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THOMAS C. RAND. 
 
A Sketch of Keene^ 
 
 The Gem of The Ashuelot Valley, 
 
 Originally Published in the Granite Monthly for February, J 895, 
 
 TO WHICH ARE ADDED 
 
 Reminiscences and Sketches of Keene People^ 
 
 Origfinally Published in the New Hampshire Sentinel, 
 Over the Signature *'Ash Swamp/' 
 
 THOMAS C. RAND. 
 
 The leading article in this little pamphlet was originally published in the 
 Granite Monthly for February, 1895. The series of articles which follow appeared in 
 the New Hampshire Sentinel at about the same time, and are republished here at the 
 request of friends who wish to preserve them in this form. 
 
 THE AUTHOR. 
 
1-4-4 
 
 IRespectfuUB DcDicateD to m^ valued frtenD, 
 
 3. TKHbitnes JBarstow, Os, D., 
 
 of mew l^orft Cttij. 
 
 8^^ 
 
A Sketch of Keene* 
 
 In attempting the task of writing 
 a readable article descriptive of one 
 of New Hampshire's favored cities, 
 the author is compelled to bear in 
 mind the fact that the limit of space 
 in the publication for which it is pre- 
 pared precludes the possibility of giv- 
 ing more than a cursory glance at 
 its chief features and characteristics 
 at the present day, however great the 
 temptation to enter into its early his- 
 tory and give a detailed account of 
 its growth and prosperity from the 
 date of its first settlement as a town 
 up to the present time. The hard- 
 ships endured by the early settlers, 
 their successful struggles to maintain 
 possession of the granted territory, 
 and the subsequent events in the 
 town's early history have been so 
 often recounted by other writers, and 
 are so familiar to the local public, 
 that a repetition of the story in this 
 connection seems entirely unneces- 
 sary and superfluous; therefore the 
 Keene of today must be the principal 
 theme of this article, with occasional 
 allusions to events in the past and to 
 former individual citizens who took 
 part in them. 
 
 The territory known as Keene for 
 more than one hundred and forty 
 years was granted by Massachusetts 
 as Upper Ashuelot, April 20, 1733, 
 but the few settlers who located here 
 thus early were soon compelled to 
 
 abandon their homes on account of 
 the depredations and hostility of the 
 Indians. It was again occupied by 
 white settlers in 1750, and incorpo- 
 rated as Keene, April 11, 1753, the 
 name being given in honor of Sir 
 Benjamin Keene. 
 
 The grant embraced a large sec- 
 tion of the present town of Sullivan, 
 which was set off in 1787, and the 
 western portion of what is now the 
 town of Roxbury, which latter town 
 was incorporated in 1812. The sec- 
 tions thus taken from Keene com- 
 prised no small fraction of her area, 
 yet they were spared ungrudgingly 
 and without detriment to the material 
 interests of the town beyond a slight 
 but temporary diminution in the 
 number of inhabitants, and a corre- 
 sponding reduction in the amount 
 of property on which taxes were as- 
 sessed. 
 
 From year to year thereafter the 
 town grew in population and wealth, 
 although no single year was ever 
 marked by any phenomenal growth 
 in either of these directions. Wise 
 and judicious management of public 
 affairs characterized her career up to 
 the time of the transition from a town 
 to a municipal form of government, 
 since when there has been a gradual 
 improvement, even In this regard, un- 
 til Keene has become one of the best 
 governed cities in New Hampshire. 
 
 The city charter was adopted in 
 March, 1873, after having been once 
 
A SKETCH OF KEENE. 
 
 rejected by the voters, many of whom 
 doubted the expediency of the pro- 
 posed change. From that time date 
 many of the improvements and pub- 
 lic conveniences now seen on every 
 hand. Previously the town had pro- 
 vided a partial supply of water for 
 the use of residents of the village, 
 but aside from this there were only 
 the ordinary furnishings of a well 
 governed country town. 
 
 One of the first important measures 
 adopted by the city government, and 
 one most successfully carried out, 
 was the establishment of a sewerage 
 system on the Waring plan, which has 
 proved of incalculable benefit to the 
 people living in the central part of the 
 city. The line of sewerage traverses 
 all the principal streets and the great- 
 er portion of the highways located 
 within a radius of a mile from city 
 hall. The undertaking seemed a gi- 
 gantic one, as it involved a great ex- 
 penditure of money and placed a 
 heavy debt upon the city. The wis- 
 dom of the officials having charge of 
 the enterprise has, however, been 
 clearly demonstrated in the improved 
 condition and enhanced value of all 
 real estate along the lines of the 
 sewer and in the bettered condition of 
 the health of the general public 
 throughout the city. 
 
 An additional supply of water was 
 the next important matter taken in 
 hand by the city government. Rights 
 and privileges in a fine body of pure 
 water were secured in the town of 
 Roxbury, four miles distant, and an 
 ample supply of water for domestic 
 and fire purposes was provided. A 
 commodious stone reservoir was built 
 on Beech hill, whence water is dis- 
 tributed through nearly all the streets 
 in sufficient volume to meet all ordi- 
 nary requirements and provide ade- 
 
 quate protection, against fire. The 
 cost of this system of water supply 
 was quite large, increasing the city 
 debt many thousand dollars, yet it 
 has proved an excellent investment, 
 yielding as it does a large interest on 
 the money expended, besides afford- 
 ing a water supply to the inhabitants 
 of the city proper at a moderate cost 
 and amply protecting against confla- 
 grations. 
 
 The fire department has also been 
 completely remodelled to conform to 
 the changed condition of the water 
 supply, and the city can boast of as 
 fine apparatus and as efficient firemen 
 as can be found in any place of its size 
 in New England. Commodious build- 
 ings have been erected for the housing 
 of steamers and other fire apparatus 
 as well as for the accommodation of 
 members of the department and the 
 stabling of the city teams. Indeed, it 
 is conceded on all hands that, with an 
 abundant supply of water and a well 
 equipped fire department, a disastrous 
 conflagration is now almost an impos- 
 sibility in Keene. 
 
 The improvement of the condition 
 of the public roads and streets next 
 claimed the attention of the city offi- 
 cials, who diligently sought to perfect 
 and beautify them. At first much of 
 the work in this department was of 
 an experimental nature and therefore 
 somewhat disappointing. Now, how- 
 ever, a successful system is in opera- 
 tion which bids fair to give us the 
 best roads in the country, while our 
 concreted sidewalks and street cross- 
 ings are luxuries which no one can 
 fail to appreciate. Several of the prin- 
 cipal thoroughfares have been macad- 
 amized, and a few short sections of 
 streets are covered with granite pave- 
 ment. The city owns an inexhaustible 
 granite quarry, where a steam stone- 
 
A SKETCH OF KEENE. 
 
 crusher is employed in preparing ma- 
 terial for macadamizing purposes. It 
 also owns a steam road-roller, which 
 does effective work in the construction 
 and repair of highways. The princi- 
 pal streets are illuminated at night by 
 electric lights, while many of those 
 which are travelled less are lighted 
 with gas. 
 
 Notwithstanding all these costly im- 
 provements, the indebtednness of the 
 city is not burdensome, nor is it larger 
 than that of most other municipalities 
 of its class, while the rate of taxation 
 is below that of any other city in the 
 state. The total valuation of taxable 
 property for the year 1894 was $6,483,- 
 668. The rate of taxation is $1.33 per 
 $100. These facts are significant, and 
 go to prove that our municipal affairs 
 are conducted by men of integrity and 
 good judgment. The present popula- 
 tion is estimated to be in excess of 
 8,000. 
 
 The public buildings belonging to 
 the city consist principally of a fine 
 large block, on the east side of Cen- 
 tral square, in which are located the 
 city offices, and a hospital building 
 near the south end of Main street, 
 the latter being a gift to the city from 
 Hon. J. H. Elliot, whose liberality and 
 public spirit have ever been in keep- 
 ing with his masterly judgment in 
 financial affairs and his able manage- 
 ment of a large estate. His noble gift 
 to the city is appreciated by all, and 
 his name will be perpetuated as that 
 of a generous benefactor and a sym- 
 pathizer with unfortunate humanity. 
 
 The city is also in possession of a 
 fine site for a library building, situ- 
 ated north of and adjoining the city 
 hall property. This, too, was a gift 
 to the city from Henry O. Coolidge, 
 Esq., who, with certain restrictions 
 which make it available for a library 
 
 site only, donated the property in the 
 expectation that a prior gift from the 
 estate of the late John Symonds, Esq., 
 for the purpose of erecting a library 
 building, would soon enable the auth- 
 orities to proceed with the work con- 
 templated by Mr. Symonds. The fact 
 that unavoidable complications have 
 delayed the carrying out of the designs 
 of these generous donors should not 
 detract from the debt of gratitude 
 which the citizens owe them. The day 
 is not very far distant, as now appears, . 
 when the beautiful library site will be 
 occupied by a building of which the 
 citizens will feel proud. 
 
 Other valuable real estate owned 
 by the city consists of several tracts 
 of woodland donated by individuals 
 for the purpose of converting them 
 into parks for the free use of citizens. 
 The principal one of these lots com- 
 prises some twenty-two acres of plain 
 land, situated a mile and a half west 
 of the city hall, and known as " Whee- 
 lock Park," taking its name from the 
 generous giver, George A. Wheelock, 
 Esq., whose efforts to beautify the 
 town by planting and preserving 
 shade trees have characterized his 
 whole life and made him a public 
 benefactor. The gift of this property 
 was a noble act on the part of Mr. 
 Wheelock, who is never more happy 
 than when mingling with the pleasure 
 parties so often gathered in this park 
 on a summer's day. 
 
 Another valuable gift to the city 
 consists of eighteen acres of woodland 
 situated near Wheelock park, on the 
 opposite side of the highway. It was 
 conveyed to the city by the late Miss 
 Caroline Ingersoll, whose many pub- 
 lic and private benefactions are well 
 remembered by our citizens. The 
 grounds are known as " Ladies' Park." 
 They are well adapted to the purpose 
 
A SKETCH OF KEENE. 
 
 designed by Miss Ingersoll, and are 
 almost daily visited in the summer 
 season by picnic parties and individ- 
 uals who enjoy outdoor recreation. 
 
 " Dinsmoor Woods," lying half a 
 mile north of the parks above men- 
 tioned, on both sides of Maple ave- 
 nue, consists of eighteen acres of 
 heavily wooded land, and to the lib- 
 erality and public spirit of Miss Mary 
 Dinsmoor and her lady associates is 
 the public indebted for the preserva- 
 tion and free use of this beautiful 
 grove. 
 
 " City Park," coutaining fifteen 
 acres, is situated near the reservoir 
 on Beech hill, and with the "Children's 
 Woods " adjoining, consisting of 
 twelve acres of woodland, was secured 
 for the perpetual use of the public 
 through the wise action of the city 
 government and the munificence of 
 Caleb T. Buffum, Esq. 
 
 These parks afford a delightful re- 
 treat for many a citizen who is unable 
 to take extended trips to the moun- 
 tains or seashore, and together with 
 the beautiful and well kept park in 
 Central square, are a priceless boon 
 to the whole community. 
 
 There are many other attractive lo- 
 calities within the city limits where 
 the natural scenery presents the most 
 lovely views. Some of these overlook 
 the broad plain on which the city is 
 built, and give a magnificent view of 
 neighboring villages, the Ashuelot 
 valley, Monadnock and Ascutney 
 mountains, and other objects which 
 cannot fail to interest the beholder. 
 Such a place is found at the summit 
 of Beech hill, where Mr. H. L. Good- 
 now has erected an observatory, called 
 the " Horatian Tower," and laid out 
 the surrounding grounds in a most at- 
 tractive manner. It is a lovely spot, 
 and is destined to become the favorite 
 resort of many Keene people during 
 
 the summer season. Similar sightly 
 locations are to be found for a dis- 
 tance of more than a mile along the 
 summit of this hill, while on the op- 
 posite side of the city, two miles dis- 
 tant, lofty eminences, which will 
 eventually be occupied as summer 
 residences, afford fine views of the 
 surrounding country. The drives in 
 the suburbs of the city are also a very 
 attractive feature which visitors as 
 well as residents never fail to admire. 
 The business centre of Keene al- 
 ways presents a neat and tidy appear- 
 ance. The various blocks in which 
 stores are located are nearly all of 
 modern architecture, some of them 
 being magnificent in style and of im- 
 posing dimensions. Among those of 
 recent construction or remodelled on 
 modern plans are Bank block. Col- 
 ony's block, Bridgman's block, and 
 Stone's block, on the east side of the 
 square; Clarke's block on the north; 
 Lane's block, Gerould's building, and 
 the Ashuelot Bank block on the west; 
 while below the square we find on the 
 east side Cheshire House block, 
 Lane's two blocks, and Gurnsey's 
 building, the latter to have an addi- 
 tion next year equal in size to the 
 present structure; on the west side 
 below the square we have Elliot's 
 building, Buffum's block, Cheshire 
 Bank building, Wright's block. Lam- 
 son's block, and the Sentinel building. 
 All these are first-class buildings, while 
 others in their immediate vicinity, al- 
 though not so modern in style, are 
 substantial and handsome structures. 
 Just off the square, on Court street, 
 is a fine building, recently erected by 
 the First Church society, and occupied 
 mainly as a dry goods and jewelry 
 store. In these blocks and buildings 
 are located most of the retail mer- 
 chants, all of whom take pride in 
 maintaining neat and attractive estab- 
 
A SKETCH OF KEENE. 
 
 lishments. Not a dingy or ill kept 
 store can be found here, while some 
 of the most elegant stores in the 
 state are conspicuous on every hand. 
 
 The county building occupies a fine 
 location near the head of the square, 
 presenting an imposing appearance. 
 A few rods west of it, on Winter 
 street, stands the elegant high school 
 building; and on Washington street, 
 in plain view from the square, is 
 found the new jail. All these are of 
 modern construction, and each makes 
 a fine picture. 
 
 Six church spires are conspicuous 
 in the heart of the city, while another, 
 as yet incomplete, rises above the fine 
 family residences of Washington 
 street. The Young Men's Christian 
 Association has also just dedicated a 
 splendid new building, the first of the 
 kind erected in New Hampshire by a 
 similar organization. 
 
 Manufacturing establishments are 
 quite numerous here. The oldest 
 concern of this kind is the Faulkner & 
 Colony manufacturing establishment, 
 Hon. Horatio Colony, president. This 
 firm has been in existence for nearly 
 or quite three-quarters of a century. 
 It is one of the most reliable manu- 
 facturing concerns in the country, and 
 the products of its mills (flannels and 
 dress goods) have always stood high 
 in the market. 
 
 Nims, Whitney & Co. have exten- 
 sive manufacturing works on Me- 
 chanic street, where they turn out 
 doors, sash, and blinds in large quan- 
 tities. This, too, is an old establish- 
 ment, having been in operation more 
 than forty years. 
 
 On the same street, is the manu- 
 factory of the Impervious Package 
 Company, whose goods find a ready 
 market. Hon. A. T. Batchelder is 
 president of the company. 
 
 The Keene Glue Company, Osgood 
 
 W. Upham, president, manufacture 
 glue in large quantities and of supe- 
 rior quality at their works on Court 
 street, one mile from the square. 
 
 N. G. Woodbury manufactures 
 pails in immense quantities at his 
 mill on Washington street. 
 
 Beaver Mills corporation, Hon. J. 
 H. Elliot, president, own a valuable 
 manufacturing plant, situated a few 
 rods east of Main street, near the 
 tracks of the Fitchburg and the Bos- 
 ton & Maine railroads, where they 
 manufacture pails in great quantities, 
 and carry on an extensive business in 
 lumber sawing, grain grinding, etc., 
 besides furnishing steam power for 
 numerous small manufacturing estab- 
 lishments located in their buildings, 
 among which may be mentioned the 
 box factories of J. M. Reed and C. M. 
 Norwood, both of which turn out fine 
 goods in large quantities. 
 
 Fitchburg Railroad repair shops are 
 located here, and a large addition to 
 their works is soon to be made. The 
 present equipment of the shops en- 
 ables the company to turn out first- 
 class railway machinery, even to the 
 production of a complete locomotive. 
 
 J. & F. French's carriage and 
 sleigh factory on Church street is an 
 old time establishment which has an 
 excellent reputation all through New 
 England. Its products are the very 
 best of the kind in the country. 
 
 T. A. Peart and I. K. Champion, 
 under the name of Keene Furniture 
 Company, produce a large quantity of 
 high grade furniture every year at 
 their factory in Beaver Mills. 
 
 The Wilkins Toy Company, Harry 
 T. Kingsbury, proprietor, manufac- 
 ture mechanical toys in great variety. 
 The factory is located on Myrtle 
 street. 
 
 The C. B. Lancaster Shoe Company 
 employ about a thousand hands at 
 
8 
 
 A SKETCH OF KEENE. 
 
 their extensive factory at the foot of 
 Dunbar street. The goods raade at 
 this establishment are first-class, and 
 have a wide reputation for excellence. 
 
 The Humphrey Machine Company 
 manufacture a great variety of ma- 
 chinery, including the celebrated IXL 
 water-wheel, which is known through- 
 out the world. John Humphrey is the 
 moving spirit in the business, and is 
 an inventor of ability. 
 
 Dunn & Salisbury manufacture 
 chairs in great variety at their fac- 
 tory on Emerald street. 
 
 J. S. Taft & Co. manufacture pot- 
 tery ware, and deal largely in crock- 
 ery and glass ware at their works on 
 Main street. 
 
 George W. Ball's Sons carry on the 
 brick-making business on Appleton 
 street, where they manufacture this 
 building commodity on a large scale. 
 
 Wilkinson & McGregor manufac- 
 ture harnesses, saddles, trunks, etc., 
 at their factory in rear of their retail 
 store on Main street, employing about 
 thirty hands. 
 
 Cheshire Chair Company, E. & C. 
 E. Joslin and G. W. McDuffee, pro- 
 prietors, manufacture chairs of all 
 kinds at their factory connected with 
 Beaver Mills. 
 
 Elisha F. Lane manufactures brick 
 in great quantities on his farm at the 
 lower end of Main street. 
 
 The Read Furniture Manufacturing 
 company, at South Keene, Charles H. 
 Read, president, employs some thirty 
 or forty hands in the manufacture of 
 various kinds of furniture. 
 
 Several other smaller manufactur- 
 ing concerns turn out a variety of 
 goods, but those already named com- 
 prise the chief enterprises of this kind 
 within the city limits. 
 
 The private residences in Keene 
 deserving of special mention, because 
 of their elegance and modern style of 
 
 architecture, are numerous. The 
 broad and finely shaded streets of the 
 central portion of the city are lined 
 with costly dwellings, generally ap- 
 proached through spacious, well kept 
 lawns. On West street, between Cen- 
 tral square and the river, we find the 
 elegant homes of many prominent cit- 
 izens, among them thos3 of Gen. S. G. 
 Griffin, S. A. Gerould, Esq., Mrs. C. L. 
 Kingsbury, Edward Joslin, Esq., Mrs. 
 
 C. S. Faulkner, the Misses Tilden, 
 Hon. Horatio Colony, W. S. Briggs, 
 Esq., L. J. Brooks, Esq., Hon. C. J. 
 Woodward, S. K. Stone, Esq., the 
 Misses Colony, G. H. Richards, Esq., 
 
 F. H. Whitcomb, Esq., J. C. Faulkner, 
 the Alfred Colony heirs, and others. 
 
 Court street abounds in fine, mod- 
 ern style houses, conspicuous among 
 which are the residences of Hon. 
 A. T. Batchelder, O. G. Dort, Esq., 
 Mrs. E. P. Dole, C. E. Joslin, S. W. 
 Stone, Hon. R. H. Porter, D. H. Wood- 
 ward, Esq., Leonard Boyce, G. D. Har- 
 ris, Esq., Mrs. Susan Allen, Mrs. R. M. 
 Caldwell, and many others deserving 
 special mention did space permit. 
 
 Washington street has many desir- 
 able houses, yet the modem style of 
 architecture does not so generally 
 prevail there as in the streets pre- 
 viously mentioned. Some of those of 
 recent construction, or remodelled 
 within a few years, are owned and 
 occupied by the following named per- 
 sons: Dr. G. R. Dinsmoor, Mrs. K. C. 
 Scott, Mrs. C. Bridgman, F. Petts, 
 Hon. Asa Smith, F. L. Sprague, Mrs. 
 
 G. B. Buffum, T. C. Rand, W. G. Hall, 
 
 D. M. Pollard, B. F. Sawyer, H. S. 
 Martin, C. W. Morse, L. M. Richards, 
 G. O. Wardwell, Charles Wright, 2d. 
 
 Main street, like the avenue last 
 mentioned, shows considerable an- 
 cient architecture, although many 
 handsome residences, modern in style. 
 
A SKETCH OF KEENE. 
 
 are found on either side of this hroad 
 and magnificent thoroughfare. Nota- 
 ble among these are the residences 
 of W. S. Hale, Hon. J. H. Elliot, Gen. 
 S. S. WilKinson, Mrs. ex-Governor 
 Hale, Hon. E. C. Thayer, Hon. Edward 
 Gustine, S. O. Gates, Esq., Mrs. J. W. 
 Prentiss, Mrs. C. W. Taintor, E. F. 
 Lane, Esq., I. J. Dunn, Esq., and 
 numerous others. Many fine resi- 
 dences are also found on other streets, 
 but it is impossible to specify them 
 here. 
 
 The religious societies in Keene are 
 numerous, and each is in a flourish- 
 ing condition. The oldest church 
 organization is the First Congrega- 
 tional, over which the talented and 
 venerated Z. S. Barstow, D. D., pre- 
 sided as pastor fifty years. The pres- 
 ent pastor is Rev. William G. Poor. 
 The house in which this society wor- 
 ships stands at the head of Central 
 square, and is one of the oldest as 
 well as one of the handsomest build- 
 ings in town. 
 
 The Baptist church has as its pas- 
 tor Rev. A. W. Hand. Their house 
 of worship is a substantial and ele- 
 gant structure, situated on Court 
 street. 
 
 The Methodist Episcopal church 
 edifice is located nearly opposite the 
 Baptist house of worship, and is 
 similar to it in outward appearance. 
 The pastor of the church at the pres- 
 ent time is Rev. James Cairns, who 
 was assigned to Keene for a second 
 term at the last annual conference. 
 
 The Second Congregational church 
 has as its pastor Rev. G. H. DeBe- 
 voise. It has a fine house of wor- 
 ship, located on Court street in close 
 proximity to the last two mentioned 
 above. 
 
 The Unitarian church and society 
 are at this time worshiping tempo- 
 
 rarily in the Armory building, pend- 
 ing the erection of a handsome church 
 edifice on Washington street. The 
 building will be completed the pres- 
 ent winter. Rev. C. B. Elder is the 
 pastor of this church. 
 
 St. James's Episcopal church has a 
 fine house of worship on West street. 
 It is built of stone, in the English 
 style of architecture, and presents a 
 fine appearance. Rev. J. C. Ayer, 
 Ph. D., is the present rector. 
 
 The Roman Catholic church build- 
 ing on Main street is one of the finest 
 structures of the kind In the city. 
 The society is in charge of Rev. J. R. 
 Power, rector, with Rev. D. J. Dunn 
 as assistant. A parochial school 
 building has been erected in rear of 
 the church, where a large number of 
 pupils are taught in all branches of 
 education usually pursued in like 
 institutions. 
 
 Bethany Mission is a religious or- 
 ganization with a house of worship 
 on Vernon street, where services are 
 held regularly, although the society 
 has no stated pastor. The church 
 was organized mainly through the 
 personal efforts of Mr. F." L. Sprague, 
 whose contribution of the church 
 building, as well as his liberality in 
 aiding the maintenance of religious 
 services therein, is appreciated by 
 many citizens. 
 
 All of these religious societies main- 
 tain auxiliary organizations, devoted 
 to religious and philanthropic work 
 such as is usually performed by simi- 
 lar organizations in other places. 
 
 The schools in Keene and the sys- 
 tem of education practised by direc- 
 tion of the superintendent of schools 
 and the board of education merit and 
 receive the approbation of every good 
 citizen. The high school, under the 
 charge of Robert A. Ray, A, M., as 
 
10 
 
 A SKETCH OF KEENE. 
 
 head master, aided by an able corps 
 of assistants, is of a high grade, and 
 is doing a noble work in the interest 
 of the youth of our city. The gram- 
 mar and other graded schools are 
 also excellent, and all are under the 
 instruction of competent teachers. 
 Thaddeus W. Harris, A. M., Ph. D., 
 is the present superintendent of 
 schools, while the board of education 
 consists of Francis C. Faulkner, Wil- 
 ton H. Spalter, Jesse B. Hyland, 
 Bertram Ellis, Simon G. Griflah, 
 Charles C. Buffum, Gardner C. Hill, 
 Fred W. Chase, and Silas M. Dinsmoor. 
 
 Keene maintains a large number 
 of orders and institutions, of a public 
 as well as private nature, the objects 
 of which are generally indicated by 
 their titles. Among these may be 
 found the several grades of Masonic 
 bodies, from the blue lodge to that of 
 the Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite. 
 Odd Fellowship also has strong or- 
 ganizations in its various branches. 
 The social features of these institu- 
 tions are very attractive, compelling 
 the admiration of all who join them. 
 
 Among the numerous other organ- 
 ized bodies which flourish here may 
 be mentioned the Ancient Order of 
 Hibernians, United Order of the 
 Golden Cross, Order of the Pilgrim 
 Fathers, Knights of Pythias, Ancient 
 Order of United Workmen, Improved 
 Order of Red Men, Monadnock Cycle 
 club, Grand Army of the Republic, 
 Cheshire Pomona Grange, Invalids' 
 Home Corporation, Keene Humane 
 society, Village Improvement society, 
 Keene Natural History society; and 
 probably there are other organiza- 
 tions of a social or benevolent char- 
 acter which the writer does not now 
 call to mind. 
 
 In connection with these it may be 
 proper to name our military organiza- 
 tions, consisting of two of the best 
 
 companies in the state, with head- 
 quarters in a spacious armory building 
 on Winter street. Also the Keene 
 Brass band, which dates its existence 
 from 1855, and whose inspiring martial 
 strains have enlivened our streets at 
 frequent intervals for nearly forty 
 years. Beedle's orchestra, too, should 
 be named among the institutions of 
 which the citizens feel proud, it hav- 
 ing few equals in point of musical 
 talent in all New England. 
 
 Public and private halls are numer- 
 ous here, the large number of socie- 
 ties and organizations requiring ex- 
 tensive accommodations of this kind. 
 Aside from City hall, which has a 
 seating capacity of one thousand and 
 more, we have Armory hall on Winter 
 street. Golden Cross hall in Diphthong 
 alley. Grand Army hall in Ball's block. 
 Masonic hall in Elliot's block, Odd Fel- 
 lows' hall in Cheshire House block, 
 the Y. M. C. A. hall on West street, 
 Warren's hall on Washington street, 
 and a hall in Lane's new building 
 which is to be occupied by the Odd 
 Fellows when completed. 
 
 Hotels are not numerous in Keene, 
 yet we can boast of at least one which 
 is commodious and first-class in every 
 particular — the Cheshire House, Chas. 
 Hartwell proprietor. It is finely situ- 
 ated on the corner of Roxbury and 
 Main streets, within a few rods of 
 the railway station. The other ho- 
 tels are respectively the City and 
 the Eagle, both under the proprietor- 
 ship of Henry Ward, and situated on 
 Main street, just below the railway 
 station. Good restaurants and excel- 
 lent boarding-houses are plentiful, af- 
 fording ample accommodations for 
 those who prefer them to hotels. 
 
 Keene Driving Park association 
 owns a large tract of land adjoining 
 Swanzey Factory village on which 
 is maintained an excellent half-mile 
 
A SKETCH OF KEENE. 
 
 11 
 
 trotting course, which is the scene of 
 many interesting racing contests and 
 other sports every season. The 
 grounds are well fitted up for the ac- 
 commodation of the public, and here 
 are held the annual fairs of Cheshire 
 Grange. 
 
 Travelling facilities are afforded 
 the people of Keene through the 
 medium of the Fitchburg and the Bos- 
 ton & Maine railroads and by means 
 of stages connecting with surround- 
 ing towns not provided with steam 
 transportation. The railroad accom- 
 modations are sufficient for the needs 
 of the people, and when a new union 
 passenger station is built, as is likely 
 to be the case in the near future, noth- 
 ing but a street electric railway will 
 be needed to fully satisfy the demands 
 of the travelling public. This latter 
 enterprise may take form at an early 
 day, the last legislature having grant- 
 ed a charter for a road of this kind 
 in Keene. 
 
 In the line of amusements, Keene 
 is not behind her sister cities in pro- 
 viding clean and elevating entertain- 
 ments during the theatrical season. 
 City hall, converted into a neat opera 
 house, only needs a small addition on 
 the north end of the building, whereby 
 better stage facilities can be obtained, 
 to make the place a charming resort 
 whenever a deserving entertainment 
 is announced to be given there. 
 Messrs. Barker & Quinn, the local 
 managers of these entertainments, en- 
 gage none but first-rate companies, 
 and their efforts to please the public 
 have been entirely successful in the 
 past. Other public entertainments, 
 such as lectures, concerts, readings, 
 etc., are provided through the enter- 
 prise of the Y. M. C. A. managers, who 
 are entitled to the thanks of our citi- 
 zens for the pleasure thus afforded. 
 
 A fine monument, erected in 1871 
 
 to the memory of soldiers and sailors 
 who died in defence of their country, 
 stands in the park in Central square. 
 It was designed by Martin Millmore, 
 the noted Boston sculptor. The cost 
 of the monument — about seven thou- 
 sand dollars — was defrayed by the 
 town, whose citizens are entitled to 
 the credit of having been among the 
 first in the state to thus honor their 
 patriot dead. 
 
 The newspapers of Keene at the 
 present time consist of two weeklies — 
 the New Hampshire Sentinel and the 
 Cheshire Republican — organs, respec- 
 tively, of the Republican and Demo- 
 cratic parties, and one daily paper, 
 the Keene Evening Sentinel. The 
 weekly Sentinel is one of the oldest 
 newspapers in the country, having 
 been established in 1799 by Hon. John 
 Prentiss, who was its editor forty- 
 eight years and whose energy, public 
 spirit, and devotion to the interests 
 of this community are matters of local 
 history with which most of our citi- 
 zens are familiar. The paper is pub- 
 lished by the Sentinel Printing Com- 
 pany in their elegant new building on 
 Main street, and is in a flourishing 
 condition. 
 
 The Cheshire Republican, O. L. Col- 
 ony, editor and proprietor, dates its 
 existence from the early years of the 
 present century. It has always been 
 a strong advocate of Democratic prin- 
 ciples, and for many years its influ- 
 ence has been potent in the councils 
 of Cheshire County Democracy. 
 
 The Evening Sentinel is owned and 
 issued by the Sentinel Printing Com- 
 pany. It was started four years ago, 
 and has more than met the expecta- 
 tions of its owners and of the general 
 public. The chief aim of the paper 
 is to give the local and general news 
 of the day, and in this it is an unqual- 
 ified success. The Evening Sentinel 
 
12 
 
 A SKETCH OF KEENE. 
 
 is now regarded as one of our perma- 
 nent institutions, and gives evidence 
 of good management and excellent 
 editorial ability. The Sentinel Print- 
 ing Company is composed of T. C. 
 Rand, president; C. J. Woodward, 
 treasurer and business manager; W. 
 H. Prentiss, clerk; and Bertram Ellis. 
 Both publications issued by this com- 
 pany are conducted under the editor- 
 ship of Mr. Ellis, with Mr. Prentiss as 
 city editor. 
 
 A religious paper called the Chris- 
 tian Herald has recently been started 
 here under the auspices of the evan- 
 gelical churches, whose pastors act as 
 its managers and editors. 
 
 Financial affairs, especially banking 
 enterprises, engross the attention of 
 many Keene people, employing a large 
 amount of capital. The oldest bank- 
 ing institution in the city is the Chesh- 
 ire Natiorial bank, Hon. J. H. Elliot, 
 president; Hon. R. H. Porter, cashier. 
 It was chartered as a state bank in 
 1803, and Daniel Newcomb was its 
 first president. Its present capital is 
 $200,000. 
 
 The Ashuelot National bank, George 
 A. Wheelock, president; H. O. Cool- 
 idge, cashier, was originally chartered 
 as a state bank, and was incorporated 
 in 1833. Its first president was Gov. 
 Samuel Dinsmoor, who served in that 
 capacity until his death in 1835. Pres- 
 ent capital of this institution, $150,000. 
 
 Keene National bank, Edward Jos- 
 lin, president; Wallace L. Mason, 
 cashier, was also chartered as a state 
 bank and organized in 1858, with Ze- 
 bina Newell as its first president. Its 
 capital is $100,000. 
 
 Citizens' National bank, O. G. Dort, 
 president; Arthur L. Wright, cashier, 
 was incorporated in 1875. S. D. Os- 
 borne was its first president. Capital, 
 $100,000. 
 
 Cheshire Provident Institution for 
 
 Savings, Hon. A. T. Batchelder, presi- 
 dent; Oscar G. Nims, treasurer, was 
 chartered and organized in 1833, and 
 is one of the oldest savings banks in 
 the state. Its first president was Dr. 
 Amos Twitchell, and its first treasurer 
 George Tilden, the latter serving in 
 that capacity nearly fifty years. 
 
 Keene Five Cents Savings bank, 
 Caleb T. Buffum, Esq., president; 
 G. A. Litchfield, treasurer, was incor- 
 porated in 1868. John H. Fuller was 
 its first president, and O. G. Dort its 
 first treasurer. 
 
 Keene Guaranty Savings bank, F. 
 H. Kingsbury, treasurer, was incor- 
 porated in 1883, with a guaranty fund 
 of $50,000. Its first and thus far its 
 only president was the late Hon. 
 James Burnap, and its first treasurer 
 was O. G. Dort. 
 
 All of these financial institutions 
 have been of great value to the people 
 of Keene and Cheshire county, aiding 
 materially in the business prosperity 
 of the community. 
 
 The people of Keene have been for- 
 tunate since the adoption of the city 
 charter in their annual election of a 
 mayor and other elective officers of 
 the city government. The first mayor, 
 Hon. Horatio Colony, was and still is 
 a prominent business man whose well 
 known abilities and honesty of pur- 
 pose secured for him a handsome ma- 
 jority at the polls, notwithstanding 
 the fact that the Democratic party in 
 which he was a leader was largely in 
 the minority in the city. His adminis- 
 tration of affairs at this early date in 
 the history of the city was warmly 
 approved by the citizens, and he was 
 reelected to the office the following 
 year. 
 
 Hon. Edward Farrar succeeded Mr. 
 Colony in the office of mayor in 1876, 
 and was reelected for a second term. 
 
A SKETCH OF KEENE. 
 
 13 
 
 Hon. Reuben Stewart was the in- 
 cumbent in 1878 and again in 1879. 
 
 Hon. Horatio Kimball was Mr. 
 Stewart's successor in 1880. 
 
 Hon. Ira W. Russell served in 1881, 
 and was reelected for 1882. 
 
 Hon. Horatio Kimball again filled 
 the office in 1883 and 1884. 
 
 Hon. A. T. Batchelder followed in 
 1885 and 1886. 
 
 Hon. Asa Smith succeeded Mr. 
 Batchelder in 1887, and was elected a 
 second time. 
 
 Hon. Herbert B. Viall was mayor 
 in 1889, and served two terms. 
 
 Hon. Horatio Kimball occupied the 
 office for a fourth term in 1891. 
 
 Hon. Frederic A. Faulkner was 
 elected to succeed Mr. Kimball, and 
 has just completed a third term, hav- 
 ing been twice reelected. 
 
 The present mayor, Hon. George W. 
 McDuffee, was elected at the muni- 
 cipal election in December, and has 
 just begun his first term in that office. 
 
 Each of the incumbents of the may- 
 or's office has made an honorable rec- 
 ord, evincing an earnest desire to pro- 
 mote the interests of the city, and to 
 maintain the reputation which Keene 
 has so long enjoyed of being one of 
 the best governed municipalities in 
 the state. 
 
 It would be ungenerous to close this 
 brief sketch without at least making 
 mention of some noted former citizens 
 who contributed to the prosperity of 
 Keene, and conferred honors upon the 
 town and state as well. A full list of 
 such personages would gladly be giv- 
 en here, yet a passing notice of the 
 more prominent ones must suffice. 
 
 Keene has furnished three govern- 
 ors of the state, viz. : Samuel Dins- 
 moor, who filled the executive chair 
 for three years, from June, 1831; Sam- 
 uel Dinsmoor (son of the former), 
 from June, 1849, to June, 1852; Samuel 
 
 W. Hale, for two years, from June, 
 1883. Another former governor, Wil- 
 liam Haile, resided here several years 
 subsequent to the expiration of his 
 official term, and until his death. 
 
 The congressional district to which 
 Keene belongs has been represented 
 in the United States congress for six 
 terms by residents of this place, viz. : 
 Peleg Sprague, Samuel Dinsmoor, Sr., 
 Joseph Buffum, Salma Hale, James 
 Wilson, Jr., and Thomas M. Edwards. 
 
 Many other prominent men of the 
 past, whose names and memory are 
 cherished by our citizens, earned the 
 eternal gratitude of posterity by their 
 untiring zeal and successful efforts in 
 behalf of the religious, educational, 
 and business enterprises projected in 
 the early years of the nineteenth cen- 
 tury. Among these the name of John 
 Prentiss is entitled to first place, hav- 
 ing been so early identified with the 
 town's history. Aside from his able 
 management of one of the most in- 
 fluential political newspapers in the 
 state for a period of forty-eight years, 
 Mr. Prentiss was an indefatigable 
 worker in the various causes which 
 claim and receive the support of good 
 citizens everywhere. Education and 
 temperance were his favorite themes 
 when in conversation with young men, 
 to whom his advice and example were 
 often of great benefit, though not al- 
 ways appreciated. He was not a 
 " public " man in the general sense of 
 that term, never seeking and but sel- 
 dom consenting to hold office, yet his 
 interest in public affairs was never 
 abated until death closed his long and 
 useful career just as he was round- 
 ing out nearly a full century of exist- 
 ence. 
 
 Zedekiah Smith Barstow, D. D., the 
 beloved pastor of the First church 
 from 1818 until 1868, although a score 
 of years the junior of Mr. Prentiss, 
 
14 
 
 A SKETCH OF KEENE. 
 
 was contemporary with him in edu- 
 cational and temperance work, their 
 only personal differences growing out 
 of religious viev/s as expressed 
 through the Sentinel and from the pul- 
 pit. Dr. Barstow's career was as re- 
 markable and inspiring as that of Mr. 
 Prentiss, and no two men ever lived in 
 Keene who wielded so much influence 
 for good as did these honored citizens. 
 
 Amos Twitchell, M. D., the genial, 
 brilliant, noble, and generous physi- 
 cian, whom everybody loved, was also 
 interested in all public matters per- 
 taining to the welfare and education 
 of the young, and his warning voice 
 against the use of intoxicating liquor 
 saved many from destruction. His 
 death, at the age of 69 years, was a 
 public calamity. 
 
 Hon. Salma Hale, statesman, au- 
 thor and profound lawyer; Hon. Levi 
 Chamberlain, brilliant lawyer and pop- 
 ular advocate at the bar; Hon. Thom- 
 as M. Edwards, prominent and influ- 
 ential in all public matters and an 
 early advocate of railroad enterprises 
 in this section; Phineas Handerson, 
 eminent barrister and dignified gentle- 
 man; Gen. James Wilson, lawyer, 
 statesman, orator, and big-hearted 
 friend; Charles G. Adams, M. D., emi- 
 nent practitioner and courtly gentle- 
 man; George Tilden, educator, phil- 
 anthropist, and faithful custodian of 
 trust funds; John H. Fuller, honest 
 merchant and kind though impulsive 
 friend of the poor; Francis A. Faulk- 
 ner, brilliant lawyer, faithful public 
 servant, loyal citizen, and genial 
 friend; William P. Wheeler, the silver- 
 tongued orator and honored jurist; 
 Famum F. Lane, profound lawyer and 
 honest adviser; Edward Farrar, faith- 
 ful ofllcial, delightful companion, and 
 generous friend; — all these and many 
 others, whose memory is embalmed 
 
 in the hearts of living citizens, and 
 whose public services are recorded in 
 the archives of the town and city, de- 
 serve more than a passing notice here, 
 but space forbids. Of each it can 
 truly be said, in the language of 
 Shakespeare, " Such a man might be 
 a copy to these younger times." 
 
 The writer in closing this sketch 
 cannot resist the temptation to again 
 refer to the early history of Keene 
 and the beautiful city which has been 
 developed in this valley of the Ashue- 
 lot. 
 
 The choice of " Upper Ashuelot " as 
 a local habitation by the early settlers 
 in this valley attests their practical 
 wisdom. Though compassed about 
 on every hand by the primeval forest, 
 in which the Indians lurked and wild 
 beasts prowled by night, the pioneers 
 of 1734 and 1753 discerned, as if by 
 prophetic instinct, the latent possibili- 
 ties of this spot, and resolutely set 
 themselves about the task of develop- 
 ing its resources. And when, in the 
 course of time, clearings made by the 
 woodman's axe let the sunlight into 
 the deepest recesses of the wilderness, 
 the hidden beauties of the landscape 
 began to reveal themselves, like a 
 symmetrical statue under the sculp- 
 tor's hand. 
 
 Gradually there emerged from the 
 chaotic woodland the lines of grace 
 which terminate the view, — the long 
 undulating crests of Beech hill, form- 
 ing the eastern horizon; the bold sum- 
 mit of West mountain; and, in the 
 distant perspective, the sky-piercing 
 peak of grand Monadnock, marking 
 out for our ancesters, as for their de- 
 scendants, the visible boundaries of 
 earth and heaven. 
 
 Winding through the valley to 
 which it gave its name, then, as now, 
 flowed the gentle rivulet that turns 
 
A SKETCH OF KEENE. 
 
 15 
 
 the wheels of many a mill, and makes 
 the air vocal with the murmurous 
 hum of various industries. 
 
 The fort, to which the families of 
 the Blakes, the Fishers, and others 
 of the earliest time had fled for ref- 
 uge from the furj- of the savages, gave 
 place at length to the church and the 
 tavern — twin institutions which our 
 manly forefathers deemed indispensa- 
 ble adjuncts of their civilization; the 
 blazed path through the woods broad- 
 ened into Main street, as we know it 
 now, with its colonnade of stately elms; 
 outlying swamps were reclaimed and 
 
 craggy hills subdued to the uses of 
 husbandry; newspapers and schools, 
 manufactories and savings banks, 
 railroads and public libraries came 
 later in the evolution of our modern 
 corporate and municipal life, until, to- 
 day, Keene is fully abreast of the en- 
 lightened spirit and progressive social 
 development of the age. 
 
 Our citizens justly cherish a local 
 pride in the city to whose beauties 
 every passing straiiger pays the trib- 
 ute of admiration, and whose growth 
 and prosperity command the respect 
 of the financial and business world. 
 
Reminiscences and Sketches of Keene People* 
 
 LOOKING BACKWARD. 
 
 Some Events in the Early History of 
 
 Cheshire Railroad. 
 
 The death of Hon. Reuben Stewart, 
 recently announced in the Sentinel, 
 reminds some of our older citizens of 
 the time when the construction of the 
 Cheshire Railroad was in progress, 
 Mr. Stewart having been early identi- 
 fied with that enterprise as well as an 
 important factor in its successful 
 career for nearly half a century. 
 The contractors for the building of the 
 road above Keene to Bast Westmore- 
 land were Messrs. Parmalee & Ward, 
 from York State, who brought with 
 them a large force of men and estab- 
 lished their headquarters at the " Sum- 
 mit," employing Mr. Stewart as their 
 clerk and superintendent of a supply 
 store established for the accommoda- 
 tion of their workmen, in which capac- 
 ity he developed extraordinary busi- 
 ness qualities which came to be ap- 
 preciated by all in after years. Mr. 
 Stewart was then a young man with 
 a wife and small family of children, 
 who were domiciled in a shanty near 
 the store. 
 
 Messrs. Parmalee & Ward were 
 honorable men, treated their help well 
 and paid thair debts promptly, not- 
 withstanding which fact the workmen 
 would occasionally indulge in a strike 
 for some unaccountable reason and 
 become turbulent and threatening in 
 their attitude toward the contractors. 
 At such times it became necessary to 
 
 appeal to the authorities for protec- 
 tion, and a dozen times or more be- 
 fore the road was completed Sheriff 
 Foster ordered out the light infantry 
 companies of Keene and Westmore- 
 land to suppress the rioting. The 
 workmen stood in mortal fear of the 
 military, and when the guns and bayo- 
 nets began to glisten in the sunlight 
 along the Summit road there would be 
 a tremendous scampering for the ad- 
 jacent woods, and not a rioter could 
 be found by the time the troops ar- 
 rived at the scene of disturbance. 
 Then would begin a hunt for the of- 
 fenders, sometimes continuing two or 
 three days, during which time Mr. and 
 Mrs. Stewart kept open house and re- 
 galed the soldiers with hot coffee, 
 doughnuts, and such other refresh- 
 ments as could be conveniently pro- 
 vided. 
 
 On one of these occasions the 
 " Keene Light " squad, under com- 
 mand of Col. Robert Wilson, arrived 
 at the Summit just at dark on a bright 
 summer evening, and as usual the 
 rioters fled to the woods. Col. Wilson 
 ordered immediate pursuit, but the 
 darkness prevented a successful 
 search for the offenders, who shouted 
 derisively at their pursuers and kept 
 up a continual but harmless fusilade 
 with shot guns and cobble stones dur- 
 ing the whole night. As daylight ap- 
 proached all became quiet and it was 
 evident that the " enemy " was in hid- 
 ing. Placing his men about twenty 
 rods apart. Col. Wilson ordered an ad- 
 
18 
 
 REMINISCENCES AND SKETCHES 
 
 vance, with instructions to arrest 
 every man found in the woods and de- 
 liver him to the sheriff, who was sta- 
 tioned at the store, but positively for- 
 bidding the discharge of a gun unless 
 the enemy showed fight. The writer, 
 then in his teens, was at the extreme 
 right of this advancing column and en- 
 tirely out of sight of his nearest com- 
 rade. Suddenly, while making his 
 way through the tangled brush, the 
 gigantic form of an Irishman armed 
 with a shot gun rose up before him, 
 and he was greeted with the exclama- 
 tion, " Don't shoot! I surrinder! I 
 surrinder!" At the same time the 
 Irishman handed over his gun and ex- 
 pressed a willingness to obey any or- 
 der that might be given by his captor. 
 To say that the young soldier was ex- 
 cited does not begin to express it — 
 he was frightened half to death, for 
 the prisoner was twice his size and 
 weighed not less than two hundred 
 pounds. However, collecting his 
 senses, he locked arms with his prison- 
 er and started back to headquarters, 
 which were reached in safety, much 
 to the relief of at least one of the 
 party. As they approached the store 
 Mr. Stewart stood on the steps with 
 the sheriff, and although he was al- 
 ways a sober-faced and dignified man, 
 he actually laughed when he compre- 
 hended the situation. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Stewart were never 
 disturbed by the rioters on these oc- 
 casions, for they were always kind to 
 the workmen and very popular with 
 all with whom they came in contact. 
 Mr. Stewart always contended that 
 the workmen were not half as much 
 to blame for their conduct as were the 
 rum sellers who periodically visited 
 the camp and supplied them with 
 liquor, and in several instances he 
 was Instrumental in having an of- 
 fender's fine remitted, even paying it 
 
 himself when unsuccessful in his ef- 
 forts in that direction. His generos- 
 ity and kindness made him a universal 
 favorite with the workmen, some of 
 whom entered into the employment 
 of the railroad corporation after the 
 road was completed, remaining in 
 that capacity long after Mr. Stewart 
 became superintendent of the line. 
 
 Riots similar to those at the summit 
 occurred occasionally along the line 
 below Keene, but they were almost 
 invariably caused by the failure of the 
 contractors to pay off their help 
 promptly, and many times there was 
 quite severe fighting before order 
 could be restored, although it is not 
 remembered that any fatalities result- 
 ed therefrom. 
 
 IRA WETHERBEE. 
 An Old Time Gambler, Crook and Al- 
 leged Criminal. 
 
 A correspondent of the Sentinel in 
 a recent issue made reference to a 
 notorious individual who flourished in 
 this community fifty years ago, and 
 whose fame as a gambler and crook 
 finally extended throughout the South 
 and West. The name of this re- 
 nowned person was Ira Wetherbee, 
 and his home was in Chesterfield, 
 where he owned a farm near the cen- 
 tre of the town. He was a lithe, wiry, 
 good-looking young man when I first 
 knew him, and on public occasions 
 like musters and trainings he was 
 generally on hand with his dice-box 
 and playing cards, prepared to enter- 
 tain the boys with any kind of gaming 
 they wished to indulge in and inci- 
 dentally to rake in what spare cash 
 they possessed. 
 
 He sometimes dressed in a fiashy 
 style, a blue or green dress coat orna- 
 mented with brass buttons, white 
 trousers, a red necktie and a black 
 
OF KEENE PEOPLE. 
 
 19 
 
 silk hat with a "weed" being promi- 
 nent features of his costume. It was 
 said that he always carried a brace 
 of pistols, but if so he was not in the 
 habit of displaying them or of threat- 
 ening violence of any kind, although 
 no one doubted his readiness to de- 
 fend himself in case of altercations 
 arising from his dangerous vocation. 
 His movements and general habits 
 were mysterious, one peculiarity be- 
 ing that he would never ride on the 
 middle seat of a stage coach or sit at 
 a hotel table with others unless he 
 could face all in the room. Invariably 
 when visiting a hotel he would keep 
 all strangers in front of him, and if 
 he took a seat it was with his back 
 to the wall, thus giving the impression 
 that he was in constant fear of an at- 
 tack from some one whom he had 
 wronged. 
 
 In the manipulation of cards and 
 dice he was an expert and was be- 
 lieved to be more than a match in this 
 respect for the shrewdest gamblers of 
 the times. During one of his visits to 
 Keene, about 1845, he called at Til- 
 den's bookbindery when the writer 
 was present and asked the foreman 
 of the shop to trim some cards which 
 he said were improperly finished. 
 Producing a number of packs of "star- 
 backs," he directed that they be 
 trimmed by clipping a very small, 
 slightly wedge-shaped strip from one 
 side of the spot cards, leaving the 
 others as they were, thus creating a 
 style of cards which came to be 
 known as "strippers," and with which 
 an expert manipulator could give his 
 opponent high or low cards at will. 
 After the trimming was completed 
 Wetherbee threw out a silver dollar 
 for the foreman, remarking, "Young 
 man, I hope you will never play cards 
 for money." 
 
 Not many years after this, Wether- 
 bee was charged with burning some 
 buildings in Chesterfield, and although 
 he was not arrested an indictment 
 was found against him by the grand 
 jury of the Common Pleas court over 
 which Judge Joel Parker presided. 
 One night during the early part of the 
 term of court the records were stolen 
 from the court room, thus destroying 
 the evidence against Wetherbee and 
 necessitating a postponement of the 
 trial. The Court offered a reward of 
 five hundred dollars for the recovery 
 of the records, but no trace of them 
 could be found during the several 
 days' search by the sheriff and his 
 deputies. One frosty morning in Oc- 
 tober, about two weeks after the 
 records were abstracted, two boys 
 from the Sentinel oflSce were out 
 shooting partridges on Beech Hill, 
 when they stumbled upon a pile of 
 ashes where some one had built a fire, 
 evidently but a short time previous. 
 Curiosity led them to rake over the 
 pile with their guns, when they dis- 
 covered bits of paper with writing 
 upon them which they instantly recog- 
 nized as the chirography of Leonard 
 Bisco, the clerk of the court. At 
 once it dawned upon their minds that 
 they had found the remains of the 
 missing court records, and they at 
 once notified Judge Parker of the dis- 
 covery. He accompanied them to the 
 spot, which was some twenty rods 
 south of the present reservoir, and 
 after inspecting the find pronounced it 
 the remains of the stolen documents, 
 and he did not hesitate to say that 
 in his opinion Ira Wetherbee perpe- 
 trated the burglary in order to de- 
 stroy evidence of a crime more serious 
 in its character. Nothing was said 
 by the officials regarding the reward 
 offered for the recovery of the records. 
 
20 
 
 REMINISCENCES AND SKETCHES 
 
 and perhaps the boys referred to 
 could have had no just claim for their 
 services, but they felt at the time as 
 though they were at least entitled to 
 the thanks of the Court, although no 
 such courtesy was shown them. 
 
 Wetherbee was a frequent visitor 
 in Keene and attended many of the 
 military balls given by the Light In- 
 fantry company at the Emerald House. 
 He was a graceful dancer and his con- 
 duct on such occasions was irreproach- 
 able. At one of the annual trainings 
 of the Light Infantry company he 
 presented himself at the armory and 
 asked to be allowed to join the ranks, 
 which request was granted by the of- 
 ficers, who furnished him with a uni- 
 form and other necessary equipments. 
 Proceeding to the rear room in the 
 armory he divested himself of two 
 complete suits of clothing, both of fine 
 quality but entirely different in color 
 and style, and then donned the uni- 
 form, in which he looked every inch 
 the soldier. The armory was well 
 stocked with liquors of all kinds 
 which were free to all members of the 
 company. After dressing, Wetherbee 
 handed the captain a huge roll of bank 
 bills, requesting him to keep it until 
 the training was over as he had no 
 pocket that would accommodate it. 
 He then proceeded to avail himself of 
 the privileges enjoyed by the mem- 
 bers of the company, and after taking 
 two or three drinks and filling his 
 canteen with choice cherry rum, he 
 took his place in the ranks and the 
 company started for Central Square. 
 Before marching far it was discovered 
 that Wetherbee had a bigger load than 
 he could carry. What to do with him 
 was a momentous question with the 
 oflacers, but they finally placed him 
 in the centre of a section, with a com- 
 rade on each side to keep him from 
 
 falling. The company then marched 
 directly to the Emerald House, where 
 Wetherbee was left to recover from 
 the effects of his intemperate liba- 
 tions. He afterward apologized to the 
 officers, declaring at the same time 
 that it was the first and last time of 
 his being drunk in Keene. His roll 
 of money left with the captain con- 
 tained nearly two thousand dollars, 
 and he was evidently expecting a 
 gambling contest for big stakes. 
 
 Wetherbee was suspected of various 
 crimes, even of highway robbery as 
 well as arson. On one occasion he 
 gave a Keene gentleman, the late Col. 
 Nehemiah Hart, quite a scare. The 
 colonel had just completed a contract 
 for building a road along the shore of 
 Spofford Lake and had been paid the 
 price agreed upon by the selectmen 
 of Chesterfield. As he was about 
 starting for home, late in the day, 
 Wetherbee approached him and in- 
 quired if he had got his pay for the 
 job. Unthinkingly, the colonel replied 
 that he had his pay in his pocket, and 
 soon after he started for Keene. He 
 had not driven many miles before he 
 was overtaken by a man with a horse 
 and gig who rushed by him with great 
 speed and disappeared in the dark- 
 ness. The colonel recognized the 
 man as Ira Wetherbee, although no 
 words were spoken as he passed; and 
 believing that he was in danger of 
 being robbed he turned about and 
 drove to a farm house near by, where 
 he remained all night. After putting 
 up his team the colonel and his host 
 watched the road until they saw 
 Wetherbee slowly returning toward 
 Chesterfield with his horse and gig, 
 doubtless wondering what had be- 
 come of his intended victim. 
 
 Shortly after this, or about the 
 time of the gold discovery in Call- 
 
OF KEENB PEOPLE. 
 
 21 
 
 fornia, Wetherbee disappeared from 
 this section of the country, and it was 
 rumored that he was killed in a gam- 
 blers' fight while crossing the Isthmus 
 on his way to the land of gold. The 
 influence which Wetherbee exercised 
 upon the young men and boys in this 
 community was very demoralizing. 
 His jaunty air, free and easy manners 
 and total disregard of the conse- 
 quences of his reckless course of life 
 made him a hero in the eyes of many 
 young men who imagined that wealth 
 and a life of ease might result from 
 following his pernicious example. 
 
 SPELLING SCHOOLS. 
 
 A Favorite Pastime in Country School 
 
 Districts Fifty Years Ago. 
 
 Mr. Editor: A news item in a re- 
 cent number of the Sentinel relative 
 to a spelling contest in the neighbor- 
 ing village of Brattleboro, Vt., revives 
 memories of similar contests frequent 
 in my boyhood days, a brief descrip- 
 tion of which may serve as a fitting 
 close of the series of reminiscences 
 in which I have indulged of late, per- 
 haps too freely. 
 
 The country boys and girls of fifty 
 years ago had few sources of amuse- 
 ment and recreation compared with 
 those enjoyed at the present day even 
 in the quietest of rural villages. 
 There were no grange organizations 
 with weekly meetings and frequent 
 festivals as is now the case in almost 
 every town, and neighborhood parties, 
 apple parings and spelling schools 
 were the principal amusements dur- 
 ing the long dreary winters. Of these 
 diversions the spelling school was 
 easily the most popular and beneficial 
 as an educator. In those days, all 
 studied the spelling book as long as 
 they attended school. Poor spelling 
 
 was a disgrace. In stormy winter 
 evenings children would hear each 
 other spell until the whole book be- 
 came familiar. In some towns spell- 
 ing schools were held one evening in 
 a week during the winter term. Each 
 district had its own school, but pupils 
 from other districts were invited. All 
 were free to attend, and all were given 
 an equal chance. Children not more 
 than eight or ten years old were wel- 
 comed if they could spell, and it was 
 often the case that these young peo- 
 ple carried off the honors as well as 
 the prizes which were sometimes 
 awarded the most proficient in spell- 
 ing. These schools were announced 
 several days beforehand, so that pu- 
 pils in other districts might know of 
 them, and boys and girls often went 
 two or three miles to take part in the 
 contests, which were as interesting 
 and exciting as the ball and tennis 
 games of the present day, and as pro- 
 fitable, perhaps, both mentally and 
 physically. The school house was the 
 place of meeting, and it was made at- 
 tractive by a rousing blaze in the fire- 
 place and rows of burning candles and 
 whale oil lamps along the desks and 
 upon the teacher's table. 
 
 When the hour for spelling arrived, 
 the master called the school to order 
 by rapping upon his desk. Often- 
 times there were as many spectators 
 as spellers, but they were still and 
 orderly, so interested were they in 
 the contest. Two of the older pupils 
 were generally selected to choose 
 sides, and these drew lots for first 
 choice. Of course the best spellers 
 were chosen first. Neither beauty nor 
 favoritism had any influence in the 
 choice. The freckled faces and the 
 turned-up noses were as sure to be 
 chosen first as the fairer ones, if they 
 could spell. The one that chose first 
 
22 
 
 REMINISCENCES AND SKETCHES 
 
 spelled first; then the one opposite, 
 and in this way they continued to 
 spell back and forth. If a word was 
 misspelled on one side and rightly 
 spelled on the other, the latter had a 
 right to draw to its ranks any one 
 from the other side except the 
 chooser. Sometimes one would win 
 all from the other side, and when 
 neither could conquer in this way the 
 contest was decided in favor of the 
 side having the fullest ranks at the 
 hour agreed upon for closing. At 
 other times every one who misspelled 
 a word sat down and took no further 
 part in the exercises. The rules were 
 strict. No whispering was allowed, 
 and if a pupil was detected in prompt- 
 ing a member of the class, the other 
 side had the right to draw one from 
 that side or to require the culprit to 
 sit down. The teacher was obliged to 
 be constantly on the watch. He was 
 judge and jury and decided all dis- 
 puted questions. In fact, a successful 
 and profitable spelling school de- 
 pended as much on the teacher as on 
 the pupils. Good spellers, like good 
 singers, were known for a long dis- 
 tance and they were in great demand 
 at the spelling matches, not only in 
 their own district and town, but in 
 neighboring towns. 
 
 The social part of the spelling 
 school was no less interesting than 
 the intellectual. There were always 
 more boys than girls, and when they 
 were ready to go home the scramble 
 for partners was great fun for those 
 who had just reached the age for mis- 
 chief and pranks. It was not the 
 plain-faced girl who had done the 
 spelling, the one that had given Har- 
 ry's side the victory, that he remem- 
 bered in the home-going. It was the 
 girl with the smiles and dimples, the 
 one on the other side who had mis- 
 
 spelled almost every word. Harry 
 was a philosopher, and he believed 
 the blessings should be equally di- 
 vided. 
 
 How clearly those old-time winter 
 scenes come back to me as I write! 
 It seems but yesterday that I left 
 them. I see the school, the master 
 and the spellers. I see the lights go 
 out and hear the clang of the heavy 
 door; I feel the warm hand-clasps and 
 hear the tender good-byes, and I hear 
 footsteps crunching the icy snow and 
 the sound of merry voices growing 
 fainter and fainter in the distance 
 and darkness until all is silent. Orion 
 and the Pleiades still shine over those 
 places, but the old school house with 
 its slanting aisles has succumbed to 
 the march of progress and the school- 
 master has gone with it. The boys 
 and girls who helped to make life so 
 bright and joyous to me are all scat- 
 tered. Some are yet busy with the 
 world's work, but the most of them 
 are "over the river." 
 
 A BOYHOOD INCIDENT. 
 Mr. George A. Wheelock Mistakes a 
 Cat for a Rabbit. 
 The reference to Mr. Wheelock 
 made by the writer of the article en- 
 titled " An Old Keene Muster," pub- 
 lished in Saturday's Evening Sentinel, 
 reminds me of an incident of my early 
 days, when Mr. W. was a young man 
 and famous throughout the neighbor- 
 hood of Keene as a " dead shot " with 
 a rifle. It was his habit to stroll along 
 the highway skirting the meadows, 
 near which I then lived, in the West 
 part of the town, armed with his 
 trusty weapon, and pick off blackbirds, 
 hawks or rabbits at a distance which 
 made the accomplishment of such 
 feats seem marvelous in my youthful 
 eyes. 
 
OF KEENE PEOPLE. 
 
 23 
 
 One morning, as I was watching my 
 favorite white cat in her search for 
 meadow moles, a hundred yards at 
 least from the road, I was startled by 
 the sharp crack of a rifle and a gym- 
 nastic performance on the part of 
 pussy, who jumped three or four feet 
 into the air and then bounded away 
 for the house. Looking around, I saw 
 Mr. Wheelock, whom I well knew, 
 standing in the road with his smoking 
 rifle in his hands, and near him was 
 another young man (presumably Mr. 
 Perry) who was armed likewise. The 
 cause of pussy's sudden flight became 
 at once apparent. I shouted at the 
 top of my voice, " Don't shoot my cat, 
 Mr. Wheelock," and the reply came 
 back, " Oh was that a cat? "We 
 thought it was a rabbit. I am sorry 
 I frightened her so, and hope I didn't 
 hit her." 
 
 On returning home I found pussy 
 had lost about half an inch of one of 
 her ears, but was otherwise uninjured. 
 At the time I doubted Mr. W.'s asser- 
 tion that he mistook the cat for a 
 rabbit, but in after years, when I came 
 to know him better, I became con- 
 vinced that he was not a man who 
 would wantonly injure a domestic 
 animal or outrage the feelings of a 
 poor boy by knowingly shooting at 
 his favorite pussy. 
 
 OLD CUSTOMS. 
 
 The Writer Recalls Practices of Fifty 
 
 Years Ago. 
 
 Elderly people are apt to delight in 
 contemplating the events and customs 
 of their early days, especially the cus- 
 toms which have become obsolete or 
 relegated to " innocuous desuetude." 
 
 One of the old-time practices in al- 
 most every New England village was 
 the ringing of the church bell at noon 
 and 9 o'clock p. m. every day, and 
 
 even in bustling little Keene this 
 custom prevailed within the memory 
 of those whose age does not exceed 
 fifty years. There were then no 
 steam whistles or railway trains to 
 denote a particular hour, and the noon 
 bell was almost a necessity — certainly 
 a great convenience — and people de- 
 pended upon it for the correct time. 
 The bell in the old First church tower 
 was the one used for this purpose up 
 to about the time the Cheshire rail- 
 road was opened, there being but one 
 other church bell in the centre of the 
 town at that time. 
 
 The bell now in the tower of the 
 Baptist church edifice was then locat- 
 ed in the steeple of the old meeting 
 house in Ash Swamp, and was known 
 as the " Ash Swamp bell." This bell 
 was also rung at noon and night for 
 the benefit of the people living in that 
 part of the town. Occasionally the 
 bell ringing at " The Swamp " was in 
 charge of the boys, who sometimes 
 prolonged the ceremony to the ex- 
 tent of creating an alarm of fire at 
 the centre, and more than once the 
 writer has seen the entire fire depart- 
 ment of the town rushing through 
 West street and along the Westmore- 
 land road on its way to a supposed 
 conflagration in the vicinity of the 
 swamp meeting house. To prevent 
 mistakes of this kind it was finally 
 agreed that the firemen should pay 
 no attention to this bell unless its 
 ringing was continued more than five 
 minutes! 
 
 Another odd custom was the tolling 
 of the church bell to announce the 
 death of a person. The sex of the de- 
 ceased was indicated by a few strokes 
 in quick succession — three for a male 
 and four for a female — followed after 
 a brief interval by the number of 
 strokes corresponding with the age in 
 years; so that, in almost every in- 
 
24 
 
 REMINISCENCES AND SKETCHES 
 
 stance, the name of the dead person 
 was made known through this medi- 
 um, as everybody in those days was 
 acquainted with all the people of their 
 town and knew of all serious cases 
 of illness in the community. These 
 solemn announcements were heard in 
 all parts of the town and listened to 
 with great interest. 
 
 These old customs, once so general, 
 have now almost entirely disappeared. 
 There may be here and there a coun- 
 try town where one or more of them 
 are still observed, but it is probable 
 that no town in Cheshire county con- 
 tinues them to this day. 
 
 THE TIPPECANOE CAMPAIGN. 
 
 Daniel Webster's Speech at a Whig 
 
 Mass Meeting in Keene. 
 
 Every citizen of Keene who remem- 
 bers the exciting local events attend- 
 ing the presidential campaign of 1840 
 can with pleasure recall the visit of 
 Daniel Webster in September of that 
 year and his speech before a Whig 
 mass meeting held on the academy 
 grounds on Winter street. It was an 
 occasion such as Keene had never be- 
 fore enjoyed and interest in it was 
 universal throughout Cheshire county. 
 It was probably the largest mass 
 meeting ever held here prior to that 
 time. Democrats as well as Whigs 
 flocking in great numbers to see and 
 hear the wonderful orator whose 
 fame, even at that time, was world- 
 wide. The words and sentiments ut- 
 tered by Mr. Webster on the occasion 
 referred to cannot now be recalled 
 by one who was then but ten years of 
 age, but his dignified manner and im- 
 posing figure will be remembered, by 
 all who saw him, as long as memory 
 lasts. From the opening to the close 
 of Mr. Webster's remarks the audi- 
 ence was as quiet and orderly as if 
 
 listening to a sermon in church, the 
 universal desire being to catch every 
 word that fell from the speaker's lips. 
 To the younger portion of the audi- 
 ence the occasion appeared to be one 
 of great solemnity, and when at the 
 close of the address a glee club struck 
 up a rollicking Tippecanoe song they 
 could not repress the feeling that it 
 was almost a sacrilegious act and en- 
 tirely inappropriate to the occasion. 
 
 The statue of Mr. Webster in the 
 state house yard at Concord repre- 
 sents him as he appeared at the time 
 of his visit to Keene and is astonish- 
 ingly correct. There is something 
 awe-inspiring in the bronze figure 
 there displayed, but to have seen the 
 original and listened to his matchless 
 eloquence was to compel reverence 
 and impress one with the feeling that 
 Daniel Webster was something more 
 than human. No wonder that the 
 people almost worshipped this won- 
 derful man and referred to him as 
 " the God-like Daniel." 
 
 After Mr. Webster's visit the cam- 
 paign grew exciting and absorbed the 
 attention of almost every citizen up 
 to the day of election. Party spirit 
 ran high, many personal encounters 
 resulting therefrom. There were no 
 campaign flags displayed, no parades, 
 no torchlight processions, but until a 
 late hour almost every night the 
 streets swarmed with men and boys 
 of both parties who sang campaign 
 songs and lustily cheered for their re- 
 spective candidates for the presi- 
 dency and uttered sepulchral groans 
 for their opponents. These wild or- 
 gies were kept up until the day of 
 election, when for two or three days 
 comparative quiet reigned, both par- 
 ties breathlessly awaiting the na- 
 tion's verdict. When this was finally 
 announced the excitement became in- 
 tense and the victorious Whigs in- 
 
OF KEENE PEOPLE. 
 
 25 
 
 dulged for an entire day in the most 
 extravagant demonstrations of joy. 
 Three field pieces were procured and 
 properly manned, and with these were 
 kept up an almost incessant cannon- 
 ading in and around Central Square 
 for more than six hours. 
 
 Other Campaigns. 
 Compared with the political cam- 
 paign of 1840 those of '44 and '48 were 
 tame affairs, but the one preceding 
 the election of Franklin Pierce to the 
 presidency in 1852 was very exciting 
 throughout the state, partly owing to 
 the fact that Mr. Pierce was a citizen 
 of New Hampshire. Keene people 
 took a deep interest in the contest, 
 and it was during this campaign that 
 flags bearing the names of political 
 candidates were first " flung to the 
 breeze." These were not swung 
 across the street by a rope or wire as 
 is now the practice, but were dis- 
 played in the only way in which the 
 United States flag should be floated — 
 from a mast or liberty-pole. The first 
 campaign flag raised in Keene bore 
 the names of Scott and Graham, the 
 last candidates ever nominated by the 
 Whig party for the ofiices of president 
 and vice president. The flagstaff was 
 erected over the Sentinel oflBce, then 
 located in what is now Whitcomb's 
 block. It towered some thirty feet 
 above the ridgepole, and from it de- 
 pended a modest little flag inscribed 
 as above stated. This movement on 
 the part of the Whigs aroused the 
 Democrats, who at once erected a 
 taller pole over the Cheshire Repub- 
 lican oflace from which they displayed 
 a larger flag bearing the names of 
 their candidates, Pierce and King. 
 The Whigs then spliced their pole, 
 making it several feet taller than the 
 one over the Republican office, and 
 procured a new and larger flag. This 
 
 was followed on the part of their op- 
 ponents by the erection of a new and 
 very handsome pole cut from a spruce 
 tree which measured nearly eighty 
 feet in height, and from this was 
 floated the largest flag ever seen here 
 up to that time. 
 
 The young and active Whigs de- 
 termined to beat their opponents in 
 the matter of poles and flags if noth- 
 ing else, and they began scouring the 
 woodlands in search of a still taller 
 tree. At last one was found in the 
 town of Sullivan which experienced 
 mill men said was over one hundred 
 feet in height. It was immediately 
 felled, hewn down to the right pro- 
 portions and decorate;d with several 
 coats of white paint before it was 
 drawn out of the woods. A large 
 gilded figure of an eagle was fastened 
 to the top, pulleys were inserted just 
 below it, and the pole was ready for 
 use. It was drawn down to the 
 Square and by cutting a hole through 
 the roof of the Sentinel building on the 
 east side the boys were enabled to 
 raise it to a perpendicular with the 
 big end resting on the attic floor where 
 it was securely fastened. The height 
 of this staff above the ridgepole was 
 ninety-one feet and the flag which had 
 been made especially for it was fifty 
 feet in length by thirty in width — the 
 largest flag, the manufacturer said, 
 that was ever made to float from a 
 flagstaff. It was a handsome sight to 
 see this flag, surmounted by a stream- 
 er one hundred feet long, flying in a 
 stiff breeze, as all the proportions of 
 the outfit were symmetrical and the 
 flag itself was held close to the staff 
 by hoops fastened to the edge at inter- 
 vals of two or three feet. In rainy or 
 damp weather, accompanied by a good 
 breeze, the flag would crack like a 
 rifle shot and could be heard at a long 
 distance. 
 
26 
 
 REMINISCENCES AND SKETCHES 
 
 No further attempt was made by 
 the opposing party to excel the efforts 
 of the Whigs in the matter of flags 
 and flagstaffs, and thus ended a rival- 
 ry which engrossed the attention of 
 the town for many weeks. 
 
 The Campaign of 1856. 
 
 The demise of the old Whig organi- 
 zation was followed by the birth of 
 the Republican party which came into 
 national existence early in 1856, or 
 immediately upon the close of the 
 brief but brilliant career of the Know 
 Nothings. In that year the Democrats 
 of New Hampshire were beaten in the 
 presidential contest for the first time 
 since the early days of the republic. 
 The new party and its principles be- 
 came very popular as the presidential 
 campaign advanced and when the 
 election returns came in it was found 
 that the Fremont and Dayton candi- 
 dates for electors had majorities of 
 five thousand or more over the Bu- 
 chanan and Breckenridge ticket In 
 the campaign of that year street pa- 
 rades and torchlight processions were 
 first introduced here, and they have 
 been the conspicuous features of every 
 campaign since that time. 
 
 The local events attending the Lin- 
 coln campaign of 1860 and those 
 which have followed are of such re- 
 cent date that it is hardly necessary 
 to call attention to them now. A gen- 
 eration hence some reminiscent citi- 
 zen may be able to write an interest- 
 ing chapter regarding them for the 
 benefit of his youthful friends. 
 
 AN OLD-TIME DEBATING CLUB. 
 
 "The Keene Forensic Society and 
 
 Lyceum." 
 
 While examining a collection of old 
 documents and papers, recently, the 
 writer discovered the records of a de- 
 
 bating society formed in Keene in 
 1829. The organization took the title 
 above quoted and was comprised of 
 the leading men of the town, eighty- 
 one of whom appear to have signed 
 the constitution of the society at its 
 first meeting on the 3d of July in the 
 year above named. These eighty-one 
 names are still familiar in this com- 
 munity, nearly all of them being as- 
 sociated with the religious, education- 
 al and business interests of the town 
 for many years subsequent to the for- 
 mation of this society. The names as 
 they stand upon the records are as 
 follows : 
 
 Gustavus A. Wright. 
 Phiiiehas Fiske. 
 Nathaniel Dana. 
 William Jennings. 
 Abiiah W. Kingsbury. 
 D. Bradford. 
 William Dinsmoor. 
 Joseph Marsh. 
 B. F. Adams. 
 J. Dorr. 
 S. Prentiss Cobb. 
 
 F. Faulkner. 
 Jesse Corbett. 
 Josiah W. Horr. 
 Azel Wilder. 
 
 V. Carter. 
 R. Montague. 
 Oliver Holman. 
 William King. 
 
 G. C. Dean. 
 John G. Thatcher. 
 Albert Godfrey. 
 F. C. Watkins. 
 Henry Willard. 
 Everett Newcomb. 
 P. Ilanderson. 
 John H. Fuller. 
 Nathaniel Evans. 
 Barton Skinner. 
 
 A. G. Skinner. 
 Isaac Sturtevant. 
 
 B. F. Tilden. 
 John C. Mason. 
 John Orcutt. 
 Milton Kimball. 
 David Dutton. 
 L. H. Briggs. 
 O. R. Stevens. 
 N. Bishop. 
 
 W. P. Wheeler. 
 
 Salma Hale. 
 Z. S. Barstow. 
 T. K. Sullivan. 
 Joel Parker. 
 John Elliot. 
 Thos. M. Edwards. 
 Aaron Hall. 
 Elijah Parker. 
 John Prentiss. 
 Jolin W. Prentiss. 
 Justus Perry. 
 Samuel A. Gerould. 
 Horatio Prentiss. 
 Nahum Stone. 
 James Wilson, Jr. 
 A. H. Bennett. 
 George Tilden. 
 Timothy Hall. 
 Charles Lamson. 
 John F. Hale. 
 Jona. F. Locke. 
 John Hatch. 
 J. B. Dousman. 
 George Blaisdell. 
 Isaac Rand. 
 S. Dinsmoor, Jr. 
 Sumner Wheeler. 
 Daniel Watson, Jr. 
 William Lamsou. 
 W. E. Dunbar. 
 John C. Hatch. 
 A. Harrington. 
 J. Henry Elliot. 
 J. M. Blake. 
 Chas. P. Perkins. 
 Quincy Wheeler. 
 Eliphalet Briggs. 
 John W. Briggs. 
 Charles Kingsbury. 
 A. Holman. 
 Luiner Nurse. 
 
 Of all these prominent and influen- 
 tial men only one, it is believed, is 
 alive today — Hon. J. H. Elliot, who is 
 still a resident of Keene. Doubtless 
 many others became members of the 
 
OF KEENE PEOPLE. 
 
 2? 
 
 society during the thirteen years of 
 its existence, but their names do not 
 appear as signers of the constitution. 
 
 The first meeting of ttie society was 
 called to order by Hon. John Prentiss, 
 and the following named gentlemen 
 were elected as its officers: Hon. 
 Salma Hale, president; Gen. Justus 
 Perry and Capt. Aaron Hall, vice 
 presidents; Col. James Wilson, Jr., 
 secretary; Timothy Hall, treasurer; 
 Rev. Z. S. Barstow, Rev. T. R. Sulli- 
 van, Col. James Wilson, Jr., and T. M. 
 Edwards, Esq., directors. 
 
 The exercises of the association, as 
 declared in its constitution, consisted 
 of " forensic disputations " upon such 
 subjects as were deemed expedient by 
 the directors, " excepting always that 
 no question of controversial theology 
 be admitted." The discussions em- 
 braced a wide range of subjects, as 
 may be inferred from a partial list 
 submitted by the directors at one of 
 the meetings and which included the 
 following: 
 
 Has Congress the right to abolish 
 slavery in the District of Columbia? 
 
 Ought there to be test acts to ex- 
 clude infidels from public office? 
 
 Ought the duties imposed by the 
 tariff laws to be diminished? 
 
 Can the immortality of the soul be 
 proved from the light of nature? 
 
 Do the interests of religion require 
 a new translation of the Bible? 
 
 Ought all religions to be tolerated? 
 
 Ought property to be a qualification 
 for exercising the right of suffrage in 
 a republic? 
 
 Would a national bank be beneficial 
 to the country? 
 
 Do spectres ever appear? 
 
 Ought the immigration of foreigners 
 to be restrained by law? 
 
 Is it good policy in our government 
 to encourage manufactures? 
 
 Would it be advantageous to the 
 public and to Keene to construct a 
 railway from Boston through Keene 
 to the Connecticut river? 
 
 These and many other subjects 
 were carefully considered at the vari- 
 ous meetings, and, judging from the 
 meagre records of the debates, were 
 made highly interesting by the talent- 
 ed speakers who took part in the dis- 
 cussions. Some of the sentiments ut- 
 tered upon these questions present a 
 strong contrast to those expressed by 
 the same gentlemen in after years. 
 Thus, when the subject of slavery was 
 before the lyceum, Mr. Barstow is re- 
 ported as saying that " the people of 
 New England have no right to meddle 
 with the subject at all. Interference 
 with it is only ' casting fire-brands, 
 arrows and death ' to the South." He 
 believed, however, that slavery should 
 be abolished in the District of Colum- 
 bia and that it was " justifiable in us 
 to work for that end." In after years 
 Mr. Barstow became quite a strong ad- 
 vocate of emancipation and preached 
 some excellent abolition sermons in 
 which he strongly denounced slavery 
 as a national curse and a sin against 
 God. 
 
 The elder Mr. Prentiss, also, took 
 about the same view of this question 
 as did Mr. Barstow. He is recorded 
 as saying that " to try to require the 
 South to give .up from five to seven 
 millions of property would only create 
 anarchy, confusion and a dissolution 
 of the Union." He conceded the right 
 of the people to meet together and 
 discuss the subject, but denied that 
 they were privileged to publish inflam- 
 matory articles that would excite the 
 slaveholders. And yet, from the time 
 when " Uncle Tom's Cabin " was first 
 issued until emancipation was con- 
 summated Mr. Prentiss was in full 
 
28 
 
 REMINISCENCES AND SKETCHES 
 
 sympathy with the abolition move- 
 ment. He was the first person in 
 Keene to read Mrs. Stowe's wonderful 
 story of " Uncle Tom," which he or- 
 dered from Boston. The morning af- 
 ter he came in possession of it he 
 called at the " Keene Bookstore " with 
 the two paper-covered volumes under 
 his arm and informed his friends 
 there that he had been converted to 
 abolitionism by reading this story and 
 that he had spent the previous day 
 and half the night in a perusal of it. 
 He also declared that Mrs. Stowe had 
 dealt the slaveholders the hardest 
 blow ever sustained by the advocates 
 of the " peculiar institution," and pre- 
 dicted that he should live to see the 
 day when slavery would be abolished 
 in America — a prediction which was 
 happily fulfilled. 
 
 One of the last discussions held by 
 the society was upon the subject of 
 the proposed building of a railroad 
 from Fitchburg to Keene. Hon. Sal- 
 ma Hale and Hon. John Prentiss sup- 
 ported the project, while J. H. Elliot 
 and others opposed it. The decision 
 of the meeting, according to the rec- 
 ords, was in favor of carrying out the 
 projected enterprise, and no doubt 
 local interest in the question was first 
 awakened through the action of this 
 society. 
 
 Other enterprises and reforms were 
 originated and given iqipetus through 
 the discussions and lectures at the 
 meetings of this society, and many 
 young men became accustomed to 
 speaking in public by participating in 
 its proceedings. Such an institution 
 if in existence here today would prove 
 of incalculable advantage to our 
 young men, and the entire community 
 would be benefited thereby. Who will 
 move to revive " The Keene Forensic 
 Society and Lyceum?" 
 
 STAGING AND TEAMING 
 
 In the Days Prior to the Building of 
 
 Railroads. 
 
 Many residents of Keene are able 
 to recall the lively scenes on our 
 streets in the days when staging and 
 teaming were profitable enterprises 
 and engaged the attention of a large 
 number of people along the principal 
 avenues of travel between Boston and 
 Northern New England. Previous to 
 the opening of the Cheshire railroad 
 it was by no means unusual to see 
 five or six large stage coaches stand- 
 ing in front of the Cheshire House at 
 about seven o'clock in the morning, 
 to each of which was attached a 
 team of four or six horses, awaiting 
 the moment of departure for their 
 respective destinations. The prepara- 
 tions for starting, together with a 
 curiosity to see the strangers who were 
 travelling by these public convey- 
 ances, always drew a crowd of idle 
 men and boys about the hotel and at- 
 tracted more or less the attention of 
 all located in the vicinity. The ar- 
 rivals and departures of railroad pas- 
 senger trains at the present day at- 
 tract many people to the station who 
 have no other object in view than to 
 gaze upon strange faces and observe 
 what others are doing, and the same 
 kind of curiosity was manifested in 
 old stage coach times. The Cheshire 
 House porch, then extending com- 
 pletely across the front of the build- 
 ing, was usually filled with spectators 
 whenever a stage left or arrived at 
 the hotel, giving that section of the 
 village a lively appearance. 
 
 The drivers of the coaches were a 
 very popular class of people and re- 
 ceived many favors at the hands of 
 travellers and citizens. They were 
 honest, faithful men and were often 
 entrusted with large sums of money 
 by merchants who had dealings with 
 
OF KEENB PEOPLE. 
 
 29 
 
 Boston parties and others along the 
 lines followed by the stages. Among 
 these knights of the whip were some 
 of the men who subsequently became 
 railroad conductors or expressmen, al- 
 though most of them disappeared from 
 this community soon after the cars 
 supplanted the coaches. The drivers 
 best known to the writer were resi- 
 dents of Keene or vicinity and a list 
 of them embraces such familiar names 
 as Capt. William Marsh (afterward 
 the stage company's agent here), 
 Amos Nicholas, Edward Pennock, Ira 
 and Hiram Hodgkins, Peletiah Arm- 
 strong, Morris Miller, Josiah and Ed- 
 ward Boutell, William Huntington, 
 Gardner Hall, Josiah Whitcomb, Har- 
 rison Clark, John Brown, and a few 
 others of less note, all of whom were 
 of a jovial, kind-hearted disposition 
 and immensely popular with the boys 
 as well as with older people. 
 
 Another noted driver, who after- 
 ward became a millionaire, was Na- 
 thaniel White, who for a short time 
 drove the Keene and Concord stage. 
 He died in Concord only a few years 
 ago, the richest man in the state and 
 universally loved and respected. Mr. 
 White was a great admirer of horses 
 and never lost interest in the occupa- 
 tion in which his early life was spent. 
 It was the writer's good fortune to 
 accompany him to the Philadelphia 
 Exposition in 1876, arriving there one 
 Saturday night after a week of hard 
 work and excitement at the Republi- 
 can National convention at Cincinnati. 
 At daylight the next morning Mr. 
 White arose and proceeded to a livery 
 stable where he ordered a team of 
 four horses attached to an old-fash- 
 ioned stage coach for a drive around 
 Fairmount park. Taking his friends 
 aboard at their hotel, he mounted the 
 box, took the reins from the hands of 
 the coachman and dashed away in fine 
 
 style. For an hour Mr. White kept 
 the team going at a lively pace, and 
 on returning to the hotel for break- 
 fast he remarked that he had not ex- 
 perienced such a pleasant drive for 
 years. 
 
 In fair weather during the summer 
 and autumn seasons travelling by 
 stage through this section of the 
 country was truly delightful. The 
 grand scenery along the route of the 
 stages won the admiration of all 
 strangers. It is related of Daniel 
 Webster that when visiting Keene in 
 1840 he extended his journey to Ver- 
 mont, going by stage through WaJ- 
 pole. On reaching the height of land, 
 where a magnificent view of the 
 Green Mountains and the Connecticut 
 river and valley is obtained, Mr. Web- 
 ster requested the driver to stop his 
 team for a few minutes that he might 
 step out of the coach for a better sur- 
 vey of the landscape. The driver re- 
 plied that he had the United States 
 mail on board and could not detain it 
 unnecessarily, at the same time sug- 
 gesting that if Mr. Webster would 
 take a seat on the box beside him he 
 would have a better view of the scen- 
 ery. The sugestion was acted upon 
 with alacrity and the great statesman 
 and the proud stage-driver rode side 
 by side during the remainder of the 
 trip. 
 
 Teaming with Horses. 
 
 Another of the interesting sights 
 on our streets and along the stage 
 routes was the periodical departure 
 and return of numerous teams for the 
 transportation of goods and merchan- 
 dise between Boston and points as 
 far north as Canada line. These usu- 
 ally consisted of huge baggage wagons 
 to which were attached four, six or 
 eight horses, according to the weight 
 of the load. Several of these teams 
 were owned in Keene, three by Laton 
 
30 
 
 REMINISCENCES AND SKETCHES 
 
 Martin, and others by Charles Dwin- 
 nel, Isaiah Robbins, Charles Towne, 
 Calvin Benton, and a Mr. Hazelton. 
 Mr. Martin had the reputation of be- 
 ing the best teamster on the road, 
 and in this business he laid the foun- 
 dation of an ample competency. His 
 horses, large, powerful animals, al- 
 ways looked sleek and were capable 
 of hauling immense loads over the 
 roads between Keene and Boston. 
 Mr. Martin is still a resident of Keene, 
 hale and hearty in his advanced age, 
 and enjoying the fruits of a long and 
 honorable business career. Like Mr. 
 White, above referred to, he is a 
 great admirer of good horses, and in 
 pleasant weather is often seen driv- 
 ing about town behind a spirited pair. 
 Teams that went further north were 
 seen on the road every day of the 
 week, Sundays not excepted. The 
 old Sun Tavern on Court street was 
 a favorite stopping place for these 
 teamsters, and frequently several of 
 them would be quartered there for 
 the night at the same time, making 
 lively work for the kitchen girls as 
 well as the stable boys. The opening 
 of the railroad of course ended the 
 heavy teaming with horses, and at 
 this day an eight-horse team of any 
 kind is rarely seen. 
 
 The First Express. 
 
 The first Keene man to engage in 
 the express business was Francis Da- 
 vis, who is still a resident of this city. 
 In his young days Mr. Davis spent 
 two or three years in the West Indies 
 and South America, returning home 
 early in 1845 somewhat broken in 
 health through an attack of yellow 
 fever. His physician advised him to 
 engage in some employment requir- 
 ing exercise in the open air as a 
 means of restoring his health. Con- 
 sequently Mr. Davis conceived the 
 
 idea of establishing an express be- 
 tween Keene and Boston, and in the 
 month of the following May he made 
 his first trip over the stage route via 
 Fitchburg with a two-horse team car- 
 rying small parcels and light articles 
 that could be more rapidly transport- 
 ed in a team of that kind than by 
 heavy teams and stages. The enter- 
 prise was successful from the start, 
 and in a short time it became neces- 
 sary to increase the number of his 
 weekly trips and to add another pair 
 of horses to his team. Naturally 
 there was some competition between 
 the stage and express companies, as 
 is shown by the following incident re- 
 lated by Mr. Davis: Just previous to 
 the meeting of congress in 1845 there 
 was much interest manifested in the 
 forthcoming first message of President 
 Polk. Father Prentiss, then editor of 
 the Sentinel, asked Mr. Davis to pro- 
 cure for him a copy of the message in 
 Boston, promising a reward of five 
 dollars if he would get it here in ad- 
 vance of the mail, which came by 
 stage. " Card." Hall, one of the stage 
 drivers, heard of the matter and re- 
 marked that he would " make Davis 
 earn that five dollars " — a remark 
 equivalent to a challenge for a race 
 between the stage and express teams. 
 On the day the message was procur- 
 able in Boston Davis and Hall left 
 that city at about the same hour, 
 each determined to reach Keene ahead 
 of the other. The express got the lead 
 and kept it the entire distance, arriv- 
 ing here nearly an hour ahead of the 
 schedule time. Mr. Prentiss stood 
 on the Cheshire House steps awaiting 
 Mr. Davis's arrival, and after hand- 
 ing over the reward he hastened to 
 return to his ofiice with the message 
 in his possession. Hardly had he 
 turned about, however, before he 
 saw the stage coming up Main street. 
 
A SKETCH OF KEENE. 
 
 31 
 
 the horses on the run and covered 
 with foam. Waving the paper over 
 his head Mr. Prentiss shouted, " You 
 won it fairly, Mr. Davis, but it was a 
 close shave." 
 
 When the Fitchburg railroad was 
 completed, Mr. Davis sold his business 
 to Mr. Bigelow of Boston, who was 
 then running an express over that 
 line. On the completion of the Chesh- 
 ire road, Mr. Bigelow sold out to 
 Fisk & Rice, Mr. Fisk, being a resident 
 of Keene, having secured the privi- 
 lege of doing the railroad express bus- 
 iness between Fitchburg and Bellows 
 Falls through the friendly aid of Hon. 
 T. M. Edwards, then president of the 
 Cheshire road. Subsequently, the 
 business went into the hands of the 
 American Express company, which is 
 today the largest and wealthiest cor- 
 poration of the kind in the world. 
 
 GLASS FACTORIES. 
 
 Business Enterprises that Once Inter- 
 ested Many Keene People. 
 The manufacture of glass is one of 
 the most interesting industries ever 
 pursued by the people of this country, 
 and, under certain conditions of tariff 
 protection, one of the most profitable 
 because of the constantly widening 
 market for the products of the glass 
 manufactories. Few people in New 
 England, unless they have travelled 
 considerably, have ever witnessed the 
 operations of a gang of workmen in 
 a glass factory, and at the present 
 day this statement will apply to the 
 people of almost every State in the 
 Union. " No material invented by 
 man is to be compared with glass in 
 the service it has rendered," says a 
 writer upon the subject of glass-mak- 
 ing, and surely there can be no limit 
 to the demands for an article which 
 is susceptible of being put to such a 
 
 variety of uses. The first glass fac- 
 tory in the United States of which we 
 have a precise account was estab- 
 lished in the town of Temple, N. H., 
 in 1780, but it was in operation only 
 a few months, being destroyed by fire 
 the following winter. In this factory 
 only bottles and ordinary ware were 
 made. The first window glass manu- 
 factured in this country was made in 
 Boston in 1793. It was of excellent 
 quality and became quite celebrated, 
 but the enterprise finally failed 
 through mismanagement. 
 
 But it is not my purpose to give a 
 history of glass making, nor will I at- 
 tempt a description of the process 
 pursued in the factories which turn 
 out this valuable and essential prod- 
 uct. A brief mention, however, of the 
 glass manufacturing enterprises that 
 once existed in Keene may be of in- 
 terest to some readers of the Sentinel, 
 especially those who remember the 
 days when works of this kind were in 
 operation here. 
 
 In 1840, and probably for twenty 
 years prior and subsequent to that 
 date, a huge wooden building stood on 
 a piece of ground a few rods west of 
 the present county jail on Washington 
 street. It was surrounded by smaller 
 buildings, sheds, stables and immense 
 piles of hemlock wood disposed in 
 such a way as to form avenues 
 through the grounds, giving the lo- 
 cality the appearance of a miniature 
 village. The buildings were black- 
 ened by the clouds of smoke which is- 
 sued from a wide opening in the roof 
 of the main building, day and night, 
 for about five days of each week dur- 
 ing the winter season, reminding one 
 of the eruptions of Vesuvius and re- 
 quiring little stretch of the imagina- 
 tion to make the huge structure seem 
 like a real volcano. The interior pre- 
 sented a still more weird spectacle, 
 
32 
 
 REMINISCENCES AND SKETCHES 
 
 for here the mysterious process of 
 glass making was in constant opera- 
 tion in its various stages, outside in- 
 terest in which centered upon that 
 portion of the work performed by the 
 " blowers," a class of workmen expert 
 in manipulating the molten, lava-like 
 mixture contained in the big caul- 
 drons and by means of the blow-pipe 
 forming it into hollov/ cylinders for 
 other workmen to finally convert into 
 merchantable window glass. A mate- 
 rial diminution of the volume of 
 smoke issuing from the building's 
 " crater " was always a signal to the 
 young people that the melting process 
 was completed and that " blowing " 
 was about to begin. At such times 
 the factory would be crowded, far into 
 the night, with spectators who never 
 tired of watching the workmen who 
 m^anipulated the blow-pipes. Trou- 
 sers, slippers and a tight-fitting wool- 
 en shirt, comprised a glass-blower's 
 dress when at work, the tremendous 
 heat from the glowing melting-pots 
 being almost unbearable. Ten or 
 twelve of these workmen stationed 
 along either side of the big furnace 
 made a picturesque scene as they al- 
 ternately dipped their blow-pipes into 
 the liquid fire and swung the glowing 
 mass that adhered around and above 
 their heads, while boys with water 
 pails and dippers continually passed 
 to and fro to relieve the burning thirst 
 vvhich the heat engendered among 
 those so directly exposed to it. With 
 the mouths of the melting-pots open, 
 the whole interior of the building was 
 lighted up with a glov;- that gave the 
 appearance of a conflagration, making 
 a startling impression on one not ac- 
 customed to the scene. 
 
 The blowers were, generally, for- 
 eigners who learned the art of glass- 
 making in the old country. They com- 
 manded large wages for those times 
 
 and it was said of them that they made 
 more money than the proprietors of 
 the works realized from their invest- 
 ments. Among the first-class work- 
 men in this establishment were some 
 who made Keene their permanent 
 home. John Clinesmith, Charles 
 Hirsch, Nicholas Hilt, Henry Lange, 
 Augustus Smith, and a few others 
 whose names are not now recalled, 
 were of this number, but no one of 
 those named is now living. Of the 
 others employed about the establish- 
 ment we remember John A. Drummer 
 and Charles Lovejoy, who acted as 
 firemen, or " stokers " as they were 
 called; Henry Gregory and his two 
 sons, William and Frank, who worked 
 in the cutting department; also Ed- 
 ward Holman, William Howard and 
 Stephen Sibley, all of whom seemed 
 to be permanent fixtures of the estab- 
 lishment, serving in some capacity or 
 other up to the time the works were 
 closed. 
 
 The business gave employment to a 
 large number of people besides those 
 directly engaged in the various de- 
 partments of the manufactory. 
 Teamsters and wood-choppers were 
 busy a greater part of the year in pro- 
 viding fuel for the furnaces, while 
 others gathered sand and hard wood 
 ashes for use in preparing the glass 
 mixture. For many years it was a 
 profitable enterprise and a great bene- 
 fit to the town. The proprietors' 
 names are not recalled in full, but at 
 different times the business was con- 
 ducted by Adams, Holman & Button, 
 Aaron Appleton, John Elliot, Oliver 
 Holman, B. F. Adams, J. D. Colony, 
 and probably several others whose 
 financial interests were identified with 
 those of the gentlemen named. 
 
 A Bottle Factory. 
 Another branch of this business was 
 
OF KEENE PEOPLE. 
 
 33 
 
 established on Marlboro street, near 
 the old Catholic church, more than 
 fifty years ago, by Perry, Wheeler & 
 Co. This was for the manufacture of 
 bottles, large numbers of which were 
 produced annually for a few years, or 
 until their manufacture became un- 
 profitable, probably by reason of for- 
 eign competition. The attractions at 
 this establishment were not equal to 
 those at the window glass factory, yet 
 it was resorted to very frequently by 
 all the boys and girls in the village, 
 so fascinating were the mysterious 
 operations attending the business of 
 glass-blowing. Here, too, was a cash 
 market for hard wood ashes which 
 many a boy highly appreciated, as it 
 often afforded him means for procur- 
 ing a pair of skates or a ticket to the 
 circus when all other resources failed. 
 A newspaper article regarding 
 American glass factories was recently 
 noted in which the surprising state- 
 ment was made that " but four of 
 these large establishments are today 
 in operation in the United States," 
 which, if correct, leads one to wonder 
 why an industry of so much import- 
 ance and of such vast consequences to 
 the working people of the country is 
 not adequately protected by our tariff 
 laws. 
 
 QUAINT CHARACTERS 
 
 Whose Home Was in Keene a Half 
 Century Ago. 
 
 Among the writer's early recollec- 
 tions of Keene are some concerning 
 events in which at least a few readers 
 of the Sentinel will feel an interest 
 when their attention is called to them 
 by one whose citizenship has been 
 contemporaneous with that of their 
 own for a period of fifty years or 
 more. Doubtless all who are thus re- 
 ferred to have a distinct remembrance 
 
 of what is here related, and if the 
 writer's memory is at fault they or 
 any one of them can feel at liberty to 
 correct his errors. 
 
 Fifty years ago Keene numbered 
 among her inhabitants several people 
 whose habits and eccentricities made 
 them conspicuous objects in the com- 
 munity. Although somewhat degrad- 
 ed by nature and habits, they were 
 familiarly known to nearly every citi- 
 zen, and especially to the young peo- 
 ple who regarded them as legitimate 
 sources of endless amusement and 
 fun. 
 
 Anna Banks. 
 
 Prominent among these characters 
 was an old woman named Anna 
 Banks, who lived in a hut on the old 
 Gilsum road, a hundred rods or so 
 above the glass factory that stood on 
 the present jail lot. She was a mis- 
 shapen, wrinkled old crone and ob- 
 tained a living by telling the fortunes 
 of the young people who flocked to 
 her weird domicil in great numbers. 
 Her appearance on the street attract- 
 ed attention, as she was a veritable 
 " Meg Merilies " in style of figure and 
 dress, as well as vocation. Her pa- 
 trons included nearly every young per- 
 son in town, many of whom visited 
 her often for the sake of a lark. Usu- 
 ally, the old woman was good-natured 
 and permitted all manner of fun in 
 her presence, but at times she resent- 
 ed undue hilarity, especially when her 
 gin bottle was empty, and then it was 
 somewhat dangerous to offend her. 
 
 The roof of Old Anna's hut extended 
 almost to the ground, so that it was 
 an easy matter for one to climb up to 
 the huge chimney, where a view of a 
 considerable portion of the interior 
 could be obtained. A kettle of boil- 
 ing water usually hung upon a crane 
 
34 
 
 REMINISCENCES AND SKETCHES 
 
 in the fireplace, and the boys (and 
 girls as well) thought it nice fun to 
 quietly ascend the roof on a dark even- 
 ing and drop sticks and stones into 
 the big kettle below. On one occasion 
 when a party was indulging in this 
 kind of sport. Old Anna seized a large 
 dipper and filling it with boiling water 
 rushed out and liberally besprinkled 
 two or three of the mischievous party 
 who were unable to reach the ground 
 in time to escape her vengeance. 
 
 " Old Anna " died some forty years 
 ago, yet there are many people still 
 living in Keene who have a vivid and 
 pleasant recollection of the merry 
 times they enjoyed in the home of 
 this eccentric old woman, and who 
 will never forget the impressive man- 
 ner in which she was wont to assure 
 every girl patron that her future hus- 
 band would be a " dark-complexioned 
 man with lots of mcnej%" and that 
 she was to have " a new pair of shoes 
 in a few days." 
 
 Richard and Lucinda Suglin. 
 
 A few rods north of Old Anna's hut 
 lived a negro family named Suglin, 
 the conspicuous members of which 
 were the father, Richard, and the old- 
 est daughter, Lucinda. Richard was 
 an athlete and enjoyed a fight as much 
 as he did a nice dinner of chicken or 
 lamb, of which delicacies he was ex- 
 ceedingly fond. He always attended 
 the musters and trainings of the militia 
 of those days and was sure to be in a 
 fight with some one very soon after 
 arriving on the field. It was rare in- 
 deed that he got the worst of such a 
 contest, for he was quick and power- 
 ful and seemed to be totally oblivions 
 to the dreadful blows which were 
 sometimes rained upon his woolly 
 head and ebony face. Ordinarily, 
 Richard was peaceable and good-na- 
 
 tured, fighting being indulged in pure- 
 ly for recreation and generally with- 
 out provocation. 
 
 Lucinda, the daughter, inherited 
 some of her father's peculiarities, 
 especially his fighting propensity and 
 love of frolic. She could sing and 
 dance quite attractively, and did not 
 hesitate to spar with any young man 
 who dared to stand up before her. 
 The " accomplishments " which char- 
 acterized Richard and his daughter, 
 however, were not appreciated by his 
 neighbors, all of whom seemed to re- 
 joice when the family emigrated to 
 another state. Since their departure 
 the raising of lambs and poultry in the 
 vicinity of their old home has been 
 attended with less loss than it was in 
 the days when Richard used to attrib- 
 ute the disappearance of this kind of 
 property to the depredations of hawks 
 and foxes. 
 
 Justus Tozer. 
 
 H Another conspicuous figure on our 
 i|streets was that of Justus Tozer, a 
 'ilittle old man who was famous for his 
 ready wit and ability to construct 
 rhymes on any subject suggested to 
 him. Although he lived to a good old 
 age, it is probable that at his decease 
 he had not drav/n a sober breath for 
 forty years. He was a harmless, good- 
 natured old man, and a great favorite 
 with the young people who gathered 
 about him whenever he appeared on 
 the street and eagerly listened to his 
 quaint rhymes and witty remarks. 
 When importuned for a rhyme, it 
 came on the instant and without hesi- 
 tation. Thus on one occasion when 
 a bright-eyed little girl asked a favor 
 of this kind he at once replied, 
 
 "Miss Catnra, 
 
 Yon look like fury." 
 
 Noticing that he had offended the lit- 
 
OF KEENE PEOPLE. 
 
 35 
 
 tie miss by reflecting upon her person- 
 al appearance he immediately added, 
 
 "lUit your eyes are as bright, 
 As the stars of night." 
 
 This mollified the injured feelings of 
 his little friend and ever after he was 
 sure of at least a penny whenever 
 they met on the street. One day when 
 asked to make a rhyme, with himself 
 for a subject, he immediately ren- 
 dered the following: 
 
 " Justus Tozer is a poser. 
 
 He's a druuken ;-kunIv; 
 It talces a gill to wet his bill 
 
 Aud a pint to get him drunk." 
 
 Tozer had no home of his own and 
 in the summer season his sleeping 
 place was usually in some barn or 
 deserted house. Even a dry goods 
 box in front of some store would often 
 afford him all the sleeping accom- 
 modations he wanted. In winter he 
 would find lodgment with some hu- 
 mane family, paying his way by saw- 
 ing wood and doing chores about the 
 house and barn. He was kindly cared 
 for in the brief illness which ended 
 with his life and many expressions of 
 regret were heard when it was an- 
 nounced that he was dead. 
 
 "Sol." Sumner. 
 
 Of the same unfortunate class with 
 Justus Tozer was a ragged, filthy and 
 extremely repulsive old man named 
 " Sol." Sumner, who prowled about 
 the town in search of means whereby 
 he could satisfy his appetite for rum 
 and tobacco. He had none of the re- 
 deeming qualities that made Tozer's 
 presence endurable, but otherwise the 
 two men were similar in habits and 
 mode of life. They were not very 
 friendly, however, as might be in- 
 ferred from Tozer's frequent remark 
 that he " considered it a disgrace to 
 speak to such a man as Old Sol." 
 
 Many of our citizens can recall the 
 features and general appearance of 
 Sumner, as he was for many years a 
 conspicuous and most disgusting ob- 
 ject in the community. He disap- 
 peared more than a generation ago, 
 and the general public was satisfied 
 to believe that death had ended his 
 miserable career. 
 
 Several other noted individuals re- 
 sided in Keene contemporaneously 
 with those here referred to, but they 
 were of an entirely different class of 
 citizens and a brief notice of their pe- 
 culiarities and amiable traits may at 
 some time appear in these columns. 
 
 THE OLD MILITIA. 
 
 " Keene Light," " West Light," and 
 
 Ash Swamp Rifles. 
 
 Many people in various parts of 
 Cheshire county have a vivid remem- 
 brance of some of the military or- 
 ganizations existing in this section of 
 the state in the early years of the 
 present century, and no doubt the pub- 
 lication of a full history of each com- 
 pany would be exceedingly interesting 
 to almost every citizen, old and 
 young; but such a history cannot be 
 embodied in a newspaper article, 
 where space is limited. A mere 
 sketch of two or three of the promi- 
 nent military organizations of olden 
 times is all that can be given here, 
 and even this must encroach upon 
 columns usually devoted to current 
 history and a record of passing local 
 events. 
 
 Military organizations were insti- 
 tuted very early in the history of our 
 country and even before the Revolu- 
 tionary war. The British nation was 
 so opposed to American independence 
 that at the close of the seven years' 
 struggle our people felt the necessity 
 
36 
 
 REMINISCENCES AND SKETCHES 
 
 of being prepared for a renewal of the 
 attack at any time. The war of 1812 
 strengthened this feeling and children 
 grew up with a military spirit and a 
 readiness to defend their rights. All 
 of the original states enacted laws re- 
 quiring able-bodied men between the 
 ages of eighteen and forty-five years 
 to be equipped and ready for service. 
 New Hampshire was not behind her 
 sister states in this matter. As early 
 as 1813 there was a movement which 
 culminated in a complete military or- 
 ganization throughout the state, the 
 troops belonging to Keene, Walpole, 
 Westmoreland, Surry, Gilsum and Sul- 
 livan forming the Twentieth Regi- 
 ment. Many of the commissioned 
 officers of the regular militia knew 
 nothing of military tactics and often- 
 times the marches and manoeuvres of 
 their commands were ludicrous in the 
 extreme. The companies were sub- 
 divided into sections at random, no at- 
 tention being paid to the height of the 
 soldier, so that it was not unusual to 
 see a stalwart six-footer sandwiched 
 between two short men who looked 
 like little boys in comparison with 
 their giant comrade-in-arms. Each 
 company had a band of musicians, 
 usually consisting of fifers and drum- 
 mers, while occasionally a bugle play- 
 er was added to the corps, making a 
 very attractive feature of the display. 
 The " independent " companies, as 
 they were called, were uniformed and 
 generally well drilled, and it is of 
 some of these organizations that the 
 writer proposes to speak in this arti- 
 cle. 
 
 Keene Light Infantry. 
 From various sources, but mainly 
 from the records in the Adjutant Gen- 
 eral's office in Concord, it is learned 
 that an independent military organiza- 
 tion was formed in Keene as early as 
 1813. The company took the name of 
 
 Keene Light Infantry, and its first 
 commander was Isaac Parker, who 
 was commissioned June 7th of the 
 above named year. A full list of the 
 officers of this company during its ex- 
 istence would gladly be given here did 
 space allow, but the names of the cap- 
 tains with dates of their commissions 
 must be the limit of details in this 
 direction. The commanders succeed- 
 ing Capt. Parker were commissioned 
 as follows: Noah Smith, June 4, 1816; 
 Nathaniel Sprague, Dec. 18, 1816; 
 Jesse Corbett, May 13, 1817; Joel 
 Parker, Nov. 13, 1819; James Wilson, 
 Jr., Jan. 9, 1821; Nathan Bassett, July 
 15, 1823; George Brown, Jan. 25, 1825; 
 Daniel Towns, Jr., Sept. 10, 1827; Wil- 
 liam Dinsmoor, March 6, 1829; Joshua 
 Wyman, Sept. 21, 1829; James Wilson, 
 Jr., May 31, 1830; Robert Wilson, Aug. 
 22, 1833; Sumner Carpenter, Aug. 7, 
 1835; Walter Taylor, Jr., June 21, 
 1838; George D. Dort, June 5, 1839; 
 Daniel Read, Aug. 8, 1842; William 
 Swan, April 24, 1843; Charles Batch- 
 ellor, May 4, 1844; Frank S. Fiske, 
 Aug. 22, 1846; Samuel A. Gerould, Jr., 
 May 5, 1847; Robert Wilson, Aug. 23, 
 1848; Dauphin W. Buckminster, Aug. 
 30, 1849; Eben G. Ball, June 18, 1851. 
 Of these officers four are still living, 
 viz: Walter Taylor of Bellows Falls, 
 Geo. D. Dort of Keene, Frank S. Fiske 
 of Boston, and Samuel A. Gerould of 
 Keene. The company was from first 
 to last a very popular institution and 
 always stood high in the estimation of 
 military gentlemen throughout the 
 state. Its commanders and subordi- 
 nate officers were selected from 
 among the most popular men in town, 
 while the ranks were filled with young 
 men from stores, shops and farms 
 who took great pride in the organiza- 
 tion. Two of its commanders — the 
 Wilsons — had a powerful influence 
 over the men in the ranks, and to 
 
OF KEENE PEOPLE. 
 
 37 
 
 their energy, great popularity and in- 
 fluence was due much of the credit 
 awarded the company for its fine ap- 
 pearance. The same may be truly 
 said of the other commanders, al- 
 though the degree of influence exer- 
 cised by them was less marked. 
 
 This company soon after its forma- 
 tion had a formidable rival in the 
 neighboring town of Westmoreland, 
 where a splendid military organiza- 
 tion was maintained many years. 
 Each claimed to be the superior of the 
 other, while in fact there was little 
 difference between them. Their uni- 
 forms were handsome, substantial and 
 similar in style. Certain it was, 
 "Keene Light" and "West Light" 
 were the bright particular stars of 
 every muster season as long as their 
 organizations lasted. The Keene com- 
 pany took special pride in the posses- 
 sion of a number of handsome tents 
 which were captured from the British 
 in the war of 1812. These tents are 
 still in existence, being owned by 
 some of our citizens who paid fabu- 
 lous prices for them when the com- 
 pany's effects were finally disposed of. 
 Many interesting episodes growing 
 out of the rivalry between these two 
 " crack " companies might be related 
 in this connection, but time and space 
 forbid. 
 
 Westmoreland Light Infantry. 
 
 A transcript from the records in the 
 adjutant general's oflice shows that 
 an independent company was formed 
 in the town of Westmoreland very 
 soon after the close of the last war 
 with England, under the name of 
 " Westmoreland Light Infantry." The 
 first captain of this company was Wil- 
 liam Pierce, who was commissioned 
 March 22, 1815, serving three years 
 as appears from the record. The sub- 
 sequent commanders were commis- 
 
 sioned as follows : Linus Aldrich, May 
 28, 1818; Larkin Baker, April 3, 1820; 
 Harry Green, Aug. 7, 1822; Levi 
 Green, March 12, 1825; Daniel Farr, 
 April 19, 1826; Charles F. Brooks, 
 Jan. 15, 1827; Joseph Wood, March 26, 
 1828; Charles F. Brooks, Aug. 22, 
 1828; William Brooks, Sept. 23, 1828; 
 Tileston A. Barker, Sept. 21, 1829; 
 Prentiss Daggett, Sept. 5, 1831; 
 Charles Butterfield, March 4, 1835; 
 Robert Britton, Sept. 2, 1836; Levi 
 Barker, April 6, 1838; Tileston A. 
 Barker, July 13, 1839; Artemas 
 Knight, 2d, April 23, 1844; Daniel W. 
 Patten, March 25, 1845; Holland Ben- 
 nett, July 9, 1846; Tileston A. Barker, 
 Sept. 7, 1847. The last named Cap- 
 tain appears to have served from 1847 
 until the disbandment of the company, 
 or about ten years in all. This com- 
 pany was one of the best military or- 
 ganizations in the state and its excel- 
 lent reputation was maintained up to 
 the time of its disbandment, or for a 
 period of about thirty-five years. Its 
 ranks were ever overflowing with the 
 very best material for the making of 
 soldiers — stalwart young farmers 
 whose patriotism and love of military 
 display knew no bounds. It was 
 also highly favored by having the sup- 
 port of the leading business men of 
 the town and especially such ener- 
 getic and enthusiastic citizens as 
 Tileston A. and Levi Barker, who 
 seemed to be imbued with true mili- 
 tary genius and to whose efficient ser- 
 vices the great prosperity of the or- 
 ganization was mainly due, especially 
 during the last few years of its exist- 
 ence. The Barkers stood in the same 
 relation to " West Light " as did the 
 Wilsons to " Keene Light." Both 
 were very popular locally, widely rec- 
 ognized as authority in military mat- 
 ters, and each rose to the rank of 
 colonel. The elder of these two broth- 
 
38 
 
 REMINISCENCES AND SKETCHES 
 
 ers, Tileston A. Barker, was one of 
 the most efficient drill-masters in the 
 state and his services in that capacity 
 were in great demand as the training 
 and muster seasons aproached. His 
 subsequent career in the late war is 
 too well remembered to need mention 
 here. Suffice it to say, he made an 
 honorable record and endeared him- 
 self to every Union soldier who came 
 in contact with him. His brother, 
 Col. Levi Barker, is still living, en- 
 joying a serene and happy old age at 
 his home in Worcester, Mass., where 
 he interests himself in military mat- 
 ters, being an honorary member of 
 one of the fine companies existing in 
 that city. His record of sixty-two 
 years' continuous connection with mil- 
 itary organizations probably has no 
 equal in this state. Only one other ot 
 the old commanders of " West Light," 
 Col. D. W. Patten, is living today; the 
 others are now mustered on "the 
 other shore." 
 
 Ash Swamp Rifles. 
 
 Early in the year of 1842 a military 
 company consisting of about forty 
 men was formed in the west part of 
 Keene, then known as Ash Swamp. 
 This was a company of riflemen, an 
 organization which was well main- 
 tained up to the time of the disband- 
 ment of the state militia by legislative 
 enactment. Col. Levi Barker was 
 then in command of the regiment and 
 encouraged and aided the new com- 
 pany through his personal efforts in 
 procuring the necessary armament 
 from the state. The company was 
 successively commanded by Benjamin 
 Curler, Sewall Curler, Asa S. White, 
 Wm. K. Goodnow, Charles W. Wyman, 
 Royal Britton and Alexander H. 
 Grimes. The lieutenants, in the order 
 of their appointment, were Sewall 
 Gurler, Asa S. White, Nelson N. Saw- 
 
 yer, Joseph G. Perry, Charles Nash, 
 Jr., and Thomas Grimes. Ensigns, 
 Asa S. White, Asa C. Thayer, Andrew 
 H. Towne, Wm. K. Goodnow, Charles 
 W. Wyman, Charles Nash, Jr., Alex- 
 ander H. Grimes, Alfred S. Blake. 
 
 This company was composed of ex- 
 cellent material and made a good ap- 
 pearance on parade, although the 
 green frock uniform and low hat or 
 cap gave the men a diminutive look 
 when contrasted with the light infan- 
 try soldiers in their dress suits sur- 
 mounted by tall hats bearing fountain 
 plumes. Had the militia laws re- 
 mained unchanged, this company 
 would have attained high rank as a 
 military organization as it was com- 
 posed of the very best material, al- 
 most every individual member being 
 a substantial farmer or farmer's son. 
 Two at least of its old commanders, 
 Captain Wyman and Captain Grimes, 
 still live in Keene, engaged- in active 
 business pursuits and enjoying the 
 esteem of their fellow citizens. 
 
 An Artillery Company. 
 
 One other Keene company deserves 
 notice in this connection. It was an 
 artillery company organized in 1842 
 and composed of boys from twelve to 
 sixteen years of age. Its officers were 
 John L. W. Tyler, captain; William 
 Marsh, Frank Holmes and George H. 
 Davis, subordinate officers. The or- 
 ganization did not continue long, but 
 during its existence it was a very pop- 
 ular institution, liberally encouraged 
 by the older citizens. Captain Tyler 
 was endowed with true military gen- 
 ius and his command received many 
 high compliments from distinguished 
 military gentlemen. The company 
 mustered with the Twentieth Regi- 
 ment in the autumn of 1842. It was 
 well uniformed and equipped with 
 wooden swords and a real cannon. It 
 
OF KEENE PEOPLE. 
 
 39 
 
 made such a fine appearance that the 
 colonel gave it the right of the line on 
 the muster field, while the reviewing 
 officer bestowed upon it flattering 
 words of commendation in his address 
 to the regiment. 
 
 At least two of the officers of this 
 company — Captain Tyler and Lieuten- 
 ant Davis — are still living. The for- 
 mer occupies a lucrative position as 
 professor of penmanship in a western 
 institution of learning, while the lat- 
 ter continues at his life-long employ- 
 ment as compositor in the office of 
 one of the Boston daily papers. 
 
 Colonels and Lieutenant Colonels of 
 the Twentieth Regiment. 
 
 It is impracticable to give a full 
 list of the Twentieth Regiment field 
 officers, but the names of the colonels 
 and lieutenant colonels are still so fa- 
 miliar to the people of Cheshire 
 county that their publication here 
 seems to be demanded. 
 
 The first man commissioned as col- 
 onel (as appears from the records) 
 was William M. Bond, his appoint- 
 ment being dated July 4, 1816. His 
 successors were commissioned as fol- 
 lows: Isaac Field, May 16, 1817; 
 Simeon Cobb, 2d, June 23, 1819 (sub- 
 sequently promoted to be a brigadier 
 general); Justus Perry, July 5, 1822 
 (promoted to a generalship) ; James 
 Wilson, Jr., June 30, 1826; Benjamin 
 F. Adams, July 15, 1829; Samuel Gor- 
 don, June 24, 1831; Tileston A. Barker, 
 June 25, 1833 (declined); James Wil- 
 son, .Jr., Aug. 5, 1833 (promoted to a 
 generalship) ; Charles Butterfield, 
 June 27, 1835; Robert Wilson, Sept. 4, 
 1837; Levi Barker, June 27, 1S39; John 
 Cowdery, June 20, 1844; George Hager, 
 June 30, 1845; Virgil A. Kimball, July 
 6, 1846; Daniel W. Patten, July 3, 1847; 
 Daniel W. Bill, June 24, 1848 (promot- 
 ed to a generalship.) 
 
 Lieutenant colonels were commis- 
 sioned in the following order: Wil- 
 liam M. Bond, June 23, 1815; Isaac 
 Field, Dec. 9, 1816; Justus Perry, June 
 23, 1819; Seth Hall, Jr., July 5, 1822; 
 Thomas F. Ames, June 16, 1823; James 
 Wilson, Jr., May 17, 1824; Jehiel Day, 
 June 30, 1826; Benjamin F. Adams, 
 June 18, 1828; David Buffum, July 1, 
 1829; Samuel Towns, June 24, 1831; 
 Bradley Leach, Oct. 4, 1831; James 
 Wilson, Jr., June 25, 1833; Eliphalet 
 R. Webster, Aug. 5, 1833; Charles 
 Butterfield, June 27, 1835; Robert Wil- 
 son, June 27, 1835; Nehemiah Hart, 
 Sept. 4, 1837; Levi Barker, June 27, 
 1839; William Wellington, Jan. 17, 
 1842; George D. Dort, July 18, 1842; 
 John Cowdery, July 1, 1843; George 
 Hager, June 20, 1844; Abel Starkey, 
 June 30, 1835; Daniel W. Patten, July 
 6, 1846; Daniel W. Bill, July 8, 1847; 
 Joseph W. Briggs, June 24, 1848; Dan- 
 iel Smith, Dec. 27, 1848; Francis 
 Brown, Nov. 1, 1850. 
 
 Going to Muster. 
 
 The time for " going to muster " 
 was generally regarded as a season 
 for unrestrained hilarity and depreda- 
 tion upon the orchards and melon 
 patches along the route to military 
 headquarters. All through the night 
 preceding muster day the highways 
 leading from the neighboring towns 
 were alive with men and boys who 
 were untiring in their efforts to keep 
 up a continual din resembling that 
 attending the advent of the 4th of 
 July in these modern times. Follow- 
 ing in the wake of the musters were 
 pedlars, sleight-of-hand performers, 
 gamblers and rum sellers. Fighting 
 among the crowd of roughs always as- 
 sembled on such occasions was a 
 common occurrence, sometimes requir- 
 ing the interference of the troops in 
 order that quiet might be restored. 
 
40 
 
 REMINISCENCES AND SKETCHES 
 
 Every year these riotous demonstra- 
 tions increased until at last they be- 
 came almost unbearable; and by this 
 reason more than any other, muster 
 days came into disrepute and a repeal 
 or radical revision of the militia laws 
 was demanded and secured. And so 
 the glory of the old-time musters de- 
 parted. 
 
 THE BASHAW OF BEECH HILL. 
 
 A Noted Character Well Remembered 
 
 by Many Citizens. 
 
 Mr. Editor: — One of your corres- 
 pondents, who has kindly criticised 
 some of my descriptions of old time 
 characters, expresses the hope that I 
 continue to give sketches of some of 
 the noted people residing in Keene 
 fifty years ago. As nearly every one 
 of the famous characters of those days 
 has living descendants residing in the 
 community, it is a delicate matter to 
 describe their peculiarities, through 
 fear of giving offense where naught 
 but respectful compliment is intended. 
 One name, however, which "W." sug- 
 gests as a proper subject for consid- 
 eration and comment is so generally 
 remembered and pleasurably associ- 
 ated with the history of the town that 
 the risk of offending surviving rela- 
 tives by thus publicly alluding to it is 
 not too great to be assumed even by 
 the most timid of writers. 
 
 John Lawrence. 
 
 The person above referred to bore 
 the respected name of John Lawrence, 
 and his home was on Beech Hill, di- 
 rectly east of and some two miles dis- 
 tant from Central Square. He was a 
 farmer by occupation and for a long 
 series of years was engaged in stock- 
 raising and agriculture in a most de- 
 lightful section of the town, elevated 
 several hundred feet above the village 
 
 which nestled in the valley below. By 
 nature he was endowed with a bril- 
 liant intellect and commanding pres- 
 ence, and had he been privileged in 
 early life to enjoy the educational ad- 
 vantages now so easily obtainable by 
 all classes, he might have made a nota- 
 ble record in some one of the profes- 
 sions and attained a leading position 
 in the community. As it was, he had 
 considerable influence over his neigh- 
 bors, while many people in the village 
 looked upon him as a man of more 
 than common ability and one whose 
 honesty and integrity none could ques- 
 tion. He was a great reader, well in- 
 formed concerning the political events 
 of the times, and able to express his 
 views on general subjects in a clear 
 and forcible manner. 
 
 Often, indeed almost always, when 
 visiting the village Mr. Lawrence 
 would become involved in an argu- 
 ment with some political opponent 
 who, like himself, was wont to vigor- 
 ously defend the principles of the 
 party to which he belonged. These 
 street discussions always attracted a 
 crowd, as it was well understood that 
 "Uncle John," as Mr. Lawrence was 
 familiarly called, would succeed in 
 turning the laugh upon his opponent 
 however badly he might be worsted in 
 the argument. His quaint remarks 
 and apt quotations were delivered 
 very impressively and with a manly 
 dignity that made them very effective. 
 As illustrations of this it may be 
 proper to quote his expressions on a 
 few occasions. At the time the Whig 
 party celebrated its great victory in 
 1840, Mr. Lawrence had charge of one 
 of the guns and was very enthusiastic 
 over the work in hand. Becoming 
 considerably excited, he finally trained 
 his gun upon the signboard of Ben- 
 aiah Cooke, then editor of the Chesh- 
 
OF KEENE PEOPLE. 
 
 41 
 
 ire Republican, and discharged the 
 piece at short range, first filling its 
 muzzle with some very soft material 
 scraped up on the street. The result 
 may be easily imagined. The sign- 
 board and its surroundings looked like 
 a section of a farmer's barnyard, while 
 the walk in front of the building was 
 strewn with broken glass. Being re- 
 monstrated with for such recklessness 
 Mr. Lawrence exclaimed, "I want Be- 
 naiah Cooke and every other Van 
 Buren Democrat in Keene to know 
 that there is a God in Israel!" At one 
 time the project of building a new 
 road over Beech Hill created consider- 
 able feeling and became the main is- 
 sue in the choice of selectmen at one 
 of our town meetings. At the Whig 
 caucus for the nomination of candi- 
 dates Mr. Lawrence was accosted by 
 a friend as he entered the hall with 
 the inquiry, "Who are your candidates 
 for selectmen. Uncle John?" In his 
 inimitable and earnest manner, and in 
 a tone of voice that could be heard by 
 every one present, he instantly replied, 
 "Any three good Whigs who fear God 
 and are in favor of Beech Hill road!" 
 It is hardly necessary to say that the 
 road referred to was built by the 
 selectmen nominated in that caucus. 
 When the Manchester & Keene rail- 
 road was laid out the line ran through 
 a portion of Mr. Lawrence's farm that 
 was covered with sapling pines. The 
 damages awarded him for the land 
 taken proved unsatisfactory and the 
 matter came before the oflicials for ad- 
 justment. The counsel for the road 
 represented that the land was of little 
 value, producing nothing but a thin 
 growth of white pine, blackberry 
 bushes and useless shrubbery. Mr. 
 Lawrence, in reply to this, said, "Gen- 
 tlemen, those sapling pines, which you 
 have been told are of little value, are 
 
 a source of revenue to me. When I 
 need money I cut off a few of them 
 and draw them to the mill, where they 
 bring the cash — just as you rich na- 
 bobs cut railroad bond coupons and 
 get them cashed at the bank. Those 
 pine trees are my 'coupons,' gentle- 
 men." His claim lor an increase of 
 damages was allowed. 
 
 Mr. Lawrence was something of a 
 poet and sometimes advertised his 
 breeding stock in verse which em- 
 bodied many droll expressions. He 
 playfully assumed the title of 
 "Bashaw of Beech Hill" and appended 
 the same to his signature whenever 
 an advertisement of this kind was is- 
 sued. The title fitted nicely and it 
 was recognized by the people of 
 Keene to the end of his days. 
 
 Mr. Lawrence was hospitable and 
 entertaining in his home and his visi- 
 tors were greeted with a cordiality 
 that left no suspicion of its genuine- 
 ness. His natural good humor never 
 deserted him, even in the excitement 
 of a wordy controversy. In many re- 
 spects he was a remarkable man and 
 those who knew him will readily ad- 
 mit that they never expect to "look 
 upon his like again." 
 
 KEENE'S NATAL DAY. 
 
 Reminiscences of the Centennial Cele- 
 bration of 1853. 
 On the 26th of May, 1903, one hun- 
 dred and fifty years will have elapsed 
 since the settlement of the town of 
 Keene and the organization of its 
 town government. Local public inter- 
 est in the celebration of a town's birth- 
 day is always strong and every citizen 
 takes pride in the event. This fact 
 was amply proved in 1853, when the 
 citizens of Keene very generally par- 
 ticipated in the celebration of the one 
 
42 
 
 REMINISCENCES AND SKETCHES 
 
 hundredth anniversary of the settle- 
 ment of the town. Professional and 
 business men took part in that event, 
 making it a glorious success and in- 
 suring for themselves the gratitude of 
 their posterity. 
 
 Very few living people have a dis- 
 tinct remembrance of that event and 
 a great majority of those who took 
 part in it have passed away. Of the 
 committees who arranged for the cele- 
 bration and of the citizens who offici- 
 ated in the proceedings only four 
 names are today found among those 
 of living men. The surviving quartet 
 is composed of Col. Frank S. Fiske, 
 George A. Wheelock, Rev. W. O. 
 White and George K. Wright. The 
 committees comprised the names of 
 prominent citizens and were as fol- 
 lows: 
 
 On Invitations. — Samuel Dinsmoor, 
 Thomas M. Edwards, Salma Hale, 
 Levi Chamberlain, Charles G. 
 Adams, Josiah Colony, John W. 
 Prentiss, John Elliot, Charles Lam- 
 son, Thomas F. Ames. 
 On Reception. — Salma Hale, John 
 Prentiss, John H. Fuller, George Til- 
 den, Noah R. Cooke, William S. 
 Briggs, James B. Elliot. 
 On Place and Arrangements for Exer- 
 cises. — F. A. Faulkner, Stewart 
 Hastings, Adolphus Wright, Abel 
 Blake, Samuel Wood, Enos Hol- 
 brook, Luther Nurse, Samuel 
 Towns, 2d. 
 On Place and Arrangements for Colla- 
 tion. — Benjamin F. Adams, Thomas 
 Thompson, William Dinsmoor, 
 James BufEum, George B. Twitchell, 
 Daniel Watson, Kindall Crossfleld, 
 Josiah Sawyer, George K. Wright, 
 Charles Chase. 
 To Prepare Sentiments. — John H. El- 
 
 liot, Geo. G. Ingersoll, William P. 
 Wheeler, Edward Farrar, Farnum F. 
 Lane. 
 On Music. — William Dinsmoor, Virgil 
 M. Kimball, Joseph W. Briggs, Al- 
 bert Godfrey, Harvey A. Bill, Wil- 
 liam S. Hutchins. 
 On Finance. — Sumner Wheeler, John 
 Elliot, Joshua D. Colony, Thomas H. 
 Leverett, Charles S. Faulkner. 
 The officers were selected from 
 among leading citizens whose names 
 are still familiar in every Keene 
 household and whose influence in this 
 community was unbounded. The list 
 is as follows: 
 
 President. — Thomas M. Edwards. 
 Vice Presidents. — John Prentiss, Sam- 
 uel Dinsmoor, Salma Hale, Charles 
 G. Adams, John Elliot, John Wood, 
 Josiah Colony, Elijah Parker, Tim- 
 othy Hall, Calvin Chapman, Joseph 
 Perry, Michael Metcalf, Abijah Wil- 
 der, William Lamson, Eliphalet 
 Briggs. 
 Secretaries. — George A. Wheelock, 
 Leonard Bisco, F. A. Faulkner, 
 Lewis Campbell. 
 Chaplains. — Rev. Z. S. Barstow, Rev. 
 William O. White, Rev. Gilbert Rob- 
 bins, Rev. Silas Quimby. 
 Chief Marshal. — Levi Chamberlain. 
 Aids.— Selden F. White, Frank S. 
 
 Fiske. 
 Marshals. — Benjamin F. Adams, Isaac 
 Sturtevant, Virgil M. Kimball 
 Joshua Wyman, Joseph W. Briggs 
 Robert Wilson, James B. Elliot 
 Francis H. Keyes, Samuel A. Ger 
 ould, Jr., Eben G. Ball, D. W. Buck 
 minster. 
 
 The celebration was a success in 
 every particular, and the thousands in 
 attendance highly enjoyed the exer- 
 cises and listened with pleasure to the 
 stirring music of Gilmore's Brigade 
 band of Boston, and the fine vocal mu- 
 
OF KEENE PEOPLE. 
 
 43 
 
 sic of a large choir of singers under 
 the leadership of W. S. Hutchins. The 
 proceedings closed with a band con- 
 cert in the town hall, followed by fire- 
 works on the common. It was a glo- 
 rious day for Keene. 
 
 VALEDICTORY 
 
 On Retiring from Service as Editor of 
 the New Hampsliire Sentinel. 
 
 With this issue of the Sentinel its 
 senior editor retires from the position 
 he has held for more than twenty- 
 eight years, and from active duties in 
 an establishment with which he has 
 been connected for just half a century. 
 The determining cause for this step 
 will be apparent to everyone who 
 stops to consider the ravages which 
 fifty years make upon the health and 
 constitution of even the most superb 
 human structure. A newspaper to be 
 successful must have perpetually at 
 its command the mental and physical 
 abilities of young or middle-aged men 
 endowed with health and talents 
 which enable them to meet the re- 
 quirements of the newspaper reading 
 public. Realizing this fact, the duty 
 of one who has occupied the position 
 of editor for nearly a generation is 
 so plain that he cannot hesitate a 
 moment beyond a convenient time for 
 relinquishing his charge. Such a 
 time has now come to him, and he re- 
 tires from duties too burdensome to be 
 longer borne by one who has given 
 his entire life, from early youth to ad- 
 vanced age, to the interests of the one 
 enterprise which has engrossed his 
 attention for a period of fifty years. 
 
 And what eventful years were those 
 to which reference is here made! 
 Their history embraces a record not 
 only of the wonderful progress which 
 the world has made in all that tends 
 to the material interests of mankind, 
 
 but also a record of the most thrilling 
 events in the life of this great nation. 
 
 To dwell upon the transformations 
 which these fifty years have wrought 
 would consume too much time and 
 space; nor, indeed, is there occasion 
 to notice them at length. History has 
 been made with unprecedented rapid- 
 ity during that period, and the world 
 has progressed at a rate little short 
 of the miraculous. But every stage 
 of that history, every step taken in 
 the world's progress has been record- 
 ed in these columns, and to recapitu- 
 late here would be to outline the con- 
 tents of a half century's files of this 
 paper. It has been a glorious thing 
 to live and move and have one's being 
 and to share to some extent as a fac- 
 tor in the world's welfare at such a 
 time, and in that consciousness we 
 rest content without rehearsing the 
 achievements of the past or boasting 
 of anything personal save a record of 
 continuous newspaper work rarely 
 surpassed in activity and length of 
 service. 
 
 The prosperity which has ever at- 
 tended this paper is of itself sufficient 
 evidence that it has been conducted 
 honorably and in the interests of an 
 appreciative community. The politi- 
 cal principles which were so ably ad- 
 vocated by its eminent founder, whose 
 memory is still fondly cherished in 
 this community, have been faithfully 
 maintained by each successive incum- 
 bent of its editorial chair, and there 
 can be no doubt that those who in 
 turn will control the future policy of 
 the paper will be in a great measure 
 guided thereby. The most valuable 
 assets of any newspaper are popular 
 confidence in its honesty and popular 
 faith in its accuracy. The gauge of 
 that confidence and faith is circula- 
 tion, and a large circulation, steadily 
 growing, is a first class assurance that 
 
:^P T^9i 1905 
 
 44 
 
 REMINISCENCES AND SKETCHES. 
 
 a newspaper is meeting the popular 
 demand for honest editorial advice 
 and a faithful presentation of news. 
 This assertion is especially applicable 
 to the Sentinel, whose circulation is 
 always increasing and whose general 
 prosperity gives assurance that the 
 public appreciates the efforts of its 
 proprietors to make just such a paper 
 as the best interests of this com- 
 munity require. Permanently located 
 in a home of its own, equipped with 
 all the improved machinery and ma- 
 terial essential to the filling of un- 
 limited orders for printing, the Senti- 
 nel establishment must be ranked 
 among the best of its kind in the 
 State. 
 
 It is not without a sigh of regret 
 that our active connection with the 
 Sentinel ceases just as it is entering 
 upon an era of prosperity and useful- 
 ness never before experienced in its 
 history. A relief from the burdens 
 and responsibilities inseparably con- 
 nected with the publication of a daily 
 and weekly newspaper is gladly wel- 
 comed; but with this sense of relief 
 comes a natural feeling of regret at 
 the severing of relations, existing in 
 some cases through many years, with 
 patrons, readers and correspondents — 
 relations which, though they have in 
 
 a large degree been necessarily some- 
 what impersonal, have at the same 
 time become intimate and pleasant. 
 Especially to correspondents whose 
 regular contributions have in a large 
 measure aided in increasing the popu- 
 larity and usefulness of the paper, the 
 retiring editor wishes to make his 
 sincere acknowledgments for their 
 hearty cooperation in efforts to make 
 the Sentinel a welcome visitor in every 
 household in the county, and at the 
 same time he bespeaks for his succes- 
 sors a continuance of the favors which 
 have become a prominent feature of 
 the paper. 
 
 With this announcement of a 
 change in the editorial management 
 of the Sentinel we 'are justified in 
 making the prediction that the paper 
 will be vastly improved in that de- 
 partment. Young, vigorous and well- 
 trained minds will control its immedi- 
 ate future, and its infiuence and use- 
 fulness must increase as the years 
 roll on. We leave it in good hands 
 and with joyful expectation that it is 
 one of the institutions of this com- 
 munity which will be perpetuated to 
 the end of time. 
 
 T. C. RAND. 
 
 Keene, November 15, 1893. 
 
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