USA > Massachusetts > Worcester County > Lancaster > History of the town of Lancaster, Massachusetts : from the first settlement to the present time, 1643-1879 > Part 6
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The road to Concord was laid out in May or June, 1656, by a joint committee from the two towns. George Wheeler and John Smalley from Concord acting with John Roper and
67
THE FIRST ROADS.
Ralph Houghton performed the duty, whereof we have this record. "We whose hands are hereunto put, being chosen by Concord and Lancaster, to lay out the country highway be- twixt the said towns, within the bounds of Lancaster, have acted and concluded that the country highway shall go as followeth. The place whence we took our beginning is at the highway beginning betwixt the lot of John Prescott [1] and John Moore's [6] lot, and so running on the east side of the minister's house, and over the north river by Lawrence Waters' house [18] and so over Penacook river near to the house of Edward Brick [19,] [east of C. L. Wilder] and so over the interval, and through Swans' swamp, where the town hath already marked out a highway for themselves, and so along to a little pine tree on the north side of Wata- quadock hill, and so along the old path, or where may be most convenient within the bounds of Lancaster." The same road is afterwards laid down in the reverse order, in the words following. "One way for the country lieth from the entrance into the town on the east part, from Waterquaduc hill down to the Swans' swamp, and over the wading place through Pennycook river, that is by the Indian ware, [wear, a dam for taking fish, ] and so along by Master Rowlandson's ground and the river, and again up to goodman Waters, his barn, between old goodman Brick's lot and that which was Richard Smiths, now in the possession of John Tinker, [29,] to be as it is staked out, at the least five rods wide on the Neck, and to be as wide as can be on the east side of the river - the Penacook - under ten rods and above five; and so from goodman Waters over the North river, up by Master Rowlandson's, D, the breadth as is laid out and fenced, marked and staked, up to goodman Prescott's ryefield,- and so between that and John Moor's lot, and across the brook, and up between John Johnson's and John Rugg's lots, five rods wide, and so beyond all the lots into the woods."
The only difficulty in fixing the location of this road arises when we reach the " highway beginning betwixt the lot of
1
68
HISTORY OF LANCASTER.
John Prescott - called his 'rye-field '- and John Moor's lot." To this we shall recur again.
About the same date, (perhaps a little earlier,) the two Neck roads were opened. The east road on the Neck went "from goodman Brick's house, [19,] through the end of his ground, and Ralph Houghton's," [20,] and so on to " Quassoponican hill," - sometimes called Whittemore hill -"full five rods wide." Edward Breck's house, as said above, was near the corner of the road east of the house of C. L. Wilder.
The west road of the Neck, now the main street from the Sprague bridge to the North Village, extended from " good- man Waters barn [18] to Quassoponikin meadow, before the house of goodman Gates, [34,] both goodman Joslins, [36,] etc., as it is laid out and marked, five rods wide, and in the interval two rods wide." This road was probably some rods west of the present main street. It began near the bridge over the North river, some twenty rods above the Sprague bridge, and ran along the hillside west of the houses now situated on the west side of the main road; near the house of John W. Barnes, across the grounds of Rev. Mr. Bartol, and those living north, by the house of William McNeil, and onward to the road that now passes between Edward Phelps and Mrs. Benjamin Otis, into the Ponakin intervale. The eastern range of lots on the Neck, extended from Nashua river one hundred and sixty rods west, and as the river curves often, the western bound of the lots was not in a straight line. This road, by degrees, was moved eastward, up the hill, and made nearly straight, as it is at present. There is an angle of about twelve degrees near the house of Mrs. Emily Green.
Next in the Records we find " one way to the Mill at the head of the lots of John Prescott, Thomas Sawyer, E, Jacob Farrah, five rods wide from the country highway to the mill." Prescott's Mill was in Clinton, where now stands the Clinton yarn mill. The road laid out was from the south part of South Lancaster to Clinton.
69
OLD ROADS.
There is some difficulty in locating the next road. The Record reads as follows: "One way, called the street or crossway, from goodman Kerley's intervale, and the rest of the intervail lotts, and so south between the double range of lots, five rods wide, and so towards Weshacome when it is past Jacob Farrow's lot; and also it receives the same width between the house lots and intervale lots northward to the walnut swamp." The intervale lots here mentioned, ex- tended from the North river, on either side of Roper's brook, south by west towards the farm of Mr. Thayer, where William A. Kilbourn now resides. It is supposed that the road began at the south end of the intervale, and went southerly, on the west side of the little brook behind the house of Mrs. Mary Ware, and rising to the top of the bank, passed to the rear of all the houses on the west side of the street in south Lancaster, and southwesterly to the house of Jonas Goss. Not far from the house of Mr. Goss, it passed up the hill, and thence onwards to Weshacome. All these early roads are indicated by double lines.
Another road extended from the "millway at the end of goodman Prescott's rye-field to the entrance of his intervale, five rods wide, and through the intervale over Nashaway river and the Still river to the outside fence of Jacob Farrar's lott, two rods and an half wide." This road began, prob- ably, about ten or twelve rods west of Mrs. Ware's corner, and went easterly, by the present way to the Atherton bridge. Crossing the river it kept along the eastern bank of the river to the "Neck bridge " where it met the Concord road, which went over Wattaquadock hill.
Finally, " one way from that intervale way down along all the intervale, to the Still river, and towards Groton, on the east side of the river, two rods wide." This road began at the crossing of the Penacook, and was directly in the line over which " Dead river " now flows, in times of high water, with a volume nearly equal to the main stream.
70
HISTORY OF LANCASTER.
Bridges were ordered to be built over the Nashua, near Carter's mills, I, and the North river above the Sprague bridge, J, in the year 1659. The Records, under date of January 14, 1659, read : "The Selectmen ordered for the bridges over Nashaway and North river, that they that are on the Neck of land do make a cart bridge over the North river, by goodman Waters', and they on the south end do make a cart bridge over Nashaway about the wading place, at their own expense." This is enough for the present. The matter of bridge-building will claim more attention in later pages.
It is now easy to show the reader where the first inhabitants set up their rude homes. Beginning at the cross-road in South Lancaster, the first lot belonged to John Prescott, [1]. His lots were in two ranges, one on either side of the road. The lots in the east range were forty rods wide, north and south, and eighty rods long, extending from the road between the North river and South Lancaster, to the intervale east of the railroad. The lots in the western range were twenty rods wide, and one hundred and sixty rods long, extending from the road on the east, to another parallel road up the side of George hill, perhaps fifty rods west of the present road. The lots were made thus narrow that the settlers might be kept in close proximity. Prescott had a lot in each range. On the east side of the road running north and south, and north side of the road running east and west, his lot was forty rods wide and eighty rods long. The double line on the map will show his bounds on the west. Next north was the lot of John Moor, [6,] of the same measure- ment. But between the two was a road one rod wide. This was the way " betwixt John Moor's lot and Prescott's rye- field." John Tinker [7] came next with a lot of the same size. Then came church lands, meeting-house hill, C, and intervale to the North river.
South of Prescott and across the road were the lots of Thomas Sawyer, E, Jacob Farrar, [3,] and John Rigby, [4,] of similar dimensions.
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INDICATING RESIDENCES Before the Massacre of 1675.
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71
HOME LOTS AND HOUSES.
Going back to the starting point, John Prescott had a lot, [8,] on the west side of the road to the Center, twenty rods wide, and one hundred and and sixty rods long. Opposite on the south side of the road, where Mr. Graham now lives, Jonas Fairbank, [5,] had a lot, forty by eighty rods, and south of him was " commons land," [2].
North of Prescott, and extending to the North river, lots twenty rods wide were assigned as follows. Stephen Day, [9,] the printer. He never came, and the lot seems to have been occupied, if not owned, by John Johnson, [9]. Next came Philip Knight, [10,] and perhaps John Roper. It would seem that John Rugg had a half lot next to Roper. Between the lot of Roper and the next one, a road extended westerly, across the farm of Mr. Thayer, up George hill, by the house of Frank Taylor, and so on where "human needs may require." Daniel Gains [11] came in somewhere in this vicinity. Probably he bought the south half of the lot of John Rugg, [12]. It is impossible to indicate precisely the ownership between Prescott and Henry Kerley, who owned the fifth lot. The men just named owned either in succession or in common. Henry Kerley's lot [13] covered part of the land where the house of Mr. Thayer now stands. His father, William Kerley, [14,] lived nearly opposite the cemetery ; though at one time, John and Richard Smith [15] had a foothold in that vicinity. Rev. Mr. Rowlandson, D, though he had land between the North and Penacook rivers, lived next north of the senior Kerley. His house was the garrison, and the meeting-house, C, was a few rods to the southeast, across the road, and near the eastern brow of cemetery hill. Next north of Mr. Rowlandson was the lot and house of William Kerley, jr. [17] Between him and the river was an intervale lot.
Crossing the North river about twenty rods above the present, or Sprague bridge, the first lot and house belonged to Lawrence Waters, [18]. If we suppose the road coming west from the railroad between the Mansion house and
72
HISTORY OF LANCASTER.
Mr. Stowell, and along between the houses of Mr. Vose and Mr. Royce, about twenty rods into the intervale, it would meet the road coming from South Lancaster near the bridge. Law- rence Waters was somewhere southeast of that road, and not far from the residence of Mr. Symmes. The first lot situ- ated between the road to the North Village on the west and Penacook river on the east, was owned by Edward Breck, [19]. Like all the lots on the eastern side of the road, it was twenty rods wide and one hundred and sixty rods long. Mr. Breck's house was near the turn of the road between the houses of C. L. Wilder and Daniel Bemis, Esq. The next lot north was assigned to Richard Linton, [29;] Ralph Houghton came next. But Houghton and Linton made an exchange, the former taking the east end of Linton's lot, and the latter the west end of Houghton's lot, so that each had a lot forty rods by eighty. Houghton [20] lived on the east road of the Neck, and Linton on the west end, somewhere in the vicinity of Mrs. Carleton's house. The third lot in the range was owned by Ralph Houghton. This was one hundred and sixty rods in length.
Next in order came the lot of James Atherton, [21,] ex- tending from the river on the east to where the Hotel Lan- caster stands. The owners in succession going up the Neck road, were John White, [22,] William Lewis, [23,] John Lewis, [24,] Thomas James, [25,] Edmon Parker, [26,] Jacob Farrar, [27,] and Roger Sumner, [28]. All these lots were bounded on the east by the river, except the last, which butted on the Neck road, then running east of the Lane place. The north boundary of Sumner was the road extending from the Whiting place, where Mr. Powers now lives, by the Lane place, and on beyond the brickyards. Gamaliel Beaman's lot [38] was north of this road. All the owners above-mentioned, (unless perhaps Atherton, ) had their homes on one or the other side of the eastern, or in modern phrase, the Neck road.
73
LOCATION OF THE MEETING-HOUSE.
Coming now to the west side of the Neck and starting from Lawrence Waters' lot, the first lot on the west of the road which goes by the churches to the North Village, we find the lot of Richard Linton, [30]. This extended from the spot where Mr. Royce resides, up the road forty rods, and eighty rods west, or to the North river. Next came the lot of Robert Breck, [31,] forty rods, extending along the west side of the Common. Breck never resided in town. In order came John Whitcomb, [32,] John Whitcomb, jr., [33,] John Gates, [34,] Nathaniel Joslin, [35,] and Thomas Joslin, [36].
All the above-named proprietors were settled compactly together, south and north of the North river, or in South Lancaster, and the Center, then styled "the Neck." The meeting-house stood as near the center of the plantation as possible, if it were to be on high land, and south of the river. And remembering that the settlement soon extended to the Prescott mills - what is now Clinton, -it will be seen that the convenience of all was consulted in the location of the house of worship. The original plan was to have the center of the town near the "meeting of the rivers." One standing on the site of the first meeting-house could see nearly every dwelling-house in the whole plantation, pro- vided the view was not obstructed by trees, and one of the first necessities of the planters was to level the forest around their habitations.
The location of the other settlers need not be exactly determined. As new families came, they either purchased of those already here, or took lots in other parts of the town, though at first, not very remote. Mordecai McLoud [37] was somewhere near the cemetery in the North Village. John Houghton took a house lot in what is now Bolton, but his land extended into Lancaster. Richard Wheeler was next north of John Houghton. His intervale came to the Nashua river, east of South Lancaster. Later John Houghton had his home on the Old Common.
The upland and intervale of
74
HISTORY OF LANCASTER.
Thomas Wilder extended from the North river on the east and north sides towards the road where Henry D. Stratton now lives, [the Keyes place, ] and there was a road from the bridge above the house of Sprague Vose to, and probably through, or by Wilder's farm. The second Thomas Wilder lived on the north side of the Old Common.
The upland and intervale of Rev. Mr. Rowlandson was between the Penacook and the North river, as the Records say, and was " laid out southardly by the North river, easterly by Penacook river, and westerly by the lot of Richard Smith." This was all in one lot of thirty-nine acres, thirteen of upland and twenty-six of intervale. He had land also near his house, called the garrison.
The " Church Lands " were in the vicinity of the meeting- house, and probably covered the land included in the middle cemetery. There were about thirty acres in the upland, and the lot reached, on the east, to the intervale lots of Prescott and Sawyer. Some of the Church Lands were near Clam- shell pond.
The various proprietors had, besides their twenty acres of upland, parcels of intervale, meadow and swamp lands, in . different parts of the town.
Having fixed the location of the settlers on their farms, and indicated the lines of road by which they were bound together, the way is clear to attend to their action as a town. And here it may be noted that they acted at one time in the capacity of a town, and at another as a body of proprietors. But since the proprietors, for a long period, constituted the great body of the town, the record of the action of either body may be considered as legitimate town history.
For about three or four years after the act of incorpo- ration, the town proceeded in the ways above indicated. But it was soon found that there were serious matters of differ- ence which the settlers could not adjust to their satisfaction. Therefore the town sent the following Petition to the gen- eral court, signed by the inhabitants. " Whereas sundry
75
THE COMMITTEE.
persons in this town, the last year, at the general court, by petition did obtain the full liberty of a plantation to choose selectmen, and to order our prudentials as other towns do, supposing the town to be furnished for that purpose ; but now, upon this short time of experience, this plantation find- ing ourselves unable to act and order our prudentials, by public town meetings, as a township, by reason of many inconveniences and incumbrances, which we find that way, nor by selectmen by reason of the scarcity of freemen, (being but three there in number,) we want liberty of choice, and the law requires, (as your petitioners do conceive,) the greater vote [majority] of them that act to be freemen. The premises being considered, your petitioners do humbly crave that the honored court would be pleased to take our condition into their consideration, and appoint a committee invested with power from the general court to put us into such a way of order as we are capable of, or any other way which the honored court may judge safest and best, both for the present and future good of us and our town, and those that are to succeed us. And such a committee, so appointed, and so impowered, may stand till they be able to make return to the general court, that the town is suffi- ciently able to order our prudential affairs according as the law requires."
A word of explanation will clear up what is doubtful about the object of this petition, and show that the town could not go forward without some such arrangement as was sought. The general court, at its first session, in 1631, ordered " that no man should be admitted to the freedom of this commonwealth, but such as are members of some of the churches within the limits of this jurisdiction." This was the law till 1664. As there were some thirty proprietors in Lancaster in 1656, and among them only three freemen, the whole legal power of the town was in very few hands. As the petitioners conceived that a majority of the selectmen must decide, it might be, when a difference of opinion
76
HISTORY OF LANCASTER.
occurred, that the whole town would be governed by two men. This was intolerable. The court felt this, and gave a favor- able answer, and judged " it meet to grant their request, and do therefore order and appoint major Simon Willard, cap- tain Edward Johnson and Thomas Danforth commissioners, impowering them to order the affairs of the said Lancaster, and to hear and determine their several differences and grievances which obstruct the present and future good of the town ; standing in power till they be able to make return to the general court that the town is sufficiently able to order its own affairs according to law."
This was passed at the May session, 1657, on the seven- teenth of the month, and the commissioners soon entered on the duties of their office. Major Simon Willard became a proprietor and inhabitant of the town. The other two never came here to reside, but made visits of business. Major Willard was invited to come, and received liberal grants of land as an inducement. He was distinguished in our early history as a member of the council, and as a military officer. He is largely referred to in the genealogy of the Willard family, prepared with great care and judgment by his descendant, Joseph Willard. He was exceedingly valuable as a citizen from his ability, probity and sound discretion. His name will appear often in the course of our history.
Edward Johnson lived in Woburn and was the author of a volume, often referred to, which has survived to our time, entitled, "Wonder-working Providence of Zion's Saviour in New England." Mr. Willard styles this " a very singular, curious and enthusiastic work." He was evidently a man of character and of prudence in affairs.
Cambridge was the home of Thomas Danforth. He certi- fied to the copy of the Act of the court just recited, and may have been Clerk. He was one of the assistants, so called, and deputy governor, and on the whole a man of distinction in his day. When the witchcraft delusion was at its height,
77
THE SELECTMEN.
he was one of the few like Increase Mather and Samuel Willard, president and vice-president of Harvard college, who acted like men of wisdom. It appears therefore that the general court dealt kindly by the town in the choice of commissioners. The good and wise Winthrop was present no longer to guide, having died in 1649. Richard Belling- ham was governor from that year till 1673, except two years, when John Endicott was in the chair.
The first meeting of the commissioners was held, on the nineteenth of September, 1657, at the house of John Pres- cott. Their first act was to choose five men, residents of the town, and proprietors, and two if not three of them free- men, to do the work of selectmen. The entry on the Records read thus : "That master John Tinker, William Kerley, sen., John Prescott, Ralph Houghton and Thomas Sawyer, shall be, and are hereby impowered to order and manage the prudential affairs of the said town, for this year next ensuing, and until such others be allowed and confirmed by the commissioners in their stead and place."
This was a singular, but proved to be a judicious plan for governing the town. The commissioners chose the select- men, but the latter performed the duties of the office as if they had been chosen by the town. They were, however, under the supervision of the commissioners, and received directions from them. Some of the orders of the commis- sioners, which were of general import will be read with interest at this late day. The first related to the work of the ministry in the place, and directed that the selectmen take care for the due encouragement of Master Rowlandson, laboring in the " Ministry of God's holy word, and also that they take care for erecting a meeting-house, pound and stocks, and that they see to the laying out of town and county highways, and the town bounds, and the making and executing of all such orders and by-laws, as may be for the common good of the place." They were also to regulate concerning cornfields, meadows, common pasturage land,
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HISTORY OF LANCASTER.
fencing of herding cattle, restraining swine, and for recover- ing fines and forfeitures of those persons who had taken up land without fulfilling the conditions thereof. It was their business to pay town debts, and levy and collect taxes, and they had authority to compel payment of taxes.
A wise direction was "that there be accommodations of land reserved for the meet encouragement of five or six able men to come and inhabit in the place, as may be helpful to the encouragement of the work of God, and the common good of the place." The Commissioners confirmed the " deed of a gift made by the town unto Master Rowlandson, of a house and land which was set apart for the use of the ministry," upon suitable conditions which were fulfilled.
The 'next regulation, which would seem strange now, when the need of it has passed away, but which was acted upon by towns for more than a hundred years after the time under review, provided that no persons should be " enter- tained as inmates or tenants," or be allowed to "inhabit within the bounds " of the town, without the consent of the selectmen. This consent to be valid, was to be entered upon the Records of the town. The penalty was twenty shillings per month, both to the person who should so " offend by intruding himself, and also to the person who should offend in receiving or entertaining " such new comer. No other persons were to be "admitted to the enjoyment of the privileges of the place and township, either in accom- modations, votes, elections, or disposals of any of the com- mon privileges and interests " of the town.
The reason for such regulations is obvious. The one forfeiting the rights of original proprietors who refused to become residents, prevented many of the best lots from remaining in the hands of absentees. It was needful for security that the first settlers should live in the closest neighborhood, and therefore the lots were so narrow that the houses could be only twenty, or at most only forty rods apart. Absentee ownership would break up this arrange-
79
ARBITRATORS.
ment. This plan also prevented speculation on the rise of land without sharing in the toil and danger of improvement. But this alone was not enough. What was to prevent those who acquired lots by purchase, from coming here, (and bringing servants or hired men,) however hostile to the manners and customs of the place, or from sending up men of loose habits and bad character, to cultivate their land. In laying the foundation of the town these were consider- ations of the utmost importance. After the solid foundations were laid, there might be safety in admitting other materials. Having a basis of "gold, silver and precious stones," there might be a capacity for enduring a certain amount of " wood, hay and stubble."
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