Cohasset Town (part 2 of 2)

Source changes here: from The Genealogies of the Families of Cohasset, Massachusetts, by Davenport, George Lyman, published 1909; 14,500 words in this source stream.

Cohasset Town

The Narrative History of Cohasset has mentioned a few of the wrecks which occurred off Cohasset, and has given full particulars of the notable wreck of the emigrant ship St. John in 1849. The following account of some additional disasters with incidental life-saving and salvage of property may be of interest. The earliest records obtainable are in the diary of Joel Willcutt. (See page 478 of this volume.) These quaint entries show the close sympathy of the people of this sea-faring town with disasters of this kind. With Christian services they buried many of the dead and if the tale could be written of those wounded and frost-bitten who were nursed and cared for in Cohasset homes and sent on their way rejoicing, it would make a long chapter. The following entries in Mr Willcutt's diary have been copied verbatim.

1801 October 24th Mr. Samuel Bates' Schooner got on the rocks of our harbor & Mr. Bates, John Kent, Capt. Daniel Loring & one other were lost.

181 5 Sept. 1 Last night there was a vessel sunk of Cohasset rocks & five men drowned & two taken of the rocks alive after remaining on her spars 11 hours.

1818 Dec. 6 Sunday a gale of wind S E, this morning there was a Barque Ship from Russia loaded with hemp and iron, on the Minots ledges at 8 o'clock the upper part of the ship parted from the bottom and drifted to leeward with the crew hanging thereon at one oclock 9 persons were taken of and four were drowned.

1820 May 7 Sunday last night the Ship Roxana from Liverpool for Boston ran on the rocks off Scituate Beach & went to pieces, people went ashore.

1822 February 26th the Schooner Primrose from Boston ran ashore on the Flatts in the outer harbor and filled with water the Packet with a number of men went to her assistance & took out her cargo and landed it at this place.

1829 Feby 6 The Ship New England at ancor of the rocks with fore and main Masts cut away & southerly wind the 8 Ship of the rocks got under way.

1830 March 26 a severe N. E. Storm and remarkable high tide a sloop from Hartford got ashore on Scituate beach near Mr. Dammons and bilged; cargo principally Corn wich was totally lost.

1 83 1 Jan 15 & 16 a remarkable N E Snow storm snow very deep a Brig got on shore on Nantasket Beach loaded with rum and a schooner on Scituate beach loaded with Coffee &c.

1833 January 31 N. E. snow storm, schooner Maniel belonging to Salem loaded with corn and flour got ashore on the beach opposite Aaron Nichols the Capt & four of the people of the Schooner were drowned and one saved.

Feb. 25 The brig Holland overset in the bay. Remarkable high wind N. W. and cold. Three schooners went out in search of the brig. Two of the schooners went to Cape Cod. 27 & 28. Vessels got home.

Further testimony to the heroism of Cohasset men is found in the records of the Humane Society of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts (instituted 1785). A few items gleaned from the reports of this Society are as follows.

Cohasset, but those only are mentioned that can be identified. Some other awards are mentioned later in this chapter in connection with the services rendered.

About 1830 the schooner Rosebud (probably running as a packet between New York and Boston) was wrecked on Bassing Beach. The cargo was saved by Cohasset men, and the vessel is said to have been only slightly damaged.

On April 12, 1831 the schooner Boston was wrecked on Chest Ledge. The captain, named Webber had lashed himself to the mast and when the schooner struck he tried to get free to help save the vessel. Just as he became free he was washed overboard by a heavy sea and drowned. Owing to the prompt exertions of George W.k Collier and others from the shore, all the crew were saved. Mr Collier saw the wreck from his home (the old Collier house at North Scituate Beach). Hastening to Cohasset he collected a crew of seven men, who, carrying a boat across Bassing Beach, went to the rescue of the shipwrecked sailors. For this brave work the Mass. Humane Society gave gold medals to George W. Collier and seven others. Six of the others are said to be Capt. John Barker, John Lothrop, Lewis Willcutt, Samuel Stockbridge, Joseph Briggs and probably James Collier. Some are said to have received $10. in preference to the medal.

At about 1840 the Swedish brig Copenhagen struck on the Sea Ledges, badly injuring her bottom. The rising tide and heavy sea drove her over the ledge, and she shortly after grounded on Brush Island. She was loaded with hemp and with Russian crash and duck, and Cohasset men were hard at work unloading her while people of all ages were busy along the shore "fishing up the crash." The tale is told that when the bales of hemp were examined by the Custom House officer and compared with the bill-oft//L<y/ur^ cy^z^^y lading, only one bale was missing. It is said that later a Cohasset fisherman grappled and raised the last bale, and that the Custom House officials remarked: "How honest these Cohasset men are!"

In the spring of 1843 the schooner Maine struck on the ledges near Pleasant Beach, and went to pieces. As she broke up, a large portion of the quarter-deck, with three men clinging to it, was carried by the sea close to the rock in the middle of Pleasant Beach. The men jumped upon the rock and were safe, and the next instant the wreckage glided out from under them and was dashed to kindling wood against the ledges on what is now the Kimball property. The vessel was loaded with shoes, and many of the people obtained a long supply of foot gear from the beaches. In November, 1843, the brig Melazo struck on East Shag rock and drifted to between Gull and Shepard's ledges. Her cargo of sugar in boxes was saved by Cohasset men, and the vessel was also saved.

Perhaps the most notable work of wrecking by Cohasset men was in connection with the ship Alabama. On the night before Thanksgiving in 1847 she struck on Minots Ledge where the lighthouse was later erected, and drifted about two miles to the eastward, where she sank in ninety feet of water. Her topgallant masts are said to have been visible above the water, but in the following February they disappeared as the vessel broke open. Some of the cabin fittings came ashore at White Head. Capt. George Hall is said to have re-discovered the locality of the wreck by noticing a peculiar yellow appearance in the water. The Alabama was a large ship for those days, and had sailed from Liverpool for Boston with a very valuable assorted cargo, consisting of china and crockery ware, tools, cutlery, railroad iron, chains of various kinds and sizes, and carpets, shawls, and other fabrics.

In early summer a number of Cohasset men under the lead of Capt. Nichols Tower, who was Underwriter's Agent and wrecking master, formed a company and made elaborate preparations to save the cargo. They secured the schooner Anaconda and had a particular form of tongs made at the blacksmith shop of Mr. Prentiss at the Cove (in the building later used for a store by Mr. Caleb F. Nichols). The wreck was too deep for work by diving operations, but a diver in a suit was sent down to reconnoitre. He found the vessel broken open and some crockery dishes strewn upon the bottom. By means of the tongs, crates of crockery ware could be caught and brought to the surface with their contents uninjured. Cutlery and chains were found packed in casks. Tools of various kinds were secured in abundance, and all the carpenters in town were provided with fine new saws. A curious and almost incredible statement is made that polished tools and cutlery exposed to the action of salt water at that depth did not rust, because away from the air, but that they would immediately begin to rust as soon as laid upon the deck. Many families were supplied with crockery; and plates, bowls, and teapots from the Alabama can be found in Cohasset to-day. The ladies secured some of the shawls, but on wearing them some mischievous boy was apt to cry out: "Alabama!" and their popularity as an outside wrap suddenly declined.

The tongs used were of several patterns and sizes, and varied in length from two to eight feet. They had strong, sharp jaws, and were so constructed that their weight kept them open. A special line or chain closed the jaws when desired, and they could then be drawn up with their prize. The tongs were also used for breaking apart portions of the wreck to get at the cargo. The Cohasset men worked upon this wreck for three summers, securing a very valuable amount of merchandise. The whole undertaking is one of great enterprise and skill and must have been difficult from the great depth of the water. The locality was known to fishermen as the "Alabama ground" for many years.

On Feb. 5, 1849, at 4 a.m., in a driving northeast snowstorm, the ship Jennie Lind, loaded with cotton, was wrecked on North Scituate Beach, abreast of the old Collier house. To show the great trials of some of these navigators, the captain of this ship said that he "had been in Boston bay for nine days and had not in that time seen the sun, moon or stars." The crew were safely landed and the cotton unloaded, after which, by dint of great exertion for seventeen days and the use of oil-casks, the vessel was floated and saved. In all this work, as well as that on another cotton ship named Dublin, which was also saved, Cohasset men took the leading part, and the cotton was teamed to Cohasset,

On October 3, 1851, the bark Vesta, Captain Flynn (the vessel being only two years old), loaded with coal, struck the back of Gull Ledge. Cohasset men discharged the cargo, and she was brought in and beached on the point now owned by Mr. C. W. Barron. John Bates of Cohasset bought her, but she was later sold, and made some long voyages under Captain Percival, on one of which she had John L. Pratt, as second mate, and Daniel Bray Lincoln, Nathaniel W. Treat, and John Murphy, all of Cohasset, as seamen. Later she sailed under a foreign flag, and is said to have been still afloat near the end of the century.

On April 8, 1852, the brig Mantel of Belfast, Me., Captain Staples, was wrecked on East Hogshead Ledge, and all hands were lost. Her spars came ashore on Sandy Beach, and the bodies of the crew were found inside Brush Island. She was loaded with turpentine and hides from Darien, Ga.

On January 29, 1853, the bark Maryland, Captain Davis, was caught in a hurricane, and her crew could not reef topsails quickly enough to prevent their being torn to ribbons. She came alongside the light-ship, then stationed at Minots, and tried to anchor. Failing in this, she struck the north side of Gull Ledge, and drifted into Briggs Harbor, where she was beached. She had an assorted cargo from Baltimore, which was unloaded by Cohasset men, under Captain Daniel Lothrop. The cargo was carried by lighters to the inner side of White Head, whence it was conveyed to Boston by packets. The bark was successfully floated and repaired.

On January 19, 1857, a very destructive storm wrecked two fine vessels upon our shore in one day. The first was the bark New Empire (briefly referred to in "Narrative History of Cohasset," p. 473). She was loaded with cotton, and wrecked about 300 feet from White Head. The rescue of her crew is notable for ingenuity and bravery. The sea was covered with broken and treacherous ice, of the kind known as "porridge," making it impracticable to use a boat and unsafe to attempt to walk upon it. A Cohasset man, named Peter Falcon, walked to the wreck by stepping upon two oblong rubber life-preservers, which he moved forward alternately as he proceeded over the broken ice. In this way he brought a sounding line to the shore, by means of which finally a hawser was carried across. A skiff was then pulled over the ice, and later a dory. Twelve men from the shore were thus drawn out to the wreck to haul the lines and render other assistance. The crew were all saved, including one with a broken leg and another with a dislocated shoulder. They were all taken to the house of John J. Lothrop, at Sandy Cove*. As the snow was very deep and the roads impassible, our lifesavers next turned their attention to rescuing Dr. Foster, who was trying to reach the injured men, but became buried in a snowdrift. They dug out his horse, and unhitching him from the shafts, drew the sleigh themselves for the last half mile.

For the courageous work in rescuing the crew of the New Empire the Massachusetts Humane Society gave Peter Falcon a silver medal and $10, and a bronze medal to each of the following: Isaac Pratt, Henry Collier, Nathaniel W. Treat, Alexander Litchfield, M. B. Stetson, Loring Bates, and L. Jenkins. The New Empire was saved and re-fitted.

It would seem that our Cohasset life-savers might well have been exhausted after this severe experience, but new work awaited them, for the same evening the ship California had struck on Black Ledge and had pounded heavily during the night. Three men on board had taken refuge on the ledge, which is a quarter of a mile from shore. The California had parted chains and drifted from Gloucester, where she was discharging cargo, and the men on board were not the crew, but ship-keepers. As soon as morning light came to their aid, our Cohasset men must hurry to Kimball's point to save the three men who were in peril. The same "porridge" confronted them here, and they came hastily, even without lines to assist them. Quickly seizing a dory and being unable to walk on the field ice, a number of men, by sprawling on their hands and knees, were

* In this house had been received in 1849 tne survivors of the ill-fated ship St. John. Later the house was for many years kept as a boarding-house and known as the " Lothrop House " or as " Mrs. Winslow's Cottage." Like the Warren Bates house, it furnished the first introduction to Cohasset for many of our present summer residents.

able to push and pull the dory to the ledge. They then assisted the three men into the boat and attempted to return to the shore in the same manner. When hardly more than 100 feet from the ledge, the dory settled through the ice so badly that the men could no longer move her.

In the meantime a skiff, manned by Nathaniel W. Treat, Thomas Tower, and a Mr. Leighton had been pushed out from Kimball's Point to within 50 feet of the dory, and had passed a line to the latter. The skiff formed a foothold from which to pull upon the dory. While this was in progress, men on the shore had laid hold of a pile of spruce floor boards which had come ashore from the deck-load of some schooner, and by stretching these upon the ice, men were able to walk out upon them, carrying the rope of the fire-engine which had been hastily brought from the village. Time had been precious, for the field ice was already moving down the shore with the outgoing tide, but two hundred willing hands on the beach soon drew both boats ashore with their living freight. The frost-bitten men were cared for at the house of Mr. Peter C. Kimball. That Cohasset men could save every life exposed in the wrecks of these two vessels, in zero weather, testifies to their pluck and bravery. Dr. Foster's sleigh was again pulled by men to the relief of these frost bitten seamen : this time being drawn over the ice, across Little Harbor. The cold was so extreme at this time that no salt water was visible from the highest rocks, and the lightship anchored two miles or more to the northeast of Minots Ledge was completely surrounded with ice.

For services in saving men on the California the Massachusetts Humane Society gave "certificates" to Peter C. Kimball and Patrick Sullivan, and $2 each to the following: Aaron Pratt, Manuel Antoine, Loring Bates, Nathaniel W. Treat, Charles Studley, Warren Bates, Cornelius Lincoln, Frederick Tower, Frank Antoine, Samuel Groce, Joseph Chadbourn, Frederick Torrey, David Stoddard, Lincoln Jenkins, James Edwards, James Pettee, William Doane, and John Powers.

These grim perils were not without their pleasantries, for as soon as the lives were saved, some attention must be paid to the cargo. As this ship was loaded with gin and sugar it was con- sidered by some to be very attractive. Peter Falcon, the surefooted, was returning from the ledge with a gallon bottle of gin under his arm, when one foot slumped through the ice and crack went his bottle, saving only a pint in the bottom. How to get this pint safely ashore was the problem - one which he solved by promptly drinking it. Some men who did not break their bottles didn't get home at all that night. The next day the town turned out to save the sugar, and brought it home in tubs, kegs, bags, pillow cases, and even stocking legs. They had enough to sweeten them for a long time.

On April 15, 1857, the bark Nueces, from Galveston, for Boston, with a cargo of cotton, hides, and pecan nuts, came into the bay during a snowstorm, and made the Minot Ledge lightship. The captain, supposing it to be Thatcher's Island lights, shaped his course accordingly for Boston Light, which course carried him to the south of Black Rocks. Seeing his mistake, he came to anchor, but the anchor not holding, he cut away his masts and the bark slowly kedged in upon the shore about the center of Green Hill. The crew, with three lady passengers, were landed safely with the help of the townspeople. Part of the cargo was saved by rolling it over Green Hill, and the remainder was loaded upon lighters. Capt. Joseph H. Smith of Cohasset discharged the cargo by contract. After about two weeks the bark was floated with the aid of the steamer R. B. Forbes, and taken to Boston for repairs. It was in rescuing this crew that Captain Frederick Tower of Cohasset nearly lost his life. Fastening a rope about his waist he plunged into the surf and carried it to the bark, but in doing so, narrowly escaped being crushed between the vessel's side and a huge boulder. This boulder remains by Green Hill now and is said to have been pushed to its present position by the vessel. A hawser was then drawn across and made fast at the top of Green Hill. Passengers and crew were then saved by lashing each into an arm-chair, and drawing it along the hawser to the top of the hill.

On Jan. 6, 1858 the ship Serampur struck a ledge off Pleasanf Beach. The crew were saved in a lifeboat. The cargo was an assorted one from New Orleans, consisting of flour, whiskey, syrup, hides, and lead. The flour came handy for many of the towns- people, especially as the underwriters valued it at only $4 a barrel, although flour was then selling for $8. A citizen could buy a barrel he had saved by payment of $2. There are rumors of barrels of whiskey being carefully buried in the beaches for future use. The eagle which for many years has ornamented the front of Independence fire-engine house came from the stern of the Serampur.

On January 28, 1859, the ship Roebuck, commanded by Captain Soule of Hingham, loaded with cotton from New Orleans was wrecked on the "West Willies." She lay there a week, and while being unloaded, a storm came and broke her to pieces. Many bales of her cotton were chewed up as she ground on the ledges, so that all the neighboring shores were covered with white cotton, washed up like seaweed. Many sunken bales were raised by grapples, and about 100 bales came ashore whole. All (even the loose cotton) was disposed of at good salvage (40 per cent).

On March 3, 1862, the brig Lincoln of Chelsea (only two years old) struck alongside the lighthouse at 4 a.m., and split in two. She was loaded with 240 tons of coal from Hoboken. Cohasset men recovered the coal from the sea bottom. As she split open her American ensign floated out upon the water. One of the wrecking party tried to grasp it, but remarked that it would be recovered later. Singularly, after four weeks it was found in Sandy Cove. On the same night the brig Marcia, also coalladen, went ashore back of the Glades House, and another brig was wrecked at Cedar Point, Scituate. All three of these vessels were consigned to one firm, and all were wrecked within a space of three hours.

On January 16, 1865, the brig Dawn of Day, of St. John, N. B., from Turk's Island, loaded with salt, struck first on Shepard's Ledge, and later on the big rock in the middle of Sandy Cove, and rapidly went to pieces, but the crew were saved.

In 1868 the steamer Tripoli, in a thick fog, ran upon the " East Willies," and her bow became wedged in the rocks. With the rising tide and with assistance of tugs she backed off and proceeded.

with cotton, hides, and rosin, from Charleston, S. C, anchored outside the light in a northeast gale and snowstorm, and slipping her anchors, drifted inside the "West Willies," and later inside the Hazards, and struck on the rocks. She had a crew of five men and one passenger, a young boy. Singularly, the boy was the only one saved from the wreck. When the vessel struck, the boy, following the example of the crew, climbed into the rigging. Looking down, he saw an old sailor taking refuge in the bow, under the slight shelter known to mariners as the "top gallant forecastle." The boy reasoned that this aged man was experienced, and knew the safest place, so he climbed down and joined him. As the ship pounded on the rocks the sailors in the rigging were "slatted" off and drowned, while those in the bow were safe. The old man ventured out too soon, however, and met his death as a mighty wave boarded the vessel. The boy remained in his place of safety until rescued. The vessel was a total loss.

On March 20, 1873, the bark Josephine, loaded with hides and wool, was wrecked on North Scituate Beach. The crew were saved, but the vessel was a total loss.

On March 12, 1878, the schooner Volante (a packet running between Eastport and Boston), loaded with herring and turnips, having anchored under the lee of Black Ledge, parted chains, and in a fresh north wind and snowstorm struck the rocks on Beach Island, about 200 feet west of the present breakwater. Her crew ran out on the bowsprit, jumped ashore, and took refuge in the cottage of Mr. Cutter. This happened at about the time of the celebrated "walking match," in the Town Hall and our Cohasset men, turning from one excitement to another, came down to unload the cargo. Those first arriving carried their goods to a convenient place on Beach Island and returned to the vessel for more, while another gang mysteriously loaded the booty upon a wagon and took it to Cohasset. The second gang had the easier time, and in the hurry and bustle were not discovered for some time.

On August 29, 1886, the bark Joseph A. Ropes, with a valuable cargo from Zanzibar, Africa, went ashore in a thick fog on a bar about half a mile west of the Sea Ledges, but was only slightly damaged and was pulled off in a day or two and proceeded to

I am indebted for the materials of almost all the foregoing account to Mr. Nathaniel W. Treat. Further information and suggestions have been obtained of Mr. Caleb F. Nichols, Mr. William E. Crocker, Mr. Henry H. Sylvester, Mr. George R. Howe, and Miss Joanna N. Collier.

The violent storm of November 25 to 28, 1888, appears to have brought disaster along our shore to a greater number of vessels, whose names can be identified, than any other of which we have record. Between Scituate harbor and Boston, no less than fifteen vessels were wrecked. The storm was of unusual violence and duration, and the wind reached a velocity of 60 miles an hour. The wrecks at Scituate were the schooner Edward H. Norton, with loss of fifteen lives, at the First Cliff, and the schooner J. and J. Locke, at the Sand Hills. At Cohasset the fishing schooner Stella Lee of Portland, Maine, 80 tons burden, came ashore at Bassing Beach, having been blown out of Gloucester Harbor by the violence of the wind. She was not injured and was floated in safety.

The schooner Sasanoa, of and for Bath, in ballast, also parted her chains in Gloucester Harbor; her crew escaped to another vessel, and she came ashore at Pleasant Beach, and was landed high and dry. She was of 79 tons, built in 187 1, and remained on the beach for several years as a picturesque landmark until unfortunately set on fire and burned. The Sasanoa had a number of times brought coal to Cohasset.

The most melancholy disaster in our vicinity was that of the steam collier Allentown, which undoubtedly foundered off Cohasset with all on board. Large quantities of her wreckage came ashore on all our beaches. The Allentown was built in Philadelphia, in 1873. She was 250 feet long, and had capacity for 1650 tons of coal. She was owned by the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad, and with her were lost eighteen lives.

Although only the three wrecks just named occurred on the Cohasset shore, six vessels met disaster on the shore of Hull. Their names are as follows : Schooner H. C. Higginson, on rocks below Atlantic House; schooner Mattie E. Eaton, on beach a short distance north of the last; the abandoned British brigantine Alice, at Kenberna, and schooners Cox and Green, Gertrude Abbott, and Bertha F. Walker, off Hull, near Toddy Rocks. These six wrecks made strenuous work for the men of the Hull and North Scituate Life-saving Stations, and some Cohasset men added their services. (See "Narrative History of Cohasset," p. 482.) Twentyeight lives were rescued from these wrecks in Hull.

Besides the wrecks already mentioned, two vessels were driven ashore in Quincy, one at Spectacle Island, and one at Winthrop, by this storm, making, as stated, fifteen vessels between Scituate and Boston. It is a curious coincidence that the great gale of 1898 occurred almost precisely ten years later than the one just described. On March 9, 1890, the schooner Lucy D. Windsor of Duxbury was capsized and sunk by a squall off Chest Ledge. The crew of six were found hanging to the bottoms of dories, and were saved by D. P. Sylvester and his son, Irving. For this act they received silver medals from the Mass. Humane Society.

On Sunday afternoon, September 9, 1900, the steamer John Endicott, returning from Plymouth, struck a rock in the Gangway Passage inside Minots Light, and was beached on the bar connecting Gull and Shepard's ledges. No lives were lost. Persistent attempts were made by wreckers to save the vessel, and she was for a time beached on the flats near White Head. Later she was sunk in 80 feet of water outside Boston Light while being towed to Boston. A further attempt to raise her was frustrated by a storm, and portions of the boat came ashore in Cohasset at Cuba Dam. She was an old boat, built in 1863, and originally named the Stamford.

It will be noticed that the John Endicott constitutes the only wreck off Cohasset in the past ten years. This immunity is, no doubt due to the great increase in steam navigation and to the establishment of Boston Lightship, in 1894. The building of Minots light was a considerable aid to navigation, but it directed the course of vessels too near the dangerous Cohasset rocks, and ships passing around Minots in safety might still be driven upon the ledges by a violent " Northeaster." Boston Lightship, in the middle of the bay, with plenty of deep water all around, makes a far safer mark to steer for, and its powerful fog whistle is a much better signal in thick weather than the fog bell of the lighthouse. The new entrance to Boston Harbor, with its powerful first-order lighthouse at the Graves, will altogether change the course of the larger vessels as they pass Cohasset. All this makes for safety, and it may be, let us hope, that the painful series of wrecks on our shore will never be repeated.

Enough has been recited to show the cruel nature of our rocks and ledges in time of storm, and also to prove the sturdy quality of our Cohasset men. Born and reared by the sea, they know her moods and dare to breast her dangers. The fact that the vessel was saved and repaired in eleven out of twenty-six wrecks near Cohasset enumerated in this chapter, testifies to the aid rendered from the shore. Would that every "rock-bound coast" had as brave and noble a band of life-savers!

The Great Gale Of November 27, 1898

The great storm of November 27, 1898, was by far the most destructive one that has visited this coast within the memory of man. A vast amount of damage was done along the New England coast and the steamer Portland was lost with all on board.

The only storm to be compared with it was the famous "Lighthouse Gale" of 185 1. A comparison of the height of tide in the two storms may be of interest. In the "old paint shop" on the wharf near Tower's store there is an old mark with the date 1851 against it, showing the height of the tide in that great storm. Mr. Edwin Souther has made a mark in the same building for this storm 28f inches above the floor and 13 inches higher than the mark of 185 1. A mark of 185 1 in the old "salt- house" on the other side of the Cove has been leveled across and just reaches the sill of the fire-department hose-house at the head of the Cove. The water in the 1898 storm rose still higher and put out the fire in a stove in the hose-house, thus corroborating the marks previously mentioned.*

To make a permanent record of the height of the tide in the 1898 storm, the writer had levels taken by Mr. Daniel N. Tower, surveyor, and copper bolts inserted in the rock in three different places. The levels were taken from a mark in the boat-building shop of Arthur O. Higgins on Margin Street and from a mark made by the writer on the "old sail loft" on the afternoon of the storm. The large doors of Mr. Higgins' shop had been broken in by the sea, and the level of the water was accurately recorded by the fact

* Careful surveys and comparisons show that the coast of Massachusetts is subsiding at the rate of about one foot in a century. As 47 years intervened between these two storms, the difference of 13 inches may be, in part, accounted for. Making proper deduction for subsidence, the tide in the 1898 gale would be seven and three eighths inches higher than in its predecessor. For interesting proofs of subsidence at many points along the shore, see Mass. Report of the Committee on Charles River Dam (1903) pp. 529-572.

that a quantity of varnish floated on the water in the shop and left its mark everywhere. The copper bolts were inserted in the following places: 1. In a ledge on Border Street near the "Village Guildhall" and nearly opposite the fire-hose houses; 2. On Border Street a short distance beyond the house of James Brennock ; 3. In the vertical escarpment of the rock of " Government Island" next the "Gulf Stream." The latter locality is within the tide gate, but the level mentioned is intended to represent the level of the tide in Cohasset harbor.

On account of the development of our shore, there was in 1898 much more property to be injured. The two causes of injury were the terrible gale and the very high tide. The force of the wind was shown by the great number of trees prostrated. All the woodland, even that situated several miles from the shore, suffered severely. Many pieces of pine woodland had half the trees uprooted. A few trees had their trunks snapped off midway. The sawmills and some portable mills in Norwell were kept very busy during the winter and spring in disposing of fallen trees and were then unable to work them all up. The uprooting of trees was facilitated by the facts that there was no frost in the ground at the time and that the foliage of the pines was loaded with snow.

Another evidence of the extreme force of the wind was the fact that many weather vanes were carried away or broken. In some cases the iron rod supporting the vane was bent at an angle by the wind. Maximum velocity of wind in Boston, 72 miles an hour.

The streets of the town were all impassable because of snow and of branches of trees and whole trees blown done across them to an extent never before seen by the writer. The electric-light poles and wires were sadly disarranged. Many poles were prostrated and the wires were in many instances hanging low or trailing on the ground. The snow had frozen on the wires, making them two or three inches in diameter, and their great weight when thus encumbered led to a large share of their disaster.

A very noticeable feature of the storm was its sudden onset and short duration. The afternoon of the 26th (Saturday) was cloudy and somewhat chilly, but not otherwise unpleasant. At 6 p.m. the writer rode a bicycle from Gannett's Corner to Cohasset and was not troubled by wind or any other circumstance. Later in the evening it began to snow. At 10 p.m. two young men rode their bicycles from Warren Bates' boarding house beyond Steep Rocks on Jerusalem Road to their home by Cohasset Common. They said the wind was becoming severe and there were about two inches of slush on the ground, but they were able to ride their wheels. Between then and midnight the storm broke out in all its fury, and houses in the village were shaken and rocked to an unusual degree. High tide occurred at 10.40 a.m. and the main violence and damage of the storm took place before noon on Sunday. It will be seen that the main fury of the storm was confined to a little more than twelve hours - a marked contrast to its predecessor, the Lighthouse storm, which gathered its fury during three days of violent east wind. In our 1898 storm it was feared by many that the night tide would rise still higher and greatly increase the damage, but such did not prove to be the case. The 1898 storm differed from its predecessor in not occurring at high-course tides. The high level to which the water rose was probably due to the force of the east wind in driving the water in. The barometer in the 1898 gale was extremely low, 28.7. The greatest damage to houses along the shore occurred at the Sand Hills in Scituate, at Nantasket Beach and the vicinity of Gun Rock, and at North Scituate Beach. Cohasset summer cottages were too well founded to receive much damage. The injury to beaches and shore roads in Cohasset was considerable, and a somewhat systematic account of the damage done on the Cohasset shore may be of interest.

Beginning near the easterly part of our shore, the most permanent damage was done to Bassing Beach. For many years past this beach has been used by a number of Cohasset men for the purpose of bleaching and drying Irish moss. For the men thus engaged, mossing has furnished a continuous occupation for the summer. The beach before the storm had upon it twenty-two small buildings, most of them being used for the storing of moss, but several served for temporary dwellings of the mossers and two were used as gunning shanties. The storm moved or demolished all these buildings but one, and lowered the beach a good deal, making it less suitable for mossing purposes. The buildings and their debris were stranded along the southerly side of Bailey's

Creek, one or two being carried nearly to Border Street. Fortunately all the mossers but two had sold their moss earlier in the fall, so most of the buildings were empty. Two men, Cornelius Murphy and Thomas Dunn, were staying at their shanties on the beach. As the tide rose and surrounded the buildings, each took refuge upon the roof and was carried some distance in that manner. One jumped into a boat which was drifting by and thus reached the shore. The other leaped upon a rock in midstream and was rescued by a man from the shore in a boat. No loss of life occurred in Cohasset on account of this storm and no bodies floated ashore. In Scituate, at the Sand Hills, a woman was drowned while attempting to escape from a cottage, and four young men camping upon an island in North River were drowned. At the culvert on Border Street beyond Government Island the railings on both sides of the street were carried away by floating debris, and the water was about six feet deep over the road. The railings between Gulf bridge and Tower's wharf were also carried away. Tower Brothers' lumber wharf suffered great damage, the lumber stored on their various wharves being floated off, strewn upon Border Street, lodged at different places about Cohasset harbor, and some of it carried under the Gulf bridge and stranded at different points up Gulf River; some of these points being quite distant.

All of Border St. west of Gulf bridge was under water and was made impassable for horses by being thickly strewn with lumber, fence posts, and other debris, which was in places piled three feet high. Several boats, including one sail-boat, were left in the middle of the road. The level of the water against Tower's building, known as the "old sail loft," was 33% inches above the street. The high-water line on this and other buildings is beautifully shown on the accompanying photograph which was taken from a point looking east. The buildings, beginning at the left hand, are : the old sail loft, Tower Brothers' store, Tower Brothers' coal shed. Beyond the latter is seen the wreck of the schooner Daylight, to be referred to later. The foundations of the old sail loft were laid in the form of a mainsail, so that sails of that shape could be conveniently laid out upon the floor.

what damaged. The greater part of Snow Place was under water. Also South Main St. near the Catholic Church, the water over the road in the latter locality being too deep for high rubber boots. The well of Capt. Henry Collier became salt and was unfit for use for a number of weeks. Part of Summer St. between Snow Place and the Cove was under water. The triangular common at the Cove was all under water, as well as all the streets bordering the Cove; all of Margin St. except the hill near its beginning;, all of Stockbridge St. except the hill near its further end and all the easterly part of Atlantic Ave. In Tilden's blacksmith shop the water was 16 inches deep over the floor. It was up to the upper surfaces of the window sills of the small house at the corner of Stockbridge and Margin Sts., level with the sills of Walter Spear's house on Stockbridge St. At the head of the Cove the water after rising to the level of the road fell in a cascade into the meadow beyond, destroying sidewalk, retaining wall, and adjacent platforms.

The piling supporting Caleb F. Nichols' store was somewhat damaged and the water rose to the window sills of the building. Mr. Nichols' stock of groceries was not injured at all, owing to his prudent custom of keeping all goods above the level of the counter. At high tide men were traversing the streets about the Cove in rowboats. Many small yachts had been laid up for the winter about the shores of the Cove, some, like the Zulu owned by Mr. William Hanlon, being securely lodged in the meadow adjoining Margin St. All these boats, and others anchored in the Cove, were set adrift and, by colliding with each other and with the shore, suffered serious injury and were landed in very strange places. The Zulu, a large sloop, was left close against the highway between the hook and ladder house and near Caleb F. Nichols' store. This boat was not injured, however.

The Daylight, a schooner of 10.25 gross tonnage, owned by Joseph Jason and used by him in taking out pleasure parties, was anchored in the Cove, but was beached by the storm at the landing just beyond Tower Brothers' coal shed. She had some holes stove in her besides being otherwise damaged and was carried partly into the highway. She was considered a complete wreck, was stripped of her rigging and her hull was sawed up for firewood, April 7,

1899. The condition of her planking and timbers when taken apart showed that she went out of service none too soon for safety. She was built in Bristol, R.I., in 1877.

The water poured through the depression between Atlantic Ave. and Stockbridge St., making an island of all beyond. It also isolated the Lawrence Barrett house, occupied by Mr. C. W. Barron. In Mr. Barron's stable it rose so high about the horses' legs that they had to be removed to a place of safety.

Beyond Bourne's corner the water was level with the tops of the stone walls, and beyond the next corner on Margin St. it floated off long sections of the wooden capping from the walls. In James Sweeney's house at the Cove a large stick of timber passed into a front basement window and passed out through a rear one. The family were taken out of the upper windows and rescued in a boat.

At Sandy Cove the water was very high, reaching far inland, around and between the cottages. It covered Atlantic Ave. quite deeply in front of Nathaniel W. Treat's house and near Mr. Fox's driveway. The seas began to break over the Sandy Cove beach and into the meadow as early as 7.30 a.m., which was three hours before high tide. The water was level with the floor of Rev. James Reed's piazza.

In the Mohawk Valley it poured across the highway, washing away the sides of the road. Roads of this kind are injured in these storms by a double cascade action, being cut down on the landward side while the water is rising. When the tide turns the cascade is in the other direction, cutting down the seaward side and leaving a narrow strip of the road intact in the middle. If the cascade action is sufficiently prolonged, this strip will also disappear, making a complete breach several feet in depth. On Beach St. the tin roof of the L of Mr. James H. Nichols' house was torn off and thrown like a balloon across the street.

At Cunningham's bridge the water was over the road on both sides of the bridge and covered quite an area of the lawn of Mr. B. Preston Clark with driftwood. One of the most thrilling events of the storm was the wreck of the fishing schooner Juniata at the breakwater, Beach Island, and the miraculous escape of her crew. This vessel had left the " Georges" fishing grounds and was returning to Boston, hastening somewhat to escape the threatening storm.

She was overtaken by the full violence of the gale in the middle of the bay and one sail after another torn to ribbons. She then anchored, but her chains parted under the fearful violence of the sea. Her captain then headed south, hoping to find calmer water in the lee of the ledges. The captain and 17 men all had to take refuge in the rigging. The vessel, after striking on some outlying rocks and later grazing Brush Island, struck plump broadside against the wooden breakwater on Beach Island. The men were able to step off upon the breakwater, but the captain was knocked off the breakwater into the water and was saved only by his vigorous swimming. AH were saved and effecting an entrance into Mr. Nicholas Sheldon's cottage nearby, made a fire and got the first warmth and comfort they had had for many hours. The vessel struck the breakwater at about 4.30 a.m., which was the hour of low tide. The facts that she drew 10 feet of water and that she landed on rocks which are perfectly bare at low tide confirm the opinion of Cohasset mariners that during that night the tide did not ebb at all but kept coming in higher and higher under the force of the wind. As the tide rose, the seas lifted the Juniata clean over the breakwater and landed her high up on the beach and close to Mr. Sheldon's piazza. The vessel was of beautiful model, only six months old, 78 tons, 100 ft. over all, 23 ft. beam, and 10 ft. hold. Her captain was Robert M. Corey, who owned one-quarter of her. A full account of the vessel and wreck was written by Rev. E. Victor Bigelow and published in the Boston Herald (evening edition) November 28, 1898. The writer is indebted to this account for the foregoing facts. The accompanying photograph shows the wreck of the Juniata.

The Juniata was sold at public auction early in December to a Mr. Burke of Scituate for $680. A building mover was employed to raise her out of the sand and move her to the lower part of fhe beach, after which, at 12 noon on Feb. 25, 1899, she was successfully launched into the breakwater, triumphantly passed out through the opening and, in tow of a tug, was taken to Gloucester to be repaired and refitted.

The escape of this vessel and crew is a very marvelous event. Had the vessel struck one hundred feet to one side or the other - from the breakwater she would have encountered savage rocks and been dashed to pieces. The breakwater was as safe as a wharf, but it suffered much damage itself and had most of its planking removed from the portion where the vessel struck it.

The sea swept savagely across Sandy Beach, washing away a portion of the highway, especially upon the back side, and covering other portions of the road with three or four feet of beach pebbles. The pranks played with the bath-houses are somewhat interesting. All the latter that were fastened down were either demolished beyond recovery or had their front and back walls completely smashed and were then partly buried in beach stones. Those bath-houses that were not fastened down floated for very considerable distances, often with little or no injury. Many of them reposed among the shrubbery along the shores of Little Harbor or were left insecurely perched like erratic bowlders upon projecting ledges of the shore, while a few reached the garden of Mr. Charles S. Bates near the head of the Common, being landed high up, within a few rods of North Main St.

Passing over the bluff occupied by the Kimball property and down the slight hill to the beach, we found the beautiful macadamized road and its high retaining wall on the south side reduced to a state of chaos. The sea had made wide breaches through it, washing it out to the depth of five or six feet, and we found only irregular hillocks of gravel and wastes of beach stones, impassable for all except pedestrians. The Massachusetts Humane Society's boat-house and the old boat-house adjoining it were both canted down from their supports. The new barn and boat-storage house of Mr. Matthew Luce was also undermined and canted. Mr. Luce's club-house, which stands in an exposed situation on the beach, was uninjured, probably owing to its being raised up on posts, with good opportunity for the sea to sweep underneath it. The small one-story house that had for many years stood high up on the beach was moved from its location, turned half-way round, and had some of its walls demolished. It was a complete wreck and was soon taken down. .

The house formerly occupied by the late John Roche, which stood upon the southerly side of Atlantic Avenue, was standing during the Lighthouse storm. It was in this house that Mrs. Peter Kimball took refuge during that storm, and she was removed from it in a boat, as the water rose high about it. Although uninjured in that storm it was not so fortunate in this one, as it was moved about fifteen feet off its foundation and turned partly round. Mr. Aldrich, who was in his cottage at the time, said that the Roche house was moved round a number of times and that he could one minute see the front door and the next minute could not. The water rose in the house a foot higher than the window-sills and reached a point 4 ft. 8 in. above the ground. An outbuilding measuring 10 ft. by 14 ft. and used as a woodshed and hen-house was carried by the water to Cat Dam. The Roche house was torn down about the middle of May, 1899. Thus perished an old landmark of the shore and the former abode of two very estimable people. Its foundation stones have been gathered into a cairn upon which nasturtiums gracefully climb.

The highway in the vicinity of the Roche house was covered by a bank of sand about five feet deep. At Pleasant Beach we saw abundant signs of the storm's havoc with the shipping, for the beach presented the appearance of a large lumber yard. Ship timbers of all sizes were strewn in profusion, most of them being of clean hard pine, showing that fine new vessels were unable to cope with the storm's fury. These big sticks were soon appropriated by our citizens, and some of them were used to build a breakwater at Pleasant Beach. The volume of water and wreckage pouring over Cat Dam broke down both railings and damaged the road. The causeway near S^eep Rocks had the tide to the tops of the fences, and it reached the level of the sill of the house owned by Mr. Edward Wheelwright, and occupied by his coachman, James Sweeney, at the foot of Steep Rocks.

Piazzas of the cottages of Hon. H. H. Coolidge and William Faxon, Jr., were destroyed. A chimney was blown over on the house of Matthew Luce, and the cottage of G. D. Braman had its tin roof blown off. The stable of the Pitkin cottage was undermined and canted down toward the sea. A small stone building on the small valley beach near the Black Rock House had its roof partly detached by force of wind and wave. The rear piazzas of the Black Rock House were damaged.

all kinds of wreckage and encumbered with the masts, keel, and several large portions of the hull of a coal barge that was wrecked on Black Rock. One of the masts now forms the lower section of Mr. Thomas W. Lawson's flagstaff at the John Bryant place. This coal barge, after striking on Black Rock, careened, so that the mast rested on the island. The crew climbed to the island by following the mast and were brought ashore by the Hull Life- Saving Crew. Many coal barges are said to have foundered in Massachusetts Bay during this storm, and the masts of two unknown schooners were found sticking up near the entrance of Cohasset harbor.

A great deal of wreckage was swept into Straits Pond, covering the ice for large areas, and lodged along its shores. A small onestory building was carried to the further end of Straits Pond and remained standing in the water near Nantasket post office for some time until it was burned.

All our beaches were made more steep, much of the material being carried over to the back side, leaving the beaches less able to cope with future storms and less able to protect the roads they bear. Undoubtedly the storms of a century have robbed Cohasset of some land area. Mr. James Pettee informed me that many years ago he cultivated a good-sized vegetable garden back of the Black Rock House, between it and the sea. He also said that on the northerly side of Jerusalem Road, between the Black Rock House and the beach leading to Green Hill, there was a field which produced hay and which was large enough for a hay wagon to turn round upon without difficulty. The condition of the latter place is now such that one more great storm might easily destroy a portion of the highway. (These references to the Black Rock House relate to the old hotel which formerly stood close to Jerusalem Road a little east of its intersection with Forest Ave.)

The winter of 1898-9 was also remarkable for a great snow storm. Snow had been falling pretty steadily for two days, when, on the 13th of February, the storm redoubled in fury and the rate of snowfall greatly increased. The result when the sky cleared on the morning of the 14th was that every road in town was blocked; so much so that all the streets in the center of the town had to be shoveled out by hand. Three places in town showed by measure- ment drifts eight feet deep, viz. : Sohier's hill, Sohier St. near top of Deer Hill, and Jerusalem Road near Mr. Wadleigh's cottage. It was nearly noon on Feb. 15, thirty-six hours after the storm cleared off, before a sleigh could pass from Depot Court to the North End at junction of Jerusalem Road. The railroad was impassable from Monday noon until 7 p.m. Tuesday. The snow was so deep on a level that a man residing by Cohasset Common tried to drive out in his sleigh, but in attempting to cross the Common, back of the Unitarian Church, got so badly stuck that he had to back out and return home. The oldest residents said they had never seen the roads more encumbered with snow, and the great storm of 1867 is probably the only recent one with which this of February, 1899, could be compared. The beach leading to Green Hill was covered with ice five to eight feet in thickness. This fact together with the frozen condition of the beach itself undoubtedly prevented further ravages by the sea.

The winter of 1903-4 was notable for its long term of continuous sleighing. It began to snow on the day after Christmas, and it was good sleighing on all the roads until Town Meeting Day (March 7), a period of ten weeks. Such winters are now common in the inland and northern portions of New England, and are said to have been common here in " old times," but it seems that the one just mentioned is the only one of the kind experienced in Cohasset for thirty or forty years.

A Short History Of St. Stephen'S Church

The parish of St. Stephen's began with the first service held in The Grand Army Hall June 4, 1893. From this venture there have resulted the thriving congregation and the gothic stone church which crowns the rocks in the center of the town.

The first rector, or as he preferred to be called, preacher, was the Rev. Charles Ferguson, who assumed charge of the parish April 26, 1893, and after two years he was succeeded in 1895, by the Rev. J. B. Thomas who ministered to the parish until 1898. A short period, less than a year, elapsed between his leaving and the calling of a new rector. This time was covered by the Rev. James Woods, who acted as locum tenens until the arrival of the Rev. Milo H. Gates, who resigned the parish at Ipswich to become rector June 1, 1898. The active history of the parish begins with Mr. Gates, for through his efforts the parish life was centered in the beautitul gothic church, with its modern parish house.

The corner stone was laid by Bishop Lawrence, Friday, December 8, 1899, in the presence of the rector, vestry, visiting clergy, and townspeople. Cram, Goodhue & Ferguson of Boston, were the architects. Following the perpendicular gothic style, they created a dignified, stately edifice, and their design was splendidly carried out by the contractors, L. D. Willcutt & Son. The workmen were almost all Cohasset men. The church was consecrated in June, 1900, by Bishop Lawrence, with the tower of the church uncompleted.

Mr. Gates left Cohasset January 1, 1904, to assume the rectorship of a New York City church, after he had completed the building of the parish house, which was a memorial gift, and he was succeeded by the Rev. H. K. Bartow, the present rector, February 14, 1904. The tower of the church was begun January, 1906, and dedicated by the bishop September 30, 1906. This, like the church building proper, was the result of general subscription among the congregation.

work of Mr. Harry E. Goodhue of Cambridge, and were given in memory of various persons, - a vestryman, a choir boy, one of the laborers on the church, and relatives of members of the congregation.

Several gifts made to the church are of interest as being historical. The alms bason the gift of Mrs. Thomas Richardson, is very old and came from Italy; the shaft of the baptismal font was given through Mr. Gates, by the rector, the Rev. A. C. W. Upcher, and parish of St. Andrew's Church, Hingham, England, and was the original font of that ancient parish. It is badly marred, and is supposed to have been broken by the soldiers of Cromwell when so many churches in England were despoiled. The font has been restored practically as it was originally. The ancestors of Abraham Lincoln, as well as of all the early settlers of this town and Hingham, were baptized in the font of which this shaft was a part. The corner stone of the church was the doorstep of the old center schoolhouse, which afterwards became the Grand Army Hall, where the first services of this church were held. This doorstep was used for those associations and because the grandfather of the contractor, Mr. L. D. Willcutt, labored on the construction of the original building. The two alms boxes, on either side of the entrance under the tower, are both very old. That on the left was an original alms box and came from Nuremberg; the other has been converted to the present use from an old "strong" box brought from the Continent, and is the gift of Mr. E. B. Townsend.

The Pope Memorial Church

The Pope Memorial Church was built in 1890 as a memorial to Charles Linder Pope, who died April 21, 1898, in the seventeenth year of his age.

The church, erected by his parents Colonel and Mrs. Albert A. Pope, is situated at the opening of Jerusalem Road, near West's Corner, fronted by a broad lawn and looking up Strait's Pond toward the Black Rock. It is built in gothic style, of seam-faced Quincy granite, trimmed with gray, and roofed with red tile. It has a large open tower, containing a rich tenor bell. The seating capacity of the church is about two hundred and forty, and of the vestry sixty. The walls are tinted green, and the ceiling a cream, with exposed rafters. The church contains a finely voiced pipe organ. Music is made a feature of the service, and many distinguished vocalists are heard each year.

The church is undenominational, and has no creed. Its mission is to deepen the spirit of universal brotherhood, and over the organ in letters of gold is inscribed the text

It is attended by persons of all denominations - in the summer by cottagers and guests at the various hotels; in the winter by the permanent residents.

The pastor, Rev. Cecil Harper, has been in charge from the beginning. There is a prosperous Sunday school connected with the church. It is supported by voluntary contributions and by an annual fair.

The Paul Pratt Memorial Library

In the Narrative History of Cohasset, by the Rev. E. Victor Bigelow, there is to be found (pp. 518 to 522) the story of how the library began as an institution and its development into a public library of the town, in the year 1879, as the Cohasset Free Public Library. Within twenty years from that date, it had become apparent that the quarters it occupied on the first floor of the Town Hall were inadequate and outgrown. Fortunately the need of the library and the hopes of its friends were answered by the bequest of Miss Harriot Eustis Pratt.

Miss Harriot Eustis Pratt was the daughter of Paul Pratt, who was born in Cohasset May 17, 1788, and died in Cohasset August 31, 1853. At his death he left a modest fortune to his daughters, Sarah S. and Harriot E., which, through wise management and shrewd investment by their trustees and the simple, careful living of the sisters, increased materially. The sisters had from the start been interested and active in the library work. Miss Sarah was one of the original trustees of the Cohasset Free Public Library and continued in that office until her death in 1896. Miss Harriot died April 19, 1898, and her will, probated May 18, 1898, founded the Paul Pratt Memorial Library. Her will directed that one-half of her estate, not including certain real estate amounting to a little more than forty thousand dollars, should be paid over to the chairman of the Selectmen of Cohasset, to the pastor of the First Parish Church in Cohasset and to the pastor of the Second Congregational Church in Cohasset for the time being; and to Randolph Knapp and James Longley and to two others to be chosen by these five, who should constitute a board of trustees for the purpose of establishing and maintaining a public library in the town of Cohasset to be known as the Paul Pratt Memorial Library. The will also directed that the three officials should always be members, ex officio, of the Board of Trustees; that this board should make reasonable regulations for the establishment and maintenance of the library by incorporation or otherwise, and provide for the perpetual care thereof; and that the largest possible liberty and discretion in the use of such literary and social means as should tend to the accomplishment of the purpose of the bequest, be conferred upon them and their successors in the trust. Aside from the ex officio members any vacancy which arises in the board is to be filled by the vote of the remaining members.

Owing to the claim of an adopted niece and consequent litigation, there intervened a delay of nearly two years before the trustees could organize.

The first meeting of the trustees of the Paul Pratt Memorial Library was held in the Selectmen's room in the Town Hall, February 3, 1900. In accordance with the authority granted to them, Philander Bates, chairman of the Selectmen of Cohasset, William R. Cole, pastor of the First Parish Church in Cohasset, E. Victor Bigelow, pastor of the Second Congregational Church in Cohasset, and James Longley of Boston, chose Samuel T. Snow of Cohasset in the place of Randolph Knapp, deceased, and these five chose Charles A. Welch and Abraham H. Tower, both of Cohasset.

The board organized with the following officers: President, Samuel T. Snow; Treasurer, James Longley; and Clerk, William- R. Cole. In the following month they organized under the laws of the state as a corporation ; the trustees became directors and the same officers were elected. There have been changes in the board occasioned by the change of pastors in the Second Congregational Church, Rev. Charles W. Merriam taking the place of Rev. E. V. Bigelow in 1901 and the Rev. F. B. McAllister that of Mr. Merriam in 1904; and by the deaths of Samuel T. Snow in 1901, of Abraham H. Tower in 1904 and of Charles A. Welch in 1908, whose places were filled in order by Charles C. Wheelwright, Edward Nichols and George W. Collier, all of Cohasset.

The first business the board found under the bequest awaiting them, was the location and erection of a building. The beginning of this task was made possible by the gift of Mr. and Mrs. Samuel T. Snow of the piece of land on South Main Street where the library now stands. Mr. Edward Nichols was selected as the architect, and the construction of the building was begun in April,

1902, and finished in December of the same year. As the building approached completion, the question of bringing the two libraries, the Cohasset Free Public Library and the Paul Pratt Memorial Library, into cooperation and union, pressed more and more upon the attention and thought of the trustees and the townspeople. The directors of the Paul Pratt Memorial Library were restrained by the terms of the trust from surrendering the position of regulating and supervising everything in the library, but there was the town library with its trustees and books. Good sense, business economy and destiny demanded that the two should be as one. It was simply brought about. The two boards agreed between themselves to an arrangement, whereby the two libraries could work together without friction and with the common purpose of giving to the people of Cohasset, the best possible collection of books with large liberty of use, in a comfortable building modernly equipped. The agreement was presented to the Town Meeting, March, 1903, and met with the approval of the citizens. Its duration was for the term of three years and has since been renewed for a like length of time. By this agreement, the directors of the Paul Pratt Memorial Library have exclusive control of the management of the library, their own funds and the town appropriation. The trustees of the Cohasset Free Public Library have entire control of the funds of that library and the interest from the same. All books bought from their funds and from the town appropriation are marked with the name of the Cohasset Free Public Library. The two boards are represented on the book committee, and thus all books are purchased with the joint voice and authority of the two boards.

Another important matter in the library's history was effected by the directors. It was the remodeling of the library after the best types of such institutions, a complete change in method of cataloguing of books and the making of regulations for the greatest freedom to the borrowers possible under a wise control.

All these problems were met and solved, and the library was opened to the public on July 13, 1903, with certain simple dedicatory exercises.

For the children, a department has been made in the north room, where their books are stacked, their periodicals gathered and their own tables and chairs arranged for their use.

The number of books has in these five years been nearly doubled, and those who use the library have greatly increased in number since the days of the badly ventilated and lighted room in the Town Hall.

To each of the libraries bequests or gifts have been made : under the wills of Miss Susannah L. Stoddard and Mrs. Henry M. Knowles, the Cohasset Free Public Library; by that of Mrs. Edward Wheelwright, the Paul Pratt Memorial Library became beneficiaries. At the time of the opening of the library, Mr. Charles A. Welch, one of the directors, gave three thousand dollars to be used for the purchase of books for the Paul Pratt Memorial Library. It was a most opportune gift, as it enabled the management to strengthen the library in many weak places.

In bringing the story of the library up to date (1908) a just pride may be taken in the interest and labor of all who first undertook the work and in the excellent result achieved by the money, the thought and devotion of the people of Cohasset. Its future as an institution is assured among us. Its power as an effective agent for good should be as great as is its opportunity.

The Paul Pratt Memorial Library building is designed in the classical style of architecture, of the Georgian, or Colonial period, and is cruciform in plan, the main reading rooms making the long arms of the cross, with an Ionic portico on the front and the stack room in the rear making the short arms. The walls are built of buff brick with trimmings of Indiana limestone, above a base course of granite. The roof is of copper, and is crowned by an octagonal cupola terminated by a vane in the form of a mackerel, - typical of Cohasset's former industry. In a circular hall opposite the entrance is the general delivery desk, and close to this a card catalogue case let into the paneling of the wall. Beyond the desk, with an intervening lobby, is the book room, consisting of two tiers of steel stacks with glass floor. This room is of fireproof construction, and is shut off from the main building by an automatic fireproof door. It contains shelf-room for about 13,000 volumes, and, by reason of the basement being wholly above ground on the rear, it is made possible to increase the capacity by adding an equal amount of shelving below, making a total capacity of 26,000 volumes. This arrangement of stacks, partly above and partly below the general delivery desk, brings all of the books within easy access. The whole north wing of the building is given to a large reading room containing the juvenile department and cases for exhibition of articles of historic interest; and the south wing is divided into a smaller reading room, an alcove for reference books, and a room for the use of the librarian and directors. Both reading rooms have fireplaces, and are paneled to the height of the windows and finished with birch in mahogany color, with birch floors. The spaces on either side of the vestibule are used for the janitor's room and stairs to the basement and loft. In the pediment above the front portico is a clock, the gift of Mr. James Longley of the Board of Directors.

Early Records Of The Cohasset Library

Since the story of the development of the Cohasset Library was written by Rev. Mr. Bigelow, as mentioned above, books bearing the inscription, "Social Library of Cohasset, 1792," have been found among those of the Cohasset Free Public Library. These books show that a Social Library was in existence at least forty years earlier than the Washington Library, which was legally organized in 1832.

A document dated March, 1800, now in possession of the library, a copy of which is appended hereto, gives a "List of Proprietors of old stock on the first of march by the Records" of the Cohasset Social Library, presumably that one in existence in 1792 and likely the Social Library into which the Washington Library was merged in 1844.

WE the subscribers acknowledge to have recieved the Net proceeds of our respective shares in the Cohassett Social Library by transfer of new Stock, or the Cash, as apears in the Columns oppisite our Names, & wee that recieve Cash acknowledge ourselves Exonorated from all priviliedges & advantages from Sd. Society in future.

Historic Memorials

The past ten years have seen a rather general movement to mark historic localities. An interesting memorial is the tablet inserted in a boulder near Bound Rock, close by Lincoln's Mill Pond. The boulder rests against the town boundary stone by the roadside of South Main Street, at the Scituate line.

Bound Rock at the outlet of Lincoln's Mill Pond is underneath a storehouse of the grain mill upon the side street, and is marked by a stone post projecting up through the floor of the building. Bound Rock marks the easterly extremity of the boundary between the Massachusetts Bay and Plymouth Colonies. Further west the line was designated as passing through the middle of Accord Pond. (See " Narrative History of Cohasset," pp. 124-126.)

This line as it exists on our maps to-day, and referred to as the "Old Colony Line," "Patent Line" or "Patten Line," extends in an approximately straight course from Bound Rock to the Rhode Island boundary, a distance of thirty-five miles. It is the longest straight boundary line in Massachusetts, and originally marked the division between Puritans on the north and Pilgrims on the south. It now divides Norfolk and Plymouth counties, with the exception that Hingham on its northerly side has joined Plymouth county.

Established in 1640 by four eminent men from the two colonies, it is found that with one exception it is the earliest artificial boundary located by landmarks in the United States. A line extending twelve miles across the peninsula from Chesapeake Bay to the ocean was established in 1632 and remains as a present boundary between Maryland and Virginia. The latter line was designated in a charter from the king, while the Massachusetts colony line was a mutual arrangement between the two colonies by their own appointed commissioners.

The tablet was prepared and placed by the Old Colony Commission, appointed by the governor in 1895, and consisting of William T. Davis of Plymouth, Rev. S. Hopkins Emery of Taun- ton, and L. Vernon Briggs of Boston. It was erected in 1900 at the most convenient point on the main highway, although 133 feet distant from Bound Rock. The tablet reads as follows:

Another boulder with tablet was erected by the Col. Thomas Lothrop Chapter, D. A. R., from proceeds of a historical loan exhibition held in the Town Hall in September, 1901. This boulder is placed next North Main Street at the northerly end of the Common, and reads as follows:

Recent Development Of Cohasset

The ten years since the publication of the Narrative History of Cohasset reveal a steady progress along the lines of town life which then existed. We notice at once that Cohasset has become more modern. Perhaps nothing has contributed more to this progressive spirit than the introduction of the telephone. At first limited to a single pay-station in the drug store of Frank W. Browne, Cohasset now has a well-appointed telephone exchange and about two hundred subscribers among townspeople, besides more than one hundred among summer residents.

The citizen no longer spends half a day in driving to see some one on business, only to find him absent from home. As additional bonds of public safety, the town installed a fire alarm telegraph system in the summer of 1905 and a police signal system in 1908. The railroad extended its second track to Cohasset in 1906, adding much to the safety and expedition of trains. Electric power was used from July 24, 1899, to Nov. 22, 1901, as an experiment upon the accommodation trains between Braintree and Cohasset. It had been used for several years previously in the summer upon the trains of open cars of the Nantasket Beach branch; but the line from Braintree to Cohasset was an early instance of its use upon a regularly equipped railroad the year round. The current was supplied by a third rail and the motor was installed beneath an ordinary passenger car, the motorman occupying a small compartment forward.

The introduction of gasoline power for boats has revolutionized the life of the boatman and fisherman. Instead of being dependent upon the fitful and uncertain breeze and being doomed to the consequent becalmed conditions with the weary pull at the oars, against wind and tide, the lobsterman can now visit his traps with certainty and dispatch. The sea is not the only locality vanquished in these modern days, for the horse is becoming less frequent and the automobile is an almost constant feature of the landscape. Roads have been much improved, and the state road now extends from the Hingham line near Whitney crossing to the Scituate line near Lincoln's mill, with the exception of a mile in the village, which the town has made equal to state highway. The increased wear of the roads by automobiles has necessitated the use of oil or of tar to lay dust and preserve the road.

A hearing upon a petition for an electric street railway was held in 1904, but proved futile. The town is thus free from the encumbrances of tracks and trolley wires in its streets, which are none too wide for the present kinds of traffic. What the future means of public transportation will be, one can only conjecture, but it is not unlikely that we shall have motor vehicles running without tracks.

Lovers of horses have preserved for themselves certain secluded drives. Howe's road extending between King and Doane streets has long been enjoyed for driving, but in recent years Worrick road and certain intersecting drives connecting with these and with Turkey Hill have been built and form delightful retreats for summer afternoons.

The general aspect of Cohasset has been much improved by the erection of several public buildings. St. Stephen's Church crowning the rocks in the center of the town, lifts its massive tower as a noble and dignified landmark. The Paul Pratt Memorial Library is a conspicuous ornament, and its hospitable doors invite all the inhabitants to the broad and liberal culture of the age. At North Cohasset the Pope Memorial Church, massive in every detail, adds a note of strength and permanence to the already charming Jerusalem Road, while its sweet-toned bell is a delight to every listener.

The old Black Rock House, which stood close to Jerusalem Road for so many years, was torn down in the fall of 1903 and its site left open as it is now, greatly enhancing the view. Its new namesake stands upon a rugged cliff about a thousand feet to the westward; and with picturesque towers and breezy piazzas, exults in its cool situation and fine view. With the passing of the old hotel, we must also notice the disappearance of the old Warren

Bates House on Jerusalem Road, for so many years kept as a quiet and select boarding house by the genial couple who occupied it. The property was purchased in 1904 by Mr. Matthew Luce, who, after removing the old buildings, erected the fine residence which he now occupies. Much of the life and constitution of our present summer colony owes its origin to this excellent boarding house where many of our families first enjoyed the delights of Cohasset. Beginning as transient boarders, they were led to build houses and develop large estates here, which have already been enjoyed by the second and third generations of their descendants. It is proverbial that any one who has really tasted the beauties of Cohasset becomes possessed by a desire to return and live here. This is seen in the "homing instinct" of our townspeople; for many a young couple have emigrated to some other locality more convenient to business, expecting never to return; but a few years (or months) have sufficed to bring them back to their native town for life.

Development of ornamental public grounds has kept pace with other improvements. The North End Park, with its quiet, restful elms, was made in 1904 through the generosity of Mrs. T. F. Furber. An extensive improvement of Meeting House pond was accomplished in 1903, the cost being provided by the estate of Robert C. Billings. The fountain and the present graceful curbing were added and the immediate surroundings greatly improved. The beauty of our Common compels the admiration of every beholder. As the center of a village it possesses a harmony and proportion and a rare beauty, which are seldom equalled and probably never surpassed. The Billings estate also provided for an enlargement of Pratt Park in Beechwood, now known as Billings-Pratt Park.

In 1907 the town purchased Lawrence wharf on Border Street for a public landing place. The acquisition of this wharf, together with the widening of Summer Street at the head of the Cove, gives the town the ownership of nearly half of the shore of the inner harbor. Among the old buildings which have given way to the march of improvement were the old store of Mr. Caleb F. Nichols, at the head of the Cove, torn down in 1907, and the near-by Zealous Bates house, demolished in 1908. The aspect of the old fishing village is slowly but surely disappearing, with consequent loss of many quaint buildings, but delightful views have been opened up and the natural beauty is much enhanced.

The schooner yacht Grade, one of the later vessels built in Cohasset and which remained at anchor in the harbor for nearly twenty years, was broken up in 1905. She was built for Mr. Edward E. Tower in 1872 of timber grown here. Her length was 68.2 feet and her gross tonnage 53.84. A near neighbor of the Grade at her anchorage, although kept in commission, was the famous sloop yacht Shadow, owned by Dr. John Bryant. She was built by J. B. Herreshoff in 187 1 and had a length of 36 feet 6 inches. She defeated the English cutter Madge in 188 1, and in the period between 1875 and 1886 the Shadow maintained constant prestige over boats of her tonnage in Eastern waters. Within the past year, when laid up between the bridges at Chelsea, she was burned in the great Chelsea fire April 12, 1908.

Mention of the Shadow brings to mind Capt. Aubrey Crocker, who for many years sailed her. Captain Crocker also sailed the Puritan against the Genesta in 1885, successfully defending the America's cup. In 1893 he sailed the Navahoe against the Britannia on a course from the Isle of Wight to Cherbourg and return, winning back to American possession the Brenton Reef cup. During this race, which was in the severest racing weather, Captain Crocker remained constantly at the wheel for ten hours, part of which time he was in water up to his waist. Captain Crocker spent most of his life in Cohasset and died here June 23, 1906.

An attempt was made in 1902 to have the town purchase White Head, in order to secure to posterity the time-honored picnic privileges. After two meetings and free discussion of the matter, the town voted by a good majority to purchase the property, but failed to give the required two-thirds vote. White Head has since passed into private hands, and the opportunity is lost.

The enjoyment of the sea is much increased by the flourishing Cohasset Yacht Club, formed in 1894. Lovers of golf take much pleasure in the fine links of the Cohasset Golf Club on land of Mr. Henry M. Whitney on Lambert's Lane. In 1901 the town purchased a spacious ball field and recreation ground just below the reservoir on Pleasant Street. The Cyrus H. Bates Camp of Sons of Veterans, No. 140, was formed in 1908 with forty members and William H. Brown as commander.

The conduct of town meetings is much facilitated by the adoption of the Australian ballot in 1904. In 1907 the town sold its old almshouse on King Street, and built the modern and commodious Cohasset Home on Pond Street, which would be a credit to any town. The new Woodside Cemetery on North Main Street, next the Hingham line, was opened in 1902. New fire department houses have been built at North Cohasset (the Matthew Luce Hose) and in Beechwood. The interior of the First Parish Church has been carefully restored, replacing the antique columns with which it was originally ornamented.

Being somewhat distant from Boston, Cohasset develops its own village institutions and social life. The Literary Club, formed in 1890, has been a notable means of culture, and now, after an existence of eighteen years, is in a flourishing condition with more than fifty members. The Men's Club of Cohasset, formed in 1907, has now one hundred members, and uniting in a broad and liberal way the energies and resources of the citizens, will make for civic improvement and high standards of citizenship.

The town has had a steady growth: many new houses have been built, including one large settlement on Lincoln Hillside. All houses have become more comfortable by adoption of modern heating apparatus and plumbing. New summer cottages have also been built, many of which are placed in picturesque situations in our rocky woods. Our summer residents are making longer seasons here, and the summer house, being better furnished and equipped than formerly, is becoming more and more the real home. Some families originally here for the summer have made Cohasset their residence for the entire year. The influence and help of these new citizens in our winter social life is of decided benefit. Free from any disturbing elements to impair its value as a place of residence, combining a shore of wonderful interest with the rugged charm of woodland and cliff, Cohasset is the gem of the " South Shore," famous for its picturesqueness and its beauty.