USA > Massachusetts > Essex County > Haverhill > The history of Haverhill, Massachusetts, from its first settlement, in 1640, to the year 1860 > Part 32
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70
· Joseph Badger, Jr.
302
HISTORY OF HAVERHILL.
CHAPTER XIX.
-
1729 TO 1741.
At the annual town meeting for 1729, a proposition was made to raise one hundred pounds for " school money," and though it was voted down, yet the proposal is significant of an increasing interest in the cause of popular education. At this time, in addition to the " Grammar" School, (which was kept in constant operation, although moved quarterly from place to place about town,) there were other schools, termed "Common" schools, kept a few weeks each, annually, in various parts of the town. School houses were not yet erected in all the places where schools were wanted, and it was therefore quite common to keep them in private houses. Thus we find that in 1725 a school was kept " one quarter " in the house of Samuel Ayer ; in 1727, one quarter each in the houses of " Widow Currier," and William Johnson ; in 1730 one quarter at John Clements ; and in 1732, three quarters at the house of Reuben Currier.
In the preceding chapter we alluded to the employment, by Massachu- setts and New Hampshire, of agents in England, to manage their affairs before the King and Council. The cost of supporting such agents had now become so great that the General Court called upon the towns to assist in defraying the expenses. At a meeting called for that purpose, this town voted to raise fifty pounds, to be delivered to Colonel Richard Saltonstall, the representative, and by him to the Committee of the General Court. This not only shows the interest of the town in the great question then beginning to excite so much attention, but also the readiness of its inhabi- tants to bear their full proportion of the public burden. That this large contribution was not an isolated case, is abundantly showu by the records of a subsequent period.
On the 26th of October of this year, twenty-nine members of the first church, residents in that part of Methuen, now Salem, N. H., had permis- sion granted to embody themselves into a church in that place. They had already built themselves a new meeting house.
At the annual meeting in 1730, the proposition to raise one hundred pounds for schools was again brought forward. This time it was. coupled with the condition that one-half of the sum should be appropriated for the support of "the Grammar School near the meeting house ; " - but the plan again failed.
303
HISTORY OF HAVERHILL.
The inhabitants of the "North Precinct" were this year allowed ten pounds from the Town treasury toward the support of a minister, and almost immediately they gave a Mr. Haynes an invitation to settle, but he declined. Soon after, they extended an invitation to Rev. James Cushing, a son of Rev. Caleb Cushing of Salisbury, who accepted, and was ordained in December. On the 1st of November, forty-six members of the first church, requested and obtained a dismission, " for the purpose of uniting in a church state in the North Precinct." The church was organized November 4, 1730.
This year, (1730,) in addition to the regular board of five Selectmen, three persons,-Nathan Webster, Sergeant Joseph Emerson, and Deacon Daniel Little-where chosen " Overseers of the Poor." This was the first time such officers were chosen by the town. They were regularly chosen annually from this time until 1735, when they were discontinued, and their duties again assigned to the board of Selectmen. The office was not again revived until 1801.
The North Precinct, having settled a minister among them, made appli- cation the next spring to the Proprietors for a grant of land for him. They promptly gave him a piece containing about twenty-nine acres.
From the Proprietors Records for 1731, we learn that Joseph Whittier and Moses Hazzen petitioned them for permission to build a wharf on the Merrimack, near " Mill Brook; which was granted, on condition that they kept the two bridges near them in repair " forever," paid fifty pounds, and built a good wharf, at least one hundred feet wide, and from the highway to low water mark! We think these terms were stringent enough to satisfy the sharpest of the sharp bargain makers among them.
Under this date, Mirick, in his history of the town, has the following :-
" About this time an affair happened which was rather derogatory to the characters of those concerned. The Commoners had fenced a certain part of the ox-common with split rails. This was very much disliked by the non-commoners living in the north part of the town, and they determined to be revenged. They soon concerted a plot, and a small party assembled near flaggy meadow, on the night appointed to execute it, carried the rails into large piles, and set them on fire. The loss of the rails was but trifling when compared with the other damage done by the fire. The earth was dry, and it run through the woods, and continued to burn for many days."
From the fact that for several years preceding, and even after the above date, these parties were at peace with each other, having settled all their disputes, we think the above described incident must have taken place about 1724, or 1725, at which time these common disputes were at their height.
304
HISTORY OF HAVERHILL.
At the annual meeting in 1732, the " proffit of the Parsonage farm" (that is, the money received for the annual rent of it) was voted to be given to the North Parish until there should be another Parish in town.
At the same time it was decided to " take an exact list of the Poles and Estates" in town, and for that purpose a committee was chosen. We think the committee must have made a short job of it, as the only future record we find relating to it, is a " bill paid Christopher Bartlett one day valuation Estates, six shillings."
The earliest notice we find of shipbuilding in town, is the following, in the proprietors records, under date of June 18, 1733 :-
" Henry Springer petitioning as followeth viz That he is willing & desirous to settle in the Town and Carry on the Trade of a Ship carpenter if he might have suitable encouragement. But having no place of his own to build on prays the grant of so much Land betwixt the highway by the burrying place, and the River or where the vessell now stands on the Stocks as would accommodate him for a building Yard." " Upon which petition after mature consideration it was voted that he should have so much, provided that he settled in the town of Haverhill & Carried on the Trade of a Ship Carpenter, or that some other person built in the same place in his room, and no Longer."
We are not to suppose from the above, that Springer was the first ship- builder in town, or that he was the only one who could build, or had built, ships here ; because, as we have already noticed, wharves had been built, and vessels employed, for many years previous. And from the fact that the size and finish of the " vessels " of that day required far less skill and capital in their construction, than do those of our own time, we may safely presume that they had not only been for some time previously employed in the commerce of the town, but were also built here. Indeed, the fact that Springer in his petition refers to a vessel then on the stocks, is, we think, sufficient to establish our point. But that Springer was the first person who carried on shipbuilding as a regular business in the town, we are inclined to believe, from the fact that his name is the first that appears in that connection in either of the Records, which are so minute in all such matters, that if it had been otherwise, we should without doubt have found the name of his predecessors.
In March of the following year, the large island in Island Pond was disposed of by the proprietors of Haverhill, to Richard Saltonstall. It was estimated to contain two hundred acres, one-half of which was given him in consideration of valuable services rendered the proprietors, and the remaining half sold to him for thirty shillings per acre.
305
HISTORY OF HAVERHILL.
Early in the spring of the same year (1734) the appearance of a few very large and uncommon "catterpiller" was noticed in the woods of the town. These rapidly increased until the trees were nearly covered, and a vast amount of damage was done by them. The following inter- esting account of them, we copy from a memoranda left by Dr. Joshua Bailey of this town :-
" In the year 1734 there was as soon as the leaves began to appear on the Oak trees a catterpiller in spots in our woods in Haverhill the red & black oaks chiefly & in the year 1735 there was 100 for one of what appeared last year & in 1736 the number was astonishing for they covered almost the whole of the woods in Haverhill & Bradford & part of Methuen Chester & Andover and in many other places near Haverhill many thou- sands of acres of thick woodland the leaves and tender twings of the last years growth were wholly eaten up to the wholly killing of many of the trees & others had most of the limbs killed & if providence had continued them to a 4th year we should not have a tree left in most of the places they seemed to like the red & black oak but when they had destroyed the leaves of the oak they cleared all before them and you might travel miles in some places and see no green leaves on any but a few trees that were standing single and in midsummer the wood was as naked as midwinter they were larger than our common catterpiller and made no nests the trees in some places completely covered with them and they would travel from tree to tree no river or pond stopped them for they would swim like dogs and travelled in great armies and I have seen Houses so covered with them that you could see little or no part of the building on every leaf of a tree you might see more or less of them."
Richard Kelley, of Amesbury, in his diary, described them as " larger than the orchard caterpillr, but smooth on the back with a black streak with white spots." And he adds, -" they are thought by many to be the palmer worm."
In 1734, the inhabitants of the easterly part of the town petitioned to be set off into a separate Parish by themselves, which was agreed to by the town, and the dividing line run. But some of the inhabitants of the proposed new parish, being opposed to a separation, made such vigorous efforts against it, that when application was made to the General Court to perfect the work, it not only refused to do so, but ordered the petitioners back to the old Parish.""
Immediately after, the people of the westerly part of the town, (between whom and those of the easterly part there appears to have been an "under-
" The petition was signed by Nathaniel Peaslee, " for himself and others."
39
306
HISTORY OF HAVERHILL.
standing" in this matter) made a similar application, which was granted, and the west part of the town set off into a distinct Parish, called the West- Parish. The inhabitants of the new Parish immediately commenced the building of a meeting house, which was completed the same fall. It stood one mile east of the present brick meeting house in the above Parish, on the south west corner of the cross road, and where Timothy J. Goodrich now lives. Soon after, a call was extended to Rev. Samuel Bachellor, who ac- cepted, and was ordained in the following July. Seventy-seven members of the first church requested and received a dismission, for the purposes of forming the new church.
In 1734, also, the North Parish " burying ground" was laid out, the land being given for that purpose by the Haverhill Proprietors. It was the same ground which is still occupied for the same purpose,-a short distance above the house of Jesse Clement, Esq.
In March, 1735, the town, for the first time, voted " to mend and repair the highways by a rate." The prices fixed upon for labor, were, four shillings per day for a man, and two shillings for a yoke of oxen. The surveyors were to be the judges of a day's work. Though the town voted as above, we do not find that a separate sum was voted to be raised as a highway rate, or tax, until 1754 -twenty years after.
At the annual meeting in 1736, the town voted to divide the income from all the parsonage land west of the Sawmill River (Little River) equally between the North and West Parish. The same year, the Proprietors gave the West Parish forty acres of land, and also gave their minister, the Rev. Mr. Bachellor, seventy acres for his own use.
In October of the above year, the Proprietors voted to survey all the meadows lying in common in the town, and divide them among themselves. The proportion each should receive was to be governed by the original grants of " accommodation " land.
In May, 1735, a Mr. Clough, of Kingston, N. H., having examined the throat of a hog which died of a throat disease, was himself suddenly at- tacked with a swelling of the throat, and lived but a few days. Three weeks after, three children in his neighborhood were attacked in a similar manner, and died in thirty-six hours. From this, the disease spread rapidly, and proved fearfully fatal, particularly to children. It extended itself in all directions, passing through the British Colonies on the east, and into New York on the west. It was two years in reaching the Hud- son. Between June, 1735, and July, 1736, nine hundred and eighty-four died in fourteen towns of New Hampshire. It appeared in this town in October, 1736, and swept off more than one-half of all the children under
307
HISTORY OF HAVERHILL.
fifteen years of age. Almost every house was turned into a habitation of mourning, and scarce a day passed that was not a witness of the funeral procession. Many a hopeful son, or lovely daughter, arose in the morning with apparent perfect health ; but, ere the sun went down, they were cold and silent in the winding-sheet of the dead. In many families, not a child was left to cheer the hearts of the stricken parents. Fifty-eight families lost one each ; thirty-four lost two each ; eleven lost three each ; five lost four each ; and four lost five cach. One hundred and ninety-nine fell victims to the terrible distemper, in this town! Only one of these was over forty years of age.
The disease was attended with a sore throat, white or ash-colored spots, an efflorescence on the skin, great general debility, and a strong tendency to putridity. Rev. John Brown, minister of the First Parish, published a particular account of this distemper, in a large pamphlet. Three of his own children were numbered among the victims.
Shortly afterward, a pamphlet of seventeen pages of rhyme, concerning the ravages of this distemper, was published in Boston. We cannot resist the temptation to copy a couple of specimen verses : -
" To Newbury O go and see To Hampton and Kingston To York likewise and Kittery Behold what God hath done. The bow of God is bent abroad Its arrows swiftly fly Young men and maids and sucking babes Are smitten down thereby."
The same discase appeared again in 1763, but in a much milder form.
In 1737, the town voted to build an almshouse, so as to support their poor under one roof, instead of hiring them kept in private families. For some reason not given, it was not, however, commenced this year, but at the next annual meeting, it was again voted to build such an house, and it was done the same year. It stood just below Mill Brook, on the river side.º The new system did not work as well as was expected, and a few years after, (1746) the town voted to sell the almshouse, and return to the good old plan of their fathers before them.
0 In 1747, Nathaniel Peaslee petitioned the Proprietors for a piece of land "where the almshouse now stands, beginning by ye Mill Brook about a rod below the Bridge, thence south to Merrimack River," &c. This was after the town had voted to sell the Almshouse.
308
HISTORY OF HAVERHILL.
Though the town of Methuen was set off in 1725, it does not appear that the line between the two towns was actually settled until the year 1737, when we find that Lieutenant Richard Kimball, of Bradford, was chosen to " settle the line between Haverhill and Methuen." This did not, however, "settle " the matter, as we find that the next year the town ordered the selectmen to join with the selectmen of Methuen and run the line, - which they did. The line thus agreed upon has continued to the present time as the dividing line between the two towns.
Among the things which call for mention in our history for 1738, is the petition of Hannah Bradley, of this town, to the General Court, asking for a grant of land, in consideration of her former sufferings among the Indians, and " present low circumstances." In answer to her petition, that honorable body granted her two hundred and fifty acres of land, which was laid out May 29, 1739, by Richard Hazzen, Surveyor. It was located in Methuen, in two lots, - the first, containing one hundred and sixty acres, bordering on the west line of Haverhill ; the other, containing ninety acres, bordering on the east line of Dracut.
Mrs. Bradley's good success in appealing to the generosity of the Gen- eral Court, seems to have stimulated Joseph Neff, a son of Mary Neff, to make a similar request. He shortly after petitioned that body for a grant of land, in consideration of his mother's services in assisting Hannah Duston in killing " divers Indians." Neff declares in his petition, that his mother was " kept a prisoner for a considerable time," and "in their return home past thro the utmost hazard of their lives and Suffered distressing want being almost Starved before they Could Return to their dwellings."
Accompanying Neff's petition, was the following deposition of Hannah Bradley, which well deserves a place in our pages, for its historical interest. The document proves that Mrs. Bradley was taken prisoner at the same time with Mrs. Duston, and travelled with her as far as Pennacook :-
" The deposition of the Widow Hannah Bradly of Haverhill of full age who testifieth & saith that about forty years past the said Hannah together with the widow Mary Neff were taken prisoners by the Indians & carried together into captivity, & above penny cook the Deponent was by the Indians forced to travel farther than the rest of the Captives, and the next night but one there came to us one Squaw who said that Hannah Dustan and the aforesaid Mary Neff assisted in killing the Indians of her wigwam except herself and a boy, herself escaping very narrowly, shewing to myself
309
HISTORY OF HAVERHILL.
& others seven wounds as she said with a Hatched on her head which wounds were given her when the rest were killed, and further saith not.
her Hannah Bradly." mark
The above deposition was sworn to before Joshua Bayley, of Haverhill, June 28th, 1739.
The General Court granted Neff two hundred acres of land.
About this time (1738) a ferry was established on the Merrimack, about a mile and a half below the present chain ferry, and near where Follansbee Noyes now lives. It was soon after removed a mile up river, near the present house of David Nichols.
The first rum distillery in town, was built about this time, as we find, under date of November 6, 1738, a petition from James McHard, to the Proprietors, in which he says : - " there is a small vacancy of land betwixt the parsonage Land and Merrimack river by Mr. Pecker's which I am informed belongs to the proprietors of Haverhill and I being about to build a Still House for the good of the Town of Haverhill and without any regard to my Own Interest, as I generally do," &c., and he therefore requests that they will give him liberty to erect his distillery on that lot. This they agreed to do, provided he built within three years. It stood on the stream (Mill Brook) near what is now the upper mill.
About this time, the long row of sycamore-trees that, for a century afterward, added so much to the natural beauty of the " Saltonstall Seat," (now the residence of Mrs. Samuel W. Duncan) were set out." The work was done by one Hugh Talent, an "exile of Erin," and a famous fiddler withal. Tradition says that the village swains and lasses did not allow the cat-gut and rosin of this musical Talent to rust for want of use. He lived with Colonel Saltonstall, in the capacity of a servant. Poor Hugh ! For nearly three generations after he had " hung up his fiddle and his bow," the beautiful trees he planted, were the pride of our village, and the admiration of all who beheld them. Many an one, whose head is sprinkled o'er with the frosts of many winters, as he reads these lines, will call to mind the days and scenes of the time when the " Old Buttenwoods" were flourishing in all their glory, and will embalm their memory with a sigh - perhaps with a tear !
The summer of 1740 was as remarkable for the vast amount of rain which fell, and flooded the country, as the subsequent winter was for the
" May 23, 1748, "R Saltonstall" petitioned the Proprietors for about one-fourth acre of land south of his homestead, " where he had lately planted some Button Trees." The petition was granted.
310
HISTORY OF HAVERHILL.
severity of its cold. It was probably the most severe winter that had been known since the settlement of the country. After a very wet sum- mer and fall, November 4th it set in very cold. On the 15th, a foot of snow fell, but on the 22nd it began to rain, "and it rained three weeks together." This produced a freshet in the Merrimack, the like of which " was not known by no man for seventy years."" The water rose fifteen feet in this town, and floated off many houses. On the 12th of December, the river was closed by the severity of the weather, and before the 1st of January, loaded teams, with four, six, and eight oxen, passed from Haver- hill and the towns below, to the upper long wharf at Newburyport. The ice in Plumb Island River did not break up until the 30th of March, 1741. There were twenty-seven snow storms during the winter. t
By the running of the new line between Massachusetts and New Hamp- shire, in 1741, nearly one-third of the population, territory, and property of the town of Haverhill, fell to the north of the line. When to this is added the large portion set off for Methuen, in 1725, we find that more than one-half of its stock of all those elements which combine to make a first elass New England town, had been taken from Haverhill within the short period of fifteen years. It was, indeed, a great change in its condition, and prospects, and must have been felt most seriously.
Soon after the State line was run, the town instructed its selectmen to take an exact list of the polls and estates on the north side of the line, which was done .¿ The list is entitled "A List of Polls and Rateable Estate Real & Personal, for the Town of Haverhill in the County of Essex, Taken in the year 1741. This list contains only those living in that part of the town that falls into N Hampshire Province according to Mr Mitch- els Line."§ This document, which is still among the town's papers, contains the following names : -
Abraham Annis, John Currier, John Currier, Jur, Richard Carlton,
Edward Carlton, Jr, Timothy Johnson, William Johnson, Peter Patee,
Obadiah Perry, Seth Patee, Benjamin Smith, Thomas Smith,
o Stephen Jaques. + Rev. Mr. Plant.
# The immediate cause which prompted this action, was the fact that those on the north side of the line refused to pay taxes any longer to Haverhill,-or even those of the current year.
§ Among the papers in the State Archives, is a petition of Nathaniel Rolfe, and John Russell, Jr., to the General Court, in 1753, setting forth that when the State line was run in 1741, the meeting house in the North Parish, with two-thirds of the inhabitants, fell on the New Hampshire side, while the minister's house, and the greatest part of the land, fell on the Massachusetts side; that some living on the latter side refused to pay their minister's rate, being in doubt about the power to raise money for such purposes; and therefore the petitioners asked that such power might be given them - if they did not then have it. The Court thereupon, April 7, 1753, resolved the portion south of the line into a separate and distinct Parish, with all the powers, &c., of a Parish.
311
HISTORY OF HAVERHILL.
John Smith, Richard Patee, Jonathan Wheler, John Watts, John Webster, William Webster, Daniel Whitiker, Benjamin Wheler, Stephen Wheler,
David Copp, Moses Copp, Thomas Crawfford, Jonathan Coborn, John Dow, Jur,
Stephen Emerson, Jur,
Edmand Page,
Othro Stevens,
Peter Easman,
Timothy Noyse,
Eliphelet Page,
William Easman,
George Little,
John Muzzee,
Roberd Emerson, Jur,
Daniel Little,
Wait Stevens,
Benjamin Emerson,
George Little, Jur,
Samuel Auderson,
Jonathn Emery,
Samuel Little,
Nathll Waekfarlee,
Humphry Emery,
Joseph Little,
John Maekcaster,
Richard Flood, Roberd Ford,
Joshua Page,
Jonathan Coborn, Jur,
Joseph Gill,
John Hogg,
Daniel Poor,
Moses Gill,
William Maekmaster, Jonathan Dusten, Jur,
Ebenr Gill,
William Mackmaster, Jr Moses Trussel,
John Heath,
Arter Boyd,
Capt Nicolas White,
James Heath,
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.