Looking Back: 1900
Excerpts from the Hollis Times
January 1900
The big story in the January 12, 1900, Hollis Times was the horrific accident which occurred on Monday, January 8, at C. W. Herrick's steam saw mill. The editor printed four headlines: Wheel Burst followed by Herrick's Steam Mill Badly Wrecked, Slipping Of Belts Caused The Accident, and Owner Had Verry Narrow Escape (extra "r" in very appearing to be intentional).
"The slipping of a belt at C. W. Herrick's steam saw mill, located on Worcester Brothers' J. E. Wheeler lot, about 2 o'clock Monday afternoon, caused a wreck which it will be some time before it is repaired. Mr. Herrick was sawing an oak log, the saw stuck and threw the main belt off the pulleys, this gave extra spin to the engine and made the belt that controlled the governor come off. The engine then ran at an awful speed as there was a 105 pound steam pressure on at the time."
"The big fly-wheel, which weighed several thousand pounds, burst, parts of it cut big timbers and broke the four inch side posts to the doorway, through which Mr. Herrick had just passed. The ends of the engine room were wrecked and many of the boards split into kindling wood, the smoke stack knocked down. One piece of the fly-wheel 4 feet 2 inches by 16 1/2 inches was found four rods from where it started, another was driven into the ground nearly out of sight, smaller pieces were found hundreds of feet away."
Surprisingly, the January 26 Hollis Times reported that "C. W. Herrick's steam sawmill which was so badly wrecked Jan. 8 by the fly-wheels bursting has been repaired and they commenced to saw logs Wednesday afternoon."
February 1900
Collector's sales of non-resident properties were announced, with taxes as low as $0.36 owed on a one-acre parcel valued at $20. A larger 60-acre farm was assessed at $1,900 with taxes of $34.20. Town statistics showed eight marriages, fifteen births, and fifteen deaths for the year ending January 1, 1900. The town had paid $6.50 for lodging vagrants while neighboring Brookline paid $21.
March 1900
Town Meeting occurred on a Tuesday with dinner in the vestry and an evening dance following. The tax rate was set at .018 percent, with $75 appropriated for Memorial Day, $150 for the Public Library, and $2,000 for schools. The town voted to have "the Town bell rung at noon each week day" with Edward E. Wheeler winning the contract at $54. Three of the five top selectmen shared the first name George.
April 1900
Multiple fires devastated the community within eight days. One barn fire burned approximately "50 acres of field and pasture" after brush burning got out of control. The Always Ready engine crew "pumped steadily for two hours" using water from a neighboring brook.
May 1900
H.H. Barber's new department store opened in Milford, drawing over 2,000 shoppers on opening day and offering goods like "5 pieces Ingraine Carpet 25 cents per yard." A total solar eclipse was predicted for May 28. The town's total assessed tax was $10,256.04, with the highest individual bill at $249.66.
June 1900
Memorial Day exercises featured a procession including "the Granite State Drum Corps" and visits to cemeteries where "119 soldiers' graves were decorated." School programs included approximately 22 presentations each, with decorations of "flags, buntings, flowers and evergreen festoons."
July 1900
Social celebrations dominated the month, including a barn dedication attended by "over two hundred" guests and the Rhoades-Powers wedding with detailed gift registry. Reception gifts ranged from "carpet, morris chair, two fancy rockers, and one hundred dollars" to five dollars from local residents.
August 1900
Residents reported exceptional agricultural achievements: one farmer's corn measured "13 feet 4 inches" from a field averaging "12 feet high." A severe drought created concern about water supply for firefighting, prompting a special town meeting on August 25 about "procuring a water supply for the town," though it was "not very well attended."
September 1900
The town well that "supplies the town pump was cleared out" and took the Always Ready engine "nine minutes to pump the water out." A house fire on September 14 required the engine to travel "over three miles" in "twenty-six minutes from the time the alarm sounded."
October 1900
Special Agent Norton surveyed a proposed rural postal delivery route and called it "one of the best routes he had ever laid out." The 24-mile route serving "about 1000 people" would require "six hours" of delivery time. Between 1890 and 1900, Hollis's population decreased "from 1000 to 910."
November 1900
A corn-husking event saw "forty persons" gather to husk "about seventy baskets of corn" before enjoying "a bountiful supper" and musical entertainment. An annual Thanksgiving concert and dance was planned featuring "music by the American Orchestra of Nashua."
