Governors Academy - Milestone Yearbook (Byfield, MA)

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495 Washington St., Dedham, Mass., March io, 1932. Mr. Edward YY. Eames, Headmaster, Governor Dummer Academy, South Byfield, Mass. Dear Mr. Eames: I I am handing you herewith a copy of the Coat of Arms of Honorable William Dummer. The Dummer Coat of Arms is described in Burke's General Armory as follows: Az. three fleur-de-lis or, on a chief of the second, a demi lion ramp issuant sa. Crest. A demi lion ramp. az. holding a fleur-de-lis or. In my search I consulted Mr. Charles K. Bolton, Chief Librarian of the Boston Atheneum, who gave the same description in his book on American Armory. He had a photograph of the Dum- mer Coat ofArms as engraved on a Hagon given by Honorable William Dummer to the Hollis Street Church in 1753. This filagon is described in detail in Old Silver of .American Churches. The Hollis Street Church has long been out of existence, and at Mr. Bolton's suggestion, I visited the Boston Art Museum where I found the Hagon on loan and now owned by the First Church in Boston CI63Ol. It was a rare privilege to take this beautiful piece in my hands and examine in detail the fine workmanship of the Boston silversmith, William Cowell, Jr. At the same time I was impressed with the thought of its use on the Communion Table of one of the early Boston churches. The inscription above the Coat of' Arms reads: Presented to the Church of Christ in Hollis Street under the Pastoral care of the Rev. Mather Byles, D.D. -and below the Coat of Arms: By the Honorable VVilliam Dummer Esq. Late Lieut. Governor and Commander in Chief of the Massachusetts. Cn the bottom is engraved: This Humbly Dedicated by XYilliam Durnmer to the Church of Christ in Hollis Street for the Communion Table- I753. I have had a copy of this Coat of Arms made, with its mantling, because of its historical connection and the fine execution of every detail. It has been a great pleasure for me to make the search for the Dummer Coat of Arms, and I am very happy to present a copy to Governor Dummer Academy. Sincerely yours, CMM Cfamff

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The Father of Governor William Dummer The friends of the Governor Dummer Academy are naturally interested in the story of its founder, but to appreciate what he stood for in Massachusetts in the first half of the 18th century it is necessary to know something of his parentage and background. He was descended from an old English family of good standing and some property. His grandfather, Richard, emigrated to America and settled on a farm at Newbury. Richard's son Jeremiah,-or Jeremy as he was commonly called- was born there September 14, 1645. Shortly before Jeremy was fourteen he was sent to Boston to be apprenticed to John Hull the goldsmith, or silversmith, as we should say today. Hull was a noted character of the time, a leader in civic affairs, best remem- bered today as Master of the Mint at which the pine-tree shillings were struck. He lived in a large house, with a garden, on the southwest corner of what are now known as Washington Street and Temple Place. Doubtless his silver shop and mint were adjacent though under a separate roof. He and his partner, Edward Saunder- son, were among the earliest of the long and noted line of silversmiths in Boston in the 17th and 18th centuries-a succession which included Paul Revere-who pro- duced the beautiful pieces of silver so highly valued today. Hull made an entry in his diary for 1659 as follows: Ir! of 5111 I Received into my house Jeremie Dummer and Samuel Paddy, to serve me as apprentices eight years. The Lord make me faithful in discharge of this new trust committed to me, and let the blessing be to me and them ! Hull's prayer was answered so far as Jeremy was concerned, but Paddy was a scapegrace, who presently wandered off to London and the Wiest Indies, and apparently came to no good end. Twenty-two years later, in 1681, Hull wrote to Paddy, Had you abode here and followed your calling you might have been worth many hundred pounds of clear estate and you might have enjoyed many more helpes for your sole. Mr. Dummer lives in good fashion hath a wife and three children and a good Estate is a member of the church and like to be very useful in his Generation. A boy of that period in Boston, seeking to learn a craftsman's trade could, in truth, have had no better chance than came to Jeremy, and he did make good use of it. W'hen his apprenticeship was served, he set up for himselfin business. He married Anna Atwater in 1672, held a series ofminor public offices, which show the esteem in which his fellow citizens held him, was a deacon in the First Church, for which he made two beautiful communion cups, and died in Boston in his seventy-third year, on May 15, 1718, after an honorable and prosperous career. His portrait shows a man of fine presence and dignity, and his silver, of which several dozen pieces are known to be extant, exhibits a high degree of craftsmanship and artistic skill. Indeed the silver produced by the Boston silversmiths-more than thirty in number -of the late 17th and early 18th centuries, is as fine in workmanship as that pro- duced in any town of the British empire outside of London. Jeremiah Dummer had several children. William, who became governor and who, dying childless, left his house and lands to found the Academy, was born in 1677. He was not a popular official, but was universally respected for his ability, his integrity, and his constant endeavor to deal fairly with the confiicting political elements in the province and to hold an even balance between the rights of the crown and the claims of the colony. W'illiam's younger brother, Jeremiah, Jr., Qalso 1.3