USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Maynard > The annals of Sudbury, Wayland and Maynard, Middlesex County, Massachusetts > Part 6
USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Sudbury > The annals of Sudbury, Wayland and Maynard, Middlesex County, Massachusetts > Part 6
USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Wayland > The annals of Sudbury, Wayland and Maynard, Middlesex County, Massachusetts > Part 6
USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Sudbury > The annals of Sudbury, Wayland, and Maynard, Middlesex County, Massachusetts > Part 6
USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Wayland > The annals of Sudbury, Wayland, and Maynard, Middlesex County, Massachusetts > Part 6
USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Maynard > The annals of Sudbury, Wayland, and Maynard, Middlesex County, Massachusetts > Part 6
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" while the bells of autumn toll,
Or the murmuring song of spring flits by, Till the crackling heavens in thunder roll, To the bugle-blast ou high,"
PLACE OF BURIAL .- The grave was made on the westerly side of Green Hill, near its base, and was in the northeast corner of the South Sudbury Cemetery be- fore its recent enlargement. In our recollection the grave was marked by a rnde stone heap, at the head of which was a plain slate-stone slab. The heap was made of common loose stones, such as a man could easily lift, and was probably placed there when the grave was made. It was perhaps three or four feet high, and a dozen feet wide at the base. The slab was erected about 1730 by President Wadsworth, of Harvard College, son of Captain Wadsworth. As we remember the spot, it was barren and briar-grown ; loose stones, fallen from the top and sides of the monnd, were half concealed in the wild wood grass that grew in tufts about it. It remained in this con- dition for years, and the villagers from time to time visited it as a place of interest.
In the year 1851 the town agitated the matter of erecting a monnment, and the Legislature was peti- tioned for aid, which was granted. But the monn- ment does not mark the original grave. The com- mittee who had the matter in charge located it about fifty feet to the north. The old grave was at or about the turn of the present avenue or path, at the northeast corner of the Adam Smith family lot in the present Wadsworth Cemetery. After it was decided to erect the monument in its present position, the re- mains of the soldiers were removed. The grave was opened without ceremony in the presence of a small company of villagers. It was the writer's privilege to be one of the number, and, according to our recollec- tion, the grave was about six feet square, in which the bodies were placed in tiers at right angles to each other. Some of the skeletons were large and all well preserved.
The war with King Philip being ended, the way was open for renewed prosperity. New buildings went up on the old estates, garrisons again became qniet homesteads, and the fields smiled with plenti- fnl harvests.
ERECTION OF SAW-MILL .- A movement that de- notes the town's activity and recnperative power was the erection of a saw-mill. A town record dated March 26, 1677, imforms us it was ordered that " Peter King, Thomas Read, Sen., John Goodenow, John Smith and Joseph Freeman have hberty granted them to build a saw-mill upon Hop Brook above Mr. Peter Noyes's mill, at the place viewed by the commit- tee of this town chosen the last week, which if they do, they are to have twenty tons of timber of the common lands for the building thereof, and earth for their dam, and also they arc to make a small dam or snffi- cient cansage so as to keep the waters out of the swamp lands there, provided also that if Mr. Peter Noyes shall at any time throw up his corn-mill they do in room thereof set np a corn-mill as sufficient to grind the town's corn and grain as Mr. Noyes's present mill hath done and doth, and see to maintain the same, and whenever they or any of them their heirs, execu- tors, administrators, Assigns, or successors, shall either throw up their said corn-mill or fail to grind the town's corn and grain as above said, the towns land hereby granted shall be forfeited and returned to the town's use again, and lastly the said persons are not to pen up the water, or saw at any time between the middle of April and the first of September, and they are also to make good all the highway that they shall damage thereby."
DEATH OF REV. EDMUND BROWNE .- The town had not moved far on the road to renewed prosperity before another calamity came. This was the death of its pastor, Rev. Edmund Browne, who died Jnne 22, 1678.
Mr. Browne came from England in 1637, and, ac- cordingly to Mather, was ordained and in actual ser- vice in that conntry before he came to America. He was a freeman of Massachusetts Bay Colony, May 13, 1640. He married, about 1645, Anne, widow of John Loveren, of Watertown, bnt left no children. He was a member of the synod that established " The Cambridge Platform," 1646-48; was on the conncil that met in 1657 to settle the difficulties in Rev. Mr. Stone's church, Hartford ; preached the artillery elec- tion sermon in 1666; and his name is attached to the testimony of the seventeen ministers against the pro- ceedings of the three elders of the First Church, Bos- ton, about 1669.
Mr. Browne was quite a land-owner, his real estate as it is supposed, amonnting to three hundred arres. His early homestead at Timber Neck had originally belonging to it seventy acres. He received from the General Conrt a grant of meadow land sitnated in the present territory of Framingham, and from time to time became possessed of varions lands both within and without the town. Mr. Browne hunted and fished, and it is said was a good angler. He played on several musical instruments and was a noted mnsi- cian. In his will he speaks of his " Base Voyal" and musical books and instruments. He was much interest-
THE WADSWORTH GRAVE, South Sudbury.
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ed in educating and Christianizing the Indians, and at one time had some of them under his special care. His library was for those times quite valuable, con- taining about one hundred and eighty volumes. He left fifty pounds to establish a grammar school in Sudbury ; but by vote of the town, in 1724, it was diverted to another purpose. He also left one hun- dred pounds to Harvard College.
Soon after the death of Mr. Browne the town called the Rev. James Sherman to the pastorate, and bought for his use, of John Loker, "the east end of his house, standing before and near the meeting- house; and the reversion due to him of the western end of the house that his mother then dwelt in." The town also agreed to pay Mr. Sherman eighty pounds salary, part in money and part in produce.
NEW MEETING-HOUSE .- In 1685 the town made a contract for a new meeting-house which was to "stand upon the present burying-place of this town, and on the most convenient part thereof, or behind or about the old meeting-house that now is."
MILITARY MATTERS .- In the wars that occurred in the last of the seventeenth and the early part of the eighteenth centuries, Sudbury soldiers did valiant service. The town was represented in the ill-fated expedition of Sir William Phipps, in 1690, and in the expedition subsequently made against the eastern In- dians. They also later did good service in and about Rutland, Mass. Repeatedly are the town's soldiers on the muster-rolls of a company of rangers who served in that vicinity. One of the commanding officers was William Brintnal, a Sudbury school- master.
SCHOOLS .- A prominent feature in the history of Sudbury at the beginning of the eighteenth century was the attention given to schools.
November 17, 1701; at a town-meeting, "it was voted to choose Mr. Joseph Noyes as a grammar school master for one year. Also chose Mr. Wm Brown and Mr. Thomas Plympton to present the said school master unto the Rev. ministers for their appro- bation of him, which are as followeth, Mr. James Sherman, Mr. Joseph Esterbrooks, Mr. Swift, of Fra- mingham." This reverend committee duly met, and examined the candidate, and reported as follows, Nov. 21, 1701: " We, the subscribers, being desired by the town of Sudbury to write what we could testify in concerning the justification of Mr. Joseph Noyes, of Sudbury, for a legall Grammar School master, hav- ing examined the said Mr. Joseph Noyes, we find that he hath been considerably versed in the Latin and Greek tongue, and do think that upon his dili- gent revisal and recollection of what he hath formerly learned, he may be qualified to initiate and instruct the youth in the Latin tongue.
"JOSEPH ESTERBROOKS, JOHN SWIFT."
On the strength of this careful approval and guarded recommendation the successful candidate went forth to his work. He did not, however, long
retain his position. For some cause not mentioned the place soon became vacant ; and February of the same year Mr. Picher became Mr. Noycs' successor. The contract made with Mr. Picher was as follows : "It is agreed and concluded that the town will and doth grant to pay unto Mr. Nathaniel Picher six pounds in money in course hee doth accept of the Towne's choice as to be our Grammar scool master, also for one quarter of a yeare, and to begin ye third of March next ensuing, and to serve in the place the full quarter of a yeare, one half of the time on the east side of the River, and the other half of the time on the west side of the river. This Grammar scool master chosen if he accepts and doth enter upon the work it is expected by the above said Towne, that he should teach all children sent to him to learn Eng- lish and the Latin tongue, also writing and the art of Arithmatic." In 1703 it. was voted to pay Mr. Picher for service done that year twenty-eight pounds, "he deducting a months pay . . . for his being absent one month in summer time from keep- ing of scool, which amounth to twelfth part of time; " "also voted and agreed, as a free will, to give unto Mr. Picher two days in every quarter of his year to visit his friends, if he see cause to take up with it." In 1711, Lieut. Thomas Frink and Quartermaster Brintnal were "to agree with some person who is well instructed in ye tongues to keep a scool." His pay was not to exceed thirty pounds.
The place of the school was changed from time to time. In 1702 it was voted "that the scool master should keep ye scool ou ye west side of ye river at ye house of Thomas Brintnell, which is there parte of time belonging to ye west side of ye river." The custom of changing the place of the school was con- tinued for many years; for we find the following record as late as 1722: "Voted by the town that ye scool master shall keep scool one half of ye time on ye west side of ye river in Sudbury, voted by ye town, that ye scool master shall keep ye first quarter at ye scool house at ye gravel pitt, voted by ye town that ye second to bee keept on ye east side ye river as Near ye water as may be conveniant, voted by ye town that ye third quarter to be keept at ye house of Insign John Moore, voted by ye town that ye fourth quarter to be keept at ye house of Clark Gleason." In the year 1717 Samuel Paris was to keep school four months of the year at the school-house on the west side of the river, and at his own house the rest of the year. If he was away part of the time he was to make it up the next year.
In addition to these means for obtaining advanced instruction, there were schools of a simpler character. About the time that provision was made for a gram- mar school, we read of "masters who were to teach children to rede and wright and cast accounts." This was done in 1701, at which time the town "voted and chose John Long and John Balcom" for the purpose just stated, "and to pay them for one year thirty
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shillings apiece." From this time repeated referenee is made in the records to schools of a primary or mixed eharaeter.
Among the schoolmasters who served before 1750 are William Brintnal, Joseph Noyes, Nathaniel Pichier, Jonatban Hoar, Samuel Paris, Nathaniel Trask, Jon- atlan Loring, John Long, John Baleom, John Mel- len, Samuel Kendall, Ephraim Curtis and Zachery Hieks. Some of these taught for a sueeession of terms or years. William Brintnal taught a grammar school as late as 1733-34, and receipts are found of Samuel Kendall in 1725 and 1736.
Prior to 1700, sehool-house accommodations were scant. There was no school building whatever. In 1702 "the town agreed that the school should be kept at the meeting-house half a quarter and the other half quarter at the house of Benjamin Morses." But it is a law of progress that improvement in one direction suggests improvement in another; so with better schools better aeeommodations were sought for. Jan- uary 1, 1702, the "town voted and paste into an aet, to have a convenient seool-hous;" also voted "that the scool.house that shall be built by the town shall be set and ereeted as near the centre of the town, as may be eonveniantly set upon the town's land ;" also "that it be twenty feet in length, : : : eighteen feet in breadth, seven feet from the bottom of the eell to the top of the plate, a large chimney to be within the house, the house to be a log-house, made of pine, only the sides to be of white oak bord and shingles to be covered cells with. Also the chimney to be of stone to the mortling and finished with brick. This was paste into an act and vote Jan. 15th 1701-2." At another meeting it was decided "that there should be two seool- houses ; " that they should be of the same dimensions; and "that the one on the east side should be set near to Enoch Cleavland's dwelling-house." It was after- wards voted that "the seool-houses should be builte by a general town acte and that the seleetmen should make a rate of money of 20 pounds for their erection." One of the houses was to be placed "by Cleafflands and the other near unto Robert Mans." In 1711 the town voted to have but one sehool-house, and this sehool-house was to be built at "ye gravel pitt." " Ye seool-house" here mentioned was " to be 20 foot long, 16 foot wide, six foot studd, nine foot and a half sparrl. Ye sills to be white oak ye outside, to be borded, and ye bords to be feather-edge. Ye inside to be bireh and borded with Ruff bords, lower and uper flower to be bord anda briek Chemne, and two glass windows 18 Enehes square per window, and the Ruffe to be borded and slingled." It was to be ready for a school by the last of May, 1712. Joseph Parmenter was to make it, and have for pay fourteen pounds.
The evidence is that the desire for school privileges spread, and that the extremity of the town soon sought for inereased advantages. April 17, 1719, the town was ealled upon "to see if it will grant the North west quarter of the towns petition, they desir-
ing the school master some part of the time with them."
DIVISION OF THE TOWN INTO TWO PRECINCTS .-- As in educational matters, so in those pertaining to the church, we find the period prolifie in eliange. Great and important events transpired relating to the meeting-house, the minister and the people. The first change was the dismission of the pastor. On May 22, 1705, the pastoral relation between Rev. James Sherman and the people of Sudbury was dis- solved. But not long was the church left pastorless. The same year of Mr. Sherman's removal a town- meeting was held, in which it was voted " yt ye town will ehose a man to preach ye word of God unto us for a quarter of a year." The Rev. Israel Loring was chosen for the term mentioned. He began to preaeh in Sudbury, Sept. 16, 1705; and the result was he was ordained as pastor, Nov. 20, 1706.
After the settlement of Mr. Loring, eeclesiastieal matters were not long in a quiet state. A new sub- jeet soon engrossed public attention. There was an attempt made to divide the town into two parochial precinets. The west side people doubtless loved the little hill-side meeting-house, about which were the graves of their friends, and whose history was asso- ciated with so much of their own. Their fondness for it had doubtless inereased as the years passed by, and there elustered about it memories of things the sweetest and the saddest that had entered into their cheekered experience. Here their children had been offered in baptism ; here had been the bridal and the burial, the weekly greetings and partings, the ex- change of intelligence of heart and home. It had been the place for prayer and the preached word ; a place of watch and ward, and a place of resort in times of danger. But notwithstanding their fondness for the sacred spot, they were too practical a people to allow sentiment to interfere with their true pro- gress, and what they believed to be their spiritual good.
With their extremely slow means of transit, and the rough roads of that period when at their best, it was a long and weary way they had to travel every Sab- bath day; but when the roads beeame blocked with tlie drifting snow, or the river was swollen with floods, then it was sometimes a perilous undertaking to reach the east side meeting-house and return. In that primitive period the people of Sudbury did not desire even a good exeuse to keep them from public worship ; they were Puritanie in both precept and practiee. They would allow no small obstaele to eheat their soul of its rights; but if there were hin- deranees in the way to their spiritual helps, they re- quired their immediate removal.
Henee, a movement was inaugurated to divide the town, and make of it two preeinets, in each of which there should be a church. A primary aet for the ac- coniplishment of this purpose was to obtain the eon- sent of the General Court. To do this a petition was
GEORGE PITTS TAVERN,
SUDBURY.
See page 205.
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presented, which, as it tells its own story, and sets forth the entire case, we will present :
"Petition of the West Side people of Sudt ury to Governor Dudley and the General Assembly.
" The petition of us who are the subscribers living on ye west side of Sudbury great River Humbly showeth That wereas ye All wise and over Ruling providence of ye great God, Lord of Heaven and Earth who is God blessed forever moore, hath cast our lott to fall on that side of the River by Reason of the flud of watare, which for a very great part of the yeare doth very much incomode us, and often by extremity of water and terrible and violent winds, and a great part of the winter by ice, as it is at this present, so that wee are shut up and cannot come forth, and many times when wee doe atempt to git over our flud, we are forced for to seek our spiritual good with the peril of our Lives.
" Beside the extreme Travill that many of us are Exposed unto sum 3 : 4 : 5 : 6 : miles much more that a Sabbath days Jurney, by Reason of these and many more objections, to many here to enumerate, whereby many of our children and little ones, ancient and weak persons, can very Rarly allend the public worship. The cons dered premises we truly pray your Excellency and ye Honorable Council and House of Repre- sentatives to consider and compassionate us in our Extreme suffering condition, and if we may obtain so much favor in your Eyes as to grant us [our presents] as to appoint us a Commity to see and consider our circumstances and make report thereof to this honorable Court. And your pore petitioners shall ever pray.
" Sudbury, January 15th 1709.
" John Goodnow.
John haynes, Jr. Robert Man his mark.
Jolın haines. John Brigham. Benjamin wright.
Willianı Walker. George Parmenter.
David Haynes. Prefer haines.
David how. George Parmenter, Jr. Edward Goodnow his mark.
Thomas Brintnal.
John Goodenow, jr. Ephraim Garfield, his mark.
Thomas Smith, Junior.
Jonathan Rice."
Joseph Parmenter. John brigham. Samuel willis. Joseph willis. Richard Sauger. Tho : Smith. Joseph Hayes [Haynes]. timothy gibson, Jr. Joseph F. Jewel (his maik). Isaac Mellen. Melo C. Taylor (his mark). John Balcom. Joseph Balcom.
(State Archives, vol. ii., page 221.)
After repeated discussion of the subject, and years had elapsed, permission was given to the west side people to erect a meeting-house and maintain a min- ister. At a town-meeting, December 26, 1721, held at the house of Mr. George Pitts, it was agreed "to grant 24 pounds for preaching for the present on the westerly side of the river." It was also decided at that meeting to choose a committee to present a peti- tion to the General Court, " that ye west side inhabit- ants may have liberty to place their meeting-house on ye rocky plaine; " which request was granted.
The preliminary work of forming two parochial precincts was now completed; it only remained to adjust ecclesiastical relations to the new order of things, and provide whatever was essential to its suc- cess .. The church was to be divided, ministers se- cured and a meeting-house bnilt. All these came about in due time. After the decision, in December, 1721, "to have the preaching of the word amongst us," and the granting of money to meet the expense, Rev. Mr. Minot was invited to preach six Sabbaths in
the West Precinct. It may be that abont this time Mr. Loring preached some on the west side, since on the town debt, as recorded April 9, 1722, there stand- this statement : "To Mr. Israel Loring to ye support- ing ye ministry on both [sides] ye river in Sudbury 80. 0. 0.""
Bnt more permanent arrangements were soon made. On the 6th of June, 1722, they extended a call to Rev. Israel Loring, and offered £100 for his settlement." July 10th Mr. Loring responded to the invitation in the following word>: "To the Inhabit- ants of the west Precinct in Sudbury : I accept of the kind invitation you have given me to come over and settle and be the minister of the Westerly Precinct." A few days after the above invitation the east side invited him to remain with them, and took measures to provide for "their now settled minister, Mr. Israel Loring." The day after replying to the first invita- tion, he wrote to the east side people informning then of his decision to leave them and settle in the West Precinct. Mr. Loring moved to the west side, July 25, 1723. (Stearns Collection ) He lived about a mile toward the north part of the town, in what was afterwards an old red honse, on the William Hunt place, that was torn down some years since. He sub- sequently lived at the centre, on what is known as the Wheeler Haynes place.
The church records by Mr. Loring state as follows : "Feb. 11, 1723. The church met at my house, where, after the brethren on the east side had manifested their desire that the church might be divided into two churches, it was so voted by majority." At the time of the division of the church, the number of communicants on the west side was thirty-two males and forty-two females. (Stearns Collection.) The church records went into the possession of the West Parish.
While ecclesiastical matters were in process of ad- justment on the west side, they were progressing towards a settlement on the east side also. It is stated that the East Precinct was organized June 25, 1722. When the effort to secure the services of Mr. Loring proved futile, a call was extended to Rev. William Cook, a native of Hadley, Mass., and a grad- uate of Harvard College. The call being accepted, Mr. Cook was ordained March 20, 1723, and continued their pastor until his death, November 12, 1760. The town granted eighty pounds to support preaching on both sides of the river for half a year.
NEW MEETING-HOUSES .- An important matter, in connection with the new order of things, was the erection of new meeting-houses. This work re- ceived prompt attention. "At a town-meeting, Jan- uary 22 : 172% the town granted five hundred pounds to build a new meeting-house on the west side, and repair the old one on the east side, three hundred and eighty pounds for the new, and one hundred and twenty pounds for the repairing of the old on the east side." The sum for repairing the old house was at a
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subsequent meeting made one hundred aud fifty pounds.
The meeting-house in the West Precinct was placed on the site of the present Unitarian Church in Sud- bury Centre. The location was probably selected because central to the inhabitants of the West Pre- cinct.
THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WARS .- In the French and Indian Wars the towu repeatedly sent soldiers to the field who did valiant service for their country. In the third French war it sent men for the capture of Cape Breton; and in the defence of No. 4, a fort on the Connecticut River, at what is now Charleston, N. H., Captain Phincas Stevens, a native of Sudbury, did conspicuous service. Mr. Stevens was born in Sudbury, February 20, 1700, and a few years later he went with his father to Rutland. About 1740, he went to the New Hampshire frontier, and after the construction of Fort No. 4, he became its commander, and assisted bravely in its defense. In the arduous task he was aided for a time, in 1746, by Captain Josiah Brown, who went from Sudbury with a troop of horse. In the fourth Freuch and Indian War Sudbury soldiers were again at the front, and did ser- vice in the various expeditions of that period.
In 1755 a regiment was raised, aud placed under command of Colonel Josiah Brown, of Sudbury, for the purpose of preventing the encroachments of the French about Crown Point and upon " Lake Iroquois, commonly called by the French, Lake Champlain." The regiment belonged to the command of William Johnson. The following is a list of the field and staff officers :
Josiah Brown, Col. John Cummings, Lt. Col.
Steven Miller, Major. Samuel Dunbar, Chaplain.
Samuel Brigham, Surgeon.
Benjamin Gott, Surgeon's Mate. David Mason, Commissary. Joseph Lovering, Adjutant.
Sept. 10, 1755, Samuel Dakin received a commission as captain of foot in this regiment. The muster-roll of his company contains forty-eight names, of which sixteeu are supposed to be from Sudbury.
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