USA > Massachusetts > Hampshire County > Pelham > History of Pelham, Mass. : from 1738 to 1898, including the early history of Prescott > Part 21
USA > Massachusetts > Hampshire County > Prescott > History of Pelham, Mass. : from 1738 to 1898, including the early history of Prescott > Part 21
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Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48
In the record of a road established for Dea. Ebenezer Gray and others in 1787 occurs the following mention of a mill :
" Beginning southerly of Dea Ebenezer Grays house at the third
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MILLS, MANUFACTURIES, ETC.
range road and running as described by various turns to a laid out road from Shutesbury to Barlow's sawmill."
In 1805 there was an article in a town meeting warrant :
" To see if the town will grant that the Surveyors shall allow work Don at the Bridge by Barlow's sawmill in the present Highway tax."
Wood's sawmill is also mentioned in the same vote as near a bridge. Turner's sawmill is referred to as being on the county road, leading from Pelham to Leverett, in 1801.
April 3, 1815, it was "Voted to discontinue a part of the road running from William Conkeys to John Hoars Sawmill." This record does not locate John Hoar's mill but it was undoubtedly upon the West Branch near the farm of Thomas Conkey, about a mile north of the sawmill of John Vanstone, at the bridge across the West Branch. Calvin Chapin of Prescott says that John Hoar owned the privilege at that point on the stream and after he (Chapin) came to town in 1824, that John Baker built a mill on Hoar's privilege and was to have the use of the mill for twenty years, and then it was to become the property of Mr. Hoar. It is quite probable that John Hoar had a mill on that privilege previous to 1815, when the vote to discontinue the portion of road leading from William Conkey's tavern to John Hoar's sawmill was passed.
Early in the century, perhaps as early a 1815, one Stephen Fair- banks built or owned a mill on what is known as the Pergy brook, and not far from where the sawmill of David Shores now stands. Fairbanks had a carding machine in his shop or mill and received the wool from the farmers to be carded into rolls for greater con- venience in spinning. He ran his carding machine for some years and then sold it to Cheney Abbott. Abbott continued the business for a number of years or until it run out, because the practice of spinning wool on the large wheel began to die out, and then Abbott sold his mill to Austin Conkey and Miner Gold, who added a story to the shop and started the manufacture of shoe pegs. The shoe peg business not having proved a success Mr. Gold turned his atten- tion to the manufacture of shingles in place of pegs, and continued the business, after leaving the shop on Pergy brook, in the south part of the town, using steam power. Stephen Fairbanks and a man by the name of Briggs were also associated together in building or running a sawmill a little farther down the Pergy brook in a deep ravine and south of David Shores's sawmill, where there is much fall
240
HISTORY OF PELHAM, MASS.
to the brook over the ledges of rocks; this was probably sixty or more years ago. Mr. Fairbanks finally became discontented with his surroundings and conditions, and built himself a covered wagon in which he and his family journeyed to the West, camping where night overtook them, sleeping in the covered wagon.
Farther up Pergy brook the foundations of a mill were to be seen sixty or seventy years ago and it is said that there was a gristmill there once, but who the owner was we have been unable to learn, as no one seems to remember seeing a mill there, but it is said that some of the foundation timbers are still to be seen in the bed of the brook.
OTHER LAND SET APART FOR A MILL.
"No 32 Is a Home Lott Laid out to William Johnson Jun Inye Lisburn Propriety & it Lays in the Second Range & Lays Quantity for Quality Containing one Hundred acres it bounds S : on third Division No. 57 partly & partly on third Division No. 58 partly & partly on Undivided Land E. on third Division 59 & W : on third Division 58 the S. W. corner to a stake & stones-from thence it Runs N. 120 Perch to a stake and Stones from thence it runs E. 200 Perch to a Whiteoak Staddle and Stones, from thence it runs S : 102 perch to a White Oak Tree, from thence W. 88 Perch to a Stake & Stones from thence it runs S. 91 Perch to a White Oak Tree & from thence to ye corner first mentioned,-A highway of 2 Perch Wide to be allowed out of the N. side of ye range line Running through said Lott & is allowed five acres more adjoining ye E. End of said Lott for a Mill place viz for land to build a Mill on for a mill yard & for Pond room Said Mill place Begins at a White Oak Tree being the N. E. of Said Lott Runns from thence E 15 Deg N 31 Perch to a White Pine tree from thence In such form as ye Water Raised by a Dam shall flow the N : Bounds of said Mill place to Run 4 Perch north from the Brook and as far E. As shall include sd five Acres. " Another lot of 50 acres under No. 32 and situated in East Hollow went with the above described No. 32.
The five acres of land allowed to William Johnson, who drew Home lot No. 32 in the west part of the town for " to build a mill, Mill yard and for pond room " was upon the stream now known as Amethyst brook and from which water is now taken by the Amherst Water Company to supply Amherst with pure water.
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MILLS, MANUFACTURIES, ETC.
This five acres of land, set apart for a mill is 250 rods east from the west line of the town and must have been the point in the ravine a little way up the stream from the mineral springs on the Orient grounds, so called, now owned by Mr. Fred Pitman of Washington, D. C. At this point early in this century there was a mill or shop owned by Isaac Otis for the manufacture of scythes and there was a small foundry connected, where small cast iron articles for household use were turned out. ' The approach to this mill site was by a road from the County highway, starting opposite the West Pelham bury- ing ground near the residence of Edwin Shaw, traces of which are still to be seen, and another approach was from the Valley road some distance east of the Valley bridge over the Amethyst brook. This shop or mill was washed away in the great freshet of 1828, and the grindstone used there was found 25 years afterwards far down the stream by Edmund Myrick and Horace Gray.
Just the date of the development of the power of Amethyst brook at the site of the Fishing Rod factory and at the mill of Lewis W. Allen, a few rods below, is not certainly determined by any data that is accessible. On the site now occupied by L. W. Allen's saw mill and shop there has been a saw mill since 1805 and perhaps before that time.
September 30, 1805, Nathan Jillson purchased of Dea. Nathaniel Sampson the farm known for many recent years as the Rev. John Jones farm. His two sons Riley and Amasa were mechanics, as was also the father. The Jillsons owned the two mills, a sawmill where L. W. Allen now owns, and a small gristmill at the privilege now occupied by the Montague City Rod company. The first grist- mill was near the north end of the dam of the Fishing Rod company, and the water was brought in a canal from a small dam farther up the stream.
Riley Jillson built a gristmill on the site of the Fishing Rod factory in 1820, and the two brothers carried on the gristmill and the sawmill farther down in company. Horace Gray came into pos- session of Amasa Jillson's half of the property 60 years or more ago, owning one-half of each mill, exchanged his half of the gristmill for Riley Jillson's half of the sawmill. About the year 1858, Mr. Gray, with his son C. D. Gray, started manufacturing of fishing rods in a small way. The sawmill and shop at the lower privilege were burned in 1851, and Gray rebuilt. About 1860 he sold his sawmill to Andrew
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HISTORY OF PELHAM, MASS.
Mitchell and purchased the upper privilege. Mitchell died and Darius
Eaton was the next owner. Eaton sold to L. W. Allen the present owner. Riley Jillson, the original owner of the gristmill, sold to Robert Cutler in 1845 ; Cutler added a sawmill, ran them both several years and sold to Buffum & Ward ; this firm sold to Mr. Anthony and he sold to William Johnson, and the latter to a man in Palmer. Gray & Son then purchased this mill. They increased the fishing rod business greatly ; C. D. Gray died in 1873 and the business was sold to Ward & Latham. Latham dropped out of the firm, and Joseph G. Ward was sole owner for some time. Leander L. and Eugene P.
Bartlett were the next owners of the business. Leander L. sold to Eugene P., and in 1889 the Montague City Rod Company became the proprietors of the flourishing business, and from their three fact- ories at Montague City and Pelham, Mass., and Post Mills, Vt., turn
out three-fourths of all the goods that go into the market. The Pel- ham branch of the Montague City Rod Company is in charge of Eugene P. Bartlett as manager, and in good times perhaps forty hands are employed in manufacturing split bamboo fishing rods that go to all parts of this country and to Europe. Besides the split bamboo rods, which are made from bamboo poles imported from Calcutta and Japan, fine lancewood fishing rods are made. Three hundred different patterns and styles are included in their catalogue, from the fancy fly rod of a few ounces in weight to the heavy and strong rods for salt water fishermen.
About the year 1808, John Parmenter set up a carding machine in a building back of the sawmill, now owned by L. W. Allen, where the farmers from this and neighboring town brought their wool to be carded into rolls for spinning on the large spinning wheels by the great open fire-places in the farmers' kitchens by the skillful fingers of the wives and daughters, and after spinning into yarn it was woven into cloth, bed-blankets and the like. Connected with the business was a fulling and dyeing department where yarn was colored and cloth dyed and fulled for use.
Some insight into the business and the manner of conducting it is gathered from an old ledger in use at that time indicates that the carding and dyeing was paid for mostly in farm produce or labor.
DAM AT FISHING ROD FACTORY.
MONTAGUE CITY FISHING ROD FACTORY.
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MILLS, MANUFACTURIES, ETC.
THE OLD CARDING MACHINE.
SCRAPS FROM THE OLD LEDGER.
Dr. Robert Cutler was credited with 95 cents worth of salt pork and $1.42 in cash July 29, 1808 ; showing that the Doctor had both pork and cash to spare. Captain Calvin Merrill was allowed $1.00 for I Gallon Cider Brandy, and $2.00 cash for "2 Knapt Hats," in July, 1809. Simeon Pomroy has the following credit : Sept. 24, 1810, " By 5 days labor on the dam $3.33 ;" Not very heavy wages for laborious work, repairing a mill dam. Andrew Hyde was credited $2.01 for three days work on dam, showing that 67 cents was con- sidered fair pay for a day's work. The account with Rev. David Parsons was opened in August, 1808 and was closed in 1814 by a cash payment of $2.44. David Pomroy has the following credit, Nov. 23, 1812, " By fifty lb. of Beef at four Dollars per Hundred,- $2.00." Gen. Ebenezer Mattoon brought the wool from his flock of sheep to the carding machine firm from 1808 to 1817, paying nothing but cash.
The following credits and prices carried out, taken here and there without regarding names give an idea of workingman's wages and value of farm products :
1810 By 13 1-2 pounds veal
.53c
1822 By 16 Pounds Sugar at 12 1-2 cts. 2.00
ISII " 2 I-2 Bushels oats at 34
.86
1822 " One Sheep, 33 pounds, 2.00
1808 " 3 Cords 40 ft. of wood at $1.17 $3.87
1822
" I Days Work .54
1808 " Setting two horses shoes .17
1823 'I Bushel of Turnips .25
I808 " Killing calf .17
1822 " 7 pounds Veal at 4 cts. .28
ISII " 12 pounds butter at 12 I-2 cts 1b
1.50
1817
" Horse to Hatfield, 9 miles, .36
1.98
1813 " I hoe
.83
1822
" 14 I-2 Skim cheese at 7
.87
1813 ยท 4 Brooms (Corn)
.50
1824
" 7 lbs Salt Pork at 10
.70
1815 " 2 Bushels corn
2.00
1822
" 3 yds Cotton Cloth at 25 .75
1818 " 2 yards cotton cloth 2-9 .92
1820 " 2 I-4 lbs Butter .22
1820
" 6 1-2 Bushels potatoes at 33
1812
" Horse to Whately (10 miles) .40
1826 " 4 lbs Butter at 12 I-2 .50
Seventy-five years and more ago there was a sawmill in the ravine where the lower reservoir of the Amherst Water Company is located, owned by Savannah Arnold. The site of the stone dam of the Com- pany is nearly identical with the dam that supplied the water for Arnold's sawmill located a few rods farther down the stream, the remains of the canal or raceway being still visible. The first mill was burned and John and Collins Brailey built another on nearly the same site.
Access to Arnold's and Brailey's mill was by a cart-road to the county highway near the residence of James Haskins, and another
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HISTORY OF PELHAM, MASS.
. cart-road that crossed the brook by a bridge and came out on the valley side of the brook.
At the head of the pond that held water for the Brailey sawmill Amethyst brook divides, or rather the two brooks that unite to form Amethyst brook, come together. One comes from the northeast and the other brings water from the watershed southeasterly from the point of union ; on the brook that comes from the northeast, high up on the hillside there was an old sawmill on the farm purchased by Eseck Cook in 1807, and in later years it was rebuilt in modern style, but the scarcity of timber and the introduction of the portable mill rendered the investment worthless, and the mill was allowed to go to decay,-time and the elements have nearly completed their work and it will not be long before not a vestige will be left. Owners follow- ing Eseck Cook were his sons, Nathaniel and Lewis Cook; then it came into the hands of Smith M. Cook and Asa Ober, but no busi- ness has been done there for years. It is probable that this was the site of Turner's sawmill described as " on the road from Pel- ham to Leverett."
On the branch of Amethyst brook that comes from the southeast there was at one time a turning shop, situated a short distance above where the two branches join to make Amethyst brook. It was owned by Ezra Brown, who lived on the north side of the turnpike near the Amherst Water Company's new reservoir, on the farm now occupied by John Hawley. At the turning shop Mr. Brown used to split out his timber and turn faucets. These he would take to Rhode Island and sell or exchange for cotton yarn.
Bringing home the yarn he would then sell it to the farmers, and the farmers' wives wove it into cloth for their families on hand looms. Mr. Brown built a new shop nearer his home, on the road accepted by the town in 1828 and leading across the ravine to George Buffum's and is described as "leaving the turnpike near Ezra Brown's new shop." In this shop Mr. Brown probably made the coffins, which he sold to the people when needed. These coffins he stained a bright red color which was the custom or fashion at that time.
Near the location of Ezra Brown's new shop W. J. Harris built a mill or shop for mechanical purposes in 1875, where he carried on a small business for several years and then sold out to the Amherst Water Company, as the site for their upper reservoir, in 1892.
RESIDENCE OF DAVID SHORES.
Charcoal Kilns near Pulpit Hill-Pelham Hollow
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MILLS, MANUFACTURIES, ETC.
Sixty years or more ago Thomas Buffum and Levi Hall built a stone dam and sawmill on a small rivulet that finds its way down from the high lands northeast of the valley and crosses the highway near the old Buffum homestead, now owned and occupied by John A. Page. The mill was quite a distance north of the Buffum place, and was run but a few years. The remains of the old dam are visi- ble by the roadside now.
About 1800 Oliver Smith built a dam on the head waters of the small brook that comes down from the base of Mt. Lincoln and flow- ing south finds its way into Hop brook in the neighborhood of Dwight, or Pansy Park, and erected a small turning shop on the county road leading from the Methodist church at West Pelham to Enfield. A small business was done at this shop for years after Oliver Smith passed away and the farm on which it stood came into the possession of Arba Randall. John Lyman, who lived near the shop used it for building wagon wheels, turning the hubs in the lathe.
Later the building was taken down and removed. The old dam remains on the north side of the highway, and the shop stood on the same side of the roadway. Persons passing along the roadway now can scarcely hear any sound of running water, so little of it coming down now from the hillside above, that one wonders how enough could be obtained to drive even a turning lathe.
MANUFACTURE OF CHARCOAL.
The burning of wood into charcoal or " coaling " as the business was termed has been carried on in a small way by individuals here and there about the town for many years. The usual practice was to pile up ten, fifteen or more cords of four foot wood into a cone shaped mass, cover it with earth and turf except an opening at the apex. Fire was then applied at the base and the work of the fire care- fully watched night and day for a week or ten days until the fire had charred the wood completely. Then the charcoal burner loaded up a wagon, fitted with high side and end boards, with perhaps an hundred bushels of coal and with horse or ox team drew his load to Amherst or Northampton and peddled the coal from house to house.
In 1862 David Shores began the manufacture of charcoal at the " Hollow" on a larger scale, than the ancient method described above. He built large ovens or kilns of brick large enough to hold
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HISTORY OF PELHAM, MASS.
many cords of wood. When an oven is filled iron doors shut the wood in, only sufficient openings are left for draft, when the kiln is fired. These ovens require constant watching day and night just the same as the earth covered coal pit. Mr. Shores has three of these ovens and manufactures from 50,000 to 150,000 bushels annually according to the demand.
The charcoal is marketed at Springfield and Chicopee mostly. It is drawn to Enfield by horses and loaded upon cars,-and on its arrival at Springfield the coal is distributed to the various large man- ufacturers, such as Smith & Wesson, the U. S. Armory and the large hotels.
Mr. Shores has purchased woodland from time to time to supply wood for his ovens, until he is the owner of 1000 to 1200 acres. Land that he cut the wood from when he first began business has grown another covering of wood large enough for railroad ties or for wood to turn into charcoal.
In 1870 Mr. Shores built a sawmill on Pergy brook to saw the large trees into lumber. This sawmill is the last one erected in town and is a circular sawmill with the latest improvements, and is located not far from his residence and charcoal ovens.
STONE QUARRIES.
The business of quarrying stone for building purposes has been carried on for more than 75 years ; just the time when the work began is not fixed. A Mr. Kimball from Amherst was one of the first in this line of business. Thomas Buffum began quarrying on a ledge on the east side of the highway leading from Buffum's to Abijah Fales', when he was 17 years old in 1827. Stones from this quarry were easily cut and hammered.
Abijah Fales opened a quarry near his house. John and William Harkness owned a quarry half a mile or more east of the Methodist church, now owned by George P. Shaw.
The largest quarry and the one from which the most stone has been taken is on the farm best known as the Joseph G. Ward farm. Ward followed Levi Hall as proprietor of the farm, and "Cooper" John Gray was the owner before Hall.
The first work upon this quarry of any magnitude was in 1820 when the college buildings at Amherst were begun. John Gray
THE VALLEY STONE QUARRY.
POURWAY OF THE AMHERST WATER CO.'S RESEVOIR.
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MILLS, MANUFACTURIES, ETC.
owned the ledge or quarry at that time and he got out cut stones for- steps and other uses about the buildings.
From the quarry on this farm a great many stone have been drawn by team to Springfield, Northampton, Easthampton, Ware and Amherst for use as window sills and caps,-hammered stones for steps and other purposes, and building stone for use in factories and public buildings. Flavel Gaylord of Amherst now owns the farm and quarry.
There have been great quantities of rough stone gathered in the pastures and drawn to Amherst for cellar walls, and the demand con- tinues. The farmers thereby clear their fields of stone and get pay for their labor. They also get out railroad ties for which they find ready sale to the railroads. Quantities of cord wood are cut and drawn to Amherst market. Wood prepared for the stove is also. drawn to Amherst. W. Orcutt Clough has been in the business 19 years, and has drawn 8000 one horse loads, all with the same horse .. John L. Brewer and others are in the business.
MISCELLANEOUS MANUFACTURING.
Horace Gray in connection with his business of sawing logs into. lumber used to do quite a business in turning bedsteads and making hand screws of wood, previous to the burning of his mill in 1851.
About 1840, Daniel Purrington built a machine for sawing shoe lasts on the principal of the Blanchard Lathe and ran it in an annex to the gristmill of his father-in-law, Riley Jillson, for some years.
" Tanner" John Gray had a tannery on his farm in the valley, many years ago and the location of the vats can be seen still on the farm of Levi Moulton.
Obadiah Cooley was a distiller, and his distillery was situated near the highway half a mile east of the center of the town on the way to the hollow.
At the beginning of this century Solomon Fletcher had a tan yard, curry shop, bark house and beaming house, standing on land of Robert Crossett in the east part of the town. He sold to Benjamin Dix in 1802.
John Parmenter made ploughs for use in Pelham and the neigh- boring towns in a small shop at the west end of the town, and about the year 1840 contracted to build some that were shipped to Illinois ..
John Harkness and his sons used to purchase French burr stone-
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HISTORY OF PELHAM, MASS.
in the blocks as shipped to this country and made sets of mill stones for grinding grain, selling them on orders about the country and placing them in the mills ready for use. They quit the business previous to 1850.
Barney T. Wetherell and Job S. Miller did quite a business at one time cutting out staves for hogsheads. Their place of business was at Pelham center.
INN KEEPERS AND RETAILERS.
Intoxicating liquors were in common use as a beverage among the people generally all through the county and state at the time this town was settled. Sylvester Judd the historian of Hadley says, "the drinks of the early days were wines of several kinds, sack, beer, ale and strong water or aquavitae,-consisting of brandy distilled from wine and a liquor distilled from malt ;"-but wine and beer were the principal drinks until rum was brought from the West Indies. It was sometimes called "Kill Devil or Barbadoes liquor." The set- tlers of Hadley planted apple trees early after the settlement of the town in 1659 and cider was made as early as 1677. They pounded the apples in troughs as was the custom in England. There is no record of cider mills in New England previous to 1700. Cider became in great demand for distillation into cider brandy, and apple orchards became numerous in Hampshire county at the time of the Revolution and the people of Pelham were in the front rank in the apple orchard industry.
The returns of the assessors of the towns of Hadley, South Hadley, Amherst and Granby for the year 1771 are said to show that there was an average of four and one-half barrels of cider for each family produced that year, and Pelham is said to have made more cider that year than either of the four towns named. Cider mills were common and there was probably distilleries for turning cider into brandy in the town. One such institution of that sort is said to have been located in West Pelham near the house of E. P. Bartlett. The lot on which it stood was known for years as the " Still Pasture," and a depression in the ground in that pasture has been pointed out as the cellar or basement of the distillery. Who owned the distillery cannot now be determined. Obadiah Cooley had a distillery half a mile east of the center of the town.
The use of liquors as a beverage by all, and the need of some
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MILLS, MANUFACTURIES, ETC.
place in town to entertain travelers on horseback journeying through the place caused the application to the country courts for license as taverners and common victualers, and the first licensed inn-holder in Pelham was Thomas Dick, and his license was granted in 1749, and reads substantially as follows on the court record :
" License is Granted to Thomas Dick of Pelham to be an inn- holder and Taverner and Common Victualler in sd town for the year ensuing for Selling Strong Liquors by Retail."
Thomas Dick continued to be licensed as innholder every year following 1749 until 1768, according to the records at Northampton ; but an auction bill, dated Feb. 20, 1770, advertized a sale at the house of Thomas Dick, innholder.
In 1763 Thomas Dick was licensed to sell " Tea, Coffee and China ware out of his house in Pelham. The said Thomas to render the accounts and pay the duties required by the law of this Province."
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