Medford Historical Society Papers, Volume 15.

And so at last the house was begun. Historian Brooks tells of the corner-stone laying on the sixth of August. Let us trust that the prayer of the good Baptist clergyman helped still the warring factions. Fortunately the swath the tornado cut two weeks later was a little southward, and the new schoolhouse escaped the fate of the old. On Forefathers' Day, very cold, and a heavy snowstorm under way at its close, the dedication exercises were held. This time the senior clergyman of the town, Dr. Ballou, made the prayer. Mr. Brooks mentions on each occasion original poems recited by pupils. Probably modesty forbade naming their author.

The effort to locate on land of higher price may have savored of ‘selfish speculation,’ but at this date we fail to find warrant for the iniquity and sin referred to. Possibly the plans finally adopted contributed to the dissatisfaction of the minority, and the final location broke the strained relation. The ‘old English’ architecture of the edifice could not fail of attracting attention, and the more because of its elevated position.

After eighteen years of use, the town decided on a larger structure and secured the present admirable location on High street. In 1869 this second house and land was sold for $I,200 to Edward Kakas, who had it converted into a dwelling-house. The cupola and the four corner turrets were removed and the exterior refinished. The entrance porch forms a bay-window, and the roof is slightly elevated at the eaves. The vertical siding was covered with clapboards, the projecting corners below the turrets removed, and the basal finish still shows the corners filled in. This building is now the residence of George H. Remele.

For some years its arched cupola found a resting-place on the ledge next Hastings lane. Till very recently one (or two) of the tall turrets have stood on the hill slope in the rear of Mrs. Kakas' residence, and within a few months the writer has seen and examined the remains of one. They were octagonal, two feet in diameter, were