USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Westford > History of the town of Westford, in the county of Middlesex, Massachusetts, 1659-1883 > Part 3
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Sept. 20, 1729. This Bill having been read three several times in the House of Representatives,
Passed to be enacted. J. QUINCY, SPEAKER.
Sept. 23, 1729. This Bill having been read three several times in Council,
Passed to be enacted.
J. WILLARD, SECRETARY.
* This was the mode of spelling the word used by the Town Clerks generally, until 1744, after which time the practice changed to Westford, which without doubt is the true orthography. "Engrost Bill for a new Town by the name of Westford." Massachusetts General Court Records, Vol. 14. September 23, 1729.
22
HISTORY OF WESTFORD.
By the Hon.ble the Lieut. Governor. I consent to the enacting of this Bill.
Wm DUMMER .*
The neighboring town of Bedford received its charter on the same day, and if it be allowed the priority, then Westford was the twenty-eighth town in the county in the order of incorporation or settlement.
There is no record on the town books of any town meet- ing held during the autumn of 1729. Probably there was no real necessity for one, inasmuch as the Committee of the Precinct, at a meeting held September 2d, of that year, had made all needful provision for the next fiscal year.
THE FIRST TOWN MEETING.
" Wesford, March the 2d, 1729-'30.
At a General Town meeting of the freeholders and other inhabitants of the sd town Regularily Assembled to Chuse Town officers for the year ensuing.
Dea. John Commings Chose moderator for the work of the day.
Voted to Chuse five Selectmen for the year ensuing.
Dea. Joshua Fletcher Chose the first Selectman. Dea. John Commings Chose the second Selectman. Samuel Chamberlin Chose the third Selectman. Ins. Joseph Keyes Chose the fourth Selectman. Thomas Reed Chose the fifth Selectman. Dea. Joshua Fletcher Chose Town Clerk. Samuel Faset, Town Treasurer.
Constables - Aaron Parker and Aquila Underwood. Surveyors of Highways, Elias Foster, Ephraim Hildreth,
* William Dummer had been acting Governor for a year then, in place of William Burnet who was appointed Governor by the King, and came to Boston in July, 1728. He died September, 1729, and Lieut. Governor Dummer was again in charge. George II. succeeded his father, George I., in 1727, and reigned thirty-three years. He died October 25, 1760, " universally lamented."
H
23
.
INCORPORATION TO BEGINNING OF REVOLUTIONARY WAR.
Henry Wright, and Andrew Spaulding. Tithingmen - Benjamin Robins, and James Hildreth Jun.
Fence Vewers- Joseph Hildreth Jr. and William Reed.
Hogg reaves - William Butterfield and Ebenezer Hil- dreth.
The above named persons were Sworn to the faithful Discharge of their Respective oficeses as the law directs. JOSHUA FLETCHER, Town Clerk of Wesford.
Voted the day above sd that swine shall goe at large. -that Samuel Fletcher Senier's head shall be left out of the rates for the year ensuing. Voted the day above sd to Joine with Capt. Jonas Prescott, Ebenezer Prescott, Ebenezer Townsend, and Abner Kent, all of Grotton, in Petioning to the General Court in ordere to their being anext to Wesford Township. Voted-the Selectmen shall apoint a man to Joine with the above sd Persons in Petioning to the General Court in ordere to their being anext to Wesford Township.
JOSHUA FLETCHER, Town Clerk of Wesford."
Under date of January 7, 1730-'31, the Selectmen ordered Samuel Faset, Treasurer of said town to pay
"To Joshua Fletcher for going to the General Court with Capt. Jonas Prescott in ordar for the families living in that part of Grotton to be anext to the Town of Westford for money and time expended the sum of 2£-IIs. 7d."
The petition of Captain Prescott and others met with a favorable response, as will be seen from the following enact- ment of the General Court :
"A petition of Jonas Prescott, Ebenezer Prescott, Abner Kent, and Ebenezer Townsend, Inhabitants of the town of Groton, Praying that they and their Estates con- tained in the following Boundaries, viz : Beginning at North East corner of Stony Brook Pond, from thence extending to the Northwest Corner of Westford, commonly called Tyng's
24
HISTORY OF WESTFORD.
Corner, and so bounded Southerly by said Pond, may be set off to the Town of Westford for their greater convenience in attending public worship.
In the House of Representatives : Read and Ordered that the Petitioners within named, with their Estates accord- ing to the Bounds before recited, be and hereby are to all intents and purposes set off from the Town of Groton and annexed to the Town of Westford.
In Council, read and Concurred, September 10, 1730.
J. BELCHER."
(Massachusetts General Court Records, Vol. 14, p. 386.).
The territory thus joined to this town was triangular in shape, the base of the triangle being the shore of Forge. Pond, and the sharp point Tyng's Corner on Millstone Hill. In the description it is not definitely said that a portion of Forge Pond was included, but this was really the case, since the bound or monument fixing the southeast corner is on the Littleton side. Nearly one hundred years afterward, namely in May, 1827, the Selectmen of the two towns ran the boundary lines between them and erected permanent monu- ments where none had been previously erected, and the lines and monuments are thus described : "Beginning at a stone post on Millstone hill marked G. W. T. at the ancient pillar of stones, thence running South 10° West 186 rods to a stone post near the house of Oliver Wright; thence South 122° West 386 rods to another stone post on Clay-pit hill ; thence South 12° West 252 rods to another stone post near the house of Capt. Nathan Brown ; thence South 102° West 49 rods and 20 links to the shore of Forge Pond, so, called, and thence the same course into said Pond [and over ?] to a heap of stones the corner of Littleton." ( Miscellaneous Records of Westford, p. 216.)
The line of this triangle on the side next to Westford, began on the southeastern shore of Forge Pond and crossing the pond it passed a little west of the house now occupied by George Wright, over or near the spring in the bank, now
25
INCORPORATION TO BEGINNING OF REVOLUTIONARY WAR.
covered up, over the brook and Kissacook Hill, west of the Poor House, and onward across the old stage-road from Lowell to Groton, to Millstone Hill. ·
Probably there was no computation of the area of this triangle at any time. Only four men are named as the owners of it, but they, it is supposed, held titles to only a portion, and the remainder was wild or " common" land.
This was the only acquisition of territory the town has ever made, and there has been no loss, except possibly such as might occur in the adjustment of disputed lines between it and the adjacent towns. In this it has been more fortunate than some others whose domain has become narrow by division and apportionment. A dispute did arise about the boundary line between Littleton and Westford as the follow- ing extract from the records will show: "1756. In the month of April the bounds Between our town and Groton and Littleton, Acton and Chelmsford were renewed as the Law directs and their was no desputes on any of the bounds except the old Despute Between Littleton and our town." The Westford records do not show what were the grounds of dispute, nor how the matter was settled. It may fairly be inferred from them, however, that this town was not the aggrieved party.
In 1755, Samuel Adams and John Glenny, living in the north part of the town, sent a petition to the General Court to be set off with all their lands and annexed to Dunstable. The town opposed them, and through its committee presented a remonstrance; and the prayer of the petitioners was refused. In 1756, Thomas Read, Esq., was paid "for money expended, time and horse journeys to Boston in behalf of this town to save any part of it from being set off to Carlisle." This attempt at division was also unsuccessful.
THE FIRST TAX-LIST.
The names are copied as they stand on the book, but the sum that each person was assessed is not given. For a
4
·
26
HISTORY OF WESTFORD.
long time the tax-payers were divided into two lists, called the North and South; and each list was put into the hands of a constable for the collection of the taxes.
THE SOUTH LIST.
Samuel Procter,
Ebenezer Hildreth,
Joseph Buterfeild,
Ephraim Hildreth, Jun.,
Nathaniel Boynton,
James Hildreth,
Thomas Barrit,
James Hildreth, Jun.,
James Burn,
Thomas Heald,
Joseph Buterfeild, Jun.,
Aaron Parker, .
John Buterfeild,
Joseph Procter,
James Brown,
Jonathan Procter,
Wid. Tabitha Blodgett,
Thomas Procter,
Samuel Chamberlin,
Ezekiel Procter,
Amos Davice,
Nathan Procter,
Joshua Fletcher,
Walter Powers,
William Fletcher, Jr.,
Benjamin Robins,
Samuel Fletcher, Jr.,
John Reed,
Timothy Fletcher,
Thomas Robins,
Wid. Elizabeth Fletcher,
John Reed, Jun.,
Elias Foster,
William Barit,
Moses Foster,
Ebenezer Spaulding,
Ephraim Hildreth,
Joseph Temple,
Jonathan Hartwell,
Wid. Joannah Kydar,
Joseph Hildreth,
Ephraim Buterfeild,
Joseph Hildreth, Jun.,
Hugh Smith.
The number of names in this list is forty-four, and the sum assessed is £59 IIS. IId.
THE NORTH LIST.
Samuel Adams,
Thomas Reed, William Reed,
Josiah Burge,
David Bixby,
Jonathan Reed,
Wid. Elizabeth Buterfeild,
Simon Rumrill,
Benjamin Buterfeild,
Ser. Timothy Spaulding,
William Buterfeild,
Edward Bates, John Blodget,
Timothy Spaulding, Jun., Andrew Spaulding, Ebenezer Townsend,
Dea. John Commings, William Chandler, Ephraim Chandler, Ephraim Craft,
Joseph Undarwood, Aquila Undarwood, Ebenezer Wright, Jacob Wright,
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27
INCORPORATION TO BEGINNING OF REVOLUTIONARY WAR.
William Fletcher,
Henry Wright,
Paul Fletcher,
Ebenezer Wright, Jun.,
Joseph Fletcher,
Ins. Joseph Keyes,
Jonathan Fletcher, Jonas Fletcher,
Joseph Keyes, Jun.,
Abner Kent,
Samuel Faset,
Jabez Keep,
Adam Gould,
Joseph Pollard,
Josiah Heald,
James Pollard,
Capt. Jonas Prescott,
William Shed,
Ebenezer Prescott, Jonas Prescott,
Jonathan Cleaveland.
In this list there are forty-five names, and the sum assessed is £65 6s. Id. The whole amount in the two lists is £125. The number of names in the two lists is eighty- nine: Of these, four were widows and five of the men paid only a poll tax, and hence there were only seventy-eight men who were owners of real estate. To these early sov- ereigns of industry the town was chiefly indebted for its subsequent development and growth ; and, as in the mind of the real lover of history a degree of interest bordering on the fascination of romance attaches to these founders of the town, an attempt has been made to fix their homesteads and to indicate as far as practicable the residence of each. In the absence of any regular plot of the town, and in view of the long time that has passed since they lifted up their axes upon the thick trees, this has been no easy task. After a thorough searching of the books of Chelmsford and of the numerous volumes in the Registry of Deeds, in East Cambridge, the following are the materials that have been gathered :
THE SOUTH LIST.
Samuel Procter lived near the present residence of Amos Leighton, and his farm included a portion of Sparks Hill. His house stood in the field near Mr. Leighton's, and on the same side of the road. The original owner seems to have been Peter Talbut. In 1714 Henry Sparks, of Concord, sold to Samuel Proctor, "all the lands that my honored
28
HISTORY OF WESTFORD.
father Henry Sparks possessed in Chelmsford, lying near Farther Tadmuck." The older Sparks married Martha Barrett, of Chelmsford, and died 1694.
Joseph Butterfield lived on Frances Hill, near Chamber- lin's corner.
Nathaniel Boynton ; on the farm of Coolidge Brothers.
Thomas Barrett lived in the extreme south part of the town, a mile or more from Parkerville. No open road at present leads to the spot.
James Burn, or Bourne, as the name is spelled on the Chelmsford books, lived probably on the farm of Samuel N. Burbeck. He is said to have been a potter by trade, and that his yard was in the field in the rear of the houses of Nathan S. Hamblin and John W. Abbot.
Joseph Butterfield, Jun., owned land near Deacon Calvin Howard's, recently in possession of John Pierce, of Hyde Park. The house stood not far from Deacon Howard's. He died before August 16, 1741.
John Butterfield ; not known with certainty, but proba- bly near Boutwell's meadow.
James Brown ; not ascertained.
Tabitha Blodget, widow of Thomas ; on the Amos Hey- wood place.
Samuel Chamberlin lived in Nonesuch, now Parkerville, near the house of George H. Elliot, somewhere in the tri- angle now formed by the roads.
Amos Davice; nothing known of him. There is no record of his marriage, and probably he had no homestead.
Joshua Fletcher; on the farm now occupied by Rob- ert J. Taylor.
William Fletcher, Jun., lived on the farm now occupied by Henry A. Hildreth.
Samuel Fletcher, Jun. ; on the Calvin Howard place.
Timothy Fletcher ; on the farm of Rufus Patten.
Elizabeth Fletcher, widow of Samuel Fletcher, Sen. She probably lived with her son Samuel, Jr., on the Howard place.
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INCORPORATION TO BEGINNING OF REVOLUTIONARY WAR.
Elias Foster ; on the Lieut. John Hildreth place, lately occupied by Morris Millard.
Moses Foster owned the land near the house of Henry P. Ruggles and school-house Number Four. He petitioned for a way to his house, and he may have lived away from the public road.
Ephraim Hildreth ; on the Julian Hildreth place.
Jonathan Hartwell ; on the farm now owned and occu- pied by Asaph B. Cutter.
Joseph Hildreth ; on the farm of Isaac G. Minot.
Joseph Hildreth, Jun. ; on the farm of the late Abijah Hildreth.
Ebenezer Hildreth; in that part of the town called " Texas," on or near the Hapgood place.
Ephraim Hildreth, Jun. ; on the farm now owned by the heirs of Abel Fletcher.
James Hildreth ; on the farm now occupied by Charles A. Wright.
James Hildreth, Jun. ; not certainly known, but proba- bly on the farm lately owned by J. Boynton Read.
Thomas Heald ; near Forge Village, on the shore of the pond, on the farm of David P. Lawrence. He soon removed to a farm near Jeptha Wright's.
Aaron Parker ; on the spot on which the house of George Hutchins stands.
Joseph Procter ; in Parkerville, near the junction of the two roads at the school-house.
Jonathan Procter; in the southeast part, near Pond Brook.
Thomas Procter ; on or near the present residence of Frederick Martin.
Ezekiel Procter ; not fully determined, but probably near Thomas Procter.
Nathan Procter ; on the farm now owned by Capt. Jacob Smith.
Walter Powers ; it seems probable that he owned the farm now occupied by John Wayne, near Nashoba Hill and
.
30
HISTORY OF WESTFORD.
on the line of the Nashua and Acton Railroad. He was assessed a few times in the town and county lists, but paid no poll tax. The farm was in possession of Joseph Hooker as early as 1740.
· Benjamin Robbins, near Nashoba Hill and southeast of Asaph B. Cutter's, on an old road laid out in 1720, now sel- dom used.
John Reed; probably the son of Thomas Read, sen. His farm was near E. J. Whitney's.
Thomas Robbins ; in southeast part, near the house of John Hutchins, Jr.
John Reed, Jun. His farm was near Amos Leighton's. It was occupied a few years ago by Alpheus and Annan Reed.
William Barrett, on the premises now occupied by George Yapp - the old tavern stand of Timothy Hartwell.
Ebenezer Spaulding ; near T. J. Wheeler's.
Joseph Temple ; in the region called "Texas," or in that vicinity.
Joanna Kidder, widow of Thomas Kidder ; at Nonesuch Hill, southwest of the Gilbert Parker house.
Ephraim Butterfield ; not known.
Hugh Smith. He paid only a poll tax, and probably had no homestead.
THE NORTH LIST.
Samuel Adams ; in the extreme north part, near Allen R. Perham's.
Josiah Burge ; in the Stony Brook Valley, south of the railroad station.
David Bixby ; on the homestead of the late John Waldo Cummings.
Elizabeth Butterfield, widow of Benjamin Butterfield (son of Joseph), who died before 1715. She lived on Fran- ces Hill.
Benjamin Butterfield, son of Benjamin and grandson of
INCORPORATION TO BEGINNING OF REVOLUTIONARY WAR. 31
Joseph, lived on the east side of Boutwell's Meadow, near Oren Coolidge's.
William Butterfield, brother of the preceding, lived on Frances Hill.
Edward Bates ; north of the present residence of Dennis Burke, and west of Long-Sought-For Pond.
John Blodget; on the Amos Heywood place, on the west side of Tadmuck Hill.
Deacon John Commings; in the valley of the Stony Brook, near the Westford railroad station. His farm in- cluded the land now owned by George B. Dupee and Sarah Cummings.
William Chandler ; at Brookside. He was the owner of a fulling-mili there, built about 1725.
Ephraim Chandler, cousin of William ; on the northwest side of Flushing Pond.
Ephraim Craft; near Alvan Fisher's.
William Fletcher, the father of Capt. Amos; in the valley of the Stony Brook, near William Taylor's.
Paul Fletcher ; near Boutwell's Meadow.
Joseph Fletcher; near Tadmuck Brook, on the farm owned by the heirs of Joshua Decatur.
Jonathan Fletcher ; in the valley of the Stony Brook, northwest of the railroad, near Thomas Horan's.
Jonas Fletcher ; in the valley, near Jeptha Wright's.
Samuel Fassett ; near Providence Hill and the sources of Tadmuck Brook. His house stood near the land of Isaac W. Green.
Adam Gould ; not known. He paid only a poll tax and probably had no estate.
Josiah Heald ; at the centre, near the residence of Arte- mas W. Cummings.
Captain Jonas Prescott lived in Forge Village. His house stood on the promontory formed by the brook and the margin of the pond.
Ebenezer Prescott, son of Captain Jonas, lived in Forge Village.
Jonas Prescott, son of Captain Jonas, in Forge Village.
32 .
HISTORY OF WESTFORD.
Thomas Read ; on Frances Hill, owner of the farm so long known as the " Read Farm."
William Read lived on the farm now owned by Oren and Edward C. Coolidge.
Jonathan Read, brother of William. He owned land on Tadmuck Hill, near the Kendall A. Wright place, but his residence is not known.
Simon Rumrill owned a farm of ten acres at the head of Long-Sought-For Pond, near the brick tavern.
Timothy Spaulding ; on the farm of Luke L. Fletcher.
Timothy Spaulding, Jr., probably had no homestead, but lived with his father, Timothy Sen. He died in 1734.
Andrew Spaulding lived north of Keyes Pond on the farm recently occupied by John Morrison.
Ebenezer Townsend ; in Forge Village.
Joseph Underwood; on the eastern slope of Tadmuck Hill. His house stood nearly opposite of the residence of the late Ira Leland. .
Aquila Underwood; on Tadmuck Hill, near the house of N. Harwood Wright.
Ebenezer Wright ; on the farm now occupied by Edwin E. Heywood.
Jacob Wright ; on the Lyon place.
Henry Wright ; near the house of Isaac W. Green.
Ebenezer Wright, Jr. ; on the homestead of his father, Ebenezer Wright, Sen.
Joseph Keyes ; on Frances Hill, near the residence of the late Trueworthy Keyes.
Joseph Keyes, Jr. ; on Humhaw Brook, the present homestead of George Keyes.
Abner Kent; in Forge Village.
Jabez Keep ; in Forge Village.
Joseph Pollard ; had no homestead and paid only a poll tax. He soon removed to Nottingham West, now Hudson, N. H.
James Pollard ; without homestead. He subsequently settled in the Centre, where he kept a tavern, on the premises now held by Mrs. John W. P. Abbot.
33
INCORPORATION TO BEGINNING OF REVOLUTIONARY WAR.
William Shedd ; also without homestead, and no infor- mation respecting him can be gleaned from the town records.
Jonathan Cleaveland ; not ascertained. Perhaps he was a son of Samuel Cleaveland, who lived near the old mill-site in Providence Meadow.
OLD ROADS.
The two roads early laid out by the Town of Chelmsford through the present territory of Westford are described on pages 12 and 13. One of them is constantly referred to in the old deeds as the Groton Road and the other as the Stony Brook Road. Two others are also frequently men- tioned, namely : the Long-Sought-For Road, which, crossing the brook near Westford Corner, led over the plain to Long- Sought-For Pond; and the Tadmuck Road, which led by Minot's Corner and intersected the Groton road near Amos Leighton's. .
Inasmuch as the description of highways often enables the inquirer to fix the homesteads of the early settlers, the transcripts of many of them are here given. They are some- times very indefinite, but in many instances they help us to a knowledge of natural objects and indicate the progress of settlement. Some of them were only private ways that have long since been forsaken; others became thoroughfares, which are now much travelled.
At the second annual town meeting, held March I, 1730-'31 a committee was chosen " to view the highways and take account what each person will have for satisfaction for damage done in their property, and make report to the town. Paul Fletcher, Samuel Chamberlin and Thomas Read, Com- mittee for sd business."
At a meeting of the selectmen, held in April, 1732, " to divide the highways and private or particular ways to each surveyor their part of ways to keep in repair and men to do the services," the following assignment was made :
I. " Thomas Procter should repair the Country road from Elias Foster's field fence to Concord line, and the way
5
34
HISTORY OF WESTFORD.
from Samuel Fitches house by Reed's and Burn's to the meeting house; and all the ways east and southeast from sd way from Chelmsford, Concord and Littleton lines you are to repair, and all the men who dwell in said limits are appointed to assist in sd work as the surveyor shall appoint."
The western boundary of this highway district began at Fitch's, now John Murphy's place, and ran from thence to George B. Hildreth's ; then, turning back, it ran by Amos Leighton's to Minot's Corner ; turning again, it passed George P. Wright's and wound around Blake's Hill, by J. Boynton Reed's to the meeting-house.
2. " That William Barrett should repair the way from Benjamin Robinses to the meeting house, and the way from Joshua Fletcher's by Boynton's to the bridge by the Wid. Blodgett's ; and all the wayes over Tadmuck [swamp] to Littleton line, and all the wayes within the sd limits ; and all the men who dwell in the sd limits, and Mr. Joseph Under- wood's family, are appointed to assist in sd work," etc.
The eastern boundary of this district began at the old Robbins' house, near Nashoba, and ran by Atwood Brothers and "Mackril Cove," to Mrs. Daniel Flagg's and onward to the meeting-house. It also included the road from Robert J. Taylor's, past Miner's Corner and Rufus Patten's, to the house of Ai Bicknell.
3. " That William Read should repair the Country road from Groton line to the town way that goes from Capt. Prescott's to the meeting house, and from thence to the meet- ing house, and so to Ebenezer Wright's, and so by sd Wright's to Chelmsford line, and so by Chelmsford line to Stoney brook, and all the Bridges over Stonney brook (being in wayes laid out), and all the wayes northerly from the first mentioned way to Stoney brook ; and all the men who dwell in the sd limits (excepting Mr. Joseph Underwood's family) are appointed to assist in sd work," etc.
The southern limit of this district was the road from Groton line at Swan Brook, near the Abraham Prescott place, through Forge Village, over the plain
35
INCORPORATION TO BEGINNING OF REVOLUTIONARY WAR.
through Boutwell's Meadow and a piece of woodland now owned by the heirs of John W. P. Abbot, past the Heywood place, by the Common and the East Cemetery, to Chamber- lin's Corner, turning there to the Chelmsford line beyond Edwin E. Heywood's, then turning back to Chamberlin's Corner and over Frances Hill to Brookside. A part of this line is no longer used, namely : from the plain over Bout- well's Meadow to the Bixby Hill.
4. "That William Chandler should repair all the wayes on the north side of Stonney brook (except Groton road), and all the men (excepting the families set of from Groton) who dwell in sd limits are appointed to assist in sd work," etc.
It will be seen that this fourth district included nearly one-half of the town. That half, however, was not so densely peopled as the cther. This seems to be the first time the town was divided into highway districts. 1136795
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