["Gleaner" articles]

Nathaniel Ingersoll] [Bowditch

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• Real property

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• Publié par: les_archives_du_savoir
• Nombre de lectures: 5
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 11 Mo

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\r:
FIFTH REPORT
OF THE
'
Record Commissioners.
1880.
BOSTON
ROCKWELL AND CHURCHILL, CITY PRINTERS
No. 39 ARCH STREET.
1880.fl
r
T—[Document 105 1880.
Mi BOSTON.CITY OF
FIFTH REPORT
RECORD COMMISSIONERS.
Boston, Dec. 10, 1880.
dated Sept. theIn their fourth report, 1, 1880, Record
announced that the City Council hadCommissioners appro-
the sum of five thousand dollars for the publicationpriated
of historical documents relating to Boston. This was in con-
Committee Printingformity with a suggestion of the on for
presumed that the grant will be continued1879, and it is
annually. As already announced, the first of the volumes
thus ordered is the present fifth report, and it contains a
series of articles relating to the history of estates lying on or
articlesaround Beacon Hill. These were contributed in
the "Boston Daily Transcript" by the late Nathaniel1855 to
"Ingersoll Bowditch, under the signature of Gleaner."
Mr. Bowditch Avas confessedly the most learned conveyan-
cer of the day. He was born at Salem, June 17, 1805, and
oldest child Dr. Nathaniel Bowditch, thewas the of distin-
guished mathematician. In the year following1823, the
graduation of the subject of this sketch, his father removed
to Boston, and Nathaniel studied law under the late Hon.
time until hisWilliam Prescott. From this death, April 16,
Mr. Bowditch an honored and useful citizen1861, was of
Boston, pursuing his chosen department of practice with un-
rivalled skill, and accumulating treasures of information ot
which but a small portion is here shown. In 1851 he printed
" History of the General Hospital,"a Massachusetts and in
"1857 a collection of curious facts entitled Suffolk Surnames."
The latter volume has been twice reprinted.ii City Document No. 105.
the interestingIn 1855, Mr. Bowclitch began series of
" " aroused a lively interest among allGleaner articles, which
with the subject. Often a single article wouldconversant
call forth the reminiscences or comments of other writers,
and the whole collection has been for years regarded as indis-
on portion ofpensable to any one who would write that our
local history.
Although the series terminated abruptly in the manner ex-
plained on page 180 of this volume, enough had been written
by Mr. Bowditch to make its republication a matter of pub-
therefore, Commissionerslic interest. When, the Record re-
munificent grant of the city, they at once selectedceived the
""these Gleanings as among the first documents to be issued.
It will be seen that the portion of our territory covered by
these notes is small ; but the articles are consecutive, and the
treatment is exhaustive. Beacon Hill and its surroundings
scrutinized, and the proverbi-are considered, every estate is
of antiquarian and legal discussions is relieved byal dryness
anecdotes of the distinguished citizens who have lived upon
this noted territory during the past two hundred years.
It has seemed unnecessary to attempt annotations to the
the twenty-five haveoriginal work. Of course years which
produced many changes but these matters areelapsed have ;
recollection of the present generation, which iswithin the
now to reperuse these sketches.
The consent of the representatives of the family to this
reproduction was given a number of years ago, and has
been renewed at the present time.
announce that their sixth reportThe commissioners have to
completed, and that it will contain the Roxburyis nearly
Land Records, together with the records of the First Church
in Roxbury. Jt is intended that it shall appear among the
city documents for 1880.
Respectfully submitted,
WILLIAM II. WHITMORE, APPLETON,S.
Record Commissioners.
ERRATA.
—The following errors of the press have been noticed :
51. (Note.) Abbott Lawrence died Aug. 18, 1855.P.
Bowditch died in 1861 ; Mr. Savage died in 1873.P. G2. Mr.