Page:The Granite Monthly Volume 2.djvu/82

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��TRAVELING ACCOMMODATIONS IN HOPKINTON.

��kept it open till 1878, when he tore it down and erected just east of it the present hotel.

The Putney House in Hopkinton vil lage was built to supply the place of the Perkins House, burnt in 1872. In the summer of that year Mr. Geo. G. Bailey determined to make Hopkinton village a place of residence, bought the old Isaac Long place and fitted it up for the convenience of his family during the hot months. A year or two after, he pur- chased the old Dr. Wells house, adjoin- ing the Long place, moved it back, es- tablished connection between the two, and made the present Putney House, a nice and convenient hotel in a pleasant shady spot. The structure includes two stories with a Mansard roof. The com- plete establishment has a front exten- sion of 125 feet and a rear one of 190. Since the erection of this house an ele- gant hall, a bowling alley and other ad- ditions have been constructed.

The old Parker Pearson stand at "Stumpfield" and French's Tavern, now burned, on the Basset Mill road, at •'Sugar Hill," were instances of smaller country establishments for the accom- modation of the traveling public.

THE RAILROAD.

A little over a quarter of a century ago a stranger came to Contoocook, and lectured in the small hall in the rear projection of the Contoocook House, in the attempt to illustrate the feasibility of steam locomotion. He had a small en- gine, for which he laid a narrow track across the hall, and actually conveyed himself back and forth to the observa- tion of the interested audience. Heads were shaken when he predicted that in twenty years freight would be brought to this vi llage by steam power plying

��the rails. Yet in less time the prophecy became true. The Concord & Claremont Railroad was projected; the line passed through Contoocook, from which there was also a branch line to Hillsborough Bridge. In the early fall of the year 1850 the cars began to run regularly to this village. A day of great festivity was held. The railroad officials extend- ed the favor of a free ride to and from the city of Concord. The proffered cour- tesy was accepted by a large company, filling a long train.

The people of Contoocook determined to be liberal in furnishing the festivities. A subscription was raised, a public din- ner provided, music and artillery secur- ed. About one thousand persons sat down to eat. The food was set upon a row of tables at the station, a shed hav- ing been erected for their accommoda- tion. About fifteen members of the Warner artillery came with a gun and music to do the military honors. The gun was posted on the intervale on the north side of the river just below the railroad bridge, towards which spot a signal was given when to fire. Speeches were made, the band played, the can- non thundered. It was indeed a gala occasion. The pecuniary expense of the dinner eaten on this occasion amounted to #200.

Many citizens of Contoocook, as well as others of the town, paid dearly for their enthusiasm and enjoyment. Assess- ments on primitive stock did the work. To get rid of the personal liabilities many threw up their whole interests, in some instances amounting to thousands of dollars. Yet the public benefits afforded by railroad facilities have been entirely incalculable.

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