The building on the northerly corner of High street, recently owned by Chas. T. Holmes, was in 1832 the property and home of Samuel Robbins, and later of his son-in-law Robert Cowen. Until June 25, 1870, its southerly end extended about eight feet south of the general line of High street, but on that date the projection was taken by the town and the street line straightened. This projection was occupied in 1831, and later by Albert Leach as a shoemaker’s shop, and still later by Eleazer H. Barnes as a candy shop. Outside of the northerly end of the building, was a covered stairway and passage leading to a store in the rear of the main building in which Mr. Robbins kept a store until his death, which occurred July 27, 1838, at the age of eighty-six. It must have been about 1830 that he dislocated his thigh. At that time the means of reducing dislocations were crude, and I remember hearing in the street the terrible groans of the old gentleman while under the hands of the Boston surgeon, who had been sent for to manage the case. The next building, which belongs to the estate of the late Charles T. Holmes, was occupied as long ago as I can remember on the front by Wm. Brown for the post office on the street floor, while he held the office of postmaster from 1822 to 1832, after which it was occupied by Edward Hathaway for a harness store, and finally by Amasa and Charles T. Holmes. The cellar under the post office was occupied at various times by Henry Flanders, who died May 8, 1835, and later, by James Barnes and others as an oyster shop. In 1829 H. H. Rolfe taught a private school in the room over the post office, and in 1832, Cephas Geovani Thompson, a portrait painter, and native of Middleboro, occupied for a time the same room where he painted portraits of Rev. Dr. Kendall, Capt. Nathaniel Russell and my mother. His son of the same name, was a highly esteemed portrait painter in Boston many years. The Old Colony Hall, a part of the estate in the rear of the main building, was through my youth occupied for various purposes. The Universalist Society after its formation, held services there from 1822 to 1826, when their church was built on Carver street. In 1833 Hiram Fuller taught a private school in the Hall, and many times in my boyhood I attended lectures and exhibitions there, among which were those of Harrington, the ventriloquist. At a later period the hall and the upper part of the main building were occupied by Stephen P. and Joseph P. Brown for a furniture shop and show room. William Brown, above mentioned, died May 9, 1845.