History of Barnstable County, Massachusetts - Chapter VIII, 1890 | 55KB | Ray Sears - LRSears@CapeCod.net

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CHAPTER VIII.
TRAVEL AND TRANSPORTATION.
BY HON. CHARLES F. SWIFT.
Packet Lines.--Mail Routes and Stage Coaches.-Railroads.--Express Lines.-Telegraph
and Cable Lines.-The Telephone Service.
THE methods of communication with the great centers of business
and intelligence serve to mark the progress of modern civiliza-
tion in a community. Travel on foot or on horseback between
the Cape and Plymouth, or Boston, was the primitive method when
such travel was imperative: but owing to the rude state of the roads,
the frequent necessity of fording streams, and the poorly constructed
bridges, this method of communication was resorted to onlp in cases
of extreme urgency. How great was the burden may be inferred from
the vote of the town of Yarmouth in 17'01, when Mr. John Miller. the
representative elect to the general court, was allowed two extra days
to go and return. " in consequence of his age and the greatness of the
journey." The water, under such circumstances, was the element
which offered the greatest inducements to travellers on the score of
comfort and speed, if not for perfect reliability. Though advantage
was usually taken of transient vessels to procure passage to and from
Boston, it does not seem probable that regular lines, running on fixed
and stated days, were established much if any before the beginning of
the present century; and it was thirty or forty years more before the
business assumed anything like the proportions which it arrived at a
few years prior to the establishment of railroad communications. It
was probably someu-hat later when stage coaches came into vogue,
and they, too, had to give way to the all-conquering steam cars,
The mode of travel by the packets was much better adapted to the
promotion of sociability and the cultivation of acquaintanceship than
our present rapid transit by rail. With twenty-five to fifty persons
crowded into the cabins and upon the decks of a small schooner, as
was often the case, there was frequent occasion to exercise the graces
of courtesy, self-forgetfulness and consideration for the convenience
of others. Men and women, thrown together under such circum-
stances, soon became sociable and communicative. All sorts of topics.were discussed, from original sin to the price of codfish. Experiences
were related and results compared. When these resources were ex-
hausted recourse was had to amusements, and not unfrequently the
younger and less rigid of the passengers would perhaps resort to a
game of checkers, or a quiet game of " old sledge," down in the hold
or the forecastle. Travel by packet was a great leveler of social dis-
tinctions-the squire, the village storekeeper, the minister or the
doctor being constrained to take up with the same fare as their more '
humble neighbors, upon whom they were obliged to depend for some
degree of deference or courtesy. On the other hand, 'these important
personages often felt impelled to exercise a degree of condescension
to those with whom they were thrown in such intimate relations. A
good steward was a great acquisition to a packet, as much dependence
was placed by all who were not seasick upon the refreshments served
to the passengers. It is well known that a sea trip is a great sharp-
ener of the appetites of such as have any appetite at all, and it seems
almost incredible, in view of the gastronomic feats accomplished on
some of these trips. that a living business could be carried on under
such conditions for twenty-five cents per meal.
Great was the excitement on land when the packet was signaled in
the offing or back of the bar. The shores were swarmed long before
her arrival, the wharf was crowded, and scores of expert hands were
ready to catch the warp as it was tossed ashore from the approaching
vessel. Then came eager inquiries for " the news," and an exchange
of greetings between reunited friends, or words of regret because of
the non-arrival of others. In those days scores of men from the Cape
villages sailed from Boston, and this was the usual way of reaching
home after their return from voyages abroad. The passengers landed
and order restored on the cluttered decks, bulk tias broken and the
freight briskly passed ashore. There were innumerable barrels, hogs-
heads, boxes, sides of beef, carcasses of mutton or pork, and jugs in
infinite variety, and not all of them filled with vinegar or molasses.
From the summits of the highest hills signals had been hoisted on
staffs to apprise the people on the south side that the packet was in.
Ample notice was given in the same way of her intended departure.
There was a good deal of rivalry between these vessels in the matter
of speed. The 3arnstable, Yarmouth and Dennis packets, and those
from the towns below, used to put forth their best efforts to make the
quickest trips, and the regattas of modern times were anticipated by
these rival packet craft. A good many five dollar bills changed hands
on some of these occasions between the betting friends of the differ-
ent vessels. Commencing on the bay side-because that was the
scene of the greater portion of their achievements--and at Sandwich
-by reason of its being the oldest town in the county-it will be a
 
.112 HISTORY OF BARSSTABLE COUSI'Y.
 
matter of general interest to trace the development, growth and ulti-
mate abandonment of the two channels of communication--the packet
and the stage coach.
SANDWICH.-The first packet between Sandwich and Boston, of
which there is any data existing, was the C/lnr~zi?~,rr Betty. a sloop of
forty-five tons, built in 1'717 by Thomas Bourne, and purchased by
Simeon Dillingham. Other packets, we know by tradition, plied be- . tween these ports, but their names have not been preserved. About
182.5 the sloops Pal/y, Captain Roland Gibbs, and S@~'in. Captain
Sewall Fessenden, were on this route, and Captain Charles Xye run
the Charles, which was built on the shore below the present town
house. Deming Jarves afterwards built, just below the glass works,
the sloop Sandwich (which was perhaps the first regular passenger
packet), also commanded by Captain Charles Nye. The fi*rrr)l C&Y,
built by Hinckley Brothers at West Sandwich in 1831-2. was com-
manded by Captain George Atkins. The sloop &m/l, commanded by
Calvin Fish, ran from the village with wood and passengers, and be-
tween these last two there was a sharp rivalry. The village people,
not satisfied with the sailing qualities of the SnrtrL, purchased the
schooner Nancy Fidey, and the competition continued. About 1840
the Boston and Sandwich Glass Company purchased the schooner
Sam/z, a fleet craft, also commanded by Captain Atkins. The village
people tried again, and bought the schooner Cobinrt; Captain Roland
Gibbs commanded her, and afterward the sloop Oscco/n, a fast sailer.
The packeting business was in its glory just before the advent of
steam cars, in 1848. Competition was brisk and rates were cut from
one dollar to twenty-five cents per trip. After the opening of the rail-
road the business began to decline. Captain Sears left the line and
took command of a brig in the freighting business. The Glass Com-
pany also took off its packet. The Wm. G. Ed&, Captain Stephen
Sears, ran a few months, but was not remunerative. Early in the
fifties, Mr. Jarves had a disagreement with the railroad company as
to the rates of freight, and in conversation with Mr. Bourne. the super-
intendent, threatened to put a steamer on the route between the Cape
and Sandwich. Mr. Bourne. it is stated, remarked that '& the acorn was
not yet planted to grow the timber for such a steamer." But the
steamer was built, and remembering the conversation, Mr. Jarves
named her the Acorrz. She ran a few years, and was commanded b>
Captain Roland Gibbs. But both steam and sailing vessels in the end
succumbed to the railroad as a means of communication with the out-
side world.
FALMouTH.---The geographical position of this town rendered regu-
lar water communication with Boston impracticable. But in the early
and middle parts of the present century there was constant and regu-
 
.TRAVEL .4ND TRdNSPORT.aTIOS. 113
 
lar communication with Nantucket, which was then a place of great
relative importance. Several vessels ran between Falmouth, East
Falmouth and Nantucket. with wood for the island, and all these craft
took passengers, particularly during the great local festival, " sheep-
shearing," when the natives and their friends from abroad held high
carnival together for a week! This intercourse continued after the
glory of sheep-shearing had departed, until the opening of steamboat
communication between Nantucket and the main land.
The first packet, of which any knowledge exists, running between
Falmouth and Xew Bedford, was a.large sail-boat owned and run by
Captain James Stewart about the year 1826. About 182'7 the sloop
Henry Clny, Captain Ezekiel E. Swift, was put upon the route between
the two places, and ran for several years. Owing to increase of busi-
ness about the year 1834, another sloop, called the SZ~V$+, was built and
run by Captain Swift, formerly of the Hmry C&y, which latter was
run by Captain John Phinney, both vessels running to and fro on
alternate days. In 1836 another sloop, the Tcq'wrn~m, was put on the
route and the HUZYJ~ CLdy was withdrawn. A few years later Captain
Swift retired, and was succeeded by Captain Oliver F. Robinson for
many years thereafter. Since the Woods Ho11 railroad was opened,
no direct line of packets has run to Xew Bedford from this town. But
daily and more frequent steamboat communication in summer is still
maintained between Woods Ho11 and Sew Bedford.
Regular communication was maintained between West Falmouth
and New Bedford by Captain 1Villiam Baker of the packet sloop iVilE,
with which for years he made tri-weekly trips from West Falmouth.
He and his craft were succeeded by Captain James D. Hoxie in the
sloop Pr~l~*ss, with which the three round trips weekly were made
until the opening of the Woods Ho11 railroad.
BARNSTABLE.-The town of Barnstable had in 1800 but a small
amount of shipping, and it is not known that any regular packet line
was maintained here. In 1806 the schooner Co~ri, 106 70-96 tons bur-
then, commanded by Captain Asa Scudder, made frequent trips be-
tween Barnstable and Boston. At the time of the declaration of war
with Great Britain. in 1812, the sloop I~?epe~zdc~zc~, of about thirty tons,
Captain Richard Howes, was running transiently as a Barnstable and
Boston packet. Before the close of the war, in 1814, on her return
passage from Boston, this vessel was fired into, boarded and burned
by the crew of the British frigate @r~zp/r, having been set on fire with
her sails all standing. The captain and passengers were taken in a
barge to the frigate. Their names were: Richard Howes, John
Lothrop, David Parker, Timothy Phinney and his young son, Syl-
vanus B. Phinney, all of Barnstable. They were landed the day fol-
lowing near Boston light. The cargo, mostly groceries, belonged to
 
8..TKAVEI. Ah-D TRASSl'ORT.\TION. 115
 
1852-3-4 the &7il, .!!n&&o and Pnwiuu~, Captain Arey, constituted the
line. During a portion of the season of 1854 the steamer ACOYE, Cap-
tain Gibbs, was running between Boston, Sandwich, Yarmouth and
Provincetown. The excursions of the steamers, so frequently made,
did not destroy the business, for in 1857 the Mnif, Captain Cracker,
dhhjr Goz&, Captain Young, and schooner L. SIIOW, Jr., Captain Backus,
continued to run through most of the year. During the season the
iVrrz'/made occasional trips to Boston, under the command of Captain
Aaron H. Young. The travel, however, had largely decreased, as the
railroad cars had commenced running. In 1858 the Mm?, Captain
Young (which vessel had been changed into a schooner), and the sloop
Si~zo~z P. Colt, Captain Cracker, continued to run through most of the
season. In 1859 the EmemM was sold, and in 1860 the fleet was re-
duced to the schooner Flora and the sloops Mni/ and Sinro~z P. Cole.
In 1861-2-3 there was not a vessel running regularly between Barn-
stable and Boston, most of them having embarked in the coasting
trade from other ports, and in 1864 it was rare that a flag was seen
flying at mast-head from vessels at either of the three wharves at
Barnstable.
YARMOUTH.-Probably before the commencement of this century
packets were running with more or less regularity between Yarmouth
and Boston. Captains Job Crowell, Nathan Hallet, Prince Howes and
Ansel Hallet were the earliest packet masters of whom knowledge
now exists. Captain Ansel Hallet commanded the sloop B&ey for
some years after the war of lS12-15. He afterward sailed another
sloop called the M~~.ss~*Icg~y, and lost his life in 1832, while laboring to
get her ready for sea. In swinging her around preparatory to start-
ing, the vessel grounded on a sandbar. Captain Hallet, while assist-
i.ng at low tide to di g beneath her in order to deepen the channel, was
crushed to death by the vessel rolling over.
At Town Dock, Captain Thomas Matthews, sr., some sixty years
ago, ran the sloop J/trrth Jrt~r between that part of Yarmouth and
Boston. Later Captain Isaac Hamblin commanded the sloop Emrmld
on the same line. This vessel was afterward sold and put on the line
from Barnstable. The other wharf and landing was at " Lone Tree,"
a little to the eastward of the present Central wharf, which was built
in 1832. This year the sloop Ffighr was placed on the Boston route
under the command of Captain Edward Hallet, son of Captain Ansel,
and the captain's brother, Xnsel, went a part of the time as his mate.
Captain Edward ran the Flkht until about the year 1850, when she was
sold, and Captain Hallet retired from the business. From some time
in 1828 to 1836, Captain Paddock Thacher commanded the schooner
Cotlrr)zodore H&l, and at the latter date was succeeded by Captain
Thomas Matthews. In 1841 Captain Matthews built the schooner
 
.116 HISTORY OF BARKSTABLE COUNTY.
 
Yarmouth, the best planned and most convenient craft that ever en-
gaged in the business from this port.. Captain Matthews commanded
her until 1849, when Captain Nathaniel Taylor took charge and ran
her until she was sold. Messrs. H. B. Chase & Sons employed her for
several years as a coaster between Hyannis and New York and vicin-
ity. About 1850 Captain Ansel Hallet ran a packet sloop called the
Maria. After that he engaged in the same business with the schooner
Claus. B. PG.&e, from 1856 to 1860, though not in that employment all
the time. She was wrecked the latter year off Manornet, Plymouth.
Contemporary with the FL&k and Ynr~to~t/l, from about 1841 to
1843, Captain Paddock Thacher ran the sloop Si~zorz P. Co/c. After
the sale of the Ynrmoulll, Captain Nathaniel Taylor commanded the
schooner Lucy E/izabcth from 1856 to 1859, when, in consequence of
injuries received on board, he gave up the command to Captain El-
kannah Hallet, who was in charge but a few months, being succeeded
by his brother Charles, who ran her two or three years, until she was
withdrawn. In 1862 Captain Edward Gorham, who had previously
run the schooner H. S. Bnrncs, with others purchased the schooner
North, of Dennis, which was run to Boston under the command of Cap-
tain Gorham, until the year 1870, when the iV0rfll was disposed of, and
since that time there has been no Boston packet from this place, where
two or three were formerly well supported. An attempt to run a
small sloop after the withdrawal of the ,Vurt/l, for certain kinds of
freight only, proved a failure.
DENSIS ASD EAST DEsrIs.-There seems to be a good deal of evi-
dence that regular communication by water between this part of the
Cape and Boston commenced at an early date. In letters written as
early as 1739, now in the possession of Captain Thomas P. Howes,
reference is made to such channel of communication. In the latter
part of the last century Captain Nathaniel Hall was running a packet
-name unknown-from Dennis to Boston. Early in 1800 Captain
Jeremiah Hall commanded a packet between Dennis and Boston. and
was knocked overboard and drowned on a trip from the latter place.
In 1821 the sloop .Srrf(y was built in the meadow below where Mr. S.
H. Nye now lives. and was launched and passed down the cove west of
the Bass Hole. She was twenty-eight tons burthen. and was mostly
owned by Captain Uriah Howes. who placed her on the route to Bos-
ton. She soon passed into the charge of Captain Ezra Hall, who ran
her as a packet until lS32. The sloop Hcroinr, commanded by Captain
Jeremiah Howes, sr., was put on the same route about the same time,
but was withdrawn sooner. The schooner ,l'ovth was built in Connec-
ticut in lS33, and commenced running under the command of Captain
Oren Howes, who had for some time previous commanded the Sal&.
The Norih was for that day a fine craft, with ample accommodations,
 
.TRAi-EL Ah-D TRASSPORTATION. 117
 
and Captain Homes was a popular and energetic commander. He gave
up his command in 1854, and was succeeded by Captain Isaiah Hall,
who had for some time been his mate. She continued on the route
until 1862, when she was sold to Yarmouth parties, being the last of
the Dennis packets.
The East Dennis packet trade was in early times kept up by tran-
sient vessels. It is stated that Mr. Edmund Sears, early in the cen-
tury, ran a Boston packet called the Erfsc~~ for a number of years.
Later, his two sons-Judah and Jacob-ran a packet schooner called
the .'Tn~ljln~~riB~*tsr~~. named for their two wives. Judah was nominally
the captain. This was previous to 1828. About that time Captain
Dean Sears ran a Boston packet schooner called the Eli&z nud Bdsey,
and at the same time Captain Joseph H. Sears was running a sloop
called the Co11~6inc. In 1833 two new schooners, the Dmid Porter and
the Corrtbthr, were put on this line--the latter seeming to be a popular
name in this locality. The old vessels were withdrawn, and Captain
Dean Sears commanded the Dmid Porter, and Captain Joseph H. Sears
the Cotnbiac. The former continued to run as a packet after all the
others had given up the business, and was not withdrawn until about
1874. She had, however, several masters. Captain Dean Sears left
packeting to command ships. Captains Constant Sears, Enos Sears,
Stillman Kelley (from 1840 to 1849) and Sears had charge of
her at various times. The Combiur had a much shorter career as a
packet. Captain Joseph H. Sears also left her to take charge of ships
in the foreign trade, and to own in and manage them. It can be
truthfully said of the packet masters who for half a century or more
plied between the north side of the town and Boston, that they were
men of great activity, extraordinary skill in handling their vessels,
seldom meeting with accidents, and of undisputed integrity of char-
acter.
CH;\rH.i>r.-Communication between Chatham and Boston by sail-
ing packets was for many years transacted via Brewster and Orleans,
especially the former. In the earlier times the freighting to and from
the city was in the fishing vessels after and before their summer voy-
ages were made, the trades-people being generally owners in these
craft. But more frequent and direct communication being needed,
the packets on the bay side were resorted to. There were two pack-
ets-the Cjlczt/rn~z and the SnmL--sailing from Brewster for several
years after 1830, which divided the patronage of the Chatham public.
They established a system of telegraphy, by means of flags and balls
hoisted on high points of land from one town to another, which indi-
cated the time of departure and arrival of these vessels. Conveyance
across the Cape was generally in open wagons, with baggage lashed
on behind. The farmers would leave the plough or scythe almost any
day to go to Brewster for passengers..The first regular packet between Boston and Chatham was the
Canton, built about the year 1830, and run by Barzillai Harding. Sev-
eral Chatham people owned an interest in her, and while she did a
good freighting business the bulk of the travel continued to go by the
Brewster route. Other packets came on later-the Jo/m J. Eafoll,
Captain Smith, Emit Johrsou, C. Taylor, 34 I? .]I. Bo~~ncy, and others.
Two good vessels were usually running at the same time, and did a
profitable business carrying freight, until the railroad came down to the
Cape, when the business gradually declined. A vessel, about the time
of the Cnfztofl, ran between this place and Nantucket. The women
used to go over to the island every year with produce for barter.
From ten to fifteen small vessels for many years ran between Chat-
ham, New Bedford and Sew York and the intervening ports, carrying
fish, and returning with produce, flour, grain and the like. For sev-
eral years prior to the opening of railroad communication, a regular
packet ran between Chatham and New Bedford.
BRE:\VSTEII.-The earliest packet between this place and Boston of
which there is any record, was the schooner h-public, commanded by
James Crosby about the years lS18-20. She used to land her freight at
a place on the shore called Point Rocks. Captain Crosby afterward com-
manded the sloop PoQ, in the same business. Captain Solomon Fos-
ter for several years ran a packet sloop called the Fnuzc; Captain
Nathan Foster also commanded her. The breakwater and boat wharf
were built by the owners of the packets about the year lS30. Captain
John Myrick commanded the schooner C'llnf/m~f~ for many years, and
afterward the sloop Rorr~4 nfrri JZM~(~, up to the time of the advent of
the rail cars. The schooner J;rml~ was a contemporary of the C/rn~/m~~z
during most of the time she was on the route, and was commanded
most of the time by Captain Freeman H. Bangs. Both these vessels
were finely fitted for the accommodation of passengers, and they ab-
sorbed a large portion of the travel from Chatham and Harwich as
well as from Brewster and vicinity. Captain Sathaniel Chase also
commanded a small schooner called L/i27 A-c/lr~~. some time before and
shortly after the railroad opened. 'There has been no packet on the
route for several vears.
OkI.E.\ss.-Tlie earliest Boston packet from this place, of which
there is any information, was a sloop of fifteen or twenty tons, Captain
Edward Jarvis, which was running in lS<@, and had then been some
little time on the route. She had poor accommodations for passengers,
and seldom carried any escept those who were in no hurry. Captain
Jarvis gave up his business in 1112, and was succeeded by a sloop
commanded by Captain Xsa Higgins. He was succeeded by Captains
Abiel Crosby, Jonathan Rogers, Jonathan Crosby, Obed Crosby, Seth
Sparrow and others but the names of their vessels are not now avail-
 
.TRA\-EI, ASL, TR.\SSPORT.%TIOX. 119
 
able. About 1820, the sloop Dr ll'dfc, commanded by Captain Simeon
Higgins, who afterward became so famous as a hotel keeper and stage
coach contractor, ran on this line for a number of years.
Not far from 182.5, the need of better facilities for transporting
their salt to Boston induced the manufacturers to encourage the con-
struction of two schooners, and the Presidctzt lV&/lingtmt, Captain War-
ren A. Kenrick, and LnfnJ,rttc, Captain Jesse Snow, were built to ac-
commodate the salt makers as .well as the general travelling public.
After a few years in command Captain Kenrick died and was suc-
ceeded by Captain Lot Higgins, and he, after a while by Captain
Joseph Gould and others. The decline of the salt business led to the
disposal of the two vessels and the substitution of smaller craft. The
sloop E~iznhrth, Captain Absalom Linnell, ran on this line several
years. Her successors were the sloop Taghorti, Captain Benjamin
Gould, and the Hrrrrict JImin, Captain Samuel N. Smith. The Harriet
Mm+z met with a serious accident on one of her trips in 1857. October
Sth, in Boston harbor she was run down and sunk by the British
steamer ,li'ingcrm. One of the crew, being entangled in the rigging,
was carried down and drowned before rescue was possible. The ves-
sel was afterward raised and repaired. She was the last of the Boston
packets, and continued on the route about two years after the cars ran
to the town.
EAsTH;\ar.--Captain David C. Atwood may be regarded as the
pioneer of the packeting business between Eastham and Boston. In
1521 he procured a sloop of forty tons burthen called the CZz$/vr, and
commenced the business. Before this time passengers were brought
by lumber vessels, which stopped at Boston both going and coming
from the eastward: also by fishing vessels, which usually made a trip
to Boston before and after the season's trip to their fishing grounds.
Captain Atwood was on this route several years. After him came the
,VLQ~ York, Captain Samuel Snow, which ran from Nauset harbor in
the summer, and Bay side in the spring and fall. At this time East-
ham manufactured about 30,000 bushels of salt. This rendered
packet vessels in good demand. A few years later the schooner
170~~~~g 7XL was placed on the route by Captain Scatter Cobb, who was
in the business for many years. This was the first two-masted packet
Eastham had. Afterward Captain Cobb bought the Brewster packet,
Pdriot. He was succeeded by his son, H. K. Cobb, who ran the A. C.
Tottcn for several years, and then built the 6rr), &em, the largest and
best of all the Eastham packets, and also the last of them.
Xfter the Yotdtlg Trll was given up Eastham parties bought the
Yarmouth sloop Ffig/tt, the fastest sailer in the Bay. Not unfrequently
these packets took from thirty to fifty passengers. Xo life was lost
nor any serious accident occurred in all this time, which is ample tes-
 
.120 HISTORY OF BhRSST.~BLE COCST\'.
 
timony to the skill and judgment of the commanders of these vessels.
The fare for passages was usually seventy-five cents each way, and the
time occupied for a run was from six hours to two days, according
to the wind and weather. Besides the passenger packets other ves-
sels, more especially designed for freighting, were for years on the
route. In 1524 Captain Jesse Collins purchased the sloop d&crinr, the
first center-board vessel ever in these waters and a great marvel to all,
and placed her on the route from Sauset harbor most of the time, and
from the Bay the remainder, freighting salt to Boston at six cents per
bushel from the first landing and five cents from the latter. In 1836
parties in the south part of the town bought the schooner Codu'nr, of
Dennis, for the same business, but she proved an unfortunate invest-
ment. The same fate befell the business here as elsewhere, upon the
advent of the railroad, although it held out with a little more tenacity
here than in the upper towns of the county. Some dozen years ago
there was also a packet running from Eastham to Provincetown.
WELLFLEET.-It is not known that any regular packet ran between
this port and Boston previous to 1812-15. At the close of the war a
regular line was established, consisting of three sloops of from thirty
to forty tons burthen, viz.: HRIZN&, Benjamin Freeman, master; hi.rcl
ParRct, Joseph Higgins, master, and Xar~,, Joseph Harding, master.
In 1519 the ,VCW Pnck~,t, on her trip to Boston, struck on Minot's Ledge
in a thick fog and immediately sunk, the captain and two of his crew
being saved. Two Methodist clergymen who were passengers were
lost. In 1820 Captain Higgins had the sloop Panrtjic- built to take the
place of the itTc~cl Prrrk&. In 1826 the first schooner was built for this
route-the Sxz;ftstcr~~, commanded by Thomas Sew-comb. She created
quite a sensation, and for a while took nearly all the passengers. In
lS30 the schooner Herald. commanded by Henry Baker, was put on
the route. In 1135 was built the schooner ~rr'~ro~l, commanded by
Captain Thomas Sewcomb, formerly of the .\':~~z~tsurc. In 1836 was
built the schooner ,l/L,rc-/lnllt. Henry Baker, master. The HcrtzId, pre-
viously commanded by Captain Baker, was in charge this year of
Captain Robert T. Paine, and had her berth at Blackfish Creek.
In lS47 were built the schooner Soplritr Ili%:~, James Wiley, master,
and the Goltk,~ -d~r(=(', commanded by Captain Robert T. Paine, lately of
the Hcrtrltl. In 1553 and lS36 respectively, two larger schooners were
built-the Lilltr A'ic-h and A\Vl./!~* Atrkcr. commanded by Captains Richard
R. Freeman and Jeremiah B. Harcling. These two packets, with the
So/dzi~7 11 'iky and Goltil.il &dg 6' running part of the time. constituted the
packet line of this place for about twenty-fire years, n-hen the failure
of the oyster planting business and the advent of the railroad rendered
it impossible to run them with profit. The schooner Fmdu'i~~ A. Hig-
gills, Soah S. Higgins, master, was built in 1882, and with the small
 
.TRh\-LI, hSD TRASSi'ORT.~TIOS. 121
 
schooner J. H. Trijp, J. A. Rich master, brought there the same year,
constitute the present packet line between Wellfleet and Boston.
Tkc:Ko.-It cannot be ascertained that there was any vessel en-
gaged in the packet business in this town prior to 1812, yet there can
be no reasonable doubt that there was some periodical connection be-
tween this place and Boston many years before. The first regularly
established packet of which there IS authentic information was, the
pink, COVU~, Captain Zoheth Rich. About 1830 the friends of Cap-
tain Rich built for him the schooner Posi6ol/, " the finest specimen of
naval architecture and of passenger accommodation in the bay
waters." Her cabin rnd furniture were finished in solid mahogony
and birdseye, and silk draperies. She was the favorite of the travel-
ing public and was thronged with passengers. Captain Richard Stev-
ens some years later ran successively the E'ozrng TrZZ, M&Z and the
fine schooner Xotk~n. With the deterioration of the town harbors,
the decline of the fishing business and the general suspension of the
regular industries of the town, the packeting business also fell into
decay before the day of steam cars.
Plio~-r~;cETo\~s.-Though the leading commercial town on the
Cape, Provincetown did not become prominent as a community, nor
as a place of residence until some time after the war of 1812-15. During
that period, as in the war of the revolution, its harbor was a rendez-
vous of British men-of-war, and its local shipping was, of course,
annihilated. Probably about the year 1820, the sloop Trz&/.-the first
Provincetown packet of which any knowledge exists-commenced
running between this port and Boston. She was owned by John Nick-
erson, who with his brother, ran her for several years. The sloops
Cathrrirlr and I"nc-kl.t followed after the Truth commenced, and were
for several vears her contemporaries. The Cnt/lrrinr was commanded
by Joseph Sawtle, ancl was subsequently wrecked on the " back side."
Daniel Cook and afterward Jonathan Hill u-ere the commanders of
the J)t~ikf.f. In 1827 Jonathan Cook bought, at Saybrook, Conn., the
sloop Lol(i.cn. She was regarded as a very fine craft and continued on
the route under the command of Captain Cook, and of his son,Charles
X. Cook. until about the year 1847. The latter afterward procured
the sloop C?scc~/n and engaged with her in the business.
Sot far from this time the schooner yacht Nort/lrrn Lz@t was
bought, and commanded by Captain 1Vhitman W. Freeman, who ran
her to and from Boston, from March to December, three times each
week--something never before nor since accomplished by any craft.
In 1843 the ~L~)rfhcr~z Light was sold to go to California, and was
wrecked and totally lost in the Straits of Magellan, on her voyage out.
Another vessel was bought for Captain Freeman-the schooner yacht
Olmtn, a fast and trim craft: but she was soon sold to New Orleans.parties for a pilot boat. Afterward the sloop &m/r, and the 1'o~l/lnt-
tnlz, Captain Jonathan Hill, were some time on the route. About lS35
the schooner Lo?tg Wcarf was placed on the route. commanded by
Captain William Cook, and later, the schooner JZd~os~~. She went on
a fishing cruise some years later and was wrecked in Bay Chaleur.
The schooner ib'izltl~on fi&r~rs was for some time a contemporary
packet with the Mel~osc. Following these, came the schooner Golnlm
Age from Wellfleet, which was commanded by Captain Nehemiah
Nickerson. She was wrecked off Wood End in lS66. In 156'7 the
schooner Nellie D. lizlrgiintt was procured for Captain Sickerson, and
she, too, was lost near Watch Hill, in 18.&S, during the latter part of
her career being in charge of Captain Joseph C. Smith.
The sailing craft have by no means had this business to themselves,
the steamers coming upon the route at different times and taking the
most lucrative porfion of the traffic, and finally supplanting the pio-
neer class of vessels. About the year IS47 the steamer .\7flrrs/roi! was
placed on the route, running not only to Provincetown, but touching
-other ports in the bay between here and Boston. She ran two seasons
and received a fair patronage. S. P. Willis, who was a passenger from
Provincetown on one occasion, wrote a very graphic and entertaining
account of the trip. The Nrr~s/lolz was followed by the steamer A~Yu,
whose history has been already sketched. She was sold. in 1861, for
a blockade runner, and was run down b)T one of the national war ves-
sels, and was planted where she never came up, on the sands upon the
coast of North Carolina. In lS63. the commodious steamer, (;:qr
SLnttztrk, Captain Gamaliel B. Smith, commenced running, and contin.
ued on the route until 1874. when she n-as sold to run in a packet line
between St. John, S. F., and Quebec. In IS%, the steamer Loi&Ylnri~,
Captain John Smith, commenced her trips between Provincetown and
Boston. She is a craft of about .?(M tons burthen. shapely. convenient
and well built, and serves the traveling public to the general satis-
faction, and has no competition in the business.
THE ST.-\GE COAC.Ht%.--The transmission both of intelligence and
of individuals from one locality to another are so intimately connected
and so interwoven that n-e are constrained to consider the two
together. The earliest couriers known to the Cape were the swift-
footed Indians, who in 162'7, when the .S~(TYYOZ~~ IL/rr~lk was wrecked at
Nauset harbor, carried the intelligence to Plymouth several days be-
fore the messengers sent by the captain of the shipwrecked vessel to
apprize the settlers of their distressing situation arrived there with
their message. The first express or mail of record on the Cape was
in 1654, when the governor of Plymouth colony paid John Smith for
carrying letters from Plymouth to Sauset. For nearly 150 years. the
dependence of private citizens for the transmission of letters was upon.such casual travelers 5s chance happened to throw in the way. But
the exigencies of the times required some system of more speedy com-
munication between different communities, and in 1'775 the following
'mail route was established from Cambridge, through Plymouth and
Sandwich, to Falmouth, once a week:
'*Plan of riding from Cambridge to Falmouth: To set off from C.
every Monday noon and leave letters with William Watson Esq., post-
master at Plymouth, on Wed. 9 o'clock A. hr.: then to Sandwich and
leave letters with Mr. Joseph Sye 3d, Wed. at 2 o'clock P. M.; to set off
from S. at 4 o'clock and leave letters with Mr. Aloses Swift, at Fal-
mouth, Thurs, at S o'clock A. \I. To set off on his return Thurs. noon,
and reach Sandwich at 5 o'clock, and set off from thence at 6 o'clock
Friday morning and reach Plymouth by noon; to set off from Ply-
mouth Fri. at 4 I'. lr., and leave his letters with Mr. James Winthrop,
postmaster in Cambridge on Saturday evening."
The first rnited States mail between Barnstable and Boston com-
menced running in 1792, when John Thacher, of Barnstabe, contracted
with the government to perform the service, and made the first trip
October 1st of that year. Timothy Pickering was postmaster general,
and Jonathan Hastings postmaster of Boston. The post rider used to
start on horseback from Barnstable Tuesday morning, and arriving at
Plymouth in the evening, stopped in that town over night. The next
night he arrived in Boston at the sign of the Lion, on Washington
street, and delivered his mail to the postmaster. Starting from Boston
Thursday morning. he arrived in Barnstable on Friday night. The
mail was easily carried in one side of a pair of saddle-bags, and the
other side was devoted to packages and an occasional newspaper. For
his service in carrying the mail the sum of one dollar per day while
in actual service was paid. Small as this amount is, there was a great
outcry at the estrnvagnnce of the government in this respect.
In 17% n weeklv mail route was established from Yarmouth to
Truro. the latter being regarded as an important town; but it was not
considered of consequence enough to continue the service to Province-
town. Offices n-erc established all along the route betweqn Yarmouth
and Truro. The nest step in the progress of mail facilities was the
establishment in lSlQ~1.5 of a postal line twice each week, as far as
\-armouth. 1:bcnezer Hallet was the post-rider, and the stirring news
from the seat of war was the moving cause of this enlargement of mail
facilities. In 1820 the mail \vns brought to Barnstable and Yarmouth
three times a week. through the influence of the large number of ship
owners and ship captains resiiiing there. This arrangement continued
until June. 1837. when a daily mail was established to come as far as
Yarmouth. In the fall of lS64, soon after the establishment of rail-
road facilities, the mails were brought to Sandwich, Barnstable and
 
.124 HISTORY OF BARh-STABLE COGSTS.
 
Yarmouth twice each day, and following the progress of the railroad
to other towns in the county came the same postal facilities to the
towns which the railroad line reached. A daily mail from YarmoutQ
to Orleans was established in October, 1847.
Postal communications with Provincetown are supposed to have
been opened soon after the commencement of the century. The first
postmaster is said to have been Orsimus Thomas, but the precise date
of his appointment is not known. The Massachusetts Register for
1808 gives the name of the postmaster at Provincetown as D. Pease.
When the mail, which was conveyed on horseback once each week,
was about to start from town, a man was sent around with a tin horn
to give notice of the fact. Samuel Thacher of Barnstable was the
first contractor so far as is now known. Mr. Thacher's mail was car-
ried in saddle bags holding about a peck. It was considered a dis-
tinction to have a letter in the mail. About 7820 a petition was in
circulation in the lower towns to have a mail twice a week, but many
refused to sign it, on the ground of expense,and because once a week
was often enough. In the winter the mail carrier used to carry on
one side of his horse a saw, and on the other a small axe, to clear away
obstructions after the snow storms, when it was found necessary to
cross the fields.
Mr. Thacher was succeeded by Joseph Mayo of Orleans. Mr.
Mayo used to take his mail to the Pamet river, Truro, on horseback.
Crossing the foot-bridge, he took another horse on the opposite side
and proceeded to Provincetown, returning by the same route. By
this plan he saved three miles each way through a sandy road. A
daily mail was established prior to 1847. Xr. Xayo was the first to
place a covered carriage on the route as far as Wellfleet, in 1835.
Succeeding Mr. Mayo, Myrick C. Horton was carrier and contractor,
and after him Simeon Higgins,
A stage-coach line, to transport passengers as well as the mails, was
first run near the close of the last century-according to the best evi-
dence obtainable, about the year 1790. This line ran at first from
Plymouth to Sandwich, and was by gradual steps extended toward
the extremity of the Cape. It had been established many years be-
fore William E. Boyden became the proprietor of the line. in 1820.
He commenced by starting from Sandwich early each morning, and
making a round trip between Falmouth and Plymouth. After a trial
of three months he was obliged to desist. and then made the trip from
Sandwich to Plymouth, and another carriage from Falmouth took the
mail at Sandwich for the former town.
In a few years a line was put on the route between Sandwich and
Falmouth. For many years these stages were run by mail contractors
Charles Sears and Enoch Cracker, the terminus of the route being at
 
.TRAVEL ASD TRANSPORTATION. 125
 
the famous tavern, afterwards dignified by the appellation of hotel,
kept by the former person.
The stage ride from the Cape to Boston was a two days' affair until
the opening of the railroad line to Plymouth, and was not resorted to
except in cases of extreme urgency, and at times when the state of
the weather rendered communication by the packets impracticable.
Many persons who had lived to a good old age and had been all over
the world had never been to Boston by land. But among those who
had traveled this route existed many interesting, and in some respects
pleasurable, recollections of the trip. Starting from the Cape at early
dawn, the parties made up of men of all stations and degrees in the
social scale, the stage-coach was an equalizing and democratic institu-
tion. The numerous stopping-places along the route gave ample op-
portunity for the exchange of news and opinions and to partake of
the good cheer of the various taverns--for they had no hotels nor
saloons in those days. Cornish's, at South Plymouth, Swift's, at West
Sandwich, Fessenden's, at Sandwich, Howland's, at West Barnstable,
Cracker's, at Barnstable, and Sear's, at Yarmouth, are pleasantly re-
membered by the old people of the present generation. A good meal
and a hot toddy, in the days before the temperance movement had
been inaugurated, left pleasant recollections of the place left behind,
and excited agreeable anticipations of the next one to come.
On the south side of the Cape, below Yarmouth,a postal route was
established to Harwich in the spring of 1804, Ebenezer Broadbrooks
being the first postmaster; and a few years later it was extended to
Chatham, and offices opened in South Yarmouth and South Dennis.
Samuel D. Clifford of Chatham carried the mails in 1826 and for
some time thereafter, on horseback. One route was from Yarmouth,
to South Dennis, West Harwich, Harwich, Chatham, and Orleans; the
other was from Yarmouth to South Yarmouth, Hyannis, Osterville,
Cotuit, South Sandwich, and Sandwich. Barnabas B. Bangs was the con-
tractor for carrying the mails to Provincetown, sub-letting from Orleans
to that place. The mail stages which were run on the south side of the
Cape from Yarmouth were driven by Jacob Smith, who was also a
contractor, and Calvin B. Brooks, who was a somewhat notorious
trader in horses, well remembered for his sharp remarks and his
rather sharp practices, making, nevertheless, few real enemies among
his victims. For the years before the advent of the cars, the contract-
or on the Chatham and Yarmouth line was Rufus Smith; from Yar-
mouth to Orleans, Simeon Higgins; and from that town to Province-
town, James Chandler, and afterward Samuel Knowles.
From Hyannis, Centreville, and other shore villages to Sandwich;
Dea. James Marchant ran three trips per week, from 1836 to 1840. He
was followed successively by Eli Hinckley, Gorham F. Crosby and
 
.126 HISTORY OF BARSSTAE1.E COCXT\..
 
John F. Cornish. From Hyannis to Nantucket, from 1825 to 3830,
the mails were carried in a packet by Freeman Matthews. There-
after, for many years, until 1872, the mails and passengers were taken
by sailing vessels and steamer to Nantucket, the steamers being with-
drawn upon the opening of Woods Ho11 railroad.
Those veteran whips Nickerson and Howes continued to serve the
Chatham public until the opening of the railroad to that town, and
for nearly a year after the road was in full operation the old contract-
ors continued to run the mail carriage. With the retirement of
" Whit " and " Sim," by which names everybody knew these contract-
ors, the last of the stages on Cape Cod were withdrawn, for the car-
riages which transport mails and passengers to and from Cotuit, Os-
terville and Centreville via West Barnstable, and Mashpee and vicinity
via Sandwich, do not resemble the old-time stages of the fathers, such
as the elders of this generation knew when they were girls and
boys.
The short lines between towns and from the central villages to
smaller ones, have frequently been found too minute for this general
chapter. These postal routes and mail lines will therefore be men-
tioned in the chapters devoted to the towns where the routes were
established and run.
Previous to the opening of the Woods Ho11 road, the Boston mails
were carried for many years by David Dimmock, of Pocasset, and
afterward by William Hewins, of Falmouth, the terminus of the line
after the opening of the Cape Cod railroad being at Monument (now
Bourne). A ferry was established from Falmouth to the Vineyard,
running daily, wind and weather permitting, during the twenty years
preceding the establishment of railroad and steamboat communica-
tions. The first grant was given a century and a half ago, to Joseph
Parker and others, and it was continued by their successors until quite
recent times.
After the construction of the Woods Ho11 branch, the only remain-
ing stages were the Chatham line, supplying that town and the inter-
mediate villages to Harwich, with their mails and passenger trans-
portation, and the Mashpee route, by which the villages of lfashpee,
South Sandwich and Greenville are supplied.
RAII,RO,\D LIsEs.-Railroad communication to the Cape was
opened in 1848, by the extension of the line between Boston and
>Iiddleboro, under the charter granted to the Cape Cod Branch Rail-
road Company, from Xddleboro to Sandwich, a distance of twenty-
seven miles. The first board of directors of this line u-as constituted
as follows: Richard Borden, Joshua B. Tobey. Philander Washburn,
P. G. Seabury, Sahum Stetson, Southworth Shaw, T. G. Coggshall,
Howard Perry, Clark Hosie. Richard Borden was the first presi-.dent, and Southworth Shaw. clerk. The road was extended to Hy-
annis in 1854; the first passenger train commenced running May 19th
of that year. This extension was eighteen miles long and, including
the wharf at Hyannis and the equipments of the road, the cost of the
entire extension from >Iiddleboro to Hyannis was $824,0.57.99. The
Cape Cod Central railroad was opened from Yarmouth to Orleans, a
distance of 18% miles, December 6, 1565. The first directors of this
road were: Prince S. Crowell, Joseph Cummings, Reuben Nickerson,
Joseph I;. Baker, Truman Doane. Chester Snow, Elisha Bangs, Ben-
jamin Freeman and Freeman Cobb. Prince S. Crowell was president,
and Jonathan Young, clerk and treasurer. The next extension of
this road was to Wellfleet, twelve miles farther, December 28, 1870,
and from thence to Provincetown, fourteen additional miles, July 22,
1873. The " openings " of these sections were celebrated with great
demonstrations of rejoicing in the several towns to which they were
extended, as placing the communities of the Cape in more direct re-
lations to the outside world.
The consolidation of the Cape Cod branch and the Cape Cod Cen-
tral roads, in 1868, before the final extension to Provincetown, under
the name of the Cape Cod Railroad Company, was followed, in 1872,
by the union of the latter company with the Old Colony railroad-
the entire line, from Middleboro to Provincetown being known as the
Cape Cod division. The Woods Ho11 branch, seventeen miles in
length, between Buzzards bay and Woods Holl, was opened to travel
July 181872. X branch line of seven miles, from Harwich to Chat-
ham, opened October, 1887, completes the railroad system of the
county. The steam cars now penetrate every town of the fifteen, ex-
cept Jlashpee, giving our citizens two opportunities each day to go to
and return from Boston, during the entire year, and in some seasons
communications are maintained over portions of this division three
times each way daily. The first superintendent of the Cape Cod
branch was Sylvanus Bourne. of Wareham. He was succeeded by
Ephraim S. Winslow, with headquarters at Hyannis. Mr. Winslow
was succeeded by the present incumbent, Charles H. Nye, as assistant
superintendent of this division, who commenced service on the road
as conductor in 1857. Previous to that time, ?1Ir. Nye had been iden-
tified with the beginning of the enterprise, having canvassed for
subscriptions of stock for the road as early as 1847-8, and actually
collecting the first money paid for subscriptions in the county.
There is no one living so intimately connected with the road from
its inception to the present time as Mr. Nye.
As the supplement to the mail pasml arrangements, and as the
lastest feature in our postal system, came the postal car service, which
was introduced about the year 1855. Cyrus Hicks of Boston was the
 
.128 HISTORY OF 13.4RSSTABLE COUNTY.
 
first postal clerk and the only one at first, leaving Boston in the morn-
ing for Hyannis and returning in the afternoon. One mail pouch was
suficient for the letters, and a limited number of pouches for the
newspaper mail, where now from eighty to 120 per day are required
for the newspaper mail alone. The service now consists of eight rail-
way postal clerks, two running entirely through each way between
Boston and Wellfleet on both the trains, and receiving and distribut-
ing the mails at every post office on the line and its connections. The
following are the clerks now in service on this route: John W. Allen,
Joseph M. White, William W. Johnson, Henry 0. Cole, Frank M.
Swift, George A. Roundy, S. Alexander Hinckley, T. Winthrop Swift.
EXPRESS' LINES.---when the railroad was extended to Sandwich in
1848, the Cape Cod Express was started by Messrs. Witherell & Boy-
den, proprietors. Mr. Witherell was thrown from a carriage and died
soon after from injuries received, when Nathaniel B. Burt formed a
partnership with Mr. Boyden, which continued until the death of the
former. In 1861, Rufus Smith, who had established a stage line be-
tween Yarmouth and Chatham, took the mails and express, which he
continued to transport until 1866. when the road was extended to Or-
leans, and Mr. Smith had an express privilege on the cars for his
mails, and furnished teams and stages for all the stations for passen-
gers, mails and express. In 1868, the Central having been purchased
by the Cape Cod Branch Railroad Company, the express business was
sold to Boyden, Burt and Smith, in equal parts. In July, 1877, the
New York & Boston Despatch Express Company were permitted to
cover the line, and after two and one-half years of competition. the two
concerns were united and are known as Sew York & Boston Despatch
and Cape Cod Express Company.
MAGNETIC TELEGRAPHS, C.U:I.E~;, ETc.-Telegraphic communica-
tion between the Cape and Boston was established in 1855. Two
companies were competitors for the privilege of occupying the field,
which before had been vacant. The Boston & Cape Cod lfarine
Telegraph Company got a few weeks ahead in its construction. and
on September 28, ISS:',, the Zirrr/tortt/l ZZgisfr-r was enabled to publish
the news of the fall of Sevastopol. by telegraphic intelligence received
the night previous-a fact which was regarded by Its readers with
wonder and incredulity. During the ensuing fall the line was ex-
tended to Chatham and Provincetown. The rival line. called the Cape
Cop Telegraph Company, was more especially under Sew I'ork aus-
pices, and the patronage of the Xssociated Press. The first named
company, which had been operated by an association, was incorpor-
ated in April, 1856, and was organized at Barnstable rune 24th of that
year. George Marston was the first president, Charles F. Swift, clerk
and treasurer, and John T. Smith, of Boston, superintendent. The
 
.TRAVEL AIVD TRANSPORT~~TIO~. 129
 
two telegraph lines were in a year or two consolidated, and this com-
pany was afterward absorbed by the all-devouring Western Union
Telegraph Company.
A telegraphic cable was early in 1856 extended from Nobsque
point, in Falmouth, to Gay Head, a distance of 33 miles. August 18,
1856, a cable fourteen miles long was laid from ?Ifonomoy to Great
point, on Nantucket. Communication was transmitted to and from
Nantucket for a day or two, but the cable was either cut or broken by
the force of the channel, and after a short time abandoned. In lcS6@!.
Samuel C. Bishop. a gutta percha goods manufacturer, who made the
last named cable, laid another across Muskeget channel. and estab-
lished telegraphic communications between Edgartown and Nantucket.
There were frequent obstructions, caused sometimes by imperfect in-
sulation, but oftener by vessels' anchors fouling with the cables, and
the attempts of Mr. Bishop were abandoned in 1861. Since that time
several abortive attempts to maintain cable communications with the
islands have been made by the existing telegraph companies, but,
from the causes heretofore mentioned, have been unsuccessful. Since
1887, congress having in that year made an appropriation to maintain
a cable from Woods Ho11 to Nantucket via the Vineyard, as an auxili-
ary of the life-saving service, and also permitting the receipt and
transmission of commercial messages, communication has, with occa-
sional interruptions. been maintained to the present time.
Telephone service to the Cape was established in 1882, when aline
was constructed and offices opened in West Barnstable, Osterville,
Hyannis, Cotuit, and ?ularston's Mills. The New Bedford system, as it
is called, was connected with the Cape the following year (1883), cov-
ering the territory above described, and also connecting with Sand-
wich, Yarmouth, Dennis, Harwich, Harwich Port, South Chatham,
Chatham, Brewster, Orleans, Eastham, North Eastham, Wellfleet,
Truro, South and North Truro, Beach Point and Provincetown. M.
E. Hatch of Sew Bedford is the general manager.
.