Scituate Heritage Days is this weekend. All the historic buildings will be open for tours, street fairs, music.... Hoping to get there!
Showing posts with label Scituate. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Scituate. Show all posts
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
"Alas, Mother! we have been murdering the Lord's people," - Edward Wanton
A smattering of facts:
”A society of Quakers built the third meetinghouse in 1678, at Belle House Neck, a peninsula in the North River near present Little's Bridge (Route 3A). This Quaker Society later moved upriver to the Edward Wanton shipyard and homestead farm. Much later the society moved its meetinghouse to the present location in Pembroke. Edward Wanton, a shipbuilder who became a Quaker, came to Scituate in 1661. He attracted many of this dissident controversial element in the region. They refused to take part in the town and colony governments or to swear an oath of fidelity to the king, would not attend the Congregational churches, did not register their vital statistics and conducted their own marriages. Harsh laws concerning the treatment of Quakers were passed in both Plymouth and Massachusetts Bay Colonies in 1658. The Quakers were repeatedly fined, tortured, imprisoned and banished from the colonies for infringements of the social order.”
(This information was taken from a publication by Cynthia Hagar Krusell; ISBN 0940628-43-0; entitled Plymouth County, 1685)
Edward Wanton Res. Boston 1658 In 1661, owned a farm of 80 acres a little below Dwelly's Creek in Scituate, Mass., and land on Cordwood Hill and Hooppole Hill. There were executions of Quakers in 1659, 1660, and 1661. He was an officer of the guard on one or more of these occasions. From Mr. Deane, in his history of Scitutate: "He became deeply sensible of the cruelty, injustice, and impolity of these emasures; was greatly moved by the firmness with which they submitted to death, and was won entirely by their addresses before their execution. He returned to his house saying, "Alas, Mother! we have been murdering the Lord's people," and, taking off his sword, put it by, with a solemn vow never to wear it again. From this time he took every opportunity to converse with the Friends, and soon resloved to become a teacher of their faith." It is said that he built the first Quaker meeting house in Massachusetts. Religion: Quaker
”A society of Quakers built the third meetinghouse in 1678, at Belle House Neck, a peninsula in the North River near present Little's Bridge (Route 3A). This Quaker Society later moved upriver to the Edward Wanton shipyard and homestead farm. Much later the society moved its meetinghouse to the present location in Pembroke. Edward Wanton, a shipbuilder who became a Quaker, came to Scituate in 1661. He attracted many of this dissident controversial element in the region. They refused to take part in the town and colony governments or to swear an oath of fidelity to the king, would not attend the Congregational churches, did not register their vital statistics and conducted their own marriages. Harsh laws concerning the treatment of Quakers were passed in both Plymouth and Massachusetts Bay Colonies in 1658. The Quakers were repeatedly fined, tortured, imprisoned and banished from the colonies for infringements of the social order.”
(This information was taken from a publication by Cynthia Hagar Krusell; ISBN 0940628-43-0; entitled Plymouth County, 1685)
Edward Wanton Res. Boston 1658 In 1661, owned a farm of 80 acres a little below Dwelly's Creek in Scituate, Mass., and land on Cordwood Hill and Hooppole Hill. There were executions of Quakers in 1659, 1660, and 1661. He was an officer of the guard on one or more of these occasions. From Mr. Deane, in his history of Scitutate: "He became deeply sensible of the cruelty, injustice, and impolity of these emasures; was greatly moved by the firmness with which they submitted to death, and was won entirely by their addresses before their execution. He returned to his house saying, "Alas, Mother! we have been murdering the Lord's people," and, taking off his sword, put it by, with a solemn vow never to wear it again. From this time he took every opportunity to converse with the Friends, and soon resloved to become a teacher of their faith." It is said that he built the first Quaker meeting house in Massachusetts. Religion: Quaker
Don't Know Much About History.....
Really, I don't. Embarrassingly little, except for a smattering of music and art history, and a few key facts that were taught to me in rhyme or song (Columbus sailed the ocean blue...)
Most required U.S. history seems to end around World War II. I hated the 3 semesters of high school history I took, so I never endeavored to take the "advanced" history classes, of which at the time there were few anyways in our High School.
I bring this up because I now find myself reading a lot of history. Mostly in a Quaker context, but in order to know what happened to the Quakers, you have to know what was happening in general at the time, thus my inquiries. History's not all the boring, dusty facts that I once believed it was. In fact, I'm finding myself rather enjoying the stories of people who found themselves in unbelievably difficult circumstances, only to perservere and triumph. And it REALLY HAPPENED.
Well, sort of. I'm now most curious about the stories that are NOT told in our history books. The point of view of those people who did not have access to education, to literacy, to the luxury of the free time to write or tell their tales. My current explorations are all hovering around 1650-1850. I still know very little about that time period, but I am learning.
I have also found some fabulous Scituate connections. I've been researching Edward Wanton, who was a jailer who witnessed the taking to the gallows and hanging of Mary Dyer on Boston Common. He was so moved by her condition and fate, that he moved to Scituate and became a Quaker himself. His history is mentioned in Old Scituate and a few other books that I hope to see at the Scituate Public library. Two of his sons relocated to Rhode Island and became governors, and that is where Scituate, Rhode Island first got its name - from us in MA! Still working on finding his grave, and the remains of his shipyard on the North River which was a South Shore landmark for years.
I'm totally hooked on the Quaker history. I feel like in some small way it is now MY history, and the relevance is what I lacked in my meager high school studies.
Most required U.S. history seems to end around World War II. I hated the 3 semesters of high school history I took, so I never endeavored to take the "advanced" history classes, of which at the time there were few anyways in our High School.
I bring this up because I now find myself reading a lot of history. Mostly in a Quaker context, but in order to know what happened to the Quakers, you have to know what was happening in general at the time, thus my inquiries. History's not all the boring, dusty facts that I once believed it was. In fact, I'm finding myself rather enjoying the stories of people who found themselves in unbelievably difficult circumstances, only to perservere and triumph. And it REALLY HAPPENED.
Well, sort of. I'm now most curious about the stories that are NOT told in our history books. The point of view of those people who did not have access to education, to literacy, to the luxury of the free time to write or tell their tales. My current explorations are all hovering around 1650-1850. I still know very little about that time period, but I am learning.
I have also found some fabulous Scituate connections. I've been researching Edward Wanton, who was a jailer who witnessed the taking to the gallows and hanging of Mary Dyer on Boston Common. He was so moved by her condition and fate, that he moved to Scituate and became a Quaker himself. His history is mentioned in Old Scituate and a few other books that I hope to see at the Scituate Public library. Two of his sons relocated to Rhode Island and became governors, and that is where Scituate, Rhode Island first got its name - from us in MA! Still working on finding his grave, and the remains of his shipyard on the North River which was a South Shore landmark for years.
I'm totally hooked on the Quaker history. I feel like in some small way it is now MY history, and the relevance is what I lacked in my meager high school studies.
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