Historic Nantucket, April 1968, Vol. 15 No. 4 by Nantucket Historical Association

Historic Nantucket

Rebuilding Old South Wharf is a big job.

APRIL, 1968

Published Quarterly by

NANTUCKET HISTORICAL ASSOCIATION NANTUCKET, MASSACHUSETTS

NANTUCKET HISTORICAL ASSOCIATION OFFICERS President, Edouard A. Stackpole. Vice Presidents, Miss Grace Brown Gardner, W. Ripley Nelson, Albert F. Egan, Jr., Alcon Chadwick, Elenry B. Coleman, George W. Jones. Honorary Vice President, Mrs. William L. Mather. Treasurer, Leonard W. Giles. Secretary, Mrs. Austin Tyrer. Councillors, Edouard A. Stackpole, Chairman; Mrs. Ernest H. Menges, Walter Beinecke, Jr., terms expire 1968: Leroy H. True, Herbert I. Terry, terms expire 1969; Mrs. J. Clinton Andrews, Richard F. Swain, terms expire 1970: Mrs. Albert F. Egan, Jr., H. Errol Coffin, terms expire 1971. Executive Committee, W. Ripley Nelson, Chairman; Alcon Chadwick, Henry B. Coleman, Albert F. Egan, Jr., George W. Jones, Edouard A. Stackpole, ex officio. Advertising and Publications, W. Ripley Nelson and H. Errol Coffin. Honorary Curator, Mrs. William L. Mather. Curator, Miss Dorothy Gardner. Editor, "Historic Nantucket", A. Morris Crosby; Margaret Fawcett Barnes, Mrs. R. A. Orleans.

Assistant Editors, Mrs.

Chairmen of Exhibits, Historical Museum, Mrs. Elizabeth Worth; Whaling Museum, W. Ripley Nelson; Hadwen House - Satler Memorial, Albert F. Egan, Jr.; Old Mill, Henry B. Coleman; Old Jail, Albert G. Brock; 1800 House, Mrs. Herbert Foye; Fire Hose Cart House, Irving T. Bartlett; Oldest House, Mrs. J. Clinton Andrews; Franklin-Folger Seat and Memorial Boulder, Herbert I. Terry.

HISTORIC NANTUCKET Published quarterly and devoted to the preservation of Nantucket's antiquity, its famed heritage and its illustrious vast as a whaling port. VOLUME 15

April, 1968

No. 4

CONTENTS

Nantucket Historical Association Officers

Mrs. Walton H. Adams

The Prehistory of Nantucket, Part II. Early Man. By Bernard H. Stockley

The Lily Pond, with Eight Photographs

The "Peter Foulger Fund" — Gift of Admiral Folger

Emigration from Nantucket to Hudson, N. Y. By Charles S. Clark

Recent Events

Diary of William C. Folger Edited by Nancy S. Adams

Legacies and Bequests

Historic Nantucket is published quarterly at Nantucket, Massachusetts, by the Nantucket Historical Association. It is sent to Association Members. Extra copies $.50 each. Membership Dues are — Annual-Active S3.00 ; Sustaining $10.00; Life—one payment $50.00 Second-class postage paid at Nantucket, Massachusetts. Copyright. 1968, Nantucket Historical Association. Communications pertaining to the Publication should be addressed to the Editor, Historic Nantucket, Nantucket Historical Association, Nantucket, Massachusetts, 02554.

Mrs. Nancy Story Adams. Born in Fairhaven, Massachusetts, August 26, 1887. Died in Nantucket, February 7, 1968. President of the Nantucket Historical Association from July, 1953 to July, 1956.

Mrs. Walton H. Adams TO THOSE WHO did not know the fact of "Nancy" Adams's offisland birth it must have come as a great surprise to learn that she was not a "Nantucketer." It did to this writer, who recalls her whimsical reply to a chance observation, "No, I'm not a Nan tucketer." Certainly, no one more than she, by virtue of able and steadfast devotion to the affairs of this island-town, deserved the appellation which so often seems to acquire the weight of heraldic distinction. In the midst of the numerous and time-demanding calls on her services, (it was trite to say, "I don't know — ask Nancy Adams), in nowise did she display that devotion more than in her long connection with the Nantucket Historical Association — as president, chairman, curator, and lastly as councillor. It was in the last capacity that, as her running-mate from 1962 to 1966, I came to know her, and the experience was refreshing. She was no "yes" woman; neither was she a "dissenter." But she was opposed to change just for the sake of change. Every proposal had to pass the test of her keen mind — was it good for the Association — before she would approve it. And her Nantucket antecedents and whaling ancestry fortified her determination to the extent that, though she might vote "yes," it was sometimes grudgingly and with a dubious lift of her head that seemed to say she felt no real good would come of it. After our joint tour of duty on the Council had ended, my association with her centered chiefly on the William C. Folger Diary. She was as loyal in preparing the transcription from Folger's not-too-easy-to-read long-hand as she had been in all her other relations with the Nantucket Historical Association. Toward the last, when her health and strength were failing, she declined any offer of help. With some it might have been obstin acy; but with Nancy Adams it was merely a characteristic ex ample of an independent and conscientious spirit that could not tolerate another's finishing or even aiding work for which she felt herself alone responsible. Nancy Adams was of the "old school" and proud of it. When people like her leave us, something of Nantucket seems to leave us, too. A.M.C.

The Prehistory of Nantucket BY BERNARD H. STOCKLEY

Part II — Early Man (Continued from Historic Nantucket, January, 1968) AS we saw in the first article of this series, there is not yet any irrefutable proof that the Paleo-Indians lived or hunted in the area which is now Nantucket. We assume that he at least hunted through the area because the "Nantucket Ridge" was still con nected to the mainland. And we do have proof of Paleo-Indian existence in Middleborough and Ipswich, Mass., and various other locations in New England as well as in virtually every part of North and South America. But, as yet, this author has not seen any artifact which can be absolutely attributed to the Paleo-Indians, and positively proven to have been found on Nantucket. One writer has illus trated a fluted spearpoint, undoubtedly made by Paleo-Indians and found in a collection donated by a Nantucket resident. But there was no information with the collection to indicate whether this (or indeed any of the other artifacts) was found on Nan tucket. Several artifacts have been brought to this writer's attention from time to time which were definitely found on the Island and have superficial resemblance to the fluted spearpoints of the Paleo-Indian. But in no case were the characteristics sufficiently clear that one could say with certainty that the artifact was made by Paleo-Indians. In short, we have some presumptive evidence for the presence of Paleo-Indians on Nantucket about 10,000 years ago. But, as yet, we are unable to prove it. Assuming that the Paleo-Indian did occupy the Nantucket Ridge, what sort of people were they and what do we know about them? It is well-established that the Paleo-Indian hunted large game animals, including several forms which are now extinct. Remains of mammoth, mastodon, American camel, American horse, giant bison, sabre-toothed cat, and dire wolf have all been found in association with the artifacts of the Paleo-Indian in places where bone has been preserved by drier or colder climate than we have in New England. As yet there is no evidence as to what animals were hunted here, although one well-known archaeologist has gone so far as to name them the Caribou Hunters on the assump tion that this was their food source. Several methods of hunting have been identified, including stampeding herds of animals over cliffs, and the killing of a mam moth, which was either deliberately or accidentally bogged down in a swamp, by bludgeoning with large rocks.

7 So, what does all this tell us about these early hunters ? First of all, that he was not a solitary hunter. No lone hunter, armed only with a hand-held spear, could have consistently stalked and brought down the large game animals, or created a stampede, or bludgeoned a mammoth to death. Furthermore, the amount of meat obtained at any one time would be much more than any one hunter's family could use. The animals which he hunted also tell something of what sort of life the Paleo-Indian must have led. Those which were not grazing or browsing animals were pred ators on them, along with the early hunters. Therefore, the places where food could be obtained depended upon where the game herds moved. He must, of necessity, have followed the herds of migratory or nomadic game animals. The life of a nomadic hunter automatically precludes the use cf any permanent type of dwelling. And lacking domesticated beasts of burden, it would be impossible to transport even a tem porary shelter from one place to another. Therefore it seems likely that whatever shelter was used had to be built on the spot, out of locally available materials. Since the hunters were following grazing and browsing animals, probably the shelter would have to consist of nothing more than a crude framework of small saplings, or large bones, over which some sort of cover was placed, prob ably the hide of a freshly-killed animal if one were available. Or, lacking that, a thatch of grass or twigs. As can easily be seen, our knowledge of the Paleo-Indians is extremely limited. They were probably living in widely scat tered small groups, living in any one place for only a few days or weeks at a time, so that concentrations of evidence about their former presence is a very rare ocurrence. Even though they must have occupied this area for several thousand years, there is little more that we can say about them than this. As to what happened to the Paleo-Indian, there is some very limited evidence that they were absorbed into the next group to occupy New England — the Early Archaic people. These people moved into the area about 6500 years ago, give or take a few cen turies. If they did absorb the Paleo-Indian, then the ancestors of the former nomadic hunters became only semi-nomadic. While the hunters might range far and wide in search of food animals, they would return to a more or less permanent camp at certain seasons of the year. This brings us to the second group of people to occupy this area. We know definitely that the Early Archaic people were on Nantucket Ridge. Remember that even when the Early Archaic people arrived Nantucket was still not an island. With the Early Archaic people, we have a little more solid evidence to go on. We do know definitely that they occupied the area, although no campsites of these people have yet been scientifically excavated on the Island. During the time that the Early Archaic people were here, there was a rapid rise in sea level (rapid in geological terms, that THE PREHISTORY OF NANTUCKET

HISTORIC NANTUCKET 8 is), of several hundred feet in a few thousand years. Therefore, it is possible that most of the living areas were inundated by the sea. This theory is supported by the fact that one of the few arti facts which can definitely be identified as belonging to the Early Archaic people was found under water. Also, in several other places in southeastern New England Early Archaic sites have been found below the high water level. As with all of the various groups which inhabited the area before the arrival of the white man, there are certain "diagnostic" artifacts that indicate that the Early Archaic people were here. These diagnostic types are distinctive tools that were made only by one group, and not by any other. On the mainland of Massachusetts and in Rhode Island, where much of the early scientific archaeological work was done, a total of seven artifact types have been designated as diagnostic traits of the Early Archaic people. But here on Nantucket, and also on Lower Cape Cod, it has been proved that three of these artifact types returned to fashion thousands of years after the Early Archaic period and therefore are not diagnostic of the Early Archaic people. Of the remaining four types of artifacts, three have been found here on Nantucket. A "ulu," which is a peculiar sort of knife was raked up from the bottom of Polpis Harbor by a man digging quahogs. This knife consists of a flat piece of slate in the shape of a half-circle with the curved edge ground to a sharp edge. The straight edge is either left thick to provide a handle, or per forated to provide for the attachment of a wood or bone handle. This type of knife has proved so efficient that the Eskimo, even today, makes and uses the "ulu." This leads to the conclusion that the Early Archaic people of New England were the ancestors of the Eskimo. In the Eskimo culture of today, the "ulu" may be made of sheet metal, but a few stone specimens can still be found in use. And interestingly enough, it is strictly a woman's tool, used in skinning animals and in food preparation. Another type of artifact which is diagnostic of the Early Archaic people is the oval "atl-atl" weight. The name comes from the historic Mexican Indian name for a spear thrower, even though weights were not used on the Mexican "atl-atl." The oval atl-atl weight is a hunk of stone carefully ground into a more or less barrel-shaped object, with a rather large hole drilled through it the long way, and a definite groove or thinning of one side of the object. Now, since all traces of wood or other organic material used by the Early Archaic people have long since disappeared, and considering that the Mexican Indian didn't use a weight on his "atl-atl," it is reasonable to ask how we can look at one of these things and say that it is an atl-atl weight. For many years these things have been turning up and were collected because they were obviously "something." Then an ethnologist working with historic Indians in eastern Canada apparently got some erro neous information. His informant said that they were attached to a tall pole and used in religious ceremonies. And so for many

THE PREHISTORY OF NANTUCKET

years they were referred to as "bannerstones." But this explana tion failed to answer some important questions. Why was one side of the artifact grooved or thinned? Why not two or three or four grooves? The answer finally came through careful scientific study of some of these artifacts found in places in Tennessee. A number of very old human burials were found, and in several of them were these "bannerstones." But, each burial which contained a "bannerstone" also contained a spearpoint and a bone hook. Careful measurement of the relative positions of these artifacts showed that the spearhead, the hook, and the "bannerstone" were all parts of an assembled spear ancl spear-thrower combination. The bone hook was attached to the end of the spear-thrower, and fitted into the end of the spear. In effect this made the spearthrower an extension of the arm of the user. And the "banner stone" was slipped onto the spear-thrower and lashed into place near the handle. In use, the spear-thrower and the spear would be held par allel to each other in one hand, ready for instant use. But this would be impossible unless the weight was thin enough so that while the hand held the thrower, the index finger could be hooked over the spear itself. Here at last was a reasonable, logical explanation of the function of the so-called bannerstone. The thinned side was positioned between the spear and the thrower making possible one-handed operation of the weapon. Experi ments by several people have shown that two-handed operation is totally inaccurate, so that if this thing was to be attached to the spear-thrower at all, the thinning of one side was a necessary development. The conclusion that the weight was attached to the spear-thrower was later proved by the finding of a complete specimen, with a weight still attached, in a dry cave in the western United States. One question still remains. Why? Why go to the trouble of making a carefully shaped and ground weight and attach it to the handle of the spear-thrower ? Several writers have stated that it added "momentum to the thrust" or some such similar idea. But, at this writer's request, a mechanical engineer studied the problem and concluded that from a mechanical standpoint it would do nothing except add a few ounces of weight to the hunt er's equipment. So, we have to return to the usual refuge of the archaeologist when he encounters something that he cannot ex plain, and conclude that to the Early Archaic hunter it had some ceremonial or magical significance. Having gone on at some length about the atl-atl weight, we will avoid going into similar detail about the other diagnostic artifacts of the Early Archaic people. Some of the types of spearpoints which have been identified with these people are admirably suited to being used as harpoon points. And one specimen of a harpoon has been found on the mainland with the stone spear head still in place. So, what does all this tell us about the Early Archaic people? Obviously the evidence is sketchy. We do know

HISTORIC NANTUCKET

that they were here, somewhere around 6,500 years ago. And the evidence leads to a number of other important conclusions. At least part of the time they lived in established villages. This would indicate a permanent dwelling of some sort. They used spearthrowers to increase the effectiveness of the main hunting weapon. And apparently there was some sort of religious belief involved. We know, from the finding of the remains of a fish trap, that he •had abandoned complete dependence on large game hunting. And the use of harpoons confirms this. And so a dim picture begins to emerge: The hunter is settling down to a village dweller. He is now beginning to take fuller ad vantage of all the resources that are available to him. Hunting small game, fishing, probably collecting wild nuts and berries as well as roots and edible greens. The use of a harpoon indicates that some sort of boat must have been used as well, and this is verified by the fact that large woodworking tools such as axes and gouges were used, probably to make dugout canoes. At or near the end of the Early Archaic period, about 5,000 years ago, Nantucket became an island. Even though the rise in sea-level was rapid in geological terms, it must have happened so slowly that the inhabitants of the area were not even aware that it was taking place. The high-water mark would be, on the average, a little higher each year. This process would continue until at last, at a time of the spring flood tides combined with a storm, the area would become tem porarily cut off from the mainland. And over a period of many years this would happen more and more frequently. Then any abnormally high tide would have the same effect; finally even a normal high-tide would make an island of Nantucket, and with the continued rise in sea-level, the final separation would take place in the inexorable way of natural processes. This happened so near the end of the Early Archaic period that isolation from his mainland counterparts does not seem to have had any particular effect on the Early Archaic Nantucketer. He was soon to be replaced by a more sophisticated culture. Again we are unsure of exactly what happened. If the Early Archaic people were the ancestors of the modern Eskimo, then the culture must have survived and not been absorbed by the newcomers. But some of the ideas which Early Archaic man introduced into the area were adopted by the newcomers — the Late Archaic people. In Part III of this series we will examine the culture of the Late Archaic people and the effects of isolation upon it.

The Lily Pond BY THE TIME this issue of HISTORIC NANTUCKET reaches the Post Office it will be nearly a year since "The Great Storm of May 1967" deluged Nantucket with eight inches of rain, seven of which fell in seven hours. There was, naturally, a lot of flooding; but the most spectacular was the refilling of the Lily Pond, empty beyond the memory of living man. The Lily Pond lies about a half-mile north of Main Street. Bounded by Centre, Lily, North Liberty, and West Chester Streets, the area contains about ten acres, some of which has been cleared, filled and laid out in lawns adjacent to the houses standing along the four sides. About onehalf is still a wild tangle of pond and swamp growth, mostly cat tails. A brook meanders part way down the middle from North Liberty Street and then is carried under ground past Centre Street and on to empty into the Harbor near the Children's Beach. It was the inability of this outlet to handle the massive flow of water that caused the Lily Pond area to revert to its pristine condition. Of that period there seems to be no record; but there is some evidence that at one time there was tidewater here. At the south erly edge of the road running past "Gull Island" (so named for obvious reasons) are two or three large timbers, which may be the remnants of a wharf standing at the edge of a small es tuary or creek running up through mud flats from the harbor. If so, later there must have been fill along Centre Street to elimi nate the creek and create the pond. Some say that there was a mill at this point, not a wharf. However the area may originally have become flooded, it is not disputed that there was a Lily Pond until, as legend has it, a little girl playing at the restraining dyke dug a little hole in it; the hole grew bigger and bigger; frightened, the little girl ran away; the water ran out and the Lily Pond was empty, not to be restored until the great storm of last year. It is a pretty story, whether you believe it or not. But the fact remains that the Lily Pond is empty now and will doubtless stay so, since it is beyond probability that another weather combina tion like that of last May will ever occur again to refill it. To perpetuate the marvel, HISTORIC NANTUCKET prints on the fol lowing pages some "then and after" pictures. The flood was photographed the day after the storm, when the pond had gone down somewhat, but was still holding up nicely. The "after" photographs were made about a week later, when the Lily Pond area had gone back to normal. The sequence: (1) Northeasterly down the Pond from North Liberty Street; (2) Southeasterly toward Lily Street and Academy Hill; (3) the lower end of the Pond at Centre Street; (4) looking West from Gull Island.

The "Peter Foulger Fund'1 Gift of Admiral Folger LATE in January of this year, Miss Margaret Folger, daughter of Admiral William Mayhew Folger, died in Portland, Maine, at the advanced age of 92. With this passing of the last surviving life-tenant under the will of Admiral Folger, the trust fund set up by the estate will be transferred to the Nantucket Historical Association. The Folger trust was set up over four decades ago under the will of Admiral Folger. The terms of the will stipulated that, with the death of the two beneficiaries — Elizabeth L. and Margaret H. Folger — the entire trust fund and interest there from is to come to the Nantucket Historical Association, provided that the following conditions are accepted: "The Bequest to be administered as a 'fund' to be known as the 'Peter Foulger Fund' in order to perpetuate the name of Peter Foulger. Said fund is to be under the control of the President, the Vice-Presidents and Board of Councillors of the Association (Nan tucket Historical Association), the property to be invested, the interest reinvested as capital until such time as a building similar to that known in Nantucket as the Coffin School, (the institution endowed by Sir Isaac Coffin, Vice Admiral Royal Navy) may be built in the Town of Nantucket and adequately endowed as a Historical Association. "I desire that no additions to this fund be accepted from any other descendant of Peter Foulger. It is to be understood that this fund is to be administered as herein described or it is to be applied as hereinafter provided. Exception: — The Board of Control of this fund is hereby given the privilege of using, at its discretion, the sum of one hundred dollars per annum for the purposes of the Association." For a number of years the Nantucket Historical Association has had the Folger bequest in its plans, and the erection of such a "Folger Memorial" building is contemplated on the site adjoining the Whaling Museum to the west, near the corner of Broad and North Water Streets. Admiral William M. Folger had a distinguished career in the United States Navy, including service in the Civil War. He was the grandson of Captain Mayhew Folger, of Nantucket, who in 1808, while in command of the Topaz, was the first to come upon the descendants of the mutineers of the Bounty on Pitcairn Island, and talked with the last living mutineer, Alex Smith. The logbook of the Topaz is one of the prized possessions of the Nantucket Whaling Museum. — E. A. S.

Emigration from Nantucket to Hudson, N.Y. By CHARLES S. CLARK From the Proceedings of the Nantucket Historical Association Thirty-fourth Annual Meeting, August 1, 1928 DURING A VISIT to Nantucket in 1919, I was very much sur prised to find that very little seemed to be known regarding the emigration to Hudson, N. Y., from 1783 to 1800. Histories of Nantucket contain but scant mention of the event, and the Island seems to have forgotten it, on the theory perhaps that if anyone chooses to become an off-islander, he is not worth remem brance. As a descendant of five proprietors of Nantucket, and of more than five proprietors of Hudson, it is a pleasure to respond to the invitation of President Macy, and to endeavor to supply a few missing links in the chain which binds together Nantucket and Hudson. It is to be presumed that the Sons and Daughters know of the terrible distress on the Island, after the Revolution. So great was the need for money that I have been told (at Nantucket) that some of the old houses now worth thousands of dollars were then sold for fifty pounds apiece. If this seems incredible let us remember that the whole upper West Side of New York from 59th Street to about 86th Street was sold at about the same time for fifty pounds. So poor were the Nantucket emigrants to Hud son that they had no money to buy or build homes, and so they took with them to Hudson their houses, taken apart and shipped, piece by piece, in the fishing vessels. Urged by the pressing necessities of their families and friends, two noble men, Seth and Thomas Jenkins, who had gone to Providence, and there accumulated a fortune, proceeded to New York, in 1783, with a hundred thousand dollars in their possession. Their purpose was to seek a site for a new Nantucket, in a fertile country, but near navigable waters. They first visited Colonel Henry Rutgers, a business friend, who owned a large farm on the lower east side of New York City; approximately the area now enclosed within Market, Divi sion, Grand and Corlears Streets, and the East River, and con taining about fifty blocks. Driving a close and hard bargain cost the descendants of the emigrants at least one hundred millions. Rutgers was a stub born old Dutchman; the Jenkins brothers keen Yankee business men. Only a difference of $200.00 separated the parties when they agreed to disagree.

HISTORIC NANTUCKET

So the envoys went on to Claverack Landing on the Hudson River and were enchanted by what they saw. The land was cheap and fertile, the view of the Catskill Mountains and the River was magnificent. A deep river swarming with fish promised ready access to the sea, and the site was the natural port of a rich country. The few Dutch settlers were hospitable and reasonable, and a bargain was soon struck. Word was sent to Nantucket, and in the autumn two families came with their belongings; the family of Seth Jenkins, consisting of his wife, Dinah Folger, and four chil dren, Dinal Coffin, and John Alsop and his family. In the spring of 1784 the other proprietors arrived in several vessels, with their families. Their leader was Stephen Paddock, who at once, with Thomas Jenkins became prominent in the settlement. The other proprietors were: Joseph Barnard, Benjamin Folger, Seth Jenkins, William Hall, Hezekiah Dayton, David Lawrence, Titus Morgan, Reuben Macy, Cotton Gelston, John Alsop, Charles Jenkins, Ezra Reed, Gideon Gardner, John Thurston, Nathaniel Greene. The original eighteen proprietors subsequently increased their number to thirty; and in the Hudson records of the next few years appear these names of first settlers: David Bunker, Redwood Easton, Nathan Folger, Alexander Coffin, Peter Barnard, Daniel Paddock, Obed Sears, John Hatha way, Solomon Bunker, Laban Paddock, Robert Barnard, Elihu Bunker, Daniel Clark, Zephaniah Coffin, Judah Coffin, George Clark, Shubael Worth. On November 14, 1784, it was unanimously resolved to call the settlement Hudson, in spite of the wishes expressed by the Governor and by many settlers that it be called "Clinton," or "New Nantucket." At the same time the site of the present city was purchased from Colonel Van Alen and Lendert Hardick, Colonel Van Alen being given a thirtieth share as proprietor. As in Nantucket, the land was divided into house lots and water, or fishing lots; the water lots being laid out on the Harbor. A large majority of the settlers were Quakers, and these erected a meeting house during the first year of settlement. Their meeting house on Union Street, which existed until recent years, was almost a copy of the meeting house now owned by the Nan tucket Historical Association. The Hudson Quakers to the second and third generation were charming people, gentlemen and gentle women to their finger tips, the men merchant princes, the women sweet and lovely with the peace of God. A little poem by Stephen Miller well describes them. Full fourscore years and ten ago From those lone and seagert places, Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket, Came the Folgers, Jenkins, Macys, And the Paddocks, Worths and Daytons, And there were Coffins, full a score,

EMIGRATION FROM NANTUCKET TO HUDSON

With many more, a home to find On North River's quiet shore. They are all gone, and in our streets Of those plain days there scarce a trace is Little save the names are left us Of the Bunkers, Barnards, Macys, Simple in heart, peace-loving men, With sober-minded worthy dames, All sweet within, and drab without, And all with good old Scripture names. For their livelihood, the settlers turned to the pursuits of their forefathers, whaling, fishing, sealing, shipbuilding and its attendant industries. Twenty-five vessels were brought from Nan tucket by 1786, and shipbuilding commenced at once. Jenkins and Gelston launched the first ship, called the "Hudson," in 1786, and Robert Folger took command. In the days of its pros perity, Hudson outranked Nantucket as a whaling port, having from first to last over 100 vessels in the business of sealing and whaling. It was a Hudson ship commanded by a Nantucket skip per, the "American Hero," Captain Solomon Bunker, which brought home the largest cargo of sperm oil ever brought to America, in 1797; and it was the "Ajax," Captain Zephaniah Coffin, which broke the record in sealing. These ships, on the outward and inward voyage, invariably stopped at Nantucket, to visit the old home. The prosperity of Hudson in the first twenty years of its existence was amazing. Nantucket men at Hudson were now able to use to the fullest extent their native shrewdness and enterprise. On March 1st, 1802, it is recorded, no less than 2800 sleighs loaded with freight and produce entered the city. Fifteen vessels a day cleared from South Bay, a better record than that of New York; and so crowded at times was the Bay with vessels waiting to come up to the wharves that people walked across the Bay on the decks of vessels. Fishing, in the river, was unbelievably suc cessful. A hundred-ton ship was filled with herring on one tide at Rogers Island. The river swarmed, in the season, with the de licious North River shad, and with gigantic sturgeon. Sturgeon was usually known along the river as "Albany Beef," and herring as "Hudson pork." Hudson sausage was famous far and wide, and to this day a gourmet will have no other sort, if he is an old-timer in New York. It is saddening to record that all this prosperity was swept away, first by British Orders in Council, French decrees and the embargo; and secondly by the War of 1812 and the decline of the whaling industry. The birth of the steamboat, which destroyed the Hudson packet trade of the Paddocks and Clarks, was also severely felt. Banks failed in Hudson, millions were lost, and many people emigrated west, to the Lake County of New York, to Rochester, and to Ohio and to Indiana. Hudson was surrounded by feudal manors, the owners of which would not sell land — only rent it.

HISTORIC NANTUCKET

Consequently those who wished to take up Government land were obliged to go west. Hudson from 1783 to 1,860 produced many great men, nearly all of whom were of Nantucket ancestry. Among them were Ma jor General William Jenkins Worth, the hero of the War of 1812 and Mexican War, whose monument stands in Madison Square, New York; Lieut. William Allen, after whom Allen Street in New York is named; Chief Justice Ambrose Spencer and Charles J. Folger, Secretary of Treasury of the United States; John C. Spencer, Judges Edmonds, Cowles, Sutherland and Edwards; the great Captains Robert Folger, Alexander Coffin, Zephaniah Cof fin, Laban Paddock, Robert Barnard and Judah Paddock; the shipbuilders, Seth Jenkins, Thomas Jenkins, Cotton Gelston, Obed Sears, and Charles Clark. The celebrated People's Line on the Hudson owes its origin to Hudson men, and Hudson, before the days of steamboats, was the first to build packets (that is to say — sloops) carrying passengers only. As might have been expected, the settlers of Hudson took Nantucket as their model in almost every conceivable way. The lean-to houses, many with whale-walks or lookouts on the roof, were replicas of the houses of Nantucket; and the mansions of the wealthy were copies of the mansions of Main Street, Nan tucket. The news at Nantucket, as I have been told by my grand father and great grandmother, who was born in Nantucket, was always a subject of keen interest. It was news from Nantucket which gave rise to the famous joke of David Lawrence. When told the Bank of Nantucket had been robbed, he said, "They must have left their latch string outside." There was an Academy and an Academy Hill, a Main Street, a Federal Street, and others named after the Nantucket streets. The arrival of famous ships created as great an excitment as in the early days of Nantucket, and a story is told of a famous preacher who said on Sunday morning: "I am glad to see so many at service, even though the 'American Hero' has arrived." The next moment he was alone in the church, for he had innocently brought the great news. On the occasion of my first visit to Hudson in boyhood I strolled out on the parade, as it is called, the park facing the Hudson. I met a few boys, who, seeing a stranger, began to ask questions. One of the first was, "Have you been around the Horn?" Every boy in the group had except myself, and not one was over fifteen. The time limit will not permit me to tell you more of this eldest daughter of Nantucket. But may I express the hope that an effort will be made to bring into closer connection with the Societies of Nantucket descendants, the descendants of the Hud son emigrants. There are now thousands of these, who are direct descendants of the original families and pioneers of the Island. And hence there is no apparent reason why New York should not have a branch of the parent society of Sons and Daughters of Nantucket.

Recent Events ON THE WEATHER FRONT the winter was rugged. An un usually prolonged spell of extremely cold weather in January and early February caused a freeze-up of Nantucket and Madaket Harbors, with ice in the Sound as far as the eye could see. Two or three steamship trips were cancelled because of the ice and scalloping was interrupted for several weeks. On the other hand the children enjoyed a rare period of ice skating. The Sherburne Associates, who own the tennis courts on Beach Street, turned them into a skating rink; the Wannacomet Water Company sup plied the water; the Nantucket Gas and Electric Co. the lighting; and the Department of Public Works the benches. To balance off the unusual cold weather, Nantucket had very little snow, which was certainly one mitigating circumstance. %

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Philadelphia has a new $12,000,000 sports arena, called the "Spectrum," which was dedicated in mid-winter with the opening performance of the Ice Capades. Came a wind and blew off a large section of the roof and the arena had to be cleared. The wind velocity was 49 miles per hour. Forty-nine miles per hour! Some of those mainland architects and builders should come here and learn something. Nantucket had two mid-winter "breezes" with maximum winds of 60 to 80 m.p.h. and everything held fast. This Island is used to wind and adjusts to it. The long-ago carpen ters and builders knew what they were doing when they put up their houses, many of which still stand and are essentially as sound as when they were built; and present day builders follow their example. This accommodation to Nantucket's winds is re flected also in the electric and telephone lines. We asked a line man once why Nantucket does not suffer the serious power failures that bedevil the mainland in heavy storms. He replied that here everything is made extra strong — poles, wires, guy-lines, every thing. "We have to do it that way," he said. "It costs more but it keeps the power coming." It is a comforting thought on a cold, snowy, gale-riven night.

And while we are on that never-failing fountain of discus sion, the weather, let's set the record straight on one point: it was not Mark Twain who first said, "Everybody talks about the weather, but nobody does anything about it," but Charles Dudley Warner. Warner — lawyer, newspaperman, editor, essayist ("Backlog Studies"), world traveler — was one of the literary giants of the nineteenth century. He was a friend and neighbor of Twain's and, in fact, they worked together on two books which

RECENT EVENTS

neither of them was happy about. So it is possible that Clemens might have used Warner's famous remark and thus gained credit for it. Warner, however, was the inventor of this oft-quoted whimsy and should be acknowledged as its author. (See Page 4 of "Weather," by Paul E. Lehr and others, a Golden Science Guide of the Golden Press, N. Y., a valuable and informative paperback handbook.) $

Two interesting books have recently come to our attention: "Nantucket Woodcuts," by Naoka Matzu'bara. Text by Fritz Eichenberg; and the "Lancastrian Towns," a chiefly photographic presentation of Lancaster township, some thirty miles west of Boston, with historical notes about the split from the parent town of the small communities surrounding it. The photographs are by Katherine Knowles, text by Mildred McClary Tymeson. Both books are most attractively made and published by Barre Press, Barre, Massachusetts. Miss Matzubara's impressions of Nantucket, naturally with a distinctly oriental flavor, are charming with a light and gay touch quite irresistible. Happily they make no pretense of being too factual. Mr. Eichenberg, a summer resident of 'Sconset, is an internationally prominent artist in the field of graphic art. He lightly embellishes Miss Matzubara's imaginative woodcuts with neat vignettes about Nantucket's past and present. One does not expect too much of Mr. Eichenberg's historical notes; but for him to run Nantucket's famous little railroad from Siasconset to Tuckernuck . . . well, he's in good company: Samuel Eliot Morison, in his "Maritime History of Massachusetts," puts Nantucket's Lis bon bell, "whose sweet tones today greet off-island visitors," in the "stumpy tower of the old North Church"! When Jove nods, mere mortals may take heart. Of "Lancastrian Towns," to us the chief interest relative to Nantucket is the history of the bitter fighting between the Indians and the White Settlers of the border towns in pre-Revolutionary times. Lancaster, about the size of early Nantucket, was repeat edly attacked, pillaged, and burned, and many of its inhabitants slain, or carried off captive, by Indians who swept out of the sur rounding forest and back again after their sudden raids, leaving ruin and terror behind them. In contrast, the Indians and Whites on Nantucket lived in peace together. To be sure, the two Indian communities on the island were not in harmony; but together they offered no racial problem to the Whites, or the Whites to them. Why was this? We don't know. But certainly the "co existence," on this small knob of the prehistoric coastal plain, of two such radically different societies, might be usefully researched by sociologists and historians seeking to find an answer to man's apparent inability to live with his brother.

Diary of William C. Folger EDITED BY NANCY S. ADAMS

(Continued from the January, 1968, issue of Historic Nantucket) 1842 Sept. 4—Hiram B. Andrews married Emmeline Barnard at Bap tist Meeting this evening. Sept. 5—Mrs. Jane L. Middleton commenced this evening living in the family of Henry S. Coffin. Sept. 6—Took tea and spent the evening at cousin Edward R. Folger's with uncle Walter and Gideon" Edwards sons and their wives. Took up and showed them J. S. Hathaway's portrait of uncle Walter. Sept. 7—Went to the Sabbath School picnic with Mr. Round, re turned to attend a funeral of a child and went back to picnic, it was at Long Pond. Sept. 10—I attended the funeral this afternoon of daughter of John Cook, Jr. Sept. 12—I attended at the funeral of George M. Swain's child this P.M. Sept. 13—1 left Nantucket at 9 A.M. in the Railroad, Capt. Phinney, for Cotuit Port & Osterville in company with the Delegates to the Association and others amounting to about 30. We had rather a rough passage, arriving at Osterville a little before eve ning. Paid 50 cts. for passage. Went up and took tea with Deacon Robert Lovell and then walked to father's at Hyannis. Sept. 14—Rode to Osterville with Capt. Asa Wright & family in father's wagon, attended the Association, dined at Robert Lovell's and after the afternoon session was over returned with Capt. Wright, accompanied by Horace B. Coleman who slept with me at father's. Sept. 15—Went back to Osterville after breakfast in father's wagon accompanied by A. Wright & H. B. Coleman. The AntiSlavery resolves proposed by the Rev. Daniel C. Round being thought too pointed, so other ones were offered by Capt. Bassett and with amendment passed by the Assoc. 21 for & 11 against. Dined at Robert Lovell's. Returned to Hyannis. Gave 25 cts. to the fund for widows & orphans of deceased Ministers. Sept. 16—I went up to Osterville alone with father's wagon, attended meeting at the Meeting House, after meeting the Nan tucket delegation and folks embarked on boats for Cotuit Port. Drove round with John Chadwick. The capt. of the Railroad quitted going to-day & I returned to Hyannis in afternoon. Sept. 17—Father & I went to visit Alexander Swain's family & to minister Pratts, former residence at Great Marshes, got there

DIARY OF WILLIAM C. FOLGER

29 before dinner, visited the old burial ground. Saw the Town House & the Great Marsh Meeting House. Left after tea and got home in evening. Sept. 18—I went to Yarmouth Port on the turnpike from Hyannis, passed by the farm of Hon. John Reed, called on him and got uncle Walter's calculations upon the Enche (?) Comet, from thence drove to Barnstable & went to the Town Clerk's office and looked up the old records to get the genealogy of the early Gorhams, afterwards went to the Patriot office & saw the Baptist Meeting House which is formed out of the old Cotuit House. Sept. 20—I went to Barnstable afoot, went again to Town Clerk's, then visited the Burial Ground near the Methodist Church. Got a Nantucket paper from Major S. B. Phinney of the Patriot. Sept. 21—Went up to Cotuit with father but found no vessel there for Nantucket. Sept. 22—I went up to Cotuit Port again with father, got a large bunch of Thoroughwort. Railroad not being going till to-morrow I put my things aboard & returned. Sept. 23—Took leave of fathers family and walked to Cotuit, left about half past one, with about 16 passengers, got to Nantucket a little after six o'clock. Sept. 25—I heard the celebrated poet Rev. John Pierpont lecture on Temperance at the Unitarian Church this evening. Sept. 28—Got three bundles of Straw of Arnold Morse and filled my underbed with the straw. Sept. 30—Wrote some of my writings out of the Nantucket In quirer in order to let the Atheneum have the Inquirers to bind. Went down to Fair Street Methodist Vestry this evening. Oct. 1—Gershom Phinney paid me 50 cts. being the balance of his son Gershoms School bill. I began a genealogical chart for Thomas Mooers, brother to Lieut, or Sailing Master Mooers. Oct. 3—I had two bills against Mrs. Griffith for teaching her sons, I gave them both to her if she would give me an order on a dry goods store for one, so she gave me an order on Charles W. Cook for $2.83 which he accepted. Oct. 3—I got the refusal of the school house in Winter street after the Town shall have given it up at the rate of $54 per annum. Saw my friend Jane L. M. Attended the funeral of Langton a teacher in the Bear street school house. Took tea at Stephen Eastons. Oct. 6—I dined at Uncle Walters and then set out to walk to 'Sconset to see Franklin Folger on genealogy, but had not got far when I was invited to ride by Edward Ray, not finding B. F. Folger at home I walked to Sesachacha Pond & back, then found him and got a part of the information I wanted, took supper at his house & returned in the evening, getting home about half past 8 P.M. Oct. 7—I began a genealogical chart for Edmond Gardner & wife at the request of Capt. Charles Gardner.

HISTORIC NANTUCKET 30 Oct. 9—Rev. William Jackson of New Bedford preached at the Baptist to-day. Oct. 14—At work most of the day cleaning up and assorting clothes and other things. Took tea at Crocker Backus this after noon. Oct. 15—Saw the Camels & Steamboat take in the loaded ship Peru to the wharf. Carried my best pantaloons to the Nantucket Dye Factory. Oct. 18—Went to Baptist class meeting. I went to the Atheneum and to J. S. Hathaways painting room with Rev. Horace Seaver, agent for the A. & F. Bible Society. He presented Memoirs of Mrs. Judson to Baptist Library. Oct. 25—I have been cleaning up my things & have had some dyed over. I got the key of the School House in Winter Street this after noon — and put up my curtains. I am to have it @ 50 dollars per annum. Both at the Conference meeting at the Baptist this eve ning. Oct. 27—Roland Folger paid me 5 dolls, on a/c of my school bills against him. Francis G. Bunker has whitened and ironed Jane's bonnet gratuitously. I went to a meeting of the Whig Vigilant Committee at the Attic in Washington Hall this evening. Oct. 28—Gave Uncle Walter and Aunt Ann an Invitation to wit ness my marriage. Jane got cap at Mrs. Millers @ 51Oct. 29—I got my coat & vest at Dye House & Phebe Easton re paired vest. Got 5c w. milk. I handed Stephen Easton 1 dollar to give Town Clerk for Certificate. I invited Crocker Backus & wife and Susan Dow to marriage. Oct. 30—I was united in marriage to Jane L. Middleton at the House of Charley Shute occupied by Henry S. Coffin, between the hours of Six and Seven P.M. There were about 30 persons pres ent in all. After the marriage most of the people went to Meeting & many of them to the Baptist Meeting as we ourselves did. Dan iel Roune Jr. was the minister who united us in marriage.

(This is the final installment of the "Diary." The rest of it is comparatively uninteresting, and, with the marriage of William C. Folger to Jane L. Middleton, "Nancy" Adams closed the book. Ed.)

Legacies and Bequests Membership in our Association proves that you are interested in its program for the preservation of Nantucket's famed heritage and its illustrious past, which so profoundly affected the development of our country. You can perpetuate that interest by giving to the Association a legacy under your will, which will help to insure the Association's carrying on. Counsel advises that legacies to the Nantucket Historical Association are allowable deductions under the Federal Estate Tax law. Legacies will be used for general or specific purposes as directed bv the donor. A sample form may read as follows: "1 give, devise, and bequeath to the Nantucket Historical Association, a corporation duly or ganized under the laws of The Commonwealth of Massachusetts, and located in the Town of Nantucket, in said Commonwealth, the sum of Dollars."

Legacies may be made also in real estate, bonds, stocks, books, paint ings, or any objects having historical value, in which event a brief descrip tion of the same should be inserted instead of a sum of money. Please send all communications to the Secretary, Box 1016. Nantucket, Massachusetts 02554. Office, Fair Street Museum.

Time regards benignly the well-worn steps of the Pacific National Bank