Cats of Longmeadow

perhaps Tommy Cordis (b.1884) Cordis Family Collection

Upon hearing that the Dogs of Longmeadow were highlighted in a recent History Note, the cats of Longmeadow took umbrage, as they are inclined to do. So in an effort to be fair and just, this week the Longmeadow Historical Society brings you… The Cats of Old Longmeadow. Unlike their canine counterparts, cats are notoriously more private, and thus there are far fewer images of them in our archives. After all, it seems one can never find a cat that does not wish to be found. Make no mistake, though. Cats have been welcome and helpful members of Longmeadow households for generations.

"Mr. Comstock and cat" December 1913 Emerson Collection/ Longmeadow Historical Society

The Longmeadow Historical Society also has several 19th century children’s books in our collection, and within their pages are charming stories and illustrations of children and their cats. Cats have always made wonderful subjects for children’s books. The word “C-A-T” is a friendly one to an early reader, and the antics they can get into often spell humorous “T-R-O-U-B-L-E.” One charming little book titled “Ann and Ellen and the Little Kitten” tells a tale of the woe that falls upon little Ann who doesn’t heed her mother’s instructions to admire, but not pick up, the kitten. Inevitably, the girl disobeys her mother’s command. The kitten scratches the young Ann's face, and when she cries to her mother she is reminded that had she obeyed her mother in the first place the injury never would have happened. Exactly the moral lesson these books were made to impart.

A popular moral: Obey your parents or pay the price. Longmeadow Historical Society Collection

Grandmamma's Book of Rhymes, 1848

Longmeadow Historical Society Collection

The Child's Guide, 1849 Longmeadow Historical Society Collection

No doubt, the many farms in Longmeadow would have had cats around to keep the mice at bay, rather than for the companionship they are so prized for today. The Storrs House Museum could certainly benefit from a good cat or two these days to handle the mice. Alas, that task has fallen to our board president, Al McKee, who comes to check the traps on a regular basis. A fine mouser indeed!

Booth Family Photo Album

Longmeadow Historical Society Collection

Booth Family Photo Album

Longmeadow Historical Society Collection

Contributed by Melissa M. Cybulski, Board member, Longmeadow Historical Society

Originally published February 11, 2021

Dogs of Longmeadow

Any morning and any late afternoon in Longmeadow you are sure to see promenading down the sidewalks and side streets of our town the proud dogs of Longmeadow out for their walks, accompanied by their faithful owners. All shapes, all sizes. Some shaggy, fluffy, and straining against leashes to chase a scampering squirrel. Others are sleek, dignified, and clearly pleased by their own elegance and good training. No matter the weather, out they come!

This week, we’d like to share images of some dogs of Longmeadow from days of yore. It is striking how even more than a hundred years ago, these dogs seem so much a part of the families with which they pose.

Unidentified Man and 2 dogs, Longmeadow Green

Cordis Family Collection

Unidentified Woman and Pug Cordis Family Collection

Kempton Family, 1909

Emerson Collection

"P.M. Taylor Back Piazza" 1910 Emerson Collection

Did you know that dog licensing money was integral to the town’s school and library funding for many years? In 1880, the town appropriated $139.50 of “Dog Money” for the schools. In 1895, the first year the town supported an official town library (which occupied a modest spare room in the rear of the town office building), the Annual Report mentions the amount appropriated for the library as “$25 + dog money.” That remained the case for decades to follow. Every town meeting warrant featured an article asking voting residents to “decide what use shall be made of the dog money... “. From 1895-1974, it appears that this money was specifically used to supplement whatever the town budgeted for library funding. What a great trade-off - register your dog AND support your town library!

"Mrs. Craig's South Park Avenue, 1915

Emerson Collection

"Carl Withe, 41 Longmeadow Street" undated

Emerson Collection

"P.M. Taylor, girls and front door" 1910 Emerson Collection

All images here are courtesy of the Emerson Collection at the Longmeadow Historical Society and the Cordis Family Collection.

Contributed by Melissa M. Cybulski, Board member, Longmeadow Historical Society

Originally published January 21, 2021

Gettysburg 1913: A 50th Anniversary Reunion

One hundred and sixty years ago, Union and Confederate armies fought The Battle of Gettysburg from July 1-3, 1863. The Union victory is felt to be the turning point of the Civil War. It was the most costly battle in U.S. history with approximately 50,000 casualties.

According to The Proceedings at the Centennial Celebration of the Incorporation of the Town of Longmeadow, October 17th, 1883, 166 men from Longmeadow served in the Union Army. Of these, eight were killed in action, five died of wounds, ten died of disease and three died in prison. In 1913, fifty years after The Battle of Gettysburg, two of Longmeadow’s Civil War veterans arrived in Pennsylvania to honor the anniversary.

The 50th anniversary of the battle was commemorated by the largest reunion of Union and Confederate veterans. It was said to be “the greatest gathering of conquerors and conquered in the history of the world.” From June 29-July 4, 1913 approximately 53,000 veterans from 46 of the 48 states gathered in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The gathering was peaceful and veterans, who ranged in age from their late 60s to their 80s, slept in tents and re-hashed battle stories with comrades-in-arms as well as with their opponents. The reunion was designed to promote healing and unity in an increasingly fractured and polarized country.

Among them were Isaac Coomes (1834-1916) and Nathan Coe (1845-1943), who both lived in Longmeadow at the time. Born in Vermont, Isaac Coomes was just a child when his family returned to their own native Longmeadow in 1841. He remained for the rest of his life. He enlisted in the 37th Massachusetts Volunteers and served in 21 battles - including Gettysburg. Isaac Coomes was one of seven brothers, two of whom died during the Civil War. Elias was killed in action at the Battle of Fair Oaks, Virginia May 31, 1862, and James died at the infamous Andersonville Prison, Andersonville, Georgia in 1864. Isaac, like his brother Elias, was trained as a thimble and spectacle maker in Longmeadow.

According to an article in The Springfield Union, Coomes enjoyed his 1913 trip to Gettysburg even though he was in poor health at the time. The paper reported, “He was much gratified to get a drink again from Spangler’s spring, remembered by the soldiers for its cold, delicious water.” Isaac never married. He resided at the pumping station according to the street directory in 1901, and on Meadow Street at the time of his death in 1916.

The other Civil War veteran who traveled from Longmeadow to Gettysburg was Nathaniel Coe. Originally from Connecticut, Coe enlisted in the Union Army at the age of 17 in 1862 in the 21st regiment of the Connecticut Volunteers and later in the 2nd Massachusetts heavy artillery. He had been captured at the Battle of Chancellorsville (Virginia) April 30-May 6, 1863 and was “released on parole May 14, 1863.” Though he did not participate in the Battle of Gettysburg he still made his way to the gathering of soldiers who were commemorating the 50th anniversary of the important event. Coe left his home at 21 Hopkins Place and made his way toward Pennsylvania.

For a more detailed look at the 1913 Battle of Gettysburg reunion please see here.

-Contributed by Lenny Shaker, Longmeadow Historical Society

Photo Credit: "Union and Confederate veterans shaking hands at reunion to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the battle of Gettysburg. Pennsylvania United States Gettysburg, 1913." Photograph. https://www.loc.gov/item/2018652225/. Other sources: Wikipedia Springfield Union News Springfield Republican Ancestry.com Military-Historians.org