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INTRODUCTION

HIS book was not intended to be a history of Northampton, and yet it contains, in the pages following.

in the various addresses and the work of the historical committees of the great Quarter-Millennial Celebration-most of the essential and important facts which people will care to know regarding such history. For further information, those searching for details are referred to those superlatively valuable works, the manuscripts of Sylvester Judd and Trumbull's History of Northampton.

Aside from the history of a memorable Celebration and its illustrations of that event, this book will be found especially valuable for its reproduction of portraits of old-time worthies and prominent living citizens of Northampton. This city has no "Hall of Fame" for its great men of the past, but an imposing roll of honor has certainly been made from the list of local notabilities named in these pages. It is much to be regretted that portraits could not be obtained of such men as General Seth Pomeroy, whose memory has been so greatly honored by the great sister state of New York; of Major Joseph Hawley, the pure patriot and friend of common school education; Hon. Eli P. Ashmun, one of Northampton's contributions to the United States Senate; Rev. Solomon Stoddard, Colonel John Stoddard and Hon. Lewis Strong. It would have been most fitting if portraits of these men of honorable fame and large influence in the making of the town's history could have been given in this volume, and the present and future generations will no doubt greatly regret the inability to produce them.