Biography of Asa Porter Morse
Asa P. Morse was the son of Daniel Morse and Sarah Morse (first cousins) and was born on September 1, 1818 in Haverhill, New Hampshire. He married Dorcas Louis Short (1822-1864) in 1845 in Cambridgeport, Massachusetts. They had three children: Mary Louisa (b. 1847); Velma Maria (b. 1851); and Arthur Porter (1858-1863).
According to the Memorial of the Family of Morse:
“Hon. Asa Porter Morse came to Boston, in 1840, and began as book-keeper in the house of Hayward & Morse, who were engaged in the Provincial and W.I. Trade. In 1846 he moved to Cambridgeport, Mass., where he has ever since resided, and where he became interested in real estate operations, and for a long time [he was] an extensive builder. He has been connected with the Cambridge Fire Insurance Company, as Director, the Cambridge Hospital, as Trustee, and other charitable Institutions, and for about thirty-five years Director of the Cambridgeport National Bank, and for the past twelve years its President; was one of the Committee of Investment, and also Vice-President of the Cambridgeport Savings Bank, and for sixteen years member of the School Board.
Although often called to positions of public trust, it has always been at the solicitation of his fellow citizens. He was Alderman in 1866, and member of the Legislature in 1869, and in 1872 he was again elected, serving the House of 1873, holding important places on several Committees, and declining reelection.
The Republicans of Cambridge of the Third Middlesex Senatorial District in the Campaign of 1878, sought to find their strongest man, and selected Mr. Morse as Candidate for Senator, and he was elected by a handsome majority.
He was appointed by President Cogswell as Chariman of the Joint Committee on Prisons, and also on the Committee on Claims. The Committee on Prisons [was] called upon to revise the entire system of prison supervision, a very important and difficult duty. Under the lead of Mr. Morse a new system was perfected which proved completely satisfactory, and the law of 1879 is acknowledged by all familiar with it to be a superior piece of legislation. So successful was he in bringing about this change, and so heartily and intelligent an interest in prison matters did he manifest, that he was, against his protest, made Chairman of the Joint Special Committee on Contract Convict Labor, which, in the summer and fall of 1879, investigated that subject. The report of that Committee was probably the most exhaustive and valuable ever made in this Country upon that topic, and permanently settled many questions which had before been in controversy.
He was reelected to the Senate of 1880 by an unusual majority. He was again placed at the head of the Committee on Prisons, and also on the Committee on Education, and Expenditures.”
As far as these papers are concerned, Asa P. Morse was the owner of a flourishing business which both manufactured and invested in cooperage materials. He had his own cooperage, in South Boston, which made shooks and constructed casks, drums, hogsheads, pipes, and barrels. He also contracted from various milling companies and individuals for shooks, staves, heads, and hoops in all sizes from sugar and molasses hogsheads to wine pipes and beer barrels. His agents, such as L.E. Persons in West Virginia, conducted many of these transactions for him in various regions of the country. By supplying machinery and money to pay labor costs, Morse also helped to finance individual entrepreneurs who cut, hauled, and fashioned staves and shooks in such areas as Michigan, Georgia, North Carolina, New Hampshire, Maine, and northeastern Connecticut. Materials were delivered, by canal barge, rail, steamer, and sailing vessel, to his warehouse and shop on India Wharf in Boston, and later to Morse’s Wharf on First Street in South Boston. Parts or finished products were shipped by boat to Cuba for sugar and molasses, to Spain for wine, to St. Pierre and Miquelon for dried fish, and to Liverpool.
Morse must have been a shrewd businessman during the difficult Civil War years and the business depression of the 1870s, because he appears to have prospered in spite of complaints from his correspondents of slow payment of bills and his own grumbling about the inability to get seasoned wood and good workmanship. Nor was he adverse to cutting corners and trying to include poor “culls” in bundles of good staves!
Morse owned his own home in Cambridgeport and rented out various houses in Cambridge, MA, and the 1893 Directory of Cambridge lists him as President of the Cambridgeport National Bank. He must have been respected by his business associates because he maintained many of the same working relationships for twenty-five years and more, and he financed some smaller milling concerns when bankruptcy threatened.
Asa Porter Morse died March 18, 1906, and is buried in the Mt. Auburn cemetery in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Restrictions
Restrictions on Access
Available for use in the Manuscripts Division
Restrictions on Use
Various copying restriction apply. Guidelines are available from the Manuscripts Division.
Index Terms
This collection is indexed under the following headings in the catalog of the G. W. Blunt White Library. Researchers desiring materials about related topics, persons or places should search the catalog using these headings.
Places:
South Boston (Boston, Mass.)
Subjects:
Coopers and cooperage–Massachusetts–Boston
Insurance, Marine–Massachusetts–Boston
Document Types:
Bankbooks
Bills of lading
Insurance policies
Administrative Information
Coll. 101, Manuscripts Collection, G. W. Blunt White Library, Mystic Seaport Museum, Inc.
Indexes
Detailed Description of the Collection
The following section contains a detailed listing of the materials in the collection.
Asa P. Morse Papers; 1855-1880 | |||||||||||||
Box | Folder | ||||||||||||
1 | 1 | Papers; 1855 | |||||||||||
2 | Papers; 1856 | ||||||||||||
3 | Papers; 1857 Jan-Mar | ||||||||||||
4 | Papers; 1857 Apr-Jun | ||||||||||||
5 | Papers; 1857 Jul-Dec | ||||||||||||
6 | Papers; 1858 | ||||||||||||
7 | Papers; 1859 | ||||||||||||
8 | Papers; 1860 | ||||||||||||
9 | Papers; 1861 | ||||||||||||
10 | Papers; 1862 Jan-Mar | ||||||||||||
11 | Papers; 1862 Apr-Jun | ||||||||||||
12 | Papers; 1862 Jul-Aug | ||||||||||||
13 | Papers; 1863 Jan-Mar | ||||||||||||
14 | Papers; 1863 Apr | ||||||||||||
15 | Papers; 1863 May | ||||||||||||
16 | Papers; 1863 Jun | ||||||||||||
17 | Papers; 1863 Jul-Dec | ||||||||||||
Box | Folder | ||||||||||||
2 | 1 | Papers; 1864 Jan-Aug | |||||||||||
2 | Papers; 1864 Sep | ||||||||||||
3 | Papers; 1864 Oct 1-10 | ||||||||||||
4 | Papers; 1864 Oct 11-20 | ||||||||||||
5 | Papers; 1864 Oct 21-31 | ||||||||||||
6 | Papers; 1864 Nov 1-15 | ||||||||||||
7 | Papers; 1864 Nov 16-30 | ||||||||||||
8 | Papers; 1864 Dec 1-15 | ||||||||||||
9 | Papers; 1864 Dec 16-31 | ||||||||||||
10 | Papers; 1865 Jan-Jun | ||||||||||||
11 | Papers; 1865 Jul-Dec | ||||||||||||
12 | Papers; 1866 Jan-Jun | ||||||||||||
13 | Papers; 1866 Jul-Dec | ||||||||||||
14 | Papers; 1867 Jan-Feb | ||||||||||||
15 | Papers; 1867 Mar | ||||||||||||
16 | Papers; 1867 Apr 1-10 | ||||||||||||
17 | Papers; 1867 Apr 11-20 | ||||||||||||
18 | Papers; 1867 Apr 21-30 | ||||||||||||
19 | Papers; 1867 May 1-15 | ||||||||||||
20 | Papers; 1867 May 16-31 | ||||||||||||
21 | Papers; 1867 Jun 1-10 | ||||||||||||
22 | Papers; 1867 Jun 11-20 | ||||||||||||
23 | Papers; 1867 Jun 21-30 | ||||||||||||
24 | Papers; 1867 Jul-Aug | ||||||||||||
Box | Folder | ||||||||||||
3 | 1 | Papers; 1868 Jan-Apr | |||||||||||
2 | Papers; 1868 May 1-10 | ||||||||||||
3 | Papers; 1868 May 11-20 | ||||||||||||
4 | Papers; 1868 May 21-31 | ||||||||||||
5 | Papers; 1868 Jun 1-15 | ||||||||||||
6 | Papers; 1868 Jun 16-30 | ||||||||||||
7 | Papers; 1868 Jul | ||||||||||||
8 | Papers; 1868 Aug-Oct | ||||||||||||
9 | Papers; 1868 Nov 1-15 | ||||||||||||
10 | Papers; 1868 Nov 16-30 | ||||||||||||
11 | Papers; 1868 Dec 1-15 | ||||||||||||
12 | Papers; 1868 16-31 | ||||||||||||
13 | Papers; 1869 Jan 1-15 | ||||||||||||
14 | Papers; 1869 Jan 16-31 | ||||||||||||
15 | Papers; 1869 Feb 1-15 | ||||||||||||
16 | Papers; 1869 Feb 16-28 | ||||||||||||
17 | Papers; 1869 Mar-Jun | ||||||||||||
18 | Papers; 1869 Jul-Sep | ||||||||||||
19 | Papers; 1869 Oct | ||||||||||||
20 | Papers; 1869 Nov | ||||||||||||
21 | Papers; 1869 Dec | ||||||||||||
Box | Folder | ||||||||||||
4 | 1 | Papers; 1870 | |||||||||||
2 | Papers; 1871 Jan-May | ||||||||||||
3 | Papers; 1871 Jun-Aug | ||||||||||||
4 | Papers; 1871 Sep-Dec | ||||||||||||
5 | Papers; 1872 | ||||||||||||
6 | Papers; 1873 Jan-May | ||||||||||||
7 | Papers; 1873 Jun | ||||||||||||
8 | Papers; 1873 Jul-Sep | ||||||||||||
9 | Papers; 1873 Oct 1-15 | ||||||||||||
10 | Papers; 1873 Oct 16-31 | ||||||||||||
11 | Papers; 1873 Nov 1-7 | ||||||||||||
12 | Papers; 1873 Nov 8-15 | ||||||||||||
13 | Papers; 1873 Nov 16-23 | ||||||||||||
14 | Papers; 1873 Nov 24-30 | ||||||||||||
15 | Papers; 1873 Dec 1-7 | ||||||||||||
16 | Papers; 1873 Dec 8-15 | ||||||||||||
17 | Papers; 1873 Dec 16-23 | ||||||||||||
18 | Papers; 1873 Dec 24-31 | ||||||||||||
Box | Folder | ||||||||||||
5 | 1 | Papers; 1874 Jan 1-7 | |||||||||||
2 | Papers; 1874 Jan 8-15 | ||||||||||||
3 | Papers; 1874 Jan 16-23 | ||||||||||||
4 | Papers; 1874 Jan 24-31 | ||||||||||||
5 | Papers; 1874 Feb 1-10 | ||||||||||||
6 | Papers; 1974 Feb 11-20 | ||||||||||||
7 | Papers; 1874 Feb 21-28 | ||||||||||||
8 | Papers; 1874 Mar 1-7 | ||||||||||||
9 | Papers; 1874 Mar 8-15 | ||||||||||||
10 | Papers; 1874 Mar 16-23 | ||||||||||||
11 | Papers; 1874 Mar 24-31 | ||||||||||||
12 | Papers; 1874 Apr 1-10 | ||||||||||||
13 | Papers; 1874 Apr 11-20 | ||||||||||||
14 | Papers; 1874 Apr 21-30 | ||||||||||||
15 | Papers; 1874 May 1-7 | ||||||||||||
16 | Papers; 1874 May 8-15 | ||||||||||||
17 | Papers; 1874 May 16-23 | ||||||||||||
18 | Papers; 1874 May 24-31 | ||||||||||||
19 | Papers; 1874 Jun 1-7 | ||||||||||||
20 | Papers; 1874 Jun 8-15 | ||||||||||||
21 | Papers; 1874 Jun 16-23 | ||||||||||||
22 | Papers; 1874 Jun 24-30 | ||||||||||||
Box | Folder | ||||||||||||
6 | 1 | Papers; 1874 Jul 1-7 | |||||||||||
2 | Papers; 1874 Jul 8-15 | ||||||||||||
3 | Papers; 1874 Jul 16-23 | ||||||||||||
4 | Papers; 1874 Jul 24-31 | ||||||||||||
5 | Papers; 1874 Aug 1-10 | ||||||||||||
6 | Papers; 1874 Aug 11-20 | ||||||||||||
7 | Papers; 1874 Aug 21-31 | ||||||||||||
8 | Papers; 1874 Sep 1-15 | ||||||||||||
9 | Papers; 1874 Sep 16-30 | ||||||||||||
10 | Papers; 1874 Oct 1-7 | ||||||||||||
11 | Papers; 1874 Oct 8-15 | ||||||||||||
12 | Papers; 1874 Oct 16-23 | ||||||||||||
13 | Papers; 1874 Oct 24-31 | ||||||||||||
14 | Papers; 1874 Nov 1-7 | ||||||||||||
15 | Papers; 1874 Nov 8-15 | ||||||||||||
16 | Papers; 1874 Nov 16-23 | ||||||||||||
17 | Papers; 1874 Nov 24-30 | ||||||||||||
18 | Papers; 1874 Dec 1-7 | ||||||||||||
19 | Papers; 1874 Dec 8-15 | ||||||||||||
20 | Papers; 1874 Dec 16-23 | ||||||||||||
21 | Papers; 1874 Dec 24-31 | ||||||||||||
Box | Folder | ||||||||||||
7 | 1 | Papers; 1875 Jan 1-7 | |||||||||||
2 | Papers; 1875 Jan 8-15 | ||||||||||||
3 | Papers; 1875 Jan 16-23 | ||||||||||||
4 | Papers; 1875 Jan 24-31 | ||||||||||||
5 | Papers; 1875 Feb 1-10 | ||||||||||||
6 | Papers; 1875 Feb 11-20 | ||||||||||||
7 | Papers; 1875 Feb 21-28 | ||||||||||||
8 | Papers; 1875 Mar 1-7 | ||||||||||||
9 | Papers; 1875 Mar 8-15 | ||||||||||||
10 | Papers; 1875 Mar 16-23 | ||||||||||||
11 | Papers; 1875 Mar 24-31 | ||||||||||||
12 | Papers; 1875 Apr 1-7 | ||||||||||||
13 | Papers; 1875 Apr 8-15 | ||||||||||||
14 | Papers; 1875 Apr 16-23 | ||||||||||||
15 | Papers; 1875 Apr 24-30 | ||||||||||||
16 | Papers; 1875 May 1-7 | ||||||||||||
17 | Papers; 1875 May 8-15 | ||||||||||||
18 | Papers; 1875 May 16-23 | ||||||||||||
19 | Papers; 1875 May 24-31 | ||||||||||||
20 | Papers; 1875 Jun 1-10 | ||||||||||||
21 | Papers; 1875 Jun 11-20 | ||||||||||||
22 | Papers; 1875 Jun 21-30 | ||||||||||||
Box | Folder | ||||||||||||
8 | 1 | Papers; 1875 Jul 1-7 | |||||||||||
2 | Papers; 1875 Jul 8-15 | ||||||||||||
3 | Papers; 1875 Jul 16-23 | ||||||||||||
4 | Papers; 1875 Jul 24-31 | ||||||||||||
5 | Papers; 1875 Aug 1-10 | ||||||||||||
6 | Papers; 1875 Aug 11-20 | ||||||||||||
7 | Papers; 1875 Aug 21-31 | ||||||||||||
8 | Papers; 1875 Sep 1-7 | ||||||||||||
9 | Papers; 1875 Sep 8-15 | ||||||||||||
10 | Papers; 1875 Sep 16-23 | ||||||||||||
11 | Papers; 1875 Sep 24-30 | ||||||||||||
12 | Papers; 1875 Oct 1-7 | ||||||||||||
13 | Papers; 1875 Oct 8-15 | ||||||||||||
14 | Papers; 1875 Oct 16-23 | ||||||||||||
15 | Papers; 1875 Oct 24-31 | ||||||||||||
16 | Papers; 1875 Nov 1-7 | ||||||||||||
17 | Papers; 1875 Nov 8-15 | ||||||||||||
18 | Papers; 1875 Nov 16-23 | ||||||||||||
19 | Papers; 1875 Nov 24-30 | ||||||||||||
20 | Papers; 1875 Dec 1-7 | ||||||||||||
21 | Papers; 1875 Dec 8-15 | ||||||||||||
22 | Papers; 1875 Dec 16-23 | ||||||||||||
23 | Papers; 1875 Dec 24-31 | ||||||||||||
Box | Folder | ||||||||||||
9 | 1 | Papers; 1876 Jan | |||||||||||
2 | Papers; 1876 Feb | ||||||||||||
3 | Papers; 1876 Mar-Dec | ||||||||||||
4 | Papers; 1877 | ||||||||||||
5 | Papers; 1878 | ||||||||||||
6 | Papers; 1879 | ||||||||||||
7 | Papers; 1880 and undated | ||||||||||||
Asa P. Morse Cancelled checks; 1874-1879 | |||||||||||||
Box | Folder | ||||||||||||
9 | 8 | Cancelled checks; 1870 Jan | |||||||||||
9 | Cancelled checks; 1870 Feb | ||||||||||||
10 | Cancelled checks; 1870 Mar | ||||||||||||
11 | Cancelled checks; 1870 Apr | ||||||||||||
12 | Cancelled checks; 1870 May | ||||||||||||
13 | Cancelled checks; 1870 Jun | ||||||||||||
14 | Cancelled checks; 1870 Jul | ||||||||||||
15 | Cancelled checks; 1870 Aug | ||||||||||||
16 | Cancelled checks; 1870 Sep | ||||||||||||
17 | Cancelled checks; 1870 Oct | ||||||||||||
18 | Cancelled checks; 1870 Nov | ||||||||||||
19 | Cancelled checks; 1870 Dec-1871 Jan | ||||||||||||
20 | Cancelled checks; 1873 Jan | ||||||||||||
21 | Cancelled checks; 1873 Feb | ||||||||||||
22 | Cancelled checks; 1873 Mar | ||||||||||||
23 | Cancelled checks; 1873 Apr | ||||||||||||
24 | Cancelled checks; 1873 May-Jun | ||||||||||||
25 | Cancelled checks; 1873 Jul-Aug | ||||||||||||
26 | Cancelled checks; 1873 Sep | ||||||||||||
27 | Cancelled checks; 1873 Oct | ||||||||||||
28 | Cancelled checks; 1873 Nov | ||||||||||||
29 | Cancelled checks; 1873 Dec | ||||||||||||
Box | Folder | ||||||||||||
10 | 1 | Cancelled checks; 1874 Jan | |||||||||||
2 | Cancelled checks; 1874 Feb | ||||||||||||
3 | Cancelled checks; 1874 Mar | ||||||||||||
4 | Cancelled checks; 1874 Apr | ||||||||||||
5 | Cancelled checks; 1874 May | ||||||||||||
6 | Cancelled checks; 1874 Jun | ||||||||||||
7 | Cancelled checks; 1874 Jul | ||||||||||||
8 | Cancelled checks; 1874 Aug | ||||||||||||
9 | Cancelled checks; 1874 Sep | ||||||||||||
10 | Cancelled checks; 1874 Oct | ||||||||||||
11 | Cancelled checks; 1874 Nov | ||||||||||||
12 | Cancelled checks; 1874 Dec | ||||||||||||
13 | Cancelled checks; 1875 Jan | ||||||||||||
14 | Cancelled checks; 1875 Feb | ||||||||||||
15 | Cancelled checks; 1875 Mar | ||||||||||||
16 | Cancelled checks; 1875 Apr | ||||||||||||
17 | Cancelled checks; 1875 May | ||||||||||||
18 | Cancelled checks; 1875 Jun | ||||||||||||
19 | Cancelled checks; 1875 Jul | ||||||||||||
20 | Cancelled checks; 1875 Aug | ||||||||||||
21 | Cancelled checks; 1875 Sep | ||||||||||||
22 | Cancelled checks; 1875 Oct | ||||||||||||
23 | Cancelled checks; 1875 Nov | ||||||||||||
24 | Cancelled checks; 1875 Dec | ||||||||||||
Box | Folder | ||||||||||||
11 | 1 | Cancelled checks; 1876 Jan | |||||||||||
2 | Cancelled checks; 1876 Feb | ||||||||||||
3 | Cancelled checks; 1876 Mar | ||||||||||||
4 | Cancelled checks; 1876 Apr | ||||||||||||
5 | Cancelled checks; 1876 May | ||||||||||||
6 | Cancelled checks; 1876 Jun | ||||||||||||
7 | Cancelled checks; 1876 Jul | ||||||||||||
8 | Cancelled checks; 1876 Aug | ||||||||||||
9 | Cancelled checks; 1876 Sep | ||||||||||||
10 | Cancelled checks; 1876 Oct | ||||||||||||
11 | Cancelled checks; 1876 Nov | ||||||||||||
12 | Cancelled checks; 1876 Dec | ||||||||||||
13 | Cancelled checks; 1878 Mar, Jul-Sep | ||||||||||||
14 | Cancelled checks; 1878 Oct-Nov | ||||||||||||
15 | Cancelled checks; 1878 Dec | ||||||||||||
16 | Cancelled checks; 1879 Jan-Feb | ||||||||||||
17 | Cancelled checks; 1879 Mar-Apr | ||||||||||||
18 | Cancelled checks; 1879 May-Jun | ||||||||||||
19 | Cancelled checks; 1879 Jul-Aug | ||||||||||||
20 | Cancelled checks; 1879 Sep-Oct | ||||||||||||
21 | Cancelled checks; 1879 Nov-Dec | ||||||||||||
Asa P. Morse Additional Papers Acquired; 1859-1876 | |||||||||||||
Box | Folder | ||||||||||||
12 | 1 | Papers; 1859 May 20 | |||||||||||
2 | Papers; 1861 Jan-Apr | ||||||||||||
3 | Papers; 1861 May | ||||||||||||
4 | Papers; 1861 Jun-Jul | ||||||||||||
5 | Papers; 1861 Dec | ||||||||||||
6 | Papers; 1862 Jan 1-14 | ||||||||||||
7 | Papers; 1862 Jan 15-31 | ||||||||||||
8 | Papers; 1862 Feb 1-14 | ||||||||||||
9 | Papers; 1862 Feb 15-28 | ||||||||||||
10 | Papers; 1862 Mar | ||||||||||||
11 | Papers; 1862 Sep-Oct | ||||||||||||
12 | Papers; 1862 Nov-Dec | ||||||||||||
13 | Papers; 1863 | ||||||||||||
14 | Papers; 1865 Aug 3 | ||||||||||||
15 | Papers; 1866 Jan-Apr | ||||||||||||
16 | Papers; 1866 May-Jun | ||||||||||||
17 | Papers; 1866 Oct-Dec | ||||||||||||
18 | Papers; 1867 Jan-Feb | ||||||||||||
19 | Papers; 1867 Mar-Apr | ||||||||||||
20 | Papers; 1867 May-Jun | ||||||||||||
21 | Papers; 1867 Jul-Aug | ||||||||||||
Box | Folder | ||||||||||||
13 | 1 | Papers; 1871 | |||||||||||
2 | Papers; 1872 Sep-Oct | ||||||||||||
3 | Papers; 1872 Nov-Dec | ||||||||||||
4 | Papers; 1873 Jan-Apr | ||||||||||||
5 | Papers; 1874 | ||||||||||||
6 | Papers; 1875 Jan-Apr | ||||||||||||
7 | Papers; 1875 May-Aug | ||||||||||||
8 | Papers; 1875 Sep-Dec | ||||||||||||
9 | Papers; 1876 Jan-Mar | ||||||||||||
10 | Papers; 1876 Apr-Sep | ||||||||||||
11 | Papers; 1876 Oct-Dec | ||||||||||||
12 | Papers, miscellaneous; undated | ||||||||||||
Asa P. Morse Volumes; 1865-1875 | |||||||||||||
Volume | |||||||||||||
1 | Bankbook; 1865 Jul-1867 Oct | ||||||||||||
2 | Bankbook; 1866 Mar-1867 Jun | ||||||||||||
3 | Bankbook; 1867 Nov-1870 Jun | ||||||||||||
4 | Bankbook; 1869 Jul-1871 Jul | ||||||||||||
5 | Bankbook; 1870 Jun-1872 Dec | ||||||||||||
6 | Bankbook; 1871 Aug-1873 Feb | ||||||||||||
7 | Bankbook; 1873 Mar-Oct | ||||||||||||
8 | Bankbook; 1873 Feb-1875 Jul | ||||||||||||
9 | Receipt book, Western Union Telegraph Co.; 1874 Aug-1875 Dec |