mm 733 :15 CORNELL UNIVERSITY LIBRARY FROM The iiuthor Cornell University Library Z733.S15 A82 Salem Athenum. 1810-1910, by Joseph N olin 3 1924 029 533 241 Cornell University Library The original of this book is in the Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924029533241 SALEM ATHENi^UM TWO HUNDRED AND TEN COPIES PRINTED BY THE BERKELEY PRESS FOR THE SALEM ATHEN^UM SALEM, MASSACHUSETTS MCMXVII THE SALEM ATHEN^UM 1810-1910 BY JOSEPH N. ASHTON SALEM, MASSACHUSETTS 1917 COPYRIGHT, 1917 BY THE SALEM ATHEN^UM / [{ipiixq^ \ The preparation and publication of this history was authorized by the Proprietors of the Athenseum at the Centennial in 1910. The work of preparation was completed soon after, but circumstances have deferred its publication to the present time. J. N. A. SALEM ATHEN^UM The Salem AthenEeum was founded in the year Eighteen Hundred Ten. Salem was then a town of between twelve and thirteen thousand inhabitants. Commercially it was an important place, widely known for its extensive trade. Its mariners navi- gated the seas in every quarter of the globe, and its ships, returning, sailed into the harbor bearing valuable cargoes from every continent; in 1810 there were one hundred and sixty-six foreign entries into its port. But commercial enterprise and adventure did not preclude attention to intellectual development and the acquisition of knowledge. In this year there were twenty- two Salem boys in college,— thirteen at Harvard, four at Dartmouth, three at Bowdoin, and two at Brown. In the seaport town itself there were two libraries, each of which had had long and distinctive life, — the Social Library, formed in 1760, and the Philosophical Library, formed in 1781. It was as successor to these two libraries that the Athenaeum came into being. The collections of these societies originating in Colonial and Revolu- tionary days and the interest in learning and litera- ture they had fostered, constituted the basis upon which the Athenaeum was established. Their tra- ditions were inherited by it, and in it their ideals were blended. Moreover, there was continuity of personnel as well as of property, for the initiating founders of the Athenaeum were for the most part persons who had been active in promoting the earlier societies. In 1810 the early libraries terminated their individual existences; their shares were bought by the Athensum and their books transferred to it. But the Salem Athenaeum was not merely a union of the Social and Philosophical Libraries. It was far more. It was organized with nearly twice the num- ber of members of these early libraries combined, and with about three times their funds and resources. The Social Library had thirty-nine members and the Philosophical twelve. Eight persons were members of both associations, so that the combined constitu- ency of these earlier societies was forty-three. The number of original proprietors of the Athenaeum, however, was eighty-two. And in material matters also, the Athenaeum was in marked advance over the earlier organizations. For, whereas the value of the libraries of the earlier societies was estimated to be twenty-five hundred dollars,— the amount paid by the Athenaeum for them, —the property of the Athenaeum at the time of its foundation was more than three times that amount. The Athenaeum was thus estab- lished on a scale distinctly larger than that of its ante- cedents and with a range of influence much wider. The act incorporating the Athenaeum was approved by Governor Gore, March 6, 1810, and on April 11 of that year the first meeting of the Proprietors was held. At this meeting it was voted that the shares of the Athenaeum "be one hundred dollars", and also that the Athenaeum "purchase the Philosophical Library and the Social Library at fifty dollars a share". For the thirty-nine shares of the Social Library the sum of nineteen hundred and fifty dol- lars was accordingly paid, and six hundred dollars 10 for the twelve shares of the Philosophical Library, a total of twenty-five hundred and fifty dollars for the two libraries. Payment for the Athenaeum shares was made in two instalments of fifty dollars each, the first due May 23, 1810, and the second August 23, 1810. Eighty persons became proprie- tors on these terms and two others later by the single payment of the entire sum, one on September 14, 1810 and the other on November 27, 1810. These eighty-two original proprietors of the Athenaeum either paid in cash or, by the transmission of their holdings in the earlier libraries, were accredited with the payment of the sum of eight thousand, two hun- dred dollars. The foundation of the Athenaeum was thus greater by more than five thousand dollars than the assets of the Social and Philosophical Libraries combined. On May 7, 1810, the Trustees appointed John D. Treadwell, Joseph Story, and John Pickering, Jr., a committee to make a list of additional books which they might think desirable for the new library to procure. The committee reported at a meeting on the twenty-first of the same month and thereupon it was voted that "the List of Books reported by the Committee, amounting to about six hundred pounds sterling (including all costs and charges and insur- ance, except freight and duties in the United States) be purchased in London for the Athenaeum." This was the largest single purchase of books ever made by the Library. In addition to this great purchase abroad books were bought of local booksellers, and furthermore somewhat over two hundred dollars in the aggregate were allowed to proprietors for books taken as part payment for shares. In this latter way 11 a number of valuable books came to the library. At this time too the Athenaeum received many books by gift and some valuable papers and documents. The most important of these perhaps were "the two volumes of New England newspapers and other papers of the years 1736-1739" given by Judge Sam- uel Sewall, great grandson of Judge Samuel Sewall, the witchcraft judge, and diarist, and the donation by Leverett Saltonstall of "one of the DUPLICATES of KING CHARLES' CHARTER of the PROV- INCE of the MASSACHUSETTS BAY engrossed on parchment." In the latter part of May, 1810, the Trustees appointed a committee "to bargain and agree with Messrs. Hathorne and Gray for two rooms in their Central Building on Market street for the use of the Proprietors of the Salem Athenaeum for the term of five years' ' ; and in the following month two of their number were delegated "to employ some person to make Boxes and Cases for the books belonging to the Athena2um, and also to procure tables, chairs and other necessary articles for the Library and Reading Room." From the fact that some of the early meetings of the Trustees are recorded as having been held "at the Social Library Room in the Central Building" it would seem not unlikely that the Athenaeum secured for itself this room of the Social Library and another adjoining it; but unfor- tunately the records of the Athenaeum do not contain evidence to estabhsh the identity of the rooms used by the two societies. That the Athenaeum did take the rooms occupied by the Social Library is however asserted in statements regarding the library made at a much later date. 12 On Wednesday, July 11, 1810, the library began its active life. On that day the rooms in the Cen- tral Building on Market (now Central) street which had been leased by the Trustees were opened for the use of the Proprietors and the books of the Athe- naeum became available for readers at the library and for circulation. Thereafter the Proprietors had access to rooms and books every day, Sunday excepted, * 'from nine in the morning till sunset' ' . In announc- ing the opening of the library in the Salem Gazette of July 10, 1810, it is stated that the Librarian would be present between the hours of two and three in the afternoon. The books ordered from abroad in May, 1810, came in due season, for on July 31, 1810, Timothy Williams was paid $1500 on this account and on September 4, 1810, a balance of $1140. These pur- chases must have arrived in Salem and have been in use by Thanksgiving time of that year as the Trus- tees voted at their meeting November 12, 1810, "that the trunks, etc., in which the books were imported from London be disposed of to Mr. John Jenks at two dollars each." The final act in instituting the Athenaeum was the making of a catalogue, provision for preparing and printing which was made soon after the accession of the books from London. Accordingly in 1811 the first catalogue of the Athenaeum appeared. This was a pamphlet of seventy-two pages and contained 2700 titles, series of volumes such as encyclopedias, tran- sactions, and magazines, each counting only as one title. The books were listed chiefly according to author, and the date and place of publication of each book was given. A feature of this catalogue was 13 the leaving of a blank space after each alphabetical group for the insertion of additions. A copy of the catalogue was presented to each proprietor. The first years of the Athenaeum were marked by prosperity and growth. In them its body of proprie- tors was considerably enlarged and its store of books increased. Between 1810 and 1824 fifteen additional proprietors were admitted; one in 1811, one in 1813, three in 1814, three in 1815, four in 1816, one in 1819, one in 1821, and one in 1823. All the new members paid one hundred dollars for their shares, except the one admitted in 1821 and the one admit- ted in 1823. Each of these paid one hundred and fifty dollars. The proceeds from the sale of these shares, aggregating sixteen hundred dollars and aver- aging over one hundred dollars a year, became directly available for the support and increase of the library in addition to the amount annually derived from assessments for that purpose. This first period in the history of the Athenaeum, it should be noted, was clearly a continuation and completion of the process of establishing the institution rather than an expression or result of any new tendency or condition. In 1815, at the expiration of the lease of the rooms in the Central Building, the library was removed to Essex Place, a building on Essex street at the head of Central street. Here it remained ten years. In 1825 rooms were secured over the Salem Bank in a building on the site of the present Downing block on Essex street. The Athenaeum remained here six- teen years, and in 1841 moved to Lawrence Place, at the corner of Washington and Front streets, where it continued until 1857. 14 ^^ -Ti^ £^^^^^ ai^^ ^^:^^,,.^ >=;: :^^tCs:^^:2L. The records of the early meetings of the Trustees were signed by all those present. A rule requiring this was adopted at the first meeting, April 23, 1810, and was repealed at the seventh meeting, July 13, 1810. During its location in these various buildings, or ' 'places' ' , the daily conduct of the library was simple in the extreme. The rooms were unlocked by the janitor upon his arrival in the morning or at latest by nine o'clock, the stated time for opening; the librarian was on duty one hour during the day ; and soon after "sunset", the specified time for closing, the janitor completed the routine work of the day by making the rooms fast for the night. At first the librarian's hour was from two to three in the afternoon, but from 1811 to 1857 it was from twelve to one. The proprietors used both rooms and books freely, leaving on the Librarian's desk memoran- dums of books taken or returned during the hours he was not in attendance. To be discriminating and critical with regard to books was not a requisite of the librarian ; the duties of the office were chiefly clerical, and the salary was slight, — twenty-five dol- lars a year from 1810 to 1843, when it was increased to fifty dollars. The position was not infrequently held by young men recently graduated from college. As might be expected in these circumstances tenures were short; no less than seventeen appointments were made to the position in the thirty years from 1810 to 1840. In the course of years some slight modifications were made in the by-laws and regulations. Begin- ning with 1834 the library was closed between the hours of one and two; and about 1840 a rule was made that ' 'no books be allowed to be taken from the Library except in the presence of the Librarian or his substitute." An attempt was made to enforce this rule, but trustworthy evidence and tradition make it clear that its enforcement was only tempo- 15 rary and short-lived and that the practice above described continued to prevail. Lax though this method of conducting the library was, it nevertheless seems to have been tolerably sat- isfactory to the proprietors. No complaints were entered, nor were any suggestions of change made by them. Some unhappy incidents, however, resulted. In 1814, and again in 1824, valuable plates were cut from certain volumes in the library, and moreover from time to time in the course of years books were lost sight of through carelessness and inattention. Lists of such missing books were printed in 1824 and in 1839, the latter containing one hundred and twelve titles. That there should have been some untoward happenings, some loss of books under such loose management is not surprising. Indeed, the surprising thing is that matters went as well as they did through these years of slight supervision. Not until 1857 was the library placed in the charge of a constant attendant. The first dozen years or more of the life of the Athenaeum had been a period of growth and pros- perity. In 1827 a second period began. In this year the institution fell into debt and the proprietors thereupon authorized the Trustees to borrow "any sum of money not exceeding five hundred dollars." The purchase of all books, excepting the regular periodical journals, was suspended and the Treasurer was instructed to sell shares upon which assessments were overdue. In the next year, however, it became possible to resume the purchase and importation of books; but the period of growth and prosperity had nevertheless come to a close and a period of depression had been entered upon. 16 Prior to 1827, three shares had in the course of seven years been sold for assessments, but after that date such sales became rather frequent. In the ten years from 1827 to 1837 fifteen shares were sold at auction for arrears. In 1835 the Athenaeum began to buy delinquent shares, the Proprietors at the an- nual meeting in that year having authorized the Trustees "to buy at their discretion any share, for sale, of the Athenaeum to be the property of the Athenaeum". On August 27, 1835, six shares w^ere accordingly bought by the Corporation for from fourteen dollars, the amount due for assessments, to seventeen dollars. These were inactive from 1835 to 1840. In the latter year the Treasurer was given permission "to lease shares in the Library at three dollars per annum to any who will pay the annual assessments". Five of the shares held in the treas- ury, however, were sold subsequently in the year, and only one remained to be so leased. In 1843 the Athenaeum again began to contract the number of its shares, buying in that year four upon which as- sessments had become overdue. Sums ranging from eight to ten and a half dollars were paid for these. In 1847 four more shares were bought for assess- ments. At length, in the year 1850, fifteen shares so acquired were held in the treasury. Those were the dark days of the Athenaeum, and it was realized that they were such. In 1848 a committee was ap- pointed "to consider what means may be suggested to render the institution more generally useful' ' ; at the annual meeting in 1849 the Treasurer was authorized "to sell the shares belonging to the Cor- poration at a sum not less than ten dollars" ; and at this meeting the Proprietors furthermore created 17 the possibility of subscribers by authorizing the Trustees "to permit non-proprietors to take books from the library as proprietors, subject to the same conditions, etc. , on payment of six dollars per annum or three dollars for six months". Happily soon after 1850 the skies began to brighten and before 1854 the shareholders became nearly as numerous as they had been prior to 1827. So the records run ; but to interpret them aright many facts which do not appear in them must be borne in mind. For these years, far from being a period of inaction, were really years of increasing intellectual activity in the community ; new interests received attention, the field of activity was enlarged, and new associations were formed to embody the development. In 1821 a historical association, the Essex Histori- cal Society, was formed in Salem. It had as its object "the collection and preservation of authentic memorials relating to the civil history of the county of Essex, and the eminent men who had resided within its limits; also all facts relating to its natural history and topography". The founders of the society were for the most part members of the Athenaeum; its first president was the president of the Athenaeum, and its successive presidents also were, almost invariably, persons who at the same time held the presidency of the Athenaeum. The mem- bership of this society was always comparatively small. An organization which attracted a large following, however, was the Salem Lyceum, formed in 1830. For more than fifty years this association conducted in Salem series of lectures on the widest variety of 18 subjects. The list of lectures, both general and technical, in the first fifty courses, (1830-1879), is indeed impressive ; so too is the list of lecturers,— John Quincy Adams, Horace Mann, Daniel Web- ster, Edward Everett, Rufus Choate, Ralph Waldo Emerson, George Bancroft, Samuel Gridley Howe, Robert C. Winthrop, Theodore Parker, Wendell Phillips, Jared Sparks, Mark Hopkins, John S. Dwight, Charles Sumner, Asa Gray, Louis Agassiz, John B. Gough, Bayard Taylor, Henry Ward Beecher, Oliver Wendell Holmes, Edward Everett Hale, Thomas Wentworth Higginson, and James Russell Lowell. There were about twenty lectures each winter. At first the speakers were mostly resi- dents of Salem, but as years went on noted men from outside preponderated. Ralph Waldo Emerson was their most frequent lecturer, giving thirty-three lectures in the course of the thirty-six years from ■ 1835 to 1871. Other frequent lecturers of wide re- pute were: Wendell Phillips (16), Theodore Par- ker (12), Louis Agassiz (10), Henry Ward Beecher (8), Oliver Wendell Holmes (7), and Horace Mann (7). John Quiney Adams and Daniel Webster each came to Salem twice to address the Lyceum. At first the Lyceum held its lectures in churches, — in the Methodist meeting-house on Sewall street and in the Universalist meeting-house on Rust street. This, however, was merely an expedient, for within a twelvemonth after its inception the association had erected a building for its own special purpose, a wooden building on Church street a few doors from Washington street, having an auditorium in the form of an ancient Roman theatre. The hall was first used January 20, 1831. 19 Soon after the formation of the Lyceum another association was formed in Salem embodying still another phase of intellectudi interest, The Essex County Natural History Society. This society, un- like the two just mentioned, was, as its name indi- cates, distinctly a county organization. Its first president was a resident of Danvers, and its vice presidents came from Ipswich and Bradford. The society was formed in 1833 and was incorporated in 1836. Though a county organization, its home was in Salem ; here were its cabinet and its library. In 1848 this society united with the Essex Historical Society to form the Essex Institute. The organization of these societies, devoted to kin- dred and allied purposes and appealing largely to the same constituency, naturally tended to diminish the support given the Athenaeum. Added to this was the faot that the initial impulse which had organized and governed the Athenaeum had by 1827 nearly spent itself. Changes had inevitably taken place in the proprietary body, and the original board of trus- tees had become seriously invaded by death, retire- ment, and removal from town. In 1823 Nathaniel Bowditch had removed to Boston and the Athenaeum had in consequence lost his "faithful and indefati- gable services as a Trustee". In the same year Dr. Benjamin Lynde Oliver had declined re-election, and Dr. John D. Treadwell in the following year. In 1827 Nathaniel Silsbee, who had been elected United States Senator from Massachusetts, retired from the board, as did also Mr. John Pickering, who had moved to Boston. There now remained of the original board in service only Dr. Edward A. Holyoke, the President, then in his hundredth year, 20 and Hon. Joseph Story, who was in Washington a portion of each year where he was making a record of distinction on the Supreme Bench second only in the annals of our Government to that of the great Chief Justice with whom he was so long associated. Dr. Holyoke died in 1829; and in 1830 Justice Story, having in the preceding year been appointed pro- fessor of law at Harvard and on that account having moved to Cambridge, retired from the board of trus- tees of the Athenaeum. The task presented to the group of trustees who succeeded the original board was a difficult one, but they proved themselves faith- ful and efficient. Under their direction the library rendered valuable service. The decline in member- ship which took place at this time was not caused by their action or by their inaction, neither could it have been prevented by them. Though this period from 1827 to 1854 was one of financial stress and of somewhat diminished vigor, yet it was during this time that the Athenaeum was nourishing Hawthorne from its literary and histori- cal lore, — Nathaniel Hawthorne was a proprietor from 1828 to 1839 and again from 1848 to 1850,— and it was also during this period that the Athenae- um received its first bequests. In 1838 the sum of one thousand dollars was be- queathed to the Athenaeum by Nathaniel Bowditch, LL. D., F. R. S., one of the founders of the institu- tion and a member of the original board of trustees. The gift was made in the following words: ' 'It is well known that the valuable library of the celebrated Dr. Richard Kirwan, was, during the Revolutionary war, captured in the British Channel, on its way to Ireland, by a Beverly Privateer; and that by the liberal and enlightened views of the owners of the vessel, the library thus captured, was sold at a very low rate; and 21 in this manner was laid the foundation, upon which have been suc- cessfully established the Philosophical Library, so called, and the present Salem Athenaeum. Thus, in early life, I found near me a better collection of philosophical and scientific books than could be found in any other part of the United States nearer than Philadel- phia. And by the kindness of its proprietors I was permitted freely to take books from that library, and to consult and study them at pleasure. This inestimable advantage has made me deeply a debtor to the Athenaeum; and I do therefore give to that Institu- tion the sum of one thousand dollars, the income thereof to be for- ever applied to the promotion of its objects, and the extension of its usefulness." In 1838 also, ten proprietors united in subscribing for a copy of Audubon's Plates of "The Birds of America" in four folio volumes, and presented this famous work to the Athenccum. The second bequest to the Athenaeum came in 1846 by the will of Miss Mehitabel Higginson, who made the following designation : — I give and bequeath to the Proprietors of the Salem Athenaeum the sum of five hundred dollars (2500.00) and upon the express condition, that the said sum shall be put at interest and that said interest shall be annually appropriated for the purchase of books in the French, Italian, German, Spanish and other foreign Lan- guages, at the discretion of the Trustees — always giving the pre- ference to such works of History, Voyages, Travels, and works of general Literature and Science as will be most useful to persons studying those Languages." In 1851 the Athenaeum received its third bequest, one thousand dollars by the will of Miss Susan [na] Burley. This was granted as follows : — I give to the Salem Athenaeum one thousand dollars, to be paid in one year after my decease by my executors and I direct that three fifths parts of said sum be appropriated by the Trustees to the purchase of rare and esteemed Theological works, and the remain- ing two fifths parts thereof to be appropriated to the purchase of books in foreign languages." 22 Up to 1850 the Athenaeum had published five complete catalogues. The first, issued in 1811, con- tained 2700 titles, while the fifth, issued in 1842, contained nine thousand. In the interval between the publication of these, others were printed, in 1818, 1826, and 1834. Beginning in 1833 annual supplements were issued for nearly a score of years. The catalogue of 1842 is particularly interesting in that in it the books are for the first time classified according to subject. There are five chief divisions: (1) Theology, (2) Jurisprudence, Government and Politics, (3) Sciences and Arts, (4) Belles Let- tres, and (5 ) History. Theology occupies fifteen pages. Jurisprudence seven. Sciences and Art six- teen, Belles Lettres eighteen, and History thirty-five. Seriousness preponderates. Fiction is a sub-section under Belles Lettres and fills six pages. The great modern out-put of novels, it should be recalled, was at that time just beginning. Small though this section is, it nevertheless includes many of the then recent and contemporary writers, — Scott, Dick- ens, Fenimore Cooper, and Washington Irving. Books of travel were then very much in popular favor, and accordingly the sub-section under History entitled Voyages and Travel is large, filling ten pages and including travels in Siberia, Paraguay, Nubia, Siam, and other remote lands. The spirit of the age is furthermore reflected in the classifications. Addi- son's Spectator, for instance, is listed under Moral Philosophy, apparently being considered more im- portant then as a book of precepts than as a work of literature. The dominance of the theological idea of design in the thought of the age is clearly seen in this catalogue: works with the following titles 23 are found under Natural Religion:— Buckland, On Geology and Mineralogy; Kirby, History and In- stincts of Insects, (referred to by Hawthorne in his American Note Books); Roget, On Animal and Vegetable Physiology; and Prout, Chemistry, Meteo- rology, and the Function of Digestion. A third period in the history of the Athenaeum had its beginning in the year of 1854. In this year the institution received its largest bequest, — the sum of thirty thousand dollars by the will of Miss Caro- line Plummer, designated to provide a building for the Athenaeum. The gift was made in memory of her brother, Ernestus Augustus Plummer, who was born November 2, 1781 and died September 28, 1823. He had been a proprietor from 1814 to 1818 and again from 1820 to the time of his death. His share was retained by his sister until her death, May 15, 1854. In addition to providing a building for the Athenaeum Miss Plummer by her will founded the Plummer Professorship of Christian Morals in Harvard University and established in Salem the Plummer Farm School of Reform for Boys. The clause in Miss Plummer' s will granting the bequest to the Athen'aeum is as follows: — ' 'I give and bequeath to the Proprietors of the Salem Athenaeum the sum of Thirty Thousand Dollars, directing said bequest to be very distinctly recorded as a gift from my beloved brother Ernestus A. Plummer, I making the bequest in conformity to what I think would have been his wish, he having felt a deep interest in the welfare of this literary institution, and the observatory having been furnished with large additional funds. The said sum of thirty thousand dollars shall be appropriated to the purchasing a piece of land in some central and convenient spot in the City of Salem, and for building thereon a safe and elegant building of brick or stone to be employed for the purpose of depositing the books belonging 24 PLUMMER HALL, 1857 to said Corporation, with liberty also to have the rooms thereof used for meetings of any scientific or literary institutions, or for the deposite of any works of art or natural productions. Should said library ever become a public one this bequest shall not be forfeited. I expressly prohibit any part of said building or its cellar from being used as a public or private office of business or place for the sale or deposits of merchandise, being unwilling that said building should be used for any purposes which might endanger by fire the valuable library therein contained. The said building to be erected and the books belonging to the said Corporation to be deposited in it with- in three years from the time of receiving the legacy or of my decease. Said building to be kept constantly insured." A site was selected and purchased in 1855 and plans for the construction of a building were taken under consideration. In her will Miss Plummer had granted liberty "to have the rooms thereof (of the building) used for meetings of any scientific or literary institutions, or for the deposite of works of art or natural productions," and the question arose as to whether the Athenaeum should erect a building to meet its own needs only or one which would afford room also for the Essex Institute. After much discussion the Proprietors voted to erect a building of two stories which would accommodate both itself and the Essex Institute. The work of construction was begun in 1856 and the building was dedicated in October of the following year. Mr. Enoch Fuller was the architect. It was a struc- ture of brick and freestone, Its two stories were alike in plan, — a central entrance hall with a single room on either side, and a large hall in the rear occupying about two-thirds of the entire floor space. The Athenaeum reserved the upper floor of the building for its own use. Here in the large hall the major portion of its library was placed. Shelving 25 was provided by cases built against the walls and in triangular alcoves which extended into the hall on either side. The inner apices of these alcoves terminated in ornamental columns, which formed an inner hall area. The alcoves were divided into two stories, but the columns extended from floor to roof. With its series of stately Corinthian columns supporting a high and slightly vaulted ceiling and its shelved walls and well-disposed alcoves filled with books, it was a library hall of considerable distinction. Structually it was the most important room in the building. It was entered however only through the front corner rooms. One of these, that to the left of the entrance hallway, was used by the Athenaeum as its reading room. Here were to be found the Librarian's desk (on a slightly raised platform), the catalogue, books of reference, the current mag- azines, and the latest additions to the library. The use of the lower floor and some additional shelf room on the upper floor was assigned to the Essex Institute. At the time of the occupancy of Plum- mer Hall the Essex South District Medical Society, organized in 1805, was admitted to the use of a portion of the building for the deposit of its library, and in 1862 the Essex Agricultural Society, organ- ized in 1818, was given room for its library. These collections were contained in the room at the right of the hallway on the second story, opposite the reading room of the Athenaeum. The hall on the lower floor, controlled by the Essex Institute, was frequently used for public lectures and concerts. Its location, on the first floor, directly accessible from the hallway, made it more available for such purposes than the hall above; it was, however, less 26 interesting architecturally than that, and was five feet less in height. The building was dedicated October 6, 1857, and the addresses delivered on that occasion, together with a memoir of the Plummer family, were pub- lished in a single pamphlet in the following year. In 1858 the Athenaeum also issued a volume containing a catalogue of the books in the library, the by-laws, and a brief historical sketch of the institution. The acquisition of a building brought a new era in the history of the Athenaeum. This period, actively entered upon in 1857, continued until 1907, exactly fifty years. The bringing together of the various intellectual activities into one building gave rise to a new and fundamental problem, that of the permanent individuality and the ultimate relation- ship of the various institutions and interests in Salem, literary, scientific, and historical. The characteristic features of this period accordingly appear under two distinct aspects: first, the determination of the rela- tionship of the Athenaeum to other institutions; and second, the development of the institution itself. The correlation of the various interests was the lead- ing problem and came to be the dominant feature of the period. It will therefore be considered first. Miss Plummer' s will, through the permissions therein granted, anticipated the needs and made provision for the solution of the more important problems of the period following her bequest. The Athenaeum was designated by her as the individual beneficiary, but regard was shown for other interests of a kindred sort. In 1799 an interesting and impor- tant organization had been established in Salem, the East India Marine Society. This association had 27 three objects: to assist its own indigent members; "to collect such facts and observations as tend to the improvement and security of navigation;" and "to form a museum of natural and artificial curiosities, particularly such as are to be found beyond Cape of Good Hope and Cape Horn". As to member- ship the by-laws provided that "any person shall be eligible as a member of this society, who shall actu- ally have navigated the seas near the Cape of Good Hope or Cape Horn, either as master or com- mander, or as a factor or supercargo of any vessel belonging to Salem, or, if a resident in Salem, of any vessel belonging to any port in the United States". The museum collected by this society was a most remarkable one. In 1821, as has already been noted, the Essex Historical Society had been formed in Salem, and in 1833 residents of Essex County interested in natural history had organized the Essex County Historical Society with Salem as its place of meeting. These two societies were united in 1848 to form the Essex Institute. Consideration for these interests is in evidence in Miss Plummer's permis- sion "to have the rooms thereof (of the building) used for meetings of any scientific or literary insti- tutions, or for the deposite of any works of art or natural productions". In planning their building the Proprietors of the Athenaeum had generously provided room for the library and museum of the Essex Institute. In 1867 a most important event took place. In this year Mr. George Peabody founded the Peabody Academy of Science (Pea- body Museum of Salem), giving funds for the pros- ecution of work in natural history, — forty thousand dollars for a building and one hundred thousand 28 dollars as endowment. At this time the Essex Insti- tute relinquished its scientific work and committed its collections of specimens of natural history to the care of the new institution, as did also the East India Marine Society. By the substantia] bequest of Mr. Peabody scientific study in Salem acquired an abode of its own and was no longer in need of the protect- ing roof of the Athenaeum. It has since lived its life by itself and not associated or conjoined with other activities. Another provision in Miss Plummer's will men- tions specifically an interest then in its infancy which has since become one of the notable institutions in American life, the public library. During this period of the Athenaeum's history, from 1857 to 1907, the public library developed and acquired a function in the community second educationally only to the pub- lic schools. The provision in Miss Plummer's will that "should said library ever become a public one this bequest shall not be forfeited" evinced intimate acquaintance with contemporary movements and wise foresight. In 1848 the Massachusetts Legis- lature Ijad empowered the City of Boston to raise five thousand dollars yearly for the support of a pub- lic library and in 1854 the present Public Library was opened. Meanwhile, in 1851, the Legislature had extended the act to include all other cities and towns in the Commonwealth. The first effort to establish a free public library in Salem was made in 1873. In this year the mayor brought the matter to the front in his inaugural address, and much con- sideration was given to the matter. The friendly interest of the Athenaeum is shown by a vote of the Proprietors in May, 1873, and repeated the next year, 29 "that the subject of a Free Library be referred to the Trustees with authority to confer with the City Council and with other committees and report the results". But this effort to consolidate the existing libraries in Salem and establish a municipal one failed. Several years later, the project was revived. At their annual meeting in 1885, the Proprietors voted to "consent to the use of said (their) library as a portion of a Public Library for the City of Salem, provided that a satisfactory plan be entered into with such other Library associations of the city to unite with the Athenaeum for this purpose on conditions acceptable to all". The plan devised at this time contemplated the remodelling of Plummer Hall and the union of the libraries of the Athenaeum, the Essex Institute, and of two minor libraries, that of the Salem Mechanic Association, organized in 1817, and that of the Salem Fraternity, organized in 1869. This effort was not directly successful, but it shortly led to a definite and tangible result. In Decem- ber, 1887, the problem was solved by the gift of property which would serve as a home for a munici- pal library which the city was at that time willing and ready to create, and on July 8, 1889 the present Public Library on upper Essex street was opened. Thus terminated the possibility of the absorption or obscuration of the Athenaeum by union or consoli- dation to form a public library. One more relationship remained to be determined in this period — that of the Athenseum and the Essex Institute. This problem, the last to be solved, was the first in point of origin. Plummer Hall had been built to meet the needs of both institutions, and in this fact is to be found the source of that 30 uncertainty which characterized the period. By the very nature of things the co-occupation of Plummer Hall by the Athenaeum and the Essex Institute as planned in 1857 could not really be permanent, for both were growing institutions. The Essex Insti- tute, especially, because of its extensive collection of pamphlets and of the large amount of space required for the preservation and display of its accumulations of articles of historic interest, became constantly in need of more room. In 1886 the Institute purchased the Daland estate adjoining Plummer Hall; it con- tinued, however, in the use of the room which had been provided for it in Plummer Hall. In 1900 still more room was needed by the Institute and its Direc- tors sought to purchase Plummer Hall, but the negotiations came to naught. Three years later they again approached the Athenasum with regard to the matter, and in 1905 Plummer Hall was sold to the Essex Institute. The Athenaeum then secured a site at 339 Essex street and erected thereon a new Plummer Hall for its own exclusive use. The new building was completed in May, 1907 and in the following month the library was moved from the first Plummer Hall, which then came into the full possession of the Essex Institute. By this transaction in 1907 the period of drifting and uncertainty, begun in 1857, was brought to a close, — a period long in duration and slow in action, but of fundamental and far-reaching impor- tance for the future. Henceforth the various socie- ties in Salem concerned with letters, science, and history were to maintain each a separate and distinc- tive existence and organization. The development of the Athenaeum during these 31 years from 1857 to 1907 was fairly normal. The events just set forth as constituting the salient feature of this period giving it, its character and marking its bounds, appear as such only in retrospect. To the men and women of that time they were rather as passing incidents, serious and acute to be sure, but so only for the time being. Nothing need neces- sarily have come from them. The changes which did take place were fortuitous; at no stage in the course of events could one have forecast what the outcome would be, for the determining factors in the process were for the most part derived from per- sonal interest and personal action. So it came about that the Athenaeum continued through these many years to render genuine and vital service in the com- munity, though to a far less extent than it was really capable of giving; and thereby it resulted that this period in the life of the Athenaeum, though overcast and affected by the uncertainty which characterized it, was otherwise fairly normal. When, in 1857, the Athenaeum moved from its quarters in Lawrence Place to Plummer Hall, the membership was practically as large as it had ever been. There were at this time ninety-six proprie- tors, one share being then in the treasury. Of these ninety-seven shares eighty-two had been issued in 1810, and fifteen in the dozen years immediately following. The acquisition and occupation of a large and commodious building seemed to be an opportune time for extending the usefulness of the Library, and accordingly an effort was made at this time to increase its constituency. At the first annual meeting held in the new building, in May 1858, it was voted "that the Trustees be authorized 32 to sell additional shares at twenty dollars each." But to this vote there was no response, for the times were most unpropitious. The financial panic of 1 857 had seriously affected the fortunes of many Salem families. Then came the Civil War, and finally the period of recovery from its economic and financial disturbances. It was not until well into the seven- ties that normal conditions again prevailed. The movement in 1873 to establish a public library in Salem may be taken as an indication of returning interest in books and reading. The founding by Mr. George Peabody of the Academy of Science in 1867 was not only a boon to one branch of study; it also had a stimulating effect on the general spirit of the community. The era from 1857 to 1907 falls clearly into three divisions: first came this period of inaction from 1857 to 1873; then the period of agitation with reference to establishing a public library, from 1873 to 1889; and finally the period in which the Essex Institute, under the roof of the Athenaeum and close beside it, grew very rapidly while the Athenaeum itself remained stationary. Now, if we reckon the third period as ending with the sale of Plummer Hall to the Institute in 1905, all these periods, curi- ously enough, were of exactly the same length, six- teen years each. The two years taken up in plan- ning and erecting the new Plummer Hall completed the fifty years which comprise the entire period. The use of a separate building in 1857 necessitated re-arrangement in the routine management of the library. It became necessary to have someone in attendance during all the time the library was open. In 1858 the matter of devising "some plan for the 33 permanent employment of a librarian and for the care of the Library" was taken under consideration. Temporary arrangements were made in this and the two following years, and in 1861 a permanent libra- rian "with fixed compensation, duties, etc.," was appointed. Miss E. K. Roberts was the first Libra- rian under this plan, and since her appointment there have been but four other Librarians of the Athenaeum. As a consequence of the change in the character and extent of the librarian's service, library hours were changed at the time of the occupancy of Plum- mer Hall. The hours appointed were from nine to one and from two to five. Since 1857 these have been varied somewhat. The hour of opening in the morning has at different times been half past eight, quarter before nine, and nine o'clock; that of after- noon closing has been either five or six. For a number of years the library was closed at five in winter and at six in summer. In May, 1884 the position of assistant librarian was created and noon closing was done away with. Since 1904 the hours of the library have been from nine in the morning to six in the afternoon. For the last two years the library has also been open on Sunday afternoons from the first of October to the first of June and on certain legal holidays. The number of volumes in the library in 1857 was about eleven thousand. To these additions have steadily been made through annual appropriations, and in the course of the fifty years since 1857 the collection has more than doubled. In the Historical Sketch of Salem published in 1879 the number of volumes was estimated to be about sixteen thousand, 34 and in a leaflet of information issued by the Athe- naeum in 1890 it was placed at twenty-one thousand, five hundred. At the time of the centennial in 1910 the library was found by actual count to comprise 26,136 volumes. Information regarding additions to the library has now for many years been furnished the pro- prietors by means of printed monthly lists. At first these lists were kept at the library for distribution, but since 1902 they have been sent to every proprie- tor and subscriber each month. With the large increase in the size of libraries generally in the latter part of the nineteenth century, and more especially because of the great size attained by the larger ones, the printed pamphlet form of catalogue became outgrown. The catalogue which the Athenaeum issued in 1858 was the last it printed. Interleaved with new accessions, it was used in the library for twenty-five years, by the end of which time it had become imperfect and had fallen into considerable confusion, and its revision was urgent. In 1883 needed action was taken and the work of transition from the old to a new method of catalog- ing was begun. In this year the library was re-class- ified and a new manuscript catalogue in book form was made for temporary use. In the next year work was begun on a card catalogue of the library, and in 1889 the present card catalogue was completed and put into use. This has been kept up and revised, and is in excellent condition. Still further improve- ment was made in the years 1896, 1897 and 1898, when the library was classified according to the Dewey decimal system. Before this time the so- called "fixed position" system had been used. In 35 this the shelves were numbered and the books, arranged according to subject, were catalogued by the number of the shelf on which they were to be found. In the new system subjects and authors, and not shelves, are fundamental; the books are labelled according to a decimal and alphabetic plan wherein the class and sub-class is designated by means of numbers used on a decimal basis and the author by his initial letter and a subsidiary numeral. The new method, though not very complicated, classi- fies the books more closely than the former; it is much more flexible in daily use ; and with it the library, evergrowing as every living library must, expands organically and systematically. The regulations of the Athenaeum regarding the use of the Ubrary have always been liberal. This is true of it both as a circulating library and as a read- ing room. Proprietors have in general been privi- leged to have four books out at a time, and to retain them four weeks. This period, however, is for the most part nominal, as books may be retained under sanction of the by-laws until notice is received that they are desired by another member. The term for new books, naturally shorter, is limited to two weeks. At the library the proprietors have always enjoyed free access to the shelves— wire netting was never used by the Athenaeum. In one instance only has restraint been put upon the use of its books. In 1847, in the period when classical studies were para- mount in the college curriculum, a vote was passed closing up certain avenues of literary achievement: in the records under date of May 19, 1847, is to be found the following order: "That the Translations of the Classical authors be placed under lock and 36 key," — a cruel restriction for aspiring but indolent college youth ! Until within recent years the old-fashioned, univer- sal practice of calling in all the books once a year has been maintained by the Athenaeum. Every book was required under penalty to be returned in May one week before the annual meeting, and dur- ing this week shelf lists were read, the books were examined, and a general Spring house-cleaning was accomplished. Meanwhile the library was closed to proprietors. About 1895 this practice was discon- tinued. Now, by means of the shelf lists supple- mented by the loan list, the inspection of the libra- ry is effected without interrupting its operation, and all cleaning is planned so as to be done without interfering with the service of the library. During the period from 1857 to 1907 an interest- ing episode developed in the life of the Athenaeum. It arose in rather an unexpected way. From 1876 to 1881 the Trustees of the Peabody Academy of Science conducted a summer school of biology in Salem. This had an average attendance of twenty- five students, and for the use of these students the Academy secured the control of six or more shares of the Athenaeum. In 1882, the year after the school was discontinued, the Academy further purchased three more shares, which the Proprietors had author- ized the issuance of in 1876. Subsequently, from time to time, other shares were secured by the Acad- emy until twenty-four had been acquired. These the Academy continued to hold for a period of years, renting them privately the meantime. In 1903 the Trustees of the Athenaeum bought these twenty-four shares in a block, at fifteen dollars a share, and re- 37 sold them within a year or two to individuals. The change in placement of these shares afforded relief to the Academy and gave stimulation to the Athe- nsum ; the Academy was relieved of the task of sub- letting, and the Athenaeum gained in new member- ship and inherent vitality. Apropos of the holding of these shares of the Athenaeum by another corporation, it should be stated that the institutions were allied and yet non-compet- itive, and that they were managed and directed largely by the same persons. Moreover, in the seventies and eighties, —and for that matter in the early nineties as well— Athenaeum shares were not in demand. The transformation of the Athenaeum into a public library was every now and then under discussion and the possibility of its absorption naturally had a deterrent effect on the vigor of the institution. The future of the Academy was secure ; that of the Athenaeum was still undetermined. By the character of their charter the Proprietors of the AthensBum have no personal equity in the property of the institution. The estate is to be "appropriated for the promotion of literature, of the arts and sciences, and not otherwise." Through their privilege of controlling and directing the prop- erty the shareholders are trustees ; and through their privilege of use they further become, so to speak, proprietary-trustees. But this is not all. Theirs is also participation in support: they are sustaining members. Assessments for the maintenance and enlargement of the library are an essential feature of the institution and are annually levied on all shares. Provision for them is found in the charter and action in case of their non-payment is therein designated. 38 At the outset the annual assessment was the only means of meeting the current expenses and enlarg- ing the library. During the early years, when the Athenaeum was without a home of its own and had rental to pay, and before it had any productive funds, the annual assessment was considerably more (espec- ially so if we consider the purchasing power of money) than it has been in recent years. From 1810 to 1814 it was five dollars; in 1815 it was ten dollars, and in 1816 eight; from 1817 to 1820 it was again ten dollars, and from 1821 to 1849 seven; since 1849 it has uniformly been five dollars. Since receiving the bequest which provided a building in 1857 the Athenaeum has received several other legacies, some of them inspired by hereditary interest in the institution. In 1861 Nathaniel IngersoU Bowditch, a son of Nathaniel Bowditch, left the Athenaeum the sum of one thousand dollars. The clause in the will grant- ing this is as follows : — "I give to the Proprietors of the Salem Athenaeum one thousand dollars as a slight mark of regard for my native town. ' ' By vote of the Trustees this gift was added to the "Bowditch Fund" created by his father in 1838. In 1879 a bequest came to the Athenaeum by the will of William Howes, son of Frederick Howes who was a Proprietor from 1816 to 1853 and a Trus- tee from 1826 to 1840. This bequest amounted to ten thousand dollars and has been constituted the "Howes Fund." In 1889 J. IngersoU Bowditch, LL.D., another son of Nathaniel Bowditch, remembered the Athe- naeum in his wUl, leaving it the sum of one thousand dollars. 39 The last bequest to the Athenaeum in the first cen- tury of its history came in 1898 from George Plumer Smith of Philadelphia. This gift increased the assets of the Athensum by about five thousand dollars and has been set aside by the Trustees and designated the "George Plumer Smith Fund", the income from which is to be devoted to the payment of current expenses. In the years immediately preceding the establish- ment of the Public Library the Athenaeum, being the principal library in the city, was fairly well used. Its circulation ranged from 6,843 in 1883 to 7,786 in 1887. Few persons, however, desired to become proprietors and a considerable number of the users of the library were annual or semi-annual subscribers. At the time of the opening of the Public Library in 1889 fully half the subscribers of the Athenaeum dis- continued and the circulation fell perceptibly. To stimulate the lagging interest in the institution a leaflet of information regarding the library was issued in 1890. At this time also the Proprietors took under consideration the lighting of the large hall, but nothing was actually done in the matter. A few years later, between 1895 and 1905, substantial improvement in the condition of the Athenaeum was effected through the activity of the Treasurer in re- newing the body of proprietors. Of the proprietors in 1910 thirty-one, or nearly one third, became shareholders between the annual meetings of 1895 and 1905. During these ten years there were fifty- nine stock transfers as compared with sixty in the twenty years preceding, or in this single decade almost twice as many as in the two preceding dec- ades. In July 1903, the Trustees instructed the 40 Treasurer to buy the shares then held by the Pea- body Academy of Science which that institution was willing to sell at fifteen dollars a share. Within the next three years the Treasurer sold these twenty-four shares to individuals and the increase thereby made in the number of persons having direct proprietary interest in the Athenseum was highly advantageous in every way. It did much to dispel the lethargy which had rested upon the Athensum as an institu- tion for so many years. In 1905, as has been stated, Plummer Hall was sold to the Essex Institute, the Proprietors in Novem- ber of that year having voted to accept the offer of fifty thousand dollars made by the Essex Institute for the land and building of the Athenaeum. At the same meeting the Proprietors empowered the Trus- tees to purchase a site and erect a building at a cost not exceeding forty thousand dollars. The present site on upper Essex street was finally selected and the sum of fourteen thousand five hundred dollars was paid for the Curwen and the Swedenborgian Church properties. Subsequently the buildings and the organ and pews were sold and the cost of the lot was thereby reduced to thirteen thousand five hundred dollars. The exterior design of "Homewood" in Baltimore, the mansion of Charles Carroll of Carroll- ton, a signer of the Declaration of Independence from Maryland, was selected by the Trustees and a building modelled after this, save for the wings on either side, which may be added later for^the enlarge- ment of the library, was erected at a cost (including the furnishings and a steel stack) of forty-one thousand dollars. The nine thousand dollars 'remaining from the fifty thousand which the Athenseum had received 41 from the Essex Institute for the first Plummer Hall were added to the permanent fund and designated as the Caroline Plummer Fund. The reservation of this sum of money and its addition to the fund for general purposes was designed through the in- terest to be derived therefrom to offset the loss of income hitherto received from the Essex Institute in the form of part payment for heating, lighting, repairs, etc., in consideration of the privilege of the co-occupancy of Plummer Hall granted by the Athenaeum. The largest room in the new Plummer Hall is the reading room. This extends across the entire rear of the building and occupies about one half of the floor area of the first story. Rectangular in shape and simple and symmetrical in design, this room has a distinct and charming individuality. It is cheerful, restful, and singularly beautiful, and is admirably adapted to its purpose. Low cases extending some- what into the room and terminating in fluted col- umns reaching to the ceiling, subdivide it into three sections. The tripartite division, however, does not interfere with the sense of unity; rather, it enhances it. From the central division of the reading room the fire-proof stack room is entered. This occupies one entire corner on the front of the building, from basement to roof. In the opposite corner, at the right of the entrance, is a reading room, supplemen- tary to but separate from the main reading room. The books of the library are distributed by classes through these rooms and in the basement under and the room over the main reading room. The present building, without enlargement through the erection of wings found in the original, provides ample shelv- 42 --SijL- (!#--. PLUMMER HALL, 1907 ing space, enough, in fact, to meet the normal growth of the library for a considerable number of years. As a library building the second Plummer Hall is in most respects far superior to its predecessor. In the first Plummer Hall the library was lodged on the second floor, reached from the entrance hall by a broad but long flight of stairs. The library was contained in a reading room, small and not particu- larly attractive, and in the large and elegantly pro- portioned hall. This hall, it is true, was stately and of considerable beauty, but it was not well adapted to library needs. Its triangularly shaped alcoves were not economical of space and were incapable of expan- sion. Heating the hall through the winter months was beyond the resources of the Athenaeum, and facilities for lighting had never been provided, though this improvement had from time to time been considered. Consequently at the time of year when the library was, at least in later years, most used, this largest room of the Athenaeum was practi- cally uninhabitable. The new building, on the other hand, affords almost every facility for the best use of the books and the comfort and convenience of the proprietors. Great changes in architectural ideals have taken place during the past fifty years through the effort to secure greater adaptability of buildings to the purpose for which they are to be used. Mr. William G. Rantoul was the architect of the second Plummer Hall. The new building was dedicated on the evening of October 2, 1907. The address on that occasion was delivered by George E. Woodberry, LL. D., Litt. D., of Beverly. This address was subsequently issued in pamphlet form. 43 The change of building was most fortunate for the Athenasum. No longer hampered by the disadvan- tages incident to the former building, the Athenaeum now stood forth in its full individuality. To the improvement in the general condition of the society which had gradually been taking place since 1895 through the infusion of new life into its member- ship, was now added the stimulation derived from the occupation of a beautiful and most convenient building devoted solely to its own purpose. In en- tering its new building in 1907 the Athenaeum en- tered upon a new era in its history. Additions to the library during the last ten years have averaged three hundred and twenty books a year. Last year three hundred and ninety-two vol- umes were added, twenty-five of these being gifts. They were of the following classes : — books of refer- ence, two; bound magazines, fifty-eight; reUgion, sociology and science, forty-one; history and bio- graphy, eighty-five; fiction, one hundred and twen- ty-eight; literature and art, twenty-seven; books in the French language, fourteen; new copies of old books, thirty-seven. The Athenasum subscribes to thirty-one magazines and periodicals. Last year the circulation of the library was six thousand, four hun- dred and fifty-four. The library is open from nine in the morning to six in the afternoon on week days, and from half past two to six o'clock on Sundays from October first to June first and certain legal holidays. Each proprietor and subscriber is entitled to have four books and one periodical in his possession at one time. Books which have been in the Ubrary less than one year may be retained only for two weeks. 44 Unbound numbers of periodicals may circulate after two weeks and may be retained not longer than one week. The annual assessment levied on shares " for current expenses and the increase of the library' ' has for more than sixty years been five dollars a year. According to the By-laws of 1906 subscribers not to exceed fifty in number may be admitted to the privi- leges of the Athensum upon the payment of a sum not less than one and one half times the annual assessment on a share. Since the adoption of these By-laws the annual fee has been seven and a half dollars. At present there are one hundred proprie- tors of the Athenaeum and forty-eight subscribers. In the month of March 1910 the Athenaeum cele- brated the one hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the founding of the Social Library and its own cen- tennial. A collection of rare and especially interest- ing books and articles was on exhibition during the entire month. On Tuesday evening, March twen- ty-eighth, there was a social gathering in Plummer Hall, and on the following evening literary exer- cises were held in Academy Hall at which Professor Barrett Wendell of Harvard University delivered the address. At the termination of its first century, — of its first century and a half, if we reckon from its earliest source, — the Atheuceum finds itself in a prosperous and stable condition. Its constituency of nearly one hundred and fifty proprietors and subscribers is the largest in its history; for its habitation it has an attractive and adequate building; its productive funds amount to more than forty-six thousand dollars, and yield an annual income of nearly twenty-two hun- dred dollars. The library itself comprises over twen- 45 ty-six thousand volumes, all in excellent condition, fully catalogued, and easily accessible. The appro- priation for books for the Centennial year, 1910-1911, is seven hundred dollars. Though now a library for general culture and no longer prominent either for size or contents, the Athenaeum is nevertheless an institution of unusual interest historically. Nathaniel Bowditch unques- tionably knew all the facts when in making bequest to the Athenaeum in 1838 he designated it as having been in his early days "a better collection of philo- sophical and scientific books than could be found in any other part of the United States nearer than Philadelphia." This distinction of course long ago passed from the Athenaeum ; but the fact that it once held such a distinction secures for it an honorable place in the history of libraries in America. The Athenaeum has historical interest in other ways also. It is one of the oldest libraries in the United States, the oldest institution of its general class in the community, and perpetuates in itself one of the dis- tinctive types of American libraries, a type no longer prevailing. The period of its life has been of excep- tional importance ; during its years great and notable changes have taken place in the organization, char- acter and management of libraries, and in their place and function in the community. The Athenaeum, covering as it does practically the entire period of library development in this country, is in one way and another illustrative of many of these changes. Again, by reason of its own direct influence in the intellectual life of the community and its character as the guardian and friend, if not actually the parent of kindred institutions in Salem, the Athenaeum is 46 conspicuous in local history. Its history is thus, to an unusual degree, indicative of the course of library development in America, and expressive of the his- tory of learning and culture in Salem. 47 OFFICERS OF THE SALEM ATHENiEUM PRESIDENTS Edward A. Holyoke, 1810-1829 Benjamin Pickman, 1829-1835 Ichabod Tucker, 1835-1838 Daniel Appleton White, 1838-1840 Benjamin Merrill, 1840-1847 Stephen C. Phillips, 1847-1850 George Choate, Alpheus Crosby, William Mack, Edmund B. Willson, Richard C. Manning, Henry A. Hale, 1850-1864 1864-1874 1874-1886 1886-1895 1895-1904 1904- CLERKS OF THE PROPRIETORS John Sparhawk Appleton, 1810-1814 Wm. P. Richardson, 1841-1846 John Pickering, 1814-1819 Henry Wheatland, 1846-1891 John Glen King, 1819-1831 Charles S. Osgood, 1891-1895 Ebenezer ShiUaber, 1831-1841 Joseph N. Ashton, 1895- William Shepard Gray, George Cleveland Benjamin Merrill, Joseph A. Peabody, George Peabody, John Moriarty, Solomon S. Whipple, Gideon Tucker, John Clarke Lee, Pickering Dodge, Benjamin Barstow, TREASURERS 1810-1818 Jonathan F. Worcester, 1851-1855 1818-1824 Benjamin H. Silsbee, 1855-1856 1824-1827 James Chamberlain, 1856-1865 1827-1828 Henry Wheatland, 1865-1866 1828-1834 Nathaniel C. Robbins 1866-1876 1834-1835 Henry J. Cross, 1876-1879 1835-1839 Nathaniel C. Robbins, 1879-1880 1839-1846 Richard C. Manning, 1880-1889 1846-1849 Frederick P. Richardson, 1889-1907 1849-1850 Nathaniel A. Very, 1907-1914 1850-1851 Ralph B. Harris, 1914- The list of officers has been brought down to the date of publication. 49 TRUSTEES Edward Augustus Holyoke, 1810-1829 John Dexter Treadwell, 1810-1824 Samuel Putnam, 1810-1821 Joseph Story, 1810-1830 Nathaniel Silsbee, 1810-1827 Moses Little, 1810-1812 Benjamin Lynde Oliver, 1810-1826 Nathaniel Bowditch, 1810-1823 John Pickering, 1810-1827 Gideon Tucker, 1812-1822 Chas. Chauncey Clarke, 1821-1829 John Glen King, 1822-1826 Benjamin Peirce, 1823-1827 Daniel Appleton White, 1824-1840 Benjamin Merrill, 1826-1838 Frederick Howes, 1826-1840 Benjamin Pickman, 1827-1835 Ichabod Tucker, 1827-1838 George Cleveland, 1827-1833 George Peabody, 1829-1840 Malthus A. Ward, 1829-1832 William Gibbs, 1830-1832 Abel L. Peirson, 1832-1853 Stephen P. Webb, 1832-1840 Solomon S. Whipple, 1833-1839 Horatio Robinson, 1835-1840 John Glen King, 1838-1839 Thomas Cole, 1838-1840 George Choate, 1839-1864 William P. Richardson, 1839-1846 Benjamin Merrill, 1840-1847 Leverett Saltonstall, 1840-1845 Asahel Huntington, 1840-1844 Francis Peabody, 1840-1849 John Clarke Lee, 1840-1849 Joseph Sebastian Cabot, 1840-1849 Elisha Mack, 1844-1853 Henry Wheatland, 1845-1855 Stephen C. Phillips, 1846-1852 Geo. Francis Chever, 1848-1852 Stephen P. Webb, 1849-1852 Oliver Carlton, 1849-1856 John Henry Silsbee, 1849-1856 Jonathan F. Worcester, 1852-1856 Benjamin Barstow, 1852-1861 Nehemiah Brown, Jr. 1852-1854 William Mack, 1853-1886 James Mason Hoppin, 1853-1859 Wm. Dudley Pickman, 1854-1856 James W. Chever, 1855-1857 James Chamberlain, 1856-1871 William S. Messervy, 1856-1886 John Clarke Lee, 1856-1866 Asahel Huntington, 1856-1864 Henry Wheatland, 1857-1893 John L. Russell, 1859-1874 George Andrews, 1861-1863 Alpheus Crosby, 1863-1874 Joseph G. Waters, 1864-1879 Nathaniel C. Robbins, 1864-1881 Henry F. King, 1866-1876 Frederick W. Putnam, 1871-1887 Henry M. Breoks, 1874-1876 Martha K. Crosby, 1876-1881 Richard C. Manning, 1874-1904 William P. Upham, 1876-1886 Thomas F. Hunt, 1879-1887 Edmund B. WiUson, 1881-1895 Frederick P. Richardson, 1881-1907 William Northey, 1886-1890 George A. Perkins, 1886-1894 George P. Messervy, 1886-1889 Wm. C. Endicott, Jr. 1887-1889 Charles S. Osgood, 1887-1898 Arthur L. Goodrich, 1890-1897 50 David Choate, 1890-1903 Richard Wheatland, 1904-1908 William O. Chapman, 1893-1908 Arthur W. West, 1905- Thomas F. Hunt, 1893-1898 John S. Williams, 1905-1911 Joseph N. Ashton, 1894- Nathaniel A. Very, 1907-1914 Gilbert L. Streeter, 1896-1901 Stephen W. Phillips, 1908- Alden P. White, 1897-1911 William C. Waters, Jr.l908- William H. Gove, 1898-1905 John Robinson, 1911- John Robinson, 1898-1905 George R. Lord, 1911- George R. Jewett, 1902- Ralph B. Harris, 1914- Henry A. Hale, 1903- CLERKS OF THE TRUSTEES John Pickering, 1810-1827 Henry Wheatland, 1840-1855 Benjamin Merrill, 1827-1832 J. F. Worcester, 1855-1856 Ichabod Tucker, 1832-1833 Henry J. Cross, 1856-1860 Solomon S. Whipple, 1833-1835 Henry Wheatland, 1860-1891 Horatio Robinson, 1835-1838 Charles S. Osgood, 1891-1895 Thomas Cole, 1838-1840 Joseph N. Ashton, 1895-1906* * In 1906 the office of Clerk of the Trustees was united with that of Clerk of the Proprietors. 51 PROPRIETORS 1810-1910 Joseph Adams, 54 1853-1871 Caroline L. Allen, 43 1906- Andrew B. Almon, 90 1856-1864 Catherine Andrew, 63 1837-1850 John Andrew, 63 1822-1837 George Andrews, 41 1857-1896 John H. Andrews, 66 1818-1853 Joseph Andrews, 63 1851-1870 Sannuel Page Andrews, 1 1853-1897 William P. Andrews, 100 1904- IrvingK. Annable, 18 1904- Henry Appleton, 41 1819-1824 John Appleton, 56 1831-1834 JohnS. Appleton, 28 1810-1817 83 1821-1825 Joseph F. Appleton, 97 1906- Nathaniel Appleton, 41 1810-1819 Augustus J. Archer, 31 1843-1846 Jacob Ashton, 8 1810-1837 Joseph N. Ashton, 86 1892- Susan Ashton, 8 1837-1857 William Ashton, 59 1810-1826 William F. Ashton, 86 1876-1892 Eleazer Austin, 7 1853-1882 Theodore D. Bacon, 67 1909- Joseph Baker, 80 1810-1816 William T. Balch, 45 1854-1854 Thomas P. Bancroft, 4 1810-1843 John Barr, 60 1810-1827 Benjamin Barstow, 39 1845-1895 Benjamin Barstow, 85 1885-1888 Gideon Barstow, 90 1818-1847 Gorden Bartlett, 11 1859-1868 Seth Bass, 89 1815-1819 94 1818-1821 96 1821-1826 John H. Batchelder, 28 1865-1882 30 1856-1861 Eben Beckford, 61 1810-1818 Arthur F. "Benson, 47 1907- Henry P. Benson, 54 1907- Henry M. Bixby, 63 1907- Henry Blanchard, 20 1810-1814 Nathaniel Bowditch, 2 1810-1824 W. I. Bowditch, 86 1854-1856 Lucy H. Bowdoin, 42 1899-1903 W. L. Bowdoin, 96 1863-1883 George P. Bradford, 86 1856-1859 George W. Briggs, 92 1853-1868 Robert Brookhouse, 41 1840-1848 Robert Brookhouse, 92 1868-1885 Henry M. Brooks, 60 1857-1861 Henry M. Brooks, 82 1868-1896 William Augustus Brooks, 76 1852- Benjamin B. Brown, 72 1860-1864 Charles Alva Brown, 52 1909- Charles D. Brown, 52 1902-1909 C. F. W. Brown, 41 1849-1852 J. Vincent Brown, 74 1860-1861 Nehemiah Brown, 32 1840-1846 55 1837-1838 Nehemiah Brown, Jr., 3 1850-1856 The number after the proprietor's name is that of the share held by him. 52 Albert G. Browne, 18 1833- BenjaminF. Browne, 29 1835- Edward C. Browne, 99 1908- Timothy Bryant, 91 1823- James R. BufFum, 27 1825- Susan Burley, 97 1826- John Cabot, 45 1810- John Cabot, Jr., 46 1810- Rebecca Cabot, 33 1810- William Cabot, 24 1810- Oliver Carlton, 31 1846- 54 1836- James Chamberlain, 68 1840- Wm. O. Chapman, 37 1890- 66 1905- Philip Chase, 96 1826- Stephen A. Chase, 32 1846- William H. Chase, 16 1841- James W. Chever, 9 1839- Thomas Chisholm, 43 1849- Wallace A. Chisholm, 92 1905- Amos Choate, 95 1824- David Choate, 48 1868- George Choate, 23 1838- Rufus Choate, 37 1831- William P. Choate, 47 1861- Charles C. Clark, 51 1817- Dexter Clapp, 30 1861- John Clark, 41 1848- George Cleveland, 39 1810- William Cleveland, 5 1826- John Clifton, 66 1853- Joseph Cloutman, 23 1833- JosephP. Cloutman, 12 1871- Henry Cogswell, 49 1843- Caroline J. Cole, 65 1868- Thomas Cole, 25 1837- 27 1827- Horace L. Connolly, 5 1842- 1843 1837 James Cook, 46 1826 Frank Cousins, 41 1827 Benjamin Cox, 49 81 1850-1853 90 1853-1856 1812-1828 1896-1898 1831-1843 1841 Benjamin Cox, Jr., 83 1844-1899 1812 Samuel P. Crocker, 22 1853-1858 1812 Alpheus Crosby, 9 1859-1876 1885 Martha K. Crosby, 9 1876-1881 1830 Henry J. Cross, 81 1871-1879 1857 Benjamin W. Crowninshield, 62 1846 1810-1834 1906 John Crowninshield, 63 1810-1820 David Cummings, 61 1820-1823 1907 James B. Curwen, 16 1840-1841 1828 Thomas C. Cashing, 27 1810-1825 1875 Crombie Street Society, 6 1844 1834-1843 1859 Crombie Street Church, 71 1886 1860- First Baptist Church, 44 1835- Howard Street Church, 29 1858 1837-1840 Independent Congregational 1869 Church (Barton Square), 17 1838 1858-1906 1868 Second Church, 17 1906- 1838 Tabernacle Church, 82 1833-1845 1868 Tabernacle Church, 75 1881- 1849 Tucker Daland, 3 1856-1861 1840 41 1824-1840 1842 John B. Davis, 86 1818-1820 1856 James Day, 94 1821-1824 1834 William Dean, 82 1810-1833 1899 William Dean, 74 1844-1844 1853 Thorndike Deland, 25 1828-1837 Thorndike Deland, 78 1828-1828 1880 Elizabeth H. Derby, 15 1 844-1853 1831 Ezekiel Hersey Derby, 53 1844 1811-1843 53 John Derby, 6 1810 Samuel G. Derby, 51 1810 Julian d'Este, 90 190] James Devereux, 2 1841 Humphrey Devereux, 57 1810- Benjamin Dodge, 19 1810- John Dodge, 64 1812- Joshua Dodge, 64 1810- Larkin Dodge, 31 1810- Pickering Dodge, 12 1810' Pickering Dodge, 97 1841- Elizabeth A. Downie, 51 1853- Andrew Dunlap, 61 1818- John Dwyer, 86 1859- Theodore Eames, 31 1814- Ephraim Emerton, 94 1831- James Emerton, 54 1871- Robert Emery, 14 1810- Caroline O. Emmerton, 2 1903- Charles M.Endicott, 36 1844- Samuel Endicott, 87 1814- William C. Endicott, Trustee 1886 William C. Endicott, 15 1857- Wm. C. Endicott, Jr. , 15 1893 91 1886- William P. Endicott, 6 1849- Essex Institute, 47 1868 62 1879-: 42 1903- Benjamin Fabens, Jr., 28 1840. Benjamin H. Fabens, 99 1906 Francis A. Fabens, 28 1841 Rebecca C. Fabens, 99 1907 1834 William Fabens, 71 1842-1847 1817 Joseph Farnum, 47 1852-1861 Herbert C. Farwell, 77 1905-1907 1848 John G. Felt, 65 1853-1860 Joseph B. Felt, 83 1817-1820 1840 John W. Fenno, 93 1821-1833 1835 Joseph E. Fisk, 79 1840-1850 1822 Sylvester P. Fogg, 41 1852-1857 1812 Caleb Foote, 26 1860-1895 1813 John Forrester, 68 1820-1835 1835 Henry Gardner, 37 1845-1890 1856 John Gardner, Jr., 32 1817-1837 6 1843-1849 1896 Jonathan Gardner, 56 1810-1822 1820 Richard Gardner, 32 1810-1817 1876 Richard Gardner, Jr., 32 1817-1840 1817 83 1820-1821 1832 William F. Gardner, 56 1822-1831 1878 Thomas P. Gentlee, 2 1848-1883 1820 William Gibbs, 30 1810-1847 Shepard D. Gilbert, 11 1895- Lydia D. Gillis, 16 1855-1899 1861 Emily A. Glover, 85 1888-1889 1828 Arthur L. Goodrich, 96 1883-1896 , 2 William H. Gove, 35 1898- 1897 George W. Grant, 83 1906- William Shepard Gray, 50 1880 1810-1819 William E. Greeley, 96 1854-1863 1897 Alfred Greenleaf, 45 1828-1837 1868 Nathaniel Griffen, 43 1849-1849 1907 Isaiah Hacker, 28 1817-1821 1907 William E. Hacker, 10 1831-1836 1907 28 1821-1836 Daniel B. Hagar, 35 1878-1898 1841 Henry A. Hale, 46 1892- Mary S. Hale, 34 1904- 1907 George B. Harris, 52 1899-1902 1847 Howrard P. Harris, 96 1903- 1908 Ralph B. Harris, 6 1901- 54 Walter C. Harris, 42 1907- N. W. Hassen, 84 1851- L. B. Hatch, 74 1861- Benjamin H. Hathorne, 65 1810- Nathaniel Hathorne, 73 1828- Nathaniel Hawthorne, 91 1848- Ralph Gushing Hayward, 9 1909- William P. Hayward, 9 1881- Charles H. Higbee, 81 1866- 62 1875- George Hodges, 37 1820- Jonathan Hodges, 5 1810- John Hodges, 89 1852- Mary O. Hodges, 89 1882- Amory Holbrook, 82 1845- Edward A. Holyoke, 18 1810- James Mason Hoppin, 71 1853- Frederick Howes, 22 1816- 12 1835- WiUiam B. Howes, 82 1854- Oliver Hubbard, 63 1820- Oliver Hubbard, 16 1842- William P. Hubon, 55 1899- Thomas F. Hunt, 90 1864- 42 1883- 67 1889- 85 1889- 79 1896- AsahelHuntington,55 1838- Arthur L. Huntington, 55 1895- Grace Hutchinson, 4 1894- John J. Hutchinson, 72 1852- Alpheus Hyatt, 10 1868- George H. IngersoU, 34 1810- Susan Ingerspll, 37 1827- Henry P. Ives, 81 1879-1879 1868 Stephen B. Ives, 28 1845-1846 1885 StepheirB.Ives, Jr.,64 1865-1891 John Jenks, 66 1810-1818 1824 William M. Jelly, 60 1909- 1839 George R. Jewett, 12 1899- Holten B. Jewett, 4 1907- 1850 Edwin Jocelyn, 4 1843-1886 Mary E. W. Jocelyn,4 1886-1894 Emery Walter Johnson, 31 1909 1907- 1871 Samuel Johnson, 42 1840-1883 1879 Gardner M. Jones, 52 1894-1899 1827 Eleanor B Kimball, 50 1903-1906 1826 Eliphalet Kimball, 31 1813-1814 1882 91 1818-1823 Ruth P. S. Kimball, 78 1889-1900 ■1854 Leonard Kimball, 53 1810-1811 1833 Daniel P. King, 93 1842-1851 Henry F. King, 31 1857-1904 ■1860 James King, 48 1810-1816 ■1853 John G. King, 48 1816-1868 ■1835 John Glen King, 68 1835-1836 ■1868 John Kinsman, 15 1853-1857 ■1822 Albert Lackey, 43 1847 1849 ■1854 Edward Lander, 38 1810-1828 William A. Lander, 91 1840-1848 ■1899 Edward S. Lang, 29 1810-1835 ■1899 George D. Latimer, 31 1904-1907 ■1899 Charles Lawrence, 67 1853-1856 ■1899 Osborne Leach, 70 1897- ■1899 William Leavitt, 39 1840-1845 ■1895 Francis H. Lee, 20 1905- John C. Lee, 20 1832-1905 ■1899 George Leeds, 80 1853-1860 ■1907 David M. Little, 41 1898- ■1860 Moses Little, 1 1810-1819 ■1874 Philip Little, 13 1904- .1815 George R. Lord, 21 1900- ■1829 Nathaniel J. Lord, 26 1829-1860 55 Nathaniel J. Lord, 21 1835-1836 Octavius I. Lord, 26 1827-1829 George B. Loring, 13 1865-1896 Seth Low, 67 1810-1813 Elisha Mack, 38 1828-1899 Mary Manning, 73 1827-1828 RebeccaB. Manning, 58 1902- Richard C. Manning, 5 1866- Robert Manning, 58 1871-1902 WiUiam Manning, 74 1820-1828 Daniel H.Mansfield, 60 1861-1876 William Mansfield, 68 1810-1820 Wm. P. McMullan, 16 1906- Benjamin Merrill, 1 1819-1853 19 1835-1836 David Merritt, 64 1840-1843 George P. Messervy,53 1886-1907 William S.Messervy, 53 1855-1886 E. C. MiUett, 28 1853-1856 Joseph Monds, 65 1838-1841 John Moriaty, 46 1828-1837 Edward S. Morse, 80 1885-1886 84 1868-1871 Frederick C. Munroe, 66 1907- Reuben D. Mussey, 22 1810-1816 D. A. Neal, 69 1850-1907 D. A., W. H. &N. W. Neal, 69 1838-1839 Jonathan Neal, 69 1839-1850 Jonathan Neal, Jr., 69 1810-1838 Sarah Neal, 53 1853-1855 Theodore A. Neal, 50 1849-1858 Ezra F. Newhall, 30 1868-1876 Gilbert G. Newhall, 29 1840-1840 Isaac Newhall, 93 1818-1820 42 1832-1836 Sarah Orne Newhall, 78 1874-1889 Andrew Nichols, 80 1816-1853 Benjamin R.Nichols, 70 1810-1828 George Nichols, 71 1810-1827 Henry Nichols, 70 1826-1828 John H. Nichols, 79 1852-1867 Mary W. Nichols, 57 1882- Edward Norris, 83 1811-1817 William Northey, 32 1875- Susan S. Northend, 64 1891- Annie A. Noyes, 77 1907-1909 Daniel P. Noyes, 94 1841-1842 Caleb Oaks, 96 1828-1839 Charles Odell, 97 1895-1898 Charles H. Odell, 50 1895-1897 David Oliphant, 97 1823-1826 Benjamin L. Oliver, 21 1810-1835 Benjamin L. Oliver, Jr. , 94 1824-1826 Grace A. Oliver, 50 1897-1903 Henry K. Oliver, 27 1831-1843 Josiah Orne, 72 1810-1826 Samuel Orne, 10 1817-1819 William Orne, 10 1810-1817 George Osborn, 93 1833-1843 Charles Osgood, 29 1854-1903 Charles S. Osgood, 28 1882-1907 Elizabeth W. Osgood, 28 1907- George Osgood, 95 1820-1824 George P. Osgood, 3 1863- Joseph Osgood, 93 1851-1861 Joseph B. F. Osgood, 30 1876- Robert Osgood, 29 1903- Thomas B. Osgood, 45 1812-1818 John Page, 94 1832-1839 Nathaniel Page, 50 1819-1822 Charles W. Palfray, 73 1839-1885 William W. Palfray, 78 1834-1837 John Brooks Parker, 50 1858-1895 Mary E. Parker, 81 1907- DuboisD.Parmelee, 65 1860-1868 56 Edward H. Payson, 44 1828- Edward H. Payson, 19 1841- Peabody Academy of Science 2 1897-1903 77 1886- 13 1896-1904 80 1886- 18 1878-1904 82 1896- 23 1896-1904 84 1871- 33 1885-1905 91 1897- 34 1896-1904 92 1885- 43 1886-1906 93 1886- 51 1896-1906 96 1896- 59 1896-1904 97 1898- 66 1886-1905 98 1882- 73 1885-1906 99 1882- 74 1885-1906 100 1882- Alfred Peabody, 52 1853- Anna P. Peabody, 22 1876- Francis Peabody, 59 1826- George Peabody, 87 1828- Henry W. Peabody, 60 1876- Jeremiah Peabody, 67 1814- Joseph Peabody, 36 1810- Joseph A. Peabody, 64 1832- JosephW. Peabody, 31 1828- Nathaniel Peabody, 37 1819- S. Endicott Peabody, 23 1869- J. Willard Peele, 74 1858- Willard Peele, 9 1812- Benjamin Peirce, 73 1810- Charles W. Peirce, 31 1844- Jerathmael Peirce, 44 1810- Abel L. Peirson, 67 1820- E. B. Peirson, 45 1854- Edward L. Peirson, 45 1908- Edward L. Perkins, 64 1853- George A. Perkins, 49 1853- Jonathan C. Perkins, 51 1838- Nathaniel B. Perkins, 23 1834- Jairus W. Perry, 8 1857- 1835 Lucy W. Perry, 8 1906- 1850 Anna P. Phillips, 23 1904- James Duncan Phillips,. 77 1905 1909- 1904 Stephen Phillips, 85 1814-1838 1906 Stephen C. Phillips, 85 1838-1885 1905 StephenW. Phillips, 91 1906- 1906 Willard P. Phillips, 93 1861-1885 1905 George D. Phippen, 34 1865-1896 1906 Walter G. Phippen, 68 1906- 1903 Henry Pickering, 26 1810-1827 1906 JohnPickering, Jr., 16 1810-1827 1904 John Pickering, 6 1868-1901 1906 Octavius Pickering, 26 1827-1829 1904 Sarah W. Pickering, 6 1901-1901 1894 Benjamin Pickman, 13 1810-1820 l