Experimental Potatoes & the Preacher Farmer

Though Middleborough might now style itself the "cranberry capital of the world," in the past, the town was noted for other agricultural products as well. One crop for which Middleborough received attention during the early years of this century was potatoes, with North Middleborough being the site of a United States government experimental potato station, known as the Eden Trial Grounds. The origin of the experimental station was the farm of Reverend J. R. Lawrence. Lawrence served as Pastor of the First Baptist Church of Middleborough at the corner of Bedford and Plymouth Streets in North Middleborough between 1903 and 1907.

Lawrence, who was born in Fall River in 1868, began his interest in farming at the time he entered the ministry. Ordained in 1890, Lawrence always occupied rural pastorates, the first three being at South Dartmouth, North Egremont, and Lanesboro. The interest in farming became all-consuming for Lawrence who came to consider himself, first and foremost, a farmer. "There is more room in the world for a farmer who can preach than there is for a minister who has a farm to get a living," Lawrence believed.

In 1896, Lawrence began his work in experimental farming, which he continued after his arrival at North Middleborough. Experiments in cross-pollination were rigorously conducted by Lawrence who argued that "every farmer should engage in experimental work and see what he can learn. I do considerable and have found it very beneficial and profitable."

Lawrence claimed to have under cultivation "probably more varieties than any other private place in the United States." This included 90 varieties of garden peas, 75 varieties of lettuce, 45 varieties of sweet corn, and, ultimately 300 varieties of potatoes.

Previously, potato experimentation had been conducted at the Arlington Trial Grounds, but, in 1904, were transferred to the Lawrence farm. Seed potatoes were planted under the direction of representatives of the U. S. Department of Agriculture, and conditions were carefully noted. Each of the three hundred varieties was planted separately and marked with tagged stakes. Lawrence made weekly reports upon their progress. When the time came to harvest the potatoes, the work had to be done by hand so that each variety could be bagged and labelled for the following season. State and Federal agricultural experts would be present to oversee the work.

Later, Lawrence devoted greater attention to the growing of fruit. In the first years of his Middleborough farm, Lawrence cultivated seedless varieties of watermelons and apples, but he later turned to berry cultivation. As Mrs. Romaine notes in her history of Middleborough, "Lawrence drew wide attention by his experiments in berry growing." The experiments in question related to the possibility of the commercial cultivation of huckleberries, and these experiments were reported in the Boston Globe at the time. Lawrence transplanted a wild huckleberry bush from a nearby swamp to his farm, where it flourished, despite the lack of any special encouragement. It produced berries "almost as large as small cherries and which grew in clusters of 15 to 30."

Despite the scope of Lawrence's experiments and the number of vegetable and fruit varieties grown on his farm, only about four acres of land were cultivated. Specifically in regard to the experimental potato patch, this acreage contrasts greatly with the nearby State Farm at Bridgewater where some 65 acres were devoted solely to the cultivation of potatoes.

Lawrence was generally employed in farm work four or five days a week from 7 a.m. to 5 or 6 p.m., and was assisted in this work by his father, James Lawrence (1835-1910). The remaining days would be utilized by Reverend Lawrence to prepare his Sunday work. "He frankly states that he can use this time to good advantage farming, and does not visit his parishioners when they are well, but when they are sick he is always on hand to offer consolation and assistance."

Lawrence also gave his parishioners practical demonstrations of farming, and shared agricultural advice with them, "and for this reason, if no other, he has come to be one of the most popular pastors of the Baptist Church in the north precinct of the town."

"For myself, I try to keep ahead of my members in all branches of farming, as many of my members are engaged in that pursuit, and then I can always give them points on farming, and by thus assisting them have a better hold upon them. I can teach the spiritual lessons on a broader scale if I have the outdoor training which is incidental to farm life, and many of my best inspirations for sermon topics have come to me while at work in the field," Lawrence believed.

Lawrence left his pastorate, potato patch and experimental farm in 1907.

Illustrations:
"Potatoes", photograph by Eleanor Martin, August 16, 2009.  Used under a Creative Commons license.

Joseph Reynard Lawrence (1868-1925), photograph, c. 1893, Emery, Rutland, Vermont.
Reverend J. R. Lawrence about the time of his wedding in 1893.

Cutting the Grass at North Middleborough, 1887

Prior to the development of push lawn mowers and their widespread adoption, lawns were mown with scythes if they were cut at all.  Roadways, on the other hand, were generally left untended and grass occasionally grew in strips where wagons and carriages passed over.  The situation at North Middleborough in August, 1887, was typical when residents contemplated an alternative solution for their unkempt roads:

Grass grows knee high in some of the principal thoroughfares of North Middleboro and people are asked to convert their cows into mowing machines.

Illustration:
"Rakes and Scythes", photograph by Markus Spring, April 8, 2007, republished under a Creative Commons license.

Source:
Old Colony Memorial, August 11, 1887, page 1.

The History of Our Schools: Plymouth Street


During the 1930s, a series of short informal histories of the various Middleborough school houses were compiled by J. Stearns Cushing, Superintendent of Middleborough Schools from 1927 until 1955.  Mr. Cushing prepared these histories for publication as a series in the Middleboro Gazette beginning on February 24, 1933.  With information culled largely from town reports, the series entitled "The History of Our Schools" sought to provide the community with a better understanding of the past history of its public school buildings.  Like Cushing's history of the Pleasant Street School, his coverage of the Plymouth Street School is brief and is here supplemented by additional background on its history.

The Plymouth Street School was built in 1903 to replace an earlier school building which was described in the 1901 School Committee report as being in poor condition.  At the time, the school house on Pleasant Street was also in need of replacement, and the idea of unifying the two into a single district was pressed: "The consolidation of both schools at North Middleboro, the Pleasant street and Plymouth street schools, into a new two room building would give to the citizens of that section of the town better graded and more efficient schools.  The need of better accommodations is imperative.  The question as to whether it would be better to erect new buildings on the lots now occupied by the old, or to erect a new two-room building at some central point, from an educational point of view, can have but one answer, and that is the last proposition should be carried out.  With a two-room building the primary grade would occupy one room and the intermediate the other, while the upper grades as now would enter the Pratt Free School.



News item, Middleboro Gazette, September 6, 1918.

The annual fall opening of Middleborough's schools,

including suburban schools such as Plymouth Street and

Pleasant Street were typically noted in the local newspaper.

Here, notice is given that going forward the two schools

would each house only five grades.  In time, this

duplication of services was eliminated and the North

Middleborough schools (including the Pratt Free School)

re-graded.

 Contrary to the recommendation of the Committee, a decision was made to build separate schools, with Pleasant Street receiving priority, and a building committee for that school being named in 1902.  Despite its prioritization of Pleasant Street, the School Committee still believed "the school building at Plymouth street is in very poor condition and should be replaced with a new one, or the old one should be thoroughly repaired."  Superintendent of Schools Charles H. Bates emphasized: "Attention is called to the condition at Plymouth Street .... Plymouth Street building is badly out of repair."

Accordingly, Article 23 for the Annual Town Meeting was drafted: "To see if the town will build a new schoolhouse at North Middleborough on Plymouth Street, raise and appropriate money for the same, and act thereon.  (On petition of Warren S. Gibbs and fifteen others).)"  The article was approved and a building committee consisting of David G. Pratt, William C. Litchfield, and Chester E. Weston was named.

The new Plymouth Street School was a one-room schoolhouse capable of accommodating 30 pupils.  $2,500 was appropriated by the town, and $25 was received for the sale of the old building.  The school was designed by architect Eugene L. Clark (for $75) and built by Frank E. Pierce at a cost of $1,525, the total cost of constructing and furnishing the school, including a fence, being $2,468.31.

Plymouth Street

The present Plymouth Street building was built during the summer of 1903  the appropriation for the same having been made at the annual meeting of that year.  For many years previous to that date the Committee had repeatedly recommended a new building there, but only necessary repairs had been made from year to year.

The report of 1904 states: "The new building for which an appropriation was made at the annual meeting in March was finished and ready for occupancy at the opening of school in September.  It is similar in design to the one at Pleasant Street, excepting it has no basement and the furnace room is in the front part of the building.  It is well lighted, heated and ventilated, equipped with modern furniture and in every way an attractive modern suburban school building.  At the dedication exercises in November, a pleasing feature was the presentation to the school of an organ by Hon. David G. Pratt, a member of the building committee.  A well has been driven, which gives a good supply of pure water."

The building at the time of its erection contained all nine grades and a total of 24 pupils.  At the present time the house serves only the first three grades of the children in that section of the town.

The names of the teachers who have taught in the present building are as follows:

1903-04
Bessie L. Thomas

1905
Lillian F. Smith

1905-06
Annie M. Holt

1907
Alice B. LeBaron

1908-09
Grace A. Tinkham

1909
Myrtie A. Shaw

1910-1923
Elsie (Landgrebe) LeBlanc

1923-45
Dorothy (Robinson) Bradford

As had been the case with the Pleasant Street School, continuing rationalization of the Middleborough school system and consequent re-grading eventually reduced the number of grades housed in the Plymouth Street School, and during much of the period from the 1950s through 1983 it was the home to North Middleborough's first graders.  At the start of the 1983-84 school year, the lower elementary grades at North Middleborough were consolidated at the Pratt Free School, and the morning kindergarten sessions conducted at Plymouth Street.  In 1990, financial considerations closed the remaining suburban schools, including the Plymouth Street School.  It was since sol by the Town of Middleborough and has been remodelled into a private residence.

Teachers serving the school in the period following Cushing's history were

1945-74
Marjorie C. Huntley


1974-75
Elaine Emanuelson


1975-76
Elaine Hammond


1976-1980
Mary Ann Fisher


1980-81
Mary Lou K. Orr


1981-82
Mary Ann Fisher


1982-83
Judith A. Whynock


1983-87
Beverly J. Atwood


1987-90
Janice M. Warner

Sources:
Cushing, J. Stearns. "The History of Our Schools: Forest Street School". Photostatic copy of original manuscript, 1932-33. Author's collection.
Middleborough Town Reports, 1932-44
Plymouth County Registry of Deeds, Book 1920, Page 424.

The History of Our Schools: Pleasant Street School

Maude DeMaranville, photograph, early

20th century.

A young Maude DeMaranville captured

about the time of her graduation from

Middleborough High School in 1905.  The

subsequent year, she entered the public

school system as a teacher and remained

there for nearly half a century.  She was

remembered for "her quiet, gentle ways and

a stern look that captured the attention and

hearts of all her students."  She passed

away on April 10, 1978.

During the 1930s, a series of short informal histories of the various Middleborough school houses were compiled by J. Stearns Cushing, Superintendent of Middleborough Schools from 1927 until 1955.  Mr. Cushing prepared these histories for publication as a series in the Middleboro Gazette beginning on February 24, 1933.  With information culled largely from town reports, the series entitled "The History of Our Schools" sought to provide the community with a better understanding of the past history of its public school buildings. Cushing's history of the Pleasant Street School in North Middleborough is one of the shortest in his series, providing a brief outline of the construction details of the school and a listing of teachers through 1932.  Notable among these women was Maude DeMaranville of Lakeville.  Though Miss DeMaranville taught at a number of Middleborough schools including Thompsonville (1906), Soule (1911-12), Waterville (1912-15), and Thomatown (1915), she was most closely associted with the Pleasant Street School where she taught for 38 years (1917-54).  In 1973, at the behest of the North Middleboro Mothers' Club, the Pleasant Street School was renamed the Maude DeMaranville School in recognition of her commitment to the community's children.   

Pleasant Street School

At the annual [Middleborough town] meeting in 1902 it was voted to build two new houses for the Pleasant Street and Soule schools, and the matter was placed in the hands of the School Committee with instructions to procure plans, advertise for bid and award the contracts to the lowest bidders.  Acting according to these instructions, the contract was awarded for building the Pleasant Street house.  The cost of construction was as follows:

Receipts
Appropriation  $2,500.00
Sale of property  14.25
Total  $2,514.25

Expenses
Lot  $70.00
Building contract  1,535.00
Out buildings, etc.  47.00
Cellar and grading  147.42
Desks  124.62
Heating  ventilating  182.05
Curtains  17.66
Blackboards  11.15
Fencing lot  123.74
Plans, surveying, etc.  98.00
Total $2,356.64
Unexpended $157.61

The Committee were able to secure the services of a competent well digger before the winter set in and this part of the work was not completed.

The list of teachers for this school building follows:

1902
Lena M. Baldwin

1903-09
Lucy E. Merrihew

1910
Alberta C. Remick

1911
Gertrude M. Coombs

1912-16
Myra A. Andrews

1917-54
Maude DeMaranville

The roll of teachers following the period covered by Cushing's history is as follows:

1954-56
Virginia C. Smith

1956-71
Margaret J. Walsh

1971-72
Jane A. Olson

1972-74
Marcia L. Roy

1974-78
Virginia A. Cahoon

1978-81
Joan C. Tripp

Throughout much of its history, the Pleasant Street School housed multiple elementary grades, principally the 4th, 5th and 6th grades for North Middleborough.  Continued rationalization of the public school elementary grades, however, resulted in Pleasant Street housing North Middleborough's second graders through much of the late 1950s, 1960s and early 1970s.  In 1974 when the addition to the Henry B. Burkland School was opened in Middleborough, many of the upper elementary grades were transferred there from North Midleborough and Pleasant Street was given over to use as a kindergarten.  It remained in this role until May, 1981, when it was permanently closed.

Sources:
Cushing, J. Stearns. "The History of Our Schools: Pleasant Street School". Photostatic copy of original manuscript, 1932-33. Author's collection.
Middleborough Town Reports, 1932-81.

Fishing at North Middleborough, c. 1910

This postcard from the early 20th century speaks for itself. While North Middleborough was never a great destination for tourists for fishing, this humorous card seems to have been too funny to pass up. Generic cards such as these were printed in the hundreds of thousands and stamped with the individual locale at the bottom. Most likely, this card was sold in the North Middleborough store alongside more traditional picture postcards depicting the neighborhood.