THE NEW YORK ASTOR, LENOX AND 1899. Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1860, BY EDWARD G. FROTHINGHAM, in the Clerk's office of the District Court of the District of Massachusetts. PREFACE. After the long interval of thirty-two years, the author now presents to the public a new edition of his Gazetteer of Massachusetts. It was his intention to have done this many years ago, but the appearance of several works of similar use, had induced an abandonment of the design, but the favorable opinion expressed of the plan and historical interest of the work by several literary gentlemen, as occupying a space not filled by any other Gazetteer, has induced another experiment upon the public favor. The historical parts of the work are mostly retained, with such corrections as time and a patient revision have shown to be necessary, while the great change of the business and modes of travel have made an almost entire change in the State, of every thing but its natural scenery. Nearly or quite one-half of the matter has been re-written, and is entirely new. It has been the object of the writer, in a small compass and at a moderate expense, to compile a work which shall give to young people and the industrial classes a better knowledge of the past history, prominent actors, important events, and present standing of our State, than can be found elsewhere in the same compass, or without an acquaintance with many volumes. A period of greater change has not, and probably never will occur in the State, than that elapsed since the publication of our former edition. Instead of 2 cities and 300 towns, we have now 14 cities and 320 towns! In place of canal and turnpike, we now talk of railroads and telegraphs. Then a population of 357,000, now of 1,131,000, and instead of a valuation of about $150,000,000, we now present a valuation of $598,000,000. The work, we trust, exhibits our deep interest in the past and present of our glorious old State. She is neither the Key Stone nor the Empire State of the Union; but she always has been the balance wheel, and while, by her thousands of manufactories, her improved transportation, and her educational advantages, she continues to keep her children at home, or sends them forth well qualified to become active and influential citizens of other communities, she will continue to hold her place in the constellation of States. The Constitution, as here printed, is intended to be all that is now in force, omitting all that has been superseded by the numerous amendments; and inserting all the articles now in force, in the words in which they were adopted. Our Constitution, as now published by authority, is that of 1780, with the numerous amendments, much of both of which have been superseded by later amendments. The codification of the Constitution by the Convention of 1855, entirely failed, being rejected by the people. The author had therefore no choice but to select and arrange those provisions which are in force, or to reprint the whole mass, onehalf of which is obsolete. The latter course has been adopted, and cannot vary essentially from any future codification of the Constitution, without further essential alterations. The author is far from feeling indifferent to the success which this revised edition of his work may meet with from the press and the public, but as his claims are humble, and this is probably his last attempt at authorship, he has much less at stake than a younger author of more ambitious pretensions. The valuation in all cases is that of 1850, being the last made by law, revised and corrected by a State Valuation Committee, and affording a better basis of comparison with that of 1860 than any other, showing the increase or decrease in ten years. The censu is that of 1855, made by State authority. Another will be taken the present year, and we would suggest to those who may posses this work the convenience of adding the new census with pen or pencil in the margin, which will show at a glance the change in each town for five years. The Map has been drawn expressly for the work, containing all the railroads and town lines, as far as space would permit, but the minute subdivisions of our cities and towns in the most populous parts of the State, have rendered these lines less distinct than was desirable. With a deep interest, not only in the success and usefulness o this work, but a still deeper interest in the prosperity of the State the work is now submitted to the public. GAZETTEER OP MASSACHUSETTS. GENERAL VIEW. SITUATION AND EXTENT.-Massachusetts is one of the United States of America. It is situated between 41° 23′ and 42° 53′ of north latitude, and between 69° 50′ and 73° 10′ west longitude from Greenwich, and 3° 38′ and 7° 7′ east longitude from Washington. It is bounded north by Vermont and New Hampshire, east by the Atlantic Ocean, south by Rhode Island and Connecticut, and west by New York. Boston, the Capitol, is 436 miles north-east of Washington City, 295 in the same direction from Philadelphia, 210 north-east from New York, 115 south south-west from Portland, 56 south by west from Portsmouth, 40 north north-east from Providence, 100 east north-east from Hartford, 300 south south-east from Montreal. The State is 130 miles in length, and 60 in breadth, making 7800 square miles; deducting for water, it is calculated to leave 4,644,000 acres of land. POPULATION.-The whole number of inhabitants in the Commonwealth, by the census of 1790, was 378,787-in 1800, 422,845-by the census of 1810, 472,040-by that of 1820, 523,159-in 1850, 994,499—in 1855, 1,133,123. It has a more dense population than any State of the same extent, in the Union, being computed at 72 to a square mile, in 1820-127 in 1850, and 143 in 1855. A very large proportion of the population are the descendants of those who left England on account of the rigid conformity to the ceremonies of the Episcopal Church, so unwisely required and cruelly exacted, by James I, and Arch Bishop Laud. To these may be added many who left that country on account of the civil dissensions during the tempestuous reign of Charles I, and at the restoration of Charles II, when most of those who had acted distinguished parts during the civil wars and the Protectorate of Cromwell, became obnoxious to the ruling powers.-It has been stated, on good authority, that Cromwell was once in his early life on shipboard for America, but was detained by an order of the King and Council. If this is true, they "caught a tartar," with a vengeance. To the foregoing may be added a very large immigration, since 1820, both from other States and foreign countries. In 1850 there were natives 695,236; born in other States 134,830; in foreign countries 164,433. CIVIL DIVISIONS.-The State is divided into fourteen Counties; Suffolk, Essex, Middlesex, Hampshire, Plymouth, Bristol, Barnstable, Dukes, Nantucket, Worcester, Berkshire, Norfolk, Franklin and Hampden, which are again subdivided into 333 cities and towns. Some notice of each County is given under the present head--the Towns are alphabetically arranged in the body of the work. This arrangement into Counties, divided into Townships, is in some degree peculiar to New England and those States whose inhabitants are chiefly derived from thence, and have carried with them the habits and institutions of the States from whence they emigrated.Counties in the southern States are Corporations for most of the purposes for which Towns and Counties are instituted in New England. Counties in this State are bodies corporate and politic, included |