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Our beloved and once happy hours
It
could be said that James Sayre Griffing lived in very exciting times.
Born during the Monroe Administration, but too young to remember it, his
first impressions of politics were most likely those of the Jacksonian Period. Perhaps no single figure dominated
American politics for so long a period as Andrew Jackson. Although narrowly defeated in the 1824 election by John Quincy Adams,
Andrew Jackson's congressional forces managed to throw water on most of Adam's
initiatives during the ensuing four years and to position themselves for their
candidate's capture of the White House in 1828. During the Adams Administration, the Democrats were successful in
liberalizing voter qualifications, not only in the constitutions of newly
admitted states, but by constitutional amendment in many of the existing states. The young nation was beginning to revolt at the notion of a
"Virginia Aristocracy," a land-holding gentry, that seemed to have an
inside track to the Presidency. Although
a man of significant wealth himself, Andrew Jackson was "packaged and
sold" to the young, newly franchised voters as a "grass roots"
man. He had all the essential
ingredients; war hero, log cabin image, and political savvy. For
eight years, in his "hands on" management style, Andrew Jackson
controlled the course of history in the United States. With the balance of congressional backing in his corner, Jackson was able
to accomplish self-serving objectives without the normal system of checks and
balances. It is remarkable that
during his eight years in office and in the four years of his hand-picked
successor Martin Van Buren, the Jackson Democrats were able to keep the Nation
out of war, both internal and external. While
the history books often glorify the Jackson Period accomplishments, they often
overlook the fact that it was also a socially regressive period. During the Jackson Period, the many-splintered political factions that had allowed Jackson and his successor to take and keep the Presidency began to form a new coalition of "Anti-Jackson" forces. By 1834, when James S. Griffing was about twelve years of age, these forces created the Whig Party. Initially, the Whigs had difficulty reaching consensus. Led by Clay, Webster, and Calhoun, three strikingly dissimilar leaders with their own agendas, the Whigs could agree on few things -- including whom might best represent their interests in the 1836 presidential election. By 1840, however, the Whigs were smart enough not to nominate a presidential candidate with political baggage. They opted for war hero William Henry Harrison and campaigned on a platform without planks. Four years out of the White House and losing his political influence, policies in serious jeopardy due to tremendous financial hardships at the national level, Andrew Jackson's forces were incapable of suppressing the torrent of campaign slander mounted against them by the Whigs. In short, "the campaign quickly degenerated into an exhibition of abuse, evasion, misrepresentation, and irrelevancies on a scale unparalleled in U.S. history up to that time." [1] So
James S. Griffing was at the impressionable age of seventeen during the
"Log Cabin and Hard Cider" days of the Harrison-Tyler campaign. It must have been exciting for him to witness the cleverly devised
campaign rallies in nearby Owego; to wear a campaign hat, carry placards, and
participate with unbridled enthusiasm as the horse-drawn floats with log cabins, cider barrels,
and coonskin caps wheeled down Main street and parked on the village green.
No doubt he joined in the choruses of "Tippecanoe and Tyler
too," with its refrain of "Van, Van, is a used up man." But
the firework displays and the pine tar torches were quickly extinguished along
with the public excitement when William Henry Harrison died shortly after
his inauguration. With too many interests to represent, the John Tyler
Administration fumbled through four years of internal chaos that did little to
muster sustained political support and by 1844, the Whigs were on the verge of losing the
White House back to the Democrats. With
a strong expansionist platform designed to appeal to Northerners and Southerners
alike, the Democrats nominated James K. Polk, an experienced legislator and
Jackson whip. The Democrats
perceived that their land-hungry constituents meant to have Texas, and Oregon,
and with endorsement by election would take extreme war-provoking measures to
secure these disputed territories. Thus
came the celebrated slogan, "54o40' or Fight." And so while James' father, Rev. John Griffing, lay on his deathbed, the
presidential election [December 4] went in favor of the Democrats who quickly
put the Nation on an aggressive path of conquest. News of the election results must have been troublesome to the Griffing
family who were decidedly "Whig" in sentiment and favored the election
of Henry Clay. On a personal level,
Henry Griffing, John's eldest son and 34 years old during the local elections in
February 1844, was nominated by the Whigs for "Collector" in
Owego. On February 15, 1844, the
Owego Advertiser reported a "Glorious Whig Victory! Owego Redeemed!"
headline. By a majority of 149
votes, Henry Griffing took his place in the local Whig administration with the
newly elected town supervisor, town clerk, and justice of peace. But what was life like as a young boy growing up in rural Tioga County in the 1830's and 1840's? In the absence of authorship by our subject, we are required to look elsewhere. There were two very famous youths, slightly younger contemporaries of James, who wrote something of early Tioga County in their memoirs. The memoirs of the first, John D. Rockefeller, who attended the Owego Academy with James' younger sister Mary, are not nearly as illuminating as those of the second, Solomon Washington Gladden, [2] who was only thirteen years younger than James and was similarly raised with strong religious instruction. After his father died, S.W. Gladden lived with his uncle on a "stony hill farm of 40 acres" on the banks of the Susquehanna River, almost equal distant to the east of Owego as the Griffing home was to the west. His writings composed years later, bear strong similarities in phrase and thought to those of James, both obviously trained by the same minds and methods of the time.
Although
James did not write of his father's death at the time, or in later years, the
description by S.W. Gladden's of his own father's funeral sounds as if it could have
been written by James himself: How vividly it all comes back to me; my fathers broken words to me -- they were his last words, and I shall never lose them if I live a thousand lives; the droning, dreadful days at a neighbor's while we waited for the funeral; the solemn procession, on foot, to the church, and the burying ground; the scene at the grave; the many nights that I cried myself to sleep. Childish sorrows are short-lived, we say; but this one was not. It has never let go of my heart; the pain of it is poignant yet. [3] In a letter written ten years after his own father's death, James expressed the same heart-felt sentiment: Our dear parents. Oh how much we ought to love and cherish them. I am so glad that our Heavenly Parent has constituted our minds that even when removed from society for a time by the hand of death, our attachment for them is not in the least diminished. But with bright anticipations we can look forward to that hour when we shall greet them in that better, far better clime. I very often think of my own dear father already there. I remember well when he used to be in the family with us. I thought him at times very strict. I knew he loved his family and wonder[ed] why he placed so many restrictions upon his children. But with my temperament, I know that if it had not been for kind, strict parental regard, I might 'ere this have been forever lost. And now could I only take that dear parent by the hand for a moment and be permitted to kiss it and beg pardon for so much of my early waywardness and want of early, warm affection for my dear parents, it would seem like a great privilege. Yet even this I cannot do. But I trust my kind Father in Heaven has pardoned me and my full heart responds. Bless the Lord, oh my soul, that I ever enjoyed the advantages of early religious training. My greatest desire is that I may live consistent with my high privileges and be of some use in my Master's vineyard. [4] S.W.
Gladden had many other memories of Owego in the 1840's. In his book,
Recollections by W. Gladden, printed in 1909, he recalled that his daily chores included
filling the wood box every winter day with fuel for the evening fire. He also remembered reading books in the evening by the light
of pine knots or a tallow-dip, held close to the pages. He claimed that their writing books were hand-made and
consisted of 'fools cap' paper, folded once, and stitched together; a sheet of
brown heavy paper added for the cover. Further,
the gray goose quill was still the "implement of letters." Books were made available through a school district library that received
funding from the State of New York. In
each district, a librarian was elected, and the library was located in one of
the farmhouses near the center of the District. Among
Gladden's other recollections, he lamented the condition of the typical
"modern school curriculum" that had, in the 1840's, tended to
"level down to the dullest" rather than provide opportunity for the
"more capable students" to excel. As for his own success, he attributes one teacher, Horace Lee Andrews,
for succeeding in "revolutionizing the methods of teaching" by
advocating the progression of students at their own pace. According to Gladden, Andrews' power of "arousing and inspiring
students, of appealing to all that was best in them, of making fine ideals of
conduct attractive to them, was quite exceptional." Inspired to further educate himself, Gladden recalled that in the mid-1850's, he was offered the opportunity to prepare for college by attending the Owego Academy. The Owego Academy was built in 1827 with money obtained from the sale of public lands given by the State of New York for the support of public schools. The academy was "three stories high, with a steeple, in which was a bell. The lower floor was for many years occupied as a schoolroom for girls, the upper floor by the principal, who taught Latin and Greek, and the middle floor by the principal's assistant, who taught mathematics.... The academic year was divided into two terms. The summer term began on the third Wednesday in April, and continued two quarters, or twenty-four weeks. The winter term began on the third Wednesday in October and continued twenty-four weeks. Each term embraced two quarters of twelve weeks each, leaving two vacations in the year of two weeks each. The tuition was $2, $3, $4 per quarter, according to the studies pursued... By 1850, ...the number [of students] had increased to 153 male pupils and 107 female." [5]
During
the mid-1850's, S.W. Gladden remembered that, "there was no time to
waste" in his preparation for college. "Happily," he recalled, "the methods were so flexible both
in the Owego Academy and in a boarding school near the village, between which
schools...time was divided, that it was possible...to advance rapidly to go at
his own gait." He devoted 14
to 15 hours a day to study, six days a week, and remembered these school days
"as the happiest" of his life. He
said that the mathematical studies held no special interest for him, but that
the languages and the literatures of Greece and Rome fascinated him. S.W.
Gladden was brought up in the Presbyterian Church in Owego but he remembered
what the other churches were like; "There were other churches in the
village, but they had no more dealing with one another than the Jews had with
the Samaritans. Sectarian
jealousies were fierce; ministers of the different churches were hardly on
speaking terms; an exchange of pulpits was a thing never heard of." Among
the boyhood activities fondly remembered, S.W. Gladden described fishing
excursions, berrying parties, autumn husking bees, and apple-paring bees. There were spelling matches between the district schools, and literary
clubs or lyceums for public debating. In
his book, Gladden mentions the reputation that Owego had earned as the
"haunt of muses," being the temporary chosen home of Nathaniel P.
Willis, famous playwright and poet. Here,
on the property he called Glen Mary and in a "rustic cottage embowered in
trees just outside the village," Nathaniel Willis wrote of rural charm and
was not offended by the locals who considered him queer and made jokes about his
farming practices. When his eastern
friends accused him of retiring to the backwoods in the late 1830's, he
responded: I wish it were more 'backwoods' than it is. Here be [calling] cards to be left, sir, morning calls to be made, body-coat soirees, and ceremony. The two miles distance between me and Owego serves me no exception, for the village of Canewana, which is a mile nearer on the road, is equally within the latitude of silver forks; and dinners are given in both, which want not one of the belongings of Belgrave-square, save Port-wine and powdered footmen. I think it is in one of Jane Austen's novels that a lady claims it to be a smart neighborhood in which she dines with four and twenty families. If there are not more than half as many in Owego who give dinners, three are twice as many who ask to tea and give ice cream and Champaign. Then for the fashions there is as liberal a sprinkling of French bonnets in the Owego church as in any village congregation in England. As for the shops -- that subject is worth a sentence in itself. When I say there is no need to go to New York [City] for hats, boots, or coat, I mean that the Owego tradesman (if you are capable of describing what you want) are capable of supplying you with the best and most modish of these articles. Call you that 'backwoods?' By 1840, the village of Owego was rapidly growing in population and in industry. The chief exports were flour, grain, salt, and gypsum that were often warehoused in Owego until they could be loaded onto arks and transported down the Susquehanna River to southern and eastern markets. Most often, these products made their way into Owego from the Lake Cayuga region and were transported over the Ithaca-Owego turnpike at the rate of 500 to 800 wagonloads per day. [6] Another commodity that helped Owego flourish was the lumber industry. For many years and until 1856, all of the ground on the south side of
Front Street east of Paige Street was "one vast lumber yard, where timber
was piled for shipment down the Susquehanna, while on the river it was being
continuously turned into rafts for shipment down to a market upon the first rise
of the water." As for the rural picture, most of the people in Tioga County lived on small family subsistence farms "where practically everything [that] was used, particularly in the way of food, was raised on the farm. A properly run family farm would raise enough food for the family itself, and enough 'cash crops', such as potatoes, butter, hay, grain, wool, eggs, and meat to be sold or bartered for manufactured goods, and to accumulate enough money for taxes, clothing, medical bills, and the other necessities of life." [7] The earliest insight into the Griffing family circle is through the hand of John Griffing, James' older brother, who was living in Union Springs, New York, during the summer of 1841. At the time this letter was written, John Griffing was 26 years old and James was 18. Union
Springs [New York] Brother James S., A long time has elapsed since I have attempted to write to any of my correspondents and it is with a good degree of acknowledgement to you for your prompt and energetic character that I would wish to make such apologies. Time has rapidly passed away since received yours, and every day has brought to mind the promise that I made you with a determination that on the morrow I would write you; that morrow has at last arrived. And what shall I write? I am at as much of a loss for ideas that would be interesting to you as the chap was what went a sparking. After being seated beside his (would be) Rib, and being rather put to it for something to say, finely plucked up sufficient courage and bawled out (as clever idea as he thought popped into his head), "Lookey, did you ever see an Owl? My yes!! What big eyes they've got, haint they." My letter on the whole will probably be about as interesting. Many scenes of interest no doubt have come in my way since I saw you. And would that I could account of them to you in an interesting manner, but cannot. Oh Jim. Me thinks of the many happy associations which have existed between us. And shall they not be kept alive? Yes. I think I hear you respond yes. They never can be annihilated (I hope never). It is a treat to me to read a letter from you. It at once creates a sensation of pleasure. Although I have many associates near and dear to me at Springport [New York], yet I have no less attachment to the beloved ones I left at Tioga. Our Nation's birthday is approaching. Oh, that I could be with you to celebrate it (as Burns says) by our own fireside [8]. My imagination flits away to our beloved and once happy hours. But alas, it is but a dream. I hear no voice but a westerly breeze to cheer those solemn, but yet lovely reflections. I must inquire about the good things, and thrice happy people of Old Tioga. How is Politics, and Religion, and matters in general? Any marriages, births, or deaths of late? What has become of [our cousin] Fred Parmele [9] and [our brother] Daniel? [10] How do the girls all prosper? Franc (God Bless her) Ann, Charlotte [Hill], and Augusta Goodrich? Do give me a minute description of their varied situations together with all the rest. And by the way, do not forget yourself. Tell Fred I received a letter from his brother, Henry [Rossiter] Parmele [11], Louisville [Kentucky] and likewise one from Guilford [CT]. They were all enjoying usual health. And also a paper from A. L. B. of Rome, New York, which I sent together with some others on to him, but have not heard whether he received them or not. Tell [our brother] Dan I received a paper from him not long since with a camp meeting notice on the margin, (I wish I was there) 10 ct. worth. If he has any more news, tell him to seal it up, it won't cost any more. I received a letter from Ed Goodrich [12] and have this day written him in return. He tells me the scarlet fever has been raging over the [Owego] Creek and had in some instances proved fatal, but had not as yet reached our house. You had not decided when you wrote what you would busy yourself at the present summer. Let me know. And also how things go off about home. How do Henry, Lydia, & Clarra [13] prosper, together with their little ones? Just kiss Mother, Permelia, & Mary, and give Sammy & Osmyn [14] a whipping for me, and tell them to watch that beehive close. Tell Mary and Permelia if I am not there next chestnut Harvest, they must lay up a store for me. I am at present alone. My boss is absent on a visit to Toledo, Ohio, at his brothers and sisters. He left on Sunday last to be absent about two weeks. I am of course confined at close quarters. Were it not the case, I should probably have been at Camp Meeting. I may come home in September for a day or so and may not; it will be somewhat owing to circumstances. I thought of visiting Niagara Falls and probably shall. I am amusing myself at present, what time I have, a perusing Thos. Dick's Works [15] and find them very entertaining. I have not seen his writings on the Future, but should like to. You wanted my opinion on that subject. You are aware I suppose that I could give one from actual experience? I will have to cite some sounder head on the subject. Washington Irving very beautifully expresses himself, "We are born for a higher destiny [than] that of Earth." [16] Of what that destiny is, there is a multiplicity of opinion among the wise head on the subject. There is a proper course to be pursued -- to live and enjoy an honourable life. If that life is so lived, we are prepared for the future. Tell Frederick [Parmele] his father lost his sister [Eunice Parmelee Robinson] sometime [17] -- I believe -- about the first of April, residing in Durham [CT], who left a family of four children, the eldest of which (a young lady) [named Ann Maria Robinson, born 26 July 1820] is fast on the decline of consumption. Cousin Henry R. Parmele [11] says in concluding his letter, "Give my love to your father, mother, brothers and sisters. And tell them they would be happy to receive a letter from any one of them. Your cousins all join with me in the same. Wishing you with them many long years of happiness, infinite joy, and prosperity. I have not heard whether you received an answer from Samuel G. of Washington County. I sent him a paper, but got nothing in return. I must close. Write me direct. -- John Griffing, Jr. Remember
me (as Uncle Harvey
says) to all enquiring friends; it won't take you more than half a
minute. And tell all to write, write. [1] Richard B. Morris, The Encyclopedia of American History, p. 183. [2] S. Washington Gladden was born in February, 1836. After his father died in 1841, he moved in with his Uncle Ebenezer Daniels, who had a farm on the banks of the Little Nanticoke Creek, three miles east of Owego and a mile north of the Susquehanna River. He became a prominent Congregationalist minister and eventually moved to Columbus, Ohio. [3] S. Washington Gladden, Recollections by W. Gladden, Boston, 1909. [4] James S. Griffing, Letter to Augusta Goodrich, July 22, 1854, from Indianapolis, Indiana. [5] Leroy W. Kingman, Early Owego, p. 566-567. [6] Gay, Historical Gazetteer of Tioga County, N.Y., 1785-1888. [7] C. Saddlemire, A Short and Swinging History of Tioga County, unpublished. [8] John Griffing is referring to the famous Scottish poet, Robert Burn, and in particular to the passage -- "To make a happy fireside clime To weans and wife, That's the true pathos and sublime of human life." [9]
Frederick Parmele [or Parmelee] b. 28
March 1814 [27 yr. old at time of letter] 4th child of Clarissa [Griffing]
Parmele and Rossiter Parmele of Guilford, Connecticut, later Louisville, KY.
Clarissa Griffing was the sister of Rev. John Griffing. Frederick
Parmele eventually opened a wagon manufacturing business in Owego. In
February, 1854, he placed the following advertisement in the Owego Gazette. [10] Daniel Griffing, brother of James and John. Possibly already living in Baltimore, MD, as a "segar" merchant. [11] Henry Rossiter Parmele [brother of Frederick, subject of footnote #8 above], lived in Louisville, KY where he worked as a baker. [12] Probably Edwin Goodrich, born 13 October 1820. He married Calphurnia Mersereau in 1844 and lived in Owego, NY. [13]
Henry, Lydia, and Clarissa. All older brothers and sisters of James’. [14] Permelia and Mary are younger sisters; Samuel and Osmyn are younger brothers of John and James Griffing. [15] The Works of Thomas Dick, LL.D. Four Volumes in One, Viz., An Essay on the Improvement of Society: The Philosophy of a Future State: The Philosophy of Religion: The Christian Philosopher: Or, The Connexion of Science and Philosophy with Religion. Hartford: Published by H. F. Sumner. Thomas Dick (1774 - 1857) was almost entirely self-taught and acquired large popular following for his intellectual treatises in the early 19th century. His works went through many editions, and he was granted an honorary LL. D. from Union College, New Jersey. [16] John Griffing attributes this famous phrase to the American novelist, Washington Irving. Actually, the distinction goes to Edward Bulwer-Lytton (1803-1873), a British politician, novelist, and poet. The complete passage reads: "We are born for a higher destiny than that of earth; there is a realm where the rainbow never fades, where the stars will be spread before us like islands that slumber on the ocean, and where the beings that pass before us like shadows will stay in our presence forever." [17] Rositter Parmelee's sister was Eunice Parmelee, born 25 March 1798 in Guilford, CT., daughter of Nathaniel Parmelee (1754) and Mercy Chittenden (1756). Eunice married Asher Robinson on 20 May 1819 and had four children before she died in Durham, CT.
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