USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Medford > History of the town of Medford, Middlesex County, Massachusetts, from its first settlement, in 1630, to the present time, 1855 > Part 1
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الخصوم
جما
درحمة
1800
Glass
Book
ישיבה
HISTORY
OF THE
TOWN OF MEDFORD,
gliddleser County, Massachusetts,
FROM ITS FIRST SETTLEMENT, IN 1630, TO THE PRESENT TIME, 1855.
BY CHARLES BROOKS.
" Pleraque eorum quæ referam parva fortisan et levia memoratu videri, nescius sum." - TACITUS. " Nescire quid antea quam natus sis acciderit, id est semper esse puerum." - CICEEO.
BOSTON: PUBLISHED BY JAMES M. USHER, 37, CORNHILL. 1855. F.T.
174 M5 B8
UBRARY
OF COMTERS 3 AUS - 31981
c
BOSTON: PRINTED BY JOHN WILSON AND SON, 22, SCHOOL STREET.
F14 53
TO
The Descendants of the first Settlers of Itledford,
WHEREVER LIVING,
AND
TO ITS PRESENT INHABITANTS,
The following Mistory is respectfully Enscribed
.
BY THEIR HUMBLE SERVANT,
CHARLES BROOKS.
PREFACE.
IN writing this History, it has been my wish to secure Medford such terri- tory in time as its acres are territory in space. The gathering of these annals has been too long delayed. Time, moth, and rust have donc their fatal work on many valuable materials; and some gentlemen, who felt a deep interest in their native town, have died without leaving any manu- script 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 granite, marble, or copper to the National Monument at Washington, I ask leave to offer Medford's historical contribution to the undecaying pyramidic monument which justice and genius will hereafter raise to the character and institutions 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 ear- liest 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 remember 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 followed 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 anti- quarian 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 undertaken 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 wan- dering 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 Dr. N. B. SHURTLEFF's beautiful edition of them is a noble monument to a
vi
PREFACE.
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 Charlestown" is invaluable. I have obtained less information from old manu- scripts in Medford than I expected. Many such important papers, long since collected here, have been irrecoverably 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-shects. 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 men- tioned 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 genealo- gical 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 withheld 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 everybody. 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 surrounding 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 solici- tude has been concerning its accuracy. In no case have I recorded a fact, or drawn an inference, 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, SEE END OF THE VOLUME.)
CHAPTER I. PAGE.
NAME AND LOCATION. - BOUNDARIES. - PONDS. - MYSTIC RIVER. - BROOKS. - HILLS. - CLIMATE. - SOIL AND PRODUCTIONS. - NATURAL HISTORY 1
II.
MEDFORD RECORDS. - FIRST SETTLEMENT. - MONUMENTS OF EARLY TIMES. - ROADS. - BRIDGES. - INDIANS. - MATHEW CRADOCK . 27
III.
CIVIL HISTORY. - EXPENSES. - MEDFORD A TOWN. - CAUSES OF PROSPERITY. - CHAIRMEN OF THE BOARD OF SELECTMEN. - TREASURERS. - TOWN-CLERKS. - GOVERNOR BROOKS . 93
IV.
POLITICAL HISTORY. - VOTES FOR REPRESENTATIVES IN CONGRESS. - COUNCILLORS AND SENATORS. - REPRESENTATIVES. - JUSTICES OF THE PEACE. - COL. ISAAC ROYAL 143
V. MILITARY HISTORY. - MEDFORD LIGHT INFANTRY. - BROOKS PHA- LANX. - LAWRENCE LIGHT GUARD. - CAPT. THOMAS PRITCHARD. - COL. EBENEZER FRANCIS. - ADJ. FRANCIS TUFTS. - LIEUT. JOHN BROOKS. - COL. ALEXANDER S. BROOKS . 181
VI.
ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY. - REV. AARON PORTER. - REV. EBENEZER TURELL. - REV. DAVID OSGOOD, D.D. 200
viii
CONTENTS.
VII.
PAGE.
ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY CONTINUED. - FIRST PARISH. - SECOND
CONGREGATIONAL SOCIETY. - UNIVERSALIST SOCIETY. - BAPTIST SOCIETY. - METHODIST SOCIETY. - MYSTIC CHURCH. - GRACE CHURCH 249
VIII.
EDUCATION. - ACADEMIES. - INSTITUTE. - LIBRARIES. - LYCEUM LECTURES. - TUFTS COLLEGE. - GRADUATES. - PHYSICIANS. - LAWYERS. - PUBLIC CHARACTERS. - AUTHORS'. 278
IX.
PUBLIC BUILDINGS. - MEETING-HOUSES. - SCHOOL-HOUSES. - TOWN
. HALL. - ALMS-HOUSES - ENGINE-HOUSES 325
X.
TRADE. - MANUFACTURES. - BRICK-MAKING. - SHIP-BUILDING. - REGISTER OF VESSELS. - FISHERIES. - MEDFORD CRACKERS. - DISTILLATION. - LIGHTERING. - MILLS. - MIDDLESEX CANAL. - PRICES IN MEDFORD 349
,XI.
CURRENCY. - TAXES. - MAP. - POST OFFICE. - TAVERNS. - BURYING-
GROUNDS
XII. 401
CRIMES AND PUNISHMENTS. - SLAVERY. - PAUPERISM. - TORNADO. -
STORMS AND FRESHETS. - FIRES. - POUNDS. - DISEASES . 431
XIII.
POPULATION. - MANNERS AND CUSTOMS. - DAILY AND DOMESTIC 451
HABITS
XIV.
FIRE-DEPARTMENT. - SOCIETIES 471
XV.
HISTORICAL ITEMS. - LETTER
478
REGISTER OF FAMILIES 499
HISTORY OF MEDFORD.
CHAPTER I.
NAME AND LOCATION.
MEDFORD, a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, lies in 42° 25' 14" 42, north latitude, and 71° 07' 14" 32, west longitude. It is about five miles N. N. W. from the State House in Boston ; and about four miles N. W. by N. from Bunker-Hill Monument. It borders on Somerville, West Cambridge, Winchester, Stoneham, Melrose, and Malden.
It received the name of Meadford from the adventurers who arrived at Salem, in May, 1630, and came thence to settle here in June. When these first comers marked the flatness and extent of the marshes, resembling vast meads or meadows, it may have been this peculiarity of surface which suggested the name of Meadford, or the " great meadow." In one of the earliest deeds of sale it is written Metford, and in the records of the Massachusetts Colony, 1641, Meadfoard. The Selectmen and Town-clerks often spelled it Meadford ; but, after April, 1715, it has been uniformly written Medford. No reason is given for these changes ; and why it received its first name, history does not tell us. Josselyn in 1638, writes thus : "On the north-west side of the (Mystic) river is the town of Mistick, three miles from Charlestown, a league and a half by water." This author gives the name of Mis- tick to land on the north side of the river, and reports a thriving population as then gathered between the two brick houses, called forts, which are yet standing. At that early period, boundary lines were indefinitely settled, and names as '
1
2
HISTORY OF MEDFORD.
indefinitely applied. It was afterwards the intention of some to unite Mr. Cradock's, Mr. Winthrop's, Mr. Wilson's, and Mr. Nowell's lands in one township, and call it Mystic.
BOUNDARIES.
Medford, until 1640, was surrounded by Charlestown, which embraced Malden, Stoneham, Woburn, Burlington, Somerville, a part of Cambridge, West Cambridge, and Medford. At a Court holden at Boston, April 1, 1634 : " 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 the land granted to Mr. Nowell on the south, and next Meadford on the north." Medford bounds would have run to Malden River, had not these four hundred acres of land intervened. Outside of this narrow strip were the first boundaries of Medford on the north-east. 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' Corner, and struck Symmes' river. The Pond and Mystic River formed the southern and western boundaries.
As proof of these statements, we have the following records: 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." "General Court holden at Newtown, March 4, 1634. All the ground, as well upland as meadow, lying and being betwixt the land of Mr. Nowell and Mr. Wilson, on the east, and the parti- tion 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 for ever."
General Court, March 3, 1635. - " Ordered, That the land formerly granted to Mr. Mathew Cradock, merchant, shall ex- tend a mile into the country from the river-side in all places."
General Court, March 3, 1636. - " Ordered, That Charles- town bounds shall run eight miles into the country, from their meeting-house, if no other bounds intercept, reserving
3
BOUNDARIES.
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 " (Stoneham and Malden).
" Mystick Side " was the first name of Malden ; " Mystick Fields " the name of the land on the south side of Mystic River from Winter Hill to Medford Pond.
April 13, 1687. - The inhabitants of Medford appointed three gentlemen, who, in conjunction with three appointed by Charlestown, were directed to fix the boundaries between the two towns.
That Committee report 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 Blanch- ard'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). How soon must such marks and bounds be effaced or removed !
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 pe- tition 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. And also a piece of land on the northerly side of said Medford, bounded easterly on Malden line, northerly on Stoneham and Woburn
1
4
HISTORY OF MEDFORD.
line, westerly on the line betwixt Mr. Symmes' and Gardner's farm, running there northward to Mystic Pond, with the the inhabitants thereof."
March 31, 1735. - Voted " to choose a Committee to join with the Committee of Charlestown, to settle the bounds of the said town on the north-westerly part of said bounds, which have been disputed."
May 14, 1744. - Voted to choose a Committee to settle with Charlestown the bounds between the two towns "near the place called Mystic Pond." ‹
" March 7, 1748. - Put to vote to know the mind of the town, whether they will choose a Committee to use their best endeavors to have the lands with their inhabitants, now belonging to Charlestown, added to this town, which now are on the southerly and northerly sides of this town."
This was not successful; but, May 14, 1753, the effort was renewed; and the town asks for 2,800 acres, and was successful.
The bounds, mentioned in the petition to the General Court, were as follows : "On the southerly side, those that the town petitioned for in the year 1738; and those on the northerly side, bounded northerly on Stoneham, on the town of Woburn and by the northerly bounds of Mr. William Symmes' farm, and easterly on Malden." The bounds desig- nated in the petition of March 6, 1738, are as follows : "The southerly tract lying in Charlestown bounded northerly with the (river) ... westerly with the westerly bounds of Mr. Smith's, Mr. Joseph Tufts' and Mr. Jonathan Tufts' farms, and then running from the southerly corner of Mr. Jonathan Tufts' farm, eastward straight to the westerly corner of Col. Royal's farm; again westerly with the westerly bounds of Col. Royal's farm ; again southerly with its southerly bounds, and then running from the south-easterly corner thereof east- ward straight to Medford River."
The action of the Legislature is thus recorded : " April 18, 1754. John Quincy, Esq., brought down the petition of the town of Medford, as entered the 17th December last, with a report of a Committee of both houses. Signed - Jos. Pynchon."
" Passed in Council ; viz .: In Council, April 17th, 1754. Read and accepted, with the amendment at A ; and ordered, That the lands within mentioned, together with the inhabi- tants thereon, be and hereby are set off from the town of
5
PONDS.
Charlestown to the town of Medford accordingly. Sent down for concurrence. Read and concurred."
Thus on the 17th of April, 1754, Medford was enlarged by all its territory now lying on the south side of the river.
March 13, 1771. - 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 Committee met, and set up twenty-two posts as metes. For present bounds, see Wal- ling's map.
Nov. 11, 1647. - The town shall be perambulated once in three years.
PONDS.
Medford Pond. - This beautiful sheet of water, though cousin-german to the sea, is as quiet and retired as if it never received a visit from the Atlantic waters. It is about three miles in circumference, half a mile in width, and no- where more than eighty feet in depth. It is divided into nearly equal parts by a shoal called the Partings, where was a road used by several persons, some of whom are yet living. The lands on each side are slightly elevated, and in future times will doubtless be filled with country seats. A brook, origin- ating in Lexington and flowing through West Cambridge, enters the south pond at the western edge ; and another, flow- ing through Baconville, enters the north pond at the north : these are all the fresh-water tributary supplies of which it can boast. Every twelve hours, it is raised from two to six inches, by the inflowing tide through Mystic River ; said river finding its source in the bosom of these waters, and its end in the sea.
On the Medford side dwelt the Indian chief; and that place was a favorite resort of the tribes visiting the sea-shore, or fishing for shad and alewives.
Spot Pond. - " Feb. 7, 1632. The Governor, Mr. Nowell, Mr. Eliot, and others, went over Mistic River at Medford; and, going N. and by E. among the rocks about two or three miles, they came to a very great pond, having in the midst an island of about one acre, and very thick with trees of pine, beech [birch]; and the pond had divers small rocks standing up here and there in it,
6
HISTORY OF MEDFORD.
which they therefore called Spot Pond. They went all about it upon the ice. From thence (towards the N. W. about half a mile) they came to the top of a very high rock, beneath which (towards the N.) lies a goodly plain, part open land and part woody, from whence there is a fair prospect; but, it being then close and rainy, they could see but a small distance. This place they called Cheese Rock, because, when they went to eat somewhat, they had only cheese (the Governor's man forgetting, for haste, to put up some bread)."
Cheese Rock may be easily found on the west side of Forest Street, half a mile N. W. of the northerly border of Spot Pond.
MYSTIC RIVER.
This river is felt to belong to Medford ; for we may almost say that it has its beginning, continuance, and end within the limits of our town. Where or why it obtained its name we know not. It presented the decisive 'reason to our ancestors for settling on this spot. We apprehend it is very much to-day what it was two hundred years ago. The tide rises about twelve feet at the bridge, and about eight at Rock Hill; but it rises and falls so gently as not to wear away the banks, even when ice floats up and down in its currents.
The first record we have concerning it is Sept. 21, 1621. On that day, a band of pilgrim adventurers from Plymouth came by water "to Massachusetts Bay ; " and they coasted by the opening of our river. In their report they remark : " Within this bay the salvages say there are two rivers ; the one whereof we saw (Mystic) having a fair entrance, but we had no time to discover it."
Johnson says : "The form of Charlestown, in the frontis- piece thereof, is like the head, neck, and shoulders of a man ; only the pleasant and navigable river of Mistick runs through the right shoulder thereof."
Rivers were the first highways; and, as it was easier to build a canoe than open a road, trade took the course of navi- gable streams. The building of small barks on the banks of Mystic River, as early as 1631, shows its superior claims to other places. Trade with Boston commenced before 1645, and the river was the thoroughfare. Long open boats were used for transportation, and they substituted the tide for oars
7
MYSTIC RIVER.
and sails. They were sometimes drawn with ropes by men who walked on the bank.
There was a ford across this stream at the Wear till 1748. The ford in the centre of Medford continued in use till 1639, and was about ten rods above the bridge. The Penny Ferry, where Malden Bridge now is, was established by Charles- town, April 2, 1640, and continued to September 28, 1787. There was, till recently, but one island in the river, and that is near the shore in Malden, at Moulton's Point, and is called " White Island." Two have since been made; one by cutting through "Labor in Vain," and the other by straightening the passage above the bridge.
The depth of the river is remarkable for one so narrow, and its freedom from sunken rocks and dangerous shoals more remarkable still. Its banks are generally very steep, showing that it becomes wider with age, if it changes at all. It has not probably changed its current much since our fathers first saw it; and the marshes through which it flows look to our eyes as they did to theirs. Few events of extraordinary interest have been witnessed upon its waters. The well-known curve in the bed of the river, near "the rock," extending more than half a mile, made the passage round it so difficult, especially with sails, that it soon received the name of Labor in Vain. It often became necessary for men to drag boats round a part of this narrow strip of land, by means of ropes stretched to the shore. In 1761, the inhabitants of Medford proposed to cut a canal across this peninsula ; and they voted to do it, if it could be done by sub- scription ! The expense was found to fall upon so few that the plan failed. Within our day it has been accomplished.
In the revolutionary war, our river was occasionally a resort for safety. August 6, 1775, Mr. Nowell says : "This day, skirmishing up Mistick River. Several soldiers brought over here (Boston) wounded. The house at Penny Ferry, Malden side, burnt." August 13th he says : "Several Gondaloes sailed up Mistick River, upon which the Provincials (Med- ford) and they had a skirmish; many shots were exchanged, but nothing decisive."
Lightering had become so extensive a business as to need every facility ; and in April, 1797, the town chose a Com- mittee to examine the bed and banks of the river ; and, if they found that any clearing was necessary, they were empowered to do it.
8
HISTORY OF MEDFORD.
March 7, 1803. - A Committee was appointed by the town " to find out what rights the town has on the river."
Ship-building made the river an object of vital importance ; and, while the tonnage of the ships was small, the depth of water was deemed sufficient; yet there were many who wished the town might widen and deepen the bed. Several applications were made, but always without success. In June, 1836, an effort was made in earnest; but the impres- sion with the majority of voters was, that no expense need be incurred until some vessel had found it impossible to float down on the highest tides. This misfortune never occurred. It always has had depth of water sufficient to float any empty, unrigged ship of 2,500 tons. March 14, 1843, the town voted to remove and prevent all obstructions to the free ebb and flow of the water.
At the time when Medford was the centre of considerable trade ; when vessels were loaded at our wharves for the West India markets ; when bark and wood were brought from Maine, and we had rich and active merchants among us ; at that time it was no unusual sight to see two, four, or six sloops and schooners at our wharves, and as many in our river.
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