Moses L. Hobart - The Man Who Knew Too Much 
The Story of Quarantine's Transition from the Board of Health to a Political Fiefdom

  

Moses Hobart was born September 27, 1780 in Hingham, Massachusetts, the son of Samuel and Abigail.[1] He was the seventh generation directly descended from Edmund Hobart who landed in America in 1633.[2] As the eldest of five children he was expected to be an example for his siblings. Moses lost his mother when he was eleven years old and his father at the age of twenty one. These life events undoubtedly had a major influence on his career forcing him to find his way in the world at a relatively early age. He married Betsy Sumner on November 9, 1806 in Dorchester, Massachusetts and their first son Moses Leavitt Hobart Jr. was born June 28, 1810 in Boston, Massachusetts. While it is not clear how Moses Hobart was employed in the years prior to his appointment as Island Keeper for Rainsford Island, he is said to have been a merchant and probably had some political connections in the small town of Boston.[3]  The town’s Board of Health advertised in the Columbian Centinel for a new Island Keeper on April 15, 1818.[4] He succeeded to the post of Island Keeper in 1818 soon after the untimely death of Henry Spear.  He most likely accepted the post of Island Keeper prior to the beginning of the quarantine season which began in June of that year. As Island Keeper he was expected to reside on Rainsford Island with his family and attend to the needs of quarantined sailors and Bostonians. During his reign at Rainsford Island, he witnessed the transition of power over the quarantine station from the independent board of health under the jurisdiction of lay persons elected at large to that of the Boston City Council under a Mayor, Board of Aldermen and Common Council form of government. This transition occurred in 1822 when Boston residents voted to adopt a city charter based on a representative form of government. This would be the first step in the eventual dismantling of Boston's quarantine program in the pre-Civil War era.

Mr. Hobart was annually re-elected to his post over the next seven years even maintaining his political standing during the transition from the independent Board of Health to the new Health Commissioners working under the direct authority of the Boston City Council. Hobart’s career ran in parallel with that of Dr. Thomas Welsh the Principal Physician for Rainsford Island (later called the Resident Physician) until Aaron Dexter was named the Resident Physician in 1825. Apparently, Dexter, Hobart and Thomas Jackson, the Health Commissioner did not get along and their feud became a political embarrassment for the City.[5] Perhaps influenced by their feud, both Hobart and Dexter were not re-elected to their posts in 1826. They were replaced by John Oliver as Island Keeper and Dr. Jerome Smith as Resident Physician.  Moses Hobart remained in Boston for some time but eventually moved to Hillsboro, Illinois where he died on January 28, 1839.[6] Even though he journeyed far away from his hometown of Hingham, his death was prominently covered in the March 2, 1839 edition of the Hingham Patriot. The editors declared “An honest upright man has been styled the noblest work of God. Such a man was the deceased.”[7]

---

[1] Ancestry.com Family Tree. Accessed online: http://person.ancestry.com/tree/35449795/person/19122795436

[2] Margaret Griffith, Hobart Genealogy: Descendants of Edmund Hobart of Hingham, MA, San Francisco, CA, 1952, pp. 1 & 45. Accessed online at Ancestry.com at:

[3] Repertory, November 321, 1806, p. 2

[4] Columbian Centinel, April 15, 1818, p. 2

[5] Boston Commercial Gazette, November 17, 1825, p. 2

[6] Ancestry.com Family Tree. Accessed online: http://person.ancestry.com/tree/35449795/person/19122795436

[7] Hingham Patriot, March 2, 1839, p. 3

John Minot – The Man with Connections in High Places

John Minot was born November 16, 1783 in Dorchester Massachusetts.  He came from a long line of Minot ancestors dating to the arrival of George Minot who arrived on May 30, 1630 in Plymouth. He married Calla Smith on November 27, 1806 and they had six children only two of whom survived into adulthood.[1] As an eighth generation American, John Minot had an extensive number of family and community connections which served him well as he served as a United States customs inspector for Boston  and Charlestown (1825-1829) and later as the Island Keeper for Rainsford Island serving the needs of the Commonwealth.[2] He lost his position as a customs inspector in 1829 when John Quincy Adams stepped down from the Presidency. His loss of employment was a subject of concern to the former president but being out of office he no longer could dole out patronage. Nevertheless, his personal influence may have been a factor in John Minot’s later appointment as Island Keeper for the Rainsford Island Hospital. [3]

Minot was appointed Keeper of Rainsford Island Hospital on March 18, 1833 and kept this position until July 31, 1841 when he was replaced by George P. Tewksbury, formerly the Captain of the Quarantine Boat.  During his Island Keeper career he worked closely with Dr. J.V.C. Smith, the city’s Port Physician. His services were in demand during 1839 when the city experienced its first resurgence of smallpox since 1800 when Benjamin Waterhouse promoted the use of cowpox as a vaccine against this deadly disease.  This epidemic forced Boston’s politicians to reassess the value of Rainsford Island and recommit resources to it island quarantine program. Soon after the epidemic, the city fathers decided to streamline it quarantine services as an economy measure and Minot’s post was eliminated. His career did not end with this loss of city employment. He was soon reconnected with the U.S. Customs Office with a special inspector assignment where he was paid $3 per day until his services are dispensed with.[4]

John Minot died at his home on Bradford Street in Boston on March 5, 1861 after five days of severe pneumonia.  He outlived his wife who died ten years earlier.[5]

---

[1]  Joseph Grafton Minot, A genealogical record of theMinot family in America and England, 1897, Boston, p. 46; http://person.ancestry.com/tree/43797045/person/26081878916/story

https://archive.org/stream/genealogicalreco00mino#page/n113/mode/2up/search/john+minot

[2] Massachusetts Register, 1828,, Massachusetts Register 1827, Massachusetts Register 1829, Massachusetts Register 1826, Massachusetts Register 1825

[3] On September 8, 1831 John Quincy Adams’ journal indicates that John Minot contacted him asking for a favor in seeking new employment.  

[4] Secretary of the Treasury, Letter from the Secretary of the Treasury, House Document No 173, 27th Congress, Third Session, February 22, 1843, p.7 contained in House Documents, Index to the Documents of the 27th Congress, Third Session, Volume 5, Compiled by Samuel Burche.;   

Bay State Democrat, March 14, 1842, p. 1

[5] http://person.ancestry.com/tree/43797045/person/26081878916/story

George Perry Tewksbury - The First Island Keeper Working for Boston

George P. Tewksbury was born in Boston on June 27, 1808, the son of William and Elizabeth.  Mr. Tewksbury became the captain of Boston’s quarantine vessel in 1828 at the age of twenty, one of the youngest men to hold such a positon.  He remained in that post for 17 years. On October 12, 1831, the Boston City Council’s quarantine committee raised his wages from 30 to 40 dollars a month to recognize his faithful, active, industrious, sober and skillful conduct for the city.[1] In 1840 Mr. Tewksbury spoke out against one of Boston’s physicians, Dr. Strong who was also a member of the House of Representative and claimed that “instances have been known of persons dying in the boats on the passage down to the island.” Tewksbury stated as a matter of justice that this remark was utterly false. He stated, “There is not a single instance on record or within the memory of anyone who is or has been connected with the Health Department of a death on board of a boat by smallpox or any other disease.”[2] While a broader review of the 19^th century did identify such cases, during Tewksbury reign as captain the city escaped such tragic cases.  On March 17, 1841 the Massachusetts Commonwealth turned Rainsford Island over to the City of Boston and enabled the city to eliminate the positons of island keeper, boatman and physician as they deemed appropriate.[3] The City did not accept this act and, consistent with the act's provision that the city could reject it, the city decided to combine the positions of island keeper and boatman thereby saving $460 a year.[4]  Tewksbury was appointed the 13^th Keeper of Rainsford Island and Captain of the Quarantine vessel on June 28, 1841. He remained in that position until March 1845 when he was replaced by Jonathan Bruce who assumed the joint duties of island keeper and quarantine captain.[5]  On October 15, 1847 Mr. Tewksbury was elected the Commonwealth’s first Harbor Master by the Boston Common Council, the Board of Aldermen and the Mayor.[6] His post was created as a result of an act of the state legislature. In his first annual report to the city, Tewksbury indicated that he boarded 8,000 vessels of which 1,493 were assisted in reaching their anchorage grounds. He urged the city to stop the practice of taking ballast from Great Brewster and Gallop’s Island and he also recommended that a breakwater should be erected at Cedar Point, Deer Island which would create a beautiful, safe harbor accessible at all times.[7] These recommendations were instrumental in justifying the acquisition of Gallop’s Island for quarantine use some twelve years later.   He remained harbor master until 1856 when Boston politics sabotaged his career. His affiliation with the Know Nothing party coincident with an effort to raise his salary and that of his subordinate staff led to a counterinsurgency in the House of Representatives to stop any fees imposed on the shipping industry merely to pay Tewksbury and his staff a better salary.[8] Mr. Tewksbury had previously been a member of the Whig party and was active in local politics representing Boston’s ward one.[9]  The political brouhaha of 1856 occurred a year before his untimely death on July 4, 1857 when he and three other people were killed by gunpowder exploding from poorly constructed rocket gun released on Boston Commons.[10]  A jury trial found the fireworks company responsible for his death pointing to a faulty rocket gun that had been imperfectly designed.[11]

---

[1] Columbian Centinel, October 12, 1831, p2.

[2] Trumpet and Universalist Magazine, April 15, 1840, p. 3.

[3] Boston Daily Advertiser, March 29, 1841, p. 1

[4] Bay State Democrat, June 29, 1841, p. 2

[5] Boston Courier, March 27, 1845, p. 2

[6] Boston Daily Bee, September 10, 1847. p. 2; Hingham Patriot, October 15, 1847, p. 2.

[7] Boston Evening Transcript, October 4, 1848, p. 2.

[8] Boston Daily Advertiser, May 21, 1856, p 1

[9] Boston Daily Bee, September 26, 1849, p. 2.

[10] Pittsfield Sun, July 9, 1857, p. 2; Boston Traveler, July 20, 1857, p. 4.

[11] Boston Traveler, July 20, 1857, p. 4

John Oliver - The Man Who Fought the 1st Cholera Pandemic

John Oliver was the 10th Island Keeper on Rainsford Island. He began his career on January 1, 1827 taking over from Moses Hobart after the latter lost favor with the Boston City Council. Oliver was 31 years of age at the time of his appointment and brought some of the traditional skills required of this position including sailing and navigational skills. Unlike any of the previous Island Keepers, Oliver was a British citizen who married the daughter of a previous Island Keeper. His connections with the Spear family and his marriage to Sarah Blany Spear certainly could only help his effort to be an island keeper. He served as the city’s Island Keeper for 6 years eventually being replaced by William Marsh. The Boston City Council appointed Marsh on December 17, 1832 and Oliver was then forced to find other employment.[1] During his tenure the city faced one of its greatest threats when the cholera pandemic of 1832 incited panic throughout the eastern seaboard. During this year, the city built a $75 cottage for the Resident Physician, Dr. J.V.C. Smith with the understanding that he would be playing an important role in fighting the anticipated cholera epidemic. While cholera never affected Boston this year, it set a new emphasis on the important role of the Resident Physician, also known as the Port Physician, thereby diminishing the importance of the Island Keeper. John Oliver may not have gotten along with Dr. Smith or his acquiescence in serving of liquor may have alienated the City Council. Whatever, the cause, Oliver lost favor with his supervisors and was terminated.[2]

Oliver was the son of John and Margaret Oliver, born in a farm near Gravesend, County Kent, England on March 9, 1796. [3] Gravesend is a seaport city at the mouth of the Thames River. According to Curt Oliver, his biographer, John Oliver ran away from his family farm at the age of nine and joined the crew of a merchant ship. After his departure from home he went around the world on several eventful voyages that took him to the South Pacific, China and South America before he finally settled in Boston.

According to Curt Oliver, “The British captains were harsh taskmasters, and John and many of his crewmates abandoned their ship off the coast of Africa, ultimately signing on with an American vessel in India. He ever after pretended to be an American. One of the causes of the War of 1812 was British heavy-handedness in searching American ships for such "traitors."

His involvement with the War of 1812 was as colorful as it was unorthodox. He was working on the "Pennsylvania Packet," which was traveling between Canton, China, and the Marquesas Islands in the South Pacific. The crew gathered sandalwood in the Marquesas and brought it to China to trade for silk and tea. John Oliver and several other crew members were left behind in the Marquesas to gather sandalwood while the ship sailed back to Canton. To their dismay, the "Pennsylvania Packet" never returned, a victim of the British blockade of Canton in the War of 1812. In the many months that followed, most of the crew members left on the Marquesas were killed by the natives. For some reason, John Oliver was among the few whom the natives decided to adopt.

He learned the native language and was heavily tattooed in Polynesian ritual ceremonies.
In 1813, the American frigate "Essex," led by Capt. David Porter, sailed into the harbor at Nuku Hiva. The native canoes surrounded the ship in traditional Polynesian greeting, and Capt. Porter was quite surprised to hear mooring advice from wild looking "natives" who spoke perfect English.

John Oliver and a friend, Eben Seger, decided to join the crew of the "Essex," which after several weeks of repairs set sail for South America. Their next encounter with the British was in the Valparaiso, Chile, harbor, where John Oliver served as a powder monkey. The Battle of Valparaiso (March 28, 1814) was a major American defeat. John Oliver, Eben Seger, and other crew members were taken prisoner by the British and sent to Halifax, Nova Scotia.
He managed to escape from the Halifax prison, but was soon recaptured. He and other prisoners of war were then transported on the captured American frigate "Chesapeake" to Dartmoor Prison in England. Life in Dartmoor Prison was severe, and the release of the Americans was delayed long after the Treaty of Ghent. It was in the summer of 1815 that John Oliver and Eben Seger were finally released and sent to New York. He had for several years pretended to be an American, but this was his first footstep on American soil.

His friend Eben Seger was from the Boston area, and the two headed there, recuperating a while on Rainsford Island, a quarantine station in Boston Harbor. The island keeper was Thomas Spear, a veteran of the Boston Tea Party, and John worked with him on the island for several years.” According to Kurt Oliver, on January 6, 1820, he married Sarah Spear, the daughter of his employer, and in 1827, John himself became the keeper of the island. He also learned the navigation of Boston Harbor and soon became a harbor pilot with the title of "Captain."

John and Sarah Oliver bore seven sons and four daughters. Because of his failing eyesight, John retired in 1849 and moved with his entire family to Lakeland, Washington County, Minnesota. Capt. John and several of his sons operated a ferry service on the St. Croix River between Hudson, Wisconsin and Lakeland. Six of his sons served in Minnesota regiments in the Civil War. Capt. John died at his home in Lakeland on July 26, 1869.

[1] Minutes of the Board of Aldermen of the City of Boston, December 17, 1832.
[2] See the August 6, 1832 Minutes of the Board of Aldermen for a discussion of the Board’s prohibition on the use of spirituous liquors to be sold on Rainsford Island while quarantine was performed.
[3] For a complete description of John Oliver’s life, see website on Descendants of John Oliver. Accessed December 30, 2009. http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~mnwashin/oliver.htm. For even more information on this website contact makremer@msn.com

Thomas Spear - Quarantine as Family Affair

Thomas Spear was the seventh Rainsford Hospital Island Keeper taking office September 14, 1796. At 43 years of age he was one of the oldest Island Keepers to assume command of Rainsford Island. However, this fact did not appear to affect his ability to accomplish his work. He had the advantage of age and was a good administrator, using family and hired hands to help with the task of managing the quarantine island. Indeed, Thomas Spear had a large family with five children less than 16 years of age and one son over 16.[1] He, his wife and children took up residence on the island in the fall of 1796 and provided nursing, shelter, and other agricultural services to those requiring quarantine due to smallpox or yellow fever.

During his tenure, his family provided nursing care as needed but this support was eventually frowned upon by the new Boston Board of Health, concerned with the possible transmission of disease to innocent children. The Boston Board of Health assumed responsibility for quarantine affairs and for the activities of the Island Keeper in February 1799. During the next few years, Mr. Spear’s activities began to get more scrutiny than those of any previous Island Keeper. The 12 members of the Board of Health had more time to devote to health issues and this meant that Spear’s routine affairs were closely monitored. Because of the increasing concern with yellow fever outbreaks along the eastern seaboard, in the spring of 1802 the Board of Health allowed Mr. Spears an extra $200 to cover the expense of having an extra nurse and man working on the island.

Apparently the Board was not satisfied with the rigor with which Mr. Spear handled quarantine and disinfection practices on the island. In 1803 the Board required Mr. Spear to handle all disinfections of vessels in person, apparently not happy with the work of subordinated that were delegated such duties by Spear. The reprimand may not have been grievous punishment since he did not lose his job. Nevertheless, the Board imposed a $5 fine if a similar offence were to reoccur. [2] After working for more than three years without any direct oversight by the Selectmen, direct supervision by the Board of Health was not easy for him to adjust to. Not content with their oversight he complained about the conduct of the Board and as luck would have it the Board learned of his complaints and took him to task for his insubordination.[3]

Mr. Spear died in the line of service on April 5, 1812. His death left the Board of Health with a challenge: the forced removal of a large family from Rainsford Island. Instead of doing that the Board of Health chose to select his son Henry to continue on as the Island Keeper since he had spent many years helping his father with the routine chores of managing the hospital, caring for the sick, navigating Boston Harbor and tending to farming activities on the island. The Board found this a fitting means of resolving their administrative responsibilities with the least impact to the merchant class of Boston. During this transition period, the Board assigned Captain Jonathan Loring along with Joshua Ellis and Isaac Vose as a quarantine committee to assist Henry Spear with the challenges of managing the hospital. Loring served for a number of years as a superintendent providing oversight and support to the Island Keeper.[4] Henry Spear died May 1, 1817 leaving the Board of Health without an Island Keeper. No one in the Spear family was willing to take on this challenge so the Board of Health chose Moses Hobart for this assignment.


[1] U.S. Bureau of the Census, Heads of the families at the first census of the United States taken in the year 1790, Massachusetts. Access December 31, 2009. Web link: http://www.usgwcensus.org/states/massachusetts/ma1790.htm
Thomas Spear grew up in a large family himself.. According to church records Thomas Spear Senior’s children were Sarah (born 1769), Susanna (born 1751), Thankful (born 1756), Thomas Jr. (born 1753), Nathaniel (born 1753), Mary (born 1761) and John (born 1749).
[2] Minutes of the Boston Board of Health, April 13, 1803, p. 234.
[3] Minutes of the Boston Board of Health, July 6, 1803, p. 243.
[4] Minutes of the Boston Board of Health, April 4, 1812 and June 11, 1814.

James Hamilton - The Public Health Innovator

James Hamilton was Boston’s third island keeper. The Selectmen appointed him to this post on February 2, 1748. Unlike previous island keepers he took a strong interest in protecting his clients from the harsh conditions that existed in Boston harbor and improving the squalid hospital on Rainsford Island. Thanks to his efforts Boston bought its first quarantine vessel. This new vessel was used exclusively to transport sick residents of Boston to the island hospital. Prior to his reign as island keeper, the town rented vessels to bring the sick to the hospital. He argued in favor of a dedicated vessel so that it would be readily available at a moment’s notice. [1]

Hamilton was an innovator in other ways as well. He was also the first island keeper to lobby the Massachusetts General Court for improved hospital conditions. He emphasized the importance of separating those who are well from those infected with communicable disease. Thanks to his efforts, the town of Boston successfully obtained funds from the Massachusetts Bay province for a new hospital for the well, known as the “Well House.” Prior to his efforts everyone placed into quarantine was forced to share the same hospital whether they were sick or well. This did not make sense to Hamilton and his efforts represent one of the first instances in American public health history where public funds were allocated to isolate those exposed to disease from those already infected. It would be another 160 years before his innovative ideas would catch hold and form the basis for the modern distinction between quarantine as a tool for removing those exposed to a disease and isolation as a tool for removing those already infected with disease.

Hamilton was probably in his early thirties when he took his post and lasted for nine years before being replaced by Thomas Hartley. During his tenure he supervised port quarantines against Philadelphia (1750 and 1756)), Rhode Island (1751), and Nova Scotia (1756) and oversaw the inspection of over 4,500 vessels that entering Boston harbor. Fortunately for Hamilton there were only a handful of vessels that were forced to undergo extended quarantines during the period he held office (i.e. 1748 to 1757). Nevertheless, he had other communicable disease responsibilities including caring for the sick of Boston. One of the worst smallpox epidemics in Boston’s history occurred in 1752 when almost half of its 15,734 residents contracted smallpox either the natural way or through inoculation. The magnitude of the epidemic was so great that Rainsford Island was not a feasible quarantine strategy. The island’s bed capacity could handle no more than 100 persons on a good fair weather day. An epidemic of this magnitude convinced James Hamilton and the Selectmen that Rainsford Island only had value in response to small scale smallpox outbreaks.
[1] Provincial Laws of Massachusetts Bay, Chapter 312, Order Empowering the town of Boston to Purchase a Boar for the use of the Hospital on Rainsford Island, p. 385.

Captain Samuel Laha - Naval Hero and Island Keeper

Samuel Laha married Mercy Ranger sometime in 1759 or 1760. He had three daughters (Mercy 1761, Mary 1765, Hannah 1767 and Sally 1773 and one son, Samuel 1771).[1] The 1790 Census shows that Samuel Laha lived in Suffolk County and had a family of four all of them over 16 years of age. Because of the times in which he lived, the indignities and political affronts that he and his country men suffered at the hands of the British led him to become an American patriot. Laha entered service in the Revolutionary War on May 28, 1776 about two months after the British retreated from Boston.[2]

Laha was the First Lieutenant on the Republic, one of the five vessels authorized in February 1776 to enter combat against the British. Laha so far as the records show had seen no naval service previous to being engaged for the Republic He was commissioned June 12 1776. The following year Laha served on the privateer brigantine Hancock as a First Lieutenant.[3] On November 18, 1777 he saw service at the same rank in the Massachusetts Privateer Brig Active under Captain John Foster Williams. The privateer brig was a vessel of 85 tons with 12 cannon and a crew of 64 commissioned in Boston on October 13, 1777. His Brig was captured in a battle with the HMS Mermaid 228 miles south of Cape Sambro, Nova Scotia on November 18, 1777. The British imprisoned Laha and held him on the Newport RI prison ship Lord Sandwich. He was also at Bristol RI on March 7 1778 when he and several of his crew mates were exchanged for British prisoners and released at Bristol Rhode Island. His six months as prisoner of war did not diminish his desire to fight the British. By the following summer of 1779 he was Master of the schooner Hannah that went on an expedition to invade Penobscot with 19 other ships of war and 21 transport ships carrying 1,500 troops.[4] The expedition was under the command of General Lovell. By the fall of that year Samuel Laha returned to Boston and was appointed Island Keeper at Rainsford Island, a job he probably earned by his demonstrated sailing skills and patriotism to his country.

As Island Keeper, Laha demonstrated his ability to follow the commands of his immediate supervisors, the Selectmen of Boston. He soon enough moved his family to Rainsford Island. During the war Laha was responsible for repairing the Rainsford Island hospital and providing routine support to those requiring smallpox quarantines. He raised his daughters on Rainsford Island and they were expected to help serve the sick and needy. Being an Island Keeper, Laha was expected to provide all of the needs for his sick patients including food, shelter and clothing. The Selectmen agreed to reimburse him for those cases where an individual was too poor to pay their own expenses.

During the Revolutionary War, the Massachusetts legislature occasionally authorized the use of inoculation as a means to prevent smallpox. Because it was considered to be a dangerous practice (i.e. the live smallpox virus was used to create immunity not the cowpox virus that was introduced in the early 1800s), inoculation was only allowed in approved hospital settings. Several Boston physicians sought permission to establish inoculation hospitals including Joseph Whipple. Dr. Whipple obtained approval to use Rainsford Island hospital and the services of Samuel Laha to provide inoculation services during the fall of 1789 and the spring of 1790.[5]

Captain Laha was also a key figure in the response to yellow fever that threatened Boston during the fall of 1793. His efforts during this period demonstrated his patriotic fervor in responding to pandemic events to protect the interests of the community. Hundreds of foreign visitors from southern states, including those arriving from Philadelphia, were quarantined on Rainsford Island until it was clear they were free of this infection. He worked tirelessly during this period to accommodate the large number of suspected yellow fever carriers and his efforts contributed to an exceptionally well managed response to this outbreak. Laha served as Island Keeper for 18 years, longer than any other person to hold this post during all of the 18th and 19th centuries. His dedication and work ethic was in part responsible for keeping this position under the control of the Selectmen rather than being run by Boston physicians.


[1] Boston Church Records, The Records of the Churches of Boston, CD_ROM, Boston, Mass, New England Historic and Genealogical Society, 2002 (Online database NewEnglandAncestors.org New England Historical Genealogical Society, 2008), p. 184.
[2] Massachusetts Magazine, Volume 2, 1909, p. 168 Web link: The Massachusetts magazine: devoted to Massachusetts history, ... - Google Books Result
[3] Massachusetts Magazine, Volume 2, 1909, p. 169
[4] Collections of the Massachusetts Historical Society, Seventh Series, Volume 4, Published by the Society, 1904, p. 311.
[5] Smallpox by Inoculation, Massachusetts Centinel, April 1, 1789; Volume XI, Issue 5, page 19.