USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Dracut > History of Dracut, Massachusetts, called by the Indians Augumtoocooke and before incorporation, the wildernesse north of the Merrimac. First permanment settlement in 1669 and incorporated as a town in 1701 > Part 1
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Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36
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D78c 1277114 1
GENEALOGY COLLECTION
Chas. N. M Justice 831 Matface AV Louer Thass
ALLEN COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY 3 1833 01095 5067
HISTORY OF DRACUT
Silas R. Coburn.
HISTORY of DRACUT
MASSACHUSETTS
CALLED BY THE INDIANS AUGUMTOOCOOKE AND BEFORE INCORPORATION, THE WILDERNESSE NORTH OF THE MERRIMAC. FIRST PERMANENT SETTLEMENT IN 1669 AND INCORPORATED AS A TOWN IN 1701
BY SILAS R. COBURN
"History has a great office, to make the past intelligent to the present for the guidance of the future." Charles Knight
1922 PRESS OF THE COURIER-CITIZEN CO. LOWELL, MASS.
Copyrighted, 1922 BY SILAS R. COBURN
tion/6/11
1275114
DEDICATION
TO THE PEOPLE OF DRACUT, MASS. AND TO ALL DESCENDANTS OF THOSE STURDY PIONEERS WHO WERE THE EARLY SETTLERS IN THIS VICINITY WHEREVER THEIR LOT IS CAST This Memorial IS DEDICATED WITH RESPECT AND AFFECTION BY SILAS ROGER COBURN
TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION
ix
CHAPTER I-Settlement of Dracut 1
II-Period of the Glacial Movement 20
III-Indian History 30
IV-Early Grants and Allotments of Re- served Land 65
V-Establishment of the Province Line . 97 VI-Early Wars 108
VII-The Revolutionary War 117
VIII-Shay's Rebellion and War of 1812 162
IX-War of the Rebellion, Indian and Spanish Wars 168
X-War with Germany and Her Allies.
176
XI-Church History 182
XII-Mills and Industries 210
Including Woolen, Cotton, Carpet and Paper Mills, Saw and Grist Mills, Fulling and Carding Mills, Tanneries and numerous mis- cellaneous industries.
XIII-Schools, Libraries and Lyceums. 225
XIV-Roads, Ferries and Bridges 241
XV-Cemeteries, Physicians and Tragedies. . 274
XVI-Mines, Quarries and Fisheries 285
XVII-Electric Service, Dracut Water Supply System 294
XVIII-Survey of Roads. 298
By Hon. B. F. Varnum.
XIX-Miscellaneous Subjects 312
XX-Biography and Genealogy 364
CONCLUDING REMARKS 434
INTRODUCTION
T HE HISTORY OF DRACUT is now presented to the public in accordance with the request of the citizens of the town for a history which would embody in one volume the various subjects which relate to its existence. I make no claim to any special knowledge of events or superior ability to place them upon record. No writer of a work of this nature can prepare the material from a personal knowledge of the facts, for the participants have, with a few exceptions, gone "To the pale realms of shade, where each must take his chamber in the silent halls of death," and even their existence has been forgotten.
Facts and information have been gathered from different sources. The records of the town have been carefully studied, though as the town clerks of the earlier years did not realize the need of a full account of the transactions of the town, it has been difficult to record the proceedings of those years. No record of the first ten years of the town's existence has been preserved, and whatever events of that period are here recorded have been obtained from other sources.
The Registry of Deeds and probate records of Middlesex County have been examined and much information from this source supplements the records of the town. The State archives have been examined and material relating to the years before Dracut received a name has been gathered. Valuable assistance has been rendered by members of Dracut families who have preserved the business papers and letters of earlier days. Too often these have been considered of no value and have been destroyed. To the historian many of these seemingly worthless papers have proved invaluable. These old documents yellow with age, often nearly illegible, in handwriting strange and cramped, make clear many difficult problems in historical matters. Old letters, old account books and old diaries have contributed facts obtainable in no other way. The residence of a lifetime in or near Dracut has assisted materially in the compilation of this work. The many changes wrought in these years are thus recorded from personal recollection, and acquaintanceship
I
HISTORY OF DRACUT
with the old residents has furnished opportunity for storing the memory with their reminiscences. These facts have been verified as far as possible by personal observation which has extended over several years, as I long ago realized the value of a town history and commenced collecting information, hoping that in the future some one would weave it into a book and thus retain it in a permanent form.
No history of Dracut has ever been published from which to learn of the proceedings of earlier days and much which is of value has been lost. As the present generation passes away and traditions are forgotten, these collections will be of value to those who take our places as citizens of the Town of Dracut. In the collection of these facts I have been ably assisted by many who have been interested in the production of a history and I take this opportunity to acknowledge their kindness. I feel especially indebted to the late Edwin M. Currier, formerly of this town, as many a problem has been solved by him which, only for his patient and careful study, would remain unsolved. Much of the success attained by these records is due to his unremitting labor. I am also indebted to Walter MeK. Draycot of Lynn Creek, B. C., Canada, for information relating to the Dracuts of England which have given the town its name and which is the only Dracut in the United States. A study of the early records of England has enabled him to trace the history of the name back to the time of the Norman Conquest in the year 1066, and to the Roman occupation B. C. 54. I acknowledge valuable assistance rendered by Miss Elizabeth Coburn of Varnum Avenue, whose collection of old papers furnished information which could be gathered from no other source. Many facts relating to Indian history and the Revolution have been found among old papers owned and carefully preserved by Mrs. Clarence G. Coburn, now residing in Pawtucketville, and cheerfully placed at my disposal; also to Mr. W. T. S. Bartlett and Mr. J. M. Wilson for contributions to the Indian History.
The trustees of the Dracut Town Library have assisted in the work by advice in relation to publication of the book. The financial assistance which makes it possible to place the history before the public has been given by the citizens of the town,
xi
INTRODUCTION
who at the annual town meeting held February 2nd of the past year, 1921, voted to defray the expense and appropriated money for this purpose, appointing the Library Trustees a committee to attend to the publication. I wish to thank all who by furnishing information or by words of encouragement have assisted me in this work, which is the result of twenty-eight years' study. I do not assert that the work in every respect is absolutely correct. Errors will creep in however careful a writer may be, and I trust that the reader will be lenient and will understand the difficulties to be encountered in the preparation of a work of this nature.
There are, to some extent, facts recorded in this work with which the present generation is acquainted, but I believe that as household utensils are placed upon the shelves of a museum for the instruction of future generations who will know of them only by tradition, so the same principle should apply in the preparation of a history. The present generation will have passed away, but the future generations will have the same desire to study the acts of the former years which are possessed by us.
The peculiar manner in which the early documents were written with the quaint spelling and abundance of capital letters which preceded a general rule for their use has been retained. It should be borne in mind that this was not the result of ignorance on the part of the writers, but was the style then in use. No doubt the style of spelling in the time of Chaucer and Spencer would present the same difficulties to our fore- fathers which theirs does to us, and in one or two centuries those persons who examine the writings of the present day will probably find as marked a contrast as exists at present between the style now in use and that of a century ago. The English language of the time six centuries ago can hardly be recognized as the language of the present day and no one can predict with any certainty what its future may be.
My object in writing this history has been to instruct and entertain the readers. The work has been performed without expectation of pecuniary reward. The formation of new acquaintances, the study of the works of nature and the satisfaction to be derived from the knowledge that those who
xii
HISTORY OF DRACUT
study this history will be led to take a deeper interest in the early days of the town's existence has provided ample compensation. The amount I receive from the town I consider a gratuity and wish to extend to my fellow-citizens my thanks for the gift. After twenty-eight years of study and preparation this history is now placed before the public, and it is my earnest desire that the lessons of patience, patriotism and good citizenship taught us by our ancestors may not be forgotten, but may be transmitted from generation to generation.
Silas R. Coburn.
DRACUT, MASS., January 1, 1922.
CHAPTER I
SETTLEMENT OF DRACUT OR AUGUMTOOCOOKE
D RACUT is located in Middlesex County, in the State of Massachusetts. It is in latitude 42° 41' and longitude 71° 19'. It is a border town on the line between New Hampshire and Massachusetts, and is about 34 miles west of the Atlantic ocean at the mouth of the Merrimack river, 27 miles north of Boston and 25 miles south of Manchester, N. H. It is bounded north by Pelham, N. H., east by Methuen, south by the Merri- mack river and Lowell, and west by Tyngsboro. These are the boundaries at the present time although greatly changed from those which existed at the time of the incorporation of the town. The establishment of the Province line and annexations of por- tions of the town to Lowell and Tyngsboro have contracted its area. When first laid out, it was bounded on the west and north- west by Dunstable; on the north and east by wilderness land ; and south and southwest by the Merrimack river. According to the surveyor's report, it contained 22,334 acres at the time of laying out, which, from the liberal measurements of those times, was probably nearer 30,000. In 1832 the area was stated to be 15,673 acres, and in 1914 it was 12,530 acres.
The population of the town as shown by census of Province, United States and state is given :
1765 Prov 1173
1840 U. S. 2188
1776 Prov
1173
1850 U. S. 3503
1790 U. S.
1217 1855 State 1966
1860 U. S.
1881 1875 State 1116
1865 State
1905
1880 U. S. 1595
1870 U. S.
2078
1885 State
1927
1800 U. S.
1274
1890 U. S.
1996
1810 U. S.
1301
1895 State 2443
1820 U. S.
1407
1900 U. S. 3253
1830 U. S.
1615
2
HISTORY OF DRACUT
The early immigrants settled first upon or near the seacoast, but being people of courage and enterprise, they gradually occupied the wilderness which was unbroken to the settlements in Canada. Chelmsford, which may be considered the mother town of Dracut, was incorporated May 29, 1655, nearly half a century before this town had a legal existence. The Merrimack river was so much of a barrier to the further progress of settle- ment that a long interval elapsed between the dates of incorpora- tion of these two towns. Until Dracut became a town the people who lived on the north side of the river were considered as belonging to Chelmsford. We quote from an old record : "Chelmsford also held jurisdiction over the settlements upon the north of the Merrimack at what is now Dracut and the part of Lowell which lies north of the river." The people voted and paid taxes in Chelmsford and depended upon that town for protection. This relation was confirmed by the Court in 1667, and to show that the citizens in those days were careful about the expenditure of money and would not pay taxes until the legality of such payment was assured, and it was an obliga- tion to do so, the quaint order of the court is given :
"Farmes abt
Vpon information of sundry ffarmes Merrimae to erected above Merrimack River whose belong to inhabitants pretend their sayd Middlesex farmes to be out of the County of Courts Middlesex and possibly be not con- tayned in any county, it is therefore ordered by this Court & the authority thereof that all and every the inhabitants of such farmes as there are or shall be improved, in all points, have their dependencies vpon & performe services & beare chardges wth the sayd towne of Chelmsford & that the sajd ffarmes repair to the courts of Middlesex for Justice & all till this Court take further orders, any lawe or custome notwthstanding Oct. 7, 1667."
Major Henchman, who had a garrison house on the Chelms- ford side of the river and who had charge of the defence of the vicinity, in a letter to the Governor and Council dated July 12, 1669, says: "Wherefore, Honorable and Worshipful I judge it
3
SETTLEMENT OF DRACUT
highly needful and necessary that we have relief, and that speedily of about twenty men or more for the repulsing of the enemy and guarding some outplaces, which are considerable on each side of the Merrimac, as Messrs. Howard, Varnum, Coburn &c who must otherwise come in to us, and leave what they have to the enemy, or be exposed to the merciless cruelty of bloody and barbarous men." [Fox's "History of Dunstable."] The Chelmsford records give the names of six tax payers on the north side of the river in 1671, viz., Samuel Varnum, John Coborn, Robert Coborn, Edward Coburn Sr., Edward Coburn, Jr., and Thomas Coborn.
The history of Dracut before its incorporation is meagre. Some of the properties changed owners, but many were held in possession by the Colburns, Varnums and Richardsons. Their families had increased and they began to desire a town organiza- tion, and a settled ministry. Joining with four non-resident owners, they presented a petition to the General Court to be laid out for a township.
The petition for incorporation is as follows :
"To the Hon. Council & Representatives of his Majesty's Province of the Massachusetts Bay in New England in General Court assembled February 1701.
"The petition of Samuel Sewall Esq., Benjamin Walker, John Hunt & Jonathan Belcher, proprietors of part of the Tract of Land called Dracut beyond Chelmsford in the County of Middle- sex on the North Side of Merrimack River and of Samuel Varnum, Thomas Varnum, John Varnum, Joseph Varnum, Thomas Colburne, Daniel Coolburn, Daniel Colburn, Jr., Ezra Colburn, Joseph Colburn, John Colburn, Robert Colburn, William Colburne, James Richardson, Ezekiel Richardson, Benja. Richardson, Joseph Richardson, Ezra Colburn, Jr., Josiah Col- burne, Hannah Colburn, widow, Elizabeth Colburne, widow, & Hannah Richardson, Inhabitants and Proprietors of the said Tract of Land called Dracut,
Humbly showeth
That the said Tract of Land (which adjoins to Dunstable on the west and northwest & runs seven miles Eastward upon the
4
HISTORY OF DRACUT
River from Dunstable line and and six miles northward from the River) lyes very commodious for a Township & hath about twenty families already settled thereupon in which are about Eighty Souls & Forasmuch as the making said place a Tounship will not only be a great Encouragement to the Inhabitants thereof & be the means for a settlement of the Ministry among them (for the benefit of which they are now obliged to go to Chelmsford, which is a great difficulty & cannot be attended by their children & several others by reason of the distance thereof) but will also be of considerable benefit to the Publick, and be a great strengthening of the Frontier parts by reason of the people which will be desirous to settle at said place when made a Township because of the convenient situation thereof.
Your Petitioners humbly pray that by the grant of this Hon.ble Court, the Tract of land aforesaid may be made a Township, and that the Inhabitants, which are or shall settle thereupon, may have and enjoy all Libertys, Privileges & Im- munities as the Inhabitants of other Towns within this Province have & do enjoy. And your Pet,rs as in duty bound shall ever pray etc. In the House of Representatives Febr 25 1701. Read in the House of Representatives February 25 1701. Resolved, That the prayer of the Petition on the other side be granted and the Tract of Land therein described be made a Township & called by the name of Dracut, provided that the Bounds Speci- fied Intrench not upon any former Grant as Grants of Townships. That the Inhabitants of Land assist in the maintenance of the ministry at the Town of Chelmsford as at present they do, until they are provided with a Minister as the Law directs. That a General Plot of said Land (taken by a sworn surveyor) be laid before this Court at their Session beginning in May next. And that if any Land shall happen to fall within the Bounds afore- said that hath not been heretofore granted it shall be reserved to be disposed of by this government.
Sent up by concurrence NEHEMIAH JEWETT, Speaker."
In the above petition, the first four persons mentioned were not settlers or residents of the territory. Hunt and Walker were sons-in-law of Alcock, who purchased the Western half
5
SETTLEMENT OF DRACUT
of the Russell grant, which is now the Navy Yard village and the region about Hovey square, and Belcher owned the eastern half which included the Center and Centralville. Samuel Var- num was the first of the name to settle here and Thomas, John and Joseph were his sons. The name of Edward Colburn, who came from Ipswich and who was the progenitor of the Colburns and Coburns does not appear on the petition, although he was living at the time, as his death occurred in 1712, but his sons, Thomas, Daniel, Ezra, Joseph and Robert were signers. The other Colburns, including John, must have been grandsons of Edward, as his son John died in 1695.
The Richardsons were allied with the Colburns by marriage and had settled here soon after the Coburns and Varnums had arrived. The petition was favorably received and the report is as follows:
"At a Great and General Court or Assembly of the Province of the Massachusetts Bay, in New England begun and held in Boston upon Wednesday the 28th day of May 1700 and con- tinued by several prorogations & adjournments unto Wednesday the 18th day of February and then met Thursday Feb 26 1701. A petition of Samuel Sewall Esq., Ephraim Hunt Esq., Benjamin Walker, John Hunt & Jonathan Belcher Proprietors of part of the tract of land called Dracut, beyond Chelmsford, in the County of Middlesex on the North side of Merrimack River & of Samuel Varnum & several others inhabitants and proprietors of the said tract of land, praying that the said tract of land which adjoins Dunstable on the West and Northwest & runs seven miles Eastward upon the River from Dunstable line and six miles Northward from the River may be made a Township & that the Inhabitants which are, or shall settle thereupon, may have and enjoy all liberties, priveleges & immunities as the In- habitants of other towns within the Province have and do enjoy, was sent up from the House of Representatives with a resolve passed by that House thereupon in the words following (being a repetition of the foregoing resolve passed in the House of Representatives) In Council 26th of February 1701, Read, Concurred with and consented to.
Coppy examined. J. WILLARD Sec'ry."
6
HISTORY OF DRACUT
It is proper in this place to state the difference between the old and new style of dating. The legal year at this time com- menced in March, February being reckoned as the twelfth month. The new style which commenced the year with January was in use upon the continent of Europe, but was not legally adopted by Great Britain and her colonies until 1752, although used to some extent. A careful inspection of the Court records will show the old style of dating. Some writers have failed to bear the difference in mind and have given the date of incorporation which is not in accordance with the present style. On the 28th of February the Court adjourned to the following April, the opening of the session bearing the date of April 9, 1702. With the resolve the petitioners were ordered to present a plot or map of the township "in May next." This order was obeyed and the surveyors' report with the plot bears date "ye 26: 3 mo. 1702," showing the Old Style as before. In accordance therefore with the present new style, commencing the year with the first of January, the correct date of the incorporation of Dracut is February 26, 1702. The town seal bears the date, 1701.
The survey ordered by the General Court was made by Jonathan Danforth, whose services as surveyor were in demand throughout a large part of the County. The report is as follows :
"26:3 mo. 1702 According to the order of the Honble Genl. Court of last year there is laid out to the Inhabitants and pro- prietors of Dracntt, a tract of land for a township on the North- side of Merrimack River, it begins at an Island lying in Merri- mack River called Wekasook and takes about half of it, and is bounded by Capt. Scarlett and Dunstable line on the North West as far as Kimballs farme at Jerimies Hill which is about six miles in a crooked line, then it is bounded by Dunstable line on the west about 4 miles. It is bonnded southerly by Merrimack River about 7 miles by a straight line from Wekasook where we began. The Southeast corner is a white oak marked with a D a little from the river and from thence it runs due North 6 miles, which line is near parallel with Dunstable line on that side. Then by a Northwest line it closeth to Dunstable line.
JONATHAN DANFORTH surveyor."
7
SETTLEMENT OF DRACUT
At this time the Province line had not been established. which, running through the town, caused all of the north part of the town to lie in New Hampshire and this was later, with some of the territory west of the brook at that time in Dunstable, incorporated with the name of Pelham. Jeremies Hill lies west of Beaver Brook between the Mammoth road and Hudson and is the next high hill north of Gumpus Hill and Gumpus pond.
The earliest recorded deed to land in what is now known as Dracut, Mass. This deed was made in 1664 and is one of the deeds, a copy of which is at the local court house, among those copied at such great labor and expense from the records at Cambridge.
"Articles of agreement made the 10th day of January in the yeare of our Lord according to the computaccon of England One Thousand Six hundred and sixty foure, betweene John Evered als. In. Web of Drawcutt, upon Merrimack in the County of Norfolke in New England gentleman, of the one party, and Richard Shatwell of Ipswich in the county of Essex, yeom. and Samuel Varnam of Ipswich aforesaid yeom. of the other pte witnesseth that the said John Evered als. Weh. for and in consid- eration of the sume of fonre hundred pounds of Lawful money of & in New England aforesaid to be payd to him the said John Web, his heyres, Executor admetrator & assignes in mann & forme following viz that is to say currant pay of New England aforesaid, two third pts of the vallue of the said sume of foure hundred pounds currant pay as aforesaid in wheate, mault, or pease, and the other third part of the vallew of ye said sume of foure hundred pounds aforesd and ye remainder of ye sd Sume of foure hundred pounds in beeffs, porke or Indians necry to be payd in equall pportions and in defect of the paymt of porke to be payd in wheate & maute and in defect of any of the said paymts or all the said paymts to be payd in marcchantable fish currant price of New England, for the full paymt and in sattis- faccon of the said foure hundred pounds aforesaid, to be payd and sattisfied at, in before or upon the dayes & times hereafter in and by these presents mentioned & reserved, that is to say one third pt thereof to be payd at, upon, or before the tenth day of
8
HISTORY OF DRACUT
March wch shall be in the yeare of our Lord One Thousand six hundred and sixty-five, and the second third part thereofto be payd, at, upon, or before the tenth day of March wch shall be in the yeare of our Lord one thousand six hundred and sixty and six and the other third part being the full remainder of the said paymt for ye paymt & sattisfaccon of the said sume of foure hundred pounds at upon or before the tenth day of March wch shall be in the yeare of our Lord one thousand six hundred and Sixty seaven. Hath demised, given, granted, bargained, sold, Aliened, Enfeoffed & confirmed and by these presents doth demise, give, grant, bargaine, sell, alien, enfeoffe & confirme unto them the said Richard Shatshwel and Samuel Varnum, the moyty or one halft of the farme of Drawcutt aforesaid of up- land, meadow & pasture to be equally divided and also the feild below the barne, now in tillage arrable land with the appurten- ances, except and always reserved out of the demised, grant, bargain and sale to him, the said John Web, his hyres, excecutors & assignes all the feild arrable land and tillage together with all & all manner of houses, barnes, structures, edifices & buildings whatsoever with the appurtenances and also the garden, the feild mentioned to be called the upper feild and also reserved three acres of the said lower feild aforesaid below the log fence neere the barne together with that parcell of land fenced in with the said log fence, neere the barne aforesaid with the appurtenances the said moyty or one halfe of the aforesaid upland to be equally divided meadow and Pasture to be lane out and equally divided at both the ends of the said farme, that is to say at the east end and west end, that is to say to by on both sides of the said John Web Proporecon moyty or one half of the lands of the said farme, the true intent and meaning hereof is that the moyty or one halfe of the said land so demised & sold is to contene by estima- tion Eleven hundred acres at least, to be equally divided as aforesaid, one hundred and acres of the pcell of Land called Draw meadow with the upland belonging to it to be part of the said Eleven hundred acres to have and to hold the said Lands and premises so bargained & sold unto them the said Richard Shatswell and Samuel Varnam, their heyres, Excecutors & Assignes forever to enure to the sole & only propper use and behooffe of them the said Richard Shatswell and Samuel Varnam
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