USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Medford > History of the town of Medford, Middlesex County, Massachusetts, from its first settlement in 1630 to 1855 > Part 1
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GEN
ALLEN COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY 3 1833 01114 8878
GENEALOGY 974.402 M465B
Matoncal Rejauch
14 47
V. 1 1898
490:70
Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2015
https://archive.org/details/historyoftownofm00broo_0
MEDFORD SQUARE.
HISTORY
OF THE
TOWN OF MEDFORD,
MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS,
From its First Settlement in 1630 to 1855.
BY
CHARLES BROOKS.
Rebised, Enlarged, and Brought Down to 1885, BY JAMES M. USHER.
BOSTON : RAND, AVERY, & COMPANY. The Franklin Press. 1886.
COPYRIGHT, 1885, BY JAMES M. USHER.
1128696
PREFACE.
THE announcement on the titlepage of this volume is a suffi- cient statement of the fact that it is based on the earlier work of Mr. Brooks ; and, indeed, no complete history of Medford can be written which does not largely embody the material collected by him. Medford had no early annalist. The sources from which the account of its settlement must be made up are scanty and ob- scure ; and such imperfect information as exists must be collected from widely scattered records. Mr. Brooks had devoted many years of his life to the task of compiling his materials. He was, moreover, an enthusiastic and painstaking antiquarian, who had inherited from his ancestors, among the first settlers of the town, a fund of traditional lore. If, then, the present volume throws little new light upon the early history of the town, it is because his research was so thorough and exhaustive that he left but a barren field of labor to his successors.
But the labors of Mr. Brooks as an historian ended with the publication of his volume, thirty-one years ago. Much has hap- pened since that date, which deserves a permanent record ; and much of the detail of our later municipal life will be lost, if those who have lived through it " die, and make no sign."
It so happened that I was the publisher of the original History ; and, as a native and resident of Medford, I felt more than a pub- lisher's interest in that work. It has long been my wish to see the annals of the town brought down to current date. In despair of seeing the work taken up by more competent hands, I have, for several years, devoted the time I could spare from other labors to the collection of facts and information touching the later history of the town, with a view to supplementing Mr. Brooks's work.
In the performance of my task, and in the effort to fuse my materials with those of Mr. Brooks, I, have found it necessary to make some changes in the arrangement of the contents of the original volume ; to suppress some of its more unimportant de- tails ; and, for one reason or another, to make occasional altera- tions in the text. It has been my aim, however, as far as possible, to preserve Mr. Brooks's text, - especially to respect that some- times quaint, and often racy, phraseology, characteristic of the writer.
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4
PREFACE.
In collecting the facts of contemporaneous history, the com- piler has constantly to be on his guard against the intrusion of matter of merely ephemeral interest ; and, in the abundance of more deserving topics, there is a call for selection and conden- sation, which holds the ambitious chronicler under a somewhat painful constraint. I cannot hope that I have always coped suc- cessfully with these difficulties, and can only say that I have done my best. Many subjects which had been carefully written out have been omitted from the volume, and this effort to keep down its size has been attended with some sacrifice.
An apology is due to subscribers for the delay which has occurred in the publication of this volume. I have to plead in excuse, that I have found it necessary to deal with a greater variety of topics than had entered into my original design, and that consequently the work has been continually growing upon my hands. The collection and verification of facts is at best a tedious process : and, in the effort to bring the history "up to present date," I have had to fight against time ; for, even while I have been compiling, events of local interest were occurring, which not only called for record, but frequently for the recast- ing of pages already written. The lapse of time necessarily makes history. It is hoped, however, that the delay due to these and other causes, has inured to the advantage of the work : it has certainly entailed upon the editor much addi- tional labor and expense.
I have reason to be grateful for the encouragement I have received during the prosecution of my task. My applications for information have always been courteously responded to, - in many cases by strangers, on whom I had no claim. My warmest thanks are due to friends for their assistance and coun- sel ; and I am especially indebted to Mr. Charles Cummings, Thomas S. Harlow, Esq., and Parker R. Litchfield, Esq., who have greatly aided me in my work, and to Mrs. George L. Stearns for a sketch of her husband's life. I wish also to make my ac- knowledgments to the Library Committee for their kindness and courtesy. There is one other friend who has followed me care- fully through my labors, and to whom I am under the greatest obligations for suggestions and practical help; but I respect his wishes in making no mention of his name.
To the town of Medford, in its corporate capacity, I return my heartfelt thanks for the substantial aid it has given to my undertaking. Loving Medford as I do, I shall be proud and happy if it shall be deemed that I have, in my declining years, done any thing to convey to the coming generations of her children a better knowledge of an important and honorable period of her municipal life.
JAMES M. USHER.
PREFACE TO THE ORIGINAL HISTORY.
IN writing this History, it has been my wish to secure Medford such territory in time as its acres are territory in space. The gathering of these annals has been too long delayed. - Time, moth, and rust have done their fatal work on many valuable materials ; and some gentlemen, who felt a deep interest in their native town, have died without leaving any manuscript testimonies. When the history of New England shall be written, the true data will be drawn from the records of its towns. Now, therefore, in humble imitation of those States in our Union which have contributed each its block of gran- ite, marble, or copper to the National Monument at Washington, I ask leave to offer Medford's historical contribution to the undecaying pyramidic mon- ument which justice and genius will hereafter raise to the character and in- stitutions of New England.
The records of the first forty years are lost. I have reproduced them, as far as I could, from documents in the General Court relating to our earliest history; from several monuments of the first settlers, which are yet standing among us; from authentic traditions which were early recorded; and from collateral histories of the neighboring towns. To find the lost, and remem- ber the forgotten, seems to be the province of the local annalist. From the moment I reached the first town-records of Medford (1674), I implicitly fol- lowed those excellent guides. Where I could save space by abbreviations, without altering the sense, I have occasionally done so in my quotations, and have used our modern orthography. The spirit of antiquarian research, now beginning to show itself, will lead to the discovery of many facts concerning the early history of Medford which are beyond my reach. These may soon render necessary a new history of the town; and I hope it may be under- taken by a person whose ability and leisure will enable him to do far greater justice to the subject than has been within my power.
There are no foot-notes in this volume. My reason for incorporating such matter with the text is this: whenever notes are printed at the bottom of a page, it is expected they will be read in at the place where the asterisk in the text directs. If the note is put there to be read in there, why not put it into the text at that place, and thus save the eye the trouble of wandering down to the bottom of the page to hunt up the note, and then wandering back again to find the spot whence it started on its search? If the new mode I have adopted should prove inconvenient to readers, they must so declare against it that no writer will follow the example.
I have received great help from the Massachusetts Colony Records; and
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PREFACE.
Dr. N. B. SIIURTLEFF's beautiful edition of them is a noble monument to a faithful student and public benefactor. I have also gathered much from the Historical Collections of the Massachusetts Historical Society, - from Win- throp, Hutchinson, Wood, and other early writers; and especially from the registries of Deeds and Probate. Mr. FROTHINGHAM'S " History of Charles- town " is invaluable. I have obtained less information from old manuscripts in Medford than I expected. Many such important papers, long since col- lected here, have been irrevocably scattered. I have received aid from CALEB SWAN, Esq., of New York; from Mr. JOSEPH P. HALL, the accurate town-clerk; from Rev. SAMUEL SEWALL, Mr. W. B. SHEDD, and several other friends. To each and all I would here offer my sincere thanks. To Messrs. WILLIAM TUFTS, of Boston, GEORGE W. PORTER and PETER C. HALL, of Medford, I owe special acknowledgments for their examination of my proof-sheets. The Register of Families has been prepared by my young friend, Mr. WILLIAM H. WHITMORE, of Boston. With the patience that belongs to older scholars, with an accuracy that belongs to a true lover of genealogical inquiry, and with a generosity that issues from a Christian heart, he has devoted himself to these researches; and every family mentioned in the Register owes him a debt of gratitude. Collegisse juvat.
By means of printed circulars and public addresses in 1853, '54, and '55, I gave very urgent invitations to all the living descendants of our ancestors, and to all the present inhabitants of Medford, to furnish me with genealogi- cal registers of their families, promising to insert all they might send. Many have complied with these requests, and many have not. I regret exceedingly that families, who alone possess the requisite information, should have with- held it. It is a serious loss to our history, and may hereafter be regretted by themselves. In this respect, the history of a town is apt to disappoint every- body. These registers of early families in New England will contain the only authentic records of the true Anglo-Saxon blood existing among us; for, if foreign immigration should pour in upon us for the next fifty years as it has for the last thirty, it will become difficult for any man to prove that he has descended from the Plymouth Pilgrims.
I have introduced much collateral history, as illustrative of local laws, ideas, and customs. The true history of a town is nearly an epitome of that of the State. It is not a single portrait, but a full-length figure amidst a group, having the closest relations to all contemporary life, and to all sur- rounding objects. To neglect these accessory circumstances and illustrations, is to leave all life out of historic details, and convert history into a wide, silent field of graves, ruins, and darkness. I have spared no pains or expense in collecting materials for this work; but my chief solicitude has been con- cerning its accuracy. In no case have I recorded a fact, or drawn an infer- ence, without having satisfactory historical evidence of its truth. If my labors shall help to fix Medford in the elevated rank it now holds in the State, and shall stimulate future generations to deserve and attain a higher, my proudest hopes will be realized. That peace may for ever be within its walls, and prosperity within its palaces, is the fervent prayer of its humble friend,
CHARLES BROOKS.
CONTENTS.
[For Alphabetical Index of Names and Topics, see End of the Volume.]
CHAPTER I.
NAME AND LOCATION. - BOUNDARIES. - PONDS. - MYSTIC RIVER.
PAGES
- BROOKS. - HILLS. - CLIMATE. - SOIL AND PRODUCTIONS. - NATURAL HISTORY . 13-38 .
CHAPTER II.
MEDFORD RECORDS. - FIRST SETTLEMENT. - MATHEW CRADOCK. - LAND AND LANDOWNERS. - ANCIENT LANDMARKS AND MON- UMENTS 39-63
CHAPTER III.
ROADS. - RAILROADS. - BRIDGES. - INDIANS 64-99
CHAPTER IV.
CIVIL HISTORY. - TERRITORIAL GRANTS. - MUNICIPAL ORGANIZA- TION. - ENLARGEMENT OF TERRITORY. - TOWN MEETINGS. - MEDFORD A TOWN FROM THE TIME OF ITS SETTLEMENT. - CAUSES OF NEW-ENGLAND PROSPERITY. - LISTS OF TOWN OFFICERS. - GOV. JOHN BROOKS. - COL. ISAAC ROYAL 100-154
CHAPTER V.
POLITICAL HISTORY. - PATRIOTIC STAND TAKEN DURING THE REVOLUTION. - ACTION ON STATE CONSTITUTION. - VOTES IN FIRST STATE ELECTIONS 155-172
CHAPTER VI.
MILITARY HISTORY. - EARLY MILITARY ORGANIZATION. - MED- FORD OFFICERS IN THE REVOLUTION. - WAR OF 1812. - MILITIA. - [OLD] MEDFORD LIGHT INFANTRY. - BROOKS PHA- LANX. - LAWRENCE LIGHT GUARD . 173-198 .
7
8
CONTENTS.
CHAPTER VII.
PAGES
MILITARY HISTORY, CONTINUED. - MEDFORD LIGHT INFANTRY. -
MEDFORD VOLUNTEERS IN VARIOUS ORGANIZATIONS DURING THE CIVIL WAR. - PRISON AND HOSPITAL EXPERIENCES. - HOME WORK OF THE WAR. - DEATH RECORD OF MEDFORD SOLDIERS. - LAWRENCE RIFLES . . 199-212
CHAPTER VIII.
ROLL OF MEDFORD MEN WHO SERVED IN THE UNION ARMY DUR- ING THE REBELLION
213-219
CHAPTER IX.
ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY. - EARLY MINISTERS. - REV. AARON PORTER. - REV. EBENEZER TURELL. - REV. DAVID OSGOOD, 220-246
CHAPTER X.
ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY, CONTINUED. - FIRST PARISH. - SECOND CONGREGATIONAL SOCIETY. - MYSTIC CHURCH. - UNIVERSALIST SOCIETY. - METHODIST-EPISCOPAL CHURCH. - FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH. - GRACE (EPISCOPAL) CHURCH. - CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH, WEST MEDFORD. - TRINITY METHODIST-EPISCOPAL SOCIETY OF WEST MEDFORD. - CATHOLIC CHURCH . 247-279
CHAPTER XI.
EDUCATION. - PUBLIC SCHOOLS. - LIST OF TEACHERS. - LIST OF SCHOOL COMMITTEES. - ACADEMIES. - COLLEGE GRADUATES, 280-301
CHAPTER XII.
PUBLIC LIBRARIES 302-308
CHAPTER XIII.
TUFTS COLLEGE
309-318
CHAPTER XIV.
CHARITIES. - PHYSICIANS. - LAWYERS. - AUTHORS. - PUBLIC CHARACTERS
319-326
CHAPTER XV.
FIRE-DEPARTMENT. - BOARD OF HEALTH. - WATER-SUPPLY. - BURYING-GROUNDS. - GREAT TORNADO. - FIRES. - POUNDS. LOCAL DISEASES .
· 327-348
9
CONTENTS.
CHAPTER XVI.
PAGES
CRIMES AND PUNISHMENTS. - SLAVERY. - PAUPERISM. - ALMS-
HOUSES
349-362
CHAPTER XVII.
TAXES. - LISTS OF EARLY TAX-PAYERS. - CURRENCY 363-381
CHAPTER XVIII.
MIDDLESEX CANAL. - LIGHTERING. - MILLS. - TAVERNS . . 382-390
CHAPTER XIX.
PUBLIC BUILDINGS. - FIRST, SECOND, AND THIRD MEETING- HOUSES. - SCHOOLHOUSES. - TOWN HALL . 391-408
CHAPTER XX.
TRADE AND MANUFACTURES. - FISHERIES. - SHIP-BUILDING. - BRICK-MAKING. - DISTILLERIES. - OTHER INDUSTRIES. - STAGE-COACHES. - NEWSPAPERS. - MEDFORD SAVINGS BANK, 409-441
CHAPTER XXI.
SOCIETIES AND ASSOCIATIONS 442-447
CHAPTER XXII.
BIOGRAPHICAL NOTICES
448-488
CHAPTER XXIII.
HISTORICAL AND LOCAL ITEMS. - MIDDLESEX FELLS. - Gov- ERNORS OF MASSACHUSETTS
· 489-512
CHAPTER XXIV.
POST-OFFICES. - POPULATION. - TABLES OF ANNUAL EXPENDITURES
AND VALUATIONS 513-518
REGISTER OF FAMILIES 519-587 .
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
MEDFORD SQUARE .
CHARLES BROOKS .
Facing 39 60
CRADOCK HOUSE
GARRISON HOUSE ON PASTURE HILL LANE
62
SUMMER HOUSE, ROYAL FARM
63
BOSTON AND LOWELL RAILROAD STATION, I851 .
· Facing 70
BOSTON AND LOWELL RAILROAD STATION, 1885 .
72
BOSTON AND MAINE RAILROAD STATION, 1847
74
BOSTON AND MAINE RAILROAD STATION, 1886
76
CRADOCK BRIDGE
86
JAMES M. USHER
66
89
RESIDENCE OF THATCHER MAGOUN, 2D .
90
RESIDENCE OF GEORGE L. STEARNS
100
OLD SWAN HOUSE, HIGH STREET
I16 I28
JUDAH LORING .
66
Gov. JOHN BROOKS .
I33
Gov. BROOKS'S BIRTHPLACE
136
RESIDENCE OF GOV. BROOKS
142
ROYAL HOUSE .
66
146
OLD TUFTS HOUSE, PUBLIC SQUARE. (REMOVED IN 1867) .
155
FACSIMILE OF TAX-BILL, 1772 . · . .
66 I 58
FACSIMILE OF RECEIPT FOR MONEY PAID FOR SERVICE IN CONTINENTAL ARMY .
164
FACSIMILE OF OATH OF ALLEGIANCE, 1778
166
RESIDENCE OF CAPT. JOSHUA T. FOSTER
66 184
SOLDIERS' MONUMENT
. 219
REV. EBENEZER TURELL .
Facing 246 66
REV. DAVID OSGOOD
247
UNITARIAN CHURCH
255
MYSTIC CHURCH .
¥ 268
UNIVERSALIST CHURCH, 1850 .
269
METHODIST-EPISCOPAL CHURCH
270
BAPTIST CHURCH
66 27I
GRACE CHURCH
274
II
PAGE Frontispiece.
12
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
PAGE
WEST-MEDFORD CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH .
Facing 276 279 ¥
TRINITY METHODIST-EPISCOPAL CHURCH, WEST MEDFORD, 28 I ¥
CHARLES CUMMINGS
¥
291
PUBLIC LIBRARY
302
THATCHER MAGOUN, 2D
305
TUFTS COLLEGE, 1855
309
HOSEA BALLOU, 2D, D.D.
¥
312
THOMAS A. GODDARD
66
314
THE BARNUM MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY, TUFTS COLLEGE GODDARD CHAPEL, TUFTS COLLEGE 66
316
DUDLEY HALL
.
.
LYDIA MARIA CHILD
Facing 357
FACSIMILE OF TAX-BILL, 1796 .
372
MEDFORD HOUSE, 1825
390
FIRST CHURCH .
391
SECOND CHURCH .
395
THIRD CHURCH
400
OLD BRICK SCHOOLHOUSE
Facing 404
HIGH-SCHOOL HOUSE
405
BROOKS SCHOOLHOUSE
: 407
RESIDENCE OF J. HENRY NORCROSS
Facing 414
OCEAN EXPRESS
421
THATCHER MAGOUN, IST .
423
LAUNCH ON THE MYSTIC .
427
WITHINGTON'S BAKERY
436
RESIDENCE OF HENRY HASTINGS
44I
CHARLES BROOKS ·
66
448
FACSIMILE OF CHAPLAIN'S . WARRANT, 1777
451
FACSIMILE OF CERTIFICATE
66
45I
PETER C. BROOKS, 2D
453
GEORGE L. STEARNS
459
JOHN T. WHITE
66
477
JOSHUA T. FOSTER
488
FACSIMILE OF AN ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF PURCHASE OF SLAVES .
Facing 498
FACSIMILE OF RECEIPT
500
GEN. JOHN BROOKS
66
5II
JONATHAN BROOKS'S HOMESTEAD
66 514
MARIA GOWEN BROOKS
318 322 326
ENGINE-HOUSE .
331
STOCKS AND PILLORY
351
FACSIMILE OF CONTINENTAL MONEY
378
66 388
FOUNTAIN HOUSE
CATHOLIC CHURCHI .
HISTORY OF MEDFORD.
·
CHAPTER I.
LOCATION AND NAME.
MEDFORD, a town in Middlesex County, is about five miles north-north-west from Boston, and four miles north- west by north from Bunker-Hill Monument. Its adjoin- ing towns at this date (1884) are Somerville, Arlington, Winchester, Stoneham, Melrose, Malden, and Everett.
In June, 1630, some adventurers, who landed at Salem in the month of May, arrived here, and began a. settle- ment on the north-west side of the river now known as the Mystic. The richness and extent of the marshes, re- sembling vast meads or meadows, must have invited their special attention ; and many have supposed that the name Meadford, first given to the place, was suggested by its resemblance to open fields, or great meadows, in their native land.
However that may have been, records of the Massachu- setts Colony, made as early as 1641, show that the place was called Meadford in certain legal documents, also Mead- fourd, and Metford. Since 1715 it has uniformly been called Medford ; not as a new christening, but as a cor- ruption of the original name, caused, possibly, by the bad spelling from which it suffered, or by our general tendency to shorten words. The names of many towns in Massa- chusetts were changed in that way, and some of them much more radically than in this instance.
During the first ten years after its settlement this town was surrounded by territory that belonged to Charlestown, and its boundaries were changed and greatly enlarged dur-
I3
14
HISTORY OF MEDFORD.
ing its next ten decades, as the ancient town and colonial records show. The following items from such records will enable the reader to obtain a tolerably correct idea of the township as it was at first, and of the changes which deter- mined its present boundaries.
At a court held in Boston April 1, 1634, this record was made : -
" There is two hundred acres of land granted to Mr. Increase Nowell, lying and being on the west side of North River, called Three-mile Brook [Malden River]. There is two hundred acres of land granted to Mr. John Wilson, pastor of the church in Boston, lying next to the land granted to Mr. Nowell, on the south, and next to Meadford on the north."
Here the original bound of Medford on the north-east is shown with sufficient accuracy ; and by this record we learn that the town-line at first did not come down to the Malden River, as it now does.
The north and north-western bounds were the " Rocks," that range of granite hills of which Pine Hill forms a part. The line ran north of Symmes's Corner, and struck Symmes's River. The Pond and Mystic River formed the southern and western boundaries.
The farm of Mr. Cradock formed a portion of the east .. ern part of Medford, and was very large, as the following record shows : -
" General Court, holden at Newtown, March 4, 1634: All the grounds, as well upland as meadow, lying and being betwixt the land of Mr. Nowell and Mr. Wilson on the east (and the partition betwixt Mystick bounds on the west), bounded with Mistick River on the south, and the Rocks on the north, is granted to Mr. Mathew Cradock, merchant, to enjoy to him and his heirs forever."
The next year the General Court "ordered " that this land of Mr. Cradock should " extend a mile into the coun- try from the riverside, in all places." As Medford was in the midst of territory which at first belonged to Charles- town, there was for some years some confusion in regard to boundary lines; and from time to time the General Court made orders in regard to it, among which were the following : -
" General Court, July 2, 1633 : It is ordered that the ground lying betwixt the North River and the Creek on the north side of Mr. Maverick's, and so up into the country, shall belong to the inhabitants of Charlestown."
15
HISTORY OF MEDFORD.
" General Court, March 3, 1636: Ordered, That Charlestown bounds shall run eight miles into the country from their meeting-house, if no other bounds intercept, reserving the propriety of farms granted to John Winthrop, Esq., Mr. Nowell, Mr. Cradock, and Mr. Wilson, to the owners thereof, as also free ingress and egress for the servants and cattle of the said gentlemen, and common for their cattle on the back side of Mr. Cradock's farm."
"General Court, Oct. 7, 1640: Mr. Tynge, Mr. Samuel Sheephard, and Goodman Edward Converse, are to set out the bounds between Charlestown and Mr. Cradock's farm on the north side of Mistick River."
But, while these orders were made with reference to certain parts of the boundary lines, other parts had not been marked with sufficient accuracy, and, in 1687, the in- habitants of Medford appointed three gentlemen, who, in conjunction with three appointed by Charlestown, were directed to fix the boundaries between the two towns.
They performed the work in due time, and the reader will be greatly amused at their report, which shows how rudely their work was done, and how soon the metes and bounds which they fixed must have been undistinguish- able. Their report, as shown by the Town Records, is as follows : -
" We have settled and marked both stakes and lots as followeth : From the creek in the salt-marsh by a ditch below Wilson's farm and Medford farm to a stake and heap of stones out of the swamp, then turning to a savin-tree and to three stakes more to heaps of stones within George Blanchard's field with two stakes more and heaps of stones standing all on the upland, and so round from stake to stake as the swamp runneth, and then straight to a stake on the south side of the house of Joseph Blanchard's half, turning then to another oak, an old marked tree, thence to a maple-tree, old marks, thence unto two young maples, new marked, and thence to three stakes to a creek- head, thence straight to the corner line on the south side of the country road leading to [Malden]."
As might have been expected, the stakes driven by the committee soon decayed or were removed, the heaps of stones and the marked trees soon ceased to be promi- nent and reliable landmarks, and disputes arose in regard to town-boundaries.
In 1735, another joint committee was chosen to settle the bounds of Medford on the north-west ; and the town, May 14, 1744, voted to choose a committee to settle with Charlestown the bounds between the two towns "near the place called Mystic Pond."
In 1771, several changes in boundary lines had been
16
HISTORY OF MEDFORD.
made by the acquisition of new territory ; and a committee was chosen by the inhabitants of Medford "to run the lines anew between Charlestown and Medford, and set up some monuments between the towns." A joint commit- tee met, and set up twenty-two posts as metes. The town- lines thus indicated are shown upon a map in the town archives, called "Walling's Map." The enlargement of the town was accomplished chiefly between the years 1748 and 1754, and the action of the citizens in regard to it at different times is set down in the ancient records as follows : -
" Oct. 23, 1702: Medford voted to petition the General Court to have a tract of land lying in the south of Andover (two miles square) set off to it."
"May 24, 1734: Medford voted, 'That the town will petition for a tract of land beginning at the southerly end of Medford line, on the easterly side of said town, running there eastward on Charlestown to the mouth of Malden River, there running nearly northward on the said Malden River to the mouth of Creek Head Creek, there running with said creek to Medford easterly line. Also a piece of land on the northerly side of said Medford, bounded easterly on Malden line, northerly on Stoneham and Woburn line, westerly on the line betwixt Mr. Symmes's and Gardner's farm, running there northward to Mystic Pond, with the inhabitants thereof.'"
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