Worcester, Massachusetts, USA
1854 - Worcester

Worcester, a city and seat of justice of Worcester county, Massachusetts, is delightfully situated in the centre of one of the richest and most productive agricultural regions of the state, 45 miles W. S. W. from Boston, 43 miles N. N. W. from Providence, 45 miles S. S. W. from Nashua, and 63 miles E. N. E. from Springfield. Lat. 42° 16' 17" N., Lon. 71° 481 13" W. From this point diverge five import ant railroads, viz. the Western railroad, which connects with the railway system of the South and West; the Worcester and Nashua, communicating through other railroads with the valley of the St. Lawrence ; the Boston and Worcester road, one of the first constructed in the state, having been opened in 1835; the Providence and Worcester, and the Norwich and Worcester railroads, both of which have steamboat communication with New York. To this network of railroads Worcester is chiefly indebted for her late rapid increase in wealth and population. The city is situated partly in a valley environed by beautiful hills, and portly on an elevation which rises suddenly towards the W., affording delightful sites for residences. It is handsomely laid out with streets of convenient breadth, usually intersecting each other at right angles. Main street, the principal thoroughfare and seat of business, is a broad straight avenue, nearly two miles in length, and beautifully shaded. On it are several of the churches, the banks, court house, city hall, and the largest hotels. On the E. side of the southern part of this street, is a spacious green, fronting which are two handsome churches, and a third, the Old South church, stands within the enclosure. The town is well built, principally of brick, and contains some of the finest residences in New England.

Among the institutions may be mentioned the American Antiquarian Society, founded in 1812, by the munificence of the late Isaiah Thomas, L.L.D., the editor of the first folio Bible published in the United States. The hull consists of a centre building, about 50 feet by 40, adorned with a neat Doric portico and two wings, each 28 feet long, and 21 wide. In it is deposited the society's library, of above 12,000 volumes, an extensive cabinet of antiquities, and numerous specimens of early printing. The State Lunatic Asylum, established here in 1832, occupies an elevation E. of the city. It comprises several buildings, the principal of which is 76 feet long, 40 wide, and 4 stories high, with two wings, each 96 feet by 36, and 8 stories high. Other wings are joined to these, the whole forming a complete square, enclosed by spacious and beautifully ornamented grounds. This institution is considered as one of the best in the country for the treatment of lunatics. Of the 2306 insane persons admitted during 13 years, over 1000 were discharged cured. The number of inmates, November, 1851, was 406, of whom 208 were paupers. The Roman Catholic College of the Holy Cross, formerly located here, was destroyed by fire, July 14th, 1852. On a commanding elevation, about three-fourths of a mile from the centre of the town, stands the Orcas Institute, a seminary of a high character for young ladies. The building, an elegant structure, is in a peculiar and striking style of architecture, and surrounded by delightful rural scenery. The public schools of Worcester are usually referred to as the model schools of New England. The citizens of this town were among the first to adopt what is commonly known as the graded system, comprising high-schools, grammar, inter mediate, and primary schools. In the high- schools of Worcester, the pupils are instructed in all the branches usually pursued in colleges. The newspaper press comprises about 12 publications, 2 or 3 of which are dailies.

The manufactures of Worcester are various and extensive. Among the leading articles produced are cotton and woollen goods, carpeting, hollow-ware, castings, pistols, wire, railroad cars, agricultural implements, tin ware, sash and door blinds, paper, saddles, harness, trunks, locks, sieves, card presses, musical instruments, mechanics' tools, plated ware. One establishment for the manufacture of wire, turns out about 500 tons of the various sizes, including card, reed, cotton-flyer, annealed, broom, buckle, and spring wire, also all kinds of round, flat, or oval, adapted to various machine purposes. The telegraph wire manufactured at this establishment is made from foreign extra-refined iron, and is of a very superior quality. At the extensive factory of Messrs. Allen & Thurber, about 100 men are employed in the manufacture of pistols, each of which goes through some 25 hands before it is finished. About 15,000 pistols are turned out annually. The commercial facilities of Worcester have been immensely increased by the construction of the numerous railways conducting to it. Previous to the opening of the Boston and Worcester railroad, the cost of transporting merchandise from the seaboard to Worcester was $10 a ton, and the time required two days. Since that event, freight has been reduced to $2 a ton, and the time to less than three hours.

The financial institutions of Worcester are five banks, the condition of which, September, 1862, was as follows : - Amount of circulation, $645,832; Amount of specie, $59,787.20; proportion of circulation to one dollar of specie, $10.69.9; amount of circulation and deposits, $996,162.46 ; proportion of circulation and deposits to one dollar of specie, $1 6.62.9. The city has also a savings' institution. The assessed value of real and personal property in Worcester, since the year 1800, has been as follows, viz. in 1800, $296,542; 1810, $1,476,883; 1820, $2,015,750; 1830, $2,747,800; 1840, $4,288,960; '46, $6,004,050; '49, $10,760,282; '61, $11,925,055, and in '52, $12,575,566. The assessment of 1852 shows an increase over the previous year of $650,511. The rate of taxation in 1851 was $6.75 on $1000 ; in 1852 it was $6.50, being a reduction of 25 cents on the thousand dollars. Stephen Sailsbury paid the heaviest tax, which amounted to $3830, and his property was assessed at $589,000. By the assessment of 1849, ninety-one persons in Worcester owned property each to the value of $20,000 and upwards, and 99 persons to the value of $10,000 and upwards. The amount of appropriations by the city for all purposes in 1851, was $75,500, and in 1852, $85,700. Worcester was settled in 1713, and incorporated a city in 1848. Its Indian name was Quinisigamond. Population in 1800, 2411; 1820. 2962; 1830, 4172; 1840,7492; 1850, 17,059, and by a local census in 1853, 20,771.

A New and Complete Gazetteer of the United States: Giving a Full and Comprehensive Review of the Present Condition, Industry, and Resources of the American Confederacy ... Thomas Baldwin (of Philadelphia.) Joseph Thomas January 1, 1854 Philadelphia : Lippincott, Grambo & Company 1854.

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