1854. 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



569 



WHAT BOSTON HAS DONE FOR 

 AGRICULTURE. 



AGRICULTURAL STORES OF BOSTON". 



Hiram Blackmer, 34 N. Market ; Joseph Brack 

 & Son, 51 & 52 N. Market; M. & F. Barr, 23 

 Broad, corner Central ; Hovey & Co., 7 Merchant's 

 Row ; Parker, White & Gannett, 59 & G3 Black- 

 stone ; David Prouty & Co., 19 N. Market; Bug- 

 gies, Nourse, Mason & Co., Quincy Hall, S. Mar- 

 ket ; Nourse & Co., Commercial, near Quincy 

 Market. 



UORTICULTURAL AND SEED STORES. 



Azell Bowditch, 54 School; Curtis & Lincoln, 

 Washington, corner Hay ward Place. 



AGRICULTURAL AND HORTICULTURAL SOCIETIES. 



Mass. Society for Promotion of Agriculture. — 

 John C. Gray, President. Abbott Lawrence, Vice 

 President. Benjamin Guild, Recording Secretary. 

 Josiah Quincy, Jr., Corresponding Secretary. 

 Thomas Motley, Jr., Treasurer. 



Mass. Board of Agriculture. — His Excellency, 

 Emory Washburn, His Honor, Wm. C. Plunkett, 

 Ephraim M. Wright, Secretary of State, ex-offi- 

 cers. Marshall P. VYilder, Nathaniel Wood, Ed- 

 ward Hitchcock, Robert C. Winthrop, and others, 

 Members of the Board. Charles L. Flint, Secre- 

 tary. Rooms at the State House. 



Mass. Agricultural Society. — J. S. Cabot, Pres- 

 ident. B. V. French, Cheever Newhall, E. M. 

 Richards, Josiah Stickney, Vice Presidents. Eb- 

 enezer Wriglit, Corresponding Secretary. W. C. 

 Strong, Recording Secretary. Samuel R. Austin, 

 Treasurer. Rooms, Horticultural Hall, School 

 Street. 



Boston Agricultural Papers. — Boston Cultiva- 

 tor, Otis Brewer, 22 N. Market, weekly ; Amer- 

 ican Veterinary Journal, George H. Dadd, 1 Hay- 

 market Square, monthly ; Fruits of America, C. 

 M. Hovey, 7 Merchants' building, monthly ; Gard- 

 ner's Magazine, W. S. King & Co., 54 School, 

 monthly ; Horticulturist, J. Breck & Son, 51 N. 

 Market, monthly; Journal of Agriculture, W. S. 

 King & Co., 54 School, monthly, Magazine of 

 Horticulture, C. M. Hovey, J^aUo^, 7 Merchant's 

 Row, monthly; Massachusetts Ploughman , \v'. 

 & W. J. Buckminster, 51 N. Market ; N. E. Far- 

 mer, Raynolds & Nourse, Quincy Hall, weekly ; 

 Practical Farmer, William S. King & Co., 54 

 School, weekly. 



It is now the harvest season with the two mil- 

 lions and a half of farmers of this agricultural na- 

 tion. So great is the interest in tlie cultivation 

 of the soil, that more than half the States of this 

 Union hold State Fairs this autumn, of from two 

 days to six, and the agricultural exhibitions of 

 towns and counties may be reckoned by hundreds. 



At first thought, we may ask, what Boston has 

 to do with agriculture? It is a commercial, and 

 not an agricultural town. This is true, but with 

 out agriculture commerce cannot ilourisb, and 

 some of the best friends and patrons of agricul- 

 ture have been men who were connected only with 

 its merchandise. 



Bat Boston has a nearer connection with ag- 

 riculture. Tbis whole peninsula was nothing 

 once but the farm of Rev. William Blackstone, 

 who owned its then 700 acres, and cultivated 

 such a portion of them as he was able. He was 



here several years before John Winthrop and his 

 party, and some writers go so far as to say that, 

 solitary and alone he cultivated his garden and 

 orchard in the spring, where he lived in the vi- 

 cinity of the Lowell Railroad station. It is cer- 

 tain that he was here, and that he invited Win- 

 throp to his peninsula farm. We soon find that 

 the new comers by right, or by might, were so 

 well pleased with Shawmut, with its " sweet and 

 pleasant springs," that they confined Blackstone 

 to 50 acres of his original peninsula, and, at 

 length, reduced him to six acres, by a formal pur- 

 chase. These acres were around his humble 

 house, and were cultivated by this first farmer of 

 Boston. 



But Blackstone, who seems to have been an ec- 

 centric character, preferring solitude to society, 

 remained only some ten years in Boston, after 

 which he removed to Rhode Island, where he di- 

 vided his time between books and agricultural 

 pursuits, until he died in 1075. His farm has 

 now the name of the Whipple farm, and is situa- 

 ted in the town of Cumberland. 



There are other early claims of Shawmut in 

 connection with agriculture ; for here, it is sup- 

 posed, the Indians enjoyed a favorite home, and 

 raised the corn that bears their name. The clear- 

 ings on this peninsula, when Winthrop arrived, 

 indicated very clearly that it was the farm of the 

 Indian before it was that of Blackstone. 



As early as 1G34, we find that the lands of the 

 vicinity of Boston were divided among the prin- 

 ciple inhabitants by a court which was convened 

 at Boston ; from 200 to 1000 acres being granted 

 to each. Among these grants, we notice that 200 

 acres was granted to Rev. Jolin Wilson, pastor of 

 the first church in Boston. This land was bounded 

 on the north by Medford. There was a provision 

 in these grants, that if the lands were not im- 

 proved, nor built upon in three years, they should 

 revert to the court. At this period. Muddy River 

 (now Brookliue) was a favorite farming region. 

 Wood, in his New England Prospect, describes it 

 as a place where "are good grounds, large tim- 

 ber, and store of marsh land and meadow." He 

 continues, " in this place the inhabitants of Bos- 

 ton keep their swine and other cattle in the sum- 

 mer, whilst the corn is on the ground at Boston, 

 ana Wnio; them to the town in the winter." At 

 Muddy Brook was u.. a„. ^f ji^^ j^j^n Cotton, 

 01 Boston, who was a colleague 01 Mr. tti\„„^, 

 and in honor of whom this town was named ; 

 since he was previously settled in Boston, England. 

 This farm, in 184^, included the two estates owned 

 by John Kenrick and Moses Andem, of Brooklino. 



As for Boston itself, at this early period, there 

 was less opportunity for large farms. Even then, 

 the wood was mainly procured from Noddle's Is- 

 land, from Dorchester, and Muddy Brook. Wood 

 says of it — " This place hath very good land, af- 

 fording rich corn fields, and fruitful gardens, hav- 

 ing likewise sweet and pleasant springs." At the 

 same time he spoke of one of our islands, the Gov- 

 ernor's, " where is planted an orchard and a vine- 

 yard.'' Mr. VV^ood speaks further of the Boston 

 of 1033 as follows : — 



" Boston is two miles nortli-cast fromRuxbury. 

 Their greatest wants are wood and meadow ground, 

 which were never in tluit place, being constrained 

 to fetch their building timber and firewood from 

 the islands in boats, and their hay in lighters. It 



