zadfuu‘ '"*\, _4 ,0’.3.‘ 9 * érituate Ztaisturiral ., Q r, Q‘ ' éurietp jetnsletter ¥?,‘f "Q2. .:..;.i'" 93.0. 93“: 276 Sdtuate, Ma. 02066 (781-545-1083) r‘ M.-11, .?,,:i.-,.; ,~?*~» » - mg, (law 781-545-8287) :1 -»~ we " - ~ I .1... ' 0 0 ~~~--*1 .//¢‘?:~¢Q ’ http.//www.z1pl1nk.net/0 history ‘ .» .. .8--=;,,,~W_.,,, '6 Volumc3 Issue 6 January, 1999 January Dinner Meeting The January Meeting of the Scituate Historical Society will be held at 6:30 p.m. on Saturday, January 23, 1999. This will be the annual turkey dinner and all those delicious homemade pies at the Harbor Methodist Church.The price is $10.00. Your reservation needs to be made as soon as possible. We have to give the church a count of people attending. Only the first 200 dinner reservations accompanied by payment will be accepted. Send a check made out to the Scituate Historical Society with your reservation to The Laidlaw Center, P.O. Box 276, Scituate, MA 02066. What discovery on Front Street set the South Shore buzzing in 1938? Where in Scituate did the fate of five ancient trees divide town opinion? Did Scituate once have its own hospital? Where was George Vinal’s store? Where was Scituate's Mayower located? How about the Centennial Hotel? Where in 1907 could you take in a minstral show? The topic of the evening will be lt will explore our Scituate of yesterday depicting historic old homes and landmarks, some long gone and those that remain with us today. Enjoy a winter evening with Bob and Dave Corbin as we take a look at a Scituate of long ago. ¢¢¢¢¢@¢¢@q1$$$$Q$$$1¢¢c1$$1£§1¢QQZ¢¢¢3Z3¢¢1$1¢3IZZ31t . Enclosed is my check made payable to the Scituate Historical Society for the dinner meeting on Saturday, January 23, 19‘-)9. Name: Number of reservations: Amount of the check: THE DRAWING FOR THE QUILT WILL BE HELD AT THE JANUARY DINNER MEETING Happy New Year & Thank You It doesn't seem possible that the new millennium is almost upon us. As we look back at the past year we have made great strides forward thanks to the support of so many volunteers and members. We have established a 5 year Capital Plan, which the town meeting approved the first round at last March's meeting. This provided for major repairs at the Lawson Tower, Mann House, and the Lighthouse. The Maritime/ Irish Mossing Museum is almost finished. The Society has established a Web site on the Internet thanks to Lou Geyer. The successful dinner meetings, the new rotating S.‘ ...AAIS‘_~-D‘. I p. 1 Ja'uay1999 :'~:"*..,q 1&5'3'j,_. -5--..+’.f'.'_,»_,£§‘./. .hr_l\~'' 1-‘s Iv‘» /5. :1‘?,1_ F; open house schedule for our historic sites, the historic cruises during Heritage Days, the celebrations commemorating the Portland Gale, etc. - could not have been done without you. The volunteers needed to staff all our sites, the committees that work on the day to day operation of the Society, and our ever supportive members make our Society one of the most active on the South Shore. We now are looking forward to GAR Hall repairs this next year. Thank you. The trustees and Officers We Need Your Support Please help the Society's fundraising activities by purchasing a 1999 Calendar. This calendar, which is made up of never-before-scenes of Scituate photographed by Dwight Agnew Jr., is a S visual reminder of Scituate's past. Please support your Society by purchasing a calendar today. They are on sale for $6.00 and may be purchased at the Little Red Schoolhouse (Laidlaw Center). We also will have a table set up at the January Dinner Meeting so that members attending may purchase one. Thank you for your support. Secondly, the Society has recently been loaned a series of Damon glass negatives of Scituate during the 1890's. This loan is for a limited time only so that we can convert these rare pictures to prints for our archives. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity, but the cost of conversion is very high. Could you help us defray the cost by making a donation? Please send any donations to the Scituate Historical Society c/o The Damon Pictures. Your support in this endeavor would gratefully be appreciated. Thank you. 100th Anniversary of Portland Gale Many events were celebrated over the weekend of November 27-29 in commemoration of the storm that impacted Scituate in so many ways. On November 27, 1998 a stamp cancellation commemorating the l0Oth anniversary of Portland Gale was held at the Maritime and Irish Mossing .Museum. Iake Donohue’s drawing was selected for the stamp cancellation. Stamps were cancelled at the P Museum, Scituate Post Office and at Humarock Post ; ' Office. The opening ceremony was well-attended, simple and moving. The number of visitors at the A museum to buy catchet envelopes and stamps, and then to have them cancelled was truly gratifying. The cancellation at the museum was to end at 2 p.m., but due to the demand the postal clerks stayed an extra -hour to service the large crowds. Later that night at Humarock Beach a commemoration service was held remembering those who had died in the Portland Gale in the Humarock area and those Humarock families who had lost family members to NC, the sea. Dave Ball, Fred Freitas and Rev. Wallace Cedarleaf took part in the service. As each person's Jake Donohue_ his dad Jack. & An teacher name who was lost in storm was read, a young child Stacey I-lendrickson Scitude Hstolicd Society p. 2 Jawuary 1999 tossed a carnation into the surf. Finally a wreath in memory of all those unknown victims of the storm was floated out to sea. On Saturday November 28, 1998 a Dedication Program was held in Sandhills at the site of the grounding of the Columbia 100 years ago during the Portland Gale. Speaking at this event were Dave Ball, Fred Freitas and John Galluzzo (Education Director of the I-lull Life-Saving Station Museum). A plaque was unveiled by Mary Butts, a descendant of Surfman Iohn Curran who had discovered the wreck. The names of those lost on the Pilot Boat Columbia, Schooner Barge Delaware, and Malinda Wilbur, a Sandhills resident drowned during the storm, were read aloud as flowers honoring their memory were placed in the surf by children of local residents. Finally on Sunday November 29, 1998 at a dedication service" the Sea Street Bridge was renamed in honor of Captain Frederick Stanley the keeper of the Fourth Cliff Life-Saving Station. A crowd of over 300 gathered for this ceremony and listened to speakers that included Russell Clark, Dave Ball, Fred Freitas, Rev. Francis Regan, Ralph Crossen, Bud Francis, Representative Frank I-lynes, Senator Robert I-ledlund, and descendants of Captain Stanley. The weekend was a tremendous success, so much so that Chronicle contacted the Society and is doing a whole program on the Portland Gale. It will air on January 7, 1999. New Year's Day 1863 On the evening of lanuary 1, 1863 eighten year old Israel David Damon of the 43rd Regiment Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry Company F entered his tent and warmed his hands over his small wood burning tin stove. By the dim light of a bees wax candle he reached into his haversack and removed a slip of writing paper and a small lead pencil. From inside his tent, Private Damon could hear the murmur of voices with an occasional interjection of laughter as his fellow comrades sat around campres, sharing stories and Christmas gifts from home. Further distant he could hear the strains of fife and voices in song. The smell of woodsmoke and tobacco wafted in from the chilly night as the young soldier sat down at a makeshift desk of discarded cracker boxes. The 43rd Regiment Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry was formed in Boston during the summer of 1862. Company F was made up of men and boys who enlisted from such towns as Scituate, South Scituate, Cohasset, Hingham, Marshfield, Duxbury, Hanover, Kingston, Weymouth, and Old Abington. Those that enlisted did so for a nine month term. The 43rd Massachusetts arrived in New Bern, North Carolina in September of 1862. The city of New Bern had fallen to Union forces commanded by Major General Ambrose Burnside on March 14, 1862. Following its capture, the city was garrisoned by Union troops. To guard against Confederate guerilla attacks, additional Union forces were encamped outside the city along the Neuse River. When the 43rd arrived they marched outside the city to what would be their home for the next nine months, Camp Rogers. It was here at Camp Rogers that Private Damon wrote the following letter that long ago New Year’s evening. Throughout the letter we can sense young Damon's homesickness as he inquires about family and the weather back home in Scituate. Concerns over money, food packages, and letters sent from home are typical of military men throughout history. Also interesting is his mentioning of the serious wounding of his older cousin William R. Damon at the Battle of Fredericksburg only Sciudal-istoricaSociety p. 3 J3I.|3y1% weeks earlier. The letter also mentions the health of fellow soldier and Scituate neighbor Warren Sherman who enlisted with Damon in the 43rd Massachusetts the previous summer. In his conclusion he mentions Company F Commander i Captain Charles Soule of Scituate who, in 1887 would become Commander of the George W. Perry Post 31 Grand Army of the Republic at our Grand Army Hall.