History of Fairfield County, Connecticut

*■ When tho Into Uncle Snni Jennings wns wnrdcn hi- got n cntp of Imy from tlio gronntl. Ho lind previously Issurd a jiroclanintton forbidding tlio olwtrnction uf tlio liigliwn.vti of tlio village. One aHornoon lie loaded liis cni I with the Imy, but, it being late, ho left tlio load in the Btreot for tho night. A number of unknown paitit^, in the fear of tho law and Willi a most eoninieii'lable regard for its iutegiity. drew the cart to tho ]iound in tho night, pitched tho liny over into the inclu«ure, then toiik the eart to jiieL-e.' and i>aiwcd that over, and then llnished up by reloading the hay and leaving the wliulc within t]ie pound. ** The feelingH of Warden Jennings when he discovore<1 the location of Ms hay the next morning can easily 1h> innigincd. But ho issued no niaiiifestu nor offered any reward for tho apiirehun^ion of the net<;int. lie remembered where he had left liis curt the night before, and silently went to work to i>itch the hay outside, to take the cait apart and get that over, and then to put tho uinchinory tugellier again and reload the hay. " That was in tho ' good uld times.' " WOOSTER CE.METERY.* The visitor to Danbury is impressed with two things in its favor, — first, its good care of the living; second, its good care of the dead. Tlie first is demonstrated in its facilities for eihicating the young and in providing for the helpless ; the secimd is sliown in the beautiful appearance of its cemetery. Perhaps there is no i)lace in Connecticut that can show a burial-place having so many advantages, both natural and artificial. The general contour of the • Cont: it utcil by E<lgar 9. Tweedy. i ground is a ridge running the length of the place in part circle from east to nortli, inclosing a basin within the circle and a terrace outside. There are several small ridges surrounding the main ridge. The basin is flooded by a neighboring stream and divided into miniature islands covered with trees. From jwintson the main ridge the lake of islands is in jilaiTi sight, and presents a very pictiirestiue view to the oltserver. There is also a drive around the water. In laying out the roads and grounds for burial purposes, the taste displayed by the architects is ad- mirable. Advantage has been taken of all the points > presented by nature, and art has smoothed the rough I places and developed tliem into beauty. The great bulk of those owning lots have been equally jcaloii- of their appearance, and in many instances the-, spots have been made very beautiful. The gren! wealth of foliage in the cemetery strik&s the visitor as being remarkable. The most hardy variety of trees and shrubs have been selected, and, while the .shade " is abundant, it docs not entirely hide many of tho other attractive features of the place in a distant view. The grounds arc wHthin the village, and ar. consequently visited quite frequently, especially on a pleasant Sabbath, when there is a large number uf visitors. The DanbuiT Cemetery Association was organized in November, 1850, under a law of the State relating to cemeteries, with si.xty .shareholders at twenty-five dollars a share. The first purchase of land was made in December of that year, of William K. Clark, the ])iecc ' containing sixteen acres, for which three hundred dollars was paid ; and another piece, five and one- fourth acres, for eighty dollars, of C(d. E. Moss White. . Additions were made from time to time, and there are now about fifty acres in that part of the cemetery which is improved. In the spring and summer of 1851 the grounds were laid out, roads made, and trees secured. Most of tlie evergreens were obtained from William Mann's nurs- erj' in Bangor, Me., .some of a suitable size to trans- plant, others, from six to twelve inches in height, set out in a nursery and transferred to the grounds when of a suitable size. Beneath the surface the soil is good and free from stone.s. Many of the knolls were quite barren and forbidding in exterior, but by the free use of muck, ii.shes, and manure a thrifty crop of gnuss appeared thereon. It was predicted by some that trees would not grow on this land, so naturally poor did it appear. Where the lake now is was a muck-swamp filled with bogs and bushes. These were collecfeil and burned, and the nuiek removed to cover the barren soil. The water which fdrins the lake .sets back fmiii the North Meadow stream, and, during a freshet, fill? the lake. A dam at the outlet keeps the water at u proper height. There is a fine spring, which never fails, on the ea.st border of the lake. The improved grounds are nearly inclosed by a DAXBURY. 237 substantia! stone wall, which is banked on the inside. Most of the material in the wall was lnou'ilit Ironi " Tamaraek Woods." On April 27, 1S.54, the Wooster jMonunient, whose top is conspicuous from a distance, was finished, and dedicated with appropriate ceremonies' to per]>etuate the memory of Gen. Wo<ister, of Revolutionary fame. The occasion was one of uncommon interest in this part of the State. There were fully ten thousand people present as witnesses of the ceremoniis. The Masonic lodges of the State and neighl)oring States were represented. His I-lKcellency, the ttowruor, with notables from abroad and military organizations from Bridgeport, New Haven, and Hartford, jiartici- pated in the affair. The Masonic display was the most imiKising ever made in the State. Hon. Henry C. Deming, of Hartford, delivered the oration. In 18(52 the reception-vault was built, unci four years later the massive stone columns at the entrance to the cemetery were erected. In Xoveiidier, 18(57, the association purchased of the late "William Augustus White about twenty-five acres, at thirty-five dollars per acre, lying on the east side of the road leading to Nortli Meadow and op]io- site the improved grounds. No improvements Inive been made on this plat, but the .setting out of ever- greens and other trees in places that will not be accejitcd tor I)urial purposes. The grounds were laid out and iinprovenients made by ami under the direction of George W. Ives and Edgar S. Tweedy. Mr. Ives died in 18(>2. His remains rest in the nortlieru point of the main ridge, and are marked by a massive granite cro.ss of simple design, in the liase of which is inscribed the following testimony i'roin his fellow-citizens : " Tills liiDnuiiK'iit is elected to George W. Ives l.y liis fiieiuls as a testi- muuial of tiie sen'ices in laying out and be.iutityiiig this cemetery, iiml in rememiirance of his public ami private worth." Since his death Mr. Tweedy has had the supervision of tlic grounds. POPULATIOX OF DANISURY. l7.-in l r.ot 1774 o/.^C jif-i 2!747 Kw JJ.'Z'.'.JZ""ZZ"^^Z!!!i!!^""!';'! -t'lKD l«in :(ii„ii 18-'0 : ;,,K7:i 1830 4:)11 1S4II 4>,()4 1850 .r,.ic,4 ISOO 7':)4 1870 ^l^;,■.i 1H80 11,U1'J THE DANBURY T.IIlliAKY as it exists to-day, with its commodious and elegant building on Main Street, the dwelling-house adjoin- ing, its books and other )iroperty, including its in- vested funds, is substantially the gift of one family,— that of the late E. Moss White, of Danbury. The late William Augustus While, of Brooklyn, son of E. Moss White, by his last will and testament be- queathed the sum of ten thousand didlars, to be paid five years after his decease, for the establishment of a jiublic library in his native borough <jf I>anbury. The Legislature of Connecticut, at its session in isdi), passed an act incor|ioratiiig the Danbury Library, which ai't was ajiprovetl by the Governor, .luiu: '<, 18(59. On the 1st <if June, 1870, Alexander M. White, of Brooklyn, brother of William Augustus Wbiti', and sole executor of his will, placed at the disposal of the trustees of the library the house on Main Street, in which be was born and in whiidi his parents died, to be used liir library ]iuriioses until a suitable building could be eri'ctcil upon the [iremises. At the same time, Mr. White also notilied the trustees of his will- ingness to give a plot of ground fitly feet on JIain Street by one hundred and lifty in depth, on which to erect a suitable building, and also the suiu of live thousand dollars, besides an ecjual amount t'l be given by his brother, George tiraiiville White, towards the erection of such a Imilding, so soon as the citizens of Danbury would join in erecting, free of debt, a suit- able building uiion this ground. At this iime Jlr. White directed that repairs be luaile upon the huiise so given, and that suitable furniture be purchused at an e.Kpen.se not to exceed five hundreil dollars, the cost of such repairs and purchases being paid by him. In 1871, Alexander M. White made a further dcnia- tion of five hunilred dollars tor the jnirchasc of books. A donation of live hundred dollars by the late Charles H. Merritt and of fifty dollars by Miss H. E. Merritt f<.ir the jiurcbase of books was made and accepted. The library continued to occupy the hou.se fiirnicrly the residence of E. Moss White till the fall of 187(5. In May of that year Mr. Alexander M. "White noti- fied the trustees of his desire to see a suitable build- ing erected upon the site fin- library uses, and of the offer of his brother, George Gi'anville White, to eon- tribute five thousand dollars for this jiurpose. To this amount Alexander M. White generously ofi'ered to add fifteen thousand dollars, making twenty thousand dollars in all. Mr. Wliite sulisciincutly oliered to re- move the old dwelling-house to the rear of the library lot at his own expense and to fit it up for rental, also to donate additional ground on the .south side and rear of the library lot, and directed that jilans be ob- tained fi)r a building costing from twenty thousand to twenty-live thousand dollars.