USA > Massachusetts > Worcester County > Berlin > History of the town of Berlin, Worcester County, Mass. from 1784 to 1959 > Part 2
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INTRODUCTORY FEATURES
To the north we are told that Jabez Fairbanks was, probably, the first settler on the Fairbanks place, at the corner of Highland Street and Randall Road. It is recorded that Jabez was born in 1694. If he settled here at his majority, that would make it the year 1715. Another early settler was John Houghton, 3rd, who located on Pleasant Street where Mrs. Leslie M. Frye resides. He sold the 120-acre farm, near the "Great Brook," which is the "land on which said John Houghton, Jr., has built and now liveth," to Benj. Bailey. (This transaction is dated July 1, 1715. )
By the year 1730, the growth of Lancaster had progressed so far that several sections wished to break away and set up an independent town of their own. So, in 1733, the inhabitants of the southeasterly part of Lancaster sent in a petition to the town asking consent to set up a new township. Finally, an act to incorporate the town of Bolton was passed by the General Court of Massachusetts on June 24, 1738.
By this act Berlin changed her allegiance from Lancaster to Bolton, and for the next forty years was an intricate part of Bolton, sharing many important offices and obligations. But some of the more progressive individuals, who were concerned in creat- ing a civic nucleus in Berlin, lived in that section along the Assa- bet River, which was a possession of Marlboro. There was Samuel Jones, Sr., living on the "Danford Tyler" place. His son, Samuel, was born there in 1726. He married Mehitable Brigham of Marlboro in 1748, and in the same year purchased of Benj. Bailey 137 acres, which included within its limits a large portion of the present central village of Berlin.
It was through the initiatory steps of Samuel Jones that the General Court was persuaded to set off the prescribed southerly part of the town of Bolton "as a separate Parish" and whereby the South Parish of Bolton was created on April 13, 1778.
There is no doubt but that Samuel Jones and his colleagues had in mind the establishment of a local independent government; but they also knew that this must be accomplished through the name of the Church. So they petitioned the General Court "to be set off as a separate Parish, in order that it might be more convenient for them to attend the Public Worship of God." Now this "inconvenience" is supposed to be interpreted as a matter of distance and road conditions between the southern part of the
Bailey Solch Goddard
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HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF BERLIN
town and the Meetinghouse at Bolton Center, but to Mr. Jones and his associates, there was a far deeper "inconvenience" which they did not care or dare to pen into their prayer to the General Court. This was the Goss-Walley controversy which had been fermenting since 1770. While this appeared to be an ec- clesiastical conflict, it had a political core-this Jones knew.
As the late Rev. Joseph N. Pardee says in his article, Thomas Goss vs. the Inhabitants of Bolton, "The invisible root of the trouble, the root that patriots did not care to expose to the King's spies, was that Mr. Goss was a staunch Royalist in politics, as well as an autocrat in the church." The sentiment of the early Berlin community was expressed by Capt. Samuel Jones as he participated in his family devotions, by praying "That the Lord would overturn and overturn, till Goss should lose his case and Walley have his place."
For the next six years the inhabitants of the south half of Bolton enjoyed their Parish government, but they still were a part of the Town of Bolton, and all town affairs had to be con- ducted from this center. In the meantime the population had in- creased to eighty families or about 500 souls, so that they deemed it fitting to make the next move towards an independent govern- ment.
So again under the leadership of Samuel Jones and several other citizens experienced in public affairs (among whom were Ephraim Fairbanks, Esq., Hon. Samuel Baker, and Joshua Johnson), they petitioned the General Court to incorporate the South Parish of Bolton and a section of Marlboro into a District of Berlin. This act was completed on March 16, 1784. They were still required to be represented in the General Court jointly with Bolton, and for their failure to send a Representa- tive in 1790 the Town of Bolton and the District of Berlin were fined. The District of Berlin's proportionate share of this fine was 44 pounds and 14 shillings, ordered to be collected by Constable James Goddard, Jr.
To this District territory there was added the estate of Peter Larkin, consisting of approximately 144 acres, from Lancaster, dated Feb. 3, 1790. This tract was never a part of the Town of Bolton, lying west of the Bolton-Lancaster line, and accounts for
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INTRODUCTORY FEATURES
that rectangular protrusion in the western boundary through which the Boylston road runs.
Another addition was made in 1806 (Feb. 15) when the bounds between the District of Berlin and the Town of Northboro were established, whereby part of each was annexed to the other. This transfer gave Berlin the James R. Parks estate in South Berlin. which included the mills and the (Wheeler) Mill Pond, lo- cated on the North Brook.
With this territory, consisting of thirteen square miles, or approximately 8,138 acres, and a population of 591 souls, they looked forward to the time when they should become a real, inde- pendent town. The realization of their ambition was accomplished in February of 1812 when the Commonwealth of Massachusetts passed upon the following bill:
AN ACT TO INCORPORATE THE DISTRICT OF BERLIN INTO A TOWN BY THE NAME OF BERLIN
Article I. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Represen- tatives, in General Court Assembled, and by authority of the same; that the District of Berlin, in the County of Worcester, be and hereby is, incorporated a town by the name of Berlin, subject to the like duties and requirements, and vested with all the pow- ers, privileges and immunities which other towns do or may en- joy, agreeably to the Constitution and Laws of this Common- wealth.
The wording of this act was recorded in the Town Records of Berlin on March 11, 1812, by Dexter Fay, Town Clerk.
Topography
Berlin has been referred to as the "Hill Town," but it is not solely a rugged terrain any more than the neighboring towns of this section. These hills are interspersed with many valleys, large tracts of cultivated highlands, and rolling, fertile intervales.
To the north of Berlin, in Bolton, there is the ridge of the Wataquadock; from this elevation three spurs project southward into Berlin like the toes of a huge bird. These are, reading from the west to the east, Barnes, Wheeler, and Sawyer Hills. The Barnes Hill spur leads off from Wataquadock (660 feet) at
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HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF BERLIN
Peach Hill at an elevation of 600 feet, and gradually descends southwesterly into Baker's Hill at the Stone House (580 feet). This spur is broken at the foot of Potas Hill (near the Berlin Mushroom Plant and Harriman's Spa) by the waters of the North Brook. Just beyond the New Haven Railroad crossing on Route 62 (290 feet) Barnes Hill proper gradually rises to a height of 540 feet and then continues to rise in Ball Hill to 605 feet at the Northboro-Berlin line. Then bearing somewhat southeast we ascend the slopes of Mt. Pisgah whose pinnacle is 720 feet above sea level, but at the Berlin line it is about 700 feet.
The Wheeler Hill spur bears off from Wataquadock at the Bolton-Berlin line and Carr Road at a point known as Rubber Station (480 feet), and continues to rise, bearing southwardly, to a height of 526 feet; then it declines to the level of the B & M Railroad (approximately 330 feet) and then, as a final punch, there stands Powder House Hill towering to 390 feet and, at its base, the Town House registers 326.5 feet above sea level. From this point southward to the Assabet River lies the great intervale tracts bordered on the west and east, respectively, by the Barnes and Sawyer Hill ranges.
The eastern spur, or Sawyer Hill, branches off from Wheeler Hill near William Wheeler's farm and then seems to emerge from Hog Swamp (340 feet), and as it stretches southeastward it gains a height of 489 feet. This range comes to an abrupt terminus at River Road, a few yards east of Danford Tyler's residence, where the waters of the Assabet have built their lowlands.
One stream, the North Brook, with its tributaries, drains the territory of Berlin. The main stream has its source in the Wata- quadock Hill and flows through the lowlands west of the Barnes range until it reaches the cut in West Berlin where it crosses over to the east side of the range. From here it follows a south- easterly course, through the broad intervale lands, and finally empties into the Assabet River in South Berlin near the farm of Danford B. Tyler.
This drainage of Berlin finds its way to the Atlantic Ocean by way of the following system of rivers. The Assabet and Sudbury Rivers join the Concord River at Concord, which empties into the Merrimack at Lowell and finds its way to the Atlantic Ocean
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INTRODUCTORY FEATURES
near Newburyport, Mass. The Nashua River empties into the Merrimack at Nashua, N. H. Chace Street in Clinton forms a watershed, so that all water to its north flows into the Nashua, and the water to its south drains into the North Brook system. The west fork to the North Brook is an outlet from Clamshell Pond which circumscribes Snake Hill and empties into the North Brook at the north end of McCann's Pond on West Street.
A second feeder to the North Brook is the Coburn Brook. This originates in the springy land near the Stone House of Peach Hill Road and flows southward, east of Coburn Road, to Hale's Pond, where it crosses West Street at Coburn Road and joins the North Brook on land of Hermon L. Sawyer.
A third tributary of the North Brook, formerly known as "Wimpee's Brook," should be called "Wheeler's Brook" for it rises on Wheeler land, off Highland Street, opposite the "Berry" homestead and flows southward crossing Walnut and Central Streets. It is joined by Brewer's Brook on land of Bryant Zwicker, thence it continues southward crossing Pleasant Street near the Leslie Frye homestead, and soon joins the North Brook south of the A. Eason Coulson house.
Along the course of the North Brook several ponds have been created by the building of dams for commercial purposes. Of these there are McCann's Pond in West Berlin and Wheeler's pond in South Berlin. There is one large natural pond within the limits of Berlin. This is Gates Pond, called "Kequasagansett" by the Indians. This beautiful lake, one mile long by one-half mile wide, lies at the eastern base of Sawyer Hill and is ap- proximately 360 feet above sea level. It was once a favorite resort for pleasure seekers and picnic parties in the summer season but in 1883 it was taken over by the Town of Hudson as their source of a water system. At that time the area of the pond was ninety acres with a watershed of 141 acres. In 1898 a new dam was constructed which gave it an additional depth of two feet and increased its watershed by twenty acres. The pond is fed by springs and it drains at the south end through a brook into the Assabet River near the "1790 Farm."
A romantic work of nature is revealed in the "Forty Caves" which lie about midway between the New Haven tracks and Allen Road, about one mile from West Street. Here is a ravine
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HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF BERLIN
. cut through solid rock which exposes cliffs and precipices some fifty feet in height, rent by numerous crevices and perforated by many caverns-the work of ages. Upon these walls of native granite, with its component elements, the geologist may find glacier scratches six inches deep. These scenic quarters furnish splendid picnic grounds as well as a gallery for scientific study. It is a miniature Purgatory.
The Indian Story
Probably there were no established settlements or villages of the Indians in the territory of Berlin, such as the one at the east- ern base of Mt. Wachusett, or that on the little plateau between the two Washacum Lakes, or the nearer settlement at "Five Corners" at the angle near the meeting of the two branches of the Nashua River, but there is an abundance of evidence of their sojourn in seasonable campings and their roaming in their hunt- ing and fishing projects.
For untold centuries they enjoyed the natural resources of Berlin territory prior to the settlement of the white man. Even when their chief, Sholan, contracted with a Company of specu- lators from Watertown to sell them an eighty square mile tract he reserved the rights to their hunting, fishing, and planting grounds, and they continued to occupy our territory until they were driven out after the conclusion of the King Philip War by the increase of white settlements.
The evidences of their sojourn are both physical and traditional. The members of Nashaway tribe of Lancaster to the north and the Ockoocangansett tribe of Marlboro to the south used Berlin territory as a happy meeting grounds. As W. E. Parkhurst says in his Indian Paths and Trails, "They had their hunting grounds and they had well-trodden roads from one mounded village to its neighbor." Thus we could reconstruct this well-trodden trail be- tween the Nashaways and the Ockoocangansetts by following the course of the North Brook through Berlin and fording the Assabet near the 1790 Farm.
When reminded that there were no railroads in those days an old settler replied: "Law no! There wa'nt no railroads in those days, but when they came to building them, they followed the
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INTRODUCTORY FEATURES
trail the hull way." Here we observe that not only did the Old Colony (NY, NH & H R.R.) take advantage of this trail through Berlin, but also the aqueduct of the Metropolitan Water System and the high tension lines of the New England Power follow the same course.
Furthermore, a trail connecting the Wataquadock settlement near Clamshell Pond with Gates Pond may be traced eastward over Boylston Road and connecting ways to the foot of Brewer Road and on over Sawyer Hill to Gates Pond. From thence, by following the course of the outlet to Gates Pond southward to the Assabet, we meet again their neighbors, the Ockoocangan- setts. They also would meet their neighbors at Gates Pond.
Another trail, along whose route many evidences of the former presence of Indians have been found, is from the Wataquadock Hills to Kequasagansett (Gates Pond). This trail may be well traced from the hills over the approximate roads of Carr and Randall, then crossing Highland Street and continuing overland by Hog Swamp, connecting with Gates and Fosgate Roads to Gates Pond.
Of course an interlacing of paths were scattered over the en- tire Berlin territory, so that Indian relics have been found in various parts. On the Larkin estate near the homes of the late Ella Howe and Warren Larkin of Boylston Road, at the base of cliffs and ledges, are the (reputed) Indian ovens on the tradi- tional camping grounds of the Wataquadock Tribe. Many relics of arrowheads, skinning flints, bludgeons, stone hammer heads, and scalping knives have been found on Snake Hill. Many of these specimens have been placed in the Worcester Historical Society.
Another section which is rich in Indian lore is Hog Swamp. It was here that the Indians had a splendid hunting territory. It was through the courtesy of J. Adams Puffer and Danford B. Tyler that we learned of the discovery of such as skinning stones, flints, bludgeons, and other hunting implements in this locality.
On Wheeler Hill the late F. Sherman Wheeler found a rare and remarkable arrowhead. This was not a native flint but an obsidian, hard and brittle, with vitreous luster, similar to stone found in Colorado. This relic is now in the possession of the Berlin Art and Historical Society.
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HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF BERLIN
Throughout the territory south of Gates Pond, on the lands of the late Waldo L. Wheeler and Myron S. Wheeler, many Indian relics have been found. The late Arthur Hastings had reported many findings on his farm in South Berlin. These included flint arrowheads, mortars, Indian corn bowls and pestle. On the stone wall in front of his residence there was an Indian head cut from a stone found on his farm.
Near the confluence of the North Brook with the Assabet River, upon land of Danford B. Tyler, there is a mound reputed to have been a burying place of the Indians. On a plot of land off River Road bordering on the Assabet River there is evidence of an Indian camp where many stone chips have been found such as would have been thrown off in the making of arrowheads and other stone implements.
When the English colony from Sudbury took possession of their grant (of Marlboro) in 1656 they found not only Indian corn fields but Indian apple orchards in a bearing state.
Following the subjugation of the Indians by the conclusion of the King Philip and French and Indian Wars a few members of Indian groups continued to visit and wander over Berlin terri- tory. Several current stories are told relative to this period which give us a more personal view of the Indian story. It is said to have been a common practice at the home of Peter Larkin of Boylston Road to leave the door unlatched; and ofttimes an Indian or more would drop in after nightfall, lie down before the fireplace, sleep and rest; then at the break of day continue on his journey. The family of Reuben Hastings, who lived on West Street near the Clinton line, in Dewey Park, tells a similar story.
It was through these visitations that the inhabitants of Berlin learned of many habits in the life of these Indians. For instance, the late Mr. Clarence Carville told this story, learned through previous generations: One day one of these wandering Indians informed them that the campsite of the Wataquadock Tribe was near Clamshell Pond and that they brought their deceased chief here, and he was buried west of Carville switch on Route 70, which is now covered by the dike of the Wachusett Reservoir. Likewise, the late Arthur Hastings told that through earlier settlers he learned that upon his farm land near the Assabet River there was a settlement of Indians.
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INTRODUCTORY FEATURES
It is related that as late as 1735 Josiah Sawyer, as he passed by on his homeward journey from his clearing on Sawyer Hill, was frightened by an Indian who was resting at the Sleeping Rock.
In his book, Indian Names and Places in Worcester County (1905), Mr. Lincoln N. Kinnicutt preserves for us the meaning of several of the Indian terms of our locale. Wataquadock, "Branches of trees or wood for fuel" and "Field or land which is cultivated," thus signifying a tract of open land over which fallen trees were scattered-or "a wood-land." Kequasagansett (Gates Pond), "Earth quake" or "It (earth) trembles." Assabet (River), "The stream we drink from." Probably the only attempt to pre- serve Indian names was in the Triangular Tennis Clubs which flourished between the years of 1900 and 1917. They were the Kequasagansett of the Center, Minne-wa-wa of the west part, and the Shanondasee of the South Berlin section.
There are different viewpoints of the attitude of the white man toward the Indian. In Clara Endicott Sears' book, The Great Powwow, she expresses the humanitarian view which grants the Indian his native rights. Likewise, Mrs. Marion Fuller Safford in her work, A Story of Colonial Lancaster, pictures the back- ground or cause of the conflict between the white settlers and the Indians; on the other hand Miss Harriet W. Forbush, poetess of Lancaster, expresses the view that the Indian was basically barbarous and retaliative beyond reason.
In conclusion, may we contribute Berlin's aftermath in the lines of:
THE INDIAN'S HOME-LAND
Have you ever seen our country town With its fertile vales and wooded hills? Spurs of grand old Wataquadock, Once the home of Indian thrills. Here they roamed, o'er crest and gulley Seeking food, raiment and glee. But their kin have long been silent, Since our kin have gained the lea.
Have you ever traced our streamlets, From their source, in yonder hills?
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HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF BERLIN
Or the West Fork from the Clamshell To its junction at the mills? And then follow it down the valley Til it joins the Assabet. And search its shoals for remnants, from The dwellers of Ockoocangansett.
Have you e'er sensed our crystal lake? Called by the Indians-"Kequasagansett." Fishing and canoeing o'er its vast expanse; Following its outlet to the Assabet. When at sundown, all the hylas Throb their weird and rhythmic lay, Like the guttural, far-off chantings Of the Nipmunks, o'er the way.
Have you ever viewed Mount Wachusett, Once a stronghold of Indian braves? Like a guardian, at the gate it stands, Silent watcher o'er their graves. Or have you climbed fair Mount Pisgah And scanned the "Promised Lands"? Vouched to the Indians as "unmolested Hunting, fishing and planting" stands.
*"Have you noticed-they have left us? They will never more be found- They have crossed the purple hilltops To their Happy Hunting-Ground. Yet, when twilight shrouds the lowlands, And the frogs their banjos play, I seem still to hear the singing Of the braves of Nashaway."
" (") From The Valley of the Nashaway Indians by Clara E. Sears.
CHAPTER II THE CHURCH AND RELIGION
Theoretically the Church and Religion predominate over the Political and Civic affairs of the community. Whenever the people desired to make a division or change in their political unit, they made their appeal in the name of religious worship. Thus, when the inhabitants of the southern half of the town of Bolton desired to form a new town, they worded their petition in these words: "Whereas, for the greater convenience for attend- ing the Public Worship of God it is found necessary to set off a part of the town of Bolton ... as a separate Parish."
The Parish was a political unit, but its chief concern was for the establishment of a place of worship and the selection of a minister. Thus after choosing "all the necessary Parish Officers," their next article was, "to agree upon a Meeting-house spot for said Parish," and thirdly, "to see what the Parish will do about having preaching amongst ourselves."
In the Parish meeting of September 29, 1778, it was voted "to have preaching among ourselves" and they granted one hundred pounds to support preaching and thirteen pounds, nine shillings, "to pay the incorporation expenses." At a subsequent meeting of December 24, 1778, they voted "to choose a committee to take a deed of the Meeting-house spot, on the little hill north of the road leading from Samuel Jones' house to the Samuel Rice shop, at the crotch of the roads."
This Deed was made by Samuel Jones who specified that "for and in consideration of the love and good which I have for the inhabitants of the South Parish in sª Bolton, and for ye speedy settlement of the Gospel in sª Parish, have given . .. one acre and twenty rods of land ... for a Meeting-house place and ac- commodation."
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HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF BERLIN
In the meantime, on April 7, 1779, the South Parish Church of Bolton was organized through an ecclesiastical council con- sisting of delegates from the Churches of Westboro, Shrewsbury, Northboro, and Stow. Twenty-five men signed the covenant and were considered the original members. Probably the wives of the married members also belonged. These were as follows:
Josiah Sawyer, Dea. Abijah Pratt
Fortunatus Barnes
Alexander McBride
Edward Johnson
James McBride
Daniel Bruce
Joshua Johnson
Jotham Maynard, Jr.
Benjamin Bailey
Eleazer Johnson
William Babcock
Jotham Maynard
Joshua Johnson, Jr.
Jacob Moore
John Hudson
Silas Bailey
Jonathan Meriam, Dea.
Barnabas Bailey
Phineas Howe
Barnabas Maynard
Amos Meriam
Samuel Jones
Levi Meriam
James Goddard
From this date (April 7, 1779) until 1836, there were two organizations that administered the affairs of the Church. The Parish, District, or Town meeting, on the one hand, concurred with the actions of the Church meeting by granting their finan- cial support. The Church budget was raised by taxation-appro- priated at the annual (Town) meeting, as prescribed under Art. III of the Constitution of Massachusetts, which required that the several towns or parishes should be taxed for "the support and maintenance of the public worship of God."
At the Parish meeting of May 31, 1779, it was voted to grant 800 pounds, in addition to the 200 pounds previously voted for preaching, "to enable the committee to carry on building the Meetinghouse, and also instructed this committee to provide Rum, Cider, Spike Poles and other necessaries for raising the Meetinghouse."
The Meetinghouse was raised on June 16, 1779 with the cus- tomary ceremonies. The meetings for worship and for Parish business were held within the house afterwards, for some time in an unfinished state, and remained the same for several years owing to the depreciation of paper money. One dollar of silver was worth forty dollars of paper or continental money. This humble meetinghouse became the rendezous for groups of worshipers, Parish, District, and Town Meetings, until the year 1826 when it was taken down by vote of the Town and a new building erected.
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