The Hyde Park Hermit (episode 238)

The early years of James Gately, who was better known as the Hermit of Hyde Park, were shrouded in mystery.  Gately was an Englishman who came to Boston after his life took a bad turn.  He had trouble making money when he got here, got robbed of his last cent, and decided to give up on humanity and disappear into the wilderness forever.  For almost thirty years, he scratched out a meager existence living off the land in the woods of Hyde Park, while his legend grew.  By the time he died in 1875, he was so well known that treasure hunters beat a path to his door to search (unsuccessfully) for the fortune they believed he had buried in his woods.


The Hyde Park Hermit

Transcript

Music

Jake:
[0:05] Welcome to hub history where we go far beyond the freedom trail to share our favorite stories from the history of boston, the hub of the universe.
This is episode 2 38, The hermit of Hyde Park.
Hi, I’m jake. This week, I’m going to be talking about James Gately Who is better known as the hermit of Hyde Park Gately Early years are shrouded in mystery, but he was an englishman and he came to boston after his life took a bad turn.
He had trouble making money when he got here, got robbed of his last cent and decided to give up on humanity and disappear into the wilderness forever.
For almost 30 years, he scratched out a meager existence, living off the land in the woods of Hyde Park. While his legend grew.
By the time he died in 1875, he was so well known that Treasure Hunters beat a path to his door to search unsuccessfully for the fortune that they believed he had buried in his woods.
Now, if this setup sounds familiar, it’s because way, way back in episode 19, we had an episode about to Boston hermits gately in the Boston Harbor Hermit and Windsor Sherwin.

[1:18] As was pretty typical for our shows in those days, each story got about five minutes of cursory research when I recently realized that with our better research skills and access to better sources.
It was time to revisit the story of the Hyde Park hermit.
That’s why I’m grateful for people like Bruce, m the latest listener to support the show on Paypal.
This episode is a perfect example of how our listeners support makes a difference When we know we can count on our patreon sponsors to give $2 $5 or even $10 a month.
That consistency allows us to maintain subscriptions to research databases.
In this case, we could get access to the globe archives to get a much more complete picture of the Hermit’s life than we could way back in March of 2017.

[2:03] Along with access to better sources are supporters. Also allow us to pay for web hosting and security, podcast, media hosting and online audio processing tools to clean up the way the show sounds,
to everyone who chips in to help me make hub history. Thank you.
If you’re not yet supporting the show and you’d like to start, just go to Patreon dot com slash hub history or visit hub history dot com, click on the support us link and thanks again to all our new and existing sponsors.
Now it’s time for this week’s main topic.

[2:38] On Wednesday February 3, 1875. The Boston Globe carried a simple notice for a death the day before Died in Hyde Park.
2nd instant of congestion of the lungs.
James. Gately known as the hermit 64 years.

[2:56] Gately lived alone in a tiny hut deep in the forest, scratching out a meager existence as a hunter.
So it may have come as a surprise when another story in the same edition of the Globe said that after the hermit died, when his body was taken away to be prepared for burial, a small fortune was found sewn into the linings of his rustic clothing.
Quote, the body was taken in charge by the town authorities.
The rags that covered his body being searched, sewed up in different parts were found in greenbacks, script and coppers.
The sum of $1,031.92.
This money was deposited in the Hyde Park savings back until called for by the heirs, if he has any.

[3:40] It’s likely that all the contemporaneous news reports contain inaccuracies and exaggerations, but the profile of the hermit. Gately published in the globe on December 13, 1880, seems the most likely to be accurate.
It was published five years after Gately is death after his tiny estate had been settled and the reporter could use the probate record and diatoms registry of deeds for research,
that profile describes how the rumors that sprung up around the hermit’s death seemed to be a continuation of the mystique that surrounded him in life.
So interesting were the legends weaved around him by the would be explorers of his secret.
That pamphlets, purporting to be a history of his life for printed and eagerly sought for.
But the old man would simply laugh. He was a hearty laugher and say they thought they knew it all.
This story got around that the hermit was making lots of money. He was never seen in the village and was never known to spend any money and so people thought he must have laid up quite a fortune.

[4:40] If the old man had soon that much cash in the linings of his clothing, how much might you have buried in the woods around his hut?
The December 13, 1880 profile on the globe describes how James gately is death kicked off a treasure hunt and his once secluded forest.
When the news of his death was chronicled, people came and carried off portions of the hut as relics and in some cases stole everything of value that could get as many people believe that the old man had acquired a great deal of money.
They dug the ground all over and some credulous ones still persist in it. And the hopes of unearthing as wealth.

[5:18] Who was this aging man who had been no degeneration simply as the hermit.
He was an englishman who had moved to boston as a young man,
rumors swirled that he was the sole heir to an enormous fortune who had been educated at Oxford or maybe it was eaten One version of this story ran in the initial globe report about his death on February 3, 1875.

[5:44] Gately was a native of Cheshire, England and was the eldest of a family of six.
His father was the owner of a vast tract of land in Cheshire, and his wealth was fabulous.
He is still living so far is known at an early age.
James Gately showed a strong taste for ornithology and became a careful and proficient student, receiving a liberal education, but his mind appeared to have been dimmed from some cause.
At one time it was the head of a prosperous school.

[6:18] A couple weeks later, a follow up story on February 15, built on gately reputation as an ornithologist to say that he was a professional collector, driven into the forest after he was unlucky in love.

[6:31] Mr Samuel now Alden of Newark New Jersey who lately visited the town and he was a friend and youth of James Gately the late hermit,
says that Gately was sent to this country as a special agent of the british museum to collect and forward rare specimens of birds, reptiles, et cetera.
That the deceased was of a peculiarly sensitive nature. Was married when 25 years old to a wealthy young lady who died within two years thereafter, and his family is wealthy and moves in the best society in England.
The better research profile that ran in December of 1880 indicated that he was a pretty typical kid, enjoying sports and outdoor hobbies.
He was a hunter and showed particular skill at taxidermy stuffing, of preserving the many creatures found in his father’s country estate.

[7:20] James Gately was born in England in 1810, of wealthy parents.
From early youth, James was fond of collecting toads, snakes, birds, and other small animals and preserving them by taxidermy so large was his collection that his mother gave him a room in the house in which he could gratify his tastes without interference.
He was also fond of gunning and took all the opportunities for that sport that his father’s extensive estate afforded educated at Oxford College, though possessed of no vicious habits.
He was one of the boys, always ready for any sport that college youths are so fond of indulging.

[8:00] One version of Gately origin story says that he came to America after his wife died young and left him brokenhearted.
Another version says that it wasn’t a wife, but rather a child that drove Gately to leave his homeland.
The December 13, 1880, Globe profile describes what gately was so eager to leave behind love or passion, held him captive for a time free became enamored of a girl below.
His position in society and the result was a son Who is still living and now 30 years of age.
They’re being impediments to the marriage. He sailed for Australia, but returned a year later.
That little difficulty being still unsettled, he set sail for this country, and his peculiar method of life commenced shortly after reaching boston with but little money in his pocket.

[8:51] Upon arriving in the hub, Gately lived the life of an intellectual, at least briefly.
As the 1880 profile continues, his background as a wealthy heir and landowner, hadn’t actually done much to prepare him for making a living in the real world, and his studies in boston were soon cut short.

[9:12] For a time. He devoted himself to study, pored over the books in the libraries, and took no heat in the future.
One day he awoke to the fact that his money was running very low, and you must do something to earn his living.
He tried to put his knowledge to a practical turn. He hired a room in Roxbury and began making cages and stuffing birds.
He kept at it for a year or maybe more, but he could hardly get enough for his work to keep body and soul together.
It was a struggle against starvation, but he was too proud to write home for money.
He had just 40 gold dollars in his possession. He had guarded them religiously against a rainy day and made up his mind to spend them only when he was driven to it by the direst necessity, but Gailey’s heart broke.
One day he’d been at work for a long time on a beautiful bird cage, and put in many extra hours on it.
His work was not appreciated, and only a small sum was offered him for it.

[10:14] One morning he started to walk to Charlestown, trusting to find better luck over there when near the bridge, hot and tired, he entered a saloon for a glass of beer.
When he felt for his money to pay for it, he found none.
He’d been robbed of his last cent, and was kicked into the street like a dog, although someone in the barroom would have relieved him of his entire fortune disheartened and downcast. He disposed of his cage for a dollar or two.
Walk back to Roxbury shouldered his gun and struck out for the woods, swearing that he would lead the life of a recluse ever after.

[10:51] At a time when manifest destiny was at its peak, and americans were streaming into texas Oregon.
Another recent U. S. Claims, Gately decided to strike out for the vast wilderness of the West,
the western wilderness, in this case being the forested areas along the line between what was then Dorchester in West Roxbury, but was later organized into the town of Hyde Park.
Our profile in the December 13, 1880 edition of the globe describes how he began making his way in the woods.
Be it remembered that he was by nature, a keen student, and delighted in perusing scientific and ornithological works in those days.
There was a thick forest from Roxbury away out to Hyde Park, and from miles beyond today it’s all different for villages and towns have broken up the forest, and houses have taken the place of the Pines and oaks,
in those days there was a thick forest from Roxbury way out to Hyde Park, and for miles beyond today it’s all different for villages and towns have broken up the forest, and houses have taken the places of the Pines and oaks.
Gately began a roving life. He lived on what he shot, he slept anywhere, and all summer long had no roof over his head.
When the sharp winds of fall began to blow, he began to look around for some shelter.

[12:15] In about 1847, gately gave up wandering and decided to settle down.
He decided to make his home in one of the most idyllic spots in the forest of what’s now Hyde Park, an area known as the Pine Garden.
The 1904 Hyde Park Historical Record Notes. 50 years ago, where Huntington’s Avenue now is, there was a private way leading to Clarendon Hills.
James Gately the hermit, prior to his removal from Cruz Woods, lived beside Pine Garden Rock, not far from the spring, issuing their from.

[12:52] The Pine Garden was a large tract of forest between Huntington’s Avenue and Backstreet. Today’s Wood Avenue.
The woods ran unbroken from the west. Roxbury town line in the north to the neponset River in the south.
Its defining feature was a large rock outcropping that was at one time called Pine Garden Rock thin sally’s Rock, and is known today as Cranes ledge,
an advocacy group that’s trying to stop a housing development and one of the few remaining tracks that’s not built over, describes the area As a 24 acre forest known locally as crane ledge.
Woods and designated as an urban wild, has been inaccessible and mostly unknown to the surrounding neighborhoods of southwest Boston Hyde Park Roslindale in Mattapan,
from a beautiful green space of crucial wildlife habitats, shady forest, flower filled meadows, rocky alcoves, and vernal pools.
The proposed project would turn crane ledge woods into an immense urban heat island of impervious asphalt and concrete.
Crane ledge. Woods gets his name from Crane ledge, A rock cliff offering a stunning view.
Looking southwest across Hyde Park in the stony brook valley far below the view across the valley gives visitors a rare sense of Hyde park as it existed more than a century ago when Crane ledge was a site for weekend picnics known as pine garden.

[14:18] For a description of what the Pine Garden was like in the 19th century, we turned to a note by Horace Sumner in the 1912 Hyde Park historical record.
Near the northern border of Hyde Park is a hilly tract of land about the size of boston common 50 or more years ago. This land was covered with a beautiful grove of pines and cedars and owing to its many attractions was known as Pine Guard.
Among these attractions were the Spring the Rock and the beautiful del or ravine.
Below the spring, the place was the resort of many picnics and the traditional history of Dorchester. We find that this was a part of the town’s common lands and was used as a sheep pasture.
The town hiring a shepherd to tend the flock.
According to this tradition, he had a stone hut on one of the peaks since known as shepherd’s tent.
From here you had a fine view of the surrounding country.

[15:15] As the passage continues, Sumner explains how our hermit Gately is responsible for renaming the rock at the Pine Garden.
The top of Pine Garden Rock is today widely known as Sally’s Rock, a spite name given to it by the hermit Gately and taken up by the people in ignorance of any other.
This rocker ledge is about 100 ft in total height, beginning with a precipice on its southern end and extending about a quarter of a mile to the north, where it gradually tapers off to the level of the ground.
Its top is covered with boulders. On the western side is a vertical wall of some 65 or more feet.
The extensive view from the top of the rock covers most of Hyde Park and dead. Um and includes Big Blue Hill and some of the hills in Roxbury to appreciate the grandeur of the rocket must be approached from the sand plain below.
The path in Brooklyn descended through a beautiful del or ravine under great trees that the sun scarcely ever penetrated.
The descent was almost too steep for safety. To the sand plain, about 100 ft below,
on the right was an irregular vertical wall of rock and the deep wood on the left an ideal place to recall stories of indians and bears.

[16:34] Today. The best approach is not from a sandy plain, but from the parking lot behind the Walgreens in the first big plaza along american legion highway, but the rocky crag is still a great place to recall stories of times gone by.
Perhaps starting with the story of the hermit Gately The top still yields views for miles, but the vista consists of less wooded hills and more houses and stores,
and along the neponset valley a series of mostly abandoned factories.

[17:05] The shepherds and picnickers who frequented the Pine garden were far from the first americans to see the potential of Sally’s Rock 1981, Archaeological Survey of the Site Found Evidence of an Ancient Native American Corey Site.

[17:20] One natural talus slope with prehistoric materials was located and surface collected.
We found considerable debate, pigeon size of prehistoric quarrying. At the White Fell site outcroppings among our recoveries here was a full grooved ax made of horn, fullest braintree slate, and presumably used in quarrying.
We also found a small number of exotic flakes of blue hills, a pariah well, and a red banded a pariah light from another Korea, about a mile from Sally’s rock.
From a survey of collections, it’s apparent that this material was popular during the middle, archaic and is especially common for tools of the neville complex,
neville points associated you based pre forms choppers, scrapers and even a chipped ulu made of sally rock Fell site were recorded.

[18:09] Even during Gately Zahra. The pine Garden wasn’t as remote as it first appeared at the southern end of the forest was the tile stone and Hollingsworth paper mill located about where the price rate is on River Street today,
Jeffrey Linenthal described the mill in a paper published in the New England Journal of Public Policy in 1991.
In 18 01. To practical papermakers, Edmund tile stone and marc Hollingsworth established a Millon, the neponset river in Mattapan, the first of many mills.
The partners would own the site of the tile stone, and Hollingsworth mill was not far from a spot in Dorchester where the town with an interest in collecting taxes on the property, had granted land to a Milton papermaker to establish a mill.
In 1773, the tile stone Hollingsworth Company leased this million 18 06 and purchased the facility.
30 years later, The mill was destroyed by fire in 1837, and the partners built a new facility adjacent to the old site and chose to remove their Mattapan operations to the new location as well.
This is the site of the Hyde Park mill on the deposit River, its origination commonly traced to 18 01.

[19:25] In the shadow of pine garden rock later known as Sally’s Rock James, Gately built a rude hut as describing the 18 80 profile I’ve been quoting from,
then he continued to scratch out barely enough of a living to go on. Well living.

[19:42] Everybody around. Hyde Park knows where Sally’s Rock is.
It is a great perpendicular boulder near the station on the boston and providence railroad, now known as Clarendon Hills.

[19:53] Against this rock, Gately built a hut. He got three or four boards from somewhere and placed them up in a slanting position against the rock.
Over the top he through brush, and that was his dwelling for years and years.
Every rain wet him through the snow, would sift into his only room, and when the sun melted it the water trickled down upon him.
It’s a wonder he didn’t die, but he didn’t.
He got used to this life, and hardened under it for days together he did not have a dry stitch of clothing all, and what there was of it was always in rags.
It was a hard life that he led. He relied on his rifle for food, and what little money he had was obtained from selling skins and stuffed birds.
Once he went for five days without food, it was in winter, and he was so weak that he could hardly crawl.
He had an ascent of money, he was too proud to beg, and even if he had wanted to, he didn’t have the strength to crawl away from his hut for more than a few feet only two charges of powder and shot remained.
He had almost made up his mind to blow his brains out with one of them.
When looking at the entrance to his hut he saw a mink with trembling hands. He raised his gun and fired.
It was a moment of suspense, but when the smoke cleared away, Gately saw that his aim had been true, he sees the animal tore off the skin and made a substantial but most unsavory meal.

[21:21] He walked to boston and sold the skin, bought powder, and so got another start in the world.

[21:29] At another time when Gately was on the verge of committing suicide, he was snowbound.
A tremendous storm set in, and raised with great fury for days.
The entrance to his Hut, which was only two or 3 ft high, was soon blocked.
Finally a massive snow fell from the overhanging rock and buried him 10 ft deep. It was hard work to dig out.
Once or twice he was almost ready to give up, but after two days of work he managed to tunnel out the snow had frozen, was almost like ice,
in the summertime, Gately made pets of snakes and lizards and rats.
It would crawl over him, but it never disturbed him, and he in turn never troubled them.
Finally people began to discover the whereabouts of the recluse. He was known as the crazy hermit, and a few people interested themselves in him.
They will give them small jobs at one time you made considerable money as a dog trainer.
He had one dog which he trained for himself and which lived for 15 years with him before death, stretched him out cold and stiff.
The female sex were afraid of him, as he always treated them gruffly.
So it became an accepted theory that disappointment in love was the origin of his freak.

[22:48] Despite his sometimes desperate existence in the pine garden. The hermit was not as solitary as you might think, or as he might have wished.
An article in the Fitchburg Sentinel of August 21, 1874, which was reprinted from the Boston Advertiser describes the many visitors that gately received.
On arriving at boston, the hermit plunged into the forest and built himself a hut under an overhanging ledge in the pine garden woods.
Here he supported himself on game, which was then abundant and devoted much time to the study of ornithology.
This strange man evidently has some property in England for his several times received remittances of money through the british console with presence of valuable dogs from the same source many ornithologists have visited.
Mr Gately and it’s affirmed that in various works upon the subject, his views have been frequently entertained.

[23:45] It’s fun to picture a proper english gentleman from the consulate tramping through the brush in Hyde Park with a stack of cash or an english, wool founded toe, or an Ornithologist fresh from college stumbling through the forest with sketches and study skins for Gately to identify.
There’s even a note on the Audubon Society website saying that Gately was the only person in history known to have collected the nest of a merlin in the state of massachusetts,
before long, the paper bill along the neponset wasn’t Gately is only neighbor large villages sprung up around the mills at today’s Reedville in Mattapan Square and houses were rapidly filling in between them,
as the boston advertiser story continues.
Finally, the advances of civilization led him to seek a more secluded spy.
He has seen the town grow up like magic, and houses penetrate his very woods, But still he remains.

[24:42] After about eight years at the Pine Garden. The 1880 profile describes how the hermit gately got a new start in a less populated corner of Hyde Park.

[24:52] Gately lived in that hut for many years and corresponded with his mother.
His letters being addressed to the Dorchester Post office, the railroads and other works of civilization were encroaching upon him.
Game began to get scarce, and so he decided to move on.
He purchased from one Williams, an acre of land at muddy pond woods in 18 55 paying $100. Therefore it’s recently been sold to mrs Twitchell for less than half of that song.
Here he built, the huddy lived in for 20 years and placed a stone wall around it and conversing with intimate friends about his relations abroad. He expressed himself as intending to return to his native land to die.
The honey lived in was a curiosity. He had a front room which was perhaps 10 ft square, the sides were lined with cases of stuffed birds and animals.
Back of this was a little room where he worked and slept.
There was hardly space enough in it for himself and dog to lie down at the same time, but it suited his purposes.

[26:00] The more secluded spot that Gately finally found to build a second and more weatherproof hut was probably near the 13th tee on the George Wright golf course, just off of West Street, along the border between Hyde Park and Roslindale.
We can locate this with some confidence because in 1872 map of the recently incorporated town of Hyde Park, carefully locates a house marked only as Hermitage, just west of West Street.
Gately is cabin was surrounded by hundreds of acres of forest. It may have looked like an unspoiled wilderness, but the forest surrounding Gately is modest, hut was actually a rich man’s weekend playground.
In a letter to a friend, Henry Sturgis grew describes a trip he took with his family in the summer of 1845.

[26:49] Holiday excursion carried my wife, Children and myself to dorchester for the day.
We stopped in the woods about a half a mile from where I now reside, and strolling about unexpectedly, I came to a point where I was much pleased with the view of the blue hills in the valley between,
I saw a farmhouse and went to it and inquired if it was for sale.
The result was a purchase of several acres of land.

[27:17] Grew, had gone to work in the dry goods store of James Reed, after dropping out of prep school at about 16 years old to Henry Gru’s benefit.
Read went on to start the enormous and successful textile mills in the neighborhood in Hyde Park that’s now called Reedville.
And in his early 20s Henry grew, became Reade’s partner By the time he bought the farmhouse of the beautiful view in 1845, he was not yet 40 years old, but already on the road to retirement.
In an 1872 speech to the officers of Hyde Park, The independent town that grew had helped to form from pieces of Milton Determined Dorchester.
In 1868 he described the property where he’d been puttering around and playing farmer for about a quarter century.
At that point, Having purchased a few acres of land in the summer of 1846, I commenced building a house and moved to this place, then a part of Dorchester, on the first day of May 1847.

[28:17] At that time most of this territory was occupied by farmers.
There were on River Street, the old highway between Dorchester and dead um within a range of a mile or a mile and a half, about 10 houses, most of them small and occupied by farmers, with two exceptions, one a blacksmith and won a wheelwright,
With a population not exceeding 50 persons,
west of my house was an unbroken range of forest trees on the northerly side in west Roxbury.
There were three farms, my nearest visiting neighbor was 2.5 or three miles distant.
I was almost literally surrounded by woods, and my friends in boston were much surprised by by going to such a wild and lonely place.

[29:03] Grew wasn’t just sitting on his hands, he continued to add additional land onto his extensive holdings.
As described in the 1891 Hyde Park historical record.
Mr Gru designates as sightly residents as woodlands and from the hillside upon which it stands as a charming view of Hyde Park, nestling in the valley of the neponset and covering the westerly slope of Fairmount,
and of Milton, with its famous blue hills,
from time to time, is added to his extensive domain until it now includes nearly all of the several 100 acres known as Gru’s woods.
This land constitutes a very beautiful natural park and has been thrown open by its owner for use by the public.
He, having, at his own expense repaired the roads leading through it and bridge the streams.

[29:56] As Henry Cruz property grew to encompass about 800 acres.
It also grew to surround James gately is cabin on its acre of land, since he came to Hyde Park to enjoy his own solitary and pastoral existence, you have to imagine that grew, was pretty amused by his new neighbor,
and despite his seclusion, Gately was anything but lonely.
Has the story of the hermit spread the world be the path to his door.
As noted in the December 13, 1880 globe profile, He made a charge of 10 cents for admission to his museum, and it was well worth the sum to see his collection when he built his hut.
Here he was getting up in the world, he planted corn and beans and shot birds and rabbits in the latter part of his life.
Game got scarce for the village, which started with the cluster of houses, grew rapidly until now.
Hyde Park is one of the most thriving towns in the state, of course, as the town sprang up, the birds were driven away,
but the old man did quite a thriving business in the way of stuffing birds,
and among the papers of his estate, examined by a globe reporter,
are a large number of letters sent by persons residing in the States, from Maine to California, soliciting information on the care of sick birds or other animals, also on taxidermy or enclosing tenders of specimens of reptiles.

[31:22] Gately self imposed seclusion came to an end on a cold winter’s day in 1875, On February three of that year the globe reported on a grim discovery in Gru’s Woods.
Mr William Chickering and William fisher of dead. Um We’re enjoying a sleigh ride yesterday in the environs of High Park,
and being old friends of James, Gately the famous her modified par went to pay him a visit at his hut and Gru’s Woods.
Upon going to the door, they found it locked peeping through the window, they saw the hermit lying curled up behind the small stove. He used attracting his attention. They asked him if he was sick, to which you responded by an affirmative nod.

[32:07] They asked him if they would break open the door and send for a doctor. He responded negatively, but they thought it best to send for a physician and dr Edwards was called and the door broken open.
A sickening spectacle presented itself to the visitors. Snow had leaked through the roof. Every article was completely frozen.
There was no fire in the stove, nor had there been apparently for some time, and the hermit himself was in an emaciated in filthy condition.
The room was about five ft square and neglect was everywhere apparent.
The doctor, after an examination of mr Gately saw that he was past all human aid, but did all that he could to alleviate his suffering by administering restorative Z,
the hermit rallied a little, and as he was an Episcopalian, the reverend dr van click Rector of christ Church was sent for, and spoke consoling words to the dying man.
But he apparently did not realize the situation.
He said that he had been physically prostrated for five days from a severe cold and that during that time he had been unable to assist himself, nor had anyone come to his aid.
He had not even had a drink of water if Gately had neglected his own needs, as his condition suddenly declined, his little menagerie in the cabin had been similarly neglected.
As noted in our 1880 profile.

[33:34] It was a remarkable death scene. They’re surrounded by stuffed,
birds and reptiles, living owls, eagles, and other birds starving for lack of food and water for some days, rendering the arab noxious by their filth and expressing their sufferings by cries of distress.

[33:52] Gately had gotten himself out of similar jams in the past, either by clawing his way out of the snow banks that buried his hut or using his last charge of powder to shoot a mink that he could both eat and sell for more powder this time.
However, it would not be the case.
Perhaps this illness was worse than any he had experienced before.
Perhaps it was an effective as advancing age, or perhaps he simply couldn’t stand having so much company and the cabinet had built to escape from the world,
But the February three notice in the Boston Globe continues the town officials having been notified.
In the meantime, Mr Twitchell overseer of the poor arrived upon the scene.
It was suggested to the hermit that the hut be cleaned up as some ladies would call and take care of them.
But he strongly objected, and he gradually sank until about 3:30 p.m. When he died, And his inanimate body was left surrounded by the remains of birds, reptiles and animals, by stuffing, which he had earned 11.

[34:57] The hermit. James Gately is not so solitary death kicked off the treasure hunt. I opened the episode with and it also kicked off a surprisingly well attended funeral.
Two days after the hermit passed away in his hut, his funeral was held at christ church in Hyde Park, the big stone church on River Street right in Cleary Square.
The next day, the boston globe noted funeral services over the remains of James Gately known as the hermit, were held yesterday fore noon in Christchurch.
The reverend dr van click officiating the edifice was filled there not being a vacant seed.
The body enclosed in an elegant casket adorned with flowers, was dressed in a suit of black cloth and the features were very natural,
after the Episcopal burial service, the remains were taken to Denham Cemetery and placed on the receiving tomb to await the order of his relatives in England who have been notified by the british console.

[35:57] The city was buried in was one of the last remaining possessions that he had brought over from the old country.
As noted in the 1880 Boston Globe Profile though the old man had lived alone, there were more sincere Mourners around that filthy mess of rags upon which he expired than at the funerals of many wealthy dead.
Through all of his pilgrimage, he had clung to the oaken chest which he had brought with him to this country and from its depths, the Cody war when he graduated from Oxford College was taken and placed around his form.

[36:30] Gately remains were interred at the old village cemetery just outside Dedham Square at the time it was the only cemetery in the town of Dad.
Um And before Hyde Park was incorporated, it was customary to bury the dead of West Dorchester and the dead and burying ground.
Even men who died while training to serve in the Civil War at camp megs were buried there, and apparently after the incorporation of Hyde Park, some residents of the Newtown were still buried in their old cemetery.

[37:01] A few months later. However, a new cemetery opened in debt. Um Not too far down Washington street from the remains of Gately is cabin On August 1, 1875.
The Boston Globe reported that a collection had been taken up to move the hermits remains into the new cemetery,
James Gately the hermit of Hyde Park having left an estate valued at $1200 and his body having laid in a neglected unmarked spot in the dead um Cemetery, five residents of that town subscribed the money to purchase a lot in the new cemetery,
and the body was moved to the lot today.
Jm Twitchell, the administrator of the Gately estate, will erect a suitable memorial over the hermits resting place, deducting the cost from the funds in his possession which the heirs in England are quarreling about.

[37:50] The December 13, 1880 Globe profile describes as new resting place and the headstone.
That’s as simple and death as gately was in life in a plot of ground in brookdale cemetery in Dedham lies all the remains of James Gately,
a rough, unhuman block of stone, weighing about three tons, with the single inscription hermit covering the grave.
There it lies typical of his life here, Rough and to the visitor divulging no clue to the identity of the body underneath, or is perhaps unparalleled struggle for existence, peace to his ashes.

[38:31] Despite the optimism of the treasure hunters who dug up his woods. Gately only seemed to have one meaningful asset.
His acre of land didn’t fetch much and rumors about the estate he was entitled to back in England didn’t come to anything.
In the end his taxidermy collection was the only thing he owned that was worth any money.
Three days after his death, the Globe reported. Gately is large and valuable collection of stuffed birds, animals and general effects have been placed in the town hall building for safekeeping.

[39:05] After five months the Globe was able to update the story with the appraised value of the collection, writing By the inventory of the estate of James. Gately the hermit.
There are $933.16 in the bank.
His collections of curiosities are valued at $691.75 and his land at $200,
And two more months after that, on September 2, 1875 an article in the Boston Globe stated petition granted of john m Twitchell, special administrator of the estate of James.
Gately of Hyde Park for leave to sell stuff.
Birds and beasts of the estate, although it sounds like the collection was completely dispersed.
That’s not quite the case after our original episode about the hermit. Gately listener and fiscal supporter of the show. Jim Kay realized that he had seen some of Gately is original taxidermy at the library.
While growing up in Hyde Park.

[40:04] Jim wrote to the Hyde Park branch of the library on our behalf, asking whether the glass case of tax jeremy was still on public display in the Children’s room, and one of the librarians responded.
We do have the owl display that hung for many years in the Children’s room, in a large wooden case, the glass front.
This display was on top of a bookcase when the Menino Wing opened, but we moved it for safety’s sake, into Weld Hall.
It is no longer on display until we can find a safe way to secure it to a wall or a piece of furniture.

[40:36] I was lucky enough to get a private viewing of the birds in the storage room where they’re being kept while the library works out as safer means of displaying them.
I’ll include a couple of pictures of Gately is handiwork in this week’s show notes.
There are a few places where you can still walk in the hermits footsteps,
From Henry Cruz Original 800 or so acres, about 615 acres are preserved as the Stony Brook Reservation, While an additional 135 acres were transformed into the George Right public golf course,
With the help of about 30 tons of dynamite.

[41:14] When you play around at the George right, you’re passing over the ground where James Gately died though the landscape has since been totally transformed.
If you’re not a golf player, you can go for a walk in stony brook reservation.
For a more representative view of Gately landscape. Follow the paved east boundary path that runs roughly parallel to the boundary with the George wright golf course.

[41:38] You can also still see the view from pine garden rock or sally’s rock or cranes ledge.
If you’re willing to bend the rules a bit to learn more about the hermit of Hyde Park and how to walk in his footsteps.
Check out this week’s show notes at hub history dot com slash 238.
I’ll have a photo of James Gately posing in front of a second cabin, an engraving of the hermit work on his taxidermy And an 1850 map in 1860s photo of Henry Cruz estate in Hyde Park,
Plus I’ll include a link to the 1872 map of Hyde Park that clearly marks the location of gately is Hermitage.
To read more. Look for links to the initial coverage of James, gately is death and the February 3, 1875 edition of the globe.
Follow up coverage in the weeks and months that followed, As well as the better research profile that ran in the globe on December 13, 1880 I’ll also link to the Hyde Park historical record of 1891, and 1912.
For articles that flesh out the details of the Hermit’s life As well as the 1981 story in the Bulletin of the Massachusetts Archaeological Society about an ancient quarry site at Sally’s Rock.
If you want to explore the hermit’s first refuge at Cranes ledge, look for a post from universal hub about exploring the lost road in the towers of doom.

[43:05] If you’d like to leave us some feedback, you can email us at podcast at hub history dot com.
We’re hub history on twitter facebook and instagram or you can go to hub history dot com and click on the contact us link while you’re on the site. Hit the subscribe link and be sure that you never miss an episode.
We’re in all your favorite podcast apps including google podcasts, Spotify, amazon music stitcher pocket casts and many more apps, you can stream the show every sunday night at eight PM on boston free radio dot com.
Or you can listen on your favorite smart speaker. If you have an amazon echo, just say Alexa, play the hub history podcast.
Or if you have a google home, you can say.

Music

Jake:
[44:00] Apple podcasts remains the most popular podcast app.
If that’s how you listen, consider writing us a brief review. If you do drop me a line, I’ll send you a hub history sticker as a token of appreciation.

Music

Jake:
[44:16] That’s all for now. Stay safe out there listeners.

</div