Shrewsbury Town (part 2 of 3)

Four years passed away, and the old meeting-house was found to be far too small to accommodate the large audiences that flocked .to hear ]\Ir. Sumner preach. It was the custom for every one to go to church ; the town was growing, the inhabitants were enterprising, and ambitious to have their town as progressive as others about them, and they voted in town-meeting to build a new and more commodious meeting-house. Where it should be erected was a serious question and caused quite a dissension between those who lived on Rocky Plain and the more remote dwellers in the south. The north precinct had been set off as a separate parish and called Boylston. Those in the south still travelled four miles every Sabbath day to the meeting-house and having done this for twenty years or more, they requested the town to place the new meeting-house nearer to them and thus equahze the distance to it from all parts of the town. If this could not be done they wished to set off as a separate parish like their northern brethren. Feeling hurt that little attention was paid to their protests and entreaties, a lengthy petition was sent to the legislature, in which their woes were set forth and redress prayed for. For some reason they withdrew this petition and the new house was erected on Rocky Plain very near the old one. In those times preaching was supported by the town, and consequently a general interest was taken in the new house of worship. A building committee was chosen, whose purpose was to have the work well and thoroughly done, and home labor was to be preferred to any other. The timbers were all selected from the Shrewsbury forests and hewn by the sturdy owners ; Shrewsbury blacksmiths made the nails and the architect himself, Mr. Daniel Heminway, was a Shrewsbury man and a famous church builder. All things being ready, the town voted to raise the building on the thirteenth of May, to provide a good supper and to send to Boston for a barrel of rum, probably the latter to keep up the spirits of the workmen and because it was a day to be remembered to all generations. We are not told that there were any cornerstone ceremonies, or that the supper provoked any after speeches. That was an entirely practical company of men who wiped the drops from their faces that warm afternoon, and sat down to refresh themselves with the sumptuous repast which the willing hands of the wives and sisters had prepared while the work was going on. The men were weary; all day since six o'clock in the morning they had labored hard to fit the mighty timbers into their places and fasten them together with the strong oaken pins that were to hold them for an unknown number of years. The work for that day was finished and they viewed it with great satisfaction as they were eating their supper on the common in the fresh breeze of the early evening. The setting sun threw a glory over the newly hewn timbers, on that day raised to a new honor, as if the blessing of Heaven were descending upon the labor of their hands.

The sturdy yeomen may have felt this, for they had done their work faithfully and well, as the structure itself testifies that has stood through the storms and tempests of more than a century, that even the lightning stroke failed to destroy and is in 1892 apparently good for a hundred years to come. IMr. Sumner in his journal says ''July 7, 1766, The old House was taken down. July 13, 1766, Being Lord's Day we met ye first time in the new House, upon wh. occasion I preached from Genesis 2S chapter & ye 17 verse - 'This is none other but the house of God, and this is the gate of Heaven.'" The new meeting-house, forty-five feet wide and sixty long, had at first no steeple or bell - they waited forty-two years for those ; the ornamentation, though simple, was artistic both inside and out, and all was painted white.

Dr. Sumner And The Church 85

Although the color of the inside has several times been changed, the white church remains yet a landmark to all the country round. The style of architecture belonging to that period may be seen in a few other buildings in town, the Haven Tavern being one. There were porches on the east and west ends, and a larger one on the south side. This was the main entrance and opened on to the broad aisle, which extended back to the pulpit on the north side. The aisles from the east and west porches met at the broad aisle and there were lesser aisles leading from these to the different pews. A gallery ran around three sides of the house, in the south part of which sat the choir. It was in 1765, the last year of tlie old meeting-house, that "Jedediah Tucker and Jonathan Wheelock were chosen by the clrk. to set the psalm in public worship." Stoves were at that time unknown and the new house was as cold as the old one. Old ladies had their foot-stoves which they carried filled with live coals and replenished at the minister's fireplace at noon, while they sat there to warm themselves, eat their luncheon and talk over the morning-sermon, speculating meanwhile on what the subject for the afternoon might be. The pews were built after the old historic pattern, square with high backs and seats on three sides, and doors that might be closed in cold weather to prevent a circulation of air and the escape of heat from the foot-stoves. If the pews were crowded, and there were boys in the family, one of them must sit in the doorway. The seats were on hinges, to allow them to be lifted and give standing room for the people when they rose to pray or sing. The prayer or singing- beingover the seats were let down again upon their braces, and if this were not done with the greatest care, a general clatter ensued, which was usually the case. There was one boy (who at ninety told the story with great zest,) to whose ears this clatter was music. He decided one day that the next Sabbath he would manfully do his papt in this portion of the service so dehghtftd to him. Waiting until the long prayer was over, throwing all his fervor into the act, he brought his seat down with a bang that sent a thrill of joy through his soul. His father's hand ' on his shoulder gave him another thrill which quickly dissipated the first, and it is enough to say that he replaced his seat more quietly in the future. Any invention for physical comfort in meeting was considered an innovation and it was with some distrust that the "lolling table'' was received. This was the rather indolent name for what was perhaps a necessary comfort to some in those days of long services, being a small shelf on which the elderly weary could rest their heads without fearing the stick of the tjthing man who is supposed to have been always on the alert to awaken all the sleeping children and drive out all the little dogs who would not sleep. 'Sir. Simon ^Nlaynard introduced the first of these tables into his own pew for his own special relief when the sermon was too long. He soon found occasion to try his new method of restful worship, and when the sermon was in its seventhly he quietly bowed his head. No .sooner did the board feel the pressure, than the supporting hook gave way and down went the table ; down, too, went his head, to his extreme mortification - reminding one of the miserere of the monks which fell the moment one leaned heavily upon it, thus revealing his weakness and wickedness in becoming weary with standing through the long service. But the people of Shrewsbury church were not like the monks of old and the sinfulness of ease being less apparent to them than formerly, Mr. Maynard's unfortunate ^mishap did not deter others from providing themselves with these comforting and convenient rests, making sure, however, that the hooks were securely fastened. In some of the primitive churches the pews were made each by a different individual. When a man desired a pew he made his own and though conforming to the general pattern he exercised his taste or consulted his convenience in the kind of wood used and the quality of the finish. The work all being done by hand the result was that some of them were well made ; in others the corner posts were unlike in height and size, and all roughly hewn. This may have been the case with the first meeting-house in Shrewsbury, but the one which we are describing was proper in all its appointments and the work skilfully done.

his own town. His opinions began to be held in great regard among the ministers in the region, and were sought on all occasions when weighty matters were under consideration. And so in time, no ministers meeting or council was thought to be complete without his presence, and his superior judgment.

During the Revolutionary War he was a firm patriot in the struggle for liberty, and his influence was always on the side of the Colonists ; his sympathy and thoughts were with those who had gone out from among his own people into the perils and hardships of war. His letter to the Shrewsbury soldiers in the Army under Washington, after the defeat on Long Island, while they were camped in New York, reveals the tender solicitude which he felt for those absent members of his flock, and after peace was declared no one rejoiced more than he over the return of the soldiers.

Notwithstanding the meagreness of his salary, this *' farmer minister"" and his estimable helpmeet managed by diligent industry and strict economy to bring up and educate eight children, and in 1797 he built for himself a new house, quite near to the old one, which he left for his son Joseph at the time of his marriage. This was removed about fifty years ago to the spot where it now stands, east of the house formed by the largest portion of the Haven Tavern.

1790 "the church chose Mr. John Stow, and Mr. Vashni Heminway to assist in leading the singers in performing that part of divine service in the congregation. " In February, 1791, "voted to begin to sing Dr. Watt's version of the Psahiis with his Hymns, the first Sabbath in March next, provided there be no objections lodged with the pastor, from the congregation before that time," and "some conversation had about the expediency of having a bass viol in the congregation." In 1798 "Captain Knowlton, who had served for many years as chorister, desired that some others might be chosen to lead in the singing. " The church considered his request and invited the congregation, and the singers in particular "to join in the choice of some suitable persons to lead in the singing." The persons chosen were Dr. Paul Dean, Mr. Shepherd Pratt and Mr. Ebenezer Drury.

Those were Shrewsbury's palmy days, when in the majesty of his full white wig and muslin bands Mr. .Sumner looked down upon his audience from the great white pulpit, which was roomy enough for half the ministers in the county. It was reached by a flight of stairs from the aisle below and entered by a door which the minister could close and fasten. A soundino^ board hune over him as he preached, to send his solemn words to every ear, and above all, the representation of a flame of fire, typified the aspirations of the soul and the ascent of the prayers to Heaven. Such an audience has never l)een gathered in Shrewsbury since those days. Every family in town was represented. There were men whose titles gave evidence of the worth they had been to their country, and, magnificent in their queues and powdered hair, their lace ruffles, velvet breeches and silver shoe buckles, they bore themselves with great dignity, waiting upon the quaintly dressed ladies in high-heeled slippers and huge poke bonnets, showing them into the different pews, some turning one way and some another through the various aisles, in the most delightful, orderly confusion. Before the minister and almost beneath his eyes was the deacon's seat and the pew for the elderly and the deaf. At the right sat Dr. Edward FHnt, the army surg-eon. Nearer yet was the Sumner family pew, where the beneficent madam sat with kindly grace among her children, and where after the service was over, the minister joined them and together they walked down the broad aisle, the congregation respectfully standing until they had passed out. At the left of the pulpit was Luther Goddard the watchmaker, who after a time, left the preaching of Dr. Sumner, became a Baptist and turned preacher himself General Ward and his wife came in at the 'south porch, taking their seats on the west of the broad aisle. Captain Nathan Howe had a conspicuous seat in front, near the pulpit. He was an officer at Lake George in the French War, and also commanded a company at Dorchester when the earthworks were thrown up in the night which sent the British out of Boston.

Daniel Heminway, the meeting-house builder, sat in the southwest corner and with him his son Vashni, the town clerk, and this is where he stood to read the marriage bans.

Deacon Benjamin Goddard's pew was at the left of the pulpit near the northeast corner of the house. It was on a Sunday afternoon, February twenty-fourth, 1799, while he was listening to one of Mr. Sumner's soul-stirring sermons that two of his children left at home took a lighted candle and went into the cellar to get some apples to eat. There was straw in the cellar, and Artemas, a little fellow not yet four years old, thought it would burn and make a pretty sight ; one touch of the candle and all was. in a blaze, the frightened children ran out and were saved, but the house and most of its contents were burned when Deacon Goddard reached the spot after the service was over. Deacon Goddard was the great-grandfather of the present Henry L. Goddard. In one of the pews sat Dr. Crosby, one of Shrewsbury's first physicians, and a distinguished army surgeon. In the great middle pew on the west side was Captain Levi Pease, the veteran stage driver and his wife, dignified as a duchess.

jMrs. Sally Henshaw came in taking her seat on the east side, every one turning to see her handsome face and fine gown made in Boston. Sheriff Ward and his wife sat on the south side ; she is said to have been the handsomest girl that went a shopping in Worcester, and he the strono^est man in all the re2:ion. A union of manly strength and womanly beauty rarely seen.

Near the eastern entrance was Henry Baldwin, the keeper of Baldwin Tavern, with his wife and aged mother, ]Mrs. ]Mary Jones, who was bright and brisk as a girl, and there listening to the sermon every Sunday, though near her one hundredth birthday. In the next pews were Col. Seth Wyman and Deacon Wheelock. j\Ir. Sam Haven, the tavern keeper, sat next to the door on the south side of the aisle. On the west side was Mrs. Rebecca Symmes, lovely with her white hair and

English ways. Her husband, who was an officer in the Revokition, died during that period, and she boarded with Mr. Joseph Nourse. On New Year's day, 1790, she was pubhshed for marriage to the Rev. Ebenezer Morse of the North Precinct (now Boylston) but as she was a widow of an American soldier, and he a rank tory, objections were made to the marriage by her friends, and she always after remained the ''Widow Symmes."

In Dr. Sumner's latter days his son Joseph and his family occupied a pew near the south door. One Sunday a current of air passing through the church was keenly felt by the aged minister, and no one, not even the tithing-man, seemed to notice his discomfort. After waiting in vain for some time, hoping for relief and getting none, he called out in a decided tone to one of Joseph's sons - "James, shut that door." The youthful and obedient James, with those keen eyes upon him, loitered not though the eyes of half the congregation were upon him also.

The following account is taken from an old journal written in 18 15. ''Sunday August 12th. This day in the afternoon a young turkey was driven into the church, and it by degrees flew on to the Pulpit beside Dr. Sumner while he was at prayer, and without any noise stood upon the Bible with as little concern as it would have done on the ground. Thus it stood while he baptised Mr. Gill's child by the name of Henry Baldwin. When we sat down to smg the last tune it left the Pulpit and went on to the Beam over Dea. Goddard's pew, all this, except when he first came m the house, and until we were dismissed, was without one peep or noise from the turkey."

From ]Mr. Sumner's Journal - "April 1792. According to a Vote of the town of Shrewsbury, the three hinder seats in the meeting house were taken up & six pews built which sold for about 140 pounds, beside the Gift building, which is to remain as a fund the Interest of which is to be appropriated for the support of the Gospel."

It was during Dr. Sumner's pastorate that the dark clouds of doctrinal controversy arose in New England. But he vv^as at all times for peace, and never engaged in strife, so through the storm he stood quietly firm, preaching the peace of the Gospel. His life among the Shrewsbury people appears to have been blameless, though he had a humble opinion of his own merits. When eightytwo years old he writes, "I wish to cultivate a submissive spirit." The whole of his journal shows not only a submissive spirit, but sensitive nature and a forgiving disposition. When the town, feeling its own poverty, refused to make any consideration on account of the depreciation in the value of continental money, which reduced his salary one-half, he says pathetically "What is providentially taken from me I can possibly submit to, but what is unjustly detained by those I have exerted myself to serve, wounds one. "'

Dr. Sumner And The Church 95

To obtain a clear idea of the grandeur and beauty of his character one should read his published Memoir and Journal. In the latter his affectionate nature shines out when he speaks of his anxious, sleepless nights, when any trouble touched his children or when anything came between him and his '' dear people."

Forty-seven years after his marriage death took his beloved wife, his "amiable consort" of whom he writes, "Her domestic virtues were equalled by few, excelled by none ; her piety was exemplary." It is probable that in the history of the town no man's influence has been .so healthful, so widespread and so enduring as that of Dr. Sumner. For sixty-two years he held the foremost place among this people, and those years included the most eventful time in the Nation's history.

It was late in life that the degree of Doctor of Divinity was conferred upon him. This was done in 1814 by Yale College and also about the same time by Columbia CoUesre, S. C. At that time there was but one other minister in the vicinity who had received the like distinction ; this was the Rev. Aaron Bancroft of Worcester.

Dr. Bancroft and Dr. Sumner were warm friends and they made a solemn compact, that the one who survived should preach the funeral sermon of the other. This sad duty fell to Dr. Bancroft who in his eulogy said - "During all the trials and conflicts of a long Hfe, he was distinguished for cheerfulness and other social qualities, but these were chastened by a quick sense of propriety. He could blend the agreeableness and affability of the companion, with the seriousness of the minister, the purity of the Christian, and the respectability of the man. Not easily provoked he knew what was due to his character, and he secured respect from all." At his death there was great mourning, for a great man had gone, a pure and blameless life had passed from earth. The pastor that the people had asked God to choose for them had been to them all that they could desire. When we consider his life, grand in its gentleness and godliness, we cannot wonder that the influence of that life moulded the characters of the children who grew up under his teachings and that it left its royal stamp upon them.

Dr. Sumner left his farm to his son Erastus, who died in 1858, and was the father of ]Mr. George Sumner of Worcester, the present owner, who has fitted up the house in the style of his grandfather's time and occupies it as his summer residence. The place where the old house stood is now a smooth, beautiful lawn, and one looks out of the same narrow windows now, that the Doctor looked from in his last days, and sees his greatgrandchildren playing tennis under the shade of the elms where he used to walk and meditate, and perhaps decide upon the subjects for the next Sunday's discourses.

Dr. Sumner And The Church 97

Dr. Sumner published by his grandson Mr. George Sumner. "The house in which Dr. Sumner passed his decHning years, and where he breathed his last, is preserved substantially in the form in which it was built ninety years ago, presenting a correct type of a well-todo New England Home of the last century. In the interior, the original pieces of furniture occupy the same places and all the details of household arrangement are maintained as far as is practicable, as they were in the time of the first occupant. The family living room contains the 'turn-up' bed where Dr. Sumner took final leave of his family and sorrowing friends ; the desk where his sermons were composed, surmounted by a small bookcase, supposed to be sufficient for his entire library, from which ' he drew his inspiration ;' and the original sofa, chairs and other furniture returned to their places, some of them after an absence of many years of duty among the different descendants in distant parts. The tall eight-day clock still ticks the time correctly. The portraits on the walls and other relics have each their appropriate place.

"The veritable 'best room,' with the regulation appointments and oaken floor ; and the kitchen, well furnished with articles now curious but once useful, all in their proper places may here be seen. In the chambers are curtanied beds, and high cases of drawers, and in the 'ideal' garret are the various wheels, large and small, high and low, with hand reels, clock reels,.

hatchels, cards and divers articles considered indispensable to a well regulated minister's family of the period. Everything from cellar to roof in the old mansion remains solid and substantial, and if no calamity befalls them, are equal to another hundred years of service. "

In Dr. Sumner's old age the duties attendant upon a large parish became so arduous that he requested the church to provide an assistant. The first man chosen to this office was the Rev. Samuel B. Ingersoll, who preached one Sabbath, was taken sick and never preached again, dying in about four weeks. In Sept., 182 1, the Rev. Edwards Whipple was ordained; he preached one year with the exception of one Sabbath, and died very suddenly. And so until 1823 Dr. Sumner had little relief from his labors. At that time Rev. George Allen, an able man and thorough scholar, was settled as colleague. The next year the death of Dr. Sumner occurred and Mr. Allen was left in possession of the pulpit.

There were some customs in the early days which were tolerated as things are apt to be in new communities, and the people becoming habituated to them think them not strange. Some of these struck Mr. Allen as being out of character with the time and place of their enactment, and he sought to institute a few reforms. It had been the practice at funerals to have toddy for the bearers, and while the mourners were being comforted in the parlor, the toddy was being made in the Mtchen, the toddy stick being sometimes heard in the parlor. Mr. Allen being- annoyed by such a singular disturbance, resolved to put an end to the practice, whereupon at the next funeral when the toddy sticks began to twirl, Mr. Allen ^-topped the service and suddenly making his appearance in the kitchen, ordered the proceedings to come to an end, and never to be renewed on such an occasion. It is said to be a fact, the toddy thus dismissed appeared no more at Shrewsbury funerals.

Fearless in his reformatory efforts he then attacked another annoyance, and again success followed his efforts. This time it was to get rid of the church-going dogs, who did not always exhibit that reverence for the place which was becoming. Mr. Allen and the tithingman, Mr. Maynard, being of the same mind, agreed that a certain quarrelsome dog should be present but once more, and Mr. Maynard was to be ready with his stick on the next Sunday morning. Mr. Ben Stone was deaf and sat in the pew for the deaf near the pulpit. On the Sunday of which we are telling he was sitting with his head resting on his hand, oblivious to all things but the sermon, when the tithing-man with quick step and raised stick came swiftly on after the unhappy little dog that had just been discovered in some roguishness for which his fate was sealed ; and instinct told him so, as he fled down the aisles, up the aisles and through the cross aisles before the dreadful, uplifted stick. Balch Dean, the dog's master, seeing the trouble of his pet and teing anxious for his safety, opened the door of his pew ; the dog understood, but dared not linger to make the turn. Round and round he ran again and the tithing-man was upon him as he passed old Mr. Stone, the raised stick came down with tremendous force not on the offending, hunted little dog, but upon the arm of the poor deaf man who had not noticed the disturbance, and received the blow with some surprise. Down the aisle leaped the dog toward the open door, and after him rushed the tithing-man whose next blow sent him yelping out the door. That dog's master left him in the protection of home ever after on Sundays, and other dogs' masters followed his example. By such object lessons did Parson Allen seek to tone down the rough ways which had descended from pioneer times.

In 1807 the west porch was taken away and the steeple built. The bell was brought to town September 26, of that year, and raised to position the same day. Whether the jubilant ringing in celebration of the event injured the bell the records do not say, but May 17, the next year, it was returned to Brookfield to be recast, brought back the 2Sth of INIay and elevated to its place of honor again. The west porch was purchased by Lyman Howe and attached to his dwelling-house, which is now owned by Mr. George Buck. The porch is in good repair and the arched ceiling as imposing as when Lyman Howe in his boyhood passed through and sat in the square pew just inside the door, with his father Gideon.

Dr. Sumner And The Church

Inexorable Fashion holds sway in the small corners of Ihe world as well as in the large centres, and the people on Shrewsbury hill were not exempt from her despotism. The old people who in their youth had built the meeting-- house, and looked with harmless pride upon it, were all gone ; and the old minister who had dedicated it to the worship of God, had gone also. The new generation was longing for something different if not better, and so in 1834 they pulled out the square pews and the white pulpit with the sounding-board, and turned the building about, making the steeple face the south, as it now does. The eastern porch was moved to South Shrewsbury by IMr. Levi Newton and made a part of his dwelling house, which was burned a few years ago. The large south porch was bought by Mr. Charles E. Miles for twelve dollars and a half and taken to his farm (now owned by Mr. Silas Howe) to be used as a workshop. He afterwards sold it to Mr. Daniel Noyes, who attached it to his house on the Goulding Hill road, where it now stands, somewhat changed both by time and the carpenter.

The meeting-house was raised and the vestry built underneath at this time. In place of the square pews and the interesting, intersecting six or more aisles, they made two long straight aisles and four rows of long straight pews with the owner's name on each. The names were in gilt letters upon a black plate and each pew was numbered in the same way ; consequently no one could mistake his seat and "get into the wrong pew," but could sit down, turn the brass button of the little door, and feel that he and his family were shut out from the world and for an hour or two free from all intrusion. The handsome mahogany pulpit with its crimson plush cushion and silk draperies was designed by Rev. George Allen and was the object of great interest to the adjoining towns who sent their delegates to see it. Being made in Framingham and brought home late on Saturday night, it was put in place on Sabbath morning, the day when the first service was to be held after the remodelling of the meeting-house. Mr. Allen hearing of it refused to hold service there because the labor had been performed on the Lord's day and the people repaired to "the hall" as usual.

In the "Religious INIagazine " of that time there is a long description of it by the Rev. Jacob Abbott, of which the following is an extract: "It is a beautiful pier table, placed upon a platform a little elevated .above the congregation, and more perfectly corresponds with our idea of what a pulpit should be than anything else we have ever seen. There is an air of ease and elegance about it which we have never before seen in the most costly specimens of pulpit architecture." And the writer goes on to say that "the society in Shrewsl3ury must be of more than ordinary intelligence, to adopt a pulpit of such grace and beauty."

Mr. Allen closed his labors here in 1840 and removed to Worcester, where he spent the remainder of his life. Much of interest might be written of the words and works of the worthy successors of Dr. Sumner in the church here, some of whom are going on with their labors in other places, "and some are fallen asleep."

When the church was raised, in 1834, the vestry built below was furnished partly with what was cast off from the old church. The pillars that supported the gallery were put in the vestry to support the floor above and the white pulpit was put there for a time and then consigned to oblivion. To this room the thoughts of

I04 Old Times Ix Shrewsbury

Shrewsbury's absent ones must often turn, for it was here that the people met for instruction, for business and for pleasure. From this place the prayers of the church have gone up ; here the Sunday School has been taught almost since its commencement.

Until the town hall was built, in 1872, the town meetings were held here, and bakers sold buns and gingerbread to the hungry voters. Such fairs were never held in town as we have known in that vestry ; and long ago the Lyceum meetings were held here, and deep and important questions considered settled by Shrewsbury's youthful brains. One needs but to mention singing schools, spelling schools and choir rehearsals, to bring up a troop of pleasant memories to many minds. This, too, was the place for lectures and some eminent men have made the walls resound with their eloquence.

It was in this vestry that John B. Gough gave his first temperance lecture and the people turned out in large numbers to hear him. It was then and there that he first saw the young lady who afterward became his wife. Years after, when he had become the most noted temperance lecturer in the world, he told this story to an audience gathered in the same room, this time at a banquet given in his honor when he had delivered a lecture for the benefit of the Public Library.

Another renowned man also honored this room with his first speech. In 1850 Mr. George F. Hoar, then a young man just entering public life, was requested to address the Shrewsbury people upon the "Fugitive Slave Law," the great topic that was then being agitated. He came and made his first pohtical speech, and he says that when he had finished, Mr. Ward told him that he " handled that subject very well." No one can doubt the truth of that remark, for it is an undisputed fact that the Honorable George F. Hoar handles all subjects well.

Of the recent alterations and renovations in the old church some other pen must tell. Could the men who raised the frame in 1766 stand within it in 1892, they would look with some surprise upon the neatly frescoed walls and the organ sounding out the tunes they used to hold in too great reverence to be touched by any mere machine. More astonished still would they be to feel the heat coming up through holes in the floor upon a cold winter day. Yet not more strange would it seem to them than it would to the Shrewsbury people of to-day, could they be carried back a century or more and see the quaint picture of Doctor Sumner m his long, black gown and full, white wig, preaching in the great, white pulpit with the sounding-board overhead.

Other People And Incidents

THE town was all astir one morning in April, 1786, when the news flew abroad that a burglary had been committed in the night in three different houses. The penalty for this crime was death by hanging ; and a deed so bold as this, done in the usually quiet village, caused no little excitement. The burglar, who proved to be a negro by the name of Johnson 'Green, was arrested the next day after a search in the surrounding woods by several parties of men, and was brousfht before General Ward to whom he confessed his -crime and he was committed to the Worcester "Gaol." The spoils he obtained that night are thus recorded - " He stole from I\Ir. Baldwin i pair of shoes one pair of silver Buckles i furstin jaccot two all wool Do. one shirt cotton and linnen, one Bottle of New England rum, two Cakes of Gingerbread, 21 coat and jaccot Buttons and four or five shillings in cash - from Mr. Farrar one pair of boots one pair of Shoes, i pair of Shoe Buckles silver one pair of Sizars 20 or 30 Coppers a remnant of black Sattin lasting one liiinen pocket handkerchief - from IMr.

Other People And Incidents Io9

Wyman about fifteen or Sixteen Shillings in Cash part Silver & part Copper. He confessed he broak up and Stole all the above articles except the bottle of Ginn - The three above houses he broak up in one night."

Strong and Lincoln acted as his counsel at the trial in Worcester, April i8, 1786, Benjamin Hey wood of Shrewsbury being one of the jury. At the trial he gave an account of his wicked deeds ; he was then twenty-nine years of age but began to steal when only twelve years old, his first theft being four cakes of gingerbread and six biscuits. Not being discovered in this, he was encouraged to go on until at last he met his doom. His confession was as follows :

" I Johnson Green having brought myself to a shameful and ignominious death by my wicked conduct, and as I am a dying man I leave to the world the following history of my birth, education and various practices, hoping that all people will take warning by my evil example and shun vice and follow virtue." Then follows a minute account of his career ending with the Shrewsbury burglary, and said that he also "stole one pair of thread stockings at Lyons just beyond said Wymans and then hid myself in the woods where I lay till the next day, and at evening set off toward Boston, was arrested by a guard placed by a bridge in the edge of Westboro. " his favorite pastime, of house-breaking-, when he was again arrested and again escaped, practiced still further his unlawful pursuits, and was again arrested on the very day originally set for his execution. On the 17th of August, 1786, he was hung in Worcester for the ''atrocious crime of burglary."

Captain Nathan Howe used to relate a stor}" which is supposed to refer to this same Green. When the Captain was at West Point there was a negro there who was sentenced by a court-martial to be whipped for stealing officers' rations. When the punishment was about to be inflicted, the officer having charge of it told the negro, after he had been tied up by his thumbs to a post, that if he would ask pardon of the gentlemen officers present they would forgive him, and the punishment might be remitted. The culprit peeked out under his arms to the right and left and said " I don't see any o-entlemen officers here," and in truth there were na officers present except the Captain of the provost guard who from the very nature of his duties was not a favorite with the soldiers, certainly not with such of them as he most had to do with. "Then," said the Captain to the man who was to do the whipping, "lay on to the rascal," and the poor fellow got a much severer punishment than he would but for his witty reply to the offer of pardon. As Green himself told in the story of his life of having been in the Revolutionary War and at West Point, he is undoubtedly the one who was whipped.

Other People And Incidents I I I.

When Ross Wyman came here in 1749, he purchased of Abram Eager one hundred and sixty acres of land with the buildings thereon. The farm contains a pretty. sheet of water where he built a dam and a mill. Being a gun maker and a blacksmith by trade he built his shops near the mill and practiced his various callings as occasion required. On the opposite side of the road from these buildings and the old house, he erected a new house which still stands, occupied by his descendants, and is in excellent repair, being no mean representation of the architecture of those times. It seems to have been more carefully put together, more pains taken to have the beams that show in the rooms, nicely finished and laid straight and even at both ends, than the "scribe and tumble rule" usually demanded. This house, though not called a tavern, had its bar-room and was kept open to the public.

Ross Wyman was a zealous patriot and in league w4th every scheme that was for the good of the colonists. At a convention of blacksmiths held in Worcester September 21st, 1774, he was chosen chairman. They resolved that they would not do any blacksmith work for the Tories nor for any one in their employ, nor for any one who had not signed the non-consumptive agreement, and requested all denominations of artificers to call meetings of their craftsmen and adopt like measures. "The recommendations and resolves of this and other like conventions, were received as laws duly enacted and were enforced with a promptitude and zeal that nothing could withstand."" The non-consumptive agreement referred to was a resolution adopted by the ist Provincial Congress assembled in Cambridge on October 21st, 1774, and was recommending *'the total disuse of India teas in this Province, and to the several towns to choose Committees to post in some public place the names of all such in their respective towns who shall sell or consume so extravagant and unnecessary an article of luxury." We are told that it was in Ross AVyman's bar-room that some of the young men gathered one night and burned all the tea they could collect in town, to show how they felt about the tea tax.

At the commencement of the Revolutionary War, Gen. Ward requested this patriotic blacksmith to make a gun for him of sufficient strength to pitch an Englishman over his head. He made it to order and of horse nail stubs, a real kings-arm and an excellent weapon. It disappeared many years ago and its whereabouts is now imknown. Ross Wyman had a clear head and a strong arm, and a story is told of him in this wise :

Being at one time in Boston and ready to start for home with a load of provisions, he came near being seized and carried off by a press gang from a British man-of-war. Resolutelv defendincr himself, he at leno-th snatched up a cod-fish, and, with both hands in the gills, he beat them off by slapping their faces with its slimy tail. Being more than a match for them with his cod- fish he tried the same weapon at another time. He was ag-ain returning from Boston and on Saturday stopped at Wayland to spend the night and the Sabbath. It was winter time, and he was with his sleigh ; the weather grew warm in the night and the early morning showed that the sleighing would not last until Monday. Fearing delay would be dangerous he started at daylight and drove on without interruption until he came to Sudbury, when in passing the house of a magistrate, he, in the dignity of his office came out with two other men to stop him according to the law and custom of the times that no one should travel on the Lord's day. Then the cod-fish came into use again, and again was victorious and Ross reached home triumphant ! His patriotic and daring spirit was doubtless inherited from his father, Seth Wyman of Woburn, who distinguished himself in the famous " Lovewell's fight." This event took a greater hold on the feelings of the people than any conflict with the Indians since King Philip's war, and furnished a theme for fireside tales and heroic songs, until the Battle of Bunker Hill and the war that followed gave rise to stories that eclipsed those of Capt. Lovewell and his men fighting against the dusky Paugus and his savage warriors.

Ross Wyman lived to be quite an old man. In Dr. Flint's journal we find this entry. "Nov. 3d, 1807. Mr. Ross Wyman visited our belfry, heard the bell ring, went to the long pond, viewed the bridge and the new

On this same farm and a few rods up the hill by the roadside, half a mile from the Northboro line, is a spot where a few years ago stood a small one-story house which was also of Revolutionary date, and has been known as the " old Alexander house." James Alexander was a Scotchman, and a deserter from Burgoyne's army when the army marched through this town in 1786 on its way to Boston. He strolled away from his company and found his way into Dr. Sumner's barn, where he slept on the hay-mow and was discovered by the Rev. Dr. in the morning, who took him into the house, gave him a breakfast, and admiring his intelligence and evident desire for other employment than that of marching with a defeated army, gave him an opportunity of working at his trade and making shoes for his family, offering the amount of his salary in paper money, if he would keep them well shod.

Later he moved into the small house where his family grew up and there he made shoes for the neighborhood, doing the nicest work. He proved to be a good citizen and lived until 1841 in the house on the Wyman farm, making all kinds of foot covering from the heaviest boot to the lightest dancing slippers.

Other People And Incidents Ii5

In the Autumn of 1724 the inhabitants of the frontier towns on the Merrimac river, being- dissatisfied with the manner of carrying on the War with the Indians, wished to adopt offensive measures. Accordingly a company of Sj soldiers was organized, of which John Lovewell was Captain. A petition was sent to the Legislature in which they say - "That if said company may be allowed five shillings per day in case they kill any enemy Indians, and possesse their Scalp they will employ in Indian Hunting one whole year, and if they do not within that time kill any, they are content to be allowed nothing for their wages, time and trouble." This petition was granted, changing the bounty into £100 for every scalp taken during one year, "Capt. Lovewell was a brave and adventurous officer, and stimulated by this offer, he immediately took the field and led his company on towards the dwelling-place of the Pequaketts, who resided within the territory now forming the towns of Frydburg, Maine, and Conway, N. H."

On the 29th of January, 1724, they mustered and started on their expedition from Dunstable, travelling a few miles each day and camping where night found them, sendino;- out scouts and sometimes seeing^ and killing an Indian. Through the cold months and in the snow they marched, until the men became footsore, and coming in the latter part of Fel)ruary to Newington, Maine, they went on board a sloop bound for Boston, where they arrived INIarch loth. About the middle of April they started out again, this time with only 46 men and marched to Saweco river, then to Pigwacket, where they found Paugus and his men and had the famous battle. It was on the 8th of ^lay, and the killing of an Indian early in the day brought out numbers from Ambush and 10 o'clock the attack was made. At the first volley Capt. Lovewell and Ensign Robbins were mortally wounded, but supporting themselves by trees they fired upon the enemy until their strength failed and "Capt. Lovewell's gun was cocked and presented when he was past speaking."' With the fall of the brave Captain, Ensign Wyman took command and "through the rest of that eventful day, by his prudent management and courageous example he was doubtless under God instrumental in preserving so many from being cut off, the enemy being more than double their number." "Seeing them become dispirited, he animated them to action, assuring them that the day would be theirs if their spirits did not flag, which so encouraged them that several discharged their muskets between twenty and thirty times apiece.'' Thirty-three men entered the engagement in the morning and at night twenty-one were left.

Other People And Incidents I I 7

silver hilted sword as an assurance of the public approbation. He soon started out again with a company under his command, but the heat of summer carried sickness into his camp which resulted in the death of many, among- them brave Captain Wyman himself. He died on the fifth of September, 1725, at the age of thirty-nine.

Shrewsbury never suffered from Indian invasion and depredation like the earlier and frontier towns and consequently has no tales of Indian warfare connected with its history and no romantic legendary lore, but among the families whose ancestors struggled with the foe and lost their lives in the defence of their liberties we find the name of Hapgood, originally Habgood. The earliest Habgood in this country came from England in 1656, arriving in Boston in July of that year. This Shadrach Habgood married in Sudbury, 1664, Elizabeth Treadway, daughter of the landowner Nathaniel Treadway, whose name was attached to the Shrewsbury grants long before the land received its present name. He was living in Sudbury when the war with King Philip came on and was one of the company of twenty mounted men sent by the government to treat with the Indians and prevent the war if possible. They proceeded to visit Brookfield, here fell into an ambush and were suddenly surrounded by two or three hundred Indians who killed eight of their number and mortally wounded three others. Among the murdered was Shadrach Hapgood.

This was in 1675. Captain Thomas Hapgood, who was son of Shadrach, Nov. 12, 1703, petitioned the General Court for an allowance, alleging that "he having in 1690 been detached into the service against the Indian enemy, was engaged in the bloody fight near Oyster River, X. H., wherein Capt. Noah Wiswell and divers others were slain and wounded : that he there had his left arm broken and his right hand much shot so that he endured great pain and narrowly escaped with his life ; that he was thereby very much disabled for labour and getting his livelihood : forced to sell what stock he had acquired before being wounded, to maintain himself since, and that in the fight he was necessitated to leave and lose his arms with which he was well furnished at his own charge. The Court granted him £5." He and his brother Nathaniel began life with considerable means, and became owners of large tracts of land, in INIarlbro ; and eighty acres of the land granted to Isaac Johnson, lying within the present limits of Shrewsbury ; were purchased by Thomas, who bequeathed the same to his son Captain Thomas, who settled thereon in 1725; he became a leading man here and served as selectman seven years. He married Damaris Hutchins, and from them descended all of the name in Shrewsbury.

Daniel Heminway was a famous church builder ; he framed the Shrewsbury meeting-house, the old South in Worcester and the one in Northboro where the Rev.

Other People And Incidents I 1 9

Peter Whitney long officiated, besides many other public buildings. " He was a warm patriot in the time of the Revolution, one of the strong men of the town," and a member of the third Provincial Congress, where he did important work on various committees, one of which was to purchase arms for the use of the army, for which service he received £4 8s. Another was to "procure stores for depositing fish for the use of the Colony." He was also a delegate from this town to the Convention that framed the Constitution of the Commonwealth. He came here from Framingham and died in 1794 aged 75.

Vashni Heminway son of Daniel, was a joiner by trade. He was a representative to the General Court several years and for twenty-two years held the o^ce of town clerk.

One of the duties of the town clerk was to publish the marriage bans. This was required by law, that any person might object if he knew just cause why the marriage should not be. There were two ways of publishing the bans, those concerned choosing the one which they preferred. A written notice of the matrimonial intention was posted in some public place, or they must be "cried off" in church; the latter was considered in best style. The Sabbath service being over, as the congregation was dispersing, the town clerk called the attention of the people by his loud " Oyez ! Oyez ! Oyez !" and read the notice. This was done three Sundays in succession, and if there were no objections offered, there was a wedding soon. If the more quiet way was preferred, the notice was posted beside the church door in a conspicuous place where it would not fail to be observed by all who entered. As it was a matter of some curiosity to know who was to be married in the village, few passed in without reading. Three weeks was the allotted time for this also. One spirited Shrewsbury girl who was published to marry a townsman, heard just in time that the family of her intended did not desire her as an addition to their circle. The next Sunday when she entered the south porch, she quickly stepped aside to the place where the notice was posted, tore it down and crumpling it in her hands threw it on the floor, crushing it still more with the high heel of her shoe, and then with sparkling eyes and a toss of her head went on and took her seat. It is needless to say that the wedding did not take place. When Vashni Heminway was to be married he outwitted all the gossips. He posted his own intentions at the proper time and usual place in the south porch, covering it with a notice to those who had dogs to take care of them during the church service and not let them get troublesome. His bans were published in this way for three weeks and no one was the wiser but himself and a certain girl who was spinning for Mrs. Sumner. When the three weeks were over Vashni walked into Dr. Sumner's house one day, in his working clothes, not even remov- ing his leather apron, and told the Rev. Doctor that he had come to be married to the girl spinning in his kitchen. wShe was called in and the ceremony performed forthwith - after a satisfactory explanation had been made.

The following was copied from a genuine marriage notice that was posted more than a century ago, the torn ends of the paper showing where the nails held it :

One of Shrewsbury's noted men was Capt. Luther Goddard, who was born in 1762. In middle life he withdrew from the church and faith of his forefathers and joined the Baptists, becoming a preacher and itinerant minister.

The way he became famous was by making watches, and it is said that he made the first watch that was ever made in America. He had his shop here, and besides cleaning and repairing the watches of the Shrewsl)ury people he also took care that those in the surrounding towns were kept in good order. Every other Sunday he preached in Lancaster, and the service being over he would collect all the disordered watches, take them home and return them in perfect order the next preaching day. Thus did he combine his different callings and made his various talents of service on all occasions.

He was instrumental in forming a Baptist Society in Shrewsbury, and by his enterprise a meeting-house was built and services sustained through his lifetime. The meeting-house was afterward transformed into a dwelling-house by ]\Ir, Lyman Howe and is now occupied by I\Ir. George Dow. It is on the Worcester road about half a mile west of the post-office, and has been remodelled and changed in appearance within a few years.

One of the eminent physicians here was Dr. Seth Knowlton, who was born in 1 781 and was grandson of Deacon Ezekiel. Harlow's History says, "He was a man of strong intellect and great influence in the town, and he was noted as much for his positive opinions and his ability to maintain them against all opposers, as he was for his skill as a surgeon and physician." There are some elderly persons now, who are not likely to ever forget the jolly Doctor who sweetened his medicine with merry stories and jokes, though the jokes Avere not always agreeable to the suffering patient. He was not very tall, but so fleshy as not to wish to mount a horse and always carried his saddle-bags in his sulky.

The children knew by woeful experience that those saddle-bags contained mixtures of inconceivable bitterness, and to the pains of sickness was added the horrible thought of the nauseous doses they must swallow when the Doctor came. One lady recalls her pleasure at the Doctor's visits, when he always took from his pocket a great copper cent to compensate her for the bitter spoonful which came after it and which she must take. His doses of dissolved fishworms, dried and powdered frogs, hog lice steeped in brandy and other delectable compounds seem to have had not a bad effect upon those who lived to grow up under his treatment, their vigorous constitutions holding out to a good old age. He was foremost m forming the Restoration Society here and gathered the children for the first Sabbath School in Dr. Sumner's church about 1810.

Abel Goulding came into town about 1790 with his family, and lived on what is now called the Dickenson place, near the meeting of the Worcester and Holden roads, in the old blockhouse, built in the earliest times as a stronghold to which the inhabitants of that part of the town might flee, in case of any Indian invasion. When the danger from Indians was over it was occupied as a dwelling-house, and was not taken away until about twenty-five years ago.

Abel Goulding acquired his fame by inventing a loom for making chaise lace, the trimming used in the linings of chaises and carriages. He made a loom and manufactured the lace at his home. His father lived on Goulding Hill and with him lived his daughter Milly, who was a bright girl and taught school in Worcester. The death of her lover broke her heart and turned her brain, and she became a wanderer about town, mildly insane and always pleasant and gentle. Tradition says that she had but to wish for a thing, when it came to her in one way or another. One would conclude that she wished for little, her possessions were so scanty. She was once in want of some candles, but it seems she had no tallow. She strolled off through the fields, and in her walk came across a dead cow. Not being fastidious she went home for a knife and with it she cut out all the tallow from the carcass and then made her candles, thanking the Lord for thus generously providing for her wants. So she went through life never suffering from want, but always having her necessities supplied like the ravens ; and Milly Goulding's wishes became a proverb among those who kncAV her.

While Parson Gushing was yet living, and Nathaniel Whittemore was tanning calf- skins for schoolboys' aprons, before Old Tombolin had worn out his sheepskin breeches, little Mary Garfield was growing up. And when the military companies were forming and Ross Wyman was making his patriotic horseshoes, when "Old Grimes'' was visiting the Baldwin Tavern and Dr. Sumner was preaching in the new meeting-house, she was lively Molly Garfield. By the time that Luther Goddard preached the Gospel and cleaned the people's watches, while Milly Goulding was patiently awaiting the fulfillment of her modest wishes and Dr. Knowlton began to dispense his herbs and fishworms, she was. called Old Moll Garfield the Witch. Not that she was ever fliought to be a disagreeable, mischief- making; witch, but one whose character would bear inspection even in those days when suspicion had not yet died out. She fared better than her predecessors of a century before, for no one meddled with her liberty and she was allowed to sit quietly in her hut and distil her rose water and cider brandy - harmless decoctions for a witch to bring out of her cauldron. Some say that her little habitation was on the spot where Mr. Cook's carnations bloom so marvelously now. Others say that it was in the vicinity of the present Garfield residence, which is a more marvelous place still than Mr. Cook's greenhouses. However this may be, she did good work in spinning for the neighbors ; but the boys were shy of her, and being determined to settle the question once for all whether she was a true witch, hung a horseshoe over the door of the room where she sat spinning one day. This story does not say whether they saw her come out, or Avhether she quietly slid up the chimney, but she was ever after called a witch. The legend says that on very dark nights she would mount her broom-stick and sail off nito the clouds much higher than the church steeple, coming down again as gently as a thistle down. Such frolics as these indulged in at her extreme age look a little as though she was at least an unusual person, but many strange things happened long ago that we cannot account for.

servant in the INIiles family and always, when not at work, dressed in a white suit. He was not careful to keep the family secrets and caused some funny experiences. Ezra Howard and his dog will still be remembered by some ; Ezra was a servant at the Baldwins.

The story of the coming of the first Plympton to Shrewsbury is thus told by a granddaughter, INIrs. Streeter, and is taken from the records of the Plympton family :

" ]\Iy Grandfather, Elzaphon Plympton, was a shoemaker and also a farmer. About 1792 he went to Shrewsbury and bought a tract of land entirely covered with wood. He first cleared away the wood from a spot large enough for a house, then dug a cellar, put up the frame and covered it. I have heard my grandmother say that the first summer she lived there, no floors were laid, only loose boards put in place, and a board laid across the timbers for a shelf on which to set her dishes. There ^vere no doors, windows or a chimney. A temporary fireplace was built out of doors where she did her cooking ; and they went through the woods to a spring, not far from the house, for Avater. When the cool autumn Aveather came on, the chimneys were built, the doors hung, windows put in, and the house made more comfortable for the approaching winter. Thus my grandfather went on doing a little at a time, as his limited means would allow, from year to year, until at last the wood M'as cleared away from the place, and his land brought under a good state of cultivation, with mowing, pasture land and tillage. He had a fine apple orchard beginning to bear nice fruit. His house was finished and though not large, made a comfortable dwelling, with wood-house, granary, barn and workshop. All this was done in about twenty years. With the small means he had at his disposal, his growing family of nine children to feed, clothe and care for, he must have been a remarkably good calculator, a frugal, industrious man, and my grandmother his true helpmeet."

The Henshaw Place

CAPTAIN NATHANIP:L ALLEX came here from Boston about the year 1756 and Hved on the place now owned by INIr. Samuel D. Ward. He w^as a sea-faring- man, had been in various parts of the world and had ac(|uired a sufticient amount of property to enable him to build himself a house a little handsomer than his neig-hbors. It was well built, too, and had the look of being rather grand, perched high up from the road, and nearer to it than the present house stands. The style of building was different from the ordinary New EuQ^land country houses and was built with a curb roof and dormer windows. The outer walls were bricklined, as a protection against the bullets of any enemy. The rooms were higher than those in most houses and the windows larger. The front door was quite imposing with its caryed side posts and cornice oyerhead surmounted by a spread eagle, all brought from England, no work of the kind then being done in this country. The door opened into a hall which ran through the house from north to south, and a broad flight of stairs led to the rooms above. The house was in its latter days painted yellow, and called by the children "The old yellow castle," so grand it seemed to them. East of the house was Capt. Allen's small store where he kept a stock in trade. He had a slave called by the name of Noah, whom he sent one night in the early spring with an errand to the Baldwin Tavern. He appears to have been unacquainted with the sociability of Shrewsbury frogs, for as he was passing the brook in the yard on his way home he heard a voice calling out as he thought, " Noah Allen," ''Noah Allen," ''Nigger Man," "I'll have him." For one instant he listened to the words spoken in such a weird tone, and then wild with fright he fled, and "not a moment stopped or staid he" until he arrived at his own master s door in safety. Capt. Allen appears to have had more than one slave, for we hear of his being at the Baldwin Tavern one day with his black man Boston and his little son Lewis, his son Caleb being left at home. While Capt. Allen was talking with others who were standing near, the little boy Lewis, in climbing about, fell into the well. He was soon recovered, but the father was more frightened than the boy, and told Boston to run home and see if Caleb had not fallen into their well, for he never knew Lewis do any kind of a trick that Caleb did not do the same thing immediately. Boston obeyed orders but found Caleb had not thought of falling into the well. Lewis Allen lived to grow up and became a goldsmith by trade. He also grew into such a dangerous Tory that his townsmen desired him to seek a residence elsewhere. He respected their request and removed to Leicester, where he purchased the IMount Pleasant farm of Col. Joseph Henshaw, who bought Allen's farm in Shrewsbury and removed there in 1781. Lewis Allen died at Mount Pleasant and at his 'Own request was buried in the garden near the road that, as he said, he might "hear the news when the stage goes by ;*' and he threatened vengeance on the one who should desecrate his grave, hi the course of time some owner plowed over the grave and ever after the place was haunted, his ghost always troubling anyone who ventured to live there.

Col. Henshaw ^^'as a sea captain in early life, had spent much time at sea and in foreign lands, from whence he brought home treasures of many kinds and a large quantity of silver ware. At the opening of hostilities Avith Great. Britain he was sent as delegate from Leicester to the first Provincial Congress, in Oct., 1774, and the next month was one of a committee "to make an estimate of the loss and damage of every kind to the province by the Boston port bill, and the act for altering the civil government." He was elected a member of the second Congress and one of a committee " to establish an intimate correspondence with the inhabitants of the province of Quebec.'' He was also sent to Connecticut to consult with the Governor and General Assemblv on matters relating^ to Col. Benedict Arnold and the stores which he was conveying to Ticonderoga, requesting that .an effort be made to have any surplus stores sent to the Province of Massachusetts, ammunition and guns being much needed there. He went, and the Congress allowed for his own expenses and those of his servant, ^7.14. The following is a copy of the Congressional resolve : ''Resolved, That Col. Joseph Henshaw be appointed and directed to repair to Hartford and inquire whether provision is made, by the General Assembly of the Colony of Connecticut, for securing and maintaining the fortress of Ticonderoga and acquaint Col. Arnold that it is the order of this Congress that he return and render accounts of his expenses in that expedition, in order that he may be honorably discharged : But if Col. Henshaw shall find that such provision is not made, and the General Assembly be not sitting, that he proceed to Ticonderoga, and inform Col. Arnold that it is the order of this Congress that he continue there, with such number of fe)rces as said Col. Henshaw shall judge necessary for the purpose. Nevertheless, if the said Col. Henshaw shall thid the General Assembly sitting, and that they have not made such provision, that he consult with them touching this important matter, and take their proposals, and immediately make report to the Congress of this Colony." During the Revolutionary War he was elected to many important oflices and distinguished himself by his patriotism and bravery. He lived but a few years after coming to Shrewsbury, but his widow, Mrs. Sally Henshaw, continued to live on the Henshaw Place, noted for her deeds of kindness and benevolence. One picture that we have of her is as she was sitting beside the bed of her servant, poor black Jack, who was dying of a fever, fanning him to keep away the flies, for, she said, "It seems as if the flies would eat up poor Jack." Aunt Sally Henshaw was not only kind-hearted, but she wore beautiful dresses and was very handsome herself when she was young.

In the lane that led from the yard to the woods and pastures to the south, old black Ccesar and his wife had their little house where they lived and worked for the Henshaw family. Hannah had a great fondness for ''the ardent "'and frequently allowed her love for it to overcome her prudence and drank too freely, but Caesar carried a steady head and kept things smooth at home. The poor woman's retribution overtook her at last, and one fatal day Dec. 26, 1807, after having taken most of the contents of her jug, she tried to lift it to its place on the shelf over the fireplace, but her joints were weak and gave way all at once and she fell in a heap on the fire. Ca?sar being near by, picked her up and did what he could for her dreadful burns, bestowing most loving care upon her. In a day or two he left her for a short time to go on some errand and when he returned the door was blocked by something on the inside. In at the window he went and found Hannah sitting on the floor, her back against the door, her hand on the bedpost and she was dead. The poor man was heartbroken, and when some days after a neighbor went to see how it fared with him, the door was again found blocked on the inside, another entrance at the window and old Caesar was sitting with his back against the door, his hand on the bed-post, and he dead. He died of grief, and his heart was really broken for his dear, black, drinking wife. To conclude this mournful and truthful tale, the house itself burned down not long after and only a few stones now mark the spot where this loving couple lived and had their tragic end.

Aunt Sally, after having become blind, went to live with her brother Joshua Henshaw, who was a man of some prominence in Boston, once owned Spectacle Island in the harbor and removed to Shrewsbury to spend his last years, living in the house wdiich was moved away in 1876, from the site where now stands the residence of the late Hon. Thomas Rice.

Squire "Josh" was a very slender man and fun was occasionally poked at him on that account. He was once annoyed at the continuous efforts of a tin peddler to prevail upon him to purchase some of his wares and he finally asked the peddler if he had not a pair of boots that would fit him. "Yes," said the peddler, "here is just the fit," handing him a pair of tin candle moulds.

Caesar drew the water from the well, the same well into which the youthful Samuel Ward once fell, and when he was brought up unhurt, wanted to go back and get his hat. The well and the house are shaded by three of the four elms which were set out by Aunt Sally's namesake and niece; and not far from Caesar's house-site stands the old sassafras tree, as large one hundred years ago as it is to-day, from which several generations of children have peeled the fragrant bark to chew on their way to school. Aunt Henshaw's June roses still bloom on the bank in front, bright and red as they bloomed in the days gone by when ]\Irs. Henshaw herself came out with stately step to see how her garden grew, or the gay young niece who visited her ran out to pluck a nosegay on a Sunday morning to wear in her belt to church.

Shrewsbury In The Revolution Sketch Of General Ward

ARTEMAS WARD was born November 27th, 1727, in the house afterward known as the "Baldwin Tavern," which his father Nahum Ward built, as we have seen in a former chapter. Here he spent his early life, and when seventeen years of age entered Harvard College, from which he was graduated at the ao-e of twenty-one years. He was then attracted to the pleasant town of Groton, Mass., where he taught school for a time, boarding in the family of the Rev. Caleb Trowbridge, whose wife was a granddaughter of the old puritan minister. Rev. Increase Mather, one of the leading theologians in the time of the Salem Witchcraft, and it must be confessed that the witches received little favor at his hands.

After the school teaching was over Artemas Ward married Sarah, daughter of the Graton minister, who is said to have inherited some of the firm characteristics of her Mather ancestors. They commenced their married life in the house on Rocky Plain, which his father had presented to him, and being commissioned one of his Majesty's justices, he there had his law office where offenders were summoned to appear before him to be tried for their misdeeds. There, too, he kept a small store, and by his account book, which is preserved in good condition, he must have done a thriving business. His rum and molasses he bought by the barrel in Boston, of Joshua Winslow^ and he bought his broadcloth of John Hancock. Very little is known of his life at this time, save that he held some town offices, being town -clerk, selectman, and representative to the General Court. The first glimpse which we have of his military life is that he was Captain of the first company raised in this town. In 1755 he was commissioned Major in the Third Regiment, Abraham Williams being Colonel. In 1758 he was made Lieutenant Colonel in the Regiment of foot commanded by Col. William Williams and raised for the invasion of Canada, setting out for the wars in May of that year.

The following extracts are made from his Journal kept during the expedition: " I\Iay 30, 1758. ]\Iarched to Brookfield, lodged at Hastings's; 31st to Northampton, lodged at Gideon Lymans ; June 3. Seven companies of our Regiment marched ten miles to ye Coffee house and emcamped.

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20. The Honbie Col. Gage & Col. Haldiman came to pay Col. Williams a visit. The General not well. The French Flag uneasy because not sent away - an acc<^ of the arrival of the Storeship, an ace* of Lord Hows arrival at the Lake with a number of Battoes, an acct of one of Rogers men killed by the guard at Half-way brook.

22. An acc^ of a party of 100 Lidians discovered on the East side ye River, a party of 200 from Prebbles Ruggles & Nichols regiment ordered out in quest of them made no discovery. Ruggles & Williams Regiment musterd by Brig^f Gen^ Gage who did Col. Williams ye Honor to say, was his Regt in uniform it would be one of the finest he ever saw.

24. A large detachment to escort y teams & assist in Building a fort came to this place three prisoners (who escaped from Canada) about 12 o'clock A. M.

I40 Old Times In Shrewsbury

brot an acc^ that ye French were raising- all their forces - that they were in great want of provisions - - that but few Indians had joyned them as yet.

June 25. About 400 teams & Wagons passed on to ye Lake with stores - preached from Deut. 23d 9. About 150 of Col. Williams Regiment with a large detachment from the Inkskilling & Rugglcs Regiments Imployed in building a stockade fort at Half-way Brook.

6. Landed without opposition & killed 4 of the enemy, took 6 prisoners all y^ rest after destroying their Block house fled - 12 o clock set out for ye mills met ye enemy Ingaged them. Lord How fell in Battle with about 10 more, the line of march broke all in confusion, returned to ye place we landed at & Incamped with 160 prisoners, many of the enemy slain viz 160.

8. Formed our lines before y^ enemys brest works, the fire began at 9 lasted till Night many slain. Began to build a brest work but soon shamefully retreated to our old brest tvork.

29. Majs Rogers & Putnam with 700 men sent down at 2 o clock in ye morn to ye Lake & 10 to South Bay to Intercept the Enemy in their return.

Aug. 8. Heard that 2 of Lord Hows Regt was found scalped which was supposed to have deserted from ye Regt before we went to Ticonderoga with one more which some days since was taken up by some of our men and is now under arrest, it is thought that he was with the Indians that feU upon ye teams on ye 28^^ of July last. It is thought, he will suffer death for his crime,

9. News from Rogers that he had got forty scalps iSc two prisoners, he lost 20 & had 50 men wounded two brought into Fort Edward that was scalped but alive - ye truth is they gave ye enemy a good drubbing this time.

13. Last night ye french Flag of truce went off - this day Capt. ^Maynard returned from his scout with ]Maj. Rogers, he went to south bay fort Ann then to Fort Edward & Saratoga he said he had 7 men shot down within the length of his gun of him, in time of the engagement.

20. This day news came to head Quarters from a letter from Gov. Hutchinson of ye surrender of Cape Breton that it surrendered ye 26 of July last.

21. Lt Johnson of Capt- Jacobs company went out on a scout with about 15 or 16 Indians and English to reconoiter and get a Captive if possible.

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and are now in the possession of his descendants. At the time of this war one-third of all the able bodied men of Massachusetts were in the field. Of the number who went from Shrewsbury, Mr. Harlow in his History traces but nine names.

Caleb Parker. The two Howe brothers and Aaron Smith came home sick, and the town granted them each an allowance of several shillings on account of their sickness. An old document of which the following is a copy, reveals some other names :

''Shrewsbury May ye 2d 1758 We y^ Subscribers do hereby acknowledge that we have rec^ of Artemas Ward fifty shillings each, it being in full for ye fifty shillings bounty allowed by ye General Court for Inlisting into ye Canada Expedition.

In July 1765 the following named persons received each, nine pounds bounty from the muster master, Col. Artemas Ward, "for enlisting into the service of ye Province of y^ Massachusetts Bay in ye year aforesaid" - John Taplix,

Shrewsbury hero, Jonah Taylor who went in his youthful ardor with the famous expedition against Cape Breton under Sir William Pepperell and fell at Louisburg in 1745. On his return from this expedition Col. Ward resumed his place in town affairs, administering justice to the unruly and throwing his influence on the right side of the grave questions then arising among the people.

In 1762 he sold his house on Rocky Plain to Rev. ]\Ir. Sumner and removed to the place since known as the Ward Homestead, on the opposite side of the King's highwav from the Baldwin Tavern.

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stead was erected is not definitely known. Probably it is one of the numerous houses built by Nahum Ward. Like most country houses of that time, it had two rooms in front, one on each side of the front door and a small entry between. A large chimney afforded fireplaces in the two rooms and also in the long- kitchen behind them. In 1785 the house was enlarged and somewhat modernized, but many old features remain. The hand-made window sashes, and heavy blinds, the great locks and hinges on the doors often excite the curiosity of the present generation, and it has been sometimes rare sport for the children to search out all the closets, cupboards and cranny places in the house, some of which are not easily found. Like the Pease Tavern, there is a swing partition between two rooms upstairs which can be raised to make one large room. The fireplaces have nearly all been bricked up, but the brick oven in the kitchen is still in good order, and the stone hearth lies before the fireplace as if waiting for those good old times to return when the back-log and fore-stick with a whole load of smaller wood filling in the space between, would blaze again and fill the room with light and heat. The crane is shut up there waiting to bear its weight of pots and kettles as in the ancient time when the fair faces and plump arms of the dames who ruled their own kitchens, kept fair to the last in spite of the roaring, scorching fire before which they cooked their dinners, happy in their ignorance of a cooking stove. The kitchen dresser is now enclosed with doors, but the shining pewter that once adorned the shelves is scattered through the land in different homes. The heavy, sliding window shutters still shut out the cold in winter nights, as they did when the young folks gathered about the bright log fire to crack their hickory nuts and roast their apples and chestnuts. The apples twirling on their strings, sputtered in the heat until the juice dropped down on to the ashes below, where the chestnuts were roasting and bursting their shells, scattering the ashes into the mugs of cider warming on the hearth, over the shining apples above, and all about, making ofreat merriment, for whichever ^^'av one flew was toward the true love of the owner of that very chestnut. Cracking their nuts and their jokes they had their fun, knowing that if they became too uproarious the General would come to the door and bid them "keep more quiet." The cellar door has the old fashioned latch pulled up by a leather string, like the one little Red-riding-hood lifted at her grandmother's door. The long poles hanging horizontally in their supports a few inches from the ceiling were used for drying apples and pumpkins, and here, too, were kept the guns. Sometimes the boys would drill in the kitchen, and the low ceiling still shows the marks where it was hit in the "shoulder arms!" In the "best room,'"' now the ''middle room," was the buffet which was, in the reno-

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The summers running across the ceiling, the corner posts and beams around the tops of the rooms, the stout timbers, the spars in the garret fastened with great wooden pins, bracing up the roof, the massive masonry in the cellar supporting the chimneys, all show that the house was not built for that time alone, but with a thought for future generations. It was from this humble dwelling that Artemas Ward went forth to take that active and prominent part in the political affairs of our country in which he distinguished himself for his pure patriotism, his strict integrity and stern sense of justice and duty from which he allowed nothing to turn him aside. In 1763 he was commissioned Colonel, and in trainino^ his men he sometimes gave them lessons in politics. Fighting for the king against the French was a thing of the past ; they must now look out for their own rights that were being encroached upon by Parliament, and the militia companies instead of being eager to learn how to best serve their king, were seeking to break away from his allegiance altogether.

Hints of Colonel Ward's disloyalty to kingly rule came to the ears of the royal Governor, Francis Bernard, who as a loyal subject of the king was bound to suppress anything like treachery ; accordingly, he sent a messenger post-haste to Col. Ward's house with a letter. It was the day when the old meeting- house was being- torn down, and men had collected from all parts of the to\\'n to take part in the work. Being directed there the messenger spurred on his horse, and finding Col. Ward with the others, presented him with the letter, resting his horse while it was being opened to see how the message was received. The assembled townsmen were curious to know what the important message could be that required such haste in the rider in the scarlet coat. Col. Ward then read aloud:

Sir. - I am ordered by the Governor to signify to you that he has thought fit to supersede your ComiTiission of Col. in the Regiment of militia lying in part in the County of Worcester and partly in the County of IMiddlesex - And your said Commission is superseded accordingly.

Col. Ward then turning to the messenger said "Give my compliments to the Governor and say to him that I consider myself twice honored, but mere in being superseded than m being commissioned, and" (holding up the letter) "that I thank him for this, since the motive that dictated it is evidence that I am what he is not, a friend to my country." Bearing this message the horseman in the king's livery turned his horse and rode off amid the shouts of the people ''Colonel Ward forever !" So bravely and without hesitation did he accept the situation, and so firmly did he abide by the stand which he had taken, that he secured the love and confidence of New England.

King George III. was not beloved by his subjects in the Province of Massachusetts Bay and his representative, the Governor thereof, felt that rebellion was in the hearts of the people. And truly they did rebel against the heavy taxations and the many acts of oppression placed upon them.

The lawdoving, law-abiding descendants of the Puritans liked it not that the king should send his Redcoats to preserve order among the most orderly of mankind, and Artemas Ward w^ith his keen sense of justice could ill brook the insult. The colonists aroused to action, sent men of tried integrity and loyalty to their cause, to act as the Governor's council, and thus protect their rights. Shrewsbury sent Artemas Ward, but the Governor, loyal to the king, would have none of him, and sent him home for the same reason that he withdrew his commission. The people then sent him as their representative to the General Court, where he remained and acted with that body.

For some years there had been turbulent times in Boston : the independent spirit of America was aroused by the presence of the British soldiers, who were pleased at times to show their authority, consequently there was a tight between them and some of the Boston workmen, and Crispus Attuks (who has since been immortalized as a hero,) was killed. This was called a massacre, and was followed by a more determined show of resistance. IMobs and riots turned the formerly peaceful city into a place of terror. The people were becoming- poor by taxation ; the already poor were crushed by it and reduced to real suffering. Kind friends in the country and in other Colonies took from their own scanty stores to help them in their need, for these stories were not long in passing over the hills. Groups of men talked them over in the bar-rooms at Baldwin's and Farrar's ; there was war in the air ! Shrewsbury Captains drilled their men; all the old flint locks were brushed up and primed ready for use at a minute's notice, when their owners should receive the word. Indians and wild cats were forgotten ; it was the Red-coats now ! When the young men burned their tea in Ross Wyman's bar-room they expressed a feeling that would show itself later in burning powder when the right time should come, and they waited with what patience they could, for the motto was, ''The British must fire the first shot !"

The great and general court of the Province of INIassachusetts Bay being deserted by the Royal Governor, Hon. Thomas Gage, Esq., on the fifth of October, 1774, the members thereof formed themselves into a Provin- cial Congress, and held their first session at Salem Court House two days later, choosing John Hancock president and Benjamin Lincoln clerk. Adjourning to the meetinghouse in Concord, a committee was appointed ''to consider what is necessary to be done now for the defense and safety of the Province," the committee to consist of thirteen, "Hon. Col. Ward" being one. It was found that not less than £20,^^,7 was necessary to defray the expense of firearms and ordnance, in addition to what was already in their possession. This appalling sum did not dismay these intrepid men who were willing to give their all for their liberty.

A committee of safety consisting of nine was also appointed to regulate the Militia and they chose three Generals, Hon. Jedediah Preble, Hon. Artemas Ward, Col. Seth Pomeroy. Jedediah Preble did not accept his appointment. All through the next winter the Militia companies in the towns were quietly learning the ways of war, learning to send their balls straight to the mark and to waste no ammunition by false shots. Heavily loaded wagons were seen wending their way towards Concord where the ordnance were to be stored, leaving their loads of powder and balls and returning for more. The teamsters were allowed ninepence per mile.

Shrewsbury voted to raise three companies, but it appears that two only were raised, one in each precinct - the south (now Shrewsbury) under Captain Job Cushing ; the north (Boylston) under Captain Ezra Bea- man. It appears also that these two companies were consolidated in one, Job Cashing, Captain, and Ezra Beaman, first Lieut., the number of men raised not being sufficient for two companies.

Before the war was over Ezra Beaman won the title of Major, having distinguished himself in the Bennington and Saratoga struggles. He is one of Boylston's famous men and an account of his valor may be read in the History of Worcester County. The place where he lived is called the "Beaman farm" to this day, and is owned by Mr. Thomas Harlow of Shrewsbury.

In March, 1773, when Doctor Joseph Warren made his bold speech in the Old South Church on the anniversary of the massacre, the British found that they had more than a handful of rebellious children with whom to deal. On the fifteenth of April the Congress at Concord adjourned to convene again on the tenth of May, the eleventh of May being appointed as a day of fastings and prayer "for the gracious interposition of Heaven and the restoration of their invaded liberties." Not fearing an immediate attack from the British, the members of Congress left Concord for their homes, excepting Samuel Adams and John Hancock, who stayed a few days with their friend. Rev. Jonas Clark, in Lexington. Gov. Gage having had orders from England to arrest these two dangerous men and send them to the king for trial, it was thought best for them to remain in the seclusion of Lexington for awhile, and there Paul Revere found them when he took his midnight ride on the eighteenth of April, and spoke at every door "A word that shall echo forevermore." The next day the shot for which the country was listening was fired and "heard round the world." Then the pent up enthusiasm of New England burst into flame, and when the historic white horse "bloody with spurring and dripping with sweat" passed through Shrewsbury, its rider crying out "To arms! To arms! The war's begun," men leaped to their saddles or shouldered their arms, and Captain Cushing's company of minute men were on the moment's notice marching toward Boston. Lieut. Nathan Howe was, like Israel Putnam, plowing at the time he heard the cry, with a horse and a pair of oxen ; mounting the horse he set off to rally the men. Nathan, Junior, cried to go, too, but was too young, being only fifteen. However when, two years later, his father left the army because his constitution was broken down with exposure and labor, he was allowed to have his wish and v/ent to the war, remaining in the service till its close.

The word that the excited horsemen brought to Shrewsbury on the nineteenth of April flew through the towns with such rapidity that before Saturday night Boston was surrounded by an army of sixteen thousand men, in the face of Governor Gage's proclamation that all rebels taken in arms should be brought to the gallows.

Artemas Ward was at Cambridge on the twentieth issuing- orders and regulating the troops as they came thronging in. On the nineteenth of May the Provincial Congress accepted the form of a commission for General Ward and the next day ''Resolved unanimously, that the president be desired to deliver to Gen. Ward the commission prepared for him by this Congress as General and Commander in Chief of the Massachusetts forces. " The commission read as follows : " The Congress of the Colony of INIassachusetts Bay '

To the Honorable Artemas Ward, Esquire, Greeting : W^e, reposing especial trust and confidence in your courage and good conduct, do by these presents constitute and appoint you, the said Artemas Ward, to be General and Commander in Chief of all the forces raised by the Congress aforesaid, for the defence of this and the other American Colonies.