July 2nd - July 8th

July 5, 1938

July 4, 1817 - President Monroe visits Commodore Bainbridge
July 5, 1938 - Old fire engine bites the dust
July 6, 1938 - James Bowditch leaves money to town for trees
July 8, 1960 - Thai king visit to childhood home

July 4, 1817
President Monroe visits Commodore Bainbridge
President James Monroe, on an Independence Day visit to Boston, rode out to Brookline for an early morning breakfast with Commodore William Bainbridge, the commander of the Boston Navy Yard in Charlestown and the former captain of "Old Ironsides," the U.S.S. Constitution.

President James Monroe and Commodore William Bainbridge. (Images from WhiteHouse.gov and the U.S.S. Constitution Museum)

The president, according to a contemporary account, “breakfasted with that officer, his family, and some distinguished citizens, who composed the company.” Leaving Bainbridge's home, Monroe visited the celebrated Brookline gardens of Thomas Handasyd Perkins on his way to Watertown and Waltham.

It is not known where in Brookline Bainbridge was living at the time of Monroe's visit.

July 5, 1938
Old fire engine bites the dust
The Brookline fire department's Engine #2 --reportedly the oldest engine still in use in a large fire department in the state -- ended its long career in the town after 25 years when it fell apart while returning from a false alarm. (The engine. kept around for largely sentimental reasons, is seen at the top of this post in a photo taken before its demise.)

Brookline Chronicle, July 7, 1938 (Click image for larger view)

"[It] came to an abrupt stop 150 yards from home and fell apart completely," reported the Brookline Chronicle. "First, the rear end dropped out, then the boiler split and finally the crank shift collapsed--and the relic of by-gone days was through."

Although destined for "the Valhalla for worn out fire apparatus," according to the article, the old work horse -- which was due to be replaced in a few weeks anyway -- was not dead yet. It had another life after Brookline at the Norwich State Hospital in Connecticut.

July 6, 1938
James Bowditch leaves money to town for trees
The will of landscape architect James H. Bowditch, who died at age 92, left $3,000 for the planting of trees in Brookline, stating that he hoped the money "will be expended in an experimental manner for the purchase and care of new varieties of trees and shrubs in order that the town may beautify its streets."

James H. Bowditch (Photo from Harvard College: portraits of the class of 1869 taken at graduation and in later life, from the collection of the Rijksmuseum)

Bowditch, the wealthy son of abolitionists William and Sarah Bowditch and a longtime member of the town's Tree Planting Committee, expressed a wish in his will that others would be inspired to make similar contributions. The will was contested by several nieces and nephews. The administrator of a trust established by the will said, reported the Boston Globe, that Bowditch had told him he was not close to his relatives and that "most of them were pretty well off.'

In 1942, the Tree Planting Commission placed a memorial to Bowditch on a boulder in what is now Horace James Circle, expressing the hope that "this boulder will serve as a lasting tribute to the civic contribution of this splendid citizen and noble character." Ironically, the memorial today is hidden behind shrubbery and difficult to reach on foot amid heavy automobile traffic.

James H. Bowditch memorial at Horace James Circle (Click image for larger view)

July 8, 1960

Thai king visit to childhood home

Thailand's King Bhumibol Adulyadej, who ascended the throne in 1946 at the age of 22, visited the Brookline apartment building where he lived with his parents as a baby. He was greeted by current residents and managers of the building, 63 Longwood Avenue.

Boston Globe, July 10, 1960

The future king was born at Cambridge Hospital (now Mt. Auburn Hospital) and lived in Brookline while his father was studying at Harvard Medical School. The six-room suite that had been occupied by the family had been converted to two units by 1960. A plaque marking the site was placed by a private Thai organization in 2009.

Adulyadej, who reigned as Rama IX until his death in 2016, was one of the longest serving monarchs in history. Only Louis XIV of France and Elizabeth II or the United Kingdom are known for certain to have reigned longer. Widely revered in Thailand as a unifying force, his rule was also a time of several military coups and repression of dissent.