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Part of the structure of Dalton estate after Victorian renovations. From Leonard Woodman Smith provided by Katharine M. Gove Director, G.A.R. Memorial Library West Newbury, MA
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J J Currier
noted that when Tristram inherited the estate he “found pleasure and profit in
the ownership and management of this attractive and productive farm He was
liberal in his household expenditures and with lavish hospitality entertained
many distinguished travelers at his country home.” (History of Ould Newbury)
Tristram and wife
Ruth Hooper, daughter of Robert “King” Hooper, a wealthy Marblehead merchant knew how to through a
party. The festive soirees hosted George Washington and an ensemble of French
royals. See Tristram Dalton and Family
However, in
the spring of 1769 there was one celebrated guest summoned to the Pipe Stave Road address
that would source a different ambit for Dalton,
namely the extraterrestrial.
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Samuel
Williams, Harvard professor of Mathematics and Natural Philosophy was more than
happy to oblige as he knew “a seat at Newbury, in a
high elevated situation,” was “very convenient for this purpose.”
The hearth
upon the hill behest “forty mountain peaks and oceans far and wide” and was the
most auspicious place to observe the celestial heavens. God had even graced Dalton with 18 church
steeples in wide view.
But this gathering
was not just for star gazing, it was to expand scientific knowledge by
observing the transit of Venus. Dalton had a
keen interest in the field of Astronomy and was part of the newly founded American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
In this
venture Dalton choose
his cohort carefully. Williams had been selected by Harvard’s John Winthrop to
observe the transit in the Newfoundland
expedition 1761. His lectures and experiments were progressive, but it was when
Williams preached in the Port that Dalton
sought him out.
Williams matched
Dalton’s
passionate intensity to explore the “dark horses” of the world. Williams excelled
in many diverse disciplines and his innovative style earned him honors. More
importantly, Dalton knew that besides Winthrop, Williams “was
among the most accurate of any estimating the moment of tangency of the
internal contact to the Sun which had an uncertainty of only seven seconds.”
Williams had
the same confident spirit working with Dalton.
He was well versed in theory from his Harvard days and would be an active participant
in assisting him. According to Hinckle, Dalton’s
knowledge allowed him to make necessary preparations way in advance such as
getting the clock adjusted and longitude determination made.
Dalton also took all
precautions which included hiring carpenters to build shelters on the roof. A
persistent trend of overcast and rain had set over Newbury, but just before the
big event Mother Nature decided to cooperate. The conditions could not have
been more perfect as one Boston
paper reported: “after a long course of cloudy weather it cleared up and last
Saturday was fair and afforded a fine opportunity for viewing the Transit of
Venus.”
The anxiety
that would have visited the observers would have been in calculating the exact
timing to observe the “black dot,” or Venus landing on the sun. Williams was
successful and carefully recorded the planetary activity. He also found that
Venus had a definite atmosphere. This was due to the “fuzzy contrast” and “uncertain
timing.” In other transits, such as Mercury the observation was precise and
easily timed. This revelation would later prove to be a major significant
discovery.
The transit
of Venus produced “an intercolonial scientific effort of major proportions” and
there were several locations observing the event, but it was Newbury that
caught Ben Franklin’s attention. His organization
known as The American Philosophical Society issued William’s publication: “An
Account of the Transit of Venus over the Sun, June 3d, 1769, as observed at
Newbury, in Massachusetts.”
Williams work
impacted several scholars, including John Quincy Adams, who attended Williams' series
of twenty-four lectures on Astronomy at Harvard. According to Rothschild Adams
was “so engrossed with the subject that he wrote copious notes on the lectures
during and after their presentation.”
Adams comradery with Williams is noted in his journals: “he
is affable and familiar with the students, and does not affect that ridiculous
pomp which is so generally prevalent here.” The warm affinity and respect Adams had for Williams would sustain a relationship for many
years after he was equally fond of Williams’ son, Samuel, JR. who was his classmate
at Harvard. During his stint in the Port Adams records dinners with Samuel, JR,
and some visits to Dalton’s
magical manor on the hill.
The contribution
of these two men that summer would reflect a lifetime of reaching for the stars
and encouraging others to expand their horizons. Dalton took an active interest in local education.
He assisted along with Jonathan Jackson, Nathaniel Tracy, and John Tracy to fund
young scholars for college. One fellow, Dudley Atkins attended Harvard due to their
generosity. Atkins had Williams as an instructor and Williams extended the use
of his home laboratory to him. In 1780 Atkins was chosen to accompany Williams on
the Penobscot Bay expedition to observe the eclipse of
the sun.
The grounds
at Spring Hill have been torn down and rebuilt since the Dalton reign. Tristram invested in new
territory, but calculated risks took his fortune. But the planets taught this
explorer heaven is not down on any map; true places never are.
Built by Edward Nairne of London, this telescope was used by Samuel Williams Smithsonian National Museum of American History in Washington.
- Old Paths and Legends of New England: Saunterings Over Historic Roads.
- Boston Evening Transcript (Boston, MA)
- The Dalton Genealogical Society founded November 1970 by Michael Neale Dalton of London, England.
- Family History Compiled by Lucy Henderson Horton
- Ould Newbury: Historical and Biographical Sketches
- Reminiscences of a Newburyport Nonagenarian
- Brides of Apollo R F Rothschild
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