Barre Plains, Massachusetts

The war was now over, and the need of a return to a peace basis was weighing heavily upon the inhabitants and the distracted and uncertain condition of the country claimed their attention. With these weights upon them the matter of building the houses was postponed to a time in the future. Nothing more was done in regard to the houses until 1790, when it was voted to divide the town into eight squadrons and to build a house in each and their locations were again assigned, but if the residents of any of these districts were dissatisfied with the site, and they could agree upon any definite place, permission was given to locate the building on the spot agreed upon ; otherwise a committee should locate the house wherever, in their judgment, would best serve the interests of the people. After the town had been divided into districts and the building spots assigned, complaints were numerous ; after these had been discussed in townmeeting the voters ordered that the house in the Centre should be erected immediately and should be thirty feet square. This was done, but its dimensions were changed to twenty-nine feet by thirty -two feet; house No. 2 was built at or near where the corresponding one now is ; No. 3 was in the east part of the town on an old road leading to Hubbardston, from where the Sil.is Harding farm-house now stands; No. 4 was "about twelve rods southerly of David Underwood's dwelling house" (this dwelling was afterward known as the Marcus Spooner place, and has lately disappeared) ; No. 5 was nearly opposite where the present No. 5 house stands ; No. 6 was where the present No. 6 stands ; No. 7 was located on an old road leading to what is now known as the Williams place, and about midway between there and the present residence of Mr. Franklin Babbitt ; No. 8 was located about fifteen rods easterly of the bridge over the Ware River at Barre Plains and on the north side of the present highway. The inhabitants of District 7 objected in vigorous language to the location of their house. After much talk a vote was passed in town-meeting to notify them to agree by a majority where the house should stand. This building was at length erected southerly of the place assigned ; but this location was not satisfactory and afterward the town gave the inhabitants permission to move it. In 1791 the town raised four hundred pounds to erect these houses and notified eacli taxpayer in the varions districts to bring on to the grounds their proportion of the building material, they being credited in the tax-list for the value of the material furnished. The houses were soon erected, but the cost had been more than was anticipated. In 1792 the selectmen were requested to employ " a grammar-school master and direct him to the several districts in rotation " and to hold a school in each district so long as the proportion. of the school funds should be sufficient to pay the expense. In 1796, the population of the town having increased, additional schools were needed and another district was established, being what is now known as No. 9. In after years other districts were formed, in some instances by dividing the former districts and in other cases by establishing new ones in the remoter parts of the town, and houses were erected in some central location. These buildings were small and of one story, usually about twenty-five feet square, built plainly and without regard to any rules of architecture, and not a great protection from storms or cold. They answered the purpose for which they were intended and were probably in keeping with the quality and quantity of information imparted. From 1763, which is as far back as our records of Rutland District extend, annual appropriations were made for the support of the schools, usually forty pounds, until 1775, when the energies of the people were otherwise concentrated and the schools were passed by. After that year the appropriations were resumed and increased each year until in 1781 the amount appropriated was three thousand pounds. Large as this seems, it w:is but little larger than some of the preceding grants, as the currency had so depreciated in value that it was equivalent to not more than seventy-five pounds when we compare its value with that of the Spanish milled dollar. In 1782 the amount appropriated was sixty pounds, and from then until 1803 the amount varied from sixty to two hundred pounds. In 1804 the grant was seven hundred dollars, this being the first year that our national word, or character for, dollars was used in our official capacity as a town.

Passage source: History of Worcester County, Massachusetts, published 1889.

From the location of Barre, it was, before the days of railroads, a prominent thoroughfare for the stage-routes from Boston to New York, Albany, Keene, Brattleboro' and other places; prominent among those old-time driver.-i, which was then considered a responsible berth, was the late Hon. Ginery Twichell. Coming here a young man, about 1830, full of energy, genial, affable and always thoroughly reliable, he made friends of all, and always had a deep interest in the town and its welfare. To him the town was indebted to some extent for better accommodations for travel. Deeply interested in the railroads projected around us, he left the staging business and entered the employ of the Boston and Worcester Railroad, where he was soon after chosen as its superintendent, and afterwards elected to its presidency. On the consolidation of that road with the Western, he retired for a while from active railroad life, but never lost his interest in it, and it was one of his hopes that Barre should be connected with the cities by steam communication. Having chosen Brookline as his residence, he was elected to the national House of Representatives from the Congressional district in which he resided, where he served a number of years, greatly to his own honor and that of his constituents. On his retirement from Congress his active spirit led him to assume the presidency of a short line of railroad, the Boston, Barre and Gardner, then struggling under many difficulties. Always a friend to Barre, in preceding years he had advocated the construction of a road to and through this town, and it was due somewhat to him that our people began to consider this matter so early as they did. As early as 1840 the subject began to be agitated here. In 1845 the town voted to raise a sum not exceeding three hundred dollars, for the survey of a route from Worcester through this town to the Miller's River. This route being found impracticable, the matter rested for a few years. About 1850 the agitation again began, this time in connection with towns southerly of us. A line was considered, under the name of the Ware River Railroad, to extend from Palmer to Winchendon, but, mainly through the opposition of the Western road, this road was not constructed for a number of years. A charter was obtained, and renewed from time to time as circumstances demanded. The first section, from Palmer to Gilbertville, was built in 1869, and in 1870 ground was broken in Barre for its extension to Winchendon. The work of grading and track -laying progressed but slowly, but the road was at last completed, and in October, 1873, it w;is opened for travel to Barre Plains. In 1854 the town voted to petition the Legislature for permission to loan its credit to the amount of five per cent, of its valuation for aiding in building a railroad from North Brookfield to Barre; the necessary surveys were made, but for want of sufficient encouragement the scheme was abandoned.

Passage source: History of Worcester County, Massachusetts, published 1889.

There are two hotels at the centre of the town and another, to be more extensive, in process of construction, which is under contract to be open for business early in 1889. At Barre Plains is another hotel. The town is noted for its temperance and good order; no intoxicating liquors, except for medicine, are allowed to be sold.

Passage source: History of Worcester County, Massachusetts, published 1889.

Machine-read from a century-old scan, so expect the errors a machine makes: misspelled names, dropped words, stray characters.

Read the whole chapter on Barre Town.