Glass^Ql 5lfi id t I.J ^. ■* flu WkS rf -itVi^h hJiifi , I ' :i.' I :: \V>'' n:n' CELEBRATION St U-^t\dtm\^ %\mmx^M\) TOWN OF SUFFIELD, CONN., Wednesday, Oct. 12, 1870. 1 Ik '*! ^£^6roil,0 HARTFORD: WILEY, WATEIOIAN & EATON, STEAM KOOK AND JOB TlilNTEKS. 1871. -^ INTRODUCTION. Wlicre arc the graves wlicrc dead men slept Two hundred years ago ? Who were they who wept Two hundred years ago ? By other men who know not them Their hmds are tilled, their graves are filled, Yet nature then was just as gay, and bright the sunshine as to-day. Those who are familiar with ancient mythology will recollect the story of the good Isis, who w^ent forth wandering and weeping to gather up the parts and fragments of her murdered and scat- tered Osiris, fondly yet vainly hoping that she might recover and recombine all the separate parts, and once more view her husband in all his former proportions and beauty. With equal assiduity have a few citizens of Suffield sought to gather up the relics of the past, and place themselves for the time amid the scenes and cir- cumstances in -which our forefathers lived and died. We thus place the past and present side by side, and arc ipial- ified to judge of the progress of events, to sympathize with our forefathers in their privations and labors, and honor them for their deeds of virtue and valor. The Two Hundredth Anniversary of the existence of the Town of Sufheld, as a distinct municipal Corporation, occuring on the 12th of October, 1870, it occurred to the minds of a few citizens that it w^ould be a proper and worthy time to celebrate the event. Accordingly, at the legal town meeting, heldpctober 4th, 1869, the subject w\as brought before the people, and it was unanimously voted that the event be celebrated in a patriotic and spirited manner. A Committee of sixty-seven persons w\as appointed to carry out the vote, and a sum not exceeding $1,500 was appropriated for the purpose. This Committee subsequently met and appointed tlic following citizens as an Executive Committee : Daniel W. Norton, Gad Sheldon, Simon B. Kendall, IIezekiah S. Sheldon, William L. Loo:\[is, T. IIezekiah Spencer, Henry M. Sykes, wlio were to have the general oversight of the preparation and carrying out of the design of the vote, and it is due to their zeal and labor that the occasion was so fittingly celebi'ated. n^RELTMHSr^RIES. At a legal Town Meeting of the Town of Suffiekl, Conn., held at the Town Hall, in said Suffield, October 4th, A. D. 1869^ On motion of D. AV. Norton, presented by the Clerk, Wm. L. Loomis, Esq., viz: That in view of the fact that during the year 1870 the Anniversary of the Second Centennary Year from the "Grant of the General Court at Boston," and the first settle- ment of this Town occurs ; therefore, Voted, That this Town take suitable measures to observe and celebrate said Anniversary, during the year 1870, in an intelligent and respectable manner, becoming the age in which we live, and in a public manner. Voted, That a Committee of sixty-seven persons of this Town be appointed to inaugurate and carry out a programme for the same, in a becoming manner, for said Anniversary, at a suitable time during the coming year. And that said Committee shall have the power and right to expend and pay out such sums or parts of sums of money, in j)romoting the objects of said Anni- versary, or the necessary expenses, as the Town ma}^ appropriate for said ol:)ject. Voied, That this Town appropriate a sum not exceeding fifteen hundred dollars for said object, to be used by said Committee. Voted, Thflt the Committee consist of the following named persons, viz : Daniel W. ISTorton, Col. Simon B. Kendall, Sam- uel Austin, Gad Sheldon, Elihu S. Taylor, Henry Fuller, Albert Austin, Wm. L. Loomis, ]\Iilton Ilatheway, Doct. Aretus Rising, Edwin P. Stevens, George Fuller, Ilezekiah Spencer, Artemus King, Henry P. Kent, Byron Loomis, Thaddeus II. Spencer, George A. Douglass, Silas W. Clark, Ilezekiah S. Slieldon, Hiram K. Granger, Thomas J. Austin, Alfred Spencer, James B. Rose, Warren Lewis, Nathan Clark, L. Z. Sykes, Julius Har- mon, Burdett Loomis, I. Luther Spencer, Benjamin F. Hastings, 6 Frank P. Loomis, Cbas. A. Chapman, Wm. E. Harmon, Iloracc K. Ford, Ealph P. Mather, John M. Ilatheway, Henry M. Sykes, and others. And tl)at said Committee take measures necessary to inaugurate said Anniversary in this town. The preceding votes of the Town of Suffield, relating to the celebration and the appropriation of said Town for said Anni- versary, were ratified and confirmed by a resolution of the Gen- eral Assembly of this State, held at New Haven, at their May Session, 1870, which passed and was approved June 9tb, 1870. At subsequent meetings of said Committee, heretofore named and duly organized for that purpose, they appointed their Exec- utive and Finance Committees, a Committee on Invitation and Reception, a Committee of Arrangements to procure a tent, music, and to provide for the collation at the close of the exer- cises in the church, with the kind assistance of the Ladies of Old Suffield, at 2 o'clock, P. M. The Officers of the Day were PRESIDENT. DANIEL W. NORTON. Capt. Apollos Phelps Capt. Seth KinOx, Rev. Amos Cobb, Hezekiah Spencer, Gad Sheldon, Samuel Austin, George Fuller, Milton Hathewav, Henry P. Kent, VICE-PRESIDENTS. Elihu S. Taylor, Albert Austin, Henry Fuller, Edwin P. Stevens, Artemus King, Hiram K. Granger, Warren Lewis, George A. Douglass, Julius Harmon. CHIEF MARSHAL. Col. Simon P>. Kendall. F. P. LooMi.s, R. A. LooMis, ASSISTANTS. John Nooney, B. F. Terhttt. SUFFIELD, CONN. €IKC¥]LAM. The) Se>©@)al ©©®l©m®Ml ^emlv©i@aiF MF tlio "Grant of General Court at Boston, Octol)er 12th, 1670," ^<2) occiiring the jircscnt year, it has been decided, by vote of this town, to celebrate the event, and to circulate the notice as widely as 2)0ssible among the sons and daughters of Suftield that have gone out from us and their descendants. All such arc cordially invited to meet with us here, on the twelfth clay of October next, for a re-union at that time, and participate in the exercises, with the assurance of a hearty welcome, both public and private. Every cft'ort will be made to make the occasion interesting and profitable, and tlie stay of our guests agreeable; and it is hoped that the gathering of those who have wandered so far away from us, and have been so long separated, will warm the heart and quicken the feeling of common inter- est and union. WM. L. LOOMIS, ^ SIMON B. KENDALL, | ALBERT AUSTIN, | Committee TIIADDEUS H. SPENCER, j on GAD SHELDON, I i,,iuuions. THOMAS J. AUSTIN, [ ELIHU S. TAYLOR, J SuTfJdd, Conn., Sept. 12, 1870. ^fS. ^Ce^^lyfti?<^ti; g^^^A e^iM, OF THE Town of Suffield, ^^ Vv^ednesda^y, October 12tli, 1870. 1. Forty t>uns will bu fired and (lie liflls of the several eliiirelies rung at sunrise. 2. The jtrocessiou will I'onn ou the East side of the Park, the right of line in front of Knox's Hcjtel, at 9 o'eloek A. ]\I., and nuirch around the Park to the Cliureh in the following order: Drinih Corps. Special Police. Town Authorities. Cominittee of Arrangements. Trustees and Teachers of the Connecticut Literary Institu- tion, and Teachers of Puhlic Schools. Colt's Band. President and Vice-Presidents of the Day. Reverend Cler<^y. Orator and Poet of the Day. Governor and Staff of the State, and E.v-Uorernors of the State. Mayor and Aldermen from Springfield, Mass. Citizens from other Towns. Citizens of this Town. 3. Exercises at the First Cong. Church at 10 o'clock A. M. 4. Collation at the tent, on the Park, at 2 o'clock P. M. 5. Re union at Second Baptist (nnu'ch, at 7 o'clock P. "SI. There will ))e Vocal and Instrumental JMusic. €o>. S. B. lii:\I>\I^r, < hicr flai^lial. II. JS.. I^OC>J>ll!S. i$. 1% TJJlJKlT'r'. I^^'A special train from Hartford to Suflickl, (the first on the Bnuieli Itoad), will leave Hartford at 7:15 A. M., on Wednesday, October I'.l. 9 ^^^u^^ I ^^'^''\^r00^'^^^' ^^^^BjB^ '^^^' 1 ,^W L Wodntisdaij, OottibDiJ 12, 1870. I VOLUNTARY ON THE ORGAN. J "• I SINGING BY THE CHOIR. 1 III. STATEMENT BY THE PRESIDENT, D. W. NORTON, Esq. f£ IV. INVOCATION BY REV. JOEL MANN. V. READING THE HOLY SCRIPTURES, BY REV. D. IVES. D. D. VI. PRAYER, BY REV. D. IVES, D. D. VII. ORIGINAL HYMN, BY THE CHOIR. YIII. ADDRESS OF WELCOME, BY REV. WALTER^ BARTON. IX. RESPONSE BY S. A. LANE, Esq , OF AKRON, OHIO. X. ODE, BY THE CHOIR. XI. ADDRESS, P,Y REV. J. L. IIODGE, D. D. XII. f SINGING, BY THE CHOIR. nk XIIL 1 HISTORICAL ADDRESS, BY JOHN LEWIS, Esq. A XIV. J- MUSIC, BY THE BAND. T t POEM, BY REV. S. D. PHELPS, ]X D. Ik XVI. ^f- ANTIIEM, BY THE CHOIR. Jf XVII. X BFNEDICTION, BY REV. STEPHEN HARRIS. '% i '''~Wl- >^ ^ ^^-u^ -^ -<>/^(9ty?'ZX/.^ ^;^^^^'"^>^ , STATEMENT |ii-Cfntfnnial Cdrbration of tijc f olun of S^wM), OCTOBER 12Tn, 1870, BY THE PRESIDENT, D. W. NOETON. Ladies and Gentlemen : Two hundred and fifty years ago the 6th day of last month, our Pilgrim forefathers took their final departure from England for America in the Mayflower, a vessel of one hundred and eighty tons. The whole number who embarked were one hun- dred and one persons. Their Eeverend Pastor, on his knees commending them in fervent prayer unto the Lord, intended to implore a blessing from Heaven upon the hazardous enterprise. He preached a sermon to them from Ezra, 8 : 2L With mutual embraces and many tears tliey took leave of one anotlier, which proved to be the last leave to many of them. The wnnd being fair they went on board, l)at the tide, which stays for no man, called them away out of the harbor. After they had enjoyed hiir winds for a season they met many contrary winds and fierce storms. Their ship was shaken and her upper works very leaky. One of the main l)eams of the mid-ship bowed and cracked— this was repaired ; they resolved to hold on their voj^age. And so after many boisterous storms, in which they could bear no sail, they fell in with land called Cape Cod, in November, 1620. After touching at several points on the shore in a storm of snow and rain, the sea very rough, they broke their rudder, which was su})plied by two men with a couple of oars. The storm increasing as night came on, they broke their mast in three pieces, and their sails fell overboard into a grown sea. Like to 14 liavc been cast a\\\ay, yet by God's mercy they recovered them- selves ; and havhig the flood tide with them, struck into the har- ])or and got under the lee of a small island, (Clark's Island,) finally landed on Forefathers' Rock at Plymouth, December 11, 1620, 0. S. ; the dense forest before them filled with Indians and wild beasts and the stormy ocean behind them, without a shel- ter, winter setting in. The settlement was immediately beguii by building houses. Their work w^ent on slowly. Cold weather, snow and rain hin- dered them, subjecting them to great sufferings. Sickness diminished their numbers, and a fire consumed their storehouse. By March, 1621, only fifty-five remained of their whole number, yet they were not discouraged. On the 16th of March an Indian walked into town and saluted them in broken English with the exclamation, " welcome Eng- lisliman." His name was Saraoset, a Sagamore of Monhesan in Maine. He had learned some English by intercourse with fishing vessels and traders on the coast. The settlers now learned that Massasoit, the great sachem in the country, was near with a train of sixty men. His visit was friendly, and a treaty was made which was observed inviolate for half a century. A settlement was made in Weymouth in 1622. Other emi- grants came over from time to time, and settled in Charlestown, Koxbury, Salem, Dorchester, Ipswich and Newbury. In Sep- tember, 1630, the foundation of Boston was laid. At a later period some of these settlers found their way through the wilder- ness, over hill and dale, mountain and stream, to the beautiful valley of the Connecticut, and removed their families thither; commenced their settlements in some of the river towns above and below us, as Springfield, Hadlej^, Hatfield, Wethersfield, Windsor and Hartford ; what was then called Stony-brook, (now SufUeld,) being avoided on account of the very heavy timber growing upon her soil ; being a dense forest or "a very woody place.'' This township was purchased of two Indian Sachems for .£30^ and in 1670 was granted to Major John Pynchon and others by the General Court of Massachusetts. Sufiield is situated on an elevation of sandstone, which divides the lower valley of the Connecticut into an u]»per and lower 15 basin. Tliis ulcvatiou dcpriv^cs Sullickl oi llic alluvial inli'ival lands found in those towns above and below us. In April, 1670, a petition from sundry of the inhabitants of the town of Springfield was presented to the General Court at Boston, praying for a grant for a township at Stony-brook or Southfield, as this place was then called, (now Suflfield), Tiiat petition was referred to a proper committee, who in due time made a favorable report to the General Court; and two hundred years ago to-da}^, the grant was passed by the General Court at Boston for a township at Stony-brook plantation, so called. The settlement of the town commenced that year, (1670). Two brothers l)y the name of Harmons came here and settled about one mile west of High Street, what is now on or near the ro'id leading from said High Street to West Suffield. Others soon followed ; so that when the town was organized at its first general Town Meeting, held on the 9th of March, 1681-2, which was convened in accordance with an order of the General Court, passed at their session held October 12th, 1681, to organize the town, when about eighty proprietors were present to make choice of the municipal officers and discharge the committee, they being present, who had managed the afihirs of the town from tlie time of the grant in 1670. But our orators and poets on this occasion will give you a good account of the results of that beginning malic here two hundred years ago. May this day, by the blessing of God, prove to be one of the best days ever witnessed by the sons anddaughUrs of Old jStifficId and their descendants; and may it long be remembered b}^ the generations who succeed us; and will they celebrate the occasiun at the end of each succeeding one Imndrtd ijearsl Following this, an Invocation by the liev. Joel Mann, and reading of the Scriptures, by the Rev. Dwight Iv^es, D. D., selections from the first chapter of John and the eleventh of Hebrews; followed by Prayer by the same gentleman. Then an original hymn was sung by the choir, entitled " Two Hun- dred Years A 2:0.'' TWO HUNDRED YEARS. Composed for the occasion by Rev. S. D. Piielps, D. 1). Where now a joyous throng we stand, And beauties round us glow, Stood a dense forest wild and grand, Two hundred years ago. How vast the change, from old to new ! 'Tvvould strike the fathers dumb ; But what shall fill the children's view Two hundred years to come? II. What struggles, perils, toils and fears They had to brave and know, Ere comforts blessed the pioneers, Two hundred years ago. For varied luxuries we possess, They had no thought or room ; But what they'll have, O who can guess. Two hundred years to come ? III. The dwelling, dress and style of yore Were plain and free from show; They spun and wove the things they wore Two hundred years ago. If flasli and fashion rule the age. And mark our progress some, Pray, what shall be the rush and rage Two hundred years to come ? 3 18 IV. The church and school, so simple then, Expressed the heart's outflow ; Earnest were those strong, thoughtful men Two hundred years ago. In grander fane and temjile found, Refinement's richer home, Th' old virtues ?i«;— will they abouku Two hundred years to come? V. Through all the past, life's growing tide Has met the one grim foe ; Old are the graves of those Who died Two hundred years ago. We swell the stream whose murmuring rolls The cadence of the tomlj ; What were our lives, and where our souls, Two hundred years to come ? ADDRESS OF WELCOME By Rev. Walter Baiitox. The Executive Comniiltcc have assigned to ine the very })leas- ant duty of giving to the returning sons and daughters of Suf- field a few words of welcome. It would have been more fitting, perhaps, that the address of welcome should come from one who had always been a resident of the town. For however much I may regret the fact, I must frankly confess that I have not yet been able to ascertain whether any or all of " the three brothers," to whom, of course, .my pedigree runs back, ever settled in this town or not. But being, as I am, very desirous to claim some share with 3'ou in the gladness and glory of this great celebration, I, of course, am bound to make ni}- connection with you some- how. Failing to make any connection with you genealogically, I was able to find, on looking up the old records, that I could make a connection with you geographically, on this wise: Up to the year IT'iO, Suflield was one of the places included in IIam}ishirc County, Mass. As I was born in that county I con- cluded not to search tlu; records any further, but to consider myself born in the same colony and county, in the same pre- cinct and on the same plantation with the rest of you. To prove that this connection is not a fancied one mercl}^, I may take the liberty to say that before Suflield was settled, or soon after, in order to keep up communication with Hartford, we who lived at the upper end of the plantation, in what is now known as Iladley and Northampton, used to have our teams drafted to repair the Suflield roads. Sucli instances are on record. Ver}'^ likely it was owing to our cutting down the brusli and making such good roads, or keeping them in such excellent re- pair that you were first induced to settle here. 20 Be tliat as it may, I stand liere to welcome to the scenes and ceremonies of this Bi-Centennial occasion, and also to the hearts and homes of the people, all former residents of the place, and all who by any other ties of relationship or friendship are specially interested in commemorating Snffield's natal day. IIow eminently befitting is it, in this l)nsy and fast age, to improve a day like this by reviewing the lives and labors of the brave and good who have gone before us ! We have so much to do, to care for, to think, read and talk about, in regard to what is going on in the wi.de, wide world, that there is great danger of our forgetting the past and what is due to it from the present. The prophet says, " ask man of the days that are past." This the orator of the day will hel]) us to do; and surely his review of these two centuries will famish to each and to all of us lessons for our study, reflection and improvement in all the years to come. The occasion in itself is fitted to call forth the ti'uest and best sentiments of our nature. In ancient times it was customary to lead out the youths of royal families to gaze on the monuments of their ancestors, that they might thus be inspired to cultivate their virtues and emulate their heroism. A still higher authority says, "Tell ye your children of it, and let your children tell their children, and their children another generation." Wiio has not often read with deep interest of the great gatherings and glad memorial days of the ancient llebrews ? What a scene must it have been when they came up by families and tribes from all parts of Canaan to keep the feasts of the Lord at Jerusalem ! IIow well fitted was this thrice yearly concourse at Jerusalem to counteract all the unsocial tendencies arising from their separation into distinct tribes, and to unite them all together as a nation of brethren ! It served to prevent all those unpleasant rivalries and jealousies which in time might have ripened into hostilities and collisions that would have rent their commonwealth in pieces. By being brought thus frequently togetlier, the acrpiaintance of families and tribes was renewed, all feelings of clanish exclusiveness were repressed, and the social union more efl'ectually consolidated. Though the chief design of these annual festivals was to per- petuate the memory of the great events on which they were 21 severally founded, other important ends were doubtless designed and seeured by these assemblages. It would bo a weleome res- pite from toil. They indulged in innocent hilarity, amusement and recreation, I don't know whether or not the boys played base ball or tlie girls croquet, but I have no doubt they had other amusements and recreations as good or better. They not only worshipped; they feasted, they sang, and rejoiced together before the Lord. And how much better for families, churches and communi- ties now, if they had more of these seasons of healthful recrea- tion and heartfelt rejoicing ! Is it not well once in a wdiile to forget our money-making and our worldly schemes, to forget also wdiat particular trade and tribe, sect and party we belong to, and remember ourselves and one another as belonging to the great family of one common Father in Heaven? You gather here to-day, not merely to glorify yourselves or your native town, although if you wanted to play the fool in an apostolic way, you might even boast yourselves a little, and not 1)0 thought either proud or vain in so doing. But your chief desire is rather to honor yourselves by honoring those who hero, so early and so well, laid the foundations of the family, church and school, of intelligent society and christian civilization for all coming time. Ilere " other men labored and ye are entered into their labors." To those of you who were born and educated here, a thousand hallowed memories will come thronging back to-day, as you look once more upon these charming valleys, these dear old hills, and the yet dearer faces of familiar friends. You will clasp each other by the hand and amid smiles and tears cry "old Suffield forever." Tell us if in all your wander- ings you have found another Suffield yet? Do you not still sing, as you come back to the old homestead, " ' Mid pleasures and palaces," etc. ? The present year I have traveled two thous- and miles through the Middle and Western States, and last year four thousand miles through the South and AVest, but in either journey I cannot say that 1 found a town which for fertilitv, thrift and beauty, for social and religious privileges would sur- pass your own. And others here who have traveled farther than that in the East and in the West have said the same. Indeed, 22 you who have never left the old homestead cannot appreciate the beauty and the blessing of a birth-place in this charming valley of the noble Connecticut. How often in the years that are past have your thoughts wan- dered away to this home of your childhood ! And how happy are you to come back and shake hands again with those that still remain of your family friends and early companions ! How it awakens also the liveliest emotions of gratitude to God, who caused the lines to fall to you in such pleasant places and gave you so goodly an heritage ! ' Tis true you will look in vain for some who by reason of death are not permitted to be with iis on this occasion. The names of many who once walked these streets, worked in these fields and worshipped in these churches, side by side with you, you will read in the different cemeteries of the town. Bat others have taken their places, and though many of us are strangers to you, and many of you are strangers to us, we are all one in our sympathies with you and in our greeting to you on this memorial day. We all feel greatly honored by your presence with us, and we are all alike interested to honor the memories of those noble, self-denying, God-fearing men and women " who for the glory of God and the advancement of the Christian fliith," began the settlement of this place two hundred years ago. But I must not keep you longer from the good things in store for you. I was only appointed to answer your rapping at the door of your dear old home, and to say in behalf of the whole SufBeld family, "glad to see you, walk in, take off your things, sit right down and make yourselves perfectly at home." As I cannot shake hands with you all individually, as I should like to do, let me ask the resident citizens of Suffield here present to rise up and allow me to gather up all their hands into one great hand and reach it out, through the hand of this son of Suffield from Ohio, to all our guests and say, welcome each, welcome all. RESPONSE, By S. a. Lane, Esq., of Akron, Ohio. Mr. President ; Ladies and Gentlemen :— It is, to me, gratifying beyond expression, that I am permitted to participate with you in celebrating tlie TWO hundredth anniversary of the settlement of this my native town. But it is not quite so grati- fying to find myself the sole respondent to the very able and the very cordial address of welcome, to the returning wanderers which has just been pronounced. The honored chairman of your committee, in his kind letter of invitation, expressed the desire that in response to said address I should give one of my faipilliar talks in regard to my recollections of Suffield when I was a boy. To this I assented on the sup- position that there were to be several similar responses, and that any formal reply to the address would devolve npon other and abler speakers than myself Indeed, I lind been informed that the names of at least two professional "talkists " had been asso- ciated with my own in the performance of the pleasing task now by a change in the programme, and by an error of judg- ment on the part of the committee, devolved wholly upon my- self. Fortunately, however, both for myself and for my audi- tors, the limited space of time which I may occupy will render my task comparatively easy, and the infliction upon my hearers correspondingly light. Forty years ago, Mr. President, I left you, a chubby, round faced, ruddy-cheeked, dark-haired, black-eyed, and — if tradition speaks truly — a iolerahh/ (pod IooIcItkj boy of fifteen years of afc. To-day I come back to you a gaunt, sallow- visnged, grizzly- headed, dim-sighted old man of lifty-five. Forty years! Along period of time, truly, ^ when, with the eyes of youth and hope, gazing forward into tlie future. But O, how short, when retrospectively considered — but the merest 2i fragment of the countless cycles that form the unnumbered cen- turies of the past ! Yet as brief a period of time as it in reality is, what great and important changes have taken place within those forty years ! Events mightier by far, and of vastly greater significance and influence upon the interests of civilization and human progress, have talvcn place within that brief period than, with perhaps a single exception, in the entire one hundred and sixty years, be- sides, of the two centuries whose termination you now celebrate. Were it proper for me to do so, in this connection, time would not permit me to give even the briefest history of all those great and grand events. Among them, however, I may pause to men- tion the inauguration of the great and ever extending system of railways which has wrought such a revolution in the modes of travel and transportation in this and other lands ; the application of electricity to the jDurposes of telegraphic communication, by which not only time and distance have been annihilated, both in our own and in foreign countries, but which, spanning and fath- oming the ocean, has drawn the two great continents of the earth so closely together that the mightiest or the minutest event trans- piring in any portion of the one may be known, in detail, through- out the length and breadth of the other within the very hour of its occurence ; the application of science to agricultural, manu- fixcturing and domestic operations, whereby one controlling mind can, with nerves of steel and muscles of iron, accomplish vastly more labor in a given time, than could formerly be done by hun- dreds of the most skillful operatives ; but towering high above them all, so far as its influence upon our own development is con- cerned, stands the gigantic moral, social and political revolution by which four millions of bondsmen have been endowed with all the attributes of independent and enfranchised citizens. But, Mr. President, I may not enlarge upon these and kindred topics so full of interest and of hope to this and the other nations of the earth, and will only say, in conclusion, that during the entire period of my absence from Old Suffield — whether it may seem longer or shorter to my hearers — my mind has ever reverted with pleasure to the fond associations of my boyhood, and my early recollections of my native town. In all my wanderings, having visited nearly every State and Territory now embraced 25 within the limits of the United States, the British Possessions upon the North, and portions of JNfexico and Central America upon the South, besides a nund)cr of ])rominent Islands of both the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans; and though I have seen many magnificent cities and beautiful towns, and rural paradises with- out number, my bo)diood recollections of Suffield overshadow them all in point of loveliness, grandeur and sublimity. And I presume I but speak the sentiments of all present, who, like me having stra3'ed away from their ancestral homes in early life, are here to-day to participate in these anniversary exercises, when I say that each recurring visit but seems to highten the coloring of those recollections and enhance my reverence for my native town. Again, Mr. President, both for myself and the large number of Sullield-born visitors present, I sincerely thank you for the opportunity thus afforded us of joining with you in celebrating this important anniversary, and for the Ycry cordial greeting wliieh is being extended to us l)y our old friends and neighbors, and their worthy descendants and successors, the present intelli- gent and enterprising occupants of the truly "sacred soil" of dear, deli^-htfid Old Suflield. ODE BY THE CHOIR. cz^^^^^-c^ej ^y ^^^^^^^^O^^^-^^, ADDRESS, By the Rev. J. L. Hodge, D. D. Hon. D. W. Norton : Dear Sir : — My own personal ac- quaintance with the town of Suffiekl extends only as far back as forty years, but from a somewhat intimate knowledge of many of its oldest inhabitants, I became familiar wdth much that has greatly interested me in its histor3\ Suflield has been largely favored of the Lord, not only in its natural advantages, but also in the character of its people. They may be regarded as an intelligent, thrifty, and religious pop- ulation. With clear and decided convictions in reference to divine and secular truth, as a community, they have always been rcmarkal)ly tolerant of the views held by those ditfering from them. I was ordained as a pastor in one of the churches there about thirty-seven years since.* I heard much of the character and excellence of those who had preceded me in the ministry of the town, such as the "Gays," father and son, both eminent in their day. The two Hastings, also father and son, who, like the Gays, did much for the honor and advancement of religion among the people. In a later day, there was Morse and Waldo, f * First Bajitist Clnirch, on Zion's Hill. t Rev. Dauicl Waldo was born in Windham, Conn., Sept. lOtli, 170'J. He remained at home on the farm until 1778, when at the age of sixteen he was drafted as a soldier fora month's service, durinu; a time of imminent peril at New London, and soon after enlisted as a volunteer in the service of the State. Ho was captured by the Tories at Horseneck, and carried to New York, Avhere he was conlincd in the " Sui;ar House," then the grand depot for prisoners ; but after a confinement of two nu^nths was exchanged. Snlise(|uently he resumed his labors on the farm, and We next lind him, about the age of 21, commencing study, and grad- uated at Yale College in the class of 17S8. He studied Theology with Dr. Hart, of Preston, Comi., and was licensed to preach by the association of Windham county. May 2l>d, 1792, he was ordained and installed as pastor of the Second Congreg.ational Church, (at WestSiillicld,) where he remained until ISO'.). In 1810- 11 he preached at Cam1)ridgcport, Mass., after wiiich he served as missionary in Rhode Island till 1820, then preached a while at Harvard, then settled for twelve years at Exeter, Conn. After which he resided in New York, and retired from 28 men of might and of mark, wliosc influence for good is yet felt in a large degree. The Baptists in Connecticut were greatly indebted to Rev. Asahael Morse for important services rendered to them in se- curing civil advantages, and in the formation of their mission- ary organizations. Elder Morse was a great man in every sense. His mind was not only of the highest order, but he was learned above maii}^ of his day, and one of the most elo- quent of preachers. A master in biblical intcrjirctation, and in a knowledge of divinity he had few equals. AVhcn he engaged in debate upon questions relating to civil or religious liberty, he never failed to show the " hiding of his power." I question whether any town in the flivored State of Connecticut was ever more blessed with revivals of religion^ or ever appreciated such gracious vis- itations, more than yours. I regret that the pressing duties of a large pastorate in this city makes it diflicult for me to give you a full report of my remarks made on the occasion of your Bi-Centennial in October last. Thine ever, James L. IIodge. any stated charge, occasionally siipplyhii? vacant pulpits. In lS5(j Mr. Waldo, then 94 years of age, was elected Chaplain of the House of licpresentatives, dis- char<;int; the duties of that position with "general acceptance. He died at Syracuse, N. Y., July 30th, 1804, aged 101 years, 10 months, and 20 days. His mind seemed to operate with a freedom little diminished till the day of his death. He died not from the effects of the decay of his physical powers, hut from the cHects of a fall — leavinii,- a record bright with jnitriotisni, benevo- lence, and holiness of life. — H. M. S. SINGING BY THE CHOIK. -^ cMtCuk ^^e^^-t>T^ PTISTORIGAL ADDRESS, By John' Lewis, Esq. Mr. PiiESiDEXT, Ladies and Gentlemen : — Wc arc gathered here to-day in obedience to the better impulses of our nature. We have come, actuated by the love of kindred ; by affection for the land of our ancestors and the spot of our birth-place; by reverence for the noble, patient, heroic spirits of the past; by a deep sense of obligation and gratitude to those through whose faithful and devoted lives we are enabled to meet under circum- stances so happy and so })ropitious. We have come from diverse stations and employments, from multiform and strangely varied experiences, from widely distant localities. ]>at we have come with a common purpose, with hearts stirred by common emotions and united by common ties. Here is the S})ot of our origin. About this place cluster the recollections of cliildhood, and tlie tender affections that center in home and kindred and friends. Here our fathers lived. These places their feet have trod. These hills and valleys their eyes have been wont to behold. These fertile acres their hands reclaimed from the primitive forest, and their brows watered with the sweat of honest toil. Here the}' planted the school and the church. Here they laid deep and solid the foundations of our present civil i^^ation. And here, in the fullness of time, they were gathered, generation after gen- eration, unto their fathers, and their bones laid to rest in the soil which they had reclaimed from the forest and the savage. And now, standing upon this consecrated ground, with all these hal- lowed associaticjns round about us, and all these tender memories thronging our hearts, can we fail to catch tiie inspiration of the hour and the })lace; can wc fail to enter with earnest and devoted hearts into the services antl festivities of this occasion? But the memorial tributes and rejoicings of this anniversary, though prompted by the more tender :md pathetic !itlri1>utes of 30 our nature, and responding more especially to the sympathies and affections, are not without their practical bearing. We are met, not simply to give expression to our feelings of honor and gratitude and love, but also to study the lives and characters of those who have filted these places during the last two hundred years. From this study we may derive a fund of historical ex- perience and knowledge, the value of which cannot be questioned. For in the lives of all, in business, in morals, in politics, in all the avocations and walks of life, there arise emergencies when the light of exj^erience is pre-eminently needed ; and this expe- rience can be gathered from the study of history. For human nature, though it may appear in different circumstances and under new modifications, is always the same in its essential ele- ments. And all events, of whatever nature or descrijDtion, arc governed by the same nndeviating laws of cause and effect. Therefore if we would forecast the issue of any particular enter- prise or combination of circumstances, or if we would predict the course of men in the presence of any particular temptations or in any given emergency, we must study human nature and the social and material laws of all phenomena as revealed in the history of the past. And so the examples of our fathers; their successes, their failures, their errors, if rightly understood and appreciated, will Ijccomc lamps to our feet in the future that is before us. Still other benefits that result from occasions like this arc of a social and personal nature. Brought together in friendly inter- course, are men and women from different sections of our coun- try, habituated, it may be, to different climates, to different scenes and customs and societies. Eeprescntativos of all the various avocations, and of all the contrasts of social position and indi- vidual experience, meet here on common ground to compare past adventures and to revive old memories. Out of this friendly interchange of thoughts and feelings and recollections there comes a better social culture, and more liberal and more cosmo- politan ideas. And better than all else, these occasions tend to br(!athe into the soul a new and more earnest life, to inspire higher and nobler purposes, to create moi'e strength and more determi- nation to givipple with the great tasks and })roblems of life. This is not, tlierefore, a mere holidav on which we have met 31 to pass the time in idle enjoyment, but an occasion of deep sig- nificance, based on tlie realities of tlic past and reaching forward to modify the results of the future, developing influences that should warm and inspire every heart, and inv(jlviiig possibilities of good whose effects may be felt to the end of time. The historian of Sufiield labors under certain intrinsic dis. advantages. Especially is this true in the present age, wdien we have become so accustomed to grand and startling events. Vie have witnessed the conflicts of mighty armies joined in battles more terrific than the world has ever seen before. We have witnessed the succesful completion of vast industrial enterprises, enterprises that revolutionize commerce and modify the thoughts of Christendom. We have mingled in the discussion of social and political questions of the most vital and absorbing interest. And we have become so familiar with these magnificent displays of power, and with these intense nervous and intellectual excite- ments, that we are in danger of losing our interest in the ordinary affairs of life. It is necessary, therefore, to realize at the outset that the history of Sufiield will not lead us through a succession of these grand events; that its history is not that of a great na- tion, controlling millions of men, dealing with vast resources and setting on foot mighty armies, but simply the history of a iow)i, which, however important and exem})lary as a town, is yet only one of many thousand similar subdivisions into which our country is distributed, and which can only furnish us events of a common character and a history made up of the ordinary every- day life of the ordinary men and women of their time. But notwithstanding this lack of general interest, the subject |iossesscs one great advantage which to us may well compensate for all others; it is Uie story o^ our fathers and the histoi-y of our uaiive About ten years after the huidiug of the i*ilgiims, in 1(120, reports of the great river (.2"onnettieut, of its fertile meadows 32 and luxuriant scenery, began to reach the settlements on Massa- chusetts Bay. In 1G33 some explorations were made in the val- ley, and shortly after the towns of Windsor, Hartford, Spring- field and Wethersfield were founded. Prior to the settlement of Sufiield, seventeen towns were thus estahlished in the Connec- ticut Valley, scattered from the mouth of the river to the north- ern part of Massachusetts. These towns were connected by rude pathways, threading their devious routes among the hills and primitive forests. Two of these pathways traversed Suf field, or Stony Brook, as it was then called. One entered the town in the northeast, and took its course through Crooked Lane and High street to South street, and was known as the Springfield road. The other, entering the town in the north- west, came down across Hastings' Hill, and united with the S[)ringfield road near the north end of South street. From South street the two roads united and passed down through Windsor to Hartford. A bird's-eye view of Stony Brook at this period would reveal an almost unbroken forest. The oak and the pine growing unmolested for centuries reared their gigantic forms on every hand, at once evidence of the fertility of the soil and obstacles to its subjugation by the pioneer. Along the border of Muddy and Stony brooks would be seen a narrow border of meadow-land, probably the only open lands visible in the whole landscape. Glimpses might be caught of an occasional traveler oi- of some emigrant party pursuing their lonely way between the upper and the lower towns on the river. Possibly we might discern the wigwam of the Indian and follow his dusky form as he stole through the forest in pursuit of game, or loitered with his fishing tackle on the banks of our little streams. It is doubtful, however, whether the Indian ever formed a permanent ai)ode within tlie present limits of our town. The Poquonnocs of Windsor, and the Woronnocs of Westficld, seem to have been the nearest triljcs. But the Indians laid claim to this territory as a part of their hunting ground, and this claim was formally extinguished by Mr. Pynchon, of Springfield, to whom th(?y deeded the twenty-three thousand acres of Stony Brook for tlu; consideration of thirty pounds sterling, or less than one cent per acre. From numerous arrow-heads and other relics found here, 33 wo know tliat Stony Brook Las been visited l»y tlie Indians, but probably tlicy only camo to form temporary encampments, or ill transient hunting parties, to pursue for a time the pleasures of the chase. In the intercourse between the upper and lower towns on the river, the territory of Stony Brook was frequently traversed, and its natural advantages, together with the apparent fertility of its soil, became well known in Springfield, and being a part of that town, it was natural that the first movements towards its settlement should originate in that place. The first of these attempts was made in 1660, when a petition was preferred to the General Court at Boston, praying for a grant of land at Stony Brook. This petition received a favorable answer, but for some reason the enterprise was abandoned. In 1669 the selectmen of Springfield assumed authority to form and direct the settlement. They made several grants of land, and among others to Samuel and Joseph Harmon, who, it is thought, in the followdng sum- mer, took up their abode on the ISTorthampton road, in the vicinity of the Stony Brook. In the fall of the same year (1670), a petition was brought to the October session of the General Court at Boston, by citizens of Springfield, asking for permission to establish a plantation at "a place called by ye name of Stony Riuer." On the 12th day of October, 1670, the General Court took this petition into consideration, and granted to the petitioners permission to settle there a township, six miles square, on condition that in five years they should have twenty families settled there, and should at the close of that period maintain an able minister. At the same time a committee of six, with John Pynchon as chairman, was appointed to manage the alfairs of the plantation, and to superintend its settlement. This committee met in January, 1671, and adopted a set of rules, in accordance with which they should proceed in the dis- charge of their functions. It was determined to grant land in l)aicels of sixty, fifty, and forty acres, according to the condi- tion and rank of the grantee ; and that in all grants there should 1)0 one acre of meadow to nine of iqdand. It was further de- termined to lay out and settle the town in divisions, separated by highways twenty rods wide, and to cut these divisions into 5 34 sections by roads eight rods wide. If this plan was ever carried out, all trace of it is now lost, and there is nothing in the pres- ent aspect of the town to indicate that such a disposition was actually made of the lirst settlers. At this meeting of the com- mittee, grants of land were made to the following persons : Samuel Harmon, Joseph Harmon, Nathaniel Harmon, Zerub- babel Fyler, and Robert Old. The grants to Samuel and Joseph Harmon were probably confirmations of the land they had pre- viously taken up on the Northampton road. Unfortunately, no documents have yet been discovered that delinitely state the time, place, and circumstances of the first settlement of Suffield. We know when the settlement was authorized, when and to whom lands were first granted, but this is all. While it is quite certain that the Harmons were the pioneers of the town, and that they came here in 1670, the exact date of their settlement is not known. From 1670 to 1674, inelusive, the committee were active in advancing the interest of the plantation. Grants of land were made to thirty-six persons, the town surveyed, roads laid out, a corn and saw mill erected, a common laid out in High street for public uses, a lot set apart for the use of the minister, and another for educational })urposes. In 1674, also, by a})plication to the General Court, the name was changed to Southfield, or Suffield, and in that year alone twenty-one grants of land were made. Everything indicated that the young settlement was prosperous. But the outbreak of King Philip's war, which oc- curred in 1675, put a sudden stop to its progress. Those wdio had taken up their grants -of land were obliged to remove to places of greater security, and Stony Brook was abandoned to the wild beast and the savage. A blank of about two years oc- curs in the records of the committee, after which, in 1()76, they resumed tlieir functions. Probably nearly, if not quite, all of the old settlers returned after the war to re-occupy the lands they had before taken up and improved. An endeavor was now made on the })art of the committee to consolidate the inhabi- tants on High and Feather streets, for the convenience of self- protection. This design was in a measure accomplished, but the fears of the Indians which prompted it proved groundless, for tli3re is no evidence and no tradition that they ever in any way molested tlic young settlement. The committee, up to January, 1682, made a, total of one hundred and fourteen grants of land, comprising aljout six thousand acres, or one-fourth the entire area of the town. In March, 1G82, in comjiliance with an order of the General Court, obtained October 12th of the ])revious year, the legal voters of the plantation were convened, and the toivu of Snifield first orjranizcd. The committee havinc; ful- fdled the oflicc to which they were a]ipointed, were now discharged, and their authority superseded by that of the town. A boanl of five selectmen was elected, consisting of Anthony Austin, Samuel Kent, Thomas Remington, John ]>arbcr, and Joseph Harmon, The organization was com- pleted by the election of other town officers, having essentially the same names and functions as at present. At this time there were about eighty flimilies in the place, and a jiopulation of four or five hundred. A list of thirty-four persons comprised the legal voters of the town — a number which included less than half of the male adults. But it is to be remembered that SuHleld was at this time a part of the Massachusetts Colony, where there existed both ecclesiastical and civil restrictions on the ballot — restrictions that gave the control of affairs to a small minority. I'he most numerous settlers were in High street. Here were located tlie Kings, llancliets. Remingtons, Grangers, Kents, Nortons, Spencers, and Sikes.- A road leading east from Iligh street connected it with Feather street, where lived the Burbanks, Ilollydays, Smiths, Trumbulls, and Palmers. In South street were the Austins, Risings, and Millers. On the western road were the Harmons and Copleys, and in Crooked Lane the Taylors, Ilitchcocks, and Coopers, Would that we might lift the veil of two centuries and catch a glimpse of the pioneer settlement as it was in 1682. There were the primitive highwaj's, whose location I have alread}' in- dicated. But let not the word linjlnvnys suggest smooth turn- pikes bordered by a few rods of grassy meadow, and enclosed by substa,ntial i'ences. Think rather of rude pathways winding among the stumps and trees, which still occupied the land set apart for public travel. Along these pathways were scattered the dwellinars of the scttlci-s. These were cabins of the rudest architeetnrc, containing for the most part but a single room, 86 lighted by one or two small windows, warmed by the huge fire- place, and furnished with rude stools, and tables, and shelves, and compelled to answer all the various needs of the family. Kicks of meadow grass and stooks of corn were carefully reared adjacent to the still ruder shelters provided for the cattle. Around these comfortless abodes lay a few acres of half cleared land, with the charred stumps yet standing and the green copse about their roots. And beyond this little clearing, and sur- rounding it on every side, lay the dark, threatening forest, rear- ing aloft its mighty trunks in defiant grandeur. From the organization of the town in 1G82 until 1749, a pe- riod of nearly seventy years, there is no event of sufficient pre- eminence to serve as a landmark in our histoiy. At the begin- ning of this period we behold a few hundred people, dispersed in rude cabins, in the midst of a dense forest, with nothing but their own strong arms and brave hearts to depend upon. At first the settler was fortunate if by dint of hard work he suc- ceeded in producing enough for the comfortable subsistence of his family and his cattle. And when, after years spent in clear- ing land of the heavy forest and preparing it for crops, he was enabled to raise a surplus for market, other difliculties had to be encountered. Markets were distant and to be reached by a la- borious and dangerous journey through almost ])athless forests and over bridgcless streams. And when reached, it was more than likely that his produce must be exchanged for other com- modities instead of the money he so much needed. Thus almost every circumstance conspired to increase the difficulties and dis- couragements of the early settler, and to keep him in well nigh hopeless povert}^ Frequently the inhabitants were compelled toi^esort to the General Court and seek relief from the burden of taxation. And graciously the General Court listened to their prayers, granting sometimes an entire exemption from taxes, and sometimes permission to pay them in the produce of their farms. The exceeding scarcity of luoney is shown by the number and character of its substitutes. Thus, from time to time, corn, rye, wheat, oats, barley, flax, turpentine, and even iron were made receivable for taxes and passed current in the town. As late as 1725, it was voted that "ii-on should be accc[)ted as town pay, 87 and should pass and be received into tlie town treasury at forty shillings per hundred weight." And so the history of this period is chiefly made up of the private struggles of each indi- vidual who found sufllcient occupation in providing the absolute necessaries of life. And yet with patience, and fortitude, and Christian zeal they labored on, sustained by the consciousness of a noble work, and cheered by the hope of brighter days in the future. The public business of the town during this period was much more varied than at i)rescnt. Besides the ordinaiy superintend- ence of civil affairs, the town had charge of the ecclesiastical and educational interests of the settlement. Town meetings were more frequent than now, and in accordance with the no- tions of those days, all who were late or absent were subjected to a fine. At these meetings grants of land were made to new settlers, disputes between adjoining proprietors composed, the enlargement of swine, sheep, geese, and cattle regulated, the ex- tirpation of crows, blackbirds, and other supposed pests of the farmer encouraged by bounties, and many other curious sub- jects legislated on, all of which have long since ceased to be the objects of public action on the part of the town. New roads Were continually being required by the expanding settlement. In 1726 the road to Taintor's Hill was established, and in 1736 the road over the Mountain. And while our flithers attended to the material demands of the growing plantation, and devised material ways to promote its prosperity, they were not neglectful of its higher interests. Morals, religion, and education, from the very beginning of the settlement, received their due share of attention. Votes relating to these vital suljectsare scattered thickly over the records of the town, and plainly evince the dee}) interest which our ancestors felt in the spiritual welfare of the people. And no higher testimonial can be given of their character than the fact that in the midst of such severe l>h)'S- ical draughts upon their energies, and such depressing physical wants and burdens, they yet had time and spirit for deliber- ations, lal)ors, and sacrifices in behalf of the intellectunl and moral welfare of their being. In addition to these internal activities, our fathers were also careful to assert their I'iuhts a<>ainst tlic encroachments of sur- 88 rounding towns. In these early times it was impossible to de- termine tlie boundaries of towns or states with much accuracy. There existed no correct geographical idea of the country, in- struments were much more rude and imperfect, and men less in- structed in the science and art of surveying. It is not strange, therefore, that adjoining towns ditfered as to the precise location of the boundary line between them. From the earliest times these difficulties arose between Suffield and the inhabitants of Windsor and Simsbury. Mau}^ complaints were made against the people of these latter places, on account of depradations committed by them in what were claimed to be the forests of Suffield. The causes of the different parties were espoused by their respective colonics. Although the controversy was car- ried on with considerable acrimony at times, and formed the subject of many exciting discussions among the people, and of some correspondence between the colonies, yet no serious col- lision is known to have taken place. A disputed boundary question between Suflfteld and Westfield, after much fruitless controversy, was finally settled by litigation. A more serious difficulty, however, relating to boundaries arose between the two colonies of Massachusetts and Connecticut, involving Suffield as part of the territory in dispute. It will be remembered that SufRefd was settled under direction of the General Court of Massachusetts, and by the people of Massachusetts. But within a quarter of a cen- tury her right to jurisdiction was questioned. In 1713 the col- onies joined in a sui-vc}^ of the line between them, and Sufiield, Enfield, Woodstock, and Somers were found to be within the chartered limits of Connecticut. But having been settled by Massachusetts, and being then under its jurisdiction, it was agreed between the colonies, but without consulting the towns tliemselves, that they should remain with tlie colony that found- ed them, and that Connecticut should receive in lieu thereof a tract of land in AVestcrn Massacliusetts. This land was ac- cordingly set out to Connecticut, being the territory now mainly comprised in the towns of Pelham, Belchertown, and Ware, and was subsequently sold and the proceeds given to Yale Col- lege. In a few years the dissatisfiiction with this arrangement broke out in open measures of denunciation and attack. Tn 1724 Samuel ^^erry, of Enfield, and John Kent, of Suffield, 39 were appointed by their respective towns to draw up a petition to the General Assembly of Connecticut, setting forth the in- justice and illegality of the agreement under which their chai'- tered rights liad been bargained away, and })i-aying that colony to receive them under its jurisdiction. Other petitions of sim- ilar import, in some of whirh AV^oodstock and Somers also united, continued to be presented to the General Assembly of Connecticut from time to time. At last, in 1749, that body for- mally voted to receive them under its jurisdiction, and prepared to maintain their claims in whatsoever forum they should be im- pleaded. But Massachusetts, though making some threats of an appeal to England, quietly submitted to the choice of the towns, and never afterwards made any serious atteni})t to en- force its claim. It has been said that these towns, in thus en- deavoring to come under the government of Connecticut, were inlluenccd sinjply by a mercenary motive; that as Massachu- setts had a larger ])ublic debt and imposed larger taxes than Comiecticut, they took this way to escape the pecuniary bur- dens laid upon them. It is suflicicnt answer to this charge to say that the towns took vigorous action on the subject more than twenty years before that debt was contracted, and before its burden could be felt. Their change of jurisdiction has also been stigmatized as a revolt and a secession. Let the facts an- swer. The towns were acknowledged by both colonies to be within the chartered limits of Connecticut. That charter con- ferred upon all the people embraced williin its territorial limits equal and common rights and privileges, but did not give to one portion of the people power to alienate another portion. These towns had, therefore, so far as any power on this conti- nent was concerned, an absolute and inalienable right to be un- der the government of Connecticut, and any bargain between the colonies in violation of that right was utterly void and of no elfect. Their claim rested on a substantial foundation, both of law and of justice. And while it is true that they had a motive in prosecuting their claim, it consisted not in any mer- cenary or disloyal feelings, 1)ut in a manly determination to ob- tain their rights, and in a laudable desire to enjoy the more lib- eral civil franchises which this charter secured to the citizen. 40 and of \vhicli llicj were unhiwrally deprived so long as tbey were under the government of Massachnsetts. Thus for more than three-quarters of a century Suffield was to all effects and purposes a part of Massachusetts. This fact adds many difficulties to the study of our history, for the rec- ords and documents relating to it are scattered over two States instead of one. The period from 17J:9 until the outbreak of the Revolution is chielly distinguished in colonial history by the French and Indian wars. Soon after the colonization of this country was begun, a struggle arose between France and England for supremacy in America. Several wars succeeded each other, in which the colonists were obliged to take the brunt of the bur- den. To these wars Suffield contributed her proportion of troops, and in tliem she was represented by Major General Phineas Lyman. lie bore an active and honorable part in the various campaigns, and at the final close of the struggle, in 17()o, he went to England to secure a grant of land for himself and other colonial oflicers. Having been successful in his ob- ject, he returned to this country in 1772, and soon after died in the region of tlie Mississippi, where the grant was located. General Lyman represented the town in the legislative assem- 1)1 ics of Connecticut and Massachusetts, and took a leading part in its public business and enterprise, lie was the first of her sons who rose to eminence in the country at large, and is de- serving of a prominent place in our esteem. Tlie close of Mr. Lyman's career marks very nearly the com- |)letion of the first century of our history. From two little cal)ins on Stony Brook, with their lonely inmates, the town had expanded to a population of about two thousand persons, scat- tered over its entire area, an"ht realize somewhat the travail in which this 2i;reat nation was born. The total number of troops furnished by Suflield in the Rev- olutionary war cannot be exactly ascertained. Judging from the imperfect data at command, and including all Mdio served in the regular army or militia for whatever period of time, the number cannot be placed at less tlian four hundred. Of this number thirty-two are known to h;ive lost their lives in the struggle. Almost a century has passed away, in which their descendants have enjoyed the blessings procured at the cost of their blood. A century ! and yet nothing has been done to per- petuate tlicir names or to give })ublic expression to our grati tudc. 4'!ie country is now at peace, and the town is rich and ])ros[)erous. We, in greater iirofusion than any ])revious gen- eration, are re;iping the precious fniils of their sacrifice. And it is to be hoped that at a ilay not far distant an approj)riate 47 inonmncnt will arise, oil wliosc imperishable stone shall Ijc en- graven, side by side, the names of those who fell in the war to establish the independence of onr eonntry, and the names of those who, in the late war, fell fightinu; for its j)reservati(in. A glance at the industrial hislor)- of Suflleld I'evcals many cui'ious and interesting liicts. At one time sliiji-building was quite extensively carried on along the river border. Many persons are known to have been engaged in it, and many vessels arc known to have been launched. But no records remain sullicient to indicate the full extent of the business. Considerable cpian- titics of iron w^ere annually wrought into a variety of man- ufactured })roducts. Nearly all farming utensils, and many of the implements required in the niechanical trades, were made in the shops of our blacksmiths. And in Boston Neck was located an establishment that turned out four or five thousand shovels annuall)'. Turpentine was gathered as an article of commerce, oil manufactured from the seed of flax, and spirit- uous liquors brewed or distilled in large quantities. Salmon, as well as shad, were caught in great numbers from the river, and were frequently a drug in the market. Many jicrsons em- barked their capital in the indigo trade, and went long jour- neys through the Southern States to collect the article for com- merce. Others engaged in the fur business with an energy and scope that reflected credit on the enterprise of the town. In our earlier history an inferior quality of earthen-ware was made here, and subsequently wooden-ware of various descriji- tions was manufactured. We have had cotton-mills and nu- merous tanneries. AVe have had carding-mills and fuUins;- mills. AYe have been able to boast of saddlers and coopers, of tailors and hatters. Once Suffield had her printing-press and pub- lished books, papers, and pamphlets. Once the stranger within her gates would not have been perplexed to find a house of public entertainment, for the time has been when SuHield had ten or twelve taverns in active operation. Previous to the last half- century every farm-house was a nianufactor}', in wdiich were pi'oduced, with laborious and cunning industry, the textile fab- rics for the household. In one vcar more than flvc thousand 48 yards of woolen cloth were thus manufactured. At the same time twenty or twcnty-Hvc thousand pounds of flax were yearly required for domestic consumption. The more we stud)' the industi'ics of the last century, the more evident it l)ecomes that the people were ftir in advance of the present century in enterprise and public spirit. Suffield was then a business centre for the surrounding country, ranking nearly on an equality with Hartford in wealth, population, and business activity. Now slie has fallen into comparative insig- nilicance. Formerly the capital and energies of licr people were so employed as to build up the town and promote the prosperity of all its citizens. On the other hand, we now behold that cap- ital transferred to distant cities and states, and investC'I in com- mercial and l)usiness enterprises that do not develop the town or yield any general advantage to our own community. If we Iia\e had a reason for this in the past, the long-deferred estab- lishment of railroad communication has removed it. And now the present generation has the opportunity^ and the means to establish successful manufactures and other branches of busi- ness that shall start the town in a new career of prosperity. Two law schools have at different times been conducted in Sullield, one by General Lyman, and one by the Honorable Gideon Granger. At these schools many distinguished mem- bers of the bar in this and surrounding counties received their legal instruction. In the early part of the present century, Sullield possessed five practicing lawyers, a circumstance wdiich would seem to indicate a high degree of prosperity. Sutlicld has given birth to mtlny eminent men. She has pro- duced two Postmaster Generals* of the United States, four members of Congress, one Major General, one Governor of Connecticut, two Governoi's of Vermont, two Governors of Pennsylvania, one Governor of Ohio, two Judges of the Su- preme Court of Ohio, one Judge of the Supreme Court of Ver- mont, and one District Judge of the United States. To-day her sons are scattered throughout the country. Many of them have achieved substantial success in business or professional life, and many of them occupy distinguished positions of re- * Sec note at close of this article. 49 sponsibilily and trust in tlu; national, state, and municipal gov crnincnts of the country. Thus fur 1 have endeavored to sketch our outward and ma- terial progress from the foundation of the town to the close of the last century. And now a brief comparison of the condition of our people in the present and in the past, in respect to some of the more important elements of life and character, may not be uninteresting. The most superficial glance at our history shows beyond question that in material wealth and comforts, in the develop- ment of the powers and resources of nature, in the multiplica- tion of mechanical inventions, in facilities of communication and travel, in all physical surroundings of whatever nature, we have attained a vast superiority over our ancestors. There have been great changes and revolutions, and they have resulted in an apparent progress. But has thei-e been a real and a true progress? Have we attained a nobler develo[)ment of charac- ter? Do we live more })erfect and more Christian lives? Do we exhibit a higher standai-d of manhood and womanhood ? For a progress which does not produce tltese results, which does not enlarge, enrich, and ennoble man in the essential and immor- tal elements of his nature, is false and delusi ve. Whik^, therefore, we have taken such immense strides in the outward and mate- rial circumstances of life, it becomes very pertinent for us to cnrpiire whether we are also more manly and more womanly, whether we are distinguished by a superior moral, religious, and intellectual development. To answer these questions will in- volve a more critical examination of our history in its bearings upon our interior life and character. And first a preliminary en(|uiry as to our physical nature. The common impression, especially among the older inhabi- tants is, that we have sadly degenerated in this respect. Ibit this impression, so fir as it is confined to our ekk;rs, may i-eadil}' be accounted for. As men grow old thc_y lose sti'cngth, vigor, and vivacity. The arm becomes feeble and the step uncertain. Feats of agility and strength that were once performed with ease, become difiicult or impossible. And in consecpiencc of this 50 condition of weakness and imbecilit}', their impressions of the world around them are modified and distorted into a conformity witli their own individual states and experiences. The change which they imagine has taken place in the world without, has really taken })lace in themselves. But while this reasoning may account for the impressions of old men, it does not definitely answer the enquiry we have raised, whether in point of fact we have degenerated physically. In respect to direct physical power, to mere brute force, we undoubtedly have, lint wdiile we admit this against ourselves, the force of the admission is destroyed by the following considerations: First, the degree of physical power is no measure of physical excellence. A person of inferior stature and strength may be just as manly, may ac- complish just as extensive and noble results in life, and may as completely fulfill the ends of human existence, as if possessed of the most gigantic bodily powers. And again we have so de- veloped and applied the ])owers and forces of nature, and ren- dered them subservient to our interests and obedient to our commands, that great physical powers are hardly useful and no longer necessary to man. In all departments of industry, in agriculture, in the mechanical trades, in manufactures, in com- merce, we can, with a given number of men, and in a given time, by the aid of modern a})pliances, accomplish vastly greater results than could our ancestors a hundred years ago. Every day and on every hand we give exhibitions of power wliich would fill our fathers with speechless amazement. Great phys- ical strength, therefore, we do not need, and. the lack of it is not a reproach. In regard to physical endurance and hardi- hood, and ability to withstand exposure, privation, and fatigue, the experiences of every day around us, and especially the his- tory of the late war, prove that we arc fully ecpial if not supe- rior to our predecessors. Moreover, in all civilized countries the average duration of human life is slowly increasing. There is no evidence which indicates that Sufiicld is an exce})tion to the general rule. With life prolonged, with erpial bodily en- durance, with strength sunicient to meet the demands of our present civilization, and with less vital energy absorbed in mus- cular growth and activity, we may safely assert that we are physically better fitted than wei'c our fathers before us to 51 achieve material success iu the world, and far l llic bouks of Ihc Auditor's OUiue for the I'ost OUicc Doiiurtiiieiit it is usecrtuiued tliat tlie post-office at SuUield began to miike quarterly returus oil the 1st of October, 1796, iiud Hezekiuli lluutiiigtou was tlie postmaster. It is probable, tlierefore, that the otiiee was established iu August or September of tliat year. Since tliat time the iianaes of postnuisters and dates of appointments are correctly ascertained, which are as follows : SuFFiELU. Estal)lished, probably, in Au.gust, IT'.Ki. William Gay, appointed postmaster July JHst, 17US. Odiah L. Sheldon', appointed April 25th, ISoo. Horace Sheldon, 2d, appointed Feb. 5th, 1841. Georj^e A. Loomis, appointed AuL;ust 3'st, 1842. Samuel B. Low, appoiuted July 1st, 1850. George Williston, appointed May 23d, lS5o. David Hale, appointed June 2'Jth, 1861. Richard Jobes, apjjointed July 6th, 186U, who is the present Jnciimbt'nt. The followin;;- named persons, natives of Sullield, have lieUl ollice as indicated in the Post Office Department of the United States : Gideon Grangek, Tostmaster General, appointed Nov. 28tli, 1801. Francis Granger, Fostmastcr General, Appointed March 0th, 1811. Setii Pease, Assistant Postmaster General. James Hitchcock, Clerk. Harvey Bcstor, Clerk. James Pease, Clerk. Oliver Phelps, Jr., Clerk, living- in Canandaigua, N. Y. Gamaliel Pease, Clerk. Chauncey Bestor, Clerk, living in Washington City, D. C. I ^ POEM, JJV S. D. PlIELl'S, I). 1). Two Hundred Yeaks ! -we're in the jiast to diiy. Where thought and memory, loudly linueriiin', stray. The generations linked to us we trace ; As each appears l)ehold them face to face; ]\ren of the stalwart heart and toiling hand, "Women well worthy l)y their side to stand, Children the image of their noble sires, Whose blood and will the blended virtue fires. They wrought how well ! they made the glorious i)ast From them the treasure that all time shall last. Two hundred years! ah, these are now secure, And naught can waste a heritage so sure. We speak of fleeting epochs, vanished days. As airy nothings or a meteor blaze. Not merely shadows we, nor vapors dim — The dying echoes of a vesper hymn. The Springtime flits, the Summer glories fade, Autumnal tints o'er all the fields are laid; But the rich harvest grew ; in the warm sun It ripened, and was to the garner won. Youth's l)l()omiiig years and manhood's stronger day- Go like the seasons, Ijut their lessons stay ! No past have we, the boon is never ours. Till pale and drop the earliest, fairest flowers. Our minds take not life's true and deep intent. Till from beyond we scan their history spent. The pro])lem's solved in sorrow, joy and toil ; In these we learn, and gather thence our spoil. We lose the time, the bliss and pain it brings. To get them back in deeper, nobler things. There's our true heritage, and naught can wrest Away the glorious past when once possessed ; Its precious lessons, its atl'cctions pure ^N'ill, without change, for cvermoi'e endure. GO Oh, mourning mother ! the sweet child you gave So soon to Heaven, so early to the grave, Is yours, a child for ever, through all change Of earthly scene, or vast unmeasured range ! A parting pang, a past — these were tlie cost By -which you keep the tender bloom you lost. Two hundred years ! how like a tale that's told Each lengthened life on to its limit rolled. The words are gone, the very sounds have died. But lives the story yet — 'twill e'er abide. In "what they were, in noble acts they did. The generations past can ne'er be hid. Our own they are, because they're liere no more, But witli us leave the mantles once they wore. The richest wealth, our best emotions felt. Arc wisdom, patience, love, that in them dwelt. Without the hallowed jjast, O, what were we ? We are the fruit of the ancestral tree. Upon life's ladder to a higher stage Have we ascended in this later age ? Built from our manhood, with a better art, A grander temple of the human heart ? We'll not ignore the steps, moss-grown and grey, Nor scorn the scaffolding that falls away. As well the lake, from its full crystal bed. Disdain the humble streams by which 'tis led. The tree, to large and fine 2)i'oportious grown, Was nursed by fallen leaves and boughs its own ; From its decays a broader verdure springs, And richer fruit on every branchlet swings. With this great law humanity is rife — From ashes beauty and from death comes life. In us, through labors, sull'erings, hopes and fears, Behold the harvest of two hundred years ! The field is beautiful whereon it grew, Ei-st Houtltjii'ld called, the time its bounds were new. But earlier still it had its Indian names. Too rough to place in smooth, poetic frames ; Then, as its winding pathways white men took, They named the region from its " Stony brook." From the " Great River," at its eastern bound, It spreads abroad in undulating ground, Sweeps the bold range of Talcott Mountain's crest, And on tiie Manituck it finds a rest. 61 Tlicsc wild .and almost trackless solitudes Bore on their bosom tlu^ primeval woods ; The sturdy oak, like pillars of the realm, Vied wnth the grandeur of the gothic elm ; Birch, maple, chestnut, ash, and more like these Made the vast army of majestic trees; While here and there, along the serried lines, Stood, like brave chieftains, tall and tufted pines. How fierce the battle when the winter tempest loud Swept through the ranks and the stern leaders boAved ! No wonder those who early sought a farm Should from this mighty legion take alarm, And say, as courage failed to enter in, "A very woody place and difficult to winne." Others, of braver hearts and stronger hands, Began the conquest of these forest lands. They felled the foe ; they reared their humble homes; They knew through patient toil the victory comes. Was it from stock thus trained and strong, the fame Of Suffield enterprise and people came. Known the land over for their Yankee skill. Shrewdness of intellect and power of will? Or was't because we Iwrdered on the State Of Massachusetts, long renowned and great, Were held by her for threescore years or more. Until at length, all disputations o'er. Its wisli and right secured, tlie town was put Within the lines of old Connecticut; And so its people reached their virtues great, The blendetl product of eacli noble State? Two hundred years ! and how does Beauty crown The whole l)road surface of our lovely town. What thrifty farms, and tasteful dwellings fair; What well-tilled fields return their harvests rare. Look from this hill, or yonder ridge more high, Enchanting landscapes meet the gladdened eye ; Tlie rising ground, the intervening vales, Tlie fruitfnlness that everywhere prevails, The crystal streams that thread their way and sing, Tlie lingering trees that grateful shadows lling, The cheerful homes that speak of wealth ami art. And richer treasures of the cultured heart ; O happy spot and dear! go where we will, This scene of bcautv lives, unrivaled still 1 62 Scarce had the settlers liere their cal)ins jilaccd, Ere tlie first meeting house tlie common graced. Afar, along the ample street each way, This huml)le building in the vision lay. As nigh the holy hour of worshij) drew, "Waved from the roof a flag of crimson hue ; It bade them come, the aged and the young, And praise their Maker with the heart and tong ic ; Not with the equijiage of modern days. Not e'en the wagon rude or richer chaise, But in pedestrian groujjs who near abide. Those from a distance in their saddles ride; Nor failed the loving spouse, with willing mind, To take a pillion-scat lier lord behind. While boys and girls, to hardy lives inured. With nimble feet the Sabbath walks endured. So for a hundred years these paths they trod, And thus together sought the House of God, Till generations passed, and others came To feel the warmth of the dear altar-flame. Till sanctuaries old and strait decayed. And others rose in ampler art arrayed. After the first they fitly graced the hill Crowned by the splendid church this day we fill. Beside the third — which often met my eye — Before 'twas finished, 'neath the open sky, The wondrous Whitefield preached to thousands there First on a joiner's bench he knelt in prayer. And such the unction and the fervor given. He seemed, tradition says, to pierce the heaven ; And such the sermon's power that ere he'd done, The hearts of many to the Lord were won. As passed the y(!ars another order grew. And to its humble home adherents drew; Then, in an ampler temple o'er the way. It flourislied well and is a power to-day. These honored churches, ranged each side the street. Sing tlu! same songs, the same good news repeat : As richest blessings crown them fi-ora above, Be tlicy, tliough dilVering still, alike in love. Two hundred years! How faitliriilly have wrought God's ministers, as precious souls they sought, FIRST CHURCH ERECTED IN SUFFIELD, About KJSO. Exti-act from the Town Records, April G, 16S5:— "That the T<.wnsinei) shall upon ye tiwres' cost procure a ladder and ilsoe a red tiagg to hang out for a signe that perions may know the lime for asfemblini; tosether." 63 From Pastor RufiLLKs,* of tli(! cailicst ("old, To those who now the sacred othce hold. YouNGi.ovE* is with us still, and no age knows; Ivcniains Devotion,* and tlie fervor glows ; In long Gay* times, with Ehenezers raised. Our Hastings* have been heavenward — God l)c i)iais(Ml ! Forgive the tempted pen to pun these names, Portraits beloved in memory's sacred frames. ][ow much is due to them, their toils and prayers, 'I'he seed they sowed and watched with tears and cares: From thence the rieliest fruitage of the past — The purest blessings that shall longest last. IIow, ill my earliest memories linger yet Those holy men my youthful vision met; Dear reverend forms and voice of solemn sound ; I listened, and was tilled witli awe profound. The texts of Waldo,* simple, earnest, clear ; Of ]\Iix,* who, oft patlietic, droi^jjed a tear; Of MoKSR,* so tender and so warm in heart, Are still in mind, nor sliall they ere depart. The last was tlie first pastor known to me; Oft when a child I sat upon his knee ; See now his snowy hair and radiant face, As in the pulpit high he took liis place. And oft with simple eloquence would tlirilj The throng in the old church on Zion's Hill. From my small prison, near the center aisle, A deep, s(piare pew, I watched him for awhile, Then, standing on tlie seat, I twirled the shits. Or through them peeked and 2)ranked w ilh iieighlxiring brat^ And then I had a curious strong desire To see and hear i\\Q j'itcli^jiipe of the choir. The leader, with his mystic box in hand. Came to the front and took his proper stand, liaised the queer instrument and blew his toot. That each might catch the key and follow suit. No organ, with its soft or thundering tone, Led our high praises to the Heavenly Throne; 'Twas deemed, if not profane, quite out of place, And sounding viols were intensely Jxisc. I see them— in the gallery front they rise. And slightly turn their faces to tlu; skies — Young men in Sunday best and AvtsU-kempt hair. Maidens' bright cheeks from which the bonnets tiare; * Sec Notes at tlie close of the Poem. 6-4 Witli earnest heart and nnaitistic voice They sang the hymns that made us all rejoice. Tliose plaintive tunes, how deep the minor roll That thrilled like harps of heaven tlie pensive soul ! Born on this soil, as sweet and wierd was one — "CV//««" — as music of a dyint^' Swan.* The mental culture of the rising youth. Their early need of elemental truth Impressed our thoughtful fathers, and they laid Foundations as they could tlie work to aid : Hence tlie free school, and Master Austin f well Taught how to read and cypher, write and sjiell. The little school-house on the common set, The little group that first within it met, The simple studies they j^ui'sued or knew. The meagie textl)ooks, imattractive, few. The treadmill steps to reach the lower hight Of Science' hill, so faintly then in sight — Ah ! as this olden scene to view is brought, Tliink of the change the jiassing years have Avroiight I Behold the Public School, its throngs how fair, Wliat means of mental wealth and culture there; Behold the ampler range in clustered Halls F(M' those who list to Learning's higher calls ! Two hundred years ! In our review to-day Come the vast throngs that lived and passed away. Not the mere outward show and form of things. We trace life's deeper stream and hidden S2)rings; Its earnest thoughts and conflicts, hopes and fears. Its holiest loves, its tenderness and tears ; The grandest attributes of human souls, In what inspires, impels, restrains, controls ; In all that manhood seeks of wealth and fame. High nobleness of life and stainless name, •Pursuits well wortiiy the immortal mind, A glorious benediction to mankind. Here they appeared and had their day and power. Rose in their strength and found their waning hour. Some mounds on yonder slope tell where they lie, And some in places far that saw them die. * Timothy Swan, of Siiffluld, was the composer of "China."' t Anthony Austin, lirst Sclioolniaster of tlic Town. 65 As tli(! broad acres of a forest decj), lieneudi the eye's quick uiululaiinuf sweep, TJcvcal, along tlio distant range of sight, The grander trees tliat reach a nobler hight, And hold awhile the lingering, gladdened gaze, To mark their verdant crowns or flowering ]>laze — So o'er this track of centuries to-day We note the men of master minds and sway. Here honors found them in their native town, Or elsewhere gave them influence and renown. In every conflict for their country's right, Foremost they stand in the ensanguined tight; Colonial w-ars, and Independence time, The later struggle, and the last sublime; In all they bore a true and manly part, Witli patriot zeal and freedom-loving heart. They're found in civil life, law-learned and wise. Grasping ^vith strength great questions as they rise, Of clear perception and ibrensic power, With forecast broad and fitness for the hour ; In the high office and the work it brings. Called and commissioned by the King of kings; On varied fields their faitliful labors blessed. Where many souls they led to truth and rest; In healing arts, with ready skill and ken ; In authorship, and wielding well the |)en. Their names, as household words, wouhl I i-econl, And mete them out a Avell-deserved reward; But time forbids — nor is it needful now, Your worthy orator has wreathed each l)row. Go back to the last century's closing years, Suffield among the rising towns appears, A central place, of wide extensive trade. Whose enterprise its reputation made. Of Hartford, Springfield, 'twas a rival then. And equaled them in influential men. It had large factories and well sustained, And artizans in skillful laljor trained. If peddlers made their indigo of clay They had to find their market far away. It had a Weekly Press, of ample size, And editorial talent — 'twould surprise You now to scan its files and columns o'er; The names, the firms, the advertisements of yore. 9 66 O'er the wide land, for high and liealthful tone, " The Impartial Herald'''' was a paper known. Dear native town ! liome of my early days, I'm glad to find in thee so mueh to praise ; So grand a record in the years gone by ; So much that meets to-day the grateful eye. Thou art not faultless — no, nor free from stain ; I would not palliate thy love of gain. Nor spare the blind and narrow seltishucss That's been a barrier to thy best success. A generation since you turned your l^ack On that great thoroughfare and iron track. Which sought to pass convenient to your dooi-, And had prosperity and wealth in store. The long repentance of these thirty years, In the wee Brancli you've waited for, appears. IIow lavish Nature on this ample ground Longs that more marks of art and taste be found ; Where wealth and culture in profession dwell Should public spirit be a living well. Too nuich of life's been given to money greed. As have your lands to bear the "filthy weed." But not severities my lines shall fill ; Suffield, " with all thy faults I love thee still." Thy children love thee wheresoe'er they stray ; Come back to prove their filial hearts to-day. Ood bless thee, mother dear of noble sons And noble deeds — the present, future one 5 Be yet the nobler as thy course ai)pears Brighter, more bright, through all the coming yeurs ! NOTES. IlELATrxo TO Tin-: Ministers IIkfeihied to on Page Go. Rev. Ben.iamin Ruggles was .the finst pastor in Suffield. The Church (Con- gregational) was organized and lie ordained April 26, 1(V.I8. He was born at Kox- bury, Mass., August 11, 1G70. His father was John lluggles, and his grandfather, of the same name, came from England in 103.5. Benjamin graduated from Jlarvaid College in 1093, and two years after came to Sufflcld. He died September 5, 1708, O. 8., at the early age of thirty-two. But his brief ministry was one of great use- fulness. His wife's death took place a year before his. Her maiden name was Mercy Woodbridgc, daughter of Rev. John Woodbridge, of Wethersfield, and granddaughter of Gov. William Leete. They left seven children, and many of their descendants have filled honorable and useful positions both in Church and State. Rev. John Yomngi.ove was the first minister in Sutlleld. He came from Massachusetts in 1670 or 1080, and remained until his death, June 3, 1090. Not much is known of his previous history, or of the character of his ministry, and it is not certain whether he was a college graduate or had ever been ordained. He left also seven children, and his widow, Mrs. Surah Younglove, survived him nearly twenty years. Rev. EiiENEZER Devotion succeeded Mr. Rugglcs in the past(M-al ollice. He was ordained June 28, 1710, having already been with the church about a year. He was a native, it is supposed, of Dorchester, Mass., and graduated from Harvard College in 1707. He died April 11, 1741, at the age of lifty-seven, having been pas- tor of the church about thirty-one years. His ministry was very successful, result- ing In accessions to the church of three hundred and thirty-four persons, some being received every year with one exception. Mr. Devotion was thiice married. His two sons, Ebene/.er and John, became ministers of eminence. Rev. Erenezer Gay, D. D.,was the next pastor. He was ordained January 13, 17-13. He was an able divine, and sometimes in conversation showed a vein of humor. It is said when he was a candidate for the pastoral olHce, being very slen- der at that time, some of the people thought he was too spare, there Avas not enough of him, his legs were too small. He met the objection with a sermon from the text: "He taketh not pleasure in the legs of a man." It was a success, and lie was harmoniously settled. His long ministry of over fifty-four years was closetl by his death, March 7, 17'.)(J, at the age of seventy-seven. His son. Rev. Ebene/.ek Gav, Jr., succeeded him in the pastorate, being ordained March 6, 1793. He was a graduate and tutor of Yale College and a tine scholar, and in his early ministrj' a popular preacher. His active pastorate continued until December 13, 1820, and he was senior pastor until his decease, January 1, 1837, in the seventy-lirstyear of his age and the forty-fourth of his ministry. Early in Dr. Gay's pastorate, November 10, 1743, the Second Congregational Church was organized In the West Parish. A few years later, as an incidental result of the "great awakening," others with- drew, under the lead of Joseph Hastings, and formed a Separate Church. Rev. .losRPii and J()ii>j IIastings, father and son, wi'i-e the lirst Baptist minis- ters ill Sullield. A nuiibcr of the Sci)arates liceaine IJaptisls, and the First Baptist 68 Cluiroli was constituted in 1700, with Rev. Joseph IIastin<;,s as pastor. It was located on Hastinjjs' or Zion's Hill. Rev. John Hastings was ordained as co-pastor witli his father in 177.5, and after liis father's deatli in 1785, aged eighty-two, he continued in sole charge of the church until his own death, March 17, 1811, at the age of sixty-eight. Without a liberal education, he had great mental vigor and was an impressive and successful minister of the gospel. Rev. Daniel Waldo, a native of Windham and graduate of Yale, was the second pastor of the Congregational Church in the West Parish, succeeding Rev. John Graham. lie was ordained May 2o, 1792, and resigned his charge after eighteen years of service. At later times he visited this people when I heard him preach. He died July 30, 1864, lacking hut a few weeks of being one hundred and two years old. He was a chaplain in Congress at the age of niaety-tive, and preached his last sermon after entering upon his one hundred and second year. Rev. J. Mix was the successor of Mr. Waldo at West Suffield, and occasionally visited the school which I attended, and preached in the neighborhood. Rev. Asahel Morse became pastor of the First Baptist Church as the successor of Rev. John Hastings, in 1812. He was the son of Rev. Joshua Morse, and was born at New Loudon, (Montville,) November 11, 1771. He preached in various plfices, but most of his ministerial life was passed in Suffield. He took consider- able interest in political movements, and in 1818 was a member of the convention that framed the present Constitution of the State, and drafted the article relating to religious liberty. Wlien a child, I remember his frequently coming to my fath- er's house, over the mountain, and preaching on a Sabbath or evening. He died June 10, ISoti, in his sixty-sixth year. i i APPENDIX. [From the Hartford Times, Oct. 15, 1870. J SUFFIELD'S BICENTENNIAL. The Celebration AVedaesda3% October 12th. Procession— Decorations— Toasts— Adduesses— Poem — Music, and THE Distinguished Guests. Sufficld had on Wednesday, Oetober 12tl), a eeleliralion of the 20()tli anniversary of the settlement of that townsliip. The event had been looked forward to with pleasure by all the citizens of the town. Invita- tions had been issued to many distinguished persons to take part in the celebration, and the town appropriated fluids for the proper observance of the day. A large tent was erected on the town green— the ladies pre- pared their choicest viands. A programme was arranged, comprising a procession, firing of guns, and oratorical exercises at one of the churches, and every one anticipated a line time. Tlie clerk of the weather was not, however, so kindly disposed, and instead of granting a fine, sunshiny, autunm day, sent a drizzling, penetrating rain that soaked through everybody, and cast a damper ui)on the celebration. It was decided to carry out the programme in spite of the storm, and with the exception of the rain and mud everything passed off satisfactorily. A special train left Hartford at quarter past 7 o'cloek, carrying, among others, ex-6ov. Jewell, Gen. Hawley, Dr. Collins Stone, and many other distinguished citizens. At Windsor Locks the cars were switched upon the new branch road from that point to Sutfield, it being the first train over the road. Owing to the failure of the contractors to complete an iron bridge, the cars were obliged to stop about half a mile from the de- pot, and here carriages were provided for the guests, who were mostly cared for liy private citizens of Sufheld. The later trains added con- siderably to the numl)er present, and among them came Gov. English and ))art of his slafi". the IMIOCKSSION was formed at 9 1-2 o'clock. A special police force lcy the Choir. Address of Welcome, liy Rev. "Walter Barton. Response, by S. A. Lane, Es(|., of Aki-on, O. Ode, by the Choir. Address, by Rev. J. L. Hodge, D. D. Singing, by the Choir. Historical AcUhx-ss, by John Lewis, Es(j. Music, by the Band. Poem, by Rev. S. D. Phelps, D. D. Anthem, by the Choir. Benediction, by Rev. Stephen Harris. IMr. NoKTON said : We meet to celebrate the bi-centennial anniversary of the establishment of this town. He referred to the de2)arturc from England of our forefathers ; their stormy passage across the ocean; their arrival and landing; this was two hundred and fifty years ago; fifty years later some of the settlers traveled across the country and settled in the Valley of the Connecticut ; the location of Suflield was purchased by IMajor John Pynchon, for thirty pounds ; in April, 1G70, Springfield pe- titioned for a grant for a township of Stony Brook, as SulHeld used to be called, and on tlie 12th of October in that year this grant was passed, and the settlement begun, Joseph Harmon and brother being the first settlers ; God was with the earlier settlers ; He has been with ns since, and we trust His blessing will rest on the exercises of the day. The address of welcome by the Rev. AValter Barton was exceedingly well adapted to the occasion. After referring to the approjiriateness of commemorating the day, in touching language and clotinent terms he re- quested all residents of Suflield to rise and extend their liands in welcome of their guests; tlien as he said he gathered them all into one great hand which he extended to Judge Lane of Ohio, on the i)art of the guests present, saying, "Welcome each, welcome all." Judge Lane made a short Ijut hapi)y reply. It was forty years ago when, he said, if tradition was true, he left the place, a rosy-cheeked, 1)lack-haired boy of l.'j ; he now returned a sallow, gaunt man, gray- liaired and dim-sighted, 55 years of age ; he then referred to the wonder- ful changes that had taken place during that time, and of the inarch of improvement, and concluded l)y returning thanks on behalf of tlie guests for the cordial greeting that was being extended to them. The Rev. Dr. Hodge spoke at length upon the religious sentiment of Sullield. His address was in plain words, ehxjuently and forcibly deliv- 72 (■red, and created a marked impression ; lie thought that God had emi- nently privileged Suffield ; the community has come gradually to the aid of the churches, and the town had been always on tlie side of God, of Clirist, and of salvation. THE ORATION. The oration of John Lewis, Esq., was a very comprehensive and ex- haustive one. Its delivery was necessarily curtaihul on account of its length, but it will be published in full in a pamphlet which is to Ije issued in commemoration of the occasion. We give the following brief al)stract : Samuel and Joseph Harmon were tlie first settlers of Suffield, or Stony Brook, as it was then called, and built tlieir caltin in the summer of 1670. Their descendants are there to this day. Major General Phineas Lyman, of Suffield, distinguished himself in the old French Avar. Singularly enough, it was on the Fourth of July^ 1774, that the people of Suffield denounced the policy of England, expressed sympathy with Boston, and started a subscription for the suftering poor. The old pay-roll in tlie State House shows that there " marched from Suffield for the relief of Boston, in the Lexington Alarm, April, 1775, Captain Elihu Kent and one hundred and fourteen men." More than one hundred and fifty men en- tered the service within a month from the alarm. In Sej^tember, 1775, Captain Ilanchett's company formed iiart of the expedition against Que- bec. He and most of the company were captured, he was jiut in irons, and they were kept prisoners till October, 177G. The captain advanced a tliousand dollars to his men, which the General Assembly repaid. The whole revolutionary record is exceedingly honorable. Thirty-two Suffield men certainly, and probably many more, lost their lives in the service. Mr. Lewis eloquently advocated the erection of a monument, on Avliich should be inscribed the names of these thirty-two, and also of those Avho were sacrificed in the war of the rebellion. The changes in industrial pursuits from generation to generation are curious. Ship-building was once carried on there. Many vessels are known to have been launched, but there is no record of them. Turpentine was for a time gathered as an article of commerce. When Suffield was a place of much trade, there were at one time twelve taverns in the town. Now there is not one. The educational and ecclesiastical history of the town is interesting, but we are compelled to omit the extracts we had intended to make. The pamphlet record of the day's addresses Avill make a valuable addition to our libraries of local history. THE POEM. Or. Phelps was extremely happy in his ])oeni. It abounded in telling hits, witticisms, and bits of choice sarcasm. The topics were those nat- urally suggested l)y the day and the writer's reminiscences of his boyhood in the town. There were many neat and ]j!easant couplets which pro- voked laughter and api)lause. jjiaiOff.-. -^- -^^^^^-y^e^u//^ X" N '-i^^ 73 The exercises were courhidcd l)y an antliciii: " Glorious things of tlice arc si)okcii, Zion fity of our God," and tlie l)eiicdiction. IN THE TENT. The procession was formed at tlie end of the exercises in the same order as in the morning, and marched to a tent erected on the green. Here were spread innumerable tables, loaded to bending with the j^rofiision of edibles furnished by the liberality of the ladies of Suffield. After all the large crowd had partaken, there were more than twelve baskets full, aye, Avagons full, left. We have never seen a more li1>cral collation or one bet- ter served than this. The ladies themselves honored their guests l)y wait- ing on them, and lent on additional charm to the occasion. Colt's Band 2)crformed a number of choice selections during the repast. THE TOASTS. Then came the after dinner speeches in response to sentiments read l)y the marshal, in the following order : 1. The President of the United States. Cy Gen. J. R. Ilawley. 2. The State of Connecticut. By ex-Governor Jewell. It had been expected that Governor English would respond to this. He arrived at al)out 11 o'clock, accompanied by Adjutant General Inger- soU, and heard a portion of the exercises in the church and dined liastil}' in the tent, but he was comjielled to leave early in order to take the after- noon accommodation train and keej) an appointment in New Haven. 3. The first settlers, Samuel and Joseph Harmon. One of their de- scendants was calletl, but he was not present to respond. 4. The descendants of the settlers. John Cotton Smith, of Sliaron, spoke in response. He is a great grandson of the Rev. Cotton Mather Smith, who went from Suffield to Sharon in 1755, and t]\ere preached over fifty years, and whose son was Gov. John Cotton Smith. 5. The citizens of Suffield to-day. By the Rev. Dr. Phelps, some well- improvised verses. 6. The sons and daughters of Sullield. By Francis Rising, Esij., of Troy, N. Y. 7. The churcli aneing generally heard. 11. The old "porch house" and the "sentinel elms." By the Hon. Samuel II. Huntington, of Hartford, who was born in that once well- 10 7-i known residL-ncc. It win occupied ))y Gen. Washington, on liis visit to Sullicld, but it lias disappeared, and with it one of the noble pair of elms that stood before it. 13. Suffield men in business in other States. By iMr. Willis King, a prominent and successful merchant of St. Louis. At 5 1-3 o'clock the special train brought the Hartford and New Haven guests home, Ijut a number remained to jiarticipate in the reunion which was held in the Second Baptist Church. At this a number of letters from old residents unable to be present was read, and there was a general min- gling of congratulations 1)y all present. There was also some fine music, vocal and instrumental. The young folks enjoyed the late liours of the evening and night, and further celebrated the day by dancing at the Town Hall, but at this our reporter was unal)le to Ijc present. THE OFFICERS OF THE DAY. The following were the officers of the day : President — D. W. Norton. Vice-Presidents — George Fuller, Gad Sheldon, AVarren Lewis, JMillon Hathaway, L. U. S. Taylor, Albert Austin. Chief Marshal— Qo\. S. B. Kendall. Aids—Y. P. Loomis, 11. A. Loomis, John Nooney, B. F. Territt. They performed their arduous duties in a very praiscworlliy manner. THE MUSIC. The music in the church was under the direction of JMr. Ilenry Foster, of New Britain, a former resident of Sutlield, who presided at the fine organ. The Voluntary was well performed, closing with " Home, Sweet Home." The opening anthem was sung l)y a choir of fifteen young ladies, in a very pleasing manner. The original hymn we ^^ublish entire. It was sung to the tune of " Auld Lang Syne." At the close of Dr. llodgc's address an operatic selection, " Night shades no longer," was sung by the full choir, in a faultless style. The closing anthem, " Glorious things of Thee," etc., was also sung with good efiect. We should not forget to say a word of praise for CVdt's Band, whose playing was much admired and heartily applauded. To conclude, the entire celebration was an exceedingly jjleasant one, notwithstanding the unpleasant weather, and all who took part in the ex- ercises will long remcml)er the 200th anniversary of Sufiield. cM^M^^ii;^.^^ ti^-^ A« ~\ i' ztO^ '/^r [From the Ilurtroril Evi'iiinj;- Post, Oct. l:j, ISTO. ) SUFFIELD BICENTENNIAL. SuFi^iEiJJ, Wednesday, Octol)er 12, 1870. For two linndred years, as the saying goes, SufReld has waited for this day, and now it comes with rain and storm, the first of any account in many weeks, and seemingly, at least to Builield folks, it comes to spoil the enjoyment of this anniversary. The early train from Hartford, a special to Suffield, and the first whose whistle ever sounded over her broad fields and through her pleasant homes, arrived with quite a delegation about 8 a. m., finding accommodations in numerous carriages and stages from the stopping place to the centre. Tlie order of the day was to form a procession at 9 o'clock, with Colt's IJand, the Governor and staif, and ex-Governors, together with citizens and strangers from al)road, and so proceed to the church, where the exer- cises of the day were to be held ; but the rain hindered, altliough it did not entirely prevent the procession, which was formed about half past nine, and witii music marched to and entered the church— and a beautiful church it is, of which few have a correct knowledge, for there is a preva- lent idea that being a country place Suflield has no fine churches, but a sight of this will disprove all such fancies. Over the altar was this beau- tiful nu)tto of cheer to those who had come from afar to this bi-ccnten- nial : AVclcome. 1 ()?(). Sons and Dnughters ol" Sullirld. 1870. Ill front of and beside the altar ilowers of every hue and sliape, together with inniiense baskets of autumn Ilowers, bright and beautiful, gave to- ken of the ladies' ever present hand. After the immense congregation had ceased to buzz, ISfr. II. A. Foster, of New Britain, formerly of the Connecticut Literary Institute, opened the day by a voluntary of the OlTertoire in F by Wely, beautiful always, but never more so than under the touch of a master. Then followed a song, " We Hail Thee," l)y a chorus composed of thirty voices. After- ward Daniel W. Norton, Esq., president of the day, madt; a short address, prmcipally historical, telling of tlu! trials our fathers endured, of their settlement in Suffield under the nauu; of Stony Brook phmtntion, i)in-- chased by iSIajor .lolin Pynchon, of Springfield, for £;]0, of the grant of Joseph IIarnu)n, October 12, 1670, and the continued growth and pros- 76 perity of tlic town. Following this, :ui invocation by the Rev. Joel Maun, and reading of the Scriptures by the Ilev. Dr. Ives, selections from the first chapter of John and the eleventh of Hebrews, followed by prayer by the same gentleman. Then an original hymn was sung ])y the choir, entitled "Two Hundred Years Ago." This song was composed by tlie poet of tlie occasion, the Rev. S. D.Phelps, D. D., of which we give a verse: " Wlicrc now a joj'ous throiiu' we stand, And beauties round us u'low, Stood a dense forest, wild and i^rand, Two liundred years ago. How vast tliG cliange from old to new, 'Twould strike tlie fathers dumlj. But wliat sluiU fill i\\e done, and thut was tliat he sliouhl ])c buried here, and have a tomb- stone of Aberdeen granite to mark liis resting phice. After a further dis- cussion of other topics connected witli his su1)ject, the Rev. Dr. sat down amid mucli appUiuse. Tlien the chorus rendered in splendid style, " Night Shades no Longer," from the oratorio of " Moses in Egypt." The orator of the day, Mr. John Lewis, a graduate of the Connecticut Literary Institute in 1864, of Yale in 1868, and now a practising member of the Hartford bar, was introduced, and for more than an hour held the vast audience by thoughts of his finely wrought and higlily polished dis- course. Relating various historical facts about the town — many new and pleasing ones, too — he said : " The history of our town is not without its practical bearing — we have met to study the lives and characters of those who have lived here the past two hundred years ; and surely there must be a practical benefit to each one of us arising from such an insight; and yet," he said, " it is necessary to realize that Suflield is only a town and not a great nation, while we pursue the search into her past life;," a fact which some of the speakers seemed to lose sight of. The history of the town from its first charter in 1670 to the present day was given even in the most minute particular. lie related the indignities and wrongs wliich she suffered in l)eiug annexed at one time to Massachusetts, and also told of her valiant i)art in the great wars of the Revolution, when she fui'- nished four hundred men, of whom thirty-two were killed, and liow the first school house was built in 1703, and of the first master thereof, Ped- agogue Austin. It is also wonderful to remark the changes in the bus- iness haljits of the town, as portrayed l)y the orator from a thriving man- ufacturing town in 1770, to a quiet farming village in 1870. Then she had lawyers, a newspaper, two law schools, a dozen hotels, and everything was full of life ; to-day how dead ! The first town meeting was held in 108:), at which selectmen were elected. Suflield has given birtli to two Postmaster Generals, four members of Congress, one Major General, one Governor of Connecticut, one of Vermont, two of Pennsylvania, one of Ohio, and various men who fill our judges' benches well and accei)tably. The speaker was frequently applauded, especially when advocating the erection of a soldiers' monument. At the conclusion of the address the band played the piece called the " Hermit's Bell," in which a cornet solo was finely given. Dr. S. D. Phelps, of New Haven, the poet, for a brief space gave the audience the outflow of his ever ready ])oetic talent. Touching with loving hand the days dead and past, calling up by his word painting sweet memories of scenes and seasons in our youth. Ilis idea of what a newsi)aper might be, or should be, if you please, was given in the following lines, describing Sullield's wrrUly p.ipiT: " Go back to tlic last ct'iitury's closiuij years, Suflield anioui^ the risiui? towns apjicars, A central place of wide, extensive trade. 78 Whose enterprise its reputation made ; Of Hartford, Springfield, 'twas arivaltlien. And equaled them in inlluential men. It had a weekly press of ample size And editorial talent; 'twould surprise You now to scan its files and columns o'er ; The names, the firms, tlie advertisements of j'orc, O'er the wide land, for hinii and liealthful tone, The ' Impartial Herald' was a paper known." Tlicn there was a scene in the old cliurcli — one of Suffield a lumdred years ago, and of their prevailing vice as a people — too much tohacco raising, he gently warned them. Tlieir long delay in Iniilding a railroad he joked them about in this wise : " The Ions; repentance of these thirty j'ears, In the wee branch you've waited for appears." After the Gloria from Mozart's 12th Mass, by the chorus, tlie exercises in the cliurch ended with the Ijenediction by the Rev. S. Harris. " FALL IN FOR RATIONS." From the church to the great tent on the Park w^as an easy change, and very agreeable to many of the visitors, especially your correspondent, who from personal experience can testify to the abundance of everything in the line of eatables, furnished by the ladies of this grand old town. " Suf- field ladies never do things ))y halves." After dinner the vast audience of 2,500 having been somewhat (juietod, Col. S. B. Kendall, marshal of the day, proposed the following toasts and called the respondents. 1. The President. Responded to by Gen. J. R. Ilawley. 2. The State of Connecticut. By Ex-Gov. Jewell, as Gov. English had left town for the puri)Osc of keeping an engagement in New Haven. Gov. Jewell in his remarks said, "that as 'twas the t;xshion to claim relationship to Suflield, one having done so by land and another by water, he could claim it by ,;?/r — as he had suffered all the tortures of the lost, trying to smoke their " partic- ular" seed-leaf (laughter) and he thought himself entitled to his claim." 3. The First Settlers, Samuel and Josepii Harmon. 4. Tlie Descendants of the Settk>rs. By John Cotton Smith, of Sluiron, a great grandson of Cotton iMathcr Smith. 5. The Citizens of Suflield to-day. By Dr. Phelps, in some very ai)pro])riate and well timed verses. G, The Sons and Daughters of SulHcid. By Francis Rising, of Troy, N. Y. 7. The Church and the School. By the Rey. Dr. Ives. ^i>t<:f' -^^T^^t^ I 79 8. The absent Sons aiul Daughters. By the Rev. Dr. Iloclgc, who, as usual, brouglit the au'liiu'c into tlic best of humoi- before he had spoken a (h)/.en woids. 1). Springfiekl, the Mother Town. By Mayor Smith, who claimed to be the grandfather of their town, be- cause he was the father of Springtield, and she was the mother of Sulheld. (Cheers and laughter.) 10. The Oldest Man in Suffield. By ApoHos Phelps, a native of the place, now eighty live years old. Too indistinct to be heard. 11. The old "Porch House" and the " Sentinel Elms."' By the Hon. Samuel IIuntingt(m, of Ilartl'oid. 13. Suffield Men in business in other States. By the Hon. Willis King, who left town for Missouri forty years ago. The Star Spangled Banner was played by the l)and, and then the mul- titude dispersed to their homes. REUNEON IN THE EVENIX(i. In the evening the same large and enthusiastic audience convened in the 2d Baptist Cliurch, and for two hours listened to toasts and spceclics — all appropriate, and some witty. The toast to the Connecticut Lit- erary Institute was resi)()nded to by Rev. Mr. Andrews, principal of the school. A very clear, forcible speaker, but space and time forbid our making any detailed report. There was a sentiment wliicli included the " Lavvton'' Ijlackberry, but your correspondent was unable to hear it all. Mr. Barton proposed an impromi)tu toast as follows: "Our Suffield rail- road and the arrival of the first train — two hundred years in coming, but better late than never."' A verse of "Home, Sweet Home"' was sung by the chorus, and with a few more remarks from strangers, and any orm wlio wislied to sj)eak, the meeting adjourned after singing the Doxology, "Praise God from Whom all Blessings Flow." Thus ended the great anniversary of Suffield's l)irth. AVith her new highway to the outer world opened she has a grand future before her, and if the spirit Avhich turned the railroad from her and prevented the arsenal from being located within her borders thirty years ago be dead, there is no hindrance to her advancement. The cost of the bi-centennial was $o,000. Through the elVorts of Simon B, Kendall, who was a member of the last legislature, an enabling act was passed, allowing the town to lay a tax sufficient to raise $1,500 for this celebration, and the balance necessary was collected by subscri])- tion. To Colonel Kendall too much praise cannot be given for his val- ualjle and untiring labors before and throughout all the exercises. Jbmor to whom honor is due. [From the Sumiiut County (Oliiu) Beacon, Oct. 2G, 1870.] A VISIT TO THE OLD NATIVE TOWN BI-CEN- TENNIAL CELEBRATION. INTERESTING EXERCISES. Deaii Oij) S.vnctum: A visit to one's iKitive town, after long years of absence, is always interesting, and doubly so on a special invitation to particiijate in tlie celebration of an important anniversary connected with its origin and early history. The occasion of my present visit to New England was the celebration of the two hundredth anniversary of the settlement of the township of Sufheld, in the county of Ilai'tford and State of Connecticut, which oc- curred on Wednesday, October 12th. The town is situated upon the Avest bank of the Connecticut river, eighteen miles north of the city of Hartford, and adjoining the Massa- chusetts line. It is one of the very loveliest of the many beautiful towns in the sjjlendid valley in which it is situated. Its fertile and carefully cuitivatetl farms, its broad and neatly kept streets, its tine roads, its mag- nificent residences, its superb chun'hcs, its commodious educational struc- tures, all evince a high degree of culture and prosperity. On the twelfth day of October, 1070, the General Court of IMassachu- setts, at Boston, authorized the settlement of the " jjlantation " — a tract of land six miles square — which was afterwards organized as the town- ship of " South Fields,'' and subsequently changed to the more compact and euphoneous name of Suffield. And it was to aid in properly ol)serv- ing its bi-centennial that the absent sons and daughters of the old town were invited to revisit their ancient home. By a vote of the town the sum of $1,500 was appro2)riated to defray the expenses of the celebration. In addition to this the good ladies of the entire town vied with each other in providing edibles for the public feast that was to be given to the re- turning wanderers, and in extending tlieir hospitality to all visitors, whetlier native born or not. Besides two large church edifices — Congregational and Baptist— in which to conduct the exercises, a large tent capable of covering four or five thousand persons had Ijeen jjrocured from Boston and erected upon the beautiful Central Park of the village. Unfortunately for the com- l)lete success and joyousucss of the occasion, a drenching rain set in on the evening of the nth and continued until afternoon on the day of the celebration. This undoubtedly kv\)t many hundreds of people from neighboring towns from attending. But yet, as stormy as it Avas, there C^ti/t f_^^^ -C7 n V. 7 81 were probably 4,000 pcoitle present, anioiiL!,- whom were niuny distintriiislu'd men, natives or (U'scendants of former residents of Builiekl from distant States, as well as a lar^e mnuln'r of tlie dignitaries of Connecticut and Massacluxsetts. Amoni^' tlie latter were Gov. Englisli and members of his stair, and cx-Governors llawley and Jewell, of Hartford, and Mayor Smith, of Springfield. The day was nshcred in by a salute of forty guns and the ringing of the church bells of tlu; town. For the lirst time, to bring in its illustrious guests, the cars ran into the lownship over its new railroad, a Ijrancli of the Hartford, New Haven and Springfield railway, on the aus])icious, or rather inaus2)icious morning. The intended grand cavalcade, i)rocession, and march, owing to the rain, was but a partial success, though the in- vited guests, officers of the day, speakers, etc., were escorted l)y Colt's Armory Band, of Hartford, from the rendezvous opposite to the Congre- gational church upon tim west side of the Park. Every portion of the hirge house, including the capacious gallery, was densely packed with an intensely interesting and expectant audience. The church was finely deco- rated with fiowers and (ivergreens and appropriate mottoes. The exercises consisted of, first, a voluntary upon the magnificent organ of the church ; second, singing by the choir; third, a statement in regard to settlenu'nt of the town and the object of the celebration, by Hon. Daniel W. Norton, of SuUield, president of the day; fourth. Invocation by Kev. Joel Maun, of New Haven, pastor of the Congregational church of Suf- field nearly tifty years ago ; fifth, reading of the Scriptures and prayer, by Rev. T)r. D.Ives, pastor of the Baptist church of SuUield; sixth, original hymn l)y the choir; seventh, Address of Welcome Ijy liev. Walter Bar- ton, pastor of the Congregational church of Suffiehl ; eighth, response to address of welcome, I)y S. A. Lane, editor of the Akron Daily Beacon, Akron, Ohio; ninth, ode by choir; tenth, address — church history of the town of Suffield— by Rev. J. S. Hodge, D. D., of Brooklyn, N. Y. ; elev( nth, singing by the choir ; twelfth, historical address of the town of Sutlield, by John Lewis, Esq., of Hartford ; thirteenth, music by Colt's Armory Band ; fourteenth, original poem, l)y Rev. S. D. Phel])s, D. 1),, of New Haven; fifteenth, anthem by the choir; sixteenth, benediction, by Rev. Stei)lien Harris, of West Suffield. These exercises occujiied nearly four hours, eliciting the undivided at- tention of the large audience, and very frcciuent and very enthusiastic aji- plause. At their close, at 2 o'clock p. m., the audience repaired to tlie big tent, uniler which was served one of the finest collations that I have ever seen. At the close of the gustatory exercises, in response to appropriate sentiments, speeches were nnide l)y ex-Gov. Hawley and ex-Gov. Jewell, of Hartford ; Hon. John Cotton Smith, of Sharon, Conn., a great-grand- son of Rev. (;otton Mather Smith, a resident of Sufiield up to 175.') ; Rev. Dr. S. D. Phelps, of New Haven ; Francis Rising, Es(|., of Troy, N. Y. ; Rev. Dr. Ives, of Suffield ; Rev. Dr. Hodge, of New Haven; jMavor Smith, of 11 82 Spriiiglit'ld; Mr. ApuUos Pliulps, 85 years of age, tlie oklest native Ixtni, life-long resident in Suffield; Hon, Samuel Huntington, of Hartford, and Hon. Willis King, a prominent merchant of St. Louis. During the after-dinner exercises, the weather came off bright and beau- tiful, and the large throng sejiarated in the best of spirits, eacli and all feeling that notwithstanding the storm the Suffield bicentennial liad been a magnificent success. In the evening a large audience assembled at the Baptist church, where the remainder of the sentiments which had been prepared were read and appropriately responded to, and many intej-esting reminiscences related by visitors, jjoth native and otherwise, the writer of this getting in a few words upon the railroad question, exhorting the peojile of old Suffield to extend their new branch road through the town, so that visitors can get out of the town upon the north as well as tlie soutli. In the evening, also, the young people of the town had a social dance at the town hall, which is represented as ))eing altogether a lively and pleasant affiiir, and thus ended one of the most important celebrations and reunions that it has ever been my good fortune to attend. S. A. L. Suffield, Conn., Oct. 14, 1870. m*M4 ^'i^^i^l^Z^; W.'^.J, iyued with tiie spirit of the pioneer minister, I resolved to obey tlie ^-ommand given to the first pio- neers of the cross, and as the liehi was large, to say as did the ijrojjlicts, here am I, send me. In August I emigrated with my family lo the terri- tory of ]Miehigan, and landed at the mouth of Swan Creek, Avhere tlie city of Toledo now stands. No white settlement of any great amount, but the ground dotted with tents of Indians, collected there to receive jJay from government. I journeyed from thei-e to Monroe City, thence up the river Raisin, about fifty miles, toTecumseh, where I located and ijreaehed for one year in the sparse settlement of that region. I will not detain you to speak of all the interesting incidents of that toilsome journev, part of the way being only the Indian trail. Soon after my arrival at Tecumseh, I went in search of provision for my family, and all I could get for love or money in three days' time was a borrowed loaf of bread, and six green cucumbers given me. The next spring the Black Hawk Avar broke out in the wilds of Wis- consin, and threatened to spread desolation and death through all the pioneer settlements between there and Canada. We were in jeopardy for some months, and onct; were informed that 1,500 Indians were close uj)on us, and we felt all the terror and anxiety incident to the anticipated at- tack. But it was a false alarm : God ordered it otherwise, and we were preserved. God proved liimself a God at hand, and restrained the Avrath of man, and we received no harm. To God be ail the praise. In August, 1833,1 sold my home in the woods of Tecumseh and started for Prairie lionde, Kalamazoo Co., where I unfurled the banner of the cross, and the winter following the Lord recognized the labor and sanc- tioned it by calling into His kingdom many ])recious souls. There we had seasons of privation and want ; but God was Avith us and sustained us through all, and I labored on in connection with others in the pioneer field as embassadors of Jesus, with more or less success, until the begin- ning of the winter '35-6. I was then called to a more extensive field of labor in a circuit of about 100 miles. I traveled on horseback, which was in fact my study, as there I arranged my sermons, and preached from 24 to 28 times every. four weeks. I Avas Avith my family but four days out of 28, and for all my toil, labor, and privation, received about $100 a year. j\Iy parishioners Avere all pioneer settlers, and most of them did Avhat they could to sui)port the Gospel, and we lived together and God prosi^ered us in spiritual and temporal things. 88 Mr. President, your humlile speaker and former townsman lias known much of the life of the pioneer, botli as a man and a minister, and being honored by the appointment of embassador of Jesus Christ to tlie revolted world of mankind, I have endeavored not only to teaeh and warn, but also to " pray them in Christ's stead l)e ye reconeiled to God." Having been raised to manhood from thirteen years of age, anil enter- ing upon the a (fairs of civil life as a freeman, commencing I say here in lliis town, I claim to be a pioneer of Suffield. Yes, sir, I have been some- what a pioneer Methodist minister in this town; for some time I ])reached alternately in South street and Fcatlier street, every two weeks, and occa- sionally in other parts of the town. My ministry in this town was about the last of my labor in New Eng- land, excepting a part of the time I preached in Southwick, Mass., which adds another link of evidence to my claim of being a pioneer of Suffield. Of this I boast. I love to advert to Connecticut— yes, to Suflield— as my native liome. Enough of self. Pardon me, Mr. President ; I have nnintentiimally passed over the first ministers, the 2)ioneers of the Gospel of the Son of God in this town. I should have named the Rev. John Younglove as the first to think and act- verily a ])ioneer. Mr. Geo. Phili])s and Mr. Nathaniel Clajip were also pio- neers, and prepared the way for Mr. Benjamin Kuggles to be ordained the first pastor, making him and the church the pioneer pastor anginning to award honors that have been too long deferred. IjKXOM; fourth son of Joseph, born five days after his fatlier's dcatli, and hence, I suppose, named " a son of griel"," founded the llchron fam- ily, from which came, in the third generation, the Rev. Dr. lienjainiii Trumbull, minister of North Haven, and author of the History of Con- necticut. The Hon. Lyman Trumbull, the distinguished Senator from Illinois, is a grandson of the Rev. Dr. Trumbull, and a native of Col- chester. My letter has grown to an unreasonable length, and imperfect as is the outline sketch I have attempted to give of one of the principal branches of the Suffield stock, I must not now add to or complete it. Twenty names occur to me among descendants, in the male lines, from Judali and Joseph Trnnil)nll, as well deserving honoral)le mention as some of whom I have taken note. And a much longer roll of men of nnirk might be niail(! u[) from those who trace dcsc^ent through maternal ancestors from the two brotliers of SufKeld. Rut I did )iot purpose to do the work of the genealogist, only to cull here and there a few twigs from an old tree. With sincere regret that I cauni^t be present at the comnu'inoratiou on Weilnesday — a regret in which you can hardly fail to join, when you see how long a letter my presence would have spared you, I am, my dear, sir, Very truly yours, J. Hammond Ti;rMi;rr,i,. 92 The old Porc'li House, the fii-bt parsonaj^-e, and the Sentinel Elms. Uesponded to by the lion. Saniin'l IT. Huntington, of Hartford — in wliich Judge Huntington very liappily and pleasantly stated that Suthcld was the place of his nativity ; that lie was cradled in the old " Poi'cli House," where, and at the viihige school, his early boyhood was spent. The two majestic elm trees standing in front were planted Ijy the Kev. Benjamin Ruggles and his jieople, about 175 years ago. AVe fancy we see them, emerging from the forest, with the young elms on their shoul- ders, sjiades in hand, and see them planting them on the highway or common. In the rear of the old " Porch House " was the well, with its crotch and sweep, and " old oaken bucket." The old Bell pear-tree on the northwest, into which many a vicious boy climbed in the darkness of the night, thus proving the old maxim, " stolen fruit was sweet." During the Revolutionary war a company of militia were i)araded nnder the shade of these elms one summer's day, during the nionth of August, pre- paratory to go to the front in the service of their country. Gen. Wash- ington, the " Father of the Country," was passing through Suffield on that day, and stopped at the Austin tavern (directly opposite) to dine. Some of the principal men of the town invited him to go over and make a speech, to cheer and encourage the men in this company to go forward and do their duty to their country. He did so, and his speech had the desired effect. On another occasion, when General Washington was passing through this town, he stopped, and with others went u]) into the belfry in the steeple of the Congregational church on the hill, just built, with its beautiful spire, by Master Howard, of Suffield. Gen. Wash- ington greatly admired tlie beauty of the surrounding country, the dwell- ings of its patriotic citi/.ens, and the fertility of its cultivated fields. A few years ago one of these majestic elm trees (the north one) fell dur- ing a wintry storm of wind, rain, and ice, whose sjiacious roots had been mutilated by a ruthless teamster's axe, in which he made a trough which he filled with grain, for the purpose of feeding his team, ruining this no- ble tree, and causing its death in haif a century, while the other sentinel is left in health and strength, solitary and alone, a silent mourner of the past, listening to the shrill whistle of the Jirst locomotive Avitli its special train from Hartford, over the branch railroad to Suilield, on tliis occasion. Long may fJiin sentinel elm stand in all its glory, free from harm and the winter's blast, a memento of the past, and mark the site of the holy men of old. And long may the worthy and honoral>le resj)ondent to this sen- timent live to visit the jjlace of his nativity. The 8uHiehl men wlio are lionored business incn of other places. Ilespondcd to by Wyllys King, Esq., of St. Louis, Missouri. Mu. Piik8II)knt: It is not in my power to make a speech, even if I de- sired to do so, or if proj)er to take nj) the time, which can be much better used. I only beg the privilege of expressing my sincere thanks to yon as 93 the honored president of the day, and through you to tlie committee of invitation, for your circular which reached me " heyond the Mis.sissii)pi," and whicli prompted my attendance on this happy reunion. Wlien I read the names on the eircuhir — Norton, Looiiils, Slicldon, Spencer, and other names so familiar in early days, my heart resjionded at once to the invitation, and my purpose was fixed to be here if possible. And now I am here to mingle in these social pleasures, to hear the voices of old friends, and to look once more into one another's faces. Time has wrought changes in many of ua, as well as in other things. We have to look dec^j down Ijclow the lutes and groves — the marks of time — on our faces to see the soul once so well known and esteemed ; but it still lives and siiines out in they«rt', and I rejoice to see it there. It is more than lifty years since I went out a boy from this grnnd old town — how grand only those know who have been abroad — to enter upon life's struggles, to fight its battles, and it is nearly forty j'ears since my ex- perience of life began " l)eyond the Mississippi," then far off — a journey of twenty days of diligent travel — now a journey o^ forty lionrs, and that without loss of sleep — then a far off land of plenty and cheapness, so much so tliat the farmers there used to tell me that a field of corn of sLvty huslieh to the acre " would run any man in del)t to pick it." Now that same field is brought so near — thanks to your railroads that have reached us — that it is right alongside of your old pastures, into which the crop can be thrown with profit to the owner. The spirit of improvement has wrought here also, as I discover by the changes made in this old. Sufiield street — laagnificent liryond comparison with any other street east or 'west. I miss the liuilding which was in the centre of the street, and where I did mischief as a school b.')y ; antl a new handsome edifice has replaced the " meeting house " into the belfry of which we boys ran \\\) and down on the lightning-rod at i)leasure, and some of the most presumptuous even up to the ball on the top of tiie spire. But I am not to make a speech, and will only remark further — again thanking you for this privilege — that my name is Wyliys King, son of Zeno King, l)orn in Sullield — l)orn on the river road (mce called "Feather street," a designation quite significant, but which I cannot now explain. My grandfather, Dan King, liad fourteen children, and the most of them grew up, married, and did something more than " talk of ])i>pul,i!i()n," and I am told that his grandfather had nineteen children, and at one time the name of "King" was on a par with that of "Smitii." It may not be out of place here to say that as to mnnhers in the family, my own blessings have iteen such that I need not be asliamed to stand u|> in the presence of Kings. Rev. Mr. Barton [jroposed an imjjromptu toast as follows : Our Sudield l)raiirli railroad, and tlie arrival to-day ot its lirst train — two liun- drod years in coniiiiL;', but better late tlian never. This toast was hap[)ily responded to hy S. A. Lane, Esij., ot" Akron, Ohio. After giving some interest ini^,' statisties in regard to the great in- crease and also the great value of railroads in Ohio, and through the West, he expressed liis joy that now at length his native town was to reap the rich benelit of this grand and indispensable instruiuent of civilization. lu closing, he gave utterance to a hope — which at no distant day will doul)tless be realized — that the Sutiield railroad might have an outlet nofth.wanl^ as it now has southward. The fanners of SulTiekl — the foundation of soeicty, the bcuef letors and feeders of the [)ublie, the hope for a tri-ceateunial celebr.ition. Responded to by Major Edwin P. Stevens. Mr. President and Fellow-Citizens : The sentiment just read is a truth so apparent that it needs no argument from me to prove it. It is from the fields and gardens of the liusl)andman that the table of the great kings, presidents, and nol)les are supplied, as well as tliat of the peasant. What a change to-day from that those noble pioneers beheld, when they lirst came here and l)uilt their rude caluns, and made themselves a houK!, and commenced the settlement of our town. The dark forests and the giant oaks have nearly disappeared before their sturdy blows, and to-day we look out upon well cultivated iields and stately mansions, where wealth and prosperity prevails, with joy and rejoicings, in all our hab- itations. These beautiful churches, these institutions of learning, stand like dia- monds in the coronet of a prince, not only to beautify, but to bless. What clianges another century will bring it would be ditlicult to ])r(!- dict. The river, that marks our eastern boundary and gives name to our noble State, will How on to the ocean ; the lirooks will run in their accus- tomed channels; thel)eautiful landscapes and fertile valleys will be here; those western liills, and even old Manitic, that stands on our western bor- der, will remain unchanged and unchanging — but we, fellow-citizens, of to day will not be liere ; others will walk these silent vales; before that tinu! we shall be gathered to our fathers, and shall slec|) the long sleep of deatli. Let us then, fellow-citizens, meet with jiromptness the (bities of our })osition, and discharge them with fidelity. Let us practice the virtues of our fathers, and when we, like them, shall have passed away, we may have the proud con.sciousness that our town and the world have been made better by our living in it. /4^^ ^.w;. ^JL^ <^^/^^^^^-«^^ /"^^^^ Cye^c 95 Tlic olik'st man in Siillickl— C;iiit. ^\ polios riielp.s. Ciipl. Plu'l[)s CiiiiR' upon tiai stjind and said: Mr. Piesidcnt, and fcllow- citi/cns : 1 tliaidv yoit lor kindly rcnicnd)L'ring me on tliis deeply intcr- estinii; occasion. I stand l)efure you lo-day tlic oldest man that is an in- habitant of this town. It was in SidlieJd that I was born, in Sullicld I have ahvMVs lived. I have been an active coteniporary with two genera - lions that have passed away. May Ihe blessings of Alndghty God rest upon tile nu'U and wonu'u of SiiHield to-day, aiul the generations that are to succeed you long after all that is mortal of ApoUos Phelps shall be reposing beneath its generous soil. Other voices than those whose remarks arc recorded yavc utterance to the thoughts and emotions, which seemed to well up spontaneously in every htiart ])resent, and many otlicrs would have been glad to have spoken, but the time of parting had come, and the company dispersed, each to seek his own home and the sphere to which he was accustomed to act. But all seemed to be well satislicd to have spent one day in com- memorating the virtues of their ancestors, and reviving the friendships of earlier years. The Executive Committee desire to acknowledge much to the ladies of Sutliehl for their aid in the jircparation for the tal)lc, audio all those who have assisted in the work and lal>or attending the celebration, as well as preparing the Appendix ibr the press. LETTERS AND REGRETS, rtECJilVKD 15Y IXVITATION COMMITTEE. Ravenna, Ohio, Octobir 1, 1870. To Wm. L. Loomi!?, Simon Ij. Kendall, Alkekt Austin, Es(|s., ami others, CoiiuuittL'e, &c. : Gentlemen: £ have just rccrivctl your kiiul invitation lo attend and participate with you and otliers in the bi-eenteiinial celeljratioii of the "Grant of the General Court of Boston, October 13th, 1G70," which Avas, I presume, tlie first elective movement for the settlement of the tlien wil- derness, now tlie beautiful and llourisldng town of Suflield, our own na- tive town. For this invitation I thank you, and 1 assure you that noth- ing could give me more pleasure than it would to visit my old native place on such an occasion, and view it as it now is, and associate with those I might find there, and visit the graves of my ancestors. Though I might find few familiar fac-(!s after so long an absence, I would, no doubt, enjoy and duly appreciate the friendly greeting of some old friends, and others of the young generation that have succeeded the de])arted ones. But I am now an old man, and though enjoying tolerable health, am, I fear, too feeble to endure the fatigues, to say nothing of the expense, of a journey of some 700 miles, even with the advantages of the modern im- provements in loc(«notion. Besides, to attend there on the 13th I would liave to lose my vote at our Ohio annual election, which occurs on the 11th instant. I have never yet failed to cast my vote at an annual elec- tion in Ohio for near fifty years. ]My father, .Ellas Harmon, Sen., son of Deacon John ITannon, died on his farm a half mile west of the West Sufiield meeting house, in January, 1793, leaving a widow' and eight children, of whom I was the youngest- born December 11th, 178!), and of them all I am now the oidy survivor. Wii all removed West, the first in 1799, myself in March, 1803, and I have never re-visited my native State; hxvc always wished to, but never found it convenient, ami now I expect I must wholly give it up. asking of you to excuse me now. Accept now my best wishes for a pleasant meeting on the 12th, and for the future prosperity of you all, indiviilually, and for my dear old native town John IIai'.mon. 13 98 BuFTALo, N. Y., July 20, 1870. D. W. NouTON, Esq., Cliairinan, 6cc. : My Deak Sir : Your esteemed favor of the Gth hist., invitiiiii,- me to at- tend the comiiit;' bicentennial anniversary of the settlement of the town of Suffield, on the lltli and 12th of October next, is received, and would have been earlier answered but for my absence from Bufl'alo. Since my arrival home, last Saturday, I have looked over my business engagements and do not see how I can be with you at the time of the celebration. It is therefore prudent for rac ^to say to you my attendance is so uncertain that you cannot safely rely upon my being present and taking a part in the ceremonies. I can assure you nothing would give me greater pleasure than to be present with you and to participate in tlie interesting ceremo- nies of that occasion. It is indeed an occasion which cannot but give utterance to a noble, sublime, and expansive sentiment. You will neces- sarily be carried back to contemplate the deeds and virtues of our ances- tors, a race of men and women ever to be revered by their descendants, for their indomitable energies and exalted virtues. Heaven bless and prosper you in the pious and dutiful work before you. Yours most respectfully, S. G. Austin. Montgomery, Ala., September 19, 1870. Hon. Daniel W. Norton, Chairman : Dear Sir : I have delayed a reply to your invitation to meet the " sons and daughters of Suffield " at the celebration of their bi-centennial an- niversary, hoping I might be al)le to be present ; but that I tind will be impossible, and can only exjjress my regret. Nothing would give me greater pleasure than to greet once more the friends of half a century, and their descendants, and unite with them in celebrating the two hun- dredth anniversary of the birth of our old mother. I am 2)roud of being- remembered as a son of Suffield, and of being wortliy of an invitation to meet lier distinguished sons, and unite with them in their festivities. Nearly forty years ago I left lier to seek my fortune in a distant land; but I haVe never ceased to remember her with i)ri(le, and to feel a deep interest in her welfare, and the welfare of her children. I trust I shall , ever so i'ememl)er her till "my right hand shall forget its cunning." But, two hundred years ! How long! and yet how short -when Ire- member that I have seen more than one fourth of them roll away. Wiiat change's have been wrought within my recollection ! How many loved ones have passed away to return no more ! In your cemetery sleeps the dust of my parents and ancestors, with many dear friends. I confess to a feeling of sadness at the recollection. Thanking you, Mr. Chairman, and through you the Executive Commit- tee — several of whom I remember as the friends of my youth — for your kind invitation, permit me to hope that the future history of "old Suf- lield" may be even more glorious than its past — that its record of ))right 99 names may be even more illustrious llian the iM'eeeding one — that her " sons may be as plants, grown up in their youth; that her (lauj4hters may be as corner-stones, polished after the similitude of a palaee ; that her garners may be full, atlbnling all manner of store," and that the hap- piness and prosperity of lier children may continue to the end. I am, dear sir, very truly yours, W.m. II. Smith. Pkovidencr, R. L, Oct. 10, 1870. To D. W. Norton, Esq., and Associates : Gentlemen: Your note of invitation to participate in the celeltration of the approaching bi-centennial anniversary of the settlement of Suffield came duly to hand. I should have replied weeks ago had I not hoped to be present on the occasion. But this satisfaction I am compelled reluctantly to forego. In common with the good people of my native town, I feel that I owe a debt of gratitude to the brave men who laid the foundations of that municijjality. Though it is now thirty-five years since I, a stripling, left the town, yet the influence of early association and companionship is felt to- day. The industrial habits of the people among whom my youth was jjassed, their regard for education and morality, and their res])ect for the institutions of Christianity, I reckon among the best educational influ- ences which I enjoyed in early life. I owe to tliem more to-day than to any institutions of learning. Gladly, therefore, would I unite with you in paying a deserved tribute to those who have passed away, but wliose works still praise them. May the next bi-centennial find the principles and practicesof the fathers flour- ishing in full vigor among their descendants. "With sentiments of respect I am your obedient servant, A. II. GnANGKTJ. GurLFORD, Sc-pt. 1!), 1S70. D. W. Norton, Esq. : Dear Sir: Please accept the sincere thanks of myself and family for the kind invitation your committee have given us to Ijc present at your bicentennial anniversary on the 12th of October next. Be assured it would afford me great pleasure to comply with this invitation ;• but such is the state of my health that I shall not be al^le to be with you on the deeply interesting occasion. The part which you kindly proposed for me must, of course, be given to some one else. Very respectfully yours, Henry Rouinson. 100 ]\Iendota, La Salle Co., III., Oct. 1, 1870. My Dkaii Elizaijetii P. Piiilleo : Your welcome letter dated Septem- ber 26th was duly received, for wliicli I thank you and those extending a kind invitation to me and my wife, to attend the celel)ration pending on the 12th of Octol^er, at SufReld. You ask my sentiments in regard to such occasions. I repl}^ my mind is occupied with the scenes of tlie future state of my being. I am in the 84th year of my age. My hope in God is unshaken amid all tlie revolutions and changes of a protracted life. ^V^' live in an era of great interest and surprising changes. The next great event in the unfolding purposes of God, I think, will be the restoration of the Jews to the land of their fathers. TJussia, from indications plainly manifest, Avill be employed as the favored instrument to remove the ob- stacles in the way of their return. Russia may have no higher motive tlian her own aggrandizement in the enlargement of her own vast empire. The Jews, wherever located, though jiossessed of vast wealth, are not the owners of real estate ; con- sequently they stand ready at the providential signal to march in rank and file, under the banner of the great Shepherd of Israel, to possess the land promised to their fathers. I am no prophet, and would not be curious to pry into the secret things of God, but study them carefully and prayerfully as the opening leaves unfold. Infidels are everywhere exult- ing over their fancied victories over the Christian religion. How vain are their hopes ; sudden and final will be their overthrow. "The Lord reigns; let the earth rejoice; let the multitude of the isles thereof be glad." "Glory to God in the highest; ])eacc on earth and goodwill toward men." And let tlie whole earth be filled with His glory. Amen, and amen. I like to have forgotten Sufilcild altogether in my tlight of thought. But I still remember her, and feel hajipy to know that I am kindly re- membered. I well remember after being in an extensive revival of religion in the State of New York, I took a journey eastward and called on Elder Cushman in Hartford, to visit and hear preaching. But he urged me to go to Sullield — perhaps God would bless my labors. I com- plied with his urgent request. I found the peo])lo without a pastor, and somewhat divided. I appointed a meeting. The jieojjle gathered, and God blessed the word, and many were added to the church. I stayed in Sufiield and enjoyed a second glorious revival. I got permission of the church and congregation of leave of absence for four or five weeks to visit Pawtucket, R. I., in compliance Avith an earnest request of the church in that place, hoping and jiraying that God would l)less my labors there as he had in other places. I left home in my own conveyance. I arrived there after two days' travel. I reached Pawtucket late in the afternoon. A meeting was apjiointod in the vestry in the evening. The bell was rung, the people soon filled the vestry to overflowing. I felt sure that God would bless the word to the salvation of souls. T obtained this evi- 101 deuce on my way thither. My prayers found a place at tlie tlirone ot grace. A work of God that very evenuig connnenccd, and extended ovei' all that region. Here I was brought to a stand. I could not labor in Sudield and Pawtucket. I finally, with great reluctance, decided to go to Pawtucket. I never found a kinder people than the people of Sufhekl. I preached twice on the Sa))1)ath, and then in the evening to Boston Neck, then to Ciiristian street, (so-called,) at Simon Kendall's school house, Sikes' school house ; to complete the circle at the Sheldon school house, near Martin Sheldon, Escj. These meetings were always well attended. I lune written during my life a cart full of mauuscrijjt, hut never read one in my whole ministerial life and called it jireaching. A minister should feel a consciousness that he is called of God to his high and holy calling before he enters upon his work, and enter into it with all his heart and soul, looking up to Him for aid and success. A man not conscious of this inward call to the ministry must feel reproved every step he takes Avitli these words sounding in his ears: "Who hath required this at your hands?" To return again to Suilicld. The church ))elieved in the practice of opening the doors after preaching, to give time and opportunity to any who might feel it their duty to drop a word of exhortation warm from the heart, (This practice was customary in the church in the State of New York, where I enjoyed my first membership.) Capt. Apollos Phelps sometimes would burst like a bombshell upon the congregation, which made that old meeting-house crack again, and the church felt warmed, awakened and comforted under such a powerful explosion, coming from a heart filled with the love of God, Sister Gunn, Deacon Gunn's wife, would rise to speak, stand erect in the door full six feet, would 2)our out a warm exhortation full of good sense and comfort. She was a strong woman physically ami mentally. To carry out her views of the rights of women, she went into the mowing and harvest fields and i)erformerofited more largely in these benefits than Illinois. You require the products of our mines and our soil. We of your looms and manufactories. Here the genius and enterprise of your surplus 2)()])ulatioii can (hid ample room for rich expansion. Wherever they go, or wherever they are, the sons of New England will not be unmindful of their origin, and never will they forget the land of steady habits. The history and reminiscences of your locality for the last two centuries the sons of Sutlield and their descendants will delight to contemplate. And the reunion of those that have wandered for and wide I trust will be under the most favorable auspices. Again I shall express my deep regret at not being able to join you on so memorable an occasion. Thanking you for your zeal and enterprise in arranging the celebration of so important an event in the history of Suf- field, for the interest you have manifested in its sons and daughters and their descendants, and for the invitation to me, one of the descendants of Ebenezer Hathaway, I will express the hope that your most favorable an- ticipations may be realized, and the day you celebrate be remembered for another liundred years. With much interest in your welfare, I am your most obedient servant, David U. Coiu;. 104 Zanesville, Ohio, Oct. 10, 1870. Messrs. Wm. L. Luomis, iukI otlitrs of the Committee on luvitation, &c. : Gentlemen : On my return home from my fall circuit I found your note awaiting me, extending a cordial invitation to meet with the people of Suffield on the 12th day of OctolK'r, and join in Iheh- lii-centennial anniversary celebration. Although born in Ohio, Suffiehl Vvas the home of my ancestry, and in- deed, if family tradition be true, Lancelot Granger, my great-grcat-great- grandlather, who married Joanna, daughter of "Robert Adams of New- bury," on the 4th day of January, 1G54, was one of the original settlers of your town. Having made several pilgrimages to the old homestead on Taintor Hill since I came to manhood, I am not altogether a stranger to the town, and was pleased to note, when last there, (in 18C6), that Avhile so much of what was old remained to remind of people and years that are past, there was also so much of improvement in buildings and grounds as proved tliat age had not taken away the vigor of the town; that while the stern virtues that belonged to tlic founders may have gone into tlie past along with tlie times and circumstances that moulded or were moidded by them, their successors, now resident in quiet safety and comfort where their ancestors maintained themselves by cour- age and endurance, amid 2)rivati()n and danger, exhibit their full share of tlie virtues of a generation, whose duty it is to improve, adorn, and beau- tify ; wliose energies must be applied in the direction of education, pro- duction, culture, and comfort. But if I do not cry halt, my jicn will, I feai-, successfully accomplish what more properly pertains to an (iiigni: Duties in Ohio forbid my bodily presence in Connecticut on the 12th inst. I will on that day try to be with you in mind. Rest assured that many sons and grandsons of Sullield Avho must remain away from your celebration will on tliat day be thinking of Avhat you are (h)ing and re- frettiii"' their inability to be in old Sutheld on her two liundredtli birth- day. Vei'y respectfully yours, Moses M. GI{ANGEl^. St. Lours, Oct. 4, 1870. To Daniel W. Nouton, Simon V>. Kundali-, Wm. L. Loomis, ^Jad Sheldon, IIezekiaii S. Sheldon, T. IIkzkkiaii Spenceu, and IIenky ]\I. Sykes, greeting : Your note to S. A. Lane, Esq., of Akron, Ohio, inviting himself and family, which I suppose includes myself, to the bi-centennial anniversary at Sullield, Oct. 11th and 12th, was read by me, and Ijeing unable to at- tend personally, I tliought perhaps a few lines from me Avould be accept- alile. Born January 9th, 1810, I am of course GO years old, and can call to mind events of the past for more than a quarter of that 200 years, enough to till a volume; but I am aware sucli letters must be short. I am some- 105 what in the condition of my fellow-booksclk'r, Oliver Ditson, of Boston wlio being- iisked to say grace at a large clani-bake near tlie seashore, anil not being used to it, got along very well till near the close, and not know- ing how to end, says: " Uii, Lord ! Very respectfully yours, Oliver Ditson." Among the many friends born in SulHeld, you will have my "bio- brother," of the Summit Bearon, and also the Hon. Wyllys King, of this city. You must call out these gentlemen for five or ten minutes' speeches. I think they will have something to say. Oh, how I would like to be with you. I met my old friend and faithful teacher, Mr. IJeuben Granger in Chicago last week, and arm in arm we walked about the city nearly one day. He had received your printed document, with invitation to be with you and take part in the exercises, but will not be able to attend. Now 73 years old, and smart and active in business, the same good man, and has the habit of saying "I will do thus and so. Providence permitting ; " and his father, Capt. Rufus Granger, used a similar ex2)ression — " the door of Providence opening." Gideon Granger, the former Postmaster General under Jetlerson, and also Madison, once said to him : " Cousin Rufus, you must be an important personage — deity for a doorkeeper." Dr. Ira Hatch, of Chicago, formei-ly from S|n-ingtield, Mass., says to me : " Comfort, have you brought me that book, the title of which I suggested, viz. : ' The Quijis and Quirks of a Bachelor; or, the Reminiscences of Comfort V. Lane, of Crooked Lane, near Springfield, Mass.' " Dr. ILitch, and brother, too, think it would be a literary curiosity to take a look into that big trunk of mine, which is a third full of letters, some of them received 40 and even 50 jears ago, carefully filed away, having passed over tlie road from and to St. Louis some dozen times. Sjieaking of " Crooked Lane," I do not suppose it was so named be- cause we, as a family, were particularly crooked or dishonest. According to Henry M. Sykes' record, we seem to come " straiglit " down from the first settlement of Suffield in 1635 — Samuel Lane, 1st, do. 2d, do. 3d, Gad Lane, Comfort Lane, Comfort V. Lane ; and once speaking to a friend of being of English descent, and not myself large of statue, he observed : "Rather rapid descent." I fliink you will l)car me witness, nor think me egotistical, if I S2)eak of my good father. Comfort Lane, as an honest, ujiright man, and much be- loved in your good old town ; and I was much gratified, some twenty years ago, in coming over the Berkshire hills, in the old-fashioned stage coach, to learn from the driver, IVlr. ChalTee, who owned the coach, that I was riding over the gear-work built by my own father, nearly twenty years before. He built of strong and solid material, and his work lasted almost ecpial to " The one-horse shay, which ran a hundred years to a day ; " and he remarked, " Your father was too honest to get rich." Well, fri(!nds, I Avould rather have that inheritance than riches. A plain nvirl)le slal) marks the spot, with this simple inscription: "Mr. li 106 Comfort Lane ; died Sept. 21, 1828 ; aged 45." And as I stood there last June, alone, I said Avithin myself, "the friends of my youth, where are they?" and a "still small voice" seemed to say, "whei'e?" Some of you still remain ; others are scattered in tlie great North and Southwest, some South, and a few in foreign lands. But the great multitude are in the silent grave. " Low their heads lie beneath the clods of the valley. Silent are their slumbers in the grave, and they un- conscious of all that is passing beneath the sun. We do well to cherish their memories and their virtues, and when we visit the place where the precious dust rests, not to look down into the cold, dark grave — for there is no comfort there — but to look up, and walk cheerfully on to the end, and in looking uj), " Heaven's own li^lit dispels the gloom, Slimes downward from eternal day, And casts a glory round tbc tomb." But perhaps I am getting too serious. Li leaving the grave of my father I went to Zion's Hill. I have seen much of American scenery, but never realized liefore that I was born in such a beautiful town. As you stand on Zion's Hill, say some jileasant, clear day in June, and look around you, there is not a single spot but that the eye rests with complacency, pleasure, and delight. Mt. Tom and Holyoke north, the Russell, Blanford, and Berkshire hills west, the Tolland mountains east, and the hills and valleys off toward Hartford and New Haven. The beautiful allusion, familiar to you all, may come in place here, where a distinguished lecturer speaks of the sainted Peter, borne on angel wings to heaven's gates. St. Peter meets him tliere and asks who comes ? Peter, from Suflield, is the meek rci)ly. " Well, Peter, we welcome you here, but ralher advise you to return to that country. It is a pleasanter country than this." Well, friends, when I relate that story here they smile and say, that will do f(jr SuHi(!ld peo2)le to tell. How it would be with St. Louis I cannot say ; but of Chicago there is a story often told, the iirst man who went up to the golden gates to ask admittance, St. Peter could find no such place on the map, and no person from there had ever entereliged to you for counting me as one of the large family of Suffield's children, and should be proud to be present as the rc])resen- tative of my father and brother; but circumstances forbid, and I must relinquish my chance of celebrating a bi-centennial, for I am almost GO, and, with a large number of those who will join in this shall have been gathered to the generations gone before long ere another occasion like this returns. Accept my best wishes for the plca"aut celebration of the day, and be- lieve me yours with respect, E. C. WnirPLE. Trov, Miami Co., Ohio, Oct. 6, 1870. Committee of the Bi-Centennial Anniversary, Suffield, Conn. : Gentlemen: Your note inviting me to be with you Oct. 12th was re- ceived last evening, forwarded by my brother. I regret exceedingly that it will not be convenient for me to comply with your request. I look back with pleasure to my native town. Always feel interested in its prosperity. Ho2:)ing you may have a pleasant and profitable reunion, I remain yours respectfully, Fanny Parsons. Washington, Oct 7, 1870. Dear Mrs. PniLLEo : I received your letter this morning, enclosing an invitation to me to be present at the celebration of the two hundredth anniversary of my native town, Suflield, Conn. The infirmities of age will prevent my participating in person in this interesting event. It must now be re- membered I am one of her oldest daughters. My father removed me to Washington City the fall of 1810. Sixty years have passed, and my pil- grimage numbers almost eighty-five years. The scenes and events of early days are now vividly before my mind, and memory recalls some of the fathers of the names of those who constitute the committee of invi- tation, to whom I return my respects. Mrs. B. p. Fletcher. J^^^i.JJ^ DEACON HENRY A. SYKES. Was born in Sufficld, September 22, 1810. At tlie early age of five years he was left an orphan, and lived with bis grandfather. Victory Sykes, until of suitalile age be was put to learning the art of architect and builder, with Mr. Cbaunccy Sheiihcrd, of Springfield, Mass. Subsequently he pursued the study of architecture, under the tuition of Ithiel Towne, Esq. His skill and taste as an architect were of a sujierior order, of which there are many proofs in the surrounding towns ; part of the buildings connected with Amherst College, residences and churches in Greenfield, Mass., many stores and private residences in Springfield, were built under his superintendence, and according to plans of his design. And not to mention more, the Second Baptist Church, and the building now used by the Hartford and New Haven Railroad Company for their freight dcjiot, in this place, but formerly the house of worship of the First Congregational Church and Society, bear upon tliem the marks of his taste, and are monuments to his memory. Though never enjoying advantages for more than a common education, he, through self-discipline and a diligent improvement of his time, ac- quired an extensive knowledge on many subjects beyond llie range of his trade, and evinced a mental culture of no ordinary degree. He was fond of antiquarian researches, was a zealous student of his- tory, and the results of his research into the early history of his native town are referred to with jjride by his townsmen. Probably there was no one who could speak more definitely, or so definitely, as he. On the IGthof Sei)tember, 1858, he delivered an interesting historical address at Suflield, on occasion of the 150th anniversary of tlie decease of the Rev. Benjamin Rugghs, first pastor of the First Congregational (!hurch here. Tliis address, with the proceedings of the day, has been ])ublished. At tlie time of his decease he had collecteoard of trustees, chosen from every part of the State. An effort is now being made to raise one hundred thousand dollars, jiartlyfor present use and jiartly as a j^ermanent fund, twenty-seven thousand of which has already been subscribed. It is the design of its trustees and patrons to have it, and to keep it, in the first class of institutions, for fitting young men for college, or for business, and afibrding young ladies all the facilities for a thorough education, classical, scientific, and lit- erary. ERRATA. Page 20, line 13 from to'p, for man read noic. 2J -y^l^iytyy/TJA/^