Historic Nantucket
ONE HUNDRED TEARS AGO A summer scene at Swain's Boarding House on Centre Street, with the "summer folks" enjoying the wide porch. April, 1977 Published Quarterly by Nantucket Historical Association Nantucket, Masachusetts
NANTUCKET HISTORICAL ASSOCIATION OFFICERS President, Leroy H. True Vice-Presidents, Albert G. Brock, George W. Jones, Alcon Chadwick, Albert F. Egan, Jr., Walter Beinecke, Jr. Honorary Vice-President, Henry B. Coleman Secretary, Richard C. Austin Treasurer, John N. Welch Councillors, Leroy H. True, Chairman Benjamin Richmond, Francis W. Pease, terms expire 1977; Mrs. R. A. Orleans, Robert E. Tonkin, terms expire 1978; Robert D. Congdon, Harold W. Lindley, terms expire 1979; Mrs. James F. Merriman, Miss Barbara Melendy, terms expire 1980. Registrar, Miss Dorothy Gardner Historian, Edouard A. Stackpole Editor, "Historic Nantucket", Edouard A. Stackpole; Assistant Editor, Mrs. Merle Turner Orleans. STAFF Oldest House: Curator, Mrs. Kenneth S. Baird Receptionists: Mrs. Margaret Crowell, Miss Adeline Cravott Hadwen House-Satler Memorial: Curator, Mrs. Phoebe P. Swain Receptionists: Mrs. Irving A. Soverino, Mrs. Alfred A. Hall, Mrs. Harold Arnold, Miss Helen Levins 1800 House: Curator, Mrs. Clare McGregor Old Gaol: Curator, Albert G. Brock Whaling Museum: Curator, Hugh R. Chace Receptionists: Clarence H. Swift, Mrs. Herbert Sandsbury, Frank Pattison, James A. Watts, Abram Niles, Adam Craig Peter Foulger Museum: Curator, and Director, Edouard A. Stackpole Receptionists: Mrs. Clara Block, Everett Finlay; Librarian: Mrs. Louise Hussey Nathaniel Macy House: Curator, Mrs. John A. Baldwin Receptionists: Miss Dorothy Hiller, Mrs,Henry C. Petzel Archaeology Department: Curator, Mrs. Roger Young Field Supervisor, Miss Barbara Kranichfeld Old Town Office: Curator, Hugh R. Chace Old Mill: Curator, Richard F. Swain Miller: John Stackpole Folger-Franklin Seat & Memorial Boulder: Curator, Francis Sylvia Friends Meeting House-Fair Street Museum: Curator, Albert F. Egan, Jr. Lightship "Nantucket": Curator, Benjamin S. Richmond Ship Keeper, Richard Swain
HISTORIC NANTUCKET Published quarterly and devoted to the preservation of Nantucket's antiquity, its famed heritage and its illustrious past as a whaling port. Volume 24
April, 1977
No. 4
CONTENTS Nantucket Historical Association Officers and Staff
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Editorial
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Some Notes on the Folgers (Foulgers)
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A Visit to Nantucket in 1826
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W. Ripley Nelson - A Tribute
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The Quaise Farm Horror of 1844
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The Rev. Fr. John D. Whitney, S.J. by Edouard A. Stackpole
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A Nantucket Shipmaster's''Sea Anchor"
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The Ordeal of the "Island Home"
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The Lightship "Nantucket"
26
Lament for a Favorite Locomotive
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Legacies and Bequests
31
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 $7.50; Sustaining $25.00; Life — one payment $100.00 Second-class postage paid at Nantucket, Massachusetts Communications pertaining to the Publication should be addressed to the Editor, Historic Nantucket, Nantucket Historical Association, Nantucket, Massachusetts 02554.
Captain Stephen Greenleaf, Jr. This portrait was presented the Nantucket Historical Association by Mrs. Lewis S. Greenleaf, whose husband was a direct descendant. It is one of the two earliest known paintings owned by the Association, and is attributed to an unknown artist — called the "Pollard Limner." On the left of the canvas is the inscription: "AE Sua Anno 1722." Stephen Greenleaf, Jr., was born in Newbury, Mass., in 1652 and died in 1743. He was a grandson of Tristram Coffin, Sr., and his father Stephen Greenleaf, Sr., was one of the original group who purchased from Thomas May hew the land at the west end of the Island.
O n e Hundred Years Ago
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A YOUNG SCHOOLMASTER, who spent his vacations in short trips throughout New England, made a return visit to Nantucket in 1877. He described the quiet of the old town, then in the beginnings of realizing its potential as a summer resort. The busy days of its maritime supremacy had vanished, and he spoke of activity along the waterfront being "confined to two or three schooners in the coasting trade, and an aban doned hulk or so that smacks of the old days." He mentioned the well defined streets, where many of the "finest dwelling houses are thrown open in summer to the travelling public as boarding houses. Through the windows of these we could see relics of the prosperous days—old Delft from Holland, fine wares from France, solid furnishings in iron and brass, silver from England, portraits on the walls . . . . Everything that will open its doors in true Island hospitality is filled to overflowing. Five thousand people will come to this town this summer to feel the sea breezes." March gales were being felt. Captain John Ray, in the packet Tawtemeo, reported his passage from New Bedford was an extremely rugged one. Mid-March found storms of snow and rain and the streets were described as being in "gum shoe condition." Out at 'Sconset Levi Coffin spent almost the whole night bringing his lambs to shelter at his farm at Philip's Run. The Island Home delayed her departure to Hyannis on March 15, and did not return when the wind increased. Work on the wreck of the bark W. F. Marshall at Surfside had to be stopped due to the storm. It was to be a busy year. Carpenters were erecting a mansion house on Main Street for Edward W. Perry (the present "Homestead"). Charles Robinson was building a cottage at the corner of Fair and Lyons Street. The salary of the Collector of Customs here was set at $250 a year, in addition to the fees and allowances. Manager J. S. Doyle had arrived and was getting the Ocean House ready for the summer. After thirty years as a store-keeper on Main Street .Timothy W. Calder retired. James H. Gibbs was putting an addition on the Joseph Perry House on Lily Street, and Captain Samuel Davis announced he would serve as the manager of Swain's Boarding House on Centre Street. (The present Holiday Inn.) Town meeting was at hand. A veteran citizen stated: "Are we willing to be accessory to the loading of this town with debt, driving our
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HISTORIC NANTUCKET
moneyed people to locate elsewhere, presenting a barrier to the influx of summer visitors which offers the only hope of resuscitation for Nantucket? We must resist the temptation to suddenly become citified." One hundred years ago. —Edouard A. Stackpole
Some Notes on the Folgers (Foulgers) THE FOLLOWING IS a contribution from a member ot the Association, Walter Weston Folger, 205 Island Avenue, Chattanooga, Tennessee: V. E. Chandler 107 Bradford Street Needham, Massachusetts In the Franklin treasure trove of the Historical Society is a letter from Mrs. John Folger, of Illington, dated ye 5, 1759. The genealogical data included is as follows: "John Foulger, the Ancestor of our Family came out of the City of Norwich in the County of Norfolk — he married Miriba Gibs in Great Britain and Brought Hir and His Son Peter and One Daughter to New England — the Daughter Married to a Pairi^on Long Island and there is a numerous of Spring from Hir but for particulars I know nothing. Peter married with Mary Morrils a young woman that Came from England with Hew Peters, and had two Sons, John and Eleazer and Seven Daughters, namely Johanna married a Coleman, Dorcas married a Pratt, Barsheba married a Pope, Patience married Barker, Bethia married Barnard, Ex perience married to a Swain, Abiah married Franklin" NOTE: The above was transcribed from a note furnished by Rev. Lyman Manchester Greenman on the above letterhead, February 8, 1935. 4-Mary Folger married Peter Paine. As his widow, she married Jeremiah Vail in 1660, according to my notes.
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A Visit to Nantucket in 1826 JARED SPARKS, WHO served as President of Harvard University from 1849 to 1853, visited Nantucket as a young man. In his Diary, under date of Oct. 10,1826, he described some of his experiences during that visit: "Nantucket. Have been absent 8 days on a visit to Nantucket. Went through Providence to New Bedford. Passed near Mount Hope, and over the country which was the scene of the renowned King Philip's exploits. "At New Bedford spent an evening very pleasantly with Mr. Dewey, and sailed next morning in a packet for Nantucket. Calm nearly all the day; three ladies on board, and nothing to cheer the dull hours, as they flew by on murkey wings, but a song now and then from one of them who had a sweet voice. At twilight we found ourselves in Holmes' Hole, an chored for the night, waiting for a tide. I went on shore with the Captain to buy hay for a horse that was a fellow passenger on deck. The next morning at sunrise we entered the harbor of Nantucket. Whale ships on every side and hardly a man to be seen on the wharves who had not circumnavigated the globe, and chased a whale, if not slain his victim, in the broad Pacific. "In Nantucket everything has an air of novelty to one unaccustomed to the manners and habits of islanders. I crossed the island on horseback to Siasconset, a little fishing village on the eastern margin of the island. The road lay through a wide common, over which were scattered thousands of sheep and a few horned cattle grazing. On my return to town by another way of 9 miles, I passed several farm houses, around which cultivation is prosecuted with considerable success. There are 10,000 sheep on the island which run in common. The sheep shearing in June is a great holiday for all the inhabitants, and indeed the only festival during the year. I saw Walter Folger's clock, which is a specimen of curious and successful mechanism. "But the absorbing business of Nantucket is the whale fishery. Many have made themselves rich by it, and it gives life to all. I conversed much on this subject with Mr. Jenks, editor of the Nantucket Inquirer, who is a gentleman of intelligence and acquirement. I pressed him to collect as many facts as possible on the history and present state of the Whale Fishery, and combine them into an article for the North American Review. He agreed to make the attempt, and immediately advertised in his paper for such facts as could be supplied from records, or by those who had been long engaged in the business. "On my return from the island, I sailed in the New Bedford packet, but was stopped by head winds at Wood's Hole, where I left the packet and walked to Falmouth, 5 miles, and took the stage for Boston, through Sandwich and Plymouth."
W. Ripley Nelson
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W. Ripley Nelson
"RIPLEY HAS GONE". This was sad news to those of us at the Historical Association who knew him so well. Yet, of course, it was inevitable because he has been in failing health for so long and only the wonderful care given him by his devoted wife, Barbara, kept his weakening heart from stopping.
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Yet, in a sense, he will never go from us. So much of what we are doing is an outgrowth of his vision and planning. He arrived at every meeting of the Association with a brief case full of information. As the expression goes, "he did his homework" and sold his ideas with proof rather than pressure. The Historical Association was only one of his many endeavors to make Nantucket the charming community he envisioned. He would not want to claim credit alone for any of his accomplishments, yet he did so much to initiate and guide through the difficult start, programs for new trees, lifeguards at the beaches, Conservation, Historic District, Poison Ivy Control, Family Counseling, Civic League, Planning Board, and many others. His advice was sought by and freely given to a number of established businesses and young people about to embark on a new career. He constantly wrote for the Association. He started Historic Nantucket in 1954 and now, nearly 10,000 copies are mailed out each year. His booklet, "The Nantucket Whaling Museum," is still in great demand. Many other booklets and articles he wrote are in use or others have replaced them, based upon his research and writing. Ripley Nelson has left many monuments which will be of value for generations to come. It can be truthfully said that the things he did touched and improved the lives of every one of us. He was a great and good man.
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The Quaise Farm Horror of 1844 Burning of the Asylum
EARLY IN THE morning of the 21st of February, 1844, the Asylum located at the town's Quaise Farm was destroyed by fire, and ten of the unfortunate inmates were burned to death. The event caused such a reaction that, ten years later, it was decided to remove the Asylum to a place within the town limits, as well as revising the entire plan for the future maintenance of a town farm. It was two decades before—in June, 1822—that the town first launched the idea of a farm for the indigent of the island, and this action came after a report by a special committee, which reported at the annual town meeting in 1821. The committee was composed of several of the most prominent citizens of Nantucket, and included: Gorham Coffin, Gideon Gardner, Barker Burnell, Zenas Coffin, Griffin Barney, Samuel Mitchell and Gilbert Coffin. It reported that there were 130 persons being supported in the town's Asylum, the greater part being old and infirmed persons, and that 60 more individuals were being partially supported in private homes. As there were some fifty persons who were capable of working under supervision, the committee recommended the purchase of a farm, where both the able workers and the old and infirm could be placed, and the produce of the farm would help support the welfare program. This report was received and the voters approved it at the annual town meeting on April 13, 1822. Following the recommendation, it was further voted to purchase land at east Quaise from the heirs of Obed Mitchell, which contained the former Shubael Coffin farm and its house and barn and animals—some 150 sheep, 12 cows, 2 oxen and 1 horse. The land contained 180 acres of land adapted to farming. The cost would be $6,700. The proponents declared that more than 100 persons involved would benefit from this new location, as it would provide a comfortable provision for the poor, which could not be provided under the system then in operation, which they condemned as encouraging "vice and immorality and brought disgrace to the town." Arguments against the plan challenged the costs, which would increase the town's debt to $14,000, and pointed out there would be extra charges as regards to carting of materials and providing transportation over the 2Vi miles to Quaise. The costs of medical attention were also mentioned.
THE QUAISE FARM HORROR OF 1844
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But the plan was approved by a large majority, and Obed Macy wrote: "It was urged with a deal of applause that the experiment would cost nothing, as the town will always be able to sell the farm without loss." However, he pointed out, the new building to be erected on the property would have 32 rooms, and who would want to buy a farm with a building having 32 rooms? Apparently, the work of erecting the new structures began soon after the Quaise property was obtained. Samuel Macy and Jonathan Swain were the superintendents of the Poor Department, as it was called, but a new committee was formed for the new operation, with an ActingOverseer appointed for the farm. In 1838 a new Asylum building was erected here. There is no indication in the records which would indicate that the new arrangement was not successful, and as the years went on the Quaise Farm continued to provide a home for the elderly as well as a place where persons able to work could carry out the regular duties involved in farm work. A number of habitual drunkards and other unfortunates were put to work on the farm as part of a rehabilitation program. It was at 2 o'clock on the morning of February 21, 1844, that the inmates of the Asylum were awakened by the smoke and flames. The fire originated on the ground floor in the kitchen and had gained a con siderable headway when discovered. So rapidly did the flames spread that Captain Timothy Bunker, and his family, on the first floor of the structure, barely escaped with their lives. There were fifty-nine people in the three-storied building, and thirteen of these were bed-ridden. One of these had not walked in 20 years. There were many deeds of heroism by rescuers, and the escape of many of the infirm was due to the exertions of their fellow-inmates and the farm workers. One person dropped from a third-story window and survived and a man lowered himself to the ground by means of a sheet which he tore into strips and tied together. One especial heroine was a young inmate named Lydia Bowen who brought her child to safety and then returned to help a friend and perished in the flames. Another woman inmate, Phebe Lovelace, a pauper, also rescued one or two old persons. Charles A. Burgess, who owned the adjacent farm, rushed to the scene and placed a ladder into position so that he could rescue those on the third floor. One of the bed-ridden there had to be carried out through a window and down the ladder by Mr. Burgess to safety. By the time help arrived from town the entire building was in flames and ten of the unfortunate inmates had lost their lives. Their bodies some
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burned beyond recognition—were removed to a small shed nearby and prepared for burial. A plot of land was set aside for a cemetery, which is now marked by cement bounds and is across the present road, opposite the Quaise entrance roads. The names of those who perished were: Thomas Hull, 67; Paul Jenkins, 66; Jonathan Cathcart, 79; William Holmes, 51; William Hutchins, age unknown; Abigail Davis, 97; Sophia Beebe, 57; Phebe Jones, 80; Lydia Bowen, 33; Wealthy Davis, 53. The editor of The Inquirer, who visited the scene of the tragic fire, described the scene on the next day: "There was a heap of ruins to mark the spot where the late spacious house stood, and every thing denoted ruin and destruction. Many of the paupers were making their way to the house formerly used as an Asylum. Some of them looked bewildered, as though they could scarcely realize their narrow escape. Old and infirm, as many of them were, it seems a miracle that so many escaped with their lives The old Asylum is being fitted up and put in comfortable order, for the ' accommodation of the poor, until some different arrangement is made, if it is thought expedient to make other provisions for them." A new structure was erected at the Quaise Farm, and in 1854, when it was decided to remove the Asylum to within the town limits, this was taken down in sections and became a part of the present "Island Home." In that same year the old House of Correction, which had been erected at Quaise in 1828, was moved and placed alongside the Old Jail, where it stood until 1956 when it was taken down. The late James H. Gibbs remembered the old Quaise Cemetery, and aided in the effort to re-establish its boundaries. He also recalled the Burgess Farm, nearby, where the last old-style sheep-shearing festival took place in 1894. During the decade between the time of the tragic fire at the Quaise Farm, and the decision to move the Asylum to town, Nantucket reached its 19th century peak as a whaling port and the great decline in its fortunes began in the 1850's. In view of the economic prospects the sale of the farm and the transference of the Asylum was a carefully considered decision.
T h e Rev. F r . John D . Whitney, S . J . Priest and Educator By Edouard A. Stackpole IN THE ROSTER of Nantucketers as teachers and educators we have an extraordinary number of both men and women, each of whom has had careers in education of varying degree and fortune. Most of these people are well known, ranging from Cyrus Peirce, Maria Mitchell, Augustus Morse and Anna Gardner to Anne Ring, Harriett Williams and Mary Walker of the present times. But there was one individual who has become nearly lost in the passage of time, and who needs not only to be better known but carefully studied as he established an enduring record as an educator in university circles. The name of this unusual Nantucketer was the Rev. Fr. John Dunning Whitney, S. J. He was born here on July 19, 1850, the son of Thomas J. Whitney, of Nantucket, and Esther A. Dunning, who came from Maine. Father Whitney's grandparents were Daniel Whitney and Sally Coffin. With a seafaring ancestry it was natural that young Whitney would seek the marine world for his future, and in 1868 he left Nantucket High School to sign on as a cadet aboard the training ship Mercury, where he soon became an officer. He was a tall, powerfully built man, with a strong mind to match his robust form. The story of his conversion to Catholicism is best given in his own words, just as he told it to Georgina P. Curtiss and recorded in her book, "Some Roads To Rome in America." It reads as follows: "I was brought up a Congregationalist; my mother was a devout member of that church. In the morning and again in the evening on Sunday I used to attend the somewhat protracted services which were common in those days, and in the afternoon I went to the Sabbath School. Here we were taught, no doubt, something of the catechism. When I was in my twentieth year I fell in with Mr. A—, a young man a few years older than myself, and a fellow officer on the school ship Mercury, and we were accustomed to talk over religion. He used to say: 'There is only one true Church, and that is either the Catholic Church or the Mormon Church.' That was a
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HISTORIC NANTUCKET
curious and startling theory. The result of our talks was that I considered the claims of the Catholic Church worth con sideration." During his service aboard the Mercury young Whitney observed the regular work of the two chaplains aboard—one a young Protestant, the other a venerable Jesuit, Father Duranquet. While he could find no fault with the work of the former he was impressed by the complete devotion of the old priest. "He never spared himself at all; he was with the boys all day long, and in the evening when until the hammocks were piped down. The next morning at 5 o'clock he said Mass and gave Communion." The Mercury was sent to New York in August, 1870, to attend the races for the famous America's Cup. The captain invited a newlymarried couple to return to New York aboard the training ship. On the cruise down Long Island Sound the bride accidently dropped a book she was reading over the side, and the gallant executive officer had a boat lowered and retrieved it for her. By some unexplained reason, when the ship reached New York the lady left the book on the wardroom table. Father Whitney described the incident: "I was curious to see what had been the object of this remarkable rescue. I took up the book and found it was the Invitation Heeded. I read it over and over, with ever in creasing pleasure and satisfaction. I had found the source and seal of authority. Much to the surprise of Father Duranquet I approached him one day with the book in my hand and said: 'Father, if this book be true, I feel I ought to become a Catholic.' He answered very prudently: 'Well, it's a serious question. You must pray over it, and I will send you more books to read.' And so the months passed. The Father sent me a number of books. I read them and talked with my friend, Mr. A—. I prayed for light and strength." Finally, John Whitney went to see Father Duranquet again, and announced his mind was made up. It was decided that the following day they would go to the Church of the Paulist Fathers, an old one then on 59th Street, so that the Rev. Dr. Stone, who resided there, might consent to be his godfather. His recollection of the subsequent events follows: "On so, on the second of November, 1870, All Soul's Day, I was baptized conditionally by Father Duranquet, and received into the Catholic Church. When I arrived at the Church they were singing the Requiem Mass appointed for the
The Rev. Fr. John D. Whitney, S. J President of Georgetown University — 1898-1901
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HISTORIC NANTUCKET
day; the catafalque was there and the candles, all of which was strange and unintelligible to me. But I had found the seat of Authority, the Catholic Church, and I was prepared to accept whatever She proposed to me." i The scene must have been a memorable one—the old church, with the impressive ceremony, the singing, the flickering candles, the venerable priest and the tall young convert—a tableau that was to be only the beginning of Father Whitney's long and distinguished career as a churchman and educator. After the usual preliminary stages of his life as a devoted member of the Catholic Church the young seaman decided to embark on a religious career. On August 14, 1872, he entered the Society of Jesus, and began upon the usual course of studies peculiar to the training of the followers of Ignatius Loyola. During the years following these studies took him to Stonehurst College, England; Miltown Park, Dublin; Manresa House, Roehampton, England; and Woodstock College, Woodstock, Maryland. For a number of years previous to his ordination to the priesthood he was Professor of Mathematics at the College of St. Francis Xavier in New York City, and as a priest he continued in that field at Spring Hill College, at Mobile, Alabama. He then taught at Grand Coteau, Louisiana; at the College of the Immaculate Conception, New Orleans; and at Fordham University, in New York City. His interest in mathematics was a natural one, having practiced navigation as an officer on the Mercury, and as an inherited tendency, as his father was a ship wright and his grandfather a merchant sailor and counting house proprietor. Through his teaching Father Whitney gained the attention of his superiors, and during his tenure as Vice President at Spring Hill College at Mobile, Alabama, his administrative ability did not pass unnoticed. His tall figure was a commanding presence, and his dedication to his various responsibilities as a teacher won for him the respect and devotion of his associates and students. On July 3, 1898, a quarter-century after his entrance into the priesthood, his years of application to his duties were rewarded by his appointment as President of Georgetown University. During the next four years his work won for him the respect of faculties and students alike. Always evident was his desire to lessen the gulf between superior and inferior and to create even a stronger loyalty to the University.
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His biographer, Georgina P. Curtiss, wrote: "To analyze with any degree of faithfulness, or to portray his influence over those under his charge, is a task which the writer deems beyond the power of pen or tongue." She went on to state: "Standing out pre-eminently from all else is one fact; he manifested a singularly intense interest in each individual student, and being conversant with the record and connections of every boy, he easily brought himself into personal contact with them Gifted with this remarkable faculty for knowing and remembering people, he exercised a wonderful influence in encouraging the backward and inspiring the ambitious " During Father Whitney's Presidency at Georgetown numerous improvements were made at the College. The porticos at the main and middle entrances were completed; the Hirst Library and Hughes Memorial Room were opened. He formally opened the Georgetown Hospital and arranged for incorporation with the University of the Washington Dental College and Hospital of Oral Surgery. Nor was athletics as an important activity ignored as he introduced football after a lapse of four years. He also introduced caps and gowns at the University. He was relieved of these pressing duties as President of Georgetown in July, 1901, and promptly appointed to fill the office of Treasurer at Boston College. Following this assignment he was stationed at posts in Brooklyn and Baltimore, where he performed duties in parochial work. In the summer of 1916, upon the advice of his physician, he returned to Boston to consult his old friend, Dr. Slattery. The report of this physician was devastating, when he informed the Superiors that Father Whitney was terminally ill—that he had but a year to live. That such a big man could be so afflicted was unthinkable. As for Father Whitney he never appeared to be concerned with the medical verdict, but continued his regular duties, making himself characteristically a companion and friend. But his failing health soon forced him to a less active role, and he was finally forced to spend more time in his room in the infirmary. His biographer describes his last days: "Towards the end of October, it began to be evident that the judgment of the doctor was not very far from being exact. He
THE REV.FR. JOHN D.WHITNEY, S.J. began to weaken perceptibly. On November 5 he said Mass for the last time. During the first week of November the heart action was painfully evident as each beat shook his big frame. Yet he insisted upon keeping on his feet, attending to all the community duties with an edifying regularity, and hearing the confessions of the students during their lunch hour. On Sunday evening, at his own request, he was anointed as he sat in his chair, for, as he said, 'He always desired to receive the last Sacraments in the full possession of his faculties.' 'It is God's will,' he remarked to one who was assisting him to make ready; "conformity to God's will has been my practice since, in my Tertianship, in England, Father Purbrick gave me the { Heliotropium' to read." The work of Father Drexillius was ever on his desk." It was not until Monday, November 19, that forced at last by sheer weakness, he took to his bed, where on Tuesday, November 27, 1917, he calmly expired. On the following Friday, Father Whitney's remains were buried from the Church of the Immaculate Conception, Boston, the Mass being attended by hundreds of the dead priest's friends. The interment took place in the cemetery attached to Holy Cross College, Worcester, Mass.
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A Nantucket Shipmaster's "Sea Anchor" WRITING FROM NANTUCKET in March, 1872, a Nantucket shipmaster gave the following account of how he successfully rigged up a "sea anchor," which he presented as a "Suggestion To Mariners." It was printed in The Boston Journal on March 30 of that year, and reads: "The second of last March I was on my passage home from Cuba in a deeply loaded brig, and hove to in the heaviest gale I ever saw, with a fearful sea running so high that it becalmed our close-reefed mainsail, and our safety depended on keeping the vessel's head as near the wind as possible. Therefor, I tried a very simple method of 'dragging her,' as follows: "Took a large cask with one head in it, and nailed a stout piece of wood across the bottom on the outside. On each side of that I bored a hole through the head, and fitted a strap through the holes, the bight of which came through the mouth of the cask. I made one end of a hawser fast to the strap, and the other end fast to the weather bow, and tossed the cask overboard. "It floated up to wind'ard, and as the vessel's head fell off from the seas, the cask would drag under water and keep her head up to wind and sea, so that almost every sea broke over the jib-boom and hardly a spray came on board. I after ward tried the old method of a kedge and spar, fast to a hawser, but it did not do near as well. "In another gale I hove to in company with a schooner, which worked to windward of me fast, until I put over my 'water-cask drag,' and 12 hours later the schooner was hull down to leeward — proving that a vessel will not drift half as fast with a drag of that kind as she will without it, and it can be easily rigged and taken on board. "I am sending this for publication. . . .perhaps it has been used before. If so, I am not aware of it." T. H.
T h e Ordeal of the "Island Home A Night "Under" Tuckernuck SHORTLY AFTER 1:30 in the afternoon on February 4th, 1882, a northeast gale developed which, as the day wore on, became one of the worst storms for many years. From early morning the sky threatened snow and at this hour it began to fall, and as the wind increased, the snowfall had become a veritable blizzard. As night advanced the storm grew in its intensity. At 5:00 that afternoon the streets were filled with huge drifts and buildings were covered, with many shaking at the fury of the gale. When the time for the boat's a rival that afternoon had come and gone, and no sign of the steamer Island Home could have possibly been discerned, it was believed that Captain Nathan Manter, her commander, had not left Woods Hole for the passage across the Sound. But there were others, more experienced in sea matters, who felt that, as the storm had not developed until long after the steamer's regular hour of departure, the Island Home had been caught by the unexpected swiftness of the storm's fury. The gale continued during the night, and although the snowfall gradually ceased, the wind continued at full force. At daybreak anxious watchers climbed the old South Tower stairs to gain the lookout and train their spyglasses out to the reaches of the Sound. At 10:00 o'clock on that Sunday morning the watchmen in the Tower sighted the steamer broadside on, sweeping toward the breaking seas on Nantucket Bar. The present jetties had not been constructed at that time, and the long shoal or bar across the harbor mouth presented a wild scene. Word went quickly through the town, and one of the Humane Society surfboats was taken down to Beachside, where Capt. John M. Winslow and his boat-crew waited. Before the boat could be launched a gust of wind lifted it from the cart and only quick action saved it from a jolting fall. But before the boat was shoved into the water the men noted that the steamer was still under its own power-that Captain Manter was carefully backing and filling, using his paddle wheels, so that he was being carried over the bar broadside on. The seamanship of Captain Manter was never more evident. Unable to get the Island Home around to mind her helm, with the wind force out of the northeast, he came along the channel from the Bar toward Brant
THE ORDEAL OF THE "ISLAND HOME"
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Point almost broadside on, or "crab fashion," to use an expression. He had resolved to allow the bow of the steamer to strike the beach at the Point (where the channel ran close to the shore) and thus allow the stern to swing around and provide the opportunity to use his rudder. But he was not called upon to perform the feat as a favorable slant of the gale (governed by the low reaches of Coatue) enabled him to bring the steamer around and proceed around the Point and up to the wharf. The appearance of the steamer gave full evidence of her experience during that long night. Her decks were a mass of ice; some 20 feet of the port gangway had been smashed in. The few passengers on board had gathered near the damaged side, pale and weary from the night in the storm, when the Island Home had managed to anchor under Tuckernuck Shoal and ride out the gale. Every one of the passengers, upon going ashore, declared their lives were saved because of the great skill and seamanship of Captain Manter. That gentleman stayed aboard his steamer, where, having donned dry clothes, he sat down for a warm breakfast, and with his pipe lighted told the representative of The Inquirer and Mirror the story of that night. "We left Woods Hole around 1:30," he began, "and nearly up to Cape Poge had a fine snow, with the weather moderate, and I did not anticipate anything serious. The wind was east-northeast. We made all our buoys, but after leaving Tuckernuck Shoal buoy the snow increased and we could not see more than 10 feet ahead. The wind was now a gale, and after we ran our time to the bar and could see no buoy we tracked the bar to the eastward for 20 minutes—still no buoy, so we came about and ran 20 minutes to the westward. Still no sign of the buoy on the bar. "As night was coming on and the wind increasing, I decided to anchor, putting out the small anchor with 15 fathoms of chain. I found out we were dragging so I increased the chain to 40 fathoms. The night was terrible and I was obliged to put out the large anchor. At 5:00 o'clock thismorningthe wind blew the strongest, and as I made my way along the upper deck it seemed as if the hurricane deck must blow off. We ripped open sacks of grain to get the bags and wrap them around the hawser to prevent its chafing. "The boat rode like a duck. When dawn broke we made land close to us, which we first took to be the Cliff, but as the light increased we found we were close upon Tuckernuck, and could see the hotel. I realized the precarious situation. When the tide fell we began to strike bottom and I knew we had to act quickly. I had determined to beach her on the
THE ORDEAL OF THE '"ISLAND HOME
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Island. After buoying the large anchor and slipping the cable, I then cut the hawser and let the small anchor go. At this moment, the wind began to favor us a little and I decided to make a run for the bar. Our cook, William Orpin, knows every inch of the ground up that way, and he brought her through the slues among the Swile Islands into five fathoms of water, when we headed for the bar. "The seas were terrific, sweeping clean across the bow and running aft. Mr. Bucknam, our engineer, was at times almost ankle deep in the engine room. The old boat rolled fearfully, and when we reached the outer bar, lying in the trough of the sea, a wave, towering above the hurricane deck, struck her as she rose upon it-knocking that hole in her side and sweeping through to the outer saloon. I wouldn't have given two cents at that time for the boat and all on board. But we passed safely through it, with all hands safe, slight damage to the boat, and with an chors gone which can be recovered. "It was as much worse than being in the ice as you can imagine. It was one of the wildest times I have known in my many years' life on the ocean. We backed and filled across the bar, and the rest you have seen. I forgot to say that the wheel-rope broke once, but we managed with some difficulty in getting it repaired." The Clerk, Jared Norton, praised the passengers for their calmness during the ordeal, and paid a compliment to Captain Manter for his coolness and excellent judgement. Engineer Bucknam reported the steamer's engines in good order, with no damage. He repeated Captain Manter's statement that this was the most severe storm he ever knew and, like the Captain, would not have paid a very great sum for the boat as she approached the bar. The Rev. Daniel Round, one of the passengers stated: "And you cannot say too much in praise of Captain Manter. He did all that could be done. Clerk Norton was all over the boat, looking to the comfort of the passengers, and helping when assistance was needed." As for Captain Nathan Manter and the stout Island Home, his knowledge of the waters off Nantucket, and his faith in his steamer were a part of his life for over thirty years of his service aboard, combined to provide the confidence which sustained him during that night in a bliz zard, in February, 1882. E. A. S.
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The Lightship "Nantucket" by Benjamin S. Richmond, Curator.
THE ACQUISITION OF the lightship N a n t u c k e t , so that it now has become a part of our waterfront scene, is a story in itself. The facts are as follows: In May, 1975, the lightship was suddenly (for us) declared surplus by the General Services Administration and was up for grabs on a first come first served basis. Several hurried conferences of Town officials and the Historical Association ensued. We learned acquisition would have to be made by the Town as ownership could be transferred only to a tax sup ported organization. The Town has no funds to operate the ship so agreement was made to lease the ship to the Historical Association who would then underwrite expenses. All this was done with utmost speed and the Town then applied for the ship, only to learn we were too late. A group from Atlantic City had already acquired her. At that time, we learned the Lightship B o s t o n was available and it was offered to us. Research by Representative Gerry Studds' staff revealed this ship had never served on the Nantucket Station. Lengthy negotiations were then undertaken to swap the Boston for the Nantucket with the Atlantic City group. Agreement was reached on the condition the Boston be delivered to Atlantic City and we pay the shipyard bills they had incurred on the Nantucket. The Atlantic City group was unable to round up a crew competent to take the Boston from Boston to Atlantic City. An impasse occurred. After several weeks of attempts to get a crew without success Mike Todd agreed to get together a crew of Nantucketers to take the Boston to Atlantic City. This was done in July 1975. We then acquired the N a n t u c k e t . She was drydocked in Chelsea in November and had the bottom cleaned and painted. Mike Todd and his crew, plus a few others, brought the Nantucket from Chelsea to Nan tucket in December 1975. After months of delays the permits to dredge the area on the north side of Straight Wharf were received in July 1976. A steel bulkhead was installed and the dredging completed by mid-August. Mike Todd and his lightship crew, who proudly call themselves "the Dirty Dozen" moved the lightship to her permanent berth on Friday, August 13, 1976.
THE LIGHTSHIP "NANTUCKET'"
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Steel bollards were installed on the wharf to moor the ship. Mike Todd constructed a platform to attach the gangway. Flexible electrical, water, and sewage connections were designed and installed. Although the utilities are now operational some final work has yet to be completed. The Lightship Itself
I This lightship was built in 1936 by Pusey and Jones, Wilmington, Del., partly from funds obtained from settlement with the White Star Line after the sinking of her predecessor LV 117. She is the largest lightship in the world, being specifically constructed for the hazardous waters of the Nantucket station. She was operated by the old U. S. Lighthouse Service and was assigned hull number 112 by them. In 1939 the U. S. Coast Guard took over the duties of the Lighthouse Service. The Coast Guard assigned her the number WAL 534. She was very heavily constructed. Her hull is both riveted and welded. She is almost a ship within a ship. Her engine rooms and crew's mess have the same watertight integrity as the outer hull and deckhouses, i.e., they have watertight doors and ports. The inner "hull" is separated from the outer by fuel and water tanks, an unusual arrangement com pared to other types of ships. Her vital statistics include the following: Length overall Beam Maximum Draft Displacement Main propulsion engine
149 feet 32 feet 16 feet 900 tons 900 SHP 8 cylinder Cooper-Bessemer diesel
Auxiliary engines Three diesel powered 30 KW generators Three diesel powered air compressors to operate fog horn, windlass, capstan, and steering engine Fresh water capacity 29,000 gallons Fuel oil capacity 50,000 gallons Anchors—Two 7000 pound mushrooms, each with over 100 feet of 1 5/8" diam. die-lock chain Cruising speed 9'/2 knots Maximum speed 12 knots Maximum cruising range 22,000 miles Mast height above maximum draft water line—68 feet
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HISTORIC NANTUCKET Crew: One Chief Warrant Officer in command and 20 enlisted men. When on station Vi of crew were on shore leave or duty for 30 days.
<*•
The lightship served on the station from 1936 until February 1975, except for the period of World War II and while being converted from steam power to diesel in 1956. Historical Background The Nantucket Lightship Station was first occupied on June 15, 1854. It is considered the most remote and probably the most dangerous station in the world. It guards the southern limits of the dangerous Nantucket Shoals and marks the eastern end of the Ambrose shipping channel to New York. Due to the vast amount of shipping passing through the area it has often been referred to as "the Times Square of the North Atlantic." Over the years there have been eleven different lightships, not counting the Reliefs, on the station. This ship is the ninth. Two small lightships, numbers ten and eleven, presently take alternate turns on the station, which accounts for one almost always seeing a lightship marked Nantucket at the Coast Guard base in Boston. At one time there were some 70 lightships stationed along our coasts. Today only two remain - the Columbia Bar on the west coast and the Nantucket on the east coast. All others have been retired and replaced by buoys or Texas Towers. It is highly probable these will also be replaced by buoys within a short time. The lightship will then pass into history as much as have the coasting schooner and the whaleship.
Lament for a Favorite Locomotive O, where is dear Dionis now And all her festive train? The headlight on her iron brow We seek, alas, in vain! In rows the silent sleepers lie, No warning toot they hear, Nor tremble, as she rushes by The hills of Nobadeer.
To "'Sconset" her beloved mate, She loaned a rib or two, A valve, a piston and a grate, Which left her feeling blue. Old "'Sconset" hobbled out one morn, And never home came he; Said poor Dionis, lone and lorn, "Life hath no charms for me."
Next morning, like a lightning flash, She scuttled out of town; At Nobadeer, with one fell splash, She to the deep went down. They said she only sought to cool The fever in her blood, And mistook for a wayside pool The ocean's raging flood. Those dulcet strains we loved to hear Along the Goose-pond shore Are silent now—alas, we fear Forever—evermore! Oh, cruel irony of fate That such a road may rust, And all the frogs may hibernate Beneath the drifted dust!
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HISTORIC NANTUCKET
O, flagman by the Goose-pond shore, Your banner waves in vain; For you shall greet, O, nevermore, Dionis and her train! Be yours a heartfelt sympathy For strangers at our gate Who in the station mournfully With season tickets wait!
And when the doughty William D. Says "Go-o-o and see the surf!" A mighty host will eagerly Go tramping o'er the turf. And as with disappointed glare They find it simmered down, O, fancy them with injured air Come trudging back to town.
Still oft on moonlit summer night May dreamers hear again Dionis, as in spectral flight She scuttles o'er the plain, From lonely hills of Nobadeer, Reverberate once more Those witching strains we loved to hear Along the Goose-pond shore.
Reprinted from The Inquirer and Mirror, 1893
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