History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts - citizen hylbom blog

322 HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY.
raised, four substitutes \i-ere procured, and one citi-
zen pcrsonallv answered the country's call.
October 17, the President made a further call
for three hundred thousand volunteers, and, with
some difficulty, the town filled her quota of ninetytwo
men by March, 1861.
In July, 1861, the Somcrville Light Infantry,
Captain Coffin, went to the front for one hundred
days, but participated in no engagement.
Somerville furnished forty commissioned officers
and one thousand and eighty-five men for the war,
in all branches of the service, which was a surplus
of one hundred and forty-seven. above the number
required. Ninety-eight were Idlled, or died of
disease incident to the hardships of war, and
two hundred and fifty were wounded. The whole
amount of mo]iey appropriated by the town for war
purposes, exclusive of state aid, was $133,039.41,
and $65,823.38 was voluntarily contributed by
the citizens.
Upon the selectmen and war committees de-
volved unusually arduous labors, and to Tliomas
Cunningham, recruiting officer during the greater
part of the war and town trcii.-iirrr fnr 1863, 1861,
and 1865, the town is esp((i:illy m.l.hted for his
energetic efforts in the various iliquivlnicnts of the
war business, and for preparing and preserving a
careful record of the transactions and expenditures
of this period.
The women of Somerville were not less patriotic
than the men ; and actively engaged in all possible
labors to manifest their sympathy and furnish ma-
terial aid. Soldiers' aid societies were formed for
making clothing and other articles of comfort for
tlie soldiers in camp or hospital ; niniiy delicacies
were prepared for the sick or wouiidi'd ; fairs were
held for the purpose of raising money ; and all that
womanly tenderness or womanly ingenuity could
suggest, was cheerfully assumed, and as success-
fully accomplished.
In the summer of 1863 a marble monument
was erected in the cemetery, to the memory of
those from the town who iiad fallen or were yet
to fall in tiie service of tlieir cdunfry. It was
erected Willi Ihe residue of llie rniid y-.n-vA for tile
Somerville l.iglil Infintry at lheirrn-.t -,,ing forth.
It is a small and simple slialt , stniidiiiii; in tlie mid-
dle of the yard, crowded with names, miil it was the
first monument erected in Massaelniselts to the fallen
soldiers and .sailors in the War of the Rebellion.
In 1866 a rea])portionment of legislative dis-
tricts was authorized, and Somerville and Maiden
were united into the Fourth District, and entitled
to three representatives, in a ratio of sixteen to
fourteen upon an aggregate of thirty representa-
tives in the ten years, and under the census of
1875, upon which a new apportionment was made
in 1876, Somerville became entitled to send three
representatives to the General Court, which was
done for the session of 1877 and thereafter.
In 1867 a night watch was established.
During this year the Forster School building was
erected, and the large hall in the ujipcr story was
fitted up for the use of the town. Town-meetings
were first held in the Medford Street school-house,
or the little eiiiiiue-house on the corner of Prospect
and A\';ishiiietiin streets, until the completion of the
Unitarian Clmrch, when its vestry was hired for
the meetings. The town occupied the lower hall
of the high-school house from the time of the
erection of this building until the increasing
needs of the school compelled a transfer of the
town-hall to the Forster School.
For several years the subject of an abundant
supply of pure water had been under consideration.
Previous to the year 1861 the inhabitants had de-
pended upon wells, not only for drinking purposes,
but generally in case of fire. For the five years
succeeding this date the east village, the McLean
Asylum, and a part of Winter Hill had been supplied
from the mains running from Mystic Lake
to Charlestown. At a meeting of the town, November
5, 1867, a committee was appointed to
meet the Charlestown board of water commission-
ers, and to contract for the general introduction of
Mystic water into the town. April 13, 1868, this
committee reported, and another, consisting of
Aaron Sargent, C. E. Rymes, R. E. Demmon,
R. A. Vinal, and C. Downer, was instructed to
procure an act from the legislature authorizing the
town to make arrangements for a water supply,
and to raise $100,000 for defraying the cost of
the same. September 18, the act was accepted by
the town, and the committee, styled the Somerville
Mystic Water Committee, proceeded to confer with
the Charlestown authorities. Within three days a
contract was drawn Tip and signed, whereby the
inhabitants of Somerville should be sniTiciently
furnished with water, provided the su])])ly was
more than ade(|iialo for the wants of Ciiarlestown
and Clulsen, a( Ihe rates charged to the inhabitants
of these cities, with a rebate to the town. Distri-
bution pipes were iniTncdiately connected with the
Charlestown mains, at the conier of Medford Street