USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts : containing carefully prepared histories of every city and town in the county, Vol. I > Part 62
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The Rev. John Fiske, minister of the church of Wenham, was considering the question of remov- ing from that place, and the people of this little settlement agreed to give him, if he would come to live with them, "Thirty acres of meadow and Thirty acres of Plowable Land for the acomo- dation of him for his most Conveniance " : to build him a " Hous Thirty Eight foot in Length and Twenty foot in breadth with three fine Rooms, the chimneys built with Brick or Stone "; and also to pay him "Fifty Pounds for the first year: and his maintenance for the future as the Lord should enable them." These and other considerations proving sufficient, in the autumn of the succeed- ing year, 1655, Mr. Fiske removed, with the 1 Allen's History of Chelmsford.
greater part of his church, from Wenham hither, and continued until his death the faithful pastor of the people. Mr. Fiske was born in the parish of St. James, Suffolk, England, about the year 1601. His ancestors had been noted for their devotion to religion, even to martyrdom, and liis parents early set him apart for the service of God. He was educated at Emmanuel College, Cambridge, and after obtaining his first degree began to preach in the Established Church. The spirit of Puritanism, however, was working in his soul; he became strongly opposed to the Nonconform- ist persecutions, and finally relinquished his office and studied medicine, which, after the usual course, he practised. He married in his twenty-eighth year. In 1637 he came, with his family, to New England, well provided with " tools for husbandry and carpentry, and with provisions to support his family in a wilderness three years." He lived a short time at Salem, where he both preached and taught among his pupils, one being the afterwards celebrated Sir George Downing. In 1642 he went to Wenham and was ordained pastor of the church at that place, and, since most of his people re- moved with him thence, the church of Chelmsford may be said to have begun in reality when the church of Wenham was gathered, October 8, 1644. Of Mr. Fiske it is written : "His care for the souls of the flock committed to him was unremit- ting, while his medical skill was of inestimable value in the new townships where he resided after he came to America." His literary abilities were early called into action ; thus, in 1657, he pre- pared, by the request and at the expense of his parish, a catechism entitled the Watering of the Olive Plants in Christ's Garden; or, a Short Catechism for the Entrance of our Chelmsford. Children. It was printed by Samuel Green of Cambridge, and was said to be "moderate in its doctrines, catholic in its spirit," and well designed for its purpose. Notwitlistanding the many hard- ships of his life, and the wasting of his estate in the promotion of the settlement of the country, he gave his youngest son a collegiate education. This son, Moses, who graduated at Harvard in 1662, was ordained minister of the church of Braintree.
Meanwhile in its civil affairs the little commu- nity was progressing. The second general meeting of the inhabitants occurred March 24, 1655, when the usual officers were chosen, besides three com- missioners, "to end small causes" under forty
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shillings. The third meeting occurred several months later, in the same year, in the meeting- house which had probably been erected since the previous election, although it is not known defi- nitely when or by whom it was built. The in- habitants were now so increased in numbers, that measures were taken to have the town regularly incorporated. In consequence, therefore, of the representations of Esdras Reed, Edward Spaulding, and William Fletcher, the General Court incorpo- rated the town on the 29th of May, 1655, by the name of Chelmsford, - a name given, like those of so many New England towns, in loving remem- brance of the early home of some of the settlers in the old country. It was soon found that the lands at first granted were not sufficiently fertile or exten- sive for the necessities of the growing settlement, and though many exchanges with the Indians were made, particularly in the vicinity of the' old land- mark, Robin's Hill, yet the inhabitants desired an extension of their limits. This desire was met by an act of the court in 1656, granting them an enlargement ; while at the same time, by reason of a similar request from Mr. Eliot in behalf of the Indians, an addition was accorded to the Wa- mesit settlement, to take in "John Sagamore's planting ground." The land granted to Chelms- ford consisted of territory now comprising the township of Westford, and the Indians were al- lowed equal privileges with the whites in its occu- pation. It does not seem to have been of much use to the natives, and in 1660 an amicable ar- rangement was made, by which the Indians were accommodated with their proportion nearer their village of Wamesit.
The organization of the town having been com- pleted and the ministry fairly settled, the inhabi- tants were careful to protect their rights in the judicious distribution of their public lands. These were apportioned from time to time by committees suitably chosen, while the privilege of becoming an inhabitant was jealously guarded. With com- mendable foresight, the people encouraged the locating among them of various craftsmen. Thus, in 1656, William Ilow, a weaver, was admitted to be an inhabitant, with a grant of thirty acres of land, provided he would follow his trade; and in the same year Samuel Adams was given four hun- dred and fifty acres on the south of Meadow Brook, in consideration of his establishing a saw- mill. Soon after he was encouraged to erect a corn-mill by the additional grant of one hundred
acres, and still later leave was given him " to set flood-gates at Hart Pond for himself and his heirs forever."
In 1659, Lieutenant William French of Billerica was commissioned a magistrate to perform the or- dinance of marriage for that town and Chelmsford. Subsequently Samuel Adams of this town re- ceived a similar appointment, and the first mar- riage recorded as having been solemnized by him occurred December 15, 1664.
The first birth on record is that of Sarah, the daughter of Jacob and Sarah Parker, January 14, 1653; but tradition says that Joseph, the son of Joseph and Margaret Parker, was born the preced- ing March. The first death which the ancient annals of the town mention was that of Isaac Learned, the husband of Mary (Stearns) Learned, November 27, 1657. He is said to have been one of the original petitioners from Woburn.
Fairly established in their frontier settlement, - for few towns had pushed farther in that direc- tion into the wilderness, -the little community increased in population, in wealth, in learning, in everything that makes a prosperous existence dur- ing the first score of years.
Among the company who had come hither from Wenham were several men of high social standing and comparative wealth. Cornelius Waldo, first deacon of the church in Chelmsford, Andrew Spaulding, for many years in a similar office, Cap- tain Thomas Henchman, invaluable as a mediator with the Indians, and others, were men of just the stamp to give Chelmsford that name for simple character and substantial worth which is still her honorable portion. In 1671 the reverend minister was called upon to mourn the death of his wife, " a virtuous and amiable woman, which inflicted a deep wound in the heart of the survivor, though not above the power of religion to heal." Mrs. Ann Fiske was of a most exemplary character, and, being for several years before her death afflicted with blindness, exhibited a rare patience. Her Scrip- tural knowledge was so extensive that her husband had no need to refer to a concordance. The year following her death Mr. Fiske, determined " to cheer the remainder of his earthly pilgrimage," married Elizabeth, the widow of Mr. Edmund Henchman.
This pilgrimage was short, for on the 14th of January, 1676, the beloved pastor and physician " saw a rest from his labors," which continued almost to the last, he having been many times car-
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ried to the meeting-house in a chair, where, as in the primitive times, he preached sitting.
The condition of the Wamesit or Pawtucket Indians through these years of advancement for the English had been one of constant decrease in strength and prosperity. In 1669 their numbers were much diminished by a warlike foray against the hated Mohawks. In the succeeding year the sachem Wannalancet came from Pennacook and built a fort on the Wamesit reservation. In May, of the year 1674, the missionary labors of Eliot were successful in the attempt to convert this sa- chem to Christianity, the occasion being one of much interest " and well pleasing to all that were present." After preaching from Matthew xxii. 1-14, Mr. Eliot asked the chief " to give his answer con- cerning praying to God.". It is recorded that Wannalancet replied : "Sirs, you have been pleased for years past, in your abundant love, to apply yourselves particularly unto me and my people to exhort, press, and persuade us to pray to God. I am very thankful to you for your pains. I must acknowledge I have all my days been used to pass in an old canoe, and now you exhort me to leave my old canoe and embark in a new one, to which I have hitherto been unwilling; but now I yield myself up to your advice and enter into a new canoe and do engage to pray to God hereafter."
Peacefully as the English and Wamesits had thus far lived together, there were very grave fears among the inhabitants of Chelmsford, when, in 1675, Philip of Pokanoket began his depredations on the border towns of the colony. The cause was indeed one to excite apprehension. Would the Wamesits be faithful to their neighbors, or would they concert with their invading brethren in this desperate effort to exterminate the English ? The feeling of the people may be learned by the fol- lowing extract from a letter written by David Middleton : "Chelmsford, March ye 20, 1675 : I bless God I came safely hither ... Good S' I humbly intreat you to pray the Counsell to grant us a Stronger Guard for wee expect the Indians every hour to fall upon us and if they come wee shall be all cutt off."
A request was also preferred from William Underwood, John Burge, and Thomas Chamber- lain, asking the General Court to "Consider of dangerus Conditions y& we are in in refferance to or lives & estates."1 The court ordered measures to be taken to protect the settlement. Lieuten-
1 Massachusetts Colony Records.
ant Henchman was authorized " to take speedy and effectual care of all the corn at the houses of Col- burn and his son, on the east side of Merry-mack river, by transporting it to his own house." To protect themselves as far as possible, several houses were fortified and regularly garrisoned.
It is believed that the Wamcsit Indians under the good care of the Christianized natives Nob- Hon and Namphou, and directed by the friendly sachem, were true to the whites. To prevent any misunderstanding or discord, the greater part of the Indians removed into distant forests, where they remained throughout the troubles. In con- sideration of their good faith the council passed an order "that the Indians belonging to Wemeset, having approved themselves friends to the English, have Liberty granted them to gather their corne at Wemisett towne and to have free egress and regress to it from their fort near Leiftenant Hench- man's, notwithstanding former orders limiting them to one mile from their wigwams." At another time the council ordered that the friendly Indians should be permitted to enter the English service. The more fully to cement the kind feelings happily existing, a treaty of concord and reciprocal friend- ship was signed between the English and the nation under Wannalancet, on the 3d of July, 1676, at Cocheco.
Although the Wamesits were thus true to their allegiance, an attack was made on the town in the spring of 1676 by a roving band of warriors. They had been excited to retaliation, it is said, by the undue violence of some whites, whose barns and haystacks had been fired, it was thought, by Indians. Several houses were burned in this raid. On another occasion Samuel Varnum, who owned a farm on the opposite shore of the Merrimack from Chelmsford, but who lived in this town, was cross- . ing thither, with two sons and a daughter, to milk his cows, when his boat was fired upon by In- dians in ambush, and both the young men were killed, one falling back dead into his sister's arms. A guard of soldiers who accompanied the unfor- tunate family were so much startled that the In- dians escaped without injury. Varnum called'out to the stupefied soldiers not to "let dead men sit at the oars," and the sad party made its way home. The young men were buried on the Howard farm, by the river.
Thus were the people of this worthy town kept in fear and anxiety through that dark season ; and a glad day it was for them when tidings came of
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the death of Philip and the close of the war. After a long absence Wannalancet came back to visit his friends at Chelmsford, and inquire if the people had suffered much during the time. The reply was made that they had been highly favored, for which they ought to be thankful to God. " Me next," returned the sagacious sachem, plainly in- timating that to his influence the town of Chelms- ford owed much of its exemption from the horrors experienced by many others in this barbarous conflict.
Soon after the death of Mr. Fiske the inhabi- tants called to their service the Rev. Thomas Clark. A native of Boston, he graduated at Harvard in 1670 and was ordained pastor of the church of Chelms- ford in 1677. He was twice married, his second wife being Elizabeth, the daughter of the Rev. Samuel Whiting of Billerica. The pastoral office was held by him until his death, a period of twenty- seven years. He was the founder of a large and prosperous family, yet but little is known of his life and work, " almost the only monument of his past existence that has survived the ravages of time being his tombstone." This was erected to his memory by the grateful act of his parishioners. Until 1682, through all the mutations of time,
" The sound of the church-going bell These valleys and rocks never heard; "
but, in the year named, a bell purchased by the town was hung, and its cheery tones reverberated over the distant meadows, calling the simple wor- shippers at the hour of prayer, or tolling a measured knell for the last rites of the departed.
In 1686, Major Thomas Heuchman and Jonathan Tyng bought of the Wamesits all their land west of the Concord River, except Wannalancet's old planting field, also five hundred aeres north of the Merrimack, between Pawtucket Falls and the mouth of Beaver Brook. The property was soon divided into forty-six shares, held. by as many proprietors, ineluding Henchman and Tyng. The territory was used for pasturage, a wall having been constructed enclosing it from the Merrimack to the Concord. The Indians, however, at the sale, had reserved the right to fish, hunt, and to cut such wood as they desired. For a few years they con- tinued occasionally to hunt their old grounds; but the whites gradually occupied the whole reservation, their humble homes arose where the still humbler wigwams had been, and soon the place which had been the Wamesits' from time immemorial knew
| them no more. In 1726 this territory was for- mally annexed to Chelmsford.
Of the Pawtucket nation but little remains to be told. It had sunk to a mere shadow of its former greatness, and the few braves who were left inhabited the upper waters of the Merrimack, near Pennacook. Notwithstanding the many hardships which they had endured from the whites, they ever maintained a friendly feeling towards their old Chelmsford neighbors, and ou one occasion, at least, gave a striking proof of their good faith. This was during King William's War, when they notified Major Henchman of the conspiracy against the brave Waldron at Cocheco.
With the dawn of the eighteenth century came new prospects of industry, happiness, and general prosperity for the good people of Chelmsford; and although they were early saddened by the loss of their minister, Mr. Clark, yet the services of the Rev. Samson Stoddard, who was ordained'in 1706, soon restored the wonted state of content. Mr. Stoddard was graduated from Harvard but five vears before, and appears to have been all through life of a delicate, sensitive nature. " He fell a prey to his corporeal and mental disorders August 23, 1740, in the thirty-fourth year of his charge."
The old meeting-house - poor and rude though it was - had served the people for their sanctuary until 1711, when a larger and better structure was erected, on which a turret was built for the bell. In 1718 the first school-house was built. The money for this purpose was raised by subscription, and the house was placed on land given by Mr. William Fletcher, situated near the old burying- ground.
For many years the residents in the western part of the town had desired to have a separate parish incorporated, and in the sonthwestern portion of the town a number of families were set off from Chelmsford and united to Littleton for better ac- commodations in hearing the gospel. Accordingly in 1724 a society in the western precinct was formed, under the care of the Rev. Willard Hall. Three years later the town consented to a final separation, and in 1729 the town of Westford was properly incorporated, at which time the families previously annexed to Littleton were joined to the new town.
In common with the other New England towns of that period, Chelmsford had to bear her share in the blood of her sons during the various expedi- tions against the enemies of the British government.
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Throughont the troublous times known as the Fourth Indian War, bodies of troops for winter service were enlisted all along the frontier, and a company of " snow-shoe " men, thirty-nine in nuin- ber, commanded by Captain Robert Richardson and Lieutenant Joseph Parker, was raised here.
At the celebrated attack on the Indians of Pe- quawkett in 1725, by the brave Lovewell, Chelms- ford was well represented by Lieutenant Jonathan Robbins and John Chamberlain, both natives of the place, though enlisting from other towns. Lientenant Robbins was wounded in the early part of the fight, and when his few companions rallied at midnight, after their dearly bought victory, he was found to be unable to travel.
Brave to the death, he requested a comrade to load his gun and leave him, saying, " As the Indians will come in the morning to scalp me, I will kill one or more of them if I can." Of Cham- berlain an anecdote relates that in the course of the engagement his gun, and that of Paugus the chief, becoming foul, they washed them together at a pond. The result was - as told in a rude ballad of the time - that Chamberlain
" Met Paugus by the water side And shot him dead upon that day."
In the French and Indian War the men of Chelmsford were again at the front, and Jonathan Barron lost his life at Fort George. Among those who gained distinction in this war was Captain Moses Parker, who displayed great valor at the siege of Fort Frontenac.
The general aspect of home affairs during the greater part of the half-century preceding the Rev- olution was, upon the whole, encouraging. The hard-working people had commonly reached a state of modest competence, and although the fluctna- tions in the medium of exchange created some dis- turbance at times, it is not shown that the people suffered more here than elsewhere.
The interests of education were warmly cher- ished, to judge by the various schools, especially those for "Righting and cyphering," maintained in the different sections of the town. Some of the schoolmasters and dames were furnished with din -. ners at the general expense. The sum of forty- five pounds, Old Tenor, or about six pounds in lawful money, was considered ample payment for teaching a grammar school three months. The inhabitants did not hesitate to honor the bills of the innholder who provided "entertainment for
ye selectmen," which refreshment probably seldom consisted of more than a little rum and water.
For a term of years succeeding the forced emi- gration of the French Acadians, the town sup- ported the families of several of the poor refugees. Many of the customs of those days were after the style of the old home; thus, for instance, it was usual to furnish some of the chief men of the town with gloves for funerals, - even where the funeral was that of a pauper. This custom prevailed until the beginning of the Revolution.
The manner of living among the people was plain and homely, but comfortable and thrifty. The fisheries of the Merrimack and Concord rivers were very productive, and wiers were early built for catching the prodigious numbers of salmon, shad, lampreys, and alewives that annually came up the streams. The sturgeon - from which the Merrimack River derives its name in the Indian tongue - was still a noble prize for the adventur- ous spearsman. At one period shad were so abundant, that in binding out apprentices it was made a part of the agreement that the fish now es- teemed such a delicacy should be served only a fixed number of times each week.
One of the greatest social events of those days was the ordination of a minister to his pastoral charge. The day on which the Rev. Ebenezer Bridge was ordained over the church of this town-May 20, 1741 -was one long remem- bered for physical pleasure not less than for men- tal edification. Mr. Bridge was born in Boston in 1714, received a collegiate education at Har- vard, and studied divinity with the Rev. William Welsteed of Boston. His call to this church and town to fill the pulpit vacated by the death of Mr. Stoddard was unanimous, and faithfully he sus- tained the charge for more than fifty years. He was twice married, his first wife being Sarah, the daughter of the Rev. Mr. Stoddard. She died in 1783, and seven years later he married Mrs. Jo- anna, the widow of the late Dr. Nehemiah Abbot. His death occurred October 1, 1792.
Mr. Bridge was a man of strong character, stern in his morals, inflexible in his adherence to duty, and highly regarded by the people of his parish. His public services were performed with great dig- nity, though his style was somewhat diffuse.
During his pastorate there was much religious interest and dissension occasioned by the ideas and teachings of Whitefield, whose disciples came hither to preach, and succeeded in diverting a number of
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the more radical members. The discipline of the church was frequently invoked, and some cases of discord were not terminated for many years. The records of the church, kept for years by Mr. Bridge, are full of interest.
In the early days of agitation preceding the Revolution Mr. Bridge was friendly towards the government of Great Britain, and in an election sermon delivered in 1767 expressed himself with great loyalty ; but the progress of events created a change in his sentiments, and he became one of the most ardent supporters of the cause of American liberty. In every way, all through the long and dreary struggle that ensued, he showed the greatest patriotism, sympathy, and devotion for the rights of his fellow-countrymen ; and by his spirited, earnest words of cheer, and his keen, discrimina- ting judgment, influenced in no small degree the action of the citizens of this town in their efforts to secure independence.
So early as September 2, 1765, the inhabitants met to discuss the distressing state of the country. Colonel Samson Stoddard, - son of the late rever- end pastor, - their representative to the General Court, having requested of the town instructions as to his course concerning the Stamp Act, a com- mittee reported the following, which was unani- mously adopted : "This being a time when, by reason of Several Acts of Parlement not only this Province, but all the English Collonies on this contenent are thrown into the utmost Confusion and perplexity : the Stamp Act, as we apprehend, will not only Lay an unconstitutional, but an un- Supportable Tax upon us ; and deprive us, as we humbly conceive, of our Rights and priviledges that we are Intitualed to, as being free born Sub- jects of Great Brittain by vertue of the Royal Char- ter : Wherefore we think it our Duty and Interest, at this Critical Conjuncture of our publick affairs . To direct you, Sr, our Representative, to be so far from countenancing or assisting in the execution of the aforesaid Stamp Act, that you use your best Endeavors that Such measures may be taken and Remonstrances made to the King and Parlement, as may obtain a Speedy Repeal of the aforesaid act."
At the convention which assembled in Fanenil Hall on the 22d of September, 1768, the town was represented by Colonel Samson Stoddard, who had been duly chosen to consult with the commit- tees from other towns.
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