![[1846 Margaret Gillies sketch of the Hutchinson Family quartet]](http://www.oocities.org/hfsbook/pic/gilliessketch342.jpg)
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1850-1851
Chapter 11 Part 1
Early in November 1850, John returned to singing on his own. He gave a concert at Nashua and two in Lowell. Then on the 15th, he and Fanny went to Boston's Faneuil Hall to hear George Thompson speak; but a proslavery crowd filled the building and disrupted the gathering. Through December, John gave solo entertainments, mostly in New Hampshire.
On the 28th, Judson and Asa joined him on two songs at Lyceum Hall in Lynn. Then the trio made a short tour through parts of Massachusetts and New Hampshire. John noted "some very peculiar
[A]t Newburyport . . . [ Judson ] was impressed that it was his duty to do something for the poor of the town, and therefore proceeded to draw from his pockets handfuls of silver half-dollars, previously secured, which he threw into the broad aisle, requesting Hannah F. Gould, the poetess, who was present, to act as almoner and see that the money went to the worthy poor only. Sometimes he would speak as if inspired, to the astonishment and delight of the auditors. Sometimes his speech would be of a comical edifying nature. More often than otherwise, it would be an address on the sinfulness of eating flesh, or wearing any garment that necessitated the killing of animals for its construction. Because of these theories he had discarded boots and shoes, clothing his feet in socks. His food was fruits, cereals and honey. However, though his idiosyncrasies caused the rest of us a good deal of uneasiness, they were never of a nature to harm any one, or to seriously shock an audience.
The group consisted of Joshua, Jesse, Judson, John, and sometimes Asa, as they sang in and around Boston. This was a particularly interesting period in Judson's life and much attention centered on him. One critical notice said:
The brother that wears long hair, parted in the middle, long beard, carpet shoes and sundry other fixins, informed his audience that he had been to heaven and
Nonsense or not, Judson seemed determined to get past this episode in his characteristic way - with humor.
Judson thought their concerts were too expensive, and he insisted they drop the cost of tickets. At times, admission was lowered to just twelve-and-a-half cents. More often, women could buy tickets for half the price paid by men; some of their advertising said this difference in price was in response to the common practice of women being paid much lower wages than men.
"Then on the 15th, he and Fanny went to Boston's Faneuil Hall": For several days, the New York Daily Tribune published news and discussion of this incident, beginning with "Disgraceful Row at Faneuil Hall," New York Daily Tribune, November 16, 1850, p. 5 col. 2.
"John recorded some very peculiar occurrences . . . occasioned by": John Wallace Hutchinson, Story of the Hutchinsons (Tribe of Jesse), 2 vols. (Boston: Lee and Shepard, 1896), 1:281-282.
"The brother that wears long hair, parted in the middle, long beard": R. D., "The Hutchinsons," New York Day Book, n.d.
This notice includes what purports to be the contents of a handbill for a concert at Lyceum Hall in Lynn, advising its readers:
To hear some Songs and Sentiments from
JUDSON, THE CRAZY BOY!
And his two Sane Brothers, who watch over him,
John and Asa.
"Judson thought their concerts were too expensive": John W. Hutchinson (1896, 1:285).
Page 2
Before the onset of Judson's illness, reviews marveled at his performance of the "Italian" passage at the end of "The Bachelor's Lament." Notices from soon after his hospital discharge mention his "Italian Opera - Italian Uproar!" This was his greatest comic achievement. According to a writer for the Boston Commonwealth, "Judson was in fine spirits last night. His imitation of Italian music was the best thing we ever heard." Praise does not get any higher.
By the way, why was Asa in and out of the group? On February 4, his son Frederick Chace Hutchinson was born. No doubt Asa was sticking close to his family.
In Milford around this time, Jesse Sr., answered a call to help put out a fire in a neighbor's barn. He worked up quite a sweat and took a cold on his way home in bad weather. He was rarely sick, but this illness stuck with him stubbornly. Then one day while doing his household chores, he was seized with paralysis and fell onto the basket of wood he was carrying. He was put to bed, his limbs paralyzed and his power of speech mostly lost. Jesse Hutchinson, Sr., lingered for about a week, but on Sunday, February 16 he died.
Jesse Hutchinson was a deeply religious man, he loved music, thought farming was a noble profession, and was always proud of his family. Mary Howitt, in her 1846 Hutchinson Family profile, said that Jesse Sr. "is described by those who know him, as a man of noble and independent character, full of kindness, and remarkable for
In a few weeks Joshua, Judson, and John began a tour of Massachusetts and Rhode Island. In Providence, about the middle of March, they were joined in concert by Caleb, Jesse, and Asa. These six sang their way through Massachusetts, Connecticut, and New York. Advertisements listed a new song, "Right Over Wrong." Like many of the best Hutchinson Family originals, it featured lyrics by Jesse and music by Judson. "Right Over Wrong" was their finest collaboration. It would have an important place in the family's repertoire, off and on, for half a century. The Hutchinsons were the apostles of the "Good Time Coming," and "Right Over Wrong" was their anthem.
"Before the onset of Judson's illness, reviews marveled at his performance": J[udson] J. Hutchinson, "The Batchelor's Lament, or, Scenes in the Life of Nobody," first line of text: "Returning home at close of day" (Boston: Oliver Ditson, 1848).
"According to a writer for the Boston Commonwealth, Judson was": "Th[e] Hutchinson's," Commonwealth Boston, n.d., in Item 37v, Ludlow Patton's Hutchinson Family Scrapbook, Wadleigh Memorial Library, Milford, New Hampshire.
The Hutchinson Family used their voices to showcase their songs; they did not use songs to display their voices. However, Judson's occasional venture into the sounds of Italian music may have been a light-hearted exception.
Apparently Judson's Italian burlesque was never published. In fact, he published few new scores after this recent psychiatric episode. Scores that identified the Hutchinson Family as composer were much fewer in number, too, after this.
"Mary Howitt, in her 1846 Hutchinson Family profile, said that Jesse Sr.": [ Mary Howitt, ] "Public Exhibitions: The Hutchinson Family," The People's Journal, April 25, 1846, pages 226-229, at page 227. Howitt understood Jesse Sr. to be a "non-resistant" who would carry this approach to the point of never suing over a debt.
"A couple months before he died, he wrote a letter to Frederick Douglass": Jesse Hutchinson
"These six sang their way through Massachusetts, Connecticut": A picture of this sextet appears in John W. Hutchinson (1896, 1:opposite p. 288). Joshua photographed well as usual; and Caleb and John looked particularly dashing. Judson stood out from the crowd as he often did.
This photo is notable particularly because it gives us one of our few glimpses of Jesse. See also John W. Hutchinson (1896, 1:opposite p. 136); Carol Brink, Harps in the Wind: The Story of the Singing Hutchinsons (New York: Macmillan, 1947), picture section. A sketch in Item 51r, Ludlow Patton's Hutchinson Family Scrapbook, Wadleigh Memorial Library, Milford, New Hampshire, is quite simple but reasonably effective, though it exaggerates the lack of symmetry of his nose. A couple days ago I was sent a scanned image of a silhouette of the Hutchinson Family quartet plus Jesse, which was sketched during the United Kingdom tour of 1845-1846.
"Advertisements listed a new song, Right Over Wrong": "Right Over Wrong: Coming Right Along: Song and Chorus," music: Hutchinson Family (Vocal Group)
For two or three years, the Hutchinsons had had a song called "The Good Time Coming." It was occasionally mentioned in Hutchinson Family papers that also listed "There's a Good Time Coming," suggesting strongly that these were separate pieces. One might well wonder, then, whether "The Good Time Coming" may have served as a protype of some sort for "Right Over Wrong."
Jesse Hutchinson, Sr. (1778-1851)
Page 3
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: : Right Over Wrong : : Behold the day of promise comes, full of inspiration: The good time, the good time, the good time's coming on, The captive now begins to rise and burst his chains asunder, The good time, the good time, the good time's coming on, Sweet dawn of peace, that day will prove, to all the sons of labor; The good time, the good time, the good time's coming on, Whence come the wars and fightings dire among the various nations, The good time, the good time, the good time's coming on, Still higher up the morning beams are spreading in their beauty, The good time, the good time, the good time's coming on, Oh, then will come the glorious day and may it last forever, The good time, the good time, the good time's coming on, |
The Hutchinsons' New York engagements began on Wednesday evening, April 2. Brothers David and Noah were there; and Isaiah Rynders was in the audience, with his gang. We can only imagine what John meant when he wrote about Rynders, perhaps suggestively, "He had some of his crew with him and there was a slight disturbance. David and Noah did not sing with us, but were active in assistance in other ways."
Journalists generally did not know how to describe Judson's "Italian Uproar." The New York Tribune said:
We felt grateful that the name of the language was given in the programme. It adds much to one's interest in a song to know that he is hearing Italian, even though he does not understand a word of the tongue. This was our case; but Judson's pronunciation was so glib that we hardly felt the deficiency.
"Behold the day of promise comes, full of inspiration": The lyrics of "Right Over Wrong" were no more fixed than were those of "The Old Granite State." Cf. John W. Hutchinson (1896, 1:284, 1:372); "He Sang for Suffrage," New York Times, November 17, 1895, p. 25 col. 5; Jesse Hutchinson, Jr., "Coming Right Along; or, Right over Wrong," s.l.: s.n., n.d., in Item 73r, Ludlow Patton's Hutchinson Family Scrapbook, Wadleigh Memorial Library, Milford, New Hampshire. The Alleghanians sang this song, into the 1870s and perhaps beyond, under the name, "Behold, the Day of Promise Comes," with slightly modified lyrics.
We have seen the changing character of "The Old Granite State," as Jesse zipped in new verses. He was well on his way toward doing much the same with "Right Over Wrong." And he made significant changes over time to his topical songs, such as "Eight Dollars a Day," "Uncle Sam's Farm," and possibly even "The Good Old Days of Yore."
"We can only imagine what John meant when he wrote": John W. Hutchinson (1896, 1:285).
The applause that evening was louder and more cordial than usual. Judson's illness had received a great deal of publicity, and no doubt much of this outpouring was directed to him.
"We felt grateful that the name of the language was given": "The Hutchinsons," New York Daily Tribune, April 3, 1851, p. 5 col. 4.
Page 4
On Friday, all seating and standing room at the Tabernacle was filled, and hundreds were turned away. According to the New York Evening Mirror of April 5, "Judson's explanation of his insanity was delivered in a droll, quaint manner, and caused considerable laughter." John remembered:
We met with more opposition in New York City that year than ever before. Much fault was found with our cheap prices, and certain elements were shocked by our calling our fellow-beings men and women, instead of "gentlemen and ladies." We well understood that the root of all the opposition was because of our steady blows at the system of slavery, and as the criticisms all came from pro-slavery publications, we kept our temper, and pushed our good work steadily on.
During this stop, the Hutchinsons, with Horace Greeley and his wife, attended a seance conducted by the Fox sisters.
At the closing concert at the Broadway Tabernacle, once again Judson stole the show.
Judson's song in four parts, burlesquing the Italian opera, is another skillful piece of vocal execution; his mimicry of the style is admirable, especially the soprano. The last part is whistled - and here let us remark that the Hutchinsons have reduced whistling to a science. To hear them, one would imagine their mouths were double keyed and silver lined. Judson's performance, in this song, resembles a whole orchestra of twittering singing-birds.
At the end of this strange but profitable tour, Jesse wrote:
We . . . trust our feeble efforts have not been entirely lost to the great and good cause. We have suffered the buffetings of the purse-proud and Rhynders' crowd, but in every struggle have come off victorious, and sung our songs of Liberty in the very teeth of some bitter opposition.
John stayed in New York, making arrangements for a solo tour, while Judson left for the hydropathic establishment of Dr. Robert Wesselhoeft in Brattleboro, Vermont. The others went home. Probably it was about this time that Asa compiled the group's new songster, the Book of Words of the Hutchinson Family.
After Abby's illness, the Pattons seemed to divide their time between New York, Hartford, and Milford. But by the early months of 1851 they had settled in New York. On February 1, Ludlow was taken into the partnership of Tredwell Ketcham and Co., receiving a one-eighth interest in the business. Five months later he was elected to the New York Stock Exchange, at which time his interest was increased to one-quarter. Ludlow Patton was on his way up in the world of finance.
In 1851 or 1852, the Pattons visited the Orange Mountain Water Cure in New Jersey. They soon purchased twenty-six-and-a-half acres of land on the side of Orange Mountain. Later they built a
"We met with more opposition in New York City that year": John W. Hutchinson (1896, 1:286).
One evening, only 400 people came to their concert at the Tabernacle. The weather was miserable, possibly accounting, up to a point, for the extraordinarily small turnout on that one occasion. John W. Hutchinson (1896, 1:285) seemed to think that cheap tickets were partly to blame. Evidence exists, from their English tour, that some of the more aristocratic fans may have objected to low admission prices because they made it easier for the working classes to attend. Something similar may have been at work in New York. So, it is possible that, in part, John was right.
"During this stop, the Hutchinsons, with Horace Greeley": John W. Hutchinson (1896, 1:285).
Surprisingly, this was not Judson's only spiritualist experience at the time. See Charles Partridge, "Spiritual Manifestations," New York Daily Tribune, January 17, 1852, p. 6 col. 6; p. 7 col. 1. This seems a most curious experiment, considering Judson's troubles from just a few months before.
"The Haunted Ground" (Boston: G. P. Reed, 1851) may have originated at this time. A strange collaboration, the lyrics of the spirit of Felicia Hemans were delivered by Jesse Hutchinson, Jr., while the music, also from the spirit land, was presented through Leah Fish while she sat at a piano.
"Judson's song in four parts, burlesquing the Italian opera": "The Concerts of the Hutchinsons," New York Daily Tribune, April 21, 1851, p. 4 col. 4.
A published score or manuscript of Judson J. Hutchinson's "Italian Uproar" has not been located, so this New York Tribune description may be the best available representation of this comic and whistling masterpiece. If, on the other hand, you know of a printed score or a manuscript and would be willing to share information about it, please use the contact link toward the bottom of the page to e-mail us.
"We . . . trust our feeble efforts have not been entirely lost": Jesse Hutchinson, Jr., "Letter from New York," s.l.: s.n., n.d., in Item 42v, Ludlow Patton's Hutchinson Family Scrapbook, Wadleigh Memorial Library, Milford, New Hampshire.
"On February 1, Ludlow was taken into the partnership": Henry Whittemore, The Founders and Builders of the Oranges (Newark, NJ:
Notice that Abby retired from concert tours well before her husband's main business successes, which did not so much as approach their peak until the Civil War years.
"In 1851 or 1852, the Pattons visited the Orange Mountain Water Cure": Henry Whittemore, The Founders and Builders of the Oranges (Newark, NJ:
Years later, after the Pattons relocated to Orange proper, Dawnwood was destroyed by fire. The Orange home may still be standing. This could be an interesting topic for further research.
A converted townhouse in lower Manhattan appears to be the same building as the Pattons' old New York City residence.
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After Jesse came to believe in modern spiritualism, he thought he could prove its truth - through the guidance of spirits - by locating the pirate's treasure buried at Dungeon Rock in Lynn.
[A] pirate band [ said John ] . . . sailed up the narrow Saugus River in the early days of the settlement, hid for months in the almost impenetrable thicket of "Pirates' Glen," and finally found a refuge from the law in the cave in Dungeon
Brother Jesse consulted mediums and then used drill and powder to tunnel into Dungeon Rock. But his temperament was not suited for such monotonous labor; and soon a message from his brothers saved him from this project. Not long after Jesse stopped drilling and blasting, Hiram Marble and his son Edwin took up the task. Hiram Marble said he would either prove the truth of spiritualism or dig its grave.
John left New York for his tour, stopping to see Judson at Dr. Wesselhoeft's water cure. He was pleasantly surprised to learn that Judson wished to go with him. They rushed off a message to Jesse and soon the three started for the glorious West. On their way to Cleveland, the Hutchinson brothers held successful concerts at Bennington, Vermont, and Troy, New York. In Cleveland, they met Judge Spaulding and Salmon P. Chase, who invited them to participate in a mass antislavery convention at Ravenna on June 25.
The Hutchinsons participated in the second Ohio Woman's Suffrage Convention, which was held at the stone church in Akron on May 28 and 29. One of their songs was "Right Over Wrong," with a verse that Jesse rewrote especially for the occasion.
Their travels led through Cleveland and Cincinnati. At Louisville they encountered a man with
On Sunday, June 6, as they approached Zephaniah's farmhouse, they saw him walking his daughter home from a prayer meeting. After a visit that must have seemed altogether too short, the brothers said their goodbyes and started the journey back to their tour.
"[A] pirate band [said John] . . . sailed up the narrow Saugus River": John W. Hutchinson (1896, 1:272-273).
A "Mr. Smith, of Foxborough" took a great interest in the excavations and the search for pirate treasure at Dungeon Rock in Lynn. See "Dungeon Rock," New York Times, July 16, 1866, p. 6 col. 2; copied from the Boston Post, July 12. It would be interesting to know whether he may have been the same person as the Asa Smith who turns up, in connection with Stone Cottage, just a bit later in this account of the Hutchinson Family. Of course, Smith is an extremely common name; but it doesn't stop us from wondering.
"The Hutchinsons participated in the second Ohio Woman's Suffrage": "He Sang for Suffrage," New York Times, November 17, 1895, p. 25 col. 5.
For much information about Sojourner Truth's famed "Ain't I a Woman" speech, delivered at this convention, see Carleton Mabee and Susan Mabee Newhouse, Sojourner Truth: Slave, Prophet, Legend (New York: New York University Press, 1993), 67-82.
"At Louisville they encountered a man with 3,000 copies of a Bible Defence": Rev. Josiah Priest, Bible Defence of Slavery (Glasgow, KY:
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The Hutchinson Family's antislavery reputation arrived in St. Louis before them - along with the man pushing a Bible Defence of Slavery. Newspapers printed unfavorable stories about the Hutchinsons; and Edward Wyman, who had promised them Wyman's Hall, now refused to let them use it. In a move that seems rehearsed, the brothers were referred to Mayor Luther Martin Kennett to ask for a license or permit.
Addressing ourselves in a courteous manner to His Honor, [ said John ] we asked
Groups of people on street corners looked angry, and the Hutchinsons believed they were in some danger. They paid their bills and had their baggage sent to the riverfront. Their expenses, in anticipation of one or more concerts, amounted to $100; and John thought their total loss from this affair might have approached
At Chicago, on news of the group's losses in St. Louis, a benefit was arranged at Tremont Hall, bringing in $225. Concerts followed there and in Racine, Milwaukee, Detroit, and Cleveland. At Caroline Severance's house, Frances D. Gage gave the brothers her poem, "One Hundred Years Hence." The next day at the Ravenna antislavery convention, after making brief remarks to the crowd, Jesse read Gage's verses - giving this new Hutchinson Family song a not-quite-musical debut. Then after four hours of abolition, the speakers joined the audience, while the trio gave one of their regular concert programs. And as if doing their duty and enjoying themselves was not enough, the Hutchinsons took in about eighty dollars from the sale of their songbooks.
Several people from Painesville asked the Hutchinson Family to entertain at their Fourth of July celebration. The brothers had misgivings. As John wrote:
Late in June, after other successful engagements, good news arrived from home in the person of Brother Asa, who had been in Milford since leaving New York in the spring. He rejoined the group, and then Jesse concentrated on business matters.
"Addressing ourselves in a courteous manner to His Honor, [ said John ]": John W. Hutchinson (1896, 1:293). See also "The Hutchinsons at St. Louis," New York Daily Tribune, June 20, 1851, p. 7 col. 5.
The St. Louis mayor's kin seem to have been divided as to whether it is best to spell their surname Kennet or Kennett.
"Groups of people on street corners looked angry, and the Hutchinsons": John W. Hutchinson (1896, 1:293-294). Cf. Byline "Reform," "The Hutchinsons in St. Louis," s.l.: s.n., n.p., n.d.
"The next day at the Ravenna antislavery convention, after making": John W. Hutchinson, "A Hundred Years Hence,"
Fanny Gage may have given Jesse her "Song of Labor" at this same meeting.
"As John wrote: "[W]e loved the land of our birth, and hated to refuse": John W. Hutchinson (1896, 1:301).
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From Cleveland, the singers took a steamboat to Painesville, arriving on July 3. Those who arranged the Independence Day celebration advertised that the group would sing songs selected by the committee.
Meanwhile, Jesse wrote a song for the occasion, and the Hutchinsons proceeded to the grove to sing. The audience numbered
The church trustees withdrew permission for use of their building, making the argument - familiar to our singers - that they were afraid it would be destroyed by an angry crowd. Meanwhile, the group arrived at the church door. Taking in what was going on, they changed the concert to a free outdoors show. Efforts were made to drown out the music - people shouted, cannons were fired, and firecrackers were set off. The brothers went on singing. "Some of the gentlemen," said Morse, "most conspicuous in exciting the disorders on this occasion subsequently made ample apologies to the Hutchinsons for their mistaken zeal."
The company sang their way from Ohio to Michigan and then went to Buffalo by way of Detroit.
"Those who arranged the Independence Day celebration advertised": Much of this account of the events surrounding Painesville's Independence Day celebration is drawn from
"Some of the gentlemen, said Morse, most conspicuous": Cf. "Disgraceful Treatment of the Hutchinsons at Painesville," s.l.: s.n., n.d.
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Behold the day of promise comes, full of inspiration The blessed day by prophets sung for the healing of the nation Old midnight errors flee away, they soon will all be gone While heavenly angels seem to say the good time's coming on
The good time, the good time, the good time's coming on The good time, the good time, the good time's coming on |
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Brattleboro, Vermont: Published by the author. 2006, 2007.
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