Worcester City (part 25 of 58)

Mr. Burbank married, at Auburn, May 23, 1837, Mary Siblev, who died at Worcester December 4, 1839. On May 27, 1841, he married Sarah W. Grout, who survives him. Their three children are all deceased. Edwin H. died August 18, 1855, at the age of thirteen ; Mary J. died August 26, 1861, aged sixteen years; and Sarah F., wife of Dr. F. B.Joy, died February 10, 1879, at the age of twenty-nine years.

His modesty led him to decline public positions during his many years of residence in Fitchburg, and the only times that he has consented to be a candidate for public office have been when his name would add .strength to the weaker, and what he considered the better, cause. While residing in Russell he represented the town in the Legislature in 1849 and 1850.

Mr. Burbank was always deeply interested in whatever tended to increase the prosperity of Fitchburg, and his wish and decree as to the ultimate disposal of his large property show not only his great regard for the city of his adoption, but also his warm, generous heart and his love for humanity. During his life also he was constantly aiding the poor, the unfortunate and the struggling ; but the amount of good he thus accomplished can never be known, as he carefully avoided publicity and sought methods of assisting others which would not meet the public eye.

Many a timely loan has he made to young men who were striving to establish themselves in business, or acquire an education ; and oftentimes the only security that could be given was the honor of the recipient.

Mr. Burbank's excellent habits and strong will undoubtedly prolonged his life many years. From early childhood his health was not good, and since middle life has been seriously impaired. He closed his long and useful life on the 7th of February, 1888.

His bequest, so generous and ample, to the city of Fitchburg, which will cause his memory to be blessed for generations to come, cannot be better spoken of than by quoting the following extracts from his will.

After providing for certain bequests, the residue of the property is placed in the hands of trustees, and, after paying some annuities, the income is given to Mrs. Burbank for life. At her decease the following clauses become operative :

" And the remainder of said principal not hereinbefore disposed of under the preceding provisions of this will, I direct my trustees to pay over to the city of Fitchburg, as far as, and as fast as, it is released from the charges and annuities hereinbefore created, for the founding and maintaining of a hospital for the care of the sick. And while I do not wish to embarrass this gift with provisions and restrictions, but desire that the city shall carefully and considerately carry my plan into execution, believing that founders of benevolent institutions like the one I contemplate often create great difficulties by endeavoring to settle in advance the details of the work they have projected, still I wish to indicate, in general terms, two purposes which I desire to have executed.

" First, I desire that a substantial and commodious hospital building shall be erected, and as I trust that my charity may survive and do good to the poor and sick for many generations, and also believe that the City of Fitchburg will in time be a large and prosperous city, I would suegest that the sum of at least $100,- 000 be devoted to the purchase of the necessary land and the erection of the structure. And I also request and direct that while those who are able to pay for the services rendered them in the hospital may be subjected to such moderate and reasonable charge as is usual in such cases in similar charitable institutions, those, on the other hand, who are in poverty and sickness shall ever be received and cared for kindly and tenderly, ' without money and without price,' and without regard to color or nationality.

" It is by the request of my wife, whose good judgment has so greatly aided me in all the affairs and purposes of my life, that I was led to make the foregoing provision for the foundation of a huspital."

This bequest will be ample to insure to Fitchburg, at some future time, an excellent hospital, which will be at once a lasting memorial to the munificent founder and a great blessing to the community.

John Putnam

John Putnam, the founder of the Putnam Machine Company, and the pioneer of the machine business in Fitchburg, was born in Peterboro', N. H., October 14, 1810.

He was a descendent, in the seventh generation, of John Putnam, who, with his wife, Priscilla, came from Abbot-Aston, near Aylesbury, England, in 1634, and settled in Salem, Mass. John's eldest son, Thomas, first settled in Lynn, but soon removed to Salem Village (now Danvers.) The next in line was Edward, whose son, Elisha, removed iu 1725 to Sutton, Mass.

- incorporated teu years before - where he purchased a large tract of land for a farm. Elisha's son, John, spent his life in Sutton, and was a scythe-maker. His son, John, the father of John - the subject of this sketch - was also a scythe-maker.

Mr. Putnam was closely connected in descent with General Israel Putnam, and also with General Rufus Putnam, wlio was commissioned lieutenant-colonel at the beginning of the Revolutionary War, and superintended the construction of fortifications at Brookline, Roxbury and Dorchester Heights. In August, 1776, he was appointed chief engineer of the Continental Army, with the rank of brigadier-general, and superintended the construction of fortifications at West Point, the most important one - Fort Putnam - being named for him. He enjoyed the confidence and esteem of General Washington.

General Rufus Putnam was one of the earliest settlers of Ohio, and in 1788 fouuded the city of Marietta, the first permanent settlement made in that State.

John Putnam, during early life, assisted his father at scythe-making. When fourteen years old he became an apprentice at the shop of Loammi Chamberlain, a machinist at Mason Village (now Greenville), N. H., where he served five years, working fourteen hours per day. He had the privilege of four weeks' schooling each year, working before and after schoolhours.

After completing his apprenticeship with Mr. Chamberlain he continued in his employ, receiving one dollar per day as wages, and in 1835 he hired a part of his employer's shop and tools and began the manufacture of cottou-machinery. At this time his younger brother, Salmon W. Putnam, then nineteen years old, began working for him as an apprentice.

In 1830 he went to Trenton, N. J., and made arrangements to start a machine-shop there, and on his return to Mason Village he set about making the machinery and necessary tools for his future business. His plan of going to Trenton was, however, destroyed by the panic of 1837, the parties who had agreed to erect a building for him there deciding it was inexpedient to do so.

Mr. Putnam, after storing the machines and tools he had made, sought employment elsewhere and soon obtained a situation as repairer of machinery at Deacon Smith's cotton-factory at East Wilton, N. H. Shortly thereafter the mill was burned and Mr. Putnam obtained another situation in Samuel Wood's cotton-factory in Ashburnham, Mass. After working there some months he hired a room in Mr. Wood's factory, and moving his tools, etc., from their place of storage in Mason Village, set them up there. He then took his younger brother, who was without capital or experience in the business, as an equal partner, and began business under the style of J. & S. W. Putnam.

The tools with which the firm started in 1837 consisted of one 24-inch swing lathe, two small screwcutting lathes, one chucking and one polishing lathe, an upright drill and gear-cutter, two die-stocks, taps, dies, reamers and mandrels.

After having remained in Ashburnham nearly a year and not being satisfied with their prospects in that place, the brothers removed to the neighboring town of Fitchburg, which then had a population of a little over two thousand inhabitants.

The history of the firm and of its great successor, the Putnam Machine Company, is fully given in the section on Iron Industries in thesk°,tch of Fitchburg.

John Putnam was extremely ingenious and a very skilful workman. Much of the new kinds of machinery made by the firm was devised by him ; and from the first and for many years he made all the patterns and forgings used in their business. Gear-cutting machines, new machinery for paper-making, gauge lathes for making bobbins, etc., may be mentioned among his many inventions.

In the early years of the business Mr. Putnam, being the only one competent to superintend the mechanical part of the enterprise, devoted his entire energies to make it a success, denying himself and his family, in a great measure, that he might put every dollar derived from the business back into it. He became so engrossed in its management, never allowing a moment of recreation to himself, that he gave slight heed to the outside and pecuniary part of the business, which he entrusted to his younger brother, Salmon W. Putnam. He did more hard work and furnished more capital toward building up the enterprise than any one else; and the business of the Putnam Machine Company of to-day represents the growth of an enterprise established mainly by his skill and untiring energy through long years of unremitting toil and self-denial.

Soon after the decease of S. W. Putnam, February 23, 1872, the presidency of the Putnam Machine Company was offered to John Putnam ; but, having been confined to the mechanical part of the business ail his life, and not wishing, at that late day, to assume the responsibilities involved, he declined the position and used his influence to place Charles F. Putnam in the president's chair.

Up to the time of his death Mr. Putnam was a heavy stockholder, and for many years a director in the Putnam Machine Company ; and until he retired from business, in 1886, he energetically kept at work with unimpaired skill, and was daily found in his apartment.

Mr. Putnam married, in 1834, Miss Sophronia Chapman, of Cambridge, Mass. She died February 14, 1866, leaving three sons, - John L., H. Marshall and Charles W., - all of whom follow the business of their father, and two daughters, now Mrs. C. C. Stratton and Mrs. Edward Newitt.

Methodist Episcopal Society in Fitchburg. He was always deeply interested in the welfare of the church and contributed generously toward its support. He was trustee Irom 1858 till his death, July 31, 1888, and one of the largest donors to the building fund for the handsome and substantial Methodist Church recently erected in this city ; and his pledge of two thousand dollars was at once the incentive and nucleus around which gathered the means that insured its erection ; and he afterwards made liberal contributions to the same worthy object.

Mr. Putnam was one of our oldest citizens, and much respected for his great mechanical skill, his strict integrity and his pleasant, unostentatious manners. At the time of his death he was nearly seventy-eight years old ; he had been a resident of Fitchburg for just half a century, and lived to see the machine business of this place increase from the accommodations of the twenty by thirty room that he and his brother hired in 1838, in the " Burbank Paper- Mill," to its present enormous proportions.

Ltjtheb Julius Beown

Luther J. Brown was born in the town of Eden, Vermont, on December 31, 1827, and was the oldest of a family of four children. His parents were Luther H. and Bersheba (Shattuck) Brown.

His early education was acquired in the district schools of his native town and at the academy in Johnson, Vt. ; and later he was a student at Appleton Academy, New Ipswich, N. H. He was fond of study and fitted for college, but financial reverses obliged him to give up his intention of obtaining a collegiate education.

His father kept a dry-goods and grocery store in Eden, and for a time the young man was engaged in this store, where he gained his first experience in mercantile business.

In May, 1843, his mother died, and in June, 1845, the family removed to Manchester, N. H. During the greater part of this interval of two years young Brown was iu Hyde Park, in the employ of Noyes Brothers, who kept a large country store. In Manchester he worked in one of the mills and was also employed part of the time in a hardware store.

In 1850, when twenty -three years of age, Mr. Brown went to Boston and became a clerk in the large wholesale and retail dry-goods house of Brett, Ellis & Co., located on Federal Street. He remained in their employ several years and acquired a thorough and valuable knowledge of the business. For a year he had charge of a branch store of the firm in Natick.

In August, 1855, Mr. Brown came to Fitchburg to locate permanently, as it proved. He very soon formed a copartnership with A. B. Sherman in the dry-goods business, and the firm, whose store was in the building next below the present Rollstone Bank block, enjoyed a flourishing trade. The partnership lasted about three years. During this period he married, January 13, 1856, Miss Sarah P. Harding, of East Medway, who, by her tact, courtesy and ability, contributed essentially to the marked success which ere long crowned her husband's mercantile life in Fitchburg.

In 1860 Mr. Brown formed a partnership with Charles Kimball, of Haverhill. The firm of Kimball & Brown occupied a store located on the spot where now stands the handsome structure known far and near as the " L. J. Brown Block."

It was about this time that Mr. Brown performed a feat that attracted widespread attention. In the fall of 1860 there was a sharp and spirited contest over the Representative to Congress from this district, which resulted in the election of Hon. Goldsmith F. Bailey, of Fitchburg, over Hon. Eli Thayer, of Worcester. Mr. Brown favored Mr. Thayer and entered into an agreement with Mr. Silas Buggies, a druggist here, who favored Mr. Bailey, that the one favoring the defeated candidate '" should wheel in a barrow from his place of business in Fitchburg to the hotel in Leominster a well-known gentleman of the 'colored persuasion,' named Ben. Franklin." Mr. Brown's candidate being defeated, in accordance with the agreement, he began his arduous task at one o'clock Thursday afternoon, November 8, 1860. Over a thousand people were present to see him start .and the Leominster Baud furnished music. Mr. Brown accomplished the journey of five miles in two hours and a quarter, with but seven rests, which was doing pretty well, as the negro weighed one hundred and sixty-five pounds. About a thousand people welcomed Mr. Brown on his arrival at Leominster. In the evening Mr. Brown gave a supper to some twentyfive of his friends. The fulfilment of this novel bet created quite a sensation at the time.

In 1862 Mr. Brown bought Mr. Kimball's interest in the firm, and in April of that year commenced business on his own account, having his wife and a boy to assist him. He soon built up a large trade, purchased the building and enlarged it at five diflerent times. In 1882 he built the present handsome brownstone front.

Mr. Brown began with dry-goods and cloak -making, but dress-making was soon added. The carpet department was established in 1882 and the millinery parlor the year following. At the time of his death over fifty people were employed in the store.

Mr. Brown's death, September 29, 1884, was keenly felt by the citizens and was a severe loss to the city. The sincere grief of the community was evinced by the profusion of mourning emblems visible on every side.

Private funeral services were held at the family residence on Blossom Street early in the afternoon of October 1st. Later in the day public services were held in Christ Church (Episcopal), under the direction of Jerusalem Commandery, K. T., and King

David Encampment, I. O. O. F. Thousands of people passed through the church to look for the last time on the face of the dead merchant. The floral offerings of friends, employes and organizations were profuse and elegant.

Mr. Brown was a thorough business man. In addition to his large establishment here he had, for three years, a branch store at Shelburne Falls. His prominence was, however, by no means confined to his special line of trade. He held many positions of trust and honor. He was a director in the Wachusett National Bank from its organization in 1875 ; vicepresident of the Worcester North Savings Institution, and trustee since its incorporation ; president of tlie Wachusett Electric Light Company from its organization, and the first president of the Old Ladies' Home. He represented Fitchburg in the Legislature in 1878- 79. He was a prominent Mason and Odd Fellow, and a vestryman of Clirist Church.

Mr. Brown's social qualities gained him many warm personal friends ; he was of a benevolent disposition, and always ready to aid any worthy object. The hall in bis block was freely opened for all meetings - political, religious or temperance - and for several years he furnished the hall, warmed and lighted, for meetings of the Railroad Men's Christian Association.

He was active in whatever tended to promote the growth and prosperity of Fitchburg, and it is safe to say that the death of no other citizen could have produced a profounder sensation or more sincere sorrow than did that of Mr. Brown.

Charles Burleigh

He attended the schools of his native town, and early showed a natural aptitude for mechanical pursuits. When a boy, he entered the shop of Mr. William Brown, a blacksmith of the town, wliere he was employed in ironing carriages and doing similar work, displaying great aptness and ingenuity.

He worked here until he was eighteen years old, when, from a youthful love of adventure, and desire to look abroad, he left home for a wlialing voyage of three years, during which time he visited all quarters of the globe.

In 1850 he married, and in October of the same year came to Fitchburg, wliere lie continued to reside until his death, which occurred May 28, 1883.

became a member of the firm ; and when the Putnam Machine Company was organized, four years later, he became one of the stockholders, and continued to be largely interested in the company during the rest of his life. For more than twenty years he was a director in the company.

For several years prior to 186& he was one of the superintendents of the Putnam Machine Company, but his other important business interests outside the works obliged him to give up the position.

About 1865 Mr. Burleigh, appreciating the difficulties that were being encountered in the eflbrt to complete the Hoosaic Tunnel by the use of hand-drills, applied himself to the arduous task of perfecting a power-drill, former efforts in this direction having proved wholly unsuccessful. The result was the Burleigh Rock-drill and Air-compressor, and to these two machines the successful completion of this great work may unquestionably be ascribed.

In 1867 Mr. Burleigh founded the Burleigh Rockdrill Company, with a capital of $150,000, to manufacture these machines and place them on the market; since then they have found a ready sale in nearly all portions of the world, and have made a most important addition to the machinery interests of Fitchburg. These machines have since been used for the successful completion of various difficult engineering feats, and their advent marked a new era in the history of the development of mines. In connection with these two important inventions Mr. Burleigh's name has become widely known.

Mr. Burleigh made many valuable inventions, and various improvements in other departments of mechanics, and secured a large number of patents.

Later in life he became interested in railroads, and was a director of the Boston, Clinton, Fitchburg and New Bedford Railroad for several years previous to its consolidation with the Old Colony Railroad, and after the disasters of 1877 he rendered signal service in saving the common stock from wreck, and in placing the preferred stock on a basis which secured to the creditors who accepted it more than the full amount of their claims.

His large business interests caused him to be intimately connected with banking organizations in town, and he was a director of the Wachusett National Bank from its organization.

Charles Burleigh was, in the true sense of the word, a self-made man. He possessed an acute, well-furnished mind, and had acquired a large fund of information on a wide range of subjects, especially those connected with mechanical and mining industries. The position lie achieved in the various spheres of usefulness was not the result of accident or chance, but the legitimate fruit of a life of hard work, patient industry and untiring perseverance.

with the work he had in hand, but entered upon his every-day life thoroughly equipped for the struggle, and he fought hard and long for success, always using unimpeachable methods to attain the desired end.

Rodney Wallace

Rodney Wallace was born in New Ipswich, N. H., December 21, 1823, the son of David and Roxauna Wallace. At the age of twelve he left his home to work for a farmer for the sum of forty dollars for the first year, with the privilege of attending school eight weeks in the winter. At the age of eighteen he was driving freight teams from various places in New Hampshire and Vermont to Boston, and in 1843, at the age of twenty, he entered the employ of Dr. Stephen Jewett, of Rindge, N. H., and traveled through five of the New England States selling Jewett's medicines, then well-known and celebrated. He remained here until 1853, when he came to Fitchburg and formed a copartnership with Stephen Shepley, known as Shepley & Wallace. The firm were wholesale dealers in books, stationery, paper and cotton waste, and continued under that name and the name of R. Wallace & Co. until July 1, ISiio. On this day the firm was dissolved and the business divided, Mr. Wallace taking the cotton waste department, which he still carries on.

December 31, 18t?4, Stephen Shepley, Benjamin Snow and Rodney Wallace bought the Lyon Paper- Mill and Kimball Scythe-Shops, at West Fitchburg, and began the manufecture of paper under the name of the West Fitchburg Paper Company, which name has been retained to the present time. Mr. Wallace purchased the interest of his partners, and in January, 1869, became sole proprietor of the property. Since becoming sole owner he has added largely to the original plant, erected many dwellings, a depot and two new mills, complete with all the most modern improvements, and now produces thirty thousand pounds of paper every twenty-four hours.

Since 1864 he has been president and director of the Fitchburg Gas Company; a director of the Putnam Machine Company since the same year; a director of the Fitchburg National Bank since 1866 ; a partner in the Fitchburg Woolen-Mill Company since 1877 ; and a trustee of Smith College, Northampton, since 1878. He is a director of the Fitchburg Mutual Fire Insurance Company ; a trustee of the Fitchburg Savings Bank ; a director of the Fitchburg Railroad Company ; a director of the Springfield Trust Company ; and a large stockholder in the Parkhill Manufacturing Company. Besides these he has had the settlement of several large and important estates.

He was representative to the General Court in 1873, and was unanimously renominated the next year, but declined a re-election on account of ill health. He served as councilor throughout the entire administration of Governor Long, during the years 1880, '81 and '82, and in 1888 was elected to represent the Eleventh District in Congress.

July 1, 1885, was dedicated the Wallace Library and Art Building. This building was erected by Mr. Wallace, at an expense of eighty-four thousand dollars, and presented by him to the city of Fitchburg free from all conditions except that " it should be under the care and management of the Board of Trustees of the Public Library for the time being, and to be used for a Free Public Library, Reading- Rooms and Art Gallery, and for no other purpose." The building is admirably adapted to the use for which it was intended, and is a continuous source of profit and pleasure to all classes of citizens.

Mr. Wallace married, December 1, 1853, Sophia lugalls, daughter of Thomas Ingalls, of Rindge, N. H. She died June 20, 1871, leaving two sons - Herbert I. and George R. Wallace. They are associated with their father in the management of his business. December 28, 1876, Mr. Wallace married Mrs. Sophia F. Bailey, of Woodstock, Vt.

George Jewett, M.D.

George Jewett, M.D., of Fitchburg, Mass., was born in Rindge, N. H., April 28, 1825. The ancestors of the Jewett family, the brothers Maximilian and Joseph Jewett, came to this country in 1638 from Bradford, Yorkshire, England, with about sixty other families, who settled the town of Rowley, Mass. The descendants of these brothers, under various forms of the name, are found in nearly every State and Territory in the Union. The Rindge branch of the family has been identified with the history of the town from its settlement. Many of the family throughout New England, including several near relatives of the subject of this sketch, have chosen the medical profession. His father, Thomas Jewett, M.D., was for many years a highly-esteemed practitioner in Rindge.

George Jewett received his early education in the schools of his native town, at the Appleton Academy, New Ipswich, and at the academy at Hancock, N. H. Being led both by natural preference and paternal example to select the medical profession as his future field of usefulness, he matriculated at the Vermont Medical College in Woodstock, Vt., in 1845. There he attended two courses of lectures. Thence he repaired to the Berkshire Medical School, from which he graduated in 1847. Subsequently he attended another course at Harvard Medical College, in which he had the privileges of hospital practice, under the

Dr. Jewett entered upon the practice of his profession in the latter part of the year 1847, at Baldwinsville, Mass., where lie resided till the summer of 1853, when he removed to Gardner and practiced successfully in that town for about five years.

In 1858 he sought and found a wider field for energy and skill in Fitchburg, where he now resides. During the war for tlie preservation of the Union he entered the service of the United States in January, 1862, as assistant surgeon of the Tenth Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry. He was in General McClellan's army through the disastrous campaign of the Peninsula. During the summer, on the banks of the Chickahominy, sickness prevailed to such an extent, that at one time he was the only commissioned medical officer on duty in his brigade. At the battle of Yorktown he received an order to take charge of a hundred wagons, to collect and carry to Yorktown all the sick and vcounded left behind on the advance of the army. In this trying and arduous service he removed the sick from the camp to the wagons, .sometimes only with the help of a female nurse, being obliged to carry them on his back. On the arrival of the hospital train at Yorktown he was detailed for liospital duty. Soon after he was ordered in charge of hospital steamer "Arrowsmith." In this position his duty brouglit him much into the company of medical officers of the Navy. He carried the wounded and sick from various camps on the Pamunky and James Rivers to Annapolis, Baltimore and other sanitaria. He was ordered to join his regiment at the commencement of the "seven days' fight" in front of Richmond, and at the battle of Malvern Hill volunteered, with two other medical officers, to remain behind as prisoners of war in care of the wounded. On this occa.sion Dr. Jewett was selected to surrender the medical stores and supplies which were left by our retreating army, and also the wounded soldiers and medical officers in charge, to General A. P. Hill, of the Confederate Army, by whom they were paroled.

After a great variety of service in the Army of the Potomac he was promoted by Governor Andrew, and commissioned surgeon and major of the Fifty-first Massachusettts Volunteers, General A. B. R. Sprague, of Worcester, commanding, and ordered to the Department of North Carolina. After some months of service in camp he was ordered to duty as post-surgeon at Morehead City, on the coast. After a short service at this point he joined his regiment, which was ordered to Harper's Ferry, there to unite with the array of General Meade, after the battle of Gettysburg. At this period matters liegan to assume a threatening attitude in New York City, where his regiment was ordered for service, camping at Castle Garden. He was honorably discharged with the regiment at the expiration of the term of enlistment.

On his return from military service he resumed practice at Fitchburg, and continued therein until the latter part of 1867. He then made an extensive tour, covering portions of Europe, Egypt, Palestine, Turkey, etc., spending considerable time in European hospitals, and returned home in 1868, with enlarged professional knowledge, powers strengthened and disciplined by unwonted contact with men and things, and complete adaptation to the needs of suffering humanity.

Dr. Jewett ranks with the leaders of the medical fraternity in AVorcester County, and has acquired an enviable surgical reputation. Zealous and diligent in all that pertains to the science and art of medicine and surgery, he has frequently contributed to the enrichment of medical literature.

Among his writings areapaper'on "Surgical Injuries of the Head," that was read before the Massachusetts Medical Society, at its annual meeting in 1877 ; and also an article on "The Use of the Aspirator in the Bladder," describing an original mode of treatment adopted in the first operation of the kind known in that section of the State. It was published in the Boston Medical and Surgical Journal.

Dr. Jewett i< a member of the Massachusetts Medical Society, and also of Worcester North District Medical Society, and has been honored in many ways by his associates in the medical profession ; he was elected president of the latter society, and, during the years of 1877 and 1878, discharged the duties of this office honorably and well. For many years he has been councilor of the Massachusetts Medical Society, and, in May, 1888, became vicepresident of the same.

He was called to the management of the Hospital Cottages at Templeton in June, 1886, and, as the president of this institution, has been untiring in his efforts, and under his able administration of its affairs, the pro.sperity and usefulness of this institution has been nearly doubled.

At the close of the war he was appointed United States examining surgeon for pensions, which office he still holds. He held for three years a commission as surgeon and major of the Tenth Massachusetts Infantry, resigning in 1872. He has also been much interested in agriculture, especially in the department of horticulture, and was president of the Worcester North Agricultural Society during the years 1878 and 1879. In September, 1874, he was appointed physician of the county jail at Fitchburg, which position he now fills.

Dr. Jewett has also taken much interest in the cause of education. From 1869 to 1876 he was a member of the Board of School Committee, and was mainly instrumental in the establishment of the Scientific Department of the High School.

In 1848, November 15th, he was married to Mary E. Sanders, of New Ipswich, N. H. She died in June, 1867, and December 17, 1868, he was married to Mary Brooks, of Roxbury, Mass. Four children of the first marriage, having died in early childhood, sleep with their mother on Laurel Hill. One sou, Walter Kendall, born October 12, 1869, is now in the sophomore class at Brown University.

Charles H. Bkown.'

The leading industries of Fitchburg have had their origin in modest and unpretentious beginnings. The pioneers builded better than they knew. In all instances the foundations were laid in toil, and sustained by self-accumulated capital. The unequal growth of the structures has been measured by the genius and the courage of a generation of whom few remain. The founders were men of enterprise, who displayed a sagacity that met the present and anticipated the future. They have builded a city and given an individuality to its business interesta. Others of the present and of the future may follow in the beaten track, reaping the fruit of their industry and sagacity ; but few can wear the laurels of the pioneer or share the honors of the founders of our prosperous city. Younger than many, yet associated with some of the earlier and prominent business men of the city, is the subject of this sketch, who has founded an important industry, and whose enterprise has contributed to the material interests of the city.

Charles H. Brown, son of Charles and Nancy (Hall) Brown, was born in Mendon, March 9, 1820. The south part of Mendon, including his native village, now constitutes the thrifty town of Blackstone, in the extreme southeast part of Worcester County. During his childhood and youth his parents resided in Mendon, in Leyden, Lewis County, N. Y., and in Burrillville, R. I. The circumstances of his youth did not permit him to pursue an advanced course of study ; yet he enjoyed and fully improved the ordinary school privileges common to the youth of his time. If he was denied many opportunities his early ambition craved, he was trained in habits of industry, and was taught the rigorous lessons of self-reliance. At sixteen years of age he sought and obtained employment in a machine shop near Greenville, R. I. Subsequently he was employed in the manufacture of a variety of machinery in Blackstone, Providence, R. I., Newton, Whitinsville and in Northford and Waterbury, Conn. In this initial work of his life he acquired skill and developed a native ability which have given him a foremost rank among the practical machinists of his time.

Fitchburg in 1849. Here the mission of his life invited him to renewed effort and enlarged opportunities. The discipline and preparation of early toil were quickly rewarded by the early achievements of a successful career.

At this time he purchased of John and Salmon W. Putnam one-third interest of an established business in repairing and manufacturing machinery. For several years the firm was known as J. & S. W. Putnam & Co., and was highly successful. Having acquired a practical knowledge of the steam-engine while in the employ of Mr. Tufts, a celebrated builder at that time, Mr. Brown early directed his attention to this line of manufacture. In 1850 the first steamengine built in Fitchburg was constructed after his designs and under his supervision. In 1856 a working model, with substantial improvements, was made and patented by Mr. Brown and Mr. Charles Burleigh. The patent was assigned to the firm and it has been long and favorably known as the " Putnam Engine." Mr. Brown continued in the management of this department of the business of the firm until failing health compelled him to retire, for a season, from active pursuits.

In 1859 he sold his interest in the Putnam Machine Company, which had been incorporated the previous year, and four years later he commenced business in Newton Lane. In 1866 he sought enlarged facilities in the block on Main Street, now occupied by the Fitchburg Machine Works. In 1871 Mr. Brown perfected and invented " The Brown Automatic Cut-Off Engine.'' This invention has won success. To this time its reputation has been increased and its demand has been enlarged. The secret of Mr. Brown's successful business career is discovered in the unremitted care bestowed upon the minutest detail of the manufacture. In all his work everything conforms to his exacting taste for a finely-finished surface and a comely outline of form and proportion. In 1873 enlarged facilities were again demanded and a spacious building lot on the opposite side of Main and corner of Willow Street was purchased, and the present substantial block was erected and fully occupied in 1876.

Two sons have been admitted to an interest in the business, and the present firm of C. H. Brown & Co. includes Charles H. Brown, Sr., Charles H. Brown, Jr., and Frank E. Brown.

Mr. Brown is a man of positive traits of character. He is zealous and independent. His perception is quick and accurate, his judgment is sound and his intelligence is clear and comprehensive. His opinions are well-matured, and are always expressed with conciseness and precision. Mr. Brown has no ambition for political preferment, yet he has manifested a commendable interest in public and in municipal affairs. He was a member of the Common Council two years immediately succeeding the incorporation of the city, and for many years he has been the efficient chairman

Mr. Brown married, May 24, 1847, Miss Emeline J. Hubbard, daughter of Harvey Hubbard, of Berlin, Conn. They have four sons, two of whom are in business, as stated ; John F. is a graduate of Harvard Law School and has recently been admitted to the bar ; and William A. is now a student in Yale College.

Jabez Fisher, M.D.

Jabez Fisher, M.D., was born in Cambridgeport, Mass., April 30, 1824, where he received only the education afforded by the common schools of the time. Engaging in his youth in mechanical pursuits, he found his development limited thereby, and at the age of twenty-three commenced the study of medicine. In 1850 he received the degree of M.D. from Harvard College, and began practice in his native town. In May, 1851, he removed to Fitchburg, and continued practice there until the autumn of 1855. In the mean time his early love of horticulture and especially the charms of fruit-growing so urged him forward that he bought the farm on which his life since 1856 has been spent. His fellow-citizens, appreciating his abilities, designated him as a candidate of the new American movement, and he was chosen in the election of 1854 as one of the five Senators from Worcester County. At the election of the following year he was again returned, this time by the Republican party. The demands upon his time by legislative service, together with his increasing interest in rural pursuits, determined him to give up the practice of his profession, and he removed to his farm in the autumn of 1856.

Giving his whole time and energies at once to his business, he soon became noted, and an authority in his specialty. After serving two years as secretary he was twice chosen as president of the Worcester North Agricultural Society, and as a delegate of the society to the Massachusetts Board of Agriculture he served two terms of three years each. While a member of that board, and afterward, he was often called upon as a lecturer before farmers' clubs and people interested in fruit-growing. In 1869 he gave a course of lectures on market gardening before the students of the Massachusetts Agricultural College, and again in 1870.

He was one of the first to appreciate the merits of the Concord grape, and, by his successful management, demonstrated its value, and was largely instrumental in extending its cultivation in his region. He was never s.itisfied with any short of the best results; hence his products were always in demand at the highest prices, and were, in consequence, widely known. He has often said that if there were any profit in his or any other business - -especially that which dealt in the luxuries of life - it must be found in furnishing the best. Any one could produce mediocrity, but only skill and care could approach perfection. He had no secrets in his operations. Anything that he had discovered or become possessed of was at the disposal of any one who chose to inquire. He gave an address on grape culture before the Board of Agriculture at its country meeting at Fitchburg in 1874, alsoone on injurious insects at Hingham in 1878. He was an early investigator and an advocate of what is now denominated commercial fertilization. Reading with avidity the first publications of the great Baron Liebig and others upon this subject, and through his knowledge of chemistry, to which he devoted much attention in connection with the study of medicine, he was able to keep fully abreast of the developments of the time.

His home, which he calls " Pomoland," or Pomona's Land, is beautifully situated on an elevation at the base of Pearl Hill, surrounded by higher land, except a picturesque valley reaching out southeasterly, and lying about a mile and a half north from Fitchburg Centre. The whole place is a type of the man who made it what it is, and will well repay any one the trouble of a visit.

Notwithstanding Dr. Fisher's devotion to his home and pursuits, he has found time to serve his townsmen in various capacities in addition to his legislative experience. He has been upon the School Committee, was one of the first board of trustees of the Public Library, was several times a selectman and once chairman of the board. He was chairman of the Board of Water Commissioners while the original works were being constructed, and served for several years afterward. He has been president of the Fitchburg Cooperative Bank from its organization in 1877, giving to it much thought, and no small portion of its success is to be attributed to his oversight.

In politics he was originally a Liberty party man, then a Free-Soiler, next an American, then a Republican, and when the Republicans halted on the temperance question, a Prohibitionist. He says that he has been a Woman Suffragist since his acquaintance with his mother. He hates shams under any and all circumstances, and his sympathies are ever with the weak and oppressed.

Music has been quite a source of recreation, he having played the organ in church some thirty years. He trained the Fitchburg contingent in preparation for the great Boston Peace Jubilee of 1872 to very good acceptance, and also directed the same chorus for a number of concerts at home.

He has always been much interested in meteorology, and has kept a continuous record since January, 1857, which possesses much value, and is often consulted.

Jabez Fisher married Roxanna Betton October 8, 1845, from which union two children survive, viz. : Mary L., born November 14, 1846, who married James A. Morton January 1, 1874; and Jabez F., born August 30, 1850, who married Clara A. Ber- nard August 20, 1879. A second marriage was consummated, February 12, 1860, with Lucy B. Hosmer. In relifrious belief be is a Universalist. His years set easily, and he serenely awaits the time when his opportunities will be enlarged and his comprehension clearer.

Eli Culley.'

Eli Culley, a son of Edward C. and Eliza (Mayall) CuUey, was born near Bath, England, February 4, 1840. At the age of fifteen years he came to this country, and found employment in a file manufactory in the city of Lowell. Subsequently he removed to Boston, and while residing there be enlisted in the Forty-third Regiment Massachusetts Volunteers, a nine months' regiment, and a military organization of good repute. He was mustered out with the regiment at the expiration of the term of service, in the autumn of 1803.

Recovering from the debilitating effect of a malarial fever, which was contracted in the service, Mr. Culley removed to Weymouth, and there manufactured files on his own account. In 1868 he removed the business to Fitchburg, and from that time he has been an honored resident of this city. His industry and close application to business have been rewarded, and among his fellow-men he is held in high esteem.

The partiality of his fellow-citizens has found frequent and repeated expression in his election to positions of honor and responsibility. In 1875 he was a member of the Common Council, and was president of the body. In 1877 and '78 he was a member of the Board of Aldermen, and each year he was assigned to important positions on the standing committees.

At the city election in December, 1879, after an animated contest, Mr. Culley was elected mayor, and was re-elected the following year. Succeeding these years of service, his friends did not suffer him to long remain among the retired executive officers of the city.

Again he was elected mayor for the year 1888, and has been chosen for the fourth time and for the year 1889. No other citizen of Fitchburg has been called to the executive chair an equal number of times, and no other has filled all the positions here named. In 1880 Mr. Culley was a member of the House of Representatives.

If briefly narrated, the public service of Mr. Culley hiis been efficient and honorable. The elements of his successful career are found in his sincerity, the unequivocal expression of his convictions and in his direct methods of speech and conduct. In public affairs and in business he has been industrious, and a life of toil and honest effort has been rewarded with the confidence and esteem of his fellow-men. His success has been earned. Alone in the world at fifteen years of age, his only capital was courage and a willingness to work. Among a nation of strangers he found in our American institutions and our New England customs a welcome denied to the foreigner in every other land. Young Culley appreciated the conditions, and from that hour, in every thought, aspiration and purpose, he was as thoroughly an American as any native born. Mr. Culley is preeminently one of the products of a benign and liberal government and the type of a successful career, the counterpart of which is not found elsewhere. The poor boy, unaided by friends and the supporting influences of wealth, seldom succeeds in any other country, and only in America does the invitation to industry, morality and good citizenship extend to the ambitious youth of every land.

In characteristics Mr. Culley is free from ostentation and is frank and direct in his methods. His impulses are quick and generous, his sympathies are universal, and his affections are tender and loyal. While tolerant of the opiniou and liberal in his estimate of other men, he adheres closely to his own conclusions, and in his administration of public affairs he has been conservative and safe. Unconsciously these outlines present many traits and elements of a model citizen, and in his success is found an incentive to an honest purpose, to loyalty to friends aod to country, and to faithfulness in the discharge of public trusts.

In his domestic relations Mr. Culley has been fortunate and happy. He married, October 5, 1862, Martha A. Redman. They have six children - three sons and three daughters - aged from twelve to twenty-four years.

Mr. Culley became connected with the Masons in 1866, and with the Odd Fellows in 1862, and has been a prominent member of both fraternities. In both organizations he has been honored with the post of District Deputy Grand Master.

Sylvanus Sawyer

Sylvanus Sawyer, an eminent inventor and mechanical engineer, was born in Templeton, Massachusetts, April 15, 1822. -"The family is of Saxon ancestry, who came to England with William the Conqueror." The name, it is claimed, is derived from the invention and introduction of mills to saw by power, and in America the name of Sawyer has been associated with mills and a variety of manufactures in every generation. The emigrant ancestor, Thomas Sawyer, settled in Charlestown (now Somerville) and removed to Lancaster about 1650. He married Mary Prescott and died 1706. His son, Thomas Sawyer, Jr., born 1648, lived in Lancaster, where he died 1736. In 1705 Thomas Sawyer, Jr., and his son Elias were captured by the Indians and taken to Canada. The mechanical genius of the family secured the freedom of the captives. Here the elder Sawyer observed, on the river where they were confined, fine seats for mills, and propo.-ied to the French Governor that he would build arpill on condition the captives were released. This arrangement was consummated and the Sawyers returned to Lancaster. Elias Sawyer, a descendant of the generations named, removed to Templeton, where, following the proclivities of his family for mechanical pursuits, he built one of the early mills of the town. His son, John Sawyer, the father of Sylvanus, was a farmer and a lumber dealer, but also owned and conducted a mill. He was a natural mechanic, doing his own carpentering, coopering and stone work, and later he supplemented his facilities for miscellaneous work with a lathe and a forge. Tn the midst of such influences and surroundings Sylvanus at an early age manifested a predilection for mechanics and invention. With equal aptnesss he designed and made many articles of utility and the playthings and trinkets of youth. One of the results of his earlier studies was a waterwheel which has since been made and sold under another name. This was followed by designs for a reed organ, a screw propeller, a hand car operated by foot-power, a steam-engine and many minor inventions. Having neither means nor experience to utilize the iruits of his early thought, the most of them still slumber in his mind.

In youth his health was feeble, and in search of some light employment he went to Augusta, Me., at the age of seventeen and began work in a gun-smith shop. Ill health compelled him to return home, but he brought with him some knowledge of a trade which found exercise in the manufacture of guns and pistols and some of original design. With such employments and assisting as health permitted in the work on his father's farm, he reached his majority. His early educational advantages were limited, but with habits of study and research and by working out his own problems, aided by a judicious selection of books, he is well equipped for the duties of life and easily excels in his favorite lines of research. In his early experience, in the denial of privileges in his youth and in the many embarrassments in his way, Mr. Sawyer has found an apprenticeship which has given him discipline and courage that has led the way to the substantial achievements of his life.

In 1844, or soon after he had reached his majority, he sought employment in Boston and was employed for a short time in a copper-smith shop. Subsequently he remained a year with Jones & Hobbs, manufacturers of locks and house trimmings. Here he devised improvements in several processes of the manufacture, and to him was entrusted the manufacture of the tools peculiar to the work, and which formerly had been made by specialists at considerable expense. Returning to his home in Templeton, his attention was first called to the cane or rattan business in the winter of 1845-46. Mr. William Wood, a cane-worker of Phillipston, seeking the services of an expert in the manufacture of some tools peculiar to the processes then employed in working the cane, came to Mr. Sawyer for advice and assistance, Comprehending the matter at once, Mr. Sawyer informed his visitor the process then employed was faulty, that all the operations could be performed at once, and with a machine operated by power. To this broad assertion Mr. Wood replied that it could not be done, that the ingenuity of many skilled mechanics had been exhausted, and thousands of dollars had been expended in useless and unproductive experiments. The faith of Mr. Sawyer remained unimpaired. In his mind the problem had been solved already. With a clear conception of the working principles of the future invention, Mr. Sawyer visited the shop of Mr. Wood and witnessed the different ojierations employed in reducing a stick of cane to the finished product. Beside scouring, straightening, and the slow whittling at the joints, there were eighteen manipulations. While witnessing these slow and laborious operations, to his former conception he added a device for scraping the joints in the strand, instead of whittling them off in the slick, and combining it with the process of gauging. This last device was immediately expressed in a machine which was a success, and which saved annually one hundred dollars on aman's labor. While he was maturing plans and making application of his conception of the more important machine for splitting cane, of which the scraper was to be a sectional part, he made and sold several of these machines lor scraping the strand. Having matured the designs, and realizing the need of greater skill and experience as a machinist, before putting them into practical form, Mr. Sawyer sought and obtained employment in the then celebrated steam-engine manufactory of Otis Tufts, in Boston. Here he secured the confidence of his employers and the esteem of his associates, and soon was placed in charge of the most important work, with men under him many years his senior in experience. In this service his ingenuity and his ability to abridge processes found frequent exercise. At the completion of the stipulated term of service, he returned to Templeton to prosecute his invention. At this time, the winter of 1848-49, his elder brother, Joseph B. Sawyer, who was then employed in a mill and machine-shop at Palmer, Mass., for an interest in the patents, proposed to furnish needed funds aud to assist in the construction of models and experimental machines. The proposition was accepted. In the autumn of 1849 he returned to Templeton, bringing with him a set of cuttingmachines and models of the same, and an experimental scraper. The patent was issued November 13, 1849, and a half-interest was assigned to his brother. The machines were set up for exhibition in the shop of his father. For motive-poWer, a man was employed to turn a crank.

The scraper made at Palmer proved defective. Undaunted, Mr. Sawyer immediately made new drawings, and at Athol constructed another machine after his original design. The machines with this scraper were successfully operated until they were worn out beyond repair, and success crowned the issue. The prophecy of Mr. Wood and other cane-workers that this end could not be reached had come to naught. The early experimenters had vainly attempted to cut down and through the hard, siliceous enameled surface of the cane with saws, spurs, loups and dies. The result was that the cutting points, in the pa«sage at fair speed of a stick of cane, became hot, and soon cut off and the saws worn smooth. The invention of Mr. Sawyer, assisted by many niechauical devices, themselves inventions, is founded upon the device of cutting under the enamel and outward, raising the strand so that when the receding edge of the spur or lip, that divides the surface into strands, reaches the surface, the enamel already has been parted without injury to the cutting points. Here is found the key to the situation. This idea dominates all chair cane-cutting machines, including the tubular spurred cutter, as firmly as the Howe method of putting the eye in the point of the needle dominates all cloth-sewing machines of the past and the present. In the spring of^l850 Mr. Sawyer invented another machine for cutting cane, which he judged might have some advantages over his first method. Having constructed an apparatus to test his invention, he put it aside for future consideration. In the mean time many interested parties had been accorded the privilege of examining the new invention, and among these were Levi Heywood, of Gardner, and an uncle, Joseph Sawyer, of Eoyalston, who subsequently applied for a patent.

Mr. Sawyer immediately proved a priority of invention, and to him a patent was issued June 24, 1851, while the application of his uncle was rejected. As an item of history in connection with these patents it is necessary to add that, upon a modified claim, a patent was issued to the uncle in 1854, which failed to meet the purpose of its design. With his attention continually directed to this business, Mr. Sawyer devised a machine for scouring cane in large quantity by power, which superseded the former process of scouring small quantities with broom, soap and sand. In the autumn of 1850 the brothers, Sylvanus and Joseph B. Sawyer, rented a shop with power in East Templeton, and, with their new machinery, began the manufacture of cane for the use of chair-makers. In 1851 Sylvanus invented a new machine for shaving the strands and trimming the edges with great rapidity. It was subsequently modified and adapted to the tubular spurred cutter mentioned hereafter, and patented December 12, 1854. The enterprise at East Templeton established the merit of the machines, and from a business standpoint they were successful and remunerative. A stock company was organized in April, 1852, known as the American Rattan Company, aud the business wa-s removed to Fitchburg. The Sawyer patents were assigned to the corporation, and an extensive business was continued under the superintendence of Mr. Sawyer, who also was one of the directors. About this time a rival company was organized by Levi Heywood itnd others, and began business, with the Uncle Joseph patents, in Boston. By a vote of a majority of the American Rattan Companj' the two companies were consolidated. This action was strenuously opposed by Mr. Sawyer and others, and in the end their judgment was sustained by the facts. The machines of the Boston company were of little value, the manufactured cane was comparatively worthless, and an inheritance of debt was the prominent item of the assets which the Boston company brought to the treasury of the Ameiican Rattan Company. By this arrangement the stock of the old company was doubled and no material benefits were secured. March 7, 1854, a patent on a tubular spurred cutter was issued to Addison M. Sawyer, the youngest brother of Sylvanus. He bad been employed by his elder brothers at Templeton, and subsequently by the American Rattan Company, at Fitchburg.

It appears that each of the three brothers had been conducting experiments in this direction, but Addison claimed and probably was entitled to priority, and to him the patent was issued. A third interest was immediately assigned to the brothers named. In connection with the machines owned by the American Rattan Company, this patent would be valuable, and doubly so, if a shave could be adapted to complete the work; but of little value to the brothers without the company's scraper and such a shave. Mr. Sawyer at once went to the shop in Athol, where he had solved many problems, and there remodeled the shave to meet the new demand. As previously stated, the remodeled shave was patented in 1854. The improvements he introduced at this time included another knife, which reduced the strand for the shaving-knife, and a scraper with a spring weighted block, which pressed the strand upon the cutter. At this time he devised a feeding apparatus for the cutter and a new guide to present the stick of cane centrally to the cutter and other improvements for handling the strands parted by the cutter.

With these improved equipments the three brothers - Sylvanus, Joseph B. and Addison M. Sawyer - resumed business at East Templeton, but they soon sold the business and assigned the new patents to the American Rattan Company. Mr. Sawyer again removed to Fitchburg, and assumed the oversight of the setting up of the new machines and the training of the help in the new processes. In June, 1855, he received a patent on an invention for splitting the rod of cane into sectional strips, removing the strand from each strip and rounding for reeds the triangular part remaining. Having realized his most sanguine expectations, Mr. Sawyer retired from the active management of the business and directed his attention mainly to other fields of study and investigation. As early as 1853 he had invented improvements in rifled

These embrace the placing a coating of lead, or some softer metal than that of which the iron body is composed, on the rear or frusto-conical end of the shell, and the same extended, or not, over the sides of the same, which is expanded laterally by the discharge, and preventing "windage" on the passage of the gas by the projectile, also filling the grooves of the rifling and obviating the necessity of helical projections; and the arrangement in the point of a percussion cap or fuse so as to insure the explosion of the shell on impact and the soldering of the soft metal to the shot.

In 1857 and 1858 Mr. Sawyer, with his brother Addison (to whom an interest in the patents had been conveyed), conducted experiments on his inventions at their own expense, in order to demonstrate the practicability of rifled cannon and projectiles to the United States Ordnance Bureau, the Chief of Ordnance refusing to be at any expense, sayiug that they had already spent mints of money on these visionary schemes, ihat the subject was exhausted, and that rifle cannon was impracticable; but after learning of their previous tests, and that they had their own guns and ammunition, he readily ordered a trial and an investigation of Mr. Sawyer's invention, which, after thorough test, proved eminently successful, the Secretary of War (who witnessed two trials) declaring that the practicability of rifle cannon and i)rojectiles had at last been demonstrated. This trial resulted in the ordering of another trial, with heavy ordnance, at Fortress Monroe, before a board of government oiBcers, and a report was submitted recommending in view of the superiority of the Sawyer projectile in accuracy over all others of which official information had been received, and of its simplicity and the certainty of the fuse bursting the shell after penetration, that four field-guns be issued to one or more batteries for practice with the Sawyer projectiles for one year; but before this order was carried into eflTect the Civil War was upon us, and these experimental guns were turned upon the enemy with great efl'ect. The fortytwo-pounders (rifle) columbiads were mounted at Newport News and ui)(>n the Rip Raps (Fort Wool), the latter being the only guns there that could reach Sewell's Point Battery, a distance of three and onehalf miles, which they did with great accuracy, and made fearful havoc with the railroad iron-clad batteries at the capturing of Sewell's Point, Norfolk, Gosport, etc., and an eightecn-pounder Sawyer rifle did great execution on board the steamer " Fanny."

Notwithstanding the great range and accuracy of the Sawyer guos and projectiles, and the certainty of the operation of their fuse, the ordnance officers did not seem to manifest that enthusiasm that was exhibited by the old artillery officers, and they seemed to rather stand aloof, and look askance upon Mr. Sawyer's invention.

This state of affairs was soon explained by an ordnance officer, who was later on appointed chief of the Ordnance Bureau at Washington, coming forward to compete before the Sawyer board with a projectile that directly infringed the Sawyer patent. They evidently did not mean to have their old ordnance theories overthrown and be left out in the cold. Hence the Chief of Ordnance, of both the army and navy, soon commenced to make, or have made, large quantities of projectiles (principally shells) for the army and navy, the former having his made by a Mr. Knapp, of Pennsylvania, and the latter at the Navy Yard at Washington, and both of them infringing Mr. Sawyer's patents, or, as Government Solicitor Whiting said, " It is an adoption of the Sawyer patent." This action of the chiefs of the Ordnance Bureaus was very unfortunate for Mr. Sawyer, who was accorded little or no credit for his inventions, or for his " practical demonstrations," which were made at a heavy cost to himself of both time and money, and almost practically barred him out from government patronage, except orders from department commanders who insisted upon having the Sawyer guns and ammunition, for whom he made quite a number of batteries of cast-steel guns, with shot and shell, besides longer guns. He appealed to the Assistant Secretary of War, Mr. Watson, and to the Government Solicitor, Mr. Whiting (both former patent lawyers). They admitted that they were using his patents, and stated that under martial law the government had a right to take and use what they pleased by recompensing the owner ; " but this did not apphj to fjficers as individuals," and advised him to wait till the war was over and then seek redress, his claim being good for six years thereafter ; but Chief Dahlgreu, of the navy, died during, or soon after, the war ; Chief Dyer died a little later, and Mr. Knapp, who made the ''Dyer projectiles'' /o;- /;/>«, followed soon after, so that there was no one left whom he could prosecute for these infringements, or compel the yielding of the credit that belonged to him. In 1861 Mr. Sawyer invented a Fuse Hood for centrating fire upon a time fuse, also a Ijoading Mandrel for filling case shot, both of which were patented December 24th the same year, and in August, 1862, he and his brother, Addison M., took out a patent jointly for a Combination Fuse, and on December 17, 1862, he bought his brother's interest in his patents.

In 1864-65 Mr. Sawyer built a large brick shop which he designed mainly for the manufacture of ordnance, and was negotiating with Mexico, Brazil and Chili, as well as our own country, for ordnance supplies; but all four of the wars ended about the same time and the shop is now occupied by the Fitchburg Machine Works.

In 1867 he took out a patent on Dividers and Calipers, and March 3, 1868, a Steam Generator ; May 26th, same year, an improved Rattan Machine, and July 7, 1868, he took another for Calipers and

Dividers. In 1876 Sawyer & Esty patented a Sole Sewing Machine. About this time Mr. Sawyer commenced to start a watch factory in Fitchburg and had got considerable of the stock taken in the enterprise and the tools substantially done when the " hard times " set in, which compelled many to withdraw their subscription ; hence he concluded to give up the enterprise and turned his attention to the manufacture of watch tools, in which business he continued till he moved the business to New York and formed a stock company, in 1881, and subsequently sold out his interest. On July 10, 1882, a patent was issued to him for a Centring Watchmaker's Lathe, which he manufactured in connection with other tools.

Resting from his labors, Mr. Sawyer has practically retired from active business, renting his shops. He has manifested a love for horticultural pursuits and a deep interest in progressive farming. His labor has been onerous and his achievements substantial. Through many years of constant use his inventions in cane machinery have permitted no improvements and still remain substantially as they left his hand. They have revolutionized an important industry and transferred it from the pestilential climate of Southern India and from Japan and Holland to this country, offering ample dividends to capital employed and aflording employment to many people. And we may add that his inventions in rifle cannon and projectiles has been perhaps equally revolutionary.

Andrew B. Sherman

The subject of this sketch was born in Plympton, Mass., April 10, 1829. His father, Capt. Zacchseus Sherman, followed the sea fourteen years, and commanded a vessel about twelve years.

Capt. Sherman was twice married. His first wife was Jane Bradford, by whom he had two sons and two daughters ; the second wife was Nancy Bartlett, of Plymouth, by whom he had two sons, Andrew B. and Algernon Sidney.

Andrew B. Sherman was educated in the district and private schools of his native town, and, after reaching the age of eight years, worked diligently during vacations - in summer on the farm and in winter in the saw-mills, and helping team lumber, &c., in which his father then dealt extensively.

With the exception of one winter, during which he worked in the store of his uncle, the late Zacchreus Parker, he passed his time thus until the age of twenty, acquiring the habits of industry which have so strongly characterized his whole business career.

In 1849 he left home and entered the country store of J. M. Harrub, of North Plympton, where for two years and ten months he worked from fourteen to sixteen hours per day, attending carefully to all parts of the business. He rendered valuable assistance in keeping the books and also in attending to finishing

Though the original engagement with Mr. Harrub was but for a few months, Mr. Sherman's interest in the business was so great and his services so valuable, that his employer induced him to remain with him for the period above mentioned, at the expiration of which time Mr. Sherman, having determined to make the dry goods trade his business, went to Boston to endeavor to secure a position where, with much better opportunities to learn the whole business, he might fit himself to enter upon it on his own account, if he so desired.

Upon his arrival in Boston he called on Mr. William F. Brett, who introduced him to his recent partner, Mr. Samuel Ellis, of Samuel Ellis & Co., 131 and 133 Federal Street, and Mr. Sherman at once entered the employ of this firm. Here he formed the acquaintance of Mr. Luther J. Brown, who later came to Fitchburg, but who was then in the employ of Samuel Ellis &Co.

About this time the firm began to close out the stocks of several out-of-town stores owned by them, and also to dispose of superfluous stock. Mr. Sherman was soon sent to Medford with a stock. Here he remained six months, applying himself early and late, sleeping in the store most of the nights.

From Medford he went to Duxbury, where he stayed about the same length of time, meeting with good success in both places, selling a large amount of goods and making money, while one of his employers, Mr. Moore, with an assistant, sold a less amount and lost money at a store in South Abington.

Mr. Sherman then took charge of the East Abington store for the next two years, as general salesman in dry goods, carpets, clothing, millinery, furniture, crockery, etc.

At the expiration of this time, the firm being financially embarrassed, Mr. Sherman went to Dover, N. H., with a large stock of dry goods. Here he stayed six months, sending to the firm one-third more money per week than had been calculated upon.

In Dover Mr. Sherman, by close attention to business and unostentatious manners, gained the respect and formed the acquaintance of nearly all in the front ranks of business and society in the place. As an expression of regard at the time he left Dover, he was tendered a reception and presented with a handsome gold seal-ring, upon which was inscribed the names of some of the prominent young men of the place ; and since then this pleasant friendship has been kept up by both parties.

Mr. Sherman then engaged as general salesman at the East Abington store for about a year, and in February, 1855, came to Fitchburg to dispose of a stock of dry goods. Here, although located in the " Old City," a half-mile from the other three dry-goods stores in town, he was fairly successful, and enjcjyed a liberal share of the trade from all parts of the town.

At the end of six months, believing that Fitchburg would in time be a prosperous city, Mr. Sherman purchased the stock of goods of his employers, and, with what money he had saved during his clerkship, commenced on his own account.

One of his salesmen was Mr. L. J. Brown, with whom he soon formed a partnership, which lasted about three years. In the meantime Mr. Brown married, and it was thought best to dissolve the partnership ; and for the past thirty years Mr. Sherman has carried on his prosperous business alone.

He paid close attention to his business, and the opportunities made possible by the condition of the markets during the Civil War made it quite profitable, - buying largely when goods were offered at less than it was then possible to make them, storing them and selling on a high market. As profits accumulated, he invested tbem in securities, v/hicli, in most cases, appreciated as well as paid interest.

At several different times, as more room was needed, the store was enlarged, until 1870, when he moved into his present commodious store, in the then new Rollstone Bank building. At that time he added a stock of carpets, to which he gave much study and attention.

In November, 1867, he established a dry-goods store in Wincheudon, which was profitably operated until November, 1885, when it was sold to W. A. Sanford & Son, of Brockton, being then located in the I. M. Murdock block.

Mr. Sherman has, at times, invested the earnings of his business in shipping, having been part owner in eight diflerent three-masted schooners engaged in the coasting trade, one of them bearing his name.

He has always manifested kind feelings towards his competitors and neighboring merchants, and has at various times, aided tbem without extra remuneration.

He has, for many years, been a trustee of the Worcester North Savings Institution, and a director of the Wachusett National Bank since its incorporation, and one of its largest stockholders.

Mr. Sherman served one year in the Common Council, and two years in the Board of Aldermen. He has, during his long residence in Fitchburg, gained the respect and esteem of the community, which he well deserves.

H. A. Blood

Hiram Albro Blood was born in Townsend, Mass., February 3, 1833, and was the son of Ezra and Lydia Ann (Jefis) Blood ; received an academical education in the town of his birth, and lived thereuntil the age of eighteen, at which age he went to Worcester in search of employment.

At the age of twenty he entered the commissionhouse of Bliss, Sutton & Co., in Worcester, Mass., as a clerk, and became a member of the firm in 1854, at which time he opened a branch house in Fitchburg, and went there to live and has resided there ever since.

In 1857 he dissolved his connection with Bli.ss, Sutton & Co., and entered into a copartnership with William 0. Brown, of Fitchburg, under the name of Blood & Brown, which existed until 1860, when Mr. Brown withdrew to enter the United States army, becoming a major of the Twenty-fifth Regiment, and a new firm was formed under the name of H. A. Blood & Co., which continued to carry on the business.

In 1865 Mr. Blood withdrew from all mercantile pursuits and became entirely interested in railroads, to the construction and operation of which he has ever since given his time and attention.

He afterwards built, or was largely instrumental in building, the Boston, Clinton and Fitchburg, the Framinghara and Lowell, the Mansfield and Framingham, and the Fall River Railroads, of which he successively became superintendent and general manager, and afterwards united and consolidated them, together with the New Bedford and Taunton, and the Taunton Branch Railroads, into one system, under the name of the Boston, Clinton, Fitchburg and New Bedford Railroad Company, reaching from Fitchburg and Lowell in tlie north, to Mansfield, Taunton, New Bedford and Fall River in the southern part of the State.

This system of railroads was for a time operated by Mr. Blood as general manager, and was afterwards united and consolidated with the Old Colony Railroad Company, of which it now forms an important part.

In 1875 he procured the charter for the Wachusett National Bank, of Fitchburg, obtaining all the subscriptions to its capital stock, established the bank and liecame its first vice-president.

He was the third mayor of Fitchburg, and was first elected by the Boardof Aldermen and Common Council November 2, 1875, to fill out the unexpired term of Eugene T. Miles, and, at the subsequent annual election in December, he was elected by the people, and was inaugurated January, 1876, and filled the office of mayor for one year and two months.

He is now chiefly interested in railroads in the State of Ohio, being tlie president of the Cleveland and Canton Railroad Company in that State, which position he has held since May, 1884, but he still retains his residence in Fitchburg, where he has an office as well as an office in Boston, Mass.

Henry A. Goodrich

The name of Goodridge, or, as it is now commonly spelled, Goodrich, has been very closely identified with the history of Fitchburg ever since the incorporation of the town.

David Goodridge, one of the original settlers of the town, was deacon of the First Church in Fitchburg and a member of the First Provincial Congress. Like most of his fellow-townsmen, he was possessed of but limited means, but his sterling worth and integrity and his belief in the dignity and efficacy of honest toil made him an influential citizen and caused him to be often called to fill positions of trust and honor in the little colonial town of Fitchburg. Succeeding generations have kept the family name in the same good repute, and two of Deacon Goodridge's greatgrandsons - Alonzo P. and John Goodrich - have spent their long and honorable lives of usefulness in our midst. The former is still with us in the enjoyment of a hale and hearty old age, but John Goodrich, the father of the subject of this sketch, died in this city in April, 1888, at the age of nearly eighty years.

Henry A. Goodrich, the eldest son of John and Mary A. (Blake) Goodrich, was born in Fitchburg, November 22, 1830. His early education was obtained in the district schools of the town, and later he attended the Fitchburg Academy and the Fitchburg High School.

He was one of the eight boys who attended during the first term of the High School, and the only one of the eight who remained permanently in Fitchburg. In 1849 he took a position as overseer in a woolenmill, and in the course of the next four years saved money enough to start in business for himself.

In January, 1855, he entered upon his successful mercantile life by buying out a hat and furnishing store under the Fitchburg Hotel. Here he remained until 1869, when he removed to his branch store, established some years previously, in Belding & Dickinson's Block. He had also, in the mean time, started another branch store in Brattleboro', Vt. In January, 1885, he moved into his present elegant and commodious quarters in E. M. Dickinson's new brick block, where, as senior partner, we now find him at the head of one of the finest and best regulated clothing and furnishing establishments in New England.

Mr. Goodrich married, in December, 1856, Miss Harriet Stebbins, daughter of John Stebbins, Esq., of Vernon, Vt. He has one son, William Henry, and one daughter, Mrs. W. L. Humes.

In addition to his mercantile pursuits, Mr. Goodrich has been largely interested in real estate operations in Fitchburg. He was, at one time, half owner of the "L. J. Brown Block,'' and sold his interest to

Mr. Brown. In 1868 he bought the American House property, and later erected two large blocks on Day Street, one of which bears the name of " Goodrich Block." He sold the American House in 1874, and became a stockholder and director in the Haskins Machine Company, which proved to be a disastrous venture.

Like many other active and ambitious men, he has encountered reverses, but, by energy, perseverance and industry, has quickly overcome them, and started anew with a fresh determination to win success.

During the War of the Rebellion Mr. Goodrich was the treasurer of the Fitchburg " Bounty Fund,'' and collected and disbursed over $20,000, the greater portion of which was afterward refunded by the town. After the terrible battles of the Wilderness in 1864 he was sent by the town, with Dr. Alfred Hitchcock and E. B. Hayward, to look after the sick and wounded Fitchburg soldiers in the hospitals at Fredericksburg and Washington. A reference to the files of the Fitchburg Sentinel about that time will show how thoroughly and conscientiously he performed his full share of the sad duty.

Mr. Goodrich has also been for many years a frequent contributor to the press on current topics. During the great "Silver Discussion," in 1878, he wrote a series of communications, which appeared in the Fitchburg Sentinel over the signature of " Inquirer," favoring the passage of the Bland Silver Bill. These communications were written in a clear and forcible style, and showed a thoroughly business-like familiarity with, as well as careful study of, the subject in hand. A correspondent of the Boston Herald said of these articles at the time, - " Our bankers and business men are considerably exercised at the appearance of a series of letters in the Sentinel, the past week or two, favoring the passage of the Bland Silver Bill. The Sentinel opposes the sentiments of these communications editorially, but it is beginning to be evident that the unknown writer is more than a match for the newspaper men, at least in vigorous style, mastery of the arts of logic and power of special pleading.''

In politics Mr. Goodrich has never been, in any sense, an extreme partisan. In early life he was a stanch believer in, and advocate of, anti-slavery principles. He served on the first " Free-Soil Town Committee" with Moses Wood, Charles Mason and Henry A. Willis. His first vote was for John P. Hale for President. He has been a Republican since the party was organized ; but, being naturally independent, has not always fully acquiesced in every political measure advocated or adopted by that party. As a rule he has supported Republican candidates.

In 1869 and 1870 Mr. Goodrich represented his native town in the Legislature, being elected thereto as the Republican candidate, and served two years on the Hoosac Tunnel committee during the most important epoch in the history of the great tunnel enterprise.

At the organization of the city government he served on the Board of Assessors, and for several j-ears was one of the trustees of the Public Library. In 1885 he was the Citizens' candidate for mayor, though practically a temperance man, but shared the fate of the entire Citizens' ticket, which was that year swept away by a tidal wave of radical prohibition.

He was active in organizing the Fitchburg Board of Trade, and was one of its first vice-presidents. He has been one of the managers of the Massachusetts Mutual Aid Society from its organization, and in 1887 was elected its president. In 1887 he was also president of the Merchants' Association and of the American Pruning Company.

Mr. Goodrich has always led a busy, active life, and has ever been ready to aid in the forwarding of all projects tending to increase and strengthen the prosperity of his native town ; and his high mercantile and social standing is the result of integrity, energy and perseverance.

Chapter Lii By Matthew Wai,Ker

Bahre is situated in the westerly part of Worcester County, about twenty-one miles northwesterly of Worcester, and is fifty-six miles from Boston by an old turnpike road, or by the Central Massachusetts Railroad sixty-one miles. It is in forty-two degrees and twenty-six minutes north latitude, and the elevation of its Common in the centre of the town is nine hundred and ten feet above the mean level of the sea. The towship is nearlydiamond shaped, its sides being very regular, two of them being about six and onehalf miles long each, the other two about six and one-fourth miles each, containing an area of about torty-one square miles. This very regular plot seems to have been educed from the similar shape of the original grant of land of which it forms a part.

The early records inform us that the proprietors of Rutland voted, in 1715, to survey and set off into lots the contents of six miles square, to be granted to settlers in order to secure the performance of the conditions in the original confirmation of the title.

The surface is hilly, its soil a subsoil of clay with a loamy overlaying, thus forming a compact stratum of the nature of hardpan ; it is very fertile, making it desirable, productive and valuable. In population, according to the census of 1885, it ranks thirty-second in the county, while in the relative proportion of its farm products it is third in rank, Worcester and P'itchburg surpassing it. It is essentially an agricultural town, the formation of the soil being such as admirably fits it for tillage, mowing and pasturage, the hay crop amounting in value to about seventy-five thousand dollars per annum, and its dairy products to an equal sum, or, for the year 1885, to seventy-five thousand nine hundred and sixty-seven dollars. The valuation of the town, as returned by the assessors for 1888, is one million three hundred and eighty-five thousand and seventyfive dollars.

Its undulating surface affords picturesque views, and the highways, hard and well cared for, furnish fine drives, showing the well-preserved farm-houses and other buildings, as well as the beautiful structures of the centre village and the more thicklysettled portions of the town, buildings kept neatly painted, and, with a background of living green, presenting an attractive appearance.

The town is well wooded and watered, the principal streams being the Ware River, which runs through the east and southerly portions, furnishing a waterpower of considerable capacity ; the Cannestow and Burnshirt Rivers in the east part, the latter having several mill powers ; Pleasant Brook, a romantic and beautiful stream, partially concealed by forests, then leaping forth and glittering in the sunlight, and with its rugged bed and stony or mosiy banks, attracting the gaze of the saunterer and inviting him to follow its windings; Prince River, which has its source in the north part, small streams flowing into and forming an artificial reservoir, covering about sixty acres, running almost directly south, having a number of water-powers which are used for various purposes ; Dick's Brook, near the centre, flowing southerly and easterly, presenting a wild and romantic view as it turns with its swift current and considerable fall, leaping onward to Prince River ; Hill Brook, Silver Brook and other small streams, from their rugged and picturesque surroundings, serving to attract the attention of the mere stroller or the disciple of the piscatorial art ; Moose Brook, in the westerly part, rising to the north and flowing southerly through a number of fertile and highly cultivated farms, presenting to the lover of nature opportunities for a stroll upon its banks that will repay him for his time and exertion. All these streams find their way into the Ware River.

In 1853, to increase the water-power of Prince River, a reservoir was constructed in the north part of the town ; in 1868 the dam gave way, the most commonly accepted opinion being that it resulted from the efi'ccts of lightning, the heavy body of water sweeping away in its course most of the manufactories on the banks of the stream, only a part of which have been rebuilt. A loss of about two hundred thousand dollars was entailed upon the town in the destruction of roads and bridges and upon individuals by the carrying away of their property.

of the surrouuding country, the rocks belonging to the Eozoic system. Bowlders abound here and there, and gneiss, granite and granitic gneiss form a large part of our natural scenery. In tlje north and westerly portions of the town runs a vein of stratified rock, which is utilized in foundations for buildings and for constructing walks. In the eastern and southern portions the division of the hills, forming a course for the Ware River, presents an interesting view to the trained or untrained eye. The wild and romantic scenery of the east part is worth more than a passing visit, and the water, dashing along its channel many feet below the roadway, with the surrounding wooded tracts and the green herbage, leads the thinking mind to a contemplation of grand and noble subjects.

While our geological formation is leading us to an analysis of its construction, we may find, in separate forms, some of the minerals that constitute our granite. We have mica, feldspar, iron pyrites, beryl and garnets, and of the latter some beautiful specimens have been obtained. Fine specimens of rutile were formerly obtained in the north and west parts, but of late years the diligent searches of the amateur mineralogist have gone unrewarded, so far as this interesting mineral is concerned.

In the northerly part of the town is an extensive deposit of plastic clay, of a rich variety, tending simewhat to marl. Bricks were made of this quite extensively some sixty and more years ago, but as no sand of the proper quality with which to temper the clay could be obtained, except by trucking it a distance of several miles, the cost of manufacture was so great that, in the competition of trade in other towns, the business here became unprofitable, and was abandoned. In the south part of the town a bed of clay was worked to great advantage fifty to sixty years ago, the sand required for its manufacture into bricks being found a short distance easterly ; but this bed ceased to yield a proper amount of clay, and was finally abandoned as " worked out." A short distance from this old bed it is shrewdly surmised that another deposit exists, and, at a favoring time, trials will be made of the quality of the material.

Under the head of topography we must refer to the forests of the town. The somewhat broken surface of the land, the natural quality of the soil, including its rocks, and the general inclination and the number of its water-courses, lead us to adopt the theory that this was not, in its primitive days, an unbroken wilderness ; that the land in a large proportion of the present township was well wooded is indisputable, and the early settler here found his way hither, and by marking trees could retrace his path with much less difficulty. In subsequent years the forests became one of the sources of a livelihood in the way of clearing the timber, not only for obtaining improved land, but for the manufacture of pot and pearl-ashes, and these were made in considerable quantities, the towns to the south

The elevation of the town from its southern to its northern extremity is quite marked, the difi'erence in height between the Plains and the " Common " at the centre being, as furnished from the minutes of railroad surveyors, about three hundred feet, or an average of about one hundred feet to the mile, and from the " Common " to the northerly limits ot the town, the ascent, though less marked, is about two hundred feet additional, thus making a difference in our elevation between the extreme northern and southern boundaries of about five hundred feet. While there is so great a difference in the elevation from north to south, the difference from the extreme eastern to the western corner is but slight; hills abound from east to west, but the elevation finally assumed is nearly the same. In the north part of the town is Hawes' Hill, which, next to Mt. Wachusett, is the highest point of land in the State east of the Connecticut River.

With the town of to-day so well laid out, with its good and numerous highways, its well-constructed and beautiful houses, its fertile fields and farms, and with a people, social, thrifty and hospitable, engaged in farming and business ventures of various kinds, the contrast now with the wooded and unsettled territ«ry of two hundred years ago exhibits wonderful changes. The first time any white man traversed this section was in 1635, when an expedition was sent westerly from the Plymouth colony and penetrated as tar as the Connecticut River. It is very probable that the report of this expedition referred to the meadow lands and to the natural fertility of the soil, and, in after-years, as the settlers in the east increased in numbers, they coutinued to move farther westerly, and settled various townships in what is now Worcester County, the first settlement being at Lancaster, in 1743. Brookfield was settled in 1073-74, and, in 1681, the General Court appointed a committee, who purchased a portion of the southern part of the present Worcester County ; December 22, 1686, old style, or January 2, 1687, of the present style of reckoning dates, the territory which now embraces Rutland, Oakham, Barre, Hubbardston and portions of Paxton and Princeton, was purchased of five Indians " dwelling in His Majesty's territory iu America," by Henry Willard, Joseph Rowlandson, Joseph Foster, Benjamin Willard and Cyprian Stevens, "in consideration of twenty three pounds in hand paid, and for themselves and all of their heirs, executors, administrators and assigns, freely, fully and absolutely give, grant, bargain, sell, alien, enfeoffe, make over and confirm unto the above-named Willard and others, a certain tract of land, meadows, swamps, timbers, intervales, containing twelve miles square," the buunds being carefully described in the deed, and these Indians covenanted that they were the lawful owners of all the lands, " or any other matter, be it mine or mines.

or any ore falling within this tract according to the butts and bounds mentioned." This was a deed of warranty, and was written in strong and comprehensive terms, and was acknowledged by the parties to the contract March 15, ltj87.'