USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Acton > History of the town of Acton > Part 4
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Sent up for concurrance J. Quincy Speaker
In Council June 30, 1735
Read and (word illegible)
T Mason, Deput Secry July ye 1, 1735 consented to J. Belcher
By this action of the General Court, signed by Governor Jonathan Belcher,1 the town of Acton was brought into being. Three days later on July third, exactly a full century after the incorporation of the mother town, and almost exactly upon the day subsequently to be- come the birthday of the nation, the act of incorporation was passed. There is about this fact an uncanny tinge of prophesy relative to the promptness with which Acton was to participate in the military and political events that lay far in the unknown future.
For purposes of completeness the exact wording of the Act of In- corporation is herewith given.
Whereas the inhabitants and proprietors of the North- westerly part of Concord, in the County of Middlesex, called the Village or New Grant, have represented to this court they labor under great difficulties by reason of their remoteness from the place of public worship and therefore desire that they and their estates, together with the farms called the Willard Farms, may be set off a distinct and sepa- rate township for which they have also obtained the consent of the town of Concord:
1 Jonathan Belcher, (1681-1757) for whom Belchertown was named, served as Colonial governor of Massachusetts and New Hampshire from 1730 to 1741.
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Be it therefore enacted by his Excellency the Governor, Council and Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, that the said Northwesterly part of Concord together with the said farms be, and hereby are set off, constituted and erected into a dis- tinct and separate township by the name of Acton, and agreeably to the following boundaries, namely, beginning at the Southwest corner of Concord old bounds, then south- westerly on Sudbury and Stow line till it comes to Littleton line, then bounded Northerly by Littleton, Westford and Chelmsford, then Easterly by Billerica till it comes to the Northwest corner of Concord old bounds and by said bounds to the place first mentioned.
And that the inhabitants of the lands before described and bounded by and hereby are vested with all the town privileges and immunities that the inhabitants of other towns within this Province are or ought by law to be vested with.
Provided that the said inhabitants of the said town of Acton do, within three years of the publication of this Act, erect and finish a suitable house for the public worship of God and procure and settle a learned orthodox minister of good conversation and make provision for his comfort- able and honorable support.
By this act of incorporation Acton was finally and completely severed from Concord and launched upon its own career. The newly formed town was no longer upon the frontier. It had incorporated towns on all sides, ranging from centenarian Concord up through Sudbury (1639), Chelmsford (1655), Billerica (1655), Stow (1683), Littleton (1714) to infant Westford (1729).
It may be of interest to digress momentarily to observe that cer- tain very elderly persons at the turn of the century were in the habit of pronouncing Billerica as though it had y as its final letter. This was taken with indulgence and regarded as a Yankee peculiarity since the same treatment was accorded the words America and Africa. A map of old Chelmsford, however, surprisingly has the word Bilirikye printed boldly upon it. (Mass. Archives, Ancient Plans, v. 112, p. 81).
Some explanatory comment relative to the map of Acton at the time of its incorporation may be helpful. Careful study of a map drawn November 6, 1700 (Mass. Archives, Ancient Plans, v. 1, p. 191), after due allowance for variations in the magnetic needle, makes clear the following:
1. The northeast boundary of Concord Village was the line AJHE, a continuation of the Concord-Billerica line.
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2. The Willard Farm was the area EHJKLCD, the line ED having been, so a note on the map asserts, defined by Mr. Willard himself in 1658.
3. The area ABCLKJ is distinctly set off from the Willard Farm and labelled as county land. Since the boundaries of Acton as in- corporated distinctly state that it was bounded northerly by West- ford and Chelmsford this county land must have been included in order to make no alteration in the Chelmsford line which had been established eighty years previously.
4. One interesting observation that should not go unnoticed is that on this old map of 1700 what has come to be called Berry Corner appears as "bury corner". The reason is obscure unless it has some loose reference to the old north burying ground, which, however, lay a little over a mile to the westward.
5. When Carlisle was set off as a precinct in 1780 an old map dated November 1779 (Mass. Archives, Ancient Plans, v. 226, p. 180 1/2) shows that the boundaries envisioned by the petitioners from Acton, Billerica, Chelmsford and Concord placed the John Heald house some distance inside the new precinct. When Carlisle eventually emerged as an incorporated town the line agreed upon was BHGF as it exists today, with the John Heald house just barely inside the Acton limits.
In concluding this phase of the record the question naturally arises concerning the reason for choosing the name Acton for the newly organized town. No known documentary evidence bears upon the point. The records of Concord and the minutes of Concord Village for the period immediately preceding 1735 are completely silent in this respect. The word derives from the old Saxon form Ac-tun signifying an oak settlement or a hamlet in the oaks. This fact together with other information appears in a brochure put out for the benefit of tourists by the authorities of Acton, England, a municipal borough (population 67,424, census of 1951) of the county of Middlesex, about seven miles from London. It is the largest of several Actons in England, was at one time the residence of Henry III, and was the center of Puritanism throughout the rule of Cromwell. It is pos- sible that some of the influential freeholders here in Massachusetts, having leanings in that direction, felt the propriety of having an Acton in Middlesex County on both sides of the ocean.
A second alternative has to do with a legend, often repeated at the turn of the century by extremely aged Acton residents, and also mentioned by Fletcher, to the effect that the particular Lord Acton regnant in England in or about 1735 offered to provide a bell for the first meeting house, in recognition of which generous offer, the town was christened for him. The legend goes on to say that sub- sequently the gratuity had to be declined because sufficient funds
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were not forthcoming, after the expense of erecting the meeting house, to build and equip a belfry of adequate size and sturdiness.
In connection with this legend the author has had the benefit of several months of research by Alderman L. J. Caffrey of Wembley, Middlesex, England, who, having history and genealogy as a hobby, became deeply interested in the question. The results of his findings may be summarized as follows: (a) No record exists connecting the family name of Acton with the town of Acton, Middlesex. The name of that city derives obviously from its proximity in early times to an oak forest round about. In fact Old Oak Common is located nearby. (b) There are five other Actons of which three, Acton Scott, Acton Round, and Acton Burnell, are in Shropshire, where also there are many branches of the Acton family. The head of the family has been a baronet for several hundred years. The fifth baronet, Richard, lived from 1711 to 1790 and it must have been he, if any- body, who made the offer of the bell. He would have been twenty-four in 1735 and hence could have been sufficiently mature to have made the offer or even to have visited Massachusetts.
There are however, several objections to the legend. In the first place, as Mr. Caffery points out, no Lord Acton existed at the time in question. Richard mentioned above was a baronet. The first person to carry the title of Lord Acton was not born until 1834. He was a professor at Cambridge and sat for five years in the British Parlia- ment. It can be argued of course that in the new America titles were held in so little repute in New England that the distinction between a lord and a baronet was exceedingly hazy.
Of greater consequence is the fact that the records of the town dis- close no reference to the naming of Acton or to the acceptance or refusal of a bell. This is particularly significant when coupled with the fact that at the time in question it was customary to hold town meet- ings to consider at length a mass of minutiae relating to local affairs. It is stretching credulity abnormally to assume that such an im- portant matter as a free church bell should be completely ignored.
Obviously the name had to be chosen before the act of incorpora- tion could be drawn up and passed in 1735. It may have been selected as early as 1732 when Concord first agreed to the setting off of the village as a separate town. As has been previously pointed out the Village elected its own clerk for a considerable period before 1735 but among those records no word appears relative to the naming of the town.
In spite of this lacuna there still exists the possibility that an offer was made unofficially by Richard Acton to some Massachusetts friend, in which case the tenative bequest and subsequent refusal never reached the floor of a town meeting for formal consideration. It may also be kept in mind that even though this were the case
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the name of Acton could nevertheless have been chosen in recogni- tion of the generous gesture.
These various postulates leave the dilemma unsolved and in the final analysis the evidence seems to favor the conclusion that the name came from Acton, Middlesex, for reasons in some measure nostalgic.
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HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF ACTON
PART II
1735 - 1750
At the time of its incorporation, Acton was well settled in the sense that the families were equably distributed over the whole area of the township. This was in part due to the fact that the soil varied greatly in fertility and as a consequence desirable farm land must needs be utilized wherever found. Stony hillsides that could be advantageously planted to orchards were only occasionally adjacent to favorably located upland that would produce hay and seed crops in abundance. Over extensive areas glacial detritus of all sizes abounded. In other places the native ledges of granite and schist lay bare and forbidding. The thousands of man-hours that went into the erection of the inter- minable stone walls of New England were expended in large part as a by-product of the clearing of the land. In this respect Acton was no exception. Loose rock, submerged boulders and stubborn outcrops were the chief bete noire of the farmer. Even though the Indian had ceased to be a major concern, nature still provided generously of annoyances to test the soul of the pioneer.
There is extant no assuredly complete record of the hardy folk who made up the town's population at the instant of its inception but a study of the reputable sources, together with the excellent map drawn by former town clerk Horace F. Tuttle, brings to light the following list of family names appearing in the interval 1735-36:
Barker
Farr
Law (Laws)
Barnes
Faulkner
Parlin
Barret (Barit)
Forbush (Furbush)
Piper
Billing
Fletcher
Prescott
Brabrook
Harris
Procter
Brooks
Hayward
Robbins
Cleaveland
Heald
Shepherd
Cragon (Cragin)
Hosmer
Wheeler
Cutting
Hunt
White
Davis
Jones
Woods
Dudley
Knight
Wooley
Emery
Lamson
Wright
In addition the names of Darby, Conant, and Pierce appear among the town officers chosen in 1737. Since it is improbable that an im- mediate newcomer would be so selected it may be assumed that these persons were residents at the time of the incorporation.
The initial business of the infant town was to get the governmental machinery into gear and set about the stipulated task of erecting the
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meeting house. Those entrusted with the various duties were chosen on the basis of merit alone we may be certain. Sinecures are the prod- uct of established and comfortable society. These were men of sub- stance and integrity who could bring sound judgment and energy to the project at hand. Fortunately their names are preserved and it will not be amiss to inscribe them in the record in detail for the informa- tion of the readers of the future. Homely Biblical names they are and the men to whom they applied were worthy pioneers in the promised land, men with vision and faith and determination to bring their plans to fruition. May those who claim Acton as their native soil feel the challenge of the example of these forefathers and the impact of their fidelity to a trust whereof later generations have been the beneficiaries.
John Heald (1639-1775) Acton's first chosen selectman, a deacon of its first church, member of the committee to build the church and a member of the committee to select the first minister. He lived a long and full life and died at the age of eighty-two about a month after Concord Fight. His homestead was on the road now known as Carlisle Street just a few yards from the Carlisle line (historical marker indicates the house). Subsequent residents were Lt. John Heald 1762, Timothy Brown 1800, John Nickles. Mr. Lawrence W. Marshall lives on the place today.
Thomas Wheeler, member first board of selectmen and town clerk for 1735 and 1736. He lived near Nehemiah's Hill, on or near the site of the house now occupied by Winston K. Newman on Main Street.
Joseph Fletcher, Member of the first board of selectmen, chosen with John Heald as one of the two deacons of the first church, member of the committee to secure the first minister. He lived on what is now known as Parker Street, near where it crosses the railroad, on the homesite now owned by Mr. Jorgen Larson. Subsequent residents were Capt. Daniel Fletcher, Stephen Shepherd, Benjamin Wilde (grandfather of the donor of Acton Memorial Library), Asa Parker and Frank Barker.
Simon Hunt, selectman and town clerk, 1737-1743, mem- ber of the committee to build the first church. He had just built a new house in 1735 which was subsequently owned by John Hunt, Jonathan Hunt, Joseph P. Reed, John Coffin, Sidney Richardson and at present by Paul Richard- son. As one goes along Central Street toward West Acton, it is the last house on the right before crossing the rail- road tracks.
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Samuel Wheeler, member of the committee to secure the first minister, was a neighbor of John Heald and lived on a homesite at the extreme end of what is now known as Wheeler Lane. None of the buildings are standing. Sub- sequent residents were Gershom Davis, John Hayward, Jr., Daniel Davis (who ran a mill there in 1775) Lt. Phinehas Wheeler, Francis Robbins.
Ammiruhammah Faulkner, member of the committee to secure the first minister. His residence still stands in South Acton, and is plainly designated by a historical marker. He came to Acton and erected his mill at the "Great Falls" of the "Great Brook". Subsequent residents were Francis Faulkner, Francis Faulkner, Jr., and Col. Winthrop E. Faulkner. Mr. Faulkner lived in what had been a garrison house erected long before his arrival in Acton. It is today the oldest house in town by a wide margin. Col. Winthrop E. Faulkner who was born in 1805 used to say that when he was a boy he was told that it was then a hundred and fifty years old, which would put the date of erection at about 1670. According to Fletcher the main room could accomodate one hundred persons. The spaces between the side beams were filled with brick to make it fire proof against the shots of the enemy. Two small glass windows, about the size of oranges, were put in the door of the main room to make it possible to watch the pro- ceedings of the court which was once held there by Francis Faulkner, the justice. The old chimney, seven by nine feet, of solid brick, was furnished with three large fireplaces and an oven below and an oven in the attic for smoking hams, and large enough to accomodate all the neighbors, with hooks attached in the arch where the hams could remain suspended until called for.
The committee to get out the timber for the meeting house con- sisted of Samuel Wheeler and Simon Hunt, already mentioned together with
Jonathan Parlin. He lived in the vicinity of the old north burying ground. His grave is marked by a well preserved slate stone which states that he died January 19, 1767 at the age of sixty-nine. His son Samuel, and two subsequent generations lived on the farm owned for many years by Thomas Hammond and later by Willis Holden.
Daniel Shepherd. He lived on the farm subsequently owned by John Cole in 1800, and later by Alvin Raymond and Jedidiah Tuttle. No building exists there today but
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the location is recognizable by a cellar hole about twenty rods east of Hosmer Street at the point where it crosses a small brook just south of the house of Mr. Sid Laffin. John Shepherd. He was a brother of Daniel and presum- ably a bachelor since he did not marry, have offspring, or die in Acton so far as the records disclose. It is possible, of course, that he left Acton for good, sub- sequent to the building of the meeting house.
Jonathan Billing. He was a stone mason and was engaged to do the pointing of the underpinning of the church. He lived on what is now known at Esterbrook Road on the homesite at present owned by Mrs. Charles Baxter. He served as town treasurer from 1739 to 1778. Subsequent residents on the place were his son Jonathan, Paul Dudley, Calvin Harris and Butterfield Harris.
Pursuant of the instructions of the General Court, Mr. John Heald called a preliminary meeting of the citizens on July 21, 1735. The following is a copy of the minutes:
By virtue of this order above ritten the sd John Heald Did assemble the Inhabitants of the Town of Acton on the twenty first Day of July 1735 and then Proseded as followeth
Leut. John Heald was chosen moderator of the meeting, Thomas Wheeler was chosen Town Clerk and was sworn before Colon'l Flint Esqr. Leut. John Heald and Joseph Fletcher and Thomas Wheeler was chosen Selectmen and assessors and was sworn before Colon'l Flint Esqr. They made choice of Jonathan Wheeler and Amos Prescott Constables with John Barker town Treasurer, surveyors of Highways Jonathan Parlin, John Cragon and Sam'l Hayward Each of which was sworn, surveyor of hemp and flax for that year Simon Hunt, tything man John Brooks, fence viewers and Drovers David Procter and Jonathan Hosmer, Hogreeves Jonathan Billing, Daniell Shepard and Joseph Wheeler. Each was sworn as the law directs.
The next few weeks were busy ones. Much important work had to be done and numerous weighty decisions made that demanded the considered opinion of the whole town. Foremost among these were the questions of taxation and the location and erection of the meeting house. In consequence several meetings were necessary, the first being convened at the home of Joseph Barker1 on October 13, 1735 for the purpose of taking action upon the following four articles constitut- ing Acton's earliest town warrant:
1 The Joseph Barker house stood on the west side of Taylor Road opposite the present residence of Mr. Dunn.
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1. To see if the town will agree to have there lands Taxt and se if the Town will Chuse one or more Persons to Petition the Grate and General Court for a Tax on sd Lands.
2. To se if the Town will Begin to Build a meeting house this year and what way they will do it in.
3. To see what money the Town will Raise to Defray Town Charges this year.
4. To se if the Town will Pitch upon a Place to set sd meeting house on.
The vote was affirmative upon article one and John Heald was chosen to present the petition to the General Court. The second article failed to prevail, it presumably being considered by the majority to be more practical to defer action until the town was better organized. On the third article thirty pounds was set as the limit of the town budget for the ensuing year. On article four it was decided, according to the quaint language of clerk Thomas Wheeler to "Set thir meeting house in the Sentre".
This apparently simple decision having been made, however, it immediately became obvious, in what has come to be recognized as true Acton form on all important issues, that the location of the center was a moot question having transcendent ramifications. All through the autumn and winter the argument thrived amain. Evi- dence scientific, political, geographical and religious was brought to the fray. The selectmen met time and again, town meetings were called, votes were passed and nullified with abandon as one faction or another had temporary ascendancy. Nevertheless it was all sound democratic procedure conducted under parliamentary decorum that has made the New England town meeting unparalleled as a school of civic consciousness.
The true inwardness of what was transpiring can best be appre- ciated by excerpts from the records.
Acton, Nov. ye 10th 1735, At a General Town meeting of the Inhabitants of the above sd Town Propounded wither they will Reconsider thare vote that they will Set thare meeting house in the Sentre voted thay will not Reconsider. To se if the Town will make any Preparation towards building a meeting house voted they will Do nothing on that articule.
Sometime previous to November 24, 1735 the selectmen, in an attempt to settle the matter impartially, had engaged surveyors to make the proper measurements and ascertain the center of the town. When the data was in hand they met on the above date and drew up a town warrant containing the following articles:
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-
-
-
BROOKS TAVERN From a Water Color by A. F. Davis
JONES TAVERN
----
1. To have the Surveyors Report that was Chosen to find the Centre.
2. To se if the Town will Reconsider thare vote that they Set thare meeting house in the Centre and agree to Set it a few rods to the Northwest of a black oak marked with an ax and attested to be the Centre by Ebenezer Prescutt or to se if the Town will agree to measure from the most Extrem Corners and find the Centre and Chuse men for that Purpus.
To the modern reader, viewing the proposal through the perspec- tive of the centuries, it seems fair enough but the citizens when assembled on the first Monday in December made short shrift of the matter by immediately dismissing both articles and voting to ad- journ. The reason for this cavalier procedure is not known. It is a recorded fact, however, that the meeting, as well as others, was held outdoors around a fire. Housing facilities being non-existant for any considerable group, the practice had much in its favor. It had also the added advantage of placing the voters at the sites under considera- tion.
Undismayed by the failure, the selectmen submitted two new propositions three weeks later at a meeting convened on December 29th.
1. To se if the Town will Reconsider thare vote that they will Set thare meeting house in the Centre and agree to Set it on a knowl with a Grate many Pines on it Lying South- westerly about twenty or thirty Rods of a black .oak Tree whare the fier was made the Last meeting or to Se if the Town will agree to Set thare meeting house on a knowl to the North of sd oak tree whare they last met or to see if the Town will Chuse two or three men to say which of sd Places is the most convenient or to see if the Commity think that knowl where on Stands a Dead Pine Between the two afore sd knowls or to say which of the three Places are most Convenant
2. to se if the Town will agree to begin to build thare meeting house this year or make any Preparation tharefor against the year Insuing or do anything Relating thereto.
This time the results were much more satisfactory. The voters reaffirmed their determination to erect the meeting house in the center of the town and chose the first site suggested in the warrant, in particular the pine knoll on the land of Dr. Cuming (a few rods south of the present location of the Centre School). Incidentally this spot was between twenty and thirty rods southeast of the geo- graphical center of the town before the subtraction of that portion which eventually was ceded to Carlisle at the time of its incorporation.
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The deed for the land was dated January 25, 1737, and was signed by Anne Cuming, wife of Dr. Alexander Cuming, a surgeon, who was at that time on a trip abroad. The deed is written in large lettered style and is very easily read, an unusual circumstance as chirography went at that time.
At the same meeting it was further decided to start work as soon as possible and to specify the dimensions. The exact record of this mo- mentous decision is given below.
At a General Town meeting of the Inhabitants of the Town of Acton Leagally worned Leut John Heald was Chosen moderator of sd meeting, on the first article Propounded whither the Town will Reconsider thare vote that they will Set thare meeting house in the Centre voted on the afarmative. Propounded whither they will Set thare meeting house on the knowl first mentioned in the Warrant and whare the Pine tree was marked in the Second Division Land of Doctor Cuming voted on the afarmative
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