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Part 1

Jesse Hutchinson, Jr., heard English abolitionist George Thampson speak, probably in New Hampshire or Massachusetts, sometime around 1835; and he joined the antislavery movement with his characteristic enthusiasm.¹ Jesse was a musical man and we have evidence that he was already writing topical song lyrics. Around the same time or not much later, Jesse's brothers and sisters were entertaining at family reunions and in functions at the district school near their home in Milford, New Hampshire.²

In the fall of 1840, Jesse and his brother Joshua organized a concert in Milford, featuring Jesse, Sr., Mary Hutchinson, their thirteen children - the "Tribe of Jesse," as they often called themselves - and maternal grandfather, Andrew Leavitt.³ Many years later, Joshua wrote, "The house was packed with an audience of all ages and positions, and the utmost respect was shown through the entire entertainment. . . . "

Joshua Hutchinson

The three youngest brothers, Judson, John, and Asa, thought they were ready to build a career, entertaining crowds with the popular songs of the day; and they received much encouragement from Brother Joshua. Lynn, Massachusetts, Jesse's adopted home, was the scene of a trial concert. The aspiring singers then took day jobs and held rigorous evening practice sessions. These rehearsals led to their first short tour. They sang to appreciative but small audiences. As Brother Judson wrote not much later, "Poor as the devil. Growing no richer very fast."

John and probably Jesse heard the Rainer Family, a popular singing group whose late-1840 Boston concerts were all the rage. Judson, John, and Asa seem to have experimented with Rainer-style performances, singing occasionally as a quartet with their sister Rhoda.⁴ But Rhoda's health would not permit extensive traveling; and the Hutchinson family had a decided shortage of females - there were eleven sons but only two daughters.

Early in 1842, on their way to a show in Lynn, the trio picked up their twelve-year-old sister Abby and brought her along for a visit to Jesse. And since she just happened to be with them anyway - out from under their mother's protective wing - they arranged for her to sing at their concert. It worked out very well, artistically; so the brothers took Abby along for the rest of the tour. Later, the Hutchinson brothers, with much difficulty, managed to gain parental permission - after the fact - for adding their little sister to their company. Thus, the famous Hutchinson Family quartet was born.

In the summer of 1842, this new ensemble embarked on their "Grand Start" - a tour that led through their native New Hampshire, across Vermont, and into New York State. The inexperienced entertainers soon learned that the main concert season didn't start until the fall; they also found that American audiences favored foreign artists. Most days, they lost money. In Albany, the Hutchinsons were rescued by a new friend, Luke F. Newland, who organized a big concert that put cash in their pockets when they needed it most. This allowed the young singers to go on to early triumphs, such as their Boston debut. While in that city, they approached Professor George James Webb and asked for guidance, to which he made his often-quoted reply - "Please yourselves and you will not fail to please the public."

Many music fans first heard of the Hutchinsons around this time from notices by Nathaniel P. Rogers in New Hampshire's antislavery newspaper, the Herald of Freedom. In his first review he wrote, "If I can judge rationally about it, (and if I can't, it is because they have enchanted me) they are musicians of the very highest order, and with the practice and improvement they will naturally experience, before they pass their prime, will reach a rare degree of excellence in their glorious art."

Late in January 1843, the Hutchinson Family sang at the annual meetings of the Massachusetts Antislavery Society. Rogers' account was reprinted in William Lloyd Garrison's newspaper, the Liberator. Thus, N. P. Rogers, more than anyone else, helped create an anticipation, favorable to the singers, in places where they had not yet performed. When the Hutchinsons made their debut in New York City, they found a ready audience; and that first New York concert series was a triumph.

New Hutchinson Family Homestead
North River Road
Milford, New Hampshire

Just a few weeks earlier, Jesse showed his brothers and sisters his lyrics for a family theme song, "The Old Granite State." John said they thought it was the "essence of egotism" and couldn't imagine how he came to write it. Somehow, though, Jesse managed to talk the singers into giving his new piece a try in concert. They introduced "The Old Granite State" to the public, starting at an appearance in Salem, Massachusetts, and it became an instant hit. Decades later Abby wrote, "[T]he 'Old Granite State' is the one that arouses the people to enthusiasm."

The Hutchinson Family quartet was a thoroughly rehearsed outfit; and the singers became quickly known for their remarkably close harmonies. John said

The leading characteristic in the Hutchinson Family's singing was then, as it always has been since, the exact balance of parts in their harmonies, each one striving to merge himself in the interest of the whole, forming a perfect quartet. . . .

They often played their own accompaniments on two violins and a cello;⁵ but their greatest artistic accomplishments generally came from their unaccompanied singing. Their concerts were filled with tension and release of a popular nineteenth-century variety, with their songs alternately bringing laughter or tears.

By the dawn of the twentieth century, Henry W. Longfellow's poem, "Excelsior," had been so heavily used that today we know it mostly from comic performances, such as a memorable send-up on television by Rocky and Bullwinkle; but in the 1840s, the Hutchinson Family's original musical setting was taken quite seriously and was treated as a major work.

The Hutchinsons had great success with songs by outside writers. One of the best examples is Sister Abby's treatment of "The May Queen," with lyrics by Alfred Tennyson and music by William Dempster.

The Hutchinson Family produced only one successful lyricist - Brother Jesse. Though they sang verses by quite a variety of poets who were much admired in their day,⁶ very often it was Jesse's newest songs that received the most attention in concert reviews. He was normally not a member of the singing group, but rather he served as their business manager. Yet a brief description such as this one, no matter how accurate as far as it goes, cannot begin to do justice to his importance to his brothers and sister. If not for Jesse, it is doubtful that we would remember the Hutchinson Family at all.

Jesse Hutchinson, Jr.

Jesse would dash off a set of verses and then move on to another project - often one having little if anything to do with music, such as his invention of an improvement in the design of air-tight stoves. So, the lyrics he wrote, in fits of inspiration, sometimes had an unfinished quality. But what they lacked in polish they more than made up for in originality. When compared to the work of his contemporaries - particularly the social-reform-minded New England rhymesters - Jesse's lyrics are quite modern.

For over a year, the Hutchinson Family quartet sang songs of faith, sentiment, and humor to popular audiences, while they performed antislavery material only at abolitionist meetings. Jesse Hutchinson and Nathaniel P. Rogers wanted them to start introducing freedom songs into their paid programs.⁷ "The whole family," wrote Asa, "talk of giving concerts making strong anti-slavery principles. Jesse is the zealot. But wisdom I trust we shall heed." Yet, where Jesse's arguments failed . . .

Jesse's songwriting prevailed. Early in 1844, the Massachusetts Antislavery Society held a meeting at Lowell. During a speech by the great orator, Wendell Phillips, Jesse Hutchinson, Jr., became quite excited; and he started writing the verses for a new song, using a railroad metaphor. When Phillips finished speaking, Jesse and an impromptu band of Hutchinsons rushed onto the platform and gave the first performance of the great antislavery song, "Get Off the Track!"⁸

The new production, set to the tune of "Old Dan Tucker," was classic Jesse Hutchinson.

Ho! the car Emancipation Rides majestic through our nation

Bearing on its train, the story Liberty! a nation's glory.

Most of Jesse's "protest" songs contained few words of actual protest. He knew in his heart that the forces of freedom would prevail; and he wrote lyrics to affirm the work and urge other reformers on. In his rousing chorus, he exclaimed,

Roll it along, roll it along

Roll it along through the nation freedom's car, Emancipation.

Even Nathaniel P. Rogers, who often brilliantly chronicled stirring scenes, wrote, "I cannot describe the electrifying effect upon the audience."

The Hutchinson Family's following included many abolitionists, and they started requesting that the quartet sing "Get Off the Track!" in concert. Thus, Jesse won the debate. It was not long before Brother Asa had a change of heart. And in the 1850s, he became particularly adamant that he would sing antislavery to any and all audiences, friendly or hostile, come what may.

The Hutchinsons' tight vocal harmonies made them famous and their antislavery songs made them infamous. Proslavery papers warned that, if they continued singing such vile sentiments to paying customers, they would risk losing their popularity. Yet, if it is true today that controversy sells, it was equally true back then. Hundreds and sometimes thousands of fans were turned away from Hutchinson Family shows for lack of space inside crowded halls. As their reputation spread through the land, their concert tours lasted longer and took them farther afield. For most of the rest of the century, as far as I can tell, literally everyone in the country had an idea who the Hutchinsons were.

Once members of the Hutchinson Family started singing against slavery, other crusades came to their attention. They used their talent and fame to promote, among many causes, woman suffrage, temperance, and the Abraham Lincoln presidential campaign of 1860.⁹

John wrote in Story of the Hutchinsons that "it was practically impossible for us to have embraced the anti-slavery reform without being under the influence of, and affected by, several other related reforms and movements." "We were waiting," he continued, "for great developments in the line of social and ethical progress. We were looking for the new light with eager, longing gaze, determined that no one should welcome it sooner or more heartily than ourselves." Jesse and the singers called this new light the "Good Time Coming," and they were the patriots and minstrels of that future America of liberty and justice for all.

Much of the Hutchinsons' reputation was built on their appearances in big concerts and at great meetings in New York City. It was also there that a phrase was published which would stick to members of the quartet for decades. N. P. Willis in the Evening Mirror, possibly in the spring of 1845, wrote that the Hutchinson Family was "a nest of brothers with a sister in it."

The Hutchinson Family quartet spent the 1845-1846 concert season entertaining in the United Kingdom, which added greatly to the group's reputation. The Hutchinsons were often thought to be important representatives of American singing. After they came home from Europe, Dr. Edward A. Kittredge - byline, "Noggs" - wrote, "We would have them remember that the eyes of both hemispheres are upon them as the exponents of a nation's music, and that to them is given the power to exalt to its proper place American melody."

Were the Hutchinsons mainly musicians or social reformers? By this time, that question was pretty much answered. The Hutchinson Family was a band of reformers. By 1848, they moved away from strict Garrisonian abolitionism; and they became heavily involved in the Free-Soil election campaign. 1848 was arguably the Hutchinsons' biggest year; but it ended with one of many episodes of Judson quitting the group.

In 1849, Abby Hutchinson married Ludlow Patton. That summer, Abby took sick and it was feared that she could not survive her illness. Her medical condition improved slowly; and in the fall of 1850, the quartet started on what was to be their grandest tour yet. But Judson's behavior became quite erratic, finally bringing the westward trip to an early close. Judson's mental illness became a matter of public discussion.

It was at this time that Sister Abby retired from her career as a touring musician. "Gifted, earnest, noble, true, with a magnificent voice, the light of our lives, the joy of our hearts, does any one wonder that it was a crushing blow to her brothers - a life-long sorrow - when one who did so much to make the family's work successful was compelled[,] by her devotion to the man to whom she had given her heart[,] to withdraw from it?"¹⁰ That was the official explanation of Abby's retirement, as recorded by John; but available evidence leads to a conclusion that her chronic frail health was likely the main consideration.

Following Abby's retirement, her brothers introduced two of their greatest original productions. The end of one of Judson's earlier songs, "The Bachelor's Lament," featured a spoof of Italian opera; and now he created a more ambitious comic work, in four parts. It was sometimes called his "Italian Uproar." According to the Boston Commonwealth, Judson's "imitation of Italian music was the best thing we ever heard." Praise doesn't come any higher. Judson Hutchinson had a real genius for comedy.

A few weeks later, Jesse wrote the lyrics for a reform anthem that would remain in the family's repertoire into the twentieth century. Like many of the Hutchinsons' best originals, "Right Over Wrong" wed Jesse's verses to Judson's music.

Behold the day of promise comes, Full of inspiration:

The blessed day by prophets sung For the healing of the nation.

Old midnight errors flee away, They soon will all be gone,

While heavenly angels seem to say The good time's coming on.

The good time, the good time, The good time's coming on,

The good time, the good time, The good time's coming on.

The membership of the main Hutchinson Family group, after Abby's departure, changed several times. A tour through the Midwest in the summer of 1851 involved Jesse, Judson, and John, with Asa replacing Jesse only toward the end. Jesse's wife had long suffered from poor health, and she soon passed away. Just days later, Jesse's daughter died. He had lost the love of his life and all six of their children.

By 1850, Jesse found faith in spiritualism. This curious development of the mid-nineteenth century attracted many Americans who had lost loved ones. John and particularly Asa seemed to think that Jesse's spiritualist fervor threatened Judson's mental balance; so they stopped employing Jesse as their business agent. He quickly signed on as manager of a rival group, the Alleghanians - James M. Boulard, Richard Dunning, Miriam G. Goodenow, and William H. Oakley - which he led through a successful tour of California during 1852, the height of the Gold Rush. His correspondence, telling of his adventures in San Francisco and in the mining country, ran in the New York Daily Tribune.¹¹  The fortunes of the Alleghanians and Jesse took a serious blow when Miriam Robb married T. P. Robb and left the life of a touring musician behind. She died just a few years later.

There is reason to think that John and Asa intended to reconcile with Jesse in 1853; but he took ill with Panama fever on his way home from the West Coast and perished at Carthage, Ohio.

Much of the high degree of originality that was attributed to the Hutchinson Family started with their older brother. They were the Tribe of Jesse in more ways than one. "Jesse," said the New York Times, "was the manager of the concerts, and, under his skillful engineering, the family [was] placed in circumstances of pecuniary abundance. Perhaps no troup[e] of singers ever enjoyed a more satisfactory success."

Jesse and Judson were at the creative heart of the Hutchinson Family. Judson was the group's best and most prolific composer, he contributed heavily to its vocal arrangements, and his singular presence on stage helped establish the Hutchinson Family as very different from other popular singing groups. But while his mental illness may have once added much to the whimsical, eccentric charm of his comic and musical work, now his strange behavior was troubling. This, along with the retirement of Abby and the death of Jesse, pushed John and Asa into more prominent roles in the singing group; but the two often found themselves leaning in different directions.

Copyright © 2001, 2002, 2004 by Alan Lewis.
All rights reserved.

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