History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Vol. II, Part 98

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) ed. cn
Publication date: 1890
Publisher: Philadelphia : J. W. Lewis & Co.
Number of Pages: 1226

USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Vol. II > Part 98

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vard College, who, in 1641, married Mrs. Elizabeth Glover. This land was situated southeast of the "Glover Farm," and had Cochituate Lake for its western boundary. Beyond this farm, easterly, was a tract of 200 acres extending towards the Weston town bound, and called the " Jennison Farm." This was granted, in 1638, to Capt. William Jennison, of Wat- ertown, for service that he rendered in the Pequot War. It was laid out in 1646.

Another grant was to Mr. Herbert Pelham, Sept. 4, 1639. This land grant was situated in the present territory of Wayland, and was what is called "The Island." For many years it was mostly owned and occupied by the Heards. Mr. Pelham came to Amer- ica in 1638, and for a time lived at Cambridge. Sav- age states that he was a gentleman from the county of Lincoln, and when in London, where he may have been a lawyer, was a friend of the colony.

The Indian owner of all these land tracts was Karto, alias Goodman, whose wigwam was at Goodman's Hill, about a mile west of Sudbury River. The ter- ritory was especially attractive to the settlers because of the broad meadow lands along the river. These in early times afforded bountiful crops of hay, which were so serviceable to the possessors that "they took in cattle for wintering." The uplands were more or less covered with heavy timber growth. "Pine Plain " and " Pine Brook," early names of localities east of Wayland Centre, probably derived their names from the heavy growth of pine forest about there ; and " Timber Neck," just south of Mill Brook, is sugges- tive of what the soil there produced.

Notwithstanding these large forest tracts, however, the people were careful to guard against wastefulness in their woodland, and enacted laws relating to it, among which are the following: 1646. " Ordered, that no oak timber shall be fallen without leave from those that are appointed by the town to give leave to fell timber, that shall hew above eighteen inches at the butt end." Also, "That no man that hath timber of his own to supply his want, shall have any timber granted upon the Common." In 1647, " it was ordered that the people should have timber for that year to supply their wants, for every two shillings that they paid the ministry, one tree."

At the time of English occupation the Indian pop- ulation was scaut; there are, however, indications that at some time considerable numbers dwelt in the neighborhood of Cochituate Pond.

Tradition locates an Indian burial-place near the old graveyard westerly of the centre of the town. Probably the pestilence that occurred among the Massachusetts Bay tribes, in the early part of the seventeenth century, largely depopulated the country. A noted Indian trail, at the time of English occupa- tion, passed through the southeasterly part of the ter- ritory. This was part of an ancient way to Connecti- cut. It passed from Watertown at what is now known as Wayland and Weston Corner, and passed into

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what was then the wilderness land near Framingham on the north side of Cochituate Pond. The strip now in Wayland was called " the road from Watertown to the Dunster Farm." The town's early grantees were Englishmen. Some of tlicm came to the place of set- tlement directly from England, and some after a brief sojourn at Watertown, which was then the town next adjacent on the east. These settlers probably arrived at the place of their future home by the fall of 1638. Some of those whose names appear upon the " records" at a very early date, and whose de- scendants long lived there, are Noyes, Griffin, John- son, Ward, Parmenter, Rice, Curtis, Stone, Rutter, Loker, Bent, Maynard, Grout, King and Woodward.

The first dwellings were erected along three roads, which afterwards became the common highway. The principal one of these roads, called " the North " or " East Street," and also the " Old Watertown Trail," started at what is now " Weston and Wayland Cor- ner," and probably followed the course of the present road over "The Plain " and Clay-pit Hill to a point near the Abel Gleason estate; from this place it is supposed to have made its way a little northerly of Mr. Gleason's house, and winding south westerly, passed just south of Baldwin's Pond, and thence to the river at the bridge. The road originally called "Northwest Row," ran from this street to what is still called "Common Swamp," and by the spot desig- nated as the house-lot of Walter Haynes. This spot still bears the traces of having, long years ago, been the site of a house. The cart-path which ran from it to the meadow is still used.

Along this road traces and traditions of homesteads are unmistakable ; old building material has been unearthed, and depressions in the ground are still to be seen. Mr. Draper, a little east of his house, by the brook, unearthcd the stones of a fire-place, with fragments of coals still upon them. Between this and Clay-pit Bridge (the second bridge or culvert from the mill-pond, or the first above " Whale's Bridge ") there are, north of the road, several depressions indicating the sites of old houses. Just beyond Clay-pit Bridge the writer, with Mr. Draper, went to look for traces of houses on the lots assigned to Bryan Pendleton and Thomas Noyes; and there, in the exact locality, were distinct depressions, just where they were looked for. The Curtis homestead, until within a very few years, was standing in about the place assigned for the house-lot. Thus strong is the probability that the lots on this street were largely built upon.

Another of the principal streets was that which, starting from a point on the North Street near the town bridge, ran easterly along what is now the com- mon highway, to the head of the mill-pond, and then to the mill. Upon this street was the first meeting- house, at a spot in the old burying-ground, and the Parmenter Tavern. The house-lots were mainly at the west end of this street, and the road was probably extended northeasterly to give access to the mill.

Here, again, tradition confirms the record of house- lots, and shows that the lots were more or less built upon. The John Maynard and John Loker estates were kept for years in their families, and the Par- menter cstate is still retained in the family. In later years the descendants of John Rutter built on that street.

The third road was called the " Bridle Point Road." This started near the Parmenter Tavern, crossed the knoll at the Harry Reeves place, and ran along the ridge of " Braman's Hill " for about two-thirds of its length, when it turned southerly, and, crossing Mill Brook, ran towards the town's southern limits. While tradition positively locates this road, it points to but one homestead upon it, and that the residence of Rev. Edmund Brown, which it undoubtedly declares was at the spot designated by the house-lot data. Along this street are no visible marks of ancient dwelling- places north of Mill Brook ; but beyond, various de- pressions in the ground, and remnants of building material, indicate that at one time this street had houses upon it. With the exception of those on the south street, the dwellings were about equally distant from the meeting-house, and all within easy access to the River Meadows and the mill. Probably they set- tled largely in groups, that they might more easily defend themselves in case of danger. They were in a new country, and as yet had had little experience with the Indians ; hence we should not expect they would scatter very widely. In the early times so es- sential was it considered by the Colonial Court that the people should not widely scatter, that, three years before Sudbury was settled, it ordered that, for the greater safety of towns, "hereafter no dwell- ing-house should be built above half a mile from the meeting-house in any new plantation." (Colony Rec- ords, Vol. I.)

It will be noticed that the positions selected for these streets were, to an extent, where the shelter of upland could be obtained for the house. The sandy slope of Bridle Point Hill would afford a protection from the rough winds of winter ; so of the uplands just north of South Street. It was also best to settle in groups, to lessen the amount of road-breaking in winter. It will, moreover, be noticed that these groups of house- lots were near, not only meadow land, but light upland, which would be casy of culti- vation. Various things indicate that the most ser- viceable spots were selected for homesteads, that roads were constructed to connect them as best they could, and that afterwards the roads were extended to the mill. Probably the people on North Street niade the short way to South Street, that now comes out at Mr. Jude Damon's, in order to shorten the way to church. Those midway of that street, for a short cut to the mill, the church and the tavern, would naturally open a path from the turn of the road by the clay-pits to the mill. To accommodate the people on "The Plain," a road was opened to the mill in a southwest-

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erly course, which is in part the present highway, but has in part been abandoned-the latter part being that which formerly came out directly east of the mill.

These several sections of road probably formed what was called the " Highway." A large share of it is in use at the present time, and is very suggestive of historic reminiscences. By it the settlers went to the Cakebread Mill, to the little hillside meeting- house, and to the John Parmenter ordinary. By these ways came the messenger with fresh news from the seaboard settlements, or with tidings from the tribes of the woods. In short, these formed the one great road of the settlement, the one forest pathway along which every one more or less trod.

The erection of dwelling-places along these first streets probably began in 1638; but we have no tra- dition or record of the week or month when the in- habitants arrived at the spot, nor as to how many went at any one time. They may have gone in small companies at different dates ; and the entire removal from Watertown may have occurred in the process of months. It is quite probable, however, that they went mainly together, or in considerable companies, for both the sake of convenience and safety; and that they were largely there by the autumn of 1638.

We have found no record of the dimensions of any of the first dwelling-places, but we may judge some- thing of their size by that of the first house of wor- ship. and by the specifications in a lease of a house to be built by Edmund Rice prior to the year 1655. This house was to be very small-"30 foot long, 10 foot high, 1 foot sill from the ground, 16 foot wide, with two rooms, both below or one above the other, all the doors, walls and staires with convenient fix- tures, and well planked under foot and boored suffi- ciently to lay corn in the story above head." But it is doubtful if this small, low structure fitly repre- sents the settler's first forest home; very likely that was a still more simple building, that would serve as a mere shelter for a few months or years, till a more serviceable one could be built.

Very early after their arrival, the people began to provide means for more easy and rapid transit. In- dian trails and the paths of wild animals would not long suffice for their practical needs. Hay was to be drawn from the meadows, and for this a road must be made. Another was to be made to Concord, and paths were to be opened to the outlying lands. The first highway-work was done on the principal street, which was, doubtless, at first a mere wood-path or trail. An early rule for this labor, as it is recorded on the town records, February 20, 1639, is as fol- lows: "Ordered by the commissioners of the town, that every inhabitant shall come forth to the mend- ing of the highway upon a summons by the survey- ors." In case of failure, five shillings were to be for- feited for every default. The amount of labor re- quired was as follows :

" Ist. The poorest man shall work one day.

"2nd. For every six acres of meadow land a man hath be shall work one day.

"3d. Every man who shall neglect to make all fences appertaining to his fields by the 24th of April shall forfeit five shillings (Nov. 19th, 1639)."

An important road, laid out in 1648, was that from Watertown to the Dunster Faim, or, the "Old Con- necticut path." The records state : "Edmund Rice and Edmª Goodenow, John Bent and John Grout are appointed to lay out a way from Watertown bound to the Dunster Farm."

Another important road laid out in the first decade was that which went to Concord. In 1648, " Edmund Goodenowe is desired to treat with Concord men, and to agree with them about the laying out of the way between Concord and Sudbury." The term " laying out," as it was employed at that period, might not al- ways imply the opening of a new path, but, perhaps, the acceptance or formal recognition of an old one, which hitherto had been only a bridle-way, or mere forest foot-trail, that had been used as the most avail- able track to a town, hamlet or homestead.

Bridge-building was early attended to, and a con- tract was made with Ambrose Leech, and another with Timothy Hawkins, of Watertowu, for structures to span the river at the site of the present stoue bridge by the William Baldwin estate.

A grist-mill was erected by Thomas Cakebread in the spring of 1639. The following is the record con- cerning it :

" Granted to Thomas Cakebread, for and in consideration of build- ing a mill, 40 a. of upland or thereabout now adjoining to the mill, and a little piece of meadow downwards, and a piece of meadow upwards, and which may be 16 or 20 a. or thereabout. Also, there is given for his accommodation for his estate 30 a. of meadow and 40 a. of uplaud."

Mr. Cakebread did not long live to make use of his mil !. His widow married Sergeant John Grout, who took charge of the property. "In 1643 the Cranberry swamp, formerly granted to Antient Ensign Cakc- bread, was confirmed to John Grout, and there was granted to Sargent John Grout a swamp lying by the house of Philemon Whale, to pen water for the use of the mill, and of preparing it to remain for the use of the town."

Probably the house of Philemon Whale was not far from the present Concord Road, near Wayland Cen- tre, and possibly stood on the old cellar-hole at the right of the road, north of the Dana Parmenter house. The bridge at the head of the mill-pond long bore the name of Whale's Bridge. This mill stood on the spot where the present grist-inill stands, and which has been known as Reeves', Grout's and, more recently, Wight's Mill. Some of the original timber of the Cakebread Mill is supposed to be in the pres- ent structure. The stream by which it is run is now small, but in early times it was probably somewhat larger. The dimensions of the mill are larger than formerly, it having been lengthened toward the west.

In 1640 a church was organized, which was Congre- gational in government and Calvinistic in creed. A

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HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.

copy of its covenant is still preserved. The church called to its pastorate the Rev. Edmund Brown, and clected Mr. William Brown deacon. It is supposed that the installation of Rev. Mr. Brown was at the time of the formation of the church. The parsonage was by the south bank of Mill Brook, on what was called "Timber Neck." The house was called in the will of Mr. Brown " Brunswick," which means "man- sion by the stream," and stood near the junction of Mill Brook with the river, a little southeast of Farm Bridge, and nearly opposite the Richard Heard place. Nothing now visible marks the spot, but both record and undisputed tradition give its whereabouts. The salary of Mr. Brown the first year was to bc £40, one half to be paid in money, the other half in some or all of these commodities, viz., " wheate, pees, butter, cheese, porke, beefe, hemp and flax at cvery quarter's end."

Shortly after the formation of the church and the settlement of a pastor a meeting-house was built. The spot selected was at what is now the "Old Burying- ground." The building stood in its westerly part, and the site is marked by a slight einbankment and a row of evergreen trees set by Mr. J. S. Draper. The house was built by John Rutter, and the contract was as follows:

" FEBRUARY 7th, 1642.

" It is agreed between the townsmen of this town on the one part, and John Rutter on the other part, that the said John Rutter for bis part shall fell, saw, hew and frame a house for a meeting-house, thirty foot long, twenty foot wide, eight foot between joint, three foot between sude, two cross dormants in the house, six clear story windows, two with four lights apiece, and four with three lights apiece, and to ententise between the stude, which frame is to be made ready to raise the first week in May next. JOHN RUTTER."

"And the town for their part do covenant to draw all the timber to place, and to help to raise the house being framed, and also to pay to the said John Rutter for the said work six pounds; that is to say, three pound to be paid in corn at three shillings a bushel, or in money, in and upon this twenty seventh day of this present month, and the other three pounds to be paid in money, corn and cattle to be prized by two men of the town, one to be chosen by the town and the other to be chosen by John Rutter, and to be paid at the time that the frame is by the said John Rutter finished.

" PETER NOYSE, " BRIAN PENDLETON,

" WILLIAM WARD,

" WALTER HAYNES,

"JOHN HOW,

"THOMAS WHYTE."

('Town Book," p. 27.)

An act relative to the raising and locating of the building is the following, dated May, 1643: The town " agreed that the meeting-house shall stand upon the hillside, before the house-lot of John Loker, on the other side of the way; also, that every inhab- itant that hath a house-lot shall attend [the raising of] the new meeting-house, or send a sufficient man to help raise the meeting-house." The year after the contract was made a rate was ordered for the finish- ing of the house, to be raised on " meadow and upland and all manner of cattle above a quarter old, to be prized as they were formerly-Shoates at 6 shillings 8 pence apiece, kids at 4 shillings apiece."

A further record of the inceting-house is as fol- lows :

" Nov. 5th, 1645.

"It is ordered that all those who are appointed to have seats In the meeting-house that they shall bring in their first payment for their seats to llngh Griffin, or agree with him between this and the 14th day of this month, which is on Friday next week, and those that are (dleficient) we do hereby give power to the Marshall to distrain both for their pay- ment for their seats and also for the Marshall's own labor according to a former order twelve pence.

" WALTER HAYNE,

"EDMUND GOODNOW,

" WILLIAM WARDE,

" JOHN REDDICKE,

" HUON GRIFFIN."

Considerable importance was attached in the early times to the seating of people in the meeting-house, and in the records of new houses of worship mention is made of this matter. Respect was had to social condition and circumstance ; committees were chosen to adjust these matters in the payment of rates, and references are made in the records of town-meeting to the requests of parties about their seats in the meet- ing-house. A rule that was general was that the men should sit at one end of the pew and the women at the other. In the third meeting-house erected in Sudbury it was a part of the plan that the pews should be so arranged as to seat seven men on one side and seven women on the other. In this first meeting- house of Sudbury the people purchasing seats had a right to dispose of their purchase, in case they should leave the settlement; but the right was reserved by the town of seating the parties who purchased, as is declared by the following record, January 26, 1645 ; It was "ordered that all those that pay for seats in the meeting-house shall have leave to sell as many seats as they pay for, provided they leave the seating of the persons to whom they sell to the church offi- cers, to seat them if they themselves go out of town." About this first meeting-house a burial-place was soon started.

In meeting public expense, rates were made on the meadow lands, or in proportion as the people were possessed of them. These meadows werc early divi- ded among them, three apportionments having been made by 1640.

This division of meadow land was an important transaction. It was not only a disposal of common property of the proprietors, but it established a stand- ard of rates, and in a certain sense of valuation. For example, money to pay for land purchased of Karte was to " be gathered according to such quantity of mcadow as are granted to the inhabitants of the town." In the division of "uplands," the rule of re- ceiving was according as a person was possessed of " meadow." In the pasturage of the extensive cow common, the people were to be limited in the number of cattle put in by their meadows, or thcir rates as based upon thein.

In the erection of the meeting-house and pay of the minister, reference was liad to rates paid on tlic

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WAYLAND.

meadows. Perhaps the meadows thus assigned might properly be termed meadow-rights. As in some places the "acre-right" would procure lands or privileges in proportion to the part paid into the common venture by the proprietor, so in Sudbury the meadow-right might do likewise; and a person who possessed an original meadow-right might possess a right to subsequent laud allotments, or the right of his cattle to commonage, so long as the town had un- divided territory. Thus it might be said that the proprietors received values on their investment in the enterprise, not by monied divisions, but by land divisions. Hence, these divisions of land might be called the dividends of those early days, and the money raised by the town ou the basis of these early divisions of meadow might be called assessments on the stock made to meet public expenses. We con- clude that these meadow-rights or dividends were merchantable, to the extent that a person in selling them might or might not convey the right that belonged to them, as related to commonage and other allotments. The lands that were given by gratu- lation, for worthiness or work done for the public, might or might not have the privileges of an original meadow-right or dividend. In raising money to pay Karto for the land which the town last bought of him, it was ordered that " all meadow was to pay at one price, and that all meadow given by way of gratu- lation should have right of commonage."

That the original grantees, and those subsequently given the privilege of such, as a "gratulation " for services performed for the settlers, could transfer the right to subsequent divisions of the common and un- divided land, is indicated by the records of the pro- ceedings of the proprietors of these lands many years after the settlement of Sudbury. In the Proprietors' Book of Records, as will be noticed further along, are given repeated lists of the names of the early grantees, even after the most, if not all of them, had passed away. These lists are referred to as those possessing an original right to the town's undivided land, and may indicate that wherever or whenever one pos- sessed that right as it had been conveyed through the years, in whatever way, that person could claim land when a division was made, or could vote on the disposal of the proprietors' undivided territory.

An early rule for the apportionment of meadow is the following :

" It was ordered and agreed that the meadows of the town of Sudbury shall be laid out and given to the present inhabitants as much as shall be thought meet, according to this rule following :

Imprimi,-

To every Mr. of a ffamilie 6 akers

To every wiffe 61/2 akers

To every child 112 akers

To every mare, cow, ox, or any other cattle that may amount to 20£., or so much money . 3 akers "

We conjecture that the meadow lands allotted by this rule were for encouragement, and to give the in- habitants at the outset a means of maintenance for 27-ii

their flocks; and that other rules were made use of when the division became the basis of assessments of rates, as bestowal of meadow dividends.

A record of the divisions is preseuted in the town books, and the following is the preamble to one of them :

" A record of the names of the Inhabitants of Sudbury, with their sev- eral quantity of meadow to every one granted, according to their estates, or granted by gratulation for services granted by tbeni, wbich meadow is ratable upon all common charges."

While land divisions were being made, reservations were also made of lands for pasturage, which it was understood were to remain undivided. These lands were called "Cow Commons," and the record of them explains their use. The first was laid out or set apart the 26th of November, 1643. The record concerning the location is as follows :

"It is concluded by the town that all tlie lands south ward that lie from the southeast corner of the bouse-lot of Robert Darnill, unto the common cartbridge going to Edmund Goodnow's meadow, and so upou a strait line to Watertown bound, wbich lands so granted, for a cow common, shall never be reserved or laid down without the consent of every In- habitant that hath right in commonage. All the lands we say that are contained within these terms, that is between the bouselot of Robert Darnill and the cartbridge before specified, southward within the five miles bound first granted, down to the great river, and bounded ou the side which the extremity of our line bounding Watertown and Sudbury, all our land contained within tlreso terms, oxcept all such land as have been granted out in particular ; that is to say, a neck of upland lying between Mill brook and Pine brook ; also another neck of land, with the flat belonging to it, lying between the aforesaid neck and the great river on the other side ; also another plat of land that lyeth westward from them, containing some 3 or 4 score acres, and granted out to par- ticular men.

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History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Vol. II, Part 98

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) ed. cn Publication date: 1890 Publisher: Philadelphia : J. W. Lewis & Co. Number of Pages: 1226

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) ed. cn
Publication date: 1890
Publisher: Philadelphia : J. W. Lewis & Co.
Number of Pages: 1226