164 History of Hingham. 



this industry, of those who were engaged in it, and of the many 

 little workshops once so plentifully scattered through the towm 

 would fill a volume. 



Among the persons early engaged in this pursuit, were Thomas 

 Lincoln the "Cooper" and his grandson John, Cornelius Cantle- 

 bury, Edward Gold, " pail-maker," Josiah Leavitt and his son 

 Josiah, John Leavitt, " set-work cooper," and his son John. 

 John Smith, Samuel Tower, Jacob Stodder, Matthew Whiton, and 

 his son Isaac, Abraham Leavitt, Elisha Burr, Isaiah Stodder, "pail- 

 maker." 



With the exception of barrel coopers, who are noticed under the 

 head of Fisheries, some of the larger manufacturers of this ware 

 since 1830 have been Crocker Wilder, Sr., on Friend near Main 

 Street ; C. & A. Wilder, also at South Hingham, who made the lirst 

 pails with brass hoops and a brass bail (probably about 18-34) : and 

 C. Wilder tfc Son and Anthony J. Sprague at Cushing's Pond. 

 Peter Hobart and Jacob Hersey were copartners and manufac- 

 turers of buckets and boxes for many years on Main near Hersey 

 Street. Elijah Whiton manufactured buckets for a few years at 

 the entrance of Hersey, near Hobart Street. His factory was 

 destroyed by fire Oct. 23, 1855. Edmund Hersey commenced the 

 manufacture of boxes on Hersey Street in 1850, by hand. Steam 

 was afterwards introduced, and from machinery of his own in- 

 vention he has prepared and sent to market a million and a half 

 of strawberry, salt, and fig boxes in a single year. Mr. Hersey 

 was succeeded by Seymour <fc Cain. Cotton Hersey was a manu- 

 facturer of wooden toy ware on Hersey Street, and Samuel Hersey 

 now follows this pursuit on the same street. William S. Tower 

 carries on quite an extensive business in the manufacture of 

 wooden toy ware at his factory near Cushing's Pond. Nelson 

 Corthell also manufactures tubs, pails, etc., on Hersey Street. 



The coopering industry, however, as a local pursuit in Hing- 

 ham, seems to be rapidly declining in importance from year to 

 year, and the prospect of its future continuance is far from prom- 

 ising. What it has been in the past is shown by the following: 

 Value of all wooden ware manufactured in Hingham for the year 

 ending April 1, 1837, $30,000 ; number of hands employed eighty. 

 For the year ending April 1, 1845, value .125.066: employed, eighty- 

 four. For the year ending June 1, 1855. value $35,100; em- 

 ployed, sixty-five. 



Until the present century, the conveniences which are now en- 

 joyed in the department of housekeeping, known as cabinet ware, 

 were quite limited. Most families in comfortable circumstances, 

 however, had their hand-made chairs, tables, bureaus, chests of 

 drawers, etc., of hard wood, which in many instances are still held 

 as heirlooms by their descendants. These were manufactured by 

 the local cabinet or chair makers who made a specialty of this 

 kind of worlc. Thcv were skilfully wrought, and not infrequently 



