History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Vol. I, Part 92

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton), ed
Publication date: 1890
Publisher: Philadelphia, J. W. Lewis & co
Number of Pages: 1034

USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Vol. I > Part 92

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TRAP FALLS BROOK, having its origin in the southern slope of the hills in New Ipswich, takes a southeastern direction through the town, and after receiving the waters of several small brooks and leaving the meadows casterly from the town's Com- mon it hurries on, rattling and foaming over the rocks till it leaps into the whirling and hissing water of Willard's Stream.

LOCKE BROOK comes from the hills in the north- east part of the town, running southeasterly. For a considerable distance before leaving Ashby it flows through deep gorges, entering Townsend at the head of the Ash Swamp, and onward, joining Willard's Stream only a short distance from its confluence with the Squannicook, Near the southern border of the

town a nameless brook, flowing through "Wright's Ponds," takes a southeastern course till it comes near to the corner of the town, where it falls into Pearl Hill Brook, which then makes a detour to the left, running nearly north, leaving Ashby and thence onward through Townsend till it joins the Squanni- cook in Ash Swamp.

WATATIC MOUNTAIN (sometimes in old records spelled Watahook and Wettetook or Wateticks) is situated in the northeast corner of Ashburnham, and in the northwest corner of Ashby, the town line pass- ing over its northeast slope cutting off about one-third of it and leaving its summit in Ashburnham. It has an altitude of 1847 feet above the level of the sea, and according to a map of Ashby delineated and publish- ed in 1831, it is 829 feet higher than the Unitarian Church. It must have been a conspicuous landmark for the Indian in his warlike expeditions, and a resort for the white man for the purposes of observa- tion in traveling from the seaboard to the Connecticut River.

On its summit is a pile of stones which has been collected in obedience to an Indian legend, that every one who visited the summit must add a stone or be- come unlucky for life. From this standpoint, near at hand, the bold outlines of the hills, with their inter- vening ponds and villages, keep the observer spell- bound; while in the distance the fast-moving rail- road trains, the shimmering lakes and rivers, many church spires and prominent buildings are brought to view.

NEMOSIT HILL (called in the town records Pros- pect Hill, and known as Blood Hill) is situated iu the west part of the town, part of it being in Ashburnham. The view from its summit nearly equals that from the Watatic. A large part of this hill is rough and rocky, but there are nice soils and excellent farin buildings crowning its southeastern slope. The last snow-drifts of spring linger, diminish and then fade away from its eastern crest.

JEWELL HILL, in the southwest part of the town, viewed from the school-house yard, near the reservoir dam, surrounded with nice grazing lands, with its rough and precipitous outlines sharply drawn against the sky, contrasts beautifully with the water seen at its base.

JONES HILL, a little west of the centre of the town, is wild and rocky on its south side, but on the north is easy of ascent. It has a cave or "Indian house," as it is often called, which is an object of some curi- osity.

PINE HILL and BATTERY HILL range along the 1 eastern border of the town, overlooking the valley around the Squannicook River.

The arborial productions of Ashby are not particu- larly different from those of the adjoining towns. In the banks of the cuts made in grading the roads may be seen pine stumps, which, considering their great size, must have supported gigantic trees. Tradition

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says that the south part of the town was covered with an exceeding heavy growth of pine when the settlers began to break the wilderness. Various kinds of de- ciduous trees, including the cak, maple and birch, have usurped the places of these monarchs of the forest. Many acres are covered with a young growth of thrifty trees, among which the sapling pine grows rapidly, promising an abundant supply of building timber for the oncoming generations.

The wild animals that roamed over these hills, and occasionally caught the eye of the settler, were those common in this latitude. In 1789 the town voted to pay a bounty on wolves; but a town of more than six hundred inhabitants would not at that time have many animals of this species. Deer were protected by offi- cers chosen for that purpose. The fox remains with us, causing the poulterer some trouble, but affording the sportsman great excitement in the chase through the first snow-fall of winter. Our brooks attract the an- gler for the trout, while other disciples of Isaac Wal- ton occasionally take good-sized strings of perch and pickerel from the reservoir. The roads in the early history of the town were merely "bridle-paths," running through the woods and over the hills, wind- ing around and making the traveled distance between two places much greater than what it is now. Trav- eling on horseback was the custom. Besides, there were so many roads contemplated, that it was impos- sible for the settlers to make even bridle-paths of many of them.

ROADS .- Between 1734 and 1745 the Townsend proprietors deeded a large number of tracts of land situated in Ashby. In every one of these convey- ances may be found this reservation : " There is also an allowance for a road whenever the town shall think it necessary."

The old Northfield road, running from the middle of Lunenburg westerly through the south part of Ashby and on through Ashburnham and Winchen- don, had Northfield for its terminus. This road was made in 1733, and is the oldest road in town. At present different parts of it are used as a public high- way. Northfield was a frontier town for a long time, and had suffered greatly during the Indian wars, many of its citizens being killed. In 1690 the settle- ment was broken up by the Indians, but again com- menced in 1713, at which time the town was incor- porated. The sympathies of the people of Concord, Groton, Lancaster and Lunenburg were so excited in behalf of their friends at Northfield, that they made this road that they might more easily assist them in their skirmishes with the Indians.

A road, alluded to in the Townsend records as early as 1742, but of which there is no record of its being laid out, was called the " Ashuelot Road," which en- tered Ashby at the same place where the old road is now traveled, and followed the same a short distance and then turned to the left and went over Trap Falls Brook, and then turning to the right, winding over

and around the hills to the northwest, till it passed out of the corner of Ashby and over the north side of Watatic Hill. Daniel. Adams and Ephraim Jones, of Concord, cut a bridle-path and marked the trees for this road from Willard's Stream to Keene, N. H., and petitioned the General Court to pay them for do- ing the work, which the Court refused to do. These are the earliest roads in the town known to the writer. Ashby has been very fortunate in its choice of town clerks. Every entry in the entire six vol- umes of records has been made in a neat and schol- arly manner. It may, withi propriety, be remarked that more pages in these first four volumes are given to the subject of roads than any other single matter, which shows that the voters liad learned that the dis- tance around a hill was about the same as over it, and that roads made to accommodate a few must in- tersect at just the right place with those more trav- eled highways which converged to their house of wor- ship.

OLD SETTLERS .- It is not known beyond a doubt who were the first settlers in town. Samuel Stone and James Locke, who lived on Battery Hill, were the first settlers in the Townsend part of Ashby.

Samuel Stone built and lived in the house now owned by Francis S. Wheeler. James Locke's house stood in the garden just north of where the old, aris- tocratie, unpainted Locke mansion is now situated on the westerly side of the road to New Ipswich, nearly a mile northerly from the house of Samuel Stone. The fear and dread of Indian incursions hindered the settlement of pioneers in this vicinity till about 1750. Persons who located at considerable dis- tance from several neighbors built block-houses or "garrison houses," as they were called, for their pro- tection. These houses were made of pine logs of con- venient length hewed on two sides and set close to- gether in the ground. The roof consisted of timbers laid across the top of the body of the structure, upon which dried bark, either of birch or hemlock, was laid in courses, overlapping each other to protect from the rain, with port-holes on each side. There were three houses of this kind on the land now in Ashby, between 1739 and 1750. One was situated near the Locke place, above described; another was built north- westerly from the central village and another on the rise of ground in the corner made by the road north- westerly, and nearly opposite to the brick house now owned and occupied by Paul Gates.

John Fitch owned and occupied the last-named garrison, which he made in 1739, when he and his wife and two children moved there from Bradford, and from which, on the 5th day of July, 1748, he and his family were taken by the Indians, and carried to Canada. Between the years 1740 and 1748 the Indi- ans kept the inhabitants in the frontier towns in a state of constant alarm. England was waging war with France, and her colonies suffered dreadfully from the incursions of the savages, who were instigated by

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the French in Canada. The French government paid a large bounty for English scalps, and a larger one for English prisoners. Indian scouts were frequently seen in and around Lunenburg, and fears were daily aroused from a conciousness of insecurity. The savages had lurked around this locality, taking their observa- tions from thesummit of Rollstone Hill, for some time before making their attack on Mr. Fitch's garrison. The inliabitants in Lunenburg and vicinity, apprehen- sive of an attack, assisted Mr. Fitch in fortifying his house, and early in the year 1748 four soldiers were stationed within the garrison. Mr. Fitch had traded considerably with the Indians, and his frontier posi- tion was well known to them. They were resolved upon his capture, knowing that he was a man of much force of character and that his friends would contrib- ute liberaliy for his release from captivity. Accord- ingly a party of them, not far from seventy in number, on the morning of the day above mentioned, stealthily approached his abode during the absence of two of his soldiers, and suddenly fell upon him and his two remaining companions, who were a short distance from the garrison. One of the soldiers named Zac- cheus Blodgett was instantly killed. Mr. Fitch and the other soldier named Jennings, escaped within the house, where they exchanged shots with the foe for an hour and a half, when Jennings re- ceived a fatal wound in the neck from a shot through a port-hole. The wife of Mr. Fitch loaded the guns while her husband continued his efforts to drive away the assailants. At length the Indians dis- tinctly told him that if he persisted in continuing the fight he and his family should perish in the burning of his cabin, but if he would surrender they promised to spare the lives of all in the house. He then sur- rendered, and his house and pens for his animals, with the fences, were immediately burned by the Indians, and Mr. Fitch with his wife and five children were started on their dismal journey towards Montreal. The wife of Mr. Fitch carried an infant in her arms about five months old, the ages of the other children varying from four to thirteen years. The news of this capture did not reach Lunenburg until about daylight the next morning, when the alarm (three muskets heavily loaded, discharged with a certain interval ba- tween each report) was immediately fired. Soldiers arrived in an incredibly short period from Groton, Lan- caster and even from Westford. They quickly put themselves under command of Major Hartwell and started in pursuit. The Indians proceeded along the south side of Watatic Mountain, and made their first stop at the meeting-house in Ashburnham. The in- habitants of that place had given up and abandoned their settlement only a short time previous. Some- where in the township of Ashburnham the soldiers in pursuit discovered a paper fastened to a tree con- taining a few lines written by Mr. Fitch imploring his friends not to attempt his rescue, as the Indians had promised to spare all their lives if unmolested,

but threatened instant death to himself and family if his friends attempted to deprive them of their cap- ture. The pursuing party then returned. After en- during the severest hardships in their long journey through the wilderness in captivity, the family were ransomed by their friends in Bradford. They returned by way of New York, Providence and Boston. The wife of Mr. Fitch, after enduring bravely her captivity. was taken sick while returning and died in Provi- dence, December 24, 1778, almost six months after the date of capture.

Some of the incidents connected with their journey to Canada are worthy of record. When the prisoners left the smoking ruins of the garrison one of the In- dians, among other things plundered, took a heavy draft chain and carried it on his shoulders to Canada, and then sold it for a quart of rum. Catherine, aged thirteen, and John, eleven years, walked along with their parents. The two boys, under six years of age, were each strapped to the back of an Indian and car- ried along. The younger one, then four years old, suffered much ; his legs became dwarfed and much deformed on account of the tightness of the deer-skin thong which bound him to the back of the savage. Susanna, the infant prisoner, endured the trials of captivity with less unhappiness than any one of the family. She married Joshua Chase, of Shirley, in June, 1770, and surviving her husband, she died in Shirley July 10, 1827. After the return of Mr. Fitch with some of his children to Lunenburg (now Ashby), he again made himself a home at or near the same place where the garrison was burned. In 1772 he moved to Rindge, N. H., where he owned several lots of land, and after living there several years he moved back to Ashby. He lost his property in his old age, his mind being somewhat impaired, and he became an object of charity. In 1793 the town record has the following: " Voted, that the selectmen provide for Mr. Fitch in the best manner they can at their dis- cretion." From that time until his death the town supported him.

He was born in Billerica in 1708, died at Ashby April 5, 1795. In January, 1749, soon after his re- turn home, he sent the following petition to His Ma- jesty's Governor and Council and House of Repre- sentatives :

" To the Honorable Spencer Phips, Governor-in-chief of the Province of Massachusetts Bay, in New England, for the time being ; to the Hon- orable, His Majesty's Conncil and House of Representatives in Goneral Conrt assembled :

"John Fitch humbly shows that in the year A. D. 1739 he purchased nhout one linndred and twenty acres of land, about seven miles and a half above Lunenburg meeting-house, and about three miles and a half above any of the inhabitants, on the road leading from Lunenburg to Northfield, and there by industry built him a house, and improved so munch land as to raise provision for his growing family and some to spare, whereby be entertained travellers, and being a carpenter, was furnished with somo tools necessary for that business, and being dis- tant from neighbors, was obliged to keep the chief of his tools and live within himself, and had husbandry utensils und household stuff, and that upon the war breaking out, although he had no near neighbore tu join with him in a garrison, yet divers of the inhabitants of Lunenburg.

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knowing the great security that a garrison at his place might be, urged him to build one ; and many of the inhabitants assisted and helped him in it, after which the several officers appointed over the soldiers and scouts ordered a quota to that garrison, nud it was a place of resort and refreshment to town scouts and for large scouts from Northfield, Town- send, Ashuelot and other places. Aud your petitioner received and en- tertained them, and in the year A.n. 1748 the scouts from Lunenburg and Townsend were ordered to meet there once every week, and he had four soldiers allowed to keep said garrison, and on the 5th day of July in the same year, by rensou of bodily infirmity, there were but two soldiers with him, although others with the sconts were to come that day. On that day before noon, and before the scouts came, the Indian enemy ap- peared and shot down one soldier upon being discovered, and immedi- ntely drove him und the other soldier into the garrison, and, after be- sieging the same about one hour and a half, they killed the other sol- dier through the port-hole in the flanker ; and then your petitioner was left alone with his wife and five children, soon after which he surren- dered and became a prisoner with his said family, and the enemy took and carried away such things as they pleased, and burnt the house and garrison with the rest, and then we entered into a tuclancholy captivity, with one small child on the mother's breast, and two more became suck- ing children in the way for want of provisions, which, with other hard- ships, brought my dear wife into a had state of health and languish- ment, and in our return, being by New York, Rhode Island and Provi- dence, there in December last she departed this life, and when I, with my five children, arrived at this province, we were Objects of charity for fuod and raiment, which some charitable people bestowed upon us. Yet your petitioner's family are disperaed by reason of poverty, and must so remain unless some charitable help may some way or other be bestowed, for your petitioner is utterly unable to put himself again into suitable circumstances, and to bring home his dispersed and melancholy family, having his substance burnt as uforesaid and fences also ; and your peti- tioner begs leave to inform you that he is utterly unable to build, fur- nish and fence and maintain his dispersed family, two children being a continual charge since our captivity, one being under the doctor's care ever since. Your petitioner also lost his only gun, worth thirty pounds, aod an ox at the same time, and his stock of cattle are chiefly gone, having no hay last year, and is under very pitiable circumstances, and begs relief in some way or other, as this Honorable Court shall think best, as in duty bound shall ever pray."

This petition bears the following endorsement :

"In the House of Representatives, April 9, 1750. Received and or- dered that there he allowed out of the Public Treasury to the petitioner eight pounds, in consideration of his sufferings within mentioned, and to enable him to resettle himself aud family on his plantation. Sent up for concurrence. THOMAS HUBBARD, Speaker pro tem.

" Iu council April 9, 1750. Read and concurred.

SAMUEL HOLBROOK, Dept. Sect."

"Consented to, S. PHIPs.11

The following petitions show that the Indians were in considerable force, and that some of them did not leave with the captives after the burning of Fitch's little garrison:

" To Ilis Excellency, William Shirley, Esq., Governor, with the Hon- orable Council of the Province of Massachusetts Bay assembled: The petition of the inhabitants of Lunenburg and Leominster humbly show- eth that, Whereas the Indinn eneury have very lately been among us in considerable numbers and with nunsnal boldness, and have destroyed one of our garrisons, killing and captivating the inhabitants, and as we have no more than ten soldiers allowed by the government for our pro- tection (who are all in Lunenburg), and thoughi in Leominster we have a small scout of your inhabitants, the circumstances are so weak and exposed that the commanding officers can hardly think it prudent to send them into the woods; so that we are forced to look upon ourselves in a very hazardons, as well as distressed, case to such a degree that we cannot many of us labor on our farins or abide in our houses with toler- alle safety, but ourselves und families must be in danger of suffering much, either by penury or the direct insults of a cruel and barbarous na- tion, or both of them. It is, therefore, may it please your Excellency and Honors, our lininble and earnest prayer that you would grant us for our protection such a number of soldiers as in your great wisdom and fatherly compassion you shall deent requisite for the preservation of our estates, our liberties and our lives. Such kindness and tender care in

your Excellency aud Houors we shall ever with sincere gratitude re- member, and your petitioners shall ever pray."

This petition was signed by fifty-eight of the citi- zens of Lunenburg and Leominster, and is dated July 8, 1748, three days after the surrender of Mr. Fitch.

Remonstrance of the Commissioned Officers and Selectmen of Lunenburg. "The humble remonstranco of the commissioned officers and the Select Men of Lunenburg sheweth that ou the fifth day of this instant, July, the enemy beset and destroyed one of the outmost garrisons of the town aforesaid, killed two soldiers and captured a family, consisting of a man, his wife and five children, and that on the seventh day of the month they discovered themselves in a bold, insulting manner three miles further into the town than the garrison which they had destroyed, when they chased and shot at one of the inhabitants who narrowly escaped their hands, since which we have had undoubted signs of their being among us. Several of the garrisons built by order of the general court are already deserted for want of help, and several more garrisons of equal importance, that were built at the cost and expense of particular men, are deserted likewise. For three days in four the last week the inhabitants were necessarily rallied by alarms and hurried into the woods after the enemy, and this, we have just reason to conclude, will be the case, frequently to be called from our business, for almost daily the enemy are heard shooting in the woods above us, and to be thus fre - quently called from business in such a season must impoverish us, if the enemy should not destroy us; and what we greatly regret is, our ene- mies, having a numerous herd of our cattle to support themselves with and feast npon, among which they have repeatedly been heard shoot- ing, from which we conclude that there may he great slangliter amoog our cattle.

" EDWARD HARTWELL, - JONATHAN WILLARD, JOSIAIL DODGE, JACOB GOULD. BENJ. BELLOWS. JONATHAN BRADSTREET, BENJ. GOODRICH, JOHN GRANT, BENJ. FOSTER.

Commissioned officers.

Selectmen of Lunenburg.

"July 12th, 1748."

After the Indian wars were ended, and the war be- tween Great Britain and France was closed by treaty, the settlers in the frontier towns of the Province gave their attention particularly to religious matters, among which was the nearest and best way to attend public worship. The language in the charters of most all the towns in regard to territory, without fix- ing the boundaries, expressly gives the grantees an area "not exceeding six miles square ; " but in some way when the surveyors and sworn chairmen, attended by interested parties, finished their work and submit- ted the plan, their lines inclosed, in many instances more than one-third more acres than were granted. This was the case with Lunenburg, chartered in 1728, and with Townsend, chartered in 1732. The distance from Lunenburg meeting-house to its western hound- ary was about eight and one-half miles. The dis- tance from the meeting-house in Townsend to Ash- burnham line was about eight miles. From A.D. 1750 to 1765 the number of inhabitants living in the territory which is now comprised within the limits of Ashby increased considerably. The people of Town- send had located more in their western border. The excellent land in the northwestern part of Lunen- burg was settled with neighbors at convenient dis- tance. The northeast part of Ashburnham, contain- ing an industrions colony of Germans, was only a

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short distance from the present Common in Ashby. All these people were anxious to have a town of their own and an easy distance to a meeting-house. Until 1764 the territory included within the present towns of Townsend, Lunenburg, Ashburnham, Fitchburg and Ashby was embraced by the three towns first named. In 1764 Fitchburg was set off from Lunen- burg, and at that time included the southern part of Ashby. In 1765 Ashburnham was incorporated with- out changing any town lines.

On the 5th day of March, 1767, the town of Ashby was incorporated from the west part of Townsend, the north part of Fitchburg and about twelve hun- dred acres taken from the northeast part of Ashburn- ham. It will thus appear that John Fitch and his neighbors, living, in 1763, in the southern part of Ashby, were citizens of Lunenburg; in 1764 they were in Fitchburg; and 1767 they were in Ashby. In the brief space of three years, without changing their domicile, they were voters in three different towns and attended town-meetings in each of them.

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History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Vol. I, Part 92

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton), ed Publication date: 1890 Publisher: Philadelphia, J. W. Lewis & co Number of Pages: 1034

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton), ed
Publication date: 1890
Publisher: Philadelphia, J. W. Lewis & co
Number of Pages: 1034