USA > Massachusetts > Worcester County > Clinton > History of the origin of the town of Clinton, Massachusetts, 1653-1865 > Part 3
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23
GEOLOGY OF THE ROCKS.
Northboro, is a mica-schist, which is known as the Brimfield fibrolite graphite schist. Still further to the east, is the Bolton gneiss with occasional masses of limestone. Calcite is also found in the slate east of the river. The Brimfield schist and Bolton gneiss are Silurian in their origin.
No traces now remain of any bed-rock formed in this territory after this intrusion, and indeed thousands of feet in thickness of the schist, quartzite and slate, and even some of the intruding granite have since been worn away by the action of various chemical and physical forces. If, at any point near the center of the town, west of the quartzite ledge, we should bore down deeply into the earth, we should first pass through the slate, then the quartzite, and then reach the granite. If there had been no erosion, the slate and the quartzite would probably lie upon the granite now exposed to a depth of thousands of feet.
All geological record ceases in this section after the changes which came from the intrusion of the granite. Age after age, each many thousands of years in duration, passed by and left no trace that the scientist of today can discover. It is not until we approach the age of man, at the close of the Post-Tertiary Period, that we again find evidence of the working of the forces of nature. These forces were so destructive in their character that they must of necessity have destroyed all vestiges of previous action, unless these were very deeply embedded in the rocks.
Certain astronomical changes, accompanied, it may be, by the elevation of the northern part of North America, so lowered the mean average temperature that the eastern half of the United States, as far south as Pennsylvania, was covered with fields of ice called glaciers. The action of the glaciers on the mountain tops proves that these must have been several thousand feet in thickness. These glaciers moved slowly southward, pressed on by the accumulating mass from behind. The vast weight of the moving ice ground up the softer rocks on which it pressed, and boulders,
24
SCIENTIFIC NOTES.
large and small, loosened and torn up by the solid current, were carried along grinding and breaking other rocks, while they in their turn, were ground and broken by them. The material, thus loosened and ground, was transported south- ward. Such was the origin of most of the loose rocks, gravel, sand and clay which lie above the bed-rocks of Clinton and all the northeastern portion of America today. These materials have been much modified since in character and distribution by chemical action and the physical forces of heat and gravitation acting through air and water.
Our town is peculiarly rich in evidences of glacial action. In the argillite rocks to the east of North Main Street, along Rigby Brook, there are distinct grooves made by the glaciers. These vary from several feet to less than an inch in depth, and their breadth is usually from three to ten times their depth. These grooves are parallel to each other and run from north to south. There are also many glacial scratches on other rocks. As the argillite has been covered since the glacial period until the "Washaway" of 1876, by a mass of gravel, these grooves and scratches have not been obliterated by the forces that worked upon the exposed rocks, and thus they still record to the seeing eye as plainly as the pen of man could do, the direction and enormous power of the forces that produced them. Not only were these little grooves made, but the continual action of this grinding force, working through long periods of time, greatly lowered the level of all our softer rocks. It helped prepare a valley for the course of the Nashua. The combination of the pressed granite and hardened quartzite in the ledges of Harris and Burditt Hills, was able to divide the bottom of the south- ward moving ice, so that a part ground its way through the granite at the east, and a part through the slate at the west, leaving the resisting crest of the hills much higher than the valley on cither side.
The materials transported hither by the glaciers, can in many cases be traced to the very ledges from which they
25
GLACIAL ACTION.
came. The frequently occurring boulders of slate, contain- ing the white, cross-shaped crystals of chiastolite were once a part, in all probability, of the ledges on George Hill, of Lancaster. The boulders and pebbles, containing dark, col- umn shaped crystals of tourmaline, were originally broken from the Fitchburg granite. The hard, heavy boulders of dark green trap, the rusty exteriors of which show that they abound in iron, are followed to their source with more diffi- culty, but they doubtless came from some of the many dikes of that igneous rock which are found in the hills and moun- tains to the northeast of Clinton. On the farm of Eli Saw- yer, east of Chace Street, is an immense granite boulder with well rounded sides, weighing many hundred tons. By Clam- shell Pond is the rock formerly known as the Rocking Stone. There are many other notable single rocks transported by the ice and left in spots which they never could have reached by any other known method than that under consideration.
The general mass of rocks, gravel, sand and clay trans- ported by the glaciers, containing materials which could not have originated where they now rest, or from any ledges to the south of their present location, is the most conclusive evidence that they must have been brought from the ledges. which contain similar materials, to the north, by some mighty force such as is only to be found in the glacial action. This mass of materials called by the geologist by the suggestive name of drift, covers most of the ledges of Clinton. Some- times, it has been left in the moraines as huge hills, some- times, it is spread out more evenly and, sometimes, has been sifted and arranged by the action of water into flat terraces.
It is possible that the deep holes in the southwestern part of the town, in two of which are contained Sandy Pond and Howe's Duck Pond, were made by enormous masses of ice which were left buried in the drift as the glaciers retreated northward.
After the temperature became modified, the water pro- duced by the melting of this great mass of ice several thou-
26
SCIENTIFIC NOTES.
sand feet in thickness and covering half a continent, was added to the usual rainfall. The rivers were of necessity very much larger than they are now. Moreover they had not yet worn out their channels, and met with frequent ob- structions which dammed their onward courses. As a result of these conditions, there were immense rivers and a great abundance of lakes and ponds.
Most of the present territory of Clinton was under water. The tops of Burditt and Harris Hills appeared as two islands which were afterwards united into one, as some obstruction or natural dam gave way and the waters were lowered. The river or lake with its frequent overflows, deposited on its sides. and more particularly upon the intervales beyond its banks, a vast mass of the sand, washed out by its current from the drift through which it flowed. The sand upon these intervales took the form of terraces, which became lower as the obstructions to the stream gave way one after another, The highest of these terrace formations now ob- servable, appears in the Trotting Park, Swincoe's Bluff and the sand hill along the river above Carter's Mill. These are of nearly the same level. These terraces have been much worn by streams running down their sides, and thus their margins have been made irregular. Goodrich, Rigby and South Meadow Brooks helped to wear away this sand forma- tion and hollowed out great valleys for themselves. In time, some other natural obstruction gave way just as the dam of Mossy Pond gave way in 1876, and the waters reached a new level. The next prominent terrace marking a decline in the river is known as the Plain. The western end of this is gullied by the valleys of South Meadow and Rigby Brooks. The last great terrace is the present river inter- vale reaching with varying width from Currier's Flats to Lancaster Mills .*
* No fossils have been found in the drift or alluvial deposits of Clinton to show the character of the animals or plants of the period, but in the
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27
POST-GLACIAL GEOLOGY.
As the mineralogy of the section has been treated in con- nection with the geology nothing more need be added except a brief summary. There are only four kinds of rock in the ledges of Clinton : hornblende-schist, granite, quartzite and slate. Boulders of trap and mica-schist are found. Nonc of these rocks have any commercial value except for rough stone work, as in walls and foundation stones. The horn- blende-schist and trap or diabase, are both composed for the most part of hornblende, which is also found to a slight ex- tent in some of the granite. Mica constitutes the main body of the mica-schist and is found in the granite. The varieties are biotite and muscovite. The quartzite is made of ground quartz, and this mineral is a large constituent of the granite, and occurs in all the other rocks and in the sand. Feldspar of the variety known as microcline is next to quartz the most important mineral in the granite. A large portion of the slate and clay arc feldspathic in their origin. Graphite, anthracite coal and iron pyrites occur in the slate ledges. Chiastolite is found in the slate boulders from George Hill and tourmaline in the granite boulders from Fitchburg. Bog iron ore, washed from the slate and clay is found in our meadows. None of these minerals, as found here have much commercial value. There is plenty of sand, fitted for plaster, and some clay, suitable for bricks, and good material for road-making is abundant.
For a town of small area, Clinton has a good variety of vegetation. The soil in the southeastern part of the town is that characteristic of a granite foundation, that in the north-
neighboring town of Shrewsbury the remains of a huge mastadon were found in 1886. Geological changes are still going on; dams, natural and artificial, are still likely to be built or destroyed; the river is con- stantly its course; the rocks are still being disintegrated by chemical action and frost. The materials of the hills are being gradually carried into the valleys by the moving waters. The changes taking place in Clinton to-day differ from those in the past in degree more than in char- acter.
28
SCIENTIFIC NOTES.
western part is argillaceous in its nature. In some places on the terraces, the sand is only covered with the thinnest coating of light loam through which the moisture soon sinks and disappears. In other places, a thick, cold, heavy soil rests upon clay that is almost impervious to moisture. These two kinds of soil lie at the extremes, and the one gradually merges into the other. The soil is also modified by differ- ent varieties of leaf mould, recent deposits from the river and its tributaries and accumulations of peat and muck. We also have swamps and rocky hillsides, a river, brooks, and ponds with sandy, muddy and mossy bottoms and float- ing and stationary islands. From such a variety of condi- tions, a great variety of plant life must necessarily result .*
* This list contains nearly five hundred flowering plants found grow- ing spontaneously in Clinton and vicinity. No sedges, grasses or flower- less plants are given. The following abbreviations are used: A., American; Can., Canadian: c., common; e., early; fl., flowered; 1., leaved; p., purple; r., round; sm., small; sp., spotted; t., tall: Vir., Virginian.
Clematis, c .; Anemone, Vir., wood ; Hepatica, r-lobed ; Meadow-rue, e .. t., p .; Rue-anemone ; Buttercup, sm .- fl., hooked, e., t., creeping, bulb- ous; Marsh Marigold ; Goldthread, 3-1; Columbine; Baneberry, red, white ; Barberry, c .; Blue Cohosh ; May-apple; Water Shield ; Water Lily, sweet scented ; Yellow Pond Lily ; Pitcher Plant, p ; Celandine ; Blood-root; Corydalis, pale : Water Cress, c .; Marsh Cress ; Horse- radish ; Bitter Cress, sm .; Rock Cress, Can .; Winter Cress, c .; Hedge Mustard, c .; Mustard, black ; Shepherd's Purse ; Peppergrass ; Radish, jointed ; Violet, round-l., lance-l., primrose-l., sweet white, hood-1., arrow-1., bird-foot-l., woody, downy yellow ; Rock-rose, Can .; Pinweed, sm .; Sundew, r .- 1 .; St. John's Wort, elliptical-l., c., sm., Can., sp .; Marsh St. John's Wort; Soapwort; Cow-herb ; Campion, bladder ; Cockle, evening, corn ; Sandwort ; Chickweed, c., long-l .; Mouse-ear Chickweed, c., clammy, field : Sand Spurrey, red ; Spurrey, corn ; Indian Chickweed ; Purslane, c .; Spring Beauty, broad-1 .; Mallow, c., high, musk ; Basswood, c .; Flax, c .; Cranesbill, sp., Carolina, Herb Robert ; Balsam, pale, sp .; Wood Sorrel, yellow, true ; Prickly Ash; Sumach, staghorn, smooth, dwarf ; Poison Dogwood; Poison Ivy ; Grape, fox, frost ; Woodbine ; Buckthorn, c .; Bittersweet, climbing ; Maple, white, red, rock, striped, mountain; Milkwort, fringed, rose-p, whorled-1 .; Lupine ; Clover, rabbit- foot, red, white, yellow, low hop ; Sweet Clover ; Locust-trec, c., clammy ;
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BOTANY.
In the past, considerable revenue has been derived from the woodlands. The pine was sawn nto lumber, the chest- nut was made into railroad ties, and every variety of wood was cut for fuel. Little standing wood now remains, and what is left seems destined to soon disappear. The pastur-
Tick-Trefoil, r .- l., Can., panicled ; Bush-Clover, violet ; Vetch, c .; Ground-nut ; Hog Peanut ; Wild Indigo ; Senna : Cherry, red, black, choke; Meadow-Sweet, c .; Hardhack ; Agrimony, c .; Avens, white, p., Vir .; Cinquefoil, Can., Norway, silvery, shrubby ; Strawberry, Vir., c .; Raspberry, p .- fl., dwarf, red, black; Blackberry, high, low, running ; Rose, swamp, dwarf, c .; Sweet-brier; Hawthorn, scarlet-fruited: Choke- berry ; Mountain-ash, A .; Gooseberry ; Currant, fetid, black, red; Saxi- frage, e., swamp; Mitre-wort, two-l .; False Mitre-wort; Golden Saxi- frage ; Ditch Stone-crop; Live-For-Ever; Witch-Hazel ; Enchanter's Nightshade ; Willow-herb, great, downy, colored; Evening Prim- rose, c .; Sundrops; False Loosestrife, alternate-l., swamp; One- seeded Star Cucumber ; Carrot, c .; Archangelica, great ; Meadow- parsnip, golden ; Caraway ; Water-Hemlock, sp .; Water-parsnip ; Sweet Cicely, smooth, hairy ; Poison Hemlock, sp .; Ginseng, dwarf ; Spikenard ; Sarsaparilla, bristly, naked-stemmed : Dogwood, flowering, panicled, silky, alternate-l .; Bunch-berry ; Honeysuckle, fly, mountain-fly ; Bush Honeysuckle, c .; Elder, c., red-berried ; Viburnum, sweet, maple-leaved ; Withe-rod ; Cranberry-tree ; Hobble-bush ; Bedstraw, rough, sm., sweet- scented, narrow-l .; Button-bush ; Partridge-berry ; Innocence or Bluets ; Iron-weed, c .; Blazing Star, c .; Thoroughwort. p., white ; White Snake- root ; White-topped Aster ; Aster, corymbed, large-l., heart-l., wavy-l., smooth, red-stemmed, long-l., many-fl., bushy, New England, narrow-l., panicled, umbelled, willow-l .; Fleabane, c., daisy ; Horse-weed ; Robin's Plantain ; Golden-rod, two-colored, broad-l., smooth, high, Can., narrow-l., elm-l., and innumerable other species ; Elecampane, c .; Ragweed ; Cone-flower, c .; Sunflower, c .; Bur-marigold, c., swamp, smaller, larger ; Mayweed ; Chamomile, corn ; Yarrow ;Ox-eye Daisy ; Tansy, c .; Worm- wood, c .; Mugwort, c .; Cudweed, c .; Everlasting, pearly, plantain-l .; Golden Ragwort; Thistle, c., Can .; Burdock ; Chicory ; Dwarf Dande- lion ; Fall Dandelion ; Hawkweed, Can., rough, hairy, panicled ; Rattle- snake-root; White Lettuce; Lion's-foot; Dandelion; Lettuce, Can .; Sow- thistle, spiny-l., field ; Cardinal Flower ; Indian Tobacco ; Huckleberry; Dangleberry; Blueberry, dwarf, low, high; Cranberry, sm., large; Bear- berry ; Mayflower ; Wintergreen ; Leather Leaf ; Andromeda; White Alder ; Laurel, mountain, sheep, pale ; Azalea, clammy, p .; Labrador Tea; Shin Leaf ; One-fl. Pyrola ; Prince's Pine ; Indian Pipe ; Pine-
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SCIENTIFIC NOTES.
age is still utilized to some slight extent. Thus our vegeta- tion has little interest except to the scientist and lover of the beautiful. The subjoined list may serve to these as a remin- der, by which they may call up volumes.
sap ; Plantain, c .; Star-flower ; Loosestrife, c., four-l., (stricta), (ciliata); Bladderwort, c .; Beech-drops ; Squaw-root ; Broom-rape ; Mullein, c, moth ; Toad-flax, Can., c .; Snake-head ; Monkey-flower ; Hedge Hys- sop, Vir., golden; False Pimpernel ; Speedwell, c., thyme-leaved, corn ; Gerardia, p., yellow, oak-l .; Painted Cup ; Lousewort, c .; Cow-wheat ; Verbena, blue, white ; Blue Curls ; False Pennyroyal ; Spearmint ; Pep- permint ; Wild Mint ; Bugle-weed ; Basil ; Pennyroyal, A; Catnip ; Ground Ivy ; Self-heal ; Scullcap, mad-dog ; Hedge-Nettle, swamp ; Motherwort ; Comfrey, c .; Forget-me-not, true ; Hound's Tongue, c .; Bindweed, field ; Bracted Bindweed, hedge ; Dodder ; Nightshade, c .; Bittersweet ; Gentian, fringed, closed ; Buckbean ; Floating Heart ; Dogbane, spreading ; Indian Hemp ; Milkweed, c., poke, p., four-l., swamp ; Ash, white, black ; Wild Ginger, Can .; Pokeweed, c .; Goose- foot, white, maple-l .; Jerusalem Oak ; Amaranth, white ; Knotweed, Penn., erect ; Water-pepper ; Door-weed ; Halberd-leaved Tear-thumb; Arrow-leaved T; Black Bind-weed ; Buckwheat ; Dock, bitter, sm .; Sheep Sorrel; Sassafras ; Spice-bush ; Leatherwood ; Bastard Toad- flax ; Spurge, sp .; Three-seeded Mercury : Elm, slippery, white ; Nettle, c, graceful ; Wood-nettle ; Richweed ; False Nettle ; Hop, c .; Button- wood ; Butternut ; Shagbark ; Pignut ; Oak, white, chestnut, scrub, scarlet, black, red ; Chestnut, A .; Beech, A .; Hazelnut, A .; Hop Horn- beam, Vir .; Iron-wood, A .; Bayberry ; Sweet Gale ; Sweet Fern ; Birch, black, white, yellow ; Alder, speckled ; Willow, prairie, glaucous, silky, heart-1, black, white ; Basket Osier ; Poplar, A., long-toothed ; Balm of Gilead ; Pine, pitch, white ; Spruce, black; Hemlock ; Tamarack, A .; Juniper, c .; Red Cedar ; Jack-in-the-pulpit ; Wild Calla : Skunk Cabbage ; Sweet Flag ; Cat-tail, c .; Bur-reed, great ; Horn Pond-weed ; Pondweed, swimming ; Water-plantain ; Arrow-head, variable ; Showy Orchis ; Rein Orchis, ragged-fringed, purple-fringed ; Rattlesnake Plantain, creeping, downy ; Ladies' Tresses (cernua), (gracilis): Are- thusa ; Pogonia ; Calopogon ; Lady's Slipper, showy, stemless ; Star- grass ; Blue Flag ; Blue-eyed Grass ; Greenbrier, c .; Carrion Flower ; Trillium, erect, nodding, pointed ; Cucumber-root ; False Hellebore ; Bellwort, (perfoliata); Wild Oats ; Twisted-stalk, rosy ; Clintonia, north- crn ; False Solomon's Seal, racemed, two-1 .; Solomon's Seal ; Lily, wood, yellow ; Dog's-tooth Violet ; Wood Rush, field ; Rush, c., Can., acumin- ate ; Pickerel-weed ; Yellow-eyed Grass,
3 1
ZOOLOGY.
The zoology of Clinton is also chiefly interesting from the point of view of the scientist, sportsman and lover of the beautiful in nature. The most prominent exceptions to this general statement is to be found in the pests, which cause so much trouble in our houses, gardens and orchards. A study of these pests and the best methods for exterminating them, would have more economic value than the study of all the denizens of the woods and streams. For the most part, they have followed rather than preceded the coming of civilized man, and new ones are even now occasionally added to the list.
The Nashua formerly abounded in salmon, shad and alc- wives in their scason, but these are of the past. The trout, too, has practically disappeared, although it may still be occasionally found by the knowing angler. The pickerel is the only game fish that remains, and this is not very abun- dant. The hornpout, eel and perch are caught to some slight extent for table use, while the sucker, the bream, and differ- ent varieties of shiners abound.
Among the batrachia, the usual varieties of turtles, liz- ards, salamanders, frogs and toads are found. A specimen of the box turtle, which was supposed to have become extinct long ago, was recently captured.
Of the reptiles, the rattlesnake has not been seen for nearly a century, and only harmless snakes remain. Of these the water snake, the garter snake, the adder, the black snake and the green snake are the most common. Any supersti- tion in regard to the poisonous character of any of these snakes is without foundation.
The birds of Clinton vary somewhat from year to year, but certain kinds generally appear, like chickadees, snow- birds, nuthatches, robins, bluebirds, Baltimore orioles, cat- birds, cherry birds, scarlet tanagers, flickers, king birds, brown thrashers, bobolinks, whippoorwills, cuckoos, cow- birds, buntings, crows, jays, chimney swifts, kinglets, gros- beaks, and the various kinds of humming birds, vireos,
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SCIENTIFIC NOTES.
warblers, finches, thrushes, swallows, sparrows, woodpeckers, blackbirds and hawks. The sportsman can usually find the partridge, quail and woodcock in their season, and occasion- ally wild ducks and geese still seek our ponds. The wild turkey, the eagle, the swan and pigeon are birds of the dis- tant past. The owl and the heron are rarely discovered in secret haunts. Many other kinds of birds are seen from time to time.
The beaver, otter and mink must have been very plenti- ful in early times along our streams where now only an occasional muskrat is found. In the forest, the catamount, the wolf, the wildcat, the bear, the moose, the elk and the deer were taken even in the eighteenth century. To-day, the huntsman considers himself fortunate if he gets a hedge- hog, a raccoon or a fox, even by wandering far beyond the limits of his town. The pole-cat is still sometimes an un- welcome visitor even in the most thickly settled districts. The woodchuck and rabbit are common, while the chipmunk and the red and grey squirrel are often seen in our shade- trees.
CHAPTER III.
1653-1682.
JOHN PRESCOTT, THE PIONEER .*
THERE are three factors in the history of any community : the physical conditions furnished by nature, the great cur- rents of the world's history, and the direct work of individual men.
Until the seventeenth century, the valley of the Nashua was in a state of nature, covered with forests and inhabited only by wild beasts and savage Indians. The rich hill slopes and intervales were uncultivated, and the abundant water power of the river and its tributaries had never turned a wheel in the service of man.
Nature, having done her part, had been patiently waiting through the long centuries for men who knew how to use her gifts. Meanwhile the course of history on another continent was slowly preparing the way for the development
* In preparing this account of Prescott, the following authorities have been consulted : Winthrop's History of New England ; Massa- chusetts Records; Middlesex County Registry; Memorial of the Prescott Family ; Rev. Timothy Harrington's Century Sermon ; Maga- zine articles and historical address by Joseph Willard, Esq .; Rev. A. P. Marvin's History of Lancaster ; Historical Sketch of Lancaster by Hon. Henry S. Nourse, and, above all, the "Early Records of Lancaster," as collected and annotated by the same author. In quoting old documents, the exact form has been kept as far as possible.
4
34
JOHN PRESCOTT, THE PIONEER.
of the New World. Explorers were sailing forth into un- known seas, warriors were fighting, scholars were studying, holy men were praying. At last, the great world currents brought a band of Puritans, driven by persecution from their native land, to settle on the New England coast.
The final factor in the origin of this community was still lacking, for, at first, the settlements were chiefly around Boston, as none wished or dared to strike out for themselves and set up homes in the wilderness, with only Indians for neighbors. But, at last, came one, whom no danger could daunt, no hardship deter,-John Prescott, the pioneer. Strong, energetic, noble-hearted and persevering, he was well fitted to head the van of civilization and first assert the supremacy of man over nature.
There is little known of Prescott's ancestors. The name is of Saxon origin, and means priest-cottage. In the time of Queen Elizabeth, we find a record of a Sir James Pres- cott, who was ordered by her to keep a horse and armor in readiness. He was the great-grandfather of our hero, whose parents were Ralph and Ellen Prescott of Shevington, Lancashire, England, where John Prescott was born and baptized in 1604-5.
He probably went to school in his boyhood and obtained some book knowledge, as we know that, in later life, he could read and write and survey land. At an early age, he learned the trade of his father, that of the blacksmith, and he worked at it for many years. In 1629, he married Mary Platts, at Wigan, and soon after sold his land in Shevington, and moved to Sowerby, Halifax Parish, West Riding, York- shire. There is a very doubtful story, that he worked under Oliver Cromwell. He surely had much in common with the Puritan leader. Like him, he was a man of great physical force, of keen practical insight, of independent theology, united with deep religious earnestness, and of an overpower- ing will, that pushed on in spite of all obstacles to the attainment of its purpose.
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