Manchester High School - Somanhis Yearbook (Manchester, CT)

Page 30 text:

28 SOMANHIS EVENTS bottles of a thick greenish glass. The ruins of this factory, which was closed in 1830 form a most picturesque reminder of olden days. Manchester Green was famous for its wagon factories. Benjamin Ly- man, living in the house now occupied by Mr. Arthur Cook, manufactured wagons in the shop east of the house, Farther down the turnpike road stood , the Bliss Wagon shops, and on East Center street were the Cone Wagon Shops. The first post office in the town was built in 1808 at Manchester Green. [n 1812 Orford Parish wished to be separated from East Hartford and become a separate township, but it was not until 1823 that the town was incorporated under the name of Manchester. In 1836 the first Cheney silk mill was built and in 1854 the present com- pany was incorporated. The center of business and population had now moved from Manches- ter Green, and other parts of the town were developing rapidly. The post office at Manchester was established in 1850 and that at South Manches- ter in 1851. In the same year the railroad passing through Manchester was opened, and the stage coach lines were discontinued. The growth of the town since that date has been very rapid and its history in later years is familiar to all. HANNAH JENSEN, ’20. K K XK WOMEN IN THE BUSINESS WORLD Much of the work of this country, as well as of other countries in the world, is in the hands of women and girls. The vocations in which they are engaged are many and diverse.. Probably the greatest number are clerks and saleswomen; stenographers, typists, and bookeepers make up a large percentage of the total. It is only in very recent times that much thought has been given to the vocational training of girls. Many an energetic young woman has failed to achieve success in her work because her choice of a vocation was an un- wise one. A girl should know a good deal about human nature, as well as many facts in regard to the work upon which she wishes to enter. The occupation of a stenographer is in many respects one of the most attractive open to girls, and for that reason many seek to become such who are not adapted to the work. Let the would-be stenographer ask herself in all seriousness whether or not she has the necessary qualifications for the position in question. If the answer is in the negative, she should seek some other field of usefulness. There is a commercial course in our high school, as well as in most of the high schools of today, and shorthand can be taken up at the same time that the student is obtaining a general education. Beware of the schooi which promises a practical knowledge of the subject in a short time—six weeks or three months. The number of profitable occupations which can be learned in six weeks is certainly very limited, and the kind of stenogra- phy which can be put to practical use in a business office can not be learned in that time. One of the advantages of the study of shorthand is the number of possibilities open to the proficient stenographer. We hear a great deal nowadays about the position of private secretary. Such a posi- tion is generally filled by the advancement of some stenographer in the of- fice who has shown unusual ability in her work, and above all—who can

Page 29 text:

ca) SOMANHIS EVENTS 1s ended. A nurse’s true characteristics come to light after the novelty and excitement of hospital life have worn away. There is no other profession that trains a girl so well for her probable future as a homekeeper and mother. She learns household management, dietetics, sanitation and care of children; but above all, her social horizon is broadened, and she learns responsibility. From the beginning she is en- gaged in living problems, vital human affairs, and she cannot but profit by her experience. The girl who enrolls in the army of Florence Nightingale first finds herself, but in so doing, creates a place of real service in the world, and becomes a source of uplift in the community in which she lives. ELIZABETH CHENEY BAYNE, ’20. RK OR THE EARLY HISTORY OF MANCHESTER Manchester is one of the four towns whose territory at one time be- longed to the town of Hartford. The section extending eastward from the Connecticut River to the neighborhood of the present Hillstown Road in Manchester was known as the Three-mile Lots. From this point east to the Bolton Hills stretched a broad belt of woodland known as the Commons, and forming part of the hunting grounds of Joshua, Chief of the Western Niantic Indians. In 1673, Joshua sold to Major Talcott of Hartford a strip of this Common land extending from the Three-mile Lots five miles east to what is now the Bolton town line. This land became the property of the town of Hartford and was used at first as hunting grounds, but was in- tended for division later into individual holdings for the encouragement of settlement to the eastward, Later the large township of Hartford was divided into the townships of Hartford and East Hartford. The more populated section of the eastern township near the river, was usually referred to as East Hartford, whiie the eastern and less settled territory, which now forms the town of Man- chester, was called East Hartford Five Miles. By this time settlement had begun within the limits of the five mile lots, the first settlers apparently having established their farms at the western edge of the town, in what is now the Sixth School District. Later the settlers in this section adopted the name of Orford Parish. In 1745 the first school in town was established, which was located in the present sixth district. By 1772 Orford Parish had grown sufficiently in size to warrant the establishment of a separate church. A petition was forwarded to the legislature, and in spite of opposition from East Hartford permission was granted for the incorporation of the Eccelesistical Society of Orford Parish. The second paper mill in Connecticut was built in Manchester on the Hockanum River, and the “Connecticut Courant” printed the news of the battle of Lexington on paper supplied by that mill. Manchester Green was the business center of the town in its early days. The opening of the Middle Turnpike in 1794 between Boston and New York added to its importance. Two stages passed through here each day, one go- ing to Boston and one to New York. At that time the only stores in the town were at Manchester Green, and here the people from the country round came to do their shopping. Near the Green was located the Pitkin Glass Factory, built in 1783 by Rich- ard Pitkin. The chief products of the factory were large demijolins and

Page 31 text:

SOMANHIS EVENTS 29 be trusted not to talk about her employer’s affairs, for the position of pri- vate secretary is essentially a confidential one. The fundamental requirements, truthfulness, honesty, industry, kind- ness, self-reliance, courage, and trustworthiness, must be met by the girl who is to enter the ranks of the world’s workers and march: forward to suc- cess. Sincerity of purpose, habits of industry, punctuality in performing work, alertness in seizing opportunties, zeal in performing the task assigned, and a willingness to do more than the required task—these are the qualifica- tions of the successful worker in every vocation. Personal appearance also goes a great way, and while every girl cannot be beautiful, any girl can be neat and clean. Most people know something of the work done by women during the war, The first ambulance on duty in the first Zeppelin raid on London was driven by a woman. They were not ashamed to don overalls and to clean locomotives and carriages in England. At one time while the war was raging there were between 800,000 and 1,000,000 women in the munition works. Who of us a few years ago ever thought there would be police-women ? Since the inauguration of factory-police work for women in England, in July 1916, a marked success has attended the organization which has re- sulted in almost daily application for policewomen in every part of the United Kingdom, Not one single woman has failed at her post or shirked her duty in the hour of danger. The leading professions are today inviting women as never before. From primitive times women have been interested in the administering of medicine. Now we find the number of women physicians in reguiar practice rapidly increasing in both Europe and America. Those European countries which, a decade ago, frowned upon the practice of medicine by women are now sincerely regretting that there are not more of them quali- fied to serve as physicians. Even as recently as thirty years ago, the Pres- ident of the British Medical Association said, “I am not oversqueamish, but 1 almost shudder when I hear of the things that ladies now do or attempt to do, One can but blush and feel that modesty once inherent in the fairest of God’s creations is fast fading away.” Dentistry also is open to women, although it does not seem to attract as many as do the medical profession and nursing, On the lecture platform there are many women who have a large place in the appreciation of the public. There has been quite an advance in the last three quarters of a century. We are told that when Miss Lucy Stone Was announced to speak on anti-slavery at Malden, Massachusetts in 1847, the announcement read as followes: “I am requested by Mr. Mowey to say that a hen will undertake to crow like a cock at the Town Hall this after- noon at five o’clock. Anybody that wants to hear that kind of music will, of course, attend.” When Miss Stone died in 1893, just forty-six years later, the Boston Herald said: “She goes to her grave honored, beloved, and mourned by the whole American people.” Today women lecturers, provided they are good speakers, are welcomed just as cordially in a public gathering as are men. I have mentioned only a few of the professions in which women are engaged. There are numerous others. Miss Mary Haynes holds a very responsible position as law-expert in one of the widely known New York real estate firms. When a senior in high school her father died. The heavy burdens, both of home-making and financial worry fell on her mother. It was necessary for Mi ss Haynes to leave school. With one year of book-