Sometimes a farm implement is just a farm implement and sometimes a farm implement has a story all its own. Such is the story of the scythe lodged in a tree trunk, at the Warwick Historical Society. The story starts with a pine tree that grew northeast of Sheomet Clubhouse Pond, off of Athol Road in the Blissville section of Warwick, according to Clare Green, Trustee of the Warwick Historical Society.
In August, 1862, an 18-year-old Augustus Bliss was helping his father cut brush at the edge of a brook, according to information at the Historical Society. After finishing his work, he hung his scythe over the limb of this then-small pine tree.
Augustus soon enlisted in Co. H, 36th Massachusetts regiment, and a day or two later left to begin his military service in the Civil War, according to information at the society, with the scythe left hanging in the tree. Bliss died of fever in an army hospital in Mississippi in July of 1863, never returning home. “This was the case of many soldiers at that time who died of disease,” Green said.
After his death, his father, Milton Bliss, left the scythe hanging in the tree and erected a railing around the trunk as a “memorial and a visible reminder of his son’s devotion to duty,” according to information from the society. Over the years, Green said, the tree became a curiosity of nature and grew around the scythe, remaining as a simple monument to Bliss.
When the hurricane of 1938 hit, Green explained, at least 10,000 trees were felled in Warwick, including the tree which held the scythe. According to information from the Society, about “a year or so later, Warwick Historian Charles Morse became interested in the story of the scythe, found the felled tree and acquired it for the town of Warwick.”
This memorial to Bliss resides at the Warwick Historical Society, preserved in a see-through enclosure to protect the scythe and the tree trunk. “Who would have known that his last harvest would still be memorialized over 170 years later?” said Green. “It is a testament to another era and the hard work they did and the passion they felt when Lincoln asked for soldiers.”
Bliss was not the only Warwick resident to be lost to the war. A memorial to Warwick’s Civil War soldiers at Warwick cemetery was constructed on Nov. 22, 1866. Along with the soldiers’ names listed is also the name of Alexander Cooper, who had survived two tours of duty in the war, then came back to Warwick. He, along with others, decided to erect a monument to memorialize those who were lost in the war. Cooper was killed on Nov. 22, 1866 by the falling of the derrick when the monument itself was being raised.
The Warwick Historical Society is opened on Sundays during July and August only; however, the scythe as well as other items from their collection can be viewed online at http://history.town.warwick.ma.us/
Carla Charter is a freelance writer from Phillipston. Her writing focuses on history with a particular interest in the history of the North Quabbin area. Contact her at cjfreelancewriter@earthlink.net.