Blessings & Consolations: Health, Faith, & Life in 19th Century New England

Convicts from the Massachusetts State Prison shaped the massive granite blocks of Massachusetts General Hospital's Bulfinch Building. On December 7, 1817, Hospital Trustees "ordered that the Hospital be “of stone, and of that kind called granite.” The stone was transported by barge to the building site. Image from Digital Commonwealth

Federal Burt, pastor of the Community Church in Durham, New Hampshire, spent nearly four months as a patient at Massachusetts General Hospital in 1827. The journal he kept during that time reveals the spiritual anguish that accompanied his physical pain. It is in the collections of the New Hampshire Historical Society, together with his sermons, family correspondence, and other papers. "Not quite so much cast down as sometimes but afraid I am cherishing the hope of the hypocrite I have acted much like one; I am looking forward to the time when I shall be united with the Church when I shall profess my love to the saviour I now think I have been too hasty I did think I loved the Saviour but I am afraid I am deceived but I will try and follow him throughout my life."

I suppose we all have our strange hobbies or pastimes, at least activities that others might find strange. One of mine is studying wills from the eighteenth and early nineteenth century. I find them intriguing as they reveal in a way few other documents can what is important to the writer. Many contain a pattern, then common, now obsolete: acknowledging mortality, commending the soul to God and body to earth, anticipating the pardon and remission of sins. It turns out that these opening phrases are in fact poetic boilerplate, with roots even further back -- included for example in Henry VIII's will, signed December 1546. Federal Burt wrote his will February 28, 1827, right before he and Mary left Durham for Boston, where he sought relief from his disease at Massachusetts General Hospital.

The original logo of the Massachusetts General Hospital was designed in 1818, nine years before Federal Burt was admitted as a patient, and was in use well into the twentieth century. The design is reminiscent of the seal of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The MGH "Indian logo" has been retired; the fate of the Commonwealth seal is subject of Resolve 1495.D https://malegislature.gov/Bills/191/SD1495. Read more at blessingsandconsolations.net.

Federal Burt died in Durham, New Hampshire, on February 2, 1828. He reflected on endings in an editorial published just a few weeks earlier in The Christian Observer: "May we close the year, as we would close our life, in the service of God, and begin another, as we would begin the business of heaven, by devoting ourselves, and all we have to Him." Read more at blessingsandconsolations.net "In his own words."

Federal Burt: What's in a name? Here's how one biographer explained it. "As the new government under the *federal* constitution convened [at the time of his birth], his Christian name is ascribed to that circumstance. There are names in our country originating in greater caprice,--as Mr Preserved Fish, a sound merchant of new York, and Mr Adam Eve, who died lately in Penn., at a great age, and Mr Pickled Ham of Maine, who has not yet turned to corruption." From the Christian Mirror, Feb.15, 1828

After many months of poring through letters, wills, sermons, publications, and traveling hither, thither, and yon in search of information about New Hampshire pastor Federal Burt (1789-1828) I'm happy to unveil the first fruits of my labor. I'm new to this, and working diligently to fix errors as they occur, and post new material regularly. Follow the emerging story at blessingsandconsolations.net

In late spring 2016, I encountered in the Archives of the Massachusetts General Hospital a letter from a patient to his surgeon, written nearly 200 years ago. There was just enough information in the document to intrigue me and to spark curiosity about the patient and his circumstances, as well as the personality of the young hospital and its relationship with the surrounding community. Ever since then, I have pursued publications, papers, letters, journals, genealogies—anything I could find that might offer information, no matter how fragmented, about this patient, in order to piece together a picture of his life and times. The various sources combine to present an intriguing, complex tale of love and courage, sorrow and hope, faith and despair, and offer an intimate view of the lives of men and women in early nineteenth century New England. Follow the story at blessingsandconsolations.net