USA > Massachusetts > Plymouth County > Hanover > Historical sketch of the town of Hanover, Mass., with family genealogies, 1853 > Part 5
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Those who desire to know more of the events of this day, must read the graphic account of Deane, in which he enumerates the houses destroyed in Scituate proper.4
We have no other notices which connect the events of this war directly with the history of Hanover, though casual traditions speak of damages sustained at different periods, from the ravages of the Indians ; and it is a matter of satisfaction to know, that the war was prosecuted with such vigor, on the part of the Col .
1 The number is 50, in Deane, but 63, in Bliss's Hist. of Rehoboth, p. 88.
2 The names are given in Deane's Scituate, p. 123, and in Bliss's Hist. of Reheboth, p. 92
: 3 Hobart's Journal.
4 Hist. Scit. p. 126, &c.
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INDIANS OF HANOVER.
onists, and with such success, that Philip was slain, his warriors routed, and from that time forth the people lived in comparative security.
At the date of the incorporation of Hanover, no hostile Indians lived in its vicinity. It is said that the last tribe, from which the citizens had trouble, congregrated on an island in Drinkwater Swamp, in the westerly part of the town, from whence they issued, and committed their depredations. They were discovered early one morning, by the smoke of their fire, seen rising from amidst the trees, and were attacked and routed.
Friendly Indians resided in the town for a long time, and the last of the race has not been dead many years. Some of these lived on the Bank land, so called, which is near Oren Josselynn's, or west of King Street; and old samp mortars, pestles, toma- hawks, or axes, and spear, or arrow heads, have been frequently found on the spot. Others resided on Curtis, now Main Street, and their wigwams stood on Joseph Dwelly's land. Here, too, relics have been occasionally found, turned up by the plough.
On the land of Capt. Elisha Barrell, in the north-easterly part of the town, and but a few rods distant from his barn, on the knoll, stood the wigwam of George Toto, probably a son of Mercy Toto, and sister of Rhoda, and perhaps of Sarah, who married James Still, in 1764. George's wife was Mary. He had no children. The old well dug by him, in the low ground near his hut, is still visible, in the midst of the bushes which surround it, and even the children of the neighborhood know it as Toto's well.
King Dick and Queen Daphne lived on Pine Island, so called, situated on what is now Hanover Street. Dick requested Col. John Bailey to write a letter for him to his friends, on the Cape, and on being asked what he should write, replied, "King Dick and Queen Daphne, ebery ting, ebery ting."
It is said that there was an old Indian burial ground on this island, and that, before the violent September gale of 1815, known as the hurricane, the mounds covering the graves of those who had been buried on the spot could be distinctly seen. Since then, all traces of them have disappeared.
There was another Indian burial ground, back of Assinippi Hall, in the north-easterly part of the town, on land owned by Capt.
52
HISTORY OF HANOVER.
Thomas Simmons. This was used, if we have been rightly informed, so late as the former part of the present century, and some of our old people remember when the last burial took place on the spot.
It is said that there was another burial ground, not far from Rocky Swamp; and perhaps there were others, in other parts of the town.
Old Peter, an Indian, lived on land owned by Turner Stetson, and married a black woman, who gave the name to the tract known as Peg's Swamp. She resided, the latter part of her life, in a house which stood where that of Albert Stetson stands, not far from the Town House, and d. May 1, 1815, æ. 87.
One John Fredericks, a Hessian, deserted from the British Army, during the Revolution, came to Hanover, and married an Indian woman named Joanna. A bounty being offered for the detection and return of deserters, he was obliged to secrete him- self for a time in Plymouth woods, and on being asked by the father of the present Zaccheus Estes, how he fared while there, he replied, " if turkentine had been molasses, I should have done very well."
The author has in his possession several relics of the Indians of Hanover, and other parts of Plymouth County ; among which are a pipe, of clay, hard baked, and of a brownish color, a present from Mr. David Mann ; - arrow and spear heads, the gifts of different friends ; an axe or tomahawk, of a greenish color, and fine finish, from Mr. John Gross, of South Scituate, and others from other friends ; a pestle, 9 or 10 inches long, and about 2 inches in diameter, a present from Mr. Seth Jones, of Pembroke ; and a stone ball, perfectly round, and about the size of a four pound cannon ball, which was picked up near the residence of Cornet Stetson, On the North River, on the occasion of a pilgrimage made to the spot a few years since, when the author drank water from the spring from whence his ancestor, more than two hundred years ago, slaked his thirst, and gave his children to drink !
What changes have taken place since those days ! No longer is the war-whoop heard, breaking upon the stillness of the night, arousing the father to arms, and causing the mother to clasp her trembling little ones closer in her embrace. Neither is the light
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CHANGES.
canoe seen gliding down the Indian Head, or the North River, to the sea. The deer and the wolf are gone. The ponds of Pem- broke, where Hobomok dwelt, no longer reflect upon their placid bosoms the graceful forms of the Indian maidens, who came there to bathe, and to sport in the waters.
Even the rude dwellings of our ancestors are gone. Their for- tresses have long since perished. And every building, erected two hundred years ago, has fallen to decay, and returned to the dust. Yet the same sun shines brightly upon us, by day, as upon them. The same moon sheds down its clear and silvery light upon our fields and homes. And the same stars sparkle above us ! Even the forests have changed. Here and there may be a scat- tering tree which saw the light when the pilgrims landed. The brave old white oak, by Jacob's saw-mill dam,
" Oft in moonlight by whose side The Indian wooed his dusky bride,"
LOSTOR PUBLIC LIBRAR
is one of these ; - also the two white oaks at Barstow's yard, on the North River. But the mighty cedars, the giant pines, the tall walnuts, with the spreading beech, the waving poplar, and the graceful elm, all are gone. Trees of a recent growth alone occupy the soil. One hundred and thirty summers, will probably number the years of our most aged forest trees.
The hum of our grist mills, the clatter of our tack-machines, or the louder reverberations of the descending trip-hammer; with the noise of the saw, cutting its way through the log; the ring of the blacksmith's hammer, upon the anvil; the cheerful call of the farmer, to his team, and the rumble of our wagons, along the road to market, laden with boxes, and shoes, and the produce of the farm; - these are the sounds which now strike the ear ; - and the spire of the church pointing to heaven, the village school-house, and our neatly painted dwellings, dotting the sides of our streets ; these are the signs of advancing civilization, and a manifest token that man is subduing the earth to his dominion, and making the elements his ministers; and though monuments of the past are occasionally seen among us, connecting by visible links what has been with what is, yet these are only incentives to greater exer- tions, and stimuli to prouder achievements !
CHAPTER IV.
ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY.
FIRST CHURCH.
" Before the loftier throne of Heaven, The hand is raised, the pledge is given, One monarch to obey, one creed to own - That monarch, God, that creed, his word alone." SPRAGUE.
Provisions for the support of Public worship-Erection of the first meeting house in Hanover-Its appearance - Gathering of the worshippers - Settlement of Mr. Bass - Seating the house - Communion service - Insubordination of the youth - Sternhold and Hopkins' Hymns - Deccase of Mr. Bass - His character-Set- tlement of Mr. Baldwin - Gift of a parsonage - Erection of the second meeting house - Its appearance - Decease of Mr. Baldwin-Sketch of his life - Attempt to settle Mr. Litchfield - Settlement of Mr. Mellen - First Bell- Painting the house, and other repairs - Withdrawal of Mr. Mellen -His decease - Sketch of his life, and list of his publications - Settlement of Mr. Chaddock- Withdrawal - Sketch of his life-Settlement of Mr. Chapin - Sketch of his life - Settlement of Mr. Smith - His life and writings - Erection of the third meeting house - Set- tlement of Mr. Duncan.
A portion of the Preamble to the " General Laws and Liberties of New Plimouth Colony, published in 1671," sets forth, that " Whereas the great and known end of the first comers, in the year of our Lord 1620, leaving their dear Native Country, and all that was dear to them there ; transporting themselves over the vast Ocean into this remote waste wilderness, and therein willingly con- flicting with Dangers, Losses, Hardships, and Distresses sore, and not a few, WAS, that without offence, they under the protection of their Native Prince, together with the enlargement of his Majes- ties Dominions, might, with the liberty of a good conscience, enjoy the pure Scriptural Worship of God, without the mixture of Humane Inventions and Impositions, And that there children after them might walke in the Holy wayes of the Lord ; And for which end they obtained leave from King James of happy
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EARLY SETTLEMENT.
memory, and his Honourable Council, with further Graunts from his Gracious Majesty Charles the first and his Honourable Coun- cil, by Letters Patent, for sundry Tracts of land, with many Priviledges therein contained for their better incouragement to proceed on in so Pious a Work, which may especially tend to the propagation of Religion, &c., as by Letters Patents more at large appeareth, and with further assurance also of the continuance of our Liberties and Priviledges, both Civil and Religious, under the Royal Hand and Seal of our Sovereign Lord King Charles the Second ; And whereas by the good Hand of our God upon us many others since the first comers are for the same pious end come unto us, and sundry others rise up amongst us, desirous with all good conscience to walk in the faith and order of the Gospel ; whereby there are many churches gathered amongst us walking according thereunto : And whereas ( by the Grace of God ) we have now had near about Fifty Years Experience, of the good consistency of these Churches, with Civil Peace and Order, and also with Spiritual Edification, together with the welfare and tran- quility of this Government. It is therefore for the Honour of God and the propagation of Religion, and the continued welfare of this Colony, Ordered by this Court and the Authority thereof, That the said Churches already gathered, or that shall hereafter be orderly gathered, may and shall from time to time by this Government be protected and encouraged, in their peaceable and orderly walking, and the Faithful, Able, Orthodox, Teaching Ministry thereof, duly encouraged and provided for; together with such other Orthodox able Dispensers of the Gospel which shall or may be placed in any Township in this Government where there is or may be a defect of Church Order."
From this, we see the views of our Pilgrim Fathers, and their reverence for religion led to the enactment of many laws for its regulation and support. Provisions were made for the support of the ministry in every town of the Colony ; and no act of incorpo- ration was granted, without containing a clause especially enjoin- ing the erection of a meeting house, and the settlement of a " learned, pious, and orthodox minister."
After the junction of the two Colonies, Plymouth and Massa- chusetts, in 1692, the laws for the maintenance of the ministry,
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HISTORY OF HANOVER.
and the erection of meeting-houses continued in force ; and accord- ingly, in the act incorporating the town of Hanover, it is stipulated as one of the conditions of the grant," that the Inhabitants of the said Town of Hannover do within the space of Two years from the Publication of this act erect and finish a suitable house for the Public Worship of God, and as soon as may be procure and settle a learned Orthodox Minister of good conversation, and make Provision for his comfortable and honourable support, and that thereupon they be discharged from any Further Payment for the maintenance of the ministry, &c., in the Towns of Scituate or Abington, for any estate lying within the said Town of Hannover."
In pursuance of this proviso, one of the first steps taken by the town, was to provide for the support of Public Worship ; and July 17, 1727, "Mr. Daniel Dwight was chosen to dispense the word of God for three months,''1 Amos Sylvester, and Thomas Josselynn being chosen to treat with him for that purpose ; and £7 19s. were subsequently voted him as a remuneration for his services. Meetings were held at this time in private dwellings ; and that of Mr. Samuel Stetson, being nearest to the centre of the town, and most convenient for the public accomodation, was principally used, for which he was liberally paid.
August 29, £60 were voted for the support of a minister, and Isaac Buck, Elijah Cushing, and Joseph House were chosen to provide one. Nov. 13, It was agreed " to erect a meeting- house at the most convenient place, by the road called the Drink water road," and Elijah Bisbee, Joshua Turner, and Aaron Soule, who were probably of Pembroke, were chosen to select the site, and Job Otis was appointed to inform them of the town's desire. Dec. 13, " Voted that the size of the house be as follows : Length 48 feet ; width 38 feet; and height between joints 19 feet ; - to be completed by Oct. 1, 1728;" and Elijah Cushing, Joseph House, and Abner Dwelley were chosen a building committee, they to have the house done in a workmanlike manner, but as cheap as possible.
January 22, 1728, Isaac Bush was chosen agent to apply to the town of Scituate for aid in erecting the new meeting-house ; a
1 Mr. D. seems to have preached in the town a few Sabbaths before its incorporation.
FIRST CENTRAL MEETING HOUSE
LIBRARY
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BOSTON
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FIRST MEETING HOUSE.
subscription paper was circulated by him, on which the sum of £90 was subscribed, but of which only ££66 1s. 6d., were re- alised ; and it was agreed that the money thus obtained, should be proportioned on the polls and estates, towards defraying the charges. Mr. Buck was also agent to apply to citizens of Hanover for aid. Gifts of land were made, by John Cushing, James Cushing, Job Otis, Nicholas Litchfield, Stephen Clapp, Senr., and others, of Scituate ; Rev. Thomas Clapp, of Taunton ; and Joseph Barstow, and Samuel Barstow, of Hanover ; the lots being laid. out for the town by Caleb Torrey, and Stephen Clapp, of Scituate. The land on which the house was built, is said to have been given by Thomas Buck. Isaac Buck was the agent of the town to receive the deeds of the above lots.
March 3, 1728, the town voted to take their part of the Gov- ernment loan of £60,000, " now in the Treasury at Boston," and Joseph Barstow, Benjamin Curtis, and Samuel Barstow, were chosen to receive the same, and to let it out towards paying the carpenters. Gifts of lumber were made by several persons, and what was left, after the house was finished, was sold for the use of the ministry. The whole cost of the house appears to have been about £300.
This first meeting-house, stood on the same spot as the present house, and continued in use until 1765, under the ministry of Mr. Baldwin, when the second house was built. No records exist from which a correct idea of its appearance can be gained. An old lady, Mrs. Perry, yet lives in Pembroke, born in 1755, who is now in her 98th year, and who was ten years of age when the second house was erected, who has a distinct recollection of that event, but not of the looks of the original edifice. From the best information I can gain, I learn that it was a plain structure, in ac- cordance with the simplicity of the times, facing the South ; with- out steeple or chimney ; the windows glazed with diamond-shaped glass ; the walls unplastered ; and unwarmed by stove or furnace ; and here, for about forty years, the fathers of the town, with their wives and little ones, gathered together, from Sabbath to Sabbath, in summer's heat and winter's cold, listening devoutly to the minis- trations of the Word of God, and chanting, to the quaint, old 4
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HISTORY OF HANOVER.
fashioned tunes of the day, Sternhold and Hopkins' hymns, dea coned off to them line by line.
I seem to see them now ; - the fathers, with broad-brimmed hats, turned up into three corners, with loops at the sides ; long coats, with large pocket folds and cuffs, and without collars, - the buttons, either plated, or of pure silver, and of the size of a half-dollar ; shirts, with bosoms and wrist ruffles, and with gold or silver buttons at the wrist, united by a link ;1 the neckcloth, or scarf, of fine white linen, or figured stuff, broidered, with the ends hanging loosely on the breast; the breeches close, with silver buckles at the knee, of goodly size ; the legs covered with grey stockings ; boots, with broad, white tops, or shoes, with straps and silver buckles ; - the mothers, with black silk or satin bonnets ; gowns, extremely long-waisted, with tight sleeves, or else very short sleeves, with an immense frill at the elbow ; and high-heeled shoes ;- these mounted upon the " family horse,"-for carriages were unknown in those days,-the father in front, and the " gude wife" seated on a pillion behind ; the children, either on foot, or in the " horse cart," with a goodly store of bread and cheese, or doughnuts and apple pie, for the noon lunch ; all moving sedately along, with becoming gravity, and decorous deportment, towards the " ancient temple;" and on arriving at the house, the husband, assisting the wife to dismount upon the bank-wall, in the rear of the building ; and she, with the children, passing quietly in at the door ; whilst the horse is hitched to the post, and the father also walks in, and sits near the door of the pew, in accordance with the custom established in times of danger, when sudden attacks from the Indians were feared ; and over the house stillness reigns, until the minister, with ample gown, and powdered wig, walks up the aisle, and mounts the long flight of stairs leading to his desk, from which, as from a tower, high above his hearers, with the sounding board over his head, to convey the sonorous tones of his voice to his flock, he dispenses to them the word of life, and bears up their prayers to the throne of God !
The first minister settled in the town, was the Rev. Benjamin
1 Mr. Samuel Brooks, on Main Street, has in his possession, specimens of the buttons here referred to, and also of the knee buckles.
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ORDINATION OF MR. BASS.
Bass, son of Joseph and Mary Bass, of Braintree, and a descen- dant of Samuel Bass, who, with his wife Anne, and one or two young children, came to New England in 1630, and settled first in Roxbury, and afterwards in that part of Braintree now Quincy.1 Benjamin was born in 1694, graduated at Harvard College in 1715, and settled in Hanover in 1728.
August 27, 1728, Benjamin Curtis, Elijah Cushing, William Witherell, Thomas Josselynn, and Benjamin Curtis, Jr., were chosen " to advise with the neighboring ordained ministers as the law directs, in order for the settlement of the Rev. Benjamin Bass in the work of the ministry ;" and subsequently the sum of £130 per annum, after the rate of silver money, at 16s. per oz., was voted as his salary.
Nov. 23, 1728, it was voted to ordain Mr. Bass to the work of the ministry ; and Amos Sylvester was chosen to provide enter- tainment for the council.
The ordination took place Dec. 11th; the 4th of the month having been observed as a day of Fasting and Prayer, and the Church, consisting of 10 ( male ? ) members, besides the pastor, being formed on the 5th. Rev. Mr. Eells, of Scituate, and Rev. Mr. Lewis, of Pembroke, were present and assisted in the services on the day of Fasting.
The ceremonies of the Ordination are thus given on the Church Records : " Dec. 11, 1728, Benjamin Bass, A. M., was, by prayer and fasting, with imposition of the hands of the Presbytery, ordained a pastor of the Church, the Rev. Mr. Eells, of Scituate, Mr. Lewis, of Pembroke, Messrs. Hobart and Gay, of Hingham, and Mr. Checkley, of Boston, laid on hands ; Mr. Gay began with prayer; Mr. Checkley preached ; Mr. Eells gave the charge ; and Mr. Lewis the right hand of fellowship."
The house being completed, and a minister settled, next in im portance was the " seating the worshippers." From a report made Nov. 31, 1728, it appears that there was room in the house for 31 pews, valued at £10 each, or £310 in all. But, the record proceeds to say, "as it is usual and commendable that there should be dignities, we generally vote and allow for the same ; that therefore we vote that the highest pew in dignity should be
1 Thayer's Family Memorial, p. 53.
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HISTORY OF HANOVER.
valued at £15, and the next £14 10s., and so proportionally lower, until we come down to those pews which are of no difference in dignity, and then proportionable to each man's rates, either by a general vote, or lots, to take in the more people into each pew so valued or prized, as shall amount to the money ;" and Joseph Stockbridge, John Hatch, and William Witherell, were chosen to proportion the pews according to these votes. Their action not being entirely satisfactory, June 29, 1730, votes were passed anew " to proportion the pews to make all persons easy, and to take in those that were left out ;" a committee of seven was chosen to attend to this duty, and their doings were confirmed Aug. 31.
Although the mention of dignities may cause some to smile, yet substantially the same custom prevails in our own day, certain seats, in all our churches, being deemed more fashionable, and more valuable, than others.
January 10, 1728-9. At a church meeting, it was " voted to raise money by contribution to provide utensils for the Lord's table ;" and by the 30th of the month, were bought, and brought to town, " three Pewter Tankards, marked C. T., of 10s. price each ; five Pewter Beakers, costing 3s. 6d. each, and marked C. B. ; two Pewter Platters, marked C. P .; a Pewter Basin for baptisms ; and a Cloth for the communion table." The commu- nion was celebrated, for the first time, March 2, 1729, and the first service plate continued in use until 1768, and Oct. 30th of that year, the Church received a present of " four silver cups for the communion table, by order, and at the expense of Deacon Stockbridge, the cost of each cup at £25, old tenor, and each having this inscription, THE GIFT OF DEACON JOSEPH STOCK- BRIDGE TO THE CHURCH OF CHRIST IN HANOVER, 1768." For this present, the thanks of the Church were voted.
January 8, 1786. Two silver cups for the communion table were received, " a Legacy from Deacon Thomas Josselynn, cost £7 4s., and recorded as a token of gratitude, and to perpetuate the memory of the Benefaction."
The tankards and flagons are still in the possession, and these, with the silver cups above referred to, constitute the present com- munion service, of the church.
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INSUBORDINATION OF THE YOUTH.
Not long after the erection of the meeting-house, the juvenile portion of the town, not having the fear of the law before their eyes, began to manifest a disposition to violate the fourth com- mandment, by congregating in the school-house, and other acts of insubordination ; and March 1, 1734, it was "voted that the schoolmaster should lock up the school-house on Saturday's, to keep people out Lord's day ;" and March 1, 1741, it was " voted that David Curtis look after the boys and negroes in the school- house on Sabbath days ;" also, "voted Thomas Wilkes and Joshua Studley to look after the meeting-house Sabbath days, to keep the boys in order." Oct. 29, 1746, " Appointed Jacob Bailey to take care of the school-house for four months next com- ing, and to have full power to prosecute any person that shall presume forcibly to break into the school-house on the Lord's day."
This propensity to mischief, however, was not confined simply to tumultuous gatherings in the school-house, and disorderly con- duct in the meeting-house ; for other demonstrations, in the shape of broken windows, and shattered doors, attested their skill in the old-fashioned sport of casting stones ; and votes for re-setting glass, and repairing locks, duly recorded, still bear testimony to these deeds of wantonness. But we are not to suppose that the youth of Hanover were more given to such proceedings than those of other towns. Public records, generally, show more or less of such outbreaks and damages in all towns. Nor need we be surprised at the character of these offences, for even in our own days, the school-house, and the meeting-house, are not exempt from such visitations, and the winds shrieking mournfully through shattered panes, seem like ghosts, lamenting the desolations of Zion, and the desecration of the Sanctuary. This Vandal spirit should ever be deprecated ; for not only is it irreverent, but a sure sign of ill- breeding, and a state of semi-civilization.
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