USA > Massachusetts > Hampshire County > Middlefield > History of the town of Middlefield, Massachusetts > Part 2
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MAP OF TRAILS IN MIDDLEFIELD TERRITORY, 1775 insert facing page 28
GLENDALE FALLS. FOUNDATIONS OF RHOADS' MILL
33
JOSIAH LEONARD'S AUTOGRAPH.
ENOS BLOSSOM'S TAVERN. OLIVER BLUSH'S TAVERN
ELIAKIM WARDWELL'S SIGNATURE
BARZELA LITTLE'S AUTOGRAPH.
HOUSE OF WILLIAM TAYLOR. HOUSE OF AMASA GRAVES
JOHN DICKSON'S SIGNATURE. .
HOUSE OF DANIEL LEACII. HOUSE OF JOHN SMITHI ..
CAPTAIN A. DICKSON'S TAVERN. ASA SMITII'S TAVERN.
MAP OF MIDDLEFIELD, 1783. .insert facing page
DAVID MACK'S SIGNATURE. .
BISSELL PHELPS'S AUTOGRAPH.
HOUSE OF DAVID MACK. HOUSE OF SAMUEL JONES
WILLIAM SKINNER'S AUTOGRAPH.
FIRST MEETINGHOUSE IN MIDDLEFIELD.
MAP OF MIDDLEFIELD, 1800. insert facing page
DR. WILLIAM COLEMAN'S AUTOGRAPH.
HOUSE OF THOMAS BLOSSOM. HOUSE OF CALVIN SMITII.
OLIVER BLISH'S AUTOGRAPHI.
NATHAN MANN'S AUTOGRAPII.
HOUSE OF JOHN METCALF. HOUSE OF DR. COLEMAN.
MOSES HERRICK'S AUTOGRAPHI.
AMASA BLUSH'S AUTOGRAPH.
SCHOOLHOUSE IN WEST DISTRICT. SCHOOLHOUSE IN NORTHI DISTRICT. .
SAMUEL TAYLOR, JR. 'S AUTOGRAPHI.
GREEN H. CHURCHI'S AUTOGRAPII
AMBROSE CHURCH'S AUTOGRAPH.
ETHIAMAR PELTON'S AUTOGRAPH.
JUSTUS BISSELL'S AUTOGRAPHI.
HOUSES OF ENOCH CROWELL, ISAAC GLEASON, DAN PEASE, T. DURANT HOUSE BUILT BY AMBROSE CHURCH. ELI CROWELL'S HOUSE.
HOUSES OF MATTHEW SMITH, JR., JESSE WRIGHT, A. RUSSELL, I. PEASE HOUSES OF CAPTAIN T. MCELWAIN, ITHAMAR PELTON, U. CHURCH, JR. 128
DOOR OF I. PELTON'S HOUSE. DOOR OF J. DICKSON'S HOUSE. . 130
HOUSE OF URIAH CHURCH. HOUSE OF DEACON JOHN NEWTON. . 133
LOOKING NORTHEAST FROM THE MCELWAIN FARM. THIE BARN ACROSS THE ROAD. 137
MAP OF MIDDLEFIELD, 1850. . insert facing page 141
SKETCH OF FACTORY VILLAGE, 1856. 144
CHURCH'S UPPER AND LOWER MILLS. SCENE IN FACTORY VILLAGE. 147 EBENEZER EMMONS' AUTOGRAPH . 151 MAP OF VILLAGES IN MIDDLEFIELD TOWNSHIP, 1870. . insert facing page 151 SKETCHI OF MIDDLEFIELD CENTER, 1866.
152 153
SKETCH OF U. CHURCH & SONS' STORE, 1856.
OLD AND NEW MIDDLEFIELD STATIONS. STORE AND SCHOOL AT SWITCH 158
161
MAP OF MIDDLEFIELD IN 1870. . .insert facing page MT. GOBBLE AND FARM OF DANIEL ROOT. 162
35 40 41 41 42 45 46 49 62 67 72 73 76 81 90 92 93 97 98 99 10-4 105 109 112 116 116 117 117 120 123 126
xxiv
HISTORY OF MIDDLEFIELD
DEEP ROCK CUTTING ON WESTERN RAILROAD-129th MILE.
166 OLIVER SMITH, 2nd; PAIN LOVELAND; MRS. SARAH ( METCALF ) DICK- SON ; MATTHEW SMITH, ESQ. ; AMBROSE NEWTON; SAMUEL SMITH 169 JOHN METCALF'S AUTOGRAPH. . 172 HENRY DICKSON ; EDWARD KING; MATTHEW SMITH; JOHN L. BELL; HENRY HAWES; GEORGE COTTRELL, SR.
173
ANNUAL CATTLE SHOW. VIEWING THIE STOCK. WINNER OF FIRST PREMIUM
177
OLD CENTER SCHOOLHOUSE. TOWN HALL AND CHURCH. MACK STORE .. 186 HOUSES IN UPPER AND LOWER FACTORY VILLAGE. 190 HOUSES OF JOSEPHI WARREN, E. MORGAN, B. WARD. 192 HOUSES OF H. TAYLOR, S. SMITH, T. ROOT, L. ROOT. 194 SOLOMON ROOT'S STORE. HOUSES OF E. J. INGHAM AND A. EVERETT SCHOOLHOUSES IN MIDDLEFIELD. 196 200 CONGREGATIONAL PARSONAGE. HOUSE OF JAMES T. CHURCH 202 HOUSES OF OLIVER AND SUMNER U. CHURCH 203 MAP OF MIDDLEFIELD, 1897 insert facing page 205 VIEWS OF THE RESERVOIR. . 206 209 FLOOD SCENES IN UPPER VILLAGE. DAM AS REBUILT. 1874 FACTORY VILLAGE FROM WEST HILL. FROM BRIDGE. 213 215
METCALF J. SMITH ; EDWARD P. SMITH; ARNOLD PEASE.
HARVEY ROOT; CHAS. COMBS; DEACON H. MEACHAM; ELDRIDGE PEASE; AMBROSE ROBBINS ; MORGAN PEASE .. 219
OLIN OLDS ; HIRAM TAYLOR; R. D. GEER; ASHER PEASE; JACOB ROR- BINS; DANIEL ALDERMAN
FLOOD VIEWS, 1901.
MAP OF MIDDLEFIELD, 1924. .insert facing page
ROAD TO BANCROFT. RAILROAD ARCH OVER FACTORY BROOK.
HOUSE OF MRS. G. ROBERTS. HOUSE OF THOMAS MARTIN
BUNGALOWS OF H. A. YOUTZ, A. S. CRANE, C. W. SHAW
AN ABANDONED FARM. HOUSE OF HENRY S. PEASE.
MIDDLEFIELD CENTER, 1883. MIDDLEFIELD CENTER, 1923
DANIEL CHAPMAN'S AUTOGRAPHI .
REV. JONATHAN NASH'S AUTOGRAPH.
CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH, 1846-1900.
CHURCH INTERIOR OF CONGREGATIONAL
266
REV. J. M. ROCKWOOD; A. DICKSON; L. BRIDGEMAN; J. H. BISBEE; C. M. PIERCE; EDWARD CLARK.
270
REV. H. A. YOUTZ; H. M. BOWDEN ; S. BRYANT; W. A. ESTABROOK ; W. T. BARTLEY ..
275
JOHN NEWTON'S AUTOGRAPH.
MATTHEW SMITH'S AUTOGRAPII .
THE BAPTIST CHURCH ..
THE METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH.
HARLOW LOVELAND ; MRS. M. HAUCK; O. WHEELER ; H. PEASE;
H. SMITH; E. J. INGHAM; T. MARTIN ; G. HOLCOMB.
H. FERRIS; W. CHURCHI; M. SMITH; L. ROOT; S. F. ROOT; E. Mc- ELWAIN ; O. PEASE.
30S 312
SOLOMON INGIIAM'S AUTOGRAPHI.
MISS LEACII; J. ROBBINS; J. BENNETT; A. GORDON ; L. CHURCHILL ...
322
MAP OF PRESCOTT'S GRANT. .insert facing page 343
MAP OF LOTS IN PRESCOTT'S GRANT .insert facing page 358
MAPS
OF
LOTS IN SECTIONS
FORMING
MIDDLEFIELD
TOWNSHIPS
insert facing page 370
TOWN OFFICERS OF MIDDLEFIELD ..
374
GRAPH OF POPULATION OF MIDDLEFIELD . insert facing page 395
OLIVER BLUSH. WILLIAM BLUSH. HOUSES OF O. AND W. BLUSHI. . 420
221 224 226 231 235 239 241 244 256 257
282 286
289 297 304
XXV
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS AND MAPS
S. U. CHURCHI ; J. T. CHURCH; U. CHURCH; MRS. PHEBE M. CHURCH ; LYMAN CHURCH ; OLIVER CHURCH ; WILLIAM F. CHIURCII .. 438 JAMES CHURCHI ; MRS. NANCY L. CHURCH; DR. JAMES U. CHURCHI ; DR. JEFFERSON CHURCH. 442 492
AMASA GRAVES, SR. ; AMASA GRAVES, JR. ; BARTON B. GRAVES
HOUSE OF DAVID HAMILTON ..
498 508
DEACON ALEX. INGHAM. HOUSE OF DEACON INGILIM.
DAVID MACK, JR. HOUSE OF ELISHA MACK. MACK MEMORIAL.
534
JNO. MCELWAIN, JR. ; OLIVER MCELWAIN; JNO. MCELWAIN, SR .;
MRS. LUCY S. MCELWAIN; JOIIN S. MCELWAIN; EDWIN Mc- ELWAIN
541
PORTRAIT OF S. F. ROOT AND PICTURE OF ROBBINS HOUSE FROM PAINT- INGS BY MARVIN ROBBINS.
584
CAPTAIN AND MRS. TIMOTHY ROOT; MRS. MARY S. ROOT; SOLOMON ROOT; MRS. LAURA MACK ROOT; SOLOMON F. ROOT. . 588
MRS. HELEN M. WARREN. MRS. PERSHING AND CHILDREN 601
GROUP AT SMITH FAMILY REUNION, 1900 604 606
SMITH FAMILY GROUPS.
DR. CYNTHIA SMITH. ORRIN SMITH 610
FAMILY OF DEACON OLIVER SMITH.
612
EBENEZER SMITH; MRS. SARAH ANN H. (HAWES-SMITH) ROOT; HOWARD SMITHI .. 616
NATHAN WRIGHT, JR. ; MRS. ASENATH C. WRIGHT; CHARLES WRIGHT; CLARK B. WRIGHT 651
French Hilfe
Sende 6300
2 Miles
PERU
Garnet
Stian
693
SMITH
HOLLOW
Robbins HIN
ROAD
Factory Brook
Pelton Hill
DICKSon sternag's HIN
WINDEOR
Bear Mountam
West
Reservoir
Hones
Hill
Multierinin Center
FACTORY VILLAGE
GLENDALE The Den
Coty's
Johnny Cake
Holcomb
collins
Taylor's PasTure
0
walnut
Bonton
DOSTON AND AT
BECKE
Abbott Bruck
Contor Pand
cable
ANY
Abbott A/11/
MAP OF MIDDLEFIELD TOWNSHIP
WASHINGTON
CHAPTER I
THE MIDDLEFIELD RIDGE AND THE TWO VALLEYS
T HE township of Middlefield, situated at the extreme western end of Hampshire County in Massachusetts, com- prises an area of over twenty square miles of territory, which, like other sections of the Berkshire Hills, is a region of mountain ranges and river valleys. The deep and narrow valley of the West Branch of the Westfield River on the southwest bor- der separates it from the township of Becket, while the Middle Branch, forming the eastern boundary, separates it from Worth- ington. Peru, occupying the northern extension of the ranges composing the Middefield upland, joins it on the north. Wash- ington bounds it on the west and Chester on the southeast.
The major portion of Middlefield township lies upon a high plateau, whose average elevation above sea level is about 1,600 feet, extending north and south between the valleys of the Mid- dle Branch and the West Branch of the Westfield River. Though this plateau is comparatively level, sloping gradually toward the south, it rises in several distinguishable summits. At the south- ern end is Walnut Hill, looking down upon the narrow valley of the West Branch with wooded hills rising steeply from the very banks of the stream on either side. Johnnycake Hill lies just north of Walnut Hill, commanding a fine view of the western hills. In the northern part of the town the peaks of Dickson Hill, Pelton Hill and Robbins Hill rise to heights of 1,700 to 2,000 feet above sea level. These hills and Garnet Hill in the same range, just over the line in Peru, command some of the grandest and widest views in the Berkshire Hills, for from their summits one can look with the naked eye into five different states, an experience possible in few localities. Haystack and other peaks of the Green Mountains in Vermont are seen on the north. Mt. Greylock and Mr. Everett are clearly visible, occupying the northwest and southwest corners of Massachusetts, respectively, while between them, beyond many ranges of hills, on any clear
VALLEY OF FACTORY BROOK FROM DICKSON HILL, ABOUT 1898
3
THE MIDDLEFIELD RIDGE AND THE TWO VALLEYS
day may be seen in the west the Catskill Mountains, seventy miles away in New York State. Hills in Connecticut are to be seen to the southeast. The peaks of Mts. Tom, Holyoke, and Nonatuck rise from the Connecticut Valley nearer at hand. On a clear day the observer can catch sight of. Mt. Wauchusett, eighty miles distant in eastern Massachusetts and a little farther toward the northeast he can espy the outline of Mt. Monadnock in southern New Hampshire.
The surface of the rounded plateau is divided into subordinate elevations by three streams, which, flowing from northeast to southeast, parallel in general to the rivers which bound the plateau, create three minor ridges upon the surface of the greater one. A brook called Den Stream rises in the northern part of the township and flowing along the eastern edge of the high plateau finally turns east, and plunging down the mountain side forming the beautiful cascade called "Glendale Falls," joins the East Branch of the Westfied River in the valley. "Factory Brook," formerly known as "Taggart's Brook" or "Mill Brook," rises in the southern part of Peru, and flowing south- ward to join the West Branch of the Westfield River, separates the main portion of the high plateau on the east, from the West Hill, a range of hills running north and south, occupying the western portion of the township. Coles Brook, another consider- able tributary of the West Branch, runs through the southwest- ern part of this region.
As will appear in a later chapter, the reason why the town of Middlefield was created at all, was the difficulty which the dwellers on the hill-tops experienced in trying to travel across deep valleys to the centers of other towns. The deep valley of the Middle Branch of the Westfield River, with steep mountain slopes on the east and west, was no inconsiderable barrier to traffic and travel between Worthington Center and the region west of Smith Hollow which then belonged to Worthington. When even to-day some of the dwellers in Middlefield think twice before driving to Worthington, having in mind the steep descent down Smith Hollow Hill and the hard climb up Sam Hill's road, what must travel in that direction have meant to the pioneers of 1773 when there was neither road through the forest nor bridge over the river? Two deep valleys with
4
HISTORY OF MIDDLEFIELD
their rapid mountain streams stood between Becket Center and the portion of that township which lay upon the southern part of the plateau. It was to these barriers to travel and trans- portation that the settlers referred in their petition for incorpo- ration in the words: "The many disadvantages arising from the Roughness of the Roads Steep Hills and Rapid Rivers that are in the way to their respective towns are more than many of your Honours would think of." This condition of isolation and the failure to secure adequate highways to replace the rude trails which the Red Man made, led to the formation of a new township.
This rolling hill-country, with innumerable ledges of granite, gneiss and mica schist, with scant soil composed mostly of glacial drift full of stones, with only here and there narrow, level mead- ows beside the streams, was the land with which the pioneers had to deal. They found the land strong and fertile, stronger, some say, than the alluvial plains along the Connecticut River. The meadows along Den Stream and Factory Brook have at times been parts of successful farms, and several enterprising farmers have done well on certain sections of the hillsides. But the sea- son for crop-raising is short among the mountains, and though agriculture has been the principal occupation of the inhabitants, the soil is better adapted to grazing, and for many years the raising of sheep and fine cattle was an important industry. Lumbering flourished so long as the native forests lasted. Quarrying was carried on for a time. The rapid mountain streams furnished adequate water power and several manufac- turing establishments flourished for some decades along the val- ley of Factory Brook.
As we shall see, this territory began and for many years re- mained a region of scattered farms, without villages or communi- ties. Later as trade developed and industries became localized, villages grew up at the Center on the plateau, at Factory Village in the valley of Factory Brook, which was also known as Blush Hollow, and at Bancroft by the Westfield River in the south- west corner of the town, locally known as "The Switch," where Middlefield Station is located. The southeast corner of the town came to be known as "The Den" or "Glendale," and the north- east corner had a little settlement in the valley by the Worthing-
MT. GOBBLE AND THE WESTFIELD RIVER VALLEY
6
HISTORY OF MIDDLEFIELD
ton River (Middle Branch), which from the names of its leading citizens came to be called "Smith Hollow."
But with the growth of manufacturing, stock raising and agri- culture in the west, the wider fields and greater opportunities in that land of dreams beckoned to the adventurous spirits of the east. The rock-bound hills and severe winters had made life hard for the pioneers and the isolation of Middlefield made many wish for homes in less secluded and more favored regions. The railroad passed the town by, following the Westfield River instead of Factory Brook. Local industries languished because of competition and the lack of proper transportation facilities ; and with the drawing away of the young people to the cities and to farms of the west, the town has in recent years become again a region of scattered farms, which are fewer in number than they were a century ago. But the beauty of the hills and valleys re- mains to delight the members of the summer colony, who find in the isolation an opportunity for rest, and in the hills and vales trails for an endless number of exhilarating rambles.
CHAPTER II
THE MOHICAN HUNTING GROUND
T HOUGH the inhabitants of the beautiful hills and valleys of eastern Berkshire and western Hampshire counties realize in a general way that their lands must at some time have belonged to the Indians, little interest has been aroused in the subject. No doubt this is due to the absence of the savage warfare which took place in the Connecticut Valley and in many other places in the eastern part of the state. It is not without satisfaction, however, that one learns that this territory was once a portion of the ancient domain of the Mohicans, whose fame has been immortalized in Cooper's tale, and whose loyalty to the colonists during the wars with the French and their Indian allies contributed much to the peaceful settlement of the western part of the state.
This branch of the Algonquin nation originally lived along the banks, of the Hudson. Westward they claimed as much territory as could be covered in two days journey, and northward as far as Lake Champlain on the east side of the river. Eastward their land extended through western Massachusetts to "the head wa- ters of the Westfield" or the hills of the Hoosac Range which extend north and south through Middlefield and the neighboring townships.
The early traditions indicate that the Mohicans could at one time summon a thousand warriors at the call of battle and that they held in subjection the individual tribes of central and west - ern New York. With the formation of the confederacy of the Six Nations, however, their ascendancy came to an end, and about 1625, they were driven into the Connecticut Valley, and their Berkshire hunting grounds appropriated by the hated Mohawks. During this period it is said that every year two old Mohawk chiefs would paddle from the Hudson, up the Hoosac, carry their elmbark canoes across the mountains along the Mo- hawk Trail to the headwaters of the Deerfield River and journey
S
HISTORY OF MIDDLEFIELD
down the Connecticut to collect tribute from the subject tribes that lived along its banks.
The sway of the Mohawks was not lasting. When Albany was taken from the Dutch by the English, the remnants of the Mohicans were occupying their original possessions and were waging a more or less successful warfare with their hereditary enemies. The council fire of the Mohicans was originally near Schodack, New York, but the influx of the Dutch led them to sell their Hudson River lands and move eastward, about 1664, to the Housatonic River, where they were known as River Indians. In 1735 a tract of land was reserved for them in Stockbridge where they lived until after the Revolution. They eventually removed to New York State, and their descendents are now on a reserva- tion at Green Bay, Wisconsin.
As there were no lakes or navigable streams in what is now Middlefield, it is doubtful if the Mohicans ever had a large or permanent settlement here. Yet this region is not without its Indian relics. In the woods near the northwest corner of the township is a large flat boulder with a perfectly round, bowl- shaped cavity in the center. That this curiosity is an old Indian mortar seems to be authenticated by the finding of a stone pestle or axe near by which is now exhibited in the Pittsfield museum. Spear points and arrow heads found in a neighboring lot and in an abandoned house add to the evidence. As it was the custom of the Indians to plant their crops at a distance from their settle- ments where hostile tribes would not discover them, the wooded slopes near the head of Factory Brook may have once concealed the Mohican corn fields.
Remains of Indian villages have also been found at Dalton and Pittsfield, whose occupants are thought to have been game keepers for the main settlements further west, supplying the warriors with food and making preparations for the annual hunting and trapping expeditions in which all took part. An early history of the tribe states that they were accustomed in early March to hunt moose in their winter quarters on the moun- tains, and in the fall to capture deer, bear, otter, raccoon, martin, and various fish, thus providing themselves with dried food and clothing for the winter.
INDIAN MORTAR-WASHINGTON, MASS.
10
HISTORY OF MIDDLEFIELD
Only one Indian name attaching to the Middlefield country has been preserved-" Pontoosne"-the original name for the west branch of the Westfield River, the winding course of which is now followed by the Boston and Albany Railroad. This word at once suggests that more familiar "Pontoosuc," meaning "The Field of the Winter Deer," which was applied not only to Pittsfield but also to certain woods in Cummington and other places in Hampshire County not identified. From this fact, it is inferred that the region of "the head waters of the Westfield River" was considered by the Mohicans as their regular hunting ground.
There is some reason to believe that in the days of the Pilgrims the beaver were very plentiful in the Middlefield streams and marshes. Whether or not the formations on the Den Stream are beaver dams or not, the Westfield River branches were also fre- quented by the Woronoaks who lived at what is now Westfield. So famous did this tribe become for its beaver pelts that in 1640 Governor Hopkins of Hartford under the impression that this Indian village lay within the boundary of Connecticut estab- lished a trading post there for a short time.
Whether this boundary region between the Mohicans and the Connecticut River tribes was ever a scene of dispute and conflict will only be known through the investigation of archaeologists. Whatever Indian blood was shed on Berkshire soil was, as will be seen later, that of hostile savages from other sections, and not that of the native owners in defense of their rightful possessions. As we shall now see, the transfer of the Middlefield region from the Stockbridge Indians to the colonists was accomplished in a more legal and peaceful manner.
In the disposal of their lands the Indians were at a disad- vantage, although the Provincial Government sought to protect both them and the proprietors by forbidding the purchase of land without authority and by ordering that all transfers of ownership be properly recorded. Without surveyors the Indians could not define in detail the borders of the tracts sold, but they naturally could not see the necessity for such exactness when they retained, as they usually did, the right to hunt and fish, and supposed that the pale faces would use the land for the same purpose. It is not surprising to learn, therefore, that the bound-
11
THE MOHICAN HUNTING GROUND
aries of grants as surveyed by the proprietors did not always agree with the descriptions in the Indian deeds-a fact which discloses the temptation of the proprietors to occupy more land than they had actually purchased.
In tracing the purchase of the Middlefield territory from the Indians it must be remembered that, when the township was in- corporated in 1783, it was composed of sections of townships or grants already established. We therefore have no picturesque meeting of proprietors and Indians such as occurred at West- field in 1724 when the Housatonics exchanged the first and per- haps the choicest portion of their hunting ground, the beautiful region now mainly comprising Sheffield and Great Barrington, for four hundred sixty pounds, three barrels of cider and thirty quarts of rum. On the contrary, we shall find that Middlefield contains portions of three different purchases from the Indians made at different periods before the establishment of the town- ship.
Just east of the Sheffield and Great Barrington tract the In- dians sold a second and larger portion of their domain in 1737 to Nahum Ward, of Shrewsbury, and Ephraim Williams, of Newton, to whom had been granted four townships bordering on the road from Westfield to Sheffield. The proprietors faced a difficult and expensive task in making a survey of their terri- tory, especially in the northeast section where Township No. 4 was to be marked out in a country where rugged, wooded hills were interspersed with frequent lakes and swamps. According to the original plat of November 24, 1736, which was accepted by the General Court, this township included parts of what are now Otis and Tyringham, but in June the next year the pro- prietors submitted a new plat on which No. 4 was shown as a rectangle just north of that region, or where Becket now is. This plat was accepted June 24, 1737, No. 4 receiving seven hundred thirty-eight acres of the land formerly shown as No. 4 as equiva- lent land for lakes. In December the proprietors, having paid twelve hundred pounds to the Committee of the General Court, and three hundred pounds to the Stockbridge Indians, to obtain a title, were confirmed in the possession of their Berkshire tract.
When we examine the Indian deed of conveyance, we find that the northern boundary of the four townships is given as "wilder-
12
HISTORY OF MIDDLEFIELD
ness and Province land" and the eastern boundary as the Farm- ington River. According to this description the northeast corner of Township No. 4 could not have been much further north or east than Shaw Pond, near West Becket, which is the Farming- ton River's main source. Now of the proprietors' new płat the northeast corner was eight miles further northeast, at a point near what is now Middlefield Center, with the northern bound- ary of the township running west toward what is now Becket station, and the eastern boundary running south over Mt. Gobble. Practically the whole of what is now Becket, which included the southwest quarter of Middlefield, seems clearly not to have been covered by the deed of the Indians to Ward and Williams.
That the Indian deed was based on the old plat is evidenced not only by a comparison of the two but also by the date it was signed,-June 2, 1737, three weeks before the new plat was ac- cepted by the General Court. The question naturally arises why the proprietors obtained their title at this time when they had just completed a new survey which clearly included land outside the boundaries mentioned in the deed. In the light of subsequent events the explanation seems to be that the proprietors saw to it that the boundaries were so vaguely described in the deed that they might be interpreted by the General Court as covering the Becket tract as well as the land contained in the old survey; or they may have considered that the Becket and Middlefield region lay along the border line of the ancient Mohican domain and that any claim of the Stockbridge Indians to it might be success- fully disputed by the Province. At any rate the Indian deed was allowed and confirmed without question, and the proprietors were granted all remaining land contained in it which had not been granted to them by the Court. There is no record or in- dication that the proprietors paid an additional sum for the Becket land.
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