Turner's Public Spirit, September 9, 1922
A look back in time to a century ago
By Bob Oliphant
Center. A cat, perhaps the oldest one in this vicinity, being twenty years of age, belonging to Mrs. Ella M. Wright, was killed by an auto recently. The animal formerly belonged to Mr. and Mrs. Frank C. Wright [brother-in-law of Ella (Smith) Wright], but upon the addition of a puppy to the family some five or six years ago, the cat left her home, taking with her a kitten belonging to another cat, and took up her abode with Mrs. Ella M. Wright, making occasional visits to her old home, and at all times appearing pleased to see her former owners.
The Woman’s Alliance of the Unitarian church will meet with Mrs. L. H. Buckshorn at her camp at Forge pond on September 14. The meeting will begin at 10:30 in the morning, and the morning session will be devoted to sewing, followed by a business meeting and program at 2:30 in the afternoon. Miss Grace Wood will give a paper entitled “The romance of a New England minister.” All women, whether members of the Alliance or not, are cordially invited to attend.
Mrs. J. Edward Clements, who is ill at her home, is improving.
The quarantine has been removed on dogs and they are allowed to go unmuzzled and unrestrained.
Rep. and Mrs. Alfred W. Hartford entertained Wesley Hawkes and Miss Grace Leavitt of Melrose, and their daughter, Miss Hazel Hartford, of Boston, over the holiday.
Mr. and Mrs. A. H. Sutherland have returned from an auto trip to the White Mountains. They were accompanied by their son Alfred and daughter Lillian, and made the return trip by way of the beaches.
The Misses Alice and Ruth Johnson are enjoying a vacation in Exeter, N.H.
Mr. and Mrs. N. C. Knight, of North Berwick, Me., were weekend and holiday guests of Mr. and Mrs. J. E. Knight.
Edmund Green has a Reo Speed Wagon for sale—see advertisement.
Mrs. Eva Pyne Courchaine returned home from the Lowell General hospital on last Sunday, being accompanied by a nurse, who will remain with her for a week.
- F. Reimer, of Arlington, who has been superintendent of the children’s camp at Long-Sought-for pond this summer, was in town on Tuesday.
Among the Westford people attending the Worcester fair were John O’Connell and family and David Desmond and son Gerald.
Miss Edna F. Currier, who has been at Lake City, Fla., with her parents [Edwin B. and Lena E. (Balch) Currier] is now a guest at the home of her grandfather, Mrs. Wayland Balch.
Misses Mary G. Balch, Gertrude and John Fletcher attended a wedding in Weymouth last Saturday.
John G. Fletcher, son of Mr. and Mrs. J. Herbert Fletcher, won the silver cup in the tennis tournament held at the Thorn Mountain Tutoring Camp, Jackson, N.H.
Mr. and Mrs. J. Herbert Fletcher entertained Mrs. Fletcher’s brother, James F. Gill and wife, of Ludlow, Vt., and Mr. and Mrs. Robert Buckold, of Waban [a section of Newton], over the holiday.
Miss Pauline Larson, of Fitchburg, is to teach grades five and six at the William E. Frost school this year.
Miss Marjorie Seavey has accepted a position as teacher in the Salem High school and has [missing line, tear in paper].
Mr. and Mrs. Charles Carter have returned to town and are again occupying the Bright cottage, Depot street. Mr. Carter is beginning his second year as principal of the William E. Frost school.
Company H of Westford and Company G of Lowell, veteran state guard organizations, are to have an outing at Martin Luther grounds [in Tyngsboro] on Saturday.
The baseball game between Westford and the Lowell Y.M.C.A. teams scheduled for Monday was postponed on account of rain.
George H. MacGregor died suddenly last Saturday while at work at the Brookside mill, his body being found in the boiler-room, where he was employed as engineer. Mr. MacGregor was well and favorably known in the town and had been employed at the Brookside mill for several years. He had recently retired, but was filling the vacancy while the regular engineer was away.
The Middlesex County Bureau of Agriculture and Home Economics will present their eighth series of motion pictures at the town hall on Tuesday evening, September 12, at eight o’clock. These pictures are educational, interesting and entertaining. The admission is free to all, but a silver collection will be taken.
Mrs. C. H. Baker and little son John of Hudson, with Mrs. Baker’s aunt, Mrs. George Walker, motored to Revere on Wednesday.
Mr. and Mrs. Forrest Nelson, who have been spending the summer in town, are at present in Southington, Conn., where Mr. Nelson has accepted a position. They will return later for their little daughter, Dorothy Ann, who is with her grandmother, Mrs. Catherine Allen.
Mr. and Mrs. Fred T. Doolittle, of Rutherford, N.J., accompanied by their daughter-in-law, Mrs. Hildreth Doolittle, and two children, of Hasbrouck Heights, N.J., have been the recent guests of Mr. and Mrs. Clarence Hildreth. Mrs. Hildreth’s mother, Mrs. Fred Doolittle, is to remain here for two weeks. They came by auto and previous to visiting Westford spent two weeks in Vermont.
The W.C.T.U. meeting, which was to have been held with Mrs. George Walker on Wednesday afternoon, has been postponed until a later date.
Recent guests of Mrs. Ella M. Wright were Mrs. Bosworth and Mr. and Mrs. Donahue and two children, of Dorchester.
Mrs. Sidney W. Wright and children spent the holiday in Lowell.
Mrs. Ella M. Wright is entertaining her aunt, Mrs. J. E. Downs, of Fitchburg.
Pleasantly Entertained. Mr. and Mrs. Frank C. Wright and Mr. and Mrs. Harry Nesmith recently attended the conference of New England Grange lecturers held in Burlington, Vt., going by auto and making various stops along the way. They were entertained by Rutland, Middlebury and Dartmouth Granges, who for a small fee served dinners and suppers to visiting patrons. At Bellows Falls on the return trip the Grangers received a royal reception. The first place visited was the plant of the Vermont Farm Machine Corporation, where the visitors were greeted by officers of the corporation, village officials and members of the Merchants’ association. Various articles manufactured by the corporation were exhibited, and Dr. John H. Blodgett gave the welcoming address. Dinner was announced at Hotel Windham and all were requested to form in line, where they were escorted by the Bellows Falls band to the hotel.
During the dinner hour the guests were entertained by a radio concert sent out by the Vermont Farm Machine broadcasting station, recently installed. This was followed by a concert program consisting of vocal and instrumental selections. Then came the dinner, which was served to 325 or more. Those from Westford who attended are high in their praise of the hospitality afforded by Bellows Falls.
L.S.C. Calendar. The calendar for the Ladies’ Sewing Circle and Branch Alliance of the Unitarian church is as follows: September 14, all day meeting at Camp Tadmuck, Forge pond, hostess, Mrs. L. H. Buckshorn; October 12, all day meeting, Mrs. Charles Robinson, hostess; November 9, supper at Unitarian church, Mrs. Eben Prescott, hostess; December 14, all day meeting, Mrs. Harry B. Prescott, hostess; January 11, all day meeting, Mrs. William R. Carver, hostess; February 8, all day meeting, special program to be announced later, Mrs. J. Edward Clements, hostess; March 8, all day meeting, Mrs. J. Herbert Fletcher, hostess; April 12, annual election of officers, Mrs. H. V. Hildreth, hostess.
The honorary members are Mrs. B. H. Bailey and Mrs. H. B. Hall.
In memoriam—Mrs. J. M. Barnard [died Feb. 1, 1913], Mrs. W. F. Balch [d. June 27, 1913], Mrs. Alvan Fisher [d. May 16, 1914], Mrs. J. M. Fletcher [d. Nov. 14, 1913], Mrs. H. M. Seavey [d. Nov. 1, 1914], Miss Anstrice Flanders [d. July 30, 1920], Mrs. George Day [d. Dec. 16, 1917], Mrs. J. Willard Fletcher [d. June 27, 1921] and Mrs. H. W. Hildreth [d. Feb. 3, 1922].
The officers for this year are as follows: Mrs. Eben Prescott, pres.; Mrs. Alma M. Richardson, v.p.; Miss A. Mabel Drew, sec.; Mrs. H. V. Hildreth, treas.; Miss Ruth P. Tuttle, flower com.; Mrs. L. H. Buckshorn, religious intelligence; Miss Eva Fletcher, chairman postoffice mission and cheerful letter [com.].
About Town. George H. McGregor died last Saturday afternoon at the Abbot Worsted Company’s mill at Brookside. He had been employed for a few days as day watchman at the mills and was found dead. Dr. F. S. Bulkeley, of Ayer, medical examiner, was called and pronounced death due to a hemorrhage. For many years prior to the present ownership of the mill he was night watchman for George C. Moore. He was of a genial and social nature, always ready for a friendly chat, industrious and frugal. He was a member of Caleb Butler lodge, A.F. and A.M., of Ayer. He was in his seventy-eighth year. He leaves his wife, Margaret [sic, Mary Jane “Maggie”]; [two] daughter[s], Mrs. Frederick W. Edwards [nee Edith Alice MacGregor and Mrs. Josiah E. Marshall (nee Bertha May MacGregor)]; four grandchildren, Mrs. Ralph Haberman [nee Marion Louisa Marshall], Edward [sic, should be Miss Edna Louisa Edwards], Norman [Edwards] and Walter Edwards, and a great-grandson, Ralph Haberman, Jr. The funeral took place from his home at Westford Corner on Tuesday afternoon. The services were conducted by Rev. E. Ambrose Jenkins, of North Chelmsford. The floral display was beautiful. The bearers were Frank and Charles E. Edwards, John A. Toye and Matthew MacNaughton. Burial was in the family lot in West Chelmsford cemetery.
Charles Trull, of Detroit, is visiting his mother, Mrs. George H. MacGregor [nee Mary Jane “Maggie” Marshall], at Westford Corner.
Westford, for the first time since its incorporation nearly 200 years ago, will have precinct voting at the primaries on next Tuesday afternoon and evening. The four precincts are Forge Village, Graniteville, Brookside and Westford Center, and you cannot vote in any other precinct than the one you reside in.
The attendance at Middlesex-North Pomona Grange last week, while not as large as some times, was very enthusiastic. Mrs. Eben Prescott, of Westford, gave an interesting talk on “Vacation experiences” as viewed in her recent automobile trip with a party of friends from West Chelmsford to the beaches. Miss [missing line, tear in paper] in pictures at the State university, Burlington, Vt. Only limited space prevents our quoting from it. In the afternoon, open to the public an address was given by Dudley L. Page on “Alaska.”
The quarantine on dogs, which was ordered for ninety days, has been lifted. Really, we did not know that there was any quarantine on, except that we read about it in the papers. The dogs did not know anything about it, at least those that we met hadn’t been notified by muzzle, chain or other control.
Labor day did not interfere with the rain laboring. It washed out the roads, Brookside getting a washout at the Stony Brook railroad crossing. The gully was the entire width of the road and was two feet wide and of a dangerous depth if you were traveling at a speed menacing to life. We believe other places in town were gullied out worse.
In our allusion to Henry H. Fletcher’s visit to town last week it might familiarize some people in town after his long absence to say that he was for many years janitor of the Unitarian church. Among others whom he called upon was his familiar friend, John M. Fletcher, and longtime connected with the Westford postoffice.
Mrs. Addie Decatur and Miss Luanna Decatur arrived home on Tuesday from their trip to Shediac, N.B., where they visited at the Roberts homestead, where Mrs. Decatur was born. It was a pleasure for three brothers and three sisters to have a reunion. On the Cape of Shediac is an Episcopal church with a bell which came from the ship Shannon. The Shannon was commanded by Capt. Roger Roberts, grandfather of Mrs. Decatur. This ship was the one which sunk the ship Chesapeake in the War of 1812, and thus the bell is of historic interest. The travelers report New Brunswick as being one month behind us in vegetation. They saw crates and crates of blueberries at St. Johns stacked on the platform for shipment to Kingman in Boston. While motoring they saw fields blue with the low bush blueberries.
Mr. and Mrs. George Howard and two sons spent the triple-holiday weekend at Nantasket.
Mr. and Mrs. John Bell, at Westford Corner, near West Chelmsford, have a son, born September 4.
The Bar Harbor express, which goes through here at night on its way from the Main seashore to New York city, went through last week Thursday night in eleven sections, each one of the eleven trains being composed of Pullman sleeping cars.
Miss Luanna Decatur returns this Saturday to New Rochelle to resume her duties as a teacher there.
Mr. and Mrs. C. D. Cushing came over from their summer home in Framingham on last week Friday and spent several days with their daughter, Mrs. W. R. Taylor.
Nabnassett school does not open until September 18. Owing to some inconvenience in the work the building could not be made ready until this date.
Mr. and Mrs. Carlos D. Cushing, from their summer camp “Quite It,” in Framingham, have been spending a few days at W. R. Taylor’s on the Stony Brook road.
First Parish church (Unitarian) Sunday service at four p.m. Preacher, Rev. Frank B. Crandall, the minister. Subject, “The secret doctrine.”
- B. Tillson of the Farm Bureau says “Now is the time to buy apples. Prices are as low as they are likely to be within the next six months.” Yes, let us call it that any way, for we have got down to four cents a box and we expect our assessment next. Oh how we dread opening our returns! We want an injunction compelling folks to eat more apples and pay more.
Among the more than 300 delegates to the printing house craftsmen convention in Boston last week was Mrs. Ellen Duane Davis [nee Gillespie (1854-1924)], of Philadelphia, great-great-granddaughter of Benjamin Franklin, and wearing a miniature portrait of her famous ancestor, which Louis XVI of France commissioned Duplessis to paint and which the French monarch presented to Franklin. Mrs. Davis is sixty years of age and running for congress from Philadelphia.
The new Nabnassett schoolhouse will open for business on Monday, September 18. It is to no fault of the school committee that the building was not completed in ample time to commence school at the usual opening of the town schools. The signed contract with the contractors, Edwards & Monahan, called for completion not later than August first, but labor troubles and other obstacles beyond the control of the contractors made it impossible to complete it by the specified time, and nothing but the over enforcement of straight-jacket demands would hold the contractors to the agreement.
The library books at the deposit station in Community hall, Brookside, have been renewed recently by a fresh supply from the main library. An effort is made to choose books for all tastes and requests for special books will be welcomed. A few examples of good stories are “Thankful’s inheritance,” a Cape Cod story, J. Lincoln; “C. O. D.” detective story, N. Lincoln; “Too much efficiency,” humorous, Rath; “Ramona,” Jackson; “The grafters,” Lynde; “No defence [sic],” Parker.
If there is trouble with the truck, borrow Page’s “Modern motor truck,” and up-to-date guide. “The mirrors of Washington” will give an insight into the political life at Washington. “The Virgin Island,” by DeBooy, gives a delightful trip to the islands lately added to the United States.
The children will be interested in “The house with the silver door,” a fairy story; “Outcast warrior,” an Indian story; “Kenneth”; “Boys’ camp book” and “Wilderness babies,” animal stories.
“The romance of Fiddler’s Green,” a recent book by Clara Endicott Sears, of [the Town of] Harvard, will be of special interest as the scene is laid in the nearby town of Bolton. It represents New England village life of two or three generations ago. The introduction of members of a Shaker community gives a new interest, while the planting of the garden of old-fashioned flowers with all their symbolic meanings is a sentimental touch.
The Massachusetts board of free public library commissioners offers a certificate to any child who reads and reports on five books for his grade, that next below or above, chosen from the lists compiled by them and on file at the J. V. Fletcher library. This report must be written on a review sheet at the library. The review sheet and the list of books are posted on the bulletin board in the children’s room. The privilege is open to all children.
After rambling around in our hollyhock orchard (for everything is hollyhocks at our showcase now) we discovered one that measures 11 feet and 3 inches, and we admonish other contestants that it is not only growing, but has just begun to grow and we shall watch out that its growing does not interfere with the right of way of the solar planetary system. What a long waiting list the Ananias club must have by this time. We are so thankful that we joined before the rash season.
This seems to be a favorable season for tall hollyhocks and tall wild flowers. We reported recently of a wild flower eight feet tall, and we did not think that anyone would dare to beat it for fear that they would have to join the Ananias club, but Miss Bessie Adams, of Chelmsford, reports a hollyhock which measure 10 ½ feet and Mrs. Sidney B. Wright, according to last week’s issue, has a hollyhock that measure eleven feet and two-twelfths of a foot, and is still ascending toward rare atmosphere. If it continues to grow to where the atmosphere is such a rarity that oxygen has to be piped to it, what will it do then?
Inconsistent. It is now open season on shore birds and will close November 30. The birds that can be taken are winter and summer yellow legs, golden- and black-breasted plover, not exceeding fifteen of all kinds in any one day and guns not larger than ten gauge are to be used. When shall we have done with our inconsistent practice? We preach from the pulpit, the press, the schools and the junior and senior bird clubs and other effective ways the value and relation of birds to life and then we right-about-face and then we go into a most senseless hair-splitting rumination over the color of the legs and color of the breast and bag limit that never is enforced. Either let us preserve bird life according to the best scientific testimony as it relates to the vital relation between human life and the life of birds as insect destroyers, or else shut up and buck up and get out from this undertone of inconsistent “talk in one direction while our action squints in the opposite direction.” Our present attitude of yellow-legged, black- and golden-breasted and bag-limit discrimination is not worthy of the wisdom of a kindergarten class. Let us have done with all this talk of preserving bird life while at the same time we ae legally carrying concealed weapons to annihilate bird life.
Wedding. A wedding of interest to Westford people occurred last Saturday noon when Miss Mary Carrington Cram and Jerome Crosby Greene were married at Sudbury in St. Elizabeth’s chapel, which is on the country estate of Ralph Adams Cram, the well known Boston architect. The ceremony was performed by Rev. F. C. Powell, superior of the Cowley Order, and who is rector of the Church of St. John the Evangelist in Boston. He was assisted by Rev. Prescott Evarts, rector of Christ church, Cambridge, a cousin of the bridegroom. One of the attendants was Miss Betty Cram, of Boston and Sudbury, a sister of the bride, who is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Ralph Adams Cram, and granddaughter of Rev. and Mrs. William A. Cram, who are remembered as former residents of this town, Mr. Cram being minister of the First Parish Unitarian church from April, 1872, until April, 1876. The family are still remembered aside from church activities as a vital asset to the social and educational life of the town. The bride’s father is well remembered as a thoughtful and studious boy for his years. This evidently was the early foundation of his after career as one of the leading architects of the state, and St. Elizabeth’s chapel is the work of his skilled hand and brain. The interior of the chapel is beautiful in the extreme, it having been richly adorned from time to time with beautiful carvings and fabrics which Mr. Cram has brought from abroad. It was further embellished for the wedding with pink and white gladioli.
Mr. Greene is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Mrs. Jerome Davis Green, of New York and is a graduate of Harvard, class of 1922. He also went to Trinity college, Cambridge, England, where he spent a season.
Mr. and Mrs. Greene will make their home at 1 Waterhouse street, Cambridge. Mr. Greene plans to do graduate work at Harvard Engineering school.
Graniteville. On last Saturday the Abbot Worsted team visited Haverhill and in one of the best played games of the season the Abbots shut out the Haverhill professionals 4 to 0. The game was played at the stadium before a large crowd. Al Davidson and Sullivan did the battery work for the Abbots while “King” Bader, formerly of the Boston Red Sox, and Dufour worked for Haverhill. This Saturday at the Abbot playground here the Abbots will play Olaf Henricksen’s Grow Tire team in the deciding game of the series. This will probably be the last local game of the season here. This game will be called at three p.m. and as both clubs are very fast the game will surely be a corker and largely attended.
All the Westford schools opened here at the usual hour on Wednesday for the beginning of the school year. The teaching staff in the Sargent school here is practically the same as last year.
Rev. A. S. Malone, pastor of St. Catherine’s church, has recently purchased a lot of land opposite the church from Fred Reed and plans are now underway to have the land cleared and a new house erected. Work will be started on the new house as soon as possible.
The Brotherhood held their regular meeting Wednesday evening at 7:30 and much business of importance was transacted.
Many people from this village attended the movies at Forge Village last Monday night when an excellent holiday bill was presented.
The rain on Labor day was a great disappointment to the baseball fans here when the Abbots were scheduled to play the fast Gardner A.A. team. The game was called off on account of rain.
Miss Eva M. Lord, former public health nurse for the town of Westford, has recently accepted a position with the Abbot Worsted Co. and will be stationed at the new Abbot hospital in Forge Village [now the house at 10 Pleasant Street].
Ayer
District Court. On last Saturday Mr. and Mrs. Stephen Kilowskuk of Westford, who were both before the court for violation of the liquor laws, were both found not guilty.
On Tuesday morning Adam Lapniewski of Westford, who was in court for a violation of the liquor law, was found not guilty, the case not being prosecuted on account of a technical fault with the complaint. Attorney John D. Carney appeared for the government and Attorney John M. Maloney for the defense.