History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts - citizen hylbom blog

missed. In May, 1S:J0, the town voted to receive
the " manifesto " of the Second Religious Society,
and not to oppose their petition for an act of
incorporation. This Second Eeligious Society
erected a meeting-liouse, and established itself as
a distinct body. Efforts made to reunite the two
factions were of no avail, but from some cause the
Second Society failed of success, and they finally
split, the society retaining the house and charter
with Rev. Bernard \Vliitnian as pastor, and the
church forming a new organization under Rev.
Sewall Harding. In 18;J1, U'l'l, and 18:J;3
Luke Fiske represented the town in the General
Court, the last year in connection with Charles
Lyman. In March, 182-3, the town voted to pro-
cure iire-ladders, hooks, etc., and in 1829 appro-
priated $350 to purchase a fire-engine; this was
the germ of our present fire department. In 1 824
Isaac Bemis, Jr., and David Townsend, Esq., were
representatives; in 1825, Luke Fiske, Esq.; in
1826, David Townsend; in 1827, David Towns-
end and Isaac Bemis, Esq.; in 1828, 1829, and
18;3(), Jonas Clark. In 1829 the town voted to
exclude needlework from the summer schools in
tile morning, and to allow it in the afternoon, and
in 1830 a small sum of money was appropriated
by the town to procure medals to be given to those
scliolars deemed most deserving. On the .30th of
July, 1830, the meeting-house erected by the Sec-
ond Society was struck by lightning and burned.
In 1831 Amos Harrington ami David Townsend,
Esq., were elected representatives. As early as in
1820 the project of a grammar school had been
agitated, an act passed by the General Court in
June, 1789 (according to an item in the warrant,
but a law passed not far from 1700 was very simi-
lar), making such a school incumbent on every
town containing two hundred families ; but it was
dismissed one year, only to come up the next. In
1821 the town was sued for not complying with
the provisions of the act of 1789; but our town
fathers were apparently but little concerned, and it
was not untd 1832 that the progressionists gath-
ered strength enough to overcome the opposition.
In that year the town appropriated §1,200 to
build a grammar-school house and town-house on
the old meeting-house common. Subsequently it
was voted to change the location to a "gore of
land" owned by Mr. Lyman, he oflering to give
the land and §200 in furtherance of the plan.
But this was not satisfactory, and after so many
WALTHAM. 427
though the project would finally be smothered in
motions and amendments, the town purchased
of Mr. T. R. Plympton the piece of ground now
occupied by the North Grammar-Scliool House,
increased the appropriation somewhat, and erected
the building there. The following year tJie to« n
appropriated §300 to enable the general school
committee to hire a schoolmaster and establish a
high school, aud the committee were instructed to
commence such a school at as early a day as possi-
ble. Following out the history of this scliool to
the present time, we find that tlie first princij)al was
Franklin Hardy, the second Josiah Rutter (1835),
the third William H. Ropes (1838), the fourth
E. A. W. Harlow (1841), the fifth Charles F. Simmons
(181.2), the sixth Daniel French (1842), the
seventh William H. Ropes (1844, second time),
the eighth Leonard P. Frost (1847). During
Mr. Frost's term of service, in 1849, the interior
of the building was altered, the town giving up the
use of the upper story for public purposes, and es-
tablishing a high school there distinct from the
graunnar department, Mr. Frost taking charge of
the former, and being succeeded in tiie latter by
his brother, George W. Frost. In 1859 L. P.
Frost again took charge, and he was succeeded in
1869 by William E. Sheldon, in January, 1871,
by Alouzo Meserve, in September, 1871, by
John T. Prince, in 1877 by John S. Hayes, in
1879 by J. T. Prince (second time), who is now
teaching.
In 1868 the town established a grammar school
upon the south side of the river, of which Arthur
P. Smith was appointed principal, a position held
by him at present. Tlie principals of the high
school succeeding Mr. Frost have been TimntJiv
W. Bancroft (1859), A. J. Lathrop (1864), James
C. Parsons (1865), Minton Warren (1874), W. E.
Bunten (1876), and Ruel B. Clark (1877). Mr.
Parsons resigned his situation in 1873, the scIiool
being in charge of sub-masters James L. Fowle
and Frederick T. Farnsworth until his successor
was appointed. Mr. Clark resigned in 1878,
C. W. Parmenter, sub-master, becoming acting
principal. The number of schools at present
(April, 1879) is thirty-seven, exclusive of evening
schools (established in 1874), and the appropria-
tion has increased corresjiondingly, about §32,000
being now required for the annual expenses.
Between the years 1831 and 1879 the town was
represented in the General Court by the following
meetings aud so many votes that it seemed as persons (except 1833-35, when the town did not