLINGS. 26 1
Brown University statistics, contributed by the late Rev. Dr. Shaw while he was an active member of this Society.
PROVIDENCE, Dec1: 6th 1816 Samuel B. Shaw
To Brown University, Dr.
Dels. Cts.
To One Quarter's Tuition and Room Rent, 4-1-1.45 . 5 45 To ditto Use of the Library, o 50
$ 5 95 28 70
34 65 Feb. 16, 1817. Received Payment,
ASA MESSER.
PROVIDENCE, December 28, 1816. Samuel Brenton Shaw,
To the Treasurer of Brown University, Dr. For Commons, 13 weeks, — day at 1.89 a week, . . $24 57
" Steward's Services, 2 21
" Sweeping, I 17
" Repairs, 75
This bill is according to law. $28 70
ASA MESSER, President. Received Payment,
JOSEPH CADY, Steward.
INDIAN NAMES IN RHODE ISLAND.
A few years ago a committee of the Society on Indian names and places in Rhode Island issued a circular, some of the results of which appear from time to time in letters ad- dressed to the Secretary of that committee. Mr. C. A. Downs, the intelligent Town Clerk of Lebanon, N. H., who received a copy of that circular, has had the good fortune lately to obtain a copy of this Society's edition of R. W.'s Key — a presentation copy from Prof. Romeo Elton to Prof.
262 RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
James L. Kingsley of Yale College, containing the names of the distinguished essayist, John Foster of Bristol, England, and of Prof. Longfellow of Cambridge, Mass. Mr. Downs turns the Key to account in studying the meaning of some of our local Indian names. The following extract from one of his letters (taken without his consent or knowledge), treats of a word about which there is a difference of opinion among scholars. He discusses the word Natick, which is the name of a village in Rhode Island, and also the name of the place where Eliot established his first Indian church in Mas- sachusetts.
NATICK. — R. W. gives nit-tauke, my land, but he does not seem to use it as the name of a place. The idea embodied in this application of it to a locality was beyond the Indian mind. I agree with Dr. D. G. Brinton in your Jones's pamph- let so far. I do not find in the word the least suggestion of a hill, neither syllable nor letter.
The late Judge Chandler E. Potter, of Manchester, N. H., a good Indian scholar, makes the following note : " Natick means a clearing, or place free from trees, from the Indian words naa, bare, and auke a place, the t being euphonic."
Rasle's vocabulary gives : " Nate, bare, or cleared. Na-t- auke, a clearing"
Rev. Edward Ballard, in geographical names on the Coast of Maine, Coast Survey Report, 1868, gives Naddock — writ- ten Nuttake, the same derivation, and cites a Penobscot In- dian as using the word Natuah as meaning an intervale.
All this is reasonable — a probable source and meaning of Natick ; but knowing the literalness of the Indians in their names, I was not quite satisfied without some evidence that Natick, in whole or part, was a clearing, which no one seems to have undertaken to prove. I began my search in this di- rection. In an account of the settlement of the place I find this : " In this place the grass was cut and timber felled, &c." This shows that there was a clearing there ; for otherwise there would be no grass. And so far as I am concerned the question is settled — Natick means a clearing. This meaning rests on etymology and facts. No other does.
INDEX OF PERSONS.
VOLUMES I. AND II.
Abbott, Daniel, i. 232, 235, 236, 237,
238 ; ii. 49, 250 Adam, ii. 159 Adams, i. 37 ; ii. 25, 27, 51
Charles Francis, i. 61, 63, 91 ; ii. 15, 24, 29, 32
Dwight R., i. 91
John, ii. 201
John Quincy, i. 266
Samuel, ii. 177
Seth, ii. 76
Addeman, Joshua M., i. 91 Adler, Cyrus, i. 91 Ahasuerus, i. 222 Alden, Mrs. Charles L., ii. 105 Aldrich, Nelson W., {.91,93 ; ii. 105,
107
Alexander, i. 203 Allen, i. 47
Candace, i. 91, 93 ; ii. 107
Edward S., i. 93 ; ii. 107
Edwin R., i. 132 ; ii. 105
Matthew, ii. 188
Noel, ii. 188
Paul, ii. 170
Philip, ii. 170
William, ii. 183, 184, 187, 217, 219, 221, 228, 229, 230
Zachariah, i. 56, 58, 64, 91, 156 Allyn, John, i. 274 Almy, Herbert, i. 93 ; ii. 107 Alvord, i. 42 Ames, John G., i. 91
William, i. 93 ; ii. 107 Amey, ii. 163 Ammidown, i. 41 Amos, ii. 74
Andrews, i. 49 ; ii. 8, 14
Byron A., i. 150 ; ii. 105
Elisha Benjamin, i. 93; ii. 8, 55,107
Neil, Jr., i. 269 ; ii. 54 Andros, i. 275
Edmund, i. 147, 274 Angell, Albert G., ii. in
Edwin G., i. 93 ; ii. 107.
Israel, ii. 183, 184, 187, 215, 217, 219, 221, 222, 223, 224
James, i. 232, 237, 238
James Burrill, i. 98; ii. 112
John, i. 233, 235, 237, 238 ; ii. 207
Nehemiah, ii. 187
Thomas, i. 41, 232, 235
Thomas H., i. 91, 149
Walter Foster, i. 14, 93 ; ii. 107 Anne, i. 280, 291 Anthony, i. 291
John B., i. 93 ; ii. 107
Lewis W., i. 91 Anthonys, i. 48 Aplin, Charles, ii. 205
Emily, ii. 205
Frances, ii. 205
William, ii. 205 Armington, A. H., i. 159 Arms, i. 41 Armstrong, ii. 47
Henry C., i. 93 ; ii. 107 Arnold, i. 47, 48, 55, 165, 227, 229, 259 ! "• 45> 48, 122, 123, 130, 131, 244.
Amos, i. 56
Benedict, i. 189, 197, 210 ; ii. 243
Benjamin H., ii. 105
Damaris, ii. 243
11.
INDEX.
Arnold, Edward B., ii. 105
Eliezer, i. 232
Enoch, i. 56
Fred W., i. 93 ; ii. 107
Israel, i. 232
James N., i. 22
John, i. 233
Joseph, ii. 182, 185. 186, 215, 216, 218
Mary, i. 91
Newton Darling, i. 93 ; ii. 107
Olney, i. 93, 107
Richard, i. 232, 233
Richard James, i. 93
Samuel, ii. 216, 218
Samuel G., ii. in
Stephen, i. 232
Stephen Harris, i. 91, 93 ; ii. 105
Thomas, i. 232, 235, 238; ii. 215, 216, 218
Welcome, ii. 170
Whipple A., i. 79
William, i. 186, 189 Arnold & Barber, ii. 84 Arnold & Johnson, i. 79 Ashotemuet, i. 189 Ashton, Henry, i. 234, 236, 237
James, i. 232 Astor, i. 64, 89
Atwood, Charles H., i. 93 ; ii. 107 Aubrey, William, i. 291 Audley, Ann, ii. 208
Elisha, ii. 208
Hannah, ii. 208
John, ii. 208
Margaret, ii. 208
Peter, ii. 208 Austin, i. 47 ; ii. 245
John O., i. 15, 16, 73, 76, 91, 97 ;
ii. 15, 39, 105, 165, 252 Aylsworth, Arthur, i. 41 Babcock, Caroline V., ii. 100
Joseph, ii. 186
Rufus, ii. loo Babson, i. 63 Bachelor, Charles E., i. 91
Backus, Thomas, ii. ii, 107, 260
Bacon, W. C, ii. 76
Bagnall, William R., i. 20, 98 ;
ii. 112 Bailey, ii. 192
Joseph Trowbridge, i. 41, 46; ii. 105
Lemuel, ii. 188
Richard, i. 41
Richard Arnold, i. 93 ; ii. 107
William Mason, i. 93. Baker, David Sherman, Jr., i. 93 ; ii. 15, 107
Priscilla, i. 41
Virginia, ii. 201
Baldwin, Sylvester, i. 41, 42, 48 Ball, Edward, i. 48
Nicholas, i. 93 ; ii. 107 Ballard, Edward, ii. 262 Ballou, i. 41, 232
James, i. 233
John, i. 232
Latimer W., i. 91, 93 ; ii. 107
William H., i. 93 ; ii. 107 Bancroft, ii. 35
Banigan, Joseph, i. 97 ; ii. in Baraga, ii. 240 Barber, Benjamin, i. 162
Edward, i. 41
P. M., i. 91
Robert, ii. 45 Barker, i. 48, 245
Benjamin, i. 168
Frederick A., i. 93 ; ii. 107
Henry R., i. 93 ; ii. 107
Richard J., ii. 252 Barlow, Jonathan, i. 41, 45 Barnard, Henry, ii. 260
Barnes, i. 49 Barrington, John, i. 115 Barrows, Edwin, i. 73, 74, 75, 76, 77,
93 ; »• i°7
Hepsa Blake, ii. 105 Barstow, Amos C., Jr., i. 93 ; ii. 107
George E., i. 93 ; ii. 107 Bartlett, i. 44 ; ii. 45, 51
INDEX.
111.
Bartlett, John, i. 41
John Russell, i. 69, 93 ; ii. 107
Robert, i. 41
Thomas E., ii. 105 Barton, i. 56, 66, 71
Albert G., i. 56
Jos., ii. 1 86
William, i. 28, 55, 56, 66 ; ii. 170
William T., i. 93 ; ii. 107 Bartow, i. 41, 42, 48, 64
Evelyn Pierrepont, i. 91, 93 ;
ii. 107
Bass, Bertha, i. 14, 93 ; ii. 107 Bates, Isaac Comstock, i. 93 ; ii. 107
William Lincoln, ii. 13, 107 Baulston, William, ii. 250 Bayard, i. 276
John, i. 42 Beal, John, i. 48 Beck, i. 83 Beckwith, i. 42, 64, 105 ; ii. 22, 73, 74
Abby, G., ii. u, 105
Amos, ii. 72
Henry Truman, i. 91,97; ii. n, 22, 72, in
Susan Truman, ii. 72
Truman, i. 68 ; ii. 72 Bedford, i. 49 Beeson, ii. 197
Belcher, William, ii. 182, 185 Bellows, Benjamin, i. 42 Benedict, David, i. 58
Maria M., i. 58, 91 Bennett Charles P., ii. 105
Edward, i. 235, 237
Herbert F., i. 117 ; ii. 105
Samuel, i. 233 Benson, i. 42 Benton, i. 244
Berkley, Dean, ii. 120, 175, 176 Bernon, ii. 90
Eve, ii. 163
Grbriel, ii. 90, 93, 141, 250 Bicknell, i. 48, 105
Joshua, 148
Thomas W., i. 91
Bidwell, i. 42 Bigelow, i. 42, 63 Binney, i. 42
William, i. 93 ; ii. 107
William, Jr., i. 93 ; ii. 107 Birdson, James C., ii. 105 Bishop, ii. 51
Courtland F., ii. 105
George, ii. 26 Bissel, Samuel, ii. 182, 185, 186
Thomas, ii. 186 Black, Sam, ii. 187 Blackeston, i. 286 Blackmar, James, i. 232 Blackmer, Nathaniel, ii. 187 Blackstone, i. 48
William, i. 48 Blake, i. 48
Charles, i. 67
Eli Whitney, i. 93 ; ii. 107
Elizabeth Vernon, i. 93 ; ii. 107 Blanchard, Elias., ii. 216, 217,218 Blaxstone, William, i. 233 Bliss, i. 42
Blodgett, John T., i. 93 ; ii. 107 Bogman, i. 42, 46
Edward Young, i. 93 ; ii. 107 Bonno, ii. 161 Boone, Anne, ii. 206
Mary, ii. 206
Samuel, ii. 206 Borden, ii. 244
Cuff, ii. 118
Innocent, ii. 244, 245
John2, ii. 244
Mary, i. 232
Richard, ii. 244, 245
Richard 3 , ii. 244
Sarah, ii. 245 Bosworth, Lewis, ii. 207
Ruth, ii. 207 Bourn, Augustus O., i. 101
George W. B., i. 93 ; ii. 107 Bourne, Edward, i. 290 Bouton, i. 63 Bowen, i. 42 ; ii. 9
IV.
INDEX.
Bowen, Clarence W., i. 14, 20, 55, 98; ii. 8, 10, 51, 105, 112
D. i. 69
Elizabeth, ii. 73
Ephraim, ii. 183, 184, 187
Holder Borden, i. 91, 97 ; ii. in
Jabez, ii. 48, 170, 249
Marin, ii. 73
William M. P., ii. 105
Zephaniah, ii. 182 Bowles, ii. 222
John, ii. 216, 225 Box, Dan, ii. 220 Boylston, John Lane, ii. 83 Bradford, ii. 194
William; i. 48 ; ii. 183, 184, 188, 200
William, Jr., ii. 188 Bradlee, Caleb Davis, ii. 105 Bradley, Charles, i. 93 ; ii. 107 Bray, ii. 144 Brayton, Ann Tallman, ii. 251
J. S., i. 64, 91
Preserved, ii. 251
Stephen Francis, ii. 251 Breed, W. J., i. 91 Brett, Mary, ii. 144 Breul, i. 55 Bridge, John, i. 42 Briggs, i. 42
Benjamin, ii. 107
Benjamin F., i. 93
Cornelius, ii. 188
Osmond H., ii. 105
Stephen, ii. 216
Walter, i. 49
H. C. & Co., i. 77 Bright, Abigail, ii. 208
Ann Goldstone, ii. 208
Henry, ii. 208 Brights, ii. 208
Brinton, Daniel G., ii. 239, 241, 262 Brock, R. A., i. 91 Brodhead, i. 272, 273, 274 Brooks, i. 63
Philip, i. 83
Brown, i. 48, 78 ; ii. 237, 248
Alice, ii. 72
Amey Dexter, ii. 72
Benjamin, i. 42, 107
Clarke, ii. 182, 186
D. Russell, i. 93 ; ii. 107
Harold, i. 97 ; ii. in
H. Martin, i. 93 ; ii. 107
Isaac, ii. 72
Mrs. Isaac, ii. 105
Jabez, ii. 139
John, i. 56 ; ii. 48, 170
John 2, i. 115
John A., i. 19. 78
John Carter, ii. 68
John Nicholas, i. 97 ; ii. in
Joseph, ii. 48, 177
Joseph Hollis, i. 78
Joseph R., ii. 84
Mary, ii. 207
Moses, i. 21, 60; ii. 48, 113,132, 137, 139, 16.0, 163, 232
Nicholas, ii. 68, 170, 246
Nicholas, Jr., ii. 249
Obadiah, ii. 159
Pardon Fenner, ii. n, 107
S., i. 107
Sarah Burrill, i. 78
Zephaniah, ii. 185, 216, 218, 228,
229, 230
Brown & Ives, i. 51 ; ii. 68 Brown & Sharpe, ii. 84 Browne, Arthur, ii. 177
Chad, i. 42 ; ii. 72
Daniel, i. 232
John, i. 232
Marmaduke, ii. 143
Richard, ii., 161, 207 Brownell, Charles D'Wolfe, i. 28,
S5,9i
Frederick R., i. 138
Isaac, ii. 85
Jona, ii. 188 Browning, ii. 47 Bucklin, Simon S., i. 14, 21 Budlong, i. 48
INDEX.
V.
Buel, ii. 92
Bugbee, James H., i. 93; ii. 56, 107
Buckley, Abby Isabel Brown, i. 98 ;
ii. 112
Bullock, Jonathan Russell, i. 93 ; ii. 107
Julia, i. 77, 91, 97 ; ii. 56, in Bumstead, Hannah, ii. 208 Burbeen, John, i. 42, 64 Burdick, James, i. 73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 93 ; ii. 7, 9, 21, 57, 58, 59, 60, 107 Burgess, Edwin A., i. 93 ; ii. 107
Tristam, ii. 232 Burgoyne, ii. 52 Burke, i. 41, 42, 47 ; ii. 48 Burleigh, i. 42 Burley, i. 42 Burlingame, Chandler, ii. 228, 229,
230
Burnham, George H., ii. 49, 105 Burnside, i. 119 Burr, David, ii. 206
Ezekiel, ii. 206
Sarah, ii. 206 Burrill, James, ii. 72
James, Jr., i. 119 Burroughs, Frank M., ii. 105 Burrows, i. 42 Butler, i. 42
David, ii. 234 Buttre', ii. 102
John C., ii. 23, 101
Lillian C., ii. 101
Mary A. Lothrop, ii. 101
William, ii. 101, 206 Cabot, George, ii. 171 Cad worth, James, i. 186 Cady, Joseph, ii. 261 Caesar, i. 156 ; ii. 135, 161 Cafaniquanut, i. 207 Calder, Albert L., i. 93 ; ii. 107
George Beckford, i. 93 Calhoun, i, 244 Callender, ii. 176
John, i. 66
Walter, i. 97 ; ii. in
Callender, William, ii. 56 Calverly, Edmund, i. 185, 226;
ii. 250 Campbell, i. 280
Daniel G., i. 93 ; ii. 22, 78
Douglas, i. 64
Duncan, i. 280
Horatio Nelson, i. 93 ; ii. 107
John, i. 280, 281, 284 ; ii. 78
Susan D. Gordon, ii. 78
Winthrop, ii. 78 Campbell, J. B. & Co., ii. 78 Canonicus, i. 107, 157, 199, 214 Capron, ii. 48
Banfield, i. 42 Carmichael, George, ii. 12 Carnegie, Andrew, ii. 105 Carpenter, i. 42, 43, 47 ; ii. n, 22, 91
Abel, ii. 217, 219, 221
Benjamin, i. 232
Charles Earle, i. 93 ; ii. 107
Ephraim, i. 233
Esther B., i. 93 ; ii. 22, 90, 92
Frances Wood, i. 93 ; ii. 107
George M., i. 51, 91,93; ii: 12, 105, 107
James Helme, ii. 90
Mary Hazard, ii. 90
Silas, i. 232
Thomas F., i. 66
Timothy, i. 233
William, i. 186, 189, 209, 218, 219,
232 Carr, ii. 184
Caleb, i. 195
John, ii. 183 Carroll, ii. 51 Carter, Ann, ii. 247
Benjamin Bowen, ii. 246, 250
Elizabeth, ii. 246, 248
Huldah M., ii, 248
James, ii. 246
John, ii. 159, 246, 247, 248
Mary, ii. 246
Rebecca, ii. 246 Casey, Gideon, ii. 216
VI.
INDEX.
Caswell, William F., i. 133
William H., i. 141 Catlin, Charles A., i. 61, 93 ; ii. 107 Causasenamont, Robin, i. 270 Chace, Barnabas J., i. 55, 91
Elizabeth Buffum, ii. 105
James H., i. 93 ; ii. 107
Jonathan, i. 93 ; ii. 107
Julian A., i. 93 ; ii. 107
Lewis Jenkins, i. 73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 93 5 "• 57, 58, 59, 60, 105, 107
Lucretia G., i. 93 ; ii. 107
Thomas, i. 19, 20
Thomas Wilson, i. 93 ; ii. 107 Chaffee, Thomas, i. 116 Chambers, Robert B., i. 93 ; ii. 107 Champlin, ii. 176
James Tift, i. 42
Jeffrey, ii. 244
Smooth Stephen, ii. 244
Stephen, ii. 244
Thomas, ii. 244 Chandler, Annis, ii. 47
William, ii. 47 Channing, ii. 137
Chapin, Charles Value, i. 93, 159 ; ii. 107
William W., i. 93 ; ii. 105, 107 Chapman, John, ii. 182, 185 Charles Second, i. 120 Chase, i. 48
Albert L., i. 139
Anthony, i. 82
Lydia Earle, i. 82
Philip B., i. 112, 153, 154.
Philip S., ii. 105
Pliny Earle, i. 82 . •
Thomas, i. 59, 82, 84
William, i. 48 Chase & Stuart, i. 84 Checkley, i. 48
Angelica, ii. 208
Ann, ii. 207
Deborah, ii. 207, 208
Henry, ii. 208
John, ii. 207, 208
Checkley, Rebecca, ii. 208
Chester, i. 47
Child, Benjamin H., i. 91
Charles H., i. 93 ; ii. 56, 107
James, ii. 188 Childs, George W., i. 56 ; ii. 105
Jeremiah, ii. 188 Chilton, Mary, ii. 251 Choate, Charles F., i. 91 Christie, i. 42 Church, i. 42
Benjamin, ii. 200
Israel, ii. 188
Nathaniel, ii. 188
Thomas, ii. 188 Cicero, i. 84 Cilley, J. P., i. 91 Claflin, Arthur W., i. 93 ; ii. 107 Clark, i. 66
Franklin C, ii. 105, 208
George H., ii. 12, 22
Thomas, ii. 201
Thomas March, i. 58, 91, 93;
ii. 105, 107 Clarke, Ethan, ii. 186
Frances Latham, ii. 208
Halsey P., i. 112, 160
James, i. 232
Jeremiah, i. 49 ; ii. 208
John, i. 218; ii. 250
Oliver, ii. 186, 215, 217
Samuel C., ii. 105
William E., i. 157 Clay, i. 244
Clemence, Thomas, i. 232, 235 Clinton, i. 260 Coats, James, i. 93 ; ii. 107 Cobb, J. S. G., ii. 105 Coddington, i. 197, 208 Codman, Arthur Amory, i. 93 ;
ii. 107 Coffin, i. 63
Hezekiah, ii. 137 Coggeshall, Mrs. James H., ii. 105
John, i. 186
Loring, ii. 198
INDEX.
Vll.
Cole, Hugh, ii. 201
Hugh, Jr., ii. 201
John, ii. 201
Joseph C. W., ii. 8
Robert, i. 1 86, 189
Thomas, ii. 182, 185, 186, 215,
216, 218
Collins, George Lewis, i. 56, 91, 93; ii. 107
Isaac, i. 161 Colt, i. 42
Columbus, Christopher, i. 22, 63 Colwell, Francis, i. 93 ; ii. 107 Comer, John, i. 24 Comstock, Adam, ii. 182, 184, 215, 216, 218
Louis H., i. 93 ; ii. 107
Richard W., i. 93; ii. 107
Samuel, i. 233 Conanicus, i. 187, 189, 196, 197, 207,
208 Conant, i. 42, 46
Hezekiah, i. 97 ; ii. 105, in
Samuel Morse, i. 93 ; ii. 107 Congdon, Edward, ii. 48, 105
George, ii. 244
John Hopkins, i. 93 ; ii. 107
Sam, ii. 244 Cook, John T., i. 167
William, ii. 188 Cooke, i. 83 ; ii. 182, 185, 211
Henry W., i. 91, 93 ; ii. 107
John, ii. 216, 217, 218 Coombs, H. M. & Co., i. 89 ; ii. 103 Coop & Boms, i. 89 Cooper, i. 290
Cornelius, Elias, ii. 217, 221 Cornell, ii. 244
Ezekiel, ii. 187
Innocent, ii. 244, 245
Joseph, ii. 216, 217, 218
Sarah, ii. 244
Thomas, ii. 245 Cornbury, i. 279 Corwin, i. 42 Cotton, ii. 63, 64, 65, 192
Cotton, John, ii. 25, 28
Courtlandt, i. 276
Coutts, i. 42
Cowell, i. 107 ; ii. 45, 225
Cowper, i. 56
Crandall, Amos, ii. 183, 184, 1 86
Cranes, i. 42
Cranston, ii. 123
George K., i. 93 ; ii. 107
Henry C., i. 91, 93 ; ii. 107
James E., i. 93 ; ii. 105, 107
John, i. 226
Samuel, i., 123 Crary, Archibald, ii. 186 Crawford, i. 42
C. Fred, i. 136 Crawfurdiana Laurus, i. 42 Cressy, Oliver Sawyer, ii. 13, 105 Crins, William H., i. 93 ; ii. 108 Crombe, Charles T., i. 147 Cromwell, Alice Underbill, i. 83
Henry, i. 83
Oliver, i. 204 Crosby, i. 42 Cross, George C., i. 121 Cudjo, ii. 161 Cufanyquanut, i. 197 Cuffuckquanee, i., 197 Cummings, John E., i. 93 ; ii. 108 Curtis, Bethuel, ii. 219, 223
Chester B., ii. 105 Gushing, i. 42 Cushman, George, i. 55, 91
Henry I., i. 94 ; ii. 108
Thomas, ii. 201 Cutler, i. 42
Dailey, Charlotte Field, ii. 105 Dana, ii. 47
Richard, ii. 47 Dane, John, i. 48 Danforth, Andaleen M., i. 91
Charles, i. 91, 94; ii. 105, 108, 246 Daniels Darius, ii. 207 Danielson, John Weaver, i. 97 ;
ii. in Dante, ii. 83
Vlll.
INDEX.
Darling, Charles W., ii. 105
M. V. B., ii. 105 Dart, Edward Merrill, i. 91, 94;
ii. 108
Daves, Graham, i. 91 David, i. 224 Davidson, George, i. 91 Davis, i. 255
Ezra D., i. 81
Hannah S., i. 81
Henry R., i. 94 ; ii. 108
Joseph M., ii. 95
Mehitable R., i. 81
William, ii. 215, 220
William T., ii. 12, 22 Davol, Jonathan, ii. 208
Joseph, i. 97 ; ii. in
William, ii. 208 Day, ii. 73, 76, 77
Albert C, i. 94 ; ii. 108
Anthony, ii. 75
Benjamin, ii. 75
Bertha, ii. 75
Charles R., ii. 76, 77
Daniel, i. 94 ; ii. 108
Daniel Eugene, i. 94 ; ii. 22, 75
Frank L., ii. 108
Henry G., ii. 76, 77
Israel, ii. 75, 76
Jonathan, ii. 75
Leslie Frank, ii. 13
Margaret, ii. 75
Nathaniel, ii. 75
Ruth, ii. 75
Sarah, C. H., ii. 90 Day, Sons & Co., ii. 76 Day & Sprague, ii. 76 Dean, i. 63
John Ward, i. 67 Deane, John, i. 48
Thomas, i. 48
Walter, i. 48 Dearborn, ii. 178 Denison, Frederick, i. 91 De La Mater, i. 42 DePeyster, J. Watts, i. 60, 91 ; ii. 105
DeSoto, Ferdinand, ii."5i Dewee, ii. 98
DeWitt, Gustavus A., ii. 73 DeWolf, John James, i. 94 ; ii. 108 Dews, Joseph, i. 94 ; ii. 108 Dexter, i. 42
Abigail, i. 232
Daniel S., ii. 228, 229, 230
David, ii. 187, 220
Gregory, i. 185, 187, 194, 207, 232 ; ii. 62, 72
James, i. 232
John, i. 232
John S., ii. 182, 185, 186, 215, 216, 218. 228, 229, 230
Oliver, ii. 219
Samuel, ii. 124
Diman, John B., i. 94 ; ii. 8, 108 Dixon, Nathan Fellows, i. 94 ;
ii. 108
Dodge, James H., i. 91 Doggett, Samuel B., ii. 105 Dongan, i. 274
Thomas, i. 273 Donnison, George, i. 186 Doringh, Charles H. R., i. 94 ;
ii. 108 Dorr, i. 56, 229, 246
Henry C., i. 21, 228 ; ii. 254 Dorrance, Daniel Eugene ; ii. 75
Harvey, ii. 75
Oliver, ii. 75, 77
Samuel, ii. 76
Samuel Richmond, i. 94 ; ii. 107 Douglas, i. 43
Samuel Tobey, i. 94 ; ii. 108
William Wilberforce, i. 94 ; ii. 108 Dow, i. 43, 46 Downs, C. A., ii. 261, 262 Doyle, i. 104 Drake, i. 48, 63 Draper, Daniel, i. 91 ; ii. 105 Dring, i. 58
Drowne, Henry T., i. 57, 91 ; ii. 105 Drowne, T. Stafford, i. 91 ; ii. 105 Drury, Asa ; ii. 73
INDEX.
IX.
Dudley, i. 203
Joseph, i. 280 Dun, Amey, ii. 207
Bernon, ii. 207 Duncan, i. 64, 280, 284
Alexander, i. 71 ; ii. in
Samuel W., i. 91
William Butler, i. 56, 91 ; ii. 13,
in
Dring, Thomas, i. 58 Dunon, Benjamin, ii. 188 Dunnell, William Wanton, i. 94 ;
ii. 108
Dunster, Henry, i. 43 Durfee, ii. 12
Charles S., i. 94 ; ii. 108
N. B., i. 255
Sarah E., i. 91
Thomas, i. 94; ii. 108 Durrie, i. 47 Dyer, i. 43 ; ii. 46, 48
Charles, ii. 48
Charles 3 , ii. 1 1
Charles Sowle, ii. 48, 105
Elisha, i. 94 ; ii. 105, 108
Oliver, ii. 13, 108, 260 Eames, Benjamin Tucker, i. 94 ; ii. 108
Sarah Adelaide, ii. 77 Earle, ii. 48
Charles R., i. 94 ; ii. 108
Mary, ii. 245
Ralph, i. 82 ; ii. 245
William, ii. 245 Eaton, Amasa Mason, i. 20, 91, 97 ;
ii. 12, 15, 55, 105, in Eddy, i. 43, 48
Mary E., ii. 105
Richard, i. 91 ; ii. 105
Samuel, i. 268 ; ii. 232 Edes, Henry Herbert, i. 98; ii. 112 Edward, i. 176 Edwards, John H., i. 129 Eliot, i. 43 ; ii. 63, 64, 65, 190, 191, 192, 262
Charles W., i. 83
Eliot, John, ii. 113, 124
Elisha, ii. 49
Ellis, ii. 142
Elton, Romeo, ii, 261
Ely, ii. 62. 66, 189, 238, 241
James W. C., i. 94 ; ii. 108
Joseph Cady, i. 94 ; ii. 108
William, i. 97 ; ii. in
William D., i. 15, 21, 56,59,91, 94 ; ii. 14, 37, 56, 61, 108, 195, 196, 237
Emanuel, ii. 141 Emmerton, i. 43 Endicott, John, i. 270 Ennis, William, ii. 228, 229, 230 Erasmus, ii. 175 Esther, i, 222 Everett, Edward, i. 82
Richmond P., i. 14, 16, 73, 75, 76, 77,91,97,219; ii. ii, 15,56,59, 60, 105, in, 259 Evernden, Anthony, i. 232 Fairbanks, Richard, i. 271 Farmer, i. 47 Farnsworth, John P., i. 94 ; ii. 108
Matthias, ii. 47 Farnum, Charles W., i. 131 Fearing, ii. 19
Ann Elizabeth, ii. 72
Sarah Burrill, ii. 72
William, ii. 72 Feke, Robert, i. 66 Felt, i. 63 Fenner, i. 48, 232, 235
Artemas, ii. 187
Arthur, i. 103, 185, 218, 219, 220, 221, 223, 236, 237, 238, 260, 262
James, i. 66
John, i. 233
Thomas, i. 233, 234 ; ii. 49 Ferguson, ii. 136 ; ii. 248 Fessenden, ii. 199
Guy M., ii. 197 Field, i. 233
Deborah, ii. 206
X.
INDEX.
Field, Edward, i. 23, gi, 94, 158; ii. 19, 105, 108
Henry F., ii. 105
John, ii. 187
Jonathan, i. 216
Nehemiah, ii. 187
Thomas, i. 185, 212, 232, 234, 235, 237, 238
Zachariah, i. 232, 235 Fields, i. 48 Findlay, i. 260 Finney, John, ii. 208 Fisher, ii. 22
Alvin, i. 70
Barzillai, ii. 87
Charles H., i. 91, 94; ii. 22, 87,
i°S
George Clinton, ii. 87
Harriet Cady, ii. 87 Fisk, Caleb, ii. 187 Fiske, ii. 82
George McClellan, i. 94 ; ii. 108 Fitch, i. 43, 46 Fifield, Henry Allen, i. 94 j ii. 108
Moses, i. 94 ; ii. 108 Fitzgerald, O. Edward, i. 94 ; ii. 108 Flagg, Charles O., i. 91 ; ii. 105
Ebenezer, ii. 182, 185, 188, 215,
216, 218 Flanders, i. 48 Fletcher, i. 276
Benjamin, i. 287
Charles, i. 97 ; ii. 56, in Flint, Susan A., i. 14, 94 ; ii. 108 Folsom, 5. 43
Albert A., i. 61, 91 ; ii. 105 Folwell, ii. 247
Elizabeth, ii. 248
John, ii. 247, 248
Rebecca, ii. 247, 248
Richard, ii. 247
Samuel, ii. 247, 248 Fones, Jim, ii. 94 Foster, i. 240 ; ii. 48, 132
Bertha Victoria, ii. 105
Jacob, i. 48
Foster, John, i. 94 ; ii. 108, 262
L. S., ii. 105
Reginald, i. 48
Samuel, i. 94 ; ii. 56
William E., i. 91, 94 ; ii. 108 Fowler, John, i. 233 Frank, ii. 160
Andrew, ii. 115 Franklin, Benjamin, i. 20 Fredericks, William H., i. 91,94;
ii. 108 Freeman, ii. 173
E. L., ii. 103
E. L. & Son, i. 89
Isaac, i. 38 ; ii. 124 French, i. 43
A. D. Weld, i. 91 Frost, i. 43, 48
Walter B., i. 91 ; ii. 105 Fyfe, John, i. 49 Gallup, C. M., ii. 59 Gammell, Asa Messer, i. 94; ii. 14, 108
Edward F., ii. 106
Robert Ives, i. 94 ; ii. 69, 108
William, i. 51, 94; ii. 58, 108, 259 Gardiner, Asa Bird, i. 91 ; ii. 7, 21, 254
Lion, i. 43 Gardner, i. 246
Clarence T., i. 94 ; ii. 108
Content, ii. 251
Henry Brayton, i. 94 ; ii. 108
James, ii. 186
Newport, ii. 135, 141
Rathbone, i. 94 ; ii. 108
Richard, i. 48 Garnett, James M., i. 91 Garrison, William Lloyd, ii. 27 Gates, Horatio, ii. 98 George, Charles H., i. 94 ; ii. 108
Second, i. 131
Third, ii. 181 Gibbs, i. 43
Josiah, ii. 186 Gifford, Robert P., i. 94 ; ii. 108
INDEX.
XI.
Gifford, William, ii. 156 Gilbert, i. 43 Girard, ii. 99 Gladding, i. 55
Kingsley, C, i. 67 Goddard, ii. 22, 69, 71
Charlotte Hope Binney, ii. 68
Charlotte Rhoda, ii. 68
Elizabeth Anne Shepard, ii. 68
Francis Wayland, ii. 68
Moses Brown Ives, i. 94 ; ii. 68, 1 08
Robert H. Ives, i. 94 ; ii. 68, 69, 108, 259
Thomas, ii. 69, 70
Thomas P. I., i. 97 ; ii. 22, 68, in
William, i. 94 ; ii. 68, 108
William Giles, ii. 68, 214 Goethe, i. 84 Goff, i. 91 Goode, i. 65
G. Brown, i. 58
P. Peter, ii. 73 Goodell, Abner E., i. 21 Goodwin, Almon K., i. 91
Daniel, i. 94 ; ii. 108 Goodwins, i. 43 Gordon, H. L., i. 91 Gorham, John, i. 68 Gorton, 5. 209
Charles, i. 91, 97 ; ii. 105, no
Samuel, i. 108 ; ii. 7, 21 Gould, i. 43
Zaccheus, i. 48 Granger, Daniel L. D., i. 94 ; ii. 108
William S., ii. 10, 108 Grano, Gilbert, ii. 183 Grant, ii. 184
Alex, ii. 30
Henry Townsend, i. 94 ; ii. 108
Henry T., Jr., i. 94 ; ii. 108 Gray, Asa, ii. 191, 192
Edward, ii. 251
Robert, i. 49
Thomas, ii. 188 Green, i. 61 ; ii. 177
Green, Arnold, i. 91, 97 ; ii. 105, in
Ellen, ii. 47
John, i. 1 86, 209
John M., ii. 228, 229, 230
Percival, ii. 47
Samuel A., i. 91 ; ii. 105 Greene, i. 87, 88, 105, 106, 107 ; ii. 222, 224
Albert C., i. 58 ; ii. 32
Benjamin, ii. 188
C., ii. 215
Caroline Cornelia Aborn, i. 87
Charles Williams, i. 14, 94 ; ii. 108
Christopher, i. 19, 87, 88 ; ii. 48, 184, 185, 186, 216, 218, 225
Dan, ii. 216
Daniel H., i. 69
Edward Aborn, i. 14, 19, 87, 94; ii. 108
George W., i. 105
Griffin, ii. 216, 217, 218, 225
Henry A., ii. 105
Henry L., i. 94 ; ii. 108
Henry Whitman, i. 94 ; ii. 8, 108
John, i. 87, 189, 226
John, Jr., i. 87
John C., i. 56, 91
Josephine G., i. 82
Nathaniel, i. 37, 105; ii. 11,15, 180, 210
Simon Henry, i. 87
S. H. & Sons, i. 87
Thomas, i. 48
Thomas C., i. 94 ; ii. 108
W. Maxwell, i. 94 ; ii. 108
William, ii. in
William M., i. 82 Greenman, Jeremiah, ii. 228, 229,
230
Grenville, John, i. 290 Grieve, Robert, i. 91 Griffin, Stephen Watson, i. 122 Gross, J. Mason, i. 94 ; ii. 108 Grosvenor, William, i. 94 ; ii. 108 Growden, Joseph, i. 287 Guild, Calvin, i. 49
Xll.
INDEX.
Guild, Georgiana, i. 52
John, i. 43
Olive L., i. 91 ; ii. 105
Ruben, i. 48
Ruben Aldridge, i. 91, 94 ; ii. 105,
1 08
Guinia, ii. 136 Hadley, i. 43
Halsey, ii. 84
Mrs. John Brown, i. 91 Haight, i. 44 Hail, George, i. 79 Hakes, i. 43
Hale, Horatio, ii. 61, 240 Haliburtons, i. 43, 45 Hall, i. 43, 66
Edward B., i. 28, 55
Emily A., i. 94 ; ii. n, 105, 108
Jenison C., i. 94 ; ii. 108
Levi, ii. 170
Robert, i. 94 ; ii. 108 Halloway, Joseph, ii. 186 Hallowell, Mary, ii. 83 Halsey, Thomas Lloyd, ii. 170 Ham, Franklin B., ii. 105 Hamilton, i. 276, 279, 280, 281, 282 ; ii. 211
Andrew, i. 275, 287, 288
S. M., ii. 13, 209 Hammet, Sarah, ii. 135 Hammond, ii. 88 Handy, ii. 182, 185 Harden, William, i. 91, 98 ; ii. 112 Harding, Stephen, i. 232
Stephen, Jr., i. 232 Harkness, Albert, i. 94; ii. 108
Josephine, i. 56, 91
Thomas, i. 64 Harriet, ii. 205 Harrington, Henry A., i. 91, 94;
ii. 108 Harris, i. 68, 105, 220, 226, 229.
Andrew, i. 232
Ann, i., 232
George W., i. 68 ; ii. 105
Jack, ii. 115
Harris, Joseph, ii. 87, 206
Lydia, ii. 206
Sarah Foster, ii. 206
Stephen, ii. 74
Thomas, i. 190, 232, 235
Thomas, Jr., i. 232
Toleration, ii. 206
William, i. 185, 186, 189, 212, 214, 215, 216, 217, 218, 219, 221, 223, 224, 227, 228, 232, 235 Harrison, Joseph, ii. 208 Harson, M. Joseph, i. 94 ; ii. 108. Hart, George T., i. 91, 94 ; ii. 108 Harvard, John, i. 43. Harvey, ii. 75 Haughkings, Will, i. 232 Haven, Richard, i. 43 Hawkins, i. 49 ; ii. 224
John, i. 232
Nathaniel, ii. 186
Roby, ii. 207
William, i. 232, 235
William, Jr., i. 238 Hawthorne, ii. 91 Hayes, Henry W., i. 94 ; ii. 108
Judah, ii. 250 Hayter, ii. 142 Hayward, John, i. 273 Hazard, i. 43, 45, 46, 67 ; ii. 149, 150,
245
Caroline, ii. 148, 163
George J., i. 94 ; ii. 108
Isaac, ii. 78
Robert, ii. 137, 244
Rowland, i. 91, 94; ii. in
Rowland G., i. 91, 94 ; ii. 78, 108, in
Thomas, ii. 127, 163
Thomas B., ii. 244
T. R., ii. 138, 163, 164 Hazelton, John, i. 43
Robert, i. 43
Heath, W. G. & Co., ii. 30 Hegeler, E. C., ii. 105 Hemenway, i. 61 Hendrick, Abel, ii. 226
INDEX.
Xlll.
Hening, i., 289 Herbert, i., 56 Hercules, i. 54 Herlitz, Joseph, ii. 237 Hernden, Benjamin, i. 232
Benjamin, Jr., i. 233
Joseph, i. 233 Herridon, Jere, ii. 186 Hersey, George D., i. 91, 94 ; ii. 105,
1 08
Hewes, David, ii. 105 Heydon, i. 42, 43,47 Hicks, Samuel, ii. 215, 222, 223 Hidden, Henry Atkins, i. 94 ; ii. 108 Higginson, ii. 137, 164 Hight, i. 44 Hill, Elizabeth C., i. 94; ii. in
Peter, i. 49
Thomas Jefferson, i. 94 ; ii. in Hinckham, Daniel, i. 186 Hinckley, Thomas, i. 186 Hippy, ii. 200
Old, ii. 199
Hitchcock, Daniel, ii. 183, 184, 187 Hodges, i. 43 Hogg, W. S., ii. 30 Holbrook, Albert, i. 57, 91, 94 ; ii. 52, 105, 108, 260
George A., i. 87 Holden, Charles, ii. 183.
John, ii. 186, 216, 217, 218, 228, 229
Thomas, ii. 186 Holley, ii. 173
Holliman, Ezekiel, i. 186, 190 Holmes, ii. 83, 153
Abiel, ii. 80, 172
John, i. 43, 80
Oliver Wendell, ii. 80, 92 Homer, ii. 83 Honeyman, ii. 120 Hooker, Thomas, ii. 47 Hopeli, Ulrio, ii. 105 Hopkins, i. 43, 50, 232 ; ii. 49, 124, 132, 136, 154,, 155, 156, 177
Albert, i. 91
Hopkins, Charles W., i. 91, 94; ii. 105, 108
Christopher, ii. 187
Esek, ii. 48
John, i. 89
Samuel, ii. 141, 152, 153
Stephen, ii. 132, 177; 206
Thomas, i. 219, 223
Thomas, Jr., i. 232
William, i. 233, 235, 236, 237, 238
William H., i. 94 ; ii. 108
William H.2, i. 94; ii. 108 Hoppin, i. 256
Benjamin, ii. 187, 205
Frederick Street, i. 94 ; ii. 108
George, ii. 202
William Jones, i. 94 ; ii. 108
William Warner, i. 91, 98, 255 ;
ii. 112 Horton, Henry, i. 77
Henry M., ii. 30 Hotten, i. 47 Hough, ii. 51 House, Eleazer, i. 50. Howard, Hiram, i. 94 ; ii. 108 Howe, Marc A. DeWolf, Jr., i. 94 ;
ii. 108 Howland, ii. 137. 237
John, i. 66 ; ii. 232, 235
Richard Smith, i. 94 ; ii. 108
Sarah, i. 43 Howlands, i. 43 Hoyt, i. 44, 49
David Webster, i. 94 ; ii. 105, 108
Henry M., ii. 242 Hoxsey, William, i. 173 Hubbard, i. 195, 196
George, i. 44
Luther P., i. 91
Hubbart, John, ii. 228, 229, 230 Huddy, Hugh, i. 288 Hudson, ii. 195
Hendrick, ii. 194
James Smith, i. 91, 94 ; ii. 105, 108
William, ii. 156
XIV.
INDEX.
Hughes, i. 254
John L., i. 87
Thomas, ii. 183, 184, 188, 217,
219, 221, 228, 229, 230 Ruling, Ray Greene, ii. 245 Hull, Elias, ii. 215, 220 Humphrey, ii. 121
William, ii. 184, 185, 187, 217,
219, 221, 228, 229, 230 Hunnewell, James F., i. 91
Richard, ii. 183, 184 Hunter, George F., i. 128
Robert, ii. 228, 229, 230
William, ii. 177 Hurd, Gustine L., i. 91 ; ii. 49 Hutchins, Shubael, i. 88
S. H. & Co., i. 88 Hutchinson, ii. 234
Anne, ii. 25 Inman, Edward, i. 232
Edward, Jr., i. 233
Francis, i. 236
John, i. 232 Iredell, i. 290 Ives, Moses Brown, ii. 68
Robert Hale, ii. 68
Thomas Poynton, ii. 68 Jackson, Anne, ii. 206
Benjamin M., ii. 207
Charles, ii. 206
Daniel, ii. 207
David, ii. 206
Elizabeth, ii. 206
Ephraim, ii. 207
George, ii. 206, 232
Henry, ii. 252
Henry R., ii. 105
John T., ii. 207
Judith, ii. 206
Mary, ii. 206 , Nancy, ii. 207
Nathan W., ii. 232
Polly, ii. 207
Richard, ii. 206
Richard, Jr., ii. 206, 252
Sally, ii. 207
Jackson, Samuel, ii. 206, 207
Stephen, ii. 206
Susannah, ii. 207
Thomas, ii. 207
William F. B., i. 94 ; ii. 108 James, i. 28, 60 ; ii. 249
Charles T., i. 28, 55
Mrs. Charles T., i. 55, 91 ; ii. 105
Edward J., i. 92
Thomas, i. 186, 189, 210
Jameson, John Franklin, i. 20, 94 ;
ii. 15, 108 Janes, i. 44
Jecht, Richard, i. 92 ; ii. 106 Jefferay, Thomas, ii. 250
William, ii. 250 Jefferson, ii. 179
Thomas, ii/ 165, 171, 210 Jeffreys, J., i. 291 Jenckes, Amos, ii. 187
John, ii. 170
Joseph, i. 232
Jencks, Albert Varnum, i. 94; ii. 108
Oliver, ii. 183, 184, 217, 219, 221 Jenkins, i. 49
Steuben, i. 50 Jenks, Elisha T., ii. 236 Jenks, J. W. P., ii. 260 Jennings, Simeon, ii. 220 Jepherson, George A., i. 94 ; ii. 108 Jerould, Dexter, ii. 221 Jerrald, Duty, ii. 183, 184, 217, 219 Jessup, Edward, i. 44 Jesus, i. 38; ii. 173 Jocelyn, ii. 193 John, i. 57, 291 Johnson, i. 82
Alexander, i. 259, 261
Asee Albro, i. 79
David, ii. 216, 218, 220
Edmund, ii. 186
Edwin A., i. 81, 92
Elisha, i. 79
Isaac, ii. 186
Joseph C., ii. 105
INDEX.
XV.
Johnson, Oliver, i. 19, 79
William S., i. 80, 81
E. A. & Co., i. 82
Oliver & Co., i. 80, ii. 30
Oliver & Son, i. 80 Jones, i. 60, 68 ; ii. 99, 101, 262
Albert J., ii. 58, 259
Augustine, i. 21, 59, 94; ii. 109, 163
Catharine, ii. 247
Charles C., i. 92 ; ii. 100
Charles C., Jr., ii. 100
Charles W., ii. 105
Daniel, ii. 247
David, ii. 98, 246, 247, 248, 249
Elizabeth, ii. 247
Horatio Gates, i. 60, 92 ; ii. 23, 97
John, i. 232 ; ii. 247
John P., i. 68
Margaret, ii. 247, 248
Rebecca, ii. 247, 248
Sarah, ii. 247
Theodore, ii. 248 Joseph, i. 38 Josiah, i. 203
Joslin, Henry V. A., i. 92, 95 ; ii. 109 Joslyn, Joseph, ii. 186 Josselyn, i. 43, 44, 46 Judith, ii. 160 Keach, i. 105
George, i. 232
Kelly, John B., i. 95 ; ii. 109 Kendall, Hiram, i. 95 ; ii. 109
Josiah, i. 44 Kent, Desire, ii. 251
Samuel, ii. 251 Kenyon, Gideon, i. 161
James S., i. 95 ; ii. 109 Kerr, i. 50 Keyes, ii. 175 Kidder, J., i. 69, 70 Kimball, Arthur R., i. 92
Horace A., i. 95 ; ii. 109
James M., i. 95 ; ii. 109
Stephen, ii. 187 King, Charles A., i. 28
King, Charles R., i. 55, 92
George Gordon, i. 76, 97 ; ii. in
H. M., i. 61, 95 ; ii. 109
LeRoy, i. 97 ; ii. in
Marquis F., i. 61 ; ii. 105
Samuel, i. 28
Samuel Ward, i. 55
William Dehon, i. 95 ; ii. 109
William F., i. 134 Kingman, Abner, ii. 205 Kingsley, James I., ii. 262 Kinion, Patrick F., i. 125 ; ii. 106 Kirby, Ephraim, ii. 228, 229, 230 Knight, i. 80
Betsey Fenner, ii. 89
Edward B., i. 95 ; ii. 105
Richard, i. 217
Sylvester, i. 79
Thomas, ii. 89
William, i. 95 ; ii. 22, 89 Knowles, i. 28
Edward Randall, ii. 106
John, ii. 150
John P., i. 55 ; ii. 48, 106
Mrs. John P., i. 55, 92
Mary H., i. 97 ; ii. in Knox, John, i. 44 Lacomb, ii. 240 Ladd, i. 44, 78
George W., i. 78
Herbert W., i. 95 ; ii. 109
H. W. & Co., ii. 30 LaFayette, i. 144 Lalor, i. 259 Lamb, Martha J., i. 20 Lancaster, ii. 204
William, i. 235
Landers, Albert C., i. 92 ; ii. 106 Lane, i. 83, 105
Langdon, William Chauncy, i. 21 Langworthy, ii. 103 Lanksford, William, ii. 206 Lapham, i. 44
John, i. 232
Oscar, i. 95
XVI.
INDEX.
Lardner, Esther Hoppin E., ii. 49,
202 Lawrence, i. 41, 44.
John, i. 44, 49
Thomas, i. 63
Lawrence, Trimble & Co., ii. 69 Learned, i. 44 Leavenworth, i. 44 Lee, Charles, ii. 210
Charles A., i. 92 Leete, i. 44
George F., i. 95 ; ii. 109 LeFavor, Casco, ii. 160 Lefferts, i. 41, 44 Leigh, i. 58
C. C, i. 57, 92 Leighton, i. 44
William, i. 44 Leland, i. 44 LeMaitre, Claude, i. 42 Leonard, i. 49 LeRoy, Esther, ii. 90 Lettsom, ii. 172 LeVeau, J. J., ii. 101 Leverich, Daniel T., ii. 106 Leverett, Elder Thomas, i. 44 Levering, i. 44 Lewis, -Elijah, ii. 186, 215, 216, 218
Virgil A., i. 92 Leysler, i. 275 Lincoln, i. 55, 61, 63
Abraham, i. 84, 136
Ferdinand A., i. 95 ; ii. 57, 58, 59, 60, 109
Frederick W., i. 92 ; ii. 106 Lindsay, David, ii. 126 Lingane, David Francis, ii. 13, 169 Lippitt, i. 49
Charles Warren, i. 95 ; ii. 109
Christopher, i. 95 ; ii. 48, 109 Little, C. A., ii. 106 Littlefield, ii. 96
Alfred H., i. 95 ; ii. 22, 95
Deborah Himes, ii. 95
Edmund, ii. 95
John, ii. 95
Littlefield, William, ii. 183, 184, 217,
219, 221
Livermore, i. 105, 146 Lock, Timothy, ii. 182, 185, 186 Lockwood, Amos D., ii. in
James T., i. 171
Robert, i. 44 Logan, i. 286, 291
Walter S., ii. 106
William, ii. 176 Longfellow, ii. 262 Lord, Augustus M., i. 95 ; ii. 109 Loring, ii. 199
Frank, ii. 198 Lovelace, i. 291
Francis, i. 272 Lowell, ii. 171 Luther, George Edmund, i. 95 ;
ii. 109
Lyman, i. 44 Lyne, Simon, i. 186 Lyon, Emory D., i. 92, 130 Macomber, Ebenezer, ii. 217, 219,
221
Macy, i. 44 Main, A. E., i. 92 Makepeace, i. 44 Malcom, Henry, ii. 208 Man, Abraham, i. 232, 235, 237 Manchester, Alfred, i. 95, 154; ii. 10,
II, 112
Manchester & Hudson, ii. 30 Manly, John M., i. 95 ; ii. 109 Mann, i. 44
Richard, i. 44 Mansfield, ii. 131 Manton, i. 127
Edward, i. 232
Joseph P., ii. 106
Shadrach, i. 219, 223, 232 Margaret, i. 56 ; ii. 199, 200 Maria, i. 38 Marot, ii. 90 Marsh, John, i. 44 Marshall, Frank L., i. 77 Martha, ii. 208
INDEX.
XV11.
Martin, i. 44, 47, 288; ii. 185
Simeon, ii. 182 Martindale, Lion, ii. 188 Mary, i. 60, 285 Mascanomet, i. 270 Massasoit, i. 116; ii. 196 Mason, ii. 53, 139
A. Livingston, i. 95 ; ii. 109
Charles B., i. 169
Earl Philip, i. 95 ; ii. 109
Edith B. H., i. 95 ; ii. 109
Edward, ii. 198
Eugene W., i. 95 ; ii. 109
George C., i. 15, 57,95, 144 ; ii. 52, 124, 143, 153, 156
John H., i. 95 ; ii. 106.
Lydia, ii. 204
Noah, ii. 204
William C., i. 175 Massury, Joseph, ii. 228, 229, 230 Mather, Cotton, ii. 173
Richard, i. 44
Samuel, i. 275 Mathewson, John, i. 233 Mathewson, James, i. 232 Matteson, Charles, i. 95 ; ii. 109
George W. Richmond, i. 95 ;
ii. 109
Matthews, William, i. 21 Mauran, ii.'ioo
Joseph Charles, ii. 100 Mauvide, John, ii. 186 May, John, i. 44
Richard, i. 273 McCabe, Anthony, ii. 106 McCrillis, Aaron B., i. 95 McDougall, Marion, ii. 131 McGuinness, Edwin D., i. 95 ; ii. 56,
109
McMaster, John Bach, ii. 34 McSparran, ii. 120, 254 Mead, William B., i. 95 ; ii. 109 Meader, Lewis H., i. 95 ; ii. 109 Merrett, John, ii. 160 Merriam, T. M., i. 22 Messer, Asa, ii. 261
Metcalf, Alfred, i. 95 ; ii. 109
Henry B., i. 95 ; ii. 109 Miantonomi, i. 107, 157, 170, 187,
189, 196, 197, 199, 203, 208 Mifflin, i. 44 Miller, ii. 207
Albert P., i. 91, 92
Augustus Samuel, i. 95 ; ii. 109
James A., Jr., i. 118
John, ii. 214
Rebecca, ii. 207
William Turner, ii. 188
E. F. & Sons, i. 140 Milton, i. 56 ; ii. 91 Mina, Xavier, ii. 12 Miner, Asa, ii. 186
Francis Wayland, i. 95 ; ii. 109 Mingoe, i. 291 Mitchell, Experience, ii. 201
Thomas, i. 95 ; ii. 109
Thomas Spencer, ii. 106 Moliere, ii. 83 Monroe, ii. 174
Henry A., ii. 85 Montague, i. 44
Montgomery, James Mortimer, i. 92 Moore, i. 49; ii. 113 Morey, i. 44, 46
John, i. 232, 235, 236, 237
Richard, i. 232 Morris, Edward D., ii. 49
G., ii. 171 Morses, i. 44 Mosley, W. H. T., ii. 106 Mott, Herbert, i. 95 ; ii. 109 Moulton, David C., i. 95
Edmund T., i. 95 : ii. 109
Micah, ii. 183, 184 Mowry, Alvah, i. 119
Nathaniel, i. 44, 233
Raymond G., i. 95 ; ii. 109
Richard, i. 44 Muller, Gustav, i. 92 Mumford, John T., ii. in Munro, i. 105
Wilfred H.,i. 21, 95; ii. 8, 9, 55, 109
XV111.
INDEX.
Munro, Bennett J., i. 118
Munsell, i. 47 ; ii. 47
Murray, John, ii. 186, 188
Nabby, ii. 94
Neale, Thomas, i. 275, 283
Nebuchadnezzar, i. 224
Nelson, ii. 177
Nenekela, i. 197, 207
Newcomb, i. 45
Newell, Thomas, i. 92
Newport, ii. 161
Newton, ii. 142
Nichols, Amos G., i. 95 ; ii. 109
Stephen Hopkins, ii. 48 Nicholson, i. 279 ; ii. 85, 86
Samuel Mowry, ii. 13 ; ii. 109
Stephen, ii. 13 ; ii. 109
William T., i. 95 ; ii. 22, 84, 87 Nickerson, Edward I., i. 95 ; ii. 109 Nightingale, Mrs. E. J., ii. 106
George Corlis, i. 95 ; ii. 109
Joseph, ii. 170
Phineas Miller, i. 106 Nisbet, William Douglas, i. 95 ;
ii. 106, 109
Nixoll, Samuel, i. 238 Noice, ii. 185 Northup, Rebecca, ii. 96 Nott, i. 49
Noyes, Isaac Pitman, i. 92, 98 ; ii. 1 06, 112
James F., ii. 244
Joseph, i. 107
Samuel M., i. 73, 74 ; ii. 58
Thomas, ii. 182 Oakes, Gideon, ii. 220 O'Brian, L. A., ii. 30 Odlin, ii. 208 Olcott, Thomas, i. 49 Oliver, Mary, i. 45 Olmstead, i. 45 Olney, Christopher, ii. 187
Coggeshall, ii. 183, 184, 187, 217, 219, 221
Elisabeth Mawney, ii. 207
Epenetus, i. 232
Olney, Frank F., i. 95 ; ii. 109
George Henry, i. 95 ; ii. 109
George W., i. 92
James, i. 235, 236, 237
Jeremiah, i. 107 ; ii. 170, 183, 184, 187, 217, 219, 220, 223, 228, 229, 230
Joseph, ii. 207
Rebecca, ii. 208
Sarah Pierce, ii. 208
Stephen, i. 56 ; ii. 183, 184, 187, 217, 219, 221, 251
Thomas, i. 45, 186, 187, 189, 205, 216
Thomas, Jr., i. 232
Tilly Merrick, ii. 207 Op Dyck, i. 45
Osamequin, i. 116; ii. 196, 200 Osgood, ii. 174 Pabodie, B. Frank, i. 92, 95
Benjamin G., ii. in Packard, Alpheus S., i. 95 ; ii. 109 Page, Charles H., i. 95 Paget, Ann, ii. 207
Henry, ii. 207
Rebecca, ii. 207 Paine, i. 45
Caleb, i. 233
Charles E., i. 95 ; ii. 109
George T., 1.57, 92, 97; ii. in, 252
Ralph, i. 233 Palascum, James, ii. 216 Palfrey, i. 64, 276 Palmer, i. 38
Fanny Purdy, i. 59 ; ii. 106
John Simmons, ii. 13, 109 Parish, ii. 174
John, ii. 218 Park, ii. 154
Edward Amasa, i. 98; ii. 112 Parker, Edward D. L., i. 95 ; ii. 109
Joel, i. 45
Richard, i. 37
William Thornton, i. 49 Parkhurst, i. 49
INDEX.
XIX.
Parkman, ii. 51
Francis, ii. 36 Parkes, Deacon, i. 233 Parsons, i. 49, 138 ; ii. 22, 81, 82, 83
Charles W., i. 92, 95 ; ii. 12, 22, 80
Mary J. Holmes, ii. 80
Theophilus, ii. 171
Usher, i. 43 ; ii. 80 Patten, ii. 153 Paty, Thomas, i. 232 Paul, David E., ii. 106 Peabody, i. 45
A. P., i. 92 Peach, i. 50 Pearce, i. 45
Charles, ii. 217
Daniel, ii. 186
Dutee, J., i. 268 Pearson, ii. 48 Peck, ii. 76
George B., i. 92
Ira B., ii. 58, 259
Joseph, i. 45
Walter A., i. 95 ; ii. 109 Peckham, Benjamin, ii. 217
Samuel Wardwell, i. 92, 95 ; ii. 1 06, 109
Stephen F., i. 92 Peet, Stephen D., i. 92 Pegg, ii. 161 Pegram, John C., i. 92, 95 ; ii. 106,
109 Peirce, i. 45
Clarence E., i. 92
Daniel, i. 49; ii. 183, 184
Ephraim, i. 232
John, i. 92 Pelham, Edward, ii. 250
John, ii. 250 Pell, Rowland, ii. 106 Pemberton, i. 286 Penn., i. 49, 291
William, i. 64, 84, 286 Penns, ii. 241 Pepperrill, i. 49 Pericles, i. 85
Perkins, i. 49 Pero, ii. 139, 161 Perry, i. 49, 54, 56 ; ii. 244 Amos.i. 27,31,72,92, 95, 144,178; «• 31, 37, S3, 61, 106, 109, 214,
239
Howard B., i. 92, 165
John, i. 49, 274, 275
John M., i. 92
Joseph, ii. 188
Lucien N., i. 68
Marsden J., i. 95 ; ii. 49, 56, 106, 109
Oliver Hazard, ii. 177, 260
William S., i. 92 ; ii. 106 Persons, Benjamin Williams, i. 95 ;
ii. 109
Peter, i. 175 ; ii. 160 Peterson, ii. 128 Pettee, J. T., ii. 106 Pettigrew, ii. 172 Pettis, ii. 205
George Henry, ii. 13
Robert, ii. 106 Phelps, Othmil, i. 49 Philbrook, Thomas Weld, ii. 205 Philip, i. 240 ; ii. 54, 197, 199, 200,
2OI
Phillips, Gilbert A., i. 95 ; ii. 109
Henry, i. 92
Theodore Winthrop, i. 95 ; ii. 109 Phillis, ii. 160, 161 Phinney, ii. 208 Pickering, i. 64
Charles, i. 31
Edward C., i. 92
John, i. 45 Pierce, i. 45
Charles, ii. 216, 218
Daniel, ii. 215, 216
John, ii. 216
Thomas, ii. 218 Pigot, i. 49 Pitman, i. 45
Mrs. J. S., i. 56, 92
Rachel Hall, i. 46
XX.
INDEX.
Plafford, Michl., ii. 226 Pocahontas, i. 28, 55 Poe, Edgar, ii. 51 Poole, i. 251
Edward, ii. 47
Murray Edward, ii. 106
William Frederick, i. 98; ii. 112 Porter, Emory Huntington, i. 95 ; ii. 119
Richard, i. 45 Potter, i. 45
Asa K., i. 95 ; ii. 109
A. V., i. 254
Chandler E., ii. 262
E. R., ii. 117, 127, 244
Holliman, ii. 183, 184
James B., i. 60
John, i. 45
Moses, ii. 79
Samuel J., i. 260
Simeon, ii. 125
Wait, i. 45
William, ii. 182, 185, 186, 187, 219
William H., i. 92 ; ii. 106 Powell, ii. 51
Esther, ii. 90 Power, Nicholas, ii. 250 Powers, i. 45 Pratt, Enoch, ii. 106
William, ii. 228, 229, 230 Pratt & Elliott, ii. 79 Pratt, Elliott & Tillinghast, ii. 79 Pray, Ephraim, i. 232, 235, 236, 237,
238
John, i. 233, 235, 236, 237, 238
Richard, i. 238 Prebles, i. 45
Prentice, Ichabod, ii. 182, 185 Preston, Howard W., i. 38, 95 ;
ii. 37, 109 Prince, ii. 161
Thomas, ii. 200 Post, ii. 88
Pukhain, Benjamin L., ii. 221 Purple, Samuel Smith, i. 98; ii. 112
Putnam, ii. 249
Benjamin P., ii. 249 Quam, ii. 136 Quamine, ii. 154, 155 Quequagunauet, i. 197, 207 Quincy, Edmund, i. 36, 37
Elizabeth, i. 36
Josiah, i. 37
Ralph, Sarah Earle, ii. 245 Randall, William, i. 45 Rasle, ii. 240, 241, 262 Rathbone & Gardner, ii. 76 Rathbun, Joshua, ii. 149 Rawson, i. 45 ; ii. 185
Edward, i. 45
Wilson, ii. 182 Read, John, ii. 115
O. A., i. 92
Reapes, Samuel, i. 233 Reaves, John, i. 233 Redwood, i. 90
Abraham, ii. 176 Reed, i. 45, 49
Mrs. James H., ii. 106 Regnier, P., ii. 227 Reichardt, Theodore, i. 63 Reid, J. A. & R. A., i. 90 Remington, Daniel H., i. 163
John, ii. 182, 185 Reushen, Christina, ii. 118 Reynolds, William Job, i. 95 ; ii. 106,
109 Rhodes, ii. 34, 51
Edward S., i. 92 ; ii. 106 Richards, Henry F., i. 95 ; ii. 49*
1 06, 109, 202
Richardson, Moses, ii. n Rider, Sidney S., i. 58, 92, 228 ;
ii. 106, 132 Riggs, ii. 184
Abimelech, ii. 183 Right, Samuel, i. 232 Rice, ii. 48
Franklin Pierce, i. 98 ; ii. 106, 112 Richmond, Caroline, i. 95 ; ii. 109
David, ii. 187
INDEX.
XXI.
Richmond, Ebenezer, ii. 187
Edward, i. 160
Stephen, ii. 150
Walter, i. 95 ; ii. 109
William E., i. 66 Ripley, James M., i. 95 ; ii. 109 Roades, Jeremiah, i. 232 Roberts, ii. 93
Robert, ii. 248
Thomas, i. 233 Robinson, i. 45, 46
John, i. 64 ; ii. 138
Patrick, i. 288
Rowland, ii. 127, 163, 164 Rochambeau, i. 144 Rodgers, Robert, ii. 216, 218 Rodman, ii. 48, 149 Roelker, William G., i. 95 ; ii. 109 Rogers, i. 41
Arthur, i. 95 ; ii. 109
John, ii. 228, 229, 230
Joseph, ii. 73
Horatio, i. 14, 92, 95 ; ii. 56, 106, in
Plain, i. 41, 45
Robert, ii. 216
William, ii. 246 Root, i. 45 Rose, Ambrose H., i. 146
Henry B., i. 92 ; ii. 106 Rosengarten, ii. 51 Rowell, B. W., i. 92 ; ii. 106 Rugg, Henry W., i. 95 ; ii. 109 Russell, i. 45
G. W., i. 63, 92
Henry Grinnell, i. 97 ; ii. in
John, i. 45
William, ii. 170 Sabin, Charles, i. 95 ; ii. 109 Saffin, John, ii. 92 Sage, David, i. 45 Salisbury, i. 45
Theophilus, ii. 77 Sally, ii. 94 Sam, i. 243, 254 Sampson & Murdock, i. 90
Samuel, ii. 191 Sanborn, John P., i. 92 Sanford, John, i. 187 Sanford, Peleg, i. 186 Sands, Comfort, i. 45 Sares, i. 45
Richard, i. 45 Sargent, C. S., ii. 191, 192 Saul, i. 224
Saunders, Frederick, i. 64, 92 Savage, i. 47 Sayles, David, ii. 217, 219, 221
John, i. 233 Scattup, i. 197, 207 Schenck, William, i. 45 Schiller, i. 84 Schlieman, i. 59, 84 Schoemaker, Jacob, ii. 131 Schouler, ii. 34, 51 Scott, i. 47
John. i. 232
Richard, i. 232
Walter, i. 43, 45 Scull, i. 50 Seagrave, i. 45
Caleb, i. 95 ; ii. 109 Sears, i. 45
Richard, i. 45 Second, Charles, i. 246 Senter, Isaac, ii. 188 Sessions, i. 45 Sewell, Samuel, i. 275 Seymour, i. 279 Shakespeare, ii. 91 Sharpe, i. 45
Lucian, i. 97; ii. in Shaw, Samuel B., ii. 261 Shaw, Sylvenes, ii. 188 Shawomet, i. 37
Shearman, Henry, ii. 228, 229, 230 Shedd, J. Herbert, i. 92, 95 ; ii. 106,
109 Sheffield, i. 105, 146
Amos, i. 167
William P., ii. 7, 21
William Paine, Jr., i. 95 ; ii. 109
XX11.
INDEX.
Sheldon, Charles Henry, Jr., i. 95 ;
11. 109
H. D., ii. 49, 106
John, i. 232
Nicholas, i. 95 ; ii. 56, 109 Shepard, George, i. 232
Thomas, ii. 25
Mrs. Thomas P., i. 92 Shepley, George L., i. 95 ; ii. 109 Sherburn, Benjamin, ii. 228, 229, 230
Henry, ii. 182, 184, 188 Shirley, J. C. & Son, ii. 30 Shove, Samuel & Son, i. 90 Sias, Uncle, ii. 93
Sibley, Alden W., i. 92, 151 ; ii. 106 Silsbee, Henry, i. 46 Simpsons, i. 291 Slafter, John, i. 46 Slater, Horatio Nelson, i. 95 ; ii. 109
John Whipple, i. 95 ; ii. 109 Slocombs, i. 46 Slocum, i. 49
Edward, ii. 185, 188, 215, 216, 218 Slocumbs, i. 46 Slocums, i. 46
Smiley, Albert K., i. 92 ; ii. 106 Smith, i. 233
Asher, ii. 73
Benjamin West, i. 95 ; ii. 109
Charles H., i. 15, 28, 55, 95 ; ii. 9,
12, 14,56, in, 259 Christ, ii. 186 Christopher, ii. 183, 184 Dorcas, ii. 251 Edward, i. 232, 238
Edwin Augustus, i. 95 ; ii. 109
E. V., i. 63
Franklin W.. ii. 48, 106
Goldwin, ii. 34, 35 ,
James, ii. 188
James Y., ii. in
John, i. 112, 215, 238
John (mason), i. 232
John (miller), i. 232
Smith, John Wilson, i. 73, 74; ii, 58
Jona., ii. 187
Joseph, i. 232
Richard, i. 147, 170 ; ii. 148
Roswell C., ii. 73
Sanford B., i. 19, 52, 86, 92
Simeon, ii. 216
Sophia R., ii. 89 Smiton, Benjamin, ii. 250 Snow, Edwin M., i. 117 Snow & Farnham, i. 90 Socrates, ii. 173 Sommerset, ii. 131 Sorononoco, i. 203 Sotash, i. 189
Southward, William, ii. 188 Southwick, Cassandra, i. 46
Isaac H., i. 16, 95 ; ii. 109
Isaac H., Jr., i. 95 ; ii. 109
Lawrence, i. 46 Southworth, Nathaniel, ii. 251 Sparks, i. 50, 83
Spicer, William A., i. 92, 95 ; ii. 109 Spink, Benjamin W., i. 80
Joseph Edwin, i. 96 ; ii. 109 Spooner, Henry Joshua, i. 96 ; ii. 109
William, i. 46 Spragg, ii. 246
John, ii. 246 Sprague, i. 46 ; ii. 246
John, ii. 248
Reuben, ii. 187
S. S., ii. 76 Spurr, John, ii. 187 Stafford, i. 49 Standish, Miles, ii. 200 Stanhope, Edward, i. 126 Stanton, Enoch, ii. 216, 218 Stanwood, Cordelia M., i. 81
Jane D. Harnor, i. 81
Solomon, i. 81 Staples, i. 157, 222, 228
Carlton A., i. 93
Evelina Eaton, ii. 97
William, ii. 97
William R., i. 56 ; ii. 97
INDEX.
XX111.
Stark, Charles Rathbone, i. 96;
ii. 109
St. Clair, ii. 98 Steere, i. 46
Henry J., i. 73, 74; ii. 56, 58
John, i. 46, 232 Sterry, Cyprian, ii. 183, 187 Stetson, i. 46 Stevens, i. 144
Samuel, ii. 188
William G., i. in Stickney, Charles, i. 257 ; ii. 54 Stiles, ii. 153, 154, 176, 177
Ezra, ii. 153 Stiness, John Henry, i. 96 ; ii. 7,
21, 109, 254
Stockbridge, Annie W., i. 92 Stockwell, George A., i. 92 Stone, i. 46 ; ii. 52, 137
Alfred, i. 96 ; ii. n, 12, 21, 109
Daniel, i. 49
John, i. 46
L. M. E., i. 92 Storer, John, ii. 147 Stranahan, i. 43, 46 Strong, John, i. 49 Stryker, William S., ii. 106 Stuart, Gilbert, ii. 177 Stuben, ii. 231
Studley, Thomas E., i. 96 ; ii. 109 Sturgeon, it. 247
Sturges, Howard O., i. 96; ii. 106 Suckling, Thomas, i. 233 Sudance, i. 291 Sully, i. 69
Swain, Edward Allen, i. 14 Swan, James B., ii. in
Jarvis Bo wen, i. 97
Jonas, ii. 158
Robert T., i. 92, 102 ; ii. 106. Swarts, Gardner Taber, ii. 13, no Sweet, i. 45, 46
Thomas, ii. 186
William N., i. 172 Swift, Joseph Gardner, i. 46 Sylvia, ii. 160
Symonds, Samuel, i. 270 Taber, Constant, i. 261 Taft, i. 15, 49 ; ii. 8
Royal C., i. 26, 96 ; ii. 30, no Talbot, Frederick, i. 96 ; ii. no Talbut, Silas, ii. 182, 185, 187, 215 Talcott, i. 47
Tanner, Thomas, Sr., ii. 47 Taylor, Charles Frederick, i. 96; ii. no
Comfort, ii. 118 Teel, George W., i. 28, 55 Tefft, Thomas, i. 161 Tennant, George, ii. 188 Tenny, Samuel, ii. 217, 221, 228,
229, 230 Tew, Benedict, ii. 217, 219, 221
William, ii. 183, 184, 188, 217, 221 Thacher, i. 49 Thatcher, Peter, ii. 207 Thayer, i. 47
Ephraim, i. 46
Sarah, i. 46
Simeon, ii. 184, 185, 187, 206, 207,
217, 219, 221 Thomas, Aston, i. 232
Charles Lloyd, i. 96; ii. no Thompson, i. 63
Charles, ii. 216
Edward K., ii. 249
Elias, ii. 215, 216, 218 Thorndall, John, i. 233 Thornton, George M., i. 96; ii. no Throgmorton, John, i. 186, 189, 219,
223, 232 Thurber, Charles H., i. 92
Dexter, i. 49
William H., i. 96 Thurston, i. 46
B. B., i. 255
Benjamin F., i. 96 ; ii. no
Charles Myrick, i. 45, 46 Tickell, i. 50 Tiff, Samuel, i. 232 Tift, ii. 94 Tilden, i. 63
XXIV.
INDEX.
Tilley, i. 46, in
R. H., i. 144, 145 5 «• 243 Tillinghast, ii. 80
Charles E., i. 96 ; ii. 22, 79
Daniel, ii. 217, 218
Daniel P., ii. 216
James, i. 64, 92, 96, 98 ; ii. 106, no, 112
Pardon, i. 232 ; ii. 79 Titus, i. 49
Tobey, Oscar A., i. 164 Tom, ii. 148, 149, 150, 160, 161 Tompkins, Edward, Sr., ii. 47, 106 Tooker, ii. 189, 190, 191, 192, 193, 194, 195, 238, 241
William Wallace, ii. 13, 61, 106,
240
Topham, John, ii. 185, 188 Torrey, i. 46
Joseph, i. 187, 188, 189 Tourtellot, i. 49
Abram, ii. 187
Amasa C., i. 96 ; ii. no Tower, James H., i. 96 ; ii. no
John, ii. 47
Traver, Adelia E. A., i. 96; ii. no Treat, Thomas, i. 273 Tribon, Agnes C., ii. 260 Trippe, Samuel Gardner, i. 96 ;
ii. 1 10 Troup, John E., ii. 56
John L., i. 97 ; ii. i n Trumbull, ii. 64, 65, 190, 191, 192,
i93» !95> 238 Tucker, William, i. 92 .
William A., i. 96 Turner, i. 142
Henry E., i. 59, 92, 96 ; ii. 15, 46, no
Moses, ii. 188
Peter, ii. 216, 218 Unthank, Christopher, ii. 250 Updike, i. 45 ; ii. 120, 140, 208,
254
Daniel Berkley, i. 96; ii. no Wilkins, ii. 114
Usher, ii. 119
Utter, George H., i. 92
Vane, Henry, ii. 25, 27, 28
Van Rensselaer M., ii. 106
Van Rensselaers, ii. 47
Van Voorhis, William Roe, i. 46
Van Zandt, ii. 243
Varian, i. 50
Varnum, ii. 185, 224
J., ii. 215, 222
James M., ii. 170, 182, 186 Vaughn, i. 283
L. & Co., ii. 30
Vincent, Walter B., i. 92, 96 ; ii no
William, i. 232 Vinton, i. 68
Alexander H., i. 68 Virgil, ii. 83 Von Gottschalck, Mary H. B., ii. 13,
1 08
Von Hoist, ii. 34, 51, 121 Vose, James Gardner, i. 96 ; ii. 55,
no
Wadlin, Horace G., i. 92 ; ii. 106 Wainwright, C. F., ii. 106 Waldos, i. 46 Waldron, i. 283 Waldy, Henry, i. 286 Walker, ii. 48
Ann Richmond, i. 87
John Pitman, ii. in
Joseph Burbeen, i. 64, 92 Wall, William Allen, i. 69 Wallen, Jonathan, ii. 182, 215, 220 Wallin, ii. 185
Wallinge, Thomas, i. 232, 238 Wain, Robert, ii. 132 Walton, William A., i. 96 Wamsetto, ii. 200 Wamsutta, i. 116 Wanton, i. 66 Warburton, ii. 142 Ward, i. 46
Henry, ii. 183
Nahum, ii. 249
INDEX.
XXV.
Ward, Samuel, i. 46 ; ii. 185, 186, 215, 216, 218
William, i. 46 Ware, ii. 172, 174
H., Jr., ii. 173 Warren, i. 42, 44, 46
Peter, i. 169 Washburn, i. 239
Mrs. O. A., Jr., i. 92 Washington, i. 144, 243 ; ii. 168, 169, 209, 215, 222, 223
G., ii. 180, 181 Waterhouse, ii. 13, 143
Benjamin, ii. 165, 171, 179, 210
S., ii. 106 Waterman, Daniel D., i. 123
John, i. 107, 112
Nathan, ii. 206
Nathaniel, i. 185, 212, 232, 234, 237, 238
Phebe Smith, ii. 206
Richard, i. 186, 190, 215
Rufus, i. 96 ; ii. no
Susan, ii. 206
Thomas, ii. 183, 184, 217, 221
Thomas, Jr., ii. 217, 219
Thomas C., ii. 217, 221 Waters, i. 46, 47
Henry Fitz Gilbert, i. 98 ; ii. 112 Watson, i. 286
William Henry, i. 98; ii. 106, 112 Way, George, i. 232 Wayne, ii. 98 Weaver, Catharine Goddard, i. 41,
46 Webb, James, ii. 184, 188
Samuel B., ii. 51
Samuel H., i. 92, 96 ; ii. 106, no
William Seward, ii. 106 Webster, i. 244
Eugene C., i. 92 Weeden, Ephraim, ii. 186
Maria H., i. 92
William B., i. 92, 96; ii. 7, 21,
106, no, 126 Weekes, George, i. 46
Weeks, i. 46
Welch, John, ii. 228, 229, 230
Stephen A., i. 92 Weld, William Fletcher, i. 47
William Gorden, i. 97 ; ii. in Welford, Julian, ii. 108 Welles, i. 47 Welling, Richard W. Greene, i. 96 ;
ii. no
Wendell, Jacob, i. 47 Wequash, i. 270 Werden, John, i. 274 West, Benjamin, ii. 248
Ebenezer, ii. 183, 184, 219
George J., i. 96 ; ii. 106 Wescott, i. 1 86
Owen, i. 92
Stukeley, i. 47, 189 Weston, i. 201
Francis, i. 186, 189 Wetherell, Daniel, i. 186 Wetmore, i. 47
George Peabody, i. 97 ; ii. ii i Wheaton, Joseph, ii. 228, 229, 230
Seth, i. 261 Wheeler, i. 44, 47
Richard, ii. 244
Wheelwright, John H., ii. 13, 22 Whipple, i. 47
Abraham, i. 46 ; ii. 260
Bela, ii. 187
Benjamin, i. 236
David, i. 233
Eliezer, i. 232, 236, 237, 238
John, Sr., i. 232, 235, 238 ; ii. 226
John, Jr., i. 103, 232, 235, 236, 238
Jonathan, i. 236
Samuel, i. 232, 236 White, DeWitt C., i. 92
Hunter Carson, i. 96; ii. no
Stillman, i. 96 ; ii. no
William, ii. 201 Whitford, George Washington, i.p6;
ii. no Whitin, Paul & Sons, ii. 84
XXVI.
INDEX.
Whitman, Valentine, i. 232, 235, 237. 238
William H., ii. 106 Whitmarsh, Joseph, ii. 183, 184, 186, 215, 222, 224
Micah, ii. 186, 215
Mical, ii. 220 Whitmore, i. 47 ; ii. 47 Whitney, i. 47 Whitaker, Mrs. Henry C, i. 68
Nelson Bowen, i. 96 ; ii. 106 Whittaker, Thomas, i. 92 Whittier, i. 84 ; ii. 144, 145, 152, 158 Whittlesey, i. 42, 47 Wickenden, William, ii. 250 Wickes, i. 46
Francis, i. 215 Wight, Thomas, i. 47 Wights, i. 47 Wilberforce, ii. 171 Wilbour, Belinda Olney, i. 76, 92, 97; ii. in
Isaac, i. 262
Joshua, i. 96 ; ii. no
Linda O., ii. 106 Wilbur, Aaron, ii. 188
George A., i. 96 ; ii. no
Lydia, ii. 77 Wilcox, ii. 244
Holden N., i. 168
Nathan B., ii. 106 Wilkins, Richard, i. 275 Wilkinson, i. 47
Lawrence, i. 232
Samuel, i. 232, 236 Willet, ii. 91
Thomas, i. 116 ; ii. 200 William, i. 125, 285 ; ii. 69, 203 Williams, i. 47, 187, 191, 192, 196, 197, 201, 204, 205, 206, 208, 210; ii. 114, 116, 118
Alfred M., ii. 12, 22, 106
Daniel, i. 232
G. W., ii. 114
J. Fletcher, ii. 106
James, ii. 187
Williams, John, i. 232
Jonathan, i. 232
Joseph, i. 232
Robert, i. 216
Roger, i. 10, 21, 22, 59, 107, in, 127, 147, 185, 186, 187, 188, 189, 190, 200, 207, 210, 212, 214, 216, 217, 227, 228, 229, 232, 234, 236, 237, 238, 239, 240, 270 ; ii. 13, 27, 28, 48, 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 113, 125, 189, 190, 193, 194, 201, 237, 238, 239, 240, 241
Woolmer, i. 64
Zephaniah, i. 92, 96 ; ii. 106, no Williamses, i. 49 Williamson, G. A., i. 159 Willson, Edmund R., i. 96; ii. no Wilson, Ellery H., i. 96 ; ii. 1 10
George G., i. 56; ii. no
Israel, ii. 75
Mary, ii. 75 Winslow, John, ii. 251
Josiah, ii. 200
Reuben, ii. 234
William C., ii. 106 Winsor, i. 47, 49, 286
Justin, i. 63, 92 ; ii. 106
Olney, i. 47
Resolved,. i. 232
Samuel, i. 232, 235, 238 Winthrop, i. 37 ; ii. 28, 235
Fitz John, i. 291
John, i. 270, 272 ; ii. 25
John, Jr., i. 270
R. C., Jr., i. 92
Wait, i. 291 Wise, Joseph, i. 232 Witter, i. 47 Wix, Nathan, ii. 220 Wodell, i. 47 Wolcott, i. 47
Henry, i. 96; ii. no Wonton, Elizabeth, i. 167 Wood, ii. 65
Benjamin, ii. 90
Emeline, ii. 90
INDEX.
XXV11.
Wood, John J., i. 80
Mark H., i. 115
William G., i. 92 ; ii. 106
William H., i. 96 ; ii. 106 Woodbury, ii. 9
Augustus, i. 92 ; ii. 21, 106 Woods, Marshall, i. 96 ; ii. 106 Woodward, Joseph, i. 233, 237, 238 Woodward, Royal, ii. in Woodworth, Leverett S., i. 14 Woolley, Mary E., i. 291 ; ii. 54
Woolman, ii. 146, 152 John, ii. 144, 145, 147, 158, 159
Worrall, John, i. 67
Wright, Carroll D., ii. 106
Yamma, ii. 154 Bristol, ii. 155
Yarrow, ii. 161
Young, ii. 194 Edward R., i. 68 ; ii. 9, 48 George F., ii. 10, 48, 106 Nicholas 8., ii. 10, 48, 106
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