A Brief History of the Merset CLI of Boston
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A Brief His t o ry o f t he M ERSET C LI of Boston Wi t h a Li st o f Pa st a n d Presen t M em b ers 1 8 5 2 — 1 9 1 3 Prepared by A C om mitte e of t he Club Prefa c e IT has been considered advisable to publish a brief history of the Somerset Club from its organiz ation to the present n r time, a period of sixty years, that i this way the memo y of the names and lives of many distinguished gentlemen of Boston who played an important part in making our city what it was in a former generation , and who made this Club one of the most distin ished social associations of i n our country, shall be held due honor by their succes n n n sors , a d that there shall be preserved the roll ot o ly of our predecessors but of all those also with whom we have been associated . The preparation of this volume has been entrusted to a special committee by the government of the Club . The . r Club is greatly indebted to Mrs Charles W Amo y, r Dr . J . Collins Warren , Dr . Hen y F . Sears and Mr . Charles R F . ead of the Bostonian Society for valuable information concerning the houses of the Club . Contents HI S TORY OF THE CLUB OFFI CE R S AND TR USTE E S HONO RARY MEM B E RS DI S TI NGUI S H E D GUE S TS PAS T AND PR E S E NT MEM B E RS Illustrations THE SOM ER SET CLUB 1900 Fronti rpi ece SEAL OF THE CLUB Ti tle page A GR OUP OF OR IGINAL MEM B E RS — THE SOM E R S ET CLUB 18 52 1 872 THE DAVI D SEAR S HOUSE AS OR I G I NALLY BUI LT CE T PI STE R T E E E E N RE ECE OF WEB ABL S RVIC , SH FFIELD PLATE F I S B . CR I NS HI E LD F ST R E SI RANC OWN , IR P DENT M H P R F ST TR S R E R SA UEL OO E , IR EA U G T. M F ST E R ET R GEOR E LY AN , IR S C A Y SI GNATURES OF OR I GI NAL MEM BERS SE S H S E T AR OU ABLET Ta ilpi ece Histo ry of t he S omerset Club 1 8 5 2 1 9 1 3 History of t he Somerset Club I N 1846 there existed an association of gentlemen "called T T u at first the ravellers, later the remont Cl b) , which occupied chambers in Tremont Street described as opposite the old Boston Museum, a playhouse . It possessed no restaurant, but refreshments were brought in from without - as wanted . It consisted of forty one members . T hese gentlemen , whose names are given below, adopted , 12 18 1 September , 5 , the name at first of Beacon Club, soon changed to Somerset Club, and purchased for their new home the stone building on the eastern corner of Somerset . T G and Beacon streets his edifice , with the ad"oining ard 18 16 n n M . D H n n er house , was built i by r avid i ckley, a d was called the finest house in Boston at that time . Its site had been previously occupied by the ancient Stone house Rev . n of James Allen of the First Church , who ow ed a far larger part of the territory of Boston than was ever owned ” h by any other individual . T e Hinckley house was in ri ed G he t . and occupied by his daughter, who married W E . 18 1 . Hodgkinson , sq It was purchased of her in 3 by Hon Crowninshield Ben"amin W . , who removed at that time The . u from Salem interior, filled with beautiful f rniture , n n n r d i pai ti gs , a d statua y, is well escribed by h s daughter, . n R Mrs J Mason Warren, in her interesti g eminiscences privately published a few years ago . “ N Gleaner "athaniel I . Bowditch) thus alludes to the Club house in one of his interesting communications in the 4 Somerset Club ‘ T 18 S w Boston ranscript , 55 , as O well kno n to Young ’ America for its elegant appointments , or, as devoted wives sitting at home might prefer to call them, its seductive ” attractions . ’ Crowninshield s 18 1 After Mr . death in 5 the house was m m r A il e be s r 1 18 2 . purchased by this Club and Opened to p , 5 ’ During its occupancy a ladies restaurant was opened in connection with the Club , probably the first of its kind in the country . Here follows a Copy of the call for the meet ing of orga niz ation " h 2 20t 18 . BOSTON , March , 5 SI R " The Subscribers to the Club , at the corner of Beacon and Somerset Streets, are requested to meet in their Club ’ 2 6 h . P . M t . House , on Friday, the inst , at 7 o clock , to receive the report of their Committee "to establish a Con st it ut ion B —L and y aws , and transact such other business as may come before the meeting, preparatory to occupancy . JOHN D . BATES , For the Execu ti ve Commi tte e. Th P S . e Club House will be Open to the families of 2 t h . members and their friends, on Wednesday the 4 inst , during the day and evening . The property was held under an instrument in the form “ n " of an i denture, which begins as follows Whereas by an indenture made on the Seventeenth of April in the year of r wninshield . Lo 18 2 w . C o E our rd 5 bet een Francis B , sq , E Samuel Hooper, sq . , and James Davis , the younger, merchant, all of the city of Boston , on the one part , and Somerset Club 5 F n B F H . B n D S r. ra cis assett, rederick radlee a d avid ears , J , E all of said Boston , squires , who executed the same on ‘ ’ h l o th s o th So s t Cl t . be a f f e member f e mer e ub , e c wninshield ru . Cro Messrs , Hooper and Davis became t stees , under whom the property was held for the benefit of the 18 2 0 2 0 shareholders "but in 55 , 4 six per cent bonds, of $ 5 each , to the amount of sixty thousand dollars , were issued , 1000 sub"ect to a sinking fund of $ per annum, and shares to this amount were retired . A t tw nt s n 18 1 th Cl n lt t nec es f er e y year , i 7 , e ub agai fe i sary to obtain more capacious quarters , and purchased 2 the Sears Mansion , 4 and 43 Beacon Street, at a cost of The to which it removed the following year . old Club house was then sold to the Congregational Association , n 18 6 and was k own as the Congregational Building . In 9 it 1 0 was purchased by Houghton and Dutton , who in 9 4 took S the structure down , and erected on its ite the western comer part of their present stores . The land upon which the Sears Mansion was erected was a part of the eleven acres previously owned by John Single ton Copley, the celebrated artist , and originally belonged to Blackstone . T Copley speaks of it as his farm on Beacon Hill . here he painted many of his famous portraits . All that we know n n n of the house is that it was pai ted yellow, a d that ear it “ M Vn ” was that of aster i al the schoolteacher, where the O tis house , now the residence of W . Austin Wadsworth, E . sq , stands . In 1 Co l l t Boston w nt to -E o n not 774 p ey ef , e ur pe , a d did return . The British forces erected fortifications upon his 6 Som erset Club lands . In his absence his house was sold without his knowl . In 1 6 h s nt h s son l t Lo L n h st Lo edge 79 e e i , a er rd y d ur , rd l G High Chance lor of reat Britain , to Boston to recover his h t . T e proper y suit was compromised by Messrs . Otis and u Mason on payment of four thousand g ineas . The date of t he the demolition of Copley house has not been ascertained . U pon this Copley lot Mr . Sears built his handsome stone ho s on th l n o B on St t n ns t t l t u e e i e f eac ree , a d i er ed a ab e w th th ollow n ns t on "“ M ns on Hous t i e f i g i crip i a i e, erec ed by David Sears in the year one thousand eight hundred — ” A. The and nineteen Parris , architect . ornamental marble tablet s upon the front Were carved by Solomon Willard , who was the architect of Bunker Hill Monument . The original Sears house had but one bow, with windows The en from the basement to the roof on each Side of it .