Wellesley High School - Wellesleyan Yearbook (Wellesley, MA)

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The East and West Parishes of Needham were separated mainly by geographic location. The inhabitants of both were primarily mill operators or farmers who were dependent on the sale of products from the mills, and of wood, faggote, and barrel hoops, to provide the necessities of life they were unable to raise. In spite of this common bond, residents of Needham ' s East and West Parishes had difficulty in maintain¬ ing good relations with one another. Those in the West Parish made several attempts to establish a separate town but they were unsuccessful over a long period. In 1851 the part of West Needham that is now Wellesley Hills became Grantville in honor of Moses Grant, who had given a bell for the first edifice of the Wellesley Hills Con¬ gregational Church (established in 1847). At that time West Needham, as a whole, was a country community with no water system, sidewalks, street lights, gas or electricity, telephones, police force or fire department. In 1874, street lamps were ac¬ quired, in the late 1870 ' s telephones began to appear, and other “new fangled contraptions” followed. The Hunnewell Gardens, with Wellesley College Hall in the distance. Courtesy Wellesley Historical Society In any history of Wellesley, one name stands out; that of Hunnewell. During 1852 Horatio Hollis Hunnewell, who in 1836 had married Isabella Pratt Welles, called their newly completed mansion “Wellesley” after her family. Around it he developed several beautiful and elaborate gardens that soon became famous, drawing folks from far and near. The flower in our town seal symbolizes these gardens. Finally, when West Needham “packed” a town meeting at the Poor Farm (now the Wellesley Country Club), the citizens of the west voted to separate from the east. With the approval of the Legislature, the incorporation went into effect on April 6, 1881. The new town was named Wellesley for Mr. Hunne- well’s generosity over several decades. The population was 2,600; the tax rate $9.50 per thousand during the first year. 22

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The present Wellesley was once the northern part of Dedham, settled in 1636 by 19 men who were granted territory both north and south of the Charles River that today embraces nearly a dozen towns. The first white settler in the area now Wellesley was Andrew Dewing, who in 1659 was granted land on which he built a garrison house. Most of the early settlers located their dwellings nearer the center of Dedham. This community was called “Continent” by the people, but the first pastor was from Dedham, Eng¬ land, and so the settlement was renamed Dedham. In those days a man had to belong to the local church in order to have the privilege of voting. Most of what is now Dedham, Needham and Wel¬ lesley belonged to Chief Nehoiden and his tribe. In 1680, the inhabitants of Dedham wished to obtain clear titles to their land. Therefore they gave Nehoiden ten pounds in English currency, forty shillings worth of Indian corn and forty acres of their land. A similar transaction was made that same year with Chief Maugus for land extending to Natick and Weston. As Dedham grew, the citizens toward the west desired to form a separate town with their own church. In 1710, they presented a petition to the General Court for the incorporation of a second town. That request was opposed by Dedham, but another was granted in 1711. The new town was called Needham after Need¬ ham, England. 1774 iR ' ic Ce r 0 Wellesley Congregational Church (used in NuHMt j laced Church Street, ’then part of main road to (drawing by late Wm. L. Taylor from description.) Courtesy Wellesley Historical Society While all this settling was taking place, industry was also beginning to grow. In 1704 Benjamin Mills built a sawmill in what is now Wellesley Lower Falls. He was also the owner of the Mills Inn where royal gover¬ nors and other dignitaries often stopped on their way from the coast to inland towns. Other kinds of mills followed for the next two hundred years to produce iron, leather, snuff, paper, machinery, chocolate, chemi¬ cals and paint, to name a few products. Stories about people in the Lower Falls and other parts of West Needham (now Wellesley) as well as in South Natick were collected by Harriet Beecher Stowe, author of Uncle Tom ' s Cabin. This new book was named Old Town Folks. In the meantime, Needham was having its troubles. Its first meetinghouse burned down. Up to this time the town had been a single parish divided geographi¬ cally by a plain about in the center. With the loss of the meetinghouse, the people in the west part of Need¬ ham wanted a church located nearer their part of town. An argument ensued between the residents of the two sections and there was much bitterness between them. When a small majority voted to rebuild the meet¬ inghouse on the original site, the result was a split between the sections. Finally, in 1774, the residents in the west acquired authority to establish the West Parish and eventually erected their own meetinghouse. The Reverend Thomas Noyes was ordained the first minister of the West Parish and remained in this position for thirty-four years. The west meetinghouse was located on the present site of the Village Church (Wellesley Con¬ gregational) but faced Church Street. (Central Street was designed much later.) 21

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Mr. Hunnewell continued to be most generous to¬ ward the new town, for he commissioned the erection of the original library and then the town hall. He also donated Morton Field, and land for the first Hunnewell School on Central Street, as well as the playfields that bear his name. Although this town was West Needham during the Revolutionary War, Wellesley residents can be proud of a very noble record of patriotism. Two companies of Minutemen were organized in West Needham prior to the outbreak of war. On the 19th of April, 1775, one company marched to Lexington under Captain Aaron Smith and the other under Captain Caleb Kingsbury. Although only one man, Amos Mills, was killed that day from West Needham, the whole of Needham suf¬ fered more casualties in battle than any other Massa¬ chusetts town. The war consolidated the two feuding sections of Needham for the time being. Near the present entrance to Wellesley College, at East Lodge on Washington Street, stood a tavern kept by Ephraim Bullard. Upon receiving news of the British march toward Concord, Bullard ran up the nearby hill and fired three gunshots to summon the Minutemen. These were joined at the tavern by the women, and all melted lead and molded it into bullets. As soon as they were supplied with ammunition, the Minutemen departed for the war. Out of a population of one thousand, Needham sent three hundred men. After the Revolution, a drowsy peacefulness settled over the community of West Needham. A stimulating event in 1834 was the arrival of the Boston and Wor¬ cester Steam Railway as far as this town. This was a turning point in community life, because with the rail¬ road came more residents and more businesses. Num¬ erous wealthy people moved from Boston to what is now Wellesley and built some of the mansions that can still be seen in the area. It was thus that Wellesley began its career as a suburb of Boston. With this influx of new families came some of the individuals of whom Wellesley can be proud. In 1846 Dr. William Thomas Green Morton of this town was the first to demonstrate the use of ether at the Massa¬ chusetts General Hospital. He lived on the present site of the town hall from 1845 until his death in 1868. In 1867, William Denton built a home for his family on the present Denton Road. They moved here so they could enjoy country life and the five children became avid naturalists like their father. His sons gathered and mounted butterflies and moths that formed an unusual collection with many rare specimens from all parts of the world. They won the gold and silver medals at the 1900 World’s Fair in Paris for the beauty and educational value of their collection. Meanwhile; at the outbreak of the Civil War, life in this town was again disrupted—this time to raise sums of money for the Union Army and to send troops to the war in the south. Joseph Emery Fiske was active on the committee that procured committees and provided clothing and supplies for enlisted men and their fami¬ lies. The men here participated in heated war meetings; the women made warm clothing for the Army. The setbacks of the Civil War were forgotten when, in the early 1870’s, a wealthy man brought prominence to this area. He was William Emerson Baker, who ac¬ quired 800 acres on what is now Grove Street and erected numerous buildings. He built formal gardens and a conservatory; an artificial lake (Lake Sabrina) stocked with fish and swans, also a boathouse on an is¬ land in the lake, bridges and a steamboat; elaborate fountains, underground tunnels and caves; a deer park and small zoo; and even a five-floor museum with exhibits and amusements. When it was completed, he called his estate Ridge Hill Farms. There was an ad¬ mission charge of ten cents and small fees for special exhibits. It was the “Disneyland” of the day and folks came from near and far to visit it. When Baker’s trained bear escaped and had to be shot, Mr. Baker sent out hundreds of formal invitations to its funeral. This re¬ ceived much publicity as many dignitaries came to the affair—it was followed by a feast and fireworks. A monument nineteen tiers high, shaped like a bottle, was erected over the bear’s grave. On a flag waving from the top was printed “To the Departed Spirits.” Mr. Baker died in 1888 and his estate was never kept up: it is now divided into many residential lots. But legends of it remain as testimony to a lighter side of Wellesley history. Soon after the Civil War, in 1871, an important chap¬ ter of town life began with the laying of the cornerstone of the original main building of Wellesley College. The college was founded by Henry Fowl Durant, a lawyer of means who had intended his estate for personal use. With the death of his only son, Mr. Durant gave up his law practice and devoted his time, talents and money to the educational institution. His aim was to “offer to young women opportunities for education equivalent to those usually provided in colleges for young men.” 23