Contents:

• President's Address
• Old Burying Ground
• Report of Treasurer
• Report of Nominating Committee
• Charter
• Officers and Committees for 1906
• List of Members
• By-Laws

The fifth annual meeting of the Brookline Historical Society was held in the G. A. R. Room, Town Hall, Brookline, Mass., on Wednesday, January 24, 1906, at 8 P. M., in accordance with a notice mailed to every member. President Rufus G. F. Candage was in the chair.

The records of the last monthly meetings were read by the clerk and approved. The President then read his annual address.


Members of the Brookline Historical Society: -

Another year of life of this Society and of this town has closed and we are here assembled, on this our fifth annual meeting, a fitting place and time to record some of the events which have transpired during the year 1905, having connection with this Society and the community in which we reside, now passed into history.

Eight papers, including the President's Annual Address, have been read at the meetings of the Society in the past year, as follows

In February, a paper on "Two Old Brookline Homesteads," prepared by Mrs. Thomas Doliber and read by Miss H. Alma Cummings, both members of this Society; in March, a paper was read by Mr. Walter Kendall Watkins of Maiden, entitled "The Paper Money of Our Fathers"; in April, Mr. Charles H. Stearns, Vice-President of this Society, read a paper on "Some Recollections of the Old Town Meeting House of Brookline, 1806 to 1848 "; and in May, a paper prepared by Miss Ellen Chase of this Society was read, entitled "A Summer's Driving Trip in New Hampshire in 1802," by a Brookline lady; in October, at the first meeting after the summer vacation, Mr. Walter Kendall Watkins of Maiden read a paper before the Society, on "Boston Neck to Muddy River"; in November, Mr. Charles G. Chick, President of the Hyde Park Historical Society, read his paper on "The Sidelights of the Stamp Act and the Boston Tea Party," and in December, Mr. George S. Mann, a member of this Society's read an interesting paper on "Shay's Rebellion."

The Society had printed in 1905, with the Proceedings, the President's Annual Address, a paper entitled "Two Old Brookline Homesteads," and in the Publication No. 3, of the Society, "John White of Muddy River," two papers read before the Society in 1903 and in 1904, by Mr. Charles F. White, a descendant and a member of this Society, and also "The Centennial of Blue Hill, Me., Academy," a paper read by your President before the Society in November, 1903.

of the Society was increased in 1905 by two admissions, decreased by one death and two withdrawals, which leaves the number the same as at the beginning of the year, of one hundred and fifty-three. That is small for a town of 25,000 inhabitants, and 1 trust that active measures will be taken during the year 1906 to increase that number, which there is no doubt can be done by personal endeavor and by such other means as may be deemed advisable.

was the only one included in the roll of deceased members for the year 1905. He died suddenly in Boston on December 11, 1905, aged 78 years 10 months and 1 day. He was born on Cypress street in Brookline, February 10, 1827, and all his life had been a resident of the town, in the progress and welfare of which he was always interested, and for which he had given time, thought, and service in the town meetings and on many important town committees. No other citizen was more widely known within or without the town.

He was an able speaker and writer, and used his voice and pen fearlessly for what he believed was for the good of his fellowmen. He was interested in the formation of this Society and was one of its early members. Advancing age and many pressing duties prevented him from taking an active part in its councils, but it held a warm place in his thought. Those who knew him personally and intimately bear witness to his nobility of character, and to his worth as a friend and neighbor. His sunny smile and cheerful contact with acquaintances and friends endeared him to the many who sorrow that they shall meet him no more in the walks of this life.

for the year 1905 numbered 345, an increase of 38 over the previous year. Seventy-one of them had passed the bound of three score and ten; namely, 29 males and 42 females. Of that seventy one, 6 males and 9 females were between 70 and 75 years of age; 13 males and 13 females were between 75 and 80, and 3 males and 1 female had exceeded 90 years.

The oldest males were: Mr. John S. Richards, 94 years 1 month and 24 days; Mr. Henry V. Poor, 92 years; and Mr. Timothy Lyons, 90 years. The oldest female was 93 years and 9 months. Besides these those best known in town and vicinity were: Mr. John C. Leighton, 86 years; Mr. Francis Cabot, 79 years 9 months and 25 days; Mr. Charles E. Guild, 77 years 3 months and 12 days; Mr. Xanthus Goodnough, 77 years 10 months and 3 days; Mr. Obadiah D. Witherell, 79 years 9 months; Mr. William Fuller Tufts, 78 years 1 month and 22 days; Mr. Terrance Gallagher, 75 years; Mr. John D. Young, 72 years 2 months and 8 days; Mr. William A. Wood, 74 years 2 months and 20 days; Mrs. Caroline Griggs Coolidge, 85 years 7 months and 22 days; Mrs. Sarah W. Seamans, 77 years 8 months and 9 days; and Mrs. Sarah F. Read, 85 years 3 months and 21 days.

The combined ages of the 71 persons were 5629-9-11, or an average of 79 years and 11 days each, which speaks well for the health conditions of Brookline, and including other advantages it makes a desirable place of residence.

of the town's incorporation was celebrated in an appropriate manner on November 10-13, 1905, with an oration in the Town Hall by Hon. Henry Cabot Lodge; dedication of a memorial tablet to the signers of the petition for the incorporation and in honor of the Brookline soldiers who marched to the battles of Lexington and Bunker Hill, upon the green near the First Parish Meeting House: by exercises for the school children in their respective school buildings, and in the Town Hall; by memorial Sunday services in all the churches of the town; with a display of day and night fireworks upon the Cypress street Playground; and with a banquet in the Town Hall, at which, including invited guests, more than five hundred persons were present. There were responses to toasts as follows: Lieutenant-Governor Curtis Guild, Jr., for the Commonwealth; Acting Mayor Hon. Daniel A. Whelton, for the City of Boston; Rev. James De Normandie, D. D., for the First Religious Society of Roxbury; Mr. James M. Codman, Jr., Chairman* of the Board of Selectmen, for the Town of Brookline; Hon. Samuel J. Elder of Winchester, for the Ladies; and Hon. James R. Dunbar for the Bench and Bar. The President of the United States was toasted and a response was made by the orchestra playing "Hail to the Chief." The Chaplain of the occasion was Rev. William H. Lyon, D. D., of the First Parish Church of Brookline. Places of historical interest and public buildings, and also places of business and private dwellings in the village and central part of the town, were elaborately and becomingly decorated with flags and bunting, giving to them a gay holiday appearance. The weather was beautifully fine for the season of the year, and the plan of the Committee having the celebration in their charge, by appointment of the town at the annual meeting, was successfully carried out, which made it a dignified and appropriate celebration, which no doubt will be handed down to future generations as such. It is to be hoped that a memorial volume of the occasion will be published at some time in the near future.

was completed in 1905, upon and near the site of the old one, at a cost of $80,000. It is a fine building containing all modern improvements, built of brick with stone trimmings, and is a pleasing contrast when compared with the old building of which it takes the place.

The year 1905 was not noted for activity in the erection of new buildings, and yet sixty-four dwellings and apartment houses w ere added to the number of the previous year in the town, showing that the growth is still onward. Some of the apartments, in accommodations for families, were equal to a dozen or more single houses of a few years ago, and equally so in the cost of construction.

which stood at the junction of Harvard and Washington streets facing Harvard Square, built in 1828 and occupied by the Baptist Church and Society from that time until 1859, when it was changed over for business purposes, and which, since the widening of Harvard street two or three years ago, has stood in a dilapidated condition and has been an eyesore to the people of the town, was demolished a few months ago. Usually the destruction of an historic structure is cause for regret, but in this instance it was cause for rejoicing that the old building no longer cumbers the ground nor remains a disgrace to the square in the heart of the town. Upon this site there has been erected a modern brick edifice for business purposes, of sightly appearance, which was occupied at the beginning of 1906. As one now approaches the square from the railway station, or the bridge over the railway, with a stranger, he is no longer obliged to apologize and explain for its appearance but feels his bosom swell with pride at the change that meets his eye.

noticeable changes have also taken place in the Morlock Block, which is now named the "Sagamore." That building has had a new front and its interior changed over into stores, offices and flats; into one part of which the Brookline Press has moved from across the street. Russell's Block, adjoining, is also being improved and renovated, showing that the march of improvement has reached that locality. The new building on the corner of Pearl and Washington streets, the real estate and express offices near the corner of Washington street and Morss avenue, and Chase's Express office and stable further down, have improved that section of the town very materially. But the advertising signs so conspicuously placed on Guild's and Whyte's Blocks are blemishes which should not be allowed, and are an eyesore. When and how Village Square is to be improved to meet the wants of the trolley lines that pass through it, and accommodate the passengers that ride on them and there change cars, seems as far distant as at any time in the past.

once so called, after the famous Old Punch Bowl Tavern there built and kept by one John Ellis prior to 1740, and demolished in 1833, included what is now Village Square and the territory from it along Washington street to Muddy River. That portion lying between Pearl street where it intersects Washington street back to what was formerly the brook on the north, now covered, and thence to Muddy River, and from the junction of Village lane and Washington street to Muddy River on the south, was originally a part of Roxbury, which was annexed to Brookline in 1844.

The section which includes Parker Hill and Heath street, and the Punch Bowl Village from the lines above described, was known as "Roxbury Precinct," and in it lived and were the homesteads of Crafts, Heaths, Griggs, Wymans, Downers, Brewers, and others, some of whom owned lands in both Brookline and Roxbury. The land on the south side of Washington street, which included the Ward Farm, for many years the property of John, Samuel and Henry Ward, and nearly all land along Pond avenue to Chestnut street, and at one time nearly all land from that part of Washington street to Jamaica Pond, was a part of Governor Leverett's allotment at Muddy River, made to him in 1637.

The Mill Dam, or Western avenue, now Brookline avenue, was the first road after that over the Neck to be built, which connected the peninsula of Boston with the mainland; and the greatest undertaking Boston had entered into, one and a half miles in length, was built by the Roxbury Mill Corporation, chartered June 14, 1814- Uriah Cotting, its principal projector, did not live to see it completed, nor did he see that it was the first step towards converting the Back Bay into terra frma. This work, for which for the first time Irish laborers were expressly imported into the country, says Drake, in his "Sketches of Roxbury," was begun in 1818, and the stone used was principally taken from the Parker Hill quarry. It was opened July 2, 1821, with a public parade, the opening of another avenue to Boston being considered a great event. A cavalcade of citizens, Gen. William H. Sumner acting as chief-marshal, crossed from the Roxbury shore, and were received by the inhabitants of Boston.

The whole territory was flowed in consequence of the construction of the dam, which had been valuable only for a trifling quantity of salt grass, and could have been purchased for a few hundred dollars. It was supposed that an immense water power could thus be obtained of fabulous value, and that all kinds of manufacturing and mechanical business would be established and carried on by its means, and that the individual owners of the land flowed, and of the surrounding region, would be benefitted and enriched. The calculation as to the value of the water power was erroneous, and the results obtained were out of all proportion to its cost. Gristmills and iron works were erected, machine shops, manufactories and rope-walks were built, but owing to the error in calculation its success was a failure and many persons were financially ruined. All plans devised to give value to the property failed until 1859, when the Boston Water Power Company, by legislative enactment, was given permission to fill the territory and convert it into dry land.

Before the Mill Dam road was built there stood on the corner of what is now Brookline avenue and Washington street, says Miss Woods, in "Historical Sketches of Brookline," in the rear of the Gas Company's office, a dwelling house with a large yard in front; and east of where the avenue now is was a small schoolhouse belonging to "Roxbury Precinct." The grounds sloped from the grassy upland to the brook on the north, and to the marsh at Muddy River, which was then forty or fifty feet wide. In the rear of that dwelling house was a garden or orchard with grounds sloping to the brook and marsh, the latter being overflowed at high tide. That dwelling, with the lands on both sides of Muddy River, in ancient time, was the property of the Griggs family, early settlers in Roxbury. George Griggs of Launden, Buckinghamshire, England, came over to this country in the ship "Hopewell," with Alyce his wife and five children in 1635.

Dr. George Griggs, early in the 18th century, built the old house next to the gas works, now falling to decay, known at one time as the "Tontine," but now better known as the "Long House." The western half of that house was added by Dr. Downer. Dr. Griggs had a daughter Mary, a beautiful woman and something of an heiress for that time, who married, against her parents' wishes, Capt. William Wyman, with whom she lived an unhappy life. The old house and land, afterwards owned by the gas company, with other land in the vicinity was long known as the Wyman property.

When the Mill Dam road, now Brookline avenue, was built and extended to the "Punch Bowl Village," it changed the condition and appearance of the estate and cut off a large part of Captain Wyman's yard. Afterwards a blacksmith shop was built and occupied upon the eastern corner of the Mill-dam road, which later was removed across Washington street to a lot now bordering on Pond avenue. After the death of Captain Wyman and the sale of his estate, the old house, later owned by the Gas Company, was kept for some years as a tavern, with the sign of the "Punch Bowl "; but as it had little except local patronage, and that of the lower order, it was given up. Drake, in "Sketches of Roxbury," says: "In the rear of the gas works, at the corner of Brookline avenue, stood an old house, which after many years' neglect was blown down, probably by the great gale of September, 1816." That must have been another house and not the Wyman house above described.

The houses of Captain Wyman and Dr. Downer both originally set back farther from the street than at present; the widenings that have taken place from time to time have cut off the yards. It was by marriage to Captain Wyman 's daughter that Dr. Downer became connected with the family and its possessions. The Downer or "Long House " had a broad green yard shaded by buttonwoods and two Lombardy poplars, and between the two houses stood a beautiful elm.

Dr. Downer, who was active in town affairs as appears by the Roxbury records, and who was the grandfather of Samuel Downer, Esq., of Boston, left his house early on the morning of the Battle of Lexington, and on his way to the front came in sight of the retreating Britons and encountered one of their flankers, who had stopped to pillage a house. Both leveled their guns at the same instant, and both missed. Closing in deadly struggle, they crossed bayonets, and Downer found he was no match for his adversary in the use of that weapon. The main body was every moment coming nearer. Gathering himself for a desperate effort. Downer quickly reversed his musket and dealt his foe a blow with the butt which brought him to the ground. Although the blow had shattered to pieces the wooden breech of his gun, it disabled his enemy, whom he finished with his bayonet. Then possessing himself of his antagonist's arms as the spoil of victory, he hastily withdrew. When the battle was over he found that his forehead had been grazed by a musket bullet.

Dr. Downer was a surgeon on board the privateer "Yankee," and was taken prisoner and carried to England, from whence he escaped to France. On the passage home he was again captured after being wounded, and taken to Portsea Prison, where he and his companions were harshly treated. He escaped by tunneling under the walls of the prison and the adjacent street, was aided by friends, and after three years' absence made his way back to Boston.



He afterwards served as surgeon-general on the ill-fated Penobscot Expedition for the recapture of Castine from the British under command of Saltonstall, which resulted so disastrously for the American cause. He was a skillful surgeon, though said to have been a hard and rough man.

For several years there was a brewery in one end of the old "Long House," it is said, with a malt-house on the opposite side of the street. After the death of Dr. Downer, a Dr. Silvan came to the house, took up his residence and began the practice of what was termed "the rainwater cure." He professed to cure all maladies that flesh is heir to by the use of rain water. He flourished for a time upon the credulity of his patients, but public opinion was aroused against him and he left the town.

The old "Long House" still stands in a dilapidated condition, as a landmark of the past, and this account of it, gathered chiefly from the "Historical Sketches of Brookline," by Miss Woods, and from Francis S. Drake's "Sketches of Roxbury," has been written for preservation in the archives of the Brookline Historical Society.

stood west of the "Long House " between the two blacksmith shops, and probably on the land once owned by Griggs, Wyman and Downer, until its demolition some twenty years ago, then known as the Lemuel Foster place.

The house was said to have been built by Edward Devotion, Jr., who died in it in 1744, and was buried in Walnut street burying ground, where a stone marks his grave. Edward Devotion moved to this house from the old Devotion house standing on its original site on Harvard street between the Devotion Schoolhouses, where it was erected in about 1680, and is the oldest building in the town.

Edward Devotion sold the old house, in which he had lived the greater part of his life, with the farm belonging with it, to Solomon Hill, said to have been an adopted son, about 1740, and moved to the "Punch Bowl Village," and it is supposed that the village house was built at that time for his occupancy. The house after the death of Edward Devotion was occupied by Mr. Thomas Brewer, who was a blacksmith and built the brick shop some time before the Revolution. Mr. Brewer lived in that house for many years, and his children intermarried with other Brookline families, although the name has become extinct in the town. When the Brewers ceased to occupy the old house, it passed into the ownership of Mr. Lemuel Foster, who also was a blacksmith and worked at his trade in the shop adjoining. He later built a house on Walnut street opposite the present Whyte's Block, where he resided in the last years of his life.

The late J. Anson Guild married a daughter of Lemuel Foster for his first wife, through whom, at her death, the Devotion house and land descended to Mrs. Guild's only daughter and child, now Mrs. George. Rogers. The old house stood unoccupied for some years, fell into decay and was torn down. The brick blacksmith shop and lot, extending from Washington street back to Pearl, are all now left of the Devotion estate in the lower village.

The writer, however, has a photograph of the old house as it appeared just prior to its demolition, which he hopes will be printed with this address, and thus preserve the outline of the house and last earthly home of Edward Devotion. Everything in the town connected with him and his name ought to be held in lasting remembrance by the citizens of Brookline on account of his gift to the town for its schools and the cause of education. The sum devised by his will would not seem large at this time, but from his moderate estate the town received about $3,500, the use of which it has had for a hundred and fifty years, more or less. Had it been kept at interest and intact, it would now amount to a sum the interest of which would pay more than all the town's annual expenses and still leave a handsome balance to be added to the principal.

For many years his legacy and name were nearly lost to the sight and knowledge of the majority of the residents of the town, and only within a few years has his name been honored by bestowing it upon the schoolhouses on the Devotion lot. Harvard street. The money received from his estate was kept at interest, a part was lost by loaning it to the Commonwealth during the Revolutionary War, which was paid back in depreciated Continental paper money; the interest on the balance was used for the benefit of the town schools until 1844, when by vote of the town the principal was used in building the Town Hall, dedicated in 1845, in which one room or fioor was set apart for school purposes. When the school in that building ceased, the Devotion legacy was lost sight of, and from that time to the present no measures have been taken by the town to place the sum back into the fund to which it originally belonged, or in any way to honor its donor, except as above stated.

This Society and other societies and organizations of the town have used their influence to have the Devotion house renovated for their meetings and for a museum of antiquities. They succeeded a few years ago in getting it partially restored by the town, since which time it has stood unoccupied. At the last annual meeting of the town, a committee consisting of the Chairmen of the Selectmen, Park Commissioners and School Board was appointed to look into the subject of its retention and repair, give one or more public hearings and report their findings in print to the town at its next meeting.

They held two public hearings, at which representatives of this and other societies appeared and advocated its retention upon its original site; to put it in repair for their use by the town, then to have it placed under their control at a nominal rental, as above outlined; and there the matter rests at this moment. It is probable, however, that the committee will make a printed report to be acted upon at the special town meeting called for a week from tonight.

If the house were to be demolished, 1 feel sure that the time will come when the citizens will deeply regret it. It is not only the Devotion House in which Edward Devotion spent the major part of his life, but it is the oldest structure in town, and ought to be preserved as a landmark; as an example of the style of dwelling our ancestors built and occupied, two and a quarter centuries ago; as an historical monument of Colonial times and for the purposes already set forth. The members of this Society and all other citizens should carefully consider the subject, and not only be ready to act, but to act wisely.

The Committee having the subject of the Devotion house and its disposition to consider, reported to the town at its special meeting held January 31, 1906, and recommended that it be placed under the care of the Board of Selectmen; and the town accepted and adopted the recommendation.

In the report the Committee said:


That vote was passed without opposition.




Read before the Society, December 18, 1901, by E. W. Baker

At the town meeting November 20th, 1901, the town adopted a by-law by which the powers and duties of the Trustees of Walnut Hills Cemetery shall also embrace and pertain to the old Town Burying Ground on Walnut street. This action was the outcome of a petition presented to the Selectmen which was accompanied by the following memorandum: -

"It is respectfully submitted that the Old Burying Ground is practically a public heirloom. In many instances, the descendants of the original proprietors have moved out of town, or are extinct, and the lots no longer receive the proper individual attention. In consideration of its venerable relics, its natural beauties, and its beneficial influence upon future generations, systematic and skillful control should be now inaugurated. The natural and obvious custodians seem to be the Trustees of the new cemetery of Walnut Hills."

This memorandum states the facts clearly and concisely and it has seemed fitting, at this time, when the question of the control and care of the old burying ground is before the town, that the Brookline Historical Society should interest itself in the matter.

The Old Burying Ground, or, as we know it, "The Brookline Cemetery on Walnut street," contains a great store of information for those interested in the history of Brookline and its families, too great indeed, to be exhausted without much time and careful search.

Serving as it did as the only burial ground of the town for over 150 years, or from 1717 to 1875, when Walnut Hills Cemetery was opened, in it have reposed the representatives of nearly if not quite all of the old families of the town both humble and prominent.

It is the present purpose to sketch the history of the burying ground itself rather than bring together a collection of names, dates and epitaphs, or to attempt to give any detailed account of any particular individual or family whose name may appear on tomb or stone. In regard to some of such names we have reliable historical information of great interest, but of many more it can only be said -


The petition of the freeholders of the Hamlet of Muddy River for separation from Boston, which resulted in the incorporation of the town of Brookline, November 13th, 1705, contains thirty-two signatures, but only fifteen family names; which warrants the statement that the population at that time did not exceed forty or fifty families. To meet the needs of this small population, at the first meeting of the inhabitants of the new town, March, 1706, the first business transacted after the choice of town officers was-



This allotment, probably, would approximate the area bounded by the brook running along the B. & A. R. R., the parkway, the brook (now covered) through the land of T. B. Griggs and along the valley between School street and Harvard avenue, and following the direction of Aspinwall avenue into what was formerly Muddy River, and the hill "toward the northwest " was probably what is now known as Aspinwall Hill.

The Cotton Allotment descended to the two sons. Rowland Cotton and Thomas Cotton, the dividing line between whose estates was a road, laid out in 1719, and described as follows: - "It begins at wattertown road & so runs between ye farms of Mr. Rowland Cotton & Mr. Thomas Cotton, all ye way in said Thomas Cottons land & so to ye land of Caleb Gardner late of Brooklyn &c to Sherborn road."

This road was named Cypress street in 1841 but for the previous 130 years it was called the "new lane." The town allowed land damages for this "new lane," according to the following: -



It is a far cry from the present population of Coolidge's Corner, Babcock Hill, Corey Hill and the Boulevard, to the "north end inhabitants " of two hundred years ago.

The two roads referred to (in the vote of 1706) were the Sherborn Road (now Walnut street) and the Newtown or Watertown Road (now Washington street) both of which appear on a map of the town made in 1728; but the site described as "the north side of the hill pointing between the two roads " is difficult to identify.

The particular site so described was not secured from Mr. Cotton, and nothing further appears to have been done in relation to any other site for seven years, or until the town meeting of December 2, 1713, when it was, -



The committee failed to make any agreement with Mr. Cotton and the attempt to secure the desired site was abandoned, as appears from the action four years later at the town meeting of November 17, 1717: -



Until the building of the first meeting house in 1714 the Brookline people worshipped in Roxbury under Rev. Nehemiah Walter, as set forth in the petition of the Selectmen, November 2, 1710, to "His Excellency Joseph Dudley," asking further time for the erection of the meeting house.

This petition recites, "And there are none of our people now complaining for want of a Minister or Meeting House in Our Town nor the Inhabitants of Roxbury of Our being burthensome to them. Our most remote family resorting to the new Meeting house lately erected at the south end of the town of Roxbury aforesaid where they were entertained without any inconvenience to the Church who are few in number at present and willing to receive them."

The burial place of the Roxbury Church was therefore the natural accommodation of Brookline until 1717, when, according to the vote already quoted, the "half acre " was purchased of Samuel Clark, Jun'r.

Samuel Clark was the carpenter who built the Meeting House in 1713-1714 and was afterward one of the first deacons of the Church, and when, in 1840, 123 years afterwards, additional land was purchased to increase the area of the Burying Ground, it was from Caleb Clark, one of the descendants of Deacon Samuel Clark.

The burial ground having been purchased on the conditions stated, it is further mentioned in the old records from time to time, some of the references indicating that "perpetual care" did not, in those days, appear to be so important a factor in cemetery management as it is today, although probably Samuel Clark took the herbage, as nothing shows that the town fenced the place entire.

In 1717 Thomas Lee was appointed grave digger.

Samuel White, Henry Sewall, Capt. Robert Sharp, and Mr. Isaac Winchester, by vote of the town in 1752, were given liberty to build tombs for themselves and families.

That the grounds did not lack attention altogether, and that some attempt was made to beautify them, we learn from the vote passed at the town meeting of 1762:-


It is to be noticed that this agricutural attention to the burying ground comes forty-five years after the land was set apart for the purpose, and this improvement is coincident with another improvement fully as great, if not greater, as, in this same year, by vote of the town, the Selectmen were appointed a committee to buy a Black Velvet Pall. Presumably the Burying Cloth authorized in 1713 at a cost of six pounds had served its usefulness.

In 1768 Deacon Ebenezer Davis and Mr. Thomas Aspinwall were voted liberty to build tombs, and in the next year, 1769, similar liberty was voted to Capt. Benjamin White, but only " provided he digs at a proper distance from any tomb or grave so as not to do them any harm."

Mrs. Mary Craft desired the same privilege for herself in 1772 but the town meeting for some reason had a little hesitation, and voted her the desired permission only under the inspection of a committee consisting of Deacon Davis, Deacon White and Capt. Benjamin White

A public sentiment appears to have been aroused this same year, 1772, that the burying place had become not altogether a credit to the town in its appearance,- although probably the barberry bushes had been pulled up as authorized ten years previously; - and, that the work of improvement might be properly carried out and suitably supervised by a sufficiently large committee, the fol lowing vote was passed: -



Although this committee was instructed to report at an adjourned meeting, the records do not contain any reference to such a report, and it is not improbable that the stirring times of the next decade absorbed the thoughts of the community in issues of supreme importance to the living, to the exclusion of thought of care for the resting place of the dead. In any event, the fence if erected at this time must have completely decayed in the next twenty-four years, so that the boundary of the original half acre purchased of Samuel Clark in 1717 became uncertain; therefore the town at the meeting of March 14, 1796, -

"Voted, To fence the Burying Ground." Mr. John Goddard, Capt'n Samuel Croft and Mr. Samuel Clark were chosen a Committee to fence the Burying Ground - and authorized to agree with Samuel Clark in regard to the line where said fence ought to be set.

The building of the fence, however, did not keep out the bushes, and it became necessary in 1799 for the town again to instruct the Selectmen to clear them from the burying ground, which is the last time, so far as recorded, that any public care was given to the grounds for another forty years, or until 1840.

Liberty to build a tomb was given in 1801 to Rev. John Pierce, in 1807 to Capt. Timothy Corey and Elijah Corey, and the last similar vote recorded was in 1808 to Capt. Joseph Goddard.

No further reference to the burying ground is made in the town records until the year 1840. During this time the "half acre " was the last resting place of the Brookline families and from what was learned later became much overcrowded. Little, if any attention, was probably paid to its care, and its condition and appearance no doubt could well be described in these lines of Whittier: -



The question of enlarging and improving the burial ground came before the town in the Spring of 1840 and the result, after a few years, was the cemetery in practically its present condition; but there was much bitter controversy in regard to these improvements as planned and carried out by the committee, and there is not much doubt that the burial rights of preceding generations were but little observed in the laying out of new avenues and regrading the grounds.

The early records of deaths in the Town Clerk's office are incomplete, and no parish records of deaths have been found previous to 1760 in the ministry of Rev. Joseph Jackson. Even after 1760 it is necessary to supplement the one record with the other in order to make anything like a complete list of the deaths in Brookline.

There are today some stones in the old burying ground which give information which cannot be found in either town or parish record, and we must most deeply regret that the committee in charge of the improvements in 1840 did not realize the importance of making a complete record of the old stones then in the grounds, many of which were without doubt disturbed and broken, and which may have been the only record existing at that time and now lost forever.

At the town meeting of April 6, 1840, the following vote was passed: -


The report of this committee presented to the town meeting of May 4, 1840, was rejected, but this meeting was attended by a very few voters and did not express the real sentiment of the town. A petition was immediately drawn up calling for another town meeting and was presented to the Selectmen, as follows: -


In response to a petition a town meeting was called for May 18, 1840, "to see what the town will do relative to enlarging and improving the Cemetery of the town," and the record of this meeting gives in full the report of the committee which a previous meeting had rejected. At this meeting, in brief, a committee previously appointed recommended the purchase of about three quarters of an acre from Caleb Clark, adjoining the old burial ground on its western, southern and southeastern borders, because, although the price asked, $500.00, was considered very high, it seemed desirable that the burial accommodations of the town should be in one enclosure. The committee suggested improvements such as fencing and new avenues and recommended the appointment of a committee to carry into effect "other improvements and embellishments as they in connexion and with the advice of the Board of Health may deem expedient, not exceeding four hundred dollars."

Further, it was recommended that the committee to be appointed be authorized to sell lots for interments or for the erection of tombs, and the report "in each and all the provisions and recommendations" meeting with approval, the following vote was passed: -



In the Brookline Alcove at the Public Library is the manuscript book of Mr. S. Philbrick containing the records of the doings of this committee for the next few years, and the annual reports of the committee to the town are embodied in full in the Town Clerk's record of the meetings at which they were presented.

From these sources it is learned that the committee sold the lot of land adjoining the town house (now Pierce Hall, Walnut street) on the eastern side to Silas Pierce for $500, which was the exact amount paid Caleb Clark for the three quarters of an acre for burial purposes.

A survey was made and a plan drawn by E. F. Woodward of Newton and after grading the principal avenue a public auction was held June 15, 1840, and by vote of the committee a printed notification of this sale was to be left at each house. Eight lots were sold at this auction and the following were the purchasers:



A permanent stone wall laid in mortar was built in front, and later capped by hammered stone; the gate was moved from about the middle of the frontage on Walnut street to the northwestern corner, and the grounds surrounded by a cedar post and picket fence. Ornamental trees were planted in 1840 and succeeding years, many of which, however, were lost on account of dry seasons, and a row of elms outside the front wall was set out in 1842, After the new avenues were laid out, the executive committee was authorized, in 1842, to give names to all the avenues in the grounds and have the same entered on the plan. The committee took it upon themselves to supervise the erection of all grave stones and monuments, and established an order requiring tombs to be sunk below the surface level of the ground. Also it was decided (1846) that no lot in the cemetery should be sold to a non-resident. In 1843 the Selectmen were instructed to furnish the Congregational and Baptist societies in town each with a gratuitous deed of a lot for the families of the then pastors, their successors or their friends, provided the societies would enclose the lots and ornament them with trees, turf or shrubbery in a manner satisfactory to the committee, and by the report in 1846 it appears the selection was made by the three different parishes in town and deeds were prepared for delivery when the conditions as to ornamentation should be complied with.

The original plan by Woodward in 1842 (on file in the Town Clerk's office) shows eighty-nine family lots marked by bound posts, but this includes only a few lots in the old "half acre " originally purchased in 1717.

Rev. John Pierce, in 1845, referring to the cemetery said, "the whole ground is now in a state of improvement worthy our highest ambition," but this condition was not arrived at without bitter opposition on the part of many at whose instigation the following article was inserted in the warrant for the town meeting of March 6, 1843: -



Under this article a committee consisting of Timothy Corey, Marshal Stearns and Harrison Fay was appointed, and it was stipulated that the alleged grievances should be presented to the committee in writing. To this committee were added, at a later meeting, Samuel A. Walker, Dea. Thomas Kendall, Moses Jones and James Bartlett. George Griggs, Esq., was substituted November 13, 1843, for Deacon Kendall, who asked to be excused.

These grievances alleged that tomb stones had been used for building purposes, for covering drains, and filling for avenues, etc. Evidently, from the records of the town meeting of April 6, 1843. the matter aroused a good deal of feeling, so much that an investigating committee was appointed. There is nothing in the records to show when this committee reported, but in the Town Clerk's office there is on file the written report signed by Timothy Corey, Chairman, in which the Cemetery Committee is found to be free from any serious blame, and the alleged grievances to have been largely imaginary.

At the town meeting March 4, 1850, the committee presented its usual annual report, which report shows that there was a balance on hand of $398.41 and that there were eight lots unsold in the cemetery. This report was accepted and the following vote was passed by the town: -



Following this action of the town, the committee evidently did as instructed and the final report of said committee was presented at the annual meeting of March 14, 1853.

Nothing later is to be found in the records to conflict with the vote of the town previously quoted passed at the meeting of 1850, and the intent of the town expressed in said vote has been carried out by electing annually a cemetery committee and making a small appropriation for the care of the cemetery.

The Cemetery Committees since 1850 have been as follows: -



As has already been stated, there exists no complete record of the burials in the old ground, but from the records available a tabulation has been made of those families identified with the burying ground and prominent in the history of the town previous to 1840.

This list contains the following family names: -

Ackers, Aspinwall, Boylston, Brewer, Celfe, Child, Clark, Craft, Corey, Dana, Davis, Gardner, Goddard, Griggs, Holden, Hancock, Harris, Heath, Hammond, Jackson, Jones, Murdock, Robinson, Stedman, Sewall, Sharp, Seaver, Stearns, Tolman. White (or Whyte), Woodward, Winchester, Withington.

These families appear in the records through two or more successive generations. There may be other families which should be included which have been identified for equal periods through female descendants under a different name by marriage, but the necessary genealogical data to complete such a list is not available at this time.

Other families, better known to the present generation, became identified with the burying ground after 1840, among which should be mentioned the names of Andem, Atkinson, Barnard, Bird, Cook, Davenport, Fay, Foster, Haynes, Howe, Kendall, Newell, Penniman, Pierce, Philbrick, Seaverns, Sanderson, Shurtleff, Stoddard, Stone, Ward, Warren, and others.

While the town records show liberty to build family tombs given to only twelve persons, more tombs were actually built, probably under authority granted by the Selectmen and not brought before a town meeting.

It is to be hoped that the histories of these families will receive further and careful attention from the Brookline Historical Society, but present mention of a few individual representatives of some of them may be interesting. Permission to build tombs in the old burying ground on Walnut street was voted in 1752 to Samuel White, Henry Sewall, Capt. Robert Sharp, and Isaac Winchester.

Samuel White, who died in 1760 at the age of 76, was the son of Joseph White, one of the petitioners in 1704. He was an important factor in the affairs of the town and church, and held nearly all the different important town offices, as well as that of Representative.

He gave to the town a wood-lot of 20 acres in Needham "to supply the minister or ministers that may be settled in the town from time to time." This deed was witnessed, and probably was drawn by Jeremy Gridley, the eminent lawyer, who was a resident of Brookline and died here September 10th, 1767. Samuel White married Ann Drew, of whom it is said that she made her Sunday morning toilet over a pail of water in place of a looking glass before walking to Roxbury for a long day's service.

Samuel White's daughter, Ann, married Henry Sewall, grandson of Chief Justice Sewall, August 18th, 1743.

Henry Sewall also was given permission to build a family tomb in 1752. He was born in Brookline in 1719, and died in 1771. His name first appears in the town records as chosen Hogreve in 1742, in 1746 he was Town Clerk and Town Treasurer, and in later years he held many town and church positions, including membership on the committee that had the care of the estate of Edward Devotion. Henry Sewall was a man of wealth by inheritance, and owned a large part of the tract which his grandfather, the Chief Justice, acquired by marriage with Hannah, daughter of Mint Master John Hull. The original tract was about 150 acres, including what we now call Longwood, bounded by what is now Pleasant street. Harvard street and the Aspinwall estate on Aspinwall avenue, taking in all the area to the Charles river, and furnishing the site for the fort on Sewall's Point.

He was evidently not willing to pay more than his just proportion of the town's expenses, as in 1754 the Assessors of the previous year are instructed to stand a trial with Henry Sewall, Esq., before the sessions for abatements of part of his rates.

The estate passed to his son Samuel, who became a refugee and died abroad. The property was confiscated and sold by order of the government.

The tomb bears the inscription, "Sewall-Walcott, 1770." (Edward Kitchen Walcott married the daughter of Henry Sewall.) Capt. Robert Sharp died in 1765, thirteen years after the vote of 1752 giving permission to build the family tomb. He was 77 years old, the son of Lieut. Robert Sharp, who lost his life in the campaign against the Indians in 1690, and nephew of William Sharp, who signed the petition of 1704, but left Brookline and settled in Pomfret, Conn.

Capt. Robert Sharp was a thrifty man of business and by purchase from those into whose possession it had come by descent from his great-grandfather, he recovered a considerable portion of the original tract of Brookline territory which, consisting of 150 acres, was acquired by Robert Sharp and Peter Aspinwall by purchase from William Colborn in 1650. Capt. Robert Sharp was a man of wealth for those days, and among other property left his widow was a negro slave, "Jane," and the silver tankard which was presented to the First Church in 1770.

Isaac Winchester, who died in 1771, was the son of old Capt. John Winchester. He formerly owned and occupied a house on Washington street on the right above Beacon, later owned by Corey, James Bartlett, and lastly by Jordan.

The Aspinwall and Davis families were so long and completely identified with the town's early history that members of the families were probably interred in the old burying ground many years previous to 1768, when permission to build family tombs was granted to Deacon Ebenezer Davis and Mr. Thomas Aspinwall.

There were three generations of Ebenezer Davis. The first came from Roxbury and purchased of Deacon Thomas Cotton the farm bounded by Harvard and Walnut streets and on the west by School and Cypress streets. The Davis family from the first Ebenezer to the present day has been prominent in Brookline.

Thomas Aspinwall Davis (the son of Ebenezer Davis, 3rd), born in 1798 in the old Davis house on what is now Kent street, formerly Harrison place, was perhaps the most distinguished representative of the family. He became Mayor of Boston in 1845, but died the same year and followed five generations of his ancestors in the family tomb in the old burying ground.

Mr. Thomas Aspinwall, mentioned in the vote of 1769, was born in 1733, the son of Lieutenant Thomas Aspinwall and Johanna Gardner and great-grandson of Peter Aspinwall, who built the house on Aspinwall avenue in 1660. Thomas Aspinwall was a colonel in the Continental Army and commanded the Brookline fort at Sewall's Point, which mounted six guns and prevented the British from ascending Charles River. Colonel Aspinwall died in 1799.

The Colonel's brother, William Aspinwall, born in 1743, became the celebrated physician and surgeon during the Revolutionary war. For many years he conducted a hospital in Brookline for inoculation against small-pox. He built in 1803 the fine mansion on the hill (now Gardner road), only recently demolished. Dr. Aspinwall was a man of eminent qualifications in political as well as professional life, and was Representative from Brookline and Senator from the district.

He died in 1823, aged 80 years, and was buried in the old burying ground.

In 1727 Samuel Aspinwall, aged 65, was drowned in Charles River and was buried in the old burying ground, where a small stone still marks the place, with the name and date perfectly legible. Samuel Aspinwall was a lieutenant in the expedition of Sir William Phipps in 1690. He was the grandfather of the colonel and doctor already referred to.

Mrs. Mary Craft, mentioned in the vote of May, 1772, as given permission to build a tomb under the inspection of a committee, was probably the widow of Capt. Samuel Craft, who was born in 1700, and died in 1771, and formerly owned the land on Washington street between Bethany Church and Park street. Mrs. Mary Craft died in November, 1772. The old brick tomb built under the vote of 1801 in favor of the Rev. John Pierce is occupied by members of his family and that of his beloved associate, Deacon John Robinson.

The Rev. John Pierce was minister of the First Parish from 1796 to 1847, in which year his death occurred. The story of his life and what he did for parish and town is too well known to require further words in this connection. Deacon John Robinson was born in 1763 and came to Brookline, with Enos Withington, about 1790, and located a tannery on Washington street not far from where Fairbanks street is now located. Mr. Robinson married Enos Withington's sister. Deacon Robinson held his office of deacon for fifty-seven years, from 1797 to 1854, and was presented with a silver goblet by the church on the fifty-seventh anniversary of his appointment, May 14th, 1854.

Deacon Robinson was overseer of the poor and selectman for thirty years, and also represented the town in the Legislature. He died January 13th, 1855, aged 91 years 6 months.

The slab on the face of the tomb gives the names of many of the Robinson family.

Shortly after 1771, Capt. Timothy Corey, who had married Elizabeth Griggs of Brookline, purchased the house and land formerly of Isaac Winchester, in the vicinity of the corner of Washington and Beacon streets. From this family, the "great hill " took its present name of Corey Hill. Capt. Timothy Corey was active in the Revolutionary War and experienced much severe service. In his house there was often preaching by the ministers of the "New Lights " and as a result of this his sons became "Deacon Timothy Corey" and "Deacon Elijah Corey," so prominent in the Baptist Church formed in 1828.

Capt. Timothy Corey in his old age joined the Freemasons, and tradition has it that he gave his reason for so doing that his son Elijah had joined and "that no son of his should know more than he did." He died in 1811, three years after the vote granting the permit to build the family tomb.

John Goddard was a commissary general for Washington's army in the vicinity of Boston, and had charge of a certain part of the work of fortifying Dorchester Heights in 1779. The references to him in the records are many, and valuable manuscripts bearing his signature or address are among the town and family archives. He was one of the most prominent citizens of the town, holding many important positions, including that of Representative for several terms. He died in 1811. His first wife, Sarah , died in January, 1756, in the twenty-fifth year of her age. One daughter was born to this marriage, Sarah Goddard, April 26th, 1754. He married later "Hannah Seaver, a most excellent, energetic and highly esteemed woman," whose descendants of today possess many of her characteristic traits. The old tomb bears the inscription -



Joseph Goddard, a son of the general, was born in 1761 and was a boy driving one of the teams under his father's charge during the construction of the fortifications in 1779. He became a most useful and honored citizen of the town, and was made a captain of militia, which title he bears in the vote of 1808 under which the tomb was built.

Benjamin Goddard, another of the sixteen children of John and Hannah, was born in 1763, and lived to be ninety-five years of age. He was a man of wealth and prominence in the community, but never held public office. He lived on Boylston street opposite the reservoir, near Sumner road.

There are some tombs now visible, and no doubt others covered up, for which no vote was passed, so far as recorded. The most important of these is the Gardner tomb, located very near the Sewall tomb. The slab over the Gardner tomb bears many names, only a few of which it is possible to mention.

The names of five "Gardners" were on the petition of 1704. Thomas Gardner, the first deacon of the first church, was born in 1676. During the earUest town records he is referred to as Lieutenant Gardner. He built the old house on Boylston street, in 1718, which was afterwards sold by his grandson, Deacon Elisha Gardner, to Capt. John Goddard, father of Benjamin Goddard, already referred to.

Isaac Gardner, who was a grandson of Deacon Thomas Gardner, and son of Isaac Gardner who died in 1767 aged eighty three years, was a graduate of Harvard and one of the foremost men of the town. His resting place is the old family tomb marked by the flag which decorated the graves of those who have fallen in defense of their country. To quote the original entry in the town records: -



The resting places of three other soldiers of the Revolution are marked by three old gray stones: -



These men belonged to the Continental Army and probably died at the barracks or at some of the houses in which they were quartered. Further information is no doubt already in the possession of some of the local chapters of the D. A. R.

A stone in the old ground bears the name of Edward Devotion, who died in 1744 leaving to the town a fund for school purposes which we are so familiar with as the "Devotion Fund," and for the preservation of whose house on Harvard street the town has given some attention and money and should give more in order to complete the work already begun.

In 1766, as appears by his epitaph, Dr. Zabdiel Boylston, who was born in Brookline in 1679 and became a very famous physician, passed away in his native town. Dr. Boylston was the brother of Peter Boylston, who signed the Muddy River petition. He was the first to introduce inoculation against small-pox, in 1721, and met with wonderful success. In 1725 he went to England, where he received great attention. He was made a Fellow of the Royal Society and for many years remained an eminent authority in his profession. His wife, Jerusha, lies in the same tomb with her distinguished husband. Among others we should not overlook the old slate markers showing that in the original "half acre " repose the remains of Rev. James Allen, the first minister of the First Church, who died in 1747, and Rev. Cotton Brown, the second minister, who died in 1751. Both were Harvard graduates; Mr. Allen in 1710, ordained in 1718, and Mr. Brown in 1743, ordained in 1748. There is also another stone, " Sacred to the memory of Anna Mather, widow of Rev. Increase Mather, formerly the wife of Rev. John Cotton of Hampton," who died in 1737.

The Brookline records show she was living in Brookline (probably with Dea. Thos. Cotton) when she married Increase Mather, in 1715.

In addition to the claim which the old burying ground has on the present generation through its antiquity and family history, it has the further claim that on every thirtieth day of May flowers must be placed on the graves of eight soldiers of the Revolution and thirteen of the Civil War.

This is enough to warrant the belief that after March, 1902, when the control and care of the grounds passes to the Trustees of Walnut Hills Cemetery, the town will provide liberally for the perpetual care and improvement of that one spot so completely identified with its history for the almost two hundred years of its existence as an independent municipality.






The committee appointed to nominate officers of the Society for 1906 made the following report: -

For Clerk and Treasurer,
    Edward W. Baker.

For Trustees,
    Rufus G. F. Candage,
    Miss Julia Goddard,
    Mrs. J. C. Kittredge,
    Charles H. Stearns,
    Mrs. Susan V. Griggs,
    Charles White,
    Edward W. Baker.

(Signed)
    Luther M. Merrill,
    John H. Sherburne, Jr.,
    Alexis H. French.

The report was accepted and it was voted to proceed to ballot. The ballot was taken and the candidates nominated were unanimously elected.

Voted, That the Society print the President's annual address. Treasurer's report, by-laws, list of officers and members, and such papers as have been read before the Society as the Committee on Publications may select.

Edward W. Baker, Clerk.

No. 9016. Be it known That whereas Rufus George Frederick Candage, Edward Wild Baker, Julia Goddard, John Emory Hoar, Harriet Alma Cummings, Charles Henry Stearns, James Macmaster Codman, Jr., Charles French Read, Edwin Birchard Cox, Willard Y. Gross, Charles Knowles Bolton, Tappan Eustis Francis, Desmond FitzGerald, D. S. Sanford, and Martha A. Kittredge have associated themselves with the intention of forming a corporation under the name of the for the purpose of the study of the history of the town of Brookline, Massachusetts, its societies, organizations, families, individuals, and events, the collection and preservation of its antiquities, the establishment and maintenance of an historical library, and the publication from time to time of such information relating to the same as shall be deemed expedient, and have complied with the provisions of the statutes of this Commonwealth in such case made and provided, as appears from the certificate of the President, Treasurer, and Directors of said corporation, duly approved by the Commissioner of Corporations and recorded in this office;

Now, therefore C, William M. Olin, Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Ho Ijevcbg rertifg that said Rufus George Frederick Candage, Edward Wild Baker, Julia Goddard, John Emory Hoar, Harriet Alma Cummings, Charles Henry Stearns, James Macmaster Codman, Jr., Charles French Read, Edwin Birchard Cox, Willard Y. Gross, Charles Knowles Bolton, Tappan Eustis Francis, Desmond FitzGerald, D. S. Sanford, and Martha A. Kittredge, their associates and successors, are legally organized and established as and are hereby made an existing corporation under the name of the with the powers, rights, and privileges, and subject to the limitations, duties, and restrictions, which by law appertain thereto.

Witness my official signature hereunto subscribed, and the seal of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts hereunto affixed, this twenty-ninth day of April, in the year of our Lord one thousand nine hundred and one.
WM. M. OLIN,
Secretary of the Commonwealth.











The name of this corporation shall be Brookline Historical Society.

The objects of this Society shall be the study of the history of the town of Brookline, Massachusetts, its societies, organizations, families, individuals, events; the collection and preservation of its antiquities, the establishment and maintenance of an historical library, and the publication from time to time of such information relating to the same as shall be deemed expedient.

Any person of moral character who shall be nominated and approved by the Board of Trustees may be elected to membership by ballot of two-thirds of the members present and voting thereon at any regular meeting of the Society. Each person so elected shall pay an admission fee of three dollars, and an annual assessment of two dollars; and any member who shall fail for two consecutive years to pay the annual assessment shall cease to be a member of this Society; provided, however, that any member who shall pay twenty-five dollars in anyone year may thereby become a Life member; and any member who shall pay fifty dollars in any one year may thereby become a Benefactor of the Society, and thereafter shall be free from all dues and assessments. The money received from Life members and Benefactors shall constitute a fund, of which not more than twenty per cent, together with the annual income there from, shall be spent in anyone year.

The Society may elect Honorary and Corresponding members in the manner in which annual members are elected, but they shall have no voice in the management of the Society, and shall not be subject to fee or assessment.

Certificates signed by the President and the Clerk may be issued to all persons who become Life members, and to Benefactors.


The officers of this Society shall be seven Trustees, a President, a Vice-President, a Secretary (who shall be Clerk of the Society and may also be elected to fill the office of Treasurer), and a Treasurer, who, together, shall constitute the Board of Trustees. The Trustees, Clerk, and Treasurer shall be chosen by ballot at the annual meeting in January, and shall hold office for one year, and until others are chosen and qualified in their stead. The President and Vice-President shall be chosen by the Board of Trustees from their number at their first meeting after their election, or at an adjournment thereof.

The annual meeting of this Society shall be held on the fourth Wednesday of January. Regular stated meetings shall be held on the fourth Wednesday of February, March, April, May, October, November, and December.

Special meetings may be called by order of the Board of Trustees. The Clerk shall notify each member by a written or printed notice sent through the mail postpaid at least three days before the time of meeting, or by publishing such notice in one or more newspapers published in Brookline.

At all meetings of the Society ten (10) members shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business.

The meetings of the Board of Trustees shall be called by the Clerk at the request of the President, by giving each member personal or written notice, or by sending such notice by mail, postpaid, at least twenty-four hours before the time of such meeting; but meetings where all the Trustees are present may be held without' such notice. The President shall call meetings of the Board of Trustees at the request of any three members thereof. A majority of its members shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business.

Vacancies in the offices of Trustees, Clerk, or Treasurer may be filled for the remainder of the term at any regular meeting of the Society by the vote of two-thirds of the members present and voting. In the absence of the Clerk at a meeting of the Society, a Clerk pro tempore shall be chosen.

At the monthly meeting in December, a Nominating Committee of three members shall be appointed by the presiding officer, who shall report at the annual meeting a list of candidates for the places to be filled.

The President, or in his absence the Vice-President, shall preside at all meetings of the Society. In the absence of those officers a President pro tempore shall be chosen.

The Clerk shall be sworn to the faithful discharge of his duties. He shall notify members of all meetings of the Society, and shall keep an exact record of all the proceedings of the Society at its meetings.

He shall conduct the general correspondence of the Society and place on file all letters received. He shall enter the names of members in order in books or cards kept for that purpose, and issue certificates to Life members and to Benefactors. He shall have charge of such property in possession of the Society as may from time to time be delegated to him by the Board of Trustees. He shall acknowledge all loans or gifts made to the Society.

The Treasurer shall collect all moneys due the Society, and pay all bills against the Society when approved by the Board of Trustees. He shall keep a full account of receipts and expenditures in a book belonging to the Society, which shall always be open to the inspection of the Trustees; and at the annual meeting in January he shall make a written report of all his doings for the year preceding. The Treasurer shall give bonds in such sum, with surety, as the Trustees may fix, for the faithful discharge of his duties.

The Board of Trustees shall superintend the prudential and executive business of the Society, authorize all expenditures of money, fix all salaries, provide a common seal, receive and act upon all resignations and forfeitures of membership, and see that the by-laws are duly complied with. The Board of Trustees shall have full powers to hire, lease, or arrange for a suitable home for the Society, and to make all necessary rules and regulations required in the premises.

They shall make a report of their doings at the annual meeting of the Society.

They may from time to time appoint such sub-committees from their own number as they deem expedient. In case of a vacancy in the office of Clerk or Treasurer they shall have power to choose the same pro tempore till the next meeting of the Society.

The President shall annually, in the month of January, appoint four standing committees, as follows:

A committee of three members, to be styled the "Committee on Rooms," to which shall be added the President and Clerk of the Society ex-officio, who shall have charge of all arrangements of the rooms (except books, manuscripts, and other objects appropriate to the library offered as gifts or loans), the hanging of pictures, and the general arrangements of the Society's collection in their department.

A committee of three members, to be styled the" Committee on Papers," who shall have charge of the subjects of papers to be read, or other exercises of a profitable nature, at the monthly meetings of the Society.

A committee of three or more members, to be styled the "Committee on Membership," whose duty it shall be to give information in regard to the purposes of the Society, and increase its membership.

A committee of three or more members, to be styled the" Committee on Library," who shall have charge of the arrangements of the library, including acceptance and rejection of books, manuscripts, and other objects tendered to the library, and the general arrangement of the Society's collections in that department.

These four committees shall perform their duties as above set forth under the general direction and supervision of the Board of Trustees. Vacancies that occur in any of these committees during their term of service shall be filled by the President.

The President shall annually, in the month of January, appoint two members, who, with the President, shall constitute the Committee on Finance, to examine from time to time the books and accounts of the Treasurer, to audit his accounts at the close of the
year, and to report upon the expediency of proposed expenditures of money.

These by-laws may be altered or amended at any regular meeting by a two-thirds vote of the members present, notice of the subject matter of the proposed alterations or amendments having been given at a previous meeting.