V-' ^! . •■■■■:-
1 ■-;..
HISTORY
OF
MIDDLESEX COUNTT
MASSACHUSETTS,
WITH
! 1 ()! r 1 ; A P l-[ re A i . SKE]TCHES
I IF MANY OK ITS
Pioneers and Prominent Men.
illMl'II.KD ISI>Kl: TICK Si:i»F.KVISIliX i)F
I < I i \ \ M ! I ' ' \ I I I I ; [ >
VOL. II.
I Xj XjTJ S T K. ^^T E ID .
I'H 1 L.\ I)ELPHI.\:
.r. w . 1. 1 ; w I s A- ( • < >.
1 N il .
( 'opi/riqht, I.V'U.
liY J. \V. LKW IS Sc ('(».
All !:inf'l< lifterrM.
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CONTENTS OF VOL. II.
CITIES AND TOWI^S.
CHAPTER I.
LOWEXL 1
Early History.
CHAPTER n.
Lowell — {Continued) 16
The Tuwn of Lowell.
CHAPTER III.
Lowell— (Con^'ntterf) 26
City of Lowell.
CHAPTER IV.
Lowell— ( Conlinued) 50
Hayora.
CHAPTER V.
Lowell — (Continued) 58
Politics.
CHAPTER VL
Lowell — [Continued) 64
Baaka.
CHAPTER VII.
Lowell— fCona'nuerf) 71
MnDufacnirea.
CHAPTER Vin.
Lowell — (Continued) 112
Scboola.
CHAPTER IX.
Lowell — (Continued) 126
Ecclesiastical History.
CHAPTER X.
Lowell — (Continued) 179
Military.
CHAPTER XI.
Lowell — (Contintud) 188
The Freag.
CHAPTER XII.
Lowell — (Continued) U'o
Medical.
CHAPTER XIII.
Lowell — ( Conlinued) 222
Societies.
CHAPTER XIV.
Lowell — ( CoTtlinued) 231
Miscellaneous.
CHAPTER XV.
Chelmsfi-bd 239
Early History.
CHAPTER XVI.
Chelmsford — (Continued) 249
lodiao History — FreDcb aod lodiao Wars — War of the ReTo-
lutioo— Shays' BebellioQ — War of the Rebellioo.
CHAPTER XVII.
Chelmsford — (Conlinued) 259
Educational History.
CHAPTER XVIII.
Chelmsford — (Continued) 264
Manafactnreo.
CHAPTER XIX.
Chelmsford — {Continued) 269
MlscellaDeoua.
CHAPTER XX.
Dracut 276
Early Hlstoiy.
CHAPTER XXL
DRA.CVT— (Continued) 278
Indian History.
CHAPTER XXEL
Dractjt — (Continued) 284
ClTil and Docnmentary History.
CHAPTER XXm.
Dbacut — (Continued) 290
£ccleela«ticai and EducationaL
CHAPTER XXrV. ,.;^
DnxcuTr— (Continued) .i..5?lL
Jterolotlonary.War.
CONTEXTS.
' CHAPTER XLIII.
300 CdsckRD— {Continued) jS-l
Ci'nrurJ Fight— Brunt and Strife .if Revoluticiri.
CHAPTER XLIV.
CoscoRD—iConlinufd) .-,37
Prtigrees and Prosperity aa u Shire-town and ;i Literur) Ceiitie
CHAPTER XXV.
Dr.\cdt— ( Continued)
Shaj-8' Eebellion and MiBcellaneous.
CHAPTER XXVI.
Dracvt— (Continued) 3]g
War of the Kebellion— ManufactureB— BiograpliicaL
CHAPTER XXVII. i — Celebratioii»-3Ioui.ii,eut6-Hebrll,„n
• „, - ^-^ CHAPTER XLV.
The Beginnings. -v^j . .
CHAPTER XXVIII. | courts, School*. t«deti.s, I>„n.tiun». etc.
BiLLEKICA— (Ct)n(m»ed) p.og ,
The Indians and Indian Wara. CHAPTER XL VI.
Co.N'CORD— (Con(ini/C(/)
Professional and Official I'lti^ens— Coiirlusi.-n
(iu:',
CHAPTER XLVII.
CHAPTER XXIX.
BiLLERlcw — i Continued) .332
IteligioiiB lljotory.
CHAPTER XXX. : Lincoj-n ,112
Rtl.LKRIC.A. — [Continued) ."^SS f^r'r Hi>fMT—rlMir..lie-— Military llr-|..ry— Fnnch ju. I
Land Di,trib.mon-D>™en,berment. '"''""' ""■-■'■''- If- lutiou-l.ist ..f .s,|die,H-\Var ..1
^ l.-lj— W.ir of th.- Heb.-lh.jii— .\it ot lu. ■.i(.o.,iiir,n— Town
CHAPTER XXXI. ! "rtice,-, etc.
BiLLERicA— iCoH(miterf) 34O CHAPTER XLVIII.
B.llericaiatheRevolntinn. LlSVOL^-^ Continued) t^o;
CHAPTER XXXII. j <^"ll>'S^<''™'luaf=-Plo-in:.„5-E.lMc.,M..unl-B,inK|.i.l«ces
DiLLKRic.\— (CoHdnuet/) 3II 1 CH U'TEK MAX
Kdnrjuioll. j
I Aylr rt3.j
CHAPTER XXXIII. 1 I,itro.l..Mion -T..|.mU.M'I'.v -Ku.ly liMhun Tube,- Bound-
liK.LEttrcA — tConlinued) 34Q ] anesof the r. mm.
ii.iig.ou8 History. I CHAPTER L.
CH.\PTER XXXIV.
BlLLKKUA — i Continued)
31iaci'Ihiiieuiis.
349
\YF.R — (Omtinued)
Kariy Sftttlerrf.
M-2
CHAPTER XXXV.
Ty.NGSBORoumi 357
CHAPTER XXXVI.
M'DBUi
CHAPTER XXXVII.
Waylano 413
CHAPTER XXXVIII.
Maynard 437
CHAPTER XXXIX.
STOMiHASl 46]
CHAPTER XL.
Groton .501
CHAPTER XLL
('<J^i->i--'> .570
.■Settlement— &rly History — Indian Tloiihles — Captain
Wlueler'H Narrative.
CHAPTER XLII.
Conci^Wi—i (.'nnlinued) 577
CHAPTEi; LI.
.A.YER — {G'/i07/lli;'/l (5,50
Highways— I'. ■ii|Hayr—niidr,M:_T.n el II — M,,|., :,i,.| Pl...^
CHAPTER LH.
.\yer — [Continued) 6.57
Canals— Ruilroadi—I'ustdilii e -Tidosrapb— Telepbunc.
CII.VI'TER LI[[.
.\yf.k — ( t'iin/iniic(/l ,jm
Schools— Library — Water uoiks.
CHAPTER LIV.
.\yek - (toH(i»iic(/) gp.5
Industries— .\ucieut Mills--Maiiufiuton-3 -Xoiiipaivr».
CHAPTER LV.
Ay'er — I Continued) ^70
Reugiois Societies: B.ipli3( — Unitarian — Catholic — 1 ..n
gregfttlolMilirt— .Methiidist.
CHAPTER LVI.
.A.VER — iConlinuetl) qj^
Fire and File * 'oiiipaiiies.
CHAPTER LVII.
Independence in i'hnn;h and .-state— Preparations for Ke».i- 1 .-Vyer — (Conlinutd)
lutioa — Journal of a British Spy,
6S4
New Town— Agit.ition for Sot-off— lucorjioration.
CONTENTS.
CHAPTER LVIir. | CHAPTER LXXII.
Westford ''S9 ' Bedford— (Coiitiivteil) 828
Colonial Troubles— Botitoo Tea Party — Minute Heo — CoDCOHl
CHAPTER LIX.
Wakefield '1'
CHAPTER LX.
WiSCHESTER "■*''
Ci\il Htstury previuus to Itou.
CHAPTER LXI.
\Vl>"CHESTER — ( Conliitued) '-^b
EccIeBiastical History.
CHAPTER LXir.
BoXBOROliiU
CHAPTER LXI [I.
Reading
Tfi9
703
Fight— Women 8 Part— Battle of Banker Hill.
CHAPTER LXXJUI.
Bedford — {Continued) 831
Supplies for tha Amiy— Fiuancial Trouble*— Vote for GoTer-
nor under the CunstitutioD iu 1780.
CHAPTER LXXIV.
Bedford — (Continued) 834
Shays' Bebelllon and Subsequent Troubles — ClTll War— Bed-
ford's Honored Dead.
CHAPTER LXXV.
Bedford — i Coniinued) 836
CHAPTER LXIV
North READiyt;
808
Finaucial Troubles — ')ld Tenor and Lawful Money — Slavery
10 Bedford— Bill of Sale of a Negro Boy in 175«.
CHAPTER LXXVI.
BedfiiRD — I Continued) 838
Puhtic Charity — How Dispenseit— Town Farm for the Pour.
CHAPTER LXV.
Sll I
Bedford
The P:.rent Towni(--EHily lir.tut- aiiil S^ttl^iiicnt.,— The T»i>
Brothers — Dlsiharge of lu'li.in l hiiiiis— i;.<i ii-.n^— linui-
IKfriitiuii.
CHAPTKi; LXVI.
BEDFORD — (Cojilinwid)
X^nie -Uouu.l.iries— Beilcvnlrmi.— l!.i"i'l»— i'ii-.! M'-jmi--
Uou'^e and .Miiii-t»r— Chiirche., F.Tiiifd— T.iM-.i— ."'■in- "Id
Fniinli*'-; ami Sites.
CHAPTER LXV 11.
BEPFiiRn— l,Cb'i/i"':r('' ...
Ri'l.iiioii of First rhuMii ■nl r..uii— |ii»iiii»sk.h -I l;->.
Nichohiii B.jiv»»— Kiint Brll- Miuielry f \>\ . Xulh.iiii. 1
bheliii.iD dnd Rev. JoM-ph Pen uli.
(Jil.APTER LXV II I.
Beufobp — {ConliiivaU
Tim I'leriiy of New Kus:l»iiil— Itcv. Sauninl Meariis- Pace
.lud H.irtw^ll Fim.l— Will .d \iinn Pa^e— New Miiliii-j-
IIoU6e — SiiigiDS-J" hool— .'^.ibl'iiiU-?^' Iiool.
CHAPTER LXIX.
Bedford —(Ci^nttnued) 82L
S-parali'in hnw-ren Clmn li -ml r'ovii 1 iiiMnnu.l'on^n'ca-
tioiwl -oci.-ty iirsunized— Their ll.m.H;..r W..i/.hip— W,,rk
of I'liilariJU Chun h aud Firil I'.u :h— Death of llev.
:^amuel .-lenrn!=— .^teatii-.' [le^ctiidaiit-s- 1 huriih cl Christ.
i^HAPTER LXX.
Bedford— ( 'ijn(i«»e'') ^-'^
CHAPTER LXXVIL
Bedford — (Continued) 839
Burial-Grounds.
I CHAPTER LXXVIII.
I Bedford — (Continued) 840
Highways- Bridges and lUilroads.
^1„ I CHAPTER LXXrX.
j Bkdford — [Continued) 844
I jitai;c-llout«f»— Foat-Oflice — PystOiMier— Industries— Residen-
tial Town— luventiona.
i CHAPTER LXXX.
>!.* Bedford — (Coniinued)
846
8-::o
SrhouU and Libraries.
CH.VI'TER L.\'\t.
Bedford— I,' '■'"''""'''l ...
Indian Tn'ublefe-ludiii.hiiil ,s. rvir. — KxiK-in-iKe of Mary
I.une— 5la-twell Family— F«!ni.h NeutraUi- FreutU aud
Indian Wars.
8-J7
MiriiigJ— Likes— Ponds— Public-Houses— Bedford Springs.
CHAPTER LXXXL
I'.KDFORD — (Contintifd) 847
Fire-EnKine — Enforcement of Law— Drink Custom — Wltch-
. raft— Bounty for Crows, elc.
CH.\PTER LXXXII.
Bedford — ^Continued) 849
Profanity and Drunkenness Puniahed hy Law — Titblogiiien
aud their Duties— Minor Offl-Ters -English Rigbt.
CHAPTER LXXXIir.
BtDFORD — (Coatiaued) 850
Noted 0\'Ca6lon8.
CHAPTER LXXXIV.
Bedford — (Conlin'Uii) 851
Topi>grapbical and Miscellaueuuth
CHAPTER LXXXV.
Bedford — (Cnniintird) 853
Early Method of Collecfiug Taxes— Souin Early Oustoou and . .' <■■ ■
IniprovemcDts. .,.*., t
CHAPTER T.XXX VT i '
Littleton ^^t''^
CITIES AND TOWNS.
CHAPTER I.
LO WELL}
HY CHARLES C. CHASE.
KARLY HISTORY.
The spot on which the city of Lowell now stands
is not without hi.storic interest. Where now stretch
its busy streets, resounding with the innumerable
voices of industries, there once stood the thickly-
gathered wigwams of the red man of the forest, or
the humble anil scattered homes of the early English
settlers. Ever since tlie race began this spot has had
its peculiar attraction as the liabitation of man. It
was never a solitude. The echoes of human voices
have ever mingled with the soun<l of its water-falls.
The .^[errimack and Concord iiivcrs unite within
the limits of the city, and there are water-falls on
each of these .-itreams within a mile of their junc-
tion. The Hsli which sw.irmed about these falls had
from time immemorial attracted the Indian, .-md the
vast water-power which they aH'ordcd allured tlie
enterprising white man to the favored spot. The
two rivers have each an honored name in history.
What civilized man first discovered the Merrimack
is an interesting but unsettled question. De Monts,
Champlain and (Captain .John Smith each has his
claim to the honor. Doubtless, Champlain, the at-
tendant and the i)ilot of the French admiral, De
Monts, made the Hrst historic mention of the river;
for, in 11)04, in writing to France re.'tpecting the
transactions of the expedition of De Monts on the '
banks of the St. Lawrence, he says : " The Indians [
tell us of a beautiful river far to the south, which '
they call the Merrimac." .\gain, in the following !
seascm, when, on the night of July 15tb, the bark of
De .Monta had sailed from the Isle of Shoals to Cape
Ann. Champlain was sent to the shore by his com-
mander to observe five or six Indians who had in a
canoe come near the .admiral's bark. To each of
these Indians Champlain gave a knife and some bis-
1 III preparing tliede pafces, the viiliiuble hjetunes ut Lowell, by Rev.
Dr. Hfliry \. titled, Cliarle^ I'owley, LL. D., au«i Alfred GilniAO, Esq., ■
have l)L'en freely coiisulled, aud to these gelltlcliien tlio writer tenders
hla dilK'ere thiinks.
cuit, " which caused them to dance again better than
before." When he asked for information regarding
the coast, the Indians " with a crayon described a
river which we had passed, which contained shoals
and was very long." This river, without doubt, was
the Merrimack. On the 17th of July De Monts en-
tered a bay and discovered the mouth of another
river, which was evidently the Charles River.
It should here be remarked that some writers have
believed that the river whose mouth waa discovered
on the 17th of July was the Merrimack ; but the
fact that Champlain, on the KJth, while at Cape
Ann, was informed by the Indians that De Monts
had in the previous night passed unobserved a river
which was very long and had shoals, forbids the sup-
position that the river, whose mouth waa discovered
on the next day, whilesailing south from Cape Ann,
could be the Merrimack. Who was the first discov-
erer of the Merrimack, therefore, still remains in
doubt. Champlain clearly marks the identity of Cape
.\nn by mentioning the three islands near its point.
.\round the falls of these streams were the favorite
(Ishing-grounds of the Pawtucket tribe of Indians.'
Here in the spring-time, from all the region round,
they gathered to secure their annual supply of fish.
Here they reared their wigwams and lighted their
council-firea. Here, for the time at least, the In-
dian had his home. His women and children were
with him. On the plains, where the young of our
city celebrate their athletic gtimes, the sons and
daughters of the forest engaged in their rude and
simple sports. On (he waters, where now our pleas-
ure-boats gaily sail, the Indian once paddled his
light canoe.
The Pawtucket tribe was one of the largest and
most powerful of the Indian tribes. Gookin, a writer
of the highest authority in Indian history, informs us
that before the desolations of the great plague in
1617 the tribe numbered 3000 souls. Its domain ex-
tended over all the State of New Hampshire and
parts of Maine and Massachusetts. Little, however,
is known of their history before the coming among
them of the Rev. John Eliot, the great apostle to the
- Wamesits is the name giveo to the Indiaiu near Concord Blr«r, bui i
the Pawtucketa and Wamraiu belonged to ttae aune tilbe.
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHTTSETTS.
Indians, about sixteen years after the landing of the
Pilgrims at Plymouth.
This devoted Christian missionary, now forty-three
years of age, had been educated at the University of
Cambridge, England, and had subsequently, in the
new world, been settled, with the title of " teacher,"
over the church in Roxbury. By his labors some of
the Indiana of the vicinity had professed their faith
in Christ, and were known by the name of Christian
or Praying Indians. With some of these Praying In-
dians to aid him in his missionary work, Eliot vis-
ited, in 1647, the red men of the Pawtucket tribe on
the banks of the Merrimack and Concord. Passacona-
way, the Indian chief, with his sons, fled at their ap-
proach. Some of his men, however, remained and
listened to the message of the devoted apostle. In
the following year Eliot, upon a second visit, gained
the ear of the chief, who declared bis purpose
in future to " pray to God." In 1653, upon the peti-
tion of Eliot, the Legislature of Massachusetts granted
to the Pawtucket Indians the land lying about the
Pawtucket and Wamesit Falls. The tract thus
granted contained about 2500 acres. Gookin informs
us that every year in the beginning of May the
apostle Eliot " came to this fishing-place of the In-
dians to spread the net of the gospel to fish for their
souls."
Passaconaway, whose usual home was at Penna-
cook (now Cuncord, N. H.), ruled over a wide do-
main, extending from the Merrimack to the Piscat-
aqua. As a powwow and sorcerer he had a wide-
spread fame. It was thought that he " could make a
green leaf grow in the winter, the trees to dance
and water to burn." He lived to a great age. Gookin
says that he "saw him alive at Pawtucket when he
was about 100 years old.' In a speech which the
aged chieftain made to his tribe before his death, are
the following words : " I am now going the way of all
flesh, and not likely to see you ever meet together anv
more. I will now leave this word of counsel with
you, that you may take heed how you quarrel with
the English." He is supposed to have died about
1661.
Wannalancet, his son, now more than forty years
of age, became his successor. He respected the dying
advice of his father. He was a lover of peace, a man
of gentle nature. Too often the unsparing vengeance
of the white men, aroused to frenzy by the perfidy
and cruelty of other Indians, fell upon the head of
the innocent Wannalancet. But he refused to retali-
ate. His memory is recalled by every generous
heart with sentiments of honor mingled with pity.
The home of Wannalancet was on the banks ofthe
Merrimack, at Litchfield, N. H., about twenty miles
north of Lowell. In 1669 he came down the Merri-
mack, and, as a defence against the hostile Mohawks,
erected a fort upon the hill in Lowell which was
from this circumstance denominated Fort Hill. This
hill is now the property of the city of Lowell, which
' has generously adorned its grounds and n^^de it the
most beautiful of our public parks.
Lender the gentle Wannalancet the fortunes of his
tribe rapidly waned. Lawless white men seized upon
his lands. .\t length he fell into the hands of
enemies. Though set at liberty, he refused to return
to his home. In 1677, when about fifty-eight years of
age, he was visited by Indians from the north, who,
' as Eliot declared, " urged him partly by persuasion
i and partly by force to accompany them to their coun-
I try." The unfortunate and di.iheartened chief finally
t consented, and with a band of about fifty followers,
which embraced all but two of his once powerful
tribe, he departed to the wilds of Canada. As a tribe,
I the Pawtuckets long since perished from the earth.
Their name and their sad memory remain. An igno-
rant and indolent race, almost utterly destitute of
1 every art and comfort of civilized life, subi-isting upon
1 the coarsest food, and wasted both by pestilence and
i war, they melted away before the advancing ranks of
I the more enterprising and aggressive settlers from the
'< Old World. Few traces are now left, in our city, of
their habitation. An occasional Indian arrow head,
or other rude implement, dug up while laying the
foundations of some modern .structure, a few traces
of the old trench which once separated their lands
from those of the white man, remind us that we live
on historic ground. The familiar words " Pawtucket,"
" Wamesit," " Passaconaway," " Wannalancet," and
others, which the people of Lowell are fond of em-
I ploying in giving names to the streets and the vari-
ous institutions and enterprises of the city, attest the
I pride and pleasure with which we recognize the his-
toric fact that on the soil where our city now stands
there " once lived and loved another race of beings,'
I in whose fate we take a poetic interest, and whose
memory we do not wish to .see blotted out forever.
j Let ua also briefly notice the white men who, in
j early days, dwelt upon this favorite spot. In 1652
; about twenty of the inhabitants of Woburn and Con-
cord, Mass., petitioned the General Court to be al-
lowed to examine a tract of land lying on the west
side of the Concord River with the view of forming a
new settlement, and their petition was granted. They
found the land " a comfortable place to accommodate
God's people." The General Court gave them a tract
of land originally about six miles square, bounded on
one side by the Concord River beginning at its junc-
tion with the Merrimack. About the same time the
grant, already referred to, giving to the Pawtuckettribe
of Indians a tract of laud lying about the falls in the
Merrimack, was made upon the petition of the apostle
Eliot.
On the River Chelmer, in the County of Essex, in
England, there was a village called Chelmsford (Chel-
mer's ford), a name which seems to have been dear
to the little band of men to whom we have just re-
ferred ; for they give the name of Chelmsford to the
new settlement. This little colony of Englishmen in
LOWELL.
a few years receive an important addition to their
numbers and their wealth by the accession of a large
part of the members of the church in \Venham,Ma88.,
with their pastor, the Rev. John Fiske. The colony
consisted of men of the most devout religious char-
acter. So careful were they that no irreligious person
should come among them that no one was admitted
to citizenship except by "a major vote at public
town-meeting." Lands and accommodations were,
however, gratuitously offered to mechanics and artif-
icers who would set up their trades in the town.
The sound of innumerable looms and spindles, which
now is heard in everj- part of this (Sty, was not heard
her^for the tirst time when our great manufactories
were built, for, in l<i56, more than 230 years ago, at
the Jlay meeting of the town of Chelmsford, thirty
acres of land were granted to William How if he
would set up his trade of weaving and perform the
town's work. Similar urt'ers encouraged the erection
of a saw-mill anil a corn-mill, it being e.Kpressly
stipulated in case of the latter that a "sufficient mill
and miller" should he employed. Truly the far-see-
ing and wealthy men of Boston, who established the
great manufactories of our city, were not the first to
recognize the value of the work of the loom and spin-
dle, and to foster and encourage the manufacturing
interests of our country.
But the history of the town of (Chelmsford is not
the history of fvowcll; for the territory of the city
embraces only that part of the town known as East
(,'helmsford. Of the town of Chelmsford we need
onlv -^ay that from its earliest days its staid and pious
inhabitants, devoted mainly to the peaceful pursuits
of agriculture, have transinitte<l to their posterity an
honorable mime. The patriotic zeal with which they
espoused their country's cause in the days of the
Revolution, and their brave and generous participa-
tion in the datigers and expenses of the war, make a
historic record of which their posterity may well be
proud.
But of Kaat Chelmsford, which, in its early days,
was the name by which th^ site of our city was called,
let us brieHy apeak. At the beginning of the present
century this village contained forty-five or fifty
houses. The natural advant.-iges of the place — its t
water- falls anil its fertile meadows — attracted not only ]
the farmer, but the mechanic and artisan. There is !
on record a description of the village as it was nearly l
one hundred yearn ago. As one came down on the j
side of the Merrimack from Middlesex Village and I
past Pawtucket Falls, he passed successively the resi- I
dences of Silas Hoar, Amos Whitney, Archibald j
A[cFarlin, Captain John Ford, Captain Phineas |
Whiting (where now stands the splendid residence of \
Frederick .A.yer), Asahel Stearns, Jonathan Fiske,
Mr. Livingston (in a house once used as Captain
Whiting's store), and Joseph Chambers, a cooper.
Then came, near the siteof the Lowell Hospital, a red i
school-house, from whose windows the pupils, when
tired of their books, looked down upon the water-
falls and the huge rocks of the river.' Near the foot
of the falls lived Benjamin Melvin. Near by stood
the saw-mill and grist-mill of Nathan Tyler— mills
which, in 1810, were swept away by the ice in a win-
ter freshet. Mr. Hall, a blacksmith, lived on the site
1 of the Ladd and Whitney monument. Josiah Fletch-
er lived near the site of the John Street Congrega-
I tional Church. Crossing the Concord River, we come
to the "Old Joe Brown House,'' a two-story house
still standing conspicuously on East Merrimack
Street, in the open space just east of the Prescott
boarding-houses. Next, on the spot now occupied
by St. John's Hospital, was the " Old Yellow House,"
once a well known hotel and subsequently the resi-
dence of Judge Livermore.
This historic house has been moved back from the
street, but still is used as an appendage of the hos-
pital. On the site of the American Honse was an inn
kept by Joseph Warren. Nathan Ames and John
Fisher did a large business as blacksmiths near the
paper and batting-mill on Lawrence Street. " Mr.
Ames " (as Z. E. StOne, Esq., from whom I obtain
these facts, informs us) " was the father of the well-
known Springfield sword manufacturers of the same
name." Near the junction of Central and Thorndike
Streets were the houses of Johnson Davis, Moses
Hale and Ephraim Osgood. On the old Boston road
lived Sprague Livingston, and on a cross-road leading
to Middlesex Village Robert and Samuel Pierce.
Levi Fletcher lived between Chelmsford and Liberty
Streets, near the old pound. Near Gates' tannery
■itood a school-house. In this vicinity was the house
of John Gload and Samuel Marshall. On the Chelms-
ford road, as one goes towards the city poor-farm, was
the house of Isaac Chamberlain, on whose site was
supposed to be the house of John Chamberlain, whose
combat with the Indian chief Paugus, in"Loveirs
fight," has been " immortalized in history and in song."
Next beyond were the dwellings of Henry Coburn
and Simon Parker. Great interest attaches to the
latter house as having once been the residence of
Benjamin Pierce, Governor of New Hampshire, and
father of President Franklin Pierce. The following
extract from an article upon Governor Pierce, written
by Joshua Merrill, Esq., of Lowell, will not fail to
interest the reader: " Benjamin Pierce was bom in
Chelmsford (now Lowell) December 25, 1757. His
father, Benjamin Pierce, died when his son was six
years old. After his father's death he lived with his
uncle, Robert Pierce, a farmer, whose honse stood on
the^oad leading from Lowell to Chelmsford, where Or-
lando Blodgetfs stable now stands. He remained with
his uncle until April 19, 1775. He was then ploughing
in a field on Powell Street, directly west of the stone
stable erected by .\ldis L. Waite. He heard the firingof
guns, and soon messengers arrived notifying the in-
habitants of the battles of Lexington and Concord.
Young Pierce, then in his eighteenth year, chained
HISTOKY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTV, MASSACHUSETTS.
hia oteers, as he called them, to a stump ; went to the
house, took his Uucle's gun and equipments and started
for Concord on foot. The British had retreated be-
fore he arrived at Concord. He enlisted in Captain
Ford's company. Having entered the service at the
commencement of the war, he continued to the close.
In one of the battles, when the bearer of the colors
was shot, young Pierce seized the colors and bore
them to the front during the conflict."
Young Pierce, as a soldier, won a noble name, but
this is not the place co record his life. But there i.s
one incident in his life of such touching interest that
I can hardly forbear to mention it. At one time after
leaving the army, he became addicted to the habit of
too free a use of intoxicating liquor. His sister, with
whom he lived, remonstrated with him, but without
effect. One day he came home intoxicated, and when
his sister saw his condition the tears began to run
down her cheeks. She wiped them off, but they
would come. He looked at her a moment, and then
said : " Becky, tears are more powerful than words.
You shall never see me in this condition again.''
And she never did. Such power is there hidden in a
tear.
In subsequent years Governor Pierce, when he
came from his home in Hillsborough, New Hamp-
shire, to Lowell, to visit his old friends, took delight
in pointing out to them the stump to which, on April
1S>, 1775, he hitched his steers. He settled in Hills-
borough after the war, and was (lovernor of New
Hampshire in 1827-29. He died in 1839, at the age
of eighty-two years. His son, President Franklin
Pierce, was born in Hillsborough, November 23, 1804.
Other old residents of ninety or one hundred years
ago, might be named, but we must not go too far
away into the neighborhood of our city, or make our
narration tedious by repeating too many names.
There is perhaps a popular impression that the
proper history of Lowell began in 1822, when the first
great manufacturing company, The Merrimack, was
organized and began its operations in the village of
East Chelmsford; but surely a thriving town or city
does not first begin to exist when it gets a new name,
or when .some great event or enterprise gives it a new
and powerful impetus and brings it prominently be-
fore the public mind. Let us glance at a few of the
enterprises of this village of a date many years ear-
lier than 1822.
Middlesex Canal.— The Merrimack River, instead
of keeping, like other eastern rivers, its continuous
southern course to the ocean and having its mouth
at the harbor of the city of Lynn, abruptly farns
towards the northeast, a short distance above Paw-
tucket Falls, and reaches the ocean at the city of
Newbury port. Indeed, there are geological indications
that the river did once pursue its southerly course to
the ocean, passing along the west side instead of the
east side of Fort Hill. Mr. Cowley says : " The exca-
vations made for the Middlesex and the Pawtucket
Canals disclose unmistakable proofs that the channel
of the Merrimack, in this vicinity, was once a consid-
erable distance south and west of its present situa-
tion.'' Some great convulsion of nature bad changed
the bed of the stream.
The rocky bed of the Merrimack and its dangerous
falls were a great obstruction to the transportation of
the timber and other products of the country to the
cities on the Atlantic coast. It was this obstruction
which suggested the construction of a canal from the
bend in the river above referred to to the city of Bos-
ton, thus securing a far shorter and safer means of
transportation th«n had before existed.
The proprietors of the Middlesex Canal were in-
corporated in 1703. Col. Loammi Baldwin, of Wo-
burn, the animating soul of the enterprise, a man of
indefatigable industry and unyielding perseverance,
of sound judgment and fertile genius, was appointed
as engineer. The first turf was removed by Col.
Baldwin on Sept. 10, 1794. " The progress of con-
struction was slow, and there v\ere many embarrass-
ments. The purchase of land for the canal from
more than a hundred owners demanded skillful diplo-
macy." The canal was opened to public navigation
in 1803. It was "30 ft. wide and 4 ft. deep, with
twenty locks, seven aqueducts, and crossed by fifty
bridges. It was supplied with water by the ( 'oncor-l
River at Billerica, which at that place is 107 feet
above the tide in Boston Harbor, and 20 feet above
the Merrimack. It cost about :<">00,000." It has been
wittily remarked that, " like an accusing ghost, it
never strays far from the Boston and Lowell Railro.id,
to wiiich it owes its untimely end." In its early days
the succe.-s of the enterprise seemed secure. Its tolls,
rents, etc., steadily increased. In 1812 they were
:?12,(>00. and in ISKI they were $32,600. In the opin-
ion of Daniel Webster the value of timber bad been
increased .'So,(i00,00(l by the canal. Vast (luantitiesof
lumber and wood were transported ujwn it. Passen-
gers also were conveyed in a neat boat, which occu-
pied almost an entire day in reaching the city of
Boston. But by degrees the enterprise lost the confi-
dence of the public, and even of most of the proprie-
tors themselves. To keep in repair the aqueducts
and locks, the l>anks and the bridges, demanded
constant and very heavy outlays of money. The
death of its engineer. Col. Baldwin, in 1808, was an
irreparable loss. The aid granted by the Legislature
proved of little avail. Dividends were not declared.
Assessment after assessment, one hundred in all, was
extorted from the long-suffering stockholders. But
in 1819 the greatest difiiculties .seem to have been sur-
mounted, and the first dividend was paid. From
1819 to 183(5 were the palmy days of the enterprise.
But in 1835 the Boston and Lowell Railroad began a
disastrous competition. The tonnage dues on the ca-
nal, which in 1835 amounted to nearly $12,000, sunk
to a little over $6000 in 1836. The opening of the
Nashua and Lowell Railroad to traffic in 1840 wag
LOWELL.
another fearful blow to the prosperity of the canal.
The warfare with the railroads was pluckily waged,
till the expenditures of the canal outran its income.
It was vain to prolong the struggle further. The ca-
nal's vocation was gone, and its property waa sold for
$130,000. On October 3, 1859, the Supreme Court
issued a decree declaring that the proprietors had
" forfeited all their franchises and privileges, by rea-
son of non-feasance, non-user, misfeasance and ne-
glect."
Col. Baldwin, the distinguished engineer of this en-
terprise, deserves a brief notice. Having enlisted in the
army of the Revolution in April, 1775, he rapidly rose
to the position of colonel. With Washington he
crossed the Delaware in December, 1776, and partici-
pated in the gallant fight at Trenton. On retiring
from the army on account of ill health he returned to
the town of Woburn. where he passed a long and use-
ful life. He was the first high sheriff of Middlesex
County after its organization under the government of
the United States. He often served his town in public
offices, and to him the country is indebted for the
propagation of the celebrated Baldwin apple.
Pawtucket Canal. — This canal around Paw-
tucket Falls, as it lies entirely within the limits of
the city of Lowell, demands of us a more specific
notice.
The precipitous falls, the violent current and the
dangerous rocks aflbrded an almost impassable ob-
struction to the transportation of lumber and other
produce of the country to the cities on the coast.
From the head of the falls to the mouth of the Con-
cord River beiow is a descent of more than thirty
feet. Lumber and wood coming down the Merri-
mack had to be conveyed around the falls in teams
and formed into rafts in the river below. To obviate
this difficulty the plan was formed of constructing a
canal around the falls. For this purpose a company,
known as " The Locks and Canals Company," was
formed, to whom a charter was granted June 25. 1792.
The president of this company was Hon. .Fonathan
Jackson. Mr. T. B. Lawaon tells us that after many
preliminary meetings, and the consumption of many
good dinners, it was resolved that a " canal be cut at
Pawtucket Falls, on the side of Chelmsford, begin-
ning near the great landing-place, thence running to
' Lily Pond,' from thence by ' Speen's Brook ' to Con-
cord River." A contract was made with Joseph
Tyler to complete the proposed canal for £4344,
lawful currency. Tyler failing to fulfill the contract.
Thomas M. Clark, of Newburyport, was appointed
superintendent of the operation in January, 1796,
with the pay of $3.33 for every day of actual employ-
ment in the work of construction, together with his
board and traveling expenses. By the energy and
fidelity of Mr. Clark the canal was opened on Oct.
18, 1796, about four years from its inception. The
day of the opening was celebrated. Men, women
and children crowded around the banks to witness
the scene. The boat which was to make the first trip
through the locks was filled with the directors of the
company and invited guests. At this point a circum-
stance occurred which is thus narrated by Allen, the
historian of Chelmsford: "Scarcely had they en-
tered the first lock when the sides suddenly gave way.
The water, bursting upon the spectators with great
violence, carried many down the stream. Infants
were separated from their mothers, children from
their parents, wives from their husbands, young
ladies from their gallants, and men, women, timber,
broken boards and planks were seen promiscuously
floating in the water. All came safely to land, with-
out material injury."
The canal cost about $50,000, and proved a practical
success, although the dividends to its stockholders
were small, averaging, it is supposed less than four
per cent, annually.
But the future had other uses for the waters of this
canal than that of transportation of produce ; for in
1821, twenty-five years after its construction, it began
to be relied upon to furnish the water-power for the
great manufacturing enterprises which were then
springing up in our city. For this latter purpose it
is still employed. The property of the original com-
pany, once mainly owned in Newburyport, fell into
the hands of Boston capitalists engaged in the new
manufacturing enterprises, new directors were ap-
pointed and large purchases of land were made; but
the original name remains, and " The Proprietors of
Locks and Canals " .still, as a company, hold a very
large and valuable amount of the property of the
city, and exercise a controlling power in its great
manufacturing enterprises.
Bridges. — For nearly 150 years after the settlement
of the town the people of Chelmsford crossed the
Merrimack in ferry-boats. But on February 4, 1792,
the General Court of Massachusetts granted an act of
incorporation to certain persons as proprietors of Mid-
dlesex Merrimack River Bridge, subsequently known
as the Pawtucket Bridge. This bridge crossed the
.Merrimack at the head of Pawtucket Falls. It was
completed at a coat of about $8000, and opened on
November 5th of the same year. Its abutments and
piers were of wood, and it seems to have been cheaply
built, for thirteen years subsequently a new bridge
with stone abutments was constructed at the cost of
$14,500. The work of the construction of the first
bridge is interesting to the reader of the present day
as incidentally showing the change in the methods of
doing business within the last 100 years. This change
will be well illustrated by the following extracts from
the records of the company, as found by Mr. James 8.
Russell among the papers of the late Dr. J. O. Green.
" May 23, 17'J2. Meeting edjoursed till to-morrow momlog tU t
o'clock/ "
" Jone 11, 1792. Col. Loamml Baldwin appointed to procure one toa
of iron A two barrele of New Englaod ram."
"June 27, 1792. Each man to be allowed half-pint of mm per da^
when maeter workman calls for It"
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS
" Aug. 27, 1792. Voted that Col. Baldwin be desired to procure one
barrel of New Eoglaod rum aud balf a barrel of West lodia rum Jvr
the proprieiort/ "
"Oct. 24, 1792. Voted that all persons tbat sball come oo Not. G, to
see tbe bridge [opened], be treated with flip .& toddy ut tbe expense or
the proprietora.'*
This was a toll-bridge, but free passage was voted
to all persons to any public meeting at tbe west meet-
ing-hou^ie in Dracut.
The tolls, until 1796, were designated in English
money, and for foot passengers were " from two-thirds
of a penny to one cent Si, five mills."
The enterprise proved a profitable one to the stock-
holders, netting for one period of thirty years an av-
erage income of more than twenty-four per cent, on
the cost. But the days of prosperity ere long had
passed away. The corporation had lived its three-
score years and ten. The days of toll-taking were
passing away and men were demanding a free passage
over every stream. The proposal in 1822 to build a
new bridge near Hunt's Fails, where now stands the
Central Bridge, threatened a dangerous rivalry. The
monopoly could not be sustained, and at length, in
18G1, the bridge was sold for $12,000 and made a free
bridge. Of this price the county of Jliddlese.x paid
$0000, the city of Lowell ji4000 and the town of
Dracut $2000.
" The freedom of the bridge," Mr. Gilman tells us,
" w:i8 received with great rejoicing. SIcFarlin's
horses drew the toll-gate across the bridge, preceded
by a band of music, and a gathering at Huntington
Hall, in which were represented Dracut & neighbor-
ing towns, look due notice of the affair."
It would be tedious to repeat the various recon-
structions of this bridge from 1805 to the construction
by the city of Lowell of the present substantial iron
structure, of which due mention will be made in the
proper place, in connection with the Central Bridge.
Allen informs us that the first bridge over the Con-
cord, near the cemetery, was built in 1658. This
bridge was removed higher up the river in H)62, and
again removed in 1699.
The first bridge at the mouth of the Concord (at
East Merrimack Street) was erected in 1774, and was
blown down by a gale before it was finished, and a
second bridge was erected. In 1819 a third bridge was
built at the joint expense of Tewksbury and Chelms-
ford.
MANDFAtrruRES. — In 1801 the first power-card-
ing machine in Middlesex County was set up in
Lowell by Moses Hale. Mr. Hale had a fulling-mill
on River Jleadow Brook, not many rods from the site
of the Butler School -house, and in this mill he placed
the new carding-machine on which in 1803 he carded
more than 10,000 pounds of wool. Such was the
humble beginning.
In 1818 Mr. Thomas Hurd purchased a building
60 feet long, 50 feet wide and 40 feet high, which in
1813 had been erected by Phineas Whiting and Col.
Josiah Fletcher for manutacturing purposes, and
fitted it up for the manufacture of woolen goods. This
building was .situated on or near the .site of the i)res-
ent Middlesex Mills. Here Mr. Hurd had sixteen
looms, employed twenty hands, and made 120 yards
of satinet per day. In addition to this building,
which was ofwood, he erected a larger building of brick
for his manufacturing operations. The latter build-
ing was destroyed by fire in June, 1825, and it
was rebuilt in 1826. This fire was the largest and
most destructive in those early days. Mr. Hurd be-
came bankrupt in the financial reaction of 1828, and
in 1830 his mills became the property of the Middle-
.sex Manufacturing Company.
Wmdowdkiss.— In 1802, on the banks of the Mid-
dlesex Canal, a few rods from the Merrimack River,
was erected a large building, 124 feet by i!2 feet, for
the manufacture of winduw-glass. This enterprise
employed about 100 persons, and made annually
about 330,000 feet of glass, the value of which was
$43,000.
Powder. — In 1818 powder-mills with forty pestles
were started on the Concord River by Moses Hale.
After various changes in the proprietorsliip of these
mills, O. ,M. Whipple became the 'ole ))ropriftor in
1827. This manufacture was at it.s zenith in the
Mexican War, when in one year nearly a million
pounds of powder were ptoduced. It Wius discon-
tinued in 1855. Mr. Whipple was a man of great
energy, and though he commenced with a small cap-
ital and in a humble way, he amassed a handsome
fortune, and became one of the foremost citizens of
Lowell.
Fisheries. — Not only the Indians, but the Eng-
lish settlers found in the waters of the .Mtrrimack and
Concord an abundant supply of fish. The rivers
teemed with salmon, shad and alewives. Instead of
the rude devices employed by the Indians, the fish in
great numbers were tiiken in nets and seines. Capt.
Silas Tyler, as quoted by Mr. Gilman, gives an inter-
esting account of fishing in his days: "The best haul
of fish I ever knew was eleven hundred shad and
eight or ten thousand alewives. This was in the
Concord, just below the Middlesex Mills. My uncle,
Jo% Tyler, once got so many alewives that he did not
know what to do with them. The law allowed us to
fish two days per week in the Concord and three in
the Merrimac. This law was enforced about as well
as the ' prohibitory law ' of the present day, and just
about xs much attention was paid to it. The Dracut
folks fished in the pond at the foot of Pawtucket
Falls. They would set their nets there on forbidden
days. On one occasion the fish wardens from Bil-
lerica came and took and carried oflT their nets. The
wardens, when they returned to Billerica, spread the
nets on the grass to dry. The next night the fisher-
men, in a wagon with a span of horses, drove to Bil-
lerica, gathered up the nets, brought them back and
reset them in the pond.
" People would come 15 or 20 miles on fishing days
LOWELL.
to procure these fish. Shad were worth five dollars
per hundred and salmon ten cents per pound."
But the palmy days of the fisherman have passed
away. The dams and numerous other obstructions
have almost entirely prevented the fish from ascend-
ing the streams. It is still a problem whether the
recent attempts to re-stock the rivers with fish, by
building fish-ways to facilitate their ascent over the
It was this sentiment that inspired many a far-see-
ing and patriotic American at the beginning of the
present century. It was not the spirit of enterprise
and the desire of gain alone that moved the noble men
who, nearly seventy years ago, laid the foundations of
the great manufactories of our city. The spirit of
patriotism also ennobled their great undertaking. As
we read the history of the inauguration of their great
falls, by hatching in the rivers spawn taken from i work we are compelled to admire their generous and
other places, and by protecting the fish by more strin-
gent laws, will ever prove successful.
Having defined and described the territory of our
city, and given a brief outline of its history in those
early days when it was the gathering-place of the Paw-
tucket Indians, and when, subsequently, it was known
as a quiet New England village, we come to a new
benevolent regard for the general welfare of our city,
and the moral purity of its inhabitants.
But before describing the work of these noble men,
let us briefly glance at their personal histories, — let
us know who and what they were.
Five of their number must receive especial notice :
Francis Cabot Lowell, because he was, in the gener-
era, when suddenly the uneventful life of the farm j ous language of his colleague, Honorable Nathan
gives place to the din and clatter of machinery and to
the bustle and activity of a great manufacturing es-
tablishment.
But before describing the beginnings of the great
enterprise, let us briefly recall some of the remoter
causes which led to its inauguration.
It is poor generalship to allow the enemy to hold
possession of the springs which supply the garrison
with water. It is poor statesmanship to allow another
nation to control the production and supply of the
Appleton, " the informing soul which gave direction
and form to the whole proceeding;" Patrick T. Jack-
son and Nathan Appleton, because, while the great
enterprise was still a doubtful experiment, they nobly
embarked in it their fortunes and their honor ; and
Kirk Boott and Paul Moody, because by their great
executive talents and their inventive genius they
made the experiment an assured and triumphant
success.
Francis Cabot Lowell may, in classic phrase, be
necessaries of life to the peo|)le of our own. Depend- ! styled the eponymous hero of our city, for from him
ence is the badge of slavery. Dependence upon Eng- | Lowell received her name. He is said to have been
land was the galling yoke upon the necks of our |
fathers. That immortal proclamation of their emau- |
cipation was not denominated " 77te Declaration of\
Rights," but "' The Declaration of Independence." But j
when political independence was gained, commercial ;
dependence remained. For the very clothing that
kept us warm we were dependent upon English capi-
tal and English skill. The scanty earnings of the 1
enfranchised American farmer found their way into i
the corters of the English manufacturer. This de- |
pendence weighed heavily upon the minds of patriotic i
men. \
The following extract from the Rev. Mr. Miles' |
" Lowell As It Was, and As It Is," exhibits in clear j
light our dependence upon other countries, in the first j
part of the present century, for our supply of cotton |
goods : 1
■■ Iq 1807 and ISOS there were imported from Calcutta 53.000,000 of \
yardd priDcipally uf coarse cotton goo4i8,aQd worth, ob prices tben were. <
over S12,UOO,(XtO. Id ISlo there were made in all the factories of the 1
United States, as appears by returns made by order of 3Ir. Gallatin, ,
thensecretury of the treasury, only 8oB,t4,5 yartls of cotton clotb. This ;
is not so tuany yards as four of the e;itAblishments of Lowell can now 1
(1845) tura out in one weelc. In 1307 the country received nearly all i
its cotton ){oods from Great Britain snd the East Indias. ' |
This dependence weighed like a galling yoke upon j
a free people. It began to be seen that if a country |
is to be truly free, it must have within itself all the
means of supplying the people with every necessary
and comfort of life. It must be able to live and to pros-
per, though every other nation should be blotted out.
a descendant of one of two brothers, Richard and
Percival Lowle. who came to Newbury, Massachu-
setts, from Bristol, England, in 1639. His grand-
father wiis Rev. John Lowell, who, in the first half of
the last century, was for forty-two years pastor of the
First Church in Newburyport. His father was John
Lowell, LL.D., judge of the United States District
Court of Ma.ssachuesetts.
Fkancis Cabot Lowell was born in Newbury-
port, April 7, 1775. He graduated at Harvard College
in 1793, when only eighteen years of age. He became
a merchant, but was driven from his business by the
embargo, the non-intercourse act and the war. He
went to Europe for his health in 1810, returning in
1813. Of his sojourn of three years in Europe, so
pregnant with results of the highest importance to
the future manufacturing interests of our country,
I shall hereafter speak. He died August 16, 1817, in
the prime of early manhood, at the age of forty-two
years. It was his son, John Lowell, who gave $240,-
000 to found the Lowell Institute in Boston.
Patrick Tracy Jackson was bom at Newbury-
port, August 14, 1780, and was the youngest son of
Hon. Jonathan Jackson, who was a member of the
Continental Congress and treasurer of Harvard Col-
lege and of the State of Massachusetts. Having
completed his education in Dummer Academy, when
about fifteen years of age, he entered the store of
Wm. Bartlett, of Newbiuyport, a wealthy merchant,
who is widely known as the munificent patron of the
8
HISTORY OF :\IIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
Theological Seminary at Andover, Mass. He proved
to be a young man of such remarkable energy, abil-
ity and fidelity, that before he was twenty years of
age Mr. Bartlett put him in charge of a cargo of mer-
chandise for St. Thomas, giving him authority above
that of the captain of the vessel. Subsequently he
made three voyages as captain of merchantmen. He
then engaged in commercial business in Boston, es-
pecially in the India and Havana trades.
In 1813 his brother-in-law, Francis Cabot Lowell,
returned from his long sojourn in Europe, witii his
mind filled with the idea of establishing in our own
country the manufacture of cotton goods. Mr. Jack-
son became convinced of tiie feasibility of Mr.
Lowell's plans and entered heartily into his viewH.
From this time a new life opens before him. He had
been driven from his mercantile business by the
war, and now he becomes a manufacturer, a railroad
builder, a man of intense energy and wonderful ac-
tivity in the inauguration and management of great
undertakings. Of his connection with the early history
of the cotton manufacturing enterprises of our country,
[ shall speak hereafter. He died in Beverly Septem-
ber 12, 18-17, .It the age of sixty-seven years.
Nathan .\i'vi,eton was born in New Ipswich, N.
H., October <>, 1779. When less than fifteen years of
age he entered Dartmouth College. He, however,
soon left the college to engage in mercantile busi-
ness in Boston with his brother Samuel. When of
age he became the partner of his brother, the title of
the firm being 8. & N. .Vppleton. His brother Sam-
uel became distinguislied both as a man of great
wealth and of almost unexampled benevolence. Of
Natliau Appleton's connection with Lowell & Jack-
son in establishing cotton manufactories, I shall
speak in the proper place.
Mr. Appleton was elected to Congress in 1830, and
again in 1842. He acquired great wealth. He died
iu Boston, July 14, 1S(J1, at the age of eighty-two
years.
Kirk Boott was the central figure in that group of
distinguislied men who laid the foundations of the
city of Lowell. As, in the introduction of the man-
ufacture of cotton in America, Francis Cabot Lowell
was the " informing soul," so in its introduction in
Lowell, Mr. Boott was the controlling will. He was
the leader without a guide. He solved problems be-
fore unsolved, and trod a path before untrodden.
Mr. Boott was born in Boston, Oct. 20, 1790, and
was of English extraction. His father. Kirk Boott,
came to Boston in 1783, and became a merchant in
the wholesale traffic in dry goods. He was the
builder of the Revere House, which, with the family,
he occupied until the close of his life. The son re-
ceived his early education in Boston. Subsequently
he studied at the Rugby School in England and
entered the class of 1809 in Harvard College. It was
probably due to Mr. Boott's taste for military life that
he left the college before completing the course of
study, and went to England, where he qualified him-
self to enter the British Army as a civil engineer. At
the age of twenty-one years he received a commission
in the Britisli Army and aubsei|uently was made
lieutenant in tiie Eighty-fifth Light Infantry and
with this regiment took part in the Peninsular Cam-
paign under Wellington, landing in Spain in August,
1813.
Mr. Boott ser\-ed till the close of the campaign, en-
gaging in the capture of San Sabastian, in the battles
of the Nieve and the Nivelle, in the passage of the
Garonne and in the siege of B.ayonne. Rev. Geo. R.
Gleig, once the chaplain-general of the British Army,
writes in 1887, when in the ninety-first year of bis
age, that lie remembers .Mr. Boott as his comrade
in that campaign, and as a " remarkably good-lnoking
man, a gallant soldier and a great favorite in the
corps."
.Vt tlie close of the wars of Napoleon the Eiirbty-
fifth Regiment was ordered to .America to take part
in the War of 1812. .Mr. Boott, being by birth an
American, refused to bear :irn)s ngainst his native
land.
His regiment, however, went to Aiiieiica. took pari
in the eng.agements near the eity of Washingtcm and
in the battle of New ( )rleans. M r. Boott, having visited
.\merica, returneil to England ami studied engineering
at the Military Academy at Saiidburst, before finally
resigning his commission.
Before returning to .\mer ic:i .Mr. Bontl married an
English lady, who belonged to a family of very high
|>rofessional standing, ami whom the Rev. l)r. Edson
calls " an excellent and devout woman, the very
beauideal nf :\n English lady." 'Mi coming to Bos-
ton he engaged with two brothers in mercantile pur-
suits, which, however, were attended with very lieavy
losses. So that when his friend, Patrick T. Jackson,
pjoposed to him to become the agent of the Merri-
mack Mills, in Lowell, he promptly accepted the po-
sition and came to East Clielmsti)rd (now Lowell) in
April, 1822, the year in which the first mill was
erected.
And here, for fifteen years, Mr. Boott found a field for
the exercise of his powers such as few men have enjoy-
ed, and which few men jiossess the ability to occupy.
He was guided by no precedent. Up to this time manu-
factures iu America had been carried on in small, de-
tached establishments, managed by the owners of the
property ; but now the great experiment was to to be
tried of so managing the affairs ofgreatjoint-stock com-
panies xs to yield to the owners a satisfactory profit.
To do this demanded a man of original commandirig
intellect, of indomitable courage and of iron will.
Such a man was Mr. Boott. For such a position his
natural ability and his military experience had ad-
mirably qualified him.
He entered upon his task with resolute courage and
conscientious devotion to duty. His life was an in-
tense life, every hour bringing its varied and urgent
// / / /r /J7-^- /^^
^
LOWELL.
duties. He was agent of the Merrimack Mills, sup-
erintendent of the Print Works, agent of the Propri-
etors of Locks and Canals. He bargained for the
construction of mills and had the general oversight
of the work.
His pen and pencil were busy upon drawings and
plans for new structures. He was arbiter in a
thou.sand transactions. He interested himself in the
public schools and in municipal afl'airs. In the re-
sponsive services of the Sabbath worship bis voice
rose above the rest, and he was everj-where acknowl-
edged as the leading, guiding master spirit.
He was not selfish and grasping. Though he lived
liberallj' and in an elegant home, he was very far
from being a wealthy man.
It is not strange that one whose mind was so deep-
ly absorbed and so heavily burdened with rea|>onsibili-
ties should sometimes, by the military brevity of his
decisions, oH'end the sensitiveness of other men. He
was almost overwhelmed with care^. In one of his
letters, in wliich he refers to an unwise business
transaction of a friend, he says, " I am almost wor-
ried out. Since this unhappy disclosure 1 get neither
sleep nor rest."
How fnr bis excess of cares affected bis physical
condition it is impossible to tell, but for several of
the last years of his life his friends observed the
signs of declining health. At length, on the lltb of
April, 1S37, as he sat in his chai.se, which stood in
the street near the Jlerrimack House, where be had
been conversing with a friend, he instantaneously
died and fell from his chaise to the ground. He was
cut off in the prime of his manhood, in the forty-
seventh year of his age. His death left a vacancy
which could not be filled. (»l his family, the wife
of t'harles A. Welch, Esq., of Bost<^in, and Mrs.
Eliza Boott, who has resided in or near London, are
the only survivors.
But wealth and character and high executive abil-
ity were not alone sufficient to set in motion the ten
thousand looms and wheels and the innumerable
spindles of the new enterprise. There was needed
also a man of inventive genius, like Hiram of old.
whom "Solomon fetched out of Tyre," and who was
" filled with wisdom and understanding and cunning."
Such a man was Pai'i, Moody, whom the distinguished
men mentioned above brought to their aid.
Mr. Moody was born in Newbury, Mass., May 21',
177!). His father was a man of much influence in
the town, and was known as " Capt. Paul Moody."
Two of his brorhers graduated from Dartmouth Col-
lege. His original design of living a farmer's life was
changed by the discovery that he was the possessor of
a genius for mechanical invention of no ordinary
character. By degrees his talents became so well
known that his aid was sought in positions of high
responsibility. In such positions he had been em-
ployed in the Wool & Cotton Manufacturing Com-
pany in Amesbury, and the Boston Manufacturing
Company in Waltbam. He gained a distinguished
name as the inventor of machinery for the manufac-
ture of cotton. He invented the winding-frame, a
new dressing-machine, the substitution of soap-stone
rollers for iron rollers, the " method of spinning yarn
foT filling directly on the bobbin for the shuttle," the
filling-frame, the double speeder, a new " governor,"
the use of the " dead spindle," and various other
devices which gave speed and completeness to the
work of manufacturing cotton. His inventive mind
was the animating spirit of the cotton-mill. His
presence and genius were invaluable factors in the
successful operations of the new enterprise. Besides
being a man of great inventive genius he was known
as an ardect and influential advocate of temperance
among the operatives in the mills, an exemplary
Christian, and a loving husband and father. He died
in .Tuly. 1831, at the age of fifty-two years. Of this
event Dr. Edson, in the funeral sermon delivered
,Iuly 10, 1831, says: "His death [has] produced a
greater sensation than any other event that has tran-
spired in this town. He died in the full strength of
body, in the very vigor of age and constitution."
Subordinate to these five distinguished leaders in
the enterprise, there were others of whom we should
also make mention as we pass.
EzKA WoRTHEN was born in Amesbury, Massa-
chusetts, February 11, 1781. He was the son of a
ship-builder, andafter securing a common-school edu-
cation he took up his father's trade. A fellow-work-
man and himself constructed a small vessel on their
own account. Leaving his trade, he turned his atten-
tion to the manufacture of woolen goods. In com-
pany with three partners, he erected in Amesbury a
brick mill, fifty feet by thirty-two feet, for the manu-
facture of broadcloth. In 1814 he accepted the invi-
tation of the Boston Manufacturing Company to take
charge of their machine-shop in -Waltham. After
a service of eight years in Waltham he was appointed
in 1822 the first agent of the Merrimack Manufactur-
ing Company, the earliest of the great Lowell com-
panies. He entered upon his duties with character-
istic energy and zeal. Soon appeared indications
of declining health. He often suflTered paroxysms of
pain. He was a man of an excitable temperament,
and his physicians warned him of approaching danger.
On June 18, 1824, while engaged in showing an awk-
ward workman how he should use his shovel, he sud-
denly fell and died.
He was a man of quick wit, bright intelligenc«and
kindly, genial nature. He had served theMerrimack
Company only two years, when he was cut down in
the prime of early manhood. His age was forty three
years. It was Mr. Worthen who had the honor of
being the first to suggest East Chelmsford and Paw-
tucket Falls as the place for the new city.
And here let us stop to observe how short were the
lives of the sis distinguished men who have just occu-
pied our attention. Only one of them reached the
10
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, :MASSACriTTSETTS.
allotted three-score years aud ten. Mr. Appleton
lived eighty-two years, Mr. Jackson sixty-seven years,
Mr. Moody fifty-two years, Mr. Boolt forty-seven
years, Mr. Worthen forty-three years, and Mr. Lowell
forty-two years. Perhaps the assumption of so great
responsibilities was too severe a tax upon the human
brain. The longevity of many of the ablest English
statesmen, however, does not seem to warrant such a
conclusion.
John Amory Lowell was born November 11.
1798. He was nephew and son-in-law of Francis C.
Lowell, for whom our city was named. He graduated
from Harvard College at the age of sixteen years.
During the management of Kirk Boott he made most
of the purchases of materials in Boston for the Merri-
mack Company. In 1835 he built the Boott Mills, of
which he was the treasurer for thirteen years. He
also built the Ma-ssachusetts Jlillsin 183'J, and served
as treasurer. Mr. Appletnn says of liim : " There is
no man whose beneficial intiuence in establishing
salutary regulations in relation to this manufacture,
e.'cceeded that of Mr. John Amory Lowell." Few
men have ever combined, to so remarkable a degree,
rare classical soholarship and great business capacity.
To these were added a brave and fearless spirit,
modesty and generosity. His long life was one of un-
tiring industry. He died October 31, 1881, at the age
of eighty-three years.
John W. Boott, eldest brother of Kirk Boott, was a
merchant in Boston in company with the elder Kirk
Boott, and afterwards with John A. Lowell, the
nephew and son-in-law of Francis C. Lowell. He
joined his fortunes with those of his brother Kirk,
and took ninety of the tUlO shares in the company first
organized.
It may be best to state at this point that of these
600 shares Kirk Boott, Jr., took 90, John W.
Boott 90, Nathan .\ppletou 180, Patrick T. Jack-
son 180, und Paul Moody HO. (Jthers soon afterwards
became shareholders.
Having brieriy shown who the founders of our city
were, we shall with greater interest and more intelli-
gently follow them in their united labor in establish-
ing our great manufacturing industries. Henceforth
their histories blend together.
The city of Lowell is fortunate in having the limits
of its history perfectly defined. No mist of doubt
beclouds its early days. Unlike some cities of the
ancient world, it was built, not by divine, but by
human hands. The walls of Thebes arose in obedi-
ence to the tones of Amphion"s golden lyre, but the
structures of Lowell are the work of the mason's
trowel and the Irishman's pickaxe, hod and shovel.
We know the history of the founders. Their very
thoughts have been recorded. The past is secure,
nor will the present and the future go unrecorded.
The germ of the history of the great manufacturing
industries of Lowell is to be found in the sojourn of
Francis Cabot Lowell in England and Scotland from
1810 to 1813. It was duriiit: these years that his
mind became inspired with the patriotic purpose of
securing for his own country the inestimable advan-
tage of being the manufacturer of its own cotton
fabrics. No doubt he also thought of the wealth
which he supposed would acrue to those who engaged
in the undertaking. He would have been more than
human if he did not. I cannot do better at this
point than to quote the language of the Hon. Nathan
Appleton : " My connection with the cotton manu-
factures takes date from the year 1811, when I met
my friend, Mr. Francis C. Lowell, at Edinburgh,
where he had been passing some time with his family.
We had frequent conversations on the -ubjcct of the
cotton manufacture, and lie informed me lliat he had
determined, before his return to America, to visit
Manchester for the pnrpuse of obtaining all possible
information on the subject, with a view lo the intro-
duction of the improved manufacture in the L'liited
tjtates. I urged him to do so, and jjromised him iny
co-operation.'' And here it will not be amiss briefiy to
show what there was in the manufactures of England
and Scotland that so much attracted the attention of
Mr. Lowell.
It has been said that the birthi)l:ice of cotton man-
ufacture was India, but th,at its second birthplace was
England. India manufactured, indeed, but its im-
plements were rude and it.s processes were slow.
England mantifactured, and its implements were the
most wondertiil products of human skill, and its pro-
cesses swift as the glance of the eye. This wonderful
rapidity was a new revelation to the world. It had
all come within one generation. A new era had
dawned — the era of invention. JIuch had long since
been done to please the taste of man, now something
is to be done to supply the comforts and relieve the
hardships of his life. Instead of slavishly supplying
power from his own muscles, he is hereafter to direct
the power which nature has put. into his hands, (t
seems inexplicable to human reason that painting,
sculpture, architecture, elo<iuence and poetry, which
demand the subtlest powers of the intellect, should
have reached their perfection two thousand years
ago, while the development of the useful arts, upon
which .so much of the happiness and comfort of man-
kind depend, has lingered on through ages of delay.
How wonderful it is that the genius which could see
an Apollo Belvidere in a shapeless block of marble,
could devise no improvement on the distafi" aud the
spindle !
These two simple implements and the one-thread
spinning-wheel had had undisputed sway for unnum-
bered years. Far back in the ages of mythology the
Parc;e spun from the distaff the thread of human life.
In the days of Solomon the virtuous woman laid her
hands to the spindle and her hands hold the distatf,
and even the writer well remembers that, in his boy-
hood, in the house of his grandparents, the rude and
cumbrous hand-loom filled the corner of the room,
LOWELL.
11
while the small, foot-turoed spinoing-wheel stood
before the fire.
One of our old residents, Mr. DaDiel Knapp, gives
us the following account of his early years : " In the
spring of 1814 my parents were young laboring people,
with five small children, the oldest not eleven years
old. AVe had cotton brought to our bouse by the
bale, to pick to pieces and get out the seeds and dirt.
We children had to pick so many poundb per day a.s
a stint. We had a whipping-machine, made four-square,
and, about three feet from the floor, wa.s a bed-cord run
across from knob to knob, near together, on which we
put a parcel of cotton, and, with two whip-sticks, we
lightened it up and got out the dirt and made it ready
for the card. My mother was carrying on the bleach-
ing business at this time. There was no chemical
process. The bright sun, drying up the water, did
the bleaching. This was the mode of bleaching at
this time."
This wonderful change attracted the attention and
admiration of Mr. Lowell. About 1760 the era o(
invention had begun, though as early as 1738 John
Kay had invented a method of throwing the shuttle
which enabled the weaver to d(j twice as much work
as before. The shuttle thus imjielled was called the
Jly shuttle. But this invention was seldom used until
1760. In 1760 Robert, the son of John Kay, invented
the drop-box, which enabled the weaver to employ
different colors in the same web. John Wyatt had.
in 1738, invented the method of spinning hi/ rollers,
Hargreaves invented the larJitiij-mifhiiie in ]7('U,
and the spin>iiii(/-/tnni/ ii\ 1764. In I 768 Arkwright
first set up his tpliiniini-framc, and then followed, in
1775, the invention of the mule by Samuel Crompton.
By this machine were pnxluced the finer qualities ot
thread. It superseded the jenny. .So wonderful are
its possibilities that more than a thousand threads
may be spun by one machine at the .same time, and
one workman can manage two machines. In 1785
Cartwright exhibited his first y^oifec/oom. I need not
speak of other inventions or of the various devices
for the perfection of cotton manufacture which at-
tracted the inquisitive mind of Mr. Lowell.
Upon his return, in 1813, he entered upon the
work of doing in America what he had seen
accomplished in the Old World. He enlisted his
brother-in-law, Patrick T. Jackson, as his associate,
who had been driven from his mercantile business by
the war, and who agreed to give up all other business
and take the management of the enterprise. The
partners purchased a water-power on the Charles
River in Waltham (Bemis' paper-mill), and obtained
an act of incorporation. Most of the stock of this
incorporated company was taken by Messrs. Lowell
& Jackson. The services of Paul Moody, whose skill
as a mechanic was well known, were secured.
Up to this time the power-loom had never been
used in America. Mr. Lowell was unable to procure
drawings of this machine in Europe, and he resolved
to make a machine of his own. He shot himself up
in the upper room of a store in Broad Street, in Bos-
ton, and, with a frame already wasted with disease, he
experimented for several months, employing a man
to turn the crank.
At length, after the new mill was erected in Walt-
ham, and other machinery was set up, Mr. Lowell set
in motion his improved power-loom, and, for the first
time, invited his friend, Nathan Appleton, to witness
its operation. Mr. Appleton says in his account of
this examination of this machine: "I well recollect
the state of admiration and satisfaction with which
we sat by the hour watching the beautiful movements
of this new and wonderful machine, destined, as it was,
to change the character of all textile industry. This
was in the autumn of 1814." With the skillful aid of
Mr. Moody other improvements were made. The
efficiency of Horrock's dressing-machine was more
than doubled. The double speeder was greatly im-
proved. "Spinning on throstle spindles and the spin-
ning of filling directly on the cops, without the pro-
cess of winding," was introduced.
Of this latter improvement, a pleasant anecdote i.s
told. I give it in Mr. Appleton's language ; " Mr.
Shepard, of Taunton, had a patent for a winding-
machine, which was considered the beat extant. Mr.
Lowell was chaflering with him about purchasing the
right of using tkem on a large scale at some re-
duction from the price named. Mr. Shepard re-
fused, saying, 'You must have them ; you cannot do
without them, as you know, Mr. Moody.' Mr. Moodv
replied : ' I am just thinking that I can spin the cops
direct upon the bobbin.' ' You be hanged ! ' said Mr.
Shepard; 'well, I accept your offer.' 'No,' said Mr.
Lowell, ' it is too late.' A new-born thought had
sprung forth from Mr. Moody's inventive mind, and
he had no more use for Mr. Shepard's winding-
machine."
The enterprise was now an assured success. The
capital of $400,000 was soon taken up and new water-
powers near Watertown were purchased.
In the War of 1812, when British manufactures
were excluded from our markets, the manufacture of
cotton goods was greatly increased, but the effect of
the peace in 1815 was to bring the American manu-
factures into ruinous competition with those of
England. The new American mills must have the
protection of a tariff, or every spindle must cease to
revolve. Mr. Lowell went to Washington and
earnestly urged upon Congressmen the necessity of
protection. At length Mr. Lowndes and Mr. Cal-
houn were brought to support the minimum duty
of 6} cents per square yard, and the measure was
carried. The tariff, together with the introduction of
the power-loom, proved sufficiently protective. Who
could then have believed that the same grade of cotton
cloth which sold for thirty cents per yard would be
sold in 1843 at only six cents?
And here, five years before the mills in Lowell were
12
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COTTNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
started, the "informiug soul " of the enterprise dis-
appears from the scene. Mr. Lowell died in 1817, at
the age of only forty-two years.
We should add iu passing that it was the original
design of the founders of our American manufac-
tures to start at Waltham only a weaving-mill and
to buy their yarn of others. In the early days of the
cotton industry no one thought of turning cotton to
cloth in the same mill. Weaving was done here, and
spinning there. It- was a new thought, when the
loom was set up in Waltham, also to put in the
spindle.
These men believed that the only profitable way to
make cotton manufacturing successful was by joint-
stock companies with large capitals. As long as the
prices of goods were high and competition did not
demand a change, these companies were remarkably
successful. High salaries were paid to treasurers and
agents and fortune smiled on the stockholders. But
a change has come. Prices are extremely low. com-
petition is eager, and it begins to be a question
whether, in order to successful cotton manufacture,
it will not become necessary for individual owners to
run their own mills and dispense with high salaries
and too liberal .1 use of money. Rigid economy
seems to be the only means of securing fair profits.
Joint-stock companies are on trial.
We should fail to do justice to the memory of the
noble men who inaugurated this great enterprise if
we did not refer to their wise foresight in carefully
providing for the moral and religious welfare of the
operatives. In this beneficent work Francis C.
Lowell had been the leading spirit. John A. Lowell
once said of hiru that " nature had designed him for
a statesman, but fortune bad made him a merchant.''
The forecasting wisdom, the broad moral views, the
deep foundation on which all his plan.s for good were
laid, reveal the evident traits of statesmanship. "In
England and on the continent the operatives in the
mills were sordid, vicious and every way degraded."
He determined that it should not be so here, and
therefore built boarding-houses for the operatives and
put them under the care of matrons selected tor that
purpose. He paid pew taxes in churches for them.
He instituted schools and used every means to main-
tain in the daughters of the countrymen, who had
entered the mills, all the simplicity and purity of
their rural homes.
It is not pleasant to confess that it has been found
ditlicult, after the lapse of more than sixty years,
fully to maintain this high moral tone. But the fact
that it was maintained so bing as the operatives were
of pure New England birth does the highest honor
to the founders of our great manufactories.
The managers of our mills have sometimes found
it impossible to employ a number of American girls
sufficient for the demands for help. And so the for-
eigner began to be employed. But when the foreign
girl came, the Yankee girl departed. At the present
time a Yankee girl, born and bred among the New
England hills, is rarely seen in our mills.
We come now to the introduction of cotton manu-
facture in the city of Lowell. The insulHciency of
the water-power in Waltham demanded that a new
site should be sought where cotton-manufacturing
might be conducted on a magnificent scale. It is a
very interesting fact that the history of the selection
of the spot on which Lowell stands for that site is
minutely -known. The Rev. Dr. Edson, first rector
of St. Anne's Church, was fully acquainted with all
the facts, and in 1843 he kindly wrote them out for
preservation in the archives of the " Old Residents'
Historical Association." I can give but a brief ab-
stract of his interesting narrative.
j The proprietors of the Boston Manufacturing Com-
! pany at Waltham, anxious to extend their profitable
operations, in the winter of l.'>:.'l-2, were in search of
a site for erecting new mills. In tlii> search Mr.
Paul Moody, who was in their em|>loy at Waltham,
• became interested. On one occasion Mr. Moody took
Ills wife and daughter in his chaise, and went to
Bradford, M;\ss., for the purpo.se of visiting two of bis
children who were in Bradfonl .Academy, and also to
meet other gentlemen to examine water privileges in
the vicinity of that town. The day was rainy, and
I the gentlemen did not appear. The next day, with
I his family, he roile to .\mesbuiy, where he met his
I old xssociate. Mr. Ezra Worthen, who, when he
! learned the object of his search, said: "Why don't
you go up to Pawtucket F'alls'? There is a power
' there worth ten times as much as you will find any-
1 where else." Mr. Moody and Mr. Worthen went up
; to P.awtucket, examining Hunt's Falls on their way.
i and, taking dinner at the tavern of Mr. Jonathan
Tyler. Pawtucket Falls were examined, and they re-
turned to their res|)eotive homes.
I Jlr. Moody reported his observations to Mr. .lack-
' son, then in charge of the mills at Waltham, and Mr.
I Thomas M. Clark, of Newburyport, father of Bishop
I Clark, of Rhode Island, w.aa engaged to buy up the
shares of the proprietors of the locks and canals on
Merrimack River. These shares were purchased at
half their original cost, their value being very much
reduced on account of the construction of the Mid-
dlesex Canal. Several farms near the falls were also
purchased .at low r.ates.
Mr. Clark was selected as the best agent for the
transaction of this important business, in which
much prudence and some secrecy were demanded,
because in the construction of the canal, many years
before, he had held a responsible position, and was
well acquainted with all the parties. We have the
authority of Bishop Clark for stating that when his
father appeared among the farmers to purchase their
farms, some supposed that he was intending to start
up an enormous tannery, while others judged him to
be insane.
^t is interesting to recall the locations of the farms
LOWELL.
13
purchased by Mr. Clark. These farms were as fol-
lows: Nalhan Tyler's farm of forty acres, between
Merrimack Street and Pawtucket Canal, reaching
west nearly U> Dutton Street, and east as far as the
Massachusetts Mills; Josiah Fletchers farm of sixty
acres, lying between Merrimack Street and Merri-
mack River; the Cheever farm, lying above the Law-
rence Corporation ; Mrs. Warren's farm, lying be-
tween Central Street and Concord River, reaching
north as far as Pawtucket Canal, and south as far as
Richmond's Mills; Joseph Fletcher't. farm of about
100 acres, bounded on the north by Pawtucket Canal,
and on the east by Central Street. The farms con-
tained about 400 acres, and the average price paid
per acre was about SIOO. The entire purchase re-
quired about s40,00O. The united cost ol' the canal
and farms was about !S100,000.
To show the rapid increase in the value of these
farms, I need only mention that nine-tenths of the
Cheever farm were sold at eighteen dollars per acre,
but the sale of the other tenth being necessarily de-
ferred on account of the insolvency and sudden death
of the owner, this tenth when sold brought more than
^720 per acre.
And here let us pause lor a moment and briefly
trace th.' history of that most important i>arl of the
land described above, which \\e> between the Merri-
mac River and the Pawtucket Ciinal, and on whicli
now stand most of the great manufactories of the city.
.\bout lU.5o, at the solicitation of tlie .\postl<
Eliot, it was granted by llie State of Massachusetts tn
the Pawtucket Indians, who had erected their wig-
watus in great numbers upon it. and had, to some ex-
tent, cultivated the soli. In li;-<i', it wassold by tiie
Indians to Colonel .louatlian Tyugand Major Tb<)ma^
Henchman, the former of wbom resided near Wicasuck
Island, iu the Merriunic, wbicli now Iteloii-s t<i tlie
town of Tvngsboni'; til-' latter was an intluential man
among the early settlers of Clielmsford. These gentle-
men soon sold the land to torty lour citizens of (.'lielms-
ford. The above-naine<l owners arf by no means the
only proprietors of this interesting tract «f land. It
was at one time the property of Ensign William
Fletcher, one of the mutsl important of the early set-
tlers of Chehnsfi.rd. In the year 1688 it wac by two
Indians — J<din .Nabersha and Samuel Nabersba—
conveyed bv deed to .losiab Richardson, an ancestor
of the well-known attorneys-at-law of the same name,
now members of the Lowell bar. This deed is re-
corded at the registry in East Cambridge, and reads as
follows :
•■TlliK present imlfnlure wilnenselh an usreenienl l.el\reen Ji«ial.
Ki. barJeim, SeDr., of llitjlnnrunl, in llie C^.iinry uf Middlews, in New
Englalul, on yt- one |wrl, hihI .ioliu .Ne«lierl.;i, .I.»<-|.li Li'"- "nJ .Samu.l
.NMllert..!, of W..nms3erk, «c, f.ir ye lovi- we l-ar for ye Iwforesai.l Jo-
fiali, liave letl unto liini one liiircell of ian.l lyinc at ye nioutl. of I'.pn-
ronl river »nJ p.inly mum MerriniH.k Kiver, on ye 6.mtl, side of aaiil
River ; westerly tip.n, ye UiIlIi. being ye bounds of ye land whicli we,
ye Kiid Indians, sould tu :ilr. Tynge .md Mr. Henelinian : bomiIi by ye
little llro..ke ealK-d Speenn Br.iuke, all winch land we. ye said Indians
above uanie.l, have lelt nuto the above said JoHali for the space of One
Tbounnd and one. VMre to him, his heirs, execiiton, adminiBtratoreand
asBictiR lo u»e and improve as he, ye said .losiah, or his heirea, adminis
ti-Hlors or aMignr. shall see cause. For which he, ye said Josiah, is lo
pay al ye terms and one lobiicco pipe, if it be demanded. In vritne«
hereunto, this inih of .lanuary, in ye year of our Lord one tboawndsix
hundred eighty and eight.
".loHN JiEfltiEBBA [X] his mark.
"SABirEL Nesheeba [X] his mark."
The indolent and improvident Indians were wont
to dispose of their lands very readily and at a low
price to their enterprising white neighbors. On ac-
count of probable transactions, which have not been
recorded, the above account does not admit of an easy
and satisfactory explanation. There is, therefore, lit-
tle cause for apprehension that the descendants of
" ye said Josiah," now residents of Lowell and mem-
bers of the legal fraternity, will, upon the strength of
the above deed, deem it wise to lay claim to the vast
possessions of all the great manufacturing corpora-
tions of the city.
The site selected for a new manufacturing enter-
prise was remarkably adapted to the full development
of the designs of its far-seeing projectors. The fall of
thirty feet in one of the largest of American rivers
was at the time believed to aflbrd a supply of power
almost inexhaustible, the river having a water-shed
of 4000 sipiarf miles. The flattering success of their
manufacturing establishment at Waltham filled them
with buoyant hope of still greater success on the
banks of the Merrimack. They went promptly to
the work. First a dam is thrown across the Merri-
mack at Pawtucket Falls, and the Pawtucket Canal is
made wider and deeper. The work of digging and
blastinir nccupied '-Od men. The canal, when com-
pleted, wa> supposed to be capable of supplying
power for tifiy mills.
Thr Mi;ui;iM.\'K M.\sfrA(Ttu:iN(i Company,
the lirst of the great manufacturing companies of
Lowell, was incorporated February 0, 1822. The
persons named in the bill as forming the company
were Kirk Boott, William Applcton, John W. Bootl
and Fbene/'.er Appleton. The capital was ^000,000.
The company promptly began the work of construct-
ing their lirst mill in the spring of the same year.
Mr. Boott, as agent, comes upon the scene in April.
Under his energetic command the work moves on
apace. On September 1st, of the next year, the first
mill is completed ; water is let into the canal and the
wheel started.
Of this canal I ought to say that it was a branch of
the Pawtucket Canal and was constructed by the
Merrimack Company after purchasing the Pawtucket
Canal. Its course is near Dutton Street. Other
branches have been constructed as new mills have
needed them.
Mr. Ezra Worthen comes as superintendent of the
mills near the time of Mr. Boott's arrival. He en-
tered with energy aud zeal upou his new work.
While actively pushing forward the enterprise he
14
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
falls dead in the presence of his workmen. He had
served only two years.
Mr. Worthen's successor, as superintendent, was
Warren Colburn, who had already, at Waltham, had
experience in the management of mills. Mr. Col-
burn was born at Dedham 179.3, and graduated at
Harvard College at the age of twenty-seven years.
From the interest in education which he acquired
while a teacher in Bo.ston he endeavored to improve
upon the text-books in arithmetic then in use by
publishing the Intellectual Arithmetic. The title
" Intellectual " was very properly given to the work,
because throughout the work fixed rules and formul.T
are studiously avoided, and a direct appeal is con-
stantly made to the intetlert and reason of the pupil.
This, together with other school-books published by
him, gave him a high reputation outside his work as
a manufacturer, and throughout his life he took a
deep interest in the cause of popular education. He
delivered public lectures and often served on the
Lowell School Committee. To him the schools of
our city are greatly indebted for their efficiency and
excellence. Mr. Colburn died September 13, IS.S.S,
;it the age of forty years.
The superintendents of the Merrimack .Mills have
been a.s follows : Ezra Worthen, from 1822 to 1S24;
Warren Colburn, 1824 to 1k;',.3; .lohn Clark, 18?.3 to
1848; Emory Washburn, 1848 to 1849; Edmund
Le Breton, 1849 to LS'iO; Isaac Hinckley, IS'iO to
186(5; .lohn C Palfrey, l.%6 to 1874; and Joseph
S. Ludlam from 1874 to the present time.
Pris'T Works. — We are told by Nathan Appleton
that in coming to Lowell it wiis the purpose of him-
self and Mr. Jackson to print calicoes as well as to
manufacture cotton cloth.
The work of printing calicoes by the ^lerrimack
Company began in the autumn of 1824 undpr the
supervision of Mr. Allan Poll')ck. .U'ter two years
Mr. Pollock resigned his position while the print-
works were not yet completed. In 1826, in order ^o
perfect the work of calico printing, .Mr. Boott went to
England to employ ihe needed engravers. Mr. John
D. Prince, an Englishman of high reputation for
skill in this art, was invited to come to Lowell, and
having resigned his position in Manchester, lie as-
sumed the superintendence of the Merrimack Print
AVorks.
Mr. Prince was paid a very liberal salary for as-
suming a position of very high responsibility, and
well did he meet the high expectations formed of
him. He filled the position for twenty-nihe years,
and then retired upon an annuity of $2000. He was
a true Englishman in life and manners, a man of
generous hospitality and of exemplary fidelity. He
died January 5, 1860, at the age of eighty years, leav-
ing to his friends the grateful memory of his social
virtues and to the poor the honor of being a noble,
cheerful giver.
In 1855 Henry Burrows succeeded Mr. Priuce as
superintendent of the print works. Mr. Burrows was
succeeded in turn by James Duckworth (1878); Robert
Leatham (1882); Joseph Leatham (1885); and by
the present incumbent, John J. Hart (1887).
The history of the Merrimack Company will be
more fully recorded in the appropriate place, when
we come to give an account of the other manufactur-
ing companies of the city, but so much of it as has
already been given .seemed ."o intimately connected
with the history of the city itself, that it could hardly
be omitted.
LoCK.s AND CANAL.S COMPANY. — When the Mer-
rimack Manufacturing Company purchased all the
jhares of the old Locks and Canals Company in 1822
they secured all the rights and privileges granted by
the charter to the old company in 1702. After con-
ducting the aflairs both of the new manufacturing
company and of the old Locks and Canals Company
its of one consolidated company for more than two
years, it appeared to be better to re-establish the
Locks and Canals Company, giving into its jurisdic-
tion all lands and water-power belonging to the com-
pany and retaining only the manufacturing opera-
tions. Tlii.-s was done on February 28, 1825, under a
-pecial act of the Legislature permitting it, and down
to the present time the company exists under the
charter of 1702.
The following have been the agents of this com-
pany since its reorganization : Kirk Boott, from 1>*22
to l.-<37 ; Joseph Tilden, from 1837 to 183.H; William
Boott, from 1838 to 1845; .Tames B. Francis, from
1845 to 1.885; .lames Francis, from lS.s,5 to the pres-
ent time, .lames B. Francis, on account of his long
service, deserves special notice.
.lA^rES BuHENf) Fr.A.Nti.s was born in ."southleigh,
(Xxfonlshire, England, .May 18, 1815. His father was
superintendent of Dutfryn, Llynwi and Forth Cawl
Railway in South Wales. The son was thus most
fortunately situateil for acquiring an early knowledge
of the work of an engineer, which was to occupy his
future life. When tburteen years of age he was em-
ployed upon the harbor-works of Forth Cawl, and,
subsequently, upon the Grand Western Canal.
At the age of eighteen years he came to America,
landing at New York .\pril 11, 1833. Fortune fav-
ored him ; tor at that time several of the earliest
-American railroads called for the services of men ot
his profession. He very soon found employment un-
der George W. Whistler, the distinguished engineer,
in the surveys of the New York, Providence and
Boston Railroad.
In the next year, Mr. Whistler having been em-
ployed to build the locomoti\es for the Boston and
Lowell Railroad, and to construct extensive hydraulic
works for the proprietors of locks and canals on the
Merrimack River, Mr. Francis accompanied him to
Lowell, and became associated with him in these en-
terprises.
When Mr. Whistler left Lowell, in 1837, Mr. Fran-
/s. =^
A-t-t^ C^-^'
LOWELL.
15
cig was appointed by the Proprietors of Locks and
CaDals as chief engineer. In 1845 he was chosen
agent also of the company. These offices he held
until 1884, when, after a service of fifty years, he
tendered his resignation. The company, however,
desiring to retain his services, appointed him to the
newly-created office of consulting engineer, and hi^
son. Colonel James Francis, was chosen his suc-
cessor as agent and engineer.
In his new position Mr. Fnincis is the consulting
engineer in all important worlvs connected with the
hydraulic improvements of Lowell, and where great
interests are at stake in other and distant parts of the
country, his professional services are frequently de-
manded.
Our limited space will permit only a briel
notice of Mr. Francis' works as a civil engineer.
During his long period of service he had the manage-
ment of all the water-power in Lowell, demanding
the important and delicate work of making an equita-
lile distril)Uti(in of this power amonir the various
manufacluring companies. Tlii.s work required many
original hydraulii- exjteriinents on a scalf tlial had
hitherto never been atteni]iled. The re.'sults of these
e.xperiments were i>ul)lislied in the profe.*sional world
in "Lowell Hydraulic Experiments,'" in IS-Vj. Thi."
wiirk, wliicli was republished in ISilS and l^'si!. is "a
recognized authority amonLr hydraulic engineers, both
in .Vmerica and in Europe.' lie has also jiuMished
"The .Strength of Cast-iron C^olumns," and many
other contributions to technical literature.
" Mr. Francis," says an able writer upon engineer-
ing, "may lie resarded as the founder nf a new school
of hvdraulic engineers by the inauguration of a sys-
tem of experimental research, which, through his
patient and careful study, has reached a degree of
perlcction before unknown. His experiments are
marked by exactness iTnin their very inception.''
There are in Lowell two monuments of his fore-
sight and skill which deserve to be recorded. The
first is the Northern Canal, constructed in 184ii, a
work of such massive strength and such perfection of
execution, that it cannot fail to command admira-
tion for ages to come. The second is what is known
as the " (iuard Locks. ' on I'awtucket Canal, con-
structed for the [lurpose of saving the city from in-
undation in case of a very high freshet upon the
Merrimack. Mr. Frencis having learned that in 1785
there had been a freshet in which the water rose
thirteen and a half feet above the lop of the dam at
the mouth of the Tawtucket Canal, and foreseeing
that should another similar freshet occur, the guard
locks, then existing, would inevitably give way, and
the city be inundated, constructed a gate and walls
which no freshet could sweep away. This work,
completed in 18">0, was a model of scitntific skill.
But to the casual observer who, on a fair day, viewed
the quiet waters of the canal, it seemed an unneces-
sary structure. The wags even styled it " Francis'
folly." But in two years (1862) there came a freshet
like that of 1785. The old works were swept away,
but the massive gate of Mr. Francis was now, for the
first time, dropped to its place and the city was
safe.
Though in his seventy-fifth year, Mr. Francis is
still pursuing the active duties of his profession.
During his past life he has often been honored with
municipal office. He was elected a member of the
American Society of Civil Engineers November 5,
1852, and was the president of that society from No-
vember 3, 1880, until January 18,1882.
The first sale of water-power by this compRny was
made to the Hamilton Manufacturing Company,
which was incorporated in 1825, with a capital of
$600,000.
The following facts in regard to the Locks and
Canals Company, I quote from Mr. Cowley :
*' For IweDtj- years the buoinoes of lliis company was to furDieh laud
& wnter-power, and build niilJR A machinen" for the variolic uiaoufac-
turiDg conipuDies. Tliey bave nerer eugnF^ed in manufacturing opera*
I tions. Tbev kept in operation tuo niacbiue fibups, a foundry A a bhw-
■ mill until 1845, Mben the Lowell Mncliine-Shupwaa incor]K>rated. Tbey
i C'HiBtructed all mill cauale to Rupply the various cumpaotee with «ater-
pi'wer, and erected nioel of the millB and the b<iardiDg hotises attached
to them. Tbey eniplovetl constantly from h\e to twelve hundred men,
j and built two hundred 1 fifty thousand dollan-' north of niKchinery per
annum. Tlieil' Bloi k waj. long the best of which Lowell could iMjast, he-
mp worth thrice and even four timer* its par value. Their preeeut Iniii-
; neBf Jb t" sufierintend the line of the water-power which ia leased hv them
! to the fieveral couipanieb. Their stuck 18 held by thew companies In tbe
same proi'ortion In which they hold tbe water.iwwor."
I In lS4l3 this company and the Essex Company, of
' Lawrence, by acts of the Legislatures of j\Iussflchu-
I setts and New Hampshire, became joint owners of the
extensive water-power afibrded by Lake Winnipiseo-
i gee, New Hampshire. This property was, in 1889,
' transferred by sale to a syndicate of gentlemen,
mostly manufacturers, in the State of New Hamp-
shire.
The most important of the works of the Locks and
Canals Company has been its construction of the
Northern Caaal, said to be the greatest work of its
kind in the United States. This canal was constructed
in 1840 and 1847, under the supervision of James B.
Francis as chief engineer. "The canal cost $530,-
000, employing in its construction 700 to 1000 persons,
and using 12,000 barrels of cement." It is 100 feet
wide and 15 feet deep, and about one mile in iength.
The whole work is one of such massive strength and
solidity, a great portion of it being cut through solid
rock, that, like very few of modern works, it will stand
unchanged in the far distant ages of the future. And
not for solidity and strength alone is it worthy of our
admiration, but its green banks, adorned with double
colonnades of trees and its attractive promenades,
with the waters of the Merrimack dashing down the
falls in close and full view, afford to the eye a very
pleasing prospect, and display t^i tbe. visitor a pictur-
esque scene of no ordinary beautj*.
The design of this canal is to aflbrd a fuller head of
16
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
water for the mills than the old canal could supply.
The multiplicity of mills demanded a greater supply
than the old canal could aSbrd.
Before coming in our history to the incorporation
of the town of Lowell, let us gather up a few facts of
a somewhat miscellaneous character.
In 1822 a regular line of stages was established be-
tween East Chelmsford and Boston.
In 1824 the Chelmsford Courier, a weekly paper,
was started in Middlesex Village.
The United States post-office was established
in East Chelmsford (now Lowell) on May 13, 1824,
with Mr. Jonathan C. Morrill as postmaster.
On July 4, 1825, the first of the military companies
of our city was formed, and took the name of Mechan-
ics' Phalanx. Following this wsa the organization of
the City Guards, in 1841, the Watson Light Guards
in 1851, the Lawrence Cadets in 1855. But the mili-
tary history of our city will appear in another place.
On July 4, 1825, the anniversary of .Vmericau Inde-
pendence was celebrated, the orator being Rev. Ber-
nard Whitman, of Chelmsford, a public dinner being
served at the Stone House, near Pantucket Falls. I
give the names of the Fourth of July orators in Low-
ell from that date to the pr&sent, following Mr. t_'ow-
ley down to 1866.
They were Bernard Whitman, in 1825; Samuel B.
Walcott, in 1826 ; Elisha Bartlett, in 1828 ; Dr. l.*rael
Hildreth, in 1821>; Edward Everett, in 183" ; John
P. Robinson, in 1831 ; Thomas J. Cireenwood, in
1832; Thomas Hopkinson, in 1834; Rev. K. W.
Freeman, in 1835; Rev. Dr. Blanehard, in IS-'iii ;
Rev. Thomas F. Norris and John C. Park, in 1841 :
Rev. John Moore, in 1H47 ; Dr. Elisha Bartlett, in
1848; Rev. Joseph H. Towne, in 1851: Kev. Mat-
thew Hale Smith, in 1852; .lunathaii Kimball, in
1853; Rev. Augustus Woodbury, in 1855; Dr.
Charles X. Phelps, in I860; (leo. .V. Boulwell. in
1861 ; Alexander H. Bullock, in 1865.
On July 4, 1867, the statue of" Victory " in Monu-
ment Square was unveiled, and, on that occasion, ad-
dresses were given by Mayor Geo. F. Richardson,
Judge Thomas Russell, Gen. A. B. Underwood, (Jen.
Wra. Cogswell, Hon. John A. Goodwin and Dr. J. C.
Ayer, who presented the statue to the city. Ten
years later, on July 4, 1878, Hon. F. T. Greenhalge
delivered an oration, and, on July 4, 18711, the orator
was Geo. F. Lawton, I3sq. Ten years later, on .lulv
4, 1889, an oration was delivered in Huntington Hall
by Hon. Henry Cabot Lodge.
The change which took jilace immediately after
the war, in regard to celebrating the 4lh of July, is
very remarkable. The war seemed to have changed.
not the patriotism, but the popular taste of our citi-
zens. Our celebrations of the 4th have become spec-
tacular. Processions, regettaa, games and sports havt-
supplemented everything of an intellectual nature.
This, however, may be alleged in behalf of these
popular attractions, ;hat, while an oration can be
heard by only a few hundred, these can be enjoyed
by fifty thousand.
John .Vdams, the most eloquent advocate of the
Declaration of Independence in the Continental
Congress, on the day after that immortal proclama-
tion was passed, wrote to his wife these well-known
words in respect to the future celebration of that
day: "It ought to be solemnized with pomps, shows,
games, sports, guns, bells, bon-fires and illuminations
from this time forward forever.'' This prophetic de-
claration would seem to sanction the present methods
of celebrating the day. .\nd yet to every patriotic
man who seriously reHects upon the dangers which
have always threatened human liberty and free insti-
tutions tliere is reason for sober thought even on the
4th of July. Such .sober thought the people of Low-
ell once had when, on the eve of the celebration of
the day in 1881, the startling message came that an
assassin's bullet had robbed the Republic of its chief
magistrate.
CHAPTER II.
LO WEI. I.- I I'onlinued).
TIIF. luWN ()|- I.fiW F.LL.
The t<Mvn of Lctwell was incorporated March 1.
1826. For four years after the work on the Merri-
mack Mills was begun the village retained the name
oC Ea'.t Clielmsford. The number of iuliabitant.s in
this village had risen from '.'(lO, in 182", to 23"", in
[All',, more (ban eleven-lbld. These twenty-three
huiidrc'd people were lonijielled to go four miles — to
Clielmsford ('ciitre — to attend town-meetings and
transact other municipal business. The two villages
hail no common business relations and nu social sym-
|>athies. The ta.ves raised upon the valuable proper-
ty of the mills could be claimetl and expeniled by the
town of ( 'belnislbrd. The schools of the new village
were under the managenii-iit ot the towu. Various
motives conspired to make it the desire of East
Chelmsford to become a town by itself. This desire
wius gratified by its success before the Legislature in
obtaining an act of incorporation.
It is interesting to be able to know the precise
way in which the new town received the name of
" Lowell."
It seems that Derby, in England, a parliamentary
borough and manufacturing town, had, from early as-
.sociation or other cause, been suggested to the mind
of Mr. Boott as a fitting name for the new town. He
had also thought of the claims of Francis C. Lowell
to the honor of giving its name. When the act of
incorporation was completed, with the exception of
giving a name, Mr. Xathan Appleton met Mr. Boott
and questioned him in regard to filling tlie blank
with an appropriate name. Mr. Boott declared that
LOWELL.
17
he considered the question narrowed down to two,
"Lowell" or "Derby," to which Mr. Appieton re-
plied, " Then Lowell by all means," and Lowell it was.
Historic Classification. — Lowell having now
become an incorporated township with a rapidly
increasing population, and with rapidly multiplying
industrial, ecclesiastical and educational institutions,
it becomes necessary at this point, in order that the
reader may follow an unbroken and logically con-
nected narrative, to classify the various subjects of
its history, and in succession treat each subject by
itself. The remaining history of Lowell will there-
fore be considered under the following beads:
I. Annals of Lowell. — This will embrace, in a some-
what statistical form, the transactions, events and
facts, very briefly stated, which will give to the reader
a general idea of the city's growth and condition from
year to year, leaving for future consideration a more
complete description of the institutions of the city,
each in its appropriate class.
2. The political history of Lowell, with sketches of the
lives of its Mayors.
3. The Mmufactures of Lowell.
4. Banks and Insurance Companies.
5. Military History.
6. The Press.
1. Schools.
8. Churches. ,
9. Societies and Clubs.
10. Physicians.
II. Libraries and Literature.
ASXALS OF LOWELr..
1826. The year 182G was Lowell's first municipal
year. The legislative act incorporating the town was
signed by Gov. Lincoln March 1, 1826, and on March
2d, Joseph Locke, Esq., a justice of the peace, issued a
warrant to Kirk Boott to call a meeting of the citizens
on March Cth, to take the proper measures relative to
the establishment of a town government. The meeting
was called at " Balch & Coburn's tavern," now well-
known as the "Stone-house" near Pawtucket Falls.
There being no public hail, town-meetings' were called,
in those early days at this tavern or at Fryes tavern,
which stood on ihe site of the American House.
It is interesting to notice the character and stand-
ing of the men whom the new town tirst honored
with its offices. The moderator of this town-meeting
was Kirk Boott. The School Committee elected were :
Theodore Edson, Warren Colburn, Samuel Batchel-
der, John O. Green, Elisha Huntington, all of whom,
with the exception of Mr. Batchelder, had received a
college education and were men of great moral and
intellectual worth. None of them, however, gained
a more enviable name than Mr. Batchelder, a man of
the highest inventive genius, who lived to be nearly
ninety-five years of age, and of whom it was said by
high authority that "his name should be placed
among those of eminent Americans." I will not
even forbear to mention also the name of the town
clerk, Samuel A. Coburn, whose town records, still
preserved in the office cf our city clerk, are a model
for the imitation of all scribes in the ages to come.
At the town-meeting held May 8, 182G, Nathaniel
Wright, afterwards mayor of the city, was elected the
first representative of the town in the State Legisla-
ture, and Nathaniel Wright, Samuel Batchelder and
O. M. Whipple were chosen as selectmen.
The Merrimack Company had now (1826) been en-
gaged in the manufacture of cotton goods for three
years, and had three mills in operation.
The Hamilton Company had been chartered in the
preceding year with a capital of $600,000. The Mer-
rimack Print Works had been started in 1824.
The population of the town was about 2500.
St. Anne's Church had been consecrated in the
preceding year.
The First Baptist Church and the First Congrega-
tional Church were organized in this year.
A daily line of stages to Boston was established in
April.
The only bridge acrois the Merrimack had been
the Pawtucket Bridge, constructed in 1792, but in
December of this year the Central Bridge was opened
to travel.
The Middlesex Mechanics' Association had been
incorporated in the preceding year.
The town wa? divided in 1826 into five school dis-
tricts : the first district school house being on the site
of the present Green school-house; the second at
Pawtucket Fall?, near the hospital; the third near
the pound on Chelmsford Street; the fourth — the
" Eed School-house" — near Hale's Mills, and the fifth
on Central Street, south of Hurd Street.
At the gubernatorial election in April the number
of votes cast by the citizens of the new town was 162.
Governor Lincoln, the Whig candidate, had a plurality
of 42 votes and a majority of 28. But in future years
the Whig plurality became less decided.
Kurd's woolen factory was burned down.
1827. — Nathaniel Wright was re-elected to repre-
sent the town in the General Court.
The selectmen were Nathaniel Wright, Joshua
Swan, Henry Coburn.
A daily mail between Lowell and Boston was es-
tablished.
The first Savings Bank was established by the
Merrimack Corporation for the express benefit of the
operators, but it ceased to exist after about two years.
First Universalist Society formed.
1828. The representatives to the General Court
were: Nathaniel Wright and Elisha Ford. The se-
lectmen were: Nathaniel Wright, Joshua Swan,
Artemas Young.
In this year the Appieton Company was incor-
porated with a capital of $600,000, and the Lowell
Company with a capital of $900,000.
The population of Lowell in 1828 was 3532.
18
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
In 1828 coal was introduced as a fuel in the town of
Lowell by Mr. William Kittredge.
William Kittredge was born in Newburyport,
Mass., June 11, 1810, and died at hia home ou East
Merrimack Street, Lowell, Nov. 28, 18S6, at the age of
seventy-six years. He was the son of Joseph Kitt-
redge, of Newburyport, and belonged to a family of
fourteen children, all of whom, save one, lived to the
age of maturity. Of the seven sons one received a
liberal education and became a clergyman, while
most of them were well-known men of ability and
integrity in the business world.
Mr. Kittredge's early education in the schools was
limited, but he was throughout hia life a careful ob-
server of the events of his time and a constant and
thoughtful reader of the history of all times. When
he was twelve years of age the family removed to
Dracut, Ma?s., where for several years they lived upon
a farm. When fifteen years of age, in 1825, Mr.
Kittredge came to Lowell and, as an apprentice to his
oldest brother, J. G. Kittredge, he learned the black-
smith's trade. Shortly before he became of legal age
he formed a partnership with this brother, in conduct-
ing an iron-store, a blacksmith-shop and a wood -yard.
A most interesting event in the early years of Mr.
Kittredge's business experience in Lowell was the in-
troduction into the city of coal as fuel. In 1828, when
he was eighteen years of age, while engaged in shoe-
ing a hor^e for S. H. Maun, Esq., a well known attor-
ney-at-law, lie was told by the lawyer that he had re-
cently seen upon a wharf in Boston some " black
rockn" which were dug from the earth and which
would burn. He advised Mr. Kittredge to procure a
quantity of this new fuel, and agreed to purchase of
him a portion of it. Accordingly two tons were pur-
chased by Mr. Kittredge on his individual account, at
the price of S20 per ton. To transport it to Lowell in a
baggage-wagon was an additional expense of S-1 per
ton. There were at hand no stoves or grates designed
for burning coal, and it was in the broad fire-place in
the lawyer's otfice that the first attempt was made to
burn the " black rocks" in Lowell. A grate was ex-
temporized, a roaring fire of wood was started and
upon it was thrown the coal in huge lumps. The
experiment failed. At length, after hours of labor,
the coal at some one's suggestion having been broken
up into about two bushels of small pieces, the " rocks"
began to glow. The fire waxed hotter and hotter.
The paint of the room began to blister. Somebody
gave the alarm of fire. Water was poured on, but
the fire still raged. The room was filled with steam,
and the alarmed and curious citizens gathered around
the office, some even venturing inside to view the
novel scene. The first load of coal is said to have
supplied the town of Lowell for nearly three years.
Slowly, however, coal came into use as a fuel. It
was first brought from Boston in barges, then by the
Middlesex Canal, and after 1835 by railroads. The
first shipment of coal by rail to Lowell for the
trade, about 1835, was consigned to Wm. Kittredge.
Upon the close of Mr. Kittredge's co-partnership
with his brother, about 1842, he conducted a large and
successful business in wood and coal. The coal busi-
ness was conducted by him individually except about
two years (1845—46), when he was in partnership
with Mr. Nathan R. Thayer, his wife's brother.
In 1842 he purchased of the Locks and Canals
Company land lying between Market and Middle
Streets, to which, at considerable cost and trouble to
himself, in 1856, he procured a branch track from
the location of the Boston and Lowell Railroad,
which track is to tlii.s date in constant use. His
yard now contained about 13,000 square feet, with a
street front of about 127 feet, and a dumping capacity
of upwards of 3000 tons of coal. Up to the clo.-e of
his long life he continued his ever-increasing and very
successful trade. Few of Lowell's men of busir.es^s
have been so long and so familiarly known. He was
the city's pioneer in his line of trade, and he has left
to those who follow him a record for integrity and
honor well worthy of their imitation.
Mr. Kittredge took an active and generous interest
in the welfare of the city of Lowell. At the time of
his death he was a trustee of the Central Savings
Bank and a director of the ilerchants' National
Bank. Though not a politician, he was three times
elected a member of the City Council of Lowell.
For a period of nearly thirty years he was a promi-
nent and honored member of the Kirk Street Church,
of which he was one of the founders.
Mr. Kittredge posse^sed a sympathetic and benev-
olent nature. In his death many a poor family lost
a faithful friend. He was a man of simple tastes, of
remarkable self-control and of a very genial «nd
buoyant spirit. The following words respecting him
from the pen of the Rev. C. A. Dickinson, his pastor,
contain much of truth as well as beauty : " We have
all been impressed with the quiet vein of humor
which seemed to flow through his whole life, like a
rippling rivulet through a quiet meadow, — new
bursting out into an occasional witticism, and now
disclosing itself only in the sparkling eye and the
beaming countenance; yet giving to the whole man
an indescribable something which made him a stand-
ing rebuke and protest against moroseuess and melan-
choly.'' In 1842 Mr. Kittredge married Nancy Bigelow
Thayer, daughter of Nathan Thayer, of Hollis, N. H.,
who survived him for two years. His children were :
(1) Francis William, who was born in 1S43, gradu-
ated from Yale College, and is now a successful at-
torney-at-law in Boston ; (2) Henry Bigelow, who
was born in 1844, and died in 1861; (3) Elltu Fra-
nia, who was born in 1847, and is the wife of Prescott
C. Gates, Esq., of Lowell ; (4) Anna Maria, who was
born in 1850, and is the wife of Dr. Charles T. Clif-
ford, of Lowell.
The Lowell Bank was incorporated with a capital
of 5=200,000.
//Tc^/c-i^i^pp^
/t-^^^£.^>^^
LOWELL.
19
Moses Hale died io 1828, at the age of sixty-three
years. He was bora in West Newbury, September,
176o. He came to East Chelmsford (now Lowell) in
1790, and built a mill on River Meadow Brojk (now
called Hale's Brook), for the purpose of fulling, dye-
ing and dressing cloth. The building now stands.
Other and far more extensive buildings were added-
In subsequent years Mr. Hale became interested in
a great variety of enterprises, among which were
dressing cloth, carding wool, grinding grain, sawing
lumber and manufacturing gunpowder. So extensive
were these works that in 1818 they were visited by
Hon. John Brooks, the Governor of the State. On
this occasion the Governor was escorted by the
Chelmsford Cavalry.
1829. — The representatives to the General Court
were: John P. Robinson and J. S. C. Knowlton.
The selectmen were: Nathaniel Wright, Joshua
Swan, Artemas Young.
In this year the Merrimack Lodge of Odd Fellows
was instituted.
In this year one of the mills of the Merrimack
Company was burned. The Lowell Institution for
Savings was incorporated. The town appropriated
SIOOO to purchase a fire-engine and hose. The town
voted to build a town-house.
Captain William Wyman was appointed postmaster
in 1829, and moved the post-office from Central Street
to the new Town Hali, now the City Government
Building.
The Middlesex Company was incorporated with a
capital of §500,000.
1830. The representatives to the General Court
were: Kirk Boott, Joshua Swan and John P. Robin-
son. The selectmen were: Nathaniel Wright, Joshua
Swan and Artemas Young. In this year the Middle-
sex Company was incorporated with a capital of Sl,-
000,000. The population of Lowell for 1830 was G477.
The Merrimack House was opened in 1830.
As early as 1829 such was the rapid increase in the
population of the town that the want of a convenient
hall for public meetings was seriously felt. In May
of that year a committee, which had been appointed
in reference to securing a new hall, reported that the
cost of erecting a suitable town building (the descrip-
tion of which was given) would be about S18,000.
By vote of the town a committee, consisting of Kirk
Boott, Paul Moody, Jonathan Tyler, Elisha Glidden
and Elisha Ford, was appointed to erect a town-house
at an expense not to exceed $18,000. The town-house
was erected in 1830 at a cost of about $19,000.
In popular language we may say that the City
Government Building, now occupied by our city offi-
cials, is the identical town-house of 1830. It was said
of the wandering palmer on returning from his pil-
grimage, in the days of knight-errantry, that
*'Tbe niotlier that Lini bnre
"Would scarcely know Uer 6od."
So the committee who, nearly sixty years ago,
erected the town-house for $19,000, could they come
back to earth again, would scarcely recognize its
identity. The bricks indeed remain, but the two
rows of short windows have given place to one row of
long ones. The hall in the second story haa disap-
peared; the long entry running through the building
parallel to Merrimack Street is no more ; the post-
office, very conveniently located on the farther side of
this entry, has long since begun its travels about the
city, and soon the comely house of which our fathers
were proud will sink into insignificance beside the
palatial edifice now to be erected.
1831. The representatives to the General Court
were Kirk Boott, Joshua Swan, J. P. Robinson, J. S.
C. Knowlton and Eliphalet Case. The selectmen
were Joshua Swan, Artemus Young and James Tyler.
In this year the Suffolk Manufacturing Company
was incorporated, with a capital of $600,000, and the
Tremont Mills, with a capital of $600,000. The
Lawrence Manufacturing Company also, with a capi-
tal of $1,500,000. To supply these three last-men-
tioned corporations with water the Suffolk and Wes-
tern Canals were cut.
The Railroad Bank was incorporated, and the
High School was opened in 1831.
July 7th. Paul Moody, one of the founders of
Lowell, died, at the age of 52 years. He is noticed on
another page.
1832. The representatives to the General Court
were : Ebenezer Applelon, Artemus Holden, O. M.
Whipple, Seth Ames, Maynard Bragg, William
Davidson, Willard Guild.
The selectmen were: Joshua Swan, Matthias
Parkhurst, Josiah Crosby, Benjamin Walker, Samuel
C. Oliver. In this year the Lowell Bleachery was
incorporated, with a capital of $50,000, and the Boott
Mills, with a capital of $1,200,000.
The population of Lowell in 1832 was 10,254. The
Lowell Mutual Fire Insurance Company was incor-
porated.
On Jan. 25th occurred the unique convivial celebra-
tion, by the Burns Club, of the seventy-third birthday
of Robert Burns. It was held at the Mansion House,
which then stood near Merrimack Street, on the site
of the present Massachusetts boarding-houses. The
feast was attended by nearly all the prominent citi-
zens of the town. The occasion was hilarious, not to
use a stronger term. The genial Alexander Wright,
a countryman of Burns and agent of the Carpel Cor-
poration, presided, and Peter Lawson, an intense
Scotchman, was toast-master. The table was graced
by the haggis, a favorite Scottish dish, whose ingredi-
ents are the finely-minced liver and lights of a calf
and a sheep, oat-meal, beef-suet, and salt and pepper,
the mixture being inclosed in a sheep's stomach and
boiled three or four hours. After a formal address
to the haggis by John Wright, brother of the presi-
dent, the repast began. Wine and songs and speeches
followed. Dr. Bartlett, Lowell's first mayor, made a
20
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
speech and recited Burns' " Highland Mary." " The
Banks of Doun " and " Duncan Gray " were sung.
John P. Robinson, Lowell's most learned and bril-
liant lawyer, spoke of Tam O'Shanter and his gray
mare Meg. The comic Perez Fuller gave an im-
promptu medley, in which were laughable allusions
to the invited guests.
While the president, in the " wee " morning hours,
was making his closing remarkx some demoralized
reveler rudely interrupted and struck up the song,
"O, Willie brewed a peck o' maut," iu which all hil-
ariously joined. Finally, in parting, all joined hands
and made the old Mansion House resound with " Auld
Lang Syne."
September 15, 1832, Judge Edward St. Loe Liver-
more died at the age of seventy years.
1833. The representatives to the General Court
were: S. A. Coburn, John P. Robinson, Cyril French,
Simon Adams, Jacob Robbins, J. L. Sheafe, Jes=e
Fox, Royal Southwick, Joseph Tyler, Jonathan
Spalding. The selectmen were: Matthias Parkhurst,
Joshua Swan, Benj. Walker, Elisha Huntington,
Samuel C. Oliver. The population of Lowell in 1S33
was 12,963. In this year occurred that long-protracted
and exciting canvass for Representative in Congress,
between Caleb Gushing, of Newburyport (Whig), and
Gayton P. Osgood, of Aodovtr (Democrat), the vote
of Lowell favoring Mr. Gushing by a ^nlall majority.
The Irish Benevolent Society was started. The sys-
tem of sewerage was begun.
Among the many men of talent whom the rapidly-
rising town attracted within its borders was the cele-
brated Wendell Phillips. On leaving the Law School
at Cambridge in 1833, he came to Lowell and spent
about one year in the otlice of Luther Lawrence and
Elisha Glidden, who were then ic partnership, but
he did not practice in Lowell after being admitted to
the bar. Mr. Phillips' sketoh of Lowell society at
that time, as quoted by Mr. Cowley, will be read with
interest :
" Lowell was then crowded with able men — well-
read lawyers and successful with a jury ; among them,
scholarly, eloquent, deeplyread in his profession, and
a genius, was John P. Robinson. The city was rich
in all that makes good society — amiable, beautiful,
and accomplished women, hospitable and amply able
to contribute their full share to interesting anil sug-
gestive conversation, — gentlemen of talent, energetic,
well-informed and giving a hearty welcome to the
best thought of the day. The changes that thirty
years have made in that circle would afford matter
for a history deeply iuteresiing and very largely
sad."
In May, 1833, occurred a sensation which deeply
moved and interested the people of New England and
especially the citizens of Lowell. It wiis the trial for
murder of the Rev. Ephraim K. Avery, of Bristol,
R. I., who, during the two preceding years, had been
the pastor of the Methodist Church worshiping iu the
chapel near the site of the Court-House. While in
Lowell Mr. Avery had formed a somewhat intimate
acquaintance with Miss Sarah Maria Cornell, a mem-
ber of his church. On leaving Lowell for Bristol, R.
I., Miss Cornell had followed him and found a resi-
dence in Tiverton, a neighboring town. On the night
of December 20, 1832, she was foully murdered. The
trial (at Newport) of Mr. A^ery, who was arraigned
for her murder, occupied twenty-eight days. The
celebrated Jeremiah Mason was employed as counsel
on the defence, and Mr. Avery was acquitted.
It is said that no other clergyman of the United
States had been tried on an indictment for murder.
Tnis fact, added to the other remarkable circum-
stances attending this atrocious crime, made the whole
affair one of absorbing interest and of an intensely
sensational nature.
September 13, 1833. Warren Colburn, agent of the
Merrimack Mills, died at the age of forty years. He
was greatly instrumental in establishing and sustain-
ing the public schools of the city.
Iu 1833 the Lowell Police Court was established
with Joseph Locke as standing justice.
Judge Locke was born in Fitzwilliam, X. H., April
8, 1772. He graduated from Dartmouth College at
the age of twenty-seven years. Having been admitted
to the bar, he began the practice of law iu Billerica
in 1802. For eight years he represented that town iu
the Legislature. He held many offices, among which
were those of Presidential elector and member of the
Governors Council. He came to Lowell in 1833, and
was, in that year, made first judge of the Police Court.
He served in that office thirteen years, resigning iu
184G, when he was seventy-four years of age. He was
a man of sound learning and humane and generous
heart. He died November 10, 1833, at the age of
eigDty-one years.
Upon the resignation of Judge Locke, in 1S4G,
Nathan Crosby was appointed his successor. Judge
Crosby was born in Sandwich, N. H., February 12,
1798. He graduated at Dartmouth College in 1820.
He came to Massachusetts iu 182G, aad practiced law
in Amesbury and in Newburyport. He devoted sev-
eral years to lecturing and laboring in promotion of
the cause of temperance. In 1843 he removed to Low-
ell, where he was employed by the Manufacturing
Companies in securing the right to control the waters
of lakes in New Hampshire, for the benefit of the mills
in seasons of drought.
As judge of the Police Court he bore himself with
that dignity, humanity, courtesy and patience which
well become a good judge. He was, iu every sphere
of life, a true Christian gentlemen. He died after
holding the office for thirty-niae years, on February
10, 1885, at the age of eighty-seven years.
On February 25, 1885, Samuel P. Hadley, who had
long been the clerk of the court, was appointed Judge
Crosby's successor. Judge Hadley was born in Mid-
dlesex Village (now a part of Lowell) October 22,
LOWELL.
21
1831. He was educated at Phillips Academy, Law-
rence Academy and the State Law School. He
studied law with Isaac S. Morse, of Lowell, and
A. C. Bradley, of New York City. On August 1,
1857, he was appointed clerk of the Police Court of
Lowell, and was promoted to be justice of the court in
February, 1880.
It is interesting to learn the number and character
of the cases brought before our Police Court. For the
year endin»r October 1, 1889, the number of cases was
4040. Of these 3034 were " liquor cases." Of the
remaining lOOG, more than one-half are case.s of as-
sault and battery, etc., which are traceable to the use
of intoxicating drinks, while there were only two or
three hundred traceable to other cau:<es.
The sessions of this court begin at ten o'clock on
every working-day. The salary of the judge is f 2300.
President Jackson's Visit. — Few events in the
liittory of Lowell have been attended with so much
eclat, and remembered by the citizens with so much
pride and pleasure, as the visit of President J?,ckson,
June 2G and 27, 1833. What made the Presidential
visit 80 remarkable and so worthy of Bj)ecial de-
scription, was the unique and noveland very aucreasful
attempt of the managers of the great manufactories
of Lowell to display upon the streets, in gorgeous
procession in honor of the chief magistrate of the
nation, the thousands of Yankee mill girls then in
their employ. When to this attraction a long and
charming array of the children of the public schools
was added, it is not strange that from all the country
round, men, women and children gathered to witness
the brilliant display.
The days of railroads had not come, and it required
four entire days to ride in a carriage from Washington
to New England. The Presidential party consisted
of President Jackson, Mr. Van Buren, Gea. Cass, Mr.
Woodbury and Mr. Donalson, the President's private
secretary. The President was in feeble health, having
recently had a severe attack of sickness while in
Boston. Men who had formed their opinion of the
personal appearance of the man from reading of his
dauntless courage and his iron will, were greatly
disappointed when their eyes first rested on their
ideal hero. Says 5Ir. Oilman, then editor of the
Cjskel: " The old gentleman appears as though he
was very feeble. He has the appearance of a very
aged man ; bis white hair and thin, pale features,
bespeak a life of trial and hardship. He was, not-
withstanding, very complacent .and dignified; yet,
while looking at him, it seemed as if a tear would
start instead of a smile. It was with a peculiar
melancholy that we regarded him. Such a contrast!
his aged countenance, his hoary head, bowing all
around, and his feeble motion, the throng of eager
and curious faces crowding to obtain a clear view, and
the loud shouts that from time to time rent the air,
seemed illy to harmonize."
The Presideutial party had visited Salem and had
tarried an hour at Andover, where they visited the
seminaries and partook of a collation. On coming
from Andover to Lowell they were met on Nesmith
Street, south of Andover Street, where a brief speech
of welcome was made. The militaryand a cavalcade
of citizens re.«ted on Nesmith and Andover Streets.
On Andover Street were the civic organizations and
citizens, and on Church Street were the mill girls and
the school children. At the head of each division of
mill girls was a silk banner with the inscription:
" Protection to American Industry." The inscription
is a slogan still. There were nine of these banners,
white upon one side and green upon the other.
B. F. Varnum, Esq., was chief marshal, having
thirly-one asiisiants, the last survivor of whom, Col.
Jefferson Bancroft, died in January, 1890.
The President rode in a barouche with Mr. Van
Buren at his side. The booming of artillery on
Chapel Hill, overlooking the Concord, added to the
eclat of the pageant. At the junction of Church,
and Central Streets two fine hickory trees had been
transplanted — a delicate compliment to Jackson's
pet name, "Old Hickory." Good Master Merrill, a
stanch Jackson man, had brought out his boys in
thick array, who, as the general passed them, shouted
(as they, perhaps, had been instructed to ilo) not
"Hurrah!" but "Hurrali j'or Jcbckton!'' "The pro-
cession passed in review before the President, with
drums beating, cannon booming, banners flying, hand-
kerchiefs waving and nine times nine hearty cheeis
of welcome." But no part of the pageantry could
be compared to the procession of the Y'ankee girls.
They were over twenty-five hundred in number and
marched lour deep, all dressed in white, with parasols
over their heads.
Z. E. Stone, Esq., whose interesting account of
Jackson's visit I mainly follow, makes the following
quotation from a letter of an old citiizen; " As Gen-
eral Jackson rode through this line, hat in hand,
there was an expression on his features hard to de-
fine, partaking partly of surprise, partly of pride, and
a good deal of gratification. Julius Caesar, Napoleon,
Alexander, in their best estates, never bowed to ' two
miles of girls ' all dressed in white. It is quite
doubtful whether either of them could have survived
it. It was evident General Jackson did not know
what to mike of appearances at Lowell. He had
probably imbibed his ideas of a Northern manufactur-
ing town somewhat from the speeches of Southern
statesmen, and was prepared to meet squalid wretch-
eJness, half concealed for the purposes of the occa-
sion ; but when told that these fine blocks of build-
ings (fresher then than now) were veritable board-
ing-houses for the 'wretched' operatives in the fac-
tories, with the evidence of his own eyes as to the
condition of those operatives, he exhibited a good
deal of enthusiasm, aiid in various ways expressed
his gratification."
General Jack.son visited the Print Works and one
25
HISTORY OF 3IIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
of the mills of the Merrimack Corporation, where
all the machinery was in operation and the girls, in
holiday attire, exhibited to him the process of manu-
facturing cotton. Charles Dickens, in his "Notes for
American Circulation," deems the visit of Jackson
worthy of the following mention, which, however,
does but little credit to the accuracy of the great
writer : " It is said that on the occasion of the visit
of General Jackson or General Harrison (I forget
which, but it is not to the purpose) he walked through
three miles and a half of these girls, all dressed out
with parasols and silk stockings."
Major "Jack Downing's" account of the same occa-
sion is almost as worthy of belief as that of Mr.
Dickens. The major declared that at one time before
this, when the general was exhausted with hand-
shaking, he himfelf stepped for.vard and shook hands
with the multitude in his stead. Taking courage
from his success on that previous occasion, he ven-
tured to do a little bowing to the haLdaome Lowell
girls, whereupon the general pushed him aside and
said : " None of that, major; in the matter of shak-
ing hands you do very well, but when it comes to sa-
luting the girls I can manage that without your help."
On the next morning, after breakfast, Jackson, with
military promptness, at the appointed hour, took his
seat in the carriage to start for Concord, New Hamp-
shire, but Van Buren's seat by his side was vacant.
" Where is Van Buren ?" said the President. On be-
ing told thad lie had not come from the breafcf;i!-t
table, he replied : " Well, I sha'u't wait for hiin.
Drive on."
The qupstion naturally arise.", Can the Lowell mill-
girls of to-day form a procession like that which
greeted General Jackson more than fifty years ago?
The emphatic answer is " Ao." Perhaps there ia no
better place than this to speak of the great change in
the character of the female operatives in our jnills
during the first half-century of their existence.
During the first half of the present century the
n:w settlemen's on the fertile prairies of the West
called from the humble farms among the hills of
New England very many of her most ambitious and
enterprising sons. But New England's daughters,
though born with a spirit equally ambitious and en-
terprising, were compelled to remain in the old
homesteads on the hillsides. Little money could
they earn, though they had willing hands for labor.
Here and there one could earn, at teaching a short
summer school, a dollar a week and board. A poor
pittance was paid for domestic service. Custom for-
bade the Yankee girl to work, like the European
woman, in the fields. But when the great manufac-
turing enterprises were started in Lowell the services
of these same Yankee girls, waiting on the hillsides
for something for their ready hands to do, were
eagerly sought and most highly prized. They were
ju.st the help most needed. They brought with them
health, strength, patience, virtue aud intelligence.
Well could the successful and wealthy manufacturer
afford to pay generously such workmen as these. The
buildings, the machinery, the boarding-houses, all
were new. The grime of years bad not yet eomo
upon them. The humble country girl, who had rarely
held a silver dollar in her hand, felt a pleasing pride
at the end of every month upon receiving a sum
which, in her childhood on the hills, she had never
dreamed of earning. They had learned economy,
and many thousands were saved to be carried back
to their country homes. Many a mortgage which
had long rested on the small farm of the parents was
lifted by these noble and enterprising daughters.
JLany a young bride in the cottage on the hillside,
after the service of a few years in the Lowell mills,
was able to vie with the daughters of the wealthy
around her in the elegance of her outfit and the rich-
ness of her attire.
The shrewd managers of cur mills strove hard and
long to keep such, and only such, girls in their em-
ploy. And so successful were they that one of them
informs me that as late as 184G "every mill-girl was
a Yankee."
But gradually there came a change. Mills were
multiplied ; Yankee help was sometimes hard to be
found. In summer the mill-girl was fond of leaving
her loom and taking a vacation on the breezy hills
about her old home. Rival manufactories sprang up.
The margin of profits thus grew small. To insure
dividends every loom must be kept moving. At fir~t
operatives were sought in Nova Scotia to supply the
increasing demand. These operatives proved very
acceptable substitutes for the Yankees. But still
greater numbers were needed, and then, very gradu-
ally, Irish girls, and after them, French girls from
Canada, began to be employed. But different races
do not always work well together, es|)ecially in cases
in which there is supposed to exist a social ine-
quality. And so it came to pass that as the foreign
girl came, the native girl went.
But there is another still more efficient cause, per-
haps, of the withdrawal of the Yankee girls from the
mills. Within the last fifty years almost countless
new avenues of labor and enterprise have been
opened to American women. Almost innumerable
sewing-machines demand the service of the nimble
tiugers of iutelligent girls. As accountants in places
of business, as telegraph operators, as saleswomen in
the retail trade, as clerks of professional men, and in
other positions too numerous to mention, the intelli-
gent and educated girls and women of America are
finding employments more agreeable to their tastes
than can be found amidst the din and clatter of the
mills.
In process of time, too, the grime and dust of age
settle down over the once new and neat buildings
and furniture, and render them less attractive than
when the freshness of early days was upon them.
Moreover, it is doubllcsa true that the second geue-
LOWELL.
23
ration of miil-owners cares less for the moral status
of the operatives, and more, perhaps, for the divi-
dends, than did their noble fathers who laid the
foundations of these great enterprises. From all
these causes it has come to pass that a class of opera-
tives, somewhat inferior in culture and intelligence,
now fills the place of the Yankee girls who welcomed
the Hero of New Orleans in the streets of Lowell.
I am informed by a gentleman, who is intimately
conversant with the subject, that at the present time
about one-fourth only of the Lowell mill operatives
are Yankee girls, whilst the other three-fourths con-
sist in about equal numbers of French and Irish.
But still the mills find in these girls skillful and
efficient operatives. The Irish girls have many ex-
cellent characteristics, and the French are said to be
intelligent and quick to learn.
In October, 1833, the town of T/Owell was honored
by a visit from another illustrious man, the Hon.
Henry Clay. la the preceding year Mr. Clay had
been the Whig candidate for the Presidency, in oppo-
sition to President Jackson, and, though defeated de-
cidedly in the canvass, he had not lost the glory of his
great name. If any American state.sman, more than any
other, was able to rouse in the hearts of his followers
the seotimects of admiration and intense devotion, it
was Henry Clay — the " gallant Harry of the West.''
The present generation can hardly understand this
admiration, for they cannot behold his magnetic
presence nor hear his eloquent voice. Mr. Clay was
received with distinguished honor, and in the evening
he addressed the citizens in the Town Hall.
But Kirk Boott, Lowell's first citizen, refused to
share in any of the honors bestowed upon the distin-
guished guest, because, though Mr. Clay had advo-
cated the war against England of 1812, yet, in order
to close the contest, he had been instrumental, as
commissioner of the United States, in making a
treaty of peace which surrendered the very objects
for which the war was declared. Nor is Mr. Boott
the firs'. American who has felt the humiliation of the
treaty of peace at Ghent.
The year 1833 was, to Lowell, one of peculiar ex-
citement and interest. The great corporations were
mostly now in full operation. The grime of age and
use had not begun to gather on the fresh and elegant
structures of the mills and of the city. The great
experiment seemed flushed with success. The scene
was novel to all the world. Strangers from other
lands, like the Queen of Sheba, came to witness the
sight. Lowell for the time was one of the seven
wonders of the world. Other like cities had not yet
arisen to divide the admiration and wonder of men.
It was Lowell's youthful prime, when her admirers
were most numerous and moat ardent. At the present
day, such have been the wonderful inventions of
recent years, there is more to be admired than then,
hut the curiosity of men has been satisfied. Other
great manufacturing cities have sprung up all around,
and Lowell has ceased to be the one city of that pe-
culiar attraction which it once possessed. The gala
day of General Jackson's visit will never return.
1834. The representatives to the General Court
were : Samuel Howard, Kirk Boott, James Chandler,
Osgood Dane, Jesse Phelps and O. M. Whipple.
[There were in 1834 eleven vacancies. At that time
it required a majority to elect instead of a plurality
as at the present time.]
The selectmen were : Joshua Swan, Elisha Hunt-
ington, Wm. Livingston, Jesse Fox, Benjamin
Walker.
In this year Eliphalet Baker, Walter Farnsworth
and George Hill, of Boston, having purchased of Mr.
Park the flannel-mill in Belvidere, near Wamesit
Falls, begin the manufacturing business under the
name of the Belvidere Flannel Manufkcturing Com-
pany.
The Lowell Advertiser started, and Belvidere was
annexed. On May 31, 1834, a steamboat, ninety feet
long and twenty feet wide, was launched above Paw-
tucket Falls to run on Merrimack River. It was
owned by Joel Stone and J. P. Simpson, of Boston,
and was called the " Herald." Mr. Stone was its first
captain. It plied twice per day between Lowell and
Nashua. On account of the shortness of the distance
and other causes the enterprise failed. The traveler,
to gain so short a ride upon the water, did notcare to
shift his baggage from the stage-coach. However, Mr.
Joseph Bradley continued to run the boat until the
opening for travel of the Lowell & Nashua Kaiiroad.
This railroad was incorporated in 1835.
The celebrated David Crocket, the comic statesman
of Tennessee, visited Lowell May 7, 1834. He was
an ardent Whig, and about 100 young Whigs of Lowell
gave him a banquet at the American House in the
evening. He was greatly pleased wkh his reception
and declared that he was dead in love with New
England people.
If the object of history is to give to the reader an
accurate and life-like view of the condition of a people,
I can hardly fulfill my task in a better way than by
quoting from the autobiography of this intelligent ob-
server the following words : " I had heard so much of
[Lowell] that I longed to see it. I wanted to see the
power of machinery wielded by the keenest calcula-
tions of human skill. We went down among the fac-
tories. The dinner bells were ringing and the folks
were pouring out of the houses like bees out of a gum.
I looked at them as they passed, all well dressed,
lively, and genteel in their appearance. I went in
among the girls and talked with many of them. Not
one of them expressed herself as tired of her employ-
ment. Some of them were very handsome. I could
not help reflecting on the difference of condition be-
tween these females, thus employed, and thatof olher
populous countries where the female character is de-
graded to abject slavery."
Colonel Crocket served two years in Congress. Ttro
24
mSTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
years after visiting Lowell he fell in battle while
fighting in the cause of Texas against Mexico.
In November, 1834, George Thompson, the distin-
guished English philanthropist, came to Lowell for the
second time. On his first visit, in October of that year,
he had spoken in the Appleton Street Church. Upon
his second visit he was to deliver three anti-slavery
addresses on three consecutive evenings, in the Town
Hall, which was then in the second story of our pres-
ent City Grovemment Building.
Mr. Thompson had a great name already acquired
in England. Mr. Z. E. Stone, whose account of Mr.
Thompson's visit I follow, writes as follows: "He
had been a leader in the struggle for emancipation in
the West Indies ; and on the passage of the Act of
Emancipation was specially complimented in the
House of Lords by Lord Brougham,' who said : ' I
rise to take the crown of this most glorious victory
and place it upon George Thompson.'
At the time of this visit to Lowell, some of the lead-
ing citizens, engaged in manufac'.uring, believed it
would be prejudicial to the interests of our mills if
their patrons in the South ^ihould learn that the per.ple
of Lowell were interfering with their rights .is slave-
holders. Others affected to believe that Mr. Thomp-
son was an emissary of England, sent hither to dis-
turb our peace and break down our institutions. On
the day on which the last of his three lectures was to
be given, a placard was posted in the streets from
which I take the following words: 'Citizens of
Lowell, arise! Will you suffer a question to be dis-
cussed in Lowell which will endanger the safety of
the Union ? Do you wish instruction from an English-
man ? If you are free-born sons of America, meet, one
and all, at the Town Hull this evening.'
"Mr. Thompson also received an anonymous letter
in which the writer says : there is a plot ' to immerce
him in a vat of indeluble Ink,' and advises him to
'leave the country as soon as po.ssible or it wil be
shurely carried into opperration, and that to before
you see the light of another son ! '
" On previous evenings brick-bats bad been hurled
at Mr. Thompson through the windows, and he had
been interrupted by cat-calls and other offensive
tlemonstrations. But on the coming evening it was
evident more serious danger was impending. When
the hour of assembling came, an unwonted crowd
gathered in the rear of the hall. It was a scene of
great excitement and all things foreboded a coming
storm. At this point the selectmen of the town in-
terfered and persuaded those in charge of the lectures
to put off the meeting till the afternoon of the next
day. The brave anti-slavery women of the audience
gathered about Mr. Thompson, and he escaped out
into the darkness and found shelter in the hospitable
home of Rev. Mr. Twining, pastor of the Appleton
Street Church. And thus ended what came very near
being a ' mob in Lowell.' "
The rapidlj'growing town now extends its bound-
aries. Not all of the city of Lowell is embraced in llie
territory of the village of East Chelmsford. The
towns of Tewksbury and Dracut have each contrib-
uted to our city, lands, which afford some of the most
attractive sites for many of the most elegant resi-
dences of our citizens. The land in East Chelmsford
was generally low and level, in some places even
covered with swamps and dotted with ponds, but the
parts which once belonged to Tewksbury and Dracut
rise in hills from the banks of the Merrimack and
afford delightful views, not only of the rest of the
city, but of the neighboring towns and of the lofty
hills and mountains which lie far to the west and
north.
Belvidehe. — This part of the city, once belonging
to Tewksbury, is bounded on the west by the Concord
and on the north by the Jlerrimack. The lowlands
near the falls in the Concord were once the hubila-
tion of the Pawtucket or Wamesit Indians. In the
Concord in early days were four islands, the largest
two of which are crossed by one in going from the
Prescott Mills directly to High Street Church. It is
interesting to know that the site of Belvidere was
once the property of Margaret, widow of John Win-
throp, earliest Governor of the Colony of Massachu-
setts Bay. After the death of the Governor, in H)4D,
the General Court granted to ilargaret Winthrop,
his widow, 3000 acres of land, bounded on the west
and north by the Concord and .Merrimack llivers.
This large tract evidently remained (wholly, or in
pari) in the hands of her descendants for many
years. For on February 12, ItiUl, .\dam Winthroj),
grandson of ^largaret, gives by deed one-fifth (undi-
vided) of these 3000 acres to Samuel Hnnt, from
whom, I suppose, the falls next below Pawtucket
Falls derive their name. In ITUD Timothy Brown
purchased a part of the Winthrop estate and built
upon it a large house, for many years a conspicuous
and widely-known landmark of our city, known as
the " Gedney House," or more familiarly as " The Old
Yellow House." This house rose aloft with a com-
manding view, adorned, as it was, by a long row of
Lombardy poplars. For a long time in "ye olden
days " it had been a noted inn, and its long halls had
olten resounded with music and the merry dance.
Mrs. Abbott, wife of Judge J. G. Abbott, of Boston,
who in her childhood lived in the house, thus de-
scribes it: "The mansion house was beautifully
situated at the confluence of the Merrimack and Con-
cord Rivers. Standing at an elevation of forty feet
above the water, it commanded a distant and lovely
view of both the streams. Back of the house, on the
opposite side of the Merrimack, rose Dracut heights,
as if to shield the spot from the north winds. It was
certainly a lovely old mansion."
This mansion, with about 200 acres of land adjoin-
ing it, constituted what was long known as the "Gedney
Estate," so named from a former owner. This estate,
in ISIG, was purchased by Judge St. Loe Livermore,
LOWELL.
25
the father of Mrs. Abbott, who, after being wearied
of politics and the buatle of a city life, had hoped
that on this quiet farm, far out in the country, he
should at length find for his declining years a jjlace
of grateful repose. Little did he dream that within
seven years be would look down from thi.squiet home
upon one of the busiest scenes ever presented to the
view in the history of human industry — the begin-
nings of the great manufacturing enterprise of the
future city of Lowell.
Judge Livermore was a man of marked ability,
and " he had associated with men prominent in let-
ters and in politics in this and other countries." His
lather bad been a justice of the Supreme Court of
New Hampshire, as well as member of the United
States Senate, of which he was president jtro tempore
for several years: while he had himself served three
terms in the United States House of Representatives,
and filled many other important offices. It was be
who gave to his part of the city the name of " Bclvi-
dcrc." He died Sept. 15, 1832, aged seventy years.
The farm of Judge Livermore was sold in 1831 to
Thomas and John Nesmilh for $25,000. The Nesmith
brothers had been successful leaders in Derry, K. H.,
and they purchased the land for the purpose of di-
viding it up into city lots to be sold as residences.
They fully accomplished their purpose, and on this
land now Eland many of the most costly and elegant
houses of the city. The Nesmiths both lived to good
old age in the mansions on the Livermore farm,
which they had erected for their declining years,
Thomas living to the age of eighty-two years, and
John to the age of seventy-six years.
The large farms lying next to that of Judge Liver-
more and belonging to Zadoc Rogers and Captain
Wm. Wyman, are now, in like manner, being
divided into lots admirably adapted for elegant resi-
dences, and it is safe to assert that no part of the city
is more attractive and beautiful than Belvidere.
The annexation of Belvidere was for about five years
— from 1820 to 1834 — a subject of much acrimonious
debate. Thetown of Tewksbury was not willing to sur-
render the taxes of a village of so much wealth, while
the people of Belvidere felt that they were virtually
citizens of Lowell. Their business and their social
relations allied them to Lowell. Accordingly, when
summoned to attend town-meetings at the centre of
Tewksbury, four or five miles away, they felt them-
selves unfairly treated by being compelled, at great
expense and loss of time, to meet with men with
whom they had neither business relations nor social
sympathies. They acted as they felt, and turned the
town-meetings into ridicule. Mr. Geo. Hedrick, our
aged fellow-citizcD, who was one of them, gives us
the following account of town-meeting days:
"We used to charier all the teams, hay-carts and
other kind of vehicles, and go down and disturb the
people of the town by our boisterous actions. As we
neared the village a 'hurrah." gave the warning of
our approach. We took extra pains to have a full
turn-out, make all the trouble we could, and have for
one day in the year a good time. At twelve o'clock
we adjourned to Brown's tavern to dinner, and hot
flip and other favorite beverages of those dsys were
freely partaken of. We met again at two o'clock
and kept up the turbulent proceedings until seven,
and returned home well satisfied with our endeavors
for the good of the town." On one occasion they
actually carried a vote to hold the next town-meeting
in the village of Belvidere. The old town at length
relented, and the new villape, as is usual ic such
cases, gained the victory. It was the mother against
the daughter and the daughter had her way. Belvi-
dere was annexed to Lowell May 29, 1834. Twice
since that date, by legislative acts, the unwilling town
has been compelled to surrender to the encroaching
city some of the most valuable parts of its territory.
1835. The representatives to the General Court
were : Kirk Boott, A. W. Buttrick, James Chandler,
Wm. Davidson, Artemas Holden, John Mixer, Mat-
thias Parkhurst, Alpheus Smith, Joseph Tyler, O. M.
Whipple, Benjamin Walker, Wm. Wyman, and John
A. Knowles. The selectmen were : Benjamin Walker,
James Russell, Wm. Livingston, John Chase, Wm. N.
Owen. This is the last of the ten years of the town-
ship of Lowell. The repeated re-elections of Samuel
A. Coburn, as town-clerk and of Artemus Holden, as
treasurer, indicate the high esteem in which they were
held. Joshua Swan's name also constantly recurs on
the town reoords. He was often honored as moderator
of town -meetings, representative to the General Court^
and selectman of the town. He was subsequently a
candidate for mayor.
Middlesex Mechanics' Building on Dutton Street
was erected in 1835.
The Lowell Courier begins as a tri-weekly, published
Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.
The Boott Cotton-Mills were incorporated in 1835
with a capital of Sl,500,000.
Aug. 22, 1835, a meeting was held to denounce all
agitations of the question of slavery. John Aiken,
John P. Robinson, Elisha Bartlett, John Avery and
Thomas Hopkinson were among the leading citizens
who participated in the doings of this meeting. There
was entertained in those days a fear of losing the trade
of the South by allowing the impression to go forth
thai Lowell was a hot-bed of abolitionism, where
intermeddling Englishmen, like George Thompson
were allowed, uurebuked, to traduce the inslitations
of America.
On Sunday, Sept. 20tb of this year, occurred an event
which for years deeply agitated the people of Lowell,
and which is still wrapped in mystery. Rev. Enoch W.
Freeman, the talented and popular pastor of th» First
Baptist Church, was suddenly seized with illness when
in his pulpit, which became so severe that he was
compelled to relinquish the attempted performance of
religious service. He was conveyed from the cliurcli
26
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
to his home where he died after intense sufferings on
Tuesday morning His wife, in regard to whom ihere
were painful suspicions, married a second husband,
who, about five years after the death of Mr. Freemau,
died in a similar manner. Many other circumstances
conspired to arouse suspicion and to fasten upon the
wife the charge of murder. She was tried upon the
second otfence and acquitted in a court of law. But
for many years the sensation lingered in the memory
of our citizens.
Boston and Lowell Railroad. — The manu-
factures of the town demanded a vast amount of
traffic with Boston. In the colder months of the
year, when ice closed the Middlesex Canal, transpor-
tation over bad roads by wagons was tedious and
done at great cost, and, even in the summer months,
the canal afforded only a slow means of conveying
the great amount of merchandise. Six stages passed
daily from Boston to Lowell and back.
To remedy these difficulties it was at first proposed
to construct a macadamized road from Boston to
Loweil, and even estimates were made for this enter-
prise and a line surveyed. At this time the inventive
and far-reaching mind of Patrick T. Jackson was
turned to this subject of transportation. Already the
experiment of transportation by horse-power on iron
rails, or trams, used for reducing friction, had been
tried. At this juncture there came the tidings across
the water that Stephenson had proved that cars pro-
pelled by steam could be successfully employed on
these iron rails. •
This news decided the mind of Mr. Jacksen. He
clearly foresaw that what Lowell must have was not
a macadamized road, but a railroad, and that the pro-
pelling power must be, not horses, but steam. He
was now fifty years of age, and it was ten years since
he had accomplished his important work of establish-
ing in American the great cotton manufactures. He
enters upon the new enterprise with his wonted zeal
and energy. Men of wealth must first be peraunded
of the feasibility of the undertaking. If successful in
England, where there were great cities in close prox-
imity, the railroad might utterly fail in America.
To many, perhaps to most, the project looked quixotic
and hazardou'^. But Mr. Jackson did not falter; a
charter was obtained and the stock was taken.
The grading of the road, especially through the
mica, slate and gneiss rock near Lowell, proved un-
expectedly expensive. " The shareholders were rest-
less under increased aase-sments and delayed income."
At times the responsibility weighed heavily ou Mr.
Jackson, and deprived him of his sleep. At length
the great work was accomplished, and time has proved
the wisdom of its undertaking. Its cost was $1,800,-
000. iThe railroad was completed in 1835.
A railroad from Lowell to Bostou could now be
constructed at far less expense. Time has shown
that steeper grades and shorter curves are practicable,
and that sleepers of wood are even to be preferred to
those of iron. In a thousand ways time and experi-
ence have aided the civil engineer.
CHAPTER III.
LO WELL—( Continued).
CITY OF LOWELL.
183S. Governor Edward Everett signed the lefria-
lative act giving a city charter to the town of Lowell,
April 1, 1836. This was the third city charier granted
in Massachusetts, that of Boston bearing date of
1822, and that of S.ilem only one week earlier than
that of Lowell. With a population of more than
16,000, it was found impossible properly to transact
all official business in public town-meeting. In the
preceding year there had been ten town-meetings,
and there was a common sentiment among the best
and wisest of the citizens that the time had come for
an efficient city government. The committee ap-
pointed by the town on February 3, 183G, reported in
favor of such a government, alleging that under the
town government there was a want of executive power
and a loose way of spending money.
Still there were citizens so wedded to the demo-
cratic methods of town-meetings that they reluctantly
surrendered the municipal authority into the hands
of a select few. When the vote accepting the char-
ter was taken, more than one- fourth of the votes were
found in the opposition. The result was yeas, 961,
and nays, 328. The first Monday in May was fixed
upon as the day for filling the city offices under the
new government. And now begins an ardent politi-
cal contest. Ten years before, the Whigs commanded
such a preponderance in number that there would
then have been no doubt how a political struggle
would terminate. But by degrees the Democrats had
so gained in numbers and in influence that the party
which would throw into the canvass tlie greatest
energy and talent might indulge the hope of victory.
Each party put forward for the mayoralty its strong-
est man. Dr. Elisha Bartlett was (he candidate of
the Whigs and Rev. Eliphalet Case led on the Demo-
crats. They were both able men. Dr. Bartlett was
perhaps personally the most popular man in Lowell
— a man of pleasing address and high mental culture.
He had occupied a professor's chair in a medical
school, and had the elements of a popular leader.
Mr. Case was a man of ruder nature, but still a man
of marked ability. He loved the strife and turmoil of
politics, and entered with ardor upon the contest.
He had been the editor of the Lowell Mercury, and,
more recently, of the Advertiser, both Democratic
papers of militant type. He was, at the time of the
election, the postmaster of the city. Ou the morning
of the election Dr. Bartlett called at the post-office
LOWEl.L.
27
and walked arm-in-arm with Mr. Case to the polls,
each courteously voting for hia rival. The result
favored the Whig candidate, the vote standing 958
for Bartlett and 868 for Case. The aldermen elected
were William Austin, Benjamin Walker, Oliver M.
AVhipple, Aaron Mansur, Seth Ames, Alexander
Wright. On the School Committee elected were
Lemuel Porter, Amos Blanchard, Jacob Eobbins,
John O.Green, John A. Knowles, Thomas Hopkinson.
Among the twenty-four Councilmen elected were such
men as Thomas Nesniith, Thomas Ordway, George
Brownell, Sidney Spalding, John Clark, Stephen
Mansur, James Cook, Josiah B. French, Jonathan
Tyler, Tappan Wentworth.
1 cannot do better than to give a very brief notice
of some of these men. I shall thus best show the
cbsrncter and spirit of the times. I shall show how
our fiithers displayed their wisdom by intrusting
1 power in the hands most capable of wielding and
most worthy of the honor of possessing it. Such is our
method of judgment in private life — we estimate the
real character of a man by inquiring who they are in
whom he confides.
Of the aldermen, Captain William Austin was the
agent of the Lawrence Corporation ; Benjamin
Walker was a butcher, and one of the early directors
of first savings bank; Oliver M. Whipple was one
of Lowell's most prominent and successful men of
business ; Aaron Mansur was a well-known merchant ;
Seth Ames was the son of thecelebrated Fisher Ames,
of Dedham, a lawyer and a man of high culture;
Ale.vander Wright was the agent of the Lowell Mills,
a Scotchman by birth and a man of talent.
Of the Common C'juncil, Thomas Nesmilh was a
wealthy dealer and owner of real estate; Thomas
Ordway was for many years clerk of the city, a re-
vered deacon cf the Unitarian Church; George
Brownell was superintendent of the machine-shop— a
very responsible position ; Sidney Spalding was a
man of wealth and of high position in the world of
business ; John Clark was agent of the Merrimack
Company ; Stephen Mansiu — afterwards mayor — was
a dealer in hardware and one of Lowell's most prom-
inent men of business; James Cook — afterwards
mayor — was agent of the Middlesex Mills; Josiah B.
French — afterwards mayor — was a railroad contractor ;
Jonathan Tyler was a wealthy dealer in real estate ;
Tappan Wentworth was a lawyer of high standing,
and subsequently a member of Congress.
Of the School Board, Lemuel Porter was for many
years pastor of the Worthen Street Baptist Church ;
Amos Blanchard, a man of great learning, was long
the pastor of the First Congregational Church ; Jacob
Uobbius was an apothecary, and afterwards post-
master of Lowell ; John O. Green was a physician of
high professional standing; John A. Knowles was a
lawyer, long well known and highly respected in our
city ; Thomas Hopkinson was one of the ablest law-
yers in the State.
Lowell at that day, as baa been often remarked,
presented a remarkable array of men of talent. Per-
haps the novelty and the importance of the great
manufacturing enterprises of the city presented a pe-
culiar attraction to the minds of superior and am-
bitious men.
But not only is the ch,aracter of our early city
fathers indicated by that of the men whom they in-
trusted with power, but still more clearly by the wise
and beneficent 'measures which they promptly con-
sidered and promptly adopted. Among these meas-
ures were the erection of new edificts for the use of
the public schools, the preservation of the public
health, the lighting of the streets, the construction
of sidewalks, the establishment of a system of drain-
age, and the various other works of public utility,
which indicate a statesmanlike foresight and a high
moral sense. There were great interests at stake and
great responsibilities to be taken. The nine great
manufacturing companies alone had a capital of more
than $7,000,000, and employed nearly 7000 persons.
The city was tilled with young men and women, who,
having left the rural quiet of their country homes,
needed the care and protection of a wise city govern-
ment when exposed to the untried temptations of a
city life.
The condition of Lowell on becoming a city is ad-
mirably told in the following passage, quoted by Mr.
Oilman, in the inaugural address of Dr. Bartlett, the
first mayor of the city : " Looking back to the period
when I came among you, a penniless stranger, alike
unknowing and unknown, I find the interval of more
than eight years filled up with manifestations of
kindness and good will. One of the most striking
points of the entire history of our town and city con-
sists in the unparalleled rapidity of its growth. The
graves of our fathers are not here. The haunts of
our childhood are not here. The large and gradually
accumulated fortunes of nearly all our older towns
are not to bo found here. The great mass of wealth
which is centered here, and which hai made our city
what it is, is owned abroad. The proprietors do not
reside among us. The profits are not expended
among ua."
In 183G "the number of churches in Lowell was
thirteen — four Congregational, two Baptist, two Meth-
odist, one Episcopalian, one Universalist, one Chris-
tian Union, one Free- Will Baptist and one Catholic."
At the organization of the city government, on May
2d, John Clark was chosen president of the City
Council, and George Woodward clerk. Samuel A.
Coburn, who had been clerk of the town of Lowell,
was chosen city clerk.
The Lowell Dispensary was incorporated in 1836,
the corporators being John Clark, James Cook and
James G. Carney.
"April 16th the Legislature passed an act, removing
a term of the Supreme Judicial Court and one of the
Court of Common Pleas from Concord to Lowell.
28
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTV, .AfASSACFIUSETTS.
For the accomodation of these courts, rooms were
fitted np in the Market-House, which was erected in
the following year."
1837. Mayor, Elisha Bartlett; population, 18,010.
From this year until 1850 the city governments were
inaugurated about April lat, the municipal electioQ
being in March.
On the Ist of April a profound sensation was pro-
duced by the sudden death of Kirk Boott. He died
while sitting in his chaise near the Merrimack House.
He was forty-seven years of age.
The suspension of specie payment in all the banks
of the United States in 1837 did not seriously atfect
the mills of Lowell.
As early as 1835 the question was agitated of build-
ing a great central market. A population of 17,000,
it was thought, stood in sore need of such a stiucture.
At one time a committee was appointed to erect such
building, but a short time before Lowell ceased to be
a town all votes respecting the erection of a market
were rescinded, and it was left to the city govern-
ment, in 1837, to commit the folly of erecting, on
Market Street, a building which the people did not
need and which they would not patronize. The cost
was .?46,000.
All attempts to make a central market of this
building have failed. The stalls hired by market-
men were not patronized, and the inarket-meu moved
out. If the people would not come to them, they
could go to the people. Men prefer a small market
near their homes to a large one far away.
1838. Mayor, Luther Lawrence. On October Sth
railroad cars began to run regularly from Lowell to
Nashua.
'"A county jail, on the modern plan of separate
cells, was erected in 1838. It was taken down after
the completion of the county jail in 1858," having
stood about twenty years.
1839. Mayor, Luther Lawrence, who was killed by
accident fifteen days afier assuming his office, and
Elisha Huntington was elected m.iyor by the City
Council. He was at the time a member of the City
Council. Mr. Lawrence assumed his office April 1st,
and was killed April 16th. In this year the Mas.sa-
cbusetts Cottou-Mills were incorporated.
November 1st. The Lowell Hospital A.ssociation
was formed. Kirk Boott's private residence, which
stood not far from the site of John Street Congrega-
tional Church, was purchased for a hospital building
and moved to the place, near Pawtnckct Falls, wheie
it now stands. The hospital is the property of the
large corporations, the treasurers of the mills having
control of it. Its design is to atford medical and sur-
gical aid to persons in the employment of the mills
who need it. It is not a free hospital. When a pa-
tient, who is an operative in the mills, fails to pay, the
company for whom he works pays his bills.
The physicians in special charge of this hospital
have been Dr. Gilmau Kimball, Dr. George II. Whit-
more, Dr. John W. Graves, Dr. Hermoa J. Smith.
Buc in recent years the medical charge has been
committed to a stall' of physicians who gratuitously
serve in turn for terms arranged by themselves.
There is also a superintendent and resident physician
of the hospital, elected by the trustees. For the
year 1889 tlie stiitf of physicians was L. S. Fox,
M.D., W. T. Carolin, M.D., J. B. Field, M.D., H. S.
J-.hnson, M.D., F. W. Chadburne, M.D., and Wm.
B. Jackson, M.D. The resident physician was C. E.
Simpson. Matron, Miss C. B. Whitford. Number
of patients treated from Jan. 1, 18SS, to Jan. 1, 1889,
299, of whom eighteen died.
1840. Mayor, Elisha Huntington. Population,
20,981. The South Common, containing twenry acres,
and the North Common, uontaiuing ten acres, were
laid out in 1840.
Mr. Cowley gives us the following: "Sever.nl at-
tempts had heretofore been made for the establish-
ment of a theatre or nuiseum in Lowell, but had
failed. In 1840 this project was renewed with better
success. The museum was first started in the fourth
story of Wyman's Exchange, by Moses Kimball [af-
terwards of the Boston Museum]. The first i)er-
formance was on the fourth of July, 1840, and was an
excellent substitute for the blarneij usually indulged
in on that day. The first collection of curiosities
was procured from Greenwood's old New England
Jluseum in Boston. But the business did not pay.
In 1845, Noah Gates purchased the museum of Mr.
Kimball, and the removal by him, in ]S4(), of the
museum into the building formerly owned by the
Free-Will Baptist Church, provoked 'strong indigna-
tion in Zion.' The church w.as at once fitted up for
dramatic entertainments ; but so great was the oppo-
sition to it that in 1847 the City (.'ouncil refused to
license any more exhibitions of ibis kind."
The Liiu-eU Offering was started in 1840. This
paper receives notice on another page. From its
unique character it has gained, both in this country
and in Europe, a distinguished name. All its articles
being the contributions of mill giils, it had a charac-
ter unlike that of any other publication in the world.
1841. Mayor, Elisha Huntington.
Jan. 11th. Benj. F. Varnum, sheriff" of Middlesex
County, died at his home in Centralville, at the age
of forty-six years. He was the son of General Joseph
B. Varnum, of Dracut.
From 12 to 1 o'clock ou the 7th of Aiiril the bells
of the city were toiled on accouut of the death of
President Harrison.
Mr. Cowley gives us the following item : " Until
1841 there had been no substantial bridge over the
Concord River connecting Church and Andover
Streets. The first structure was a floating bridge for
foot-passers. The next was a bridge set upon piles.
But in the year above-named a double-arch stone
bridge was constructed, which in 1858 was replaced
by the i)resent single-arch structure."
LOWELL.
29
In June, 1841, th" Lowell Cemetery, situated near
Concord River and Fort Hill in Belvidere, was con-
secrated with appropriate ceremonies. The address
on the occasion was delivered by Rev. Dr. Amos
Blanchard. James G. Carney and O. M. Whipple
appear to have been the foremost of our citizens to
urge the establishment of this cemetery. Mi. Whip-
ple was president of the corporation for its first
thirty years. Forty acres were first purchased. Sub-
sequently it was enlarged to seventy-two acres. The
original price of a lot containing 300 square fret was
$10, but from time to time the price has increased
until a lot, completely prepared lor u^e, costs S250.
The cemetery has a beautiful stone chapel, presented
by Mrs. C. P. Talbot, also a stone olBce near the
gateway. It has bten adorned in various ways, until
it has become a cemetery in which the citizens of
Lowell take a justifiable pride. A new entrance on
the Belvidere side will add much to the convenience
of the citizens.
The Edson Cemetery, on Gorham Street, belongs to
the city of Lowell. It is well cared for by the city
and is kept and adorned with much taste. The same
may also be said of the Catholic Cemetery, on Gorham
Stree:, near by the EJsou Cemetery.
Before the great manufactories were started, Eist
Chelmsford had two cemeteries. One was at the cor-
ner of Brancli and School Streets, and it is still kept
with much care, and is the burial-place of some
families who lived upon the spot in early days. The
other was on the banks of the Merrimack in Belvidere,
Iving between East Merrimack and Stackpole Streets,
and east of Alder Street. This has been discontinued,
the bodi«s of those who were buried there having
been removed. The spot is now appropriated for
private residences.
1842. Mayor, Nathaniel Wright.
Charles Dickens visited Lowell in 1842. The im-
presiion made ui)on him by the new manufacturing
city in America, so unlike any English city, is told in
his "American Notes." A brief quotation will suffice:
"In this brief account of Lowell, and inadequate
expression of the gratification it yielded me, I have
carefully abstained from drawing a comparison be-
tween these factories and those of our own land. The
contrast would be a strong one, for it would be be-
tiveen the Good and Evil, the living light and deep-
eat shadow. I abstain from it, because I deem it just
to do so. But I only the more earnestly adjure all
those whose eyes may rest on these pages to pause
and reflect upon the differeuce between this town and
those great haunts of desperate misery.''
1813. Mayor, Nathaniel Wright. June 19th was a
gala day in Lowell. John Tyler, President of the
United States, visited the city. He arrived at the
Northern Depot about 10.30 o'clock, and there met
an imposing array. A platform was erected near at
hand, from which Dr. Huntington, chairman of the
committee of arrangements, delivered a speech of
welcome, and the President made reply. It was a
beautiful June day, and everything appeared at its
best. The children of the public schools graced the
occasion. Arrayed in order near the landing were
the High School girls, " beautiful as the morning."
The Stark Guards, from Manchester, N. H., the Low-
ell Alechanics' Phalanx, the National Highlanders,
the Lowell Artillery and the Lowell City Guards
adorned the procession. A carriage drawn by six black
horses conveyed the President, Governor Morton, of
Massachusetts, Dr. Huntington and Robert Tyler.
Then followed twenty-five carriages and a cavalcade
of citizens, under Col. Butterfield. All was beauti-
ful — only one thing was wanting, and that was en-
thusiasm. The course pursued by Mr. Tyler after
the death of the lamented Harrison had chilled the
hearts of the men who, in 1840, with wild delight,
had shouted, " Tippecanoe and Tyler, too."
1844. Mayor, Elisba Huntington. Population,
25,163. In thi< year the City School Library was es-
tablished, on May 20th. Central Bridge was rebuilt,
and an experiment of paving streets was first made.
Our city may be justly proud of its streets. It has
enjoyed this advantage over older cities, that from its
earliest days the belief was univeri<al that its destiny
was to become a city. Its broad streets, with gener-
ous sidewalks, have been laid out under the influence
of this belief.
Feb. 16th. Zadoc Rogers died, at the age of seventy
years. He was born in Tewksbury in 1774, and pur-
chased the well-known Rogers farm in Belvidere in
1805. Most of Belvidere is built on this farm of 247
acres, and the Livermore farm, of 150 acres. The
Rogers farm was kept nearly intact until 1883, when it
was purchased by a syndicate, consisting of Ethan A.
Smith, Eli W. Hoyt, Freeman B. Shedd and Thomas
R. Garrity, and sold in house lots. These lots are
being rapidly covered with elegant residences, in
modern style.
The Prescott Manufacturing Company was incor-
porated, with a capital of $800,000.
In this year the poet Whittier became a resident
of Lowell. He came to take charge as editor of the
Middlesex Standard, an anti-slavery paper, which,
however, failed of success. The people of Lowell do
not boast of the short sojourn of the poet in Lowell,
but still they feel a pardonable pride and pleasure in
knowing that the man whom a distinguished Senator
has called " the most beloved man in the nation"
was once their fellow-citizen. Though in feeble
health while in Lowell, his pen was busy, and in bis
little work entitled, " The Stranger in Lowell," hehas
given us a very pleasant transcript of his thoughts
and feelings as he walked our streets. I can, per-
haps, give no better illustration of these thought*,
and of the humane and generous nature of the poet,
than is found in the following quotation from his
little book, in which he speaks of the Irish laborers
of our city :
30
HISTORY OF -MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
"For myself, I confess I feel a sympathy for the
Irishman. A stranger in a strange land, he is to me
always an object of interest. The poorest and rudesc
has a romance in his history. Amidst all his appar-
ent gayety of heart and national drollery and wit the
poor emigrant has sad thoughts of the ' ould mother
of him,' sitting lonely in her solitary cabin by the bog,
side ; recollections of a father's blessing and a sister's
farewell are haunting him ; a grave-mound in a dis-
tant churchyard, far beyond the 'wide wathers,' has
an eternal greenness in his memory : for there, per-
haps, lies a ' darlint child ' or a ' swate crather ' who
once loved him."
Mr. Whittier was in Lowell during the Presidential
canvass of the autumn of 1844, the candidates being
Clay, Polk and Birney. His paper, the Standard
advocated the election of James G. Birney, of Mich-
igan, who received in Lowell 246 votes.
1845. Mayor, Elisha Huntington.
The Stony Brook Railroad Company was incorpor-
ated, with a capital of 1:300,000.
The Lowell Machine-Shop was organized as a cor-
poration, with a capital of S300,000.
In 1845 manufacturing in the city of Lawrence was
begun by the Essex Company.
In this year was published " Lowell as It Was and
as It Ls," by Rev. Dr. Henry A. Miles. This excel-
lent little work was the first published history of
Lowell in book-form. At that time there were two
very divergent and antagonistic sentiments in regard
to the comparative moral and industrial claims of
large corporations and of private enterprise in the
manufactures of our country. It was to repel the
charge that large corporations led to oppression, cor-
ruption and nepotism, that Dr. Miles seems to have
written his history. Fully half of the book is de-
voted to showing that the mills of Lowell were man-
aged by wise and benevolent men, and in a manner
calculated to promote the moral welfare and the high-
est good, not only of the operatives, but of the com-
munity at large. It is the common belief that such
a book could not now be truthfully written. No doubt
the general character of the operatives has depreci-
ated. The Yankee girls, reared among the New-
England hills, have departed, and girls of foreign
birth have taken their places. So, too, the owners
and managers of the mills have changed. The early
founders are gone. The grime of age has robbed the
buildings of some of their freshness and beauty, and
the ideal days are past. But we can concede no
more. The structures are still noble structures, the
owners and managers are still noble men. If the
great enterprise has lost something of the freshness
of youth, it has gained much of the stability of man-
hood. A nobler class of men cannot be found than
the agents of our mills. The influence of the man-
agement of our mills is consistently and firmly on the
side of morality. lu every grade of service in these
mills may be found very many men of devout relig-
ious character. In all that promotes the moral wel-
fare of man, these great corporations can proudly
challenge comparison with the best regulated private
manufacturing enterprises in the world.
In 1845 the City Council authorized the purchase
of the North Common for §12,857, and the South
Common for $17,954.
In this year the Middlesex North District Medical
Society was organized. This society has doubtless
done much to give dignity and character to the med-
ical profession, but quackery, like the hydra slain by
Hercules, has a hundred heads, and will not readily
relinquish its hold upon the minds of credulous men.
What is most disheartening in the labors of a society
like this is the fact that very many men who are
shrewd and sensible in all things else have a decided
predilection for quackery in the healing art.
In October, 1845, a large fire in a building owned by
the Middlesex Company, on Warren Street ; loss,
$30,000.
February 5th. The residence of AVm. Smith, Esq.,
on Dracut Heights, was burned. This fire will long be
remembered. A heavy snow fell throughout the day,
and, in the night, when the fire occurred, the driving
snow-flakes filled the air, so that it was impossible to
locate the fire. All the heavens seemed illumined
with a glowing light. The superstitious were said to
believe the end of the world had come.
1846. Mayor, Jefferson Bancroft; population, 20,-
127. Whipple's Mills were established by O. M.
Whipple on the Concord River in this year.
January 2d. A fire occurred in Bent & Bush's store,
on Central, opposite Middle Street. The night of the
fire was " bitter cold," and there was much sufler-
ing from cold.
1847. Mayor, Jefferson Bancroft.
June 30th. President Polk visited Lowell. He was
received upon hi.s arrival by Mayor Bancroft, >vho de-
livered a speech of welcome. The mills were closed
and thousands of operatives and others filled the
streets. A procession (under I. W. Beard, chief mar-
shal), in 'which were the Lowell City Guards, the
Westford Rifle Company and the Mechanics' Phalanx,
with a cavalcade of citizens, escorted him through
the city. A superb supper was furnished at Mechan-
ics' Hall. He visited the Middlesex and Pre.scott
Mills on the next morning, and proceeded to Concord,
N. H. Hon. James Buchanan attended the President
upon his tour.
September 12th. Patrick T. Jackson, one of the
founders of Lowell, died at the age of sixty-seven
years. He is noticed on another page.
The City Institution for Savings was organized.
The Appleton Bank was incorporated with a cap-
ital of 5100,000.
1848. Mayor, Jefferson Bancroft.
The reservoir ou Lynde Hill was constructed under
the superintendence of J. B. Francis. Its capacity is
1,201,641 gals. It is the property of the Corporations
LOWELL.
31
and is used for extinguishing fires, supplying water to
the Corporation, boarding-houses, etc.
The Salem and Lowell Railroad was incorporated ;
also the Traders and Mechanics' Fire Insurance
Company.
The Stony Brook Railroad was opened to travel
September 16, 1848. Abraham Lincoln visited Low-
ell. As President Lincoln had not yet attained re-
nown, it is interesting to inquire whether the people
of Lowell who heard his speech in the City Hall ap-
preciated the exalted talents and worth of the man.
He was called to Lowell to speak in behalf of the
election of Zachary Taylor, the Whig candidate for
the Presidency. The City Hall was crowded, ladies
being present. Hon. Homer Bartlett was president
and Alfred Oilman, Esq., secretary. Of Mr. Lincoln's
speech the Courier says: "Abraham Lincoln, of Illi-
nois, addressed the assembly in a most able speech,
going over the whole subject in a masterly and con-
vincing manner, and showing beyond a peradventure
that it is the first duty of the Whigs to stand united,
and labor with devotion to secure the defeat of that
party which has already done so much mischief to
the country. He was frequently interrupted by bursts
of warm applause."
The discovery of gold in California in 1848, was an
event of great importance to Lowell. It diverted the
attention of the young men of New England from
manufacturing and other enterprises at home to the
dazzling prospects of sudden wealth on the shores of
the Pacific. What Lowell mifrht now have become, had
the gold of California not withdrawn from it so much
of its enterprise and talent, is only left to imagination
and conjecture. The wonderful development of the
States west of the Mississippi has, doubtless, also
greatly affected the growth and wealth of our city,
by alluring young men to "go west."
1849. Mayor, Josiah B. French.
In April, 1849, George W. Whistler, the distin-
guished railroad engineer, died at St. Petersburg,
Russia, at the age of forty-nine years. He was born
at Fort Wayne, Ind., in 1800; graduated at West
Point when nineteen years of age, and was made
professor in that school at the age of twenty-one
years. He afterwards served as engineer in the
army. In 1834 he became engineer to the Proprie-
tors of Locks and Canals, at Lowell. His talents were
demanded in the construction, at the machine-shops,
of locomotives for the Boston and Lowell Railroad,
which was then being constructed.
This, being a new work for American engineers, de-
manded the highest skill. In this work Mr. Whistler
distinguished himself. When other roads were
equipped his services were demanded, both in New
England and the West. His talents brought him
fame. The Emperor of Russia invited him to Rus-
bia as consulting engineer of railroad*. In this ser-
vice he remained until his death, in 1849.
On Sunday, September 9th, occurred what has been
called "The Battle of Suffolk Bridge," an affair which
approached more nearly a riot than any other which
Lowell has witnessed. The Irish people, who in
great numbers had settled on the " Acre " and its vi-
cinity, had not left all their national feuds in the old
country. The " Corkonians " and " Connaught men,"
who spoke different dialects, had long indulged a
mutual hostility even here in America. In 1849 a
large class of lawless and violent men had roused the
old factional strife to such an extent that the police
of the city were compelled to interfere. At length
on Sunday, the 9th of September, the conflict began
in earnest. Showers of stones and brickbats filled the
air. The women even took part and supplied the
combatants with mis-iiles. The bells were rung and
the Fire Department came out and aided in quelling
the riot. The " City Guards " and " Phalanx " met
in their armories, but they were not called into ac-
tion. The mayor persuaded the crowd to disperse.
September 2d. Father Mathew, the apostle of tem-
perance, visited Lowell, lectured in the City Hall, and
secured about 4000 names to his temperance pledge.
1860. Mayor, Josiah B. French. Population, 33,-
383.
In this year the Prescott Bank was incorporated.
Gas was first introduced in Lowell. The Court-House
was erected.
December 16th. Great fire in Belvidere, Stott's
Mill and other buildings being burned. Los-", $37,-
400.
1851. Mayor, James H. B. Ayer.
The Daily Morning News was started.
Tne first fair of the Middlesex Mechanics' Associa-
tion was opened September 16th.
January 28th. John Clark died at the age of fifty-
four years. He was born in Waltham, 1796, and
graduated at Harvard College. At first he engaged
in teaching in Salem, and then in trade in Boston.
He came to Lowell in 1833 to act in the position of
agent of the Merrimack Company, to succeed Warren
Colburn. He was deeply interested in Lowell's pros-
perity. He was once president of the Common Coun-
cil and on the Board of Aldermen, and was greatly in-
strumental in founding the City Library.
The part of Lowell now called Centralville was, by
act of the Legislature, set off from the town of Dra-
cut in 1851. In the beginning of this century Dracut
was a town of about 1300 inhabitants, sparsely settled
and devoted to agricultural pursuits. They were of
pure New England stock, devout and orthodox in
their religious life. The Varuums and the Coburns
were families of high moral and intellectual worth,
who have transmitted to their numerous posterity an
honorable name. General Joseph B. Varnum held a
high position among the statesmen of America, hav-
ing been a Representative in Congress for sixteen
consecutive years, in four of which he held the office
of Speaker of the House. He was also at one time
president pro laxporc of the United Slates Senate.
32
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
Id the early years of this century, the only bridge
leading from Dracut to East Chelmsford (now Low-
ell) was that at Pawtucket Falls, but after the mills
of the Merrimack Company began to be erected in
1822, such was the increase in the number of inhabit-
ants living near the Merrimack River and below
Pawtucket Falls, and such the activity of business,
that something more than a chain ferry was needed
to meet the wants of travel and business. la 182G
a bridge took the place of the ferry. It was of wood,
uncovered, and about 540 feet in length. Its cost was
$12,000. It was rebuilt in 1844 and again in 1862, at
a cost of about 134,000. Th« iron bridge built by the
city in 1883 at a cost of §118,000 is a graceful and
substantial structure and is an honor to the city.
The village of Centriilville stands upon the slope
of the highest hill within the limits of our city, and
commands a splendid view of the great manufactur-
ing establishments on the south side of the river.
Especially in the evening, when these establishments,
stretching far along the river's banks, glow with in-
numerable lights, is the scene resplendent and beau-
tiful. Few places are more attractive for private
residences than the hillsides of Centralviile.
1852. Mayor, Elisha Huntington. The proposi-
tion to build Huntington Hall was adopted by the
City Council.
In April occurred the great freshet of 1852, when
boats were used in some of the streets of Belvidere.
An account of the freshets in the Merrimack River
for a period of more ihau a hundred years has been
written by James B. Francis, Esq., the well-known
civil engineer. From this account we learn that the
earliest recorded freshet occurred in October, 1785.
It was also the greatest of which there is any record
or tradition. At Nashua the rise in the river was
thirty-two feet, and at the head of Pawtucket Falls it
was more than thirteen feet. There was then no
bridge at Pawtucket Falls to obstruct the course of
the water. In the freshet of 1852, which occurred
after the bridge and the dam had been constructed,
the water rose fourteen fett, somewhat higher than in
1785. But from the fact that at Nashua the water
rose about two feet higher in 1785 than in 1852, it is
evident that the earlier freshet was the greatest.
The guard dam and gates of the Pawtucket Canal,
constructed under Mr. Francis' s-upervision, and des-
cribed on another page, to protect the city of Lowell,
are models of engineeringskill.
In the freshet of 1870 the water rose thirteen feet
above the dam, and in the freshets of 1859, 1862,
1865, 1869 and 1878 its rise was more than ten feet.
May 6th. Louis Kopputh, the Hungarian patriot,
visited Lowell. At St. Paul's Church in the evening
he was formally received and welcomed by the mayor.
Dr. Huntington, and he delivered before the people
of Lowell a speech remarkable for its felicity and
beauty. In this year w.is made the first attempt to
enforce a prohibitory liquor law.
1853. Mayor, Sewall G. Mack. In this year the
Belvidere Woolen Company was organized, and the
Wamesit Bank incorporated. Capital of the bank,
•SIOO.OOO. Corporations reduce the hours of labor to
eleven per day. Lowell Museum burned.
In the first part of 1853 an attempt was made in
Lowell to enforce the prohibitory liquor law, which
was enacted in the previous year by the State Legis-
lature. This first attempt failed. The law referred
to was the first of the kind in Massachusetts.
November 10th. Judge Joseph Locke died atihesge
ot eighty-one years. He was chief justice of the Police
Court for thirteen years. He is noticed on another
page.
In this year was erected the depot, containing
Huntington and Jackson Halls, the former being
named from Dr. Elisha Huntington and the latter
from Patrick T. Jackson.
1854. Mayor, Sewall G. Mack.
On July 28, 1854, occurred the most extensive fire
ever witntssed in Lowell. It caught about 4i o'clock
P.M., in a small shed or stable near the corner of
Lowell and Dummer Streets. The buildings around
were very combustible, and the south wind was blow-
ing. The intense heat overpowered the firemen and
the fire had its way. Twenty-two buildings were
burned and about 600 persons were made houseless.
But the buildings burned were so cheap and frail that
the actual amount of property destroyed did not ex-
ceed S30,000, a loss much smaller than that of many
other less extensive fires.
1855. Mayor, Ambrose Lawrence ; population .37,-
554. In this year Central Briilge was, by the City
Council, made a public highway.
The registry of deeds for the Northern District of
Middlesex County was opened. March 17, 1855,
\Vm. Livingston died.
In June of this year the Middlesex North Agricul-
tural Society was organized with Win. Spencer as
president. Its history is on another page.
July 22d, Dr. Elisba Bartlett, first mayor of Lowell,
died at Sinithfield, R. I., at the age of fifty-one years.
August 18th. Abbott Lawrence died at the age of
sixty-three years. He was born in Groton in
1792, and was brother to Luther Lawrence, second
mayor of Lowell. He employed his great wealth and
talents in advancing the manufacturing interests of
Lowell, and for him the city of Lawrence was named.
WiLMAM LiVIxosTOX affords us a remarkable
example of a truly self-made man. Fortune maybe
said to have smiled upon him only once, and that was
when she gave him the rising city of Lowell as a fair
field for the exercise of his remarkable force and
energy of character. All else he wrought out with
his own hands.
He was born April 12, 1803, in Tewksbury, Mass.,
and was the son of Wm. Livingston, a respectable
farmer. Having dutifully served his father until he
was twenty years of age, he came to East Chelmsford
y .
-^ ''/'/// /-y .^ .'
LOWELL.
33
(now Lowell) just at the time wiien the first
mills were starting, and when all willing hands
could find something to do. He began as a simple
laborer. In due time his energy and economy
enabled him to purchase a horse and a cart. Soon
lie begins to employ other men and other teams. His
force and ambition bore him still upward. In two
years he became a coniractor. His enterprise and
fidelity gave him a name. He made contracts fur
excavating earth and constructing the stone-work for
canals in Lowell, in Nashua, X. H., and at Sebago
Lake in Maine. At length he took very many and
very large contracts for constructing the mills of the
great corporations in Lowell. He cjnstructed a caual
in the State of Illinois. He erected saw and planing
mills for manufacturing lumber from the forests ot
New Hampshire. His varied contracts and enter-
prises from the days of his early manhood to the com-
pletion of the Salem and Lowell Railroad, in 1850,
are too numerous to be mentioned in this brief
sketch.
But these profitable contracts do notsati.sfy his am-
bition. He established in Lowell a depot for the sale
of grain, lumber, wood, coal, lime, brick and cement.
He purchased land near Thorndike Street, and
erected store-houses for his extensive and increasing
business. While he was engaged upon bis contracts
this business assumed large proportions, employing a
capital of «^0,000 to $100,000, and it is still carried on
ill the hands of Hon. Wm. E. Livingston, his enter-
prising son.
Mr. Livingston was also a man of courage. When
the Boston & Lowell Railroad demanded for freight
what he esteemed an exorbitant charge, he did
not hesitate to make war upon the monopoly by ad-
vocating the construction of comjieting roads. To
this conflict was due the early construction of the
Lowell and Lawrence and the Salem and Lowell
roads. It was through the persistent efforts of Mr.
Livingston before the Legislature of Massachusetts
tliat the charters of these roads were obtained in
spile of tlie earne?t remonstrance of the Boston and
Lowell road. It was mainly due to his wonderful force
and energy that these roads were promptly com-
jileied. The act incorporating the Lowell and Law-
rence road was passed in 1S4G, and the road was fin-
ished and in running order before the close of 1847.
To accomplish this remarkable work of enterprise
and despatch required much night labor, of which
Mr. Livingston had the personal supervision. It was
in this work that his zeal surpassed his prudence
for he contracted a very severe atfection of the lungs,
from which he never recovered.
As a citizen, Mr. Livingston was among the most
prominent in advancingthosepublicenterprises which
pertained to the growth and permanent prosperity of
the city.
He was a Democrat in politics, an earnest, sincere,
upright man, and special foe of all monopolies. He
iJ-ii
did not aspire to political honors, though he fre-
quently received the suffrages of his fellow-citizens.
He often held office both in the town and city of
Lowell. In 183G and 1837 he was a member of the
Senate of Massachusetts. He was also president of
the Lowell and Lawrence Riilroad.
Mr. Livingston acquired a large estate. In 1852
he erected for himself, on Thorndike Street, one of
the most elegant private residences in the city.
In 1855 it became evident that his pulmonary dis-
ease would end in consumption. Having gone to
Jacksonville, Florida, in the vain hope of regaining
his health, he died in that city, March 17, 1855, in
the fifty -second year of his age.
1856. Mayor, Elisha Huntington.
Post-office removed from Middle to Merrimack
Street.
November 7th. Thomas Hopkinson died at Cam-
bridge in the fifty-third year of his age. He waaborn in
New Sharon, Maine, in 1804, and graduated at Har-
vard in 1830. He was one of Lowell's ablest lawyers.
Having been appointed president of the Boston and
Worcester Railroad, he left Lowell about 1849, and
resided in Cambridge.
1857- Mayor, Stephen Mansur.
This was a year of financial distress. There was a
general stagnation in business. Some of the mills
stopped, some ran on short time, and many workmen
were unemployed.
A chime of eleven bells was placed in the tower of
St. Anne's Church.
January IGth. Hon. Thomas H. Benton visited Low-
ell. He delivered a lecture before the " Adelphi " in
the evening on the " Preservation of the Union,"
prefacing it with observations upon what he had seen
in Lowell during the day. He had visited the mills
and the boarding-houses, and seemed greatly pleased
and very agreeably disappointed. The following is
one of his remarks : " I had supposed the houses
were small, mean and poorly ventilated, as are those
of which we read in the old world, but on entering
I find the walls and parlors furnished as well as those
in which the members of Congress board in Waah-
ingtoii."
This celebrated Democratic Senator, peer of Clay,
Calhoun and Webster, was cordially welcomed by the
people of Lowell.
March 3d. George H. Carleton died at theage of fif-
ty-two years. He was born in Haverhill, January 6,
1805; came to Lowell, August, 1827, and bought out
Daniel Stone, Lowell's first apothecary. Carleton's
apothecary store, on Merrimack Street, was for many
years by far the best known of itj kind in the city.
It still retains his name. His old and almost illegi-
ble sign is still over the door, and is a pleasing me-
mento of the respect which his successors cherish for
his name. His life was identified with the life of the
city and of St. Anne's Church, of which he was a
warden. He was alderman of the city in 1838-39, '41.
34
WlSTOrvY OF MIDDLESEX COLLM'i.', MASSACHUSETTS.
From September 10th to October 7th was held tlie
second Fair of the Middlesex Mechanics' Association.
July 1st. Richmoud's paper-mill was burned. Loss,
$21,000.
In 1857 was started The Trumpet, a sensational
paper. The editor, James M. Harmon, found his
business of lampooning the respectable people of
Lowell somewhat expensive, having received a Hog-
ging from one of them, and being sent to the House
of Correction three months for slandering another.
1858. Mayor, Elisha Huntington.
The present bridge across the Concord, at Church
Street, waa built at a cost of §11,295.
November 5th. Hon. Nathaniel Wright died at the
age of seventy-five yeara.
March 20th. The new County Jail, on Thorndike
Street, was first occupied. This magnificent structure
cost $150,000, and contains one hundred and two
cells. If the annual rent of this building should be
reckoned at 10 per cent, of its cost, and if every cell
werekeptcoustantlyoccupied. the average annual rent
of a cell would be 'iXZ'l. When to this is added the
average cost of each occupant for food, salaries of
officers, etc., the very lowest annual expense to the
county of each prisoner is S-100. Thus a scoundrel,
who thinks his family of six persons fortunate if they
can atl'urd to occupy a tenement whose annual rent is
fifty dollars, finds, when he is so fortunate as to get
into this magnificent jail, the county lavishes upon
liim alone an expense which, if bestowed upon his
large and suffering family, would enable them to live
almost in luxury. To squander money thus ap-
jiroaches very near a crime.
1859- Mayor, James Cook.
Ollice of superintendent of schools established.
The first steam tire-engine procured.
November 14th. Thomas Ordway died at the age
of seventy-two years. He was born in Amesbury,
Mass., in 17S7, and was the son of the principal vil-
lage physician. He started business as a trader in
Newburyport in 1S09, but the great tire in 1810 con-
sumed his store and his goods. In 1821 he opened a
store in Concord, N. H. After three or four years
he came to Lowell and opened a store in the britk
block, corner of Worthen and Merrimack Streets. In
1838 he was elected city clerk, and he held the office
nearly twenty years. As city clerk and as a revered
deacon of the Unitarian Church he was long one of
the best known and most beloved citizens of Lowell.
1860. Mayor, Benjamin C. Sargeaut. Population,
30,827.
January 5th. John D. Prince died. He is noticed
on another page.
January 12'.h. Joseph Butterfield, a deputy sheriff
for nearly fifty years, died at the age of seventy-five
years.
March 28th. Park Garden, in Belvidere, purchased
by the city for a Common.
July 2d. The Registry of Deeds for the Northern
District of Middlesex County was opened with A. B.
Wright as register. Up to this date deeds of real es-
tate in Lowell had been recorded in the registry at
East Cambridge. Mr. Wright's successors have been
I. W. Beard and J. P. Thompson, the present incum-
bent.
July 14th. Nicholas G. Norcross died at the age of
fifty-five years. He was born in Orono, Maine, De-
cember 25, 1805. In his early life he was engaged in
an extensive lumber business on the Penobscot River.
On coming to Lowell, about 1845, he began a large
busines^s in lumber on the Merrimack, by which he
gained to himself the well-knowu title of ''Lumber
King."
186L Mayor, Benjamin C. Sargeant.
February 20th. Pawtucket Bridge made free ami the
event celebrated.
April lOtli. Addison O. Whitney and Luther C.
Ladd killed while marching in the Sixth Massa-
chusetts Regiment through lialtiuiure.
I July 14th. Nathan Appleton, died in Boston, at the
I age of eighty-two years. He was a Boston merchant
: of great wealth, and was most deeply interested in the
I establishment of cotton manufactures in Lowell,
i having subscribed for IS'i of the original IIOO shares
of the Merrimack Compaiiy. His tine, full-length
portrait graces Mechanics' Hall, and ''Appleton
I Street'' and "Appleton Bank " and "Appleton Com-
i pany " attest the honor in which his name is held in
our city.
,Vugust2d. The Sixth Regiment return from the war.
September 5th. tJeueral Butler having returned to
Lowell, alter the capture of the forts at Hatteras
IiiUt, was received with enthusiasm liy the people of
the city. He was escorted from ihu depot by four
military companies and received an address of wel-
come from Mayor Sargeant.
September 24ih. Prince Jerome Napoleon, with his
wife, the Princess Clotilde, daughter of Victor Em-
manuel, King of Italy, visited Lowell.
1862. Mayor, Hocum Hosford. Central Bridge
rebuilt.
Four Lowell companies enlisted for nine months'
service in the war.
August 9th. Edward G. Abbott was killed at the bat-
tle of Cedar Mountain, at the age of twenty-two years.
Major Abbott was the son of Judge J. G. Abbott, and
a graduate of our High .School and Harvard College.
He was a brave soldier and a young man of high
promise. His death produced a profound sensation.
French Immigiiatiun.— The city of Lowell during
the last twenty-five years has received into its labor-
ing class a very large number of French Canadians.
This remarkable migation began about 1863. The
number of French in Lowell amounted to about 1200
in 18(58, and now has reached 15,000, and forms a
very important part of the inhabitants of our city.
The French settlers in Canada occupy a large por-
tion of what has been known as East Canada, along
f(r^ 7^^ //'<'«.* 1 y /?^ ciXi.-* ■> o
LOWELL.
35
the bants of the St. Lawrence and the lower courses
of its tributary streams. They now number perliaps
1,000,000 souls and constitute more than one-third of
the inhabitants of ihe Province. They have been left
far behind in the race of weahh and progress by the
settlers of English origin, and to a very great extent
they live a laborious lite upon small farms which are
too often encumbered with debt. Their few cities
have increased in inhabitants slowly, and there are
few great manufactories of any kind in which the
willing laborer can earn sufficient money to start in
life or pay off the debt upon his humble farm.
In recent years it has come to these people like a
revelation that such are now the facilities of travel
by railroad that only a few hours will bring them to
the great manufacturing towns and cities of New
England, where they can readily exchange their
labor for ready money. With this incentive before them
few at first quit their rural hemes and more and more
followed. Herein New Euglandnotonly the father, but
mother, son and daughter, found ready work for ready
hands. Almost all came with the intention of return-
ing to pay off their debt and spend their remaining
days in their old homes. Very many actually do
this. Others never return. Perhaps a sou or a
daughter marries in New England and their affec-
tions are in their new home, or some profitable busi-
ness invites them to remain. Many of them pay an-
nual visits to Canada when business is less active, and
it is an interesting scene when large numbers gather
at our depots with baggage of every description to
start for their old homes. To many the pleasing ex-
citements of city life, or the facilities of reaching a
church of their own fiiith, or the advantages of good
public schools, present a powerful motive to remain
in New Eng'.and. Their old rural homes in Canada,
where no church nor school is near at hand, and
where business languishes, have by degrees lost their
charm and so they never return.
Still they love their native language and are proud
of it. They wish to iearn the English, but not to
give up the French. Above all things they hold fast
to the religion of their fathers. They are mostly de-
vout Catholics, and in their new homes they faith-
fully follow and obey their religious teachers. They
are often to be seen, even early in the morning, in
Ion"' procession, men, women and children, with
book in hand, thronging the sidewalks of our streets.
Father Gariu, the excellent and honored pastor of
St. Joseph's Church, informs me that on every Sunday
morning his spacious church on Lee Street is filled in
succession with five different audiences. And so
crowded has this church become that he is now erect-
ing a new and very spacious church on Merrimack
Street for the accommodation of the rapidly increas-
ing- number of French Canadian people. As laborers
they prove to be an industrious and intelligent class.
Tliey perform a very large part of the manufacturing
work of our city.
1863. Mayor, Hocum Hosford.
January 2Gth. First Sanitary Fair in Lowell.
September 9th. Lowell Horse Railroad Company
began to lay track?".
April 1st. Stephen Mansur, mayor of the city in
1857, died at the age of sixty-four years.
June 3d. Solon A. Perkins was killed in an engage-
ment at Clinton, Louisiana, at the age of twenty-seven
years. Major Perkins was son of Apollos Perkins,
and a graduate of our High School. He wasasuperior
scholar and a gallant soldier. Lowell had no richer
offering to make.
1864. Mayor, Hocum Hosford.
January 9th. Dr. John C. Dalton died, at the age
of sixty-eight years. He was born in Boston, and
graduated at Harvard. He was, for many years, a
distinguished physician in this city and in Chelms-
ford.
March 1st. Lowell Horse Railroad opened.
April 4th. George Wellman died, at the age of
fifty-three years. He was born in Boston, May IC,
1810. He came to Lowell when twenty-five years of
age, and was for many years in charge of a carding-
room of the Merrimack Corporation. He became
distinguished as an inventor, and is especially known
as the inventor of the self top-card stripper, which
has become one of the most important factors in cot-
ton manufacture.
April 23d. Celebration of Shakespeare's birth at
Huntington Hall.
May 6tb. Henry L'.vermore Abbott was killed in
the battle of the Wilderness at the age of twenty-two
years. Major Abbott was a fon of Judge J. G. Ab-
bott, a graduate of our High School and of Harvard
College and was a young man of fine intellect and
high promise.
May IGth. First National Bank incorporated.
June 7lh. J. H. B. Ayer, mayor of the city in 1851,
died at the age of seventy -six years.
July 17th. Three companies of the Sixth Regiment
enlist for 100 days.
August 16th. Captain William Wyman, second
postmaster of Lowell, died at the age of eighty-two
years. He was the owner of the farm on the heights
of Belvidere on which now stand many of the most
elegant private reridences of the city. He constructed
many of the buildings of the city, one of which —
Wyman'o Exchange — still bears his name. He was,
for many years, one of the most conspicuous and
enterprising men of the city.
October 20th. John P. Robinson died at the age of
sixty-five years. See Bench and Bar.
Captain Jonathan Spalding. — The high moral,
intellectual and social culture of Lowell in its early
davs has been the subject of very common remark,
and has frequently elicited the admiration of
strangers. The celebrated Wendell Phillips, who, in
1833, was a citizen of Lowell, said of the city thirty
vears afterwards: "Lowell was then crowded with
36
HISTORY OF .MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
able men, and was rich in all that makes good so-
ciety, — amiable, beautiful and accorapliahed women,
— gentlemen of talent, energetic, well-informed, giving
a hearty welcome to the best thought of the dav."
This enviable condition of Lowell was greatly due
to the humane and generous policy of the merchant
princes of Boston who were the founders of the city.
It was also partly due to the large number of men of
talent and culture whom the new and magnificent
manufacturing enterprise had attracted to the spot.
But a third and very important factor was the high
character of the people already living in the quiet
village of East Chelmsford, where Lowell now stands.
The fertile fields lying for miles around Pawtucket
Falls were owned by thrifty farmers, whose spacious
homes were the abodes of generous ho.-pitality and
of much social refinement. Among them were men
of talent and high political position. On the north
side of the river was General Joseph B. Varnum,
who, for more than twenty years, was a member of
Congress, for four of which he was Speaker of the
House of Representatives, and for one year President
])ro tempore of the United States Senate. On the
south side was the sturdy young farmer, Benjamin
Pierce, who gained an honorable name as au officer
in the Kevolutionary War, and who afterwards be-
came Governor of New Hampshire and the father of
a President of the United States. On these farms
were the ancestors of many of the best families of
our city, and the names of Varnum, Coburn, Spald-
ing, Hildreth and others are still honored names.
To this class of substantial farmers belonged Jonathan
Spalding, the subject of this sketch.
Capt. Spalding was born at East Chelmsford (now
Lowell), June 12, 1775, and died at his home, on Paw-
tucket Street, Lowell, April 17, 1SG4, at the age of
eighty-eight years. He was born at his father's farm-
house,npar Pawtucket Falls, but the home of his in-
fancy and childhood was situated near the junction of
Merrimack and Central Streets. His father was Joel
Spalding, a respectable farmer, and his grandfather.
Col. Simeon Spalding, who lived near the centre of
Chelmsford, was an otBcer in the Revolutionary
army, and one of the most important and influential
men of the town, being the trusted representative of
Chelmsford in the Legislature of the State in the
days of the Revolutionary War, a member of the
Provincial Congress of Massachusetts in 1775, and a
delegate to the convention for framing a Constitution
of the Slate in 1770. Edward Spalden, the great-
grandfather of Col. Spalding, was one of the earliest
settlers of Chelmsford.
The father of Capt. Spalding spent his life upon
his farm, if we except a short time in which he
served in the Revolutionary army. He was present
at the surrender of Burgoyne at Saratoga. In 1790,
just 100 years ago, the family removed from the
house in which Capt. Spalding was born to the man-
sion-house on Pawtucket Street, in which he spent
the remaining years of his long life, and which is
still in the possession of Sarah R. Spalding, his only
daughter.
Capt. Spalding owed his military title to his ap-
pointment in his early manhood to the captaincy of
a company of cavalry. Through life he carried
with him something of the pcsitiveness of military
discipline. Though he was very deeply interested in
the promotion of the public welfare, he was never
ambitious of political honor. He was, however, in
1833, a member of the Legislature of the State.
When it became evident to him ihat the city of
Lowell was destined to cover his ancestral farm, he
sold the larger part of it to a syndicate of gentle-
men, consisting of William Livingston, Sidney Spal-
ding and others, and it was divided into house-lots
for the homes of the people of the rapidly-extending
city. He, however, retained as much of the
est.ite as would meet his wants and pleasures while
living in retirement, and his last years were peace-
fully and pleasantly passed at the old homestead.
Capt. Spalding was (bnd of books, and was happy
in his domestic relations. He loved to rehearse to
his family the events of early days, and tell cf the
simi)le scenes of rural life, when the good people of
the town were wont to ride to church on horseback,
keeping the Sabbath with the profoundest rever-
ence, and devoting to the solemn service the entire
day, from the rising of the sun to th.3 going down
thereof. He had the pleasure of witnessing, from their
very ince|)tion, the rise and development of the great
manufacturing enterprises which have made Lowell
known the world around.
Capt. Spalding was a man of delicate sensibility
and refinement of feeling, and possessed that union
of gentleness and firmness which always gives grace
to manners and dignity to character. He was of a
social nature, and was upon terms of friendly iuter-
C'jurse with ilr. Boott and other distinguished meu
of LoweH's early days. Of the hospitality of his
home a large circle of friends have many pleasant
memories. His quiet and [leaceful life was prolonged
far beyond the allotted age of man, and it afforded a
noble illustration of that pure and strong New Eng-
land character to which is due so much of the sta-
bility, prosperity and glory of our country. His wife,
Sarah Dodge Spalding, died in 1837, at the ageof for-
ty-nine years. Of his two sons, who survived him. Dr.
Joel Spalding will be probably noticed iti this work
among the physicians of Lowell, and J. Tyler Spal-
ding, who was a member of the firm of Ward &
Spalding, in Boston, died in 1872, at the homestead
in Lowell, at the age of forty-two years.
1865. Mayor, Josiah G. Peabody. Population, 30,-
990. The effect of the War of the Rebellion upon
the people of Lowell is indicated by the fact that
just before the war, in 18G0, the population was
greater by 5837 than at its close, in 1865. But even
before the war, such was the financial prostration
LOWELL.
37
aud distress of the country, that the population of the
city in 1860 was less by 727 than in 1850.
June 17th. The dedication of theLadd and Whitney
monument occurred. Lowell hnd never seen so splen-
did a pageant. The procession before the dedication
contained a vast array of high officials and organiza-
tions dressed in uniform, too numerous to be men-
tioned. The exultation at the successful issue of the
war inspired the occasion, and men of every class
delighted to honor the two younp Lowell soldiers
who were the first to shed their blood in the great
civil conflict. The oration was delivered by Massa-
chusetts' " War Governor,'' Andrew. The monument
does honor to the city. The words of the finely ap-
propriate inscription upon it, selected by Governor
Andrew, are found in Milton's Samson Agonistes, lines
1721-4, and are the words of Manoah, the father of
Samson, as he contemplates the bravery and death of
liis son :
" Nothiu? is here fur teftre, notbins to wail
Or kuuck the breuat ; Do weuknead, nu contempt,
Dispraise, or bltinic ; DOtliiug but well uDd fair,
Atiti what liiuy quiet us ia a death bo uuble."
December 11th. Elisha Huntington died at the age
of seventy years. Probably no citizen of Lowell has
filled so many office?, or has so long enjoyed, in
political and municipal aflairiS, the favor of his fel-
low-citizens.
1866. Mayor, Josiah G. Peabody. Population,
30,878.
January 17tb. Chase's Mills burned. Loss, $173,-
000. Probably the most destructive fire that has oc-
curred in Lowell.
August Gth. Music Hall opened.
September 3d. Perez Fuller died at the age of
seventy years. He was born in Kingston, Mass.,
1797. Mr. Fuller was a tailor by trade. He was a
]>erson of very unique character. While he was a
quiet, thoughtful man, so sober in appearance as al-
most to look sad, be possessed a vein of wit and humor
which made him the delight of all who loved fun. For
years no convivial occasion in Lowell was complete
without a comic song from Mr. Fuller. As an ama-
teur actor he exhibited remarltable natural talent.
He was withal so genial a companion that he became
a general favorite. It is hardly to the credit of the
mirth-loving people of the *ity, whom he so often
delighted, that in our cemetery there is no stone to
mark his grave.
1867. Mayor, George F. Richardson.
February 4lh. Young Men's Christian Association
organized.
March 29th. St. John's Hospital incorporated.
February 4th. First fair in aid of the Old Ladies'
Home.
April 21st. Joshua Swan died at the age of seventy-
nine years. He was born in Methuen, Mass., and
came to East Chelmsford (now Lowell) in 1S24, and
entered into the em|)loy of the machine-shop, where
he served as a contractor till 1840. While Lowell
was a town no man probably received bo many offices
as Mr. Swan. He was often selectman and modera-
tor of meetings, etc. He represented both town and
city in the Legislature. He was in the Council aud
Board of Aldermen, and served as county commis-
sioner three years from 1848.
July 4th. The statue of Victory, presented to the
city by Dr. J. C. Ayer, was unveiled in Monument
Square, in the presence of 15,000 or 20,000 spectators.
This statue is of bronze and is seventeen feet high.
It stands upon a granite pedestal. It is modeled
after a statue in front of the royal palace in Munich.
The figure is of a draped woman with wings, extend-
ing the wreath of victory in one hand and holding a
harvest sheaf of wheat in the other. It commemor-
ates the success of the national arms in the War of
the Rebellion.
July lOth. Old Ladies' Home, on Fletcher Street,
was dedicated.
1868. Mayor, Geo. F. Richardson.
March 11th. Samuel L. Dana, LL.D., died at the
age of seventy-three years. He was born in Am-
herst, N. H., 1795, and entered Harvard College
when only fourteen years of age. He served as lieu-
tenant of the First Artillery in the War of 1812. He
became a physician by profession, and practiced in
Waltham, but his great attainments in the science of
chemistry gained him the appointment of chemist to
the Merrimack Manufacturing Company. He came
to Lowell in 1834. Probably no citizen of Lowell
has made so high attainments in science. He was an
unassuming man of the most sterling worth.
May 30lh. Decoration Day firot celebrated.
December 4th. Gen. U.S. Grant visited Lowell. He
caine by invitation of the members of the City Grov-
ernmect, who met him in Boston and escorted him to
the city. The general seemed desirous of avoiding
display, and only three carriages were provided for
the occasion. He visited the Merrimack Company's
mills and the Print Works, the Carpet Mill and the
Lawrence Mills. There was a display of flags, and
crowds filled the streets, but the pageantry which at-
tended the visits of President Jackson and President
Tyler was wanting.
December 21st. Old Residents' Historical Associa-
tion organized with Dr. John O. Green as president,
and Z. E. Stone as secretary.
March 17ih. Samuel Burbank died at the age of
seventy-six years. He was born in Hudson, N. H., and
came to Middlesex Village (now a part of Lowell) in
1823, where he engaged in trade. Subsequently he was
adealer in clothing and hardware on Central Street for
many years. Few citizens of Lowell have been bet-
ter known or more highly honored. He was twice in
the Common Council, twice in the Board of Alder-
men, three times in the State Legislature. He was
also warden of St. John's Church. On the day of
his burial, as if by a spontaneous movement, the
38
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
stores of the city were closed. So much do men
honor inte(!rity of character.
18S9. Mayor, Jonathan P. Folsom.
May 26th. The Lowell Hosiery Company was in-
corporated with a capital of $200,000.
October 15th. Hon. John Nesmith died at the age
of seventy-six years.
December 27 th. Masons celebrate St. John's Day
in St. Anne's Church.
Hon. John Nesmith. — The ancestry of Mr. Nes-
mith may be traced to that colony of sturdy Scotch-
men who, iu 1G90, sought the fertile fields of northern
Ireland, and settled on the River Bann, in the county
of Londonderry. From this colony came his great-
grandfather, Dea. James Nesmith, who, in 1719, set-
tled in Londonderry, N. H., and was one of the pro-
prietors of the town and an elder in the Presbyterian
Church. Thomas, the eldest son of Deacon Nesmith,
settled in the neighboring town of Windham, and ac-
quired a large estate. John, the son of Thomas, and
father of the subject of this sketch, was a merchant in
Windham, and died at the age of forty-four years,
leaving a family of nine children. John, the fourth
child, who was born August 3, 1793, and at the time
of his father's death was thirteen years of age, was
put to service as a merchant's clerk in Haverhill, Mass.
After five years in this position he formed a part-
nei^ship with his elder brother, Thomas, and engaged
in trade, first in Windham and subsequently in Derry,
N. H. During several of the later years of this part-
nership the brothers also carried on an extensive
and very successful commission business in New
York. Mr. John Nesmith conducted this branch of
the business of the firm and had his residence in that
city.
Having acquired property in trade, they came to
Lowell in 1831, and purchased of Judge Edward St.
Lae Livermore his estate of 150 acres in Belvidere
for S25,000, and sold it in house-lots to the cit'zens
of the rapidly-growing town. This enterprise brought
them still greater wealth.
But Mr. Nesmith was far from being contented
with dealing in real estate. He aspired to intellec-
tual achievements. His active mind enjoyed inves-
tigation and experiment. He studied works of science,
Le invented machines, he sought out new devices in
the mechanic arts; as he walked the streets his brow
was knit in thought, he peered into the future, and was
knov/n in the business world as a far-seeing man. It
was he who, foreseeing the advantage of controlling
the waters of Winnepiseogee and Squam LakeS, in
New Hampshire, for the benefit of the Lowell mills
in seasons of drought, purchased, on his own account,
the right to use these waters — a right which the
manufacturers were subsequently obliged to purchase
of him. It was he who, discerning the fitness of the
site of the city of Lawrence for manufacturing pur-
poses, purchased large portions of the land on which
that citv stands.
Among the machines invented by Mr. Nesmith
were one for making wire fence and another for
weaving shawl fringe. He engaged iu the manufac-
ture of blankets, flannels, printing cloths, sheetings
and other fabrics. He was either agent or owner of
mills in Lowell, Dracut, Chelmsford and Hooksett,
N. H.
He was a man of ardent, aggressive nature. His
convictions were positive and he could not meekly
bear opposition. His marked character brought him
public distinction. He was elected to municipal of-
fices. He was twice chosen Presidential elector and
once Lieutenant-Governor of the Siate. However,
he was not a politician, but a moralist. In political
contests it was not the partisan, but the moral, aspect
that moved him. The temi)erance aud anti-slavery
causes found in him a liberal contributor aud a life-
long friend.
In domestic life he spent freely from his large es-
tate to make his home one of comfort aud of beauty.
His graperies and his hot-houses, his fruit-trees and his
shrubbery, his fine lawn adorned with noble ornamen-
tal shade-trees, all attest his refined t:\ste, his love of
the beautiful and his tender care for the happiness of
those he loved. In his declining years he was not
the man to retire to the ease and repose so often
sought by the aged, but he Vvorked while strength
la>ted. He died not so much from disease as because
his physical powers could no longer endure the ac-
tion of his mind.
In his will he made generous provision for the in-
digent blind of New Hampsliire, and for a park iu
the town of Franklin in that State.
His death occurred October 15, 1SG9, in the
seventy-seventh year of his a^e.
1870. Mayor, Jonathan P. Folsom. Population,
40,928.
Jan. ISth, Rev. Dr. Amos Blanchard died. A sketch
of his life is found in Church History.
March 2d, B. C. Sargeant, mayor of the city in 18G0-
61, died at the age of forty-seven years.
March loth. Natives of !Maiue hold a festival iu
Huntington Hal!.
Col. Thomas Nesmith. — Very many of the early
settlers of New England were the choice spirits of
the British Isles. It was their love of liberty, their
superior enterprise, and, above all, their ardent
desire for religious freedom, that compelled them to
forsake their kindred a.nd the land of their birth,
and to welcome the hardships of a free life in the
new world. Conspicuous among these brave and
hardy einierants were the early settlers of London-
derry, N. H., and the adjacent towns. In 1690 their
forefathers had removed from Scotland to find a
fairer home and more fertile fields on the river Bann,
in the north of Ireland, and had settled in the county
of Londonderry. They were uncompromising Presby-
terians, and the persecutions which in Scotland they
had suflVrcd I'rom the English government and the
/
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h. . -.
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LOWELL.
39
Established Church had only confirmed their con-
victions and inspired in them an ardent love for
independence.
From these Scotch people in Londonderry in Ire-
land came the early settlers of Londonderry in New
England. Among them was Dea. James Nesmith,
the great-grandfather of Col. Thomas Nesmith, the
subject of this sketch. Dea. Nesmith came to
America in 1719, and was one of the sixteen pro-
prietors of the town of Londonderry, now in the
State of New Hampshire. His son Thomas, from
whom Col. Nesmith received his name, was one of
the first settlers of Windham (once a part of London-
derry), and was an enterprising farmer who, for the
times, acquired a large estate. John Nesmith, son of
the latter, and father of Col. Nesmith, remained upon
the homestead. The farm contained about 400 acres
and the spacious farm-house had seventeen rooms
and a store attached to it, together with a large hall,
which was a famous place for balk and dances in
"ye olden time." John Nesmith kept a country
store and did a thriving business. When forty-four
years of age he died suddenly, leaving a widow with
nine children.
Col. Thomas Nesmiih was born in Windham,
N. H., Sept. 7, 1788. His early education was ob-
tained in the district school and in the institution
now known as the Pinkerton Academy, in Derry.
When his father died he was eighteen years of age.
His mother was a woman of remarkable ability lor
business, although from lameness she was able to walk
only with a crutch. She resolved to retain the store
and rely upon her sons to carry on the business and
thus support the family. And doubtless it was in
this school of necessity that Col. Nesmith learned
those lessons of wisdom and foresight that made him
in future years one of the safest of financiers, and
one of the shrewdest and most far-seeing of the early
founders of the city of Lowell. He learned to lake
and to bear the responsibilities which the large
fiimily of a widowed mother imposed upon an older
son.
When twenty-four years of age he formed a partner-
ship with his younger brother John, and started a
store in Windham, in which they continued business
for about ten years. During this time he carried on a
very profitable business in the purchase and sale of
linen thread, which in those days was manufactured
on the small foot-wheel in private families. In 1822
the partners opened a store in Derry, where they con-
tinued in trade for about eight years.
In 1831 they retired from business and devoted
themselves to real estate, purchasing of Judge St.
Loe Livermore his large estate in Belvidere, in the
town of Tewksbury, for S2d,000, with the purpose of
selling it in house-lots demanded by the rapidly in-
creasing population of Lowell. This fine swell of
land, bounded on two sides by the Concord and the
Merrimack, became a part of the city about three
years after its purchase. It contains 150 acres and
upon it have been erected very many of the most
elegant homes of the city. The results of this enter-
prise, when added to the accumulations of trade in
earlier years, made the Nesmith brothers among the
most opulent of the citizens of Lowell.
Colonel Nesmith, though not a seeker for office, had
his share of official responsibilities. In early life he
was inspector of schools, and held other town offices
in Windham. In the War of 1812 he enlisted as a
soldier for, three months, and served as third lieute-
nant in Captain Bradley's company, stationed at
Portsmouth. In 1820 he was chosen colonel of the
Eighth Regiment of New Hampshire Militia. After
coming to Lowell he served two years in the City
Council, and he was a director of the Merchanib'
Bank.
His last years were spent in his home on Park
Street, his large estate affording him sufficient and
congenial employment. Colonel Nesmith was a
gentleman of the old school, dignified in manner and
observant of the gentle courtesies of social life.
It is to the honor both of the head and heart of
Colonel Nesmith that in his last will he left to his
native town of Windham $3000 for founding and per-
petuating a public library, $1000 to the High Street
Church Sab bath -School, of which his own children
had been members, and $25,000 as a fund for the sup-
port of the poor of Lowell. He died July 31, 1870,
at the age of eighty-two years.
1871. Mayor, Edward F. Sherman.
February 8th. The fir^t case of small-pox occurred.
This disease became epidemic in the city and was
the occasion of much excitement and alarm. The
city government was very severely blamed for inef-
ficient action in checking the disease, and many
citizens were roused to anger and indignation. It is
easy to judge after an event what should have been
done. The disease prevailed till autumn, and 580
persons were attacked by it, of whom 178 died.
October 23d the Board of Health reported that all
danger from small-pox had passed. The city ex-
pended S2G,000 on account of this epidemic. Its
origin is traced to an emigrant family who settled in
Mill Street. This family, having a sick child, used
every means to conceal the fact that the disease was
small-pox. The parents reported it as a case of mea-
sles. After the child had died a "wake" was held
in the house, and before the truth became known
large numbers had been exposed.
March 14th. City Council appropriated $15,000 to
establish a fire-alarm telegraph.
April lltli. Central Savings Bank organized.
August 22d. Framingham and Lowell Railroad
opened for travel.
December 9th. The Grand Duke Alexis, of Russia,
visited Lowell.
December 29th. Odd Fellows' Hall dedicated.
Sidney Spaldikg wa» born in East Chelmsford
40
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
(now Lowell) November 14, 1798, and died at bis res-
idence on Middlesex Street, Lowell, on September 2,
1871, at the age of nearly seventy-three years. He
was the son of Micah Spalding, a respectable farmer
of East Chelmsford, whose farm-house, in which his
son was born, still stands on the corner of School and
Liberty Streets, in Lowell. In lively contrast to the
namerous equipages which now daily traverse the
once quiet farm of Mr. Micah Spalding it is fitting to
record that he was the possessor of the first chaise
owned in East Chelmsford. He died April 23, 1830,
at the age of seventy -seven years, while his wife, Mary
Chamberlain [Spalding], lived to the greit age of
ninety-one years.
The Spalding family is so numerous in Lowell and
its vicinity, and bears so honorable a name, that a
brief record of the ancestral line of the subject of
this sketch will not fail to interest the reader.
Edward Spalding, his earliest American ancestor,
seems to have joined that devout band from the towns
of Woburn and Concord, who, about lCo2, being in
search of a new place of settlement, had discovered a
tract of land on the west side of Concord River,
which they pronounced " a comfortable place to ac-
commodate God's people," and which, on making it
their home, they had called Chelmsford (Chelmer's
ford), probably in affectionate remembrance of
Chelmsford in England, on the banks of the river
Chelmer. Edward Spalding was in the first Board of
Selectmen in the town. John, the oldest sou of Ed-
ward, came with his father to Chelmsford when about
twenty-one years of age and lived to the age of eighty-
eight years. Joseph, son of John, also lived in
Chelmsford and died in 1728, at the age of fifty-four
yeais. Simeon Spalding, son of Joseph and grand-
father of Sidney Spalding, was far the most distin-
guished of his ancestors. He represented in the Leg-
islature the town of Chelmsford during the eventful
years preceding the Revolutionary War and during
the first years of the war. The fact that he possessed
the full confidence of his patriotic constituents indi-
cates the quality of his own patriotism. He had the
military title of colonel. Colonel Spalding was a
prominent Free Mason and for several years the his-
toric Pawtucket Lodge, of Lowell and vicinity, held
its meetings at his house. Micah, the son of Colonel
Simeon Spalding, was, as belbre stated, the father of
Sidney Spalding.
Mr. Spalding, after completing his elementary
education, became a clerk in tiie glass woiks
of Middlesex Village (now Lowell), a village which,
situated at the head of Middlesex Canal, was in those
early days a very important centre of business. At
length he opened a store in this village, which in two
or three years he relinquished in order to engage in
trade in Savannah, Georgia. But after visiting the
South he found neither the climate nor the institu-
tions of Georgia agreeable to his tastes and he re-
turned to New England. It was while in Georgia
that he imbibed those political principles which
made him an ardent Free-Soiler during the restof hia
life.
His next business adventure proved to be most for-
tunate. In company with four or five other gentle-
men, in 1830, while Lowell was a town, he purchased
the farm of Jonathan Spalding, in the south part of
Lowell, and proceeded to divide it into house-lots for
the rapidly increasing population of the town. This
proved to be the enterprise which occupied most of
the remaining years of liis life and from which he de-
rived most of his wealth.
However, he took a prominent part in the con-
struction of the Lowell and Lawrence and the Salem
and Lowell Railroads, in the stock of which he was a
large owner. At the time of his death he was presi-
dent of the former road and director of the latter.
Although Mr. Spalding was not ambitious for po-
litical honors, he was for four years a representative of
Lowell in the General Court. He was one year a
member of the Common Council and for two years
in the Board of Aldermen. In 1861 he was nomi-
nated as candidate for mayor of Lowell, but he de-
clined the honor. Had he received the election he
would have graced the olBce, for he was a gentleman
of superior talent for business, of cultivated manners
and of commanding personal presence. His tastes
led him to the <|uiet enjoyments of domestic lile. He
was fond of books, and in his elegant and attractive
home he had much to allure him from the walks of
political life.
He, however, had his share of human sorrow.
He lived to see the death of two wives and all of
their four children. ' His third wife and one dai^gh-
ter, -Miss Harriet Sidney Sjialding, survive him. Dr.
Charles Parker Spalding and Mr. Frederic Parker
Spalding, who are sons of his third wife by her for-
mer husband, Frederic Parker, Esq., attorney-at-law,
and who were adopted by Mr. Spalding and received
his name, are now respected citizens of Lowell.
1872. Mayor, Josiah G. Peabody.
January. William North died attheage of seventy-
eight years. He was born in Weatherslield, Conn.,
July 12, 1794. He held the position of superintendent
of the dyeing department of Middlesex Mills. He
was a man of great moial worth and was affection-
ately called " Father North." He was often honored
with city offices. He was especially identified with
St. Paul's Methodist Church.
February. City Library removed to Masonic Block.
February 10th. E. F. Sherman, mayor of the city
in 1S71, died at the age of fifty-one years.
March loth. People's Club orgai;ized.
April 27th. George Brownwell died at the age of
nearly seventy-nine years. He was born in Ports-
mouth, R. I., August 8, 1793. After working as a ma-
chinist in Fall River and Waltham,he came to Lowell
in 1824, and was among the first machinists of the
Lowell Machine Shop. Ou the death ol Paul Moody
■> ',..
y^ // r< ^af,,rj
LOWELL.
41
be succeeded him as superintendent of the machine
tihop. He retired from active business in 1845. He
was a member of the Common Council, of the Board
of Aldermen and of the Legislature, and was one of
Lowell's first citizens.
April 26ih. Oliver M. Whipple died at the age of
seventy-eight years. He was born in Weathersficld,
Vt., May 4, 1794, and came to East Chelmsford (now
Lowell), in 1818, nearly eight years before the town of
Lowell was incorporated, and established a powder
manufactory which he operated thirty-seven years.
He was a man of great energy and he took a very
active part in developing the enterprises ot the city
ill its early days. He was honored both by the town
and city of Lowell with many offices, and is justly
esteemed one of the founders of the city.
August 3d. An embassy Irom Japan visited the
city.
The Pawtucket iron bridge was finished in 1872, at
a cost of $3G,000, half of which was paid by the town
of Dracut.
Lowell Water-Works.— On November 27, 1872,
the pumping-engine of the water-works was first set
in motion.
Very soon after Lowell received her city charter
(1S3C), the question of an adequate water supply
attracted the attention of the city government.
In June, 1838, Mr.'F. M. Dexier, civil engineer, of
Boston, was employed to ascertain the level of Tyng's
and Long Ponds, and of Merrimack River above
Pawtucket Falls, and also the probable cost of intro-
ducing water from each of these sources. One item of
the engineer's report was that an outlay of §168,000
would furnish a daily supply of 1,200,000 gallons
from Tyng's Pond.
It was in 1848, ten years afterwards, that this re-
port was taken from the table and referred to the
proper committee. William E. Worthen, engine'=r,
was engaged to investigate and report the cost of sup-
plying with water 7a,000 inhabitants. He reported
that no pond in the vicinity of Lowell could furnish
a sufficient supply and recommended the taking of
water from the Merrimack River as the most feasible
plan. To do this would require au outlay of $400,000
or $500,000.
Here again the question rested for seven long years.
In 1855 an act of the Legislature was obtained
allowing the city to take a water supply from Merri-
mack Rivtr.
In 18G0 more surveys were made and reported upon,
and referred to the next city government, and then
follows a long rest of sLx years.
lu 18G6 the city government raised a committee on
water supply, and appointed Mr. L. F. Rice as engi-
neer. The plau reported made Beacon Hill, at the
head of Sixth Street the place for a reservoir, and
West Sixth Street the place for a pumping station.
It was estimated the total cost of introducing water
from the Merrimack, would be $750,0U0. This plau
was submitted to a vote of the people of Lowell and
rejected.
But soon there follows a change in the popular
sentiment. The friends of the water supply measure
take courage. Again on February 23, 1869, a popu-
lar vote was taken with the result of 1868 for the
measure and 1418 against it. By this vote the city
government was instructed to proceed and to intro-
duce water into the city for extinguishing fires and
for domestic uses.
The committee into whose hands was put the
charge of executing the work consisted of the mayor,
Mr. Folsom, Aldermen Scott and Latham and Coun-
cilmen Anderson, Greenhalge, Haggett and Lamson.
New investigations were now made. Water taken
from various sources was again analyzed. The water
from the Merrimack River and Beaver Brook was pro-
nounced purest. The Council decided in favor of
Beaver Brook, with an estimated cost of over
$1,000,000.
Again opposition arises. In November, 1869, the
proposition of postponing the whole matter was
brought to a popular vote and negatived by a very
decided majority, the yeas being 824 and the uays
2754. So decided an expression of the popular will
settled the matter. And cow the work proceeds.
Messrs. Levi Sprague, William E. Livingston and S.
K. Hutchinson were appointed as the Board of Water
Commissioners and Mr. Joseph P. Davis as engineer.
The plan adopted was that of the engineer, who re-
commended that water be taken from Merrimack
River at a probable cost of $1 .265,000. This was the
final plan, and it has been carried into successful exe-
cution. Very few if any dispute its wisdom.
Mv space will not allow me to speak at length of
the filter galleries, conduits, engines, pumps, and a
thousand other appliances necessary to the comple-
tion of the great work. The rest must be given in a
statistical form. The annual report for 1888 gives us
the statistics below :
The reservoir lot od BeacoD Hill contains 17 acres. The reservoir
itself covere nearly seveu acres.
Total leiigib of u'Hier mains, miles 85
Kunilier of water-takers 15,500
Kstiiiialeil population supplied 70,000
Tnlnl charges from all sources for 1888 185,000
Ket bonded indebtedness of the city for water-
works $1,191,160
Amount of receipUi above expeuditarei ID 1888 . $o,244
Total expenditures on water-works 14,453,583
Number gallons water pumped in 1888 1,822,01X490
Number tons of coal consumed in 1888 1,8(^
Average price of coal per ton in 188S f4-44
Kumber of gallons of water used daily per capita G6^
1873. Mayor, Francis Jewett.
May 1st. Young Women's Home dedicated.
July 9th. Fisher A. Hildreth died at the age of
fifty-five years. He was born in Dracut February 5,
1818. His home was in Centralville, and through his
life he was identified with the city's histoiy. As
editor of several Democratic papers and as post-
42
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
master of the city he became very widely known.
He acquired wealth and from his estate wiia erected
the "Hildreth" block. He was a man of talent and
enterprise.
August '24th. Dr. Edson's eightieth birthday cele-
brated.
September 29th. The Daily Times appears as a
morning paper.
1874. Mayor, Francis Jewett.
March 7lh. Fiftieth Anniversary of the organiza-
tion of St. Anne's Church celebrated.
April 20th. Fire at Wameait Mills ; loss, $40,000.
September 24th. G. A. R. Hall dedicated.
December Ist. Lowell & Andover Railroad opened.
October 31st. Rev. John O'Brien ' died at the age
of seventy-four years.
In 1874 the village of Pawtucketville (1000 acres)
was set off from Dracut to Lowell. This village,
many years older than Centralville, haa a history
reaching back into the last century. Here, in 1711,
was established the old church whose history is else-
where given. The bridge over the Merrimack at this
place, incorporated in 1792, had drawn people to the
spot. This village, formerly known ;ia West Dracut,
is now one of the most pleasant and attractive parts
of our city.
In the same year (1874) Middlesex Village (060
acres) was set off from Chelmsford to Lowell. The
history of this village also runs back into the pi\at
century. Here started the Middlesex Canal, which
was incorporated in 1793 and opened in 1804. It
was a busy place in those early years. It is now a
quiet village adorned with pleasant homes.
By the annexations of Belvidere, Centralville,
Piiwtucketville,Middle3ex Village, etc., the territory of
Lowell haa been very greatly extended. Belvidere
alone contained five square miles. The extent of the
city now is more than twelve square miles, having
been enlarged by annexations in 1832, 1834, 1851,
1874, 1879, 1888.
The original territory of Lowell was not an inviting
place for private residences. The low grounds, inter-
spersed with swamps, sprinkled with clumps of bushes,
dotted with muddy ponds, hardly promised health
and a pleasant home to the new-comer. Well does
the writer remember how, at the time he contem-
plated coming to Lowell in 1845, his wise physician
shook his head and warned him of the peril to which
he was exposing his family. But by an admirable
system of drainage and the annexation of these four
villages, all of which are inviting and eligible spots
for healthy homes, Lowell may, on the score of
healthfulness and neatness, challenge comparison
with her sister cities.
Lowell haa now outgrown the crude and barren
aspect of a city in the rough process of being built,
and is fast putting on that settled and homelike ap-
> Fur biugrnphy soe " St. Patrick's CliurcU llittory."
pearance which time alone can give. When the poet
Whittier was, for a short time in 1844, a citizen of
Lowell, he missed "the elm-lined avenues of New
Haven and the breezy leafine^-s of Portland," and
even declares that " for the last few days it has been
as hothereaa Nebuchadnezzar's furnace." However, he
kindly adds : " But time will remedy all this." The
prophecy has proved true. Few cities present more
to please the eye than Lowell. Its streets are broad
with spacious grades and well paved side-walks, and
lined throughout with elms and maples in the very
prime of beauty.
The decaying old buildings, cheaply constructed in
uncouth style many years ago, and standing hard
upon the traveled street, such as too often mar the
beauty of older cities, do not appear in Lowell. The
city stands upon the border line between the decay of
age and the freshness of youth.
Nor is the scenery of Lowell without its charms.
As the traveler approaches the city from the east,
along the banks of the Merrimack, and passes the
elegant residence of Gen. Beuj. F. Butler, there is
spread out before him a scene resplendent with
beauty. On his right across thestream rise gracefully
th« heights of Centralville, crowned with forest trees,
while at their feet the waters of the river dash and
foam as, amidst the huge boulders, they descend the
fails. Far up the river two graceful bridges, spanning
the stream, are outlined on the western sky, while on
the south side of the Merrimack are ranged in long
array the vast structures of our great maiiufactorie;,
with their graceful chimneys towering far above them.
Let the traveler now turn to the left and, ascending
Lynde's Hill in Belvidere, view a far different scene
but one of equal beauty. At his feet, nestling amidst
the green foliage of the trees, are the ten thousand
homes of a thrifty and happy people, the numerous
church spires proclaiming that in the hearts of this
people there is a better worship than that of Mam-
mon. Against the western sky, and forty miles away,
stretches the long range of the Pack Monadiiock
Mountains in New Hampshire, while far beyond them
rise the dim outlines of the Grand Mouaduock. At
the left also rises the peak of Mount Wachuset in our
own State. The whole scene is one of great loveli-
ness, mingling with the triumphs of human art the
charms and beauties of nature.
1875. Mayor, Francis Jewett. Population, 49,GS8.
January 7th. Kalakaua, King of the Sandwich
Islands, visited Lowell.
March 31st. Knights of Pythias dedicated their
new hall.
July 1st. New City Charter adopted by popular
vote.
June. Tappan Wentworth died at the age of seventy-
three years. He was born in Dover, N. H., Feb. 24,
1802, and was a descendant of Thomaa Wentworth,
the celebrated Earl of Strafford. He married Anne
McNeil, a niece of President Franklin Pierce. He
4^^^ ''C7-z^t^/i^_
LOWELL.
43
came to Lowell in Nov., 1833, aud entered upon the
practice of law, in which he gained a very high repu-
tation. He was honored with many offices in the
city and the State, and in 1852 was elected to Congress
by the Whig paity.
1876. Mayor, Charles A. Stott.
January 13th. Reform Club organized.
February 8th. Fiftieth anniversary of the First Bap-
tist Church celebrated.
March Ist. Lowell celebrated the fiftieth anniver-
sary of its incorporation as a town. General Butler
delivered an oralion and addresses were made by
Hon. John A. Lowell, Marshall P. Wilder, Dr. John
(). Green, Rev. Warren H. Cudworth, Jonathan
Kimball, Bishop Clark, of Rhode Island, C. A. Stott,
mayor, and Rev. Dr. Miner. The poem for the occa-
sion was written by John S. Colby. Music by the
Lowell Choral Society and the Germania Orchestra
of Boston.
June 6th. The First Con^egational Church cele-
brated its fiftieth anniversary.
June 8th. Dom Pedro II., Emperor of Brazil, visited
Lowell.
October 23d. Albert Wheeler died at the age of
sixty-three years. He was born in Concord Decem-
ber 15, IS] 3, and came to Lowell when ten years of
age. In 1836 he engaged in the grocery busineirs on
Tilden Street, and in the same place continued the
trade for forty years. Few citizens of Lowell have
been so familiariy known. His genial, social nature
gained him many friends.
August 21st. Josiah B. French, mayor of the city
in 1849 and 1850, died at the age of seventy-six
years.
Josiah Bowers French. — In the first quarter of
the present century there were upon the farms and
the hillsides of New England many families of
smart and promising boys who had been reared in
virtuous homes, whose physical powers had been
strengthened by the necessity of labor, and whose
stout hearts .and willing hands only waited for an
opportunity to take up the serious duties of life
and to make for themselves an honorable name.
Such a family was that to which belonged Josiah
Bowers French, the subject of this sketch ; and such
an opportunity was the commencement of the great
manufacturing enterprises of Lowell about seventy
years ago. Luther French, the father of Mr. French,
was a respectable farmer in the town of Billerica,
four of whose sons — Josiah B., Abram, Walter and
Amos B. — came to Lowell in early life and became
men of high standing and enterprise among the
founders of the city.
Josiah B. French was born in Billerica December
13, 1799, and died at his home on Chelmsford Street,
Lowell, August 21, 1S76, at the age of seventy-six
years. His early education was limited to the dis-
trict schools. At the age of eleven years he left
home, not to return, and lived with two of his
uncles, attending school and working upon the farm
for his board and clothing. One of these uncles
resided in Salisbury, N. H. For two or three years
of his minority he worked in a store, and for a
short time he was engaged in trade in Charles-
town.
Mr. French had this advantage in life : that he
was a man of fine personal bearing, tall, erect and
commanding, giving the impression to one who met
him that he was no ordinary man.
At the early age of twenty -four years he seems to
have attracted attention to his merits, for he then
received from Sheriff Nathaniel Austin an appoint-
ment as one of his deputies for Middlesex County.
Upon this appointment he became a resident of
Lowell, where he held the office until 1830, acting,
meantime, as collector, and serving in various
minor offices.
In 1826 he engaged in the service of the Central
Bridge Company, and took part in disposing of its
stock. He was appointed coroner in 1827, collector
of taxes of the town of Lowell in 1829 and assessor
in 1833-34.
In 1828 he was active in the work of organizing
the Old Lowell Bank, the earliest of the discount
banks of the city. Of this bank he was for several
years a director.
From 1831 to 1846 he did an extensive business
in staging on various lines of travel. He had a
contract for carrying the United States mails be-
tween Boston and Montreal. Of the old method of
staging Mr. French gave an interesting account in
a paper read before the Old Residents' Historical
Association on May 4, 1874, in which he said :
■' The number of stages arriving at. and leaving
Lowell, at the time when the Boston and Lowell
Railroad went into operation, in 1835, was forty or
forty-five each day." The railroad greatly inter-
fered with his staging, but he continued to carry
the mails afterwards. It was many years before the
railroad was extended to Montreal.
The talents of Mr. French were recognized by
his frequent appointment to office. In 1835 he was
elected on a citizen's ticket as Representative of
Lowell to the General Court of Massachusetts, and
long afterwards, lin 1861, he was again elected.
In 1836 and in 1842 he was a member of the Com-
mon Council. In 1840 and 1841 he was chief en-
gineer of the Lowell Fire Department. From 1844
to 1847 he was one of the commissioners of Middle-
sex County. He took an active part in the incor-
poration of the City Institution for Savings, and also
of the Appleton Bank. With both of theae institu-
tions, either as trustee or director, he was connected
from the beginning, and shortly before his death he
became president of the Appleton Bank.
Few men have engaged in so great a variety of
enterprises and employments. In 1847 he, with
others, took a large contract in the construction of
44
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
the Ogdeiisburg Railroad, which occupied him for
about two years. While engaged upon this contract
and absent from the city, he was, upon a citizens'
ticket, elected mayor of Lowell. In the office of
mayor he distinguished himself as a financier. In
the next year he was re-elected, holding the office in
the years 1849 and 1850. In 1851 he was chosen
president of the Northern Railroad of New Hamp-
shire. This position, however, he aoon resigned in
order to engage with his brother Walter in a large
contract involving three million dollars, in the con-
struction of a railroad in Ohio. His brother having
been killed in the lailroad drawbridge disaster at
Norwalk, Conn., in 1853, the completion of this im-
portant contract fell upon Mr. French. For about
fourteen of the later years of his life he served as
agent of the Winnipiseogee Lake Cotton & Woolen
Company at Lake Village, N. H.
For a period of several months before his death, in
1876, his declining health forbade his acti\e pursuit
of the duties of his busy life.
Mr. French, though not an active politician, was
ranked as a member of the Democratic party. In re-
ligious sentiment he was a Unitarian.
He will long be remembered as among the most
sagacious and enterprising business men of the early
days of the city of Lowell.
1877. Mayor, Charles A. Stott.
July 29th. The First Uuiversalist Church celebrated
its fiftieth anniversary.
Captain Joxathan Tyler was born in East
Chelmsford (now Lowell) January 17, 1790. He was
one of the seven sons of Nathan Tyler, who resided
near the foot of Pawtucket Falls. His father, who
was for the times a man of large estate, was employed
upon the river in boating and rafting, and the son, in
his earlier years, followed his father's occupation.
In those early days, before railroads existed, a vast
amount of lumber was brought in rafts down the
Merrimack. At Pawtucket Falls the rafts were
broken up, and the lumber, having been drawn by
teams to the foot of the falls, was there formed again
into rafts. These operations employed many men
and many teams, and made the vicinity of the Falls
a scene of busy life.
In 1816 Captain Tyler married Civil S., daughter
of Captain Benjamiu Bulterfield, a wealthy farmer
and a prominent man in East Chelmsford. Mrs.
Tyler became widely known in Lowell, having lived
to the great age of ninety-lour years.
Upon his. marriage Captain Tyler began business
for himself, as landlord of the American House, on
Central Street, a house which he owned through life.
After nine years in this position he, for a lew years,
was landlord of the Mansion House, which then stood
near the corner of Merrimack and Bridge Streets.
Public-houses in Lowell's early days were places of
great importance, being frequented by men of every
class, who, from curiosity, or for trade, or tor finding
a home, resorted to the new and thriving town. To
these the hotel was their first home. Here, too, the
wealthy mill-owners from Boston took many a good
meal. Having by his shrewdness and enterprise ac-
quired wealth in his early days, he spent the last half
of his long life in dealing in real estate, in erecting
buildings, many of which are ornaments to the city,
and in wise and profitable speculation. His residence
during these years was upon Park Street.
Captain Tyler was an upright, industrious, enter-
prising man, who thought much and said little.
Though he never sought public honors, yet such were
his ability and worth that his fellow-citizens often
placed him in positions of responsibility and trust. At
difierent times he was one of the selectmen of the
town, a member of the Common Council and of the
Board of Aldermen, and a representative in the State
Legislature. In his will he left $10,000 for the poor
of Lowell.
Captain and Mrs. Tyler, both having been born on
the soil of Lowell, and both having spent there the
whole of their long lives, became to a very remark-
able degree identified with the city itself. Both be-
ing most intimately conversant with the history of
the city, their death robs us of a historic treasure
which can never be replaced.
Captain Tyler died October 14, 1877, at the age of
eighty-eight years. Mrs. Tyler died May 11, 1886, at
the age of ninety-four years.
1878. Mayor, John A. G. Richardson.
April 24th. The Lowell District Telephone Com-
pany began operations.
July 3d. James C. Ayer' died at the age of sixty
years.
September 26th. First annual regatta of the Ves-
per Boat Club.
July 3d. Artemas L. Brooks died at the age of sev-
enty-four years. He was born in Groton, N. H.,
1803, and came to Lowell in 1832. For forty-seven
years he was well known as a house-builder and man-
ufacturer of lumber. He was a conspicuous advocate
of the moral reforms (jf his day, and stood at the
front in every good cause.
December 30th. Electric lights tried in Merrimack
Mills.
May 13th. The Lowell Art Association was formed,
with Thomas B. Lawson as president.
1879- Mayor, John A. G. Richardson.
February 5th. Samuel Batchelderdied at the age of
nearly ninety-five years, an age greater than that of
any other of the founders of Lowell. He was born in
Jatfrey, N. H., in 1784. When a young man he engaged
in trade in Peterboro' and Exeter, N. H. In 1808 he
began the manufacture of cotton in New Ipswich, N. H.
Such were his ability and success in this enterprise
that he was invited to participate in establishing the
great manufactories of Lowell. He was a man of
1 See biugrapUy Id chapter ua Manufactures,
LOWELL.
45
science and invention. Tlie machines he invented
and the offices he held are too numerous to be men-
tioned. He was the most active aj^ent in starting the
Hamilton Mills. He took a very lively interest in
the affairs of the town of Lowell. Even at the age
of eighty-six years he was president of the Hamil-
ton, the Appleton, the Essex, the Everett, the York
and the Exeter Mills. There are few examples on
record of men of such intense mental activity and of
such a vast variety of responsibilities who have at-
tained so great an age. His last years were spent on
his estate in Cambridge, Mass.
July 1st. Morning Mail first issued.
September 2(5th. The Unitarian Church celebrated
the fiftieth anniversary of its organization.
1880. Mayor, Frederic T. Greenhalge. Popula-
tion, 5'J,485.
January 14th. Charles Stewart Paruell visited
Lowell.
September Cth. First Catholic Parochial School
opened.
October 5th. Seventy first meeting of the American
Board of Commissioners for Foreign MiEsions held
m Lowell.
October Cth. Chase & Faulkner's mills destroyed
by fire.
188L Mayor, Frederic T. Greenhalge.
January 31st. The School Committee voted to
supply all the children of the public schools with
frtc text books at the expense of the city. This deci-
sion is now almost universally acquiesced in.
January. Electric Light Company organized.
February 22d. City Council voted to introduce the
high service water system.
April 6lh. Hocum Hosford, mayor of the city in
1SG2-3-4, died at the age of fifty-five years.
May 6th. A'»sociated Charities organized.
September 6lh. " Yellow Tuesday." The darkness
of this day did not probably equal that of the " dark
day " in May, 1780. It was characterized by a gloom
which fell on the earth like a yellow pall.
October 13th. Citizens voted to build Aiken Street
Bridge.
October 31st. John Amory Lowell died at the age
of eighty-three years. He built the Boott and Mas-
sachusetts Mills.
1882. Mrtvor, George Runels.
Josiah Gates died May 4, 1882.
Theodore H. Sweetser' died May 8, 1882.
April 11, 1882. Rev. Dr. Eden B. Foster died at the
age of sixty-eight years.
August 5th. Central Bridge burned. The structure
was of wood and was entirely consumed.
1883- Mayor, John J. Donovan.
February 23d. Fiftieth anniversary of the opening
of the Edson Grammar School celebrated.
May 7th. Vote of City Council to establish a free
1 For biogmiiliy 8:k: chupU.-!' ou Ik-ucli ao<l Bar.
reading-room and to make the City Library a free li-
brary. The great number of men and boys who daily
frequent the free reading-room attest the wisdom of
this vote.
June 25ih. Rev. Dr. Edson died at the age of
ninety years. He was rector of St. Anne's Church
for nearly sixty years.
In 1883 the Erie Telephone Company was organ-
ized with a capital of $5,000,000 ; Wm. A. Ingham
was the first president. The business of this com-
pany is limited to Cleveland, Ohio, and the States
of Arkansas, Texas, Minnesota and South DiJcxta.
The company pays four per cent, annual dividends.
Levi Sprague, president for 1890 ; C. J. Glidden, sec-
retary and treasurer.
Djniel Ayer, from whom the part of Lowell called
" Ayer's City " derives its name, died at Bath-on-the-
Hudsou, December 30, 1883. Mr. Ayer was born in
Canada. He came to Lowell in his youth. After
several failures in Lowell and elsewhere to acquire
wealth by purchat-ing land and selling it in houife-
lots, at length fortune smiled upon him, whert upon
he made a feast for his former creditors in Lowell, at
which each guest found under his plate the full
amount that was due him. Mr. Ayer was a peculiar
man, and had other eccentricities besides that of pay-
ing his honest debts. He once had the honor of rep-
resenting Lowell in the State Legislature.
September 18th. New Central Bridge opened to
travel.
October 10th. The Paige Street Free Baptist
Church celebrated its fiftieth anniversary.
November ISlh. New standard of time went into
efl'ect.
The iron Central Bridge was finished in 1883; cost,
$118,000.
The iron Aiken Street Bridge was finished in 1883;
cost, $190,W0. The Aiken Street Bridge is much
longer than the Central Bridge.
October, 188.^. The New England Telephone and
Telegraph Company was organized under the laws of
the State of New York. It was formed by consolidat-
ing several companies which had formerly operated iu
Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont and most of Mas-
sachusetts. The wonderful invention of the telephone,
and the prospect of its early introduction into all the
channels of business, produced a profound impression
and gave rise to a vast amount of honest and dishon-
est speculation. Enterpribing men and unscrupulous
men alike saw in the invention the promise of untold
wealth suddenly acquired. There was a general craze.
The ignorant and inexperienced, with a wild rush,
followed the acute financiers and the unscrupulous
speculators into the telephone business. New com-
panies sprang up on every side, the stock in which
was eagerly sought. Credulous men and confiding
women freely invested their money and never exactly
knew where it went to.
These numerous companies soon learned that to
46
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
operate a telepbooe was something very different
from simply forming a company and taking in the
money of credulous men. It was found that the com-
panies must combine in order to succe-sful operation.
In this combination the original Bell Company, hav-
ing the power, took the lion's share of the vast capi-
tal of ?12,( 00,000. This capital almost equals the
combined capital of all the great manufacturing cor-
porations of Lowell. These corporations can show
vast and splendid possessions, — lands, buildings, ma-
chinery, canals, which challenge the wonder and ad-
miration of the beholder, but where are the colossal
possessions of the New England Telephone Com-
pany ?
This company, under its present officers, is,
doubtless, well and honestly managed, and it has the
confidence of the community. It deserves high praise
for saving from the wreck so much as it has succeeded
in saving. The wrong lies further back than the for-
mation of this company. The stock of the compjuiy,
if sold to-day, would restore to tho3e who purchased
it seven years ago, a little more than half of the
money invested.
In the earlier days of the telephone Lowell seemed
to be the central city of telephone speculation and
management, and probably the people of no other
city have lost so heavily in purchasing telephone
stock. It is this that warrants the mention of this
subject in a history of this city.
The headquarters of the New England Company
are now in Boston. The company pays aanuaily a
stock dividend of three and one-half per cent. In 1S88
the company paid in dividends, >'284,651. The gross
earnings were SI, 127, 307; expenses, !i85t),.380 ; net
earnings, $270,726 ; number of local exchange con-
nections, 26,520,535 ; number of regular employees of
all classes, 518.
1884. Mayor, John J. Donovan.
Charles Morrill, superintendent of 'the schools of
Lowell for seventeen years, died April 2, 1884. Mr.
Morrill was born in Waltbam and was the son of Rev.
Jonathan C. Morrill, first postmaster of Lowell. He
was educated at WatervilleCollege, Maine, was chosen
princi|)al of the Green School iu Lowell in 1845, and
became superintendent of Lowell public schools in
1867. He died in office at the age of sixty-five years.
Charles P. Talbot died July 6th.
August 30, 1884. Colonel Joseph S. Pollard died at
the age of seventy-two years'. Colonel Pollard was
born in Plaistow, New Hampshire. Before coming to
Lowell in 1854 he had been elected Representative
and Senator to the Legislature of New Hampshire.
He was also a Representative from Lowell in the
Massachusetts Legislature and for two years alder-
man of the city. For fourteen years he was an in-
spector in the Boston Custom-House.
October 30th. Horace J. Adams died at the age of
sixty-six years. He was born in Haverhill, New
Hampshire, and came to Lowell in 1S33. .Is senior
partner in the firm of Adams & North, dealers in
furniuire for many years, he became one of the best
known of the citizens of Lowell. He was a very
prominent member of St. Paul's Methodist Church.
John A. Kuowles' died July 24, 1884.
The Colwell Motor.— The American Triple
Thermic Motor Union, a company formed for the in-
troduction, as a motive-power, of the Triple Thermic
Motor, familiarly known as the " Colwell Motor," had,
in its earlier years, its headquarters in this city, and
for its president and principal manager, the Rev. T.
M. Coiwell, a citizen of Lowell. The laws of Massa-
chusetts do not grant charter.^ to companies who.se
capital, like that of this company, is as large as $25,-
000,000. Accordingly a charter was secured from the
State of New York, and the city of New York is now
the headquarters of the company. But Lowell was
the field of its early operations, and the citizens of
I Lowell have been most deeply affected by the success
or failure of the enterprise.
So much heat is required in the production of
steam, and there is so great a waste of power in ap-
plying it in the propulsion of machinery, that it has
long been the dream of men of inventive talent to
find a vapor which can be produced with far less
heat, and applied with far less waste. Experiments,
with more or less success, have been made for this
purpose with ether, chloroform and bisulphide of
carbon, all of which can be evaporated at a far lower
temperature than water, and all of which are very
volatile liquids and under certain circumstances dan-
gerously explosive.
In the year 1850 the attention of engineers was at-
tracted to an engine invented by Vincent du Trem-
bley, known as the Binanj Vapor Enyinc, in which
steam produced in one boiler was made, by means of
tubes, to evaporate the ether in a second boiler, the
latter vapor being applied to the propulsion of ma-
chinery. Du Trembley's binary vapor engines proved
to be more economical in the consumption of coal
than the common steam engine, and atone time they
were employed in seven ocean steamers, which plied
from France to Brazil, or from France to Africa.
Though every caution was employed in these engines
to prevent the contact of the ether with the fire, it
was found impossible to prevent occasional accidents.
At the very time when preparations were being made
to introduce these engines into five other vessels, by
one of these unfortunate accidents one of the first
seven vessels, the ship " France," was set oa fire and
burned. This disaster was a sad disappointment, and
its result was a return to steam.
Afterwards the Ellis engine presented its claims.
This, too, was a binary vapor engine employing, in-
stead of ether, the bisulphide of carbon. This vola-
tile but inexpensive liquid presents to the engineer
very serious obstacles to its use, among which are its
1 For biography see cbui)lei' ou Bench auil Bai-.
LOWELL.
47
liabiliiv to explosions, its offensive odor, and the diffi-
culty of finding a proper lubricant for the engines in
which it is used. The Ellis engine was also employed
to propel vessels and was used in the Atlantic Works
in East Boston. The Heyer Brothers of Boston in-
vested heavily in this enterprise. But the engine
proved a failure, and the invested money was lost.
Steam again asserted its dominion.
About the year 1879 Mr. William S. Colwell, of
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, an engine-maker by trade,
after long study, believed he had found the means of
obviating the objections to the use of the bisulphide
of carbon, and constructed an engine which he is said
to have run in a quiet way for about one year. An
application for a patent was filed July 2G, 1879. At
length, in August, 1883, an engine was set up and put
to actual service in West Forty-sixth Street, New
York, parties having been induced to invest in the
enterprise in the preceding year.
Not having the means of starting the enterprife
of introducing the new engine without aid, Mr.
Colwell associated with him Mr. J. H. Ca.mpbell, an
attorney, aud Mr. James McLain, a chemist, both of
New York City. His brother, P^ev. Dr. T. M. Col-
well, pastor of the First Baptist Church in Lowell,
became his principal manager and representative be-
fore the public. Dr. Colwell is a man of ability,
having great power over the minds of those who are
jissocia'.ed with him, and he entered upon the new-
enterprise with an ardent zeal and untiring energy
which commanded success. He was president of the
company, formed in 1884, for the development and in-
troduction of the patent, with its office in Shedd's
Block, in Lowell. The friends of the enterprise were
buoyant and ardent. It was claimtd that the self-
same heat which in steam gave a 14 horse power,
would give a 63-hor3e power after passing from the
steam into the bisulphide vapor, and that of the
60,000,000 tons of coal annually used in the United
States for creating sleam, 45,000,000 would be saved.
Many clergymen, especially of the Baptist persuasion,
became officers in the company or shareholders.
Widows and men of small means were approached
and urged to purchase stock. They were told if the
rich had heretofore had all the favors of fortune, now
there w:i3 a chance for men of humbler means also
to become suddenly wealthy. The excitement grew
apace. The story is told of a woman who had 54000
well invested in a bank. She was sorely tempted to
withdraw it and invest it in the stock of the new
motor. The cashier of the bank dissuaded her from
withdrawing it. But after hearing the president
])reach on Sunday she sent into the bank her check
for withdrawing the full amount, declaring thai she
could no longer doubt after listening to the preaching
of so good a man. There was in the persuasive lan-
guage of the president an ardor and positiveness
which begat conviction in the excited mirtds of those
who already wished to believe, and had begun to in-
dulge in the fond dream of wealth. To confirm this
statement it is enough to quote from a speech of Dr.
Colwell delivered before the shareholders in May,
1884, the following sentences: "I believe the har-
vest is now ready for the sickle." " Over 300
engines have been applied for." "If any of you
feel, for any reason, that yon would rather have your
money back, and ten per cent, additional, you may
have it." "The largest amount of leakage in 6
months would not be greater in bulk than a grain of
wheat." "I will pay any man $500 if he will show
me how to explode bisulphide of carbon." The
report that Jay Gould had invested s;l,000,000 in
the enterprise added to the excitement. In the
minds of the faithful the most extravagant expecta-
tions were indulged. Stock which was va'ued at
*G00,000 jumped to $5,000,000, and then to $25,000,-
OUO. It was claimed that the engine saved seventy -five
per cent, of coal, and therefore would and must be intro-
duced into all the places where steam is now employed.
How much the people of Lowell have invested in
Colwell motor stock it is impossible to tell, but the
amount is very large. It is believed that very many
persons of humble means aud credulous nature have
risked their all. After the encine in New York was
abandoned an engine was set up on Jackson Street,
Lowell, in May, 1885. This engine, for a while, was
used to generate a current of electricity for the elec-
tric lights of the city. Ere long it gave place to a
steam-engine, and the Colwell motor slept for many
months. But, in the summer of 1889, Mr. Warren
Aldrich, the owner of the building and part owner of
the engine itself, set it to running to carry certain
machinery. On the afternoon oi July IGth a start-
ling explosion was heard in the building, and the
alarm of fire was rung. The flames, however, were
soon subdued, and it proved that a quantity of bisul-
phide had escaped into a drain and there exploded.
The explosion, without doing much real damage toany-
thing of value, fully proved that this volatile liquid,
when mixed with a certain amount of air, is a dan-
gerous explosive. The engine was not disabled, but
it has quietly ceased to work.
To a heartless looker-on, when he considers that
five years ago this great enterprise with its capital of
$•25,000,000, with its shares at $5000 each, with its
president, a doctor of divinity, announcing that over
300 engines had been applied for, is now unable to
show a single engine in action, and haa not actually
sold one of those 300 engines applied for, the prospect
of success seems truly forlorn and dim. Not so with
those whose fortunes are at stake. They are easily
satisfied, and their hopes are easily kept alive. It is
said that a citizen in passing by the quiet Colwell
motor works on Jackson Street, saw a lone Irishman
digging in the dirt. " Patrick," said he, " what are
you digging that hole in the ground for?" "To kape
the stockholders azy," was the prompt reply of the
son of Erin.
48
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
It is asserted, in explaining the explosion, that Mr.
Aldrich did not have the sanction of the company in
starting up the engine, and that he did not know how
to manage it. The hopeful friends of the enterprise
are fully persuaded that their favorite invention, as
all things great and good have done before, is now
only passing through the Red Sea of public distrust
and scorn, and that by and by they will sing a soug uf
triumph like that of Miriam of old.
1885. Mayor, Edward J. Noyes. Population,
G4,051.
The Tayior Street stone bridge was finished in 1SS5.
Cost, $100,000, including expense for approaches and
land damages.
Feb. 10th. Judge Nathan Oosby died at the age of
eighty-seven years. He was born in Sandwich, N. H.
He came to Lowell, Nov., 1S43, was commissioned
judge of the Police Court May ID, 184(3, and held
the office thirty-nine years, until his death. He was
a man of high character and pure li/e. He was a
geotluman of the old school, and few men have
equaled him in natural dignity and self-control.
Nov. 14, 1885. Edward Tuck died at the age of
seventy-nine years.
December 22d. Dr. John O. Green died at the age
of nearly eighty-seven years. He was a notive of
Maiden, and he came to East Chelmsford (now Low-
ell) in 1822. He was a worthy compeer of Dr. Edson
in establishing and sustaining our public-school sys-
tem. The lives of very few of the citizens of Lowell
are so fully identified with the life of the city itself.
See medical chapter.
1886. Mayor, James C. Abbott.
Wm. C. Gray died Ai)ril 3, ISSC, at the age of
seventy-seven years. He was born in Tiverton, R. I.,
came lo Lowell in 1829, established the Boston &
Lowell Expres<, employing teams for five years, until
the Boston & Lowell Railroad was opened to business.
As an expressman for many years, he was most famil-
iarly known in our streets. He acquired property
and once owned the Washington House. His prop-
erty was mainly lost by speculation. He held the
offices of alderman and deputy sheriff.
Mrs. Civil S. Tyler, widow of Capt. Jonathan
Tyler, died May lltb, at the advanced age of ninety-
four year-<. She was the daughter of Capt. Benj.
Butterfield, of Chelmsford. She was landlady of the
Mansion House in the early days of the city, and
from her birth she was on the ground and was familiar
with all the history of Lowell from its origin. Prob-
ably no other Lowell lady has been so long and so
widely known. She was a lady of great moral and
intellectual worth.
May 4th. Charles Hovey died at the age of sixty-
eight years. He was burn in Acton, 1817, and came
to Lowell in 1832. For fifty-four years he wai an
apothecary on Merrimack Street, and few citizens of
Lowell have been so well known. He grew up with the
city and held many positions of trust in church and
business life. He stood aloof from politics and pre-
ferred the more unobtrusive life of a private citizen.
He was a man of great moral worth.
On April 1st was celebrated the fitueth anniversary
of the incorporation of the city of Lowell, in Hunt-
ington Hall. The hall was tastefully decorated with
Howers and pot-bouse plants and with streamers and
festoons of bunting. On raised seats in front were
400 children of the public .schools, who formed a
chorus for celebrating the day. The forenoon was
occupied with music from the children and the Amer-
ican .Orchestra and by a historical address upon the
schools of Lowell, by C. C. Chase. The alternoon
exercises consisted of an address by His Honor, the
mayor, J. C. Abbott, a poem by Lieut. E. W. Thomp-
son, an oration by Hon. F. T. Greenhalge and music
by the Apollo Quartette and the American Orchestra.
A social levee and reception in the evening closed
the celebration.
1887. Mayor, James C. Abbott.
May 27th. Rev. Dr. Owen Street died, at the age of
seventy-one years.
August 19th. Alvau Clark, the celebrated con-
structor of telescopes, died in Cambridge, at the age
of eighty-three jears. Mr. Clark was born in A.sh-
field, Mass., March S, 1804. He came to Lowell in
1825, and left it in 1827. AVhile here he was an en-
graver for calico printing at the Merrimack Print
Works. His marriage here, at the age of twenty-two
years, was the first marriage in the town of Lowell.
It occurred March 25, 182C, not many days after the
incorporation of the town.
On the last night of 1887 the Worthen Street Bap-
tist Church was burned. For many years before this
no church property iu Lowell had beeu destroyed by
fire.
1889. Mayor, Charles D. Palmer.
January 12th. The engine-houses aud armories on
Palmer and Middle Streets were destroyed by fire.
An engine-house, on the site of that destroyed by
fire, was commenced in 1S8S, and finished m 1889.
This house is equipped with all the most-approved
appliances demanded by the Fire Department for ihu
most efficient means of extinguishing firts. It is
claimed that it is, iu these respects, the most complete
structure in New England. lis cost is $-50,000.
Another engine-house was commenced in 1888 on
Westford Street. It was completed in 1889, at a cost
of $18,000.
Another engine-house, ou High .Street, begun in
1888, and fini-hed in 1889, cost !?23,000.
Lowell takes pride iu the completeness and effi-
ciency of her fire service.
Novem >r 15th. Colonel Fister, commissioner oi
the Post-Office Department for selecting the site of a
new post-office for the city of Lowell, recommended
the site of St. Peter's Church, corner of Appleton
and Gorham Streets. His recommendation has beeu
adopted by the Post-Office Departmcut. Through the
nu^'i yj T^UiveA
i_
LOWELL.
49
efforts of the friends of this site the Government be-
comes the owner of it by the payment of one cent.
The appropriation by Government for the building of
the new post-office is 8200,000.
1889. Mayor, Charles D. Palmer.
Notwithstanding the extraordinary outlays in re-
building the engiaehouse on Palmer Street, and the
erection of two other engine-houses and several
school-houses, the debt of the city was increased in
1889 by only about S9000. The debt at the close of
1889 was as follows : Ordinary debt, S991,502 ; debt
for water works, $1,141,555. Total, $2,130,117. The
erection of a new city-hall and memorial building,
already contracted for at an estimated cost of S500,-
000, together with a new high school building, will,
in the near future, greatly increase the debt of the
city. Still, it is believed that the increase meets the
ajiprob.ation of the citizens.
July 17th. The stable of the Lowell Horse Rail-
road, on East Merrimack Street, was burued. This
fire was notable for the rapidity of its progress, the
lofty height of its spire of flame, and the remarkable
success of the Fire Department in preventing its
spread. In it 117 horses were burned and thirty-one
cars, the loss of the property being about SIOO.OOO,
on which the insurance was about $74,000.
Aug. 23d. Rev. Stedman W. Hanks died, at the
age of eighty years. He was the first pastor of John
Street Congregational Church. For many years be-
fore his death he was secretary of the Seaman's
Friend Society in Boston.
Oct. 8th. The new opera-house of Fay Brothers &
Hosford was opened. The audience was addressed
by Mayor Palmer and Hon. F. T. Greenhalge, mem-
ber of Congress. The poem written by John S.
Colby was a production worthy of the occasion.
This building fills a want long felt by many of
the people of Lowell. More spacious play-houses
may be found in other cities, but it is claimed that
there are none which exceed this in the general
beauty and effect of its interior. It is constructed
wholly of brick an 1 iron, and is as nearly fire-proof
as possible. It is situated between Central and Gor-
ham Streets, not fronting fully upon either street,
and it makes no pretence at external beauty. Its
seating capacity is 1600.
The Training School-house, of Charles Street, was
finished in 1889, at a cost of $28,000.
A.MOo BiNXEY Fkexch was born in Billerica July
3, 1812, and died at his residence on Bridge Street,
Lowell, on March 23, 1890, at the age of seventy-eight
years. His father was Luther French, a respectable
farmer in Biller-ca. Lieut. William French, the earli-
est American ancestor of Mr. French, came to America
in 1G35, and was a leading citizen of Billerica, hav-
ing been, in 1003-04, the first representative of the
town in the Legislature of Massachusetts.
Jlr. French was one of the four sons of Luther
French, who came to Lowell in the early days of the
4-ii
city, and were known as business men of superior
ability. Of these brothers, Josiah B., the old-
est, was once mayor of Lowell. A sketch of his life is
given on another page of this work. Abram, the
■second in age. came to Lowell in 1833, and was long
a well-known merchant tailor in the city. He was a
member of the Common Council, and for several
years on the Board of School Committee. Walter,
the third brother, after keeping restaurants in Low-
ell and in Manchester, N. H., became a contractor in
the construction of several important railroads, and
was killed in 1853 in the railroad disaster at Nor-
walk, Conn., at the age of forty-three years. Amos
B. French, the subject of this sketch, and the young-
est of the four brothers, came to Lowell when about
eleven years of age. His first employment was in the
service of the manufacturing companies of the city.
In 1835 he eslablished a restaurant on Central Street,
and afterward added a dance-hall, which for many
years was a place of popular resort. It always gave
character and re-tpectability to a social event to say
that it was at " French's.''
In 18G3 he was succeeded in the restaurant busi-
ness by Nichols & Hutchins, and he became senior
partner of the firm of French & Puffer, dealers in
crockery, on Central Street. In this firm he con-
tinued until the time of his death, a period of
twenty-seven years, enjoying the entire confidence of
the community as a man of the strictest integrity and
highest character.
Mr. French never sought political distinction, but
he was a man of such courteous and affable address,
and of Buch modest worth and dignity of character
that few men could more successfully appeal to the
suffrages of his fellow-citizens. He was in the Board
of Aldermen in 1870 and 1871, and at the time of his
death he was a director of the First National Bank
and of the Lowell Mutual Fire Insurance Company.
He was also a trustee of the Lowell Institution for
Savings.
The following tribute to Mr. French's character
was furnished, at the writer's request, by his pastor,
the Rev. George W. Bicknell :
" In many respects the life of ;\Ir. French was an
unostentatious one, yet it exerted a great influence
for good. There was always something about his
presence which inspired those associated with him.
In his business relations he was honest, upright and
reliable. His word was as good as his bond. He
took advantage of no man. He accumulated quite a
fortune, but it was the result of straightforward and
legitimate transactions. His generosity and iinsel-
fisbness would never have allowed him to become
rich. His long career among our business men gave
him an enviable position. Mr. French was as mod-
est as he was manly. His was a rich and noble char-
acter. Genial, affable, sympathetic, always kind, he
won the love of companions and associates. His
heart beat for humanitv, manifesting itself so often
50
niSTORV OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
in ministering to the poor and suflTering, in liundreds
of acts of charity, of which the world knows noth-
ing. Truly it may be said of him that he determined
not to let the right hand know what the left h:ind
did, and yet, as occasion called, he kept both hands
active.
" His friendship was rich and valuable. He was
true. Those who confided in him did not misplace
their trust. He had a kind word for all. Many
eyes were dimmed with tears when he passed away.
"Mr. French was a devoted and enthusiastic mem-
ber of the First Universalist Church, reflecting its
great principles of love, kindness and righteousness
in his daily life."
1890. Mayor, Charles D. Palmer.
From Mayor Palmer's inaugural address, at the
organization of the city government for 1890, on Jan.
0(h, we learn the following: The expenditure for
hchools in Lowell for 1S89 was $188,905; the number
of inmates of the alms-house, 602 ; average, 249 ; the
number of alarms of fire during the year, 115. The
number of electric lights was 177; of gas-lights, 959;
of gasoline-lights, 416; total number of lights sus-
tained by the city, 1552 ; the total length of city sew-
ers, 55 miles; total length of city streets, 102 miles;
cost of caring for parks and commons, SS070 ; cost of
caring for public cemeteries, §4200 ; totai length of
main pipes in water-works, 470,747 feet ; total num-
ber of hydrants, 824; expenditures for school-houses
for 1888 and 1889, §107,000.
On April 14th occurred, at Huntington Hall, the
anniversary exercises of the Port Royal Society,
whose members belonged to the land and naval forces
operating in the vicinity of Port Royal, S. C, during
the Civil War. Judge Advocate Charles Cowley de-
livered an address recalling the memories of the
eventful days in which he took part in the operations
of the s-quadron sent to reduce the rebel forts. Rev.
Dr. Chambre, of Lowell, Hon. John Reed, of Cam-
bridge, Eric B. Dahlgren, Frederic F. .Vyer and
others took part in the proceedings. A poem was
read by Lieut. E. W. Thompson.
CHAPTER IV.
LO WELL -{Cunliiiucd).
MAYORS.
In preparing the following sketches of the lives
of the mayors of our city 1 have been greatly aided
by biographical notices of nineteen of their number
published in the Vox Populi, in 1874 and 1875. If
it shall be thought by any that I have too uniform-
ly bestowed upon these men words of praise, I can
only say that my words have been sincere. I have
known all but one of the mayors of Lowell, and I
believe them to be a class of noble men. I think
it highly to the honor of the people of Lowell that
they have had the wisdom to bestow their highest
offices upon men like these. The character of a peo-
ple is indicated by the character of the men whom
they choose to represent them. It is one of the fe-
licities of popular government that even bad men
rarely venture to nominate bad men like themselves
for high office. Though exceptions occur, such,
happily, is the rule. It is in the lower grades of
office that bad men are found, and there, too often,
corruption begins.
The portraits of all but five of the twenty-six may-
ors of Lowell adorn the walls of the City Govern-
ment Building. They are accurate and highly fin-
ished likenesses, most of them being from the skill-
ful band of our fellow-citizen, the late Thomas B.
Lawson, Esq.
Dr. Ei-I.sha Eartlett, the first mayor of Lowell,
was born in Smithfield, R. I., October 0, 1804. His
parents belonged to the Society of Friends. When
twenty-two years of age he graduated as Doctor of
Medicine at Brown University, and after spending a
year in foreign travel and study, he came to Lowell to
enter upon the practice of his profession. His genial
nature, his fine personal appearance and his all'able
manners soon made him a general favorite, and iu
1830, when only thirty-two years of age, he had the
honor of being elected as fir.st mayor of Lowell, and
was re-elected iu 1837. He was not a politician, nor
were the labors of official life specially agreeable to
his nature. He loved his profession and was fond of
literary pursuits. He was the author of valuable
medical works. As an orator he held a high position.
There was a jjoetic charm in his eloquent language
which captivated the hearer. The writer has still a
vivid recollection of bearing his opening lecture in a
course delivered more than fifty years ago before the
Medical School of Dartmouth College. The beautiful
and eloquent language with which he portrayed the
sacredness of the physician's office at the bedside of
the dying and amidst the most tender and solemn
scenes of domestic life, left an impression upon the
mind which can never be effiiced. But another
writer will speak of him as &. physician. It is my
part only to write of him as a citizen whom Lowell
honored by electing him as the first mayor of the
city.
Dr. Bartlett spent his last years as an invalid in
his native town of Smithfield, R. I. He died in the
prime of manhood at the age of fifty-one years.
Ll'ther Lawrence, second mayor of Lowell, was
born in Groton, Massachusetts, September 28, 1778.
He was the son of Samuel Lawrence, an officer in the
Revolutionary Army. He w.as the oldest son of five
brothers who constituted a family of distinguished
name. His brother Abbott, especially, acquired re-
nown as American Jlinister to the Court of St. James,
and as a merchant prince of the most exalted char-
acter. The whole family were interested deeply iu
LOWELL.
51
the manufactures of Lowell. Abbott Lawrence's
name is mentioned in tlie acts of incorporation of the
Tremont, tbt' Boott and the Massachusetts Mills of
our city. Luther Lawrecce graduated from Harvard
College when twenty-three years of age, and having
completed his legal studies, settled as a lawyer in his
native town. His fellow-citizens paid him the honor
of sending him repeatedly to the General Court, and
in 1821 and 1822 he was chosen Speaker of the Lower
House. It was, in part, to care for the great amount
of property invested by himself and his brothers in
our mills that he removed his residence to Lowell in
1831, where he engaged in the practice of his profes-
sion and soon acquired distinction. He was elected
mayor in 1838 and 1839. About two weeks after en-
tering upon the duties of his second term of office
he was, on April 16, 1831), accidentally killed in the
Middlesex Mills by falling into a wheel-pit. His age
was sixty-one years. His sudden and tragic death
was the occasion of universal sorrow. He was a man
of kindly heart, of high honor, of sound judgment
and unselfish and liberal spirit. The citizens of Low-
ell desired to pay him the respect of a public funeral,
but his family declined to accepc the proffered honor.
He was buried in his native town.
Dr. Eusha Huxtisgtos, mayor of Lowell in
IS-lt), 1841, 1844, 1845, 1852, 185G, 1858 and most of
1859 waa born in Topsfield, Massachusetts, April 9,
179G, and was the son of Rev. Asahel Huntington, for
nearly twenty-five years the minister of that town.
At the age of fifteen years he entered Dartmouth
College and graduated in 1815. After attending medi-
cal lectures at Yale College and taking his degree in
medicine, he came to Lowell iu 1824 to enter upon
the practice of his profession — a practice which for
more than forty years he followed with great popu-
larity and success. He was indeed a " beloved physi-
cian." Probably no citizen of Lowell has ever so
long and so uniformly held the honor and affection of
the people. Lowell was never weary of bestowing
honors upon him. For nearly eight years he was
mayor of the city. When in any cause success
seemed doubtful, courage and hoi)e revived if Dr.
Huntington consented to take the lead. He was
born a gentleman, and it was in his very nature to
win men by his kind and affable ways.
Though a modest man, he was always before the
public. The partiality of his fellow-citizens placed
him there. Not only did he fill all the higher grades
of municipal office, but he was a church warden, an
overseer of Harvard College, and in 1852 Lieutenant-
Governor of the State.
His name will not be allowed to pass into oblivion.
One of our streets is Huntington Street and our most
spacious public hall is Huntington Hall. His por-
trait graces the City Government Building and the
reading-room of the Middlesex Mechanics' Associa-
tion. In St. John's Church, of which he was a war-
den, a window has been placed in which there i; a
life-size figure, in his honor, of St. Luke the "be-
loved physician." His only daughter is the wife of
Professor J. P. Cooke, of Harvard College, and one of
his sons is Rev. Dr. William R. Huntington, rector
of Grace Church, New York City. Dr. Huntington
died December 13, 1865, at the age of nearly seventy
years.
Nathaniel Wriqht was born in Sterling, Mass.,
Feb. 13, 1785, and was ihe oldest son of Hon. Thomas
Wright. He entered Harvard College when nineteen
years of age and was admitted to the bar at the age
of twenty-six years, having in Lowell pursued the
study of law under Asahel Stearns, who was subse-
quently a member of Congress and Professor of Law
in Harvard College. Prof. Stearns, when in Lowell,
occupied the house on the corner of Pawtucket and
School Streets, which became the residence and
properly of Mr. Wright. The house has in recent
years been occupied by Mr. Gerrish, the son-in-law of
Mr. Wright. The law-office of Mr. Wright was on
the Dracut side of the river, where he acted as post-
master before 1824, when the first government post-
oftice was established on Tilden Street, in East
Chelmsford (now Lowell). Mr. Wright succeeded to
the business of Prof. Stearns and enjoyed a good
practice, and to a remarkable extent possessed the
confidence of the community. When Lowell became
a town, in 1826, he was chosen on the first Board of
Selectmen and he was the first representative to the
General Cuurt elected by the town. He was three
times re-elected to these offices. In 1842 he was
elected mayor on the Citizens' ticket as a repre-
sentative of the interests of the citizens of Lowell
who believed that the Corporations were exercising an
undue amount of control over public affairs and
were oppressively treating their employees. His
opponent was Dr. Elisha Huntington, the Whig
candidate, who was supposed to favor the interests of
the Corporations. In 1843 the Whigs adspted him
as their candidate and elected him.
Mr. Wright was a man of few words, of decided
action, of clear perceptions and sound judgment.
He was a sound man of business and was averse to
popular display. He died Nov. 5, 1858, at the age of
nearly seventy-four years.
Jefferso:^ B.\xcroft was born in Warwick,
Mass., April 30, 1803. The circumstances of his youth
con>pe;led him to begin very early a life of self-
sujiport and self-reliance. First upon a farm in Athol,
Mass., and then in a blacksmith shop, with few
educational advantages, he spent the first years of
his long and honorable life. Coming to Lowell iu
1824, he found employment in the mills until
1831. His position as overseer in theAppleloo Mills
was in that year exchanged for that of deputy sheriff
under Sheriff B. F. Varnum. This office he held for
twenty years, filling meant' me various other trusts, such
as collector of taxes, chief engineer of the Fire Depart-
ment, and member of the Common Council and Board
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
of Aldermen. He bears the title of colonel from
having been chosen the first colonel of the Fifth (now
Sixth) Regiment. He held the office of mayor of
the cily in the years 184(3-7-8. He also represented
Lowell in the State Legislature in the years 1840-41-
50-51. In 1853-4-5 he was warden of the
State Prison. In 1860 he was again appointed
deputy sheriff and performed the duties of th.at
position until 1887, when advancing age compelled
him to retire. The last two years of his life were
spent upon his farm in Tyngsboro', Mass.
Col. Bancroft was endowed by nature with qualities
which have well deserved the honors which have
been bestowed upon him. His dignified personal
bearing and his commanding presence well befitted
his military title and admirably qualified him to per-
form the duties of sheriff in the courts of law. He
died in Tyngsboro', Jan. 3, 1890, at the age of nearly
eighty-seven years.
JosiAH B. French. — (For biography see chapter
on City of Lowell.)
James H. B. Ayer was born in Haverhill, Mass.,
17S8. He was a descendant in the fourth generation
of the celebrated Captain Samuel Ayer, first captain
of the town of Haverhill, who, on August 28, 1708,
when the French and Indians, under the infamous
Hertel de Rouville, attacked the vill.ige of Haverhill,
and killed the minister of the town and many of its
inhabitants, rallied his little company of s^ildiers, pur-
sued the retreating enemy, and sacrificed his life in a
brave attack upon ihem.
Mr. Ayer, when a young man, engaged in trade
and in teaching school in the town of Amesbury. He
subsequently came to Lowell in 1823, while the first
mill of the Merrimack Compauy was not yet com-
pleted, .and was employed by this company and the
Locks & Canals Company to take charge of the lum-
ber department. In this service he was engaged
until 1846, when he was associated for five years with
Horatio Fletcher in the lumber business. He was
next employed as paymaster of the Locks & Canals
Company.
Being one of the earliest employes of the enterprise
of establishing manufactures in East Chelmsford, he
held many offices of honor and trust in the early days
of Lowell. He was one of the selectmen of Chelms-
ford, also one of the assessors both of Chelmsford and
Lowell. He assisted in running the boundary line
between Chelmsford and Lowell. He was for twenty
years warden of St. Anne's Church. He was alder-
man in 184'J and 1850, and was mayor of the city in
1851. During his last twelve years he was paymaster
of the Locks & Canals Company.
He died June 7, 1864, at the age of seventy-six
years, and was buried in Amesbury, Mass.
He was a man of good sense, high character and
sterling honesty.
Sewall G. Mack w.is born in Wilton, N. H., No-
Tember 8, 1813. Kemoviug to Amherst, N. H., in
his boyhood, he there engaged, while yet a young
man, in the business which he has followed through-
out his active life. He came to Lowell in 1840, and,
in company with Mr. Daniel Cushing, established
the well-known firm of " Cashing &, Mack, dealers in
stoves, &c."
Mr. Mack gained the confidence of the community
not only as an honorable business man, but as a citi-
zen who could be intrusted with important responsi-
bilities in conducting municipal affairs. In 1843 and
1846 he was a member of the Common Council, and
in 1847 he served in the Board of Aldermen. lu
1853 and 1854 he was mayor of the city. In 1862 he
was a member of the Legislature. With this last ser-
vice his political career was closed, and he retired to
the more congenial sphere of business life. That may
be said of him which can be said of very few who
engage in trade, that he pursued the same business
and almost in the same place for about forty-six
years.
About three years since he withdrew from active
business life, but ho still finds, at the age of s-eventy-
six years, much to occupy and interest his mind. He
is president of the Lowell Gas Company, and also
president of the Five Cents Savings Bank, and has
long been a director of the Railroad Bank, and of the
Stony Biook Railroad. Besides these there are many
other positions of trust which are wont to be bestowed
upon a man so long and so well-known as he for his
fidelity, ability and knowledge of business. Add to
these also the care of his own large estate. Probably
in his declining years no labors are more congenial to
him than those which pertain to the welfare of Kirk
Street Congregational Church, in which he has long
lield the office of deacon, and of which he is one of
the most liberal supporters.
Dr. Ambrose Lawuexce was torn in Boscawen,
N. H., May 2, 1816. His early years were spent
upon a farm, and he had not the advantage of a lib-
eral education. He came to Lowell when twenty-one
years of age and worked as a machinist for the Suf-
folk Corporation. Soon, however, turning his mind
to the study of dentistry, he opened a dentist's office
in 1S3"J in a building on or near the site of the pres-
ent post-office, where he remained for about thirteen
years. In 1852 he erected for his residence the house
on John Street, which is now known as " Young
Women's Home." He was in the City Council iu
1S40, and in the Board of Aldermen iu 1851 and
1859. In 1855 he was mayor of tlie cily, having been
the candidate of the Ameiicau or "Know-Nothing"
party in its most prosperous days.
Dr. Lawrence took an active part in re-organizing
the Fire Department, iu the iutroduction of pure
water into the city and in making Central Bridge
free. He possesses an active and inventive mind and
through the success of the Amalgam Filling invented
by him, and extensively need by dentists, he has
made himself wealthy. He is a man of mirthful
LOWELL.
53
spirit and it has been said of him that he loves a
joke better than a good dinner. He is not a partisan
in politics, though he was wont to take part with the
Whigs. For more than twenty years he has resided
in Cambridge and Bost3n,his present residence being
Boston Highlands.
Stephen RIansur was bora in Temple, N. H.,
August 25, 1798. At the age of sixteen years he
began to serve as a hired man upon a farm. His am-
bition, however, did not allow him long to occupy an
inferior position. When only twenty-one years of
age he became the proprietor of a hotel and stables
in Boston. Having had some experience in working
upon a canal during a short residence in the State of
New York, he came to Lowell in 1822, when the
work of widening the Pawtucket Canal was begun,
and was appointed as an assistant superintendent of
that undertaking. In 1830 he commenced (with a
partner) the hardware and crockery business. In thi.s
business he continued almost to the end of his life,
occupying for many of his last years a store on or
near the site of the Boston & Maine Depot, on
Central Street.
He gained the confidence of his fellow-citizens,
and was elected in 1S3G, and again in 1850, a member
of the State Legislature. He was twice in the Com-
mon Council and three times in the Board of Alder-
men. He was mayor of the city in 1857. After this
he stood aloof from public office.
Mr. Mansur was a religious man and was closely
allied to the interests of the First Baptist Church, of
which he was a deacon. lu his church relations he
was highly esteemed. He was a pian of good busi-
ness qualities and of sterling common sense. He
died April 1, 18G3, at the age of nearly sixty-four
years.
James Cook was born in Preston, Conn., October
4, 1781. His father was the proprietor of a fulling-
mill, and it was while employed in his youth in his
father's mill that the son gained that knowledge of
the manufacture of woolens for which he was after-
wards distinguished, and in which he 8i)ent his early
manhood. In those early days the New England
farmers raised their own wool, and made it into cloth
in their own families. Cloth thus made was sent to
the clothier's mill to be fulled, colored and dressed.
Mr. Cook was the oldest of a family of seven sons,
and it devolved upon him to learu the clothier's
trade in his boyhood. After the War of 1812 the
three oldest brothers commenced the busine?8 of
manufacturing broadcloth in Northampton, Mass.
But Lowell at that time presented advantages for
manufacturing woolens so much superior to those at
Northampton, that in 1828 the brothers sold out.
Mr. Cook was employed as the first agent of the
Middlesex Company in Lowell in 1830, and under his
management this company inaugurated the manufac-
ture of woolens on a large scale. Mr. Cook's experi-
ence and skill were exhibited in many valuable im-
provements, especially in adapting the Crompton
loom in making woolen as well as cotton fabrics.
So successful were these operations, that in the
third year a dividend of thirty-three per cent, was
declared. For six years, beginning with 184G, he had
charge of the Winooski Mills at Burlington, Vt.,
during which he received the gold medal of the
American Institute for his manufactures. He subse-
quently had charge of the Uncas Woolen-Mills of
Norwich, Conn.
After the disaster brought upon the Middlesex
Mills in Lowell by the gross mismanagement of
Lawrence, Stone & Co., Mr. Cook was a second time
made the agent of these mills, and held the position
one year, leaving the properly greatly improved.
Giving up the business of a manufacturer, he spent
his last years in the insurance business. Though not
a politician, he was twice a member of the Common
Council, and was elected by the American party as
mayor of the city for 1859. My limited space will not
allow me to rehearse his history as a military man in
the War of 1812, in which he skillfully captured a
British barge. He died April 10, 1884, at the ad-
vanced age of nearly ninety years.
Besjamix C. Sargeakt was born in Unity, New
Hampshire, February 11, 1823. From Unity he re-
moved in his boyhood to Windsor, Vermont. When
sixteen years of age he came to Lowell and entered,
as clerk, the book -store of Abijah Watson, his brother-
in-law. About 1842 he went to New York, where he
found employment in a book-store for about three
years. In 1845 he opened a store on Central Street,
on or near the site of the Central Block. Subse-
quentiy he established a book-store in the City Gov-
ernment Building, in which he continued throughout
his life.
Mr. Sargeant was five times a member of the
Common Council and was three times elected presi-
dent of that body. He was mayor of the city in 18G0
and 18G1, and proved himself to be an efficientofficer.
He was known as a religious man and was a vestry-
man of St. Anne's Parish. His manners were cour-
teous and his bearing dignified. He made an excel-
lent presiding officer, and Lowell had a worthy repre-
sentative in him on public occasions. His popular-
ity is indicated by the fact that the Sargeant Light
Guard received its name from him.
He left no children. After a long and painful ill-
ness he died on March 2, 1870, at the age of forty-
seven years.
HoctTM HosFORD was born in Charlotte, Ver-
mont, November 8, 1825. He worked upon his
father's farm until his twentieth year, during the last
three of which he had its entire management. Though
his means for educating himself were limited, he was
appointed teacher of a district school when only
eighteen years of age. When twenty years old he
came to Lowell and found employment in Gardner &
Wilson's dry -goods store at a salary of 1150. After a
54
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
service of a few years as clerk, he sucoeedod Daniel
West, one of his former employers, as proprietor of a
store on Merrimack Street, and continued in the dry-
goods business on this street during the remainder of
his life.
With his partner, Arthur G. Pollard, he erected on
Merrimack Street in 1874-75, the spacious and elegant
building known so well to the citizens of Lowell as
the store of " Hosford & Co." It is a model building
fitted with every convenience adapted to the trade.
Mr. Hosford was a member of the Common Council
in 1860, and of the Board of Aldermen in 1801 and
1867. He served as mayor of the city in 1862, being
the youngest person who had ever served in ihisoifice.
He was re-elected as mayor for the years 1863 and
1864. He was a member of the State Legislature in
1866. His capaciiy for business gained for him ap-
pointments to places of high responsibility. He was
a director of the Boston & Lowell, and the Lowell &
Lawrence Railroads, and in 1875 he succeeded General
Stark as manager of the Boston & Lowell Railroad.
In the latter position he served during the rest of his
life, being at the same time treasurer of the Lowell
Hosiery Company, and of the Vassalborough Woolen-
Mills.
In 1864 he was chosen president of the Jlerchants'
National Bank. In the above and many other posi-
tions, too numerous to be mentioned, Mr. Hosford
exhibited a capacity for business, a soundness of
judgment and a clearness of perception which have
given him a high rank among the first citizens of
Lowell.
His most distinguished honor is that attained as
mayor in the years of the Rebellion. In those years
of sorest trial he served his city nobly and gained the
titleof " War Mayor."
He died April 5, 1881, at the age of fifty-five years.
JosiAH G. Peabody was born in Portsmouth, N.
H., December 21, 1808. In 1824, after having for four
years worked upon a farm in Haverhill, Mass., he
came to Lowell, in order to learn the trade of carpen-
ter and house-builder. Here he engaged in the ser-
vice of Captain John Bassett, then a well-known
builder. He seems to have finished his somewhat
limited education at Atkinson Academy, N. H. In
1833, when only twenty-five years of age, he entered
upon the business of contractor and builder. Among
the buildings erected by him are the bank building
on Shattuck Street, the Kirk Street Church, the Lee
Street Church, the lunatic hospital at Taunton, and
the Custom- House at Gloucester. From 1808 to the
present time he has been engaged in the manufacture
of doors, sashes and blinds at the Wameait Steam-
Mills in this city.
In the Lowell Fire Department Captain Peabody
has seen long and arduous service, and for eleven
years he was iu the Board of Engineers. He was
elected captain of the Mechanic Phalanx in 1S43.
He was in the Massacliu.-etts Legislature in 1837
and in 1855, and was in 1856 a member of the Gov-
ernor s Council under Governor Gardner. He was
twice in the Common Council and once in the Board
of .A.ldermen. In 1865, 1866 and 1872 he was m.ayor
of the city. In this office he served the city most faith-
fully. He is a man of affairs, a true Yankee, abound-
ing in energy, force and courage. The cause of tem-
perance has no firmer friend or a more constant and
consistent worker. His presence is still familiar in
our streets, and he bears with ease and grace the bur-
den of more than eighty years.
George Fraxcis Richardson. — (For biography
see Bench and Bar chapter.)
Jonathan P. Folsom was born in Tamworth, N.
H., October 9, 1820. At the age of five years he re-
moved to Great Falls, where he remained twelve years.
Having afterwards served two or three years as clerk
in a store at Rochester, N. H., he came to Lowell in
1S4U, when twenty years of age. Here lie became a
clerk with the firm of Din-more i; Read, on Merrimack
Street. After two years he went South and entered
as clerk into the service of James Brazer, in Ben.son,
Alabama, where he was appointed postmaster of the
town. Having spent about six years in the South, he
returned to Lowell and entered the service of David
West, having as a fellow-clerk Mr. Hosford, who af-
terwards became mayor of the city.
After two years in the store of Mr. West he went
into trade for himself on Merrimack Street. Since
that time, in different capacities, he has, down to the
present year, been engaged ;n the dry-goods business.
Mr. Folsom was a member of the Common Council
in 1856 and 1S()7 ; a member of the Bojird of Alder-
men in 1859-61-62 and 1873, and mayor of the city
in 1869-70. In 1871-72 he represented Lowell in
the State Legislature. He has also been a trustee of
the Central Savings Bank and a director in the Old
Lowell National Bank.
Mr. Folsom has always been known as a man of
ngreeable presence and afl'able manners. At his
second election to the mayoralty he received every
vote cast but two, — a nearer approximation to unan-
imity than any other mayor has ever attained.
Edward F. Sherman was born in Acton, Mass.,
Feb. 10, 1821. He came to Lowell when a child and
attended school under Master Bassett in the school-
house built and owned by the Merrimack Company.
This building stood upon the site of the Green School-
house, and is the same in which Dr. Edson first
preached on coming to Lowell, ilr. Sherman once
publicly read an amusing account of Master Bassett's
school, the substance of which is fuund in this volume
under the head of " Schools."
Mr. Sherman graduated from Dartmouth College in
1843, and had the honor in a subsequent year of giv-
ing an oration before the college upon taking his de-
gree of Master of Arts. He was for some time en-
gaged in teaching, having been elected preceptor of
the academy in Canaan, N. H., and that in Pittsfield,
LOWELL.
55
Mass. He commenced the study of law about 1846
iu the office of Hon. Tappan W'entworth, and subse^
quently became Mr. Weniworth's partner. In 1855
he was elected to the office of secretary of the
Traders' and Mechanics' Insurance Company, — an
office which he held during the rest of his life.
In ISGl and ISCC he served as member of the Legisla-
ture of Massachusetts, and in 1870 was in the Board of
Aldermen. For several years he served on the School
Committee. In 1871 he was mayor of the city, having
been nominated by the Citizens' party. Though well
qualified for the place, he did not seek it. He had in
previous years been affected with pulmonary disease,
and could ill afford to incur the labors and excitement
attending the performance of his duties in the mayor-
alty. Most unfortunately the small-pox prevailed in the
city in an epidemic form, and from every side his ad-
ministration was severely and, doubtless, often un-
justly, charged with inefficiency in checking it. The
strain was too severe for his sensitive nature. He
went to the sick-bed upon quitting the mayor's chair,
and died In six short weeks. His death was on his
birthday. His age was fifty-one years. He was a
man of kind heart, of very pleasing address, of
scholarly tastes and of superior iutellectual powers.
Fkaxcis Jewett was born in Nelson, N. H., Sept_
19, 1820. His father, who was a farmer, suffered so
severely from a serious lameness, that his son in his
early years was compelled to assume, in conducting
the farm, the responsibilities of a man. Mayor Jew-
ett is by no means the first man whose misfortunes in
youth have laid the fouudations of future success and
made them leaders of men. He seems to have finished
his education at the Baptist Seminary in Hancock.
Young Jewett possessed a robust and powerful
frame, and a mind to match. He early learned to
grapple with the labors and hardships of life with
courage and buoyant energy. His townsmen recog-
nized his merit, and before he was twenty-eight years
of age he was twice elected to the Board of Selectmen.
Before finally quitting his farm he had, in the winter
months, found employment as a butcher in Middlesex
Village, now a part of Lowell. In 1850, with a cash
capital of S200, he started business as a butcher in
that village. Twenty years later he established him-
self in business in the place on Middlesex S:reet
where he now resides. His place of business is now
on Button Street.
Mr. Jewett has always been a favorite among the
voters. His sturdy manliness, his thorough honesty,
his kindly bearing and his sound common sense win
the confidence of the common people, and they like
to give him offices of trust. He has been twice
elected to the Common Council and twice to the
Board of Aldermen. In 1873, 1874 and 1875 he was
mayor of the city, and iu 1877 and 1870 he was State
Senator. He was chosen elector in the Garfield cam-
paign in 1880, and in 1887-SS-8'J he was on the Gov-
ernor's Council. He has filled every office well.
Charles A. Stott was born in Centralville while
it was yet a part of the town of Dracut, August 18,
1835. The annexation of Centralville to Lowell oc-
curred in 1851. No other mayor of the city had
been born within its limits. He pas-sed through all
the grades of our public schools, and has spent his
whole life within the city. His father, Mr. CharUs
Stott, was a man of marked individuality, who came
when a young man from England almost penniless,
and by persistent industry and great energy and strict
economy acquired wealth and an honored name. He
was superintendent of the Belvidere Woolen Manu-
facturing Company, which was established by him,
and was known as a skillful and very successful
manufacturer.
Major Charles A. Stott, the son, upon leaving the
High School, became a clerk under his father, and
several years after his father's death he has become
agent and president of the company, — a company
which has long enjoyed very great success.
Major Stott, in the early part of the Rebellion,
took an active and patriotic part in raising troops,
and served as major in the Sixth Regiment of nine
months' men. This regiment, which was in the ser-
vice from August, 1862, to June, 1803, was stationed
at Suffolk, Va., and was under the command of A. S.
FoUansbee as colonel, and O. F. Terry as general.
After leaving the service, he built a flannel-mill
on Lawrence Street, which was for a time operated
by him. But this property he sold, and became, as
stated above, the agent and president of the mills
established by his father. He occupies an elegant
private residence on Nesmith Street.
Major Stott holds a high position in the Masonic
order. In 1859 and 18G0 he was a member of the
Common Council, and was in the Board of Aldermen
in 1869 and 1870. He was mayor of the city in 1876
and 1877. He enjoys the esteem of his fellow-citi-
zens, and, what is very highly to his honor, he has
the affection and respect of those who are in his
employ.
JoHX A. G. Richardson was born in Lowell,
October 13, 1840, and was educated in the public
schools of the city. On leaving the High School, he
formed a partnership with his brother in the pro-
vision business in Lowell. When thirty-four years of
age (1874), he was elected by Ward 4 a represent-
ative to the General Court of Massachusetts. That
a young Democrat should thus be selected \>j a Re-
publican ward, which had always put Republicans
in office, is a very pleasing indication of the peroonal
popularity of the man. In 1878 and 1879 he was
mayor of the city. Lowell had elected no Demo-
cratic mayor for twenty-eight year?. The very flat-
tering majority received by Mayor Richardson at hia
second election is ample testimony to the acceptable
manner in which he had fulfilled the duties of his
office in hie first year.
In the Rebellion he belonged to Company C of the
56
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
Sixth Regiment, and three times went with hia regi-
ment on its southern campaigns.
Mr. Richardson is not a politician. His tastes
lead him to the pursuits of business life. Since re-
tiring from his position as mayor, he has engaged in
the provision business in Lowell, and since 1SS2 in
the wholesale beef trade in Minneapolis, Minn.
He is a gentleman of cordial address and pleasing
manners, and readily wins the respect and favor of
his fellow-citizens.
Frederic T. Gkeenhai.ge was born in Clitheroe,
a parliamentary borsugh of England, in the county
of Lancaster, on July 19, 1842. His father, William
Greenhalge, who had been an engraver in the famous
Primrose Print Works at Clitheroe, came to Lowell
about 1SS4, and was employed at the Merrimack
Print Works to take charge of the copper roller en-
graving. Young Greenhalge was then about twelve
years of age. He passed through all the grades of
the Lowell public schools, in which he was known as
a boy of superior talent. At the examination for ad-
mission to the High School he received the highest
rank of all the candidates, and, upon graduating Irom
the High School, he received a Carney medal, and
was acknowledged as the first boy in his class.
Especially did he excel as a declaimerupon the stage
thus early giving promise of that ability as an orator,
which he has exhibited in recent years. He entered
Harvard College in 1859, but the death of his father
compelled him to relinquish ihe hope of completing
his course, and to return to the serious responsibili-
ties which were placed upon him as an only son.
After teaching school and engaging in other labors
for self-support, he entered upon the study of law in
theofBce of Brown & Alger. In 18(53 he engaged
in the war, and was employed in the commissary de-
partment in Newbern, N. C. While at Newbern he
was seized with malarial fever, which compelled him,
after months of sickness, fo return home. Again he
devoted himself to the study of the law, and was ad-
mitted to the bar in June, 1865. His talents brought
him early success, and made him the object of popu-
lar favor. He served in the Common Council in 1868
and 1869, and in the School Board in 1871. In the
years 1880 and 1881 he was mayor of the city. I have
not the space to mention all the minor otBces which
he has held. He is everywhere recognized as a man
of high promise. He was elected to Congress in
November, 1888, and his many friends contidently
believe that in the arena of political debate he will
gain a high rank among our ablest orators.
George Runels was born in Warner, N. H., Feb-
ruary 3, 1823. During his first sixteen years he
worked upon the farm or in the blacksmith shop of
his father or his brother. In his seventeenth year he
came to Lowell, and for one season engaged in the
work of stone-cutting with Gardner K. Eastman. He
then went to sea in a whaling vessel. His vessel suf-
fered shipwreck near the Fiji Islands, in the South
Pacific Ocean. He escaped in a boat, and after three
days upon the water he was rescued by a passing ves-
sel. He next found employment on a trading vessel,
and was engaged in the South seas in selling tortoise-
shells and beche de mer, a species of slug used as a
delicacy by the Chinese in making soup. At length,
on board an English vessel, he traded in the Indies,
and while in Calcutta was attacked with the cholera,
and was confined to a hospital for six weeks. In
1844, having followed the seas for four years, he re-
turned to his work of stone-cutting in the service of
Mr. Eastman.
April 1, 1846, he engaged in the business of stone-
cutting for himself on Middlesex Street. Four years
after this he spent a few months in California. In
1S51 he purchased a farm in Waterbury, Vt. Re-
maining upon his farm about three years, he returned
to his business of stone-cutting in Lowell, which he
followed for more than twenty years. For the last
ten years he has been engaged in erecting buildings
and caring for his estate.
In 1S62 he was a member of the Common Council,
and in 1S64 and 1S73 he was in the Board of Alder-
men. He served as mayor of the city in 1882.
Mr. Runels is a man of modest merit, sound judg-
ment and strict integrity. Though not a politician,
he is everywhere known as a worthy, upright man,
who in his mayoralty served the city most faithfully.
John J. Dokovax was born in Y'onkers, N. Y.,
July 28, 1843. He came to Lowell when three years
of age, and was educated in the public schools of the
city. On leaving the High School he entered as
clerk into the employment of Mr. Gove, proprietor of
the Chapel Hill Grocery. Upon attaining his major-
ity, he was received as partner in the business, and
so continued until the death of Mr. Gove, in 1869.
The firm, known as Donovan & Co., was then estab-
lished. This firm still continues to do business as
grocers at 266 and 267 Central Street, and is consid-
ered cue of the best-established firms in the city. Its
commodious building is well adapted to the exten-
sive business of the firm. The firm deals largely in
powder, dualin and explosives, and has a store-house
in Tewksbury, in which its explosives are kept. In
1884 Mr. Donovan projected and constructed all the
lines of the Atlantic Telegraph Company east of
Boston. For many years he has been a. prominent
public mau.
In 1883 and 1SS4 he was mayor of the city. In
1886 he was Democratic candidate for the Fiftieth
Congress, and was, in 1888, president of the State
Democratic Convention. On April 30, 1889, he de-
livered the oration at the city's celebration of the
centennial anniversary of Washington's inaugural, and
also the memorial address on Decoration Day, May
30, 1889.
Mr. Donovan is still in the prime of life. He has
already made for himself an enviable record for sa-
gacity in business and for popular talent. His friends
LOWELL.
57
may naturally and confidently expect that still higher
lionors await him in the future.
EnwAED J. NoYES was born in Georgetown, Mass.,
September 7, 1841, and carae to Lowell when seven
years of age. Having passed through the primary
and grammar schools of the city, lie completed his
education at the academies of Groton, Mass., and
Newbury, Vt. While he was at Newbury the War
of the Rebellion broke out, and young Noyes, at the
age of twenty years, returned to Lowell, and entered
upon the service of recruiting soldiers for General
Butler. Under General Butler he went to Ship Isl-
and in 1861, and with him he entered New Orleans
on May 1, 18G2, being at the time temporarily upon
the general's staff. He rose in the service from
lieutenant to major. In 1862 he was appointed cap-
tain of the First Texas Cavalry, made up of Texans
who had been driven out of their State for their Union
sentiments. In this frontier and hostile position in
Texas he was exposed to almost daily encounters and
met with hardships and perils which few of our regi-
ments endured.
In Jlay, 1863, while charging through the enemy's
line of battle, he received a wound in the slioulder,
which confined him for some time to a hospital in
New Orleans. From this wound he has never com-
))letely recovered. When the war was drawing to a
close, in December, 18G4, he returned to Lowell. In
1860 and 1867 lie was engaged in planting cotton. In
18U8 he engaged for a year in the study of law in
Columbia College, N. Y. Until 1881 he was en-
gaged in private business. In that year and in 1882
he was chief of police in Lowell. In 1885 he was
mayor of the city. After engaging for two or three
years in private business he again, in 1888, became
chief of police in Lowell. He now (IS90) holds the
office of superintendent of the horse railroads of
Lowell.
Mayor Noyes bears an excellent record, both as a
brave soldier and as an efficient man of business. He
is admirably qualified for the position of chief of
police on account of his personal bravery and his
knowledge of law. To his new office he brings the
qualities which will doubtless command success.
James C. Abbott was born in Andover, Mass.,
June 3, 1825. Being the son of a widow he early
learned the lessons of industry and self-reliance
which have marked his manhood. He graduated
from Phillips Academy, at Andover, and entered
Dartmouth College, where he remained two years.
At Harvard Law School he laid the foundation of
his success as a lawyer. Having studied law with
I. S. Morse, Esq., in Lowell, he opened an office in
Canal Block, having as his partner Harrison G.
Blaisdell, Esq.
He has now practiced law in Lowell nearly forty
years, and gained the reputation of a careful and
conscientious student, and a wise and faithful coun-
selor. Few men are more punctual in the discharge
of their duties, or more faithful and painstaking in
the execution of the trusts confided to them. Mr.
Abbott has never sought office. His honors have
been thrust upon him. He was a member of the
State Senate in 1887, and was for six years in the
School Board. He held the office of mayor of the
city in the years 1886 and 1887, and was in the Board
of Aldermen in 1880.
Since holding the office of mayor, Mr. Abbott has
devoted himself to the practice of his profession. He
is, however, president of the First National Bank, of
which he had previously been a director. He also
holds the office of commissioner of sinking funds.
He is president of the Lowell Mutual Fire Insurance
Company.
In the business world Mr. Abbott is esteemed a
safe, cautious, judicious man, whom it is safe to
trust. In politics his straightforward honesty and
conscientiousness make him an excellent executive,
but a poor partisan. He is thoroughly respected by
his political opponents as a man who cannot be man-
aged, and who will do the right thing when he sees
it. His practice of his profession has been remunera-
tive, and he has an elegant private residence on Fair-
mount Street.
Chakles D. Palmer was born in Cambridge,
Mass., November 25, 1845. His father, George W.
Palmer, was a book publisher and manufacturer.
The son graduated from the Dwight Grammar School,
of Boston, in 1858. On graduating from the Boston
Latin School, in 1864, he had the honor of receiving
one of the four Franklin medals. He graduated
from Harvard College in 1868.
With the purpose of becoming a manufacturer he
entered the service of the Washington Mills Com-
pany, in Lawrence, in which he exhibited such marked
ability that in 1869 he was appointed by one of the
United States commissioners to the Paris Exhibition
to the service of collecting statistics relating to the
wool industry in Canada.
For about ten years, beginning with 1872, he was
a member of a co-partnership for the manufacture of
woolen shoddy in North Chelmsford.
In 1880 he married Rcwena, youngest daughter of
the late Fisher A. Hildreth, Esq., of Lowell, who died
in 1873, leaving a large estate. It was in managing
the affairs of this estate that Mr. Palmer was em-
ployed from 1880 to the time of his election to the
mayoralty of the city. As mayor he has served the
city two years, 1888 and 1889, and he has now en-
tered upon his third year of office. It is only just to
say that he has more than met the expectations of
his friends. He has exhibited an independence of
action, a devotion to duty, and a correctness of judg-
ment, which give him a high rank among men distin-
guished for executive ability.
58
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
CHAPTER V.
LO WELL—^ ConLinued).
POLITICS.
Lowell, having had its first election under a city
charter, it will be interefting, at this point, to turn
our attention to its political history both as a town
and as a city.
lu iis early elections, as a town, the Whigs had a
very decided preponderance. In the Presidential
election of 1828 John Quincy Adams received almost
three times as many votes as General Jackson, and
at the gubernatorial election of that year Levi Lin-
coln received more than seven times as many votes
for Governor as all his opponents. Gradually the
Democrats gained upon the Whigs until, in 1835, at
the last town election. Governor Everett received but
a bare majority over Marcus Morton.
After Lowell became a city, in 1836, no Democrat
was elected mayor of the city until 1848, when, after
three trials in the same month, Josiah B. French had
a majority of thirty-three over Daniel S. Richardson,
the Whig candidate, and Mr. French svas re-elected
in 1849. The next Democratic mayor was J. A. G.
Richardson, who, in 1877, had a majority of eighty
over Charles A. Stott. Mr. Richardson was re-elect-
ed in 1878 by a very heavy majority. In 1882 J. J.
Donovan, the Democratic candidate, was elected, and
in 1883 he was re-elected by a decided majority. In
1885 and 1886 J. C. Abbott, a Democrat, was elected.
In 1854 Ambrose Lawrence, the American, or Know-
Nothing candidate for mayor, received more than
five-sixths of the entire vote of the city. In every
other year a Whig or Republican has been elected,
either upon a strict party ticket or on a citizens'
ticket. The two parties now, 1890, are nearly equally
divided ; but the probability is that there are more
Democrats than Republicans, the balance of power
being in the hands of the voters who belong to neither
of the two great parties.
A third party has, in some years, acquired a con-
siderable strength in Lowell, conspicuously the
Kuow-Nothings, in 1854. From 1840, when James
G. Birney, the Anti-slavery presidential candidate,
received forty-two votes at the gubernatorial election
in 1852, when Horace ilann received 1202 votes, the
Anti-slavery party increased in strength, but the
Kansas troubles and the war merged them in the
Republican party. Again, the Prohibition party, in
1880, nominated for the mayoralty Hon. J. G. Pea-
body, who received 1279 votes. The fact that there
was no Democratic candidate in a great measure ac-
counts for this large Prohibition vote. This vote has
not often exceeded 200.
Many of the best citizens of Lowell have always
favored non-partisan nominations for city olficera.
Their theory is certainly plausible, and it implies a
high sentiment of patriotism ; but in practice the
people of Lowell have not been induced, for any con-
siderable time, to sustain it. Men are not so consti-
tuted that they can be regularly led to work with and
vote for men in the city eleciions whom they have
bitterly opposed as unfit for ofiice at the State elec-
tion only five weeks before. Non-partisan nomina-
tions are found practicable only when some important
question of public utility baa greater weight in the
minds of the voters than their party affiliations.
However, as will be seen below, in several of our
municipal elections non-partisan nominations have
been successful.
In the following record of the elections in Lowell
for sixty-three years I have omitted to name candi-
dates who have receive"d only a few votes :
In 1826, at the first election for Governor in
the town of Lowell, the result was, Levi Lincoln, of
Worcester, 95 ; James Lloyd, of Boston, 53.
In 1827, for Governor, Levi Lincoln, of Worcester,
89; Wm. C. Jarvis, of Cliarlestown, 22.
In 1828, for Governor, Levi Lincoln, 157; Elijah
H. Mills, of Northampton, 14. For President, John
Quincy Adams, 278 ; Andrew Jackson, 97.
In 1829, for Governor, Levi Lincoln, 127; Marcus
Morton, of Taunton, 21.
In 1830, for Governor, Levi Lincoln, 298; Marcus
Morton, 87. The population of Lowell in 1830 was
6477.
In November, 18!il, for Governor, Levi Lincoln,
264; Marcus Morton, 228.
In 1832, for Governor, Levi Lincoln, i'>75 ; M;ucus
Morton, 441. For President, Henry Clay, 694 ; An-
drew Jackson, 412.
In 1833, for Governor, John Davis, of Worcester,
452 ; Marcus Morton, 395.
In 1834, for Governor, John Davis, 893 ; Marcus
Morton, 668.
In 1835, for Governor, Edward Everett, of Boston,
826 ; Marcus Morton, 768.
In these ten years Messrs. Lincoln, Davis and Ever-
ett were the successful Republican candidates iu the
State elections.
In 1836, Lowell's first year under a city charter,
the elections resulted as follows : For mayor, Elisha
Bartlett, 958; Eliphalet Case, 868. For Governor,
Edward Everett, 864; Marcus Morton, 908. For
President, Daniel Webster, 878; Martin Van Buren,
894. Until 1846 the municipal elections were in the
spring and other elections in the autumn.
In 1836, Edward Everett was elected Governor and
Martin Van Buren President. Dr. Bartlett was a
physician, and Mr. Case an editor. It is proper here
to remark that throughout this political record the
officers mentioned as e!ectied assumed the duties of
their office in the next year after election, with this
exception, that until 1847 the mayors of the city were
LOWELL.
59
elected and entered upon their office in the spring of
the same year.
In 1867, for mayor, Elisha Bartlett, 1018; Elipha-
let Case, 817. For Governor, Edward Everett, 1058:
Marcus Morton, C28.
In 1838, for mayor, Luther Lawrence (Whig),
871 ; John W. Graves (Dem.), 529. For Governor,
Edward Everett (Whig), 871 ; Marcus Morton
(Dem.), 640. Mr. Everett was elected Governor in
1838. Mr. Lawrence was a lawyer, and Mr. Graves a
physician.
In 1839, for mayor, Luther Lawrence, 91C ; Josiah
B. French (Dem.), 215. For Governor, Edward
Everett, 1033; Marcus Morton, 812. Mr. Morton
was elected Governor in 1839. Mr. French was a
contractor. Upon the death of Mr. Lawrence, only a
few days after entering upon the duties of his office.
Dr. Elisha Huntington, who was a member of the
Common Council, was chosen his succesaor.
In 1840, for mayor, Elisha Huntington (Whig),
1093; Josiah B. French, 644. For Governor, John
Davis, 143G ; Marcus Morton, 941. For President,
Wm. H. Harrison, 1470 ; Martin Van Buren, 856.
Mr. Harrison was elected President, and Mr. Davis
Governor. Dr. Huntington received now his first
election. For many years he was the favorite candi-
date to be put forward when, in order to carry an
election, there was demanded a candidate of great
personal popularity. He was a practicing physician
in Lowell for many years. The population of Lowell
in 1840 was 20,981.
In 1841, for mayor, Elisha Huntington, 1032 ;
Jonathan Tyler, 523. For Governor, John Davis
(Whig), 1170; Marcus Morton, 1030. Mr. Davis
was elected Governor. Dr. Huntington had made so
popular a mayor that there was not a serious opposi-
tion to his re-election. A ticket headed by Mr.
Tyler (a Whig) received about one-third of the votes
of the city, the Democrats probably sustaining this
ticket in most case.-!.
In 1842, for mayor, Nathaniel Wright, 967 ; Elisha
Huntington, 94.S. There being no election on the
first trial, a second trial gave Mr. Wright, 1159 ; Dr.
Huntington, 1096. For Governor, John Davis, 1234;
Marcus Morton, 1263. Samuel E. Sewall, of Rox-
bury, candidate of the rising " Liberty " party, 128.
Mr. Jlortou was elected Governor. Mr. Wright was
a Whig. He was put up against Dr. Huntington by
citizens who believed that the corporations had been
exercising an undue influence in city aflairs, by dic-
tating to employees how they should vote, by
threatening to remove from their employ those who
did not vote as required. Messrs. Aiken and Bartlett,
agentsof the Lawrence and Boott Corporations, were
in 1842 special objects of attack. This sentiment led
to the nomination of Mr. Wright, who was elected at
the second trial. The Vux Fopuli was started in the
preceding year as the representative of this senti-
ment. It was designed as ;in expression of the vokc
of the people on the question of Corporation influence
and control.
In 1843, for mayor, Nathaniel Wright (Whip),
1093 ; Elisha Huntington, 224 ; John W. Graves, 577 ;
Josiah B. French, 85; others, 123. For Governor,
George N. Briggs (Whig), of Pitlafleld, 1473 ; Mar-
cus Morton, 1175 ; Samuel E. Sewall, 206. In the
city election party lines were not closely drawn.
There were two Whig candidates and two Demo-
cratic candidates, and many scattering votes. Mr.
Briggs this year received the first of seven elections
as Governor of Massachuetts. He is the last of our
Governors whose terms of office have extended beyond
four years. The normal period seems now to be three
years. Gardner, Banks, Claflin, Rice, Long, Robinson
and Ames each served three years.
In 1844, for mayor, Elisha Huntington, 1477 ;
Jonathan Tyler (Whig), 935. For Governor, George
N. Briggs, 1791 ; George Bancroft, of Boston, 1138 ;
Samuel E. Sewall, 203. For President, Henry Clay,
1742 ; James K. Polk, 1091 ; James G. Birney, 246.
Governor Briggs was re-elected. James K. Polk was
chosen President. Jonathan Tyler was the " Citizen's "
candidate, on a non-partisan ticket.
In 1845, for mayor, Elisha Huntington, 1280 ; Geo.
Brownell (Whig), 198; Jonathan M. Marston (Demo-
crat), 123 ; others, 188. For Governor. George N.
Briggs, 1484 ; Isaac Davis, of Worcester, 655 ; Samuel
E. Sewall, 160. Governor Briggs was re-elected in
the city election. Mr. Brownell was superintendent
of the machine shops and Mr. Maraton was a dealer
in liquors. These two gentlemen received but few
votes because at this election there was no organized
opposition to the re-election of Dr. Huntington.
In 1846, for mayor, on first ballot, Jefl"erson Ban-
croft (Whig), 988 ; Joshua Swan (Whig), 813. On
second ballot, Bancroft, 1307 ; Swan, 196. Both Mr.
Bancroft and Mr. Swan were Whigs. There was some
local opposition to the regular Republican nominee,
Mr. Bancroft, in Ward Four. Complaint was made
that this ward had been neglected in the distribution
of offices. The nomination of Mr. Swan gave expres-
sion to that feeling, and the Democrats probably voted
for him. For Governor, in 1840, George N. Briges,
1576 ; Isaac Davis, 669 ; Samuel E. Sewall, 228. Mr.
Bancroft was a deputy sherifl" and Mr. Swan was a
contractor at the machine shop.
In 1846 there were two municipal elections. Here-
tofore the municipal year had begun in the spring, but
hereafter it is to begin in January. Hence the second
election in December, 1846, for the city government
of the year 1847. At this election the vote was, Ban-
croft, 1307 ; Swan, 196. There was no party conten-
tion, both candidates being Whigs.
Municipal election, December, 1817, and State elec-
tion, November, 1847. For mayor, Jeflerson Ban-
croft, 1032; Josiah B. French (Democrat), 655; Elisha
Huntington, 228. For Governor, Geo. N. Briggs,
60
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
1655; Caleb Gushing, of Newbirryport, 1282; Samuel
E. Sewall, 172.
Disaffection with Mr. Bancroft in Wards 3 and 4
explains the vote for Dr. Huntington. But little in-
terest was taken in this election, and the vote was
very small. Governor Briggs is re-elected. For the
two years the Mexican War had somewhat disturbed
the politics of the country. Even in Lowell, John
P. Kobinson, probably its most brilliant lawyer,
though a stanch Whig, favored the election of Gen-
eral Gushing, the Democratic opponent of Governor
Briggs. This opposition of Mr. Robinson gave biith
to that well-known poem of James R. Lowell, the
keen satire of which well outlines the local cause that
brought it forth :
"GiivenerB. ip a sensible mnn;
lie alftys to homo and looks arter his fulkd ;
He draws liis furrcr ez stniislit uz lit- can,
Au' into nobody's tater-patcb pukca.
But John P.
Robinson, he
Sez, he wouDt go fur Guvcaer B.
"Gineral C, he goc6 in fur the war,
Ho don't vully principle inore'n an old end ;
Wat did God make us raytional crect<*is fer —
But glory aud gunpoMdor, plunder and blooil ?
So, Johu P.
Kobinson, ho
Sez. he shall vote for Gineral C."
Municipal election in December, 1S48, and State
and National election in November, 184S. For mayor,
at first trial, Daniel S. Richardson, 1080 ; Josiah B.
French, 723 ; John W. Graves, C74 ; Oliver M. Whip-
ple, 249 ; Jefferson Bancroft, 88. At the second trial,
Richardson, 1305 ; French, 810 ; Graves, 064. At
the final trial, French, 1577; Richardson, 1544, and
others, 21 ; and Mr. French was elected by a plural-
ity of 33, and by a majority of 6. For Governor,
Geo. N. Briggs, 1976 ; Stephen G. Phillips, of Salem,
1221 ; Caleb Gushing, 441. For President, Zachary
Taylor, 1959; Martin Van Buren, 1096 ; Lewis Cass,
870. Mr. Tdylor was elected President, and Governor
Briggs re-elected. Mr. Richardson was a lawyer. A
comparison of the Presidential election with the city
election would seem to indicate that in the latter the
Anti-slavery party generally voted for Mr. French.
Oliver M. Whipple was a manufacturer of powder, and
one of the oldest and most prominent citizens. The
second and third trials in the city election were de-
manded because, at that time, a plurality did not
elect. Scattering votes could defeat an election.
Municipal election December, 1849, and State elec-
tion November, 1849. For mayor, Josiah B. French,
1521; Geo. Brownell (Whig), 1285. For Governor,
Geo. N. Briggs, 1659; Geo. S. Boutwell, of Groton,
759; Stephen C. Phillips, of Salem, 663. Governor
Briggs was re-elected, and Mayor French is compli-
mented with a second election. Mr. Brownell was
superintendent of machine shop.
Municipal election December, 1850, and State elec-
tion November, 1850. For mayor, James H. B. Ayer,
1811; Abner W. Buttrick, 893. For Governor, Geo.
N. Briggs, 1790; Geo. S. Boutwell, 891 ; Stephen G.
Phillips, 743. Mr. Boutwell was elected Governor.
Mr. Ayer was the paymaster of the Locks and Canals
Company, and Mr. Buttrick was a grqcer. Governor
Briggs meets with his first defeat in a gubernatorial
election. The population of Lowell in 1850 was
33,383.
Municipal election December, 1851, and State elec-
tion November, 1851. For mayor, Elisha Hunting-
ton, 2021; John W. Graves, 1S3S. For Governor,
Robert C. Winthrop, of Boston, 1915; Geo. S. Bout-
well, 1342; John G. Palfrey, of Cambridge, 681-
Governor Boutwell was re-elected.
Municipal election Dec, 1852, and State and
National election Nov., 1852. For mayor at first
trial, Sewall G. Mack, 1961 ; John W. Graves, 1919,
others, 48. Second trial, Mack, 1954; Graves, 1878.
For Governor, John H. Clifford, 1789 ; Henry W.
Bishop, of Lenox, 1236 ; Hor.ice Mann, of Newton,
the Free-Soil candidate, 1202. For President, Win-
field Scott, 2032; Franklin Pierce, 1576; John P.
Hale, 684. Mr. Clifford was elected Governor and Mr.
Pierce President. Mr. Mack was a dealer in stoves,
etc. In this year the Free-Soil vote reached its
highest point. It is probable that Mr. Mann, whose
vote was the highest, received support from the other
parties out of personal considerations.
JIunicipal election Dec, 1853. and State election
Nov., 1853. For mayor, Sewall G. Mack, 1979 ; John
Nesmith, 700; Weare Clifford, 697; Wm. Fiske, 275.
For Governor, Emory Washburn, of Worcester, 1927;
Henry W. Bishop, 942; Henry Wilson, of Natick,
973 ; Bradford L. Wales, of Randolph, 351. At the
city election John Nesmith was the Free-Soil candi-
date and Wm. Fiske the Temperance candidate. Mr.
Washburn was elected Governor. Mr. Nesmith was a
manufacturer and dealer in real estate. Mr. Fiske
was a dealer in lumber. In 1853 the people of the
State were called to vote upon the .icceptance of the
new Constitution formed at the constitutional conven"
tion under the control of a coalition of Democrats
and Free-Soilcrs. The Whigs under Washburn and
the National or Hunker Democrats under Wales suc-
ceeded in defeating most of the articles of the pro-
posed Constitution.
JIunicipal election Dec, 1854, and State election
Nov., 1854. Fur mayor, Ambrose Lawrence, 2651 ;
Joseph Bedlow, 442. For Governor, Henry J. Gard-
ner, of Boston, 2863 ; Emory Washburn, 902 ; Henry
W. Bishop, 353. In the city election, Mr. Lawrer.ce
was candidate of the " American (commonly called
" Know-Nothing") party" and Mr. Bedlow of the
Whigs. Mr. Lawrence was a dentist. Mr. Bedlow
was in the service of the Lawrence Corporation. In
the State election Mr. Gardner was the candidate of
the " Know-Nothing" party. The sudden rise of the
new party and its sudden decline are remarkable phe-
nomena in the history of politics. The wild rush of
LOWELL.
61
politiciana of every shade to join the winning side
rendered the party too unwieldy to be subject to the
control of its wiser leaders, and the misconduct of a
lew soon brought reproach and defeat upon the
whole.
Municipal election Dec, 1855, and State election
Nov., 1855. For mayor, Elisha Huntington, 2290 ;
Alfred Gilman, 1402. For Governor, Henry J. Gard-
ner, 175.) ; Erasmus D. Bench, 1014 ; Julius C. Rock-
well (Whig), of Pitisfield, 971. Mr. Gardner was re-
elected. Mr. Beach was the Democratic candidate
and Mr. Rockwell the Whig candidate. Mr. Gilman
was the American or " Kuow-Jsothing" candidate for
mayor, and Mr. Huntington the Whig candidate.
Mr. Gilman had been postmaster of Lowell in the
administration of Presidents Taylor and Fillmore.
He had also been an editor.
Municipal election Dec, 1856, and State and
National election Nov., 185G. For mayor, Stephen
Mausur, 1915; Elisha Huntington, 1870. For Gov-
ernor, Henry J.Gardner, 2940; Erasmus D. Bench,
1259; Luther V. Bell, of Cliarlestown, 127. For
I'resideiit, John C. Fremont, 3U87 ; James Buchanan,
1248. Mr. Mansur was a dealer in hardware. In this
year there was i)revailing a very strong sentiment in
favor of non-partisan munici))al government. Many
of the b(st citizens of Lowell who were not politi-
cians publicly joined in a movement to elect Dr. Hun-
tington on a non-partisan platform. He was there-
fore i)Ut up in opposition to the Whig candidate, Mr.
Mansur. lu 185lj Mr. Gardner was re-elected Gover-
nor and Mr. Buchanan President. In 1856 the Whigs
generally supported Mr. Gardner. Those who did
not, under the name of "American and Whig party"
supported 51 r. Bell. The three parties were called:
" American Rei)ublican," " Democratic, " " American
and Whig."
Municipal election Dec. 1857, and State election
Nov., 1857. For mayor, Elisha Huntington, 2000;
Wm. North (Rep.), 1449. For Governor, Nathaniel
P. Banks, of Waltham, 1710; Erasmus D. Beach,
1076; Henry J. Gardner, 1151. Mr. Banks was elec-
ted Governor. Dr. Huntington \v;)s the Citizens'
" non-partisan " candidate. Mr. North, the Repub-
lican caudidate, was a dyer at the Middlesex Mills.
Dr. Huntington's long experience aided him as a
candidate in this year of financial distress, when wise
counsel was in great demand.
Municipal election Dec, 1858, and State election
Nov., 1858. For mayor, James Cook (Rep.), 1737;
E|)hraim B. Patch (Dem.), 1209. For Governor, N.
P.Banks, 1754; E. D. Beach, of Springfield, 1070;
Amos A. Lawrence, 397. Mr. Banks was elected
Governor. Mr. Cook had been an agent of the Mid-
dlesex Mills, but for many years he was engaged in
tiie insurance business. Mr. Patch was an auctioneer.
Municipal election, Dec. 1850, and State election
Nov. 1859. For mayor, Benj. C. Sargeant (Rep),
1772; Levi Sprague (Rep.), 1457. For Governor,
N. P. Banks, 1612 ; Benj. F. Butler, 1140; Geo. N.
Briggs, 342. Mr. Banks was elected Governor. Mr.
Sargeant, candidate of the American Republican
parly, defeats Mr. Spragt'.e, candidate of a Citizens'
movement. Mr. Sargeant was a bookseller, and Mr.
Sprague a contractor.
Municipal election Dec. 1860, and State and Na-
tional election Nov., 1860. For mayor, B. C. Sar-
■geant, 2073 ; Francis H. Nourse (Rep.), 1393 ; John
O. Green, 138 ; James K. Fellows, 105. For Gover-
nor, John A. Andrew, of Boston, 2750 ; E. D. Beach,
988 ; A. A. Lawrence, of Brookline, 443. For Presi-
dent, Abraham Lincoln, 2776 ; Stephen A. Douglas,
1002 ; John Bell, 435 ; John C. Breckenridge, 142.
Mr. Andrew was elected Governor, and Mr. Lin-
coln President. In the city election Mr. Nourse, a
Republican, was put up by those who had become
disaffected with Mayor Sargeant's administration in
1859. John 0. Green represented the peace party,
and J. K. Fellows the Democrats. Mr. Nourse was
engaged in railroad business, and Mr. Fellows was a
watchmaker. In the National election Bell was the
candidate of the " Union " party, commonly called the
" Bell and Everett '' party, and John C. Breckenridge
of the regular Democrats. Mr. Douglas had the sup-
port of the Douglas Democrats. The threatening war
had drawn new party lines. The population of
Lowell in 1800 was 36,827.
Municipal election, Dec. 1861, and State election
Nov., 1861. For mayor, Hocum Hosford (Rep.),
1719; John W. Graves, 1664. For Governor, John
A.Andrew, 2139; Isaac Davis, of Worcester, 1003.
Mr. Andrew was elected Governor. Mr. Hosford
was a merchant and was known as Lowell's " War
Mayor."
Municipal election Dec, 1802, and State election
Nov., 1862. For mayor, Hocum Hosford, 1876 ; Ar-
thur P. Bonney (Rep.), 1320. For Governor, John
A. Andrew, 1977 ; Charles Devens, Jr., of Worces-
ter, 1427. Governor Andrew was re-elected. Mr.
Bonney was a Republican, and was the regular Re-
publican candidate. He was a lawyer.
Municipal election Dec, 1803, and State election
Nov., 1863. For mayor, Hocum Hosford, 1231 ; others,
18. For Governor, J. A. Andrew, 1723; Henry W.
Paine, of Cambridge, 669. Gov. Andrew was re-
elected. In this year the war was upon us, and Mr.
Hosford was kept in ofi&ce by common consent. In no
city election had there eve. been so few votes. Two
causes conspired to render the vote small, — first, there
was no party contest, and second, the day of election
was, in the afternoon, very rainy.
Municipal election Dec, 1864, and State and Na-
tional election Nov., 1864. For mayor, Josiah G.
Peabody (Rep.), 1099; Abner W. Buttrick (Dem.),
944. For Governor, John A. Andrew, 2401 ; Henry
W. Paine, 1106. For President, Abraham Lincoln,
2473; Geo. B. McClellan, 1090. Gov. Andrew was
re elected. President Lincoln was re-elected. Mr.
62
HISTOllY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
Peabody was a door, sash and blind maker, and Mr.
Buttrick was a grocer.
Municipal election Dec, 1865, and State election
Nov., 1865. For mayor, J. G. Peabody, 1517 ; B. C.
Sargeant, 1513. For Governor, Alexander H. Bul-
lock, 1875 ; Darius N. Couch, of Taunton, 58<. Mr.
Bullock ia elected Governor. At the city election
Mr. Peabody, candidate of the Workingmtn's party,
defeats Mr. Sargeant, candidate of the Union Repub-
lican party, by a plurality of four votes.
Municipal election Dec, 186C, and State election
Nov., 1866. For mayor, Geo. F. Richardson (Rep.),
1923; AlbertB.Plympton, (Rep.), 1089. ForGovernor,
A. H. Bullock, 2602 ; Theodore H. Sweetser, of Lowell,
766. Gov. Bullock was re-elected. Mr. Plympton
was a master mechanic and a Republican. He was
put up by the workingmen and the citizens against
Mr. Richardson, the Republican candidate.
Municipal election Dec, 1867, and State election
Nov., 1867. For mayor, G. F. Richardson, 3214;
scattering, 13. For Governor, A. H. Bullock, of
Worcester, 2395 ; John Q. Adams, of Quincv, 1598.
Gov. Bullock was re-elected. JIayor Richardson had
no opponent.
Municipal election Dec, 1868, and State and Na-
tional election Nov., 1868. For mayor, Jonathan P.
Folsom (Rep.), 2008; E. B. Patch, 1850. For Gover-
nor, \Vm. Claflin, of Newton, 3135; J. Q.Adams,
1622. For President, U. S. Grant, 3152; Horatio
Seymour, 1593. Mr. Claflin was elected Governor,
and Gen. Grant President. Mr. Folsom was a dry-
goods merchant.
Municipal election Dec, 1869, and State election
Nov., 1869. For mayor, J. P. Folsom, 3133; pcatter-
iug, 2. For Governor, Wm. Clatlin, 2306; J. Q.
Adams, 1413 ; Edwin M. Chamberlain, of Boston,
235. No mayor of Lowell has received a vote so
nearly unanimous aa that given to Mr. Folsom in 1869.
Gov. Clatlin was re-elected. Mr. Chamberliin was
the candidate of the Labor Reform party.
Municipal election Dec, 1870, and State election
Nov., 1870. For mayor, Edward F. Sherman (Rep.).
2246; Charles A. Stott (Rep.), 1667. For Governor,
Wm. Claflin, 2002; J. Q. Adams, 1003; Wendell
Phillips, of Boston, 646. Gov. Claflin was re-elected.
Mr. Phillips was the " Labor Reform candidate."
Mr. Stott was a manufacturer. Jlr. Sherman was a
lawyer. He was nominated by the "Citizens" in
opposition to the Republican nominee, Mr. Stott. He
WHS not a politician and did not seek the mayoralty,
but was selected on account of his well-known ability.
But both he and the City Council of 1870 incurred
great reproach and blame for their course of alleged
inaction in checking the spread of the small-pox,
which prevailed to an alarming extent this year.
The population of Lowell in 1870 was 40,928.
Municipal election December, 1871, and State elec-
tion November, 1871. For mayor, J. G. Peabody,
2136 ; Charles A. Stott, 1709. For Governor, William
B. Washburn, of Greenfield, 1598; J. Q. Adams,
1046 ; Edwin M. Chamberlain, of Boston, 237 ;
Robert C. Pitman (Temperance), 97. Mr. Wash-
burn was elected Governor. Mr. Stott was the Citi-
zens' candidate against Mr. Peabody, the Republican
candidate. The Citizens' movement this year was
less popular on account of the fact that the officers
elected by that movement in the preceding year had
incurred so much blame in regard to the prevalence
of small-pox.
Municipal election December, 1872, and State and
National election November, 1872. For mayor,
Francis Jewett (Rep.), 2378; Hocum Hosford, 1968.
For Governor, William B. Washburn, 3474; Frank
W. Bird, of Walpole, 16S1. For President, U. S.
Grant, 3467 ; Horace Greeley, 1673. Governor Wiish-
burn was re-elected. Gen. Grant was also re-elected.
Mr. Jewett was a butcher. Mr. Hosford was the can-
didate of the Citizens' party. At this time very many
citizens favored non-partisan municipal nomnuitions.
In this year the mayor was elected by the Republi-
cans, but the aldermen by the Citizens'. Both can-
didates for the mayoralty were Republicans.
Municipal election December, 1873, and .'?tate elec-
tion November, 1873. For mayor, Francis Jewett,
3390 ; scattering, 3. For Governor, William Gaston,
of Boston, 2150; William B. Washburn, 1584. Gover-
nor Washburn was re-elected. Mayor Jewett was
re-elected almost without opposition.
Municipai election December, 1874, and State elec-
tion November, 1874. For mayor, Francis Jewett,
3221 ; H. Hosford, 1386. For Governor, Thomiis Tal-
bot, of Billerica, 2939; William Gaston, 2655. Mr.
Gaston was elected Governor. .Mr. Hooford was the
nominee of a Citizens' movemtiit.
Municipal election December, 1875, and State elec-
tion November, 1875. For mayor, C. A. Stolt, 2578 ;
J. C. Abbott (Dem.), 2027. ForGovernor, Alexander
H. Rice, of Boston, 2583 ; William Givston, 2533 ;
John I. Baker, of Beverly, 42. Mr. Rice was elected
Governor. Mr. Abbott, the Democratic candidate fur
mayor, was a lawyer.
Municipal election December, 1876, and State and
National election November, 1876. For mayor, C.
A. Stott, 3013; J. A. G. Richardson (Dem.), 2897.
For Govrrnor, A. H. Rice, 3831 ; C. F. Adams, of
Quincy, 2919. For President, Rutherford B. Hayes,
4003; Samuel J. Tildeu, 3089. Governor Rice was
re-elected, and Mr. Hayes elected President. Mr.
Richardson, the Democratic candidate for mayor, was
a provision dealer.
Municipal election December, 1877, and State elec-
tion November, 1877. For mayor, J. A. G. Richard-
son, 3068 ; C. A. Stott, 2988. For Governor, A. H.
Rice, 2808; William Gaston, 2650; Robert C. Pit-
man, of Newton, 727 ; John I. Baker, of Beverly,
223. Governor Rice was re-elected. Mr. Richardson
was the Democratic candidate for mayor.
Municipal election Dec, 1878, and State election
LOWELL.
63
Nov., 1878. For mayor, J. A G.Richardson, 4138; Na-
thaniel C. yanboru (Reji.), 1809. For Governor, Benj.
F. Butler, of Lowell, 4238 ; Thomas Talbot, 377.') ;
Josiah G. Abbott, of Boston, 132. Mr. Talbot was
elected Governor. Mr. Sanborn, the Republican
candidate for mayor, was a photographer.
Municipal election Dec, 187'J, and State election
Nov., 1879. For mayor, Frederick T. Greenhalge
(Rep.), 4092; Jeremiah Crowley (Dem.), 3148. For
Governor, B. F. Butler, 4397; John D. Long, of Bing-
ham, 3332 ; J. Q. Adams, of Quincy, 110 ; Daniel C.
Eddy, of Hyde Park, 55. Mr. Long, Republican,
was elected Governor. Mr. Greenhalge, the Repub-
lican candidate for mayor, and Mr. Crowley, the
Democratic candidate, were lawyers.
Municipal election Dec, 1880, and State and Na-
tional election Nov., 1880. For mayor, F. T. Green-
halge, 4054 ; J. G. Peabody, 1279. For Governor, John
D.Long, 5411; Charles P.Thompson, 3893; Charles
Almy.of New Bedford, 35. For President, James A.
Garfield, 4513; Wiufield S. Hancock, 3917. Gov.
Long was re-elected and Mr. Garfield elected President.
Mr. Peabody was the nominee of the Prohibition
party for mayor. The population of Lowell in 1880
was 50,485.
Munic.pal election Dec, 1881, and State election
Nov., 1881. For mayor, Geo. Runels (Rep.), 3794; J.
A. G. Richardson (Dem.), 2411. For Governor, John
D. Long, 2972 ; C. P. Thompson, 2817 ; Charles
Almy, of New Bedford, 178. Gov. Long was re-elect-
ed. Mr. Runels was a stone-mason.
Municipal election Dec, 1882, and State election
Nov., 1882. For mayor, J. J. Donovan (Dem.), 4257 ;
Francis Jewett (Rep.), 381G. For Governor, B. F. But-
ler, 50C5 ; Robert R. Bishop (Rep), of Newton, 3538;
Charles Almy, of New Bedford, 51. Mr. Butler was
elected Governor. Mr. Donovan was a grocer.
Municipal election Dec, 1883, and State election
Nov., 1883. For mayor, J. J. Donovan, 4952 ; J.
H. McAlvin (Rep.), 4111. For Governor, Benj. F.
Butler, 5445; Geo. D. Robinson (Rep.), of Chicopee,
4373; Charles Almy, 48. Mr. Robinson was elected
Governor. Mr. McAlvin, the Republican candidate
for mayor, was for many years treasurer of the city.
Municipal election, Dec, 1884, and Slate and Na-
tional election Nov., 1SS4. For mayor, Edward J.
Noyes (Rep.), 5012 ; Geo. W. Fifield (Dem.), 4477.
For Governor, G. D. Robinson, 4982; Wm. G. Endi-
cott, 30 13; Julius H. Seely, of Amherst, 127; Mat-
thew J. McCafferty, of Worcester, 800. For President,
Grover Cleveland (Dem.), 3710; James G. Blaine
(Rep.), 4785. Gov. Robinson was re-elected. Mr.
Cleveland was elected President.
Municipal election Dec, 1885, and State election
Nov., 1885. For mayor, E. J. Noyes (Rep.), 4316;
James C. Abbott (Dem.), 4571. For Governor, G. D.
Robinson, 3918; Fred. O. Prince (Dem.), 387C;
Thomas J. Lothrop, 5G. Gov. Robinson was re-
elected Governor and Mr. Abbott mayor.
Municipal election December, 188G, and State
election, November, 188G. For Mayor, J. C. Abbott,
4843; Albert B. Plympton (Rep.),"4022. For Gov-
ernor, Oliver Ames (Rep.), of Eastoc, 4171 ; John A.
Andrew, 4271 ; Thomas J. Lothrop, of Taunton, 1S7.
Mr. Ames was elected Governor.
Municipal election December, 1887, and State elec-
tion November, 1887. For Mayor, Charles D. Pal-
mer (Rep.), 5G05; Stephen B. Puffer, 4520. For
Governor, O. Ames, 489G; Henry B. Lovering (Dem.),
4429; William H. Earle, of Worcester, 90. Gov-
ernor Ames was re-elected ; Mr. Palmer had been
a manufacturer, and Mr. Puffer was a dealer in pro-
visions.
Municipal election December, 1888, and State and
National election, November, 1888. For Mayor, C.
D. Palmer, 5636 ; Nathan D. Pratt (Dem.), 5059. For
Governor, 0. Ames, 5566 ; William E. Russell, 5274 ;
William H. Earle, 128. For President, Benjamin
Harrison (Rep.), 5G30 ; Grover Cleveland, 522G. Gov-
ernor Ames was re-elected, and Mr. Harrison was
elected President ; Mr. Pratt was a lawyer.
Municipal election December, 1889, and State
election November, 1889. For Mayor, C. D. Pal-
mer, 5465 ; J. Crowley (Dem.), 5208. For Governor,
J.Q. A. Brackett (Rep.), 4313; W.E.Russell (Dem.),
4856 ; John Blackmer (Pro.), 284.
Municipal Officebs. — The presidents of the Com-
mon Council have been : John Clark, 1836 and 1844;
Elisha Huntington, 1837-39; Pelham W. Warren,
1840; Tappan Wenlworth, 1841 ; Joseph W. Mansur,
1842; Oliver March, 1843; Daniel S. Richardson,
1845, '46; Joel Adams, 1847 ; Thomas Hopkinson,
1839 and 1848; John Aiken, 1849 ; Ivers Taylor,
1850; George Gardner, 1851; Benj. C. Sargeant,
1852, "56, ' 58; Wm. A. Richardson, 1853, 54 ; Alfred
Gilnmn. 1855; Frederic Holton, 1857 ; Wm. P. Web-
ster, 1859 ; Willi»m F. Salmon, 18(i0 ; Wm. L. North,
18G1 ; Geo. F. Richardson, 1862, '63; Geo. Ripley,
18(34, '65; Gustavus A. Gerry, 1866, '67; Alfred H.
Chase, 1868; Wm. Anderson, 1869; Albert A. Hag-
gett, 1870, 73, '76 ; Henry P. Perkins, 1871, '72 ; Nathan
W. Frye, 1874; Benj. C. Dean, 1876; John F. Kim-
ball, 1876, '78 ; E. B. Pierce,1879,'83 ; Earl A.Thissell,
1880 ; C. C. Hutchinson, 1881 ; Wm. N. 0<-good,
1882; John J. Hogan, 1884; Alfred V/. Chadwick,
1885 ; Walter M. Sawyer, 1886 ; James H. Carmichael,
1887; Edmund B. Conant, 1888; Wm. E. Westall,
1889.
In 1839 and 1876 there were two presidents, each
serving a partial term.
The city clerks have been: Samuel A. Coburn
1836 to 1837 inclusive (he was also town cleik <rcm
1826 to 1835) ; Thomas Ordway, from 1838 to 1853 ;
Wm. Lamson, Jr., from 1854 to 1857; John H.
McAlvin, from 1858 to 1868 ; Samuel A. McPhetres,
from 1869 to 1881 ; David O'Brien, from 1882 to
1884, also in 1887; Samuel M. Chase, from 1885 to
188G ; Girard P. Dadmun, from 1888 to 1889.
G4
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
The city treasurers have been : William Davidson,
ISSGto 18S2; John A. Buttrick, 1843 to 1846; Itha-
mar A. Beard, 1847 to 1850; John F. Kimball, 1851
to 1855 ; Isaac C. Eastman, 1856 to 1860 ; Geo. W.
Bedlow, 1861 to 1864; Thomas G. Gerrish, 1865 to
1869 ; John H. McAlvin, 1869 to 1882 ; Van Buren
Sleeper, the present incumbent, 1883.
The city physicians have been : Charles P. CofEn,
1836, '39; Eli3haBartlettl840, '41 ; Abraham D.Dear-
born, 1842, '43; David Wells, 1844-46; Abner H.
Brown, 1847-50 ; Joel Spaulding, 1851-55 ; Lather B.
Morse, 1856. '57 ; John W. Graves, 1858-60 ; Moses
W.Kidder, 1861-63; Nathan Allen, 1864, '65; Geo. E.
Pinkhara, 1866-68 ; John H. Gilman, 1869 '70 ; Wal-
ter H.Leighton, 1871, '72; HermonJ.Smith, 1873-77;
Leonard Huntress, 1878; Edwiu W. Trueworthy,
1879-81; Willis G. Eaton, 1882-84; J. J. Colton,
1885-87; J. Arthur Gage, 1888, '89.
The city auditors have been : John Nesmitb, 1836;
Joseph W. Mansur, 1837 ; Horatio G. F. Corliss, 1S38;
John G. Locke, 1840-48 ; Geo. A. Butterfield, 1849, '50 ;
Wm. Larason, Jr., 1851-53 ; Leonard Brown, 1854, '55;
James J. Maguire, 1856 ; Henry A. Lord, 1857 ; Geo.
Gardner, 1858-74 inclusive ; David Chase, 1875 to
the present time, except that in 1887 Wm. J. Cough-
lin was auditor.
The city marshals have been : Zaccheus Shedd,
1836, '37, '40, '41, '48, '50; Henry T. Mowatt, 183S;
Joseph B. Butterfield, 1839; Charles J. Adams,
1842-47 ; Geo. P. WalHron, 1849 ; James Corrin, 1851 ;
Edwin L. Shedd, 1852-54; Samuel Miller, 1855; Wm.
H. Clemmence, 1856, '58, '74, '77 ; Eben H. Rand,
1857, '59; Frederic Lovejoy, 18C0, '61, '78 ; Bickford
Lang, 1862-71; Charles P. Bowles, 1872, '73; Albert
Pinder, 1879, '80 ; Edward J. Noye^ 1881, '82, '88,
'89; Micha^il McDonald, 1883, '84 ; Jacob B. Favor,
1885, '86 ; Frank Wood, 1887.
CHAPTER VI.
LO \V£LL—{ Contimud).
BAXK.S.
The national discount banks of Lowell are all be-
lieved to be in a sound financial condition. The fact
that the stock of every one of them is fur above its
par value indicates the popular confidence in the
safety of their management. For many years very
few semi-annual dividends have been omitted. Their
general management has been conservative, and all of
them have a surplus suliicieutly large to ensure sta-
bility in times of financial reverses.
For the statistics of the discount banks given below
I am much indebted to the late Mr. Charles Hovey,
who, ou February 4, 1S86, read a valuable article upi'u
these banks before the "Old Residents' Historical
Association.'
Of the Savings Banks of Lowell it may be said that
they all have the confidence of the community. All
are now paying dividends amounting to four per cent,
per annum. But extra dividends are rarely paid.
With the low rates of interest now prevailing in the
business world, savings banks, for years to come, will
hardly be able to pay annually more than four per cent.
The law of the Slate forbidding these banks to in-
vest in Western mortgages tends to keep down the
dividends, while it also tends to give security and
safety to the institutions.
Discount Banks of Lowell — Old Loicell Xational
Dunk. — Thi.s bank, under ihe name of "The Lowell
Bank," was incorporated March 11, 1828, two years
after Lowell became a town. Of the persons named
in the act of incorporation none are living. They
were Phineas Whiting, Samuel Bacheider, Thomas
Hurd, Daniel Richardson, Kirk Boott, Paul iloody,
Josiah Crosby, Nathaniel Wright. The Board of Di-
rectors elected in 1828 were Nath. Wright, Jot^iah B.
French, Kirk Boott, Joshua Bennett, Jonathan Morse
(2d), Phineas Whitirg, Thomas Hurd, Amos Whituey,
Benj. F. Varnura, Daniel trhattuck.
The capital of this bank has been from its origin
5^200,(100, It was authorized to commence business
as a National Banking Association June 22, 1865, and
it has since been known as "The Old Lowell National
Bank." Its first place of business was in the brick
block next west of Worthen Street, which was then
known as the " Bank Block." From 1833 to 1845 its
banking-rooms were in the old Wyman's Exchange
on Central .Street. From 1S45 to 1878 its place of
business was in the second story of the bank building
on Sliattuck Street, erected by "The Lowell Institu-
tion for Savings." Since the latter date it h.ns occu-
pied rooms in the second story of the new Wyman's
Exchange, corner of Meirimack and Central ;^treets.
The new Wyman's Exchange is a sub>tantial brick
edifice; but the old Wyman's Exchange, which stood
for many yeais as a conspicuous land mark of the city,
was a lofty stone building so profusely lighted with
windows as to present to the eye the appearance of
dangerous instability. It was the prevailing belief
that in case of fire it would surely collapse. "There
is a tradition that the first cashier, who was a careful
man, always intended to run into the bank-vault
whenever the building should fall."' The building
was taken down in 1878.
Below are the names of the presidents and cai-hiers
of the bank, with the date of their appointment and
the number of years of service.
Presidents: Nathaniel Wright, 182S (30 year* ) ;
James G. Carney, 1S5S (1 year): John O. Green, 1859
(2 vears); Joshua Bennett, 1861 (4 years); Edward
Tuck, 1865 (19 years) ; John Davis, the present incum-
bent, 1884. Cashiers: James G. Carney, 1828 (17
year-); David Hyde, 1815 (4 years); .John L. Ord-
•jr^-s-^'^-.
(^ t>'i--U'
c^ i-^^ t^c-,^ ty ^i
C^ •■-
A
LOWELL.
65
way, 1849(14 year^); Charles M.Williams, the present
incumbent, 1863. The present board of directors is;
Edwsrd M. Tucke Fhineas Whiting, A. B. Wood-
worth, George F. Penniman, Ed. T. Rowell, John
Davis, Jacob Nichols, Joseph L. Chalifoux, James
F. Puffer.
Edward Tuck belonged to that class of sturdy men
of business who, starting life upon an humble New
England farm, h.ive, by their native force and en-
ergy, iichieved a distinguished success and left an
honorable name. He was born in Fayette, Me.,
March 31. 180(>, and died at his home in Centralville,
Lowell, November 14, 188-'), at the age of nearly
eighty years. He was of pure New England descent,
the following being the direct line of his American
ancestors :
1. Robert Tuck, who, about 11)30, came to America
from Gorleston, a town lying 124 mile-t northeast of
London, .iiid now containing about 4000 inhabitants.
In 1638 he settled in Winnacunnet, (now Hampton),
N. H. He kept the first public-houss in the town,
was a chirurgeon by profe-sion,a selectman and town
clerk, as well as " clarke of the writls." 2. Edward
Tuck, who came to America with his father and set-
tled in Hampton, where be died in 1652. 3. John
Tuck, a carpenter by trade, who was born in 1652,
near the time of his father's death, and lived in
Hampton to the age of ninety years. He erected a
grist-mill and a fulling-mill on Nilus River, and was
probably a man of pro[)erly. He was a devoutly re-
ligious man, who read his Bible through twelve times,
and was deacon of the church for twenty-seven years.
He was also a selectman and representative of Hamp-
ton in the Legislature of the State. 4. Edward Tuck,
a carpenter by trade, who was born in 16(14-95, and
lived to the age of seventy -eight years in Kensington,
N. H. 5. Jesse Tuck, who lived u[)on the paternal
estate in Kensinglon. He was born in 1743, and
died in 1826, at the age of eighty-three years. 6.
Jesse Tuck, father of the subject of this sketch, who
was born in Kensington, in 1773 or 1774, and set-
tled in Fayette, Kennebec County, Me., where he
died in the sixty-eighth year of his age.
Edward Tuck remained upon his father's farm until
he was twenty-one years of age, receiving his educa-
tion from the schools of the town and from theacad-
emv in the neighboring town of Farmington, Me. He
came to Lowell in 1828, while only a few of the mills
were, as yet, in operation, and found employment in
the hotel of S. A. Coburn, which is now known as
the Stone House, on Pawtucket Street, the late resi-
dence of J. C. Ayer. After two years of service in
the hotel and in one of the factories, be engaged in
trade for about eight years. In 1832 he mHrried
Miss Emily Coburn, of Dracut. In 1838, when thirty-
two years of age, he entered upon the express busi-
ness between Boston and Lowell, in which he con-
tinued with marked success until 1855, a period of
seventeen vears. It was in this busine-'-s that he laid
5-ii
the foundation of bis e.^tate. In 1855 be became a
broker in Boston, still retaining bis home in Lowell.
This business he followed until advancing years de-
manded that he should relinquish it.
It was as expressman and broker that Mr. Tuck
became more familiarly known in the streets of
Lowell than almost any other citizen. He was a
marked man. His strong constitution, firm health
and fine physical development left the impression
upon those who met him that he was a man of no
ordinary ability. He was a man of force, will, en-
ergy, dispatch. He kept his object steadily in view.
He meant business. He was never in a hurr)% but
always on time. He was noted for system, method and
punctuality. A writer for the press once playfully re-
marked of him : " Probably there is no man in Lowell
who has been over the Boston and Lowell Railroad
as many times as Edward Tuck, president of the Old
Lowell National Bank. Rain or shine, every day of
the week, excepting Sundays and holidays, he may
be found on his way to Boston. His companion
down is the Boston Post; returning, the Transcri/,t.
He quietly absorbs his paper, giving especial attention
to the financial and commercial department."
On returning from Boston Mr. Tuck brought with
him not on*y the documents pertaining to his busi-
ness, but a hearty good-cheer for his friends, the most
recent news from the commercial world, and the
last good story which he had heard on 'Change and
which he knew well how to repeat and adorn.
Though Mr. Tuck possessed that buoyant and
cheerful spirit which good health and love of action
are wont to bestow, yet few men have drank more
deeply of the cup of sorrow.
Of his three children, hie eldest daughter, Augusta,
wife of Captain T. W. Hendee, shipmaster, died in
1864, on board her husband's ve-rsel in the Indian
Ocean. Her two only children did not long survive
her. Eleanor, the second daughter of Mr. Tuck, be-
came the second wife of Captain Hendee. After four
short years of married life spent in England and
Bombay, the husband died upon his vessel, leaving
his wife thus bereft upon the ocean. Returning to
Lowell, she also died in four years. Thus in the
brief space of a few years the father was bereft of his
son-in-law and all his children and grandchildren,
with only one exception. He bore his deep affliction
with exemplary fortitude.
Mr. Tuck, on account of his marked ability, was
often placed in positions of trust and honor. He
was alderman of Lowell in 1856, 1859 and 1873, a
member of the State Legislature in 1870, and for fif-
teen years president of the Old Lowell National
Bank. In every position he earned the name of an
honest and able man, who had a wholesome contempt
for all pretence and sham.
An attack of paralysis, in 1879, clouded, with phy-
sical weakness and suffering, the last six years of his
long and busy life.
66
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY. MASSACHUSETTS.
His wife survived him, but lias deceased since the
death of her husbaod. Of his family only one now
remains, Hon. Edward M. Tuclce, secretary of the
Traders and Mechanics' Insurance Company, .ind nt
the present time (1890) a member of the Senate of
Massachusetts.
The Railroad Bank. — This bank was incorporated
in 1831. The names of Ebenezer Appieton, Eben-
ezerChadwick, William Lawrence, KirkBoott, Lemuel
Pope and John P. Robinson appear in the act of
incorporation.
These gentlemen, being mostly Boston men and
owners of stock in the manufacturing corporations of
Lowell, had, as their object, the establishment of a
bank for the special use of these corporations. For
nearly forty years the banking business of the cor-
porations was done through this bank. From it also
was for a long time obtained the money for the
monthly pay-rolls of the operatives in the mills.
The first board of directors was: Luther Lawrence.
Paul Moody, Elisha Glidden, Henry Cabot, .Joshua
Swan, Kirk Boott and Ebenezer Appieton.
The names of the presidents and cashiers, with the
date of their appointment and the number of years of
service are as follows:
Presidents: Luther Lawrence. 1831 (S years) ; Pel-
ham W. Warren, l.s.3;» (ti years); B. F. French, 1840
(8 years); S. W. Stickiiey, 1853 (22 years); Jacob
Rogers, the present incumbent, 1875. Cashiers: Pel-
ham W. Warren, 1831 (8 years); S. W. Stickney,
1830 (14 years); John F. Rogers, 1853 (17 years);
James S. Hovey, 1870 (15 year?); Frank P. Haggett,
the present incumbent, 1885.
From 1831 to 183(5 the banking-rooms of the insti-
tution were at the corner of Central and Hurd Streets.
From 1836 to 1845 it occupied a room in the second
story of a building erected by itself, at the corner of
Merrimack and John Streets, and on the site of the
building now occupied by the Five Cent Savings
Bank. From 1845 to 1859 it occupied a room in the
bank building on Shattuck Street. From 1S59 to
1889 it occupied rooms in the Carleton Block on
Merrimack Street, now known as Odd Fellows' Block.
Its present place of business is on Merrimack be-
tween Kirk and John Streets. Its capital at its in-
corporation was $200,000. From time to time die
capital was enlarged as Corporation business increased
until it reached $800,000. When this business di-
minished it was reduced to $400,000, and this is its
present capital. When, in 1885, the capital was re-
duced to $400,000, a dividend of fifteen per cent, was
paid from the accumulated surplus. No semi annual
dividend has ever been omitted.
The names of the present board of directors are :
Jacob Rogers, Sewall G. Mack, George Motley,
George Ripley, James B. Francis, A. G. Cumnock,
James Franci.i.
City Bank. — An institution called "The City
Bank " was incorporated in March, 1836, Jo.-<eph
Locke, Jonathan Tyler and John Nesmith being
named in the act of incorporation. But the financial
distress and panic which came upon the country in
the next year made it so difficult for the ntw bank
to comply with the requirements of law, that the en-
terprise was abandoned.
Appieton Bank. — This bank was chartered in 1847,
si,xteen years after the Railroad Bank began business.
Its capital was at first $100,000, then §200,000, and at
List $300,000. Its first directors were John A.
Knowles, Isaac Farrington, J. B. French, John Nes-
mith, Abner W. Buttrick, Sidney Spalding, George
Bragdou, Ransom Reed, John W. Graves, none of
whom now survive.
Below are the names of its presidents and cashiers,
with date of their appointment and the number of
years of their service :
Presidents: John X. Knovvles, 1847(21 years); J. B.
French, in 1876. who, from ill health, did not assume
the active duties of his ottiies .folin F. Kimball, the
present incumbent, 1876. Cashiers: John .\. But-
trick, 1847 (12 years): John F. Kimball, 185'. (IS
years); E. K. Perley, the present incumbent, 187ii.
The present directors are: John F. Kimball, Addison
Putnam. William E. Livingston, Freeman B. Shedd,
D. W. C. Farriuirton, \ViHiaui Nichols, William S.
Bennett, W. W. Wilder.. The dividends have aver-
aged about ten percent, per annum.
This bank first occupied a brick building, owned
i)y itself, on the corner of Central and Hurd Streets.
on tile site of which the bank erected in 1878 the
elegant four-story building which it now occupies.
PiesroU Ban/:. — This bank was incorporated in
1850 with a capital of •■<200,"00, which, in 1865, when
it became a national bunk, was increased to ?'300.000.
The first directors were : Joel Adams, Samuel Bur-
Ijank, Daniel S. Richard.son, Joshua < 'unverse, Charles
B. t'oburn, Andrew C. Wheelock, .irtemas L. Brooks,
James H. Rand, Elijah .M. Read, Rufus Clement,
Isaac \V. Scribner. The presidents have been ; Joel
Adams, appointed 1850; Charles B. Coburn, 1864;
Daniel .S. Richardson, the present incumbent, 1874.
The cashiers have been ; .Vrtemas S. Tyler, 1850
(twenty-two years); Alonzo .1. Coburn, the press nt
incumbent, 1871. Its banking office was at first in a
building on the site of the present Mansur Block on
Central Street, but in 1865 the bank moved into the
building (Nos. 26 and 28 Central Street) which was
erected by itself. The present directors are : D. S.
Richardson, George F. Richardson, Hapgood Wright,
C. U. (.'obnrn, Daniel Gape, N. M. Wright, C. A.
Stott, W. A. Ingham, A. A. Coburn, J. W. Abbott, J.
.\. Bartlett.
Waniesit Bank. — This bank was incorporated
.\.pril 28, 1853, with .i capital of $100,000. Its pres-
ent capital is $250,000. Its first directors were :
Sidney Spalding, Horace Howard, Ignatius Tyler,
Charles H. Wilder, .\biel Rolfe, Abram French,
Henry C. Howe, Samuel Horn, Alpbeus R. Brown.
LOWELL.
67
In 1865 it was reorganized as a natiooal bank. Its
presidents have been : Horace Howard, appointed in
1853; William A. Richardson, 1860; Charles Whit-
ney, 1867 ; Henry C. Howe, the present incumbent,
1887. Its cashiers have been : John A. Buttrick,
1853; G. W. Knowlton, the present incumbent, 1874.
The pre^ent Board of Directors is: Samuel Horn,
Prescott C. Gates, Seth B. Hall, William H. Wiggiu,
Perley P. Perham, Samuel Kidder, G. W. Knowlton,
Francis Jewett, James W. Bennett, H. S. Howe. Its
place of busines-s is at ISii Uliddlesex Street, near the
Northern Depot, in a brick block owned by the bank.
Meirhants' National Bank. — This bank was incor-
porated in 1851 with a capital of $100,000, which has
been increased three times and is now $400,000. Its
first directors were: Harlan Pillsbury, Thomas Nes-
mith, Albert Wheeler, W. W. Wyman, Daniel Swan,
Joseph Bedlow, Samuel T. Lancaster, George F.
Richardson, Hocum Hosford, Isaac S. Morse, Asa
Hildreth. Its presidents have been : Harlan Pills-
bury, appointed in 1854 (ten years); Royal South-
wick, l-'^iM (eight months) ; Hocum Hosford, 18G4 (two
years); H. W. li. Wi^'htman, lS7t', (four years); Ar-
thur P. Boniiey, the present incumbent, 1880. Its
cashiers have been : Eliphalet Hills, appointed in
1854 (ime year); J. N. Pierce, Jr., 1855 (eighteen
years) ; ("harles W. Eaton, 1873 (eleven years) ; Wal-
ter W. Johnson, the i>resent incumbent, 1884. The
present directors are: Arthur P. Bonney, Samuel T.
Lanca.ster, William H. Andeison, Cyrus H. Latham,
Aina-sa Pratt, William Shepard, Albert F. Nichols,
Frank T. Jaijues, Michael Collins, .Vrthur G. Pollard,
George Kunels. Until 1870 its office was in the sec-
ond story of a building owned by itself (Merrimack
Street, No. 311). Since that date it has been on the
first story of the sitnic building. This bank was
changed to a national batik in 1864.
Firnl Naliimal Bank. — This bank was organized un-
der the national law February 16, 18()4, with a capital
of $250,000, which has remained unchanged. Its first
directors were: James K. Fellows, James C. Ayer,
Gilman Kimball, Isaac Place, James C. Abbott, Ei)h-
raiin Brown, J. W. Daniels, .\. P. Bonney, Joseph
H. Ely. Its presidents have been : Arthur P. Bon-
ney, appointe<l 1864; James C. Abbott, the present
incumbent, 1880. Its cashiers have been: George F.
Hunt, 1864 (two years); George B. Allen, 1866 (four-
teen years) ; Walter M.Sawyer, the present incum-
bent, 1880. The present directors are : J. C. Abbott,
Amos A. French, Ephraim Brown, Samuel N. Wood,
Gilman Kimball, Patrick Derapsey, A. C. Taylor,
Joseph S. Brown, W. H. Parker, John Lennon,
Thomas Costello. Its place of business was at the
corner of Central and Middle Streets until 1884,
when it took possession of the building erected by
itself on Central Street.
Lnwell Co-operative Bank. — This bank was char-
tered by the State of .Massachusetts, April 20, 1885,
with an authorized capital of .?1,000,000. From its
organization its officers have remained the same.
They are as follows : President, A. B. Woodworth ;
Secretary, George W. Batchelder; Treasurer, George
E. Metcalf. The directors are: Joseph L. Sedgley,
Leonard Evans, Jr., Charles T. Rowland, E. G.
Baker, John O. Gulline, John Dobson, Thomas Col-
lins, S. J. Johnson, James E. White, J. D. Hartwell,
George W. Brothers, Edwin S. Bickford, Caleb L.
Smith, James Markland, Samuel A. Byam.
The banking-office is at No. 6 Central Block, Cen-
tral Street.
The profits (interest) credited to shares during the
last year were 7.i per cent.
The monthly meetings are held on the first Thurs-
day after the 10th day of each month. Money is
loaned at every meeting to build a house, buy ahouse
or pay off a mortgage. Motto : " Save your money —
ownyo'tr home."
Savings Banks — Lowell Intlitulion for Savings —
The Lowell Institution for Savings was incorporated
(October, 1829, and was the first incorporated savings
bank of our city. More than two years before this
date the Merrimack JIanufacturing Company had,
without legislative sanction, received money from its
operatives on deposit, with interest on the same con-
ditions as those existing in savings institutions. In-
terest at 6 per cent, per annum was allowed, and this
interest ceased to be paid when the depositor left the
employment of the company. This beneficent plan,
however, being of somewhat doubtful expediency, as
well as doubtful legality, was suspended in Julv,
1829.
In the Hamilton Mills a similar plan for savirgthe
earnings of the operatives from the losses which they
frequently suffered for want of a safe place of de-
posit seemed greatly to be needed, and the agent, Mr.
Samuel Batchelder, opened books of deposit for the
operatives on the savings bank principle. But when
it became doubtful whether the charter of the com-
pany would allow banking business to be done by a
manufacturing company, the agent, with others, pe-
titioned the Legislature for the incorporation of a
savings bank. The petition was granted and an act
of incorpi)ration was passed. But so small was the
number of responsible men who participated in the
work of establishing a bank thus incorporated, that
the petitioners felt compelled to appoint themselves
as trustees of the new institution. Mr. James G.
Carney was induced to act as treasurer, and the ex-
periment began.
The first important transaction of this institution
was the negotiation of a loan of about $17,000 with
the town of Lowell a few months after the bank be-
gan to receive deposits. The refusal of the town au-
thorities, however, to continue to pay the rate of in-
terest required by the bank, and the difficulty experi-
enced by the institution in loaning its depositsapon the
prescribed rates, raised the question, in the next year
(1830), whether it would not be advisable either to
63
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
" close the concerns of the institution or to reduce the
rate of dividends.'' The result was that on Nov.],
1830, the rate of interest was reduced frcm o per
cent, to 4 per cent. At the latter rate the bank con-
tinued to pay dividends for about fifty years. Extra
dividends, however, have from time to time been
paid, but not oftener than once in three years.
The management of this institution has been emi-
nently safe and conservative. It has, throughout
the sixty years of its existence, been almost ab.so-
lutely exempt from loss. Its first treasurer held his
office for forty years, always prescribing to himself
the most rigid and conscientious discharge of duty,
and allowing in others no trifling or evasion of the
rules prescribed. \t no time of financial panic or
peril has the confidence of the people of Lowell in
this institution been shaken.
Its cautious and consei'vative management is indi-
cated by the following by-law: "The funds of the
institution may be invested in loans on mortgages of
real estate within this State, provided that the whole
amount loaned on mortgage shall not at any time ex-
ceed a third part of the whole funds of the institu-
tion at the time of making the loan, and no loan
shall be made lor more than half the value of the es-
tate pledged.''
The amount of deposits in this bank were, in 18.3(1,
§7037; in 1840, j;305,S9.".; in 1S.">(I, #705,7G1 : in LStiO.
?1,14(;,093; in 1870, *;|,.i8S, 128 ; in 1880, .■:'2,'.ni!1,7o3 ;
in 181»0, .$4,384,871.
In 1878 the average amount of each depositor was
■•^401i, while forty years before, in l'^38, it was ^IS'>.
The amount of ^100 deposited in this bank in 182'.'
would, in 1880, be $2471), and in 1890 about i>2SS().
The presidents have been : Elislia ("Hidden, 1820 to
1835; Theodore Edsot:, 183.J to 1883; John (J. (Jreen,
1883 to 188(3; Charles A. .Savory, the present incum-
bent, 188(j.
The treasurers have been : .1. G. Carney, 1829 to
18(39; George .1. Carney, the present incumbent,
1869.
Trustees for 1889 are: George Motley. Franklin
Nickerson, C. A. Savory, S. Kidder, A. B. French,
Frederick Bailey, A. St. .John Chambre, J. W. B.
Shaw, Frederick Taylor, Cyrus .M. Fisk.
James G. Carney, who, for nearly forty years, was
treasurer of this bank, deserves a special notice. He
was born in Boston, February 14. 1804, and was
trained to business in the service of William Gray,
one of the most distinguished of the merchants oi
Boston, who, for two years, was Lieutenant-Governor
of Slassnchusetts. Mr. Carney came to Lowell in
1828, when twenty-four years of age, to fill the office
of first cashier of the Lowell Bank, which was estab-
lished in that year. In 1829 he was elected treasurer
of the Lowell Institution for Savings. He aided in
organizing the Bank of Mutual Redemption in Bos-
ton and was, at one time, its president. He was one
of the originators of Lowell Cemetery and was among
its trustees. He was a man of marked personal dig-
nity, of unusual firmness of character, and was re-
markably accurate and methodical in his official work.
His name will long live in Lowell. He died of pneu-
iionia, February 9, 1S(!9, at the age of sixty-five year.s.
Cili/ /nsfitu/ion for .Suringt. — This bank was organ-
ized 1847. The first president was Rev. Henry A.
Miles, who, in 1853. was succeeded by Rev. Daniel
C. Eddy. In 18.57 Dr. Xathan Allen was chosen,
president and remained in office twenty-two years.
The present incumbent, Hon. F. T. Greenhalge, was
elected president in 1S89.
The first treasurer, .lohn A. Buttrick, held the office
twenty-eight years, and was succeeded, in 1S75, by
his son, Frederic .\. Buttrick.
The banking olHce, ever since the organization, has
been on the corner of Hurd and Central .Streets.
The [iresent Board of Trustees is : Frederic T.
Greoidialge, William E. Livingston, N. M. Wright.
William Nichols, Charles R. Kimball, William S.
Rinnett. Addison I'litnam, John F. Howe, .Samuel T.
LatRa.sler, Edward K. rcrley. (Quarters commence
on the second Saturday of .lanuary, .\pril, July and
•Jctober.
Amount of deposit October o, l.'<89. ?^''.,0S(;,<,)10.
This very large deposit indicates the popular confi-
dence in tlrs institution. Its management has been
luarked throughout with wisdom and fidelity.
Brief mention should be made of John .A. Buttrick,
the first treasurer, to who.se fidelity and ability the
very high standing of this bank is largely due. He
was born in Stetson, Maine, April 14, 181.X. In liis
childhood his family removed to Framingham. in this
State, and his youth was spent upon a farm. .\t the
age of .si.xteen years he was a student in Phillips
-Academy in .\ndover. For several years he taught a
private sihool iti Medford. In 1830 b': came to Low-
ell, and lor fotir years was in the grocery trade with
his brother. From 1843 to 1847 he was trea.-urer of
the city of Lowell. In 1847 he was chosen cashier of
the .V|iplelon Bank and treasurer of the City Institu-
tion for Savings. Having resigned the cashietthip
of the bank in \>^'i'>. he devoted the rest of his life to
the duties tif treasurer of the Savings Bank. This
was his life-work and here he gained a very honor-
able name. His reputation is historic. His fellow-
citizens loved to honor him. He was elected Re[>re-
sentalive and Senator to the State Legislature, and
member of the ."^chool Committee. He was an honest
man of simple manners. He was genial, compassion-
ate and conscientious, and Lowell hiis lost few citi-
zens who will be so afi'ectionately remembered. He
died March .'U, 1870, at the age of sixty-six years.
J.riwell Fi If- Ceil/ .'y'ariiKjs Bun/.. — This bank was in-
corporated in 1854. Its presidents have been : Hora-
tio Wood, 1854 to 1885; Sewall G. Mack, the present
incumbent, 1885.
Its treasurer, Artemas S. Tyler, has been in office
since its organization.
LOWELL.
G9
Trustees for 1889: William F. Salmon, John H.
McAlvin, C. E. A. Bartlett, Dudley Foster, Albion C.
Taylor, Charles Coburn, George F. Pennimau, AsaC.
Russell, George F. Richardsou, George S. Cheney,
Arthur Staples.
Deposits from five cents to $10(10 are received
Hours of bu.sine3s from niae to one o'clock, and on
Saturday evenings from seven to nine o'clock.
Quarters commence on the first Saturday of January,
April, July and October. Amount of deposits on
September 28, 1889, $1,322,740.
The banking-rooms of this bank were the same as
those of the Prescott Bank until the winter of 1874,
when it took possession of the elegant building, with
marble front, erected by itself, on the corner of Mer-
rimack and John Streets.
Tlie Mechanics' Savings Ban/:. — This bank was or-
gaoized in 18(>1. Its presidents have been William
A. Burke, 1861-87 ; Jeremiah Clark, the present in-
cumbent, 1887. Its treasurers have been John F.
Rogers, 1801-70; C. F. Battles, 187(1-71; C. C.
Hutchinson, the present incumbent, 1871.
Trustees for 1889: J. Clark, Jacr)b Rogers, Isaac
Cooper, Alfred (Tilnian, F. RodlifT, J. V. Keyes,
A. G. Cumnock, C. S. Hiklreth, John Davis, James
Francis, W. W. Sherman, E. M. Tuck, James G.
Hill, William D. Blanchanl, James M. Marshall,
Francis Carl, William G. Ward. Edwin H. Cum-
mings, Edward N. Burke.
Quarters commence on the first Saturday of March,
June, September and December.
Hours of business from 9 to 1 o'clock daily, and
from 7 to 9 on Saturday evenings.
Amount of deposits on August 1, 1889, $1,.S80,201.
The first place of business of this bank was in the
rooms of the Railioad Bank in Odd-Fellows' Hall,
the treasurer, ,Iohn F. Rogers, being also cashier of
the Railroad Bank. Rutin 1871 the banks separated.
The Savings Bank, with Mr. Hutchinson as treasurer,
for two years occupied rooms in the rear of the dis-
count bank. In 1873 the Savings Bank took posses-
sion of the first story of the building on Merrimack
Street, which it had erected for its use. It removed
from the first story to the second story of this building
in 1889.
John F. Rogers, the first treasurer of this bank de-
serves a special notice. He was born in Exeter
y. H., December 1, 1819. He fitted for college at
Exeter, but did not pursue his studies further. Learn-
ing the hardware business in New York, he set up a
hardware store in Lowell in 1845. In 1853 he became
cashier of the Railroad Bank, and held the office
through a period of seventeen years. From 1801
until his death, in 1870, he was treasurer of the Me
chanics" Savings B:;knk. Few men have lived a life
so pure and so devout. Few were so much beloved
and few so much lamented. He died in the prime of
manhood, at the age of fifty-one years.
Central Savings Ban/:. — This bank was incorporated
in 1871. Its president from its incorporation has
been Oliver H. Moulton. Its treasurers have been
J. N. Pierce, 1871-72; Samuel A. Chase, the present
incumbent, 1873. Trustees in 1889: O, H Moulton,
E. Brown, Patrick Lynch, Henry C. Church, George
Itunels, J. C. Abbott, E. Boyden, Cyrus H. Latham,
Willard A. Brown, Amasa Pratt, Benjamin Walker,
Joseph R. Hayes, John S. Jaques, J. P. Folsom, A.
G. Pollard, George F. Scribner, Prescott C. Gates,
S. N. Wood, Frederick Ayer, Joseph 8. Brown, Dan-
iel Swan, Robert Court, Charles W. Saunders, Ezra A.
.\dams, George L. Hunloon, George W. Young.
The quarters commence on the first Saturday of
February, May, August and November.
Its hours of business are from 9 to 1 o'clock, and
on Saturday evenings from 7 to 9.
There is a safety-vault in connection with the
bank.
Amount of deposits, October 20, 1889, $1,915,172.
Its place of business is the Merchants' Bank build-
ing, 39 Merrimack Street.
Merrimac/: lilver Savings Ban/:. — This bank was in-
corporated in 1871. Its president, from its incorpora-
tion has been J. G. Peabody. Its treasurers have
been G. W. Knowlton, 1871-74; A. J. Flint, 1874-
79; Nathan- Lamson, the present incumbent, 1879.
Trustees in 1889 : A. D. Puffer, Atwell F. Wright,
Charles Runels, C. J. Glidden, W. A. Ingham, F.
RodlifT, Jr., Crawford Burnham, J. C. Johnson, James
W. Bennett, Horace Ela, B. F. Sargent, C. F. Var-
ntiin, G. W. Knowlton, C. E. Adams, Alfred Barney,
R. G. Bartleti, Setb B. Hall.
The quarters commence on Ihp first Saturday of
February, .May, August and November.
The hours of business are from 9 to 12, and from 2
to 4 o'clock on Mondays. Tuesdays, Thursdays and
Fridays ; and from 9 to 12, and 7 to 9 o'clock on
Saturdays.
' Interest is paid on any sum, from SI to j^lOOO. No
deposit received above S1600.
Amount of deposit, on October 20, 1889, S830,G34.
The place of business is at 189 Middlesex Street,
near the Northern Depot.
Fire IxsrnANCECo.MPANiE.s. — In the early days of
Lowell almost all its fire insurance business was done
by three companies, viz., the Middlesex Mutual Fire
Insurance Company, of Concord, Mass.; the Merri-
mack Company, of Andover, and the Lcuvell Mutual
, Fire Insurance Company, of Lowell. The last of
these three companies was for nineteen years the only
fire insurance company in Lowell.
It was incorporated March 0, 1832, and commenced
business in April following. Its first place of busi-
ness was in the Railroad Bank Building, situated on
the site of the present Appleton Bank Building, on
Central Street. The office was subsequently removed
; to the Mansur Building, corner of Central and Mar-
I ket Streets, where it remained for over forty years.
About five years siuce, in 1884, it was removed to the
70
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACIITTSETTS.
second story of tlie building erected and occupied by
the First National Bank.
Its presidents have been — Luther Lawrence, elected
in 1832; Elisha Glidden, 1834 ; John Nesmith, 1836;
Jonathan Tyler, 1837 ; Horace Howard, 1841 ; J. B.
French, 1851 ; J. H. B. Ayer, 1853 ; J. K. Fellows,
1860; J. C. Abbott, the present incumbent, 1880.
Its secretaries and treasurers have been — Samuel
F. Haven, 1832; Tappan Wentworth, 1835; J. M.
Mansur, 1837; R. G. Colby, 1841; Isaac S. Morse,
1845; Jacob Robbins, 1852 ; George W. Bean, 1860;
Wm. P. Brazer, 18G2 (temporarily) ; James Cook,
1862; Charles W. Drew, 1877; E. T. Abbott, 1883.
The original directors, elected in 1832, were — Kirk
Boott, Luther Lawrence, Elisha Glidden, Aaron
M.insur, Nathaniel Wright, John C. Dalton, Seth
Ames, Benj. Walker, Matthias Parkhurst.
The directors for 1889 were — Wm. H. Wiggin, .1.
K. Fellows, Wm. P. Brazer, Charles A. Stott, Wm.
E. Livingston, J. C. Abbott, Benj. Walker, Amos B.
French, N. M. Wright, A. G. Pollard, E. T. Abbott,
P. C. Gates.
For several of the first years of this company no
premiums were paid, a deposit note being relied upon
for assessment. The business of this company out-
side of Lowell was formerly done by agents, who, for
the sake of the profit arising from their commission,
were found to take risks which ought to have been
rejected. From these risks the company met with
such serious losses by fire, that in 1S53 it was voted
not to take any more risks outside the city. The
result has been most satisfactory. Losses by fire
have now for many years been very few. The com-
l)any is in a liighly prosperous condition. Dividends
are paid of sixty per cent, for five years, fifty i)er
cent, for three years, thirty-three and one-third per
cent, for one year. The fact that all proi>erty in-
sured is in the city of Lowell may, to some, suggest
the d.anger that a disastrous fire in the city would
prove disastrous to the company; but the excellent
Fire Department of Lowell, the cautious manner in
which property is insured, and the conservative
character of the directors an<l othcera of the companv
have gained for it the highest confidence of the citi-
zens. The risks of this company in 1889 were nearly
*3,000,000.
This company employs no agents, the business be-
ing done wholly at the home office under the supervi-
sion of the director.s.
In preparing this article I am indebted for aid to
J. K. Fellows, Esc]., a former president of the com-
pany.
Trailers and Mechiinics' Fire Insurance Company. —
This company was incorporated in 1848, and com-
menced business in June of that year, as a mutual
company. In 1854 a charter was granted the com-
pany to add to the mutual department a stock depart-
ment, with a capital of S50,0O0, which was, in 1870,
increased to $100,000. Business was transacted by '
j both these departments until 1881, when the stock
I department was dissolved and the stock and surplus
divided among the stockholders. The number of
I shares in 1861 was 500.
The presidents of this company have been : Thomas
Hopkinson, elected in 1848; Sewall G. Mack, 1850;
Joshua Converse, 1855; C. B. Cobiirn, 1860; Levi
Sprague, the present incumbent, 1874; James H.
Rand acted temporarily as president in 1855, and again
in 1857.
The secretaries have been : James Dinsmoor, 1848 ;
Edward F. Sherman, 1855; Orrin F. Osgood, 1872 ;
E. M. Tuck, the present incumbent, IS74.
The original directors were : Thomas Hopkinson,
Thomas Nesmith, X. C. Wheelock, Joshua Converse,
E. F. Watson, James H. Rand, Peter Powers. Henry
Read, Sewall G. JIack, Benjamin \\'eaver, Nathaniel
Critchett.
At the great fire in Boston, in 1872, the company
suH'ered a loss of S230,O00, which it ha:* paid in full,
and it is now in a very prosperous condition.
From the Massachusetts Fire Insurance Report,
Dec. 3, 1888, we take the following: Gross assets.
$565,207; gross liabilities, !;li(7,42S; surplus, Suii7,-
778; gross cash income lor 1S88. $143,206.
Amount at risk in 1S8'J, $26,:;70,lii5 ; cash assets,
$565,450. Dividend on five-year policies, 70 per
cent.
The directors in 1880 are: Levi Sprague, C. C.
Hutchinson,. lacob Rogers, Charles H.l^'olmrn, (ieorge
K. Richardson, W. F. Salmon, S. T. Lancaster, Julin
F. Kimball, D. S. Richar(lsf>n. Henry C. Howe.
The place of business of this company was al firsi
on or near the site of the present Appleton Bank
Block; but in 1.S52 it was removed to the lorner of
Central and .Middle .Streets.
Tlie Howard Fire Iii.surniire Coiiijxini/ w.is organized
in September, 1848. (ta first directers were: <Jliver
M. Whii)ple, William Fiske, .Foei Adams, Emory
Washburn, Joshua iMeirill, David Dana, Stephen
Cushing, Elijah .M. Read, Samuel Burliank, Sidney
Spalding, A. W. Buttrick, Thomas Hopkinson, Dan-
iel S. Richardson; jiresident, Oliver M. Whipple;
secretary, Frederick Parker.
Its capital was $;')0,000, which was in a short time
increased to $100,000, and subse(|ueutly to $2oo,000.
Jlr. Whipple, the first president, held the office
until 1851 or 1852, and was then succeeded by Dr.
Nathan Allen, who, in 1862, was succeeded by Joshua
W. Daniels. Ephraim Brown became president and
treasurer in 1865, and remained in office to the close
of the existence of the company, in 1872.
The first secretary and treasurer, Mr. Parker, held
his office until 1852, when he was succeeded by
Joshua W. Daniels. Mr. Daniels became both pres-
ident and treasurer in 1862. He resigned in 1865.
Ephraim Brown became secretary in 1862, and was
succeeded in 1864 by Henry B. White, who in turn
was, in 1867, succeeded by Sewall A. Faunce, who
LOWELL.
remained secretary until the close of the company's
existence in 1872. In 1864 the principal business
office of the companr was removed from Lowell to
Boston.
NotwithsUnding the loss of $19,000 in July, 1866,
by the great Portland fire, the company prospered.
It had paid a dividend in 1865 of 20 per cent, and
from 1868 to 1872 the annual dividends were 10 per
cent. At the time of the great Boston fire, in 1872,
the company was in a prosperous condition. Its
amount at risk was $10,000,000, and its surplus $17ri,-
000, about seven-eighths as large as its capital. In
that fire the loss was $840,000, which swept off all its
assets, and it ceased to exist.
CHAPTER VII.
LOWELI^i Continued).
MAXUF.iCTURES.
There are two reasons why the history of the man-
ufactures of Lowell should be brief: first, like all
things else in the city, they have had a comparatively
brief existence ; and second, the great manufactures
of Lowell are so much alike, that the history of one
is, in many cases, but a repetition of that of another.
In recording the early history of the city we have
already mentioned the small manufacturing enter-
prises which were existing in East Chelmsford in the
early years of the present century. There were the
caw-mill and grist-mill of N.ithan Tyler, near Paw-
tucket Falls, not far from the site of the Lowell Hos-
pital ; the woolen-mills of Thomas Hurd, near the
site of the Middlesex Mills, in which twenty hands
were employed : the glass factory at Middlesex Vil-
lage ; the powder-mills of O. M. Whipple, near the
Concord River ; the mills of Jloses Hale, started in
1801, on River Meadow Brook; and various other
such small manufactories, as in those early days were
found, especially near a water-fall.
It should be remarked that the fulling-mills
which existed in those early days throughout the
country had for their design the finishing of the
cloth which was made by band in the homes of the
people.
The early manufactures of East Chelmsford were
mostly of woolen goods, although, in 1813, Phineas
Whiting and Josiah Fletcher, with a capital of S3000,
had erected a modest wooden building near the site of
the Middlesex Mills, for the manufacture of cotton.
But after about five years the mill was sold to Thomas
Hurd, who began in itthe manufacture of woolen goods
and satinet. It was then a serious question whether
America could compete with England in the manu-
facture of cotton. In favor of England were cheaper
labor, greater capital, superior skill and established
reputation. In favor of America were cheaper cot-
ton, more abundant water-power and the superior en-
terprise of a people in the vigor of youth.
Francis Cabot Lowell seems to have been the first
to inspire in the minds of enterprising Americans the
full conviction of the feasibilitj' of this competition.
As already stated, on a previous page, the power-loom,
improved by the skill of Mr. Lowell, had, in 1814, been
introduced into the cotton manufactory of the town of
Wallham. The success of the experiment in Walt-
ham, on the Charles River, led to the construction of
the mills at Lowell, on the Merrimack River, whose
abundant waters and splendid falls seemed to promise
a power which was almost inexhaustible.
In giving a brief history of the great cotton manu-
factories of the city of Lowell, I propose to avoid
minute statistical items, and to present to the reailer
only a general accountof these great enterprises, with
an occasional notice of the prominent men who have
gained a distinguished name, both as successful man-
ufacturers and as citizens of Lowell.
1. The Eleven Great Mantjfactdring Corpo-
rations.
The Merrimack Manufacturing Company,
whose history, interwoven, as it is, with the early
history of the city, has already been partially given,
was incorporated in 1822 with a capital of S600,000.
The capital has been four times increased, and is now
$2,r,00,000.
Its treasurers have been Kirk Boott (appointed
1822), Francis C. Lowell (1837), Eben Chadwick
(1839), Francis B. Crowninshield (1854), Arthur T.
Lyman (1877), Augustus Lowell (1877), Charles H.
Dalton (1877), Howard Stockton (1889).
The superintendents of the mills have been Ezra
Worthen (1823), Paul Moody (1824), Warren Colburn
(1825), John Clark (1833), Emory Washburn (1848),
Edward L. Lebreton (1849), Isaac Hinckley (1849),
John C. Palfrey (1865), Joseph S. Ludlam (1874).
Of the first four of these superintendents, mention
has already been made in another part of this work.
Emory Washburn was called to his office in the
Merrimack Mills, from his practice as attorney-at-
law in Worcester. On leaving his position in Lowell,
after a service of a few months, he returned to bis
practice of law in Worcester, and became a judge and
Governor of the State.
Edward L. Lebreton had been a practicing lawyer
in Newburyport, and had official connection with
Suffolk Bank, Boston. He died in Lowell only a few
months after his appointment as agent.
Isaac Hinckley, before coming to Lowell, was su-
perintendent of the Worcester and Providence Rail-
road. After a service of sixteen years in the Merri-
mack Mills, he resigned to take the office of president
of the Philadelphia, Wilmington and Baltimore
Railroad.
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, M VSSACFIUSETTS.
John C. Palfrey was appointed superintendent of
the Merrimack Mills after serving as engineer in the
United States Army. He was in office from the close
of the war in 1865, until 1874, when he resigned to
take the position of treasurer of the Manchester
Mills, in Manchester, N. H. He still holds the lat-
ter office.
Josephs. L'jdlam, before coming to the Merrimack
Mills, was engaged in mining operations in the State
of Michigan.
The superintendents of the Print- Works have been
Kirk Boott (1822), Allan Pollock (1823), John D.
Prince (1826), Henry Burrows (18oo), James Duck-
worth (1878), Robert Leatham (1882), Joseph Lea-
tLani (1885), John J. Hart (1887).
The superintendenls of the Print- Works in Lowell
have generally been selected in England for their
technical knowledge of calico-printing.
Mention elsewhere in this work is made of Kirk
Boott aud John D. Prince.
Allan Pollock, before his appointment as superin-
tendent, waji a maker of mathematical iuxtriiments in
Boston.
Henry Burrows was, before coming t<) Lnwell, an
expert calico-printer in Englan<l.
.Tames Duckworth was a calico-printer in the Mer-
rimack Mills before hi.i appointment as .superinten-
dent.
Robert and Joseph Leatham, father ami son, were
English e.Kperts in the calico-priutinir.
John .1. Hart also w.is invited from England to the
position of superintendent, as an e.xpert in the art of
calico-printing.
Directors for 1 889: Selh Bemis, president; (Jeo.
B. Chase, Arthur T. Lyman, C. Wm. Loring, Charles
H. Daiton, .Vuguatus Lowell, Charles P. Bowditch.
-Vgent: Joseph S. Ludlam.
Preparatory to the beginning of the manufacture
of cotton goods by the Merrimack Company and the
Hamilton Company (wliieli soon followed the Merri-
mack), 500 men were em|)loyed in building a dam
acrns's the Merrimack at Pawtucket Falls, in enlarg-
ing the Pawtucket Canal, and in constructing lateral
canals for conducting water-power from the Paw-
tucket Canal to the mills. These improvements cost
8120,000.
On September 1, 1823, the first mill having been
completed, the water w.as let into tlie canal (con.-itruct-
ed for the special purpose of bringing water from the
Pawtucket Canal to the mills of the Jlerrimack
Company), and the wheels started. The first cloth
was made in November, 1823, and on January 3,
1824, took place the first shipment of goods.
The policy of this company has always been most
liberal. It has rendered valuable pecuniary aid to
churches of different denominations, to schools,
aud various institutions designed to promote the re-
ligious, moral and intellectual interest of the com-
munity. Its boarding-houses, designed lor its opera-
tives, have always been models of neatness and order,
and its long brick block of tenements on Dutton
Street is a building which, for taste and elegance,
compares well with the dwellings of private citizens
of wealth. Hon. Thomas H. Benton, the distinguished
United States Senator from Missouri, on visiting
the boarding-houses, probably those of this company,
declared thai the operatives " live in large, stately
houses, and that one finds in them the same kind of
furniture as you will find in a Congressman's house
in Washington."
On Jan. 7, 1827, five years after the first mill was
erected, it was destroyed by fire.
The number of mills has increased to six. There
are also " immense storehouses, boar<ling-houses,
and stables ; and small buibling'i without number."
The management of the Merrimack Mills, almost
throughout their history, has been conducted with
cousumniflte ability.
The stock of the company has ruled liigli in the
market, and the diviilends have been large. How-
ever, the course pursued by the .Merrimack and most
of the other mills of Lowell during the war of 1861
affords a very conspicuous e.xception. < )n this subject
Mr. Cowley uses the following language in his History
of Lowell :"
"During the late war the .Merrimack (!'onipaiiy
showed great lack of 'sagacity and foresight,' in
stopping their mills, in dismissing their operatives,
in discontinuing the purchase of cotton, and in sell-
ing their fabrics at a slight advance on their peace-
prices, and at less than the actual cost of similar fab-
rics at the time of sale. Instead of boldly running,
as companies elsewhere did, they took counsel of
their fears and their sp.acious mills stooil on the bank,
' As idle x-H A pniuU-il ^liip iipuli ii |»iiiii[etl dfK,'
"Thebluodersof this company were naturally copied
by others. . . . The other cotton companies actually
sidd out their cotton, and .several of them made
abortive e.xperiments in other branches of manufac-
tures, by which they made losses, direct and indirect,
exceeding the amount of their entire capital. It is
but fair to aild that most of these abortive e.xperi-
ments were made in opposition to the judgment of
the local agents."
Most unfortunately, at the very time when a bold
venture would have been rewarded with millions of
dollars, it was confidently assumed and ilanlarcd that
the true policy was one of " masterly inactivity."
The aver.age of the annual dividends paid by this
company for the first forty-five years was about 13
per cent., but for the last twelve years, about 7 per
cent.
The company manufactured 11,000,000 yards of
cotton cloth in 1839, 14,0o(),u00 in 1849, 19,000,000 in
1859, 22,000,000 in 1869, 42,000,00(1 in 1879, and 52.-
000,000 in 1889.
lu 1889 the number of yards dyed and printed web
48,000,000.
I
7
■' f^cC.u ,,cC /to cL
c/f.
LOWELL.
The following are some of the most important sta-
tistics for 1889. Number of mills, 5 ; number of
turbine-wheels, G; number of steam-engines, 97,
equal to 6000 horse-power.
Number of spindles, 156,480 ; number of looms,
4607; number of male operatives, 1000; number of
female operatives, 2000 ; number of yard.s made per
week, 1,000,000.
The Hamilton Manufactukixg Company was
incorporated Jan. 26, 1825, for the manufacture
of cotton goods, with a ca|>ital of 1600,000. Its
capital has been four times increased and is now
$1,800,000. Its treasurers, with date of appointment,
have been Wm. Appleton (1825), Ebenezer Appleton
(1830), Geo. W. Lyman (1833), Thomas G. Gary
(1839), Wm. B. Bacon (]8.i9), Arthur T. Lyman
(1860), Arthur L. Devens (1863), Eben Bacon
(1867), Samuel Batchelder (1869), Geo. R. Chap-
man (1870), James A. Dupee (1870), James Long
ley (1886), Charles B. Amory (1886).
Agents: Samuel Batchelder (1825), John Avery
(1831), O. H. Moulton (1864).
John Avery, after serving as a supercargo of a
merchant vessel for some time, went to Wnltliara,
Mass., as paymaster in one of the mills in that town.
F/om Waltham he came to Lowell to the position of
agent of the Appleton Mills, where he served three
years, after which he was for thirty-three years (from
1831 to 1864) agent of the Hamilton Mills.
Oliver H. Moulton, after serving as overseer in the
Pemberton Mills, in Lawrence, and as superintendent
of the Amoskeag Mills, in Manchester, N. H., was
appointed agent of the Hamilton Mills in 1864.
The superintendents of the Print Works have been
Wm. Spencer (1828), Wm. Hunter (1862), Wm.
Harley (1866), Thomas Walsh, assistant (1876).
Wm. Spencer came from England to take, in 1828,
the superintendence of the Hamilton Print Works.
He held the position for thirty-four years. He had
previously superintended print works in Ireland.
While in Lowell he took great interest in agriculture
and was president of the Middlese-ic North Agri-
cultural Society and of the Horticultural Society. He
was a man of noble public spirit and liberal senti-
ments. Kindred tastes made him a friend of Hon.
Daniel Webster.
Wm. Hunter came from England to Lowell to be
the overseer of the color shop of the Hamilton Print
Works. Subsequently he became, for four years,
superintendent of these works.
Wm. Harley, from Scotland, after serving as calico
printer in Southbridge, came to Lowell to serve for
ten years as superintendent of the Hamilton Print
Works. Thomas Walsh, of English birth, from being
an overseer in the printing-room, became superintend-
ent of the Print Works in 1867.
Directors for 1889 : .Tames Longley, Thomas Wig-
glesworth, C. H. Parker, Henry S. Grew, E. I. Browne,
James H. Sawyer, Charles B. Amory, C. W. Jones.
The plant occupies seven and one-half acres of
land. The motive-power consist* of ten turbine-
wheels and forty-one engines of 2600 horse-power.
Like the Merrimack Mills, the Hamilton Mills have
two departments; (1) The manufacture of cotton
cloth ; (2) The printing of calicoes.
The number of yards of cotton cloth manufactured
by this corporation in 1839 wa.s five million yards ;
1849, about nine millions ; 1859, eleven millions; 1869,
eleven millions; 1879, eighteen millions; 1889,
thirty-seven millions.
In 1889 the number of yards dyed and printed was
thirty-four millions.
In 1889 the number of mills, 6 ; looms, 3035 ; male
operatives, 800; female operatives, 1300; yards of
cloth made per week, 730,000.
The operations of this company began about four
years subsequent to those of the Merrimack Com-
pany.
Besides the mills for manufacturing and printing
goods, this company has erected very extensive store-
houses, boarding-houses and other buildings de-
manded by its extended and extending manufacturing
operations.
The goods manufactured include flannels, ticks,
prints, stripes, drills and shirtings.
The curtailment of the manufacture of cotton goods
by this company during the War of 1861, and the
substitution of the manufacture of woolen goods dur-
ing that period, proved disastrous. The wool and the
machinery for its manufacture were purchased at war
|)rices, and the woolen cloth sold at the greatly re-
duced prices which followed the war. It has cost the
company a long struggle to recover its loss. For the
last twelve years the average of the annual dividends
paid by this company has been less than four per
cent.
Ferdinami RoDl.lFF.— Ferdinand Rodliff, su-
perintendent of the cotton department, was born
February 6, 1806, in Seekonk, Massachusetts. His
parents came to America before the War of In-
dependence, his father being of German, and his
mother of English descent. At that time cotton man-
ufacture had just begun in this country, and a mill
was built at Seekoak, near the place of his birth.
Children were then put to work in the mills at an
early age, the small boys and girls being employed in
tending breakers. At the early age of seven years
Mr. RodlifT was put to work in the Central Mill in
Seekonk, his wages being fifty cents per week, while
the hours of labor were from five o'clock in the morn-
ing to seven o'clock in the evening, with a half-hour
for breakfast and three-quarters of an hour for dinner.
His opportunities for attending school were very
meagre, the schools being kept only a month or two
in the winter and the same time in the summer. He
continued at work in the Central Mill at Seekonk and
in attending school until he was seventeen years of
age, when he received the appointment of overseer of
T4
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHT^SETTS.
spinning. When we consider that he was then
scarcely more than a boy, tiie appointmeut was a high
testimonial of his character and worth.
When twenty years of age he 'vaa appointed general
overseer of ail the departments of the Messinger
Mill in Canton, Mas3achu.setts.
On June 28, 1827, when twenty-one years of age, !
he came to Lowell, and entered the employment of j
the Hamilton Manufacturing Company, as second ;
hand in the dressing department. In the autumu of
the same year he was appointed ;is overseer. After a |
service of twenty-five years as overseer in diB'erent i
departments he was appointed assistant superiuten- |
dent, the superintendent at that time being John
Avery, Esq. By this change he was brought into
contact with not only the manufacturing, but the
mechanical part of the work of the mill. The position
of assistant superintendent he has now held for more
than thirty-seven years.
Thirteen years ago, in 1877, when ilr. Rodlitt" had
completed a service of fifty years with the Hamilton
Manufacturing Company, he entertained serious |
thoughts of resigning his position on account of his i
advanced age, being then seventy-one years old.
Whatever feeling of delicacy he may have felt on !
account of his age. the Directors ot the Corporation
completely dispelled by a remarkable testimony ol
their appreciation of the value of his services.
<Jn the 27th day of .June, 1877, upon the comple-
tion of Mr. RodlitJ-s rtltieth year of continuous ser-
vice, the Directors of the Hamilton Company met at
Lowell, and he was called before them and presented
by the trea.surer, -Mr. Dupee. with a gold watch and
chain and a United States bond of .'SlOoii, together
with the following note :
" tlusli.N, .liioe 'JTtli, IiiTT.
*' tif'ir si> : To-riiurrnw will •'■iiii|iletH ihe tiftielb year itl aer\ ic-l reliijer-
L'tl by yuu lu llie Ilaliiiltoii Mniniluctniin^ < '■.uijiuriy.
'*Aa a testiiiiunlHl i.f their uitiirHc-Litioii of yitiir fanhfulDeS-s, intf yrttv
;ind aelf-Jenial, .inJ Vfur /e.ilitiis ;uiii litany co-operalioo with all the
"tJicera of the t/uinpany, the Dii-ectura ask your acceptaiice of a gold
watch aD'i a L'oiteiJ Stales btiiiil fur uUe thollsauii ijullars.
" With our Wrii uislies (or your health aad liappioeas we have the
pleasure to subscribe ourselves.
** Very cordially your friends.
(Signed) "James Longlev,
" TaoMAS WlfJ^LF-SW'OBTH,
"I'HAi. Henkv Pabkeh,
" Henky Savles,
" Henrv 3. Grew,
" .Tames Ellison,
" ja.1ies a. dcpee.
" To Ferdinand RodlllT, Esci. '
Since the presentation of this generous testimonial I
Mr. Rodliffhas for nearly thirteen years held his posi-
tion, performing with great punctuality and fidelity,
the duties appertaining to it, and receiving from his
superiors, his peers and his friends frequent testimon-
ials of the honor and affection in which they hold him.
Upon the occasion of his eightieth birthday, Feb-
ruary 6, 1886, he received the following letter from
the Directora of the Company :
" BosniN. February 'irh, ISMJ.
** P^-ir .Sir ■ The Direttitrs of the llaniiltuii Mauufactuniig Company
present their earnest coit^latulatiuns on this your eig:litieth birthday.
Wo beg to assure you of theirhigh appreoialiou of yuur services in the
enipluynient of this I'uiiw.ralitm, nearly tifly-niue yeai^, and to accept
their best wiahes for the lon;;er cunliuiiance of your remarkable health
and vi|;or of body and niiod.
" CordialW vour friends,
(Signed) " James LoNui.Er,
" Thumas Whjgleswobth,
" i;has. Henky Pabkeh,
" Henry S. i!rew.
*• Edward I. Browne,
".I. HtBRERT Sawyer,
"James A. Di iee.
•'Tn Ferdinand Rodli/f, Ks.] "
Mr. Rodliffhas now served in manufacturing com-
panies continuously for nearly seventy-seven years.
It would be difficult to find iiiiothei- man in America
who has done the same. Now, in his eighty-fifth
vear, he goes to his daily duties with elastic step,
atl'ording, by the soundness of his body, head ami heart,
an admirable illustration (if coiunlete manhood. He
enjoys the pleasant memories of a wcll-n(ient life —
"And that which ^hi'llM accoliipaliy old at:e,
As honor, love, .ihedielae, tr.io|id of ll ieii-U "
The .\pi'1.etijN Co.mpany was incorporated in
1828, with a capital of Siioo.iHlO, which ha- not since
been increased. Its mills are situated between the
Hamilton and Paw tucket Canals and west of the
Bamilton .Mills.
The treasurers of this company have been as fol-
lows : Win. .\ppleton (appointed in 1S2S). Patrick
T. Jackson (182!l). Ceo. W.Lyman ( ls:!2). Thomas
C. Cary 11841), \Vm. B. I'.acon (IS-'iH), Arthur T.
Lyman (18<11), .\rthur L. I>evens (isii.)). .lolin .\.
Burnham (lsti7), tieo. .Motley i l.sii7), .lames .\. I>u-
pt-e (1>174), Louis Robeson (188<;).
The superinteiidenLs have been .Ii.bii .Vvery (|.S28),
(ieo. .Motley (ls:U). .1. H. Sawyer (lsii7), Daniel
Wright (1881), Wm. H. McDavitt il.ss7i.
Mr. .\very is noticed under the history of the Ham-
ilton Mills, (leo. -Motley, from the office of clerk in
the counting-room of the Hamilton Mills, was, in
18.31, appointed superintendent of the .Vppleton
Mills, and filled the otBce with great ability and fidel-
ity for thirty-six years.
J. H. Sawyer, before his appointment as superin-
tendent of the Appleton Mills, in 1807, was superin-
tendent of the Otis Mills in Ware, Mass. He held
the office in Lowell fourteen years, and i» now treas-
urer of mills in Chicopee, Mass.
Daniel Wright, from the position of assistant of Mr.
Sawyer, became, on the retirement of Mr. Sawyer,
superintendent of the Appleton Mills in 1881.
Wm. H. McDavitt, having held the otlice of super-
intendent of the Globe Mills, in Woonsocket. R. L,
was appointed superintendent of the Appleton Mills
in 1887.
C. H. Richardson, before his appointment, in 1888,
as agent of the .A.ppleton Mills, was superintendent
of mills in Newark, N. J.
;;
/ c/ /lX'
LOWELL.
The motive- power in the Appleton Mills coDBists of
seven turbine-wheels and three steam-engines of 1550
horse-power. The turbine wheels were first success-
fully used in these mills, one of them having been
put in in the year 1844. Since that date the turbine-
wheels, which were introduced in the mills of Lowell
by Uriah A. Boyden, have gradually displaced the
breast-wheels, only a very few of which are still in
use. The main advantage of the turbine over the
breast-wheel is that it can be successfully used in
time of a freshet or very high water upon the river,
when the breast-wheel, on account of back water,
loses all or part of it* efficiency.
This company, sooner than some others, discovered
the mistake of inaction during the War of 1861, and
sooner recovered from it« ill effects. The average of
its annual dividends, however, for the last twelve
years have been less than four and a half per cent.
This company has five mills, 1639 looms, 260 male
operatives, 450 female operatives, and manufactures
350,000 yards per week.
The goods manufactured are sheetings, shirtings
and drillings.
The number of yards manufactured in 1839 was
5,000,000; in 1849,7,000,000; in 1859,8,000,000; in
1869, 8,000,000; 1879, 13.000,000, and in 1889,
16,000,000.
The Lowei-l Manitfacturing Compaxv was in-
corporated in 1828, with a capital of $900,000, which
has since been increased to $2,000,000. Among its
corporators were Frederic Cabot, William Whitney
and Richard C. Cabot. This company was the first
to use for weaving carpels, the power-looms, invented
by E. B. Bigelow, an invention so wonderful that it
seems to be almost endowed with intellect.
The following, relating to thiit company, is taken
from Hill's " Lowell Illustrated " : "The Company
originally commeneed operations with a single mill
four stories in height and about 200 ft. in length,
with a few necessary buildings for storing raw mater-
ials and manufactured goods, sorting wool and dye-
ing. About two-thirds of the space in this mill was
occupied for the manufacture of coarse cotton cloth,
called Osnaburgs, or Negro Cloth, which was largely
sold in the South for plantation wear. The remain-
ing space was utilized for the production of carpeting
on hand-looms, the weaving being done in the fourth
story. It was in one corner of this weave-room, par-
titioned off for the purpose, that the Bigelow power-
loom, which was destined to work such a revolution
in carpet-weaving, was built and perfected in 1842,
or about that time."
In 1848, when it was evident that Bigelow's inven-
tion could be profitably employed, a mill of one story
in height and covering nearly an acre of ground, was
erected and furnished with 260 of these looms for the
manufacture of carpets. About 1883 another spa-
cious mill, three stories high, was erected by this
company for the manufacture of Brussels carpets, and
was furnished with a Hartford automatic engine of
500 horse-power. The works of this company occupy
about ten acres on the south side of Market Street.
The directors of this company for 1889 were Daniel
S. Richardson, S. L. Thorudike, Augustus Lowell,
Israel G. Whitney, Augustus T. Perkins.
The treasurers have been, Frederick Cabot (1828),
George W. Lyman (1831), Nathaniel W. Appleton
(1841), William C. Appleton (1843), J. Thomas
Stevenson (1847), Israel Whitney (1848), Charles L.
Harding (1863), David B. Jewett (1864). Samuel Fay
(1875), George C Richardson (1880), ArthurT. Lyman
(1881).
The superintendents have been Alexander Wright
(1828), Samuel Fay (1852), Andrew F. Swapp (1874),
Alvin S. Lyon (1883).
Samuel Fay was born in Warwick, Massachusetts,
in 1817, and came to Lowell, when fourteen years of
age, to serve as clerk in the cloth-room of the Lowell
Corporation. Subsequently he held the position of
paymaster for six years, of superintendent for twenty-
two years, and of treasurer for six years. He died in
1880, having held positions of trust in the corporation
for forty-nine years.
Andrew F. Swapp was assistant superintendent of
Lowell Mills before his appointment as superintend-
ent. He had previously been overseer of the dye
works of the company. He died while in office.
Alvin S. Lyon, before hi§ appointment as superin-
tendent, had been superintendent of the Durfee Mills
of Fall River.
This company manufactures ingrain, Brussels and
Wilton carpets, worsted goods, and a limited amount
of cotton goods. Number of mills, 5; turbine-
wheels, 2; number of steam-engines, 5; looms, 485;
male operatives, 950 ; female operatives, 1150 ; yards
of carpets made per week, 75,000; number of yards of
carpeting during the year 1839, 130,000; 1849,
338,000; 1859, 1,300,000; 1869, 1,820,000; 1879,
1,924,000; 1889, 3,120,000.
For the last twelve years the average of the divi-
dends paid by this company ha.s been about four and
one-half per cent.
Alexander Wright was born in Arklestone,
near Paisley, in Scotland, May 4, 1800, and died at
his home in Lowell, June 7, 1852, at the age of fifty-
two years. He was the son of Duncan Wright, a
chemical bleacher by trade, who came to America in
1812, during the last war with Great Britain, and was
taken prisoner by Captain De Wolf, of the American
privateer, " The Yankee," and carried into the harbor
of Bristol, Rhode Island.
When De Wolf discovered the occupation of his
prisoner, he employed him as superintendent of a
bleachery, in which he had an interest, in Coventry,
Rhode Island. He is believed to have been the first
chemical bleacher in New England, if not the first in
America. The circumstance of his capture was the
cause of his resolve to settle in New England instead
71)
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COIINTY, MASSACIirSKTTS.
of Philadelphia, where lie had intended to fix his
home.
In 1815 his wife, who was a sister of the American
ornithologist, Alexander Wilson, with three sons,
one of whom was the subject of this sketch, followed
him to America. The father with his family now
located in Smithficld, Rhode Island, but after two
years removed to Waltham, Massachusetts, where he
started a bleachery on his own account. Three years
later the Boston Manufacturing Company, being
about to start a great manufacturing enterprise in
Waltham, bought out the bleachery of Mr. Wright,
whereupon he set up a new bleachery in Medway,
Massachusetts. He at length engaged in calico-print-
ing in Fall River, Massachusetts.
We now resume the history of the subject of this
sketch. Mr. Wright, following his father to America
when fifteen years of age, arrived at Boston in the
first ship which entered that harbor alter the close of
the war. When twenty years of age he commenced
the manufacture of coach lace in Medway, Mass.,
and continued in that business forsix years. He then,
in 1826, first conceived the idea of manufacturing
carpets, of which, up to this time, none had been
made in New England. He went to England to pro-
cure looms ami weavers. Upon his return voyagr-
"The Rival," the ship in which hesailed, was wrecked
on the American coast. But having, at length,
reached home in safety, he set up, in Medway. his
three looms and began the manufacture of carpets.
Misfortune, however, pursued him ; for in two years
his mill was destroyed by tire.
He was induced by Hon. Patrick T. tlackson, of Bos-
ton, to enter the service of the Lowi'll Manufacturing
( 'iiinpany, of Lowell, which was the first of the great
corporations of that city to engage in the iiiaiiufac-
ture of carpets. Mr. Wright was apjiointed the first
superintendent of that company in 18l!8, and he filled
llie ofllce with great ability and success until his
death, in 1852. He proved to be an officer whose afl^a-
bility of manners and thorough knowledge of hisbiis-
iness secured the confidence and respect of the stock-
holders and managers of the company.
Mr. Wright possessed fpialities of mind and heart
which admirably fitted him for bis responsible posi-
tion. He was of a frank and generous nature, which
readily won the affection and respect of all he met.
He was far more than a safe and skillful manager ol
mills — hew.asa public-spirited citizen, a generous and
hospitable neighbor and friend, a noble and bounti-
ful man in all the social and domestic relations of life.
He bore through life that sympathetic, gallant and
ardent na' lire which renilered him very dear to his
friends and made his death, while in the prime of his
manhood, a subject of sincere and universal grief.
Mr. Wright was noted for the ardor and enthusiasm
with which he pursued every enterprise in which he
engaged, and for the cheerful zeal with which he
pressed forward to the attainment of his object.
He was deeply interested in the public welfare.
His fellow-citizens often desired to bestow upon him
the honors of office. He was urged to allow himself
to be a candidate for the mayoralty of the city,
but he declined the honor. He was, however, twice
elected on the Board of Aldermen, and once represent-
ed the city in the Legislature of the .*tate. At the
time of his death he was a member of the Board of
School Committee.
His wife, two sons an<l five daughters survived
him.
The MiPDLESE.x Comp.a..vv was incorporated in
183l>, with a capital of soOO.iMMl, which has since been
increased to ■■>7."fi,(HU>. .Vinong the corporators were
.Samuel Lawrence and William W. Stime. It en-
gaged in the manufacture of broadcloths, cassi-
meres, etc.
The treasurers of this company have been William
W. .'^tone (18W), Samuel Lawreme (H-lnV R. •'^. Fay
(18.-.7), George /.. .'^ilsbee I I.sSl>).
The agents have been .lames (.'ook (is.ioi. Nelson
Palmer (lS4'i), Samuel Lawrence (l>;4i'i\ • >. H. Ppitn
11847), William T.Mann ( is.-,l). .rn^lma Humphrey
(1>!.')21, Janu'S Cook llS-''8i, H. H. Perry ll8,=iS), (uis-
tavus V. Fox (18(;'.i), William C. Avery (l>:4). u. H.
Perry (1882!.
James Cook became mayoi- of Lowell in IS.oO. A
notice of liiiii will he foiiiiil :inioiig ihe sketches nt
the lives of the mayors of the city.
Xelson Palmer, who hail -erved under Mr. L'nok
as wiiol-K(irter in his mills in N..rthampioii, suc-
cee<led .Mr. Cook, in 184.''. as agent i>f the .^li(ldlesex
Mills of Lowell.
i^amiiel Lawrence was brother nf Amos and .\bbolt
Lawrence, of P.iisto;i. .\tter leaving the office of
ireasiirer of the Miitdlesex Mills, in which he was
charged witti gross lulsinaiiagemcnt. In- cnuaged in
the wool business in New York (ity, ami died in
.Stockbridge, Mass.
f). H. Perry was the son of the celebrated naval
commander, Oliver Ha/anl Perry, made illustrious
by his victory on Lake F.rie. He left the office of
agent of the Middlesex Mills to become one of the
firm of Perry. Wendell, Fay it Co., selling agents of
the mills. He died at his residence in Ando\er,
Ma.ss. His son, O. H. Perry, is the present agent of
these mills.
William T. .^Llnn served as paymaster in the Mid-
dlesex Mills before his appointment as agent.
Joshua Humphrey, before his appointment as
agent, was a naval officer. .After leaving his office as
agent, he returned to his home in Virginia, and be-
came an officer in the Confederate Navy during the
War of the I!ebelIion. He died in Virginia.
Gustavus V. Fox is noticed elsewhere in this work.
William C. Avery, on leaving Lowell, went to Cal-
ifornia, and engaged in agricultural pursuits. He
now, however, resides in Dedham, Miiss., where he
has been engaged in the woolen business.
LOWELL.
T7
The present agent, O. H. Perry, graduated at the
School of Technology in Boston, became superin-
tendent of the Middlesex Mills under Mr. Avery,
and is the successor of Mr. Avery as agent.
The directors for 18Sil were Benjamin F. Butler,
tieorge Higgiuson, T. .lefiierson Coolidge, M. E. Wen-
dell, C. P. Curtis, Augustus Lowell, George Z. Sils-
bee.
The plant occupies seven and one-half acres of
land bounded by Warren Street, Concord River and
the Pawtucket Canal.
The goods now manufactured by this company are
indigo-blue coatings, cassimeres, police, yacht and
cadet cloths, ladies' sackings and beavers.
The motive power consists of two turbine-wheels,
three breast-wheels, three engines of 250 horse-power.
Number of mills, 3; number of teasles used per
year, 1,000,000; wool used per week, 20,000 pounds;
number of male operatives, 400; number of female
operatives, oHd; number .of yards of cloth manufac
tured per week, 10,Oilti.
The number of yards of cassimeres and broadcloths
manufactured by this company in 1S39 was -J0O,000;
ill 1S49, l,l;;7,OO0; in 18o'J, 1,500,000; in 18(iy, TSO,-
IIOO; in IST'.i, l,19(i,fM)0; in 1SS!I, G')0,000.
This company has sutl'ered lar more than any other
In the lity from the mismanagement of the men
whom it had entrusted with ofhce. In 1858, the en-
tire capital having be^n lost by its officers^ the com-
pany was re-organized with new managers and new-
subscriptions to stock.
Since the re-organization in IS-iS the company has
had very gratifying success. The average of its divi-
dendf fur ihe last twelve year< has been nearly twelve
per cent.
The turbine-wlieel his entirely superseded the
breast-wheel, excefil in the Jliddlesex Mills, where
three breast-wheels of the old pattern are still in use.
This company has been a pioneer in the successful
manufacture in America of goods which had here-
tofore been im]>orted from Europe. Upon this sub-
ject the following statement of Samuel Lawrence,
treasurer of the company from 1 840 to 1857, is of in-
terest :
" When Uif Mi'ldlpst-x Ct-nil'aiiy ctiirted, in IS:ti'., nioet >»f the woolen
(ro.>ds fonsiinie'l tif re were fri'iii Kngliind, imported Ity n»en from York-
eliire, wh'i for nwuy yeitrh eviided piiyiug the fuH amount uf duties by
linder\Hluulioll. . . . I Hie of the dllticulties in Ihe early (irodlictioii of
wooleoh liere «afi a defect in dyeiiic- Tliis coni|iany was ntoet foniiuate
in early discovering that this evil arose from Ihe Bimpleut cause — the ini-
perfecl cleansing of the wool. . . .
"Mr. Cuinptuii, of Taunton. Mass., became employed by Ihe Middle-
Hex Company to adapt his principle to their looms to produce a fabric
like the Sedan, and wat^ entirely KnireMful. Thus crimnieuced in this
ronntl'y the manufacture of laney cassimeres. The shawl manufiicture
by Ills MiJdlest'X ('onip:iny was commenced in 1M47. I'p lo that time
the fringes were twisted by hand, ami Ihe success dejiended uiajn its l»e-
iDgdoiie bj machinery. At that lime .Mr. Millon D. Whipple was in
the employment of the company, jierfecting a felting machine, and be
was employed lo produce a twisting-machine for fringes, in which he
succeeded iterfeclly, and tliua gave this branch of industry to this
fountrv."
The Suffolk Manufacturing Company was
incorporated January 17, 1831, with a capital of
$600,000, and the Tremont Mills, March 19, 1831,
with a capital of $600,000. The two companies, in
1871, were consolidated and called the "Tremont A:
Suffolk Mills." The plant occupies ten and one-half
acres of land on both sides of the Northern Canal.
The capital of the consolidated company is $1,200,-
000.
The treasurers of the Suffolk Company were : John
W. Boott (1831), Henry Hall (1832), Henry V. Ward
(1859), Walter Hastings (1865), Wm. A. Burke
(1868), James C. Ayer (1870).
The treasurers of the Tremont Mills were : Wm.
Appleton (1831), Henry Hall (1832), Henry V. Ward
(1857), Walter Hastings (1865), Wm. A. Burke
(1868), James C. Ayer (1870).
The treasurers of the Tremont & Suffolk Mills
have been : James C. Ayei (1871), John C. Birdseye
(IS72), Arthur G. Lyman (1886), Alphonso S. Covel
(1887).
Agents of the Suffolk Manufacturing Company :
Robert Means (1831), John Wright (1842), Thomas S.
Shaw (18GS).
Agents of the Tremont Mills: Israel Whitney
(1831 ), John Aiken (1834), Charles L. Tilden (1837),
Charles F. Battles (1858), Thomas S. Shaw (1870).
.-\grnt8 of the Tremont & Suffolk Mills ; Thomas
S. Shaw (1871), Edward W. Thomas (1887). Kobert
Means, before his appointment as agent, was a mer-
chant in Amherst, N. H. He died suddenly in
Lowell, while in the performance of his duties as
agent.
John Wright was born in Westford, Mass., No-
vember 4, 1797. He graduated from Harvard Col-
lege, and was afterwards preceptor of the Westford
.Vcademy. He was afterwards principal of a large
school in Worcester, Mass., where he becytme agent
of a manufactory. He came to Lowell to act as
agent of the Suffolk Mills in 1842. This position he
occupied for the long period of twenty-six years.
His health failed him in 1868, and he resigned his
office. He died in 1869, at the age of seventy-one
years. Mr. Wright was a man of talent. He inter-
ested himself in the welfare of the city, and was a
member of the School Committee and State Senator.
He held various other positions of responsibility and
trust.
Thomas S. Shaw, before his appointment as agent
of the Suffolk Mills, had been superintendent of the
Boott Mills and agent of the Nashua Manufacturing
Company, Nashua. He is now agent of a mill in
Marysville, New Brunswick.
Israel Whitney had been a sea captain before his
appointment as agent of the Tremont Mills. After
resigning his office he became agent of the Great
Falls Manufacturing Company.
See notice of John Aiken as agent of the Lawrence
Mills.
78
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
Charles L. Tilden, from serving; as clerk, was ap-
pointed agent of the company. On resigning the
office of agent he retired from active business.
Charles F. Battles was born in Dorchester, Mass.,
in 1818. He came to Lowell when sixteen years of
age, and was employed in the counting-room of the
Tremont Corporation. He became paymaster and
then agent of the corporation, holding the last posi-
tion twelve years. He was appointed treasurer of the
Mechanics' Savings Bank in 1870, but died the same
year at the age of fifty-two years.
Edward M. Thomas, after serving as draughtsman
in Lowell Machine-Shop, became superintendent of
the Willimantie Linen Mills, in Willimantic, Conn.
From this position he was, in 1887, appointed agent
of the Tremont and Suffolk Mills.
Directors of the Tremont and Suflolk Mills 1889 —
Arthur T. Lyman, Fre<lerick F. .\yer, Frederick
Xyer, Jacob Rogers, James W. ('lark, Harrison
Gardner.
This company manufactures cotton flannels, drill-
ings, sheetings and shirtings, dress goods and fancy I
shirtings. Its motive-power consists of eleven ttir- |
bine-wheels, three engines of 20(10 horse-power.
Number of males employed, 500; number of females
employed, 14IMI; number of spindles, 113,0iiO; num-
ber of looms, .'{SOO ; number of yards per week, ,
(500,000. '
Before the consolidation the Suffolk Company made
cotton cloth, in 18.39, 4,ti8tt,000 yards; in 1849,
.''i.-JOO.t.MiO; in 18.^)9,8,008,(1(1(1; in 18()9, (1,500,000, and
the Tremont Mills in 1839, (;,741,iiOO ; in 1849, (!,240,- [
000; in 18.'.9, 11,9^0,000; in 1869, t>,7t30,0O0. '
Since the con.solidation the Tremont and Suffolk
Company made, in 1879, •2C),00O,0OO ; in 1S89, 29,-
O0(»,(_IO0.
The experiment of manufacturing cassimeres j
during the war was made by both these companies,
and to both it proved a disastrous failure and a great
loss of capital.
The average of dividends of the consolidated com-
pany during the last twelve years has been nearly six [
and one-half per cent.
In recent years very great changes and improve-
ments have been made in the buildings of this com- I
pany. The original buildings can scarcely be recog- j
nized in the spacious and substantial structures of
to-day. !
The Lawrence Manufacturing Company was
incorporated in 1831, with a capital of *1, 200,000, '
which has since been increased to 11,500,000. The
plant is on the Merrimack River, west of the Merri-
mack Mills.
The treasurers of this company have been : Wil- !
liam Appleton (1831), Henry Hall (1832), Henry V. '.
Ward (1857), T. Jefferson Coolidge (1868), Lucius M. i
Sargent (1880). |
The agents have been: William Austin (1830),;
John Aiken (1837), William S. Suuthworlh (1849), '
William F. Salmon (1865), Daniel Hussey (1869),
John Kilburn (1878).
Capt. .\u3tin, before his appointment as agent of
the Lawrence Mills, was warden of the State's Prison
at Charlestown, Mass. John Aiken was born
in Bedford, N. H., graduated from Dartmouth Col-
lege, practiced law in Manchester, Vt. (where he
also was a teacher in Burr Seminary), was for three
years agent of the Tremont Mills, in Lowell, and for
twelve years agent of the Lawrence Mills, and after-
wards treasurer of the ( 'ochecho and Salmon Falls
Mills. He held various civil offices, and was a man
of commanding influence and marked ability. He
died in .-Vndover, Mass., in 1864.
William S, .Southworth, before he became agent of
the Lawrence Mills, was a practicing lawyer in Ben-
nington, Vt. Upon leaving Lowell he returned to
liis practice of law at Bennington.
William F. Salmon, before Lis appointment as
ngent of the Lawrence Mills, had been paymaster and
superintendent of the Lowell Mills. Since being
agent of the Lawrence Mills he has been manager of
the Lowell Hosiery (_'i*rapany.
Daniel Hussey, before coming to Lowell, was agent
of the Nashua Mills, of Nashua, N. H. After leav-
ing Lowell he w.is treasurer of the (ireat Falls Manu-
facturing Company, of Great Falls, N. H.
John Kilburn, while ageijt of the Naumkeag
.Mills, in Salem, -Mass., wjis appointed agent of the
Lawrence .Manufacturing Company in 1878.
From IS'Il to |S(i4 the manufactures of this company
consisted of the various grades of cotton cloth, but
-ince 1864 one of the most important of its manu-
factures has been cotton hosiery for women. .Vnother
lirancli of business has been knitted underclothing.
The following statistics are for 1889, instead of
1890, as in other cases :
The motive-power consists of twelve turbines and
five steam-engines. Number of mills, 5 ; of spindles,
120,000; of looms, 3432; of males employed, 1051 ;
of females employed, 2089; firoducts per week, 696,-
526 yards of cotton cloth, 17,046 dozen hosiery, 900
ihirts and drawers.
The various manufactures are shirtings, sheetings,
cotton fiannels, cotton and merino hosiery.
The average of dividends paid by this company for
the last twelve years has been nearly nine per cent.
The introduction of the manufacture of hosiery, in
the time of the war, was attended with the loss of
about ?oOO,000, but in recent years this manufacture
has yielded a large ])rofit.
This company has kept abreast of the times, hav-
ing erected substantial and spacious store-houses and
other buildings, and having promptly introduced the
most approved machinery.
The Lawrence Company manufactured, in 1839,
10,400,000 yards of cotton cloth; in 1849, 13,520,000 ;
in 185a 18,720,000; in 1869, 15,600,000; in 1879,
23,100,000.
CL^ ^ en L, C
^
LOWELL.
79
The Lowell Bleacheey was incorporated in
1833, with a capital of $50,000, which has been in-
creased to ^00,000.
Its treasurers have been John Clark (1833), James
C. Dunn (1834); Charles T. Appleton (1835), Samuel
G. Snelling (1859), Percivnl Lowell (1886).
The agents of the company have been Jonathan
Derby (1833), Joseph Hoyt (1834), Charles T. Apple-
ton (1835), Charles A. Babcock (1849), F. P. Apple-
ton (185.i), Fordyce Coburn (1880), F. P. Appleton
(1882), James N. Bourne (1886).
Messrs. Derby and Hoyt served the company only
about one year each.
Charles T. Appleton had been connected with the
Bleachery in Waltham, Mass., before coming to
Lowell. On leaving the office of agent he became
treasurer of Lowell Bleachery.
Charlen A. Babcock, before his appointment as
agent of the Bleachery, was paymaster in one of the
corporations. <.^u resiguing his office as agent he be-
came a member nf the tirm of A. & A. Lawrence, in
Boston.
F. P. .\ppletoc, before becoming agent of the
Bleachery, officiated as a Unitarian clergyman. On
resigning his office as agent lie retired from active
busines.s.
Fordyce Ooburii, from the position of overseer on
the Corporation, was made agent. He died while in
the office.
James N. Bourne, the present incumbent, before
his appointment as agent, had been the superintend-
ent of the Bondsville Bleachery, and had been con-
nected with Kitson's Machine Company.
Directors for 1889: Auirus'.us Lowell, Harrison
Gardner, Daniel S. Richardson, Percival Lowell,
Charles F.. Whitin.
The buildings of this couipany are the bleachery
and the dye-works. Tne motive-power consists of
one turbine, six engincsof 1200 horsepower. Number
of males employed, 3fi0 ; number of females em-
ployed, 40; number of yards dyed per year, 15,000,-
dOO : number of pounds bleached per year, 10,000,000.
The Boott C()TTf)N-MlLL.« were incorporated in
1835, with a capital of .•?1.200,00((, which has not
been increased. Among the corporators were Ab-
bott Lawrence and John A. Lowell.
The treasurers of this company have been John A.
Lowell (1835), J. Pickering Putnam (1848), T. Jeffer-
son Coolidge (1858), Richard D. Rogers (1865), Au-
gustus Lowell (1875), Eliot C. Clarke (1886).
The agents of this company, Benj. F. French (1836),
Linus Child (1845), Wm. A. Burke (1862), Alexan-
der O. Cumnock (1808).
Benj. F. French was educated for the bar and had
practiced his profession in Amherst, N. H. He en-
gaged in the business of manufacturing in Nashua,
and from Nashua was invited to Lowell. He served
the Boott Company as agent from 1836 until 1845,
when he accepted the presidency of the Railroad
Bank. He was a man of high character and liberal
culture.
Linus Child was born at Woodstock, Conn., in
1802. He graduated from Yale College in 1824,
studied law in New Haven and engaged in the prac-
tice of law at Southbridge, Mass, He was six times
elected to the Senate of Massachusetts. For seven-
teen years (from 1845 to 1862) he was agent of the
Boott Mills. While in Lowell he was prominent in
promoting the interests of the city in religious, civil
and political matters, holding city offices, and exer-
cising a large and beneficent influence. After leaving
Lowell he practiced law in Boston. He died in 1870,
at the age of sixty-eight years.
A. G. Cumnock, the present agent, has risen to his
position through all the grades of service in the
Boott Mills.
Directors in 1889: Augustus Lowell, Eliot C.
Clarke, C. Wm. Loring, Arthur T. Lyman, Edward
\V. Hooper, Augustus Flagg, Edward I. Browne.'
The plant is on the south side of the Merrimack
River, and is separated from the Concord by the
.Massachusetts Mills. The mills have, since 1861,
been extensively altered, and all the buildings of
this company are substantially constructed. Before
the war the stock of this company, for several years,
was mucli depressed and for a season paid no divi-
dends, but in recent years it has seen greater pros-
perity. For the last twelve years the average of
annual dividends has been over eight per cent.
The motive-power consists of nine turbines, and
four steam-engines of 1750 horse-power. " The com-
pany has [seven] mills of modern style in full opera-
tion, and the interior arrangements and machinery
are the best that can be devised."' The plant occu-
pies about nine acres of land, a part of it being in
Centralville, where it is proposed in due season to erect
new buildings. The goods manufactured by this
company are sheetings, shirtings and printing cloth.
The number of mills is seven ; number of spindles,
148,412; number of looms, 4002 ; males employed, 478;
females employed, 1500 ; yardsof cloth made per week,
800,000 ; number of yards of cloth made in 1839.
8,061,000; in 1849, 10,273,000; in 1859, 15,579,000;
In 1869, 16,715,000; in 1879, 27,106,000; in 1889
40,300,000.
Alexander G. Cumnock. — The great manufac-
turing corporations of Lowell were not institutions
of slow and gradual growth, but they sprung into
being at once, full-grown and strong. They were
founded by wealthy merchants of Boston who had
counted the cost and knew well what they were do-
ing. They were men of noble aims and comprehen-
sive views, and acted upon wise and benevolent prin-
ciples.
In the early years of these corporations, so great
was the desire to promote the general welfare of the
manufacturing community, that it was the custom to
select, as agents and managers, men who, without any
80
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS
special and practical knovvledge of maDufacturiag,
had acquired a high reputation and influence in the
business in which they were already engaged. But
in later years the problem of management has become
more difficult. The capacity of the mills, the amount
of work performed and of money invested have be-
come greatly increased. Competition has sprung up
00 every side. The margin of profits has been grow-
ing less and less. In order to insure dividends the
most approved methods of manufacturing must be
introduced, and goods must be made at the lowest
possible expenditure.
Hence it has come to pass in recent years that
agents and managers must have, in addition to the
high character, liberal views and business ability
formerly possessed, another qualification, namely, a
thorough and intimate knowledge of the best meth-
ods of manufacturing.
To this class of manufacturers belongs Alexander
G. Cumnock, the present agent of the Boott Cotton-
Mills, and the subject of this sketch.
Mr. Cumnock was born in Glasgow, Scotland, Sep-
tember 28, 188t. His facher, Robert L. Cumnock,
was a freeholder of Glasgow and a man of fair estate.
Four years after the birth of the son the family re-
moved to Johnstone, thirty miles from Glasgow,
where the father engaged in manufacturing. Eight
years later the father resolved to relinquish his busi-
ness in Scotland and seek hia fortune as a farmer in
the ne'sr world. .Accordingly, in 1848, with his wife
and his two children, he came to America, and after
a brief sojourn in Lowell he settled upon a farm in
Mason, \. H., where he reared a family of eleven
children.
Of the eight sons, five have been remarkably suc-
cessful in manufacturing. It is believed that no
other family in America has the practical control of
such extensive manufacturing operations.
Alexander <t. Cumnock went to Lowell at the age
of twelve years and entered the Edson Grammar
School. He spent three years in this school, which
terminated his school life. He began, in his early
years, the work of preparing himself for promotion.
He devoted his evenings to study. For several win-
ters he took lessons in draughting. For two winters
he look lessons in book-keeping and general business
in JlcCoy's Commercial School in Lowell, and also
for one winter he studied in connection with a com-
mercial college in Boston. The patient toil and ap-
plication, of which he was an example, were the
secret of his success.
After leaving school he entered the Hamilton Milis
and was employed in the spinning-room. From this
point it is interesting to trace the rapid |)rogress of
the enterprising mill-boy, step by step, up to his
present enviable position. In 1854, when twenty
years of age, he was appointed third hand in the
spinning-room on the Boott Corporation, then under
Hon. Linus Child as agent. Three years later he be- '
came second hand. .\t the age of twenty-five years
he was invited by Mr. Straw, agent of the Amoskeag
Mills in Manchester, N. H., to take the position of
overseer of a spinning-room in those mills. To pre-
vent his acceptance of this otfer, Mr. Child promoted
liim to the position of overseer in the spinning-room.
.\fter si.\ years he was appointed superintendent of
the Boott Mills, an office next to that of agent. In the
next year he was chosen agent of the Quinneboag Man-
ufacturing Company, of Danielsonviile, Conn. After
holding this position two years, he was, in IStiS, upon
the resignation of William A. Burke, chosen to suc-
ceed him in office as agent of the Boott Cotton-Mills,
one of the most extensive manufacturing corporations
in New England.
This position oi high responsibility he has now
successfully filled for twenty-two years. Meanwhile
the operations of this great corporation, with a cap-
ital of $1,200,000, have been greatly enlarged, the
number of epindles having been increased from ti4,-
nO(( to 1-51,000.
Outside his official station, Mr. ('uninock has occu-
pied various positions of tnist in civil life. He is a
trustee of the Mechanics' ."Savings Bank, a director of
the Lowell Gas-Light Company, and a director of the
Railroad National Bank. In 1872 he was in the
Board of Aldermen, and held the imjiortant position
of chairman of the (.'oinmittee on Water Works,
when the policy of the management of these works
was in process of formation.
Mr. Cumnock is a man of generous nature, with a
hearty sympathy with all that pertains to the virtue
of society and the welfare of the city. Foriune has
favored him, and he has been remarkably successful.
His success, however, has not been attained without
patient toil, unremitting efibris, and a high purpo.se to
" ilo lii.1 bent iilwaijs.''
The MA.ssACHfsETTS CoTTON-Mn,L.s were incor-
porated in 1839, with a capital of §1,200,000, which
has since been increased to $1,800,000, by the absorp-
tion of the Prescott Company.
The Prescott Company was incorporated in 1844,
but was soon abso.-bed in the Massachusetts Company.
The trejisurers have been John A. Lowell (1839),
Homer Bartlett (1848), Geo. Atkinson (1872), Charles
L. Lovering, 1890.
Agents: Homer Bartlett (1840), Joseph White
(1849), Frank F. Battles (185t)), Wm. S. Southworth
(1889).
Homer Bartlett was born in Granby, Mass., in
1795, and graduated from Williams College in 1818.
He was a Presidential elector in 1844 anfl member of
the Governor's Council in 1854. In 1849 he left the
office of agent of the Massachusetts Mills to accept
that of treasurer. The latter office he held until 1872,
when he was seventy-seven years of age. He died in
1874, at the age of nearly seventy-nine years.
Joseph White, upon leaving his position as agent,
serveil for several years as secretary of the Massachu-
y.' y\
\ n
/f
/o
LOWELL.
81
setta Board of Education. He now resides in VVil-
liamptown, Mass.
A notice of Mr. Battles is found on another page
of tbis work.
Mr. Southworth, the present agent, bad served as
superintendent of the mills before his appointment
a.s Hgent.
Directors for 189(1 : Augustus Lowell, Edward L
Browne, Benj. W. Crowninshield, Robert Treat
Paine, Charles P. Bowditch, Augustus P. Loriug,
Charles L. Lovering.
The plant of the Massachusetts Cotton Mills
since the purchase of the I'rescott Mills, in 1847,
covers eight acres. The motive power consists
of thirteen turbines and four steam-engines of 1250
horse-power. Number of males employed, 560;
number of females em[)loyed, 1250; number of spin-
dles, 12<).(i48 ; number of loom.s, 372H ; number of
yards of cotton cloth made per week, ftOO.OOO ; num-
ber of pounds of cotton used per week, 300,000.
The good* made by this company consist of sheet-
ings, shirtings and drillings.
The original buildings of this corporation have been
very greatly enlarged and impnived. The basement
stories, which were formerly occupied with the pon-
derous breast-wheels, are now used for the manu-
facture of cloth.
The following extract from Hill's " Lowell Illus-
trated," will show the e.'ctent of the operations of
this company :
" By the substitution of flat for pitched roofs and
the adaptation of basements for manufacturing
purposes, when the lircast-wheels were discarded, six
full stories are obtained in nearly all the principal
buildings of this Company ; and their aggregate
lenirth is twcnty-tive hundred feet and a total floor
area of fifteen and one-half acre.s (now increased to
eighteen acres). These figures include store-houses,
but e.\clude several minor buildings, as shops, waste
and wheel-hou-^es, stables, etc., from one to three
stories in height."
The number <<\' yards of cotton cloth made by this
company in l>!4'.i was lo,;^,73,000 ; in 18-i'.», 28,172,000;
in 18611, 17,40<;,OW; in lS7;t, 38,714,000; in 1880,
47,.'230,0ii().
The average of dividends for the last twelve years
has been about five and one-half per cent.
Fraxr F. Battles. — The great manufacturing
corporations of Lowell have no worthier represen-
tative, no man more fully identified with their interests,
in mind and heart, than Frank F. Battles, the late
agent of the Massachusetts Mills.
Mr. Battles was born in Dorchester, Mass., Feb. 12,
1820, and died at his home on .Mt. Washington Street,
Lowell, Sept. lit, 1S8',I, at the age of nearly seventy
years. He was of New England descent. His grand-
father, Jonathan Battles, was a farmer in Stoughton,
M:iss., a stern and sturdy man of the early days. His
father, Joseph Battles, held the position of overseer
6-ii
ID a manufacturing establishment in Dorchester.
When Mr. Battles was twelve years of age he came
to Lowell with his father, who, on account of his ex-
perience as a manufacturer, had been invited to aid
in starting the new mills of the Tremont Corporation
of that city. After leaving the service of the Corpo-
ration he spent his last years upon his farm in
Derry, N. H., where he died in 1845.
Mr. Battles, on coming to Lowell with his father's
family, became a pupil in the North Grammar School
(now Bartlett), and afterwards entered the High
■School, which was then under its first principal,
Thomas M. Clark, now Bishop of Rhode Island.
Among his schoolmates were Gen. Benj. F. Butler
and Capt. Gustavus V. Fox.
Upon leaving the High School he was appointed
clerk in the Railroad Bank, then under the preai-
dency of Benj. F. French. When the Dwight Mills,
of Cabotville (now Chicopee), were started, Mr. Battles,
upon the recommendation of Hon. Homer Bartlett,
was appointed paymaster of that Corporation. When
twenty-six years of age he was invited back to
Lowell to the position of paymaster of the Prescott
Mills. He subsequently became superintendent of
those mills, and in 185G, when the Massachusetts
Mills had absorbed the Prescott, he was appointed
agent of the combined Corporations, a position which
he filled with great ability and success until 1880,
when his declining health demanded his retirement.
He held this latter oftice forty-three years.
Upon leaving his official position he found for
himself 8 pleasant home on Mount Washington
Street, where his friends fondly hoped, and even be-
lieved, that his former health was returning; but
upon the evening of September 10, 1889, after retir-
ing for the night, he suddenly died of apoplexy.
The news of his sudden death produced a profound
sensation. Probably Lowell had no citizen who was
ever more sincerely mourned. Especially that very
large number who, in his long ofKcial career, had
served under him, and had experienced the generous
kindness of his noble nature, heard the sad tidings
with feelings of filial tenderness and grief. The rela-
tions of Mr. Battles to his employes were of a peculi-
arly interesting character. He seemed t«j take pride
in his workmen. He recognized them politely on
the street. He dealt generously with those who
erred. When a charge was made before him he was
wont to ask : "Are there not some extenuating cir-
cumstances?" At his death the feeling was univer-
sal that a ffood man had fallen. But his goodness
did not consist in doing no harm, but was that of an
intelligent, thoughtful, just man, who believed that
goodness is the highest attribute of humanity.
He was favored by nature. He had a fine personal
bearing, and was of genial, courtly manners. In his
conversation and intercourse with others there was a
natural charm which did much to win for him their
affection and respect. By those who knew him best
82
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
it is asserted that his unostentatious benevolence in
the bestowment of gifts of charity was one of his
most marked characteristics.
Mr. Battles uever sought civil office. He was,
however, a director of the Railroad National Bank,
and he served aa alderman in 1870 and 1871.
Lowell Machine-Shop. — The following record
of this corporation is in part taken from an .irlicle
in " Lowell Illustrated," by Frank P. Hill :
"The building of cotton machinery was first begun
by the Merrimack Manufacturing Company, to equip
their second mill, it being then impossible, by reason
of stringent laws imposed by England, to import it.
They erected for this purpose a four-story building
similar to a cotton-mill, and after having completed
their machinery, early in 1826, sold the business and
tools to the Proprietors of Locks and Canals.' The
latter company continued to do a large business in
building machinery for cotton-mills till 1845, a period
of nineteen years. They also engaged in building
locomotives and making machinists' tools.
But in 1845 a new company, with the title of Low-
ell Machine-Shop, was incorporated, which pur-
chased the plant of the Proprietors of Locks and
Canals, and this company has continued the building
of cotton machinery up to the present time.
The original corporators of the company were Ab-
bott Lawrence, Nathan Appleton and John A. Low-
ell. The capital, which orginally was ••?500,000, is
now increased to :!;900,000.
The treasurers have been ; J. Thomas Stevenson
(1845), William A. Burke (1876), Robert H. Steven-
8on*(1884), Charles L. Pierson (1889).
The superintendents have been : William A.
Burke (1845), Mertoun C. Bryant (1862), Andrew
Moody (1862), George Richardson (1870), Charles L.
Hildreth (1879).
M. C. Bryant, before his appointment as superin-
tendent, was a civil engineer, having taken an import-
ant part in starting the works of the Lowell Gas Com-
pany. He died in office.
Andrew Moody, before being superintendent, had
been a machinist and contractor in the machine-
shop. On resigning the office of superintendent he
retired from active business.
George Richardson had been a draughtsman and
contractor in the machine-shop before his appoint-
ment as superintendent. He died while in office.
C. L. Hildreth, having been in service in the ma-
chine-shop for forty-five years, is now superintendent
of the works.
Directors for 1889 : Richard D. Rogers, J. Hunting-
ton Walcott, Augustus Lowell, Robert H. Stevenson,
George P. Upham, Arthur J. Lyman, Charles L.
Pierson.
The shops and foundry of this corporation are
located between the Pawtucketand Merrimack Canals,
and the whole plant, including boarding-houses, oc-
cupies nearly thirteen acres.
" The Lowell Machine-Shop has facilities for turn-
ing out annually complete cotton machinery repre-
sented by 160,000 spindles. The floor surface of the
shops, foundry, etc., exceeds nine acres."
This company manufactures every kind of machine
used by manufacturers of cotton or paper. The num-
ber of shops is seven, together with the foundry
and the smithy. The number of men employed is
1600; number of tons of wrought-iron annually con-
sumed, 11(»0; of cast-iron, 8500; pounds of brass
composition, 55,000 ; tons of anthracite coal used an-
nually, 3500; of smithy coal, 500.
The motive-power consists of seven turbines of 500
horse-power, three steam-engines of 410 horse-power.
The average of the annual dividends paid by this
company for the last twelve years has exceeded nine
per cent.
William Alvord Bi'RKE was born in Wino^^or,
Vt., July 7, 1811, and died at his home on Nesmith
Street, Lowell, May 28, 1887, at the age of seventy-
six years. He was a descendant of Richard Burke,
of Sudbury, Mass., who came to this country about
the ye;ir 1660, and who?e great-grandson, Solomon
Wait Burke, was one of the earliest settlers of Wind-
sor.
Mr. Burke's early education was obtained in the
public schools and in the Academy of Windsor, where
he very early exhibited unusual powers for the ac-
quisition of knowledge, having at the age of six years
attained to a considerable acquaintance with the
Latin language. It was the ambition of his early
years to pursue a collegiate course of study, but cir-
cumstances forbade it, and at the age of fifteen years
he entered the machine-shop of the Nashua Manufac-
turing Company, at Nashua, N. H., whither his
family had now removed.
Mr. Burke exhibited such ability and fidelity in his
new calling, that at the age of twenty-three years he
was placed in charge of the machine-shop owned by
Messrs. Ira Gay A Co., of Nashua. But still further
promotion awaited him, for at the end of two years
lie was put in charge of the repair shop of the Boott
Cotton-Mills of Lowell, and was also appointed master
mechanic of these mills.
In 1S39, when twenty-eight years of age, he was
elected agent of the recently-erected machine-shop of
the .\mo8keag Manufacturing Company of Manches-
ter, N. H. This position he held until 1845. During
all these years he had been educating himself in the
management of large bodies of men, and in the me-
chanical construction oi' machinery used in cotton-
mills. The education thus obtained was of the high-
est service to him in the positions of great responsi-
bility in which he was yet to be placed.
In 1845 the new corporation, known as the "Low-
ell Machine-Shop," purchased of the " Proprietors of
the Locks and Canals" their large machine-shop, in
which had been built most of the machinery for the
mills of Lowell. These works were then, and still
■/-'/.-i--t-
/
■'Jy/t 2/'^^
^'-/?,
-C-^/^ />-/ ^
LOWELL.
83
are, the largest works of the kind in America. Over
tbem the company appointed Mr. Burke as superin-
tendent when at the age of thirty-four years. To
• commit so important a trust to bo young a man
seemed to many a hazardous experiment. But Mr.
Burke proved equal to the demand. The ta>-k was
arduous, and the difficulties great, but he brought
with him a well-trained mind, a sound judgment and
an indomitable will. He rose above every obstacle
and held the position with honor for seventeen years.
In 1862 he was appointed agent of the Boott Cot-
tou-Mills, in which he had previously been master
mechanic. This year was to the mills of Lowell a
year of perils and disasters. The war had raged for
one year and had brought confusion and dismay.
Many mills had been closed ; operatives had left the
city; to obtain cotton was almost impossible, and all
things demanded a leader of astrongwill and asteady
hand. Mr. Burke wa.s called to tread a |)ath before
untrodden. But he went boldly forward. He de-
manded the substitution of new machinery for the
old. and the adoption of the most approved methods
of manufacture. The change inspired new life. Con-
fidence and ho])e revived. The stock, which b.ad fal-
len below par, now gradually rose high upon the
scale of manufacturing stocks of the country, and the
administration of Mr. Burke proved an eminent suc-
cess.
In 1S<!8 he resigned his position in the Boott i\Iill,~
to accept the office of treasurer of the Tremonl Mills
and Surtblk Manufacturing Company. After holding
this office two years he resigned it to take the position
of assistant treasurer of the Great Falls Manufacturing
Company, in Great Falb, N. H., and of the I)wighl
Manufacturing Company, of Chicopee, Mass., botli ol
which were among the largest mills of the kind in the
country.
As treasurer of these mills he was in a position of
high authority. His policy wa.s never timid. Even
against the remonstrances of stockholders he insisted
that the first step to be taken by these mill.* — all of
which were in an unsatisfactory condition — wa.s to
expend money freely to place them in the most efl'ec-
tive condition. Old machinery must give place to
new. Old structures must be rebuilt. The latest in-
ventions and imjirovements must be introduced. To
do this against the opposition of the timid, reijuired
both firmness and courage. But the work was done,
and time proved the wisdom of the [)olicy.
In 187G Mr. Burke, now sixty-five years of age, re-
ceived his host appointment to a |)osition of high re-
sponsibility. He was elected treasurer of the Lowell
" Machitie-Shoi>," in which, in Ins early years, he had
been the efficient and successful superintendent. This
position he held until I8S4, when the infirmities of
age and declining health demanded his retirement.
After three years he closed liis long and busy and
honorable life.
Mr. Burke possessed qualities which admirably
adapted him to the command of other men — a strong
will, a fixed purpose, a firm Bell-control and a sound
judgment. His mind was conservative. He indulged
in no speculations, and took no part in the faiscinating
schemes of visionary men. He had no taste except
for things permanent and substantial.
He was a director in several of the institutions of
the city, was president of the Mechanics' Savings
Bank for twenty-six years, and for two years during
the Civil War was a member of the Board of Alder-
men.
In 18.37 he married Catharine French, of New Bed-
ford, N. H., who died in 1870. In 1872 he married
Elizabeth M. Derby, who still survives. His surviv-
ing children are Catharine Elizabeth, Annie Alvord
and Edward Nevins Burke.
Chakle.<! Lewis HiLniiETH is a descendant of
Richard Hildreth, who belonged to that company of
thirty-nine persons — most of whom were inhabitants
of Woburn and C!oncord, 5Iuss. — who, in ltj.j.3, pe-
titioned the Legislature of Massachusetts for a grant
of land bordered by the Merrimack and Concord
Rivers, and lying near Pawtucket Falls. This tract
embraced the site of the city of Lowell. Their peti-
tion being granted, they formed a settlement, to which
they gave the name of Chelmsford. In this devout
and sturdy band of farmers were the progenitors of
many of the founders of the city of Lowell.
It is an interesting fact in regard to Richard Hil-
dreth, that, upon his petition, the Legislature of Mas-
sachusetts granted t« him a lot of laud containing 100
acres, for the reason that he " had a wife and many
small children, and, being a husbandman, he was
greatly disadvantaged partly by the hand of God de-
priving him of the use of his right hand, whereby he
was wholly disabled to labor." This lot of land, lying
in Westford — which was formerly a [lart of Chelms-
ford — has now been in the hands of Richard Hil-
dreth and his descendants for seven generations, and
is the projierty of Charles L.. Hildreth, the subject of
this sketch.
Mr. Hildreth was born in Concord, N. H., October,
9, 1823, and is the son of Elijah Hildreth, a farmer,
who, after his sou's birth, became a resident of New
Ijiswich, N. H.
Mr. Hildreth, having finished his education at the
academy at New Ipswich, at the age of twenty-two
years, came to Lowell almost an entire stranger, and
began work in the Ijowell Machine Shop. After a ser-
vice of three years as a workman he became a con-
tractor in the machine-shop, and continued in the lat-
ter position about ten years.
In 1858, on account of the great depression of bus-
iness, which began in the preceding year, he engaged
as foreman in the Industrial Works of Bement &
Dougherty in Philadelphia, where he remained about
two years. Having returned to Lowell, he became,
in 18G5, foreman in the machine-shop, a position
which he held for fourteen vears. In 1879 he was
84
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY. MASSACHUSETTS.
elected superintendent of the machine-shop, an office
whose importance is indicated by the fact that tlicsi-
works are the largest of the kind in America, and in
them is manufactured most of the machinery of the
great manufacturing corporations of the city of Low-
ell. This position he has now held for eleven years.
In addition to his regular official duties, Mr. Hil-
dreth takes a deep and active interest in various
beneficent institutions of the city. To the Jliddle-
sex Mechanic Association he has been especially de-
voted, giving to its affairs much of his time and
thought. In remodeling and rearranging its lilirary
he took an active interest, and in 1873 he served as
president of this association.
From 1868 to 1871 he wjis a member of the Bunnl
of Aldermen of Lowell, and, as chairman of the
Committee on Lands and Buildings, he took puit in
the erection of the Green School-house, the iiiosi
elegant and imposing of the school-houses of tlie city.
Mr. Hildreth is a man of broad synipiithies, til
cordial addre.ss, of sound judgment and of lirm pur-
pose. As the manager of one of the most important
institutions of the city he has the all'ection and re-
spect of those in his employ, and the entire conlidence
of the community. Having served during almost his
entire business life in the works of which he now has
the oversight, he is thoroughly conversant with all
the duties appertaining to bis office.
The following table of the statistics of the [ireccd-
ing eleven great manufacturing companies ot ]>owell,
is taken from the " Year Book " for 1889, i)ublisheil
by the Jlorning Mail Company :
Tiilal cnpitiil iiivpsted 81 1,i.')",i"mi
" iiunilter oC cpiinlles ^ti'.",_*'.:ii
" " luutiia .;l,t^'.il
'■ " feniHlee enipli'j'wl, It.^iii:; ; nrnka,
T.Tli'J l:i. |r,j
•• " ynrd^ cottuii clotli witv.-ii |i»t
week .'», 11115, 7.",r»
" '* " priDled \>er week l.tioU.'HH)
'* " " iljed per Huuutii lr.,iHHi,(ru)
" " " rarpeting per u-^ek . . . T5,<»"t
*• " " wtiitlen ilulli per week . . l'.!,."i"'>
" *' poiiDja hleiiclied [>er HHiiun) . . . lo,(«m,iMMt
" " " mttori L-uttbiiDied per week 1.0<>4,JU.J
" ■* " clean wool per week . . l"JiP,iirri>
** *^ tons coal per anuuni (iiivliuliue
smithy T'i. liii;
*' '* bnsliels cliarconl Iter aiiuiiiii . . . lo.JiHi
*• " t^alloiiH oil |>er aotMiiii I^T.ntl'j
" " ponnUs starch {ler aiiniliii . . . :;,'.nV>,Mr,
" " tonti wnni^ht-irim (ter aiiiiuiii . . 1,'JIKI
" " '* cast-iron per uliiiiiui .... >»,;".tm
" " " aleel |>er auiiinii ;j(ii)
" " pounds bntfis compositii-ii per
nniiiini -S.^juKl
" " turbine-wtieels ^."l
'* " ateuui-eagiuea liih
" weekly pay roll (exclusive of Lowell Bleach-
erv) Sll.l,":!*
" taxes paid ?l(t;l,7;i.'KjS
From this table it appears that the number of yards
of cotton cloth woven annually in these mills is more
than 260,000,000. To enable the mind more clearly to
comprehend this vast amount, it may be said that
this cloth would encircle tht- earth nearly six times,
and if stretched in a straight line, would extend over
a distance so great that a man traveling forty miles
per day would not reach the end of it in ten years.
2. Minor M.^scf.^ctures.
FlBRH MASUFACTrRE.*. — The Belridere Woolen-
M//s.—The life of Charle.s Stott, the late agent
and principal proprietor of the Belvidere Woolen
Manufacturing Company, is so intimately blended
with the history of the mills themselves that both
should be written on the same page.
These mills have a history running further back,
perhaps, than that of any other of the nulls of Lowell.
Thomas Hurd, who began the inanufactiire of satinet
on the Concord River in l.Sl.'i, ownetl the water priv-
ilege at the mouth of tlKit river, both on the east and
west sides. He sold the [irivilcge on the east, or l!(-l-
videre side, to Win'hrop Howe, a man.ifncliiier of
tlaunel by hand-looms, who in l.'*27 s(dd it to Harri-
.son (r. Howe, who introdiiccil the power-loom, in
lS.i2 .Mr. Howe sold it to Warren. Rarry A Park, of
Bosion, who in 18;^4 sold it to Wliitwell, Bonil it
.Scaver, who in 18.';.'i scdil it to FarnswortI), Baker iV
Hill.
It was under the latter cimipany that Mr. Stott be-
came connected with these mills, and for many years
was so identilied with them that in common parlance
tliey are known as " Slotts .Mills."
Charles r?tott was born .4iignst 21, 179;!, at Roch-
dale, a parliamentary borough ill i.,ancashire, England
famed, even in the days of <iueen Elizabeth, lor iis
manufacture of woolen goods. His parents being in
humble life, he was at the early age of seven years
put to work in a woolen-mill in wliicli the service
was so exacting as to leave him only the opp<irtiiiiity
of ac<]uiring the most limited education. The hours
of labor extended from five o'clock in the morning to
nine o'clock in the evening. When the years of
manhood came his ambition pidni|iteil him to leiive
the ranks of the day laborers and to begin business
on his own account. But fortune did not smile upon
him in England, and at the age of tweiity-.seven years
he resolved to begin life anew in America. In 1.^26
he lantlefl in Boston with two shilling pieces in his
pocket, his only riches. One of these shillings he kept
through life as a souvenir of his early struggles. It
still remains in the hands of his son, Hon. Charles \.
Stott, ex-mayor of Lowell.
In .\merica Mr. Stott first found employment in a
manufactory in .Viulover, Mass. In 1828, with three
associates, he began to operate the Jlerrimack Mills
in Dracut, Mass. After seven years in this business
he became, in 18.35, agent of the Belvidere Woolen-
Mills, then owned by Farnswortli, Baker & Hill.
This company having become bankrupt, Mr. Stott
formed a partnership with Mr. Farnswortli, one of the
company, and under the firm-name of Farnsworth &
Stott they engaged in runnlug the mills.
^^ % x^^
LOWELL.
85
Misfortune, however, pursued Mr. Stott into the
new world, for within the space of about one year the
mills were twice burned. After these di8.ister3 a new
company was formed called the Belvidere Woolen
Manufacturing Company, of which Mr. Stott became
the president and the active manager. Under the
sagaciou.-; and energetic control of Mr. Stott the en-
terprise was crowned with remarkable success. In
1862 a new mill was erected by the company on Law-
rence Street. Both these mills during tlie la-it nine-
teen years of his life Mr. Stott managed with a sa-
gacity and skill which have been rarely equaled.
Mr. Slott, by his long connection of forty-six years
with the Belvidere Mills, acquired a very high and a
very honorable reputation among the successful
manufacturers of the country. He was a man of de-
cided character and very marked characteristics. He
led a pure and simple life, and he cared not for office
or honors, for dress or fajihion, for equipage or dis-
play. He loved his business heartily, and to it lie
devoted all his powei's. It is said of him that when
age had rendered him too infirm to move with his
wonted activity from room to room in his mills, it was
his delight to sit for long hours near some rew and
curious manulacturing machine to admire the skill of
its construction and the beauty of its o|)eration.
(jutside of bis chosen sphere Mr. Stott rarely par-
ticipated in the afl'airs of civil or of social life. He
was, however, a director of the I'rescott Bank from its
orgai:ization. He was a member of the Pawtucket
Lodge of !M:isiius, having received his degree in
Lodge of Hope, Rochdale, England, in l.S2.'i. He was
a constant and exemplary worshiper in High Street
Congregational Church
He died on June 14, 1881, at his residence on
Cliesluut Street, at the age of eighty-iwo years.
At bis funeral, in High Street Church, there was a
large concourse of citizens by whom he was honored
and revered. It was an interesting and touching in-
cident of the solemn occa-sion, that he was borne to
the grave by workmen in his mills who had long
known him and had toiled by his side.
Hon. Charles \. Stott succeeds his father as agent
and president of the Belvidere Woolen Manulacturing
Company, Mr. John Stott being superintendent of
Mill No. 2. In its two mills the company employs
2o0 hands, and manufactures tlanneU and dress-
goods. The oldest mill of the company is situated on
Howe Street.
The Stirling Mi/Is were built by Charles Stott, agent
of the Belvidere Woolen-Mills, as a private enterprise.
They were run by his son, Charles A. Stott, for eight
years, when they were purchased by a corporation,
the principal owners being Parker, Wilder i Co., of
Boston. The agent of the Stirling Mills is Edward
I). Holden. The mills have seventy-two looms, 5000
spindles and employ 13o hands, making 2.000,000
yaids of flannel per year.
F/aiinel Mills, etc., of C. P. Talbot 1- O;.— The ex-
tensive manufacturing plant of this company is in
North Billerica, but from the fact that their store is
in Lowell and that the senior partner was long one
of the most prominent citizens of Lowell, a sketch
of his life containing an account of the manufac-
tures of the firm is here inserted.
Charles P. Talbot belongs to that class of ster-
ling men, who, by their courage and energy have
turned the adversities and defeats of their early
years into the very means of final success and tri-
umph.
He was of English extraction and was born in
Templemore, Ireland, May 19, 1807, and died at his
home on Chestnut Street, Lowell, July C, 1884, at the
age of seventy-seven years. He was the lineal de-
scendant of John Talbot, first Earl of Shrewsbury,
who, in 1458, at the age of eighty years, died at the
battle of Chatillou, leaving estates in Ireland, on one
of which, in Templemore, the ancestors of Mr. Tal-
bot resided.
In 1807, William Talbot, the grandfather of Mr.
Talbot, with his family, came to America, and in con-
nection with his son Charles, the father of the sub-
ject of this sketch, eng.-iged in the manufacture of
broadcloth in Cambridge, N. Y. Charles Talbot, the
father, wius evidently a man of property and culture;
for he brought with him a large library, in which
were several editions of Shakspeare. His enterprise
ill Cambridge was probably unsuccessful, for in 1819
he removed his business to Danby, Vt., where, after
four years, he died, leaving his wife with a fiimily ot
eight children without means of support. The two
oldest sons, Jidin and Charles P., the latter being then
sixteen years of age, were removed from school and
put to work in aid of the support of the family. The
mother w:is a woman of great energy and possessed
those sterling qualities which afterwards character-
ized her son.
In 1825, two years after the death of her husband,
she removed to Northampton, Mass., with the hope
of finding employment for her older sons in the
woolen-mills of that place, and for the better educa-
tion of the family. Mr. Talbot, after working in the
mills at Northampton, came to Lowell, to act as over-
seer in the Middlesex Mills of this city. In 1834,
when twenty-seven years of age, he went from
Lowell to Williamsburg, near Northampton, where
he engaged in woolen manufacture on his own ac-
count. But the business panic of 1837 proved ruin-
ous to his enterprise, and he disposed of his businesf
in Williamsburg in 1838, and returning to Lowell, he
soon rented of the Middlesex Canal Company certaiu
buildings in North Billerica, where he commenced
the manufacture of dye-stufl"s.
And here fortune seems first to have smiled upon
him, for he soon purchased and enlarged the estab-
lishment, and in 1839 formed a partnership with his
brother Thomas, under the title of C. P. Talbot &
Co For twelve years the brothers operated the dye-
86
HISTORY OF JITDDLKSEX COUNTY. MASSACIirSETTS.
wood mills with such marked succes"*, that in 1851
they purchased of the canal coinpaii}' the water-
power and other property and erected mills for the
manufacture of Hannels.
Before this, in 1849, they had started their chemi-
cal works in North Billerica, and they had also, as
early as 1842, opened a store in Lowell for the sale
of dye-stuffs and chemicals. This store was first
located on Central Street, opposite the Washington
House, subsequently for many years in the Market
House on Market Street, and recently in tlie Talbot
Block on Middle Street.
And here it is interesting to compare the humble
beginning of the enterprise in IS'iS with its present
coudiiion. We see ilr. Talbot in 1838, his former
business having been luiricd by the linancia! panic of
the previous year, beginning in a rented building and
in a small way a new manufacture, with nothing to
aid him but hia firm will, his admirable self-reliance
and his fi.xed resolve to retrieve his fortunes.
In order to mark the contrast, it is enough to set
before the reader a summary of the present condition
of the two great manufacturing companies which
have arisen out of that humble beginning. 1st. The
Talbot Dye-Wood an<l Chemical Company man-
ufactures sulpburic, muriatic ami nitric acids, oil of
vitriol, extract of imligo, blue vitriol, solutions of
tin, 7.inc and antimony, tin crystals, drugs, dye-woods,
etc., employing thirty men. 2d. The Talbot Mills
make all-wool flannels and dress goods, using twenty
seta of cards, IGG looms and employing '2~'> men.
But the reputation of Mr. Talbot doea not <lepen(l
alone upon his business talents and the courage with
which he has met the reverses of life, but also upon
the noble qualities of his heart, his generous sympa-
thies, his indignant scorn of every act of o|)pression,
his charity for the poor and his open and hearty es-
pousal of every gooil cause. His convictions were
positive, and the friends of humanity knew where to
find him.
In all that paternal and generous treatment of the
employes of the firm which has already been de-
scribed in the sketch of his brother Thomas, found
on another page, the elder brother was in hearty
sympathy and generous co-operation.
The two brothers were alike and r^fforded an admi-
rable example of fr.iternal sympathy. In both the
moral nature predominated. In both the love of
honor, justice and kindness rose nobly above the love
of gain.
The earlier years of the elder brother were in-
tensely occupied with the unsolved problem of busi-
ness success and he had no time and acquired no
love for political honors, while the younger brother
came later upon the stage when the prospect of suc-
cess in business seemed already .-ussured, and very
naturally his active mind turned upon the important
questions of Civil Government and led him to accept
the exalted position which he so honorably filled.
Both had their battles in life, both fought with equal
bravery and both came out of the cnnHict with e<iual
honor.
Mr. Talbot loved his liojne. In the domestic circle
he was most tender and indulgent. Me was fond of
books and was a thoughtful reader. Hi.s reading took
a wide range, but he was especially familiar with the
English CliUfsics.
His wife survives him. Of bis two sons, Edward
R. died in 1872 and Julian resides in Lowell. His
only daughter is the wife of Richard H. Ewart, a
merchant in New York. The sketch of the life of
Mr. Talbot would not be complete without further
reference to his excellent wife and to the memorial
chapel which she erected in \^Si> to her husband's
memory.
Jlrs. Harriet E. Talbot was born Sept. 7, ISIG, and
was the daughter of Captain John and Polly Rt>gers,
of Lempster, New Hampshire. She became the wife
of Mr. Talbot May Z, I.S:j.'.. In the year following
the death of her husband, wishing to erect some me-
morial of his name which would at once be an honor
to the city and a fitting monument of his worth, she
devised and erected in the Lowell Cemetery a modest
and beautiful cha[)el. It is constructed of stone, hav-
ing before the entrance a graceful arch adorned with
flowering plants and climbing ivy. The structure
ailmirably comports with the well-known tastes of
her departed husband. It was dcdicateil on Novem-
ber 1, 1881). .\n ap|>ropriate eulogy of Mr. Talbot
was pronounced by Rev. Mr. Seward, his Ibrmer pas-
tor and friend, and it was formally dedicated by the
Rev. Dr. Street in language impressive and solemn,
in which he called down the benediction of God
'■ upon her who had cau.sed it to be erected."
L(jivell Felling-Mith, Pawtu<ket Street, manufacture
•ill kinds of hairf'eltlng lor uon-conducting, lining
and packing purposes. About I,200,(J0it pounds of
American and Runsian cattle-hair consumed annu-
ally. Fifteen hands are employed.
Moses A. Johnson in lS.'>y started the felting busi-
ness on Howe Street. In 18G5 Mr. Johnson and his
partners, George Bruerton and Williau) E. Bloodgood
purchased a aaw-mill on Pawlncket Street and trans-
formed it into a felting-mill. This firm in IStiS sold
out to William H. Thompson, Mr. Jounson taking
the position of manager. On the death of Mr. John-
son, in 1874, Henry M.Thompson, son of the jiroprie-
tor, became manager. The latter bought out his
partner in 1881 and is now sole proprietor.
Nocelly Siispeiiiler Worl.:i, Hale Street, manufacture
elastic and non-elastic webs, web-straps, braid, cords
and suspenders, employing thirty-five hands. The
proprietors, Josiah and John Harriman, removed their
business from Tanner Street to Howard Street in 1881
and to Hale Street in 1886. These works have been
twice enlarged.
FaiilLntT Mills.— In 1863, Alfred H. Chase erected
a large brick mill between Lawrence Street and Con-
LOWELL.
87
cord River, for the manufacture of woolen goods,
and, in 1864, L. W. Faulkner also erected a similar
mill in the immediate neighborhood for a like pur-
pose. On October G, 1880, a fire caught in the dry-
room of the Chase Mill, and both mills were con-
sumed. The loss upon the Chase Mill was $185,000,
and upon the Faulkner Mill over $100,000. Both
were fully insured. As to amount of loss this was
Lowell's largest fire. The Faulkner Mill was rebuilt
in 1881, and, in 1886, the Chase Mill property was
purchased by L. \V. Faulkner and his sons, Fred-
erick and John A. Faulkner, and a large mill erected
on its site. The two mills are known as " The
Faulkner Mills." The manufactures are dress goods,
fabrics, flannels and gents' suitings. The firm also
operate the Livingston Mill, on Thorndike Street.
The machinery in both mills embraces 13,000 spindles
and 184 broad fancy looms, the product being $900,-
000 per year, and the number of operatives about 500.
Both water and steam are used as motive powers.
T%e Siiyden Bagging Company, Mechanics^ Mills,
Dutton Street, manufactures press bagging used in
the process of obtaining cotton-seed oil. Five looms
are run and 100,000 to 125,000 pounds of worsted are
used annually. Five hands are employed. Thomas
Sugden started this business about 1873. Mr. Sugden
died in 1888. The business is now managed by
James Brown and Edward Craven.
J. M. Spurr, oc Shattuck Street, manufactures cus-
tom shirts, shirt-bosoms, cufis, etc. He started
business in the place which he now occupies, in 1870.
He employs four hands.
The Kew England Bunting Company has its origin
in the small manufactory for press-dyeing flannel,
started by John Holt, in 1852.
John Holt was born in Dorchester, N. H., Decem-
ber 26, 1812. When eighteen years of age he came
to Lowell and worked at cabinet-making from 1830 to
1852. In ihe latter year he commenced the work of
press-dyeing flannel in a small wooden building on
Davidson Street. In 1863 he began the manufacture
of flannel in the stone mill on Davidson Street, now
occupied by the New England Bunting Company. In
December, 1875, Mr. Holt commenced the manufac-
ture of flags and bunting. In 1880, E. S. Hylan, the
son-in-law of Mr. Holt, purchased the business. lu
1889 the business was transferred to a joint-stock com-
pany, consisting of E. S. Hylan and Ferdinand Rod-
lifl", Jr.
This company employs forty-five hands, runs
twenty broad and fifty narrow looms, producing fancy
worsteds for dress goods, Turkey red awning stripes,
bunting, flags and carriage robes or dusters.
Whittier Coltnn-AIills. — For the history of these
mills see sketch of life of Moses Whittier. The
mills are on Stackpole Street, and have 5000 spindles
and employ seventy-five hands, making yarns, twines,
bandings and cord, and using six bales of cotton per
dav.
Mo.sES Whittier belonged to that class in the city
of Lowell, of which but few now remain, who early
became identified with the manufactures of the city,
and who spent a long and busy and honorable life
amidst its thriving industries. He was born in
Canaan, N. H., April 16, 1795, and died at his home
on Kirk Street, in Lowell, March 14, 1884, at the age
of eighty-nine years. He belonged to the pure New
England stock, his most remote American ancestor,
Thomas Whittier, having, in 1638, come from South-
ampton, England, in the ship " Confidence," of Lon-
don, and settled in Salisbury, Mass.
Beginning with Thomas Whittier, the direct gene-
alogical line of descent is as follows: 1. Thomas Whit-
tier, of Salisbury, afterwards of Haverhill, who was
born in 1620, and died in 1696, at the age of seventy-
six years. 2. John Whittier, of Haverhill, who was
born in 1649, and died in 1721, at the age of seventy-
two years. 3. William Whittier, of Methuen, who
was born in 1688, and died in 1729, at the age of
forty-one years. 4. Richard Whittier, of Methuen,
who was born in 1718, and died in 1778, at the age of
sixty years. 5. Richard Whittier, of Methuen, af-
terwards of Canaan, N. H., was born in 1755; died
in 1813, at the age of fifty-eight years, and was the
father of the subject of this sketch.
Thomas Whittier, the earliest of this line of ances-
tors, held an honorable position in " church and
state," as is attested by the fact that he was admitted
" Freeman " by the General Court in 1666. Among
his numerous descendants inNew England is included
the poet Whittier.
Moses Whittier lived upon his father's farm until
1813, when, at the age of eighteen years (his father
having died), he removed to Hallowell, Me., to live
with an elder brother, where he learned the trade of
machinist and jeweler, and for several years was en-
gaged in mechanical pursuits. During these years
he was so much an invalid in health that he hardly
dared to venture upon any arduous duty or serious
responsibility. But when about thirty years of age
he was appointed superintendent of a cotton-mill in
Winthrop, Me., and assumed the position with the
remarkable result that his new service in the cotton-
mills had the efl^ect to confirm his health and give him
new strength and courage, so that almost to the end
of his long life of eighty-nine years, though always
in delicate health, he was able to perform, with great
regularity, the many important duties that devolved
upon him.
In 1829 he came to Lowell and was employed un-
der Warren Colburn, superintendent of the Merri-
mack Mills, in starting one of the dressing-rooms of
that corporation. Upon the organization of the
Boott Mills, in 1835, his skill and experience were in
requisition for starting also one of the dressing-rooms
of that corporation. In 1852, while still retaining his
connection with the Boott Company, and having
charge of all the belting in its mills, be began, on his
88
HISTORY OF MTDPLESFA' COUNTY. .MASSACIITTSETTS.
own account, the manufacture of loom-haruesses ami
twine.
So successful (lid this adventure prove, that in 1807
his son, Henry F. Whittier, left his business in Bos-
ton, and. coming to Lowell, entered into partnership
with his father in the manufacture of twine.
Henry F. Whittier was born in Lowell, August 4,
1833, and was educated in the schools of the city.
On leaving the High School he engapied, for seven-
teen years, in the insurance business in Boston. At
the end of this time he came to Lowell and formed
the partnership with his father, as stated above.
So remunerative was this enterprise that in 187S
the spacious and substantial building on Stackpole
Street was erected to accommodate the increasing;
business of the firm. This mill has l)een twice en-
larged. The remarkable success of this firm and its
high reputation are due, first to the uprightness and
integrity of the father and next to the enterprise and
ability of the son.
In 1887 the establishment wa.s incorporated under
the name of the "Whittier Cotton-Mills," with E. JI.
Tucke as presideut and Henry F. Whittier as treas-
urer.
Since the death of Henry F. Whittier, in 1888, four
years subsequent to the death of hi.s father, Jliss
Helen A. Whittier, the only survivor of the children
of Moses Whittier, has, as treasurer, had the general
supervision of the atl'airs of the corporation, with
Nelson Whittier, his nephew, as practical manager.
The articles now manufactured are cotton twines,
bandings an4l ropes, which, on account of the reputa-
tion of the firm, find a ready sale. The business
gives employment to about seventy hands.
As a citizen, Moses Whittier was verj- widely
known and very highly re.'pected. The taste which
he early formed for farming, I'ollowed him through
life. He had a special tbndness for the cultivation of
grapes and fruit-trees, and for keeping bees, and for
such other occupations .as an .igriculturist of culti-
vated tastes loves to engage in. He was also a lover
of books and kept abreast of the literary progress of
the times. He took a lively interest in the library of
the Mechanics' .Association, and at one time wa.s ils
treasurer. Perhaps no trait of his character is more
worthy of record than the benes'olence of his nature.
The poor always found in him a cheerful giver, and
the many workmen in his employ loved and honored
him for the considerate and generous kindness which
they received at his hands. In his death Lowell
lost a citizen of refined taste, of blameless life, and of
great moral worth.
E. S. Wheeler, Fletcher Street, makes double-
knotted loom harnesses and harness-machines. Em-
ploying six hands. He started the business in the
present location in 1888, having previously done busi-
ness on Arch Street, with Thomas F. Burgess as
partner.
The United Stales Buntiny Company, with Gen. B.
F. Butler, D. W. C. Farrington and others as jiropri-
etors, and Walter H. McDaniels, as manager, com-
menced operations in ISiiO, and have since experi-
enced very little change, either in man.ageuient or
operation. Their mill is of brick, and is situated on
Crosby Street. It has nine sets of cards, six combs,
5000 spindles, 220 looms and employs (JOO hands.
About (jOOO pounds of wool are consumed per day.
The manufactures are bunting and worsted cloths.
Tlie Lowell Goring Wnrl.s were started in 1S88, by
W. F. Copson, who remains sole |)roprietor. He man-
ufactures shoe-goring and braid, having ten em-
ployees. The works are at Mechanics' Mills, Button
Street.
(Jrnsslcy Miiiiii/dctiiriin/ (.'niiipaiiii, manufacturers of
indigo-blue Hannels, ladies' diess-goods, and fine
cloakings.
This business was begun in 1SG4 by W'm. Walker
& Sons, in a brick building at Mitssic FalU, on Law-
rence Street, owned by C. B. Richmond. .V:- business
increased, Mr. Richmond erected Ibr the conii)any
another building of stone. Both these buildings were
used by the company until the death of Mr. Walker
ill 1888. The sons, after continuing the business fur
over a year, sold it out to W. M. ('rossley, who is the
i present proprietor. The mills contain six sets of
cards, llioO spindles, twenty-lour looms and give em-
ployment to about one hundred hands.
Mac Stockinij Co)iij>ani/. — Mr. Benjamin F. Shaw,
having invenied a new knitting-loom, for the nuinii-
facture of seamless stockings, a com[>any was incor-
porated in 1S77, with a capital of i-;!u,000 for the pur-
pose of putting the invention into successful opera-
lion. Work was begun promptly upon the construc-
tion of nine of these machines, and one of them was
so far completed in the autumn of 1878 .as to allow of
its exhibition at the lair of the JIassachusetts Charit-
.ible Mechanic Association, heid in Boston in that
year.
Contrary to the predictions of exjierts in the hos-
iery manufacture, the new knitting-loom, on actual
trial, proved its superiority. The capital, theretbre.
was increased, in 1870, to j^lGU.OUU. Six acres of land
were procured for the plant, and in ISSd a new brick
mill of three stories W!is constructed. Success fol-
lowed. In 1880 the capital was increased to .^240,000.
The new knitting-loom was called for in Europe. Mr.
Shaw spent several months in London in exhibiting
his invention to knitters from almost every European
country. A company was formed to start a manufac-
tory in Leicester, England, for using the new knitting-
loom.
Meanwhile the increased demand for the " Shaw-
knit " goods in America was so great, that the capac-
ity of the mill was still further enlarged. The success
of this enterprise is due both to the superiority of
the loom and the excellence of the goods produced.
The company has now (1890) a capital of $360,000.
F. J. Dutcher is presideuti Josiah Butler, treasurer;
LOWELL.
89
B. F. Shaw, manager. The company employs 500
operatives and runs 273 stocking looms, producing
daily 8400 pairs. They manufacture the patent Shaw-
knitstockings. "Since the discovery of the remarkable
dye, trade-marked Sitov blait by the company, a dye-
bouse has been added to its plant, for dyeing all the
variety of goods turned out, whether wool, merino or
cotton." The mill, dye-works and office are on Smith
Street.
Josiah Butler, Gorham Street, manufactures batting
and deals in waste, employing fifteen hands, consuming
1500 pounds of cotlon daily. He started the bu.siness
in its present location in 1871.
Wiltiaiii H. Carter, in his mill on Congress Street,
in which, in former years, A. J. Richmond, and, after
him, Geo. Ri()ley had manufactured batting, now
makes ladies' dress goods and union ca.ssimeres. He
has four sets of cards and thirly-four broad looms.
He also does a wool-scouring business, using Sar-
gent's latest improved seouring-machine. He em-
ploys about forty hands.
Tlie Thonidikc Manti/actiirinij Company, on Thorn-
dike Street, produces about 500 dozen pairs of sus-
penders per day, employing 150 to 175 hands, run-
ning thirty-five looms and twenty-five sewing-ma-
chines. This business was started in 1870 by Dav-
id C. G. Field, who early received a? partners Luther
J. Eames, Asa C. Russell and James G. Buttrick.
The company was incorporated in 1889. Mr. Butt-
rick is treasurer and agent.
The Lowell Hosiery Com/>aii;/ was started in 1809,
mainly through the efforts of W. F. Salmon. A char-
ter was granted to \V. F. Salmon, Thomas Nesmith
and Hocum Hosford May 20, 1809.
Starting with a capital of §10u,000, the company
afterwards increased it to Sl75,000, which is mostly
owned in Lowell.
The plant is situated on Mt. Vernon Street. This
company manufactures annually 275,000 dozen wom-
en's plain cotton hose, 150,000 dozen women's and
children's fancy cotton hose, consuming 800,000 ib.s.
of cotton and yarn yearly, and employing 100 male
and 200 female operatives.
The Pickering Knitting Company, on Tanner Street,
was started by C. C. Pickering, Edwin Lamson and
E. A. Thisseli in 1882. J. W. C. Pickering, son of
the senior partner, was admitted into ihe firm In 1883,
Mr. Lamson retiring at the same time. The firm
manufactures knit underwear for men and women,
employing 500 hands. The works are located on
Tanner Street.
M. li B. Rhodes began the manufacture of worsted
yarns for carpets of all kinds on Wall Street in 188C.
They consume 350 to 400 pounds of wool daily and
employ thirteen female operatives.
Waller Coburn d- Co., dealers in cotton waste. —
About 1852 Alanson J. Richmond started, on Con-
gress Street, the manufacture of cotton batting. Mr.
Richmond having died at the end of about eight
years, George Ripley succeeded him in 1860, and for
eleven years made wadding and batting. Mr. Ripley
was succeeded, in 1871, by the Wadding and Paper
Company, which held the plant till 1877, when the
larger mill was occupied by William H. Carter (men-
tioned elsewhere), and a part of the building has
since been used by Walter Coburn & Co. This latter
company purchases and sorts cotton-waste, and sells
it both in home and foreign markets, where it is used
in the manufacture of yarns, grain-bags, satinets,
horse-blankets and paper. The company employs
about forty -eight hands.
Wahh Worsted Mills, Meadowville, manufacture
worsted yarns. The new mill has ninety looms and
5000 spindles and 150 employees. The business was
removed to its present location from Middlesex
Street in 1882. The proprietors are M. T. Stevens &
Sons, successors of John Walsh & Sons.
Lowell Worsted- Mills, James Dugdale, proprietor,
on Willie Street, manufacture worsted yarns for cas-
simeres, knit-goods and coatings, employing eighty-
five hands. Mr. Dugdale started the business in 18G0,
and is a pioneer manufacturer of fine worsted yarns.
He was born in England, 1820, and came to America
in 1847. Since 1872 his son has been his partner.
The Lladnek Mills. — The proprietors of these mills,
R. W. Kendall & Co., seem to have found a name for
this manufactory by spelling the principal proprie-
tor's name from right to left. Mr. Kendall's first
manufactorj' was a small wooden building in the
yard of the Wamesit Power Company, where, for six
years, beginning with 1878, he was employed simply
in dyeing cotton flannel. In 1884 Kendall & Co.
erected, for their business, on Lawrence Street, near
the cemetery, a spacious wooden building 200 by 60
feet, and three stories high, having two large exten-
sions. The work of the mill consists in printing and
dyeing both cotton and woolen flannel. The firm
has selling agencies in Boston, New York, Philadel-
phia, Chicago and Detroit. H. D. Kendall is superin-
tendent, and Walter B. Perkins, paymaster. The
firm employs about sixty hands and prints and dyes
from 15,000 to 25,000 yards of cotton flannel per day.
The United Statet Cord Company commenced, in
1880, the manufacture of solid braids of cotton, linen
and worsted for all purposes. The works are on
Lawrence Street, and employ fifteen hands and con-
sume about 500 pounds of cotton per day. Among
the articles of manufacture are railroad signal cords,
window-sash cords, curtain cords, chalk lines, etc.
The officers of the company are : Prestisa Webster,
president; Paul Butler, treasurer; Charles Gray,
superintendent.
Tlie Cutter & Walker Manufacturing Company. —
The business of this company was started in 1852, by
G. W. Walker and Dr. Stephen Cutter, and conducted
by them until 1875, \. hen a stock company was formed
with a capital of $40,000. Mr. Walker died in 1876
and Dr. Cutter died in 1881. Jacob Xichols is now
90
HISTORY OF MIDPLKSEX COTTNTY, AlASSACnU.-^ETTS.
president and treasurer of the company. The manu-
factures are shoulder-braces, suspenders, abdominal
supporters, shoe-linings and paper stock. The works
are located on .Middlesex Street and thirty hands are
employed.
W. L. Davis, in Davis & Sargent's building on 5Iid-
dlesex Street, manufactures elastic and non-elastic
webbing. Employing twelve to fifteen bauds. He
started the business in 1881, and is the successor of
RoUason & Sherman.
John M. Pevey, on Walker Street, manufactures cot-
ton yarns, single and twisted, suspender and other
yarns and suspenders to order. This business was
started in 1882, the proprietor having previously
been partner with his three brothers in the brass
and iron foundry business. He is also the proprietor
of the American Improved Foss and Pevey Cotton
Card.
The Crilcrwn Knitllug Company was started by
Edwin Lamson and W. C. Hamblet in 1888. Before
the end of the year 1888 the company became incor-
porated, there being four stock-holders, namely, Jaines
F. Puft'er, Stephen B. Puft'er, Warren C. Hamblet and
Edwin Lamsini. The works are on Tanner Street.
The company employs eighty hands, and manufactures
ladies' Jersey vests, 100 dozen being produced daily.
Metal Maxltfactures. — The American Boll
Company. — In 1847 James Meadowcroft and George
C. Smith started the manufacture of iron bolts anrl
nuts, in a building hired of O. M. Whipple, in what
is now the Wamesit yard. It was the tirst bolt man-
ufactory in the United States. The work was all
done by hand and the process slow. In 1854 D. S.
Sherman was admitted partner, and in 1855 the pres-
ent main building of the company was erected. Sub-
se<iuently Jonathan Hope, Richard Dewhurst, Robert
H. Butcher and James Minter at different times be-
came members of the firm. Mr. Minter's invention
of a heading-machine seems to have finally secured
the success and permanency of the manufacture. In
1881 the American Bolt Company, which was incor-
porated with a capital of $200,000, succeeded to the
business.
Success followed. Fifteen hundred tons of iron are
now consumed annually. The manufacture consists
of bolts for railroads, bridges and other purposes ; also
nuts, screws and washers. One hundred and fifty men
are employed. The company has a high reputation
and very extensive patronage.
To a novice the works are of great interest. " A
hole is punched through a cold iron plate U inches
thick as easily as if it were a s'.ice of cheese. Everj*
thing is done with dies. A die cuts the hole in the
nut, cuts the nut itself and shapes it, and gives it its
thread. The bolts are headed in a machine, threaded
in a lathe, and polished in an emery barrel."
The officers of this company are : James Minter,
president; Percy Parker, treasurer; and Miles Bren-
nau, general manager.
K'ltson Marhine Coinpani/, Dutton Street. — Richard
Kitson came to Lowell from England in 1849, and,
building a shop in what is now Broadway, started
the manufacture of the first needle-pointed card-
clothing in this country. He invented various ma-
chines for opening and cleaning cotton fibre, on
which he secured patents. From these small be-
ginnings the present extensive works — probably the
largest in America for a similar pur|)ose — were de-
veloped. Mr. Kitson was sole proprietor until 1874,
when the Kitson Machine Company was organized,
the president of which is now Jacob Rogers, and the
treasurer Haven C. Perham.
The company manufactures cotton-openers and
lappers, wool-washers and dyers, employing 225
men.
Parsons li- Meuley, Fletcher Street, make copper
stamps and stencils for cotton and woolen and hosiery
mills, bleacheries, etc. This business was started in
1843 by R. J. Dewherst, Wui. Parsons becoming a
partner in 1S45. In 1S57 the firm liecaine Parsons
& (iibby, and in 1881 Pars(ii3 & Mealey. Parsons
having now retired, Mr. Mealey is .sole proprietor.
Tlie Perey Brothers, on Walker Street, iron and
brass founders, employ seventy men, and annually
use 1500 tons of iron. The f.iur brothers, Jnhn M.,
George E., Franklin S. and James \. Pevey, started
the business of iron and brass founders in 1871.
In 18S2 John A. Pevey retired from the firm to
enter upon other business. The business is thriv-
ing under the other brothers. Their manufac-
ture includes brass, composition, copper, bronze ami
white metal castings, also water-works and sewer-
c:i3tings, lamp-posts, grates, window-weights and rail-
road supplies. They al;:o manufacture zincs for tele-
graph, telephone and fire alarm batteries.
UiiioK Brass Fnimdry, Wnrthen Street, produces
all kinds of brass and composition casting*, liabbit-
metals, etc., employing six men. This foundry has
been in operation since 1881. Alfred L. .Smith is the
proprietor.
Daniel Cushingii Co., 5Iid<llesex Street, manufacture
plain and ornamental galvanized iron and copper
work, employing fifteen men. The company an-
nually consumes twenty to thirty tons of galvanized
sheet-iron, and from eight to ten tons of cast and
wrought-iron.
David Cushing started this business in 18()',», with
G. W. and F. Smith, of Boston, as partners*. He had
been a partner of S. G. Mack, in the stove business,
from 1835 to 18t;9, the firm of Cushing & Mack being
one of the best known throughout the city.
Mr. Cushing ilied in 1887, and his son. Joseph L.,
succeeds him, the old firm-name being still retained.
John Dennis li: Co., NS'estern Avenue, manufacture
presses for every variety of work, roll-coverers' tools,
etc., employing twelve men. The firm consists of
John Dennis and his son, J. Nelson Dennis. The pres-
ent firm started in 1882. The father had previously
LOWELL.
91
carried on the business from about 186G to about
1879.
Siannell d- Wholty manufacture steam boilers, stand-
pipes and reservoirs, steel and iron-plate work and
fire-escapes, employing thirty to fifty men, and con-
suming forty to fifty tons of iron |)er month. This
business was started in 1880. Tbe works are on Tan-
ner Street.
Middlesex Machine Company. — This company was
started by F. G. Perkins and W. G. Wright in 1888.
In 1889 the firm was changed to C. S. Shepard and F.
G. Perkins. They are contractors for heating and
ventilating buildings, and employ eighteen men.
Their works are on Western Avenue.
A. Nourbourn, corner of Gushing and Willie Streets,
manufactures steam, iron and wood-working ma-
chinery, employing ten men. He started the busi-
ness in 1877.
Wm. C/eivortIt ti- Sons, manufacturers of weavers'
reeds, on Middle Street, employ five men. This
business was started by Wm. Cleworth & Son at
Mechanics' Mills in 1860. It was removed to Middle
Street in 1868, where it is still conducted by Wm.
Cleworth and his two sons, David aud Edwin Cle-
worth.
Oeo. W. Harris, at his mill on Pawtucket and Per-
kins Streets, manufactures loom-harnesses, running
one English, nine double-knot, one double machine
and sixteen Harris machines, his own invention,
employing thirty-five hands. In 1860 Mr. Harris
started this business in a wooden building on Perkins
Street. In 1880 he removed to the spacious brick
manufactory which he now occupies.
In 1867 W. \V. Carey started the manufacture of
shafting, hangers and pulleys. Soon Geo. W. Harris
was received as partner, and the firm of Carey & Harris
continued the manufacture until 1879, when Harris
retired from the firm. Since that time the business
has been carried on by W. W. Carey. The manufac-
tory is on the corner of Broadway and Mt. Vernon
Streets. Number of hands employed, fifty.
Lowell Spring-Bed Company manufactures the
Lowell Bed-Spring in Nesmith's Block, Merrimack
Street. The proprietor, J. L. Severance, started the
business in his present location in 1887.
Lowell Rubber Type Company, Nesmith Block, Mer-
rimack Street, manufactures rubber stamps, etc. The
business was started by J. L. Severance on Central
Street in 1880. In 1884 he removed to big present
location.
IF. H. Bagshaic, Wilson Street, manufactures and
exports comb, gill, hackle and card pins, circles for
combing-machines, fallers, gills, hackles and porcu-
pines, weavers' combs, and manufacturers' supplies,
employing twenty-five hands. The business was es-
tablished in 1873.
Charles E. Oee, Fletcher Street, manufactures
worsted and wood-working machinery, employing five
hands. He started the business in 1888, succeeding
Wm. Robinson, who had long done business in the
same place.
Samuel E. & Thomas Stott, Meadowcroft Street,
manufacture needle and diamond-pointed wood and
leather card clothing, machine wool combs, circles,
gills, fallers, hackles, shoddy and waste-pickers, rag-
dusters, etc., employing from forty to fifty hands.
This business was removed to its present location
from the yard of the United States Bunting Company
in 1886. Before 1881 it had been located on Market
Street.
W. B. Glover. Hurd Street, stencil-cutter, engraver
and lock-smith, started the business as stencil-cutter
in 1853, and has since enlarged it by becoming an
engraver and, later, lock-smith.
Ariston Grocer, steel letter, stamp and stencil-cutter
on Market Street, has worked at the business about
forty-five years. After having had his place of busi-
ness on Middlesex Street for twenty-five years, he
came to his present location on Market Street in 1888.
His son, Charles O. A. Grover, is now the manager of
the business.
Lowell Steam-Boiler Works manufacture steam-
boilers, bleachers and bleaching kiers, tanks for
all purposes, penstocks, flumes and quarter-.forns
for turbine-wheel work.
These works were started on Button Street, by
Stephen Ashton, in 1856, and sold to Wm. Dobbins in
1804. Wm. Dobbins was killed in 1873, being
crushed by a boiler (which had not been properly
supported in its place). In 1875 Charles Cowley
purchased the works. In 1877 they came into the
hands of Richard Dobbins, the present proprietor,
who employs forty to seventy men and uses about fifty
tons of iron and steel per month.
The New England Wire Goods Company at
Holt's Mills, Belvidere, manufactures every descrip-
tion of wire-ware. This business was started by J. W.
Kenvin & Co., in 1882, and was then called The
Lowell Wire Works. In 1889 it was purchased by
W. F. Kenneson, who is the present treasurer and
manager. He employes twenty men.
Wm. d- Hartley Wadsworfh in 1888 started the
manufacture of tempered cast-steel card wire on
Bridge Street, also high grade cast-steel wires. They
employ five men.
Jeremiah Clark, dealer in cotton and woolen
machinery, began business in Middle Street in 1867.
In 1888 he removed to his new and spacious building
on Dutton Street. He has a mach'ne-shop and store-
house on Perrin Street, employs eighteen men, and
uses an electric motor of ten horse-power.
A. Haltowell, Market Street, manufactures brass
goods, also Hallowell's spray-nozzle, fountain
stands, mill hydrants, fire department supplies, etc.
This business was begun by A. Hallowell in 1863, on
Middle Street, with C. L. Willoughby as partner.
Subsequently it was carried on in Franklin Square by
Reed & Hallowell, having been removed to Market
112
IITSTORY OF MIDDLKSEX COrLNTY, IMASSACnUSKTTS.
Street about 1879. It is imw conducteil by A. Hallo-
well as sole proprietor.
M. A. Mack it Co., oil Sliattiick Street, manu-
facture gal vauized coruices, wimlow-caps and brackets,
iron and tin roofs; they are also tin, sheet-iron, brass
and copper workers. This firm succeeds to a business
long since established. Sewall G. Mack came to
Lowell in 1840, and, in company with Daniel Cash-
ing, established the well-known firm of Gushing &
Mack, dealers in stoves, etc. On the retirement of
Mr. Gushing, the firm became S. O. JIack & Go. The
senior partner having retired, a new firm was formed
in 1880, consisting of \V. .\.. Mack and Geo. H. Wat-
son, who started bu.siiiess in their new and elegant
building on Shattuck Street. The firm employ.s
eighteen men and uses sixty to r<eventy-(ive tons of
galvanized iron, and twenty-five tons of black iron
per year.
D, H. Ul/noii cL- Co., Gushing Street, manufacture
slasher cylinders, silk and dresser cylinders, ccdor and
dye-kettles and all kinds of copper work for mills,
euiploying seven men. The business nf the firm was
first on Central Street about 1872. It was removed
to Gushing Street in 1880, and in IS'Jd it is U< be re-
moved to the spacious and commodious brick Ijlock
erected for 'ton Dutton Street.
Mr. Wilson wa.s the first man in .Vmerica to make
the copper slasher cylinders.
The KiKiicles r>ciile Wurks, on Fletcher Street, were
started in 18.'57 by \Voods& Nute, who were succeeded
by John A. Knowles, .Ir. Mr. Jvnowies ilieil about
1883, and the business was purchased by Williaiu Jrl.
Tliomps<iii, of Salem, who is now the proprietor.
These works manufacture all varieties of standard
scales, and also all foreign slandard-s. .Vliout tiiiuo
are annually made. Twelve men are employed.
Large sales arc made in Southern and Western States,
and in Mexico and Brazil.
I'ke Union Iron Fnicndry, W. P. Edwards, proprie-
tor, oil Lincoln Street, consumes about 7l'0 tons of
iron annually, employing about thirty men. The
company started business in 1872. In 1889 Mr. Ed-
wards became sole proprietor.
A. L. Wright, corner of Rock and Fletcher Streets,
has for his specialty the nianufaeture of engine-
lathes. Mr. Wright started in business for himself
eighteen years ago. His increasing business required
him to move, first from Dutton to Gushing Street, and
then to his present quarters, where he has a Moorage
of 10,jOO feet. He employs thirty to thirty-five
hands.
.S'. C. it G. H. Smith, Broadway, manufacture cap
and set-screws, employing fifteen men. In 1884 they
succeeded S. C. Smith, who had commenced the busi-
ness in 1808.
Benjamin Lnwrtnce, on Broadway, manufactures
engioe and hand lathes, planers and shapers ; also
combined index and milling machines, employing
twelve haudu. He started the business on Fletcher ;
Street in 18o4. Subsecpiently he removed to Mt.
Vernon Street, coming to his present location in
1870.
Jo-irph Tarntr, Broadway, manufa<tiires jack,
cotton, sugar, rigger, planking, locomotive, claw-jack
and large jiress screws, boiler-punches, turn-buckles
of all sizes, ic, employing eight men. He started
the business, as sole proprietor, in lS7o succeeding
Thomas Atherton & Sou. Mr. Turner came from
j England in 18')4, worked nine years ;us engineer lor
: ihe Pacific Mills in Lawrence, became partner with
I .Vlherton & Son in Lowell in 18i)4, and bought out
I his partners in 1875. The business was formerly
1 conducted near Stott's Mills in Belvidcre.
The Sn'tiin Tiirhinf tliitl Mmmjitrtuiiiiii CimijKint/,
, corner of Dutton and \Villie Slivils, lioes work bv
j contract. The wheels of the company arc wt-ll-known
j throughout the country, being used in many large
I nianufacturicg coni|i:inies. It was established in
1804.
' Fniiil: Cn/rert. .l.'ickson Street, maniifaclures ami
repairs machinery, cniployiuL' three to six men.
When President Lincoln called for 7-'i,ii(Hi loen in
1801, Mr. (.'alvert was living in Alab.ima. Me claims
that he was the only man of llial State who answered
the call. He suliseqiieialy lame north, and in lsil4
started his present biisincss.
His father, Francis A. (alvert. was a British sol-
ilier who came to Lowell in IS:!:l. and became dis-
' linguished as an inventor. He was said to have been
the first man in .Vjiicrica to make m.icliiiiery for
spinning worsted. I'.efore this invention we were in-
debted to England lor worsl<d yarn. It is alxi
claimed that he received ibe lirsl paleiil in the world
for combing Wool liy macliincry. In his cnlerprises
be bad the aid of liis brother W. W. I ';ilven. Like
many other inventors lie failed lo :iii|uire wcallli.
'. He returned to Eoirland, where he diid in the city of
.Manchester.
l>. C. Brown, on Warren Street, manufactures
reeds, harne.sses and patent wire !u<ldlcs lor cotton
and woolen-mills. The business w.is established in
1830. He employes thirty hands anil makes lin,-
000,(100 heddles per year.
ir. //. Hope iL' Co., Gushing Street, manufactures
milled machines, cap and ^^et screws and jack sjiool
journals. The firm consists t)f Wm. II. Hope and
Ale.xaiider GuUilaiid. They are the successors of
Elliot it Go.
The Lou'i'll Card Co/n/iani/ was started as a private
enterprise by a firm consisting of .Icremiab Clark. ( '.
L. Harmon and Levi Edgell. Siibseiiuently J. W.
Whittier was adinitteil into ihe firm. An act of in-
corporation was secured ill 1873. The company has
ninety-five machines for the manufacture of card
clothing for carding wool and cotton and employs
twenty-two hands. The plant is on the corner of
Market and Shattuck Streets.
F. a. Per/dns started the business of making ma-
LOWELL.
n:'.
chinists' tool sand lathes at Mechanics' Mills in 1859.
After about two years he removed to Middlesex
Street, then to Middle Street, where be remained
about three years, and then to his present place on
Fletcher Street. He employed about forty-five men
His specialty is engine lathes.
T. C. Entn-isUc, in Gates' Block, Worthen Street,
manufactures patent \var[>ers, balling, linking and
chaining macliines, Entwistle's patent expansion
comb and common combs for warpers, beamers and
slashers. Mr. Entwistle was formerly with the Hope
dale Machine Company in Hopedale, Mass. He
started business on his own account in 1887 in Gates'
Block in Lowell.
//, J. ■'<-nrycr manufactures machinery on Broad-
way, employing two hands. Mr. Sawyer, as member
of the firm of Smith, Lawrence & Co., began the
business on Fletcher Street in 18.'i4. He came to his
present location in 187(». The large brick manufac-
tory which he now ciucupies (in part) was erected for
hi^ business and that of Benjamin Lawrence.
Geor;i'' L. <''uli/, curner of Wejteru Avenue and
Fletcher Street, manufactures machinists' tools and
loom-harness hooks and eyes. He has occupied his
lirespnl location about eight years, having previously
done Imsine-s in PerkiMs' building on Fletcher Street,
and in Davis and Sargent's building on Jliddlesex
Street.
T/i'- Aiiieii'-'iii Wire GooiU Oniijininj^ Payne Street,
near Schor)l Street, manufactures patented and special
wire hardware, and makes a specialty of bronzing,
platingand japanning, em ploying from twenty to thirty
hands. The company started business in 18.S8.
Pltillips (f •S'liihoni, Western Avenue, manufacture
files and rasps. Tlie firm consist of ,1. L. Phillips
and A. 1). Sanliorn, who are successors of .Fohu
l)Mckwortli. The firm also iloes business in Salem,
.Mass., having set up the bramli of business in Lowell
in isssi.
JViii. K'linirl,:^^ ( 'iisliing Street, manufactures hand-
cut files and rasps of every description, emjiloying
four men. He started the business at his present
location in is.ss, having previoti-ily carried it f)n for
ten years on Miildlese.x Street.
C A. J)o'li/'\ Payne Street, manufactures shoddy-
j)icker machines and pins, and covers shoddy-pickers,
employing eight hands. He started the business of
making s!ioddy-|iicker pins in 18S2, in Davis and Sar-
gent's building on Middlesex Street. In 1889 he
moved into the building on Payne Street erected by
himself for accommodating his biisinesg.
iSainne/ (!. Cooper, Central Street, manufactures
copper stamps, stencils for cotton and woolen-mills,
lileacheries, hosieries, etc., employing six hands. He
liegan the l)UsiMcss in 1872, having J. H. C<inier for
partner, who had conducted it for a few months be-
fore the partnership was formed. Since the death of
Mr. Corner in 188), Mr. Cooper has been sole j)ro-
prietor .
Joet Knapp <{• Son, machinists and manufacturers
of nuts, bolts, screws, etc., and wood- work machinery.
This business was established by Geo. L. Richardson,
who, in 188.5, was succeeded by Joel Knapp & Son.
Mr. Knapp learned his trade as machinist at the
Lowell Machine-Shop. This firm makes special ma-
chinery to order, and materials for bridges and all
kinds of buildings are manufactured by them. They
employ ten skilled workmen.
I). Cole and A. F. Xichols started the manufacture
of iron and brass castings in 18.'i8, and still continue
the business on the corner of Willie and Dutlon
Streets. They give special attention to the casting of
pulleys and hangers, iron pipe and columns. Their
operations include turbine water-wheel work and
machinery castings. They employ fifty men.
Daniel Lorejoy (0 Son, manufacturers of machine-
knive.=, on Rock and Cushing Streets. This business
was started as early as 1S.S8. The firm employs
twenty-five hands.
Gen. ir. Fifield started the business of making
machinists' tools and lathes in 1874. The works are
on Fletcher Street, and sixty hands are employed.
Ci/n/s /"fr/f/ix manufactures machinists' tools, cm -
ploying five men. He started the business in 18S2,
on Dutton Street, his present place of business being
still on Dutlon Street.
Woods, Shenrood it Cnmjiany, manufacturers of
lustral wire-ware of every description. This busi-
ness was started by E. P. Woods, and Daniel
Sherwood in 1861. In ixiiii Cyrus H. Latham was
received as partner. Mr. Sherwood died in 1877, and
since that time the business has been conducted by
E. P. Woods and < 'yriis H. Latham. The factory is
on Bridge Street at f^iol of Seventh Street. Number
of employees, sevciiiv-five. iS'ickel and gold-plating
is a part of the business, and the firm has a high
reputation.
Riee A Co.'s Wire iro(7-.«.— In 1849 S. L. Hildreth
began the manufacture of wire work, in a small way
on John Street. He was, about 18()0, succeeded by
Henry A. Hildreth, who moved the business to Cen-
tral Street, and was succeeded by Hildre'h A: Rice,
on Middle Street, about 1872. Hildreth retired in
1874, and the business is now in the control of Frank
E. Rice. The firm title is Rice & Co., Mt. Vernon
Street. The firm manufactures wire cloth, nettings,
office-railiugs, bird-cages, rat-traps, etc., employing
fifty men.
Lowell Steam and Gas-Pipe Works, established by
Horace R. Barker, are among the most successful and
important of the business enterprises of the city.
Horace R. Barker was one of those men of
sterling intrinsic worth, wiio, having risen from a.
childhood and youth of hardship and toil, have
fought a good fight and attained an honorable name.
He was of English descent, his early American an-
cestors having settled in Pomfret, Conn. His grand-
father, John Barker, went from Pomfret to Stratford,
94
HISTORi'' OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
N. H., where his father, Albermarle Barker, was born.
His father removed to Lexington, Mass., where the
subject of our sketch was born on June 27, 1829.
While he was yet a child the family moved to Xew-
ton, Mass., where the father pursued his trade as
maker of cutlery and other implements of steel.
It was the father's misfortune, at the age of about
forty- four years, to be almost fatally injured by fall-
ing down a precipice. This injury he survived in a
helpless condition for about five years. His wife and
eight young children were thus thrown upon their
own resources, not only for their own support, but
for that also of the invalid father. It was in this
struggle that Horace Barker learned that self-reli-
ance and efficiency in business which characterized
his future career.
At the age of eighteen years he entered the ser-
vice of the New England Gas-pipe Company, in Bos-
ton, and proved to be a workman most highly prized
by his employers for the fidelity of his service. On
one occasion, in case of fire, there was the imminent
danger of the explosion of a boiler, unless some one
would take his life in his hands and prevent the dis-
aster, young Barker did not hesitate to encounter
the fearful risk, and, after accomplishing his object,
he was drawn insensible from his perilous situation.
In 1851, with the aid of his employers in Boston, he
started the business of steam and gas-fitting in Low-
ell. His machine-shop for three years was on Howe
Street, but afterwards on Middle Street, in a spacious
building erected by him.self. He also opened a store
in Barrister's Hall, on Central Street, for the sale ot
steam and gas-fixtures. This extensive business he
carried on during the last thirty-five years of his life,
gaining for himself a handsome amount of property,
as well as the name of a business man of the highest
character.
Mr. Barker never sought political honors, though
he was often nominated for office, because his name
gave strength to the ticket. He was in the Board of
Aldermen in 1877-79, and he served the city with
great ability and fidelity. On .several occasions he
was importuned to be a candidate for the mayoralty,
but this honor, on account of the urgent demands ol
his business, he felt it his duty to decline.
Mr. Barker was greatly interested in the pursuits
of agriculture, and he owned a highly-cultivated
farm in Dracut. H.e wa.s at one time president of the
tru.'stees of Lowell Cemetery, and at the time of his
death he was a director of the Merchants' Bank. He
was a man of broad and liberal views, and of a gen-
erous, benevolent nature.
In the pride of his manhood and in the midst ol
his successful career there came upon him a fatiil dis-
ease, the enlargement of the heart. He struggleil
bravely against it. He sought renewed health at his
.Measide cottage, but all in vain. As the inevitable
hour approached he begged to be carried back to his j
home in Centralville, which he hud himself erected.
and which contained all that he held most dear. And
here, in a few short days, he quietly passed away.
He died on Sept. 8, 1886, at the age of fifty-seven
years. His wife and his two daughters, and also his
aged mother, now in her ninetieth year, survive him.
Wood Manufactubes. — .1. L. Brooks A Co., Me-
chanics' Mills, corner of Fletcher and Dutton Streets,
! manufacturers of packing cases, moldings, gutters,
I doffing-boxes, filling-boxes, etc. This is one of Low-
' ell's oldest and best-known firms.
j This company consumes about 2,000,000 feet of
; lumber annually, employs nearly sixty men, and runs
j a saw-mill in Middlesex Village.
1 Artemas L. Brook.'; was born in Groton, N.
H., September 20, 1803, and died at his home on
Fletcher Street, Lowell, ,Iuly 3, 1878, at the age of
seventy-five years. He was the son of Peter Brooks,
a farmer in Groton, who removed soon after his son's
' birth to the neighboring town of Hebron. His early
American ancestors belonged to Middlesex County,
Massachusetts.
Jlr. Brooks received his elementary education in
the common schools of Hebron. For a short time he
attended the academy at Pembroke, N. H. His early
years were mainly spent upon his father's farm. He
also learned the carpenter's trade and served as
teacher of a district school. When twenty-five years
of .age he went to Boston, and in that city and in the
navy yard at Charlestown he worked at his trade as
carpenter and in other employments for two or three
years. .Subse(|uectly he returned to Hebron and en-
gaged in farming for one year. It was in this year
that he married Mi.ss Sarah Philips.
In 1831 he came to Lowell while it was yet a town,
and worked as carpenter and general builder. Houses
constructed by him in this early period arestill stand-
ing, and are occupied as dwellings. After one year
he formed a partnership with Thomas P. Goodhue
(afterwards postmaster of the city), for the introduc-
tion of Woodworth's planing-machine. Subsequently,
this partnership having been dissolved, he conducted
the business alone 'n a shop which stood near the
site of Stott's Mills, in Belvidere. At length, with
William Fiske sis partner, he carried on the lumber
business in the yard of the Jliddlesex Manufacturing
Company, having there a planing-mill. About this
time he invented the double surfacing planing-ma-
chine, for which he obtained a patent.
In 18-lii, with Ignatius Tyler as partner, he erected
the Mechanics' Mills, at the corner of Fletcher and
Dutton streets, and engaged in the manufacture of
lumber. It was in these mills that Mr. Brooks,
through the remaining th"rty-one years of his life,
carried on a very extensive and very successfiil lumber
business, gaining for himself an enviable name for
ability and integrity. Even to the present day the
familiar firm-name, A. L. Brooks & Co., is au honor-
ed name among the citizens of Lowell.
At different times Mr. George W. Shattuck, Wil-
%-'^<STW^---'^i'\
LOWELL.
fl5
liam C. Brooks and George H. Ames were partners
of Mr. Brooks. '
In 1872 Mr. A. B. Woodworth, his son-in-law, be-
came a member of the firm, and during the twelve '
years since the death of Mr. Brooks he has continued
to conduct a very large and successful business in a j
great variety of lumber manufactures.
But the history of Mr. Brooks has by no means
been written when he has been described as a suc-
cessful man of busine^.s. It is as a good citizen, as a
hearty friend of every work of philanthropy, as a I
whole-souled Christian gentleman that he will be j
longest and most afiectiouately remembered. j
Mr. Brooks was long connected with the Fire De-
partment of Lowell, and served upon the board of '
engineers. He was for several years in the Board j
of School Committee. In 1849 and in 1855 he was 1
in the Board of Aldermen. He also held the office of ,
trustee of the City Institution for Savings, and direc- [
tor of the Prescott Bank. |
It was, however, as a religious and philanthropic '
man that he was best known. As a member of the j
Appleton Street (now Eliot) Church for six years,
and of the John Street Congregational Church for
thirty-six years, he was actively and officially en-
gaged in all works of benevolence and philanthropy.
Especially ardent were his anti-slavery sentiments.
Mr. Brooks' chosen field of religious effort, however,
was with the young men of the city. For twenty-
five years, in the Sabbath-school of his church, he
had a large class of young men, in leaching whom he
is .said to have taken a " wonderful delight."
The writer cannot do better than to close this brief
sketch with an extract from an address delivered soon
after the death of Mr. Brooks, at the fortieth anni-
versary of the John Street Church, by George Ste-
veus, Esq., who had in church work long been associ-
ated with him :
" His manly, nolile presence, his brave, honest,
generou> heart, full ot all high, holy and honorable
aspirations, his ever-abounding hope and implicit
faith in the final triumph of truth and justice, his
rugged training and wonderful success in business,
which carried hiui on from the beginning of a jour-
neyman carpenter, dependent upon his daily earnings,
to the pi'sition of a leading business man in ourcity —
all combined to fit him for a teacher and leader of
young men. No young man ever came in contact
with him, whom he did not lift and encourage, and
who did not learn to respect and love him.''
Mil/oil Aldrirh c(mimenced in 1842, with E. Hap-
good a.s partner, the manufacture of power-loom and
carpet shuttles. They were at first located near the
site of the .Middlesex Woolen-Mills, but in 1843 re-
moved to Middle S'reet, and in 1844 began the manu-
facture of wooden screws. The firm removed to
Howe Street in 184G. In 1848 they sold out the shut-
tle business, and dissolved the partnership. Mr.
Aldricli co'ilinued the making of wooden screws, and
was burned out in Howe Street in 1851. In 1865 he
came to Mechanics' Mills, where he is still engaged in
making wooden screws and clamps. He employs
seven to t«n hands.
J. S. Jaquef Shuttle Company manufactures power-
loom shuttles for every description of work. Factory
at Whipple's Mills. This business was started by E.
& R. Douglass in 1833, over the old saw-mill in the
yard of the "Machine Shop," Mr Jaques being one
of the workmen of the firm. At length Mr. Jaques
was admitted partner. One of the Douglass partners
having died, the business was removed to Middlesex-
Street, and carried on by the firm of Coburn &
Jaques. On July 20, 1863, Mr. Jaques, having be-
come sole proprietor, a fatal accident occurred, by
which, through the explosion of a boiler, four
of the workmen were fatally injured. Mr. Jaques
then removed to the present location, where he has
erected a spacious and elegant manufactory, and, in
company with his son, John L. Jaques carries on a
very extensive and profitable business, employing
thirty-five hands.
G. W. Bagley, on Middle Street, manufactures Bur-
rows' dryair refrigerators, doors, signs, window-
screens, etc., employing ten to twenty men. This
business was started by W. L. Floyd about 1878, on
Prescott Street, who sold it to Bagley about 1882.
Mr. Bagley removed to his present location in 1887.
' Marshall d: Crosby, Middlese.T Stieet, manufacture
cabinet-furniture, side-boards, roll-top desks and
I book-cases, etc., employing forty hands. This company
I started business in 1864. Mr. Marshall had carried
I on the business in Tewksbury ten years before the
' partnership in Lowell was formed, and he left the
j firm in 1885, Crosby now having no partner.
' J. G. Peabody A- Edvard Fifield started the manu-
' facture of doors, sashes, etc., at the Mechanic Mills,
j on Warren Street, near the site of the Middlesex
Woolen-Mills, in 1844, and removed to the corner of
, Dulton and Fletcher Streets in 1846. Mr. Fifield
' left the firm in 1854. Since 1873 the business has
been conducted by the company known as J. G. Pea-
body & Sons. The manufactory is in Wamesit Mills.
' The business amounts to $(J0,000 per year. Sales are
made mostly in New York and Boston. Twenty-five
i or thirty bands are employed.
1 J. B. Goodwin & Co., manufacturers of house and
I office furniture, started business on Western Avenue
i in 1889. They employ ten men and give attention to
the^nterior finish of offices, banks and stores. F. J.
Farr is the partner of Mr. Goodwin.
Silas W. Fletcher, manufacturer of doors, sashes,
blinds and window-frames, on Western Avenue,
started his business at Wamesit Mills in 1863. He
employs thirty men.
W. H. Kimball, stair-builder. The business of this
manufactory was started by Thomas Pratt in 1840.
Pratt was succeeded, about 1870, by Griffin & Ste-
vens. About 1877 Gordon i^ Kimball became the
96
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, JfASSACHUSETTS.
proprietors. Gordon having left the firm in 1885, W.
H. Kimball remains the sole proprietor. The manu-
factory is on Diitton Street and employs three men.
Davis <f- Sargent, manufacturers of packing-boxes,
on Middlesex Street. Stephen C. Davis, the senior
member of this firm, is a veteran in his line of busi-
ness. From 1852 to 1866 he was, with Otis Allen, en-
gaged in making boxes. In 1866 he formed a partner-
ship with Mr. Storer, who soon retired, and the firm
became Davis & Melendy. Upon Mr. Melendy's re-
tirement, in 1873, Benjamin F. Sargent, of Nashua,
who had long been in the same business, took his
place, and the firm of Davis & Sargent la (me of the
most successful in the city, doing a very large and a
very lucrative business. Besides box-making, a very
large business is done in bringing lo^s from the north-
ern forests and making thera into lumber. Their
saw-mill turns out 3,500,000 feet of lumber annually,
and the firm employs forty-five men. In box-making,
etc., they use 225,000 feet per month.
Olis Allen, the veteran manufacturer of boxes, is
the father of Charles H. Allen, recently member of
Ccipgress. He commenced the business in 1850. lu
l>i51 he enlarged his liusine.ss by purchasing a saw-
mill, and, in 1852, bought a tract of land in the Fran-
conia Mountains, and engaged in running logs down
the Merrimack. From 1862 to 1872 Mr. Allen was
out of business, but in 1872 resumed, in partnership
with his son, the manufacture of boxes. ft wa.« to
meet the demands of their thriving busine.ss that the
son has recently retireil from political office.
The firm employs about one hundred men. They
make Allen's lock-cornered filling-boxes, dotting- '
boxes, roving cans anil mill work generally. The
machinery is driven by an engine of 150 hfirse-power.
1>. H. Bemii it' Co., Mechanics" Mills, designers antl
manufacturers of artistic furniture. Mr. Bemis, the
head of this firm, in 1880 came to this city from
Brattleboro', Vt., and after wcirking fur C. I. Taylor
as a machine hand for four years, became partner in
the firm of Carter i*e Bemis. Since 1885, Mr. Bemis
has been sole proprietor. He employs ten hands and
does a large business in the manufacture of all kinds
of house finish, brackets, balusters, stair-work, bank,
store and ofiice fittings, mantels, sideboards, etc.
Anwsa Pro/I d- Co., manufacture doors, sashes,
blinds, mouldings, church furniture, etc. This com-
pany's business was started by M. C. Pratt, in 1848.
The establishment was burned out in 1865. Mr.
Amasa Pratt, in this year, came into the firm. 'His
brother, M. C- Pratt, the original owner, died in 1884,
since which time .^masa Pratt hsus been the only pro-
prietor. He employs forty men, and consumes
5,000,000 feet of lumber annually.
Tiiijlor A Co. started the manufacture of furniture
on Middlesex Street, in 1877, and were burnt out in |
1878. On starting, the firm consisted of ('. I. Taylor
and Charles F. Heard. The manufactory is at the
Wamesit Mills, and the firm consists of C. I. Tavlor
and J. T. Carter, who are designers, carvers and man-
ufacturers of all kinds of store and office furniture,
interior finish, wood-work, mantels, etc. They em-
ploy thirteen men.
The Union Stopple Compumj, Western Avenue, has
facilities for turning out twenty-two barrels of bungs
per day. Lowell seems to have been the head-
quarters for this manufacture, which was .started in
this city by Josiah Kirby. John Batchelder, the
proprietor of the Union Stopple Company, was first
established in the business in 1858. After being three
times burned out, and after a prolonged absence from
Lowell, about 1886 he resumed his business in this
city.
John L. Cheney i(- Co. established the manufacture
of bobbins, spools and shuttles of every description
on Payne Street in 1888. They pay special attention
to making Cheney's patent spools. They employ
seventy-five hands. The manufacture of true-run-
ning bobbins lor patent spindles is a specialty of
their manufucture. Previous to 1887 Mr. Cheney
had been, for twenty-two years, a partner of Wm. H.
Parker in the same business. Edwards Cheney, his
son, i.s MOW his partner in business.
The Mtrrimarl: Croqnet Coin/mni/, on St. Hyacinth
Street, manufactures croquet .sets, ten-pins, ring-toss,
Indian I'lubs, base ball bat.s. and castor wheels, and
employs sixty hands. In 1875 Whitney it Willard
took this biisiuess from .Vddison Hadley, who had
previously run it in a small way. In two years Blair
it Son took it, and were followed by Moulton it Co.,
whr.solil it to Pease iVt Ames. In 1879 B. F. Colby
look the business and increased it to its present
magnitude. He took S. P. Griflin as partner in
18.S!I.
IT/zi. H. I'arLer <f Son, at Wamesit Slills, Dutton
Street, make bobbins, spindles, spools, shuttles, etc.,
for the manufacture of cocton, wool, silk, flax and
jute. They employ 2"0 hands. Wm. H. Parker and
Everett Nichols started the busine.ss of making shut-
tles, bobbins, etc., in 1859. Subsefjuently John L.
Cheney became a partner, but since 1887 the part-
nership has been that of Parker & Son.
Tlie Cohurn Shuttle t'ompany, comer of Tanner and
Lincoln Streets, manufacture shuttles, bobbins and
spools. The business was started by .lohn H. Co-
burn in Brooks' Building on Dutton Street in 1866.
Mr. Col)urn had previously been associated with J. S.
Ja(|iics in the shuttle manufacture. Coburn sold to
Boardman it Morse in 1869, the works having, in 1867,
been removed to First Street, Centralville. In 1S70
the firm of Lamson, Thissell & Pickering became
proprietors. They were made an incorporated com-
pany about 1885, with a ca|iital of $100,000, with Ed-
win Lamson president.
Sturterant <C' (laler, manufacturers of post-rails,
balusters, stairs and wood-turning. This business
was started by Fred. .V. Sturtevant in 1884. Mr.
Galer became his partner in 1888. The firm attends
LOWELL.
97
to all kinds of house furnishing, and employs four
men.
A. Bachelder & Co., on Mt. Vernon Street, are pro-
prietors of the New England Bung and Plug Factory,
employing ten hands. They started businessabout 1868.
S. Baker, Fletcher Street, makes tanks and vats for
tanneries, bleacheries, breweries and dye and chemical
works, also harness frames. Employs two men. Since
the death of his son, W. S. Baker, in 1886 (who had
been his partner), S. Baker has been sole proprietor.
Mark Holmes, Jr., <t Son, at Wamesit Mills, started
their business as wood-turners and house-finish manu-
facturers in 1887. The firm does general jobbing in
the wood-turning and finishing line. EmplojssLs men.
L. W. Hawkes, furniture and mattress-maker. Mid-
dle Street. Mr. Hawkes started business in 1882, in
East Merrimack Street, having James Sexton as part-
ner. He removed to Prescott Street in 1883, and to
his present location on Middle Street in 1890. Mr.
Sexton was his partner only for a brief period. Mr.
Hawkes gives attention to upholstering and repairing
all kinds of furniture. Hair mattresses are made over
and put in good condition. He employs twelve hands.
If. E. Hatch, at Wamesit Mills, manufactures
brackets, stair-posts, newels, balusters, scrolls, win-
dow-frames and house-finish, employing three hands.
Mr. Hatch started this business on Gushing Street in
1884, and came to Wamesit Mills in 1886.
John Welch, manufacturer of furniture, started his
business in 1885 on Button St. His place of sale is on
Middlesex St. He employs twenty men. He manu-
factures furniture for churches, libraries, stores, etc.
Win. Kelley »t Son, Mechanics' Mills, manufacturers
of doors, sashes, blinds, window-frames, etc. This
business was started by Wm. Kelley in 1845. Mr.
Kelley died in 1887, since which time the business has
been in the hands of his son, Frank F. Kelley, who
had become partner three years before his father's
death. Twenty men are employed, and from 300,000
to 400,000 feet of lumber are annually used.
A. P. Bateman manufactures sash, blinds, mould-
ings, window-frames, etc., on Mt. Vernon Street, near
Broadway. He started this business in 1879. In 1889
he was burned out, and having no insurance he lost
S5000. But he was able to pay his debts, dollar for
dollar, and is now (1890) with new buildings doing
business again. He employs thirty men.
Edward A. Allen and Frank P. Cheney are starting
on Western Avenue a manufactory of boxes and
cloth-boards. The firm-title is Allen & Cheney.
E. G. Cummings, at Wamesit Mills, manufactures
plain and fancy boxes, employing six men. The bus-
iness was started about 1878.
iJ. J. Colcord, Wamesit Mills, manufactures refrig-
erators and furniture, employing fifteen to twenty
men. He began the business about 1880, at his pres-
ent location .
Allen Howard began the manufacture of coffins and
caskets at Mechanics' Mills in 1888. Employs four men.
7-ii
John Remick, Fletcher Street, makes patterns and
models, employing two men. He started the business
in 1887, and was the successor of Pierre Cagnon.
Badger & Kimball, Mechanics' Mills, manufacture
office and store fittings and furniture of all kinds, em-
ploying twenty-five men. They started the business
in 1889.
Stone Manxtfactukes. — Sweai & Davis, granite
workers, on Thorndike Street, employ thirty men,
and during the year use 15,000 cubic feet of stone.
They make fronts of buildings a specialty. This firm
started in business in 1877, succeeding Clough, Davia
& Sweat, who began the business about 1852 on
Western Avenue.
Andrews & Wheeler, Thorndike Street, at their
Monumental Granite and Marble Works, employ
twenty-five to thirty men. They started the business
in 1857. The firm consists of C. H. Andrews and C.
Wheeler.
Carl C. Laurin, Gorham and Anderson Streets,
makes all kinds of granite monuments and tablets,
employing five men. He started business in 1889.
James Mahan, marble and granite worker, opposite
the Fair Grounds. He began business in 1876. He
is mostly confined to monumental and cemetery
work, employing five hands.
LewU D. Oumb, off Maple Street, prepares granite
for cemetery and building purposes, using steam-
power for polishing, and employing fifteen men.
These works have been in operation since 1873.
Charles Bunels, Congress Street, general granite
worker. This establishment has had many changes
in its proprietors. It started under George Runels,
Clough & Co., in 1855, the senior partner being ex-
Mayor Runels, the father of Charles Bunels. In
1873 the firm became Runels, Davis & Foster, and in
1877 Runels & Foster. In 1879 Charles Runels be-
came sole proprietor, and still continues the business.
Among the buildings erected by this firm have been
the State Prison at Concord, Mass., the New England
Life Insurance Building, the Girard Bank in Phila-
delphia and the stone-work of Aiken Street bridge.
The number of hands varies from twelve to one hun-
dred according to the contracts on hand.
The Staples Brothers, School Street, manufacture
sewer gratings and back-water valves, and are agents
for the Akron Sewer and Drain Pipe, and are also
dealers in fire-bricks, chimney-tops and fire-clay
goods. The brothers, R. H. and W. H. Staples, suc-
ceeded N. T. Staples & Sons in 1880. N. T. Staples,
the father of the Staples Brothers, started this busi-
ness about fifty years ago, taking his sons as partners
before 1880, and selling out to them in 1880.
C. A. Kendall, near Davis" Corner, manufactures
hydraulic cement drain, sewer and culvert pipe from
three to twenty-four inch bore, also chimney-tops
and well-pipe, employing ten men.
Leather Maxufactcreks. — Whitney <£- Weston
manufacture leather belting, worsted aprons, loom
98
HISTORY OF MILBLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
strappiDgs, rubber belting, finished belt leather and
raw hide and patent lace leather, employing eight
men. This business was started by Whitmarsh &
Adams in 1857. From 1862 to 1880, Phineas Whit-
ing conducted it. He was succeeded in 1880 by his
son, H. F. Whiting, who has for his partner J. F.
Weston. The location of this business has been from
the beginning in or near the Savings Bank Building,
on Shattuck Street.
Josiah Gates & Sons, 137 Market Street, manufac-
turers of belting, hose, lace-leather, loom straps and
pickers, banding, harness leather, etc. For the his-
tory of this firm, see sketch of life of Josiah Gates
in this work. The firm consumes 20,000 hides for
belting annually, have a tannery on Chelmsford
Street and employ thirty hands.
Josiah Gates. — The inauguration of the great
manufacturing enterprise in East Chelmsford (now
Lowell), in 1822-23, was regarded throughout New
England with peculiar interest. Upon the farms on
the hillsides there were many young men, in humble
life, who had high aspirations and willing hands, and
who only waited for an opportunity. Of this number
was Josiah Gates.
He was born in Townsend, Vt., August 31, 1805,
and was the son of a farmer. On account of the
death of both his parents, he was early called to en-
dure hardships and take responsibilities which,
though grievous to be borne, doubtless laid the foun-
dation of his future success.
He labored upon a farm until eighteen years of
age, when he entered the service of a clothier in
Townsend, and for three years was employed in the
work of carding and finishing.
In 182fi he came to Lowell and found employment
in the fulling-mill of Daniel Hurd, and afterwards in
the service of the Merrimack Company. This com-
pany, owning a fulling-mill on Cape Cod, put it in
charge of Mr. Gates. But at length, preferring to re-
aide in Lowell, he returned to his service in the Merri-
mack Mills, and after about one year was employed
as overseer in the weaving and dressing department
of the mills of the Lowell Company.
In 1845 Mr. Gates went into business on his own
account, still retaining, however, his relation to the
Lowell Company. He rented a store on Dutton
Street and commenced the manufacture and sale of
leather belting and other manufacturers' supplies.
The enterprise proved a decided success, and he was
several times compelled to enlarge his facilities for
manufacturing. In 1861 he added the manufacture
of leather hose for the Fire Department, and did a
large business in that line.
In 1858, for the purpose of furnishing leather for
his manufacture of hose and belting, he started an
extensive tannery on Chelmsford Street. In 1866 he
admitted into partnership his two sons, J. E. and P.
C. Gates, and in 1870 his third son, R. W. Gates.
In 1869 Mr. Gates became interested in the manu-
facture of the Markland carpet power-loom, of which
he owned the patent. In the interest of this latter
enterprise he went to Europe in order to introduce his
power-loom into foreign manufactories of carpets.
In 1881 he erected a fine brick block on the corner
of Market and Worthen Streets, for the manufacture
and sale of hose and belting, a business which is still
successfully prosecuted by Prescott C. & Royal W.
Gates, the sons who survive him.
The able management of the affairs of this firm
from its beginning, and the excellent quality of its
goods, have gained for it a wide reputation and
brought an ample reward.
Mr. Gates was a man of liberal views and widely
extended sympathies. He took an active interest in
the welfare of the city, having served in the Common
Council in 1863, in the Board of Aldermen in 1865
and 1866, and in the State Legislature in 1868. He
was a director of the Wamesit Bank, of the Lowell
and Andover Railroad, of the Lowell Hosiery Com-
pany, of the Turner's Falls Manufacturing Company,
of the John Russell Cutlery Company of Turner's
Falls, and of the Hillsboro' Mills at Milford, N. H.
He had a special fondness for agricultural pursuits,
and at agricultural shows many of the products of his
highly-cultivated lands on Gates Street, on which was
his residence, were wont to appear on exhibition.
Mr. Gates did much to build up the city of Lowell.
He was a man of strict integrity, of sterling common
sense, and of unsullied character. He died on May 2,
1882, at the age of nearly seventy-seven years. Two
sons and five daughters survived him.
Wm. Parr began the manufacture of belting, etc.,
on Middlesex Street in 1868, and removed to Dutton
Street in 1881. He makes worsted aprons, leather
belting, lace leather, and employs three men.
John Pilling established the manufacture of
women's, children's and misses' boots, shoes and slip-
pers for Southern and Western trade on Worthen
Street in 1887. He employs seventy-five male and
fifty female operatives.
Arey, Maddock & Locke, Lincoln and Tanner
Streets, tan and curry grain, buff, wax and split
leather, employing 125 to 150 hands. This firm
started in business in 1878, succeeding Shepard&Co.,
who had succeeded E. G. Cook. The business has
been carried on in this place for about thirty-eight
years, and has suffered much from fires. It was
started by Lund, Clough & Co. in 1852.
Israel Bent, manufacturer of belting, trunk handles
and dealer in card clothing on Market Street, started
the business at his present location in 1866. He em-
ploys three hands.
White Brothers li Co., on Howe Street, inventors
and sole manufacturers of ooze leather, and dealers
in organ, piano and fancyleathers, buck, chamois and
wool skins, employ 250 men. They have a salesroom
in Summer Street, Boston. The brothers are E. L.,
H. K. and W. T. White. Their father, William H.
a.
c^
LOWELL.
99
White, who is aleo connected with the firm, estab-
lished the business in 1868.
William Heney White was born in Woburn,
Massachusetts, October 26, 1829, and is the son of the
late Colonel Samuel B. White, of that town. His an-
cestors on both sides were of the pure New England
type, possessing in a marked degree the energy, cour-
age and inflexible principles that characterized the
earlier settlers of this country. His father, a true,
earnest citizen, was the first treasurer of the town of
Winchester and also took the most forward part in
establishing a public library in that town. He was
the first commander of the " Woburn Mechanics'
Phalanx," a military organization of prominence for
the past fifty-five years.
From his father Mr. White inherited many of the
traits which have made his life a success.
On his mother's side the record is the same. His
maternal grandfather. Deacon Calvin Richardson, pos-
sessed great intellectual and moral worth, and was
blessed with a family of ten children, all of whom,
together with all their respective wives and husbands,
were, at the same time, members of the church of
which he was an honored officer.
Mr. White received his elementary education in the
common schools of Woburn, and for one year attended
the academy in that town.
Beginning with the sixteenth year of his age he
devoted himself for four years to learning the trade of
a machinist. When twenty years of age he was em-
ployed in the locomotive works of the Boston &
Lowell Railroad and was soon promoted as overseer of
the locomotive repair-shop of the Western Division of
the New York and Erie Railroad at Hornellsville,
N. Y. At the age of twenty-two years he was
appointed superintendent of the repair-shop of this
road at Dunkirk, N. Y., where he had under him about
seventy-five men engaged in starting the works.
After one year's service at Dunkirk he was induced
to return to Woburn (now Winchester) to engage in
the manufacture of mahogany and other fancy woods,
which was then a very thriving and profitable busi-
ness in that town. It was here that he suflFered his
first reverse ; for after a successful business of three
years his works were destroyed by fire.
In 1855 Mr. White, being now twenty-six years of age,
began the work of tanning and manufacturing leather,
a business which he has now followed for thirty-five
years. In the third year of his new business came
the financial crisis of 1857, by which his enterprise
was completely prostrated. Finding no sale for his
large stock of hides, he was compelled to settle with
his creditors as best he could.
In the following year Mr. White was employed by
a Boston firm as superintendent in building and es-
tablishing an extensive tannery in Montreal. After
four or five years in this employment, preferring to
reside, and educate his family, in New England, he
came to Lowell in 1863, during the Civil War, and
started the business of manufacturing gloves from
leather prepared by himself. After eight years he
relinquished the manufacture of gloves and devoted
himself exclusively to the more remunerative busi-
ness of leather manuiacture, a business in which he is
still extensively engaged with remarkable success.
For twelve years a brother of Mr. White was his
partner, but the firm now consists of Mr. White and
his three sons, Edward L., Henry K. and William T.
White, under the firm-name of White Brothers & Co.
The firm has an extensive tannery in Lowell and a
large store in Boston. They employ about 300 hands.
Their manufactures consist of the finer grades of
leather for boots and shoes and for a great variety of
fancy leather goods. The firm has a very extensive
business, making sales, not only at home, but also in
Europe. They are among the largest users of calf-
skins in the country, and in their mantifacture of col-
ored leathers occupy the very foremost position in
the trade. They also tan many varieties of kid and
goat-skins, and are daily receiving at their works skins
collected by their buyers in every part of the globe.
Mr. White is a gentleman of high character, gen-
erous nature and refined taste. Though he has been
a member of the City Council of Lowell, he has little
fondness for public life or for the numerous societies
which invite him to their membership. He finds his
chosen pleasures in the retirement of home and the
felicities of domestic life.
He has been twice married — in 1854 to Miss Maria
Theresa Towle, and in 1888 to Mrs. Maria C. Lyon,
daughter of the late Judge Nathan Crosby, of Low-
ell. His family consists of the three sons already
mentioned, and one daughter, Maria Theresa White.
Mr. White has purchased and now occupies the
house and grounds formerly owned and occupied by
the father of £is present wife, where, upon, the hUl-
side overlooking the city, he delights in his fine gar-
den adorned with comely shade-trees and winding ter-
races, and rich with a vast variety of fruits and flowers.
L. S. Kimball, on Shattuck Street, roll-coverer and
manufactnrerof leather loom-pickers and card-leather
belting. He employs six men. Moses F. Kimball,
the father of the present proprietor, started the busi-
ness in 1866 on Market Street. It was afterwards re-
moved to Middlesex Street and then to Middle Street.
It was burned out January 1, 1874, and was started
anew in 1874, on Shattuck Street. Upon the death
of the father, in 1872, the business was managed by
his widow, M. E. Kimball, and his son, L. S. KimbalL
For some years L. S. Kimball has been sole proprietor.
John Tripp & Co., roU-coverers, in the yard of the
Massachusetts Cotton-Mills. This business was es-
tablished in 1853 by John Tripp, who came to Lowell
in 1825. After serving for several years as an over-
seer in the Appleton Mills and in the belting business
in company with Josiah Gates, he engaged in the
roll-covering business in the yard of the Massachu-
setts Mills, where it is still carried on, having been in
100
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, 3IASSACHUSETTS.
the same location for thirty-seven years. Mr. Tripp
died in 1888. The business is now conducted by a
company consisting of A. C. Pearson, S. C. Wood and
jVIts. E. a. Mansur, the latter being a daughter of Mr.
Tripp. This company employs sixteen hands and
their customers are the several corporations and other
manu&cturers of cotton throughout New England.
William Wilby, Wilson Street, manufactures leather
belting and worsted aprons, employing two men. He
started in business on Middlesex Street in 1878, re-
moving to Market Street in 1880, and to his present
location in 1888. He succeeded Thomas Wilby.
Paper Majs-ufactuees. — C. F. Hatch <i- Co., man-
ufacturers of paper-boxes. Mr. Hatch, who had been
connected with Charles Littlefield in making boxes,
started his present business in Prescott Street in 1881.
About 1885 he entered his new and elegant quarters
in the Hoyt & Shedd Block, on Church Street, where
he employs from eighty to one hundred girls and
twelve men, producing 300,000 boxes per month.
Charles Littlefield & Co., Middle Street, paper-box
makers. Mr. Littlefield, after being engaged for about
twelve years in box-making, on Warren Street, re-
moved to his present locution in the new Talbot
Block, on Middle Street, in 1889. At one period C.
F. Hatch was a partner of Mr. Littlefield.
The firm manufactures about 6000 boxes per day
and employs forty hands.
Bacheller, Dumas dc Co., Central Street, do book
and pamphlet binding of every description, paper-
ruling and lettering in gilt on books, albums, pocket-
books, traveling bags, silk, leather, etc., employing
about twenty hands. The company began this busi-
ness in 1869. Ernest G. Dumas, son of one of the
firm, was several years since admitted as partner.
Samuel Du Moulin, paper-ruler and book-binder in
Hildreth's Block, Merrimack Street, started business
in 1889.
Haworth & Wation, Lincoln and Brooks Streets,
manufacture paper cop tubes for mule-spinning, large
paper tubes for use on bobbins, full-length tapered
tubes, paper cones, and tubes for cones and parallel
winders. This business was started by Mr. Haworth
on Arch Street, in 1875. Mr. Watson became his
partner in 1877. The business was removed from
Arch Street to Market Street and afterwards to Cen-
tralville, and then to its present location. It was de-
stroyed by fire in 1888.
The company bought out the Conical Cop Tube
Manufactory in 1889, and the Acme Cop Tube Com-
pany in 1879.
Richmond Mllh. — Among the earlier business en-
terprises of Lowell was the well-known manufactory
of paper and cotton batting on the Concord River,
established by Perez 0. Richmond in 1834.
Perez Otis Richmond was born in Westport,
Mass., February 22, 1786. He was the son of Perez
and Hannah Richmond, the former being an influen-
tial and prosperous farmer in Little Compton, R. I.
John Richmond, the earliest American ancestor of
Mr. Richmond, came to this country from Ashton
Keynes, of Wiltshire, England. His son Edward,
born 1632, settled in 'Little Compton, R. L, married
the daughter of Henry Bull, Governor of Rhode Is-
land, and held the oflSce of Attorney-General. Syl-
vester, the son of Edward, died in 1754, at the age of
eighty-two years. Perez, the father of the subject of
this sketch, was the son of Sylvester, and a descend-
ant of John and Priscilla Alden, of the Pilgrims of
Plymouth.
Mr. Richmond entered upon a business life in the
store of Mr. John Bours, of Newport, R. I., whose
daughter he married, by whom he had six children,
only two of whom. Rev. John B. Richmond, of Med-
ford, Mass., and Miss Mary L. Richmond, of Lowell,
Mass., are living.
Subsequently, with his brother Alanson as part-
ner, he engaged in mercantile business in Newport,
R. I., and afterwards in Providence, R. I. The part-
nership being subsequently dissolved, his brother de-
voted himself to farming in Livingston County, N. Y.,
while Mr. Richmond engaged in manufacturing in
Windham, Conn., and afterwards in Providence.
In 1834 he came to Lowell, and at his mills, on the
Concord River, commenced the manufacture of vari-
ous kinds of goods, among which were woolen fabrics,
cotton batting and paper. In subsequent years the
woolen department was put into other hands, while in
the Richmond Mills only paper was manufactured.
Mr. Richmond's superior ability and great energy
and enterprise secured for him an ample estate. He
was a man of large stature and commanding personal
presence. He died very suddenly at Nashua, N. H.,
where, in the later years of his life, he had fixed his
home, on Sept. 23, 1854, at the age of sixty -eight years.
His son, Charles B. Richmond, who, for fourteen
years before the death of his father, had been engaged
with him in his business, succeeded him in the man-
agement and ownership of the paper-mills. He was
born in Providence, R. I., November 25, 1816. He
inherited his father's talent for business.
He was a man of quiet, unobtrusive nature, and
was highly respected. He was not a politician, and
had no love for public life. He was, however, a trus-
tee of the City Institution for Savings, and a -director
of Appleton Bank.
But his tastes led him to the quiet of home and the
congenial endearments of domestic life. His elegant
residence, commanding most delightful views of the
Merrimack, might well allure him from the turmoil of
business to its peaceful retreat.
In his last years his strength was enfeebled by a
very severe affection of the lungs. He died at the
residence of his father-in-law, Mr. Amos Heywood,
in Beverly, Mass., whither he had gone for the bene-
fit of the sea-air, August 25, 1873, in the fifty-eighth
year of his age.
Carriage MA>T:FACTuaER9. — John H. Swett,
2_
/
< y^y^ ^:. yjuT j
^^/^/>^^
LOWELL.
101
Arch Street, manufactures all kinds of carriages, and
also does carriage, sign and ornamental painting.
In 1874 ilr. Swett bought out Joel Jenkins, a
veteran carriage-maker, and has since run the busi-
ness at the old stand on Arch Street. Joel Jenkins
had been in the business for about forty years, first
for sixteen years on Pawtuckei Street, and afterwards
for twenty-four years on Arch Street.
T. IT. Hill, Bridge Street, manufactures wagons
and sleighs, employing two men. He began the bus-
iness in 1884, succeeding John Drew.
C. F. Hill, Middlesex Street, manufactures wagons,
sleighs and pungs, employing ten men. He started
the business in 18G6, having for three years H. B.
Hill as partner, but being sole proprietor for about
twenty-one years.
Snwyer Carriage Company, Tanner Street, was
founded in 188-3 by T. C. Sawyer & Sons, of Merri-
mack, Mass., where they had acquired a reputation
as carriage-makers. The present company, organized
in l^SG, is under the management of T. C. Sawyer.
The i)roprietors are G. K. Chandler and E. H. Morse.
The company occupies a manufactory having three
stories and a floorage of 12,i.i00 square feet. They
manufacture fine carriages of every description, em-
ploying twenty-two men.
Ediciii Sanborn, carriage-builder, corner of An-
dover and Pleasant .Streets, started business iu 1867
and is still engaged in the same location.
Fo// Brothers li' Hos/ord, in the old Convers factory
on Central Street, build carriages, wagons, sleighs,
pungs, etc., eni|)loying fourteen men. This firm started
in ISSG, succeeding the well-known firm of Day, Con-
vers i Whitredge, which was established in 1857.
E P. Bryant, West Third Street, manufactures
licht and heavy wagons of all kinds, employing ten
men. He started the business in 1S8G.
Medicine Masufactcres. — TUe J. C. Ayer Com-
pany whose laboratory is on Market Street and ofliceon
Middle Street, manufactures Ayer's Cherry Pectoral,
Ayer's Sarsaparilla, Ayer's Ague Cure, Ayer's Hair
Vigor and Ayer's Pills, employing nearly 300 per-
sons iu the various departments of the business. The
firm issues annually l.S,000,000 of Ayer's Almanacs in
ten languages and consumes 800 tons of paper.
In 1877 the firm of Dr. J. C. Ayer & Co., was suc-
ceeded by the J. C. Ayer Company, of which Mr.
Frederick Ayer, brother of the founder of the busi-
ness, was and is treasurer and manager.
James Cook Ayer.' — Among the sons of old
Connecticut who have been identified with the past
life of Lowell, James Cook Ayer, unquestionably,
stands the foremost. He was born May 5, 1818, in
that part of Groton which, as a separate town, now
bears the name of the famous traveler, Ledyard.
His father, who died in 1S25, was Frederick Ayer, a
soldier in the War of 1812 ; son of Elisha Ayer, a
1 By Hon. Charles Cowley. LL.D.
soldier of the Revolution. His mother was Persis
Cook Ayer, who died in Lowell, July 23, 1880, at the
home of her eldest surviving son, Frederick Ayer, Esq.
The Honorable James Cook, for many years agent
of the Middlesex Company's woolen-mills in Lowell,
and in 1859 mayor of Lowell, was Mr. Ayer's moth-
er's brother ; and his wife, Mrs. Lovisa Ayer Cook, was
his father's sister.'
In 1836, by arrangement between his widowed
mother and his uncle and aunt, James C. Ayer re-
moved to Lowell, and made his home with Mr. and
Mrs. Cook, who, having lost all their own children by
death, henceforth treated their nephew with as much
affection as if he had been their own son. He ac-
quired a good academic education in the South Gram-
mar School (now Edson) in Lowell, in the Westford
Academy, and in the Lowell High School. He not
only completed the course of studies required of those
entering Harvard College, but he actually prosecuted
for three years the studies prescribed in the college
curriculum. The Rev. Dr. Edson acted as his tutor in
Latin, but for the most part he pursued his studies
alone, without the advantages of college teachers or
college associates.
In 1838 he entered Jacob Robbins' apothecary
shoj) in Lowell as clerk and student. By assiduous
study during four years he not only made himself
master of the business of an apothecary, but also
made a special study of chemistry, and became a
practical and analytical chemist. He devoted much
time to the study of medicine, first under Dr. Samuel
L. Dana, and afterwards under Dr. John W. Graves.
His proficiency in medical science was recognized by
eminent physicians, and the LTniversity of Pennsyl-
vania gave him the degree of Doctor of Medicine.
In April, 1841, he purchased Mr. Robbins' apothe-
cary shop for S2486.61, paying for it with money bor-
rowed from his uncle, whom he repaid in full in three
years. This was the nucleus of the vast establish-
ment of the J. C. Ayer Company, of which an ac-
count will be found elsewhere in this volume. There
is scarcely a machine in the whole establishment
which was not either invented or greatly improved by
the mechanical genius of its founder. That genius
also found expression in the invention of a rotary
steam-engine, and a system of telegraphic notation, not
inferior to the recording telegraph of Prof Morse.
On the 14th of November, 1850, he married Miss
Josephine Mellen Southwick, whose father, the Hon-
orable Royal Southwick, was for many years a promi-
nent wooien manufacturer, and political leader in
Lowell. Soon after his marriage Mr. Ayer purchased
from Colonel Jefferson Bancroft, the "Stone House "
on Pawtucket Street, which has since become his-
toric. Here he enshrined his household goods, and
delighted to dispense a baronial hospitality.
The abuses which existed iu the management of
2 See Cook's "Genealogy of FanillieB bearing the name Cooke or Cook.'
102
HISTOKY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
onr manufacturing corporations became known to
Mr. Ayer prior to the epoch of " hard times'" of
1857. But the collapse of the Middlesex Company
in Lowell, and of the Bay State Mills in Lawrence,
which signalized that year, roused his ire and stimu-
lated his energies to practical efforts for root-and-
branch reforms. How these abuses arose he thus ex-
plains in a pungent pamphlet: —
"These institutions were originally organized by a
few men, who united their capital like co-partners,
and obtained such charters as they desired from the
State government. Under charters thus granted, —
which were well suited to their early condition, — our
manufacturing companies, so long as that condition
continued, were well managed and very prosperous."
" But a generation has passed away. Time has
changed the relations of owners and managers. The
originators — large stock-holders, or principal owners,
as they were called — of these institutions have died ;
their estates have been distributed to their heirs, and
sold out to the public. They subscribed for and held
their stocks in lots ranging from $25,000 to $100,000 in
a corporation. Now the average ownership is about
three $1000 shares to one individual. The present
stockholders, intead of having, as the original owners
did, a personal and intimate acquaintance, rarely
know each other at all. They are scattered all over
New England, and even other States."
Under such circumstances, inviting the directors to re-
elect themselves and to fill all the offices with their own
friends, coteries were formed ; sons and nephews were
provided with places paying them large salaries for
small services. One man became a director of thirty
companies, and president of nineteen ; and this is
but a single example of the manner in which the
control of manufacturing corporations was monopo-
lized by a few. An account of the successive legisla-
tive acts mitigating and largely correcting these evils
will be found in Cowley's " Reminiscences of Jamea
C. Ayer," etc., of which twenty pages are devoted to
this subject.
Mr. Ayer soon found able allies in these efforts for
corporation reform. Of course he also found able
opponents, for the abuses were of long standing, and
wealthy families owed all that they had or were
thereto. A third classappeared, which he despised more
than his extreme opponents, composed of men who
" meant to serve the Lord, but to do it so diplomati-
cally as not to offend the devil." These men favored
Mr. Ayer's reform in the abstract, but affected to de-
plore his methods as causing unnecessary irritation.
They would rejoice to see the walls of Jericho blown
down, but Joshua's ram's-hom was too harsh an in-
strument. Why did he not try a silver trumpet,
playing the gentlest of tunes? The contest was long
and bitter, but it was won.
This battle for corporation reform was not his own
battle merely. " It was the battle of the people — the
battle of the widow, the orphan, the invalid, and ev-
ery small stock-holder — against a coterie that had
captured their property and also their profits."
Had his own gain alone been his object, he
might have attained that end without making a
single enemy, by keeping quiet until two or three of
the corporations had been wrecked by their incompe-
tent managers, and then buying the entire property
of these corporations for a comparatively small sum.
But he scorned the rolt of the wrecker and delighted
in that of the reformer.
In 1865 Mr. Ayer secured from the United States
three letters-patent for processes invented by him
for the disintegration of rocks and ores, and the de-
sulphurization of the same by the application of
liquid and liquid-solutions to them while in a heated
state. But as the Chemical Gold and Silver Ore Re-
ducing Company had better facilities than himself for
introducing these inventions and making them avail-
able to the people, Mr. Ayer transferred all his rights
therein to that company. Another enterprise in which
he embarked, was that of supplying the people of
Rochester, New York, with water. The perfect suc-
cess of the Rochester Water Works demonstrates the
soundness of Mr. Ayer's plan, notwithstanding the
disastrous litigation which delayed it. Many and
various enterprises occupied his attention — more than
were ever known, except to his immediate associates.
The people of Middlesex and Essex Counties see
before them daily one product of Mr. Ayer's mind, —
the Lowell and Andover Railroad, — diminishing the
cost of travel and transportation between Lowell and
Boston. But the people of Michigan who enjoy the
profits of the Portage Canal behold, in that canal
and the railroad therewith connected, a far greater
product of Mr. Ayer's mind — " a monument more en-
during than bronze." The origin of the Lake Su-
perior Ship Canal Railroad and Iron Company was
as follows : In 1865-66 Congress granted to the State
of Michigan four hundred thousand acres of mineral
and pine lands, situated in the upper peninsula of that
State, in aid of the construction of a ship-canal on
the northern shore of Keweenaw Point, to open the
navigation of Portage Lake and Portage River
through to Lake Superior, and thus facilitate the nav-
igation of the great lakes by allowing vessels to avoid
Keweenaw Point, one of the most dangerous passages
for vessels known to navigation. By opening a canal
a mile and a half long, connection was made with the
Portage River, affording a short cut across the point,
lessening the distance that vessels had to make
around the point by not less than one hundred and
ten miles, besides affording an excellent harbor on
the route from Duluth to Buffalo.
"This inestimable advantage to transportation
through the lakes was secured, it may be said, wholly
through the forethought of Mr. Ayer."
Attempts were made to induce Mr. Ayer to invest
in the Panama Canal ; but a little examination satis-
fied him that those who invested in that enterprise
LOWELL.
103
were ignorant of its magnitude, and would ultimately
lose their investments. The excellent work of Dr.
J. C. Rodrigufs, the friend of Mr. Aver, published in
18S5, proves the soundness of this prediction that the
plan of M. De Lesseps would fail.
Shortly after the capture of Port Royal and the
Sea Islands by Admiral Dupont, in November, 1861,
J. C. Aver and Company obtained four plantations on
Hilton Head, one of the islands that bound that bay,
and engaged in the cultivation of cotton by free black
labor. The first experiments were unprofitable, but
later experiments met with success. The enormous
crops of cotton picked since the elevation of the
slaves to the condition of hired servants, have dis-
pelled all doubt that cotton can be cultivated with
abundant success by free labor. Had John C. Cal-
houn believed such crojjs possible without slavery,
his grandson says, there would have been no war.
In 1S72 the Congressional district.* of Massachusetts
were reconstructed. Lowell and Lawrence were
placed in the Seventh District, and many citizens
were found in both those cities, as well as in the contig-
uous towns, wlio desired to elect !Mr. Ayer to Congress.
Another candidate, however. Judge E. R. Hoar, re-
ceived the nomination of the Republican District Con-
vention, and Mr. Ayer gave him a cordial support.
Judge Hoar's pretensions to superiority over others
of the 8on^ of men Mr. Ayer never conceded ; but
the judge had used no unfair means to obtain the
nomination ; and though a man of many prejudices
and overprone to vote with the contrary-minded, he
had done nothing to provoke a " bolt." His career
in Congress was not brilliantly successful, and in
1874 he wisely declined a re-nomination. It seemed
to be generally understood that Mr. Ayer's time had
come, and he received the Republican nomination,
but was defeated. John K. Tarbox, the Democratic
candidate, received 8979 votes; Mr. Ayer, 7415; and
Tarbox's plurality was 15tJ4. Mr. Ayer had to en-
counter, what no other Republican candidate for
Congress had to encounter in that year, not only the
Democratic candidate, Tarbox, but also an " Inde-
pendent Republican candidate," so called. Judge
Hoar, then sitting in Congress as a Republican and
regularly elected as such. But it required more than
that to defeat Mr. Ayer, though his health was at that
time so broken that he was compelled to seek rest in Eu-
rope, where he could do nothing for his own success.
The year 1874 was the year of "the great tidal wave,"
which overwhelmed the Republican party in many
of its strongholds. It was the same year in which
Samuel J. Tiiden defeated John A. Dix as candidate
for Governor of New York, and in which William
Gaston defeated Thomas Talbot as candidate for Gov-
ernor of Massachusetts.
It was because of the discredit into which the Re-
publican party had fallen, not because of any per-
sonal odium which attached to Mr. Ayer, nor because
of any superior merit in Tarbox, that Mr. Ayer failed
to be elected. Ten years later, when James G. Blaine
was defeated in the Presidential election of 1884, Sam-
uel Hoar, Esq., son of Judge Hoar, was pleased to refer
to the defeat of Mr. Ayer as having "compelled the
future," and led to the defeat of Mr. Blaine:
But Mr. Hoar was mistaken alike as to the cause
and the consequences of Mr. Ayer's defeat.
The cause which defeated Mr. Ayer was the same
I cause which, on the same day, in the same State, de-
' feated Mr. Frost in the Fourth District, Mr. Gnoch in
I the Fifth, General Butler in the Sixth, Mr. Williams
in the Eighth, Mr. Stevens in the Tenth and Mr. Alex-
ander in the Eleventh, by adverse majorities gener-
ally greater than that of Mr. Ayer.
Had Mr. Ayer's health and life been spared, he
would doubtless have been elected to Congress in
1S7G, and re-elected in 1878, and would have won
honorable distinction there.
Liberal donations to meritorious public objects^ere
given by Mr. Ayer. When the chime of bells was
placad in St. Anne's Church, Lowell, in 1857, he and
his brother^ Frederick, made a gift to that church of
the "F" bell. After Monunem Square had been
laid out as a public mall in 1S66, Mr. Ayer, who had
been traveling in Europe, made a gift to the city of
the winged statute of Victory, which has ever since
adorned that square. It was publicly dedicated July
4th. 1SC7.'
When the town of Ayer was incorporated, in 1871,
and its citizens, with extraordinary unanimity,
honored him by assuming his name, he made to that
town the gift of its beautiful Town Hall.
The organization of the town took place March G,
1871, and was followed by a public dinner, speeches in
the afternoon, and a magnificent ball in the evening.
Mr. Ayer made a very felicitous address. After ex-
plaining the circumstances which created the necessity
for proprietary medicines, and briefly referring to his
own efforts to supply that necessity, he closed his ad-
dress, saying : "Thus have I striven in my humble
sphere to render some service to my fellow-men, and
to deserve, among the afflicted and unfortunate, some
regard for the name which your kind partiality hangs
on these walls around me. Oppressed with the fear
that I do not deserve the distinction you bestow, I
pray God to make me worthier, and to smile upon you
with His perpetual blessings."
Upon his return from his second tour in Europe,
February 4, 1875, Mr. Ayer received a cordial " Wel-
come Home " from more than two hundred of his
friends at a public dinner at the Parker House in
Boston. In replying to Mayor Jewett's address of
welcome on this occasion, Mr. Ayer remarked, "Such
1 Mr. .Tver's letter of donation to Major Penbody appears in "Beml
Diaceoces of JaDie9 C. Aver asd tbe Town of .\yer." The same volume
contains Mr. .\yer'B speech at the inauguratioo of the town. Persons
applying to F. F. Ayer, Esq., for copies of these " Reminiscences" have
been supplied by him gratia. For J. C. -Oyer's speech at the unveiling
of the statue of ^■ictory, see Cowley's ** History of Lowell," page 210.
104
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
a greeting as this, from such a gathering as this, is
worth a dozen elections to Congress."
A month later, March 5, 1875, the President ap-
proved an act passed by Congre?s, authorizing Lieu-
tenant-Commander Frederick Pearson, a gallant offi-
cer of the United States Navy, who afterwards mar-
ried Mr. Ayer's only daughter, to " accept a decoration
of Companion of the Military Division of the Order
of the Bath, tendered to him by the Queen of Great
Britain, as a testimonial of the appreciation of Her
Majesty's government of the courage and conduct dis-
played by said Lieutenant Pearson in the attack upon
the Japanese forts by the combined fleets of Great
Britain, France, the Netherlands, and the United
Stateji, in September, 18G4, because of which said
Pearson received the thanks of the British Admiral,
the senior oflicer commanding."
Coming from long-lived ancestors, Mr. Ayer might
have attained old age ; but, like thousands of his con-
temporaries, he overtasked his powers; and before he
had completed his fifty-seventh year he felt the ap-
proaches of paralysis, and was compelled to withdraw
from every form of active work. The best medical
advice was sought, but the progress of that fatal dis-
ease was only retarded. The inevitable end came
July 3, 1878, in his sixty-first year. An autopsy of
the brain showed its weight to be fifty-three ounces,
four or five more than the average.
At his grave in the Lon-ell Cemetery the attention
of the visitor will be arrested by the unique and im-
pressive statue chosen by the widow and children of
Mr. Ayer as a monument to his memory. It is the
statue of a lion, of colossal size, cut in Sicilian marble
by the famous English sculptor, A. Bruce' Joy. The
head of the lion rests upon his paws, and his face
wears an expression so mournful and so sad, that he
has been called the Weeping Lion.
Soon after Mr. Ayer's death Judge Abbott wrote :
" He possessed very great capacity, as his success
in all his many and various enterprises and undertak-
ings very clearly shows ; as that success depended en-
tirely upon his own sagacity, foresight and efforts,
without help from others. I seldom, if ever, have
known one with greater business capacity, or more
foresight, judgment and sagacity upon all business
questions he was called to act upon. He was a most
remarkable instance of what can be done in this
country by intelligence, industry and capacity. Alone
and unaided, he was able to accomplish results most
remarkable, and build up a fortune among the very
largest in the country ; and this, too, by his regular
business, without resort to the hazards and tempta-
tions of speculation."
General Butler wrote : " 5Ir. Ayer's remarkable
business ability, his untiring energy and devotion to
his pursuits in life, hardly ever taking a vacation un-
til failing health and age required it, may well be a
subject for the contemplation of our young men who
wish to succeed." The more so (we may add) because
in the various enterprises which Mr. Ayer set on foot
to enrich himself, he always sought to render some
substantial service to the public, and never engaged
in the spoliation of hia fellow-men.
Mr. Ayer not only possessed great powers of mind,
he also had the capacity to exert those powers in va-
rious and diverse forms of action. Nor were his ex-
traordinary intellectual powers applied to business
alone, various and diverse as were the business enter-
prises in which he engaged. His mind was equally
acute, equally grasping, equally tenacious of its pur-
poses, when applied to matters purely intellectual.
He loved the physical sciences, especially chemistry.
He was a good Greek and Latin scholar, as his notes
on the margins of his copies of Greek and Latin au-
thors abundantly attest. One of the authors contain-
ing such marginalia is Lucretius, who is not included
in the curriculum of any college. He wrote and spoke
French with facility. He learned Portuguese after he
was fifty years old, and read in the original the
Lusiad of Camoens.
He was particularly fond i)f Horace, and loved to
quote from his Epistles that. famous line, "/, bone, quo
virtus tua te vocat ; I pede fausto." ("Go, my dear fel-
low, wherever your faculties direct ; and success go
with you.") To the last of his active life he loved to
sit in his library and refresh his mind with its choicest
treasures. For ephemeral literature he cared noth-
ing; from boyhood to declining years his favorites
were "the Immortals." He loved art in all its forms
— music, painting, sculpture, architecture, oratory,
poetry — and he loved the society of those who were
adepts therein. At Munich he met Pilotli, whom he
describes as " the Choate of artists — a skein of nerves,
without a frame," and he endeavored to procure from
Pilotti a copy of that immortal painting which adorns
the Cologne Gallery — Galileo in Prison — intending it
as a present to the city of Lowell for the City Hall.
But for the premature eclipse of his faculties and his
premature death, the Memorial Hall of Lowell would
doubtless have been enriched with a copy, by Pilotti's
own hand, of this renowned painting, so striking and
impressive that when Mr. Ayer first saw it he said,
" It took my breath away."
To a friend who asked him what he considered the
principal cause of his success in life, Mr. Ayer re-
plied: "First, my own good star; and second, always
adhering to the rule, ' Undertake what you can accom-
plish, and accomplish what you undertake.' " If there
was any one trait in his character more marked than
any other, it was the quickness and the clear-sighted
sagacity with which this self-centred man discerned
what he could accomplish ; and such was the sound-
ness of his judgment that in his larger undertakings
he was scarcely ever known to make a mistake.
More than once, during the last sixteen years, have
the men of Lowell sighed for a leader with the force
of will, the organizing power and the genius of Mr.
Ayer, as the Scota, in an agony of a need of general-
^a.
/,
LOWELL.
105
ship, once cried, " O for an hour of Dundee ! " When
the generation which knew James C. Ayer has passed
away, history will relate to the generations that are
to come, what he was, and what he did, during his
active life of forty years in Lowell.
Frederick Ayer, the subject of this sketch, was
born in Ledyard, C!onn., December 8, 1822. He re-
ceived his elementary education in the district
schools of the town, afterwards pursuing his studies
at Jewett City, Conn., and completing his course at a
private school in Baldwinsville, N. Y.
Mr. Ayer's first business employment was as clerk
in the general country store of John T. Tomlinson &
Co., Baldwinsville, N. Y. From this place he went,
to Syracuse to take general charge of a store belong-
ing to the same firm. After being at the head of that
establishment for three years, a portion of the time as
partner, the partnership beginning when Mr. Ayer
was twenty years of age, he formed a partnership
with Hon. Dennis McCarthy, who for two terms was
the Republican representative to Congress from that
district. This firm was under the name of McCarthy
& Ayer, and continued about eleven years. The
house thus established is still doing business under
the name of D. McCarthy, Sons & Co., and is one of
the largest and most successful dry-goods houses in
Central New York.
Mr. Ayer relinquished his interest in the above-
named firm in the spring of 1855, for the purpose of
joining his brother. Dr. James C. Ayer, the formula-
tor of "Ayer's Proprietary Medicines," the firm tak-
ing the name of J. C. Ayer & Co. This firm con-
tinued in active business until 1877, when it was in-
corporated under the name and style of "J. C. Ayer
Company." At this time Frederick Ayer was elected
its treasurer, an office which he still holds.
During his administration of the afiairs of this
company iu business has much more than doubled,
and is now extended over the entire habitable globe.
In addition to the above, Mr. Ayer has been a di-
rector in the Old Lowell National Bank, and is now
vice-president of the Central Savings Bank. He has
also been a director of the New England Telephone
Company since its organization. He was on the Board
of Aldermen in 1871, and distinguished himself as
chairman of the Board of Health, in controlling the
small-pox contagion which was then raging in the city.
His sharp criticism of the inefficiency of the Board
of Health then in office was the occasion of the res-
ignation of all its members. A new board was chosen
and Mr. Ayer placed at its head. At this time the
disease had been extending and increasing for eight
months. Through his prompt and vigorous action,
and with an efficient corps of physicians and city
officials thoroughly organized, the disease was in six
weeks wholly eradicated from the city. The whole
number of cases, according to the report of the city
physician, was 567, and the number of deaths 177.
In 1871 James C. and Frederick Ayer purchased a
controlling interest in the stock of the Tremont Mills
and the Suffolk Manufacturing Company, which were
standing idle and in a bankrupt condition, and effected
the consolidation of the two companiesunderthename
of the Tremont and Suffolk Mills. This Corporation,
of which Mr. Ayer is still a director, is one of the
most successful of the cotton-mills of New England.
In the construction of the Lowell and Andover
Railroad Mr. Ayer took an active and important
part, first as a director and soon after as president of
the road. The latter office he still holds.
Mr. Ayer was at one time president of the Portage
Lake Canal, running from Portage Lake to Keweenaw
Bay, in Michigan, aud he has now been for many
years its treasurer. He is also a director of the Lake
Superior Ship Canal, Railway and Iron Company, of
which he was for several years both secretary and
treasurer. The capital of this company is S4,000,000.
In June, 1885, Mr. Ayer purchased, at auction, the
entire property of the Washington Mills, Lawrence,
Mass., and reorganized the Corporation under the name
of the Washington Mills Company, of which for one
year he was president, and has since been its treasurer.
Mr. Ayer's first marriage was in December, 1858,
at Syracuse, N. Y., to Miss Cornelia Wheaton, by
whom he had four children. His second marriage
took place in July, 1884, to Miss Ellen B. Banning,
at St. Paul, Minnesota, by whom he has two children.
Mr. Ayer is a man of remarkable administrative
and executive ability, and of great skill and tact as
an organizer and manager in business enterprises.
These qualities, together with his indomitable will
and courage, place him in the front rank of the
business men of New England.
Frederick Faxnixg Ayer ' was born in Lowell,
September 12, 1851. His father was James Cook Ayer,
whose life, in its broad outlines, has been traced in
previous pages of this work. His mother, Mrs.
Josephine Mellen Ayer, is the daughter of Royal and
Direxa (Claflin) Southwick. Through her he inherits
the blood of Lawrence and Cassandra Southwick,
members of the Society of Friends, who suffered per-
secution for their religious principles in Colonial Bos-
ton, and whose heroic endurance has been immortal-
ized in one of the poems of Whittier. Mr. Ayer is
also related through his mother to the great commer-
cial house of Horace B. Claflin and Company, of New
York ; her mother and the founders of that house
being alike children of Major John Claflin, of Mil-
ford, Massachusetts.
The first twelve years of his life were passed at the
paternal home on th»» Merrimack River's bank, and
within sound of its many-voiced waters, and at the
public schools of Lowell. In 1863 he went to St
Paul's School, at Concord, New Hampmhire, under
the Rev. Dr. Coit, and remained there four years.
His father owned large numbers of shares of the cap-
1 By Bon. Cbarlea Cowlej, LL.D.
106
HISTORY OF JIIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.'
ital stock of various manufacturing companies, some of
which had suffered immense losses in consequence of
the ignorance of their managers touching the methods
and processes of their business. Mr. Ayer early
adopted his father's views of the necessity of acquir-
ing a practical knowledge of the details of any busi-
ness in which he might be engaged, or in which he
might invest his capital. Upon quitting St. Paul's
School, therefore, he cheerfully entered the employ
of the Suffolk Mills as an operative, beginning with
the picker in the cotton-room, and working his way
up through the carding, spinning and weaving de-
partments, successively, to the machine-shop. Thus
he can say, as General Banks has often said, " I have
worked in every room in a cotton-mill from wheel-pit
to belfry." Thus he acquired personal knowledge of
every process through which cotton passes from the
loose fibre to the finished cloth. Having learned all
these processes in their order, he left the mill, and fitted
for college at Cambridge, passing his examinations in
the summer of 1869. For the last twelve years he has
been a director of the Tremont Suffolk Mills.
In the month of July, 1869, with the co-operation
of several other bright young men in Lowell, be or-
ganized the Franklin Literary Association. As this
association has since developed into two distinct bod-
ies, both political, it is proper to say that the origi-
nal Franklin Literary Association was wholly free
from political character or political purposes ; it was
simply a debating club. Its first meeting was held
in the basement of Phineas Whiting's belting store,
and in the absence of chairs its first president was
installed upon the head of a barrel. At the meetings
of this body, Mr. Ayer acquired a habit of no small
value, "the habit of thinking upon his legs" (as
Macaulay once defined it), and at the same time ex-
pressing his thoughts in a clear and orderly manner.
In 1873 Mr. Ayer graduated at Harvard College
with honor. He then went to Europe with his father,
combining study with his travels ; and on his return
in 1874 entered the Law School at Cambridge. After
pursuing the study of the law there for two terms, he
was admitted to practice as an attorney and coun-
selor-at-law. In 1875, taking as his law partner Lem-
uel H. Babcock, Esq., he opened an office in the
Transcript Building, at the corner of Washington and
Milk Streets, Boston, where the two friends practiced
law with success under the firm-name of Ayer &
Babcock. Ordinarily, a lawyer has neither the op-
portunity nor the capacity to argue complicated ques-
tions of law before a court of law with much satisfac-
tion, either to himself or to his client, until after sev-
eral years' practice before a single judge or before
juries.
" The heights by great men reached and kept,
Were not attained by sudden flight,
Bnt tbej, while their companions slept,
Wera toiling upwards in the night."
But whatever Longfellow may have said or sung to
the contrary, "the heights" have sometimes been
reached " by sudden flight." Lawyers have some-
times sprung to the front at a bound by being ready
to take advantage of " the occasion sudden." Mr.
Ayer had an exceptional experience of this kind. It
happened in this way. His father owned a control-
ling interest in a company incorporated under the
laws of New York Tor the purpose of supplying the
city of Rochester with water from Hemlock Lake.
Litigation arose between the company and the city.
Notwithstanding the intricacy of the legal questions
involved, Mr. Ayer, who was then at the Law School
of Harvard University, took pains to study them
thoroughly, and to make himself familiar with them ;
not with any intent to participate in the argument of
the case, but from an intelligent curiosity touching a
matter in which his father had a great interest. Judge
Henry R. Selden was his father's counsel, and when
the case came on before the General Term of the
Supreme Court, Mr. Ayer went to Rochester to attend
the argument. He afterwards wrote the following
modest account of the complete surprise which was
there given him :
" I accompanied Judge Selden to the court-room,
and when our case was called, without a word or look
of previous warning to me, he arose and proceeded
to introduce me to the court as his associate counsel
from Massachusetts, announcing, to my gaping aston-
ishment, that I would open the case. With thump-
ing knees I faced the court — for the first time in my
life — and stated the facts, arguing one or two points,
talking about half an hour."
Notwithstanding the suddenness of this call, Mr.
Ayer acquitted himself with much credit. The case
was won, and his father was so well pleased at the re-
sult, that he presented him with a check for S10,000.
This was his first professional fee. This incident
gave him an insight into the peculiar ways of senior
counsel, which made him for some time shy of court-
rooms. In 1876, in consequence of his father's health
having broken down, he was obliged to abandon the
practice of law to look after the lawyers. He re-
cently wrote : " I am sorry to say I have never gotten
entirely rid of the law. I have been more or less ex-
tensively involved in it ever since, but, like Micaw-
ber, ' principally as defendant on civil process.' My
father's estate was left in a complicated and hazard-
ous condition, and it took me some twelve years to
extricate it from the dangers to which it was exposed.
My time has been more or less largely occupied with
this duty ever since the death of my father, in 1878."
On the 26th of October, 1876, the Town Hall of
Ayer, the gift of Mr. Ayer's father to that town, was
dedicated with appropriate services. In delivering
to the town's committee the keys of this edifice, in
behalf of his father, Mr. Ayer spoke with marked fe-
licity, preserving his self-control under circumstances
which might have unnerved another man. Very
tender and impressive were his allusions to his father,
whose life was then drawing to a close : " This cheer-
LOWELL.
107
fill hall, this large assembly, these bright faces buoyant
with life, only serve to remind me bitterly, that he who
raised this roof and these walls, and who so much an-
ticipated this opportunity to join you hand in hand,
cannot be here. It was ac occasion he had long
looked forward to, with the abiding hope and inten-
tion of being present himself to tell you the lasting
obligations he is under to the good people of this
town." His address, and others made on this oc-
casion, were printed entire in Cowley's " Reminiscen-
ces of James C. Ayer, and the Town of Aver."
The justice and expediency of the doctrine that
representative bodies, charged with political func-
tions, should contain representatives of the minori-
ties, as well as the majorities, of their constituents,
have been appreciated by many of the best thinkers
of our times. A little reflection will satisfy any im-
partial mind that this principle is equally applicable
to the government of manufacturing, mining and
other joint-stock companies. Mr. Ayer was among
the first to see the wisdom and expediency of minority
representation and cumulative voting in industrial
corporations. In 1885 a bill, embodying these prin-
ciples was presented to the Legislature of Michigan.
As a director of the " Lake Superior Ship Canal Rail-
way and Iron Company," and of the "Portage Lake
and River Improvement Company," and as a stock-
holder in these and other joint-stock companies in that
State, Mr. Ayer had large interests at stake, and he sub-
mitted to the Michigan Legislature an argument in
favor of the bill, which was simply unanswerable.
The bill became a law in Michigan. Similar meas-
ures have been passed in other States and are agitated
in many more. The brief of this argument, which has
been printed and widely circulated, shows that, in the
struggle between " the masses and the classes," the
sympathies of Mr. Ayer are with the people at large.
The 14th of April, 1890, being the twenty-fifth
anniversary of the formal restoration of the Federal
flag over Fort Sumter, was celebrated by the Port
Royal Society, by a reunion of military and naval
veterans who served in the Department of the South
and South Atlantic Blockading Squadron, in Hunt-
ington Hall, Lowell. Mr. Ayer was present, with
other invited guests, and made an address which was
widely published. Old Bostonians remember well
the surprise which Charles Sumner gave them in
1845 by his Fourth-of-July oration on the " True
Grandeur of Nations." Instead of expatiating on
war before the representatives of the army and navy,
the State Militia and the city fathers there assembled,
Mr. Sumner astonished them with an oration against
war and in favor of universal peace. Mr. Ayer treated
his audience to a similar surprise. " The heroes of
the future," he said, " will not be found on the fields
of slaughter, and the destruction of human life to
settle national disputes will cease to be glory."
His speech on this occasion contracted pleasan^y
with those made by the veterans of the war. They
dwelt on perils through which the country had
already passed ; Mr. Ayer turned his back upon the
past and discoursed of perils which becloud the fiiture.
By his advocacy of universal peace, of the settlement
of international difliculties by arbitration, of a life
tenure of office for all deserving officers in the civil
service, Mr. Ayer showed that he has the power to
anticipate the future,
*' ForeruD his age and race, and let
Hie feet mlUeDiums bence be eet
la midflt of koowledge dreamud not yet."
Very gratifying to his own friends and his father's
friends in Lowell was the following passage in this
address: "Lowell is always my home — I am only
visiting New York. Lowell is all the more attractive
to me when I come here from the crowded, noisy
streets of that fretful metropolis. It affords me a world
of pleasure to see you all face to £ace — to stand once
again on the banks of the beautiful river where I
wandered as a boy, and where my memory and aflec-
tion wander still."
The Literary Society of Ayer having presented
their collection of books to that town as the nucleus
of a public library, Mr. Ayer, in April, 1890, made a
gift to the town of five thousaiid dollars to be ex-
pended in the purchase of books — a sum more than
sufficient to place their library upon a level with that
of any other town of similar size in Massachusetts.
On May 3d the people of the town, in public meet-
ing assembled, extended to Mr. Ayer, by a resolution
unanimously adopted, " the expression of their full
appreciation and heartfelt thanks for his handsome
and timely remembrance ; " recognizing in this mu-
nificent act " a noble and loving tribute to the memory
of the man whose name their town bears." This
library will be formally opened before the close of the
year, Mr. Ayer giving an address on that occasion.
The care of the vast properties left by his father in
different States engrosses much of Mr. Ayer's time.
Besides the companies already mentioned he is one
of the directors of the Lowell and Andover Railroad,
of the J. C. Ayer Company, and of the New York
Tribune. But in the midst of all these enterprises
and employments he has found time for generous
studies. He has given much attention to various
branches of economic science. He has opposed by
voice and pen successive schemes for debasing the
silver coinage and inflating the currency. He has
advocated the reform of the tarifi" and the civil
service and the maintenance of a sound currency re-
deemable in coin.
C. I. Hood & Co., prepare Hood's Barsaparilla,
Hood's Vegetable Pills, Hood's Tooth Powder and
Hood's Olive Ointment. Their laboratory on Thom-
dike Street, is of brick and is four stories in height,
with basement. They possess machinery for produc-
ing 75,000,000 books and pamphlets per annum, to be
used for advertising. They employ 275 bands. The
whole establishment is admirable for its system, neat-
108
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
ness and adaptation to the extensive business of the
firm. Mr. Hood is one of the most successful and en-
terprising citizens of Lowell. He was born in Vermont
in 1845, and was apprenticed to Samuel Kidder, an
apothecary in Lowell, at the age of fifteen years.
Subsequently he became partner in an apothecary
store at the corner of Central and Merrimack Streets.
While in this store he first offered to the public a new
medicine, Hood's Sarsaparilla. The enterprise
proved a success and the medicine became famous.
The business was very rapidly extended, constantly
out-growing its accommodations. At length, in
1883, the spacious laboratory now in use wsis erected.
The building is constructed throughout in the most
substantial manner. The massive tanks for the
sarsaparilla have a capacity of 90,000 bottles. The
firm does its own printing, and its advertising has
reached immense proportions. The character and
quality of the articles produced by the firm are of the
highest order, and Mr. Hood, who is only forty-
four years of age, is in the midst of his honorable
and very successful career.
A. W. Doioa ib Co., Central Street, manufacture
Dows' Cough Cure, Diarrhoea Syrup, Dows' Soothing
Cordial, &c. The company started the business about
1877, being successors of A. W. Dows, Sr., who had
been in the business for about thirty-five years. The
firm consists of Charles N. and A. M. Dows, sons of
A. W. Dows, who founded the business.
Lowell is said to be the birth-place of the modern
soda-fountain. In 1861 Gustavus D. Dows, brother
of A. \V. Dows, received a patent for the marble soda-
fountain, now so generally used, and the first fountain
made under this patent was set up in the store of his
brother, A. W. Dows, in Lowell. The inventor set up
his business in England as well as in Boston. But
he was pursued by disaster. The five-story building
in Boston, in which was his drug-store, was blown up
by an explosion, and soon after a bronchial affection
ended the inventor's life, at the age of seventy-six years.
Geo. -S. Mowe, South Loring and D Streets, manu-
factures Dr. Mowe's Cough Balsam, used in Dr.
Mowe's private practice fifty years ago, and for thirty
years extensively used by apothecaries generally.
Dr. Daniel Mowe, the originator of this widely
known medicine, was born in Pembroke, N. H., in
1790, came to Lowell in 1831, after having been a
practicing physician in New Durham, N. H., for
several years. In Lowell he was for twenty-nine
years a highly respected physician. He died in 1860
at the age of seventy years.
TTie Moxie Nerve Food Company was organized in
1885. It manufactures a medicine called Moxie
Nerve Food, after a recipe said to have been for
several years in the possession of Dr. Augustin
Thompson, of Lowell. The business has had a re-
markably rapid development, and the medicine is al-
ready extensively known and sold throughout the
country. The Highland Skating Rink, with a floor-
room of 19,060 feet, has been purchased for this
manufactory, where 30,000 bottles of the medicine can
be made in a day. Dr. Thompson is the general
manager. The company employs fifty hands and
five horses. It has a branch office in Chicago.
George S. Hull, on Merrimack, corner of John
Street, manufactures Lyford's Magic Pain Cure,
Harvard Bronchial Syrup, Hall's Veterinary Lini-
ment; also makes essences, syrups, flavoring extracts,
etc. This business was started by S. (r. Lyford in
1877. About 1880 George S. Hull entered the firm.
At the present time George S. Hull is sole proprietor.
A. C. Stevens, Middlesex Street, is the originator
and proprietor of Stevens' Sarsaparilla and Stevens'
Dandelion Pills, and manufacturer of strengthening,
porous, belladonna and rheumatic plasters, cough
mixture and tooth powders, employing three hands.
The business was started in 1875.
Dr. J. A. Masta, Varney Street, manufactures Dr.
Masta's celebrated Cough Balsam. The business was
established in 1854, the medicine having been used
as early as 1852.
Tweed's Liniment for man or beast, prepared by the
S. E. Tweed Company, Middlesex Street. This com-
pany started about 1886, and was reorganized in 1890.
It employs four men.
MiSCELLAXEOUS MAXUFACTrRES. — Whithed dcCo.,
corner Middlesex and School Streets, manufacture
hard, soft and mill soaps, and deal in hides and calf-
skins, employing ten men. They are the succes-
sors of Samuel Horn & Co., one of the oldest and
most respectable firms of the city.
Samuel Horx. — In every populous city and
thriving community in the New England States
there is a class of men, growing more numerous
every year, who possess wealth and culture and an
lionorable name, who love their business and are
known and honored in the social world, but who
have no taste for public life. They are content with
their elegant homes, their gardens and their lawns,
their fruit-trees and shrubbery, their pleasant libra-
ries and their shady walks. Such men are the bene-
factors of society. They set a noble though silent
example before the young, showing them that the
highest happiness in human life is not to be sought
in political honors or public display, but rather in
the retirement of domestic life, and the humane and
rational enjoyments of a cultured home.
To this class belongs the subject of this sketch, the
venerable Samuel Horn, who, at the age of eighty-
three years, still remains in vigorous health among
us, an honored representative of that sterling class of
business men who are recognized as the founders of
the city of Lowell. Samuel Horn was bom on Dec.
31, 1806, and was the son of Windsor and Matilda
(Nichols) Horn, of Southboro', Mass. He received
his early education in the district schools of South-
bctfo'. After leaving school he was engaged, until the
age of twenty-two years, in the management of the
, ,i^?-^J>*^
^^o-y/^u cc/ :^/-/<
LOWELL.
109
farm of Col. Dexter Fay, of Southboro,' in driving
cattle to the great cattle market at Brighton, and in
other such employments as are wont to engage a
thrifty young farmer. But resolved to seek a wider
and more profitable field of enterprise, he came to
Lowell in 1828, when the great manufactories, just
starting, invited new laborers from the surrounding
country, and having learned the art of soap-making,
he formed a partnership, in 1830, with Orin Nichols,
of Southboro', for' the manufacture and sale of soap
in Lowell, and for dealing in tallow and candles,
under the firm-name of Nichols & Horn. The place
of business of this firm was on Central Street, on
land now occupied by Tyler Street, the laying out of
that street requiring the removal of their shop. After
one or two years Otis Allen took the place of Mr.
Nichols as partner, and the firm-name became Horn
& Allen. About 1833 the business was removed to
the comer of Middlesex and School Streets, where it
continued for fifty-three years.
For fifty-eight years, with the exception of about
four years, in which his health demanded a tempo-
rary retirement, Mr. Horn carried on the soap busi-
ness in Lowell, having had as partners, at various
times, Grin Nichols, Otis Allen, Martin N. Horn, his
brother, and Alfred S. Horn, his only son. During
this long period Mr. Horn made all kinds of fancy,
domestic and manufacturers' soap, supplying not only
families and traders, but many private industries and
corporations in Lowell. He also sent large quantities
to other cities, having customers of fifty years' stand-
ing.
He was also largely engaged in the purchase and
sale of hides and skins. He shipped large quantities
of tallow to Liverpool, where, on account of his high
commercial standing and honorable dealing, he com-
manded a higher price than other shippers. He also
sent large quantities of candles to California, Cuba
and other places. So high a reputation did he ac-
quire in the commercial world, that, at one time, a
counterfeit article was placed upon the market with
the false label, " Horn's Tallow."
Mr. Horn, having been a citizen of Lowell almost
from its origin as a municipality, has taken an active
interest in its growth and prosperity. He was one of
the founders of the Wamesit National Bank and of
the Merrimack River Savings Bank, and has been, from
the start, a director of one and a trustee of the other.
In 1839 he was a member of the City Government,
devoting to the duties of the position much time
which, he believed, should be given to his business.
Accordingly, he has since refused all political and
public office. In 1886 he retired from business, hav-
ing accumulated an ample amount of property, and
having reached the eightieth year of his life.
Mr. Horn is a gentleman of high character, of dig-
nified bearing and commanding personal presence
His elegant residence on Smith Street, in the suburbs
of the city, with its shade-trees and walks, and its fine
lawn extending over several acres, affords a most eli-
gible retreat for the repose of his declining years.
0. D. Wilder, Western Avenue, uses one run of
stones, principally for grinding corn. He employs
four men. He started the business about 1880, with
Frank B. Sherburne as partner. Sherburne left the firm
about 1881. The firm succeeded Sherburne & Morse.
P. M. Jefferson, Charles Street, manufactures fam-
ily, laundry, ammonia, chemical, factory, scouring
and soft soaps. He started the business about 1870.
The location of Mr. Jefferson's business has a his-
tory. Adam Putnam, long known to the people of
Lowell as a soap manufacturer and senior member of
the well-known firm of Putnam & Currier, was born
in Stow, Mass. He came to East Chelmsford (now
Lowell) in 1822 and took charge of a part of Hurd's
Woolen -Mills. After several years in this service he
became a dealer in paints, oils and glass, on Central
Street. In 1846 he formed a partnership with John
Currier in soap-making, which continued for twenty-
two years, until the death of Mr. Putnam, in 1868, at
the age of sixty-nine years. Addison Putnam, the
son of Mr. Putnam, is a well-known and enterprising
dealer in clothing in Lowell. John Currier, the ju-
nior partner, was born in Amesbury June 10, 1810;
came to Lowell December 4, 1830, and died Novem-
ber 28, 1881, at the age of seventy-one years. His
last years were spent in retirement from business at
his elegant residence, built by himself, on Broadway.
W. A. DickiTuon, Howard and Tanner Sts., manufac-
tures mill soaps, making a specialty of scouring and
milling soaps, and deals in alkalies and prime tallow,
employing five men. Business was started about 1883.
The Lowell Crayon Company, Ford Street (Sam.
Chapin, manager), manufactures colored chalk crayons
expressly for use of cotton-mills and other mill supplies.
Wm. Manning manufactures corn-cakes on the cor-
ner of Broadway and School Streets, using one hogs-
head of molasses per day during the manufacturing
season. He employs an average of thirteen men.
He started the business in 1868, and has been engaged
in the business in Chelmsford, Billerica and Lowell
for about forty years.
The Lowell Gas-Light Company was incorporat«td
in May, 1849, Seth Ames, Ransom Reed and Samuel
Lawrence being among the incorporators. The capi-
tal, which at first was $80,000, is now $500,000.
Gas was first introduced into the city Jan. 1, 1850.
Although this company has had a monopoly of the
business, it has pursued a generous cotirse, and has vol-
untarily, from time to time, reduced the price of gas
to the consumer as the increase of business and im-
proved methods enabled them to do it. It is asserted,
probably with truth, that the price of gas in Lowell
is less than in any other city of New England. The
price in 1850 was $4 for 1000 cubic feet ; in 1889, $1.10.
A part of the work of this company in recent years
has been the introduction of gas stoves into families
for cooking purposes.
110
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
By pursuing an ealightened and liberal policy the
company has so far gained the confidence and trust
of the community that it is now one of the most
prosperous and influential corporations in the city.
This company employs the West Virginia coal for
manufacturing gas.
During the year ending Jan., 1889, this company
has supplied 227,338,000 cubic feet of gas. It has
6500 meters in active use, and employs about 130 men.
Its president is Sewall G. Mack. The manufacturing
plant is on School St., and the oflSceis on Shattuck St.
L. A. Derby & Co., electricians, on Middle Street.
The business of this company was started in 1883 by
L. A. & F. H. Derby, in a small shop on Prescott St.
Later they moved to larger quarters in Central Block,
on Central St. In 1888 they came to their present lo-
cation on Middle St. It is the leading establishment in
this section engaged in wiring for incandescent lights,
gas-lighting, automatic fire alarms, watch-clocks, medi-
cal batteries, etc. They employ eleven men.
The United States Cartridge Company was started by
Gen. B. F. Butler in 1869, and is a private enterprise.
This company and the United States Bunting Com-
pany have the same president, but are entirely inde-
pendent of each other. The officers of the Cartridge
Company are : B. F. Butler, president ; Paul Butler,
treasurer ; C. A. R. Dimon, superintendent, and James
B. Russell, paymaster. The manufactures are metallic
cartridges, paper shells for shot-guns, and primers.
The company produces 12,000,000 cartridges, 2,000,000
paper shells and 2,000,000 primers per month.
E. N. Wood & Co. grind corn, rye and oats, from 200
to 300 bushels per day. Salesroom on Market St. They
employ twelve men. Their mill on Chambers St. is run
by water, and is of twenty-five horse-power.
This business was started about fifty years ago by
Samuel Wood, the grandfather of E. N. Wood.
Samuel Wood, soon after beginning business, took
Joseph Tapley as partner, and in about fifteen years
his son, S. N. Wood, took control of the business.
S. N. Wood, in 1868, took as partner his son, E. N.
Wood, and retired from the business in 1882. About
1884 George C. Evans became partner, and the style
of the firm is now Wood & Evans.
William E. Livinggton, Thorndike St., is proprietor
of a mill having seventy horse-power and four runs of
stones for grinding corn, rye, plaster and cop cracker.
He grinds about 350 bushels of com and rye per day.
This mill was erected by William Livingston, the
father of the present proprietor, and started in 1845.
Warren Clifford, silk, cotton and woolen dyer,
Andover Street. Clifford Weare, the father of War-
ren Clifibrd, came to Lowell in 1834. He started an
establishment for dyeing on Lawrence Street. In
1839 he started the well-known dyeing establishment
on Andover Street, now carried on by his son. The
father died in 1872. The business is chiefly job-
dyeing. Five hands are employed, and over 3000
parcels are handled annually.
F. F. Howe <i- Co. dye and finish hosiery and under-
wear, making a specialty of " clean black " on ho-
siery, employing eight hands. Mr. Rowe's partner is
Fred. L. Green. The company started business on
Hale Street in 1889, Mr. Rowe having before carried
on the business on Broadway.
TTie Spindle City Dye- Works, on Broadway, dye and
bleach hosiery-yarn and cloth, and employ ten hands.
The works started in 1889.
Bay State Dye-House, Prescott Street. E. W. Gould
started this establishment in 1884, and in 1886 sold
out to C. A. Reynolds, the present proprietor. All
kinds of job-dyeing are done to order. About 7000
parcels were handled during the past year.
Jonathan Holt d Co. began the manufacture of hard
glue in 1879. The firm, of which F. J. Sherwood is
the junior member, is located on Tanner Street. Six
men are employed, and the annual product is about
sixty tons of glue.
S. Bartlett, Middlesex Street, manufactures soda
and mineral water, tonic beer, ginger ale, nerve food,
etc., employing fourteen hands. During the past
year he has made and put up about 15,000 dozens of
quart bottles and 12,000 dozens of half-pints, also
charged 2069 soda fountains. He started the busi-
ness in 1859, with George and John Gushing as part-
ners, but is now the sole proprietor. Mr. Bartlett is
the successor of George Gushing, who succeeded
Hancock & Melvin, manufacturers of the well-known
" Melvin Beer."
Albert S. Fox, Central Street, makes ice cream and
confectionery, employing four men and three women.
This business was started by C. A. Thorning. in 1877,
on Central Street, who sold it to Fox in 1887. Mr.
Fox removed to his present location in 1888.
C. A. Thorning, Highland Hall, Branch Street,
caterer and manufacturer of confectionery and ice
cream. He started business at his present location
in 1888, having previously been located on Central St.
Sovelty Plaster Works, established by George E.
Mitchell, proprietor, in 1864, manufacture medicinal,
porous, rubber, isinglass, blister, mustard, corn, bun-
ion and surgeon's adhesive plasters of all kinds, and
employ thirty hands. The building of this company,
on Elm Street, was erected in 1866. John H. Mc-
Alvin is the business manager.
Page it Nunn, Merrimack Street, manufacture cake,
ice cream and confectionery. This business was
started by Dudley L. Page, on Middle Street, in 1867.
He moved to the Museum Building, on Merrimack
Street, about 1869. After a sojourn in Boston, he re-
turned to Lowell and started the business anew in
1880, on Merrimack Street, taking (one year later)
F. T. Xunn as partner. This firm has gained a high
reputation as caterers. They employ fifteen men and
nine women.
E. Hapgood <£• Son, manufacturers of all kinds of
mattresses. Office on High Street. Mills on Law-
rence Street. This business was started by the firm
LOWELL.
lU
on Rock Street, ia 1870, and removed to its present
location in 1871. Ephraim Hapgood, the father,
having died, Edgar Hapgood, his son and partner,
continues the business. Thehrm has a mill at North
Troy, Vt., for the manufacture of excelsior. Num-
ber of hands employed thirty-five to forty.
The Spring-Bed and Shade-Roller Company, Worthen
Street, was incorporated in 1881. The principal
manufacture isShorey's Improved Spring-Bed. Presi-
dent, James Duckworth ; treasurer and clerk, Charles
Kimball.
John Cross, Button Street, manufactures awnings,
tents, horse and wagon-covers, etc., and employs six
hands. He started the business in 188G, as successor
of JI. Meany.
John McAskie, Middle Street, manufactures tents
and awnings. He started business in the building
which he still occupies in 1883. He also attends to
making horse-covers, and splicing and fitting falls.
Henry Edwards, Middle Street, manufactures ma-
chine-brushes, employing four men. Mr. Edwards
started this business in the town of Andover about
1877, where he remained five years. On coming to
Lowell he started the business in Market Street, and,
in 188G, removed to his present location.
The Lamson Consolidated Store Service Company
manufactures the Lamson Cash and Parcel Carriers,
employing 230 men. The manufactory is on Walker
Street. The company was organized in 1881 and
chartered in 1888, with a capital of ^,000,000. Pres-
ident, Frank M. Ames ; treasurer and general man-
ager, AV. S. Lamson. This is the first company to es-
tablish successfully the business of cash and parcel
carrj'ing systems in stores. It was organized in 1881
by W. S. Lamson, a merchant of Lowell. This com-
pany owns more than 200 patents and has a very
large patronage throughout the entire country.
Lovejoy Store Service Company was chartered in 1889,
with a capital of $56,000. Joseph S. Ludlam, presi-
dent ; Walter W. Johnson, treasurer ; and a board of
directors. Works at Mechanics' Mills.
Patrick Kelley, Davidson Street, manufactures soda,
ginger ale, root beer, lemon cream and mineral water.
He employs nine men, and bottled about 20,000 dozens
the last season. He started in business in 1882.
James Calnin, River Street, manufactures tonic,
ginger, root, raspberry, lemon cream, and nectar
cream, Belfast ginger ale, lager beer and cream mead,
employing six men and bottling 6000 dozens yearly.
He started the business on Market Street in 1882,
succeeding Thomas Torney. In 1884 he removed to
his present location.
C. E. Carter, corner of Branch and Smith Streets,
manufactures Allen's Root Beer Extract, Carter's
Blood Syrup, Carter's Tooth-Ache Drops, and Electric
Nerve Pencils. Mr. Carter started this manufacture
at Davis' Corner in 1876, removed to Central Street
in 1S7S, and to his present location in 1879.
E. \V. Hoyt d- Co. manufacture Hoyt's German
Cologne and Rubifoam, the latter a beautiful liquid
substitute for tooth-powder. They put annually upon
the market about 2,000,000 bottles. Twenty hands
are employed.
Eli W. Hoyt was born in Alexandria, N. Y.,
Sept. 5, 1838, and died in Lowell Feb. 9, 1887, at
the age of forty-eight years. He belonged to the
pure New England stock. John Hoyt, his most re-
mote American ancestor, was one of the original
settlers of Salisbury, Mass., and was a prominent
man, having held the offices of " moderator " and
" selectman " of the town.
The direct genealogical line, beginning with John
Hoyt, is as follows : (1) John Hoyt, of Salisbury,
who came to the town about 1639 and died in
1687-88. (2) Thomas Hoyt, of Amesbury, who was
born in 1640. (3) Lieut. Thomas Hoyt, of Amesbury,
who was a farmer and representative to the Gen-
eral Court, and died in 1740. (4) Timothy Hoyt, of
West Amesbury, who was born in 1700. (5) Timo-
thy Hoyt, of West Amesbury, who was born in 1728.
(6) Ephraim Hoyt, who, in 1841, died in Alexan-
dria, N. Y., at the age of eighty-three years. (7)
Daniel S. Hoyt, now of Lowell, who was born in
1808, and is the father of the subject of this sketch.
Mr. Hoyt, when eight years of age, came to Low-
ell with his parents, and was educated in the pub-
lic schools of the city. At the age of about four-
teen years he became a clerk in the drug-store of
E. A. Staniels, on the corner of Central and Mid-
dlesex Streets, and at length was received as part-
ner in the business. Upon the death of Mr. Stan-
iels, in 1861, Mr. Hoyt, th^n twenty-three years of
age, became sole proprietor. About 1866 he began,
in a small way, the manufacture and sale of cologne,
declaring that the first thousand dollars he should
earn he would devote to that enterprise. This pur-
pose he fulfilled. In 1870 Freeman B. Shedd, who,
for several years had served as clerk in the store,
was received as partner, and the firm began the ex-
tensive manufacture and sale of " Hoyt's German
Cologne." The article was in itself so valuable, and
the business of the firm was so ably and honorably
conducted, that the confidence of the community
was rapidly gained and the enterprise proved a re-
markable success. The drug business was given up
and the firm erected a spacious and commodious
building on Church Street for the accommodation
of its extensive and increasing buainess.
Few firms have gained so honorable a name and
few enterprises have been crowned with so complete
success. Wealth followed ; and the two partners,
whose mutual relations were always those of the
most confiding friendship, from a humble begin-
ning, found themselves in a few short years among
the wealthiest men of the city.
It has been well said of Mr. Hoyt that his saccesa
did not change his demeanor and that his bene-
factions kept pace with his prosperity. He remain-
112
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
ed through life that same gentlemanly, modest,
unassuming man that he was before fortune smiled
upon him. His gentle, winning ways won the hearts
of all who met him. Lowell has had many citi-
zens who have been as highly honored, but few who
have been so much beloved.
Though Mr. Hoyt had decided political principles,
it was hard to persuade him to accept a civil office.
In 1878 and 1879 he served in the City Council,
but, though often importuned, he steadily refused
to enter the Board of Aldermen or to be a candi-
date for the mayoralty. He served, however, as
chairman of the Republican City Committee, and
was a generous supporter of his political principles.
His charities abounded. His church found in
him a munificent giver, and the poor shared free'y
in his bounty. To his aged parents he was a most
noble son. His delight was in his home. His ele-
gant residence on Andover Street was adorned with
paintings and works of art, which his fine taste had
selected, and nothing was wanting to make it the
happiest of homes.
In the midst of his fortunate career, when he had
so much to live for and was daily so great a bless-
ing to all around him, there came to him the sad
premonition of declining health. For two years he
struggled bravely for life, but consumption had
claimed him for its own. His long sojourn in Cal-
ifornia and Colorado were unavailing. At length,
when he saw the approach of the inevitable hour,
he desired to be conveyed to his delightful home
and the scenes which he so tenderly loved. And
here, surrounded by his dearest friends, and cheer-
ed by every kindness which love could suggest, he
peacefully resigned his life. His wife and his aged
father still survive him.
F. E. Jewett & Co., Button Street, manufacture
cider vinegar, employing twenty-five men in the busy
season, and bottling about 6000 dozens yearly. He
succeeded Charles A. Gould about 1887, having at
first W. E. Stuart as partner, who is now no longer
in the firm.
Lowell Oiler Company, office in Northern Depot,
Middlesex Street, William H. Ward, president. This
company manufactures the Humphrey journal box
and oiler combined. It started in 1885 and succeeded
H. P. Humphrey, who originated the Automatic
Oiler Company.
Clinton S. Bruce, Salem Street, manufactures med-
icinal and surgical plasters, porous, blister, mustard,
corn, court, surgeon's adhesive, isinglass and dressing
plasters of every description. He started the busi-
ness on Coolidge Street in 1877, and removed to his
present location in 1888.
The Lowell Creamery commenced business in 1885.
It has seven milk routes and one route devoted to sale
of butter and cream. About 700 cans of milk are
handled daily. Between 200 and 300 cans of milk
are separated each day, and the cream extracted by
the De Laval Separator. Nineteen men are employed.
The works are located on Hildreth and Hampshire
Streets.
Aaahel Davis manufactures magneto-electric ma-
chines and wood-working machinery on Middlesex
Street. He started the business in 1855 on Market
Street. He is a veteran in the business. He has
taken out eighteen patents for his own inventions.
Samuel Young, Electrician, Savings Bank Building,
Sbattuck Street, started business in the repair-shop of
the Merrimack Mills about 1872, and came to Shat-
tuck Street about 1886. He made alarm clocks for
mills and electric work generally.
CHAPTER VIII.
LO WELL—( Continued).
SCHOOLS.
Ox the 1st day of March, 18^4, in the private car-
riage cf Hon. Kirke Boott, the first agent of the
founders of the Merrimack Mills, the earliest of the
great manufacturing corporations of our city, there
came to Lowell the Rev. Theodore Edson, a young
clergyman who had been employed by the directors
of the Merrimack Company to " preach and perform
pastoral duty to such persons in their employ as
might desire it." It was he who became the founder
and father of the school system of our city. On the
twilight of the evening of Saturday, the day of his
arrival, the carpenters were still at work on a new
building of two stories, just erected on the lot now
occupied by the Green School-house, in the upper
story of which was a hall constructed by the com-
pany for religious worship, the lower story being de-
signed for the first school established by the new
manufacturing colony. On the next day. Sabbath,
March 7, 1824, in the new hall, public divine worship
was held in Lowell for the first time in a place de-
signed for such worship. The young clergyman
preached to a crowded and attentive audience. Low-
ell was but a small village then of about 600 inhabit-
ants, and it had not yet received its present name.
Very diflferent was the aspect then of our city from
that which now greets the stranger's eye. Swamps
and bogs covered large portions of Market, Tyler,
Charles, Worthen, Anne, Kirk and several other
streets, and at the lower end of Market Street, and
near Kirk and Anne Streets, were ponds of water.
Woods covered a wide area, stretching far in the
rear of the Green School-hoube. The reservoir heights
on Lynde Hill, in Belvidere, were also covered with
woods. In the rear of the site of our post-office rose
a considerable swell of land, which long ago was
leveled down to fill the low marsh which then spread
out where now are KLrk Street, Anne Street and the
LOWELL.
113
High School lot. A pond filled the site of the High
School-house. One of our old citizens, still living,
says he distinctly remembers the following remark of
the Hon. Luther Lawrence, second mayor of our city,
in criticism of Dr. Bartlett, the first mayor, under
whose administration the High School lot was pur-
chased : " What do you think of a man who will lo-
catf a High School in a pond of water?"
We have already described the aspect of the quiet
village which stood on the site of Lowell in the be-
ginning of the century ; but now, after twenty-five
years have passed, a new order of things begins. The
days of invention and enterprise have come, new
structures begin to rise, and the whole scene begins
to change. Let us glance at the new asi)ect. Most
conspicuous was the new Merrimack Mill with its
boarding-houses adjoining it. Next on the swell of
land in the rear of our post-office rose the new and
elegant mansion of Kirk Boott, with lofty columns
in front and a fine lawn stretching down to the Con-
cord River. At the junction of the Merrimack and
Concord Rivers, where now stand the Massachusetts
Mills, wai a hotel called the " Mansion Houi>e," kept
by Captain Jonathan Tyler, long a well-known citi-
zen. Over the Concord River, on the site of the St.
JohnV Hospital, >till rose consiiicnonsly. as at the be-
ginning of the century, the spacious mansion of Judge
Livermore, already referred to. In the vicinity of St.
Patrick's Church, east of the North Common, were
ranged the low huts of the first Irish people of the
city, some of which, after the fashion of the old
country, had walls of mud and were covered with
slabs, with a barrel for a chimney. This settlement
was formerly known as " The Acre." There was
Mi.xer's tavern on Central Street, from which the
stages for Boston started, and Blake's tavern on Gor-
ham Street, two rival houses, the adjacent streets
being conspicuously ])lacarded to make it sure that
the traveler did not put up at the wrong house. The
stone house near Pawtucket Falls, afterwards the
residence of Dr. J. C. Aver, wa< then a hotei and a
favorite resort of the wealthy. Close by Pawtucket
Falls, ill reiir of the site of the mansion of Frederic
Ayer, Esip, was an old saw-mill, then the sole i)08-
sessor and occupier of the vast power which these
falls supplied. On the bluff near the falls stjll stood
the old red school-house, as at the becinning of the
century. Here and there were scattered farm-houses,
almost all of which have now disappeared.
Gen. B. F. Butler, who first came to Lowell when
ten years old, in 182S, has given us a lively account
of the straggling and scattered village, when it first
burst upon his view as he approached the place and
stood on Christian Hill, where now is the Central-
ville Reservoir. The general playfully mentions a
large spreading oak which stood near Tower's corner,
not far from the Washington House, under which, on
the first morning after his arrival, he found for sale
and ate the first ovsters he had ever seen. But verv
S-Ji
many and even most of the land-marks of that early
day have been removed or destroyed. Kirk Boott's
mansion has long since given place to the encroach-
ments of the manufacturing establishments, and is
now known as the City Hospital near Pawtucket
Falls. The low Irish huts have given place to more
substantial residences, and the two-story building on
the site of the Green School-house, where the first
public-school was kept, and where Dr. Edson first
preached to the [leople of the new city, has been re-
moved to Cabot Street, where it now stands.
In giving the history of the Lowell Schools, I
hardly need to mention the old Chelmsford district
schools, long before established ; for they bore only a
very remote relation to the schools of the city of Low-
ell. They were soon absorbed in the school system
of the new and enterprising manufacturing village.
The history of the Lowell schools properly begins
when, in 182C, the first School Committee of the town
1 of Lowell established two new school districts in ad-
I dition to the Chelmsford school districts already men-
1 tioned. The two new districts were established for
j the special use and benefit of the manufacturing
I population of the rising village. These districts were
] known as No. 1 and No. 5. It was in this year, 182G,
' that Lowell became an incorporated town. For
I about two years before this a school had been sus-
tained at the expense of the Merrimack Company,
under the sole supervision of Dr. Edaon in the two-
story building already mentioned. For the first few
summer months the school was taught by a lady.
The first male teacher was Joel I^ewis, a young man
of much modest worth, who, after a service of about
one year, went into the employment of the Locks &
Canals Com[)any, and was greatly interested in the
erection of Mechanics' Hall. He died at the age of
thirty-four years.
The first School Committee (which was chosen in
1826) consisted of some of the first men of the town
and deserve special mention.
They were, first of all. Rev. Theodore Edson, a
man of iron will, who knew the right and never
shrank from standing alone. He justly deserves the
title of father and founder of the school system of
Lowell; second, Warren Colburn, Esq., a graduate of
Harvard College and afterwards teacher of a select
school in Boston, who, though called to the important
position of superintendent of the Merrimack Mills,
still remained enthusiastic in the cause of education.
A part of the labor of preparing the three mathe-
matical works, which have made his name famous,
was performed amidst his arduous duties in the ser-
vice of the Merrimack Company ; third, Samuel
Batchelder, Esq., a many-sided man of high literary
culture, a devotee of science, and, above all, of the
highest inventive genius; fourth. Dr. John O.
Green, a model School-Committeeman, whose wont it
was to visit the schools under his care once a
week, and in the most unobtrusive manner learn
114
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY* MASSACHUSETTS.
their condition and supply their wants. The teacher
and the school had no firmer, truer friend. For
many years Lowell honored itself by placing him
upon its school committee ; fifth, Dr. Elisha Hun-
tington, a graduate of Dartmouth College, a man of
high social and literary culture, whose polished and
graceful bearing, whose kind and affable nature made
him always a favorite with the people of Lowell.
To such men, in her earliest years, did Lowell in-
trust the precious interests of her public schools.
The longevity of these five men — this first School
Board of Lowell — is remarkable. Mr. Bitchelder
died at the age of ninety-five years; Dr. Edson at
the age of nearly eighty-nine years; Dr. Green at
the age of eighty -six years ; Dr. Huntington lived
out almost the allotted three-score years and ten,
while Mr. Colburn alone was cut down in the midst
of his years.
The town of Lowell continued the district system
of schools, from its incorporation, in 182G, to the year
1832, when the graded system nuw in vogue was,
amidst much contention and opposition, adopted.
For the benefit of my younger readers, I ought, per-
haps, to say that the district system consi^^ted in hav-
ing in each territorial district one school only, and
this school was attended by pupils of every age, and
of every degree of advancement. I might also add,
what was very often true, that uuder this .system
every pupil used as text books such books as he saw
fit to bring to school. Even in Lowell, Dr. Edson
tells us that in Di.strict No. 2, at the Pawtucket Falls,
a pupil wnt sent to school with an arithmetic not
approved by the School Board, and demanded to be
taught therein. Xt the refusal of the board to allow
this book to be used as a text-book, great offence w.is
taken and a lawsuit was instituted. An action of
trespass was brought against the teacher for refusing
to teach the pupil. But the case never came to trial.
This old district system was exceedingly defective,
and it is only to be tolerated in cases where the popu-
lation is so thin and so scattered as to preclude the
possibility of establishing graded schools, like those
of the present day in all our cities, in which different
schools are established for pupils of different ages,
and the text-books and courses of study are fixed by
authority of the School Board.
But the old district school with all its faults is not
to be despised. It was the school of our fathers. In
it were educated the best and noblest men of
America — men who fought for our liberties and
founded our free institutions. The great defect of
these schools was an almost absolute want of system
and of law. The school from year to year was
simply what the master made it. As King Louis XIV.
said: " I am the State," so the di.strict schoolmaster
could say: "lam the srhool." Of one of these auto-
cratic old masters it is said that, being once reproved
for going to his school too late in the morning, he
coolly replied : " When I am late in the morning, I
leave off enough earlier in the afternoon to make it
up."
" Old Master Gile,'' of Essex County, a man of huge
equatorial dimensions, was wont to keep the mis-
chievous little boys of his school in subjection by
solemnly assuring them that the cau.se of his remark-
able rotundity of form was that he " hnd fnten so
inaiuj little boijx.'' The little boys gaped, and won-
dered, and obeyed.
The old masters devised their own penalties and
fought their own battles. The victory was usually
with the master, but sometimes with the pupils. In
the latter case it only remained for the master to
walk out or to be carried out. I myself have seen a
master take his hat and leave. The Rev. Warren
Burton, who wrote the pleasant little book entitled ;
"The District School as it was," tells of one of his
masters whose name was Augustus Star. Master Star
was a hard and cruel man and the boys rose in their
rage and might to dT'pope him. They carried him
bodily to the brow of a hill, whose sloping sides were
slippery as glass from being used by the boys in slid-
ing ilown-hill. Without sled or toboggan the naughty
boys shot Master Star down the slippery way. while
the wag of the school shouted ; "There goes n shootiny
.Star!"
Mr. Sherman, formerly mayor of Lowell, who at-
tended the district school in the two-story building
(already described) which stood upon the site of the
present Green Sihool building, has given us some
very amusing reminiscences of that early school.
'"The time of the teacher," he says "was about
equally divided by drilling in ('olburu's 'First
Lessons," anil punishing the boys." One of the punish-
ments consisted in sending the oH'enders through a
trap into the dark cellar to remain there till close of
school. " We always had a good lime down there,"
says .Mr. Sherman, "the principal fun being see-saw,
for which game some old planks and the wood-pile
atlorded us facilities, and so being sent iiito the cellar,
like being compelled to sit among the girls, came to
be denominated as ctipital punishment. One (iay,
using the sticks of wood ;i8 levers, we removed one of
the large stones in the wall at the rear of the building,
and after that we used to crawl out and roam over the
woods and swamps, which extended westerly from
the building up to ' the (cre.' It was an unlucky day
for us when our master discovered out mode of
egress — some boys not getting back from the woods in
season to go up when called at the close of the half-
day. Among the i>unishments resorted to, one was
to require unruly boys to seize a long iron staple
fastened to the ceiling for holding up the stove-pipe and
hang upon it with no other support; another to hold
out heavy books horizontally; another to stoop down
and with the fingers hold down a nail in the
floor ; another to have clothes-pins put astride the
nose ; and another, worst of all, to sit upon pointed
sticks. Master Baasett, who taught the school about
LOWELL.
115
three years, had ten or twelve of these stools of peni-
tence, and would frequently have as many boys out
on the floor at a time, bent in a sitting posture and
balancing themselves upon the sharp ends of the
sticks. These sticks were pyramidal in form, about
one foot hij;h and three inches square at the base."
Those old district school days were far from being
days of peace and harmony to the excellent School
(Joinmittee. We at this day read with surprise the
violent opposition made to the introduction into these
schools of Colburn's first lessons, and other school-
books prepared or recommended by Warren Colburn.
This remarkable contest between the School Com-
mittee and the people of Lowell 1 will describe in a.s
few words as possible. The Swiss philosopher, Pesta-
lozzi. had recently published to the world his new
theory of the science of education. He taught that
undcrttaniUng should take the place which memory
had occupied, and that in giving instruction we
should proceed from the concrete to the abstract, and
not, as heretofore, from the abstract to the concrete.
I cannot, perhaps, more clearly give a popular view
of this question than to propound and solve before
the reader, by both the old and the Pestalozzian
method, the following »im|)le mathematical problem :
" Ij two poiiii'ls nf hf^ef cost forty cents, what wilt three-
tilths of a pound cost .' "
By the old method, we are taught to go by the rule
and place the forty cents as the third term, the three-
fifths of a pound as the second term, and the two
pounds us the first term, then to multiply together
the second and third terms and divide the produce by
the first, and, presto ! we have the answer. It is not
too far from the truth to say that neither the old
arithmetics nor the old teachers were wont to give
any reo-son why this trick of legerdemain, the old
" llule of Three," gave the true answer.
]5ut I'e.staloz/.i would teach us to throw aside all
abstract rules and appeal directly, in the following
manner, to the jiupil's understanding; "If two
pounds of beef cost forty cents, one pound will cost
half of forty cents, that is, twenty cents. If one
pound Cost twenty ceuts, one-fifth of a pound will
cost one-fifth of twenty cents, that is, four cents. If
one-fifth of a jiound cost four cents, three-fifths will
cost three times four cents, that is, twelve cents,
which is the result sought."
When I was a boy, I studied arithmetic according
to the old method. I learned the rules and went
strictly by them, and the answers came out as if by
magic. I do not recollect that I ever recited a lesson
in arithmetic or gave a reason for any of my proces.ses.
I well recollect my surprise and embarrassment when
a new master asked me the novel question, if I could
tell why, in applying the " Bute of Three," the product
of the last two terms divided by the first gave the true
result.
I was confounded, and, though I had studied arith-
metic several winters, I had never thought it to be the
province of the teacher to est, or of tire pupil to
answer, such novel questions.
The merits of the Pestalozzian theory of iDBtruction
are now so fully conceded that it is hard for us to be-
lieve that our fathers so angrily opposed the new
philosophy, or that they should regard it as imperti-
nent and unjust that a pupil, who had obtained a
correct answer by a rigid application of an abstract
rule, should be called upon by the teacher to go be-
yond the rule and give a reason for his process.
As I have already said, one lawsuit even was once
instituted in Lowell to avenge the violated honor of
the old modes of instruction, and it required all the
wisdom and forbearance of the excellent members of
the School Board to reconcile the people to the new
methods of instruction. Even teachers were some-
times found in the opposition, and Mr. Colburn him-
self sometimes took charge of a class in school, in
order to exhibit the best method of applying the new
and improved theory of instruction. So violent was the
opposition that when the committee's report recom-
mending the use of Colburn's books was laid before
the town-meeting, a motion was made and passed to
put the report under the table, and then followed
another motion that the School Committee be put
under the table ! The moderator, however, refused
to put the latter motion as being, perhaps, somewhat
too personal — so unwilling were our fathers to ex-
change a system which demanded the memory of ab-
stract rules for one which awakened the thought and
appealed to the understanding of the pupil.
It is remarkable how little thought our fathers
were wont to put into their mathematical processes.
Prof Quimby, of Dartmouth College, has told us of a
man whom he discovered up in New Hampshire or
Vermont, who possessed the most intense enthusiasm
for mathematical science. The professor was de-
.lighted with his discovery. "Surely," thought he,
" here is another example of the poet's mute, in-
glorious Milton." But the professor's enthusiasm
was somewhat dashed when, on one occasion, in dis-
cussing some abstract question in mathematics, his
newly-discovered genius remarked that there was one
thing he could never quite understand, and that was
why in addition we must carry one for every ten.
" But," added he with decision, "you've got to do it,
or the answer won't come out." The friendship of
the two scholars was short-lived.
But the great historic contest in regard to the Low-
ell schools occurred in 1832, when, after trying the
district system for six years, and learning its inade-
quacy to meet the wants of the people, the School
Board resolved to establish, instead of the six district
schools, two large graded schools completely classified
after the manner of the graded schools of Boston and
Newburyport. To accomplish this object required
the erection of two large school-houses, at the ex-
pense of about $20,000. To this proposition there
arose, even among the first men of the town, the most
116
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
determined opposition. Mr. Kirk Boott, the most
influential citizen of the town, protested that the
town was already in debt and could not aHord so
great an outlay, — that sufficient and suitable provis-
ions had already been made in the public schools for
the poor, and, as for the rich, they would never pa-
tronize the public schools, but would for their
children seek better modes of instruction. Hon.
Luther Lawrence, aftenx-ards mayor of the city, Hon.
John P. Robinson, the most talented lawyer of the
town, and other leading men arrayed themselves
against the School Board. At the town-meeting,
called to take action upon the expenditure of $20,000
for the erection of two large buildings for graded
schools, in a long protracted and violent struggle,
Dr. Edson, single-handed and alone, advocated the
expenditure, and triumphed over all opposition by a
majority of eleven votes. Almost immediately
another town-meeting was called in order, if possible,
to rescind the vote. Lawrence & Robinson, both
eminent lawyers, appeared in opposition ; but there
was no flinching, and Dr. Edson still triumphed by
a majority of thirty-three votes. The opposition sur-
rendered and the two school buildings now known as
the Edson and the Bartlett School-houses were
erected. Such was the inauguration of our present
system of graded grammar schools.
It was with evident and justifiable pride that Dr.
Edson, in his address delivered at the opening of tlic
Colburn School, recalls the fact that within thirteen
months after this violent contest was ended, upon the
visit of Henry Clay and Governor Lincoln to Lowell,
both Kirk Boott and Mr. Lawrence waited upon these
distinguished men into the South (now Edson). *?chool,
and showed them the schools in very successful
operation. The doctor's victory was complete.
Having thus spoken of the inauguration of our
school system, we will turn to the history of individ-
ual schools.
Edson School. — Of the grammar schools the
most interesting and best preserved record is that ol
the Edson School. The history of this school de-
serves the first mention, for it reaches back almost to
the incorporation of Lowell as a town. Its name
has several times been changed. First, it was known
as the district school of " District Ao. 5.'' Its earliest
teacher was Miss Anna W. Hartwell, of Littleton,
whose humble salary was $1.93 per week and board.
She was an amiable and accomplished lady. Her
term of service was. short, but it was long enough for
her to capture the heart of a member of the School
Board, Hon. J. S. C. Knowlton, editor of the Lowell
Journal, and one of the first citizens of the place.
BIr. Knowlton subsequently removed to Worcester,
where he was elected State Senator, mayor of the
city and sheriff of the county. The second teacher
of the school was Joshua Merrill, who for many
years bore an honorable name as an instructor, and
whose death in Nov., 1889, at the venerable age of
eighty-seven years, has removed one of the most con-
spicuous of the founders of the Lowell schools. To
him I am indebted mainly for the history of the
Edson School.
Mr. Merrill began to teach on Nov. 5, 1827, in a
small house standing on Middlesex Street, near the
spot on which the Free Chapel now stands. He had
at first about seventy-five pupils on the humble
salary of S6.23 per week, out of which he paid his
own board. It was in truth a day of small things.
But Master Merrill was a man of the right mettle,
and he entered upon his work with enthusiasm, and
hoped for better things. And better things came, for
in 1830 he received the munificent salary of $300 per
year, with which he was so contented and so happy,
that he took to himself a wife, whom he felt abun-
dantly able to support, and who still lives in the city
of Lowell.
Let me again in passing speak of the small house
in which Mr. Merrill first taught. It was originally
designed and used as the counting-room of the Hamil-
ton & Appleton Companies. It was the building occu-
pied by our High School when it was first opened in
December, IsSl, under the prim.'ipalship of Thomas
Clark, now Bishop of Rhode Island. The building
was long since removed, and is now on the south side
of Middlesex Street, and i.s the third house west of
Howard Street. It has been enlarged and rai.sed
ui>on a brick basement, and has been divided up into
several small tenements.
In November, 1829, the Edson School, still under
.Miister Jlerrill, took pos.session of the new brick,
building, now known as the Free Chapel, and was
called the Hamilton School, from the prominent part
which the Hamilton Company took in sustaining it.
The school-room was a curiosity. It had been fin-
ished under the directi<in of J\Ir. Beard, a member of
the School Board, who, in architecture, was an origi-
nal genius. The pupils sat with their backs towards
the teacher. Master Merrill was obliged to occupy a
sort of high pulpit, for, when he stood down upon the
floor, he could barely see the heads of the larger pu-
pils rising above the tall desks. The benches were
sanded to save them from being cut by the boys, but
the rough surface made such havoc with the clothes
of the children that the mothers compelled Mr.
Beard to remove the sand and repaint the de.sks.
The apparatus for heating had this remarkable pecu-
liarity : that the aperture through which it was ex-
pected that the hot air would enter the school-room
simply conveyed a current of cold air from the school-
room out into the chimney. Al"ter running the fur-
nace day and night for some time in vain, a stove for
burning wood was substituted in its place and all was
quiet again.
Many a fierce battle about text-books, discipline,
etc., did Master Merrill wage in those troublous times,
but he was sustained by the School Board and he
firmly held his position. He accepted the situation,
LOWELL.
11^
aad when he could not do what he would, he cheer-
fully did what he could. When he could not ride, he
was contented to go afoot.
At this point it will not be amiss to turn our atten-
tion to the contrast between the present time and
sixty years ago in regard to the labors and rewards of
a faithful teacher in the public schools. The teacher
of the present, with his salary in the neighborhood of
S20(i0 annually, with his vacation of nearly one-fourth
part of the entire year, with his pupils classified ac-
cording to age and attainments, with his well-trained
assistants, convenient and spacious school-room, with
a thousand devices to promote the cleanliness and
comfort of his apartment, and the quiet and order of
his pupils, would find it hard to return to the days of
good Master Merrill.
Of those days, in addition to what I have already
written, I will give below an extract from Mr. Mer-
rill's own account, premising, however, that Mr. Mer-
rill's lot was not an exceptionally hard one for those
early days, for lie was in the service of some of the
most progressive and cultivated men of the country.
Of these men were Rev. Theodore Edson, Warren Col-
burn, Dr. John 0. Green, Hon. J. f^. (/. Knowltim,
all of whom in 18l!7 were members of the Superintend-
ing School Committee. They were men of liberal
culture. It should also be added that Mr. Jlerrill
began to teach in Lowell nearly five years after the
work of building the great manufactories bad begun.
But the following extracts will show that if men did
not hesitate to invest liberally and even munificently
in great industrial enterprises, they were hardly to
be accused of extravagance in their supjiort of public
schools.
" In the afternoon," says Mr. Merrill, October 23.
1827,"! returned to New Hampshire. As I could
not go by car or stage, I walked."
On the preceding day he had made the following
agreement with the School Board, as certified to by
I. A. Beard, district clerk :
"The L'ummitlee agxeed with Joshua Merrill to teacli school m
weeks, -^ days eacli week (omittiog Saturiiuv), ami to pay liis own
board, for SHO He is altio to be at the exi>ense of coming and retlirn-
iug."
"On Nov. 5 I commenced my achool. The second day I received a
formal visit from the Superintending Couimlttee. Mr. Colburn in-iuired
if I was familiar with the use of his Orst leasoue. I informed him I wh.s
not, never having used it in school. He was then requested (1 think by
Dr. EdsoD) to eserclde a class in it for my benefit, which he did."
"During the five months I bad 91 different scholars. [Mr. fli., it
seems, bad no assistant.] "
In 1831 Mr. Merrill was offered an increase of five
dollars per month in his pay if he would leave the
Hamilton School and become, the teacher of the Mer-
rimack School. It would seem from the following
reflection that this tempting offer sorely perplexed
his mind : " I thought if I should leave the Hamil-
ton, where I was giving satisfaction, and should not
be successful at the Merrimack School, it would be a
serious disappointment. When or where could 1
expect to get another yearly school with such a gen-
erous salary, — $300 per year? "
It was specified, in his formal agreement with the
committee, dated February 22, 1831, that "the vaca-
tions in the course of the year should be left to his
discretion, but not to exceed one month." By this
arrangement neither party gained or lost, for he was
paid for the time which he actually taught, and so
the more vacation, the less pay.
The following indicates the attitude of some of the
citizens towards the School Committee and the
schools :
"The door.bell rane. I went to the door. There stood a stranger
to me, although an old citizen. Holding up his whip, be said : ' la
your name Blerrill '.' " 'It is,' I responded. 'You are not vary large,'
haid he, 'neither am I ; but I will horse-whip you. What did you pnn-
ish my boy so for?' This s(ieech waa mingled with terrible oatlis,
which I will not name. I inquired his lx>y's name, and then told him
that I had punished his boy for disobedience to'the rules of the School,
made by the School Committee, and that I should certainly do the
xame again in like circumstances. 'If yon are dissatisfied, go to the
■ ommittee with your coniplainti^.' After l>estowing a very liljeral
iimount of curves n|ion the committee and myself, he left, and I
escaped the promised whipping."
"Dr. Kdson came in one day, and said to me with a good deal of
earnestuesp : 'Well, ftlr. Merrill, what do you think ^ Can you manage
the schiKd*.'' I replied unhesitatingly; 'I r.au if I have good health
Hud a giHKl School Committee to Iwck me up.' He onid : ' The Commit*
lee you ahull have.' "
I give the above exti-acts as, perhaps, my best
means of defining the status of a schoolmaster sixty
years ago. It was in accordance with the spirit of
the times. It is only in more recent years that public
school-teachers have felt assured of liberal and gen-
erous treatment at the hands of the parents of their
pupils and the patrons and supervisors of their
school. Of course, there were noble exceptions ; but
loo many of the old teachers looked upon their posi-
tions as if held by a doubtful tenure, and even upon
the times of peace as a sort of armed neutrality.
; On the 23d of February, 1833, the school moved
Into the building now known as the Edson School-
house, where it waa made a graded school, and was
I first known as the South Grammar i^hool, then as the
First Grammar School and, finally, as the Edwn School.
The latter name is surely most appropriate, for this is
one of the two graded schools for the establishment
of which Dr. Edson so persistently and so bravely
fought. Master Merrill continued the teacher, with a
salary, at first, of $500, which was subsequently, from
time to time, increased. He resigned his position in
1845, and was succeeded by Mr. Perley Balch, who,
in 1870, was succeeded by Mr. Ira Waldron, who, in
1872, was followed by the present principal, Mr. Cal-
vin W. Burbank. On December 22, 1888, this school
contained 457 pupils, and for 1888 the percentage of
attendance was 90, and the number of assistant teach-
ers in constant service 11.
Bartlett School.— The BartlettSchoolnextclaims
our attention. I have already referred to its estab-
lishment, for it was one of the two over which there
was, in 1832, such a violent contest in town-meeting.
118
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
In its first years it occupied the two-story building
(already referred to) on the site of the present (Treen
School-house. It was then called the Merrimiicl:
School, and was first taught, for a short time, by a
lady, who was paid by the Merrimack Company, and
who was succeeded by Mr. Joel Lewis, who, after a
service of about one year, was succeeded, in 1825, by
Mr. Alfred N. Bsssett, from Atkinson, N. H., the
teacher whose peculiar modes of punishment, as
given by Mayor Sherman, we have already described.
Mr. Bassett resigned in 1829. His successor, ilr. Wal-
ter Abbott, of Milford,N. H., taught only one year, and
was followed by Mr. Reuben Hills, of Hancock, N.
H., who was the teacher of the school when, in 183.S,
it was moved into the house near the North Common,
which it now occupies, and became a graded school,
known as the North Grammar School. Mr. Hills
resigned in 18.35. Mr. Jacob Graves was the princi-
pal of this school from 1835 to 1841, and again from
1843 to 1847 ; Mr. G. O. Fairbanks from 1841 to 1S42 ;
Mr. O. C. Wright, from 1842 to 184.3; Mr. J. P. Fisk,
from 1847 to 185G, the school, from 1S49 to 1S50, being
called the " Hancock School." The Hancock School
and the Adams School being united in 18.50, under
the name of the Bartlett School, Mr. Bement, the
present incumbent, wa-s then made principal of the
consolidated school.
This school received its present name from Dr.
Elisha Bartlett, the first mayor of Lowell, a man of
such exalted character that I might, perhaps, call
him not only the first mayor of Lowell, but also the
first citizen of Lowell.
On December 22, 1888, this school contained .344
pupils. The percentage of attendance for 1888 was
91. The number of assistant te.ichers in constant
service was 8.
High School. — Our High School was opened in De-
cember, 1831, under the principalship of Thoma.» M.
Clark, now Bishop of Rhode Island, in a sm.all build-
ing, on Middlesex and Elliott Streets, in which Mr.
Merrill first taught. Mr. Clark was only nineteen
years old, and the house was so small and the teacher
so young that the bishop once playfully remarked
before a Lowell audience that the reasons why he
flo^^i! his l)oys so seldom were, first, the house wjm
too small for the operation ; and, second, he was
afraid the boys would turn round and Hog him.
For a long time the High School lived a very no-
madic life. We find it first in the lowerroom ofwiiat
is now the Free Chapel, on Jliddlesex Street; next in
the upper room in the present Edson School-house ;
next in Concert Hall, which was near the site of the
store of Hosford & Co., on Merrimac Street; next in
the present Bartlett School-house; next in the attic
of St. Mary's Church, on Suffolk Street, a room now
used for a Catholic parochial school, and next, for a
second time, in the Free Chapel. Thus, for its first
nine years, like the ark in the wilderness, it wan-
dered from place to place, till at last, in 1840, it
" pitched its moving tent " on Kirk and Anne
Streets, where, for forty-nine years, it has enjoyed a
peaceful, quiet home.
Its first principal. Bishop Clark, who served from
1831 to 1833, still lives. Next followed Rev. Dr.
Nicholas Hoppin, who served from l'<33 to 1S35, whu
died four or five years since; next, from 1835 to
1830, Franklin Forbes, Rsq., who became, after leav-
ing Lowell, the very successful agent of the Lancas-
ter Mills, and died in 1877 ; next, from 18.30 to 1841,
Hon. Moody Currier, recently Governor of New
Hampshire; next, from l.'<41 to 1842, Nehemiah
Cleveland, Esci., who devoted his last years to literary
pursuits, and died in Westport, Conn., in 1877 ; next,
from 1842 to 1845, Mr. Forbes a second time ; next,
( 'harlt's C. Chase, the writer of this article, from 1S45
j to 1883, a term of service of thirty -eight years, almost
I three times !is long as that of all his predecessors,
I and next, Frank F. Coburn, Esf]., the pjesent princi-
I pal of the school.
The teachers of the school at the presi-nt time are
as follows: Principal. Frank F. C'liluini ; .Vssistaiits,
Frank B. Sherburne, Cyrus W. Irish, Mary A. We'.i-
I ster. Marietta Melvin, lOlizabeth McDaniels, Harriet
C. Hovey, (.'harlotte E. Draper, Alice J. Chase, Susio
L. D. Watson, Adelaide Baker, Jennie L. Allen.
1 Maud Hadley. Besides these regular teachei-s the oc-
c:isional teachers are : Thomas W. Graves, in i>en-
manship, Walter E. Owen, in music.
The statistics of this .school most recently i)iib-
I lished are those of 1888. They show the whole num-
ber of pupils l)elonginir, on Dec. 22, 1888, to be:
Males, 204 : females, 224; total, 428; and the per-
' centage of attendance to lie 04.
I The pupils occupy ten dill'erent rooms, both sexes
I reciting in the same chisses, sitting in the same rooms
! and pursuing the same studies. The same is true of
' all the other schools of Mie city.
! However, from 1840 to 1807, the sexes were sejia-
I rated, and the school occupied only two rooms, cal!e<l
j the male and female departments. The principals nf
! the female department were as follows : Lucy E.
Penh.illow, 1840 to 1S4(! ;Sn.san F. Burdick, 1840 to
185(1; .\nne B. .Sawyer, IS.'iO to 18.52. After the con-
solidation of the two departments under one head the
teachers who presided over the young ladies, and who
were called sub-principals, were Jonathan Kimball,
1.S52 to 1857, subsequently superintendent of .schools
in Chelsea, Lloyd W. Hixon, a graduate of Dartmouth
College, and sub.sequently teacher of a private school
in Newburyport.
My space wiil not allow me to record the long list
of excellent teachers who have assisted in the in-
struction, but the friends of the school would not
deem its history complete if the following teachers
should not be mentioned : James S. Russell, still
living, at the age of eighty-three years, truly a vet-
eran teacher, who was instructor in mathematics for
forty-three years; Rev. George B. Jewett, a graduate
LOWELL.
119
of Amherst and subsequently tutor in th&t college,
and pastor of a church in Nashua, N. H.; David C.
Scobey, 1842 to 1850, a grkduat* of Dartmouth Col-
lege, who died while in service, at the age of thirty-
four years; Ephraim W. Young, 1849 to 1856, now
judge of Probate of Sauk County, Wisconsin, and liv-
ing at Baraboo ; John J. Culton, 1857 to 1865, a gradu-
ate of Amherst College, afterwards city physician and
member of the School Committee in Lowell ; Joseph
H. McDaniels, 1865 to 1868, a graduate of Harvard,
now Professor of Greek in Hobart College, Geneva,
X. Y.; Gorhani D. Williams, graduate of Harvard,
1865-66, afterwards attorney-atlaw in Deer6eld,
Mass.; Levi S. Burbank, 1807 to 1873, afterwards
principal of Warren Academy, Woburn, Mass.; Ed-
win H. Lord, a graduate of Bowdoin, now principal
of the Brewster Academy, Wolfsborough, N. H.
Moody School. — The Moody Grammar School was
established in 1841, and is the first and only grammar
school in Belvidere. It received its name from Paul
Moody, one of the jiioneers in the great manufactur-
ing enterprises of Lowell. It is situated at the cor-
ner of East Merrimack and High Streets, on a very con-
tracted and very irregular lot, so small, indeed, as
to compel the boys of the school to find their play-
ground in the streets of the city.
Its first principal was Seth Pooler, who served in
his office from 1841 to 185G. He is still living, a
very aged man, in Rutland, Vt. His successor was Mr.
Joseph Peabody, who was principal from 1856 to
18,S3. Mr. Peabody died in Lowell in Nov., 1886. Upon
the resignation of Mr. Peabody, in 1883, Mr. William
S. Greene, the present incumbent, was elected.
On December 22, 1S88, the number of pujjils in this
school was 239, and in 1888 the percentage of at-
tendance was ninety-two. The number of assistant
teachers was seven. The great waut of this school is
a ])iay-ground worthy of a grammar school of a great
and wealthy city.
Gkees School. — This school was opened in 1842,
in a brick building on Middle Street, now occupied by
the firm of J. C. Ayer & Co. The house was es-
teemed at the time of its constraction as well adapted
to the uses of a grammar school, and in the School
Report of 1842 it is called a "beautiful grammar
school house." In process of time, however, iis
dense surroundings rendered the building an unfit
place for a large public school. The house was sold
for business purpo.ses and the school was removed to
the new and costly and elegant building on Merri-
mack Street, which it now occupies, in the year 1871.
This building, far the most costly of the Lowell
school buildings at the time of its erection, was
erected in 1870 at the expense of $106,000.
At the opening of this school, in 1842, Mr. Samuel
C. Pratt was elected principal. In 1843 Mr. Aaron
Walker succeeded Mr. Pratt and served as Principal
till 1845, when Mr. Charles Morrill, who had been for
about four years an assistant teacher in Lowell
schools, was elected priocipal, holding the position
till 1867, when he was elected superintendent of the
schools of Lowell. Mr. Charles A. Chase succeeded
Mr. Morrill in 1867, and resigned in 1868. The next
principal was Mr. George F. Lawton, who was in of-
fice when the school removed into the new and ele-
gant building on Merrimack Street.
In 1874 Mr. Lawton resigned his position and was
succeeded by Mr. Albert L. Fisk. Mr. Fisk's feeble
health required him to relinquish his position, and
he died January 13, 1830. His successor, Mr. Albert
L. Bacheller was, in 1880, transferred from the Colburn
School to this school, and he still fills the office of
principal.
The Green School received its name from Dr. John
O. Green, who, as supervisor of LowelJ schools for
very many years in the earlier part of the city's his-
tory, has done for them a greater service, perhaps,
than any other citizens. He lived to a great age to
witness the fruits of his generous labors.
On December 22, 1888, the number of pupils be-
longing to the Green School was 402. In the year
1888 the percentage of attendance was ninety-one.
The number of assistant teachers was eight.
Colburn School. — The Colburn School-house,
built on the banks of the Concord River, was erected
in 1848 and dedicated on December 13th of that year.
At its dedication an address of great historical value
was delivered by Rev. Dr. Edson. The school re-
ceived its name from Warren Colburn, an early agent
of the Merrimack Mills, an ardent supporter of the
Lowell schools in their first years and the distin-
guished authorof that remarkable school-book known
to every teacher as " Colburn's First Lessons."
The first principal of this school was Mr. Aaron
Walker, who resigned in 1864 and was succeeded by
Mrs. Fidelia O. Dodge. Her successor was Mr. Per-
ley Balch, who became principal of the school in
1870. Air. Balch had before this been, for twenty-five
years, the principal of the Edson School. He was
succeeded in the Colburn School, in 1874, by Mr.
Albert L. Bacheller, a graduate of Middletown (Conu.)
University, who, after a service of six years, was
transferred to the principalship of the Green School.
In 1880 Mr. Geo. W. Howe, a graduate of Bowdoin
College, succeeded Mr. Bacheller as principal of the
Colburn School, and is the present incumbent.
On Dec. 22, 1888, the number of pupils belonging
to this school was 321. For the year 1888 the per-
centage of attendance was ninety-one, and the num-
ber of assistant teachers was eight.
Vaencm School. — This school occupies an ele-
vated and commanding view in the suburb of Central-
ville, which is that part of Lowell which was set off
from the town of Dracut in 1851. In former years
there had stood near the spot a time-honored institu-
tion known as the " Dracut Academy," one of those
" old academies " which in the early part of the present
century, long before the modern High School was
120
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, IMASSACTIUSETTS.
known, crowned so many of New England's hills, and
gave to the noblest and best of her sons and daugh-
ters their only means of pursuing the branches of a
higher education than that afforded by the district
school.
This school received its name from Major-General
Joseph B. Varnum, who was the most distinguished
citizen of whom the town of Dracut could ever boast,
having held the high office of president pro tempore
of the United States Senate.
This school was opened in 1851, in the upper room
of the old academy building, with Mr.- A. W. Board-
man, a graduate of Harvard College, as principal.
Mr. D. P. Galloupe succeeded Mr. Boaidmac in 1853,
having been, for many years before, the principal of a
grammar school in Salem. The new brick building
on Myrtle S'.reet was first occupied by this school in
1857. Mr. Galloupe, after a service in thi.s school nC
twenty-five years, resigned his position in 1878. His
successor was the present incumbent, Mr. Arthur K.
Whitcomb, a graduate of Diirtmouth College.
On Dec. 22, 1888, the number of pupils belonging
to this school was 452. For the year 1S8S the per-
centage of attendance was ninety-two, and the num-
ber of assistant teachers was ten.
Fra.nki.in .\XDHi(inr,ANi) ScHOOi,. — This school
was called the Franklin School in the School Report
for 1849, and subsequently till, in 1882, it was remov-
ed from Jliddlesex Street to the new and elegant
building in the " Highlands," wheuittook the name
of the Highland School.
It is pro|)er here to remark that before 1840 the
grammar schools were known in the School Reports
and in common parlance ;ls Grammar School No. 1,
Grammar Sciiool No. 2, etc., but in that year it ap-
pears that the names of men of national reputa-
tion, like " Washington," " Franklin," etc., were ap-
plied to most of them, while in later years they gen-
erally have the names of citizens of Lowell who
have most distinguished themselves as the patrons
and friends of her schools. Such names are " Edson,"
" Green," " Bartlett," " Colburn."
. In 1840 this school, under the name of " Grammar
School No. 4," was opened in a school-house on Mid-
dlesex Street, with Mr. George Spaulding as princi-
pal. He was succeeded, in 1844, by Mr. Nason H.
Morse. The new brick building, erected for the
school on Middlesex Street, wxs first occupied in 1845.
lu 1848 ill health compelled iMr. Morse to resign,
and Mr. Ephraim Brown temporarily filled his place.
In July, 1847, Mr. Ephraim W. Young, a graduate of
Harvard College, Wius elected principal of the school,
but was tran.sferred to the High School, as teaclier of
sciences, in a few months after his election. In 1849
Mr. A. B. Heywood became principal of the school,
and in 1870 he was succeeded by Mr. Stephen G.
Bailey, a graduate of Yale College. In 1874 Mr.
Perley Balch succeeded Mr. Bailey, and in 1878 Mr.
Frank F. Coburn, a graduate of Amherst College, suc-
ceeded Mr. Balch. In 1880 Mr. Coburn, having been
transferred to the High School ;xs teacher of sciences,
was succeeded by Mr. Ch.irles \V. Morey, a graduate
of Amherst, and the present incumbent. On Jan. 1,
1882, this .school took possession of its new and ele-
gant building on West Pine Street, erected at llie ex-
penseofabout$43,000, and became known as the High-
land School, a name derived from its location in the
Highlands. On Dec. 22, 1888, the number of pupils
belonging to this school wa-s 5."4. In 1888 the per-
centage of atti-ndance was 91, and the number of as-
sistant teachers was twelve.
Bi^Tl.liK School. — This school receives its name
from Lowell's distinguished citizen, Gen. Benj.
F. Butler. The building, which is on Gorbam Street,
is an elegant brick structure, erected in 188.'!, at the
expense of about s!ot;,00O. It was opened in 188:5,
having as its ]>riiicipal Mr. (ieo. H. Conley, who re-
mfiined in office till April, 1884, when he was elected
superintendent of the [Mitilic siliooU of Lowell. Mr.
('onley was etlncated at the College of the Holy
Cross, in Worcester, Mas-. He is now one of the
supervisors of the schools of Boston. His successor in
the Butler School was Cornelius I'. Callahan, a grad-
uate of the College of the Holy Cross. He entered
upon his services in 1884, and is the present incum-
bent. On Dec. 22, ]8Ss, the number of pupils be-
longing to this school was 442. In the year 1888
the percentage of altendiiiice was ninety-one, and
the number of Jissistant teaciiers was nine.
PaWTIk'KET Sfiiooi,.— This school is sitiiated on
the Jlammotli road, in I'awtucketville, on land set off
I'rora the town of Dracut. The house was erected in
1.S84, at the expense of nearly s5.'?,()ii0. Tliis is the
only grammar school in Lowell which bears the old
Indian name of its location. It was organized in
September, 1884, with .Mr. Oliver C. Semple, a gradu-
ate of Amherst College, .as its principal, who was
succeeded in 1885 by Mr Cyrus W. Irish, a graduate
of Harvard College, who, in 188(5, was transferred
to the High .'School, as teacher of sciences. Jliss
Nellie McDonald temporarily served in his place in
the Pawtucket .School. In 1887 Mr. William P.
Barry became |>rincipal of the school and is the pres-
ent incumbent.
On December 22, 1888, the number of pupils in
this school was 110. In the year 1888 the percentage
of attendance w.as ninety, and the number of assistant
teachers was four.
Having given a short sketch of the history of the
present gr.amniar schools of Lowell, I will add a brief
account of those that have, from various causes,
ceased to exist.
Mann School. — This school received its name
from Hon. Horace Manu, the distinguished secretary
of the Board of Education of Massachusetts. This
was the first grammar school established exclusively
for the children of Catholic parents under the agree-
ment between the School Board and the parents,
LOWELL.
121
which I more fully explain under the head of " Calh-
olic Parochial SchooU." This school was established
in 1838, and was formed by uniting two of the Catho-
lic schools already existing. It was originally called
the Fifth Grammar School, and was first set up
in Liberty Hall, under Mr. Daniel Mclllroy as prin-
cipal. In 1841 Mr. James Egan succeeded Mr.
Mclllroy, and Mr. Egan, in 1842, was followed by
Mr. M. Flynn. In 1844 the school was removed to
the new brick building on Lewis Street, and Mr. Geo.
W. Shattuck became its principal.
In 1852 nearly all the girls of this school were
withdrawn by their parents and transferred to the
new Catholic private school under the instruction of
the Sisters of Notre Dame, and under the supervision
of Father O'Brien.
Mr. Shattuck resigned in 18.'J2, and was succeeded
bj- Mr. P. W. Robertson, who was succeeded by Mr.
A. T. Young, who held the office only a few months
in 1853. Mr. Samuel A. Chase succeeded Mr. Young
in 1853, and served as principal till 1873, when he
was succeeded by Miss Nellie M. Gallagher, who had
been first assistant teacher in the school. In lS7(i
Mr. Geo. H. Conley succeeded Miss Gallagher. In
1883 Mr. Conley was transferred to the Butler School,
and Mr. Oliver C. Semple, a graduate of Amherst
College, succeeded him. On September 1, 1884, Mr.
Semple was transferred to the priucipalship of the
new Pawtucket School, and the Mann School no
longer existed as a grammar school.
The average number of pupils belonging to thi.s
school in 1851 was 25G.
Washington School.— In 1834 a second grammar
school was opened in the building now known as the
Bartlett School-house, with Mr. Nathaniel D. Healy
as principal. This school was called the "Third
Grammar School." In the year 1838 it was removed
into the South Grammar School-house, now known
as the Edson School-house. Before its removal,
however, Mr. S. S. Duttnn had been its principal for
a few months in 1835, and Mr. Isaac Whittier for a
few mouths in 1830. At the time of its removal Mr.
John Butterfield was principal, liia term of service
extending from 183tj to 1840, when Mr. Jonathan
Kimball was elected principal. In 1851 Mr. Kimball
was succeeded by Mr. A. T. Young, who, after a few
months, was succeeded by Mr. P. W. Robertson, who
remained its principal till, in 1856, it was merged
into the Edson School in the same building. This
change consisted in remodeling the entire house so
that instead of two large rooms with a male principal
at the head of each, eight small school-rooms were
constructed, in one of which the principal presided
and in the other eight rooms, female teachers.
In 1855 the average number of pupils belonging to
this school was 162.
Adams School. — This school was opened in 1836 in
the lower story of the building now occupied by the
Bartlett School. Its first principal was Mr. Otis H.
Morrill. In 1851 he was succeeded by Mr. Samuel
Bement. The school in the upper story of this build-
ing was known as the " Hancock School " as long as
there was a separate school in the lower story called
the Adams School ; but when the house was re-
modeled in 1856, the two schools were united in one,
and were called the Bartlett School. Mr. Fisk, prin-
cipal of the Hancock, having resigned, Mr. Bement
became principal of the consolidated school.
The history of the Hancock School is not separate-
ly given, but has been treated of under the head of
the Bartlett School.
The changes in the names of our grammar schools
sometimes makes their history slightly involved. For
example, the names applied to the school (or schools)
in this building have been, first, "Merrimack
School;" second, "North Grammar School ; " third,
"Hancock and Adams Schools;" fourth, "Bartlett
School."
In 1851 the average number of pupils belonging to
the Hancock School was 235. and to the Adams 222.
Primary Schools. — Many of the best things in the
world are those of which but little is to be said. The
silent forces of nature are the forces that change
the world. Indeed, a blessing has been pronounced
upon the land which has no history. " The short and
simple annals " of our primary schools do not measure
their priceless value in our system of education.
Even without the other grades of schools, the primary
schools alone would be to any land an inestimable
blessing. They can live without the other grades, but
the other grades cannot exist without them. They
stand at the threshold of life and guard the portals of
the temple of knowledge.
But their history is necessarily a meagre history.
With every change of teachers a primary school
changes its character and becomes another school,
and thus in one sense it has no history. Not so with
the higher and Iftrger schools which have many
teachers and more fixed courses of study. They do
not lose their identity and they have a continuous
history.
In the year 1888 (the report for which is the latest
report published) Lowell had ninety primary schools
(proper), in thirty-two separate buildings. In each is
a single teacher, and each is subject to the supervision
of a single member of the School Board.
Of the primary schools of Lowell it may, in general,
be said that they are excellent. In cases in which
the teacher has been elected upon her merits this
praise is alm()st always due.
Catholic Parochial Schools. — There is, doubt-
less, a wide and honest difierence of opinion among
Christian men in regard to giving religious instruction
in the public school. Some believe that so great is the
difierence of doctrine among the various religious
sects, the only religious instruction which it is
practically possible to give in public schools is the
inculcation of the general principles of morality,
122
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
while others believe that distinctive doctrinal in-
structions should be regularly and systematically
taught. It is probably fair to assert that the Protes-
tant Churches generally adopt the former view and
the Catholic Churches the latter.
The people of Lowell have thus far had the good
fortune, as well as the wisdom, to avoid any serious
conflict on this subject. The children of Protestants
and Catholics have sat side by side in the public
schools for many years, scarcely conscious of any
religious difference. The writer of this article w.is
for about thirty-eight years at the head of one of the
Lowell schools, in which many of his pupils were
Catholics. He read every morning from King James' ^
translation of the Bible before the assembled pupils
and repeated a short form of prayer, ami he recollects
no case in which any pupil refused to attend the
exercises or in which any parent offered a complaint.
These amicable relations between the two parties
seem to have been in great measure the result of ii
mutual agreement made in the earlier days of the ex-
istence of our school system. Of this agreement I
will give a short account, as found in the report of a
sub-committee of the School Board appointed in
1S43 to consider the subject of the relations of
Catholics to the public schools :
" In the first settlement of the town," says this re-
port, "owing to .several causes, the Irish were col-
lected, and built their dwellings chiefly in one quar- ;
ter, ou a tract of land familiarly known to all by the
name of '77/f .lire.' A large population was here i
gathered, destitute of nearly every means of moral
and intellectual improvement so generally enjoyed in
New England. It was not to be expected that a com-
munity thus situated and neglected, so near the cen-
tre of a populous town, could be viewed with indif-
ference ; on the contrary, it would be watched with
great anxiety and apprehension. Accordingly, by
the advice and efforts of philantbropic individuals, a
room was soon rented and supplied with fuel and
other necessaries, and a teacher placed in this school,
who was to be remunerated by a small voluntary tax
from the parents. From the poverty and indirt'er-
ence of the parents, however, the school very soon
languished and became extinct. It was, from time to
time, revived, but, after months of feebleness, again
failed.
" Up to the year 1830 the attempts to establish a
school in this neighborhood were sustained by indi-
vidual benevolence chiefly."
At the May meeting of 1830 the town took the
matter up, and appropriated fifty dollars to establish
a separate school for the Irish. This school, like
other district schools, was in session only a part of
the year. It seems, however, that this arrangement
proved unsatisfactory, for we find that in 1S34 liev.
Father Conolly kepta private school under the Catho-
lic Church, thus clearly indicating that the public
school was not meeting the wants of the community.
The various attempts to exttiid the benefits of the
public schools to the Irish population had thus far
failed. In speaking of these attempts and failures
tha School Committee of 183(3 use the following lan-
guage: "These attempts have been hitherto frus-
trated, chiefly, perhaps, by a natural apprehension on
the part of parents and pastors of placing their ihil-
dren under Protestant teachers, and, in a measure,
also by the mutual prejudices and consequent dis-
.igreement among the Protestant and Catholic chil-
dren themselves."
When Father Conolly sought the aid of the com-
mittee in his work of educating and improving the
children under his charge, the committee entered
readily into his views, and a plan of establishing one
or more separate schools for the children of Catholic
l)iirents was matured, and put into successful opera-
tion.
Ou the i>artof the committee the followini; condi-
tions were insisted on a.s indispensable:
" 1. That the instructors must be examined as to
their i|ualifications by the committee, and receive
their appointments from tlicin.
"2. That the books, exercises and studies should
be all prescribed and regulated by the committee,
and that no other whatever should be taught or al-
lowed.
" :!. That these schools should be |>laced. as respects
the examination, inspection and general supervision of
the committee, on precisely the same ground as the
other schools of the town." Father (_'onolly, on his
part, urcrcd, " in order to render the scheme acceptable
to his parishioners, that the instructors must l>c of
the Roman (':itholic faith, and that the books pre-
scribed should contain no statements of tacts not ad-
mitted by that faith, nor any remarks ivllecting inju-
riously upon their system of belief " "These condi-
tions," says the report, " were assented to by the com-
mittee as reasonable and proper, and the books in
use in our schoiils were submitted to his inspection,
and were by him fully approved.'"
Accordingly, in September, two schools for the
Irish children were established under the Catholic
Church, and (me in the vicinity of Chapel Hill.
In March, lS-14, there were one gr^immar school
and five primary schools, composed exclusively of
Irish children.
By degrees, a^ time pa.ssed on, the children of Irish
parents freely entered the High School and other
schools of every grade, and no religious discrimina-
tion has been recognized. For a long period both
parties have seemed satisfied, and complaints of any
undue interference with the religious rights of the
pupils have seldom, if ever, been heard.
The rapid increase of Catholic parochial schools in
Lowell rluring the last ten years is uot to be attrib-
uted toany rupture of the harmonious relations of the
Protestants and Catholics of the city, but to the
policy of the Catholic Church in America, which, in
LOWELL.
123
recent years, demands, more imperatively than ever,
that the children of the Church must be educated by
the Church, and that as religious instruction so far
. transcends in importince all other instruction, Catho-
lic parents must no longer intrust the education of
their children to schools in which no such instruction
is given.
Four of the Catholic Churches of Lowell now sus-
tain parochial schools. These schools are i)iaced un-
der the instruction of the Xaverian Br6ther8, the
Sisters of Notre Dame, the Grey Nuns of Ottawa and
the Dominican Sisters. These teachers are ap|(ointed
by officials of high authority in the Church who are
not only men of su|>erior ability, but who are ]>laced
in a position which enables them to act independ-
ently of local prejudice or popular favor. The result
is, that the teachers of these schools are a superior
chiss of instructors — gentlemen devoted to duty and
to the service of the Church, and ladies of refined
manners and high intellectual culture. The school-
building.-i are almost new, and are substantial and well
equipped with the aiipliances demanded by modern
schools.
There are three schools connected with .St. Patrick's
Church : (! ) The Fenialf .Vcademy, which was estab-
lished in IS.i:!, and which has eleven teachers and
about IdO pupils, and in which the French lan^ruage
is taught and a somewhat higher grade of studies is
pursued. (2) The Parochial School (for girls), which
is devoted to the common English branches of study,
having eight teachers .and about 300 pupils.
Both of these schools are nuder the instruction of
the Sisters of Notre Dame, the Superior being Sister
Clare, of the Sacred Heart. !
The substantial bjick building which accorarao- i
dates both schools is situated on .•Vdanis Street.
(3) The St. Patriilc Parochial School (for boys) is
situated on Sull'olk Street, and is in a brick building
formerly known as St. ALiry's ('liurch. This church
was buiit and originally owned by the Worthen Street
Baptist Church, but has long been in the possession
of the Catholics. This sclior)! lias eleven teachers
and about "):'..'> pupils. It is under the instruction of
the Xaverian Brothers, with Brother .^ngelus as di-
rector. In this school music i« made a subject of
special attention. It has a brafs band and orchestra
of twenty-four pieces, under the instruction of the
Brothers. It also has four companies of cadets, sup-
plied with uniforms.
The three schools are under the general supervi-
sion of Father Michael O'Brien, jiastorof St. Patrick's
Church.
The Parochial School of the Immaculate Concep-
tion is situated on High Street, in Belvidere. It was
established in 18S1, and has seven teachers and about
47J pupils. It is under the instruction of the Grey
Nuns of Ottawa, the Superior being Sister M. An-
gela. The school is for both sexes, and only the
common English branches are taught, including mu-
sic, drawing and calietheDics. The echool building
is particularly attractive, both for its construction
and the beauty of its location.
St. Joseph's Parochial School, on Moody Street,
is designed for the children of French Catholics,
most of whom have, in recent years, come to Lowell
from the British Provinces. It is under the general
supervision of Father Andre M. Garin, pastor of
St. Joseph's Church, on Lee Street. It has seventeen
teachers and about 1000 pupils, and is under the in-
struction of the Grey Nuns of Ottawa. The children
come from homes in which the French language is
spoken, but in the school instruction is given both in
French and English. It is worthy of remark that
the pupils prefer the English, and think it a language
more easily acquired than the French. .Mary Ann
Roby is Sister Superior of the school. A stranger, on
visiting this institution, is struck with the spirit of
politeness and courtesy which pervades every depart-
ment.
St. Michael's Parochial School, on Sixth Street, in
Centralville, has but recently been opened, having
been organized in September, 1889. It has five teach-
ers and about 180 pupils, all being girls. The com-
mon English branches are taught, together with vo-
cal and instrumental music. It is under the instruc-
tion of the Dominican Sisters and the general super-
vision of the pastor of St. Michael's Church.
Trainixg-School. — A training-school has re-
cently been established by the School Board for the
better instruction of young candidates for the posi-
tion of teacher, and also as a means of testing the
aptness and ability of the candidates for their work,
and thus aiding the board in their selection and
choice of new teachers for the schools.
The pupils of this school do not differ from the pu-
pils of the primary schools, but their immediate in-
structors are candidates before the School Board for
positions as teachers, who are denominated ''pupil-
teachers," and are ])laced on trial under the super-
vision of an experienced principal, whose duty it is
to observe the methods of the teachers under her
charge, to point out their defects and errors, to sug-
gest better methods and give them general instruc-
tion in the art of teaching. The most apt and skill-
ful of these "pupil-teachers" have the best reasons
to expect appointments, by the board, to permanent
positions as teachers in the public Bchools. However,
no pledges are given beforehand, nor does the board
think it just, in all cases, to reject the claims of other
conapetent persons who have not served in the train-
ing-school. «
Perhaps the greatest benefit to be derived from this
school will be the elimination from the list of candi-
dates for teachers' positions ofthose who, by their failure
in the work of the training-school, clearly chow that
they possess no natural aptness and ability for the
teacher's work. It is well known that in all our cities
there are many persons of high character and moral
124
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, IMASSACHUSETTS.
worth, who have secured situations as teachers, but
who on trial prove to have no natural tact in their
work. Through an excess of kindness such unsuc-
cessful teachers are allowed, for long years, to retain
their positions, to the detriment of the schools and
with great injustice to the pupils and their parents.
It is hoped the training-school will often save the
board from such unfortunate and embarrassing ap-
pointments. The principal of this school is Miss
Julia M. Dewey.
On Sept. 13, 1889, in the new building on Charles
Street, erected specially for this school, the six rooms
were occupied by 236 pupils. The number who had
presented themselves as pupil-teachers was thirty-two.
These were variously employed under the direction of
the principal, some in teaching the pupils in the
building, some in temporarily tilling the places of
absent teachers of other schools, and all in daily drill
and practice in the work of instruction.
Free Evenint; Schools.— In 1855, in consequence
of an alteration in the Constitution of the State, it
was found necessary to bring under the direct super-
vision of the School Committee those free evening
schools which had for several years been sustained by
the Lowell Missionary Association, aided by annual
appropriations from the City Government. From
this date they became a part of the school system of
the city.
My space will not permit me to trace their history
or to tell of their bent»ticent mission. They help
where help is most needed, and their existence and
support do honor to our free institutions.
These schools are net in session <luring the spring
and summer months. For the term beginning in
Oct., 1887, and ending in Feb., 1888 (the last re-
ported), the number of these schools was ten, the
average number of pupils belonging to them was
1917, the percentage of attendance being 78A.
These schools are in session lour evenings per
week.
One of their number is devoted to instruction in
the higher branches of study, and is denominated the
" Evening High School."
The whole number of teachers in service in the
term reported was, on the average, seventy-six.
Free Evening Drawing-School. — In 1870 the
Legislature of Massachusetts enacted a law requiring
that free instruction in industrial and mechanical
drawing shall be given to persons over fifteen years of
age, and that drawing shall be taught in all the pub.
lie schools. In accordance with this law, drawing
was made one of the regular studies of the schools,
and provisions were made for free instruction in
drawing, outside the public schools, to persons over
fifteen years of age. In 1872 three evening classes in
drawing were formed — one in free hand, one in archi-
tectural and one in machine drawing. This free in-
struction has been since continued with gratifying
success and with increasing favor. The Committee
on Drawing in 1878, say : " Drawing, as taught in our
schools, is not a mere accomplishment, nor is it an
amusement. It is the language of all industrial arts.
Buildings and machines must have plans, elevations,
sections and drawings of parts. Carriages, furniture,
jewelry, implements, pottery make their first appear-
ance in drawings. Conceived in the mind, they take
visible form on paper. All the varied designs on
carpets, calicoes, muslins, silks must be drawn before
they can be wrought."
j In 1889 the unoccupied Mann School-house wa.s,
i at an expense of SI 125, fitted for the accommoda-
j tion of all the departments of this school. With
1 these more commodious quarters the Free Evening
i Drawing-School started on a new career of usefulness
and success. 0( the composition of this school the
committee of 1888 say : " A visit to the classes while
at work shows us carpenters, cabinet-makers, stone-
cutters, masons, mechanics, teachers, book-keepers,
clerks, house-keepers, domestics, operatives, students
— all engaged in an educational process that means
developed and improved powers for them in the prac-
tical work of life."
The following statistics are for the year 188S : Total
number in architectural classes, ()4 ; total number in
machine classes, 112; total number in free-hand
class, 138 ; total number in practical design cla*8, 3l! ;
total number in modeling class. Km; ; aggregate. 320.
The total expense of the school for IS88 was .y)04i>.
SiPERiNTEXDEXT OF StuooLs. — The subject of
superintendent of schools has fared rouL'hly in the
city of Lowell. It has been driven to and fro like a
shuttlecock between the .'^chool <_'i)inmittee, the Com-
mon Council and the people, each in turn giving it
a hostile blow.
As early, perhaps, iia 1850. some of the best friends
of our schools began to agitate the question of elect-
ing such an officer, but the School Board were slow
to move in the matter. In 1854 the (ieneral Court of
Massachusetts enacted a law authorizing the Cit\'
Council to require the School Committee annually to
elect a superintendent of public schools, with such a
salary as the City Council should determine. In the
same year the City Council of Lowell passed an ordi-
nance makingthe requisition which thestatuteauthor-
ized. After long discussion upon the validity ofthis law,
in June, 1858, the Lowell School Board elected as sup-
erintendent, General Henry K. Oliver, of Lawrence,
subsequently treasurer of the Sta'e of Massachusetts.
But the Common Council had voted no salary, and
General Oliver refused to accept the office under such
conditions, .\gain, in December of the same year,
Hon. Joseph White, subsequently secretary of the
State Board of E<lucation, was elected to the office,
but refused to accept on account of insufficiency of
salary.
At length, in February, 1859, Mr. Geo. W. Shat-
tuck was elected to the office and promptly entered
upon its duties. But the office had too few ardent
LOWELL.
125
friends and far too many open or secret foes. The
question of abolishing the office was left to a popular
vote at the annual municipal election in December,
1859. By a vote of U)4<) to 1069 the people instruct-
ed the City Council to repeal the ordinance requiring
an election of superintendent of schools, and this was
accordingly done. But the subject would not real.
Other cities, generally, had such an officer, and the
friends of schools, with so much unanimity and earnest-
ness, demanded a superintendent for the Lowell
schools, it was resolved by the authorities to conform
to the popular demand.
Accordingly in Feb., 1864, after the office had been
vacant about four years, Mr. Abner J. Phipps, super-
intendent of schools in New Bedford, was elected to
the same office in the Lowell schools. On account o(
the insufficiency of the salary offered, Mr. Phipps did
not assent to accept the office, until Mr. Hosford,
mayor of the city, pledged himself to make up the de-
ficiency in salary from his |)rivate purse. He then
entered upon its duties aud served until near the close
of 18(>6. Soon after the resignation of Mr. Phipps,
Mr. Charles Morrill, princijjal of the Green School,
was elected to the position. Upon the death of Mr.
Morrill, in 18S4, after the long service of seventeeii
years, Mr. Geo. H. Conley, principal of the Butler
School, was elected to the place. Upon the appoint-
ment of Jlr. Conley to the office of supervisor in the
Boston schools, Mr. Geo. F. Lawton, an attorney in
Lowell, and once principal of the Green School, be-
came superintendent of the Lowell schools and is the
present incumbent of the office.
To sustain this office seems now to be the settled
policy of the city ; still, there are doubtless those who
regret that the parents of the children and the most
influential and public-spirited citizens do not, as in
earlier years, particijjate in the management and ex-
aminations of our public schools. As in domestic
life no hired nurse or governess, however expert,
can till a mother's place, so in our public schools the
children of a larger growth need a love and care more
tender than a salaried officer, however skillful, can
bestow.
All will concede that the vast amount of clerical
work demanded in the management of our schools
calls for the services of the expert and skillful hands
of well-paid officers, but when the parents desert the
schools and intrust the dearest interests of their
children to hired experts and paid officers, one may
well sigh for the return to our schools of the
more tender care and supervision of those who love
the children most.
Still there are very great advantsges in the super-
vision of our schools by "Superintendents," I only
plead that these advantages shall not be lost, and
more than lost, by the withdrawal from their manage-
ment of those who by the ties of nature are most
deeply interested in their welfare.
Carney Medals. — The Carnev Medals are the
gift of James G. Carney, Esq., the first treasurer of
the " Lowell Institution for Savings," the oldest sav-
ings bank in the city. In a letter addressed in 1858
to the mayor in regard to this gift, Mr. Carney says:
" 1 am desirous of contributing somewhat to the
benefit of the public schools of Lowell, where my
children have received their school education. I
therefore send the enclosed check, that the annual
interest thereof may be appropriated to the purchase
of six silver medals to be annually distributed to the
six best scholars in the high school forever — three in
the girls' department, and three in the boys' depart-
ment."
The description of these medals is as follows:
"The outer circle on one side bears this inscrip-
tion : The fear of God is (he beginnning of wisdom.
Within this circle is a cluster of flowers, under which
are the words : Presented to for excellence of
character and scholarship. On the reverse, upon the
outer circle, is the inscription: James G. Carney to
the f.owell schools. Inside of this is another circle in-
scribed : Gel inisdom, gel understanding, and within
this circle is a Grecian lamp."
In accordance with the request of the giver, these
medals have been annually distributed, beginning
with the year 1859, when at the head of the list of
" Carnev ^ledal Scholars" stands the name of Fred-
eric T. Greenhalge, now Representative in the United
States Congress.
The School Committee of Lowell consists of four-
teen members, viz., the mayor, the president of the
Common Council, and two members from each of the
six wards of the city, who hold office for two years,
and are elected by the wards in which they reside.
The general teachers and officers are a superinten-
dent of schools, a supervisor of the evening schools, a
teacher of penman.ship, a teacher of drawing, a teach-
er of music, a militan.' instructor and three truant
commissioners.
ScHooi, Statistics for 1888. — Estimated popula-
tion of Lowell, 75,000 ; valuation of real and personal
property, $57,646,775 ; Number of children from five
to fifteen years of age on May 1st, 12,296; number of
teachers in Dec, 1888, 191 ; expenditures for schools,
§181,930; salary of the superintendent of schools,
$2600; salary of the supervisor of evening schools,
$1300; salary of the principal of High School,
$2200 ; salary of the principal of Grammar Siihool,
$1800 ; salary of male assistant in High School, $1800 ;
salary of female assistants in High School, $700 ;
salary of female assistants in Grammar School, $600 ;
salary of teacher of Primary School, $600.
Diplomas are awarded to the graduates both of the
High and (Jrammar Schools. In 1888 the number
of diplomas awarded in the High School was 61.
Central Villaoe ArAPEMY. — This institution,
familiarly known as " Dracut Academy," was incor-
porated in 1833. -The Academy building of two
stories, standing near the side of the present Vamuni
126
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
School-house, was first occupied by a school in 1836.
The first catalogue of this Academy gives the names
of ninety-oHe pupils. The name of Joseph Bradley
is given as president, that of Jefferson Bancroft as
secretary, and that of Isaac Withrell, A. M., as prin-
cipal.
Other teachers in this institution were: Benjamin
F. Butler, Rev. M. Cutler, William G. Russell, Rev.
J. C. Ingalls, Charles Morrill and Rev. Cyrus Mann.
Especially in the administration of Mr. Ingalls the
school was in a flourishing condition, the spacious
building once used as a "Water-Cure" establishment
being erected and u^ed as the boarding-house for the
pupils.
But the purposes for which the New England
academies of the first half of the present ceniury
were established have been fully met by the modern
High School. Hence this academy, like the rest,
ceased at length to be needed, and was abandoned as
early at least as 1851, when Centralville was annexed
to Lowell. The building then became the property
of the city, and the Varnum School was opened in it.
When, in 1857, the Varnum School took possession
of its new brick building, the old academy was
moved from Myrtle to Read Streets. It now stands
on Bridge Street and is used as a manufactory of
wire goods by Woods, Sherwood & Co.
As this academy was established and flourished
before Centralville became a part of Lowell, its his-
tory does not properly belong to the history of Low-
ell schools, but as the building stood on ground now
belonging to Lowell, and was for so many years, as it
stood upon the hillside, a cons|)icuous object tu the
people of our city, it seems to deserve a brief notice.
CHAPTER IX.
LOWELL-(Conli)iufK)
ECCLESIAfcTICAL HI>TORY.
In preparing a brief history of the churches of
Lowell, I have mainly relied, for my material,
upon historical addresses delivered upon anni-
versary occasions, upon churi-b manuals and re-
plies from pastors and others kindly given to my
inquiries. In regard to the Pawtucket < 'hurch, the
only one of them whose record goes back into the
preceding century, I am indebted to the valuable
history of that church by Atkinson C. Varnum, Esq..
whose researches have saved me much labor. My
labors have brought nie to a somewhat intimate knowl-
edge of the interior operations of onr Christian
churches, and I am protoundly impressed with the
inestimable blessings which they bestow upon society.
The value of a church to the community is too
often judged by the character of its Sunday services,
and especially by the elo(|uence of its pastor. This
criterion of judgment may have been almost just tor a
century ago, but it is very unjust when applied to the
churches of the present day. The Sunday-school,
with its corps of faithful teachers; the meetings for
prayer, in which the spiritual life of the members
gains new insjiiration and strength ; the >ewingcircle,
where skillful hands make garments tor the poor ; the
Society of Christian Endeavor, in which the young
Christian first puts on his armor; the " Busy Bees,"
whose little fingers first [>ly the needle in the cause of
the children of want : the " Daughters of the King,"
whose holy vows call them lo rescue the perishing, and
many other instrumentalities by which the Christiuu
church of to-day fulfils its hallowed mission of charily
very greatly lranscen<l in importance the eloi|uence of
the preacher and the stately and formal services of
the sanctuary.
And yet in my history of the churches of Lowell
I have said but very little in regard to these humble,
but beneficent instrumentalities. The reason is
obvious. From the very nature of the case there is
little to be said. Their " record is on high." It
is made by an angel's pen, not mine.
In respect to these subordinate works our churches
of all denominations ;ire very much alike. The record
of one Sunday school is very much like that of
another. To state forty times, in iriving the liistory ot
forty churches, that each one has its Sunday-school
and its sewing circle, would be too much like stating
forty times in describing their houses of worship that
each has its roof and windows without and its pulpit
and pews within.
I have therefore mostly contented myself with
giving an account of the origin of each church and
the cause and [uirpose of Its establishment, of the
erection of its house of worship, and of the changes
in its pasiors, together with a few brief sketches of the
pastors' lives. While Sunday-schools are very much
alike pastors, are often very unlike, and hence each
pastor calls for his s|iecial history.
St. .\xxe's CHfKfU. — The history of this church
is well defined. It is a (lart of the liistDry of the city
itself, and is interwoven with all its nienu)ries. I
find no lack of material for my short sketch of St.
Anne's Church. Especially have I drawn from the
historical sermon of its rector, "Sir. Chambrc, deliv-
ered on the church's si.xtieth anniversary, and from
the article of Charles Hovey, E^(|., read on February
J6, 1885, before the " Old Residents' Historical Asso-
ciation."
The founders of the great manufacturing establish-
ments of Lowell were men of far-seeing minds and
generous hearts. They thought of something besides
dividends. They knew full well that the 1200 peojile
of every shade of social character and religious belief
could not be moulded into a well-ordered community
without the benign influences of education and re-
ligion. Accordingly, after their first mill had been
LOWELL.
127
erected, they proceeded to erect a building of two
stories, on the spot where now stands the Green
School-house, for the purposes of a school and a
house of worship. It was in the upper story of this
building that, on March 7, 1824, the Rev. Theodore
Edson delivered the first discourse ever preached in
a public hall in the city of Lowell. The room was
filled with an attentive audience. On the preceding
day the young clergyman, then in deacon's orders,
had been brought from Booton to Lowell in the
chaise of Kirk Boott, arriving on Saturday eveuiug.
He found the carpenters, in the hours of twilight,
hastily giving the finishing strokes in prei)ariDg the
new hall for public worship on the morrow The
form of worship was that prescribed in the Book of
Common Prayer. The responses were feeble, the
voice of K^rk Boott rising above all the re.st.
Only about three weeks before this occasion, a so-
ciety called "The Merrimack Religious Society" had
been organized under the auspices of the Merrimack
Manufacturing Company, a majority of the members
of which wore Unitarians in their religious belief.
The employment of Mr. Edson was simply temporary
and tentative. It was far from being certain that the
heterogeneous population whom the nev; enterprise
had drawn together, most of whom had been accus-
tomed to the siruple and barren worship of the New
England counlry churches, would readily engage in
the more formal and im|>osing liturgical services of
the Episcopal Cluirch. But a trial of a few weeks
persuaded the new society that they were warranted
in employing tlie young clergyman for a lull year, —
a year which proved to be the first of nearly sixty
years of a pastorale eviT tn be memorable in the his-
tory of our city. The salary fi.xed at first w;ls i^liDO,
wiih an increase of ^'^•hi and a house, if he should be
married. "This increase,"' Dr. Edson once pleas-
antly said, " came in about two years.''
Upon the settlement ol' a pastor, the Merrimack
Company resolved to erect a cliii'-ch, and apjirojiriated
S^'JOOO for the jiurpose. The site of the Cireen
School-house hid its claims as the site of the new
cliurch ; but the .spot on which the church now
stands was finally selected. The first stone was laid
May 20, 1S24, and the house was consecrated March
IG, 182o. It was the same stone church which we
now see, excejit that an addition' of thirty ftet was
made at the north end about 1843.
In the early days of this church the Merrimack
Com|)any had pursued towards it a very liberal and
generous policy. It had erected for it the first small
house of worship, had for two years directly paid the
salary of its rector, and had given to it a lease of the
church property without rent for fifteen years, ending
in November, 1842, and in various ways contributed
to its support. The parsonage was erected in 1825.
The harmonious relations between the church and
the Merrimack Company seem to have been inter-
rupted at the expiration of the lease in 1S42, for at
that time the Merrimack Company claimed $12,000
for the church property and that the parsonage
should be vacated before March 1, 1843. To this de-
mand the " Religious Society," known since 1831 as
the "Congregation of St. Anne's Church," yielded,
the church was purchased by individual subscrip-
tions and the pastor removed to the stone house near
Pawtucket Falls, afterwards the residence of Mr. J.
C. Ayer.
The course of the Merrimack Company seemed so
unjust to the church, that in February, 1856, a suit
was brought against the company before the courts to
recover the possession of the church building and the
parsonage. Distinguished counsel were employed on
both sides. For the church were Hon. Joel Parker,
Hon. John P. Robinson and Benjamin F. Butler, and
for the company were Hon. Rufus Choate, Hon. F.
B. Crowniushield and S. A. Brown, Esq. The final
decision of the Supreme Judicial Court, after a delay
of about four years, sustained the claim of the Merri-
mack Company, which received for the parsonage
nearly 117,000, raised by private subscriptions, and the
rector re-entered the house on March 21, 1806, and
there spent the remainder of his life.
There was a strong conviction on the part of many
that the conduct of the Merrimack Company towards
the church was oppressive and unjust, and it is said
that the distinguished Patrick T. Jackson, having
met the treasurer of the church on his way to pay
over the money to the company, declared the trans-
action " no better than highway robbery."
In the above narration to avoid the numerous long
names by which the St. Anne's religious society was
called at difl^erent times, I have used the word
" rhnrcli " with perhaps too little precision.
From the close of this contest with the Merrimack
Company to the end of Dr. Edson's life, in 1883, the
affairs of this church present not many things de-
manding historical record, and my record will be
brief, and in .somewhat detached statements.
March 8, 1874, was observed as the fiftieth anniver-
sary of the introduction of religious worship in
Liiwell.
The St. Anne Sabbath-School, for almost sixty
years, had two sessions every Sabbath, and was cate-
chised by the pastor every month.
In 1830 a building was erected north of the church
at a cost of l<500 for the use of the Sunday-School,
and a second building in 1839. These gave place in
1868 to the present stone chapel, which was erected
at the cost of $12,000. The number of scholars in
1840 reached 655. In 1873 the choir-room and sac-
risty were buiit at a cost of $5000.
St. Luke's church, an off-shoot of St. Anne's under
the Rev. A. D. McCoy, erected a house of worship in
Belvidere, which before its completion, was sold in
1845, to the High Street Congregational Church, and
the enterprise was relinquished. Rev. Mr. McCoy had
been employed in 1839 as an assistant to the rector of
128
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
St. Anne's for one year, and services were held by
him in Chapel Hall. This vas warranted on account
of the large attendance at the mother church. Out of
this movement came the formation of the society of
St. Luke in Belvidere.
On October 17, 1857, took place the dedication of
the chime of eleven bells which, by the generous sub-
scriptions of private individuals, had been placed in
the tower of St. Anne's. Mr. George Hedrick had,
by persistent effort, raised the subscription of more
than $4000, and had pushed the work to its comple-
tion. " Rich and poor, high and low, men of every
shade of religious opinion," contributed to the pur-
chase of the bells. With great propriety this chime
of bells was placed in the tower of St. Anne's, the
oldest of the churches in the city proper, nnd that in
which the fathers of the city first joined in religious
worship. The bells were founded in the city of Troy,
N. Y., and on each bell was an appropriate inscrip-
tion. To make my account more brief, I will men-
tion only (as an example) the inscription on thesi.xth
in order, whose pitch is on B :
" B, r,«,l lbs. MuslciHiis' B«M.
To the memorj- of Hanclcl. Born A. P. HiM . .lie.l A. V. ITJS. Pre-
sented by the principal niiibical professore and .-iniateutfl of Lou'ell, X.lK
1857.
To ninsic ! Noble art divine,
King forth, ye belle, a merry chime."
The total weight of the eleven bells is 9899 pounds.
An orphanage, located near the church, was insti-
tuted in 1875. This institution was dear to the hearl
of Dr. Ed.'<on. On Jan. 1, 1890, it had two teachers,
and supported twenty-one children. Children are
received who are from two to seven years of age.
At the death of Dr. Edson, who owned Ihisorphan-
age, it became the property of his daugliter, .Mis>
Elizabeth Edson, who has generously donated it tf.
the church.
Of thememorial windowsalready placed inSt. Anne's
Church, the first is given by Dr. John O. Green and
William A. Burke, in which two female figures.
" Charity " and " Devotion," are designed to repre-
sent, respectively, the most marked characteristics of
the departed wives of the givers.
The second, representing "The Annunciation," is
placed by the widow of the late George H. Carleton,
in memory of her husband, who for many years was
a warden of the church.
The third was placed by Mrs. Eliza C. Davis, aa a
memorial of her father and mother.
The fourth was placed by Mr. Elibu S. Hunt and
his son-in-law, Mr. Albert G. Cook, in memory of
their respective wives.
After the death of Dr. Edson the parish was in
charge of Rev. A. E. Johnson and Rev. F. Gilliatt.
The church was without a rector for nearly one year.
Having brought the history of St. .Inne's Church
down to the time of the death of its first rector, I
pause to give a brief account of his life. It would be
impossible to write a history of this church, or even
of the city itself, with Dr. Edson left out. His long
life, his intense individuality, his high official posi-
tion, his iron will and hi.s tireless energy make him
stand out alone as a marked man who can be com-
pared with no one else. " We shall not look upon
his like again."
Theodore Edson was born in Bridgewater, Mass.,
.\ugust 24, 1793. Though he learned the carpenter's
trade, his tastes led him to a life of study. He en-
gaged in school-teaching for the whole or part of two
years. Subsequently, in 1816, he went to Phillips
Academy, at Andover, and spent two years in prepar-
ation for college. He entered Harvard College in 1818,
at the age of twenty-five years. In college rank he
was the fourth scholar in his class of sixty members,
among whom were Charles G. .\therton, Nathaniel
I. Bowditch, Rev. Dr. Worcester and Rev. Dr. Hill,
of Worcester. Having assumed deacon's orders after
his graduation, he was supplying St. Matthew's
Church in South Boston when Kirk Boott came to
his humble study to invite him to come to Lowell.
In accepting the invitation he as-sures us he did not
even think of his remuneration, but was filled with
the thought of his own unworthiness of so sacred an
office. I quote his own words; " I entered the min-
istry with a very deep sen.se of unworthiness of so
great an honor, and with intense gratitude to God for
putting me into the sacred calling."
In the early years of his ministry he took an .ictive
and responsible part in every eH'ort of the benevolent
in promoting the religious and intellectual welfare of
the new settlement. Far from limitine: his labors to
the bounds of his own parish, his voice was uplifted in
public halls antl in the pulpitsof other denominations
in the defence of every good cause. In his last years,
when the bounds of religious societies liad become
more distinctly defined, and when the burden of years
pressed upon him, he very naturally confined himselt
more strictly to his own parochial duties, but it was
not so in his earlier days. To no man is Lowell more
indebted for starting things aright than to him.
Dr. Edson's long pastorate of nearly sixty years
presents an almost unparalleled devotion to duty. He
never spared himself No form was more often met
in the streets, but he was never obeying the call of
pleasure, but always that of duty. There was some
widow who needed bread, some troubled soul who
called for sympathy, some dying man who needed the
consolations of religion. On this subject Bishop
Clark made the following eloquent remarks in 1865
in reference to Dr. Edson : " The sun has not been
more regular in his rising and setting than he has
been in his daily round of duties. No storm has ever
raged which he would not cheerfully face when the
call of the suH'erer called him from his fireside. No
Sunday ever dawned when the doors of St. Anue
have not been opened to the worshiper. No heavy-
laden sinner ever asked his counsel and was sent un-
LOWELL.
129
comforted away." It is said that throughout his long
ministry he never sought a. summer vacation, though
on one occasion he received a gift from a parishioner
of SIOOO to defray his expenses on a voyage to the old
world. This voyage, however, was his " strange
work," and even in this he was probably obeying the
call of duty.
V^ery few clergymen have been so often called as he
to officiate at the burial of the dead. On such occasions
the solemn and beautiful burial service of his Churchy
though so often repeated, seemed always fresh and
new. With what solemn awe he always approached
the mystery of death. We, who have so often lis-
tened to his voice at the burial of the dead, can never
forget with what tender, pleading pathos he was wont
to utter the words : " O God, most mighty, O holy and
merciful Saviour, thou most worthy Judge Eternal,
sufiier us not, at our last hour, fur any pains of death
to fall from Thee." This prayer, so often uttered,
was abundantly fulfilled in his own case, for his physi-
cian and life-long friend, who watched by hi= bedside
during the long weeks of severe suffering which closed
his life, testifies that these sufferings " were borne
with the sweetest submission and calmest resignation."
When he saw that the end was near he asked that the
"sacrament" be no longer delayed, and " he sank
Bereuely and gently, in the conscious presence of his
mental powers and with cheerful submission of his soul
to God." He died of congestion of the lungs, June 25,
1SS3. He left one daughter, his wife having died ten
years before.
Rev. A. St. John Charabre, the second rector of St.
Anne's Church, assumed the duties of bis office May
15, 1884, and he worthily fills his high position.
The House of Prayer. — This Episcopal Church,
which is far more ritualistic in its form of worship
than any other in the city, was organized in 187G by
Rev. B. F. Cooley. Services had previously been
held in Highland Hall and in private parlors by the
Rev. Mr. Roberts, pastor of St. John's Church. Mr.
Cooley entered upon his work with great energy and
enthusiasm. He acted as architect in designing the
new church building, and as artist in decorating its
wall:?. He also embroidered many of the vestments,
and, by conducting the music, he secured a very ex-
cellent choral service. He was succeeded by " Father "
Brown, of Methuen.
Rev. J. J. Cressy was rector of this church from
1881 to 1887. The present rector. Rev. A. Q. Davis,
came to the church in March, 1888. There are 107
persons connected with the parish.
" The services, being in music and ritual, are as
much in advance of what is now common as the
present services have advanced beyond those of forty
years ago."
The church edifice, on Walker Street, was opened
for worship December 29, 1876. The corner-stone
was laid by Rev. Dr. Edson in September, 1870. On
this occasion several of the clergy and the choirs of
9-ii
the House of Prayer, of St. John's (Lowell), St.
John's (Lawrence) and the Advent (Boston) were
present and assisted in the services. The church edi-
fice, with the land, cost about $4000.
St. John's Parish. — The organization of this par-
ish of the Episcopal Church was effected July 30,
1860. Preliminary to its organization Rev. Charles
W. Homer, of Cambridge, who in 1859 had come to
Lowell as an assistant of Dr. Edson, had held Sunday
services in the chapel of St. Anne, beginning on Feb.
27, 1859. Subsequently, for want of sufficient room
in the chapel, these services were transferred to Me-
chanics' Hall.
The connection between the Rev. Mr. Homer and
St. Anne's Church was dissolved Oct. 1, 1860, and
steps were immediately taken to establish a new par-
ish. This parish was organized, ^ stated above, July
30, 1860.
Rev. Charles W. Homer, first rector of St. John's
Parish, was chosen to his sacred office July 29, 1860.
On the first Sunday in October, 1860, the Sunday ser-
vices were transferred from Mechanics' Hall to
" Wyman's Church," a hall in a building which stood
on the site of the present Edson's Block, in Merri-
mack Street.
The erection of a house of worship was promptly
begun, and the corner-stone was laid on Monday,
April 15, 1801, with Masonic ceremonies. The pastor,
by his winning manners and affable address, was re-
markably successful in raising funds from all denomi-
nations of Christians for the erection of the church.
The new church was first occupied for religious
worship on the first Sunday of October, 1861. This
house, with the chapel, was erected at a cost of
$17,000. Its walls are of Weatford granite.
The first rector resigned Nov. 22, 1862, and Rev.
Cornelius B. Smith assumed the pastoral office on
May 24, 1863. Under his rectorship the debt of the
church was paid.
The Rev. Charles L. Hutchins succeeded Mr.
Smith as rector Nov. 1, 1865. During his term of
service the west window, with the figure of St. Luke,
the beloved physician, was placed in the church in
honor of the first warden. Dr. Elisha Huntington, a
citizen whom, perhaps above any other, Lowell has
delighted to honor. Another window was also placed
in the church in honor of Mr. Samuel Burbank, a
most worthy man.
Rev. Daniel C. Roberts succeeded to the rectorship
June 1, 1869, and served the church four years.
The present rector. Rev. L. C. Manchester, assumed
the pastoral office October 1, 1873.
One of the marked features in the worship of this
church is its tasteful and excellent music, the credit
of which belongs very greatly to Mr. Charles H. Bur-
bank, librarian of the City Library, who, for nearly
thirty years, has devoted much time to this part of
sacred worship. A boychoir has been successfully
employed for more than twenty years.
]30
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
Pawtucket Chuech. — The Pawtucket Church is
far the oldest within the present territori- of Lowell.
It is siluated in that part of the city which in 1874
was set off from the town of Dracut. But as St.
Anne's Episcopal Church was the tirst established
withi n the original limitsof the city, the honor of being
the first church in Lowell justly belongs to St. Anne's.
The town of Dracut is supposed to have received
its name from the town or parish in England from
which came Samuel Varnum, who, about 1(575, one
hundred years before the War of the Revolution,
bought land of the Indians on the north side of the
JCerrimack River and thus probably became the ear-
liest English settler of the town. It was incorporated
as a township in 1701, one of the provisions of the
act of incorporation being this : "That the inhabit-
ants of said land jissist in ye maintenance of the
ministry of the town of Chelmsford, as at present
they do until they are provided with a minister as
the law directs."
In 1711 the inhabitants of Dracut in general town-
meeting voted to build a meeting-house of tlieir own,
and in the tame year they chose as their minister Mr.
Amos Cheever, who, four years before, had graduated
at Harvard College. He was to have a.s bis salary
tifty pounds per year, and also eighty pounds for
building a house. This offer was declined. A simi-
lar offer was made to Mr. Wigglesworth in 1712,
which was also declined. The salary was probably
too small to warrant a settlement. It was not till
171S that the meeting-house was completed, although
it was dedicated two years before this date. Nor w:us
it till 1720 that the church secured the services of a
pastor.
By vote of the town this first meeting-house was to
be thirty feet long and twenty-five feet wide (about
the dimensions of a large parlor). The pay of the
workmen on the edifice was, by vote, to be " two shil-
lings one man a day for getting timber; four cattle
and a man a day five shillings and so according ; the
trustees to get the work done as cheap as they can."
" The locality," says Mr. Varnum (to whom I have
already expressed my obligations), " was on what is
now called Varnum Avenue, about a half a mile
above Pawtucket bridge, on the southerly side of the
street, on land owned by Deacon Abel Coburn, and
just east of hia present residence. The spot still re-
tains the name of the old ' meeting-house lot.' We
are informed by Mr. Coburn that there appears also
to have been a ' Noon-house,' in which the people
assembled between services to warm themselves and
partake of a lunch."
As to these " Noon-houses " or " Sabba' day houses "
Mr. Varnum makes the following quotation from Ed-
ward Abbott's work called " Revolutionary Times " :
" Comfort, being carefully shut out of the meeting-
house itself, was only thus rudely provided for insuch
subordinate structures. The ' Sabba' day house '
was a family affair generally comprising but a single
apartment, perhaps fifteen feet square, with windows
and a fire-place. It was very plainly and sparsely
furnished. Chairs for the old people and benches
for the children stood round the walls, and a table in
the centre might hold the Bible and a few religious
books and pamphlets, while on one side shelves con-
tained dishes for cooking and eating. A group of
such cabins standing about the meeting-house added
not a little to the picturesqueness of the spot, and
their use conduced greatly to the convenience and
comfort of Sabbath worship, especially in winter.
The family able to keep a Sabba' day house, drove
directly thither on Sabbath mornings, warmed them-
selves up by a not fire without and quite likely by a
hot drink within, and here spent the intermission
with further wholesome regards to the wants of the
inner man."
Rev. Thomas Parker was the first settled pastor of
the church. He was evidently a superior scholar, for
he graduated at Harvard when only seventeen years
of age, and settled in the ministry at Dracut at the
age of only nineteen years. The vote to extend a call
to Mr. Parker was passed on Dec. 28, 1719, in general
town-meeting, and his salarv' was then fixed at eighty
pounds per year.
It must not be supposed that before the settlement
of Mr. Parker the people of the town were without
religious instruction and privileges, for as early as
1711 the town appointed a committee to employ a
minister at five shillings a day (temporarily, of course),
and Mr. Wigglesworth and Mr. Hail were so em-
])loyed. The following town record on the subject of
employing temporary preachers is a noteworthy
record, as presenting, in its form of language, an inter-
esting puzzle :
"Also it is voted that Mr. Wigglesworth should
come to preach for a time, in a way to making a
settlement after Mr. Cheevers has been treated with,
and don't come to preach and in a way to making a
settlement."
Mr. Parker's pastorate of forty-four years seems to
have been an ideal one, for he spent his whole remain-
ing life with his people, dying after a year of declin-
ing health in the sixty-fourth year of his age. The
records leave no trace of anything but affection for
their pastor, and the town voted the generous sum of
twenty-four pounds for a mourning drcfs for his
widow and six rings to the pall-bearers who conveyed
the sacred dust to the grave. A few years since, by
order of Mr. Varnum, the remains were removed from
the field in which they were first placed to the Wood-
bine Cemetery in Lowell.
During a part of Mr. Parker's pastorate the
harmony of early years seems to have been broken ;
for the little, old meeting-house, which the builders
were ordered to make as cheap as they could, had be-
come too small and too much decayed for further use,
and the location of a new church became a subject of
somewhat acrimonious dispute.
LOWELL.
131
However, in 1748, a new church, with front and side
galleries, ■■as erected, in the style of the times, with
square box pews arranged arouad the walls for the
dignitaries who could pay for them, and benches in
the centre of the church for those who could not
purchase pews. Eight seats of " digaitie " were
established by vote of the town, thus quaintly defined
iu the order of rank, to wit:
" Fore seat below, second seat below, fore seat in
front gallery, fore seat in the side gallery, third seat
below, second in the front gallery, fourth seat below,
second in side gallery."
Kev. Nathan Davis was the second pastor of the
church. His ordination occurred Nov. 20, 17G5. His
salary was fixed at eighty pounds, like that of his pre-
decessor, but to defray his expenses in changing his
residence and beginning a new pastorate, a special
grant of loO pounds was given him. Such a grant
was customary in those days and was denominated a
"settlement." Mr. Davis resigned his oflice in 1781
after a service of sixteen years.
In 1785 a call to settle as pastor was extended to
Rev. Timothy Langdon. This call was given just
after the close of the Revolutionary War, when the
country was most deeply suffering from a depreciated
currency and the evils of poverty were almost as hard
to be borne as had been the dangers and hardships of
war. Only by slow degrees did the thrift and energy
of the American people, aided by the financial policy
and wisdom of Alexander Hamilton, dispel the gloom
which rested upon the hopes of the American people.
The pcoijle of Dracut had made a noble record of
sacrifice during the war, but their poverty forbade
them to ofl'er such a salary to Mr. Langdon as he
could accept.
Two years after Mr. Lar.gdon had refused to as-
sume the office of pastor, a call was extended to Mr.
Solomon Aiken, offering a settlement of £150, a
salary, of £91 and twenty cords of wood. This call
was accepted, and for twenty-five years he " proved
himself to be an efficient and faithful pastor."
In 1793 a violent contest arose in regard to divid-
ing the parish into two parts on account of the great
inconvenience to which many were subjected in
reaching the church, the two extremes of the old
parish being so far apart. The result was that the
church now known as the Centre Church was erected
iu what was claimed to be near the geographical cen-
tre of the town. The people of the west part of the
town, where the old church had stood and where the
pastor resided, were far from being satisfied that the
new church was erected so far away, and resolved
that they would have a church of their own near
Pawtucket Falls. A new religious society was formed
a lot of land for a new church was purchased of
Jamos Varnum, a large land-owner, the deed bearing
the date of Jan. 7, 179C. The church erected upon
this laud by the newly-formed society is the same
church building which now stands near the Paw-
tucket Bridge. The location was very favorable for a
churcli, for besides being near the bridge across the
Merrimack, it was situated upon the Great Mammoth
Road, which had been laid out foiu years before.
Mr. Varnum also adds iu regard to the choice of this
location : " There may have been a bit of romance
considered, for this was the Ancient and Capital
Seat of the Pawtucket tribe of Indians, and the spot
where John Eliot first preached the gospel to them
in 1647 and for many years afterward, as they gath-
ered to obtain their supply of fish at the falls."
The new society was called " The West Congrega-
tional Society in Dracut," and the act of its incorpora-
tion is dated June 22, 1797. Their house of worship
was a plain structure, having square pews, with seata
around the sides of the pew, so that as many hearers,
if the church were filled, faced from the pulpit as
towards it. There were galleries on three sides, and
the deacons' seat directly in front of the pulpit.
There was the decorated sounding-board hanging
over the preacher's head. This sounding-board seems
to have been the object of a most unaccountable affec-
tion of one at least of the worshipers ; for when,
about 1828, it was removed from its place, this devout
man, on entering the church and perceiving that the
object of his affectionate regard had been removed
from its sacred position, soliloquized thus: "They
have taken away the ark of the Lord and I will go
too." He then left the church and returned no more.
A box-stove, purchased by individuals for warming
the church, was set up first in the winter of 1820-21,
the foot-stove, a small square box of tin or iron, en-
cased in a wooden-frame and containing within a dish
of coals brought from home, having heretofore been
the only means of protecting from freezing the aching
feet of the worshipers. In 1820 the steeple of the
church was erected, and the first bell, at a cost of
S700, was purchased.
But I must be pardoned for dwelling so long upon
the early history of this oldest of our churches. Our
city is intensely modern, and has but very few objects
which we love because they are old. I fancy I hear
some cynical critic say, "The people of Lowell can
boast of so small a number of things which are an-
tique and picturesque, that they feel bound to use the
few that they have for all they are worth."
It is remarkable that for twenty-three years after
the incorporation of the new society the church had
no settled pastor. A large number of temporary
preachers were employed, among them President
Lord, Rev. Humphrey Moore, Bishop Parker, Dr.
Edson and Rev. Jacob Coggin. Slndents from An-
dover Seminary came up on horse-back and preached
two sermons " for two dollars and found."
But on January 31, 1821, Rev. Reuben Sears was
installed as the first settled pastor of the new Paw-
tucket Church. Mr. Sears graduated from Union
College in 1798. He is remembered as a man of
good abilities and kindly spirit. After eerving the
132
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
church six years he resigned his oliice, went West
and died in 1837 or 1838.
Rev. Sylvester G. Pierce, the .second pastor of this
church, waa installed in April, 1829. when he was
thirty-two years of age. Leaving Union College in
Ilia senior year with the purpose of going as mission-
ary to Bombay, he changed his purpose so far as to
defer his work as a missionary until he had taken a
course of study at Andover. In 1828 he began to
supply the pulpit of the Pawtucket Church, where he
was ordained as an Evangelist. So much were the
members of the church pleased with him as a
preacher that they gave him an invitation to settle
with them as their pastor. He accepted the office,
and during the four years of his ministry fifty-tliree
members were added to the church. In 1832 he was
installed as pastor of the church in Jlethuen, where,
after a very successful pastorate of seven years, he
(lied of consumption in the prime of manhood. Mr.
Pierce was an ardent, earnest, eloquent man, who left
behind him a blessed memory.
Kev. Tobias Pinkham, the third pastor, about a
year after his graduation from Andover Seminary,
was installed in the sacred office May 18, 1836. He
served as pastor only three years, and became a Bap-
tist minister. He died in Tioga, Peuu., at the age
of forty-two years.
Kev. Joseph Merrill, the fourth pastor, graduated
from Dartmouth College. After having for several
years been engaged as teacher or pastor elsewhere,
he was installed over Pawtucket Church April 20,
1842. In the years 1840 and 18.30 he represented the
town of Dracut in the State Legislature. He had
resigned his pastorate in 1848, having served six
years. His last years were spent in Lowell. He was
"a sincere, earnest and faithful preacher."
Rev. Brown Emerson, the fifth pastor, was a grad-
uate of Yale College. His service extended from
1850 to 1854. He died in Wyoming, N. J., at the
age of nearly eighty years.
Rev. Perrin B. Fiske, the sixth pastor, served the
church only two years, from 18G3 to 1865, afterwards
becoming pastor of the church in Peachara, Vt.
Rev. Joseph Boardman, the next pastor, graduated
at Amherst and the Andover Seminary, and was in-
stalled Sept. 1, 1870. He was in office four years and
is now preaching in Barnet, Vt. He was an earnest,
faithful pastor, leaving behind him many warm
friends.
The present pastor. Rev. Charles H. Willcox, was
ordained Nov. 6, 1884. He is a graduate of Yale
College and of the Yale Theological Seminary, and
has spent two years of study in Germany. He is a
young man with bright prospects before him.
To the above list of pastors of this church we will
add the name of the Rev. William Allen, who was
acting pastor for several years, closing his service in
18G8, and Rev. Elias Nason, who was acting pastor
from 187G to 1884.
In 1SS8 this church had 131 members.
First Cosueegatioxal Church. —The first germ
of the history of this church is found in a meeting of
three men, carpenters by trade, on Jan. 7, 1824, for
the purpose of organizing a iirayer-nieeting among
the Christian men and women whom the new manu-
facturing enterprise had called together from all the
region round. More than a year before, the Merri-
mack Company had begun the erection of its mills,
and they had also erected boarding-houses for the ac-
commodation of the operatives. It was in one of
these boarding-houses. No. 21. that the three car-
penters met. Their names were: Wm. Davidson,
James 51. King and Nathaniel Holmes. After sing-
ing a hymn, reading the Scriptures and joining in
prayer, they proceeded to the work for which they
had met. The prayer-meeting thus organized was a
I'nion meeting, being participated in by Congrega-
tionalists. Baptists and Methodists. At the first
meeting after the organization only seven persona
were present. But as they continued to meet from
house to house their numbers grew, until in the
autumn of 1825 it was by mutual consent agreed that
the diiferent denominations should hold separate
meetings. The new meetings held by the Congrega-
tional brethren were, in a spiritual sense, remarkably
lervid, and it is told that on one occasion a brother
became so exalted in his prayer, that his voice (or iia
echo) reachtd the ears of Kirk Boott,the agent of the
Merrimack Jlills, who at once despatciied a note de-
manding that no more meetings of the'kind should
be held upon the Corporation. Unexpected opposi-
tion aUo arose fnmi the pastor of the church in Dra-
cut. near the falls, who protested that the new meetings
withdrew from his ministrations many who ought to
attend them. He seemed to suppose that Lowell be-
longed to Dracut, not dreaming that in a few short
years Dracut would belong to Lowell. The meetings
grew apa''e so that in two years, after the meeting of
the three carpenters 388 persons were found who
favored the Congregational form of Christian wor-
ship. The result was that an ecclesiastical council
met at the residence of William Davidson, No. 14
on the Merrimack Corporation, June (3, 1826, and
formed the First Congregational Church of Lowell
with fifty members.
The meetings of the new church were held in the
same building (on the s^ite of the present Green
School-house) in which the Episcopal Society of St.
Anne had worshiped two yearn before. But on Dec.
25, 1827, a "new brick meeting-house," erected by
the society, waa dedicated — a bouse which long stood
as a well-known landmark of the city until, in 1884, it
was demolished to give place to the elegant edifice in
which the church now worships.
(3n July IS, 1827, a few months before the dedica-
tion of the house, Rev. Geo. C. Beckwith waa ordain-
ed and installed as the first pastor of the church.
But after a service of less thau two years his health
LOWELL.
133
demanded the resignation of his office. He was a
mau of high culture and earnest piety. He died in
lioston in 1870, while in the service of the American
Peace Society.
On Dec. 25, 1829, Rev. Amos Blanchard was or-
dained and installed as second pastor of this church.
His pastorate continued more than fourteen years. Of
Dr. Blanchard I shall speak more in detail in connec-
tion with my record of the Kirk Street Church, with
which his life was more closely identified.
Dr. Blanchard's successor was the Kev. Willard
Child, who was installed Oct. 1, 1845. His pastorate
continued nine years. Dr. Child is affectionately re-
membered by the church as a faithful pastor and a
man of large heart. It has been said of him that he
" preached the law and lived the gospel." Before
coming to Lowell he had been a pastor in Norwich,
Conn., and after leaving Lowell, he was settled in
Castleton, Vt.
The fourth pastor of this church was Rev. J. L.
Jenkins, who, coming from the Theological Seminary
at Andover, was ordained and installed Oct. 17, 1855.
After a ministry of six years he resigned his office,
and entered into the service of the American Board
of Commissioners for Foreign Missions. He was a man
of superior talent and of " earnest, progressive faith."
He is now pastor of a church in Pittsfield, Mass. His
successor was Rev. Geo. N. Webber, who was install-
ed Sept. 17, 1802. After a service of four and one-
half years he resigned his office to accept a professor-
ship in Middlebury Colleo'e, Vt. He was a man of
finished scholarship and keen mind.
The sixth pastor was Rev. Horace James, who was
installed Oct. 31, 1SG7, and was in office three years.
He was a man of marked ability and great energy,
radical in his opinions and independent in his meth-
ods. On resigning his office he became secretary of
the American and Foreign Christian Union. He died
in Worcester, Mass., in June, 1875.
The present pastor is the Rev. Smith Baker, who
was installed Sept. 13, 1871.
The new brick house of worship, dedicated June
18, 1885, at a cost of about SJT.OOO, is a most elegant
and commodious structure, having a seating capacity of
about 1500. The fine organ placed in the new church
cost about S6000. The large audiences which assem-
ble in this church on Sunday evenings to listen to the
popular lectures of the pastor form so remarkable a
feature in the work of the church that they deserve a
special mention.
The Eliot Church. — This church was first known
as the Second Congregational Church. After enter-
ing its house of worship on Appleton Street, it was
known as the Appleton Street Church. But since the
erection of its present house, near the spot where
once, in a log chapel, preached John Eliot, the apos-
tle to the Indians, it has been called, from him, the
Eliot Church.
Ad early as 1830 the house of worship of the First
Congregational Church had become so crowded, and
the growth of the city towards thesouth and west was
so great that there was an obvious call for a new
church near the Appleton and Hamilton Mills, which
were already in full operation.
At a regular monthly meeting of the members of
the First Congregational Church, held Aug. 31, 1830,
the first steps towards the formation of a new church
were taken. The enterprise had ita origin, not in a
desire to leave the mother church, but in a serious
sense of duty to meet the wants of a rapidly-growing
city. A religious society was formed and a place on
Appleton Street, then a bed of rocks, was selected for
building a house of worship. The erection of the
house began in 1830, and the house was dedicated July
10, 1831. This house, after being the home of the Eliot
Church for forty-two years, was sold for $15,000 to
the First Presbyteriau Church and Society, and it ia
still a well-known land-mark of our city.
Rev. William Twining, the first pastor of the Ap-
pleton Street (now Eliot) Church, was ordained Oct.
4, 1831. He proved an earnest, devout aqd scholarly
man, and the new church prospered under his minis-
try. He had previously been pastor of a church in
Great Falls, N. H, and, after serving the Eliot Church
three years, he was chosen to a professorship in Wa-
bash College, Ind.
Rev. Uzziah C. Burnap, the second pastor, was in-
stalled July 6, 1837, the church having been without
a pastor nearly two years. He came to Lowell after
a pastorate of thirteen years in Chester, Vt. His
pastorate in Lowell continued fourteen and one-half
years. He was a man of decided convictions and
earnest zeal, and he was often compelled to disagree
from those around him. He died in Lowell in 1854,
at the age of sixty years, leaving behind him, among
those to whom he had been a spiritual father, a
precious memory.
The third pastor. Rev. George Darling, a graduate
of Union College and Princeton Theological Semi-
nary, was installed December 30, 1852. He had been
the pastor of the Presbyterian Church in Hamilton,
Ohio. He was an attractive preacher. His pastor-
ate continued two years. For twelve years, since
leaving Lowell, he was pastor of a church in Hudson,
Ohio.
Rev. Dr. John P. Cleaveland, a graduate of Bow-
doin College, was settled over the Eliot Church Oct.
2, 1855. He had been pastor of churches in Salem,
Detroit, Providence and Northampton before coming
to Lowell. His pastorate continued more than six
years. He was dismissed in 1862 to become chaplain
of the Thirtieth Massachusetts Regiment, and went
with this regiment to Ship Island and New Orleans.
In this office he served only a few months. He died
March 7, 1873. He was a man of versatile mind
and undoubted ability. He possessed keen wit and
a buoyant, sympathetic nature.
The fifth pastor, Rev. J. E. Rankin, a graduate of
134
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
Middlebury College and Andover Theological Semi-
nary, was installed Dec. 17, 1S62. He had been pas-
tor of a church in St. Albane, Vt., and after a pastor-
ate of nearly two years in Lowell he was settled
successively over the Winthrop Church in Charles-
town, and the Congregational Church in Washing-
ton, D. C. Dr. Rankin is an orator and scholar,
having acquired a national reputation as a writer
both of prose and poetry.
The sixth pastor. Rev. Addison P. Foster, a grad-
uate of Williams College and of Andover Theological
Seminary, was ordained Oct. 3, 18G6. Here in his
first pastorate of two years he gave promise of that
eminent ability and success for which he has since
been distinguished. He is now pastor of thelmman-
uel Church in Boston. Rev. Dr. J. M. Greene, the
present pastor, was installed July 20, 1870. He
graduated at Amherst College, and studied theology
in Bangor Theological Seminary. Before ciming to
Lowell he had been pastor of churches in Hatfield,
Mass., and in South Hadley, ^L^8S. The present
house of worship of the Eliot Church is a beautiful
and commodious edifice of brick, situated in a com-
manding position on Sumner Street, overlooking
the North Common. Its spire rises conspicuous to
the view among the other structures of the city. This
house was dedicated Dec. 2, 1S80.
JoHX Street Church. — Beginning with the
starting of the great manufactories, the growth of
Lowell was very rapid. Within the space of two and
a half years its population was trebled, and ten
Protestant Churches were formed. As early as 1S38
the first two Congregational Churches — the " First,''
and the " Appleton Street " — had so far " outgrown
themselves" that it became apparent that a third
church of the same order was needed. At a meeting
of gentlemen belonging to both of these churclie.s,
held on Dec. 3, 1838, a committee was appointed to
take into consideration the formation of a new church.
This committee reported favorably in regard to the
enterprise, and also recommended that the proposed
church building should be erected on John Street.
The recommendation being approved by the friends of
the enterprise, a substantial brick church was erected
at a cost of nearly i?lS,000, and was dedicated June
24, 1840.
The church which was to worship in the new
building had been formed more than a year before
the completion of their new building, worshiping
meantime in the Cily Hall. It consisted, when
formed, of 243 members. Rev. Mr. Seabury, subse-
quently a pastor of the church, said, in 1879, of this
original band : "It was a large and auspicious be-
ginning — forty-nine brethren, 194 sisters. They
were full of faith and courage; men and women of
strong character and humble piety, they loved the
cause of Christ.'"
The first pastor. Rev. Stedman W. Hanks, was in-
stalled March 20, 1840, the sermon being preached by
Rev. Joshua Leavitt, of Providence, R. I. ilr. Hanks
was a man of earne>t C'hristian character, an ardent
devoteeofthe beneficent reform movementsof hisday.
The formation of the Kirk Street Congregational
Church in 1845, and of the High Street Congrega-
tional Church in 1846, drew away many of the mem-
bers of this church and somewhat checked its growth.
After a service of twelve years Mr. Hanks rtsigned
and became secretary of the Seaman's Friend Society,
with its office in Boston. In this last position Mr.
Hanks remained until his death, in 1889, at the age of
eighty years.
Soon after the resignation of Jlr. Hanks, ajoung
preacher who was supplying the pulpit "thrilled the
whole congregation with emotion " by a sermon which
he preached from the tex t, " liun, upeaL to this yovng
man." The people took him as he didn't mean, for
the young man they ran to speak to wr.s the preacher .
himself, the Rc-v. EJen B. Foster. Dr. Fosier was
installed February 3, 1853, aul, after a service of
eight and one-half years, retired from the office on ac-
count of ill health. After four years, during which
the church enjoyed the minis'raliona of another pas-
tor, Dr. Foster was recalled and reinstalled in 18i)G.
This second pastorate continued twelve years.
Dr. Foster was a most earnest student and a ser-
I monizer of remarkable power. His style gushed with
I emotion and overflowed with striking illustrations
' and eloquent diction.
i Rev. J. W. Backus was installed over this church
September 24, 18t)2, and after a pastorate of four
[ years he resigned his office, carrying away with him
the affectionate remembrance of his people.
On September S, 1875, Rev. Joseph B. Seabury was
installed as associate pastor with Dr. Foster, subse-
<iuently assuming the full work of the pastorate. He
served the church eight years.
The present pastor. Rev. Henry T. Rose, was in-
stalled October 10, 1883. The splendid organ placed
in this church in 1887 cost over ^GOOO.
Kirk Street Congrehatioxal CnrRfH. — In
1845 the Rev. Dr. Blanchard, pastor of the First
Congregational Church, with about one hundred
members of the church, who were bound to him and
to one another by social sympathy and kindred tastes,
united to form a new Congregational Church in Low-
ell. This organization, first known as the Fourth
(."ongregational Society, secured as a place of worship
Mechanics' Hall, which would seat nearly 500 per-
sons. The first service was held on May 25, 1845.
Alter a few months, a larger hall being needed, the
City Hall was secured as a place of worship.
The official organization of the church and also the
installation of the Rev. Amos Blanchard as pastor,
took place May 21, 1845. The work of erecting a
house of worship was early entered upon and their
new brick church on Kirk Street was dedicated on
December 17, 184G. The cost of the house was nearly
!?23,U00. The name was now changed to that of
LOWELL.
135
"Kirk Street Church." Dr. Blanchard remained
pastor of this church until his death, January 14,
1870, a period of twenty-five years. His two pastor-
ates in Lowell covered a period of forty years.
He was born in Andover, Mass., March 7, 1807.
He entered Yale College when sixteen years of age,
and, subsequent to his graduation, studied in An-
dover Theological Seminary. From this seminary he
was called directly to the pastorate of the First Con-
gregational Church in Lowell, when less than twenty-
three years of age. He was greatly loved and honored
by the church, and his sudden death at the age of
sixty-three years produced a profound sensation.
Perhaps no citizen of Lowell ever possessed so wide a
range of erudition as he. His ready and retentive
memory enabled him to call at will upon his vast
store of knowledge, and those who heard him speak
without previous warning were often astonished at the
extent of his learning and the brilliancy of his intel-
lect. His noblest efforts were those in which a sud-
den emergency and a sympathizing audience arou-ied
the energies of his cultivated mind, and his great
learning supplied the material for the highest oratori-
cal effect.
Rev. Charles D. Barrows was ordained as pastor of
this church July 13, 1871. Mr. Barrows had not com-
pleted his theological course of study when he became
the choice of the people of the church. But in order
to secure him as their pa-stor ihey waited for him an
entire year. He proved to be a man of superior
executive ability and acknowledged popular talent.
A high reputation as a successful pastor was soon ac-
quired, and led to an invitation to the pastorate of
the First Church in San Francisco, and he is now the
pastor of that church.
His successor. Rev. Charles A. Dickinson, was
installed Jan. 3, 1883. He had been the pastor in
Portland Me., of the church where, in former years,
had preached the celebrated Edward Payson. Mr.
Dickinson is a man of superior talent and devout
piety. His desire to establish a church organization
by which the masses in a large city can be more
effectively reached and brought within the direct in-
fluence and sympathy of a Christian church, led him
to accept the pastorate of the Berkley Street Church,
in Boston, in which he is now carrying into successful
operation his benevolent design.
The present pastor, Rev. Malcolm McGregor Dana,
was installed on Oct. 11, 1888. He had been the
pastor of a church in St. Paul, Minn.
High Street Church. — This church was organ-
ized in 1846. It is the only church of any Protestant
denomination on the east side of Concord River and in
that part of Lowell known as BelviJere. The absence
of any church organization in so large a field seemed
to invite the zeal and enterprise of Christian men to
"go uj) at once and possess it." Other causes also
conspired to help on the work. It was urged that the
John Slreet Church had become so large and strong
that some of its abundant power ought to be devoted
to Eome new enterprise. The Rev. Timothy Atkinson,
an English clergyman, who had formerly preached in
Quebec, being a man of wealth, had offered pecuniary
aid, if the work should be undertaken.
The first public meeting of the friends of the cause
was held at the John Street Church in July, 1845. It
waa at this meeting proposed to purchase the un-
finished church in Belvidere, recently erected by a
new and short-lived Episcopal Society, known as St.
Luke's. After considerable negotiation the Church of
St Luke was purchased for ?7500, and meetings lor
divine worship were commenced in the vestry of the
church, the main audience-room being unfinished.
The ofiicial organization of the new church took
place in John Street Church, Jan. 22, 1846, when the
names of seventy-one persons were enrolled, most of
whom had been members of the John Street Church.
In the next month, Feb. 26, 1840, Rev. Timothy
Atkinson was installed as the first pastor. Mr. Atkin-
son was a man of high culture and devout Christian
character. He remained pastor for nearly two years.
On Dec. 15, 1847, Rev. Joseph H. Towne was in-
stalled as the second pastor of the church and con-
tinued in the office six years. He had been the pastor
of the Sdlem Street Church in Boston, and was widely
known as a man of eminent pulpit talents. If others
could excel Mr. Towne in executive affairs, few men
were his equals in the grace of eloquence and delicacy
of taste. His reading of the Scriptures and of hymns
charmed his hearers and found many admirers. Mr.
Towne still lives, an aged man, in Andover, Mass.
His successor, the Rev. Orpheus T. Lanphear, was
installed September 5, 1855, his pastorate continuing
one year. He preached what may be denominated
strong sermonf. He possessed a logical mind with a
trenchant and incisive style, which did not please all,
but which challenged the attention of intellectual
men. Mr. Lanphear still lives iu Beverly, Mass.,
where he was once a settled pastor.
The Rev. Owen Street was installed pastor of High
Street Church, September 16, 1857, and continued in
ofBce till his death, in 1887, a period of thirty years,
which was longer by ten years than that of all his
predecessors. Mr. Street was a man of sterling com-
mon sense, of tender and gentle nature, of high in-
tellectual culture, and he was one of those few men
whom all seemed to revere and love. Both his char-
acter and his long pastorate warrant me in giving a
very brief account of his life.
He was born in Eist Haven, Conn., September 8,
1815. He could trace back his genealogy through a
long lice of clergymen. He entered Yale College in
1833. Among his classmates were Samuel J. Tilden,
William M. Evarts and Chief Justice Waite. After
his graduation from the theological seminary at
Yale, he found a temporary employment as the pre-
ceptor of an academy in Clinton, Conn. As a teacher
he was very successful, hLs work being congenial to
136
HISTORY OF 5IIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
his nature. In 1842 he was ordained as pastor of the
Congregational Church in Jamestown, N. Y. After
a successful pastorate of nine years, ill health com-
pelled him to resign his charge. In September, lSo2,
he was installed over the church in Ansonia, Conn.
From consideration of health he resigned his office
here, and was subsequently installed as pastor of the
High Street Church in Lowell, in 1857. In this pas-
torate the best of his years were spent. His work
was crowned with eminent success, for few men were
ever more revered and loved, and few men were ever
more tenderly mourned. The history of his last days
is peculiarly touching. It was well known that the
mutual love betwen Dr. Street and his excellent wife
was unusually tender and strong. When the husband
slowly approached the time of his departure, the
heart-stricken wife, foreseeing the anguish of the
approaching separation, declared that if her hus-
band departed, she should go with him. Her
words were prophetic, for in death they were not
divided, and they were both buried on the same day
and in the same grave.
Dr. Street had reached the age of seventy-two
years. His successor, the Rev. Charles W, Hunting-
ton, was installed February 29, 1S8S, having been
pastor of the Central Church in Providence, R. I.
The house of worship, when purchased of St. Luke's
Society, attracted observation and criticism for its
peculiar style of Gothic architecture. The walls were
surmounted with pinnacles, and its whole aspect was
novel in the extreme. The poet Whittier is quite
severe in his remarks upon it. I quote from his
" Stranger in Lowell ": " The attention of the stranger
is also attracted by another consecrated building on
the hill-slope in Belvidere — one of Irving's ' Shingle
Palaces,' painted in imitation of stone — a great
wooden sham, 'whelked and horned' with pine
spires and turrets, a sort of whittled representation
of the many-headed beast of the Apocalypse."
But the horns have been removed, and the building
is now a modest and attractive house of worship.
HuiHLAXD COXGREGATIONAL ChuRCH. — The
"Highlands" of Lowell, extending westward far
away from the older Congregational Churches of
Lowell, and being rapidly occupied by the new resi-
dences of a thrifty and enterprising class of citizens,
seemed, as early as 1883, to call for a new church in
that part of the city. In accordance with this senti-
ment the "Highland Congregational Association"
was formed in February of that year. Under the
auspices of this association religious services began
to be held in Highland Hall, March 11, 188.S. Until
a church was formed meetings were held in this hall,
the pastors of other churches giving their services m
preachers in aid of the new tnterprise.
On January 1, 1SS4, "The Highland Congrega-
tional Church " was duly organized by an ecclesias-
tical council, the services of recognition being held
in the Eliot Church. Rev. Dr. C. \V. Wallace, of
Manchester, N. H., was the acting pastor of this
church for the first six months. The fir^t pastor, the
Rev. S. Winchester Adriance, was educated at Dart-
mouth College and the Theological Seminaries of
Andover and Princeton. His installation took place
January 1, 1885. The first house of worship erected
by this church was a wooden edifice, first occupied in
December,1884. But the rapid increase in cumbers soon
demanded larger accommodations, and in 1888, a new
edifice of brick, capable of holding 800 worshipers,
was erected. This elegant house, on Westford Street,
(erected at a cost of about $85,000), surrounded, as it
is, by private dwellings recently erected in modern
style, with fiae lawns around them, may well be
called, " beautiful for situation, the joy '" of the High-
lands of the city. The number of members of this
church, which was only fifty-three in 1884, haa
rapidly risen to 223 in 1889. A bright prospect lies
before it; but its history is short, because its days
have been few.
Third Co^•GREGATIO^■AL CHVRnr.— Disbanded
churches also have a history. As early as 1832 the
worshipers at the First Congregational Church found
themselves too numerous tor proper accommodation
in their house of worship. On June 25, lb32, a meet-
ing was held in the vestry of this church, with the
view of forming a new Congregational Church. A
council was called to meet July 2, 1832. This council
sanctioned the enterprise, and the third Congrega-
tional Church was duly organized.
The first and only pastor of this church, Rev.
Giles Pease, of Coventry, Rhode Island, was installed
October 2, 1833. The place of worship was the large
wooden building erected by the Methodists on the
corner of -^Iarket and Suffolk Streets, now no longer
used .as a church. The financial irregularities of its
treasurer compelled it to give up its house of worship
in 1S33, and hold its meetings in the Town Hall.
Subsequently this church purchased the " theatre
building," the second building above Worthen Street
on the north side of Market Street, at the cost of
$4000. At the dedication of this building as a
churcli it is said that the unusually iarge audience
was due in part to the fact that a wag had given no-
tice that a performance would be given that evening
at the theatre.
In 1834 this church tried the free church system.
But the enterprise languished and was given up in
1838. There is no record of its last days, but the tra-
dition is that the members voted themselves letters of
dismission to other churches of their choice.
Tde French Protestant Church. — This church
is, in its government and creed, of the Congregational
order. It had its origin in the religious wants of the
great number of French people who, in later years,
have come to the city from the British Provinces.
Fifty years ago almost all the operatives in our
mills were of New England origin. By degrees Irish
help was very extensively employed. And then fol-
LOWELL.
137
lowed the French from Canada and elsewhere, until
now, as I am told by an overseer in one of our mills,
the French operatives even outnumber the Irish.
Tiiey prove to be intelligent and quick to learn.
The French who have come to Lowell are mainly
Catholic. They seem to be a devout people and they
throng St. Joseph's Church, on Lee Street. Already
a second church of spacious dimensions is being
erected on Merrimack Street for the accommodation
of our French Catholic population. Its name is to be
St. Jean Baptiste Church.
But among the French inhabitants of Lowell there
is a goodly number of Protestants. For these the
French Protestant Church was established. Its or-
ganization touk place July 3, 1877. Worship, which
has always been conducted in the French tongue, was
maintained in the hall of the Young Men's Christian
Association and perhaps eUewhere, until the erection
of the elegant French church on Bowers and Fletcher
Streets. This church, including the land, cost $14,000.
It is of brick and was erected about seven years ago.
Rev. T. S. A. Cot6 was pastor from July 3, 1877, to
March 1, 1884 ; Rev. C. E. Amaron, from May 1, 1884,
to November 1, 1886 ; Rev. Joseph Moiin, from De-
cember 1, 188G, to July 1, 1888; Rev. T. A. Derome,
acting pastor, from October 15, 1888, to April 15, 1889;
Rev. Joseph H. Paradis has been pasior since Sep-
tember 16, 1889. The resident membersnip is seventy-
one.
Swedish Evangelical Lutheran Chukch. —
This new church enterprise aflbrds an illustration of
the well-known fact that people of any nationality,
when in a strange land, love to unite in a religious
worship which recalls the memories of their early
home.
This church was organized in 1882. For about five
years it had no settled pastor, its pulpit being sup-
plied by theological students and other clergymen.
Until 1885 the place of worship was in the First Pres-
byterian Church on Appleton Street, and perhaps in
other places. In 1885 a church was erected on Meadow-
craft Street at a cost of about S6000. It is of wood,
and is capable of seating 400 persons.
The first pastor, Rev. L. H. Beck, was settled in
1887. Rev. J. V. Soderman became pastor August
29, 1889, and is still in service.
Swedish Evangelical Mission. — This mission
was organized June 13, 1885. Its methods are those
of the Congregational Churches. It worshiped at
first in Parker Hall, on Gorham Street, and subse-
quently in the church of the Primitive Methodists, on
Gorham Street. The house of worship which the
mission first erected was dedicated May 21, 1886.
This building was burned November 6, 1887. Their
present house, on London Street, was promptly
erected at a cost of S4000. The seating capacity of
this church is 300 in the auditorium, and 165 in the
vestry, which is in the lower story. This mission has
received valuable aid from the Kirk Street Congrega-
tional Church in furnishing its house of worship. It
is almost free from debt.
Its pastors have been Rev. Fritz Erickson, whose
pastorate began May 21, 1886, and Rev. Emil Holm-
blad, the present pastor, who assumed the duties of
his oflBce January 6, 1889.
The First Presbyterian Church. — This church
was organized June 23, 1869. It is the only Ameri-
can Presbyterian Church in Lowell, and is under the
Presbytery of Boston and Synod of New York of the
Presbyterian Church in the United States.
The roll of the church contains the names of 250
members, some of whom are non-residents. The roll
of the Sunday-school contains 270 names, the average
attendance being nearly 200.
The congregation worshiping with this church is
composed largely of citizens of Scotch descent.
The first pasior was Rev. John Brash, who was in-
stalled October 26, 1869. He was succeeded by Rev.
Alfred C. Roe, brother of the novelist, who was in-
stalled November 1, 1870. The third pastor. Rev.
Soltan F. Calhoun, was installed in October, 1871.
The present pastor. Rev. Robert Court, D.D., was in-
stalled May 6, 1874.
Dr. Court was born in Glasgow, Scotland, and is an
alumnus of Glasgow University and also of the Free
Church Theological College, Glasgow. Before coming
to Lowell he was settled at Malcom, la., for five
years. He is distinguished for his scholarship, for
his vast accumulation of knowledge, and for a re-
markable memory, which readily affords him abun-
dant material for the discussion of almost any subject
in the range of human learning.
In its early days this church worshiped in Jack-
son Hall and in various other places. It purchased
its present house of worship, on Appleton Street, of
the Appleton Street Congregational (now Eliot)
Church for 815,000, and begin to worship in it about
January 1, 1874.
Westminster Presbyterian Church. — This
church is in its infancy. Its members are an excel-
lent class of citizens, mainly of Scotch and provincial
origin.
The church was formed February 22, 1888. Its pas-
tor, Rev. F. H. Larkin, was inducted into the sacred
office September, 1888. He was educated in Mon-
treal. The church worships in Mechanics' Hall, ita
membership being about 100.
First Baptist Church.— This church was organ-
ized February 6, 1826. It was the second church
formed in the original territory of the city, St. Anne's
Episcopal being the first. From the organization of
St. Anne's Church in 1824 until two other churches
(the First Baptist and the First Congregational) bad
been formed, in 1826, a certain amount was regularly
deducted from the pay of the operatives in the Mer-
rimack Mills to support religious worship at St. An-
ne's. To many of the operatives this tax was dis-
tasteful, and to some it seemed oppressive. The tax
138
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
was abandooed, the public opinion against it being
very strongly expressed.
As early as 1825 the Baptists began to consider the
question of forming a church of their own persuasion.
Prayer-meetings were held in private houses. It is
even asserted, and probably with truth, that one and
perhaps two Baptist clergymen preached sermons in
private dwellings before the first sermon of Dr. Ed-
son was preached, on March 7, 1824. The house of
Jonathan C. Morrill, the Srst postmaster of Lowell,
seems to have been the place in which most of these
early devotional meetings of the Baptists were held,
and for this reason it has been styled a tent in the
wilderness. These earnest and crowded meetings
seem to have given offence to Mr. Kirk Boott, agent of i
the mills, but the Baptists bravely held their ground. |
Only nine months after the organization of the |
church their first house of worship was dedicated. |
The dedication of the house and the installation of j
their first pastor. Rev. John Cookson, took place on
the same day, November 15, 1826. This first house,
situated on Church Street, is the same as that in
which the church now worships. Great alterations
and improvements have, however, been made in it.
The selection of the spot on which the church stands
has a somewhat romantic interest. A young lady,
who was baptized and admitted to the church soon
after its organization, was importuned by Mr. Thomas
Hurd, an early manufacturer in Lowell, to enter
his mill as an operative. She had objections on ac-
count of the distance of the mills from her home, but
finally said: "I will come- and work for you if you
will give our little church a lot of land to build a
meeting-house on." " I will,'' was the prompt reply,
and the rtsult was that the present site was selected.
The land thus donated by Mr. Hurd had not a high
value, perhaps about $150, and was rather low, hav-
ing between it and Central Street a marshy spot,
over which a dry path was made by means of boards
and shavings which the brethren brought to the spot
on their way to the Saturday evening meetings. The
church members must have been a feeble band at
first, for when the first pastor was called only nine
votes were cast, and three of those in the negative.
From such small beginnings has sprung one of the
strongest church organizations in our city. It seems,
however, that the " society " was stronger than the
church. The members of the " society " embraced
some of the most prominent and worthy citizens, and
with these men the pastor chosen by the church was
far from being popular. The result was that Mr.
Cookson, yielding to the many charges made against
him, as being an unfit man for his position, resigned
his office not many months after his settlement. He
seems to have been a good pastor, and in his short
pastorate many new members were added to the
church. He was born in England, and after acting
as pastor of churches in Maiden and Lowell, Mass.,
aud in Morrisauia, N. Y., he returned to England.
But the resignation of Mr. Cookson did not restore
harmony. The man selected by the church as second
pastor did not plea?e the " society,'' and so for months
there was no pastor of the church.
At length Rev. Enoch W. Freeman was selected
for the sacred office, and was installed June 4, 1828.
The pastorate of Mr. Freeman was one of great
prominence and importance in the history of the
church. He was a man of marked aud peculiar
character. He graduated from Waterville College in
1S27, at the age of twenty-nine years, and in only one
year after his graduation he became pastor of the
church in Lowell.
The signs of disaffection which had existed early
in Mr. Freema'i's ministry became very apparent
upon his marriage to his cousin, a woman who had
been divorced from her husband, and had a tarnished
reputation. As time passed, new causes of sttspicion
and scandal arose. One Kenney, of Boston — i man
of intemperate habits and a gambler, who had once
been a lover of !Mrs. Freeman — was wont to frequent
the parsonage in Lowell. On one Sunday afternoon
Mr. Freeman began the religious services in the
usual way ; but, on reading the second hymn, he was
attacked with sickness of a peculiar nature, and was
borne tenderly from the church to his home, where
he died on the succeeding Tuesday. His widow ere
long married -Mr. Kenney. About four years after
this marriage Mr. Kenney died undtr such suspi-
cious circumstances tha^ his wife was strongly '•tis-
pected of poisoning him, and she was tried for mur-
der. The body of Mr. Freeman was exhumed, and
found to be .'surcharged with poison. The two hus-
bands, as well as the father of Mr. Freeman, had
died with similar symptoms and under very 3us|)i-
cious circumstances, and there were many who fully
believed that the suspected woman was a second Lu-
cretia Borgia. The absence of a suBicient motive for
the commission of such horrid crimes was probably
the only consideration that secured her acquittal.
The sensation occasioned by this painful affair
produced a feeling in the church destructive to all
Christian fellowship and harmony. Religion and
scandal cannot live together in peace. The fearful
wrong by which the pastor's life was taken away
created in those who loved him and believed him a
murdered man the profoundest .sympathy. This sym-
pathy prepared them to be dissatisfied with his suc-
cessor, whoever he might be. Nobody could fill the
place of the beloved, the murdered Mr. Freeman.
His successor, the Rev. Joseph W. Eaton, a recent
graduate of Newton Seminary, and a young man of
great promise, was ordained February 24, 1836. But
the hearts of the people seemed shut against him.
" He felt the shadow of Freeman falling evervwhere."
He was charged with preaching an imprudent ser-
mon, and was asked to resign. Only one short year
before, he had received an almost unanimous vote,
inviting him to come, and now an almost unanimous
LOWELL.
139
vote invites him to leave. The church was without
a pastor during most of 1837. The dissensions were
not healed. A council was called to settle difficul-
ties. Men who had been set aside for their opposi-
tion to Mrs. Freeman were restored to fellowship.
At length the true character of the suspected woman
appeared ; she was excluded from the church, and
the dark shadow passed away.
The third pastor, Rev. Joseph Ballard, was installed
December 25, 1837. He proved to be the man most
needed by the distracted church. "He brought ex-
perience, character and firmness. It needed just
such a man to adjust matters and restore quiet and
order. Under him the church flourished, and in
1840, 137 new members were added."
It was in Mr. Ballard's ministry that the extensive
revival occurred under the preaching of the great revi-
valist, Rev. Jacob Knapp, whose services were held
in the First Baptist Church. " No such revival ever
occurred in Lowell. It was general, deep, permanent
in its results. The records of the church that year
were like the bulletins of a conqueror."
Mr. Ballard, on coming to Lowell, was in the prime
of manhood, being thirty-eight years of age, and he
did a noble work in bringing to the church harmony
and strength and great prosperity. His pastorate in
Lowell continued eight years. He had been settled
over churches in Medfield and Hyannis, Mass., and in
South Berwick, Me. After leaving Lowell he preached
for several years in Yorkville, N. Y.
On January 29, 1846, Rev. Daniel C. Eddy was or-
dained as pastor of this church. He was only twenty-
three years of age, and this was his first pastorate.
He bad been educated for the min'stry in the New
Hampton Theological Seminary, and came to Lowell
with fresh zeal and bright promise of future useful-
ness and distinction in his sacred calling. This prom-
ise he has abundantly fulfilled. Few clergymen
have gained a more commanding influence or risen to
a higher position as orators or as men than he. He
gave strength to his church, and though very young,
he soon proved himself the peer of any clergyman in
the city. His pastorate continued eleven years. Since
leaving Lowell he has been the pastor of churches in
Boston, Fall River and Philadelphia.
Rev. Wm. H. Alden, a graduate of Brown Univer-
sity, was installed as pastor June 10, 1857. He had
been settled in Attleborough before coming to Low-
ell, and since leaving Lowell he has been settled in
Albany, X. Y., and in Portsmouth, N. H. He proved
a very acceptable pastor, especially in social life and
pastoral duty.
Rev. Wm. E. Stanton was ordained to the sacred of-
fice November 2, 1865, and continued in service until
1870, when ill-health compelled him to resign. He
was a young man of excellent spirit and devout
Christian character. He was a graduate of Madison
University and Theological Institution.
Upon leaving Lowell he sought health iu Florida,
where he labored successfully for the Home Miaaion-
ary Society.
Rev. Norman C. Mallery was settled July 1, 1870,
and continued in the pastorate four years. He was a
graduate of Madison University and Theological Sem-
inary. He had previously preached in Morrisville,
N. Y., and in Manchester, N. H. On leaving Lowell
he took charge of a church in Detroit, Mich. He filled
his office well and especially excelled as a sermon-
izer.
Rev. Orson E. Mallory was settled in March, 1875.
It is an interesting fact that the three pastors last
mentioned were classmates in Madison University,
and graduated the same day. Mr. Mallory is now
pastor of the Branch Street Baptist Church in
Lowell.
On May 1, 1878, Rev. T. M. Colwell was installed
as pastor. Dr. Colwell was a man of marked ability,
and he gained, while pastor of the church, a command-
ing influence. His connection with the well-known
"Colwell JLotor" enterprise, in the minds of some,
greatly impaired his reputation, while others still
cling to him with affection and with faith in the hon-
esty of his conduct and the uprightness of his char-
acter.
Rev. John Gordon was installed as pastor in Feb-
ruary, 1885. He was a man of Scotch descent, and
of decided talent, but as a pastor he proved a man so
positive in his convictions and so blunt and dogmatic
in the expression of them, that he failed to gain the
favor of his parishioners.
Rev. Alexander Blackburn, the present pastor, was
ordained October 23, 1887. Under his administration
the church is in a prosperous condition, the " known
list" of members being 629. This church sustains a
Sabbath-Bchool of 580 members, and is engaged in
other benevolent enterprises.
WoRTHEN Street Baptist Chdech. — The his-
tory of this church apparently begins with a meeting
held on September 6, 1831, in the vestry of the First
Baptist Church, in order to take measures for the for-
mation of a second Baptist Church in Lowell. As
the result of this and a subsequent meeting an eccle-
siastical council met on September 13, 1831, at the
house of Deacon S. C. Oliver, and duly formed a new
sister church of " Baptist faith and order." In the
Town-Hall, which had been engaged by the new so-
ciety as a place of worship, a religious service was
held on the evening of the same day, at which Rev.
Mr. Barnaby, of Danvers, preached, and the new
church was duly recognized.
Rev. James Barnaby, the first pastor of this church,
was installed on July 5, 1832. In these early days
the church grew rapidly in numbers. It took high
ground on the great moral questions of the day, espe-
cially on that of temperance. The first house of wor-
ship, a neat and commodious building of brick, situ-
ated on Suffolk Street, was completed as early as July,
1S33. This building is now in the hands of the
140
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTV, MASSACHUSETTS.
Catholics. Afterserving in the sacred office three yearj,
Mr. Burnaby resigned the pastorate. It is worthy of
remark, in regard to him, that over cue church, that
of West Harwiclc, he was settled four times, and that
during hia life aa a pastor he baptized over 2800
persons.
On October 29, 183-i, Rev. Lemuel Porter, of the
Newton Theological tjeminary, was recognized as the
second pastor of this church. He proved a sliillful
and capable leader of his flock. During his pastorate
of more than fifteen years the church was eminently
prosperous, the number of members in 1847 being
estimated as high as nearly 900. In 1S51 Jlr. Por-
ter's resignation was accepted. He died in October,
186i, while in service aa secretary of the American
Tract Society.
The Kev. James W. Smith, a student from Newton
Theological Seminary, became pastor of this church
in 1851, and served in the sacred office two years.
After leaving Lowell he was a pastor in Philadelphia
for twenty-six years. The Lowell church gave him
up with deep regret.
Rev. D. S. Winn, also from the Newton Seminary,
was, on September 14, 1853, ordained as pastor, and
entered heartily and hopefully upon his work. After
about two years of service he accepted a call to a
church in Salem.
Rev. T. D. Worrall, from Mt. Holly, N. J., became
pastor in 18.55, and served the church till 1857.
Rev. J. W. Bonham was pastor from 1857 to 1S(J0.
He was an earnest and faithful pastor, and his church
gave him up with regret.
Rev. Geo. F. Warren, of Attleboro', was installed
in October, 1860. Under Mr. Warren's efficient ad-
ministration of seven years the flagging courage of
the church returned, the church debt was cleared
away and his pastorate was marked with union and
strength. In 1867 he accepted a call to Maiden, Mass.
Rev. S. R. Morse, of East Cambridge, was pastor of
this church from 1867 to 1870. His faithful labors
and the kindness of his heart are still tenderly recol-
lected by those who enjoyed his ministrations. It
was in his pastorate that the Branch Street ilission was
started, the Third Baptist Church and the Central
Baptist Church having become extinct.
Rev. Henry Miller, of Elizabeth, N. J., came to
this church aa pastor early in 1872, and remained two
years. To the great regret of his chsrch in Lowell
he accepted a c.iU to the Plymouth Baptist Church in
New York City. For about one year previous to
April, 1873, the church was without a pastor.
Rev. E. A. Lecorapte, of Syr.icuse, was installed as
pastor on Sept. 9, 1874. He found much to discour-
age him in performing the duties of his office. The
church had had no pastor for many months, the mill
operatives were no longer Protestants and worshipers
in Protestant Churches, and it was difficult for the
most faithful pastor to sustain the interests and pros-
perity of the church.
Mr. Lecompte died March 2, 1880. He was much
beloved, and the words of James have been ali'eciiou-
ately applied to his character: "First pure, then
peaceable, gentle and easy to be entreated, full of
mercy and good fruits." The vacancy in the pastor-
ate following the death of Mr. Lecompte, in March,
1880, was filled by Rev. J. C. Emory, under whose
successful ministration of five years the church debt
was paid, and 170 new members were added.
Rev. W. S. Ayers, of Newton Theological Semi-
nary, was ordained June 4, 1885, and is still the faithlul
pastor of the church.
On the last day of the year 1887 the wooden church
in which wor.-hip had been maintained lor nearly fifiy
years was burned to the ground. The church cnulil
iil aflTord to meet so great a loss, but with admirable
generosity, courage and despatch a new and elegant
house of brick has been erected. The new house is of
the Romanesque style, and provided with every mod-
ern convenience to meet the wants of a church.
The cost of the old church was $8000. The new
church, which was dedicated Feb. 26, 1890, cost about
$40,000. This sum includes the organ and all the in-
terior equipments of the church.
The Third Baptist Church was organized in 1840,
and in 1840 the edifice on John Street, now occupied
by the Central Methodist Church, was erected for its
occupancy at the cost of i^l4,000. This church, after
a struggle of twenty-one years for success, was com-
pelled to disband in 1S61. Its pastors were: Rev.
John G. Naylor, Rev. Ira Person, Rev. John Duncan,
Rev. Sereuo Howe, Rev. John Duer, Rev. J. Hubbard.
Baptist Fkesch Missiox. — This organization is
under the auspices of the American Baptist Home
Mission Society. It is not a church, but a mission.
Those who labor in it are members of various Lowell
churches. Its main design is to bring French Ro-
man Catholics under the influence of Protestant
churches. As early as 1871 Rev. N. Cyr commenced
holding French services in Lowell, and a colporteur
was employed to labor among the French people of
the city. Rev. J. N. Williams succeeded Mr. Cyr.
The services of these missioncries were conducted in
the French language, the meetings being held in the
rooms of the Young Men's Christian Association and
in the vestry of the First Baptist Church, and else-
where, probably. The missionaries have not always
resided in Lowell while conducting the mission.
Rev. G. Aubin followed Mr. Williams in charge of
the field. Mr. N. N. Aubin for some time had the
oversight of the work. Then followed Rev. E. U.
Brun. After Mr. Bruc, Mr. N. N. Aubin, having
completed his theological studies in the Newton Serai-
nary, again, as a regularly appointed missionary, as-
sumed the charge, under the auspices of the Baptist
Home Mission Society.
As the result of the labors of this mission fifty-one
French converts are reported to have joined the vari-
ous Baptist churches of the city.
LOWELL.
141
Branch Street Baptist Church. — This church
was organized July 1, 1869. Its house of worship,
dedicated Jan. 16, 1872, is in a rapidly-growing part of
the city. The auditorium is remarijable for its
acoustic qualities, few, if any. large halls in the city
equaling it in this respect. Its seating capacity is
1500. Present number of members, 419.
The first pastor of this church, Rev. E. A. Whittier,
assumed the pastoral office at the organization of the
church, July 1, 1869; Rev. G. F. Warren, Sept. 24,
1873; Rev. H. S. Pratt, Feb. 4, 187G ; Rev. 0. E.
Wallory, the present pastor, was settled March 3,
1878.
The seats in this church are free, weekly offerings
being relied upon to meet expenses.
Fifth Street Baptist Church.— This church
was organized March 17, 1874. It had its origin in
the religious wants of the part of the city in which it
is situated.
Before the erection of its hou?e of worship religious
services were held in a chapel built in 1872.
Its house of worship on Fifth Street in Centralville
was erected in 1879-80, and dedicated March 6, 1880,
its cost, land included, being $20,000. It has a seat-
ing capacity of 450.
The property is well situated as to its surroundings,
with a roomy chapel iu the rear of the church, in ihe
second story of which is a large social hall with a
kitchen.
Like nil other suburban churches, it has heretofore
suflered from the tendency of church-goers to seek a
bouse of worship on Sundays near the business cen-
tre of the city, where they go to trade on week-days.
The church begins to feel the influence of the in-
crease of the number of inhabitants in its vicinity,
and is, ou the whole, iu a prosperous condition.
Its pastors have been as follows : Rev. T. J. B. House,
settled March 17, 1874 ; Rev. M. C. Thwing, March
1, 1877 ; Rev. N. C. Mallory, Januarj- 1, 1882 ; Rev.
J. J. Reader, June 12, 1886; Rev. L. G. Barrett, Jan-
uary 1, 1888. Present number of members, 249.
Highland Baptist Church. — Since June, 1889,
Myron D. Fuller and John J. McCoy have held Gos-
pel services in Highland Hall, Branch Street. A Sun-
day-school has been formed. In October, 1889, it was
resolved to form a church, and steps are being now
taken to complete the organization. It is to be known
as the Highland Baptist Church.
Mdliodiit Churches. — The pastors of other denomi-
nations frequently remain so long in office, and their
lives are so intimately interwoven iu the lives of
their churches, that it has seemed almost a necessity,
in giving the history of the churches, to give also a
brief personal notice of the pastors. But in regard
to pastors of Methodist Churches these personal no-
tices are nearly precluded by the great number of
pastors and the shortness of their periods of service.
And yet the Christian Churcn has been blessed with
no more eloquent and devout men of holy lives and
exalted character than are found in the Methodist
denomination. The lives of such men well deserve
even more than a brief record, but this short history
cannot afford the space in which to give it. I am
therefore obliged to do what I am not pleased to do^
and to make the history of the Methodist Churches
far too statistical to interest the general reader.
St. PauPs Church. — In the churches in any city
and of any denomina'.ion it is worthy of remark that
the number of women far exceeds the number of
men. And it is not in numbers alone that they de-
serve most the love and honor of the Christian
Church. Such love and honor the Methodist Church
has never failed to give, and it is to a devout woman
that St. Paul's Church loves to trace its origin. This
woman, Miss Phebe Higgins, is said to have been
the first Methodist in the city of Lowell. She was a
woman in humble station, but eminent for the parity
of her life and conversation. She kept a journal of
her experience and lived to the great age of eighty-
seven years.
Mr. James R. Barnes, who came to Lowell in 1824,
and who had been previously ordained as a local
preacher, seems to have been mainly instrumental in
forming the first Methodist Church in the city. In
1824, about the 1st of June, he formed i "class" of
eleven persons in his own house in Dutton Street, on
the Merrimack Corporation. Of this " class " he be-
came the religious teacher, and this class was the
germ from which sprang Si. Paul's Methodist Church
and also the Worthen Street Methodist Church. Until
August, 1826, the Methodists of Lowell, though few
in number, kept up religious meetings and enjoyed
the occasional service of a preacher whenever such
service could be secured. One of these occasional
preachers. Rev. H. S. Ramsdell, says that on his com-
ing to Lowell to preach on one occasion Rev. Dr. Ed-
son " very kindly opened his church for our accom-
modation. He went to church with me and conduct-
ed me into the desk." The Old Red School-house
near Ha'e's Mills was the favorite place of meeting to
the early Methodists. Mr. Jonathan Knowles kindly
opened his hou=e for class and prayer-meetings,
"with a large cane keeping the bad men and boys
quiet without, while the Methodists sang and prayed
and exhorted within.''
In the Conference year ending in June, 1827, 135
sermons were delivered in Lowell by no less than
eleven clergyman, a record of them having been kept
by a son of Mr. Knowles.
The number of worshipers at length outgrew the
Old Red School-house, and a house of worship was
erected. This house, situated near the site of the
Court-House, on Chapel Hill, was dedicated on
Thanksgiving Day, Nov. 29, 1827, two and a half
years after the dedication of St. Anne's, and a few
days before the dedication of the First Congregation-
al Church on Merrimack Street. From this church
or chapel the place took the name of " Chapel Hill."
1-42
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
Though other denominations formed " religious soci-
eties " earlier than the Methodists, the Methodists
claim that to thera belongs the honor of being the
first to form in Lowell a Christian Church.
About June 13. 1827, Rev. Hiram Walden was sta-
tioned by authority as a preacher and pastor in Low-
ell. Oq Dec. 14, 1827, Mr. Walden was succeeded by
Rev. A. D. Merrill, under whom the church greatly
prospered. On July 30, 1828, Rev. Benj. F. Lam-
bord became pastor. On June 17, 1829, Rev. Aaron
D. Sargeant was stationed in Lowell. On May 27,
1830, Rev. Ephraim K. Avery was appointed, under
whom the membership rose from 227 to 451.
I need to do scarcely more than briefly to refer to
the fact that in a few months after Mr. Avery had re-
moved from Lowell to Bristol, R. I., in 1832, a young
woman, Sarah M. Cornell, who was a member of his
church in Lowell, followed him to Rhode Island, and
was, on Dec. 20th, foully murdered by some unknown
Laud. Circumstances painfully suspicious pointed to
Mr. Avery as the murderer, and he was tried for the
crime and acquited. The New England Conference re-
solved that he was innocent. I cannot trace the subse-
quent career of Mr. Avery, but cau only state that
uearly thirty-four years after this affair he was a
highly respected citizen of Pittsfield, Ohio, and oc-
casionally preiiched wiih great acceptance.
lu 1831 an attempt was made to form a new ilethod-
ist Church, and a house of worship for the new or-
ganizatiou was erected on Lowell and Suffolk Streets,
— a large square, wooden house, without a s.eeple, —
but in a few months the enterprise failed for want of
pecuniary support. It was called TUe Second Metho-
dist Church. In 1832 Rev. George Pickering and
Rev. David Kilburn were appointed over the two
churches.
In 1833 Rev. Abram D. Merrill was appointed.
Under him the Methodists required two places of leli-
gious worship — their chapel on Chapel Hill and the
hall of the present City Government Building on
Merrimack Street, then called the Town Hall. Low-
ell was not yet a city. In 1834 the Methodists se-
cured as a place of worship the large house on Low-
ell Street, which they had vacated not long before,
and worship was uo longer held in the chapel or the
Town Hall. In this new house of worship there
came a very powerful revival. About Jan., 1835, the
chapel was re-opened, and during this year there
were two places of worship. Under Mr. Merrill's
ministrations, the membership increased from 390 to
724. And now follow in aucces-iion as pastors : Rev.
Ira M. Bidwell andJlev. Charles Noble, in 1835 ; Rev.
Orange Scott and Rev. John Parker, in 183G ; Rev.
E. \V. Stickney and Rev. John Lovejoy, in 1837.
Of the clergymen just mentioned. Rev. Orange
Scott became widely known and celebrated as an anti-
slavery lecturer in those stirring days of anti-slavery
agitation.
In 1837 the large brick church on Suffolk Street,
built by the Baptists and costing 320,000, was pur-
chased by the Methodists md occupied in place of the
wooden house on Lowell I now Market) Street. It is
now owned by the Catholics.
It was on June 13, 1838, that Bishop Waugh divi-
ded the one church worshiping in two separate places
into two distinct churches, to be called respectively
the Chapel Hill Church and the Wesley Chapel
Church, appointing Mr. Stickney as pa.stor of the
former, and Mr. Lovejoy pastor of the latter. From
the former sprang the St. Paul's Church, and from the
latter the Worthen Street Church. As the St. Paul's
Church occupied the first house of worship erected
by the Methodists of Lowell on Chapel Hill, it may
in a popular sense, be called the "Mother Church,"
but in reality, both the St. Paul Church and the
Worthen Street Church have the same origiu and the
same age.
Leaving for the present the history of the newly-
formed Wesley Chapel Church worshiping on Lowell
Street, we will trace that of the mother church on
Chapel Hill. The chapei becoming too much
crowded, a hall on Hurd and Central Streets was
hired to receive the ovei How till the new church, now
being erected between Hurd and Warren Sts., could
be completed. This church was dedicated on Nov.
14, 1839, its incorporated name being " The St. Paul's
Church. In the year of this dedication Rev. Orange
Scott, having relinquished his employment as an
anti-slavery lecturer, wa= for a second time the pastor.
The new church was erected on a somewhat romantic
spot where there was a sandy knoll, a burial-place of
the Indians, some of whose skeletons were found in
removing the knoll.
In 1841 a very serious conflict arose between the
bishop of the diocese and the church. The church
had requested the appointment of Rev. Schuyler
Hoes, of Ithaca, N. Y., as pastor. This the bishoj)
refused to grant, and appointed Rev. Joseph A. Mer-
rill. The people and the church rebelled, and Mr.
Merrill was denied admission to the pulpit. The re-
sult of the conflict was that Bishop Hedding came to
Lowell, and through his conciliatory course peace
was restored, Mr. Hoes receiving the appointment.
Under Mr. Hoes the church's membership W9s in-
creased by 175, there having been a revival following
the preaching of the Evangelist, Elder Knapp, in the
neighboring Baptist Church.
In the pastorate of Mr. Hoes also occurred the
"great secession " from St. Paul's Church, under the
leadership of Rev. Orange Scott, a secession in which
more than half the male members of the church
united. The seceding members formed a new church
called the Wesleyan Methodist Church, purchased
the vacated Methodist chapel on Chapel Hill,
and moved it to Prescott Street for their house of
worship. Here the church had for pastors. Rev. E.
S. Potter, Rev. James Hardy, Rev. Merritt Bates,
Rev. Wm. H. Brewster and Rev. Daniel Foster, the
LOWELL.
143
last of whom entered the army and was killed in bat-
tle at Fort Harrison, while in command of a company
of the Thirty-seventh Colored Troops.
The occasion of this Wesleyan secession was the
neglect of the National M. E. Church to discipline
members in the South who peristed in holding slaves,
and for alleged complicity with slavery. The subse-
quent course of the national church, however, was so
satisfactory to anti-slavery men that, by degrees,
most of the seceders returned to the fold, and the se-
cession movement was one of short duration.
The space allowed for the history of St. Paul's
Church is so far exhausted that I have room only to
mention the list of pastors since 1842, a list which
contains many gifted men of commanding eloquence.
1 give the date of appointment in connection with
each name. Rev. Wm. H. Hatch, in 1843 ; Rev.
Stephen Remington, in 1845; Rev. Charles K. True,
D.D., in 184G; Rev. Alphonso A. Willetts, in 1848;
Rev. Wm. S. Stud ley, also in 1848; Rev. John H.
Twombly, in iS49; Rev. Gershom F. Cox, in 1851;
Rev. L. b. Barrows, D.D., in 1853; Rev. Daniel E.
Chapin, in ISoJi; Rev. George M. Steele, in 185G ;
Rev. Henry M. Loud, in 1858; Rev. Wm. R. Clark,
in 18G0; Rev. Daniel Dorchester, in 18G2 ; Rev. Sam-
uel F. Upham, in 18G4 ; Rev. Sylvester F. Jones in
1867 ; Rev. D. C. Kuowles, in 1870; Rev. T. Burton
Smiih, in 1872; Rev. Wm. S. Studley, in 1875 ; Rev.
Merritt Hulburd, in 1877; Rev. Charles D. Hills, iu
1879; Rev. Hiram D. Weston, in 1882; Rev. Charles
F. Rice, in 1885; Rev. Charles E. Davis, in 1888.
Worthen Street Mcthotlist Church. — For the history
of this church prior to June 13, 183s, I refer the
reader to my account of St. Paul's Methodist Church,
for up to that date the two churches were one and
the same church. The original church, before its di-
vi.siou, had worshiped in the Old Red School-house,
in the chapel on Chapel Hill, in the Town Hall, in
the wooden church on Market Street, and in the
brick church on Suffolk Street. As the exigency de-
manded, it had had sometimes one pastor and some-
times two, sometimes one house of worship and some-
times two. But after the division of the original
church into two distinct churches, called the Chapel
Hill Church and the Wesley Chapel, the latter, now
the Worthen Street Church, worshiped for three
years in the brick house on Suffolk Street.
In tracing the history of the Worthen Street M. E.
Church, I begin with a list of all its pastors from 1838
to the present time, after which, with this list before
us, I shall give a brief account of the church. The
pastors, with the date of their appointment, have
been as follows:
1S38, Johu Lovejoy ; 18.in, Jotham Horton ; 1841, A. D. Snrgeant ;
184.1, A. D. Merrill ; 1845, J. Springer, J. Sanborn ; 1817, I. A. Savage ;
IWa, C. .Wilms ; 18,il, I. J. P. Colljer ; 1S-.3. M. A. Hone ; 185% J. W.
SuilniuM; 1857, A. 1'. snrgeant ; 1S58, AY. H. Hatch ; Iwill, A. D. Sar-
geaut ; 1801. L. U. Tli.ijer, Chester Field ; 18(3, \V. H. llutch ; ISM. J.
0. Peck ; 1807, George Wliiltaiier ; lS7n, George S. Clmdblirue ; 187C,
1). 11. Ela; 1670, F. J. Waguer ; \il^, George Collyer ; 1S81, N. T.
Whitakcr; 1884, E. E. Thorndlke ; 1887, W. T.Worth; 1888, W. T.
Perrin.
From 1834 to 1841 peace aud harmony reigned.
But in 1841 came the great conflict between the
bishnp and the two Lowell churches on the subject
of slavery. The Lowell churches, believing that the
National M. E. Church had truckled to the slave
power, were unwilling to accept as pastors the cler-
gymen appointed by the bishop. To the Wesley
Chapel the bishop had appointed, in 1841, Rev. A. D.
Sargeant. The church refused to receive him, and
elected Rev. Wm. H. Brewster as their pastor. Mr.
Sargeant, with 173 members of the church, held relig-
ious services in Mechanics' Hall until the new house
of worship on Worthen Street was completed in the
following year. This house of worship, dedicated io
1842, still remains the house of worship of the Wor-
then Street M. E. Church. Its original cost was
$9000.
Respecting the general character of this church, I
can do no better than to quote the language of Rev.
N. T. Whittaker, its pastor in 1884:
"The Worthen Street Church has always been a
revival church. More thau 10,000 have been enrolled
upon her records as members. More than 15,000
souls have professed conversion at her altars. The
church is remarkable for her harmonious, benevolent
aud progressive spirit, and is thoroughly consecrated
to the service of Christ."
The present pastor, Rev. W. T. Perrin, is a clear-
thinking, genial man, and a successful pastor.
In 1889 and 1890 the church edifice was almost
entirely reconstructed at an expense of S13,000.
Central Methodist Church. — The years of 1851 and
1852 were years of unusual religious interest in the
Methodist Churches of Lowell. Crowds gathered at
the houses of worship. Rev. Mr. Collyer, of the
Worthen Street Church, seemed to be endowed with
great power over the minds of his hearers. This state
of things naturally suggested a new Methodist Church
to meet the growing numbers and the kindling en-
thusiasm.
Accordingly anew church organization was formed,
and the building opposite our post-office now known
as Barristers' Hall was hired for a place of worship.
This building had been erected for the Third Uui-
versalist Society, formed in 1843 and subsequently dis-
banded.
The first pastor of the new church, the Rev. William
Studley, an eloquent man, was appointed in April,
1854. His successor, Rev. I. S. Cuahman, pa8r.or of
the church in 1856-57, filled the sacred office under
great discouragements. These years were yeajs of
financial distress. Many mills closed, their operatives
leaving the city for their homes in the country, and
these causes depleted the number of worshipers and
brought gloom and discouragement.
Next follows Rev. I. J. P. Collyer, a man of ardent
zeal and skilful leadership. The church revived
144
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
again. Rev. Chester Field came to the church as
pastor in 1860, amidst the rumors of war. The num-
ber of the young men worshiping in this church
who enlisted in the army, seriously impaired its ef-
ficiency and property.
Next follows in 1861, Rev. L. R. Thayer, who
infused new life into the church. Its numbers in-
creased. It was during Mr. Thayer's pastorate that this
church purchased of the Baptists the house on John
Street which it now occupies, tor $8000. Mr. Thayer
had a large place in the hearts of his people.
In 1863 Rev. J. H. Mansfield was appointed to the
pastorate of the church, and in 1865 the Rev. Andrew
McKeown. Uuder both these pastors the prosperity of
the church continued, the debt of $4000 being
paid off.
In 1867 Rev. Wm. High began a ministry of three
years, in which $5000 was expended in improving the
house of worship.
In 1870 Rev. Fred Woods became pastor, and in
1872 Rev. Daniel Dorchester, a man who has since
attained a high reputation, having been recently ap-
pointed by President Harrison a commissioner to
the Indians.
Rev. J. H. Mansfield, in 1874, was a second time
appointed pastor of this church, and was in the sacred
office three years.
Then follow Rev. M. B. Chapman, Rev. Geo. L.
AVeslgate, Rev. W. W. Foster. Jr., Rev. I. H. Packard,
Rev. S. B. Sweeter, Rev. J. N. Short.
Mr. .Short is the present incumbent. The member-
ship of the church is about 300.
Centralville Methodist Church. — The village of Cen-
tralville, which constitutes all that part of Lowell
which was in 1851 set off from the town of Dracut, on
the north side of the Merrimack River, contained at
the last census about 8000 inhabitants. Since that
time the population has rapidly increased. Up to 1886
only one church of any denomination had been erected
in the village. In the latter part of that year, Rev. C.
V. Dunning, presiding elder of the Dover District, New
Hampshire Conference, carefully looked over the
ground and fixed his eye on a desirable location for
a church, and reported the whole matter to the en-
suing Conference in 1887. Accordingly the Bishop
of the New Hampshire Conference, to who^e Episco-
pal jurisdiction the village belonged, advised the for-
mation of such a church, and in May, 1887, he ap-
pointed Rev. Sullivan Holman as its pastor.
The church was organized with only four members
on June 19, 1887. A lot for a church edifice on Bridge
and Hildreth Streets was purchased, and divine wor-
ship was held for one year in a cottage standing on
the lot.
The work of erecting a house of worship was
promptly begun, and at the present time the vestry in
the basement story is finished and is used for the
meetings of the church.
The enterprise is still in itj infancy. It occupies
an important position, and is surrounded by a rapidly
increaj-ing population. The fact that the member-
ship has already increased from four to sixty or sev-
enty, bears witness to the fidelity of the pastor and the
zeal of the people.
The house of worship is to be of brick and will
probably cost about $18,000.
The Berean Frimithe Methodist Church. — In 1884
the population of Lowell had extended so far up the
Concord River, that there .seemed to be an evident
call tor the work of a church in that quarter of the
city. Accordingly a mission school was established
by the Methodists on October 3, 1884, and a small
hall was built for its use on land owned by Mr. James
Dugdale, on Lawrence Street. The leaders of this
enterprise were Rev. J. A. McGreaham and Mr.
Thomas Leland.
After two years the hall on Lawrence Street was
sold, and the church, which was first organized as a
mission school, moved into il.s new house of worship
on Moore Street, near Lawrence Street. This house
was first occupied in December, 1886, but was dedi-
cated May 7, 1S87.
The first p.istor of this church. Rev. G. J. Jeffries,
was appointed May 10, 1887.
The second and present pastor, Rev. T. G. Spencer,
was appointed May 8, 1889. The cost of the house
of worship was $2500. Its seating capacity is 300.
First Frimitice Mctho'list Church. — This church
was organized in 1871. Like other Primitive Meth-
odist Churches, it dilfers from the Methodist Episco-
pal Churches in rejecting Episcopal con.rol and in
adhering to what is believed to be the primitive apos-
tolic methods of the early Christian Churches.
The church was organized in a hall near Davis'
Corner, where worsliip was held. The present hou=e
of worship on Gotham Street was erected in 1871, at
the cost of $8J00. It wi.l seat 400 persons and large
congregations attend its services.
The present number of members is 195. Since the
erection of the church, a parsonage has been built on
Congress Street, in the rear of the church.
The following are the names of the pastors of this
church as appointed by the Conference: Rev. William
Kirby, Rev. Joseph Parker, Rev. George Parker, Rev.
Charles Spurr. No successor to Mr. Spurr was ap-
pointed for three or four years, the church mean-
time being disbanded.
On January 5, 1879, it was reorganized, and Rev.
N. W. Matthews appointed pastor. He served four
years, and was succeeded by Rev. J. A. McGreaham,
and then by the present pastor. Rev. T. M. Bateman,
under whom tlie church prospers.
Highland Methodist Episcopal Church. — This church
was organized March 12, 1875. Until June, 1876,
divine service wis held in Highland Hall, on Branch
Street. The house of worship now occupied by this
church is situated on L:ring Street and was dedicated
June U, 1876.
LOWELL.
145
Services preparatory to the formation of a church
were held in Highland Hall as early as September,
1874, the desk being occupied generally by 8tadent«
from the Boston Theological School. But early in
1875 Rev. G. W. H. Clark became the pastor and con-
tinued in office until September, 1875.
From September, 1875, to April, 1877, Rev. J. H.
Mansfield, pastor of the Central Methodist Episcopal
Church, assisted by the other Methodist pastors of
the city, supplied the pulpit.
The following is the list of pastors since appointed
to this church, with the dates of their appointment:
Rev. Abner R. Gregory, April, 1877; Rev. G. H.
Clark, April, 1878 ; Rev. Austin H. Herrick, April,
1879 ; Rev. E. A. Smith, April, 1881 ; Rev. W. H.
Meredith, April, 1884; Rev. W. W. Colburn, April.
1887 ; Rev. Alexander Dight, the present pastor,
April, 1889. Present membership, 200.
This church occupies a position of much import-
ance in one of the most beautiful and most rapidly
increasing parts of the city, and it was to meet the
wants of this thriving and attractive section of
Lowell that the church was e.stablished.
South Congregational Society. — This is familiarly
known as the Unitarian Church. Its first germ of re-
corded history is found in a meeting held on August
30, 1829, in the house of Thomas Ordway, well known
in after years as the clerk of the city of Lowell, to
consider the expediency of forming a Unitarian So-
ciety. The result was that such a society was organ-
ized at a s'^bsequent meeting, held on September 26,
1829, in the stone house near Pawtucket FalliJ, long
known as the residence of Dr. J. C. Ayer. Among
the founders of this society were many of the most
distinguished men of the city. I need mention only
the names of Judge Thomas Hopkinson, Judge Jo-
seph Locke, Samuel L. Dana, LL.D., Dr. John C.
Dalton, Judge Seth Ames, Dr. Elisha Bartlett, first
mayor of the city, Samuel Batchelder, Hon. Luther
Lawrence, second mayor of Lowell, and James G.
Carney, a well-known banker.
Rev. Wm. Barry, the first pastor of this church,
was ordained November 17, 1830, the services of ordi-
nation being held in the First Baptist Church. Up
to this time the society had worshiped in the Free
Chapel on Middlesex Street. Mr. Barry's pastorate
continued four years. He was a graduate of Brown's
University and of the Harvard Divinity School.
After leaving Lowell he was settled over a church in
Framingham, and afterwards he returned to Lowell
and became the pastor of the Lee Street Unitarian
Church. He was a man of thorough education, re-
fined taste and pure life. He recently died in the
city of Chicago. Though not a man of vigorous
health, he attained a great age.
On December 14, 1836, Rev. Henry A. Miles was
installed as second pastor of this church. Dr. Miles
graduated at Brown University in 1829, and at Har-
vard Divinity School in 1832, and had, before coming
10-ii
to Lowell, been settled for four years over a church
in Hallowell, Me. His pastorate in Lowell continued
nearly seventeen years. Since leaving Lowell he has
served for six years as secretary of the American Uni-
tarian Association. He has also engaged in literary
work, having written several theological books.
While in Lowell he wrote the first published history
of the city, a work of much merit, and entitled,
" Lowell As It Was and As It Is."
Two years after the resignation of Mr. Miles a call
was extended to Mr. Theodore Tebbets. He accepted
the call, and was ordained as pastor September 19,
1855. At the time of receiving this call he had not
yet completed his course in Harvard DivinitySchool.
Only ten days after entering upon his charge he was
attacked by a violent and long-lingering fever, which
compelled him to resign his office in order to restore,
if possible, his impaired health, but he never fully re-
covered. He died in Medford in 1863, at the age of
thirty-two years. He was an accomplished man,
having in college taken a high rank and having grad-
uated with high honors.
Rev. Frederick Hinckley, a graduate of Harvard
Divinity School, was installed as pastor of this
church November 12, 1866. He had, before coming
to Lowell, been settled over churches in Windsor,
Vt., and Norton and Haverhill, Mass. His ministry
closed in 1864, after a service of eight years. He was
subsequently pastor of churches in Boston and Wash-
ington, D. C.
Rev. Charles Edward Qrinnell, the fifth pastor of
this church, before his ordination in Lowell, gradu-
ated at Harvard College, and studied in the Yale
Theological School, the Harvard Divinity School,
and- the University of Gottingen in Germany. He was
ordained February 19, 1867. He was a man of wide
culture and literary taste. He published several
philosophical and theological essays. In 1871 he had
the honor of preaching the annual election sermon
before the government of the Commonwealth in the
Old South Church in Boston. Upon leaving Lowell,
in 1869, he became pastor of the Harvard Church in
Charlestown, and also served as chaplain of the Fifth
Regiment, Massachusetts Volunteer Militia. He re-
tired from the ministry in 1874, and entered upon the
practice of law in Boston.
Rev. Henry Blanchard, the sixth pastor of this
church, graduated from Tufts College. Before his
settlement in Lowell he had been pastor of a Uni-
versalist Church in Brooklyn, N. Y., and had preached
in a Unitarian Church in Indianapolis, Ind. He was
ordained in Lowell, Jan. 19, 1871, and was in office
two years. Since leaving Lowell he has preached in
Worcester and Portland, Me., where he now resides.
Rev. Josiah L. Seward, the seventh pastor of this
church, graduated at Harvard College and at the
Harvard Divinity School. He was ordained in
Lowell, Dec. 31, 1874. After a pastorate of fourteen
years he resigned his charge and was settled over the
146
HISTORY OF JIIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
Unitarian Church iu Waterville, Me. Mr. Seward is
distinguished for his wide range of scholarship and
his great acquisitions of knowledge.
Eev. George Batcheior, the present pastor of this
church, was ordained Feb. 27, 1889. He has pre-
viously been settled over churches in Salem, Mass.,
and Chicago, 111.
Second Uxitaeiax Society. — This organization,
familiarly known as the Lee Street Unitarian Church,
was instituted Aug. 2, 1845.
As this society was abandoned more than twenty-
eight years ago, I can scarcely give more of its history
than the names of the pastors and the dates of their
settlement. The first pastor. Rev. M. A. H. Niles,
was installed April 8, 1846. Rev. Wm. Barry
preached his first sermon Dec. 12, 1847, having waived
a formal installation. Rev. Augustus Woodbury com-
menced his services as pastor Sept. 1, 1853. Rev.
John K. Karcher was ordained March 30, 1858. Rev.
Wm. C. Tenney was installed Oct. 26, 1859.
On June 24, 1861, the society disbanded. Among
the causes of the failure of this enterprise was the
great loss which it suffered both in membership and
financial support by the War of the Rebellion.
The Lee Street Stone Church, of Gothic architecture
was erected for this church in 1850.
After the dissolution of the church, in 1861, this
house of worship was occupied by the Spiritualists for
several years, and about 1868 sold for $11,500 to the
St. Joseph's Catholic Church.
The Ministky at Large, a charitable Institu-
tion, formed in 1843, under the auspices of the Uni-
tarian Church, deserves a passing notice. Its design
has been somewhat modified since its first establish-
ment, and I shall speak of it only as at present con-
ducted. A recent report defines the object of this
institution in the following words : ''To befriend and
help the unfortunate but worthy working poor, who
are likely soon to be able to help themselves." Those
" who do nothing and want to do nothing " receive
no aid. A deserted wife, struggling to support a
large family of small children, is an object of special
favor. The honest and industrious poor man, when
sickness cornea upon him, finds a friend in this benefi-
cent institution. Its object is not alone to give, but
to encourage also, and advise.
The annual expenditure of this institution is some-
thing less than $3500, which is derived in part from
the interest on funds donated to it or to the city for
such charitable purposes, and partly from the con-
tributions of the friends of the cause.
Under Rev. George C. Wright, the present Minis-
ter at Large, there are sustained, in the building owned
by this institution, and situated on South and Eliot
Streets, a children's sewing-school, a school of dress-
making and a cooking-school. Religious services are
held on Sundays, attended by about forty families.
Of the worthy Ministers at Large who have served
this beneficent institution during the forty-six years
of its existence, special mention should be made of
the Rev. Horatio Wood, whose faithful and ethcient
ministry continued for twenty-four years.
FiEST Universalist Church. — The First Univer-
salist Society in Lowell was formed on July 23, 1827,
by John Bassett and ninety-eight others. During the
year 1827 meetings of Uuiversaiists were held in the
Old Red School-house, near Davis' Corner, a house
which was also a favorite place of meeting to the
Methodists of those early days. Four Bassett bro-
thers, one of whom was teacher of the school kept iu
the house erected by the Merrimack Company, were
at that time the efficient and acknowledged leaders
of the Universalists of the city. In 1828 Judge
Livermore offered them the use of a convenient hall
in Belvidere. This hall was probably in the Old
Yellow House, which had once been a hotel, and in
which Judge Livermore resided.
The first church built by this society was erected
on Chapel Hill, and dedicated November 27, 1828.
This location, however, was at so great a distance
from the homes of most of the worshipers that it was,
in 1837, removed to a more populous part of the vil-
lage and placed upon the site of the Boston and
Maine depot. Here it stood for many years one of
the well-known landmarks of the city.
On the same day of the dedication of the house of
worship. Rev. Eliphalet Case, a recent convert from
Methodism, was installed as pastor of the society.
Soon after the dedication and installation a church
organization was effected, which has ever since en-
joyed uninterrupted harmony. Mr. Case was in office
about two years. He was an outspoken and able
defender of the doctrines of his church. " He came
not to bring peace, but a sword." In September,
1830, Rev. Calvin Gardner was invited to the pastor-
ate of this church. He continued in office about
three years. The society would gladly have kept
him longer.
The Rev. T. B. Thayer was the next pastor of the
church. His letter of acceptance is dated March 25,
1833. He was an eloquent young man of unusual
promise, and he served the church for twelve years.
It was in his pastorate in 1837 that the house of wor-
ship was removed from Chapel Hill to the spot where
now stands the Boston & Maine Depot on Central
Street. On leaving Lowell, in 1845, Mr. Thayer was
settled in Brooklyn, N. Y..
Rev. E. G. Brooks, the successor of Mr. Thayer, re-
mained as pastor only one year.
In 1846 Rev. Uriah Clark accepted a call to the
pastorate of this church and served the church four
years. He was a man of good talents, but not of un-
sullied character. The church can hardly be said to
have prospered under him. For a year after Mr.
Clark left the pastorate the church was without a
shepherd.
In 1851, to the joy of all, Mr. Thayer again re-
turned to the office he had resigned in 1845. His
LOWELL.
147
second ministry continued six years. They were
years of prosperity. In 1857 Mr. Thayer resigned to
take charge of the fifth society in Boston, and for two
years the Lowell church was without a settled pastor.
In September, 1859, Kev. J. J. Twiss, who came
from New Bedford, succeeded to the pastorate. The
twelve years of the ministry of Mr. Twiss were years
of material prosperity, and the church became the
possessor of the house of worship, which heretofore
had been the property of a corporation distinct from
the church.
The seventh pastor of this church was Rev. G. T.
Flanders. During his pastorate of seven years the
old house of worship was demolished to give place to
the Boston & Maine Railroad Station, and the beauti-
ful brick church on Hurd Street was erected, at the
cost of 880,000. This house was dedicated February
10, 1875.
Rev. G. W. Bicknell assumed the office of pastor
December, 1879. He is an eloquent and popular
man and the church is in a flourishing condition.
Shattuck Street Uxiversalist Church. — It is
evident that in the early days of our city theUniversal-
ists of Lowell gained a large share of popular attention.
This denomination then had in Massachusetts men
of unusual eloquence and power, who won the pop-
ular ear wherever they preached. As early as April
13, 1826, Dr. Thomas Whittemore preached in Lowell,
in a hall connected with the Washington House.
Rev. Hosea Ballou, in 1828, preached the sermon at
the dedication of the chapel erected by the Universal-
ists on Chapel Hill. Subsequently, in 1836, Rev. Dr.
Thayer, pastor of the First Universalist Church,
preached to immense audiences in the City Hall. So
great was the popular favor that the Rev. John G. Ad-
ams was invited from New Hampshire to come to the
aid of Dr. Thayer. This state of things seemed to war-
rant the formation of a second Universalist Society.
Such a society was formed, and the TVumpet and
Freeman of September 24, 1836, made the following
announcement respecting it :
" A Society of Universalists, consisting of fifty
male members, was formed in Lowell, Mass., on the
4th inst., called the second Universalist Society in
Lowell. They commenced with a zeal worthy of the
good cause they espoused."
Rev. J. G. Adams received and declined a call to
become the first pastor of the new society. The
society for some time relied upon various preachers
to supply its pulpit. One of these was W. H. Knapp,
who was an eccentric man, who believed in good eat-
ing and drinking — particularly the drinking. The
services, it seems, were held in Town Hall, which
was in the second story of our present Government
Building. At length, after listening for more than a
year to occasional preachers, a pastor, the Rev. Z.
Thompson, was secured.
Rev. Zenas Thompson was installed pastor of this
church Feb. 5, 1837. He preached in the City Hall,
heretofore called Town Hall, to a congregation of
more than a thousand persons, most of whom were in
the early prime of life. Of this congregation he said,
many years afterwards : " I do not remember but a
single head that showed gray hairs."
A new house of worship was speedily erected and
dedicated Nov. 15, 1838. This is the house now known
as the Shattuck Street Universalist Church. The
work of erecting a new church bore heavily upon
the pastor, and from weariness he felt compelled to re-
sign a position which demanded such severe labor,
and return to his former position in the State of
Maine — leaving a salary of $1200 for one of $600.
Soon Rev. Abel C. Thomas was invited to the pas-
torate. He has been styled the " Quaker Universal-
ist." His ordination took place Aug. 26, 1839, and he
remained in office three years. He fell upon stirring
times which demanded all his energies. Millerism was
then rife in Lowell, and Mr. Thomas delivered lec-
tures against that heresy. Elder Kaapp, the revival-
ist, came to Lowell, and Mr. Thomas became involved
in the excitement attending the revival. He said
hard things about Elder Knapp. He declared that
the Elder's " familiar acquaintance with the devil en-
abled him to present him in probably faithful por-
traits, and his success in frightening children and
weak-minded men and women was beyond all ques-
tion." On the other hand hard things were said
against Mr. Thomas. It was asserted that he entered
a revival meeting where he found his own wife and
dragged her out by the hair of her head. To this
charge he made the following witty reply : "1. I never
attempted to influence my wife in her choice of a
meeting. 2. My wife has not attended any of the re-
vival meetings. 3. I have not attended even one of
them. 4. Neither my wife nor myself has any incli-
nation to attend them. 5. I never had a wife."
Rev. Alonzo A. Miner came to the pastorate in
July, 1842, and held the office during six prosperous
years. Dr. Miner was an eloquent preacher and a
man of superior eodowments. Since leaving Lowell
he has been president of Tufts College, and many
years pastor of the Second Universalist Church in
Boston. At the present time he is everywhere known
for his able and persistent advocacy of " prohibitory
legislation against the sale of strong drink."
Rev. L. J. Fletcher commenced his ministration in
May, 1848, but served only a few months, and was
succeeded by Rev. L. B. Mason, whose " stay was very
short."
Rev. I. D. Williamson, who entered upon his pas-
toral duties in September, 1849, was very soon com-
pelled by ill health to leave his charge.
Rev. Noah M. Gaylord was pastor from 1849 to
1852, when he accepted a call to Columbus, Ohio.
Rev. Joseph S. Dennis served the church as pastor
from 1852 to 1854.
Rev, Charles Cravens served for one year, resigning
in 1855.
148
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, 3IASSACHUSETTS.
In 1855 Rev. C. H. Dutton commenced his pastor-
ate of three years.
Inl859Rev. J. L.Fletcher again became pa^jtor, and
in liis pastorate of three years, by his faithful and
popular preaching, revived the drooping spirits of the
society. But it was a time of war, and the society be-
came embarrassed with debt. Mr. Fletcher retired,
and there was no settled pastor for about one year.
On July 1, 1864, Rev. F. E. Hicks began his brief
ministry. In November, 1865, Rev. John G. Adams
commenced a pastorate of nearly seven years.
Rev. VV. G. Haskell became pastor in April, 1873,
and remained three years.
The present pastor, Rev. R. A. Greene, came to
this church from Northfield, Vt, which was his first
parish, and was settled in April, 1877, the church
having been without a pastor for one year.
Under the efficient administration of Mr. Greene
the church is now stronger than ever before, and the
sum of about $9000 has been expended upon the
church edifice.
A Third Universalist Church was formed in 1843.
The building now known as Barrister's Hall, on Mer-
rimack Street, was erected for its use. Its pastors were
Rev. H. G. Smith, Rev. John Moore, Rev. H. G.
Smith (again) and Rev. L. J. Fletcher.
This disbanded church seems to have left very little
recorded history. Mr. Cowley gives us, in his " His-
tory of Lowell," the following account of it : " After
a languid existence it was dissolved. The two last
pastors of this church were not in full fellowship
with their denomination, but preached independently
as ecclesiastical guerrillas."
Paige Street Free-Will Baptist Church. —
The origin of this church is found in a prayer-meet-
ing, established about 1830, by the Free-Will Bap-
tists of the city, at the house of Dea. Josiah Seavy,
father of one of the postmasters of Lowell in later
years. This house was situated on Merrimack Street,
near John Street. For about three years no public
meetings for preaching were held on the Sabbath.
But on May 19, 1833, such a meeting was first held in
Classic Hall, on Merrimack Street, Rev. Nathaniel
Thurston, of Dover, N. H., being the officiating cler-
gyman. Only about twenty persona were present.
Subsequently the Free Chapel on Middlesex Street
was engaged for Sabbath services, and in that place a
church was organized Aug. 15, 1833, of which Mr.
Thurston was elected pastor. He did not, however,
enter upon his duties until April, 1834, the pulpit
being supplied meantime by Rev. Benjamin S. Mansur
and Mr. J. L. Sinclair. Classic Hall, on Merrimack
Street, was for several months the place of worship
for this church.
Under Elder Thurston the church greatly pros-
pered, the number of members on Sept. 1, 1838, being
470. The wife of the pastor was a lady of ability and
culture, and occasionally assisted her husband by
preaching in his pulpit.
The first house of worship of this society, a spa-
cious brick edifice, erected on Merrimack Street,
on the site of the present Hildreth Block, was
dedicated Nov. 15, 1837. The corporation which
erected this building, having the pastor at its head,
acted as a savings bank, receiving deposits aud pay-
ing interest on these deposits. The management of
this corporation became one of the sensations of the
time. The pastor was esteemed a man of such sin-
cere piety and good sense that many mill girls and
other depositors of humble means intrusted their
money to his hands with the most implicit confidence
in his integrity and ability. The new building arose
apace, but the afiairs of the corporation were con-
ducted with an almost total disregard of all business
principles. The pastor, who was the principal man-
ager, seemed to be infatuated with the idea that if he
meant well all things must turn out well, and so set
at naught the plainest maxims of business men. The
result was that litigation ensued, depositors lost their
property, and the whole enterprise ended in a disas-
trous failure. The house was abandoned in July,
1846, and the church was compelled to occupy rented
quarters. Until the new house of worship on Paige
Street was erected, in 1853-54, the church worshiped
in the chapel on Prescott Street, which had been
moved there from Chapel Hill, and in Welles' Hall,
on Merrimack Street.
We will notice in passing that in 1840 Elder Thurs-
ton, after resigning his office as pastor of the First
church, proceeded to form a second Free-Will Bap-
tist Church. A chapel was erected for the new
church on Colburn Street. But the new enterprise,
after having had two pastors, Elder Thurston and
Rev. J. L. Sinclair, was abandoned in 1843, on ac-
count of the elder's fiuancial embarrassment.
The second pastor of the parent chiuch was Rev.
Jonathan Woodman. In his pastorate there was, in
1842, a remarkable revival of religion in the city, 100
being added to this church on the first Sabbath in
May. He was pastor from Sept., 1840, to March, 1844.
Mr. Woodman, much to the regret of the church,
resigned his charge March 1, 1844, and was succeeded
by Rev. Silas Curtis, who became pastor March, 1844,
and was succeeded by Rev. A. K. Moulton, in June,
1849. The labors of Mr. Moulton, in connection with
the erection of the new house of worship on Paige
Street, are gratefully remembered. This house, erec-
ted at a cost of nearly S16,000, was dedicated Feb. 1,
1854. Mr. Moulton resigned his office in June, 1855,
and was succeeded by Rev. J. B. Davis, whose pastor-
ate terminated in 1859.
Rev. Darwin Mott, an able preacher, was called to
the pastorate April 1, 1860, and remained in service
two years.
In May, 1863, Rev. G. W. Bean was called to the
pulpit of this church and continued its pastor nearly
two years. He proved a faithful pastor, whose memory
is held in high esteem.
LOWELL.
149
Next follows the pastorate of Rev. J. B. Drew, who
was in the pastoral office from 1865 to 1868, making
an honorable record.
Rev. D. A. Morehouse, the next pastor, was in
service less than two years, resigning Dec. 31, 1869.
For five years, beginning in 1870, Rev. J. E. Dame
held the pastoral office. His pastorate was marked
by a revival spirit. It was during Mr. Dame's pastor-
ate that the Mt. Vernon Church was formed as a
mission enterprise. The Mt. Vernon Chapel, erected
at the cost of S8700 on Mt. Vernon Street, was dedicated
July 10, 1873. The new church was organized Dec.
29, 1874, with Rev. Geo. S. Ricker as pastor.
In Dec, 1875, Rev. E. W. Porter became pastor of
this church. He was a faithful and able pastor and
held the sacred office about nine years, a period longer
than the pastorate of any one of his predecessors.
Rev. Geo. N. Howard, the present pastor, was in-
stalled March 11, 1885.
There have been connected with this church since
its organization 3092 persons. It is estimated that
more than 20,000 persons have been connected with
the Sabbath-school.
This church has at all times taken high grounds
and an advanced position on all the great moral enter-
prises of the day, and has faithfully and zealously
labored for the spiritual good of the city.
The house of worship abandoned by this church in
1846 had a history which should be recorded. It was
converted into a museum and theatre by Noah F.
Gates, who purchased the museum belonging to Moses
Kimball, which had been started in 1840 in Wyman's
Exchange, on Merrimack Street, and removed it into
the church edifice. The building was subsequently
licensed as a theatre, though the license met with
opposition from the community. Disaster betided it.
Three times it was ravaged by fire. The museum and
theatre departed and the building was reconstructed
and made into stores and offices. At length it was
demolished and the splendid Hildreth Block erected
on its site.
jNIount Veexojt Free Baptist Church. — This
church had its origin in the mission spirit of the first
Free Baptist Church on Paige Street. Its location, on
the corner of Mt. Vernon and Butterfield Streets, was
selected because within a half-mile of that spot there
had been no church of any denomination established)
and the thriving and industrious residents of the
neighborhood were fully able to welcome and sup-
port a new religious organization in their midst.
As the first step the mother church on Paige Street
in 1872 resolved to erect a chapel on the spot desig-
nated above, and proceeded promptly to carry out its
plan. The chapel was completed at a cost of $10,000
and consecrated on July 10, 1873. Following the con-
secration of the chapel was the organization of a
Sunday-school, which, with the regular meetings for
prayer and the preaching services on Sunday even-
ings, made the new chapel the home of an active and
enthusiastic religious enterprise, an enterprise which
has ever been attended with harmony and prosperity.
The enterprise rapidly grew and soon warranted the
employment of a regular pastor. To this end the
Rev. Geo. 8. Ricker, of Richmond, Maine, in May,
1874, was invited to assume the charge, and in Decem-
ber of the same year a church was formed and Mr.
Ricker chosen as its pastor. Under the pastorate of Mr.
Ricker the church was blessed with spiritual interest
and healthy growth. In its first five years the mem-
bership had increased from twenty-six to one hun-
dred and fifty-five.
The second pastor. Rev. C. E. Cats, was settled Dec.
20, 1882. His successor, Rev. E. G. Wesley, was
settled Oct. 29, 1884. The present pastor. Rev. J. L.
Smith, was settled in Oct., 1888. The membership is
about 120.
Chelmsford Street Free Baptist Church. —
In October, 1880, Mr. A. L. Russell opened a mission
Sunday-school in the Sherman School-house. In a
few Sundays it outgrew its home, and Mr. Russell, in
two months' time, had built a chapel for its needs.
Later, the chapel was moved ofi", and the present
brick church, on Chelmsford Street, was built, Mr.
Russell contributing one-half the entire cost of the
church and the lot. This church edifice was dedi-
cated September 24, 1882.
The cost of the house of worship was about $8000,
the seating capacity being 450. The present number
of members is 142.
The pastors, with date of settlement, have been as
follows: Rev. J. Malvern, November 1,1882; Rev.
L. W. Raymond, November 1, 1884; Rev. W. J.
Halse, the present incumbent, October 1, 1887.
This church meets a long-felt want in the south-
west portion of our city, in which there has been, in
recent years, a rapid growth in population and busi-
ness. This is an active and aggressive church, and
is doing good service in a location in which a
church is greatly needed. The ladies of the church
support two native teachers in India.
Advent Christiak Church. — This church was
organized about 1846. The records of its earlier years
are incomplete.
The church worshiped in various halls until the
erection of its house of worship on Grand Street.
The cost of this house was $6500. The number of
members is 101.
Among the pastors of this chnrch have been Elder
Cole, Elder Williams, Elder Thurber, Elder Thomas,
Elder Emerson, Elder Couch. The terms of office of
some of the pastors have been brief, and dates are
very generally wanting.
The society at the present time is in a flourishing
condition, with a good Sunday-school.
The present pastor is Elder J. Hemenway.
Catholic Churches. — The work of starting the
great manufactories of Lowell began in the spring of
1822. The quiet village of East Chelmsford then
150
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
became a scene of intense activity. In four years it
waste become the town of Lowell, and in only ten years
more it was to receive its charter as a city. The vast
amount of labor required in digging canals and erect-
ing the mills and the boarding-houses adjoining them
invited laborers even from the Old World. The town
became a centre of attraction to the Irish laborer.
Mr. Hugh Cummiskey, a pioneer in the work, came,
with thirty men, from Charleatown, all on foot, to
work on the canals. " Kirk Boott met them at what
is now the American House, and gave them money to
refresh themselves."
They began their work April 6, 1822. Soon, other
Irishmen came in great numbers. In those days al-
most all the ground between the American House
and Pawtucket Falls was an open common. On this
ground the Irish laborers put up their rude habita-
tions. The spot on which they gathered was known
as " The Acre." These exiles from home were not
forgotten by their Church. Even in 1822, their first
year in Lowell, Father John Mahony, of Salem, came
to them and celebrated Mass. The Bishop of the
diocese came to Lowell in person, October 28, 1828,
and religious services were held in the hou.se which
stood on the site of the Green School-house, and in
which so many other religious societies had worshiped
in their early years. After that, Father Mahony
came from Salem once a month to celebrate Mass.
But numbers rapidly grew, a larger house of worship
was needed, and the building of churches begins.
St. Patriclc'a Church} — It is safe to conclude that
amongst the early pioneers of Lowell, a few, at least,
were Catholics — Irish Catholics, no doubt — driven
from home and country, perhaps, because of partici-
cipation in the brave but unsuccessful attempt of
1798 to win independence for their native land ; an
attempt whose strongest encouragement had, doubt-
less, been the success of the Americans in a similar
cause, and the important part the Irish race had taken
Ln achieving that glorious result. Yes, they were prob-
ably here. Wherever earnest, enterprising men came
together throughout the land, and the laborious and
hazardous work of the early settler had to be done,
there the strong, willing sons of Erin have been
found, with the noble simplicity and confiding trust
of their country's faith still in their brave, generous
hearts. They were needed, and because needed, wel-
come. The bone and sinew, " the muscle and the
mind that spring fi-om Irish soil," were helpful in
such emergencies; years of toil and endurance, with
little more than mere existence as requital, had in-
ured them to the privations of a pioneer life ; and,
never disheartened, they determined to win from the
stranger what their Motherland was often debarred
from providing — a home. If any such there were,
however, it is more than probable that they received
little encouragement in the practice of their religion.
> By Eatbarine A. O'Eeeffe.
Even at the comparatively recent period of Lowell's
early development, Massachusetts' towns were not
very liberally disposed towards Catholics. Many of
the severe laws and bigoted customs that had pre-
vailed during Colonial times had, perforce, been set
aside when Catholic aid was found so essential and
so ready in the Revolutionary crisis ; but " prejudice
dies hard," and is often resuscitated in " the piping
time of peace." In many cases, it was long before
the few Catholics that were scattered here and there
were in a condition to assert themselves, and meet
together openly for the practice of their religion. As
soon as it was possible, we may be certain they did
so; and that period in Lowell appears to have been
about the year 1822, when, according to the most re-
liable accounts, Mass was for the first time celebrated
here in what was known as the " Irish Camp,' on
ground now occupied by Wheeler's Block, Tiiden
Street, for the benefit of a number of workmen em-
ployed on the canal, under the direction of ^Ir. Hugh
Cummiskey. From that time forth, different clergy-
men attended them as often as was possible, consider-
ing the small number of jiriests and the large district
in their charge. In the latter part of 1827, however,
their spiritual care was assigned to Rev. John Ma-
hony, who had charge also of the Catholics of Salem,
in which latter place he, for some time, resided.
Rev. Father Mahony, Lowell's first pastor, was
born in Kerry, Ireland, 17S1. After his ordination
he came to this country, where he faithfully labored
six years in the Maryland, and eight years in the
Virginia diocese, prior to his affiliation to the diocese
of Boston in 1826. After a visit to Lowell, the 8th
of October, 1827, he reported to Rt. Rev. Bishop
Fenwick, of Boston, that there were twenty-one fami-
lies and thirty unmarried men settled here. These
were visited by Bishop Fenwick' himself, the 28lh of
October, 1828, when the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass
was offered in the Merrimack Company's School-
house on Merrimack Street. Father Mahony, though
still living in Salem, visited Lowell occasionally for
the discharge of his pastoral duties ; and, at length,
in 1830, encouraged by the increased number of Cath-
olics — who, as a result of Lowell's rapidly developing
industries, numbered then about four hundred — com-
menced, in July of that year, the erection of a frame
building, seventy by forty feet, on land donated for
religious purposes by the Locks and Canals Company.
In just a year it was completed, and the exUed chil-
dren of St. Patrick dedicated to God this first monu-
ment of their religion, under the patronage of that
Apostle who had blessed their native land with the
light of faith. This dedication — an event long re-
membered by Lowell's first Catholics — took place
July 3, 1831, the ceremony being performed by Rt.
Rev. Bishop Fenwick, who, on the same day, adminis-
tered Confirmation to thirty-nine persons.
Meanwhile, the increasing duties of both places,
Salem and Lowell, having rendered a resident priest
ST. PATRICKS CHURCH AND PAROCHIAL BUILDINGS,
LOWELL, MASS.
LOWELL.
151
in each place a necessity, Father Mahony was ap-
pointed for Lowell ; and the erection of the church
was immediately followed by that of a pastoral resi-
dence close by, which was finished in 1S32.
Soon after, in 1833, Father Curtin was sent to
Father Mahony's assistance, and remained here until
1836, when he was transferred to the cathedral at Bos-
ton, and his place at Lowell filled by Rev. James Con-
nelly, who had come some time previous. It was
largely through the efforts of the latter, under Father
Mahony's direction, that two wings were added to the
church.
From his first advent in Lowell, Father Mahony
had taken steps towards educating the children
of his parish, who were brought together for
that purpose as early as 1828 ; but the pov-.
erty of their parents and the scanty means
at his disposal, rendered aid from some other
quarter necessary. From the school records we learn
that " At the annual town-meeting in May, 1830, an
article was inserted in the warrant for the appoint-
ment of a committee ' to consider the expediency of es-
tablishing a separate school for the benefit of the
Irish population.' The committee reported in favor
of such a school ; the report was accepted, and the
sum of SoO was appropriated for the establishment
and maintenance of a separate district-school for the
Irish. It was kept only part of the time and sus-
pended. All the arrangements hitherto were unsatis-
factory. In 1834 Rev. Mr. Connelly carried on a pri-
vate school in a room under the Catholic Church. In
June, 1835, this gentleman made application to the
School Committee for aid, and an arrangement was
entered into between them."
Xow that this subject of Catholic schools has been
mentioned, it may be as well to continue it for a brief
period, though it somewhat anticipates other points
of our sketch.
The School Committee appears to have, under this
arrangement, assumed supervision of a private school
already existing in a room under the Catholic Church,
and elected its teacher, Mr. Patrick Collins, as a mem-
ber of the corps of public instructors. The following
September, another Catholic school, in the vicinity of
Chapel Hill, was adopted as a public trust, and its
teacher, Mr. Daniel Mcllroy, confirmed as a teacher
in the town's employ. The school term of 1837 saw
still another room under the Catholic Church prepared
for educational purposes ; and another school, with
conditions similar to the first two, was opened with
Miss Mary Ann Stanton as its teacher. The following
June Mr. Collins' and Mr. Mcllroy's schools were
united under the name of the Fifth Grammar School,
with Mr. Mcllroy as principal, and moved to Liberty
Hall, on Lowell Street. January 8, 1844, this school
was moved to a new building on Lewis Street, ever
since called the Mann School. The arrangement that
the teachers of schools made up of Catholic children
should be Catholics, but subject to examinations and
visitations of the School Committee, like all the other
public schools and teachers, continued some time; till
finally, " in 1848 a large private school which had
been kept in the basement of the Catholic Church
was disbanded, and most of the pupils entered the
public schools."
In 1833 the charity of the Irish Catholics led to the
organizing of the Lowell Irish Benevolent Society,
whose first president was Mr. Michael Cassidy, who
was also president when it was incorporated in 1843.
The gentleman holding that office for the current year
(1890) is Mr. John Dougherty.
An idea of the increasing numbers and influence of
the Lowell Catholics may be gleaned from the fact
that St. Patrick's Day, 1838, was appropriately cele-
brated by them, not only by a High Mass in the morn-
ing, at which Father Mahony preached an eloquent
panegyric of the saint, but also by a procession and
banquet under the auspices of the Lowell Irish Be-
nevolent Society, on which occasion the mayor. Dr.
Elisha Bartlett, made an address in which he com-
mended their industry and their fidelity to their reli-
gion and country.
Lowell's first pastor labored most faithfully for the
spiritual and temporal welfare of the Catholics here,
until, in February, 1830, he was placed in charge of
St. Augustine's Church, South Boston, where he con-
tinued his good work until his death, December 29,
1839. Bis remains, with those of many others of the
Catholic pioneers of Boston, rest in the old cemetery
of St. Augustine's, which is looked upon " as a shrine
of historic interest and of reverent pilgrimage."
Father Mahony's successor at Lowell was Rev. E.
J. McCool, who remained from February 14, 1836, to
August 24, 1837, when he was succeeded by Rev.
James T. McDermott.
Father McDermott was ordained by Rt. Rev.
Bishop Fenwick, in 1832; and, after a short time in
Hartford, was sent to aid Rev. James Fitton in at-
tending New Haven, Bridgeport, Norwalk and other
places in Connecticut, besides several missions in the
western part of Massachusetts, all of which were then
included in the Boston diocese. Having built the
first Catholic Church in New Haven, and had it ded-
icated in May, 1834, he continued his duties in that
part of the diocese untU August, 1837, when, as has
been stated, he came to Lowell. Owing to the increase
in the congregation in Lowell, and the neighboring
places attended from there, an assistant became neces-
sary, and Rev. James Conway was, in December,
1839, appointed to that position, after having spent
several years on the Maine missions, and, subsequently,
some time at the Cathedral in Boston.
On St. Patrick's Day, 1841, we again find mention
of a celebration of the event, when High Mass was
offered by the pastor. Father Mahony, and an able
discourse delivered by Father Conway. At a banquet
in the evening, at which were present many of the
leading citizens of other denominations, one of the
152
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
toaafa proposed gives some indication of the spirit of
the time. It referred to an event that disgraces the
annals of Massachusetts — the burning, by a mob of
bigots, of the Ursuline Convent at Charlestown, and
was as follows : " The Convent Ruins of Mt. Bene-
dict. — Massachusetts may yet boast of a Legislature
with spirit and liberality sufficient to blot from her
escutcheon that disgraceful stigma. But while there
is a Lindsey to vindicate them, there will be a rabble
to desecrate the most sacred institutions of the
country."
Et. Rev. Bishop Fenwick having visited Lowell in
1841, found the Catholics here so numerous, that he
directed Father Conway to set about erecting a second
church. Before the bishop's departure a parish meet-
ing was held in St. Patrick's Church, at which he was
present, and at which $8000 was contributed or
pledged as a beginning by members of the congrega-
tion, in sums of $100 each. That August a lot of
land, on the corner of Gorham and Appleton Streets,
was purchased from the Hamilton Company ; and on
this the brick church, ninety by sixty feet, afterwards
known as St. Peter's, was built at a cost of $22,000.
That Christmas the building was so far advanced
that Divine service was held there, and it was com-
pleted less than a year after, when it was dedicated
October 16, 1842, and Father Conway, who had su-
perintended the work from its inception, was ap-
pointed its first pastor, a position beheld until March,
1847, when he was transferred to the Church of the
Immaculate Conception at Salem, which he very con-
siderably enlarged.
To return to Father McDermott's pastorate. In
1846 he deemed it advisable to purchase an edifice
near the corner of Lowell and Suffolk Streets, in the
near neighborhood of St. Patrick's. This had been
built and dedicated for religious services July, 1831,
by the Second Baptists, and sold in January, 1838,
■ for $12,000 to the Methodists, who called it Wesley
Chapel, and who afterwards sold it, as above stated,
to Father McDermott. The latter, having had it
handsomely prepared for Catholic worship, it was
dedicated as St. Mary's by Rt. Rev. Bishop Fitzpat-
rick, Sunday, March 8, 1847, on which occasion an
appropriate sermon was delivered by Very Rev. Dr.
Ryder, then president of the College of Holy Cross
at Worcester. Father McDermott became pastor of
the church, and so remained for several years, when,
the increased accommodations at the enlarged St.
Patrick's having rendered St. Mary's no longer ne-
cessary, it was closed, and remained so until it was
purchased by Rev. John O'Brien from the heirs of
Father McDermott, who had meanwhile died, in
September, 1862. It was then again opened for ser-
vices until 1879, and in 1880 the present rector. Rev.
Michael O'Brien, commenced remodeling it into a
parochial school for the boys of St. Patrick's Parish,
which will be described later on.
On Father McDermott's appointment to St. Mary's,
Rev. Hilary Tucker, of the Cathedral, was sent,
March 17, 1847, as his successor, to St. Patrick's. In
the fall after his coming, the citizens of Lowell,
Catholic and Protestant, manifested their charity by
contributing nineteen hundred and ninety dollars
towards the relief of Ireland, then stricken by one of
her most appalling famines, — famines caused not so
much by crop failure — for in her worst years she has
produced more than enough for all her children —
but by the rapacity and injustice of tyrannical land-
lords.
Father Tucker remained until December, 1848,
when he returned to the Cathedral, and was succeeded
by a pastor whose memory time has but rendered
dearer and more revered by the Catholics, — indeed,
by all denominations in Lowell, — Rev. John O'Brien.
As the details of his edifying life will be given else-
where, here will be mentioned only those particularly
i connected with the pastorate of St. Patrick's.
One of the raemorable events in the early days of
Catholicity in this city took place the year following
Father O'Brien's advent, — the visit of Rev. Theobald
Mathew, the famous Apostle of Temperance.
The Lowell Courier, dated Monday September 10,
1849, thus announced his coming :
"The Committee of ArmDgementB tor the receptioo of Father
SlatJiew beg leave to anoouuce that he is expected to arrive at the de-
pot of the Lowell and Lawrence Railroad, on Middlesex Street, at eight
o'clock to-morrow (Tuesday) morning. lie will then be received by the
CoQimittee and such other gentlemen ns may unite with them, and
thence be escorted through Middlesex, Central to Tyler, through Tyler,
Lawrence, Church, Andover, Nesniith, Merrimack, Dutton, Lowell,
Cabot and Merrimack Streets to the ^lerrimack House.
" Father Mathew will remain in the city three days, and spend a por-
tion of each day at the Catholic Church. During his visit an •opportu-
nity will be offered to such of your citizens a3 may desire it, for an in-
troduction to him, of which due notice will be giTen.
" EL15UA HuNTIN'lTON, Chairman.
"E. B. Patch, Sec'y."
The programme, as thus announced, was carried
out. An immense crowd gathered at the railway
station to welcome him ; but, owing to Father Math-
ew's desire, because of indisposition resulting from
his extraordinary labors in the temperance cause,
his reception was as quiet as possible. After arriving
at the Merrimack House, as the crowd insisted on
hearing him, he addressed them briefly. During his
stay he was the guest of Rev. Father O'Brien, who
rendered him valuable assistance in his noble work.
That day. Father Mathew administered the pledge at
St. Patrick's Church, after which he visited the mills,
accompanied by Father O'Brien, and attended by
members of the committee and prominent mill offi-
cials, and was everywhere received with the greatest
courtesy. Returning again to St. Patrick's, although
he worked until after ten o'clock that night, and ad-
ministered the pledge to over a thousand people,
many were still obliged to go away without it, owing
to the lateness of the hour. Wednesday, he spent at
St. Mary's, where he waa fully occupied the greater
portion of that day ; Thursday, the same at St. Pe-
/,^/t^H.^t
LOWELL.
153
ter's, until three in the afternoon, when he went to
the City Hall, where a large audience had gathered
to meet him. Short addresses were given by Dr.
Huntington and Father Mathew ; and the latter,
after being introduced, shook hands with large num-
bers of citizens, and administered the pledge to all
who desired it.
It was estimated that in all, he administered over
five thousand pledges. Friday, he was obliged to
depart for Lawrence, owing to other engagements.
The Lowell Daily Journal and Courier, dated Thurs-
day, Sept. 13, 1849, contained the following tribute to
his worth and successful endeavors :
"Our citizens are under lasting obligations to
Father Mathew for the amount of good he accomplish-
ed and will yet accomplish. Although there has been
no strong public demonstration — owing to a wish ex-
pressed on his part that he might be allowed to work
— there is a deep feeling of respect for him pervading
our community, whose hearty good wishes for his
future prosperity will accompany him wherever he
goes."
The following letter, written the evening before
Father Mathew's departure, may be of interest not
only as a souvenir of the great temperance advocate,
but also as recording the impressions of an experi-
enced and cultured stranger on a visit to Lowell,
more than two score years ago.
" Lowell, Thursday Night, 13th Sept., 1849.
" To Ha Honor y the Mayor :
" Mt Dear Sib :— The high enim&tion that I had always entertained
of the rapid growth of Commercial enterprise and Industry, for which
Lowell is BO pre-eminently distinguished, is in no small degree enhanced
by the gratification afforded roe of personally inspecting your extensive
and flourisbing Blanufactories. I have l)een equally delighted and
astonished at the Fabrics subtuitted to me as specimens of Native Manu-
facture.
"The spirit of laudable emulation to develop to their fullest extent
your industrial resources affords the best earnest that, at no distant day,
America will have reason to be as j ustly proud of the products of her
looms, as she now is of her widely-spread and rapidly.«xtending com-
merce.
*' But to the Moralist, the aspect of your factory population pos-
sesses a still deeper interest. You have proved to a demonstration, the
important fact, that, the busiest operations of industrial activity are per-
fectly compatible with a high standard of Christian morality, of intel-
lectual refinement and conscious self-respect.
*' Your factory operatives, amounting to nearly fourteen thousand,
may fairly challenge comparison on these points with any similar class
In the world. The air of comfort, happiness and health, so visible in
the appearance of the men ; and the taste, industry and intellectuality,
which cbaractenze the female assistants in those busy hives of national
wealth and industry, are features as novel as they are interesting to the
friend of human progress.
" It was the boast of Italian royalty that it annually bestowed a
marriage dowry on a few unportioned females. Into what paltry in-
significance does this puny specimen of R^-gai munificence sink, when
compared with the great modem fact that many of the ladies of Amer-
ica, who now, as wives and mothers, adorn the domestic circle, have laid
the foundation of their wealth and comfort, not by debasing dependence
on Prince or Noble, but by the exercise of their own industry and labor
in those extensive manufactories of which not only your city, but the
whole Republic, may feel justly proud.
*' I feel honored by ray public introduction to the enterprising citizens
of Lowell. To you, dear Sir, and to my esteemed friends. Doctor Hunt-
ington, Mr. Patch, Judge Crosby, Judge Washbume, Ex-Mayor Ban-
croft, and the other gentlemen of the Committee, permit me to convey
my grateful thanks for your kindness aud courtesy ; and to Messrs.
Wright and Perry, agents of the Lowell and Middlesex Mills, and to
Mr. Prince, of the Merrimack Print Works, for the high gratification
1 experienced in inspecting the Carpet Works, and visiting their splen-
did factories, at which eetabllshmeots I have been paid the politest at-
tention and coorteey.
" I have the honor to he, my Dear Sir,
" Tour devoted servant,
" Tbbobaiji Matbzw.**
The 27th of June, 1851, another much beloved and
highly respected priest came to Lowell, Rev. Timothy
O'Brien, an elder brother of Father John. A brief
sketch of him, also, is given elsewhere ; suffice it here
to say that he bravely encouraged and ably assisted
his brother through the trying period of 1854 and
1855, in which latter year he died the 11th of Octo-
ber, deeply regretted.
Since 1848 the Catholic children of Lowell had at-
tended the public schools. Desirous of securing for
them not only a secular, but also a religious educa-
tion — a training of heart and soul as well as mind —
the Eev. Fathers O'Brien by their united efforts es-
tablished the Convent and Girls' School, the land and
first frame building for which were donated by Rev.
Father Timothy. The school was committed to the
judicious care of the Sisters of Notre Dame, a com-
munity of religious women devoted exclusively to
teaching, which had been introduced into this
country — at Cincinnati — about twelve years before;
and into New England — at Boston — soon after,
through the efforts of Rev. John McElroy, S. J.
The Sisters, five in number, sent from Cincinnati
on the Lowell mission, under the direction of Sister
Desiree, reached Boston, Friday, September 17, 1852.
Having remained with Sisters of their order estab-
lished there on Stillman Street until the following
Monday, September 20th, they came thence to Lowell,
accompanied by Rt. Rev. Bishop Fitzpatrick and
Father McElroy, and were established in their little
wooden convent on Adams Street. Two days after
their arrival, the classes in the parish school were'
opened and three hundred children enrolled as pupils.
In addition to the free-school, a pay-school was soon
after established for the accommodation of those who
desired to pursue more advanced studies.
In a Catholic Directory, at the beginning of 1854,
we read of " An Academy and Free-School by the
Sisters of Notre Dame in a spacious and handsome
building erected near St. Patrick's Church, Lowell, by
Rev. Timothy O'Brien. It is in contemplation also
to build an hospital and asylum in connection with
this establishment."
The boarding-school — a now flourishing institution
numbering about one hundred pupils pursuing a high
order of studies — had a very simple beginning. The
mothers of many of the pupils of the parish school
were obliged to spend the day working in the mills,
which often necessitated the absence of the elder
children to take care of the younger ones. In order
that the former might not be deprived of school bene-
fits, the Sisters opened a small and unpretending kin-
154
HISTOKY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, .MASSACHUSETTS.
dergarten for the little ones, the good results of which
led their mothers to urge the Sisters to keep their
little charges altogether. Permission was given by
their superior, and went into effect the 2d of Novem-
ber, 1854, when three applicants were received as
regular boarders, and St. Patrick's Boarding-School
thus established.
This last event, however, somewhat anticipates
events in the history of the church itself, which we
now resume.
The successful development of Lowell industries
having effected a marked addition to the population,
a proportional increase in the Catholic congregations
was the result, and in none more so than in St.
Patrick's ; so that the frame building erected 1S30 —
even with its several additions since then — was inade-
quate to their needs.
With a wise foresight, plans were then commenced
by Rev. John O'Brien for the present splendid granite
edifice, whose corner-stone was laid on the Fourth of
July, 1853, by Rev. Timothy O'Brien, assisted by Rev.
John and Rev. Michael O'Brien, the latter their
nephew, and now the respected rector of St. Patrick's
Church, who, from 1851 till his appointment to Low-
ell, was an occasional visitor of his reverend rela-
tivps. From that time until Oc tober 29, 1854, when the
church was dedicated, the work went steadily on, not-
withstanding many threatening attacks upon it during
thetroublous timesof that year,thetwo brothers, whose
devotion to each other was only excelled by their
devotion to their divine vocation, generously giving
thousands of dollars to the noble task of erecting a
suitable temple to the service of the Living God.
Few calls for help in the work were made upon the
congregation, who, at the time, were not much favored
with this world's goods, seven thousand dollars being
about the amount contributed by them, outside of
their regular church dues. Probably, the most impor-
tant assistance was rendered by the generous working-
girls of the parish, many of whom deposited their
savings with their pastors, with the understanding
that they would accept no interest, but devote the
latter to a co-operation with them in the good work.
A visitor to the building, a few days before its dedi-
cation, described the " New St. Patrick's, on Adams
Street," as a " most magniScent church. Its length,
including tower, is one hundred and seventy feet, its
width through transept, one hundred feet. Its style
is Gothic of the thirteenth century. The arch
through the nave is perfect ; the distance from the
floor to the centre of arch ia seventy feet. The
arches on the sides are supported by fourteen large
pillars. There is a large stained glass window back
of the altar bearing the inscription, ' Contributed by
ladies of Lowell to St. Patrick's Church, 1854.' The
cost of the window was SIOOO. In its centre is a
figure of Christ ; on whose right appears Mary ; on
left, St. Joseph. Around these are represented Saints
Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Peter and Paul. The
windows throughout are stained glass. The church
is calculated to seat two thousand persons. Its cost
has been about $G0,000."
I The above are the dimensions of St. Patrick's at
; present writing, the only changes being in the win-
j dows, the ceiling, the altar and general improvement
1 in the interior ornamentation of the church.
The ceremony of dedication, which, according to
the Roman Catholic ritual, was most impressive, took
place Sunday, Oct. 29, 1854, the ceremony being per-
formed by Rt. Rev. Bishop Fitzpatrick, of Boston.
There were present over two thousand five hundred
people. Every available seat was occupied, and
there were four or five hundred standing or
kneeling in the aisles. In addition to the pre-
late above mentioned, there was present Rt. Rev.
Bishop O'Reilly, of Hartford, Conn., afterw^ards, in
January, 1856, drowned on the ill-fated steamer " Pa-
cific." There were also present eighteen other cler-
gymen, in addition to all the priests of the city.
Mass was celebrated by Very Rev. Jolin J. Williams,
then Vicar-General of the diocese of which he is now
Archbishop, with Rev. Michael O'Brien, then of Ro-
chester, N. Y., deacon ; Rev. Thomas H. Shahan,
then of Salem, now of Arlington, sub-deacon, and
Rev. Nicholas J. O'Brien, since deceased, as master
of ceremonies. The sermon on the occasion was de-
livered by Rev. Dr. Moriarty, O.S.A., of Philadel-
phia, who took for his text Hebrews 1:1-3 verses.
In the eloquent discourse that followed, the Rever-
end Doctor congratulated those who had been the
means, in the hands of the Almighty, in aiding in
the erection of the beautiful temple which was that
day dedicated to the honor and glory of the Most
High.
At Vespers, in the evening, the church was agaia
crowded. The sermon then delivered was by Rt. Rev.
Bishop O'Reilly, after which the Sacrament of Con-
firmation was administered to three hundred and
twenty-five children by Rt. Rev. Bishop Fitzpatrick.
While this noble work in the cause of religion had
been advancing to completion, religious bigotry — of
all prejudices the most unreasonable, the most un-
conquerable, the most degrading — was exerting its
bitterest malice, in different parts of the country,
against Catholics. As a writer, who has made a
study of the subject, has said, '"The Anti-
Catholic agitation breaks out periodically in the
United States, and the symptoms of the malady are
the same from the colonial times down to our own."
For two decades it had seemed an intermittent fever,
whose worst stages were reached in the years '34, '44,
and now '54, in each of which anti-Catholic delirium
had fiercely raged, its haunting spectre being " the
bug-bear Romanism, ready to glut itself with the
blood of honest Protestants." Rev. Mr. Goodman,
an Episcopal clergyman, said on the subject : " Con-
gregations, instead of being taught from the pulpit to
adorn their profession by all the lovely graces of the
LOWELL.
155
Gospel, by kind and afiectionate bearing in the world,
by earnest and ever-active endeavors to secure for
themselves and others the blessings of peace, were
annoyed with inflammatory harangues upon the ' great
apostasy,' and upon abominations of the Roman
Church."
The year 1834 had witnessed, " in the very part of the
country which boasts most of its culture and self-com-
mand, men who dishonored the religion they professed,
preached falsehood against Catholicity, and hounded
on their dujtes to violence." It had seen a convent
burned, its inmates, nuns and pupils, turned out
homeless on the streets at midnight — one of them to
die, thus adding murder to arson. It had seen whole
neighborhoods of Catholics thrown into consterna-
tion, churches threatened and the graves of the dead
ransacked.
1844 had witnessed still greater devastation in va-
rious places, noticeably in Philadelphia, the " city of
brotherly love." The Episcopal clergyman before
quoted ttus summed up the vandalism in that one
city : " Nativism has existed for a period hardly
reaching five months, and in that time of its being
what has been seen ? Two Catholic churches burned,
one twice fired and desecrated, a Catholic seminary
and retreat consumed by the torches of an incendiary
mob, two rectories and a most valuable library de-
stroyed, forty dwellings in ruins, about forty human
lives sacrificed, and sixty of our fellow-citizens
wounded; riot and rebellion and treason rampant on
two occasions in our midst; the laws boldly set at de-
fiance, and peace and order prostrated by ruffian vio-
lence I These are the horrid events which have taken
place among us since the organization, and they are
mentioned for no other purpose than that reflection
be entered upon by the community which has been
so immeasurably disgraced by these terrible acts."
18o4 saw another anti-Catholic delirium agitate the
country, and in no place did it run higher than in
New England. The houses of Catholics were
wrecked and their lives endangered; in nearly every
city churches were threatened and many attacked,
blown up and burned down ; the lives of priests men-
aced, and one of their number tarred and feathered
and left for dead on the roadside.
In many instances these midnight orgies had been
performed under the inspiration of Orange airs, and
had been particularly active against Irish Catholics,
indicating that the unrelenting hate that had driven
them from their native land had pursued them to a
country, one of whose fundamental principles is re-
ligious toleration and equal rights to all. There were
too many of these Irish Catholics in Lowell to allow
them to pass unmolested. The bigots known as
"Natives," in 1844, were, in 1854, known by the ap-
propriate title of " Know-Nothings ; " and showed
that the same virulence actuated them under a difier-
ent name; they had " learned no truths and forgotten
no fable."
A part of the programme of this attack consisted in
employing " mad preachers to declaim against Popery
in the public streets and squares, in hopes of provok-
ing the Catholics, and especially the Irish Catholics,
to resent their insolence." This was carried out to
the letter in Lowell. The advent of one of these — a
fanatic named Orr, who blasphemously assumed the
name of the Angel Gabriel — was soon heralded. The
Loicell Advertiser of Saturday, June 10, 1854, stated
that Orr would come that evening " tooting a tin
trumpet and talking to the rowdies in the streets."
His coming, however, was delayed. The same paper
stated, June 15th, "We have 'Know-Nothings'
among us ; " and Saturday, June 17th, " Orr, the
tooting angel, arrived in town to-day with his tin
trumpet." He had come that noon and gone to the
Washington House. At seven that evening he went
to the South Common, and there, mounted on a bar-
rel, had harangued the thousands that had gathered
around him, some through curiosity, some through
sympathy, some through malice.
Nine o'clock Sunday morning — the day that should
be a " Truce of God," a rest from earthly labor and
turmoil, a feast of religious truth and brotherly love
— once again saw him, " a British subject on American
ground," insulting the religion, ridiculing the race of
thousands of Lowell's citizens, nearly half of whom
were American born. However, much to his cha-
grin, and to the disappointment of the " Know-
Nothings," he did not succeed in stirring up any
marked disturbance, notwithstanding the treasonable
and insulting motto with which every discourse was
prefaced: "Rule Britannia! Hail Columbia! and
Down with the Mother of Abominations ! " a motto
which conclusively proved whence came the animus
that dictated his utterances.
An editorial of the Lowell Daily Advertiser of Wed-
nesday evening, June 2l8t, wrote thus of the attitude
of the Catholics of Lowell during this exasperating
episode : " Let us suppose that some native American
Catholic should come in our midst, and, after sound-
ing his horn, should gather about him an audience of
thousands, and then proceed to harangue that audi-
ence, composed of Catholics and Protestants — men,
women and children — by calling the Protestants a
race of cowards, blackguards and 'Mickeys.' Not
content with this, let us suppose him to point out, per-
sonally, a member of the crowd and ask the audience
to ' look at his ugly mug.' Under such circumstances
no one could deny that he was disposed to enjoy great
/reerfom of speech, and if he was permitted to leave
the grounds unmolested, great credit would be
claimed for our Protestant population on the score of
toleration and liberality. But when, added to all
this, he should happen to be a foreigner, adopting for
his motto the words : ' Rule Britannia ! ' we very
much question whether the vigilance of our police,
and the influence of all our clergy combined, could
prevent a serious and bloody riot. But all this, and
156
HISTOKY OF xMIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
much more, the Catholics of Lowell have endured,
and not for fear, but because principle and respect for
law and order guided their actions ; and they are en-
titled to as much credit for their forbearance as Pro-
testants would have been had they exhibited as much
Christian virtue under like circumstances."
The moderation of the Catholics was, however, of
little avail. Acts of violence must be attributed to
them, whether or no. Most improbable reports be-
came current to inflame the wrath of their Protestant
fellow-citizens against them, if possible. Tuesday,
the 28th of June, the absurd canard was spread that
five Irish companies from abroad were expected to
assist the "Jackson Musketeers" — a chartered mili-
tary company of American citizens, mostly of Irish
blood — in cutting the throats of the people of Lowell.
Where these " Irish companies " were to come from no-
body knew. They were to " come at seven that even-
ing." It is needless to say that this spectre of a diseased
imaginatiou did not materialize. An anti-Catholic mob
did, however, not long after, with direst menaces
against every thing Catholic.
The good Sisters did notescape from these maniacal
threats and fiendish onslaughts. From one of them,
then, as now, a resident of the convent, we received
the following account :
"Almost two years had paaaed aince the opening of the convent, when
the peace was broken and terrifying rumors came to the ears of the lit-
tle community. The lawlaas marauding of the Know-Nothings was
then rife in Massachueetts ; churches had been mobl>ed and convents
threatened, a band of the fanatics had even forced an entrance to our
convent in Roxbury, then in its first days of existence, and the effect of
these reports upon the siblera of Lowell was anything but reassuring.
Soon, to their terror, they heard that the enemy was upon them ; some
of the band had come to this city, and an attack upon church and con-
vent was expected hourly. The sieters had dismisiied the classes, telliug
the children to remain in the safety of their own homes. Then, gather-
ing their few belongings, they bundled them together, and each sister
was allotted her portion to carry, should they be compelled to Hee. A
watch was setin the church-tower, and one peal of the church bell was
to let priests, sisters and people know that the godless band was upon them.
It had been agreed, that, at the first warning, a board from the fence
that enclosed the convent yard was to be wrenched away, and the sisters
were to escape through the opening thus made, and pass to a neighbor's
bouse, until the work of destruction had been wrought upon the de-
fenceless little building they bad called their home. Days passed in this
state of suspense. The sisters held themselves ready for all emergen-
cies, and lietened from hour to hour for the boding bell. Meanwhile,
faithful-hearted friends gathered around them, and, after their day's
hard labor, the factory girls congregated in the parlor, carrying stones
for want of better « eapons. Men came nightly to watch with the sis-
ters, hiding in the cellars, and in a eturdy way declared that if a finger
were laid upon the convent, there would be bard blows dealt in its de-
fence. Just at dusk, one quiet evening, the ominous peal Bounded forth
from the belfry. Fear and consternation in many hearts, but trustful
prayer iu the little convent. The self-constituted defenders stood with
arms uplifted, ready to burl their missiles at the first assailant. Tea,
the Rnow-Nuthiugs were approaching the church, but they had not
counted sufficiently upon Irish loyalty and vim When just within
sight of St, Patrick's, they were attacked by some strong-armed Irish-
men and women,— ay, women ; the latter led the attack. The march
became a melee, and the street was completely filled by the motley
crowd. They reached the bridge that spans the canal just within sight
of the convent. There was a halt, a splash, and a ringing cheer — a
sinewy matron, unable to restrain her indignation, had seized upon one
of the leaders of the gang, and dung him over the railing, floundering
into the water below. The rest of the band made the best of their way
out of the mob ; and, although the 6i:iter8 were stilt iu a state of anx-
iety, yet the attitude of their assailants grew less and less threatening.
[ " At last, on the fifteenth of June, came the dreaded ordeal. Between
I eleven and twelve in the morniog a carriage drew up before the convent,
j and five well-dressed men alighted, and sought admission. The sisters
I were just Bitting down to dinner, when the alarm of ' Know-Xolhings .' '
f was given; and, according to previous directions, a speedy message was
1 seut to Rev. Timothy O'Brien. While the sisters were still parleying
with the new-comers at tiie entrance, the Reverend Father made his
I appearance, and in his fearless strength seemed an overmatch for the
I five iotrudeis. ' ^^'hat Is your business in this bouse?' asked the wor-
( thy priest. * We wish to inspect the premises,' they answered. 'You
may follow me, and see what is to be seen, but I warn yuu not to lay
your band upon anything in this holy dwelling,* The so-called Com-
mittee conformed strictly tu orders and were led , through several
community rooms. When the.v reached the dormitory, the reverend
guide paused, and informed them that the privacy of the sleeping
apartments of the religious Bbould be respected. To their insistint^, be
stoutly declared that they should uot set foot within them ; and short-
ly after they took their leave, much to the relief of the community."
This, however, did not end the annoyances and dif-
ficulties of the Catholics of Lowell, either Sisters or
people. The Know-Xothing fever had not yet reached
its turning-point. " It would seem, indeed," says
Colonel Stone, a Protestant editor of the Aw York
Commercial Advertiser, " as though these people had
yielded themselves to this species of monomania, and
from mere habit they give a willing credence to any
story against the Roman Catholics, no matter what
or by whom related, so that it be sufficiently horrible
and revolting in its detail of licentiousness and blood."
The elections of November, 1854, sent to the Legis-
latures of several States many members of the new
party whose influence was immediately felt. Massa-
chusetts, in addition, elected a Know-Nothing Gov-
ernor, Henry J. Gardner, of whose policy we may
glean an idea from the following extract from his
inaugural address, delivered early in January, 1855 :
*' The honor of the American Flag should be confided only to those
who are born on the soil hallowed by its protection : They alone can
justly be raquirad to vindicate its rights. One of my earliest official
acts, then, will be, if sanctioned as the laws require, by the advice and
consent of the executive council, whom you will select, to disband all
military companies composed of persons of foreign birth."
That the executive council did consent, and more-
over added that " admission of an adopted citizen into
a military company would deprive that company of
the bounty of the government," we have testimony
from the Boston Atlas, bearing date January 11, 1855,
which contains the order of Henry J. Gardner, Gov-
ernor and commander-in-chief, ordering that the Co-
lumbian Artillery, Webster Artillery, Shields Artil-
lery and Sardfield Guards, in Boston (respectively.
Companies B, F and H, of the Fifth Eegiment of
Artillery ; and Company C, of the Third Battalion of
Light Infantry), Jackson Musketeers in Lowell (Com-
pany A, Fifth Regiment of Light Infantry), Union
Guards in Lawrence (Company G, Seventh Regiment
of Light Infantry), and the Jackson Guards of Wor-
cester (Company D, Eighth Regiment of Light In-
fantry), all of either " foreign birth " or extraction,
be disbanded.
The Jackson Musketeers, manfully determined not
to obey this order, considering themselves " a mili-
tary company of American citizens, organized pre-
cisely like any other military company, that had done
LOWELL.
157
no act as a company, nor as individuals, unbecoming
soldiers, good citizens, or gentlemen of the nicest
honor."
In this determination they were encouraged, per-
haps led, by the colonel of the regiment, Benjamin
F. Butler, who wrote the following letter :
•* Headqvabtebs 5th Reot., Lt. Ikt.
" LowEiL, Jan. 22, 1855.
" General : A t night, on the 20th instant, ' Brigade Order, Number 2,'
tranimitting 'Division Order, Number 3,' with a copy of ' General Order
Number 2 ' and * Council Order advisory thereto,' waa received.
" I am therein charged with the duty of disbanding Co. A of this
Regiment. Upon consideration, lam of opinion that the order is one
not required or authorized by law, and therefore 'respectfully decline to
execute it.
** 1 have the honor to be
" Your obedient servant,
"Besj. F. BoTtm,
" Col. Commanding 6th Reg. Lt. Infantry.
"To Brig. Ge.v. James Jones, Ja.,
"Commanding 3rd Brigade, 2nd Division, M,V.M."
On the Ist of February, Col. Butler was removed
from command by the Governor's order, without
having officially served on the company the order to
disband ; hence, when, on the 15th, the armory of the
Jackson Musketeers was broken open, and the musk-
ets seized by order of Gen. Stone, they were still —
which made the act more glaringly unlawful — a reg-
ularly organized company.
Having uttered various protests, the members, at
last convinced that neither the Chief Executive nor
Legislature of Massachusetts, as then constituted,
would give them justice, allowed the matter to rest,
and did not again attempt to resume arms until six
years after, when their country needed them for the
preservation of the Union.
March 29th, 1855, saw the convent once more in-
vaded. Again we quote from the Sister's account :
"Nearly a year had passed since the terrible days of threatened
attack from the Know-Nothings. The sisters still spoke of those hours
of dread thev spent during the eventful June of fifty-four, and prayed
God they might never know the like again. All seemed peaceful, when
lo ! the clouds gathered threatening as before. The report reached
Lowell that another band of fanatics was making raids upon convents ;
and under the name of 'Smelling Committee,' had appointed to them-
selves the task of dragging dark secrets forih to the light of day. They
had already visited the convent of our order in Eoibury, succeeding in
putting the sisters to great annoyance. Now, they announced their in-
tention of making a thorough search of the Lowell convent. Back to
the minds and hearts of the sisters came the terror that had harrowed
their very souls just a year b«fore ; but their brave defender. Father
Timothy O'Brien, bade them be of good cheer. ' For,' said he, 'they
■ball not harm a hair of your heads, the black-hearted villains.' He
counseled the sisters not to let one of them in, until he arrived. Soon
the expected committee came, seven in number, accompanied by some
Lowell officials, and headed by no leas a personage than the Mayor of
the city. According to the pastor's instruction, the sisters refused them
admittance until they saw Father Timothy, who escorted the Committee
through the bouse, asking them whether they met the extraordinary
sights they had expected. They insisted upon all the closets being
opened for their inspectiin, which waa accordingly done ; the children's
dormitories were visited, and lest anything should escspe observation,
the worihies raised the spreads, and examined the beds. When, how-
ever, they were about to enter the dormitories of the religious, the Rev-
erend Father forbade them to cross the threshold as they valued their
own safety. They desisted, and in taking their leave, expressed them-
selves satisfied with the result of the visit. Neither Mayor nor commit-
teeman made his appearance at Notre Dame again."
The men that formed this committee were : Messrs.
Streeter Evans of Essex, Gilbert Pillsbury of Hamp-
den, John Littlefield of Foxboro', Joseph Hiss of
Boston, Nathan King of Middleboro', Joseph H.
Lapham of Sandwich, Stephen Emery of Orange.
The Catholic historian, John G. Shea, thus character-
izes it : ' The infamous conduct of this committee,
and the examinations to which it led, covered with
opprobrium the instigators of this inquisitorial mea-
sure. In their visit to a house of sisters of Notre
Dame, at Roxbury, the members of the committee
acted with the grossest indecency ; in their excursion
to Lowell, one of the committee was accompanied by
a loose woman [Mrs. Moody, aliat ' Mrs. Patterson '],
whose expenses he charged to the State ; and these
very fair samples of Massachusetts' guardians of pub-
lic morals, going to see whether any disorders existed
in Catholic convents, themselves gave every example
of dishonesty and debauchery. The whole Know-
Nothing party blushed at the dishonor they had
drawn upon themselves ; and to satisfy the public
clamor expelled Mr. Hiss, one of their members,
making him the scape-goat." Mr. Charles Cowley, of
this city, in his " History of Lowell," relates the " Pat-
terson" episode still more plainly, thus summing up
his account: "The results of the visit were, to make
Hiss notorious, aud the Legislature ridiculous, and to
furnish some sensational cuts for the comic and pic-
torial newspapers."
However, as has been well said, " Man cannot be
kept in a state of constant fury against his fellow-
man, especially when the latter is inoffensive and
innocent ; and when the passions are no longer ex-
cited by the leaders of the movement, natural benev-
olence resumes its course. There are moments when
apostles of error stop from weariness, and others,
when political reasons make it prudent to wheedle
Catholics by presenting real toleration and not a
sham. And lastly, God wishes to give his Church
some days of repose amid the trials of the crucible in
which the faithful are purified."
The Know-Nothing frenzy subsided ; and it be-
came evident that Catholics were ready to at least
forgive its injustice and malevolence ; and to forget
them, unless recalled by similar outrages, which — God
forbid !
To return again to St. Patrick's school. The num-
ber in the different departments, free-school, acad-
emy and boarding-school, rapidly increased, and,
with them, necessarily the number of Sisters, so that
school and convent accommodations in a short time
became inadequate, and once again evoked assist-
ance from the ever-generous hand of Father Timothy
O'Brien, who seems to have taken the schools under his
special care. Soon after the dedication of the church,
work was commenced for the erection of a large
frame school building. Father Timothy's intention
had been that it should be finished for the opening
of the September term of 1855, but he was disap-
158
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
pointed not only in that, but in ever witnessing its
completion ; for he was called to the reward of his
labors, as has been said before, on the 11th of Octo-
ber, 1855.
Shortly after his death a handsome granite monu-
ment was placed over his remains. A Lowell paper
dated July 10, 1856, thus commented upon it : "On
leaving the church-yard we noticed that the monu-
ment to the late Rev. Mr. O'Brien, which has been
in the course of erection for some time past, is com-
pleted and placed over his remains immediately op-
posite the main door of the church. . . . The
monument has that suitable appearance and grand
solemnity about it which the granite alone can give,
making it in all respects an appropriate testimonial
of the respect in which the late clergyman's memory is
held. It was built and placed where it now is by the
congregation of St. Patrick's."
Soon after Father Timothy's death Rev. Thomas R.
McNulty was sent from St. Augustine's Church,
South Boston, as assistant to Father John O'Brien,
and remained in Lowell until February, 1857, when
he was transferred to Milton, where he founded St.
Gregory's Church, Dorchester Avenue.
Another assistant. Rev. T. P. McCarthy, was sent
to St. Patrick's, November 26, 1856, and remained
till May, 1858, when, his health failing, he retired ;
and soon after died in a religious retreat in the West.
The school building in which Father Timothy had
been so deeply interested was completed in the fall of
1855, and immediately occupied.
The convent, also — intended for five Sisters where
now there were twice that number — was not large
enough. The fall of '56 saw the beginning of a
brick convent, which still remains, though with later
additions considerably larger than the first building,
which latter, at the time of its completion, seemed ex-
travagantly commodious. Soon, owing to the rapid
increase of pupils in the difierent departments, every
available space was occupied. In 1864 the building
was again enlarged, and in 1865 the Academy was in-
corporated under the title St. Patrick's Academy. It
seemed, however, a difficult matter to keep the ac-
commodation proportionate to the ever-increasing
pupils. A short time after the foundation-stone of
the present building was laid, and before many
months, a substantial structure of brick, finely pro-
portioned and handsomely finished, was completed,
needing nothing but an extensive play-ground and
pleasant surroundings to make it an ideal boarding-
school. In these last it was for a time lacking ; but,
gradually, some unsightly buildings that surrounded it
were purchased and removed ; and, at length, sufficient
land had been procured and handsomely laid out to
make the surroundings correspond with the Academy
itself.
The one most closely connected with Father John
in all these improvements — Sister Desiree, the worthv
Superior who had led the little band of five to the
humble convent in 1852 — wa.s cut down in the midst
of her usefulness on the 16th of October, 1879, re-
gretted by the people of Lowell as one who.se dearest
aspiration had been for God's glory and the spiritual
and temporal welfare of all : a comfortress and assist-
ant in poverty, sutTering or sorrow ; a watchful and
loving mother to the young committed to her care ; a
kind friend and wise counselor to the many who had
sought her guidance.
In addition to the pupils at the different schools,
hundreds of women and girls had been gathered
together in religious societies, largely through her
efforts under the direction of the pastor. Of these,
the Sodality of the Immaculate Conception was organ-
I ized as early as 1854, with the following officers:
Prefect, Miss M. O'Connor; Secretary, Miss Georgiana
Cummiskey. It now numbers six hundred and fifty
members, with Miss Ellen Dinneen as Prefect, and
Miss Elizabeth Johnson as Secretary ; and is a source
of encouragement and assistance in every good work
in the parish. The Sodality of the Holy Family, for
married women, was formed about the year 1861, with
Mrs. Catherine Haviland, Prefect, and Mrs. Catherine
Ring, as Secretary. It now numbers over three hun-
dred members, with Mrs. Marcella Courtney as
Prefect, and Mrs. Sarah Kelley as Secretary. This
latter Sodality has taken upon itself " the praise-
worthy task of clothing poor children and rendering
destitute homes more comfortable."
1857, " the year of the panic," was a sad one for the
poor throughout the country ; and nowhere did they
suffer more than in manufacturing cities and towns.
In Lowell, several mills were closed and much poverty
and suffering resulted, which the priests and the sisters
at St. Patrick's did all in their power to alleviate. In
many instances, whole families were kept for weeks
by their bounty ; food being dispensed at all hours
from parsonage and convent to men, women and
children without regard to race or creed.
The opening of the mills, in the spring of 1858, soon
restored prosperity and happiness, which remained
undisturbed until the spring of 1861, when the Catho-
lics of Lowell, in common with all their fellow-citi-
zens, felt the shock and the grief of the attempted
dissolution of the Union.
Notwithstanding the slur that had been cast upon
the loyalty and military abilities of the Irish race in
Massachusetts six years before, we find some of them
— Catholics, as the Irish and their descendants gener-
ally are — in the militia which responded to the first
call of the President, when the "gallant Sixth Mas-
sachusetts," containing four Lowell companies, started
April 17, 1861, for the defence of the Nation's capital.
One of these, Timothy A. Crowley, may be taken as
indicative of the calibre of most of the others. He
was Lowell born, but of Irish descent. At the depart-
ure of the company, a local paper said of him : " The
color-bearer of the Sixth Regiment is Timothy A.
Crowley, a private in the Watson Light Guards of
LOWELL.
159
this city, a gallant and patriotic soldier, well-known
to our citizens. The flag will be sate in his hands
[vide Gov. Gardner's inaugural, sis years before],
and he will dei'end it with his life." He went out as
corporal in the Watson Light Guards in their three |
months' campaign, and bore the colors of the Sixth
Kegiment during the Baltimore riot of 1861 " with a
steady courage that attracted the admiration of all."
During the struggles of that regiment he won from a
war correspondent of the Boston Journal the tribute
of being " as noble a fellow as ever wore a uniform of
the old Bay State." Having returned with his regi-
ment, he soon organized a company, which he led
forth from Lowell; and having displayed even greater
bravery as an oflBcer than as a private, he met his
death at New Orleans, October 5, 1862. His remains
were brought to Lowell, and a High Mass of Requiem
offered for the repose of his soul at St. Patrick's
Church, from which he was buried with public hon-
ors, in St. Patrick's Cemetery, October 26, 1862.
That the Catholics of Lowell, a majority of whom
were of Irish birth, were fully awake to the demands
of the hour, we learn from the following "Call"
which appeared in the local papers the very evening
on which the first blood was shed in the Union cause :
"Adopted citizens, arouse! The cry of war resounds
throughout the land ! The flag of our country, which
we have sworn to support and defend, has been assail-
ed I Now is the time to prove our devotion to the be-
loved Constitution of our country. Therefore, all
those who desire to join a militia company will assem-
ble at the hall of the Independent Guards, corner of
Lowell and Suflblk Streets, this Friday evening, to
afiix their signatures to a document for the above
purpose."
It is needless to say that the call met with a ready
response. Sixty-six men that evening, and four more
next morning, enrolled themselves as defenders of the
Union. Saturday morning the company was accepted
and the charter received, and the following officers
appointed : — Captain, Patrick S. Proctor ; First Lieu-
tenant, Matthew Donovan ; Second Lieutenant, David
W. Roche ; Third Lieutenant, Thomas Ciaffey ; Fourth
Lieutenant, Edward Murphy.
This company, afterwards known as the Hill Cadets,
is thus referred to in Cowley's " Histc^y of Lowell : "
— " The Hill Cadets — the first company organized in
Lowell during the Rebellion — were principally men
who had belonged to the Jackson Musketeers, — who
had been deprived of their arms by the Know-Noth-
ing Governor Gardner, — and who had been calumni-
ated even as late as the preceding January, as being
ready to take part with South Carolina against their
own adopted Commonwealth. It was not until they
received the shock of a bloody civil war, that the na-
tive and foreign-born began alike to feel that, in spite
of all their little differences, they were all Americans
at heart — loving their country with a warm and equal
love, and ready to peril all in her defence."
Of the officers of the Hill Cadets, Matthew Dono-
van's bravery led to his promotion to the rank of ma-
jor; David W. Roche was subsequently transferred to
Company A of the same regiment, and promoted to a
captaincy. He was killed at Gettysburg, July 3, 1863;
his remains brought to Lowell and interred, as had
been Captain Crowley's, August 3, 1863. Thomas
Claffey's career is thus described by a local historian :
— " On December 13, 1862, the Army of the Potomac
under General Burnside advanced on the defences of
Fredericksburg, but only to be driven back, after a
sublime exhibition of its courage and a lavish outpour-
ing of its blood, to its original lines. Among the
killed in this engagement was Captain Thomas Ciaf-
fey, of Lowell. He was born in Cork, Ireland, and
came to Lowell when a boy. At Fredericksburg, the
command of his company devolved on him, and here
his gallantn.- won him a commission as brevet captain.
This honor, however, was conferred too late. Early
in the engagement, he for whom it was intended fell,
shot through the mouth and neck, and so, amid the
cloud and thunder of battle, the impetuous spirit of
Thomas Ciaffey took the everlasting flight; His body
was not recovered."
This was not the only company made up of Lowell
Catholics of Irish blood. Before the close of that
same first month of the war, still another call was
issued, and answered, to form a company to be at-
tached to the Irish Brigade of Boston ; and, on the
1st of May following, the Butler Rifles — Co. G of the
Sixteenth Infantry — was organized, including a large
number of men of either Irish birth or parentage,
and with Thomas O'Hare its first lieutenant, and
afterwards its captain.
Nor were the Catholic women of Lowell lacking in
patriotism, and loyalty to the Union. Side by side
with their Protestant sisters, and with devotion by no
means less marked, did they work in their own wo-
manly way for their country's defenders, as the follow-
ing extract will show : — " The ladies named below,
belonging to the different Catholic churches in this
city, have patriotically volunteered their services as a
committee to furnish the soldiers of Captain Proctor's
company with flannel garments, and invite the co-op-
eration of other ladies who may wish to unite in the
same benevolent work.
" The committee will meet in the vestries of the
several churches to-morrow afternoon, for the purpose
of making further arrangements. We learn that the
city government have granted the use of their rooms
in the government building as a workshop for the
ladies engaged in this enterprise. The following are
the names of the committee: — St. Patrick's Church,
Mrs. Hogan, Mrs. P. Haggerty, Mrs. T. D. Smith, Miss
B. Proctor, Miss M. A. Doyle, Miss M. Shea, Mrs. D.
Crowley, Miss L. Enright. St. Mary's, Miss B. Car-
roll, Mrs. T. Lucas, Miss M. Pender, Mrs. J. Warren,
Mrs. P. Lynch, Miss M. Deehan, Mrs. J. Heland. St.
Peter's Church, Mrs. J. Quinn, Mrs. B. Costello, Miss
160
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
J. McEvoy, Miss L. McEvoy, Misa M.. McGuiggan,
Miss M. McNulty, Miss Kate McEvoy.
Well, indeed, might the Lowell Advertiser of Thurs-
day, May 2d, state: "The fidelity of the Irish to the
general government is indisputable. No class of our
people excel them in patriotic devotion to the land of
their adoption." And with confidence did the pioneer
Catholic organ of the State, the Boston Pilot, of the
preceding week assert : " The Irish adopted citizens
are true to a man to the Constitution. No exception
to the ancient character of their race will now be dis-
covered. This is their real country. The govern-
ment of the United States is their favorite system of
national policy. They have taken a solemn oath to
be loyal to America against all other nations in the
world. Here they flourish in all their undertakings.
Here they are deeply fixed with their wives and fam-
ilies, whom they support from profits of their perma-
nent engagements in the various pursuits of bubiness
in the State. Here are rooted all their hopes of hap-
piness, honor and emolument from farming, from
commerce, from artisanship, from public toiling, from
politics and from the professions. They have too
much at stake here — too much of their honor and too
much of their other interests — to be traitors to the
country."
In an editorial in the Lowell Advertiser of that time
reference is thus made to the Irish volunteers and to
their treatment a few short years previous : " We can
conceive of no more withering rebuke to the State of
Massachusetts, than is paid it in the promptness with
which the men who compose these companies have
come forward, in the dark hour of our country's peril,
to defend it from the attacks of domestic traitors, to
uphold our flag, and under its protecting folds to bat-
tle for the right. What better evidence is wanted to
satisfy Americans of the error they have committed
Ln doubting the patriotism of these men, and denying
them the same political and social rights enjoyed by
aU other classes of citizens. Let us hear no more of
such illiberal sentiments from Massachusetts. They
have too long been a disgrace to the intelligence of
the State, both at home and abroad ; and may we not
hope that the extra session of the Legislature about
to be called, will take, at least, the initiatory steps in
purging out all unjust laws affecting their rights.
"At any rate, we cannot doubt, that in whatever
post of danger or of peril they may be placed, in the
fearful struggle through which we are now passing,
they will do their duty bravely, with honor to them-
selves, and credit to our city ; and that they will show
to us, of the manor born, that the love and patriotism
which Irish adopted citizens have always claimed to
cherish for our country and its free institutions have
been no idle boast. They will show us, too, the in-
justice of the disbanding of the so-called Irish mili-
tary companies of Massachusetts by a Know-Nothing
administration, for the poor reason alone, that they
happened, perchance, to be born upon another soil
and exercise the constitutional right to ofler up their
prayers to God before a Catholic altar."
The Hill Cadets made their first appearance in
their new uniform on Sunday, May 5, 1861, when
they assisted at Mass at St. Patrick's Church. The
Mass was celebrated by the pastor. Rev. John O'Brien,
and when, at the Consecration, the drum beat and the
men presented arms before the Lord of Hosts, the God
of Battles, it was a most impressive scene, reminding
one of the Ages of Faith, when the Crusaders dedi-
cated their arras to the Holy Cause, and sought at
the altar of God inspiration and encouragement to
battle for His Holy Land and Holy Name.
Their next public appearance was the following
Thursday evening, when they marched to the
residence of Paul Hill, Esq., a gentleman who had
been very active in their behalf and in whose honor
they took their name. They were presented on that
occasion with a handsome flag, the presentation ad-
dress being delivered by John F. McEvoy, Esq.
We next hear of them the 23d of June, and also of
a delegation of the Butler Rifles, as attending, at St.
Mary's Church, the funeral services of Rev. Joseph
Gray, a highly esteemed priest, who died suddenly,
June 21st, at the residence of Rev. Father McDer-
mott, and whose remains now lie in St. Patrick's
Cemetery, where a monument has been raised in his
memory " by the Catholics of Lowell, under the au-
spices of the Young Men's Catholic Library Associa-
tion." A few days after, Monday, July 8, 1861, the
Hill Cadets and the Butler Rifles left Lowell for
Camp Cameron, Cambridge, and were attached to the
Sixteenth Regiment, with which they soon went to
the front, and bravely and honorably served for three
years, returning July 21, 1864, after having taken
part in the battles of Fair Oaks, Malvern Hill, Chan-
tilly, Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg,
Locust Grove, Wilderness, Spottsylvania, Cold Har-
bor and Petersburg, — " a record their children and
their children's children may look back upon with
pride."
And so we might continue a roll of honor from of-
ficers and privates, in army and navy, radiailt with
the loyalty and bravery of the Catholics of Lowell,
some of whom sleep in unknown graves on Southern
battle-fields, " Southern dews weeping above them as
gently as though they lay in their Northern village
church-yards ; " some of whom repose this June
morning 'neath flag-marked and flower-strewn graves
in St. Patrick's Cemetery ; some of whom we, hap-
pily, have yet amongst us; and still others of whom
have been called hence to serve again their country
in various positions of honor and trust.
During all these years several worthy priests had
been sent to Lowell to assist Father O'Brien. In
June, 1858, came Rev. M. X. Carroll, and remained
until February 28, 1859, when he went to Mansfield,
and after some time was transferred to his present
place at the Boston Cathedral ; Rev. P. O'Donoghue
LOWELL.
161
W£is alsi here from December, 1858, to February, 1859,
when his place was filled by Rev. E. O'Connor, who
remained until June, 186U and not long after died in
the Milwaukee Diocese. Rev. EmilianoGerbi, O.S.F.,
next came to Lowell in June, 1861, and, having
served until April, 1862, was sent to St. Mary's,
Charlestown, and thence to the Gate of Heaven
Church, South Boston, where he died. In June,
1862, Rev. Peter Bcrtoldi came to St. Patrick's,
whence he was transferred, July, 1864, to St. Peter's
Church, Sandwich ; Rev. Peter Hamill came soon
after, September, 1864, and remained until Decem-
ber, 1864, a short time before his death. Rev. James
McGlew, the present respected pastor of the church
of St. Rose, Chelsea, spent a few months at St. Pat-
rick's, from January, 1865, to July 1st of the same year,
when he was appointed to St. Mary's Church, Ran-
dolph, and afterwards, as has been stated, to Chelsea.
Rev. Charles F. Grace next succeeded, in July, 1865,
remaining until July, 1868, when he was transferred
to Great Harrington. About a year after his coming,
the congregation, which had greatly increased, re-
quired the presence of another priest, and Rev. Den-
nis C. Moran, having been appointed in August,
1866, remained until March, 1868, when he was
placed in charge of St. Mary's, Uxbridge, also of
AVhiliusville, where he built a fine church, the pres-
ent St. Patrick's, after which he was appointed to the
l>a8torate of St. Charles' Church, South Adams, which
position he still occupies.
Meanwhile another care had come to the priest
of St. Patrick's — that of the Catholics of Chelms-
ford. Finding them quite numerous, and realizing
the distance they had to come to Mass, Father
O'Brieu purchased a Protestant Church in East
Chelmsford, which he moved to a central posi-
ion in North Chelmsford, where it still remains,
under the patronage of St. John the Evangelist, at-
tended by priests from St. Patrick's Church, Lowell.
Before Father Moran's departure it was found that
two assistants would be necessary; and, at the earnest
solicitation of Father John, his nephew, Rev. Michael
O'Brieu, St. Patrick's present rector, came from
Rochester, N. Y., to Lowell, June 29, 18C7. The de-
tails of Father Michael O'Brien's career, previous to
this event, will be found elsewhere ; but from this
time forth little can be said of him apart from the
history of St. Patrick's Church, to whose welfare atd
advancement — spiritual and temporal — all his best
energies have been unselfishly devoted.
The year following Father Michael's coming saw
another good work of Father John O'Brien's com-
pleted — a hospital for the sick and suffering. In the
fall of 1866 he purchased the "Livermore Place," in
Belvidere, the "Old Yellow House," built by Timothy
Brown, 1770, and later occupied by Judge Livermore.
Together with the adjoining land, the cost was
$12,000. This he presented to the Sisters of Charity,
and had it incorporated under their auspices March
11 -ii
29, 1867, with the name St. John's Hospital, at the
Sisters' reques^, in order that it should allow, at least,
its title to pay him some tribute of appreciation and
respectful remembrance. In 1868 the building was
completed and opened. The report for 1879 says of
this noble institution : "Its doors are always open to
cases where individuals are suddenly stricken down
or injured by accident in the mills, or on the railroads,
or by any other means."
Shortly after the establishment of the hospital — for
its benefit, and also for the benefit of persons living
in its neighborhood, which is quite a distance from
St. Patrick's Church — a chapel was erected close by,
and for a while attended by priests from St. Patrick's.
Not long after this, the spiritual care of the French-
speaking Catholics having been committed to the
Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate, fathers of
that society came to Lowell, and also took charge of
the little hospital chapel, which has Hiuce developed
into the beautiful Church of the Immaculate Con-
ception.
Sometime previous to this, Father John had made
extensive additions to St. Patrick's Cemetery, which,
when he came to Lowell, consisted of only a few
acres that had originally been set apart for burial
purposes by Lowell's first Catholic pastor. Father
Mahony. For this purpose, a large tract of land in
the vicinity of the first one was purchased, and it has
since been greatly increased by the present rector,
who has continued Father John's admirable arrange-
ment and appropriate ornamentation, until St. Pat-
rick's Cemetery — the only Catholic one in Lowell —
now consists of about seventy acres, is excellently
laid out, has numerous handsome monuments, and is
second to none in the city. Within its sacted enclos-
ures lie the remains of Rev. Fathers Gray, McDer-
mott, Crudden, Phaneuf, Trudeau and Ryan, over
each of whom a monument haj been raised — that
over the last-named clergyman having been erected
by the kindly remembrance of Rev. Michael O'Brien.
There, also, repose several of the good Sisters of
Notre Dame and of Charity, the greater part of whose
pious lives was devoted to the welfare of the Catho-
lics of Lowell ; besides all the laity of the city who
have died in the Catholic communion, realizing, be-
yond a doubt, that " Blessed are the dead who die in
the Lord."
And now, to once again resume our sketch of the
church. On the departure of Father Moran, already
referred to. Rev. Arthur J. Teeling, then recently
ordained, was appointed in his place in July, 1868,
and remained till August, 1871, when he was trans-
ferred to the Church of the Immaculate Conception,
Newburyport, of which he is now permanent rector —
thus, by something of a coincidence, reversing the
condition of things, twenty-three years IJefore, when
Newburyport provided Lowell with a pastor, as
Lowell now did for Newburyport. In connection
with Father Teeling's term in Lowell, and subsequent
162
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
career, a sketch of the Catholic Church in Newbury-
port states : " It may be a not uninteresting fact that
Newburyport's present pastor, Rev. Arthur J. Teel-
ing, was for three years assistant to Rev. John
O'Brien, of Lowell, Newburyport's first pastor. Per-
hap.s, from the one whose brief sojourn in that town
had been so successful, and who had given the good
work such a strong impetus on the right road, Father
Teeling, in the impressionable days of his early
priesthood, imbibed some of the zeal that during his
pastorate had crowned the church of Newburyport
with a success almost unprecedented in the eccle-
siastical records of Massachusetts, and equal to that
of any church in the country similarly situated."
It was while Father Teeling was in Lowell — and
largely through his assistance and that of Father
Michael O'Brien — that the pastor, in 1869, organized
the St. Patrick's Temperance Society, which soon
after became one of the largest in the State, num-
bering thirteen hundred members — about seven hun-
dred men and six hundred women. Its first ofiicers
were: President, Rev. Michael O'Brien; Treasurer,
Rev. Arthur J. Teeling; Secretary, Mr. James J.
Shea. The society still exists, though with some-
what diminished numbers, and consists of men only.
Its present officers are: Spiritual Director, Rev. R.
S. Burke; President, Mr. William E. Broderick ;
Secretary, Mr. Henry Johnson ; Treasurer, Mr.
Michael Rourke.
The additional priests at St. Patrick's having ren-
dered the pastoral residence as inadequate as it had
always been unsuitable. Father John had it removed,
and the present commodious one erected, at liis own
expense, in 1869.
Having now provided, not only for all the present
needs of the parish, but for many of those for years
to come ; and beginning to feel the weight of ad-
vancing age upon him. Rev. John O'Brien resigned
the pastorate of St. Patrick's in 1S70, and Rev.
Michael O'Brien became pastor de facto, though
always under Father John's guidance. Hale and
liearty, and scarcely less active than ever, did the
zealous priest remain for four years more, when he
was suddenly called, October 31, 1S74, to enjoy the
reward of his noble and edifjirig life. After most
impressive funeral rites, his remains were placed
beside those of his beloved and revered brother.
Meanwhile, other changes had taken place amongst
the priests at St. Patrick's. After Father Teeling's
departure, in 1871, a worthy successor came in the
person of Rev. Michael T. McManus, who remained
from May, 1871, to April, 1876, when he was trans-
ferred to West Newton ; and, after six years, was ap-
pointed to the spiritual charge of the large and pros-
perous congregation of St, Patrick's Church, South
Lawrence.
A few months before Father McManus left Lowell,
two other assistants having become necessary for the
increasing pariah, Revs. William and Martin O'Brien
came in Sept., 1875. Of these reverend father.", the
former. Rev. William O'Brien, most faithfully minis-
tered to St. Patrick's congregation until June, 1884,
when he was placed in charge of the then recently
formed congregation of St. Michael's Church, Cen-
tralville, of which he is still the esteemed pastor.
Rev. Martin O'Brien remained in Lowell about a
year and a half, when he was sent to the Church of
the Immaculate Conception, Salem, whence, after
nine years of valuable service, he was transferred to
the pastorate of St. Mary's Church, Newton Upper
Falls.
In September, 1876, Rev. William M. O'Brien came
to Lowell, and, after a twelve years' stay, which is
pleasantly and gratefully remembered, was appointed
pastor of St. Mary's Church, Winchester, Massa-
chusetts.
Rev. John J. Shaw, happily still at this, his first
mission, came here January 16, 18S3 ; and, about a
year alter, January I'J, 1S84, came Rev. James W.
Hickey, whose health obliged him, in September,
1887, to seek tlie more genial clime of Calilornia.
Rev. Richard S. Burke came to take his place here
soon after, and St. Patrick's is still favored with his
services.
With the assistance of these zealous priests — under
the wise and fatherly guidance of the rector — several
excellent societies have been formed in addition to
those already mentioned. Amongst these is one very
important in the advancement of religious affairs and
the general good of the community — the Holy Name
Society, organized in May, 1879, with the following
officers: Spiritual Director, Rev. M. O'Brien ; Presi-
dent, Mr. Michiel Meally ; secretary, Mr. John J.
tjhea ; Treasurer, Mr. William Downey. The society
now numbers three hundred and fifty members, with
Rev. Jlichael O'Brien, spiritual director ; Mr. Michael
McDermott, president ; Mr. Michael Moran, secretary,
and Mr. John Whilty, treasurer. Another society this
present year established, is for the benefit of the poor
and sufiering — the Conference of St. Vincent de
Paul. Its Spiritual Director is Rev. Michael O'Brien ;
President, Mr. James O Sullivan ; Secretary and Treas-
urer, Mr. John P. Mahoney.
To revert again to the sad event of October, 1874.
After Father John's death it soon became evident
that his mantle had, indeed, fallen upon his chosen
successor. Rev. Michael O'Brien, whom Bisho]) — now
Archbishop — Williams immediately confirmed in that
position.
To give an idea of what St. Patrick's Parish owes
to these two zealous workers in God's vineyard — in-
deed, to the three ; for Father Timothy was equally
generous — is next to impossible. From the present
rector, who is truly one that ' lets not his right hand
know what his left hand does,' one can get only a
meagre account. But, " actions speak louder than
words, " and "figures will not lie." Ask the par-
ishioners when contributions were solicited for such
LOWELL.
163
and such improvements and additions — they cannot
tell you — they cannot remember. So quietly and un-
ostentatiously has everything been done, that it is
taken almost as a matier of course — " Father John
did it " — " Father John gave it ; " and the same with
Father iVIichael.
The time, however, for something of a reckoning
had come. When Father Timothy came to Lowell,
everything he then possessed, and everything he after-
wards received, were generously placed at the dispos-
al of Father John for the building of the church and
school ; BO that, at the time of his decease, a large
debt was virtually due him, which amount reverted
to Father John as his heir. The latter, however,
followed his brother's example, everything that be-
longed to him, that came to him, he seemed to regard
as belonging to his church and his flock. The Christ-
mas before his death he made a statement to that
effect, as many of the older parishioners can, proba-
bly, remember. Out of what others would consider
his own private resources, the parochial residence,
worth ten thousand dollars, had been built; from
them also, thousands of dollars had been expended
on the school building, and three thousand had
been left as a fund, the interest of which was to pur-
chase textbooks for needy pupils; and three thousand
more had been expended on repairing St. Mary's
Church. These, and other figures, which might be
presented by his successor. Father Michael, showing
the indebtedness of the church and parisli to them
and to him, would be almost incredible. They were,
however, submitted, with confirmatory vouchers, in the
report of the standing of the church for the year end-
ing December 31, 187-1, to one who understood their
truthful showing, the Right Reverend Bishop of
the Diocese, accompanied, out of the generosity of
Father Michael's heart, by the statement that all that
had been used for the benefit of church, schools,
etc., by both his predecessors, he, as their heir — inter-
preting the condition of affairs as he believed they
would wish him to do — now presented to St. Patrick's
Church.
Of this report and statement the Rt. Rev. Bishop
sent the following acknowledgment :
" Boston, Feb. 8, 1675.
" Rev. Deah Sm ; — Tour report for 1674 is receivtKl with llit, deed of
the LouBC. It is not necessarj" to say th.it the Report is very satisfac-
tory. Tlie p«opk- of Sf. Patrick's owe .i debt of gratitude to Father JoLd
and to yourself, whicb I Lope tliey will uot forget.
*' With best wislies fortbe year,
" Yours very Bincerely,
" -r John J. Williams,
*' Bp. of Bu&tOD.
"Bev. M. OBbie-V, Lowell, Ma»."
Soon, Father O'Brien's zeal began to manifest
itself. Anything that time had impaired, or that had
heretofore been overlooked was soon attended to.
Amongst the former wa.s the basement of the church,
which he renewed and greatly improved in 1878,
making of it a large and handsome chapel, of the
game dimensions, except height, as the church above,
for the celebration of Mass on week-days, for con-
fessions, and for the accommodation of the Sunday-
school, and of several religious societies that meet
there at different times; while two good-sized and
convenient apartments were set off, one for a vestry,
the other for a library.
Not long after the completion of this, he commenced
ed preparations for the crowning glory in St. Patrick's
record — the consecration of the church. Devoting to
this purpose his strongest energies, and giving to-
wards it — as in many other instances — tliousands of
dollars of his own private resources, more, indeed, than
he will ever acknowledge, he went on with the uoble
work of clearing the church wholly from debt, and
making the alterations and repairs necessary to render
it worthy of that distinction. With this end in view, he
had handsome new seats and fine, massive new doors
put iu ; also a most chaste and beautiful marble altar
erected. This last is a magnificent specimen of art.
It is built in the Gothic style to correspond with the
church, and is composed of gray and white marbles,
and inlaid with rich specimens of precious Mexican
onyx, and rare marbles from Ireland and Portugal.
At its base it measures twenty feet, and from its base
to the top of the central pinnacle, the messurement
is twenty-three feet. On the Gospel and Epistle
sides of the altar are niches ; in the former of which
is placed a marble statue of the Blessed Virgin, and
in the latter, a statue of the same material of St.
Patrick, the patron of the church. Describing it the
week after the consecration, the Boston Pilot said :
" Altogether the altar presents a most imposing ap-
pearance, and is one of the finest in the country."
The walls and ceiling he also greatly beautified. ♦V'o
whole interior having been frescoed with a delicate
purple tint and embellished with rich gilding. Under
his direction, too, the old windows were removed,
and beautiful new stained-glass ones — a series of edi-
fying and instructive lessons presented in lovely tints
and colors by the sunshine — substituted for them,
through the generosity of members of the congrega-
tion and a few others.
Following is a list of the windows and their donors.
The first on each side facing each other, are orna-
mental windows presented — that on the left or Gospel
side, by James J. McCafferty, Esq., in memory of his
father; that on the Epistle side, by Mary and Katie
Griffin. Second, Gospel side, an allegorical repre-
sentation of Temperance with its good, and Intem-
perance with its evil results, designed expressly for
and presented by St. Patrick's Temperance Society ;
second, Epistle, pictures of St. Michael the Archangel
and St. James the Apostle, presented by Rev. James
McGlew. Third, Gospel, the Miraculous Draught of
Fishes, donated by Miss B. C. Proctor in memory of
her brother. Captain Patrick S. Proctor; third. Epistle,
a picture of the Miracle of the Loaves and Fishes
given by the Sodality of the Immaculate Conception.
Fourth, Gospel, pictures of St. Mathew and St. Mark,
1G4
HISTOKY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
given by James Collins; fourth, Epistle, pictures of
St. Luke and St. John, presented by the Holy Name
Society. Fifth, Gospel, picture of The Raising of
Lazarus,- tlie gift of the Rosary Society ; fifth, Epistle,
representation of Christ Restoring Sight to the Blind,
gift of Mr. Timothy O'Brien. First in Gospel trans-
sept, pictures of St. Jerome and St. Augustine, pre-
sented by Rev. Arthur J. Teeling; first in Epistle
transept, pictures of St. Gregory and St. Ambrose,
given by Mrs. A. F. Jewett, in memory of her hus-
band, Andrew F. Jewett. Second Gospel transept,
pictures of St. Patrick and St. Bridget, given by
Patrick Mead ; second Epistle transept, pictures
of the Blessed Virgin and St. Anne, given by
Anne Hallinan. On left side of altar, picture of the
Nativity of Christ, presented by Dr. F. C. Plunkett;
right side, picture of the Resurrection, presented by
Patrick Lynch. Above these in left transept, picture
of the Annunciation, gift of the Sodality of the Holy
Family ; above in right transtpt, one of the Ascension,
gift of the Sisters of Notre Dame. In the choir, also,
are two handsome windows — at the left, one repre-
senting St. Rose and Si. Agnes, presented by John
Donovan ; and one at the right, representing St. John
the Baptist and St. C'uluiiibkille, presented by Mrs.
Terence Hanover, in memory of her husband, Terence
Hanover. Above the altar is the masterpiece of all
— a representation of the solemn and sublime mystery
of the Crucifixion of Christ — donated by Rev. Michael
O'Brien in memory of Revs. Timorhy and John
O'Brien.
Everything being now in rcadines?, even to the
placing of the twelve anointed crosses that always
mark a consecrated church, the solemn act of conse-
cration — one of the most impressive ceremonies of the
Catholic Church — was performed Sunday, September
7, 1S79.
The following extracts are taken from the full ac-
count of the ceremoiiy which appeared in the Boston
rUol of that week :
"A Rare Ceiiemoxy.
** Consecnifiaii of n Church in LofeJl.
"A rare Catholic tereniony w;i» pcrfuiiiieil on tfiiiiilay, the 7th inst.,
1)V the 31oat Kfv, Arciihiihup Willi.iii]S, ihu uci-iiaiuu Ik.*iij(; tlit- luiist^ ni-
tiuli of St. Patrick's Chtirdi. Luwi^ll, SInnH. '1 liiii i^ ilm tliiiil l-Iiimx-Ii
tliut hiiH uow beiMi constcnxted iu the anltdiocfsd of Itotiloli. the otlii-r
twobeiiiRthu Church uf the lulltidculute rouccpliuu, iu Uustuu, auJ
the church uf the sumo ualue iu Keuhurypurc."
"THE COXbECRATiuN.
"The ceremonies of consecration, uliicli were very long, began at
snven A.M., thu Mo3t IlovereuJ Consecrator heiiifr u^aialcil by the fol-
lowiiii; clergymen : First ileucon. Rev. Thoniiu ^hiilinn, Boston; bec-
oiid deHCon, Uev. .luhii Gny, SiiUm ; snhdeucuu, Rev. 31. McMunus,
West Newton ; Masters of Ceremonies, lieVi. .\ J. Teehng, Newbury-
jwrt, and John Gilmore, O.S. A , Lawrence. This ptirtioD of the cere-
monies occupied three boiirs, and was prirate. Thu church was ojiened
to the congregation, who were udniitied only by tickets, at ten o'clock ;
and in a short time every available ^p^ce was occupied. The Solemn
Pontltical Mass was comnienced at muirter-past ten, His Grace, the
Archbishop, being the celebialit ; Very Uev. Father Byrne, V.iJ., act-
ing aji .\rchprie8t; deacons of honor, Rov. Jatues McGlew, Chelsea;
Uuv. James Huurigan, Biughamtuu, N. V. ; deacon of the Mas^, Rev.
Father Smith, rector of the Uofttou Cilliedr.il ; sub-dciu.'ou, Uev. Father
^lorris, Brookline ; Masters of Ceremonirs, Rev. Fathers ?Ietcalf, Bos-
tou, and William O'Crien, St. Patrick's, Lowell.
" The entire ceremonies were caiTied out strictly in accordance with
the Rouiau Catholic ritual, and were impressive iu the extreme, the
rich goldr n vestmeuls of the ofticialiiig clerf;yman blenJin^ beaulifnlly
with the uiagnilicent surroundings of the sanctuary. Quite a iiuuiber
of the local clergy were present, and also many from different parts of
the archdiocese. The followijig Bishops were piesent : Ut, Rev. Biebop
Ryan, of Uuff.tlo, N. Y., who preached a nuigniticeut sermon in the
morning; Ut. Uev. Bishop Healey, uf Purtlaud, 3Ie , the preacher at
the Vesper service ; Rt. Rev. Bishop Lynch, of Charleston, S. C. ; Ut.
Rev. Bishop Shaiiahan, of Ilarrisburg, I'a. ; Ut. Rev. Bishop 31c31aboli,
of Hartford, Conn. ; Ut. Rev. Bishop O'Reilly, of Springfield, ilats ;
and Ut. Uev. Bishop Conroy, of Albauy, X. Y.
" Bishop Ryan's text for the mornint; sermon was as follows: 'And
the Lord appeared unto Solomon by night and said, I have heard thy
pniyer and 1 have choeeu this place to ni>seir for a house of siciihce.*
.\t the CQUdilsion, the Rt. Reverend prea-lier cougratulated the i.atho-
lics of Lowell in an especial manner upon the si^utticaut ceremonies
which had been pertormed that day iu at. Patrick's Church. Hecou-
glatulated them for their zeal and, iu closing, ur{^ed iLem 10 ever bo
prouil of their Catholicity.
"The music sung was Ilaydu's Sixfeenlh, and was ndmimbly ten-
dered by the choir of the cliurch under the dil ectiun of 31r. E. F. Faulk-
ner, with 3lr. Michael Jidinson as organist. At the end of the Mass,
and after the Archbishop s blessing, the Tn L'entn was sung by the whole
congregation, led by Father Teeling, of Newbuiy])ort. To a lox-r of
congregational siugillg the effect was gland. To hear a v;ist multitude
offering up a hv mu ot praise tu Alniighiy God is, indeed, the acme uf
devotional music.
" In the evening. Solemn Pontifical Vespers were sung by Ut. Uev.
Bishop t-'ouri»y, of .Vlhany ; nitd the sermou was pieacued by IU. Uev.
BlsllLip liealey, of Portland, Me."
Hardly was this last work completed when another
important one w;t3 undertaken by Father O Biien.
St. Mary's Church, to which we have already referreil,
having been for some time closed, he now determined
to utilize as a school for the boys of his parish. For
that purpose he had it transformed into a model
school building, with two line halls, and ten large,
well-ventilatsd and convtniently-provided school-
rooms, all ready fcr occupancy in September, 1881,
though the school was not opened until the following
year, owing to the difficulty of obtaining a sufficient
iiumljerof suitable instructors. By September, lbS2,
however, he had procured as teachers one of the most
succes.->lul religious-teaching societies in the country,
the Xaverian Brothers, a congregation that had been
introduced into the United Slates in 1854. Five iu
number came to Lowell, with Brother Joseph as t?ii-
perior for seven months, alter which he w;is oucceedeil
by Brother Dominic, who remained in charge until
18SG, when Brother Augelus, the present Superior,
wa.s appointed. The original number has now in-
creased to eleven. The number of pupils, which was
was at first JOO, has increased to 5G0, blessed with
that teaching of all most essential, moral and relig-
ious; and pursuing a course of mental training sec-
ond to none in the city, supplemented by physical
drill and military discipline, making a grand combi-
nation of educational requisites, which cannot fail to
produce strong, intelligent, loyal and conscientious
citizens. In coanectiou with the school are a variety
of societies, amoiigst them the St. Patrick's Cadel.s,
two hundred and filty in number; aloo, a fine or-
LOWELL.
165
chestra, and St. Patrick's School Brass Band, of
twenty-six pieces.
An interesting event in connection with this school
took place March 17, 1890, when our country's flag
was raised above it, with most impressive ceremonies.
The school hall, decorated for the occasion with na-
tional emblems and the Irish colors, was inadequate
to accommodate the large number of people gath-
ered to witness the exercises. The school orchestra
made its first appearance, and its fine rendering of
national airs won enthusiastic applause from the
audience, as did all the other participants. The flag
was presented with an appropriate speech by Rev.
Father Burke, on behalf of the St. Patrick's Tem-
perance Society, and was accepted by the rector.
Father Michael O'Brien, in behalf of the school.
Mayor Palmer also made a short address.
A few days before there had been erected on the
school building a substantial flag-pole, surmounted by
a gilded cross — " the cross, not as the emblem of so-
called Romanism, or Anglicanism, or any other ' ism,'
but as the emblem of man's salvation." After the
presentation all adjourned to the sithool-yard, whence
to watch the raising of the flag, and, as the " Star
Spangled Banner" was thrown to the breeze, all the
pupils sang " The Flag Above the School," a song,
written for the occasion by Henry F. O'Meara, of
Boston. A few days after, a somewhat similar cere-
mony took place at the Academy.
The interest of the Catholics of Centralville, that
part of taecity across the river, who had been obliged
to come quite a distance to attend Mass, next engaged
Father O'Brien's special attention; and, the Arch-
bishr>p having decided that they were entitled to a
church, formed of Centralville and Dracut a separate
parish, and committed to Father O'Brien the building
of a church for their benefit in the former place. The
site of this building is central and well adapted to re-
ligious purposes. It has a frontage of ninety feet on
Sixth Street, and is one hundred and eighty feet deep,
extending to Seventh Street, with the s.tme frontage on
this as on Sixth Street, making it altogether most de-
sirable. On the 10th of December, 1883, ground was
accordingly broken for the beginning of the work on
the basement. From that time forward, work was
pushed rapidly, and on the 21st of the following April
the corner-stone was laid with impressive ceremonies
in the presence of over twenty thousand people. The
Most Rev. Archbishop and other clergymen, of whom
there were about twenty, were escorted from St. Pat-
rick's to the site for the new church by a long pro-
cession composed of the various Catholic societies of
the city, with Mr. Michael Corbet as marshal of the
day. After all had taken their places, and the Veni
Creator had been intoned by the clergy present,
Very Rev. Jeremiah O'Connor, S.J., president of
the Boston College, preached a most eloquent ser-
mon, which was listened to with uncovered heads by
the vast multitude on all sides. He was followed bv
Rev. Arthur J. Teeling, of Newburyport, who spoke
briefly but forcibly on the objects and necessities of
church-building in this young and rapidly-growing
country.
The ceremony of laying the corner-stone was then
performed by Most Rev. Archbishop Williams, with
Rev. Fathers Tortelle, of Lowell, and McGlew, of
Chelsea, as attendants ; Rev. Father Shaw as master
of ceremonie8„and Rev. Martin O'Brien, of Newton
Upper Falls, as cross-bearer.
In the corner-stone was placed a box containing a
copy of each of the Lowell papers, and one of each of
the principal Catholic papers of the country ; and
some of the current coins of the United States. Writ-
ten on parchment and placed in the box is an inscrip-
tion in Latin, of which the following is a translation :
" For the preater glory of God.
Leo XIII., Chief Pontiff.
Chester A. Arthur, Praeident of the American Repablic.
Ueorge D. Robinfioo, Governor of Miissacliusetts. ,
John J. Donova,n, Mayor of Lowell.
Michael O'Brien, the hnt puator.
" The Moet ReTerend and Illiiatnoiu Archbishop of Boston, on the
21st of April, 1884. laid tliis corner-stone. In the city of LrfjwctI, in tho
presence of an immense concourse of people, under the iuvocutiou of
8t. Michael, Jesue, Mary and Joseph."
From that time forward, the work was pushed with
incredible rapidity, until, the basement having been
made ready for religious services, it was dedicated by
Archbishop Williams, as St. Michael's Church, on
the 22d of June of the same year, with Rev. William
O'Brien, whom we have already mentioned, as its
pastor. Mass on the occasion was celebrated by Rev.
Wm. Blenkinsop, South Boston, and an appropriate
dedication sermon preached by Rev. Joshua P. Bod-
fish. Vespers in the evening was sung by Rev. Ar-
thur J. Teeling, who preached an eloquent sermon on
devotion to St. Michael, the Archangel.
Divine service is still held in the basement. It
is provided with three altars, of which the prin-
cipal is a very handsome and costly marble one, pre-
sented by Mr. Timothy O'Brien. The two others are
of cherry wood, finely finished and polished. The
place is well ventilated and lighted by twenty-four
large windows, and there is a seating capacity of
about eleven hundred. The church, which is to be
Romanesque in architecture, is to be built of brick,
wiih granite trimmings, and, when completed, will
be very handsome. It will be seventy feet in front,
and one hundred and thirty-five feet deep. The tower
will be one hundred and seventy feet high, and will
contain a belfry. The windows will be the finest
qualil^ of stained glass. The interior will be finished
in hard ash. There will be two hundred and thirty-
five pews, and the seating capacity of the church will
be over fifteen hundred. There will be three hand-
some marble altars, and a finely-finished cherry pul-
pit. The architect's estimate of constructing the
building is one hundred thousand dollars.
Of its esteemed pastor, Rev. William O'Brien, a
166
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
local paper says : " He is genial and kindly in tem-
perament and mach loved by all his parishioners. His
management of the church has been excellent; and
under his careful guidance the parish is destined to
become one of the largest in the city." His present
assistant is Rev. John J. Gilday, a native of Lowell, a
most zealous and highly esteemed clergyman.
A handsome parochial residence was purchased
soon after the dedication, and a fine parochial school
was then built — a school said to be possessed of every
convenience, and, in point of architectural beauty, un-
surpassed by any building of its class in the city. It
is of wood, sixty by sixty, and two and a half stories
high, or sixty-two feet from the first Hoor to the bell-
tower. There are six rooms, which, altogether, will ac-
commodate over four hundred pupils. In the top
story, will be a large hall which will be u.sed for
lectures and entertainments. The basement can be
used aa a recreation hall on stormy days. Beinir ready
for occupancy in September, 1880, the Girls' School
was opened with two hundred pupils, in charge of five
Dominican Sisters. The coming September the Boys'
Department will be opened with about the same num-
ber, and under Sisters of the tame order.
The education of all committed to his care having
been attended to, through the provision of parochial
schools and the Academy, Father O'Brien was next
desirous of providing for the theological training of
poor but deserving young men of his parish, whom
God might bless with a vocation for the priesthood.
Accordingly, on the opening of the Diocesan Ecclesi-
astical Seminary, at Brighton, he contributed a burse
t)f five thousand dollars to that institution, with the
understanding approved of in the following acknowl-
edgement which he received from the Ari'libishop:
"BusToN, June lo, lS?iS.
" Ueceived from Rev, Slichnel O'Brit-n, P.It., St. r;Uriek's Clmrcli,
l.u^^t-ll, t]%'u tiloiiKiiud dulLili* furu tiill blime il two liulf Uiirsea in tlic
Uurttuti Efclesiiiaticiil Si-niiruir>, lliightun, \MIli ri;;hls uf [iifBent;iliun
liy the ret-tor uf St. I'atiick's (.'liiiitli, Luwt-II, uf otuiients for tlie bni^e,
uuU uilL iTcft^rvuce tu l^c ^ivcii tu sttiileiils fiuni lite siiitl {jiiri^b.
" -!- Jno .1. WtLLtAMS,
" Archbisliop of Boston, frcs.''
And now to return finally to " the parent church "
of all Lowell's Catholic temples of divine worship —
St. Patrick's — after having given somewhat of a de-
scription of all the buildings connected with it — the
Parochial Residence, the Convent, the Sisters' cLapel,
the Academy, and Girls' School, the Boys' School,
and the Brothers' House— all of which appear in
the accompanying engraving.
In describing its beauties and recounting its ex-
cellent qualifications for the sacred purpose of its
-erection, it seemed diflicult to specify anything in
which St. Patrick's Church seemed lacking. There
was one thing, however, that presented itself to the
minds of the zealous and active assistant priests there,
when the approach of the fortieth anniversary of the
ordination of the honored rector, February 17, 1889,
suggested a celebration of the event, and a preseu-
tation of some gift that would, in a measure, bespeak
the reverence, atlection and appreciation of them-
selves and of the congregation. This was a chime of
bells to be placed in the church-tower in his honor.
The absence of Father O'Brien, who had gone to
Palmyra, N. Y., to attend the funeral of an old friend,
Rev. Thomas Cunningham, gave them an opportunity
to carry out their plans. Calling the congregation
together, the project was no sooner mentioned than it
was •entered into with the greatest enthusiasm. Com-
mittees were formed and the parish canvassed with
most gratifying results before Father O'Brien's return ;
which, however, did not occur until after the anni-
versary ; and they, in consequence, were obliged to
postpone the celebration of the event until Sunday,
February 24, 1SS9. That wiu", indeed, a gala-day at
St. Patrick's. The religious commemoration of the
event commenced in the morning, when Solemn High
Mass was celebrated by the reverend rector himself.
The Very Rev. John B. Hngan, D.D., president of
St. John's Ecclesiastical Seminary, Brighton, and
Rev. L)uis S. Walsh, also of the seminary, were
present at the ilass.
The exercises connected with the presentation took
place in the evening after Vespers, which commenced
at half-past seven, when the church, ablaze with lights
and fragrant with flowers, was crowded to its utmost
capacity. Describing the event, the Loircll JJaihj
('oiiriiT said : " It was an occasion unique among the
Catholic community, and it was improved to the ut-
most, with an outpouring of good wiliand substantial
appreciation that could not fail to impress all who
participated as it did the honored recipient. St.
Patrick's Parish is a good deal like a gigantic family.
The pews to-day are largely occujtied by thos^e whose
fathers and grandfathers preceded them in the same
places, and there is naturally that leeling which,
while in no way exclusive or reseived towards the
new-comers, warms into a glow on an occasion like
this, when the thousands to whom St. Patrick's is the
cradle of faith, gather to do honor to u beloved pastor
and friend. The affection between the shepherd and
the flock was never more cordially exhibited, and on
both sides there were the most touching evidences of
mutual good will, respect and love." And the Zojw/^
6'(/?i gave the following tribute to the worthy recipient
of all these honors: "The friends of Father Michael
found it hard to convince themselves that that young-
looking priest had been a worker in the Church dur-
ing forty years. It is safe to say that hardly a dozen
members of St. Patrick Parish were aware one month
ago that Father Michael was about to reach his for-
tieth sacerdotal anniversary. And his review of his
early days as a priest astonished them still more, as
he presented for their inspection the scenes he acted in
as a missionary in the frontiers of New York and
Pennsylvania. The missionary days of Father
Michael O'Brien had been carefully concealed by that
gentleman, and his retiring disposition kept in the
LOWELL.
167
backgrouu 1 deeds of which any priest might be proud.
These were brought to the front at this late day on a
flood of tender emotions raised by the unexpected
tribute from hiu congregation.*'
In the front pews of the middle aisle were seated
His Honor, Mayor Palmer, a contributor to the bells
fund, the Xaverian brothers, delegates from the sodal-
ities and other religious societies, memberd of the
committee, and several prominent citizens.
Vespers were chanted with Rev. M. T. McManus,
South Lawrence, as celebrant; assisted by Rev. D. J.
Gleeson, of St. Patrick's ; and Rev. William M.
O'Brien, of Winchester; and with Rev. John J.Shaw,
of St. Patrick's, as master of ceremonies. In the
sanctuary, were all the other priests of St. Patrick's,
besides Revs. William O'Brien and John J. Gilday.
of Centralville ; and Rev. J. J. Foley, of Lowell.
After A'espers, while Father O Brien knelt before
the altar in silent prayer, the choir sang Vivat paator
bonus, on tbe conclusion of which he took his seat
in front of the altar with Fathtr Shaw beside him.
John J. Hogan, Esq., then advanced to the altar rails,
and, on behalf of the congregation, delivered an elo-
quent address, in the course of which he reviewed the
priestly hfe of the beloved pastor of St. Patrick's on
hi.> various missions before coming to Lowell, and
then thus spoke of his services in this city :
*' Tu the people of St. TatricU's pill idli you Imve niiniatered fur more
tUiiu twdity-tWij years. In tlmt pfrii)d, how uiuiiy uf (lie fclurdy, up-
right and houest iiitu of our coiit'iepatiun huve pnaaed away, uhu, with
yuiir saintly predec-esaorB, Fathers .luhD aud Timothy, built this sacrtd
L-ditit-'i-, and uow tlio Bona and duughtci's of those men revetx', respect
and honor you, their worthy eutct-ssor.
" By your efforts WHS ti.ischurch freed from dt-ht and consecrated to
the service of (Jod. li stands lor future generations to giize ujKjn, Riving
lebliuiony of an earnest and loyal people, proud in Laving ho zeuloub
and iudefatigable a pastor.
*' To you w e arc indebtod for this l>eaiitiful marble nltar, a vork of art
and beauty, and enibleniutic of the purity of our church. Tlifr mugnili-
ceut wlndow^, which portray the mysteries of uur religion, are the
reniilt of your hihor; and our enicient bchouls, founded by you, are fur-
ther proofs of your anxiou-i caic and Wiitchfulnees.
" For these priceless favors we, your parishionerE, arc most deeply
grateful, and in appreciation thereof we have assembled here to extend
to you uui best wishes and heartiest congrutulations. This is a gmnd
and niaguiticeut outpouring of your jwople, all itctuiited by the sinjile
purpu^e to do titling honor to you. whom, with profound faith aud
willing obedience, we look up to as our spiritual guide.
"And now, [{evereiid Futliei, in behalf of youi in-ople, it is my pleai-
ure to present to you this most beautiful chalice, symbolic of the ju iet-t-
hottd. made of the purest metals, aud ornamunled ami designed with
the finest art of the goldsmith. It telU of the sufTeringw of tuir feavionr
vheuhesaid, ' Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me,' aud
being the cup in which the tncharistic Victim, Christ, the spotless
Lamb, is to reiH'Se, it is thus the most holy of the sacred vesaeln.
" Beloved pablor, while you were visiting tlie sceties of your early
priestly labors, your cougregrttion, aa one harnionious wboJp, resolved to
crowu this liallowed temple with a chrnie of bells We feel that this
noble structure in which you and your devoted people take a just
pride should have located in its lofty tower tongues ol music, that will
proclaim to hejiven the love of the flock for the bhepherd. As their
joyous peals resound in the skies above, the melody of their tones will
ifverberaie through the hearts of the faithful here below. Their merry
chimes will ring out a glad welcome to the Sunday Mass, while theii
Bulemn cadeuce will foretell ihe time for evening ]n-ayer. Their pwert
music will ofltinies cause the hearts of the faithful to leap with joy and
the sinner to return to his mother Church. 1 herewith phice in your
hands a purse of money, the sum of five tlious.in>t dollars, subscribed f>'t
the purjHJse.
" In conclusion it is oar wish upon this aDDiversary to assure yon of
our afTectionate attachment to your person, and toofTerupa sincere
prayer that Almighty God may preserve you in health and strength
in these coming years in order that you may live to celebrate your
golden jubilee."
Mr. Hogan also informed Father O'Brien that, in
due season, he would be asked to accepta bronze bu;it
of himself as a token of the esteem of the clergy and
relatives.
Mrs. Mary Calvert then addressed Father 0*Brien
in behalf of the Holy Family, of which she was then
prefect; and Miss Nellie Foley, for the Sodality
of the Immaculate Conception, in which she held the
same office. Both ladies presented handsome bou-
quets of rare flowers. Mr. Michael McDermott spoke
for the Holy Name Society, and James H. Carmichael
for the Young Men's Sodality, whose offering to their
pastor was a gold-headed cane.
We quote a brief extract from the eloquent address
of the gentleman last mentioned as an epitome of
what had preceded :
•'Forty periods of time called years have elapsed since you became a
minister of God. During thotr years you have seen churches reared in
former wildernesses ; you have seen dioceses spring up in almost an un-
disc(»vered country ; you have se-n universities and colleges estAblisbed
and srhoolrt built in every part of thij; vast country ; and more wonder-
ful (liau all, you hove seen your people increase from a few thousand to
millions. You, reverend sir, have proved true in periods of pereecution
and oppression, have seen your people persecuted on account of their
Frtith, prohibiting them from enjoying all the privileges and political
rights gi-anted them by the Constitution of our country.
"You have heard your people's devoiion to the Constitution atid laws
of these United States questioned by corrupt, ignorant and lawless fa-
natico and bigots ; and you have seen your people give the lie to the(*e de-
fumers when the nation was in its liour of peril. They proved their
devotion to the Constitution and their loyalty to the iiuttltutlons of tlio
countrj* by Siicrificing their lives for its defence.'"
Father O'Brien then ascended the pulpit, and
though much overcome at first, recovered strength
as he proceeded in an eloquent response to this re-
markable demonstration of his people's esteem. We
do not give here his address in full, as it was main-
ly reminiscences of his life, which will he presented
elsewhere. He thanked them for their uniform devo-
tion to him. He said he took all their praises less as a
tribute lo himself personally, than as a testimony of
the reverence in which they held the holy office of
the priesthood. He closed by expressions of grateful
feeling to his fellow-citizens, Catholics and Protestant
alike, for the uniform courtesy and goodrwill they
had always manifested towards him.
At the conclusion, the congregation rose and joined
with the choir in singing, to the air of ** America," the
following hymn written for the occasion, by Mips
Katherine E. Conway, of the Boston Pilot editorial
staff, formerly of Kochester, N. Y., where, when an
infant, she had been baptized by Father O'Brien,
then its pastor :
Oh, lift glad heart and voice,
And to the Lord rejoice
In hymns of cheer,
Thjt to our love and care.
And to our daily pniyer,
His tenderness doth sjiare,
Our Father dcuj- 1
168
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
Tlie diiy that glads the priest
Id church and home a feast
Hi3 people keep —
He sowed in bygone yeare
God's seed in giief and fears,
And nuw the ripened cais
In joy we reap.
AVliat need of praising word ?
Lo I his works pmiso hiui, Lord :
His fruilfu] days —
Long records fiiir and whito
And brave in all men's Eight
The eyes of Heaven delight —
How poor our praise !
The following Tuesday most pleasing celebrations
of the auspicious event took jiluce in the Academy
and in the girls' department of the parochial school ;
and Wednesday the same in the boys' department, on
all of which occasions gifts were presented. A few
days after, members of the Sodalities of the Holy
Family and Immaculate Conception informed Father
O'Brien that they intended, as soon as possible, to
present an altar shrine to the church in commemora-
tion of the happy anniversary — an intention, wliich,
as wc write, is approaching realization, and is to be
supplemented by a similar gift from Father O'Brien
and the congregation. To this end, plans have been
drawn, and specifications made out, whose execution,
next October, will provide St. Patrick's Church with
two most beautiful marble side-altars, one in each
transept, each to be surmounted by large groups of
sculptor work, thirteen feet higli and eight feet wide.
That to be presented by the sodalities is to represent
the Apparition of Our Holy Lord to the Biessed Mar-
garet Mary ; and the one by Father O'Brien and the
congregation to represent St. Dominic receiving the
Ilosary from the Blessed Virgin. Tiiese are to be
made of alabaster, in full alto-relievo, and finished iu
old ivory.
In less than a year from the presentation of the
bells fund, the chime of bells was finished and set up
in the belfry, all but ihe principal one — St. Mary's —
which, representing the whole thime, was yet to be
blessed.
This ceremony, which is a most impressive one,
took place on Sunday, the 9th of February, 1890.
The Lowell Sun thus graphically described the sur-
rounding circumstances: "The thousands who at-
tended St. Patrick's Church on Sunday last will re-
member the experience as one of the most inspiring
of their lives. All the space in the church that could
hold a spectator was filled at both morning and after-
noon services ; the vsist crowds gathered to attend the
ceremonies of the blessing of the chime of bells pre-
sented to the church to mark the fortieth anniversary
of the ordination of Rev. Jlichael O'Brien, the perma-
nent rector of the church.
"Tickets were in great demand for the two weeks
before, and the fathers tried to accommodate all the
friends of the church. A large number of Protestants
were eager to attend the cereiponies, and they were
well treated by the clergymen and members of the
committee. Everybody realized that the baptism of
the bells would be a series of events as grand as the
profound ceremonies of the Catholic Church could
make them. They were not mistaken, for all who at-
tended the ceremonies were greatly impressed.
" The day was a succession of beautiful and inspir-
ing events. Noble sermons, powerful music, the sol-
emn Pontifical Mass and Vespers, the kneeling thou-
sands, the chanting of the bishops and clergymen, all
these were there for the glory of God."
Solemn Pontifical Mass was celebrated in the morn-
ing, at which 3Iost Rev. Archbishop Williauis was
present, with Rev. John Flatley, of Cambridge, and
Rev. L. J. Morris, of Brookline, as deacons of iKjnor.
Rt. Rev. Bishop Bradley, of M.-mchester, N. H., cele-
brated the ilass, with Rev. Arthur J. TeeliuL', of
Xewburyport, assistant priest. Rev. William O'Britn
of Centralville, deacon ; Rev. James Walsh, of Lowell,
sub-deacon; Rev. L.S.Walsh, of St. John's Seminary,
and Rev. J. J. Shaw, of Lowell, masters of ceremonies.
Rt. Rev. Bishops MtQuaid, of Rochester. X. Y.,
Healy, of Porlland, .Maine, and O'Reilly, of Spring-
field, Mass., Rev. Fathers Joyce, O.M.I., and Ronan,
of Lowell, O'Reilly, O.S.A., and McManus, of Law-
rence, were present in the sanctuary.
An eloquent sermon was preached by Rt. Rev.
Bishop O'Reilly, on the Gospel of the day, which
was Luke viii. 4-15.
A still larger congregation crowded the church
at Ve-'pcrs, in the afternoon, when the blessing or
baptism of the bells took place. Pontifical Vespeis
were celebrated by Mo^t Rev. Archbishop Williams,
with Rev. Arthur J. Teeling, deacon ; Rev. Jarae> T.
O'Reilley, O.S.A., sub-deacon ; Rev. Fathers Walsh
and Shaw, masters of ceremonies. Besides the clergy
present in the morning, there were at the afternoon
services, Very Rev. James McGrath, O.JI.I., of
Lowell, Rev. J. J. Gild.\v, of Centralville, and Rev.
William M. O'Brien, of Winchester. The music on
the occasion — as is always the case at St. Patrick's —
was most excellent.
After the singiugof the psalms, the bell was blessed,
with all the solemnity possible, by the Archbishop
and attendant clergymen, while twenty-five boys of
St. Patrick's school and the same number of girls
from the academy stood as sponsors.
Another eloquent sermon, explanatory of the use
of bells and the ceremonies attendant on their dedi-
cation to divine service, was delivered by Rt. Rev.
Bishop Healy, from the text " I am the voice of one
crying in the wilderness."
In the course of his explanation the Rt. Rev.
preacher spoke in substance, as follows :
" Tlie Chiircli uses notliing wiiliont making it sacred by lier hlesniiig.
Yuii Dinst be iiBtuliislied lo see Iliut tlii? 1k;II uiiderwetit so mnliy differ-
ent funii^ of cereiHony. Vun would almost have Kiitl it was tlie urdina-
lion of lite preaclier. You know, or you bliould know, that it whs
naslied with consecrated water, tliat the metal within and uilliout was
puiilied by It ; you kiiuw, or you bhould know, that iu Ihu iuvocutiuu, the
'-zP
/<^^^^^'
LOWELL.
169
Church pravcd that the mntter profiine might be consecmted to
God, uiid in this praj'er alt implored that the spirit of darkucua in it
Uiiglit be froiii lliiit tiDle diHlM>lled.
*' Yuu §ee that tlie reverend brethren went nronnd consecrating it by
repeated slgiiH of the crosa, first with water and then with repeated
unction of consecrated oil, and, at ludt, you saw that they placed in it
the sniokin;; tluirible, Bhuwiug thereby wlmt should he the sacrednese
of the ficuind ilifT-ised by the bell in the upper realms. Thus the church
makes evi;rytliin" sncre-l, and thus hhe blesaei* this instrument in order
turonsidtT it freed of oil prolanity, ami tliut for the first time its voice
is to be like that of one crying in the desert, and that you will hearken
to its sound as to the Toice of the servant of God in all the lessons It
brings to you.
** ' I am the voice of one crv'ing in the desert,' and this bell, when
elevated in the tower of the church, will be to you a preacher; and
when I look upon this congregation and remember the old bell that
souuded uu so many days ,of gladness and of sorrow in this church in
yeiii-b pa*it, I cannot but wish that this voice that cries in the wilderness
may he to yoii a faithful pre.icher and keep in your miii<ls the divine
diameter of the cliurch and her leaching. And I cannot but hope, too,
that it will be many yeaiu before the bells erected hero to coninieniorute
the foitielh anniveiiniry of the ordination tu the priesthood of your
dear pastor— wilt toll the sad uulea tbut will follow Liui tu the liouie of
his predecessors."
On the conclusion of the cUscourfe the Archbishop
gave the Benediction of the Most Blessed Sacrament
10 the kneeling multitude, in which every heart
thrilled with the triumphant inspiration of Catholic
])iely as Father O'Brien rang out the consecrated
bell's fust peal in honor of the Ileal Presence of our
Lord.
A few days later, this bell also was raised to its
jilace in the belfry beside tlie other sixteen. Thurs-
day evening of that week Mr. Barbourka gave a roost
pleasing concert upon them, the first number of
which was, most appropriately, a hymn to St. Pat-
rick. This was followed by various sacred and patri-
otic airs. Mr. Barbourka's place has since been well
supplied by Mr. Cosgrove, whose manipulations are
most satisfactory.
And thus the chimes have continued ever since, and
will so continue long after they have tolled a re-
quiem for all who now listen to their summons — in-
creasiiig in strength and harmony, gladdening priests
and people as they raise their hearts and souls hea-
venward; a call to God's worship, a proclamation cf
the glory and splendor of His holy temple, and a re-
minder of the devoted priest more than half of whose
consecrated years have been unselfishly given to the
Catholics of St. Patrick's Parish.
The year 1890 presents, indeed, a pleasing retro-
spect in the history of St. Patrick's Church. She has
been assailed by many enemies and conquered them ;
loved and respected by many friends, and been true
to them ; mother of many devoted and worthy chil-
dren whom she has tenderly nurtured, and for whom
she has won the blessing of her Divine Spouse.
She sees now, in place of the few exiled, poverty-
stricken, but whole-souled and faithful sons of St.
Patrick forty thousand Catholics of various ances-
tries, but all devoted and loyal to this noble country,
whose justice and liberality have allowed their
Cburch such phenomenal growth. She sees them
gathered around many altars of the one True Living
God, in the numerous temples of Catholic worship iu
Lowell, all of whom look upon her as the parent
church ; and she congratulates herself and them that
the three-score years of Catholicity in their city that
have rolled on, with their changing seasons, their
varying sunshine and storm, have but caused her
Heaven-inspired organization to wax stronger and
stronger, and become a more and more potent factor
in the temporal, educational, moral and spiritual
advancement of the people of Lowell.
Key. John O'Brien.'— In the honored list of pas-
tors of St. Patrick's Church, Lowell, none, probably,
will hold a higher, none, certainly, a dearer place,
than Rev. John O'Brien, whose devoted toil of up-
wards of twenty-six years made for that parish a
most honorable record, and won for Catholicity most
glorious results.
Descended from a noble family of ancient Thom-
ond, whose records are amongst the most illustrious in
Ireland's annals, John O'Brien was born in the year
1800, in BalRna, County Tipperary, Ireland. Blessed,
as had been his brother. Timothy, who was nine years
his senior, with a vocation for the priesthood, he was
carefully educated for that highest of all professions;
and, having honorably completed his studies, was or-
dained at Limerick the 28th of December, 1828, for
the Diocese of Killaloe. He was stationed for some
time at Clare, near Ennis, and was there highly es-
teemed ; as, indeed, he was wherever the duties of his
profession led him.
After about twelve years of faithful and zealous ser-
vice, he ex pressed to his bishop an srdent desire to once
againsee his brother, Father Timothy O'Brien, who had
left Ireland when John was only sixteen years old, but
for some time his request for permission to visit him
was not granted. Meanwhile, accounts from Father
Timothy and others of the scarcity of priests in this
country, and the great work to be done here, inspired
him with a desire not only to visit, but to remain with
his brother. At length, permission was given him to
do so ; and about the year 1840 the two brothers, sep-
arated for twenty-four years, were re-united at Rich-
mond, Va., where Father Timothy was for several
years stationed. They did not remain so long, how-
ever. In about a year Rev. Richard V. Whelan, who
had been pastor of Martinsburg and surroucdiug
missions, was consecrated Bishop of Richmond, March
21, 1841 ; and, having a high appreciation of Father
John's energy and zeal, as also of his great -physical
strength and vigor, urged him to take his own place
in the extensive missionary field to which Martins-
burg belonged.
Interpreting the request as the will of God, Father
John complied with it, and for about seven years led
a most laborious and self-sacrificing life, spending a
considerable portion of his time on the road, going
from one station to another, riding oftentimes many
>By KatLarine A. 0'E.neBe.
170
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
miles to administer the rites of the Church to the
sick and dying. Well might it be said of bim, as of j
his predecessor, Father VVhelan, " He traversed hills
and mountains, through rain and shine and cold and
heat; many a death-bed was cheered by his pres-
ence, many a heart made glad, many a soul saved
through his labors. Great and grand wai his charity,
sincere his life, and disinterested his sacrifices. . . .
Though a stranger to us, in a strange country, his
life's work challenges our admiration."
In addition to Martinsburg, Father O'Brien had the
spiritual care of Winchester, Harper's Ferry and sev-
eral other places. In a collection of sketches of the
churches in that vicinity, we find the following, with
regard to the former place : " For four long years
they [the people of Winchester] had not the happi-
ness of being present at the Holy yacrifice. At last,
in 1844, their dear Saviour had compassion on their
loneliness and sorrow, and sent them Rev. John
O'Brien, then stationed at Harper's Ferry, who visited
Winchester once in three months, and offered the
Holy Sacrifice for the half-dozen Catholics present.
It was not until 1847 that things began to change for
the better. In that year turnpikes were being built,
on which many Irishmen and Catholics worked. A
priest from Harper's Ferry now came regularly once
a month.
Father John, as also his brother, always kept up a
close intimacy with the Jesuits ; and it was by one
of these, the venerable Father McElroy, that the
Boston diocese was suggested to the former as a more
fertile field for his pious labors. He, r.ccordingly
turned hiiher his steps in 1848, and was cordially
welcomed to this diocese by Rt. Rev. Bishop Fitzpat-
rick, who commissioned him to take charge of the
Catholics in Newburyport, Chelsea and other eastern
districts in this State, the former of which he chose
as the headquarters of his mission. Father O'Brien's
first visit is well and pleasantly remembered by many
persons still in Newburyport. During his brief stay
there, he did everything possible to advance the
cause of religion ; his genial manner, cultured mind,
pious zeal, and interest for the good of the general
public, both Catholic and Protestant, being very
powerful in softening the asperities with which those
who differ from them in religion are apt to look upon
the first Catholic [)riest that takes up his residence
amongst them. His superior abilities and marked
success in Newburyport led to his being called to the
more important pastorate of St. Patrick's Church in
this city.
Of the good works he accomplished during his
quarter of a century and more in Lowell, we have
already spoken, but by no means done them justice,
in our sketch of the church. Neither did we do so
to the able assistance and unbounded generosity of
his brother. Father Timothy, who joined him in
Lowell, in 1850. As an account of one is incomplete
without a brief sketch of the other also, we will here
digress to say a few words about this good priest,
whose five years' ministrations in this city so endeared
him to the people of Lowell, particularly to the
Catholics of the older generation.
Timothy O'Brien was born in the year 1791, in Bal-
lina. County Tipperary, Ireland. Having, at an early
age, manifested a vocation for the priesthood, he was
educated with that noble end in view ; and, after
completing a most creditable course in the classics,
finished his theological studies at St. Patrick's Col-
lege, Carlow. With the design of becoming a Jesuit,
on the American mission, he came to this country in
ISIG, and entered the Jesuit novitiate at Georgetown,
D. C, where he remained about two years; when,
wilh the approbation of hisspirituil directors, he laid
aside his long-cherished desire of becoming a member
of that society, and was'orJained a secular priest in
1818, at Baltimore, by Archbishop Marechal. His
intention at th^ time, and theirs also, wjs that his en-
trance into the Society of Jesus was to be simply de-
ferred for a few years ; and, though Go 1 appe:ired to
will otherwise, he always retained his prelilection for
the.Iesuits, to whose warrior-like spirit in fighting the
battles of Religion, his own brave, zealous disposition
seemed akin ; while they, in turn, continued their in-
terest in the earnest, devoted priest, so much sd, that
the Provincial Rt. Rev. Dr. Ryder had made ar-
rangements that Father O'Brien should be received
into the society even on his death-bed if he so desired.
His first mission was to St. Patrick's Church, Fell's
Pjint, Baltimore ; and he also for some time oHiciated
at Carrollton Manor, where a church, St. Joseph's,
had been built in 1820, mostly througli the generos-
ity of Charles Carroll, of Carrollton, who gave the
lot and a considerable portion of the funds for its
erection. Thence he was transferred to Richmond,
Virginia, but soon after absented himself from that
place for about a year, having volunteered to minis-
ter to the wants of the Catholics of Baltimore, who
at the time were — priests and people — stricken with
a plague.
After this period of heroic and self-sacrificing de-
votion to his sacred calling, he returned to his charge
at Richmond, and labored there faithfully and zeal-
ously for nearly twenty-nine years. When he went
to that city but tew Catholics were to be found there,
and they were unable even to provide a place of wor-
ship. In no wise disheartened, however. Father
O'Brien went to New York and elsewhere collecting
for the benefit of his people, uutil, at last, through
his untiring exertions, an elegant and substantial
church — St. Peter's, now the Cathedral — was built.
As the Catholic population rapidly increased, he
became able to supplement this by other good
works; and, accordingly, he built an asylum and a
girls' school, both of which he placed in charge of
the Sisters of Charity, who are still there. The
school-house — a very fine one — he built from his own
private means, at a cost of thirty thousand dollars.
LOWELL.
171
At the appointment of Bishop McGill, in 1850,
Father Timothy retired from Richmond, and carried
out a long-cherished wish to spend the remainder of
his life with his hrother. Father John, in Lowell. Of
his assistance and encouragement to the latter during
the most trying period of his pastorate, and of his
earnestness in the cau.se of education, we have already
spoken. A scholarly man and an eloquent preacher,
bis abilities commanded universal respect, while his
charity, his kind, genial disposition won him the
affection of all who came in contact with him.
In March, 1855, he was threatened with pneumonia,
but soon recovered and the warm weather found him
apparently as well as ever. Early in October of that
year his intense interest in the progress of the school,
which he was building, led him to expose himself to
cold and dampness, which brought on a fresh attack
of pneumonia. He was confined to his bed the 6th,
and died Thursday afternoon, the 11th of October,
1855, at the age of sixty-four.
Appreciation of his good work in Lowell and regret
at Ilia departure were expressed on all sides. The
following is quoted from the Lowell Daily Journid and
Oiuricr, Saturday, October 13, 1855 : " He has been
in this city five years and has won the personal es-
teem of all who have known him. He was a good
and useful citizen, and in his death the community
has met with a loss. Unchristian, indeed, must be
the feeling that would withhold from such a man of
any faith the posthumous praise due his character."
Extracts from a lengthy tribute in the Evejung Ad-
wr/;so- of Friday, October 12, 1855, are as follows:
" For nearly five years past he has oflaciated in this
city, nor has be been idle during this time. The new
church on Adams Street, which h, perhaps, one of
the finest in the country, was built partly through his
exertions, and it stands a proud monument to his
memory, and an everlasting testimony of his zeal in
the cause of religion. While the Catholics of this
city have, by his death, sutl'ered the loss of one of the
best and most tender Fathers, the community at large
has been deprived of a good and useful citizen ; one
who took a warm interest in everything that concern-
ed the public good
"In all his acts he exhibited the true Christian;
and, although he has passed from our midst, he has
left behind him works that speak his virtues more el-
oquently than any words of ours. In his intercourse
with society he was most kind and affable, a bene-
factor to the poor, a friend to the erring, and gener-
ous to the afflicted."
Rev. Father Timothy was buried the Saturday
following his death, after a Solemn High Mass of
Requiem had been celebrated, at which Right Rever-
end Bishop Fitzpatrick and about twenty priests were
present. His remains were then buried in St. Patrick's
Church-yard, where, in a few months, the Catholics of
St. Patrick's Parish erected a monument, already
described, in grateful commemoration of his virtues.
To return now to his brother, Father John. From an
address of welcome to his nephew, the present rector,
several years afterwards, on bis return from a visit to
his native land, we copy the following tribute paid to
Father John's memory by one who knew him well and
long, Hon. John Welch : — " How our thoughts return
to-night to the fast receding past, to the past fraught
with events of so much importance to the parish and
its people ! How we wonder when we reflect, that —
not so many years age, but that many in our midst
can recall to mind the time wheu the Church of St.
Patrick's was the only Catholic Church in Lowell,
and the Catholic people but a handful ! Where we
now stand, stood a poor wooden structure, and where
we are now numbered by the thousands, there were
but a few hundred. Then it was that Father John
was sent by a kind Providence. He was filled with
the ardor and zeal of youth and religion, and soon,
aided by the untiring efforts of Father Timothy, this
noble structure towered to heaveu. But was this the
only monument he left to posterity ? Ask the unfor-
tunate, the needy ! More lasting than pile of stone
or brazen column is his memorial in the hearts of all ;
for his great charity, like the circling sun, was for all
without distinction. How his grand, stately form
now looma up before our eyes ; how his earnest, kind-
ly voice rings in our ears, as it was wont when urging
his beloved people to ' love one another.' Deeply
had he imbibed of the fountain of love from the lips
of the beloved disciple whose name he bore, whose
words he bo loved to utter, and whose life he bo strove
to imitate. ' As a man lives, so shall he die,' was his
oft-repeated exhortation ; and in him, how truly was
it exemplified. But shall we ever forget the grief that
wrung our hearts when it was told us that ' Father
John was dead,' that that pure and noble soul which
had labored so indomitably for our welfare was gone
from outof our midst! that that great and generous
heart which beat with such affection and love for us was
forever at rest! That was the saddest hour for us
ever experienced, and the gloom that settled over the
entire Catholic population was heavy and deep and
dark indeed."
The sad event here referred to took place the eve of
the festival of All Suinte, Saturday, October 31, 1874.
A few years previous, in 1870, realizing that he had
reached his " three-score years and ten," though, ap-
parently, little enfeebled by them, he had resigned the
charge of the parish to his nephew. Father Michael.
For Eome time after, he seemed almost as energetic,
and, to the end, remained just as interested as ever,
his departure being most sudden. It was All Saints'
eve, and some of the oldest of his parishioners were
gathered, where they had bo often been for over a
quarter of a century on similar occasions, around his
confessional, and there they had kept him the greater
part of the afternoon occupied. His duties, therefore,
bad probably amounted to an over-exertion, and he
entered the dining-room of the pastoral residence at
172
HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.
six o'clock greatly fatigued. Seated at the table,
however, he rallied, and was conversing freely with
Fathers Michael O'Brien and McManus, who were
present, when, suddenly, raising his hand to his
head, he complained of being ill, and, with a few
words, in reply to his alarmed companions, he fell
back in his chair. Father McManus immediately ad-
ministered the Sacraments to him ; and in a few mo-
ments he breathed his last. The cause of his death
was supposed to be apoplexy.
As soon aa his death became known, the streets
leading to his residence became crowed by his parish-
ioners and others anxious to learn whether or not the
sorrowful news was true. The next day, Sunday, the
sad event was toucbingly announced in all the Cath-
olic churches of the city ; and when, at one o'clock,
the remains were laid in the parlor of the parochial
residence, it was estimated that over five thousand
persons came to pay their last tearful tribute of respect
to their deceased i'riend and pastor. Members of the
O'Connell Literary Institute acted as ushers.
At a special meeting of the Lowell City Govern-
ment, held Monday evening, November 2d, to take
action upon the invitation extended by Rev. Michael
O'Brien to attend the obsequies, the following com-
munication from the mayor was presented :
"Mavok's OrricE, Nov. 2, 18T1.
** Ce^Ulemen tifthc City Council:
"I liuve cnlk'd you to(:ctlior .it tliis time that you may take mich
notion on tlie invitation wliich I liave itliis day recuiveii, for the (.'ity
Council to attend iu a Iwdy the funeral oljaequies of the lute Rev. John
O'Brien, as you may tliiiil^ just and proper ULder the circumstances.
" Tlie Rev. Jolill O'Brien, who was taken frt)ni this to the spirit
world, witliout a nionienl's warning, vvaa one of our old aud respected
citizens, who had performed Iiis part well as a citizen ; and, ju? a
preacher and niiniater, lias eudcared himself to hi^ parishioners Liy his
kind acts of beDuvoIcuce ; and their kind hearts are made sad by this
Buddeu dispetuiatioo of Di\ lue rrovideuce.
" Ftt.\NCIS Jewett, .l/uyur."
On motion of Alderman Huntoon, the invitation
was accepted. Alderman Crowley, in seconding the
motion, addressed the board as follows :
"I would that the pronouncing of a proper eulogy
upon the life and character of the beloved deceased
were left to some one in this board be.«ide myself. I
have known Rev. Father O'Brien from my boyhood,
and have sat under his ministrations since that time
as a Catholic. He was a warm-hearted friend, and
much loved the city of Lowell and its people. A
year ago he received an invitation to visit Ireland.
Lhe land of his birth, and to view the scenes of his
childhood once again. He declined the invitation
in fear, as he expressed himself, that he might die
there; for he desired to die in Lowell, where he had
so many ties of interest. He was a friend to me in
boyhood, and an esteemed and beloved counsellor at
all times."
At the conclusion of Alderman Crowley's remarks,
he moved that a committee, consisting of the mayor
and Alderman Huntoon, and such members of the
Common Council aa might join, be appointed to take
The
action with regard to attending the funeral,
motion was adopted.
Wednesday morning, the funeral services took place
in St. Patrick's Church, which the Sisters of Notre
Dame had draped in mourning. The beloved re-
mains, vested in clerical robes, lay in a handsome
casket before the altar in the main aisle. At the
right of the altar were seated the members of the so-
dalities of the Holy Family and of the Blessed Vir-
gin, each with appropriate mourning badges ; while
beyond, in the recesses of the school-room of the
convent, between which and the church the sliding
doors had been opened, might be seen the Sisters of
Notre Dame and the children of the school, whom
Father John had cared for so tenderly. The Sisters
of Charity were also there, accompanied by nearly
fifty orphans, towards whom his fatherly heart had
ever been most kind.
The Catholic organizations of the city formed the
line of march on Market Street about nine o'clock,
with Mr. D. J. Sullivan as marshal, and Messrs. John
Grady, John Sullivan, Patrick Lynch, P. J. Court-
ney, J. McLoughlin and J. Healy as aids, and
marched through Central, Merrimack and SufTulk
Streets to the church, the bands accompanying the
diflereut organizations playing, meanwhile, their sol-
emn funeral dirges. At Merrimack Street, the mem-
bers of the City Council were received at the City
Government Building and escorted to the church,
where they were given the seats reserved for them.
The venerable Dr. Theodore Edson, fifty years pastor
of St. Anne's Protestant Episcopal Church, and an
old friend of the deceased, also occupied an honored
place in the congregation. The church was crowded
to its utmost capacity.
All the societies having been seated, at ten o'clock
the clergy entered, and the OIBce lor the Dead was
intoned, the principal chanters being Revs. A. Sher-
wood Healy and John Delahuiity — both since de-
ceased — while five bishops and over one hundred
priests occupied places in the sanctuary. At liio
Solemn High JIass of Requiem which followed, in
presence of Rt. Rev. Bishop Williams, with Revs.
William Blenkinsop and E. H. Purcell as deacons of
honor, the celebrant was 'Very Rev. P. F. Lyndon,
Vicar-Geueral of the diocese ; deacon. Rev. James
A. Healy, then of Boston, now Bishop of Portland ;
sub-deacon. Rev. J. B. Smith, of the Cathedral, Bos-
ton ; and masters of ceremonies. Rev. .V. J. Tteling,
of Newburyport, and Rev. J. J. Gray, of Salem.
The choir was under the efficient direction of the
organist of the church, Mrs. James Marren.
At the conclusion of the Mass, Rt. Rev. Bishop
Williams, D.D., spoke as follows :
" Beloved People :^It is a sad duty we are called upon to fultil this
morning;, to pay our last res|iects to the remainsof your beloved Father
Jidm. You had all hoped that ho would have been Ixng spared to pre-
side over the parish and enjoy tho fniits of his work, but a satisfied God
called him suddenly to his reward. We cannot reciill hiiu ; we can only
luin^le our tear% with yours, for the sorrow you feel Li coiujuou to all.
LOWELL.
173
Of all the clergy, none was more endeared It waaa recreation to listen
to liis genial converBUtion, biu humor without guile, to enjoy bis gener-
oiiK huepitiility. He lived with you a qnarler of a century-, and
worked with you and for your KOod. and wtiere he labored his su-
jierior fell in* aniit-ty. All know what he found here — what he left.
The old church, built when Catholics were few, was then stauding,
and he determined to erect one ?i}uh1 to the best, lie did not begin
at once; he saw around bini the immediate want of religious iuBlruc-
tiou. He tlierefore called faithful women about him, who might
teach, not only the science of the world, but the Bcience of Ileuven.
Uelying on God and your generosity, uo one ever heard of money for
hot church, no buildiug went up with so little noise — so few collec-
tions. All that came to liim was put into this bouse, and it was only
after finishing it that the old 
