S744 B 66d 1325—-JHIRD SEMI-(ENTENNIAL OF CONCORD-—1375) | A DISCOURSE Growth and Development of Concord, \. Hh, IN THE LAST FIFTY YEARS; BEING THE THIRD SEMI-CENTENNIAL. DELIVERED BY APPOINTMENT, IN THE CITY HALL OF CONCORD, ‘ JUNE 17, 1875. iby NATHANIEL BOUTON) De D. Core O. Rigy PRINTED BY THE REPUBLICAN PRESS ASSOCIATION. 1875. THIRD SEMI-CENTENNIAL. 1725. CONCORDENGH. 1875. The present year marks the termination of the third half century that has elapsed since the original grant of our township, in 1725. A short time since, the City Council and the Board of Trade ex- tended to Rev. NATHANIEL BOUTON, D. D., an invitation to address the people of Concord upon the subject of the moral, social, and civil progress of their city during the last fifty years. This invitation he has accepted, and a meeting will be holden for this purpose at the City Hall, on Thursday, the 17th day of June, proximo, at eleven o’clock A. M., that being the one hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the issu- ing of a grant to the proprietors of the township of ‘*‘ Pennycook,” by the General Court of the Province of Massachusetts Bay. The present year is the fiftieth anniversary of the settlement of Dr. BOUTON in this city. For half a century he has been a close observer of all its varied interests, and of the events that mark its progress. Of very many of them he has been the recorder, and it is to him that we are indebted for the admirable history of our town and city. The exercises at City Hall will consist of the address, and music by the Concord Choral Society. Dinner will be served to invited guests and citizens, at the Eagle Hotel, at three o’clock. You are respectfully invited to be present, with ladies, on the occasion. JOHN KIMBALL, ‘Zayor, GEO. A. BLANCHARD, President Board of Trade, JOSE PEE. WA LOE Re JOHN \M.“HILL, SARGENT: C. WHITCHER, Committee of Invitation. Concord, N. H., May 28, 1875. ~o ) Ap. es ke TEAL Dt Peep Ede bib Sch. 30 Sept 27 9 a én a ¢ i . ’ " ae aw y, / : : ff f “f great ‘ ‘ dee fants City CLERK’s OFFICE, CITY HALL BUILDING, Concord, N. H., June 3oth, 1875. Rev. Dr. BOUTON :— Dear Sir: Ata meeting of the City Council, held June 26th, 1875, the following resolution was unanimously adopted : Resolved, That the thanks of the citizens of Concord be and are hereby extended, through the City Council in convention assembled, to Rev. Nathaniel Bouton, D. D., for his valuable and interesting his- torical address, delivered in the City Hall, June 17, 1875, being the occasion of the third semi-centennial of the settlement of the town, and that a copy of the same be solicited for publication. A true copy—attest : Cr ioe WAIN City Clerk. To C. F. Stewart, Esq., Czty Clerk, Concord :— Str: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of a copy of the resolution passed by the City Council of Concord, June 26, 1875, con- veying their vote of thanks, &c., with a request for a copy of the dis- course, delivered by me on the 17th of June, ult., for publication. I hereby signify my compliance with said request, which I beg you to communicate to His Honor the Mayor, and the gentlemen of the City Council. Very respectfully yours, &c., N. BOUTON. Concord, N. H., July 3, 1875. BURTON KRIST, COLLECTION mrs OO UW Festi Mr. Mayor, Gentlemen of the City Council and of the Board of Trade, Ladies and Gentlemen: Were it permitted me to place passages of holy writ at the head of the discourse, which, by invitation, I have the honor to address to you on this occasion, I would select, as most fit for my purpose, and most congenial with my sentiments, the words of the royal Psalmist: “ AZy times are in thy hand.” “ The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places; yea, I have a goodly heritage.” * Standing before you, fellow-citizens, perhaps for the last time, after the lapse of fifty years since I became a resident of the goodly town, now city, of Concord, I desire, first of all, on this occasion and in this presence, to render thanks to the Supreme Author of all our blessings, that ‘“‘my times” were allotted me in this pleasant place, in an age and generation so prolific of good. I desire, also, with the deepest sincerity, to render a humble tribute to Concorp, the adopted and adop- tive place of my residence, the birthplace of my children, the field of my labors, the scene of my experiences, joyous and sad, and I hope, in the end, the place of my burial. It adds to the interest of this occasion that the *‘ times,” which in particular we commemorate, bring us to the one hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the original grant of the township. On the 17th of June, 1725, a petition, signed by Benjamin Stevens, Andrew Mitchell, David Kimball, Ebenezer Eastman, John Osgood, and Moses Day, in behalf of themselves and others, was presented to the Great and General Court of Mas- ® Pay 35ii5s) 20:0. 6 sachusetts, for a grant of the very lands for a township which are now our heritage.* On that day the seed of that tree was planted whose fruit has ever been sweet to our taste, and under whose wide-spread branches we sit to-day with great delight. Just fifty years from that day took place the ever memorable battle of Bunker Hill, in which a portion of our citizens shared a glorious part, and in commemoration of which, on this hun- dredth anniversary, we heartily unite. Under these circumstances we might very properly review the times embraced in the whole period of our history,—at least, so far as to note the most prominent events in each fifty years past; to recall the names, labors, and sacrifices, the noble deeds and worthy character of the first settlers; and especially to note the steady growth of our town, from its beginnings in the wil- derness, 1725, to its present honorable position and its distin- guished advantages. But of both the first and second periods it must suffice to say, that the history of those “‘ times” is already written, and need not be rehearsed in the ears of this assembly.t CoNncorD IN 1825. I. The theme which now invites our attention is, THE GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT OF CONCORD IN THE LAST FIFTY YEARS. Before I ever saw the place, it had been described to me in an official communication inviting me to preach as a candidate for the ministry here, as ‘‘one of the most important stations in New England; the seat of the state government, and the shire- town of the county; as an agricultural town, with a pretty large and very flourishing village nearly in the centre; the general character of the people distinguished by sobriety and industry ; the town has been settled about a century, and has had but three ministers settled, whose ministry has filled up that whole space.” ‘*'[hese considerations,” it was added, ‘‘ will show you that the field is large, and the labors abundant.” This description, by my life-long friend, Samuel Fletcher, Esq., was not exaggerated; yet of this nature everything is comparative. On reaching the place, and walking the streets of this then * See Hist. of Concord, pp. 55, 63. 7 See Hist. of Concord, and two Centennial discourses by the writer, Nov. 21, 1830. 7 *‘ pretty large and very flourishing village,” what did I behold? In the village, as-then laid out, were two streets, which we now call Main and State streets, and a short, half laid out street or avenue which we call Green street, together with four con- venient cross streets, which we call Franklin, Washington, Cen- tre, and Pleasant streets. The whole village consisted of about 175 dwelling-houses, 17 stores, 8 taverns, 5 printing-offices, and a considerable number of small mechanical shops. The popu- lation was estimated at about 1,100, or near one third of the population of the whole town, which was not far from 3,000.* The greater part of this village population at that time lay northerly of the Town Hall, the spot where we are now assem- bled, where, also, the greater part of the business was done, on Main street. The public buildings were the State House, State Prison, the Town Hall, in which also was a county court room, and the old North Meeting-house. In the whole village, comprising what is now the Union School District, were three school-houses, viz., the old two-story brick at the North end, the Bell school-house in the centre, and a small one-story house at the South end. On the line of Main street, from the Walker place to the South end, or Butters’ tavern, were many vacant lots. A few rods south of us, on Main street, was a low gully, through which run a brook that was crossed by a small plank bridge; on one side worn-out tan-pits, and on the other the famous old hay- scales. In the whole village there was then only one brick dwelling-house, the same now owned by ex-Gov. Stearns, built the year before by Doctor Thomas Chadbourne, though since greatly improved and enlarged. Fronting the state house, on the east side, was a decayed picket fence enclosing an old apple orchard, on a portion of which, two years subsequently, the first Eagle Coffee House was built.t Along the midway of Main street, the entire width of ward five, were fifteen dwelling- * The U.S. Census of 1820 gave 2,838; that of 1830, 3,702 ;—the increase of population being greater the latter half of the decade than the first, we estimate the population of 1825 at 3,000 or 3,100. + See Hist. of Concord, p. 539. ¢ This was finished on the 8th of January, 1828, and in it was a ball the same evening, in honor of Gen. Jackson’s victory at New Orleans, January 8, 1814. 8 houses, including three taverns; within the whole limits of ward six, south of Pleasant street, we count only fourteen dwell- ing-houses; on the whole length of State street, then laid out as far as Pleasant street, were only seven dwelling-houses on the west side, and one on the east; on Green street, three small one-story houses; west of State street was a strip of swamp land, overgrown with alders and other bushes, extending from near the State Prison the entire length of the village south; the rising ground, further west, was pasture and tillage land, the northern portion being known as saxd-hill. Be it remembered there were then no named “streets” in Con- cord; but the whole village was known, in town and out of it, as ‘the Street.” Names were not assigned till 1834. I hope it will not detract from your estimate of “this pretty large and flourishing village,” to be informed that in 1825 there were here no pavements nor sidewalks, except such as were made on the road-side by foot-travellers ; that persons who walked to meeting in winter had the right of way in the middle of the road, and that by proclamation from the pulpit; nor must you esteem it the less because carpets ‘on the best rooms of many of the best families in town were home-made; and that the furni- ture of every kind was far more simple and inexpensive than would satisfy families of very moderate means at this day. I remember when the first mahogany armed and cushioned chair was brought into the village, at the cost, I think, of fifteen dol- lars, and it was talked of as quite extravagant. This reminds me that outside of the main village there was but one house in the whole of the West Parish where a carpet covered the floor of the best room; that then, too, in that sec- tion of the town, as also in the east, with perhaps two excep- tions, there were no dwelling-houses painted white; if painted at all, red or yellow. I place to the credit of the families of that time, both in the village, and, more especially, in outer dis- tricts, that nearly every house was a home-factory for domestic fabrics. In a single school district (No. 3) in the West Parish were nineteen looms in daily use, for weaving by mothers and daughters, who needed no illustrated, unabridged dictionary to 9 define the meaning of the “shuttle,” the ‘ spindle,” and the ** distaff’ Very few stoves were then in use, either for parlor or kitchen ; but the large, open fire-place, with plenty of wood for one dollar and fifty cents a cord, made the old hearth-stone a place of comfort and of joy. Then rare were pictures on parlor walls, and still more rare, plants and flowers at windows. I need hardly tell you that we had no ‘‘ Concord Directory” in those times, nor did we need one; for the people from every section, attending the same meeting on the Sabbath, their faces and names and residences were well known to each other; and as the larger part ‘stayed at noon,” it came to pass that if any case of sickness, or accident, or death, or marriage, or birth occurred in any part of the town, it could be talked over in a social way during intermission, without any great violation of the Fourth Commandment. Outside of the two rival banks, acting under one and the same charter, there was no invested capital, no incorporated compa- nies for manufacture or trade, no insurance company, except the old tna, of Hartford, Conn., whose insignia on every house that it protected was a round, painted tin plate bearing its name. Then all mechanical employments were carried on single-handed ; the engine and machinery consisted of the brains and hands of the master, with one or more apprentices. Our late respected citizen, Lewis Downing, had then but recently begun to make his Concord wagons, his capital consisting of sixty dol- lars in money, his tools, and his own hands. Even framing build- ings by the square-rule was then but just introduced, as certified by our venerable master-builder, Atkinson Webster, Esq. A chief part of trade was by barter and exchange, with very little cash ; produce taken into stores was transported to Boston or other markets by river and canal-boats in summer, and in heavily loaded sleighs or wagons in winter, the trip requiring a week or more. Then you could nowhere cross the Merrimack river without stopping to pay toll at a ferry or a bridge. The first free bridge over the Merrimack river, from its mouth to its source, was erected in Concord in 1839. It may seem strange to you, in these musical times, that in IO the whole town there was, in 1825, but one fzano-forte, and that was brought into town by the (second) wife of Col. William A. Kent,—and, I may add, charmingly played by her youngest daughter, Miss Ellen Tucker. Our young ladies may be pleased to learn that the *‘ charms” of her music, or some other charms, charmed the heart and won the hand of a brilliant young cler- gyman, preaching for the Unitarian Society,—now the revered philosopher and sage of Massachusetts, and of wide-world fame—RartpH Watpo EMERSON. The first organ in town was set up in the Unitarian church in 1529, and was consumed with that edifice in 1854. The instrumental music in other churches, for years later, consisted of a bass viol, a flute, and a violin. MATERIAL GROWTH. Such, in general, was Concord .in 1825. How is it now? Lift up your eyes, and behold your city in 1875! I will not presume to describe it, but if you have leisure, take a walk through this ‘* pretty large and flourishing village,” containing, as now laid out, surveyed, and measured, 120 streets and ave- nues, equal, in aggregate length, to about twenty-seven miles,* within whose bounds, by estimate, are to-day 2,000 dwell- ings and 10,000 inhabitants. Or, if you prefer it, come ascend with me to the cupola on the dome of the State House: look down from that eminence on the “ Street,” where all the business was done in 1825. Survey the magnificent brick buildings that stand in compact beauty-and strength before your eyes: turning westward, see, beneath you, the street where were only eight dwelling-houses, now extending the length of two miles, studded with elegant houses on each side, and ornamented with beautiful shade-trees and flowering gardens. Look on the successive tiers of streets and dwellings, rising one above another on the gentle slope of the hill westward, until your eye rests on the stately mansions which crown its brow ; then extend your vision in the distance to Prospect Hill, and the opening of that ‘‘extension” ground already made at- tractive by its sightly buildings. Behold what now covers * Survey by Mr. Warren Upham, 1875. II that valley of worthless swamp-land; or, turning northward, see the line of houses exended till it reaches the ancient farm- houses of the West Parish. If you prefer it, take an open carriage, in this beautiful month of June, and, commencing at the North end, drive over the height of land west of this City Hall. Soon you will find your- self in the midst of a new district, the growth of the past seven or ten years, where there are better houses and a more numer- ous population than in the whole of this *‘pretty large and flourishing village” fifty years ago. Continuing your ride along these heights, there will soon burst on your vision a prospect so wide, so picturesque, so beautiful, of elegant houses, turrets, towers, and steeples, intermixed with lofty and ornamental trees, that the ancient Concord will be lost sight of, and your only wonder will be when and how the change could have been brought about. I would not have you stop here, but extend your ride and survey till you reach, on the south border, the new Broapway of our city, and see the productive gardens at the further extremity, which are at once as much a source of pleasure to visitors as of profit to the owners. If this view does not suffice you, take a wider range, and, with your family, ride and enjoy together the varied and beautiful scenery around our Long Pond; or, better still, over the height of land further west, till your eye sweeps the vast horizon, which takes in the Uncanoonucs, the grand Monadnock, the sublime and solitary Kearsarge, the distant Ascutney, Cardigan, and Ragged mountains, and stretches far away towards the White Hills. In a more quiet way pass over the river at Fisherville, look on the Duston monument, survey the well-cultivated farms in the ‘‘ mountain” district, and see our village in the distance. Before you stop, pass through the shades of the pine plains ; and when your ride is ended, I am sure you will testify, ‘‘ Our lines have fallen to us tn pleasant places; yea, we have a goodly heritage!” Besides the growth of the main village, I must add that spe- cial improvements are visible in the West village. The kit factory of ex-Mayor Humphrey, and the woolen factories of the 12 Holdens, with other industries, have awakened new life in that agricultural section of the town, as also enhanced the value of every acre of their land. Their new brick school-house and elegant stone church are proofs of progress. East Concord village, at this time, is aspiring to the dignity of city streets and avenues; and, by its proximity to the centre, with railroad accommodations, is attracting new branches of business and a growing population. Still more: undreamed of a half-century ago, on our north- ern border, upon the banks of the Contoocook, where there were but two dwelling-houses on this side of an old, dilapidated bridge, and three more on the interval near the railroad station, a village has sprung up much larger than the main one in 1825, containing a population of about 2,500 souls, with capital in- vested in factories over half a million, furnishing employment for about 700 workmen, and enjoying, as one ward of the city, similar, if not equal, advantages of every kind as at the centre. Nor must I omit that even on the dark Pine Plains, which used to be considered as barren as a desert, another village has begun to rise, with neat houses, and cultivated and fruitful fields, which, I doubt not, will increase from year to year, and prove a convenient appendage for residents who do business in the centre precinct. Indulge me, fellow-citizens, with a brief chapter of statistics, which will tell in figures the whole story of our material growth better than any description. In 1825, Concord ranked in population as the sixth town in the state,—Portsmouth, Gilmanton, Sanbornton, Londonderry, and Dover being in advance: now it is the second,—Manches- ter only, with its magnificent factories and its thousands of operatives, standing at the head. In 1825, the number of taxable polls in Concord was 610, and the assessed valuation of the town was $804,376: the last year, the taxable polls were 3,784, and the valuation $9,000,526—next again only to Manchester. Then the highest tax paid by any one individual was $94.86, and the tax upon 13 the whole town was but $4,073.38: now the highest tax paid is over $3,000, and I could name four individuals the sum of whose taxes last year was more than doudle that of the whole town in 1825. Then the amount of stock in trade was as- sessed at $34,600 ; stock in banks at $14,735 ; money at interest, $24,850 : now the assessed stock in trade is put down at $830,811 ; and, besides all other money, unknown in amount, in banks, in bonds, and at interest, there is on deposit in the several savings banks of the state, in the names of citizens of Concord, $1,333,609, and shares owned by them in railroads, worth not less than $1,093,750. In regard to this material growth I can find a beginning in 1825, but I know not where to place the figures ending in 1875. The city collector has kindly furnished me a list of forty-two names of individuals or companies engaged in trade or manu- factures of different kinds : I shall not undertake to give the exact sum of their invested capital, nor the amount or profit of their business. Some of these, however, stand out so prom- inently that it will not be invidious to name them, and I am sure they will not object to the statement. The carriage factory commenced by Lewis Downing, Esq., as now carried on by the Abbott Downing Co., has a capital of $400,000, employs an average of 250 men, and produces carriages of various kinds to the value of $500,000 annually. The Granite business, be- gun in a humble way by Luther Roby, Esq., some twenty-five years ago, has grown into gigantic proportions. The several companies—I am told ten in all—engaged in quarrying in the ledges and in hammering in their extended sheds, gave employ- ment last year to about five hundred men. Filling contracts for splendid monuments and magnificent public buildings, the products of their labor are visible in our principal towns and cities in every part of our country. One of our home-wrought monuments is at Muscatine, on the western banks of the Mis- SiSSippi river. Why need I speak of the founderies and belting companies ; of organ and melodeon manufactories; of the power-presses of Concord, or rather of the power of the Press in Concord; why of the ‘* Concord harness” and the ‘Concord churn;” 14 why of the monumental marble works, wrought with artistic skill into all forms of beauty; why of the silver ware, and the beautiful photography, and of builders of houses and churches, and flour and grain and lumber dealers ; and why of our princely merchants, about two hundred in all? Iassume as substantially correct, the statement that the capital invested in manufacto- ries of all kinds in Concord the last year was about $2,276,300,* giving employment to 2,150 men and boys, with some 500 women, and producing manufactured articles to the value of $4,600,000. Concord to-day is a vast workshop—bee-hive—of productive industries. Perhaps, however, the most conclusive evidence of the mate- rial growth of Concord will be found in the records of the PostT-oFFICE ; for the number of letters sent and received, with the papers which pass through the office, indicate, somewhat, both the number of persons thus accommodated, and the amount of business transacted through that channel. As we have said, the population of Concord in 1825 was about 3,000, with only one post-office. In that year Gen. Joseph Low was postmaster, his office being in a small wooden building where the Rumford block now stands. The postage on letters that year was : . . POG aaa Postage on newspapers, . : : ; : 40.18 Commission on letters and newspapers, which con- stituted his salary, : ; : 5 i 4 293.96 Contingent expenses of the office were. ; : 85.28 Allowance on free letters, : : ; ; 27.90 Leaving a balance due the United rie : - . $320.22 The last year, Moses T. Willard, Esq., postmaster, there were collected on regular newspapers alone $657.16, and the revenue from letters, letter-boxes, stamps, and postal cards was $21,460,—leaving a balance for the government, after all con- tingent expenses were paid, of $14,476.14. This is not all: the ordinary letters sent through our village post-office last year were reckoned at 470,000, and the number of letters received at 500,000 ; to which add registered letters to the number of 2,269, * N. H. Gazetteer, 1874. 15 and money-orders amounting to $84,025. Be it further re- corded, that 35 mail-bags are daily received, and 35 daily sent out from this office; and that the regular newspapers of Con- cord sent out annually amount to one million. Here, fellow-citizens, we might rest the evidence of our material growth in the last fifty years; but I am indebted to the accurate pen of our city clerk for another item, which partly explains, as cause and effect, the basis of our growth. From 1825 to 1830 (five years), the publishments of intentions of marriage, by parties in our city, were 121, or an average of 24 a year; from 1870 to 1875, the number of publishments was 850, an average of 170 a year. If you ask for further evidence of our material growth, I will point you to our new and improved methods and implements of husbandry ; to our fire department, with its powerful steam fire engines, its forty-five hundred feet of hose, and its trained companies of more than four-score men, ‘“ alert” and of ‘* good- will;” * to the superb, substantial, and free bridges, which span our rivers; to the gas-works, which give light to our dwell- ings and illuminate our streets; to the sewerage, which adds to the healthfulness of our city precinct; to the railroad facilities and telegraphic lines, which connect us with the whole world; and perhaps chief of all, to the water-works, which supply us, from one of nature’s inexhaustible reservoirs, with the purest water for our domestic uses and for the extinguishment of fires. Please excuse me, fellow-citizens, for not telling you how much all these things cost, and the amount of our city debt. PERIODS OF GROWTH. > If, just here, we inquire into the periods and causes of the growth of Concord in the last fifty years, they will be found to centre, chiefly, in the fact of its being the Capital of the state ; yet, I humbly conceive ¢at is not the beginning, nor all. A true history of its growth would include its location; the char- acter of its first settlers, as a select and elect company, fitted * See Appendix, Note 1. 16 for so great an enterprise as a plantation in the wilderness. * Long before the white man came, the savage tribes of Penacook had made it their head-quarters,—selecting it by an instinct and sagacity which seldom erred, on account of the natural advan- tages which it afforded for fishing, hunting, and for defence. Here was their ancient fort, where they fought the Mohawks. In the old Indian and French wars, ftumford lay in the direct route for soldiers from eastern towns to Charlestown, No. 4, and thence to Ticonderoga and Crown Point. Concord, too, in and after the Revolution, had acquired celebrity by the character of her citizens. The old minister, who had moulded the people by his teachings and example, was. still alive— known and reverenced throughout the state as a true patriot as well as devoted servant of God. Here were Col. Gordon Hutchins and Capt. Joshua Abbot, both with their com- panies in the battle of Bunker Hill; here resided Col. Thomas Stickney, who, with his regiment of volunteers, was with Gen- eral Stark in the battle of Bennington; here, also, was Timothy Walker, Jr., Esq., one of the honorable councilors for Rock- ingham county, ever vigilant for the prosperity of the town. When, therefore, in 1778, the subject of calling a Convention to form a constitution was raised, Concord was named as the most suitable place—half way between the sea-coast and the Connecticut river, and already become the highway of travel from the northern sections of the state. In his early travels to the lake and mountain region of New Hampshire, the celebrated Dr. Dwight, president of Yale Col- lege, passed through the place (1812), and described it as beautifully located on both sides of the Merrimack river, thrifty and growing; and predicted, ‘‘ It will probably be the perma- nent seat of government.” In the war of 1812-15, Concord was the more brought into notice by being the general rendezvous for soldiers on march for Canada. But when, by act of the legislature in 1816, it was decided that the State House should be built here, then a new life began. From 1825 to 1836 were years of unchecked * See Hist. Concord, pp. 59, 60. ES 17 progress. There was then a temporary pause and reaction on account of the speculating mania in Concord home-lots and the wild lands of Maine. But when it was decided that the Con- cord Railroad should be built, connecting us with Boston, then enterprise took a sudden leap. On the entrance of the first passenger train from Boston, September 6, 1842, hundreds of citizens assembled to witness the new and strange sight; shouts, huzzas, and firing of cannon celebrated the joyous event. Thenceforth our growth advanced more rapidly than ever. In 1$43, thirty-seven new dwelling-houses, making fifty-one tene- ments, besides one large church, various stores, offices, and shops, were erected in the main village. Between 1840 and 1850, the population nearly doubled. ‘The next great impulse was the adoption of our City Charter, in 1853 ; thence ‘‘ onward” has been our watchword, and onward our progress—never more so than in the past three years. Even the great national calamity, which came upon us in the conflict for the life of the nation, contributed to our increase and enrichment, inasmuch as our city became the central rendezvous for the brave soldiers who came hither from every part of the state to be enrolled, and hence to march to the battle fields of our country ; and, the war ended, to return and receive, amid rejoicings and tears, their honorable discharge. I must record that, in that dread conflict, nobly and well did Concord uphold the flag of our country,—her municipal author- ities responding to every call, and furnishing her full quota of 915 men for the Union army,—all, as they went forth, cheered by the hearts, the hands, and the prayers of her loyal women. No marvel that, attracted by such influences, population has flowed in upon us from every quarter. Laborers and mechan- ics of every craft have here sought and found remunerative em- ployment; young men and maidens, from adjacent and remote sections of the state, have come to learn trades, to fill the places of clerks, and to enjoy superior social privileges; professional men, attracted by the prestige of the capital, with brighter prospects of wealth or fame, and gentlemen with families, who have acquired property and reputation in other towns, disposed 2 18 to retire from active service and spend the evening of life in quiet and comfort, have chosen our beautiful city for such laud- able ends ;—to these add that men of enterprise, skill, and thrift have come to introduce new industries of trade, of mechanism, of art, and merchandise, because from this, as a centre, they can more easily convey their products to places near or remote. Occasions OF Pus Lic INTEREST. At this point it may be pertinent to note, that among the at- tractions and advantages of a residence in our city are to be reckoned the occasions of great public interest, which draw the people together from every section of the state. I allude to the attractions of our annual Election Day, giving to the people an opportunity to witness and to share in the display, the ceremonies, and festivities attending the Inauguration of Governor; to the occasional conventions, political and for other ends, at which sometimes thousands assemble. The largest remembered of this kind was on June 17, 1840, during the Harrison campaign, when the people came in’ masses, it was estimated to the number of ten or fifteen thousand; when ‘¢ Typpecanoe and Tyler too,” ' was the song, and a log cabin with latchet of the door out, was the ensign of party. To which add the occasional visit and presence of men eminently distinguished in some of the higher walks of life. Ofsuch men in “ my times,” I recall the names of some on whom it was a privilege and honor even to look: I name, first, the immortal General Lafayette, who visited us in June, 1825,—the friend of Washington, the honored hero and citizen of both France and America. At his coming the people gathered by thousands to shout his welcome. Old sol- diers of the revolution to the number of 210, some of whom had served under him, gathered to do him homage; at his presence they fought their battles o’er again; they took his hand, one by one, and,—singular as it was happy,—after so long a separation he recognized and called by name some of the old veterans that had fought by his side. After him, in June, 1833, came Gen- eral Andrew Jackson, President of the United States,—the hero of New Orleans, the man of iron will. His heroic bearing, 19 his hoary locks lying back on his lofty forehead, his flashing eye and venerable form, struck every beholder with awe ; thou- sands gazed upon him. Thrice on the Sabbath he worshipped with us in different congregations, and had the prayers and bene- dictions of ministers and people. Accompanying him on that visit was his Secretary of State, Martin Van Buren, afterwards President. We have also been honored with a visit from President James A. Polk, and later, in the memory of us all, the indomitable Gen. Ulysses S. Grant. Compeers or superiors in honor and fame, we have looked on the august visage and heard the inspiring eloquence of Daniel Webster ; we have seen among us the Hon. Lewis Cass, his massive form laden with the burdens as well as honors of office; as a visitor among his relatives we have repeatedly seen the Hon. Salmon P. Chase, Chief Justice of the United States; and the aspiring, ever-working Hon. Levi Woodbury. May I not place these four in the front rank of New Hampshire’s sons in the last fifty years? Specially invited, and producing quite a sensation at the time, was the visit, in 1843, of Col. Richard M. Johnson, wearing the same red vest which he wore when, in battle, ‘‘ in his opinion,” he killed Tecumseh. Here, too, we have listened to the entrancing music of the violin by Ole Bull, and seem, even now, to hear the tones of supplication and entreaty thence of a mother’s prayer. We have looked on the benignant face of Mr. George Peabody, whose wealth, amassed by high finan- cial ability, patient industry, and sterling integrity, he dispensed with a royal munificence, for the benefit equally of England and America. On the political platform, we have heard in eloquent debate not only New Hampshire’s brilliant sons, Franklin Pierce and John P. Hale, but also the rival champions of Illinois, Stephen A. Douglas and Abraham Lincoln. We have listened to the silver-tongued eloquence of Edward Everett, in eulogy of Washington. Repeatedly have we been honored with the presence among us—though in a more private and humble way—of the late Professor 5. F. B. Morse, who, we are proud to say, came to us early in his illustrious career as a painter of portraits, and who, leaving us, carried with him not only the 20 - picture but the heart of the fairest of our daughters. After he had completed his great invention of the electric telegraph, and’ entered on his wide-world fame, he came back to us, and asked the privilege to look once more upon the very spot where he first met and was introduced to the beautiful bride of his youth —Miss Lucretia P. WALKER.* DISTINGUISHED CITIZENS. While Concord has had the honor of visitors and guests thus eminent in the public walks of life, she has not herself been deficient in furnishing a fair quota of capable and honora- ble men to fill high positions in our own state, in other states of the Republic, and in foreign countries. Of our citizens, either native-born or resident, we have furnished one President of the United States, four Governors of New Hampshire, two Senators and two Representatives in Congress, eleven Judges of our state courts, including four Chief Justices. One of our sons has been Governor and Judge in an adjoining state, and Minister to Rio Janeiro. We have furnished one United States Commissioner abroad to settle disputed claims with England, _ another Minister, resident in Switzerland, and at least two. Consuls to other foreign countries. Others of our citizens have been called to positions of instruction in colleges and other pub- lic institutions, and many of our sons have, in other cities and states. of the Union, acquired honor and wealth, with a good name, which is best of all. I need hardly add, that, in the last fifty years, Concord has been well represented in the legislature of the state, furnishing, among her able representatives, no less than six Speakers of the House, ten Senators, three of whom were Presidents, and five honorable Councilors. In regard to leading and influential citizens of Concord, be- fore and in *‘ my times,” it is gratifying to know that there have always been men living in different sections of the town with that amount of home talent, that ‘*round-about common sense,” which enabled them to manage the prudential affairs of the town wisely and well. For this service, the ancient families of Eastmans, Chandlers, Kimballs, Hoyts, Virgins, Rolfes, Car- * She was the eldest daughter of Charles Walker, Esq., and was esteemed the belle of Concord. 2I ters, Abbots, Farnums, Herberts, Stickneys, Ayers, Bradleys, and Walkers,—to mention no more,—have furnished a large quota. Allow me here to record a well-known historical fact, rela- ting to our central village: For a long period, a sort of rivalry and competition existed between the North end and South end, or, rather, the #zddle, which comprised the South end. The dividing line between the two sections was a neutral space of some fifteen or twenty rods in front of the old Town Hall. Here a border warfare was not unfrequently carried on between the bel- ligerent boys of the different sections. This rivalry rose to its highest pitch in the location of the State House. In both sec- tions resided men of note and influence. At the North end, in 1825, and later, were men who held office and had a con- trolling influence in town affairs through near a whole gener- ation. I trust it will not be thought invidious in respect of others if l name them: Mr. Abiel Walker, a man of few words but sound judgment, himself a pattern of economy and thrift, and deemed worthy of trust in town aflairs. His neighbor, Samuel Coffin, cool in manner, with a clear head, accurate and just in accounts, was the financial conservator of town expenses. He would bring his estimate into each annual town-meeting, seeming to say, “Thus far, gentlemen, and no farther.” It was hazardous to overstep his bounds. Gen. Robert Davis, who had the rare gift of knowing everybody in town, and held, in turn, every office the people could confer. Chief of all, Richard Bradley, whose name, placed on the list of voters at the age of twenty-one, and then appointed constable, never dis- appeared from office of some kind till the age of seventy. Comprehending town affairs and town interests more perfectly than any of his compeers, positive in his opinions, sound in judgment, reliable in word and deed, he was an acknowledged leader during his whole life. It is well to note that these men were all natives of the town, who lived and died on the old homesteads where they were born. They were known as con- servative North-end men. At the same time, residing in the middle section was another band, who, distinct in almost all matters except what had a 22 bearing on the interests and growth of their particular section, held an equiponderant influence. These men were Col. Wm. A. Kent, whose intelligence, social position, and gentlemanly manners gave him a wide popularity ; Isaac Hill, a trained and skilful politician, slow of speech but swift of pen, printer, edi- tor, governor, senator, who swayed an influence throughout the state unsurpassed by any citizen; Joseph Low, of-soft words and conciliatory manners, postmaster, bearing military titles, and honored as first mayor of the city, by his personal good qualities holding the esteem of a large portion of his fellow-cit- izens; and Nathaniel G. Upham, of dignified presence, lawyer, judge, superintendent of railroad, and, later, commissioner to England, had the gift of foresight more than most men, and in general character and position stood well with the people. These men, I say, distinct in their several lines of influence, were yet a unit in what they judged would be for the general prosperity of the town, and particularly for the growth of the section where they resided. Not one of these men was native- born. They came hither from different towns, with diverse ideas and associations; they came young, and here began and here ended their lives. The first four, I have said, were conservative, slow to move in new measures, or to adopt untried experiments; the others were progressive, quick to discern the signs of the times, hope- ful of new measures, and prompt in execution. As in mechanics and science there is what is called a compo- sition of forces, so I attribute to the counterbalancing and yet composite influences of these, and such like men, with their numerous associates, the healthful growth of our town and city ; at no time rapid and hazardous—no rush to extremes—no unad- vised and rash expedients could be carried; and no measures, fairly proposed and deliberately adopted by a majority of our citizens, that have not proved a success. Thanks for the judi- cious administration, not only of the town, but also of the city government. PusLic BUILDINGS. T alluded to the public buildings in Concord in 1825. The State Prison has since been enlarged to nearly double its capaci- 23 ty. The historic old meeting-house has passed away in flames. The old wooden Town Hall has given place to the substantial brick edifice in which we are assembled. The State House, more grand and beautiful in its proportions without, and more commodious for its purposes within, has also attractions and adornments never thought of fifty years ago. Here are the memorial battle-flags of our brave soldiers, on which hundreds come to gaze with patriotic devotion. On the walls of the Representatives’ chamber we behold the full-length portrait of the Father of his Country, and by his side noble specimens of New Hampshire’s noblest sons, both in ancient and modern times. Over their heads, our military heroes of the Revolution— Stark and Cilley, Scammell and Poor. In another chamber, hon- orable senators; and in still another, a splendid galaxy of well- drawn portraits of the men whom the people have been pleased to honor as chief magistrates. These beautiful adornments in our Capitol are due to the gratuitous agency of one of our own citizens—his work is his reward—Hon. Benjamin IF’. Prescott, Secretary of State. Of other public buildings which have arisen since 1825 I would speak if I knew how to discriminate. But we have now so many that in some respects are worthy of the name, that I hesitate. We call the building and library of the New Hampshire Historical Society,—patronized as it is in part by the state,—a fzdlzc institution. The splendid Board of Trade building is public in a noble sense; and the magnificent Opera House is designed to be public: but there is one about which there can be no divided opinion. In the Institution for the Insane, first built in 1841,.now an. ornament to our city as it is an honor to the state, we claim a special interest. The establishment of it was first earnestly recommended by Gov. Isaac Hill in his message to the legisla- ture in 1836. It was then ably advocated by our representative, Charles H. Peaslee, Esq., who was chairman of a committee of the legislature on the subject. Its location in Concord, rather than at Portsmouth or elsewhere, is mainly due to the wise foresight of Hon. N. G. Upham. For the purchase of the beautiful grounds where the institution is situated, the town 24 appropriated $10,000; and most gratifying of all, of the per- manent funds which are its chief endowment and reliance, amounting in all to $250,000, $190,000 of that sum were lega- cies by persons native-born or resident in Concord, viz. : By Abiel Chandler, Esq., : : : $25,000 the Countess of Rumford, cra kate 15,000 Moody Kent, Esq.,_ . A : : 150,000 To which, adding the sum paid for land,—$10,000,—gives to the city of Concord an interest of $200,000 in that institution. But we may humbly ask, What is that compared with the benefit which has already accrued, and more that will in all future time accrue, not only to Concord, but to all New Hamp- shire, from the establishment of such a beneficent institution? Already 3425 insane patients have been admitted into it, of which 1364, or 40 per cent., have been wholly restored; 768 others improved and discharged. And in the last ten consecu- tive years the rate of recoveries to the admissions of persons who had not been insane over six months, is 77 to the 100. MorAL PROGRESS. Permit me now, fellow-citizens, to lead you along another track of progress. We who are now seventy years of age and upwards have witnessed the whole course of what is called the TEMPERANCE Rerorm. We knew the state of society here in 1825, and we know, comparatively, what it is now. Let then those who are in younger life, and strangers to our city in former times, step back with us fifty years, and receive the tes- timony of eye-witnesses and actors in the events and scenes of that and the period intermediate. At that time, and for about five years later, the use of ardent spirits in Concord, in the form of rum, brandy, gin, whiskey, with wine and other mixtures, was universal. In the families of the more wealthy and fashionable, they were displayed in elegant decanters, in an ornamented case on the side-board, placed on the table at dinner, offered as a token of civility to visitors by day and evening, and regarded as among the indispensable comforts of life. These liquors were used equally on occasions of joy and sorrow, for cold and heat, at births and deaths, at 25 marriages and funerals. Farmers carried well-filled’ bottles into the fields with them; mechanics kept them in their shops, and professional men in their offices. The idea was universal that no laborer could do summer work without them; and hence, in haying and harvesting, farmers usually purchased from ten gallons to a barrel for their workmen. At funerals, it was the custom to pass round well-filled glasses to all the mourners and relatives, and bearers received a double portion. We aver that, in 1827, every store in town, then nineteen in number, sold ardent spirits, not onfy by the quantity, to be car- ried away, but by the glass, to be drank by customers at the counter; that every tavern, ten in number, kept an open bar, glittering with glasses and labeled decanters of the choicest liquors, to accommodate its guests. The aggregate quantity of ardent spirits of all kinds—not including wines—sold from stores in Concord, in the year 1827, was equal to four hundred hogs- heads (of 120 gallons each), or about 48,000 gallons,—enough to furnish more than one gallon to every inhabitant of Merri- mack county,—and the portion of it actually sold to the people of ‘*this sober and moral community,” as estimated and put down by the traders themselves, was about 14,500 gallons,— equal to four and a half gallons to every man, woman, and child intown! The cost of these liquors to consumers was not less than $9,000, which was more than double the amount of all the taxes the year previous for state, county, and town expenses, including schools and the support of the poor. Yes, fellow-citizens, these were the ‘‘good old times” of license, when any maa who wished to accommodate his neigh- bors, and help himself, could, by asking for it, obtain a license from the selectmen to diffuse the curses of rum broadcast over the town,—only he must pay twenty cents to the town-clerk for recording his license! And any man, on a certificate of good moral character, and the payment of two dollars, could obtain a license for a taverner—rum and all. This is not all. The product of every orchard in town, in those times, was converted into cider; from 15 to 20, 30, 50 barrels, and often more, were stowed away in cellars for family 26 use and for hired laborers, and at the end of the next season not enough left for vinegar ! Such was the exact state of things in Concord in 1825, and till 1830 and later. Has anything been done in the intervening years to stay and roll back the mighty flood of rum and cider which overflowed our goodly town? I will not ask you, fellow citizens, to go over with me, step by step, the history of all the efforts put forth in this temperance cause. The first blow was struck on Fast Day, April 12, 1827, in that old "North Meeting-house. The battle there bestia in weakness has been bravely ‘“‘ fought out on the line” of total abstinence, and many a glorious victory has been achieved. In proof, I point you to visible trophies: 1. That in the whole city there is but oze place where spir- ituous liquors can be lawfully sold, and that only for ‘‘ medici- nal, mechanical, and chemical purposes,” adding wine for sacramental uses. 2. That in all the stores in Concord, two hundred or more in number, there is not oze where a glass of such liquor can now be bought to be drank oz the premises. If, as is conceded, it is sometimes sold by apothecaries and druggists, it is presumed to be in the line of their profession, for medicinal or chemical purposes, rather than for use as a beverage. We confide in their integrity, that, in this regard, they will keep a good con- science. 3. That not a single tavern in our city keeps, as formerly, an open bar, but, if kept at all, is out of sight; and I offer it as my humble opinion, that there is not visible in all the families of Concord, on side-boards or anywhere else, any szgzs of hav- ing on hand intoxicating liquors for daily use, or for treating callers and visitors. The first year I began my labors in Concord, in making pas- toral calls on a particular day, I was invited to drink at every house, or an apology was made for not having any on hand. I assume, that of the eighteen or twenty ministers now in Con- cord, there is not one who in the last fifteen or twenty years has 27 ever been invited by a parishioner to drink intoxicating liquor in any family which he has visited. 5. In brief, I submit that the customs and usages of social life in this regard have undergone a total change in the last fifty, or, rather, the last thirty years. If spirituous liquors were now drank in the same proportion by the present population as in 1825, instead of 14,500 gallons, as then, we should consume not less than 72,000 gallons, or 600 hogsheads. Instead of four and a half gallons a year to every man, woman, and child, I really question whether the average*would equal four and a half pints, or even four and a half gills. I know at least oe who does not drink that quantity. And if the same proportion of people in town were now reckoned intemperate, as then, we should have a staggering battalion in our streets of not less than six hundred drunkards. It is due to our good name to say that much of the liquor here sold in a clandestine manner is bought and drank by people from other towns; and I state on the best authority, that of the arrests made for drunkenness by our police, two thirds at least are non-residents. It gives me great pleasure here to state that within a few years past a great accession has been made to the temperance ranks in Concord by a society composed of a class of our fellow citizens who had stood aloof from, or not been reached by, other organizations. We welcome with double gladness the St. John’s Catholic Temperance Society, composed mostly of hale, robust, energetic young men, who will, we are sure, do noble service in winning their associates from the ranks of the destroyer. Besides these, among the same class of citizens, as I am assured on the best authority, there are not less than eigh- teen hundred who within the past eight or ten years have taken the pledge of abstinence from the hands, rather, from the lips, of their reverend Father, and who on that account, perhaps, will stand the firmer and walk the more erect. These facts explain in part what we have all rejoiced to see,—a marked improvement and elevation of character in that now large por- tion of our community. Yet it is said,—and we deplore the truth of it,—that there are places in which, without license, in defiance of law, under 28 color of beer or ale, in saloons and victualling houses, in pri- vate dwellings and out-houses, in cellars and attics, the deadly liquor is kept for sale ;—and a cry is raised as if nothing had ever yet been done to stay or remove the evil. In regard to the facts of the case, we find in them a powerful incentive to persistent action in this reform. We would array against the use and the sale all proper influences,—moral, legal, social, re- ligious,—that can possibly be made to bear. Let every existing temperance organization renew and augment its efforts. We welcome the Woman’s Temperance League; we ask a more vigilant watch of our city police to ferret out the secret places of the deadly sale; we implore the coéperation of our munici- pal authorities to the legal extent of their power; we invoke the majesty of our courts not to let justice be turned away backward and equity fall in our streets, but in all cases let the law be vindicated. It is motive enough for such united and determined action, that almost all the existing evils of our com- munity arise from or are allied with intoxicating drinks. In regard to the morals of this community in other respects, I think it may be now said, with more propriety than in 1825, ‘that the general character of the inhabitants of Concord is distinguished by good morals, sobriety, and industry.” Com- parisons are odious; yet, compared with other places, we hum- bly submit our opinion that neither in New Hampshire, nor in New England, is there a village or city of equal population where the people, as a body, are more industrious, sober, peace- ful, and well-ordered than here. Here order reigns; street fights and nightly brawls, outrages on decency and public peace, are rare. Never, since the foundation of our settlement, 1725, has the cry of blood, for wilful murder, gone up to heaven from our soil. In the last fifty years, two homicides have occurred, —one the result of boyish passion, the other of drunken carousal, without malice prepense. Within the same period I can recall but three instances in which the public peace has been disturbed by what might be termed riotous proceedings. The first was in 1835, on occasion of the visit of George Thompson, an elo- quent anti-slavery lecturer from England. It may well humble us to-day to reflect that the whole disturbance on that occasion 29 was caused by the action of the staid “ friends of law and order,” to prevent a lecture from that gentleman on the subject of sla- very in the poor old Town Hall. The chairman of the board of selectmen turned the key against him. No one was hurt. The next occasion was 1836, after the Rev. George B. Cheever, then of Salem, Mass., had, by invitation, delivered a temperance discourse in the old North Church. In the evening the pastor’s house, where Dr. Cheever lodged, was assailed by certain rum ‘fellows of the baser sort,” who, after shaking the door and calling in vain for the man ‘who dreamed the dream,” retreated to the state house yard and burnt him in effigy. The next day each one of the party was called before a justice of the peace, and they were obliged to pay a fine and costs for their rum-deed. The third and still greater excitement,—fresh in memory,—resulted in the destruction of an offensive press by incensed soldiers, against the counsel and orders of our munici- pal authorities. CoNncorp, with the motto on its city seal,— ‘law, education, religion,’—indicates the true character of our people. SCHOOLS. On the subject of schools it is less important that I enlarge, because the annual reports of the superintending school com- mittee, from 1827 till the present time, have been published and distributed among all the people. The statistical facts which enable us to mark the progress made in fifty years, are these: The sum appropriated by the town for school pur- poses in 1825 was - : - - . $1,250.00 The number of scholars in Stirdaccies ; : 4 925 The sum appropriated in 1875 was. : : » 27,126.00 And the number of scholars returned, . : : 3,549 The sums above mentioned are exclusive of appropriations for building and repairing school-houses.* In place of ¢kree schools in this pretty large village, as in 1825, we have now ¢fzrty distinct schools, and more wanted. The progress in our schools which is most marked is in the size, style, and convenience of our school-houses; in the adop- * See Appendix, Note II. 30 tion of the graded system of instruction,—consequently a wider range of studies, better order and discipline, and more thorough instruction; to which add, more recently, the introduction of vocal muszc as a branch of study, in the benefits of which the smaller children as well as the more advanced share. We look with just admiration and pride upon our substantial and commodious grammar schools, and more upon our high school edifice, scarcely inferior in its accommodations, we judge, to any in the state. It is a proud day when the youths of our city,—young men and maidens,—without distinction of race, color, nationality, politics, or religion, having completed the prescribed course, stand forth in the presence of teachers, parents, school committees, and friends, to give proof of their attainments, and to receive diplomas as testimonials and lau- rels of the success achieved. With laudable pride we say, ‘¢ These are our jewels.” As pertaining to the history of education in Concord, I must not omit to mention that, from the beginning, it has always been an object to employ well-educated and competent teachers. Hence, students and graduates of college have often been em- ployed, some of whom have afterwards become distinguished in public life. The first master in the ancient Penacook was Mr. James Scales, a graduate of Harvard College, afterwards the first minister of Hopkinton, N. H.; in 1773, Benjamin . Thompson, the celebrated Count Rumford, began his illustrious career as a school-master; district No. 8 boasts that one term Hon. Levi Woodbury was their teacher; No. Io, that the late Rev. Dr. Burnham, of Pembroke, and Dudley Leavitt, the dis- tinguished Mathematician and ‘‘Almanack maker” of New Hampshire, served them. ‘The first term the old brick school- house at the North end was opened it was taught by Hon. George W. Nesmith, and afterwards by Professor Edwin D. Sanborn. No. 3 was taught by Judge David Cross; No. 12, by the late Prof. Long, of Dartmouth College; Nos. 4, 5, 7, 8, by our most eminent literary son, Nathaniel H. Carter. The late Joseph Robinson, Esq., and Col. Chandler E. Potter, taught with ability and success. I might name other scholarly and able men, still living among us. 31 In our educational history (further), the ‘Concord Literary Institution and Teachers’ Seminary” has a creditable record. It was established in 1835. The building, 58 feet by 54, two stories high and costing about $3,500, which was raised by subscription, was located on a lot of land donated by the late Samuel A. Kimball, Esq., on what was then called Sand Hill, now covered with elegant and sightly dwellings, and known as Academy Hill. First taught by Mr. T. D. P. Stone, a graduate of Amherst College, it attained a wide popu- larity, having students from all the New England states, from New York, Ohio, and Alabama, and one each from Greece and from Spain. There were two departments, male and female: on the roll of students we count about nineteen hundred names, among which we discover the names of very many of our own sons who have attained distinction in the various walks of life. Among them we count the names of nine who have become preachers of the gospel, nine physicians, sixteen educated as lawyers, several distinguished educators, and other successful business men. It gives me special pleasure to say that His Honor the Mayor, the President of the Board of Trade, and the Superintendent of Public Instruction in this Union School Dis- trict, severally received their highest academic honors from the Concord Literary Institution and Teachers’ Seminary; and I have the further pleasure to add, that in 1837 there appeared in the list of students the name of Henry WILSsoNn, now Vice- President of the United States. Here, we believe, he received the last finish of the academic education which has borne him to his high position. The Academy closed its mission in 1844.* Nor would I omit that all along through the past fifty years, at least succeeding the Academy, there have been select schools for young misses, taught by ladies of culture and refinement, to the great advantage of our daughters. The Methodist Biblical Institute, the first of the kind in the United States, established in our town in 1847, remained among us twenty years, in which time five hundred and sixty-two young men were educated in it for the Christian ministry. * See Appendix, Note III. 32 To which I add the more recent school at Millville, estab- lished in 1855 by the munificence of George C. Shattuck, M. D., of Boston, in which institution we take the more satisfac- tion, Heoals se the zzclezs and basis of the beautiful villa that has there sprung up is the frst brick dwelling-house ever erected in Concord, being built in 1804 by Jacob Carter, Sen., the father of our venerable living citizen bearing the same name. Its prefix indicates the historic fact, that on the stream which flows by it was erected in 1733 the first mill ever built in Con- cord on the west side of Merrimack river. In the growing prosperity of this school we rejoice, sharing as we do in the benefits of its-rich endowments, its liberal cult- ure, its wealthy patronage, and its large disbursements. Although, fellow-citizens, we do not claim to be the banner town of New Hampshire in the puwd/zc education of our sons, yet I have the pleasure to say that I have the names of eighty- six graduates of college since 1825,—our sons,—native born or residents, making the whole number one hundred and sixteen ; besides others, number not exactly known, graduates of medical and law institutions.* Since 1825, all the public libraries in our city have come into existence, Viz.: The City Library, containing about. i . 6,350 vols. The Library of the N. H. Hist. cee : - Py OOOn tes Phe N. id. State Library.) ou 135000: Sabbath-school libraries, aggregating . : - -Qs00057"" These are our proofs of progress in schools and education in the last fifty years. CHURCHES. What shall be said of our religious progress? Step out with me, fellow-citizens, and look at that old North Meeting-house as. it was, standing alone in this township of seven miles square and more, opening its doors on the east, south, and west to re- ceive worshippers from every section. They come in wagons, on horseback, and on foot, to the average number of 750. In the whole town there is but one stated, settled minister, his sal- * See Appendix, Note IV. a ary $750 annually, and the whole expense to the town in 1825 was $806.13. The highest minister’s rate, as it was called, was $23.17; the next highest $13.05 ; and the average rate paid by five of the ablest men in the vicinity of the meeting-house was but $7.60. Look again, and count to-day, on precisely the same territory, at least twenty houses and places of public worship, convenient, commodious, some of them elegant, magnificent, and costly, each with its stated minister, and on the Sabbath well filled with worshippers to the aggregate number of near 6,000. Do you ask at what expense? The salaries alone of ministers aggregate $24,450, and other expenses incidental at least $10,000 more— which sums are voluntarily raised by subscriptions or contri- butions, in not a few cases, of fifty, one hundred, two hundred dollars, and more. One fact in our religious progress is worthy of historic note, viz., that as our town itself has had its “times” of growth, its impulses, and particular periods of enlargement, so the churches have advanced in a like manner, more in some years than in others. We call these years ‘times of refreshing.” In the first quarter of our half century, particularly from 1827 to 1842, there was almost a continuous religious interest pervading the minds and hearts of the people. In that period there were added to the First or North Church alone 579 members; to the First Baptist, chiefly under the ministry of Rev. Dr. E. E. Cummings, 472; and a corresponding number to other churches that improved the heavenly visitation. Of similar seasons, more recent, I need not speak; but I shall ever regard it as a favor of Divine Providence, for which my heart is glad, that ‘¢ my times,” so ordered, shared in such blessings. I estimate the ratio of membership in the churches to our whole population at 13 per cent. in 1825; now, at 18 per cent.* I look upon it as a most gratifying circumstance, that re- dounds to the credit of these several churches and congregations, and equally to the honor of the whole community, that they have risen into existence in the most natural order to meet the * See Note V. 6 34 wants and preferences of those who support them. The prin- ciple of religious liberty and equality is so well understood and so uniformly acted upon, that although each church, and every individual member thereof, is well persuaded in his own mind, and fixed in the faith and ecclesiastical order which he has adopted, yet the broad mantle of Christian charity is spread over the whole, and no one has reason to complain that he cannot worship God according to the dictates of his own con- science, having none to molest or make him afraid. Of the ministers of Concord I shall so far magnify my office as to say, that through the whole period of its history, one hun- dred and fifty years, its prosperity, character, growth, and devel- opment in morals, education, and religion, are due more to them than to any other single class of her citizens. The value of their labors and influence can never be calculated in dollars and cents, but only by the influences which have raised us to the position which we hold to-day among the towns and cities of our state and country. MortTALITY. If your patience, fellow-citizens, is not already exhausted, | I will claim your attention to one topic more. It is to remind you that all along the path of these fifty years, Death has kept even pace with the growth of our population. According to the record of mortality in town, which I kept forty-two consec- utive years, or till 1866, the number of deaths was 4,229; the number since, according to a list furnished by the city clerk, is 1,284, making to the beginning of the year 1875, 5,513. This large number of the dead, crowding the old burying-places, have demanded more room, and new grounds have been opened to receive them. But notwithstanding the seemingly large number of deaths, yet Concord is justly ranked as one of the most healthy localities in New England. Our rural districts are equal in healthiness to any other portions of the state. In- cluding the centre village, the deaths annually in the whole city are only as one to seventy-two inhabitants, or about fourteen in a thousand, which is less than the best reported sections of Massachusetts. Of all who have died in the last fifty years, eight hundred and sixty-two, or one sixth and four tenths of the 35 whole number attained seventy years. Seventy of this number reached ninety: years; fifteen between ninety and ninety-six years ; ten between ninety-six and ninety-nine years ; and five of them one hundred years and over—the oldest being one hundred and three years, four months, and twenty-five days. It is an affecting thought to me, that, of all the people in town who were fifty years of age in 1825, not one is known to be among the living to-day; of all the ministers then in the state in office, only two are known to survive as my seniors ;* and of all the members of the religious society of which I took charge, I find only five survivors among us to-day,—then young men, now the old men of the town; some of them are present. _ I beg the privilege of naming them as my contemporaries, sup- porters, and friends: Col. William Kent, Dea. Ira Rowell, Joseph Eastman, Ivory Hall, and Joseph P. Stickney. Fellow-citizens: sometimes, with closed eyes, I seem to see in retrospection a long procession passing before me of venera- ble men and women, representatives of past generations living in 1825, but now numbered with the dead. I recognize their well-remembered faces and forms; I rise up to do them reyer- ence. I crave the liberty of saluting some of them by name as they pass along. Of those who resided on the east side of the river, I recognize the venerable, strong-minded, and large-hearted old patriot, Jonathan Eastman, Sen., Esq.; and next to him Capt. John Eastman, as straight and strict in principle as he was in form,—both leaving behind worthy descendants. I bow to Stephen Ambrose, Esq., of gentlemanly manners and wide influence ; and to his sensible and godly brother, Dea. Nathaniel, as also to their neighbor, our capable selectman and representa- tive, Jeremiah Pecker, Esq. There is Jacob Hoit, at the age of ninety, in his ancient dwelling on the *‘ mountain,” with a memory still fresh, and exuberant with facts of olden times. I see Asa Graham looking over his well-cultivated farm; and Samuel Goodwin, with that emblem of old age, his red cap covering his head, as he used to sit in the old North Meeting- house. Of the West Parish, I recognize in this procession the *Rev. Abel Manning, of Goshen, in 1825, now residing in Goffstown, and Rev. Liba Conant, of Northfield, now in Orfordville. 36 venerable Capt. Joseph Farnum, rinsenecrtn ee of age, spending a portion of each day in reading a cha a of his large Bible; Timothy Carter, Esq., justice of the peace; Dea. Abiel Rolfe, esteemed for his downright integrity and piety, whose prayers were sought as well as his counsels; here passes honest Amos Abbot, the owner of the granite ledges, which originally cost fifty cents per acre, whose value, to him unknown, enriches his descendants, and is better than a mine of gold to our city; Isaac Dow, Esq., who well filled the offices of trust conferred on him; Capt. Samuel Davis, and Richard Flanders, and Capt. Nathan Ballard, Sen., each at the age of eighty-nine, leaving descendants on the old homesteads to bear up their names. I recognize, also, not a few residing in the ancient street, who were, in my eyes, old men fifty years ago: there Js Mr. Enoch Coffin, living in the family mansion, still standing, under the shadow of that majestic elm which is the pride of our city. Along on Main street I see Mr. Nathaniel Abbot, whose hos- pitable mansion entertained many friends; near him, often in converse, the friendly and devout Mr. Lemuel Barker; Mr. Richard Herbert, moving along with his staff, which fell not from his hands till the age of ninety-four; here is my venerated predecessor in office, Rev. Asa McFarland, D. D., serving the town twenty-seven years, justly reputed among the ablest min- isters of the state; and his near neighbors, Dr. Peter Green, John Odlin, Esq., and the athletic Capt. Richard Ayer. Still following in the long line I see the self-possessed and dignified landlord, Abel Hutchins, sitting in the old Pheenix, just risen from its ashes, and next him the genial Benjamin Gale; I dis- cover, too, without mistake, the venerable founder and father of the Concord Press, George Hough, Esq., still pausing to fix the points ; respected as ever, I recognize Judge Samuel Green, walking with unequal step, but holding an even and just bal- ance; here is Albe Cady, Esq., with the pen in hand of a ready scribe ; I see Maj. Timothy Chandler, ingenious and industrious, regulating the time; tripping along with elastic step, at the age of ninety and over, is Mr. John Shute, Sen.; near by, his neighbor, the exemplary Dea. James Wiley, and Dea. Jonathan Wilkins, Esq., a graduate of Dartmouth College, in his home f 37 at the ‘‘ Eleven lots,” deliberate in step and in choice of words, but the more respected as the head of a large family of sons and fair daughters. These all, and many more, were among the aged inhabitants of the town in 1825. The long procession still moves. I recognize many that in ‘‘my times” were the supporters of our schools and churches— industrious, moral, useful citizens ; here a group of those Chris- tian women, who, like some of earlier times, followed and served the Saviour by ministering to his poor ;—among them I see loving and loved ones who await ouR coming ;—they all seem now “in shining garments:” alas! many fair daughters, who faded and passed away just in the bloom of womanhood. Hee pass standard-bearers in our churches. One, with the same halo of sanctity about him as on the last Sabbath of his service in church; and another, of graver aspect, but bearing on his front the impress of sincerity and fidelity to duty and to trust. I discern and salute men in the learned professions ;— every one of the physicians of that day; every one of the law- yers,—as also, much lamented, some of a more recent period. Here are Chief Justices of the state,—one the more learned and exact, the other the more dignified and courteous. Here, also, I discern fellow-laborers in the ministry—a beloved Rector, fall- ing in the prime of manhood, with his robes yet fresh upon him, and later, a laborious and successful Pastor thirty-four years,—both gone to give in their accounts. Passing, I see the shadow of our second honored Mayor, suddenly dropping the cares and honors of office, to be followed by a sorrowing com- munity to a premature grave. Some, too, I discern, more emi- nent in their stations ;—ex-Governors of the state; a venerable Judge, still wearing his ermine at the age of four score and four; and a President of the United States. Closing up the long procession, I discern the brave boys in blue,—sons,— whose graves we strew with flowers of loyal affection. But the shadows fade as promiscuously they pass along; rich and poor, high and low, aged and young, parents and children,— all vanish from view, but yet live forever more! ‘« Though lost to sight, to memory dear!” 38 Pardon me, fellow-citizens, that I have detained you so long. But with renewed congratulations for the prosperity which has attended and crowned our goodly heritage in the last fifty years, with renewed thankfulness to the Giver of all our mercies in that period, and with heartfelt satisfaction that in ‘‘my times” I have shared and been identified with you in all the progress we have witnessed and enjoyed,—I beg, in conclusion, humbly to remind you that our surest and only guaranty of prosperity for the future lies in adherence to the principles of virtue, hold- ing high the standard of morals, encouraging habits of industry, sobriety, economy, and diligence in our lawful avocations, cher- ishing our schools, training our children in the way they should go, guarding the Sabbath from profanation, and reverencing and sustaining the institutions of our holy religion. Thus doing, I see no grounds of apprehension for the future. The growth of the past fifty years is a prophecy and surety for its growth in the next. Our beautiful location may become still more attrac- tive, our business relations and resources more expanded, our population be again and again doubled, and our social, educa- tional, and Christian privileges augmented. So, leaving this, our heritage, our children and children’s children shall bless the God of their fathers, and say, ‘‘ Our lines are fallen unto us in pleasant places; yea, we have a goodly heritage.” Want OO MEN eh) Xs, INCLUDING PORTIONS OF THE DISCOURSE OMITTED IN THE DELIVERY. , NOTE I, PAGE ts. FIRE DEPARTMENT. Of the number of fires in Concord in the last fifty years I shall not presume to speak; they are too numerous to mention. Some of them, as will be readily recalled, were in the very heart of our city, and destructive of large amounts of property; but, to the praise of the enter- prise and energy of our people, our losses by fire have been our gain. Out of their ashes have arisen new, larger, more substantial and costly edifices, which stand to-day as proofs of our progress. Among the ruins by fire we count five of our churches, naming them in order: the Unitarian, 1854; the South Congregational, 1859; the West Congrega- tional, 1869; the Old North, 1870, after standing about 119 years; and last, the First Congregational, 1873. In 1825, and six or eight years later, the fire department was managed by what were called ‘‘ fire-wards,” appointed by the town, who, on occa- sions of fire, bore aloft the distinguishing badge of their office,—‘‘a staff five feet long, painted red, and headed with a bright spire six inches long,”* with a blue ribbon streaming from the apex. In 1825, and about eleven years later, there were only two small fire engines in the main village,—one of them called the ‘‘Literary *»—which were worked by a brake, six men on each side, with a hose from twenty to thirty feet in length, without any suction hose. At the cry of fire and the ringing of an alarm bell, the fire-wards seized their badge, the firemen sprung for their engines, to be drawn by hand, and the people, with pails and buckets, rushed to the scene. Then would be heard the word of command from * See Hist. Concord, p. 343. 40 a fire-ward, like the colonel of a regiment, ringing out in stentorian tones,—‘‘ Form a line!” Then the people,—all the people (whoever disobeyed did it at his peril) fell into line,—rather, two lines,—one to pass single buckets of water from the nearest accessible well, hand by hand, to empty one by one into the tub of the engine; the other line to return the buckets to be refilled. Then, all ready, the engine placed as near the fire as would not be too uncomfortable, a stream of water from a half-inch pipe would be thrown upon the burning build- ing. Sometimes the men in line worked faster than the men at the brakes could throw the water, and then tubs from the neighborhood would be in requisition to hold the surplus till wanted. Very unfor- tunate was it if a well, with five or six feet of water, should give out before the fire was got under: butso it often happened. And if a building was so unfortunate as to be burnt up, it was not, be it spoken, for want of good-will, nor want of a good sweat on the part of the brakemen, nor want of being heard by the fire-wards, nor because the people in lines did not help all they could. I smile to remember how many times I have stood in line by the hour passing buckets from hand to hand. The gentlemen of the Fire Department of 1875 may congratulate themselves, not only on the superior, splendid engines and apparatus which they possess for extinguishing fires, and at their superior skill in management, but also that they stand in an honored line of succes- | sion. Among the engine men of 1827 were a good portion of the most worthy, honored, and honorable citizens of the town. In a list of twenty-two names before me, I find the names of Francis N. Fisk, John George, John West, Dr. Moses Chandler, Jeremiah Pecker, Or- lando Brown, Richard Bradley, Robert Davis, Samuel Coffin, Charles Herbert, Richard Herbert, Luther Roby (chief engineer, 1827), James Buswell, and Samuel A. Kimball, Esqrs., with others of honorable name. I must not omit to record that at the fires. in former times there was always present one conspicuous character. Usually, first and foremost, you might see the glare of his big white eyes amid flames and smoke: seizing a ladder, and the fire-axe which he bore officially, he would ascend roofs, enter chambers, and cut his way to the very source of the fire; then, face to face with the fire-fiend, and with the stuttering cry of ‘‘ Water, water!” he would dash on pailful after pailful, or guide a well-directed stream from the engine to the exact spot. All due respect to the memory of Thomas: B. Sargeant, the champion fire-fighter of Concord fifty years ago. | 4I NOTE II, PAGE 29. STATISTICS OF SCHOOLS, FURNISHED BY C. F. STEWART, ESQ., CITY CLERK. Sum appropriated for schools in 1825, . 1826, . bay y Pet 1828, . 1829, . Total for the five years, $1,250.00 1,250.00 1,250.00 1,250.00 1,250.00 $6,250.60 I can find no satisfactory statement of the number of scholars for the above period, but in 1826 I find reported 893 scholars, with the number in District No. 17 (partly in Hopkinton) and District No. 5 omitted, which, if added, would probably give not far from a total of 925 scholars. In 1840 the appropriation for schools was raised to Number of scholars returned the same year, Appropriation for schools in 1850, Scholars in 1850,. Appropriation for schools in 1851, Scholars in 1851,. Appropriation for schools in 1852, ponolars Ti ro taut F : : 2 —equal to one fourth of the whole population: their report. Appropriation for schools in 1853, Scholars in 1853,. Appropriation for schools in 1854, Scholars in 1854, . Total appropriation for the five years, Appropriation for year ending March, 1870, Number of scholars, Appropriation for year ending March, 1871, Number of scholars, Appropriation for year ending March, 1872, Number of scholars, $2,070.00 1,062 $4,174.20 1,653 $4,219.32 1,624 $4,292.72 : : 2 1Og so say the committee in $5,471.86 2,300 $5,430.28 2,448 . $23,588.38 . $20,673.00 2,319 . $20,751.00 2,401 . $21,658.00 2,494 42 Appropriation for year ending March, 1873, f : : $23,959.00 Number of scholars, . : ; : ; 2 : 2,492 Appropriation for year ending March, 1874, : ! . $25,126.00 Number of scholars, . Ae an : : . £2) "2,468 Total appropriation for five years,. . . : $ }2,167.00 The above does not include the large amount expended for school- houses during the same time. To the foregoing it may be added, that in 1825, and several years later, all the school-houses then in town, with the exception of the brick house in No. 11, at the North end, and the old Bell school-house in the centre, were small one-story houses. With rare exceptions, all were built with large, old-fashioned fireplaces, and were warmed, not by stoves, but by piling on large quantities of wood to meet the exigencies of the weather. In the school report of 1827, the committee say,—‘‘ In some instances we have seen wood upon the fire, at one time sufficient, if burned in a stove, to keep a house warm during school hours for two or three days; and frequently beheld, with emotions of pain, the suffer- ings which those nearest the fire endured from its excessive heat, while others, more remote, have actually shivered with cold.” INTERESTING LETTER FROM HON. G. W. NESMITH. FRANKLIN, January 15, 1875. Rev. Dr. BOUTON :— My Dear Sir: You inquire whether I ever taught school in your school district, No. 11. I answer, I did act the pedagogue for the term of four months, commencing in the month of November, 1820, and terminating in March, 1821. I was employed by the late Francis N. Fisk. I boarded at the tavern then kept by Lemuel Barker. I cannot state to you the exact amount of wages received by me per month. My recollection would be, not much over twenty dollars per month. The price of board was two dollars per week. The school generally averaged about sixty scholars. Among the dead I recollect Paul George, Charles West, Charles Emery and his sister, Mrs. Towle, Miss Coffin, who married in New York city, and the daughter of Nathaniel Abbott, by name Eme- line, and some others who were superior scholars. Among the living, of the same order, I remember the wife of Judge Perkins, Rev. Mr. Le Bosquet, C. Thorn, and a few others. I find but a very few of my little flock now alive. * This was the number in actual attendance. 43 My testimony would place that district school above the average of district schools in this state at that time, in point of capacity and acquire- ments. Your brick school-house was erected in the year 1820, and I was the first to use it in my said capacity of school-master. I think my immediate predecessor in your district was a Mr. Bartlett, brother of the late Richard Bartlett, Esq. My successor was Samuel A. Burns, Esq., of Plymouth. Ataschool-meeting of your district voters, holden early in March, Capt. Joseph Walker presented a claim against the district, which the voters refused to allow; whereupon Capt. Walker obtained possession of the key of the house, and notified the district that there could be no school unless his bill was paid. I was allowed a vacation of three days in consequence of this zwzbroglio. The bill was at length paid up, and the house was opened. Of all this I did not complain, because my pay went on, and I enjoyed the days of rest; and my scholars said they had a good time. Walker got his pay, and the district escaped a lawsuit; and I never heard of any public meet- ings being held, either in Boston or New York, wherein Walker was denounced for employing zsconstitutional measures in obtaining my key, in order to enforce the payment of what was justly due him. The above occurrence formed an interesting episode in my school- master experience in your district, and so forms a like episode in my letter. I could proceed to detail to you many historical facts in relation to the men and measures of the legislature of the fall session of 1820, but all this would not be an appropriate answer to your inquiries: so you will allow me to stop here. Truly your friend, GEORGE W. NESMITH. DOME SET, PAG Rass te CONCORD LITERARY INSTITUTION AND TEACHERS’ SEMINARY. In the fall of the year 1834, a young gentleman from Andover, Mass., Mr. Timotuy D. P. STONE, came into Concord and proposed to opena High School, or Academy, provided a suitable building, with apparatus, could be furnished for the accommodation of the school. There being then no building that would answer the purpose, and the want of one being sensibly felt, especially by parents who had children to educate, the proposition was at once made to erect a suitable building for the purpose of a High School, or Academy. A subscription was accordingly ‘ % 44 opened,* and the requisite sum obtained, with the general expectation that the building would be erected on land offered for the purpose by GEORGE KENT, Esq.; but before the location was decided on, a propo- sition was made, by individuals residing in the north section of the vil- lage, that the building should be erected on Stickney’s hill, so called, west of the court house. ‘This proposition not being agreed to,+ it was then proposed by individuals at the north section to erect a building for an academy on land offered by RICHARD BRADLEY, EsqQ., and a subscrip- tion for the requisite sum was raised for the purpose.t In the mean- time trustees had been chosen by the subscribers in favor of the location on the ground of Mr. Kent, and by those in favor of the location on the ground of Mr. Bradley; but as it was obviously unnecessary and inex- pedient that there should be two institutions of the kind, a proposition was made to unite and erect the proposed building on land offered by SAMUEL A. KIMBALL, Eso., on the hill west of Union street, and since known as Academy Hill. A subscription for the building and for the purchase of an additional piece of land of Mr. Kimball was accordingly made, in shares of twenty- five dollars each, by individuals residing in the main village, and is as follows : SAMUEL A. KIMBALL, §—donation of land for the building. Woodbridge Odlin, ? guaranty land on the side of the hill east of Mr Reuben Wyman, Kimball’s land, needful for a road, &c. Shares.} Sum. Shares. Sum. ! Peter Elkins, . 2 $50.00 || Ezra Carter, . A : .| 1% | $37-50 David L. Morrill, 4 |100.00 || John Whipple, I 25.00 James Buswell, 2 50.00 || Isaac Clement, 2 50.00 Samuel Herbert, A 3 75.00 || George W. Ela, 2 50.00 [| Provided the building on Nathaniel Bouton, 4 I00.00 Richard Bradley’s land does Joseph C. Wallace, I 25.00 not go on. | Jewett Bishop, in work, I 25.00 John Farmer, in books, : I 253.00 || John Goss, . : 4 10.00 Abiel Walker [on condition || Edward Philbrick, ; ; 15.00 that a majority of the pro- || Michael Tubbs, . : 10.00 prietors unite in this loca- : || Henry M. Moore, in work,. y% 12.50 tion, and that a street be || Philip Sargent, . : uy I2.50 opened for convenient com- Neison P. Johnson, y% 12.50 munication from State St. || Hazen Walker, . 4 elie! 25.00 to the’Institution], 4 100.00 || A. B. Kelly, ; i Pais! 25.00 John’Miller, yy 12.50 || Shadrach Seavey, fk u% 12.50 Reuben Wyman, WA 12.50 | Isaac Emery, Jr., ; : % 12.50 eH. Peaslee; I 25.00 | Joshua K. Abbot, 7 25.00 Nathaniel Abbot, i in labor, I 25.00 || Woodbridge Odlin, I 25.00 Eas. Lowles ; 3 75.00 || Robert Davis, 3 75.00 Tho. Chadbourne, . 2 50.00 | Samuel Coffin, I 25.00 John Titcomb, in work, I 25.00 || Richard Herbert, 2 50.00 Horatio Hill, 3 75.00 | {saac Hills. 4 100.00 John West, . 3 75-00 | Richard Bradley, 4 100.00 Joseph C. West, I 25.00 | | * See:MS. Files, No. 1, in a box in the Library Room of the N. H. Hist. Soc. + See MS. File, "No. 2. + See MS. File. ¢ See Deed of Conveyance, on record in Register of Deed’s office. 45 & Subscribers at the South part of the Street, who have given their iShares: Sum. George Kent, Asaph Evans, tsaacueillie, Pare Low, part in appara- Nathaniel G. Upham, Samuel Fletcher, William Gault, Amos Wood, . Benjamin Thomson, John B. Chandler,” in appa- ratus, . ; Joseph ’P. Stickney, George Hutchins, Elisha Morrill, Hall Burgin, . Benj. Damon, in painting, James Straw, in joiner work, Joseph Robinson, . ; Ebenezer E. Cummings, William Esterbrook, Joseph Grover, Bradbury Gill, ‘ William T. Goodell, J. C. Emerson, Enos Blake, Samuel Evans, Daniel Carr, Edward Brackett, . Ira H. Currier, Aaron Carter, . . HHH HH HHAR HHH RHNDSD DNDN DA Oe ee > UW CO $200.00 125,00! 100.00 TOO,00) 100.00 100.00} 100.00 100.00!) 100.00) 100.00} 59.00) 50.00 50.00 || 50.00) Abraham Prescott, Asa Parker, in brick, . Aaron Morse, in 5 rate work, Daniel Dunlap, in joiner’ s work, Porter Blanchard, in cabi- net work, . Eliot A, Hill, in cabinet | work, Crockett & wont in cabi- net work, . Woodbury Brown, penter work, Jacob Abbot and Samuel C. Colby, in carpenter work, Cotton S. Brown, in carpen- ter work, . Philip Watson, in carpenter work, in car- | Thomas Butters, i in work, Silas G. Sylvester, in work, Reuben D. Morse, in car- penter work, . James Whittemore, in work, William Pearson, in work, Henry 5. Robbins, John Wheeler, in work, Richard Worthen, in brick or work, names, payable to William Gault, Treasurer. Shares HRA Hw eH | Sum, $25.00 25.00 25.00 25.00 25.00 25.00 25.00 25.00 25.00 25.00 for the Purchase of Land of Samuel A. Kimball, north of the site given for the Academy. Additional Subscriptions. Isaac Hall, in addition to former subscription. a ae Rogers, amilton Hutchins, S. C. Badger, ‘ P , Geo. Hutchins, in addition, Samuel Fletcher, in addition, F A. Capen, Jr., Benjamin Damon, in work, . ; Edward Brackett, . Asaph Evans, F Seth Eastman, - William Low, : - Joseph P. Stickney, Joseph Low, in addition, N. G. Upham, in addition, paid by note, Thomas Chadbourne, in ad- dition, paid by note, . N. Bouton, in addition, paid by note, John J. Ayer, in addition, paid by note, Shares. Load Sum. | $33-33, 25.00) 25. 00) 25. 00) £2: 00! 25. fore} 10.00. 10.00) 12.00! 15.900) 10.00 25.00) 25.00) 33-33 33-33) 25.00! 25.00) ote IShares | .| Sum. William West, . ; Nath’! Wheet, in apparatus, Gardner P. Lyon, Lewis Hall, Jno. Whipple, in | addition, Amos Wood, in addition, Base Chadwick, . George T. Pilsbury, David Kimball, Samuel Morril, Ezra Carter, Berea owle, i in addition, Sam’l Herbert, in addition, Francis N. Fisk, William Green, Peter Renton, Samuel Evans, in addition, J. B. Moore, paid by note, ‘Thomas Brown, John McDaniel, Robert Davis, in : addition, David L. Morril, Jonathan Herbert, Plymouth, MoH OH 46 At a general meeting of the above subscribers, all of whom were pro- prietors of the Institution, 18th February, 1835, the following persons were chosen a Board of Trustees, viz.: Nathaniel Bouton, Ebenezer E. Cummings, David L. Morril, Samuel Fletcher, Samuel A. Kimball, Isaac Hill, Nathaniel G. Upham, Hall Burgin, Thomas Chadbourne, William Gault, Abiel Walker, and Ezra Carter. The Trustees, on the 19th February, organized by choosing Rev. Nathaniel Bouton, Presi- dent of the Board, Rev. E. E. Cummings, Secretary, and Dea. William Gault, Treasurer. An act of incorporation was obtained; the building was erected on the proposed site, 58 feet long and 54 wide, two stories in height, with a cupola; entrance, two doors in front, one for males and the other for females; the apartments separated on the lower floor by a partition, with sliding doors. In the upper story were rooms for library, appa- ratus, and recitations, with a spacious hall for exhibitions. The cost of the building was about $3,500, exclusive of apparatus, and a library, estimated at $200. The building was publicly dedicated to the pur- poses of education 16th September, 1835, in the presence of the Trus- tees and a numerous assembly, by appropriate services, with an address by Rev. Mr. Bouton. The name of the institution was ‘‘ Zhe Concord Literary Institution and Teachers Seminary.” It comprised four departments : I. The Teachers’ Department, for the instruction of young men and ladies who wish to prepare to teach district schools. il. The Academical Department, for instruction in classical studies and preparing young men for college. III. The High School Department, for those who are preparing for business or usefulness in life without acquiring a classical education. IV. The Preparatory Class, to consist of such as are too young or too backward to enter either of the above departments. The institution was opened for instruction in the fall of 1835, Mr. T. D. P. Stone, Principal; Miss Elizabeth Fuller, Preceptress; Miss Rowena Coffin and Miss Mary K. Coffin, Assistants. Mr. Stone resigned in August, 1837, and the teachers who succeeded him were, in 1837—two terms—Mr. J. D. Berry, Miss Rowena Coffin. 1838—April term—Mr. Eden B. Foster, Miss Sarah Foster. 1838—August term—Charles Peabody, Miss S. Foster. 1838—December term—Mr. A. C. Heaton, ‘ 1839—April term—Mr. A. C. Heaton, BS 1839—August term—Mr. Charles Peabody, ‘* 1839—December term— te es 1840—April term— «6 “< \ r. Chatles Peabody, Miss S. Foster. m— is Miss Dow. Mr. Wm. C. Foster, Miss Sarah Foster. 6é 66 n— Struction of Mr. Stone the institution was very fl 837 to the close of 1841, thirteen terms, the a¥@ term, in the male department, was 43, and in the female , 34. The average yearly income for tuit‘on was $799.15, unerated the teachers. rrassed with a debt of about $1130, the Trustees in 1841 applied town for relief, and received an assignment and transfer of 600 es in the Concord Railroad, for which the town had subscribed, which they concluded not to carry on. These shares were sold, and 'y the Trustees transferred to Gen. Joseph Low, for $675. Thus only artially relieved, and pressed with other difficulties, arising from sec- tional, political, and sectarian causes, the Trustees, in March, 1844, decided ‘‘ to dispose of the corporate property of the institution,” and to offer the academy building for sale at public auction, on certain specified conditions. It was accordingly sold on the r1oth of May fol- lowing. It was bid off by Richard Pinkham, of Concord, for himself, S. C. Badger, and Asa Fowler, for $540. With this sum the debts of-- the institution were discharged. For some time afterwards, private schools were kept in the academy building ; but in 184-, the building was sold* to Hon. Isaac Hill, taken down, and removed; out of it were constructed two large dwelling- houses and a part of a third, situated at the lower end of Main street, Opposite to the carriage manufactory of Mr. Joseph S. Abbot. Thus endeth the history of the frs¢ and /as¢t public academy building ever erected in the town of Concord. Peace to its remains! ¢ NOTE. IV, PAGE. 32. GRADUATES. The list of graduates being incomplete, the author thinks it ine pedient to publish the names of those in his possession. They a reserved for future use. s * The owners at this time were Richard Pinkham and S. C. Badger. + For more particulars, see original recor(s in the library of the N. H. Hist. 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