USA > Massachusetts > Essex County > Wenham > The history of Wenham : civil and ecclesiastical, from its settlement in 1639, to 1860 > Part 3
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To this body, powers of the most arbitrary and despotic character were granted. They were authorized to enact laws, subject only to approval by the king ; to levy taxes, to control the forts and militia, to regulate the currency, to erect courts and appoint judges, and, in case of resistance, to execute martial law. Soon after this, Sir Edmund Andros was sent over as " Captain-General and Governor-in-chief" of all New England, and with him a sufficient body of troops, as it was supposed, to subdue and keep down the refractory colonies. One of his first acts was to impose a tax of " twen- ty pence on each poll, and one penny on the pound upon all the late Colonies and Provinces." This tax having never been granted by the repre- sentatives of the people, was manifestly illegal,
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but all who refused to pay it were seized and im- prisoned, refused the benefit of a habeas corpus, and finally condemned by a packed jury, “ most of them non-freeholders, and some of them strangers and foreigners." The press was restrained, and a design formed of establishing the Episcopal Church, and compelling all other sects to contribute to its support. The old land titles were declared to be void, and it was threatened that writs of intrusion should be issued, " as many as a cart could hold." " Our condition," said Danforth, " is little inferior to downright slavery." To assemble peaceably in town meeting for purposes of deliberation, was declared to be an act of sedition and riot.
The prospect at this time was gloomy in the extreme. But it was not in the nature of the Pu- ritans to despair. In the hour of peril they put their trust in God, and patiently waited for the favorable moment to strike for deliverance. For- tunately for them, the tyranny of James was not confined to America. His oppressive and arbitra- ry measures at length provoked a revolution which drove him from his throne, and ended in the pro- clamation of William and Mary, to be king. and queen of England.
The news of the revolution at home soon reach- ed New England, and immediately the people arose in their might, deposed Andros, disarmed his fol- lowers, and entrusted the management of affairs to a Committee of Safety, of whom the venerable
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Bradstreet, now in his 83th year, was chosen pres- ident. The influence of these events was felt even to the remotest hamlets. As the tyranny of An- dros and his subordinates had been everywhere felt, the rejoicing at his downfall was equally uni- versal. The following record will show the feel- ings of the people of Wenham in view of the then state of public affairs, and also the interest they felt in all that affected the well-being of the colo- nies.
" May 6, 1689. At a town meeting. We the freeholders and inhabitants of the town of Wen- ham, being deeply sensible of and thankful to God for his great mercy in delivering us from the tyran- ny and oppression of those vile men under whose injustice and cruelty we have so long groaned, withal render our hearty thanks to those worthy gentlemen who have been engaged in so good a work as the conserving our peace, since the revo- lution ; yet being also apprehensive of the many inconveniences and hazards of the establishment of our affairs: Resolved, that we expect that our Honorable Governor and deputy Governor, and assistants, elected by the freemen of this colony, in May, 1686, together with the deputies then sent down by the respective towns, to the court then held, and which was never legally dissolved, shall come together and exercise their power as a Gen- eral Court, according to our charter, on the 9th of this May, inst., and in so doing, we promise and
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engage to aid and assist them to the utmost of our power, with our persons and estates, praying God to grant them the management of our arduous affairs, and we hope that all those who are true friends to the peace and prosperity of this land, will readily and heartily join with us herein. Vot- ed, with one consent, in the affirmative."
They then chose Ensign Fairfield and Thomas Patch to inform the Committee of Safety, of "this their mind and determination." A convention of towns was held a few weeks later, to which Walter Fairfield and Thomas Fisk were sent as delegates from Wenham, and which voted by a large majori- ty, for the resumption of the beloved Charter. But this the magistrates were afraid to do without the consent of the English Commons, and that consent was never obtained. A new Charter was formed, in many respects less favorable than the former one, but with which the colonists were compelled to put up.
The accession of William and Mary to the crown of England, involved a war with France, of which even these distant colonies felt the terrible effects, The Indians were furnished with arms and ammu- nition by the French in Canada, and excited to at- tack the English. The old scenes of savage war- fare were now renewed. To protect themselves and their families against their barbarous foes, it was voted, Oct. 30, 1691, " that forasmuch as we appre- hend it our duty to do what we may for our safe-
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ty in this time of danger, that there shall be a for- tification built for a shelter for our women and children."
The matter was left to a committee of seven, to determine where and of what nature the defences should be. Several years earlier a company of militia had been formed in town, and in 1683, the General Court passed an order that, " Thomas Fisk be captain, Charles Gott be lieutenant, and William Fisk be ensign of the first company in Wenham. Great, in those days, were the honors of the officers in " the trainband." Their names were never men- tioned without prefixing the military title ; they held the highest seats at church, and on all occa- sions took precedence of the untitled multitude. With all their sturdy republicanism, our forefathers were careful to render to every one his due share of honor, and not less careful that no one should assume a rank which did not belong to him. Even the title of Mr. which is now given to every one, however low his position in the social circle, was at first accorded to only two or three inhabitants of the town. But the distinctions of Mr. and Cap- tain and Lieutenant have now but little respect. The aristocratical element in the people was not strong enough to stand the shock of the Revolu- tion. But if public functionaries received much honor in those days, their pay was proportionally less. In 1692, Walter Fairfield was elected repre- sentative, and as towns then paid their own dele-
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gates, he was allowed two shillings a day, while attending the General Court, out of which he was to pay his own expenses. In 1695, Capt. Thomas Fisk was paid "for going representative, for ser- vice as an assessor, and a day going to Ipswich, £2 9s."
The first settlers appear to have obtained their land by purchase, from the Indians, and one family at least, still hold their farm (now occupied by Mr. Daniel Perkins,) by a deed from its aboriginal pos- sessor, and signed by him with an arrow, as his mark. Yet after the town had been settled more than sixty years, a claim to the soil was made by certain Indians, as will appear from the following record. " Dec. 10, 1700. Voted, that whereas, Samuel English, Joseph English and John Umpee, Indians, and, as they say, heirs to Moschanomett, late sagamore of Agawam, lay claim and challenge to the soil of our township, it is agreed that there shall be a committee chosen to treat with them, and examine into the claim and challenge which they, the said Indians, make of our land." This committee seem to have considered that the easiest way to settle the matter, was to pay the Indians for their title, especially as their demands were not very extravagant. Accordingly £4 16s. were raised by tax, and appropriated for the purpose. After this, we presume that not even the most scrupulous or the most sensitive purchaser could have a doubt as to the title by which the people of Wenham lay claim to the soil.
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HISTORY OF WENHAM.
It has already been mentioned that there were large tracts of land within the town, which were not divided among particular owners, but held in common. One tract of six hundred acres lay in the easterly part of the town, extending from Grape-Vine bridge, as it is called, near the house of the late William Langmaid, to the Manchester line. Another tract included that part of the great swamp which lies in Wenham. Another portion lay west of Lord's Hill; and there were other smaller portions in different parts of the town. The ownership of these lands belonged to " the commoners," who were probably the descendants of the first settlers of the town, or had derived their rights by purchase from them. In some cases, too, where families had removed into the place, the town had voted to grant them a share in the common lands ; for the town seemed to exer- cise a concurrent jurisdiction over them. Occa. sionally lots were granted from these lands to per- sons for their services, or sold to pay the debts of the town.
The management of these common lands was a continual subject of difficulty and contention. Or- ders innumerable were passed to prevent trespass, and to regulate the feeding of cattle and cutting of wood upon it. The inhabitants of the town were generally allowed to cut wood and timber for their own use, but not for sale, except by special permission. In spite, however, of every precau-
5
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tion, complaints of trespass were continually made. Committees were appointed, stringent regulations were passed, and even the prosecutions which were repeatedly commenced against the offenders, proved ineffectual. The wood and timber continu- ed to disappear.
Motions were early made in the town meetings, to divide the common lands equally among the proprietors, but various obstacles stood in the way of such a division. It was even questioned whether it could legally be done, without the unanimous consent of all concerned. Votes to di- vide them were repeatedly passed, one as early as 1669, but they were afterwards re-considered, or allowed to go by default. It was so evident, how- ever, to every one that the lands in this state were very imperfectly cultivated, and that their real value could never thus be half realized, that all parties at length came to the conclusion that it was best to distribute all the lands equally among the proprietors. A committee was accordingly ap- pointed to determine who were entitled to lots, as commoners. Of these there appeared to be sixty- three persons owning seventy-one shares. A meet- ing was then held, March 6, 1704-5, at which it was voted, with but one dissenting voice, "that all the commoners should have an equal share both for quantity and quality in whatever division should be agreed to." It was then ordered that convenient highways should be laid out for access to each lot,
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and that the commoners should join in companies of eight, to each of which should be allowed an equal share in the division of the lands, and each company should appoint one of their number to assist in making the division. It was moreover agreed that wherever any company of eight should wish to divide their share among themselves indi- vidually, they should have power to do so.
As considerable interest was felt in this division of the commons, and several persons still hold the lots then drawn by their ancestors, the following list of the commoners, as then assorted in compa- nies of eight, is here given.
Who drew the first lot in the swamp.
Walter Fairfield, Richard Hutton, Thomas Fisk, Sen.,
John Barr,
Josiah Dodge,
David Batchelder,
hobert Symonds, Robert Symonds, Jr.
Who drew the second lot in the swamp.
Benjamin Edwards,
Thomas Edwards,
Richard Knowlton, Mordecai Laream,
John Gott, Joseph Herrick, John Herrick, John Berry.
Who drew the third lot in the swamp.
William Fisk, James Friend,
Joseph Fowler, Samuel Kimball, Sr., John Coy, Thomas Kimball, John Stewart, John Edwards.
Who drew the fourth lot in the swamp.
Samuel Fisk, Jr., Ruth Dodge, for her hus- band's estate.
Mary Dodge,
Henry Haggett,
Wm. Knowlton,
Jonathan Moulton,
Benjamin Fisk,
Samuel Fisk, Sr.
Who drew the fifth lot in the swamp.
Thomas Fisk, two shares.
Walter Fairfield, two shares.
Nath'l Waldron, two shares.
William Dodge, one share.
Zaccheus Goldsmith, one share.
Who drew the sixth lot in the swamp.
Richard Dodge, Thomas Patch, Sen., John Perkins, Tobias Trow, Charles Gott, Jr.,
Daniel Kilham,
Stephen Patch, William Rogers.
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HISTORY OF WENHAM.
Who drew the seventh lot in the| Who drew the eighth lot in the swamp. swamp.
Mr. Hull,
Joseph Batchelder,
John Batchelder,
Caleb Kimball,
John Dennis,
John Kilham,
Samuel Kimball, Jr.,
David Maxey,
Ebenezer Batchelder,
Ephraim Kimball,
William Fisk, Jr.,
Theophilus Rix,
John Leech,
Joshua Wallis,
Joseph Hocker.
Timothy Patch
Who drew the ninth lot in the swamp.
Mr. Gerrish, one share.
Lieut. John Porter, three shares.
1
Thomas White, one share. Theophilus Fisk, one share. Widow Cue, one share.
A committee chosen by these companies, pro- ceeded to divide the swamp and the common in the eastern part of the town into lots, which were drawn for by the different companies, on the 28th of November, 1705. The third and ninth divisions refusing to appoint any one to draw for them, the commoners made the appointment for them. The bounds of each lot are described at great length in the records, but it is unnecessary to repeat them here.
As the power of the commoners to divide the public lands, was questioned by some, a vote was passed at a town meeting, March 5, 1705-6, con- firming their proceedings, and granting to each company of eight, the parcels of land of which they were already possessed. The common lands having been thus divided among the different companies, these afterwards subdivided them among them- selves. Some smaller lots which were not included in this division, were sold to pay the current ex-
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penses of the town. Various exchanges and sales of the lots thus distributed, are recorded about this time, from which it appears that they varied in value, from forty to fifty shillings.
This division of the common lands, was undoubt- edly a wise measure. It ensured the better and more profitable cultivation of the lands themselves, and it also removed a constant source of wrangling and contention. A considerable portion of the records had previously been taken up with ac- counts of difficulties of this kind. Town meetings now became more peaceable, and the citizens, each attending to his own affairs, continued to increase and prosper.
The following half century was quite uneventful in the history of the town. The farmers cultivated their fields and gathered in their harvests in peace. At regular intervals the freemen assembled togeth- er and transacted the ordinary municipal business, of the town. That peculiar and distinctive feature of New England, the board of selectmen, has of course always existed. It is curious to observe how closely the town offices were, for a long peri- od, confined to a few leading families. The Fisks, the Fairfields, the Gotts, the Porters, the Kimballs, the Tarboxes, the Dodges, and the Friends, seem to have possessed almost a monopoly of the important places. Tything-men were regularly elected to terrify refractory boys, and to keep a guard over the manners and morals of the people. Hog-reeve
5*
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was no nominal office in those days, when swine were allowed, as they were till after the Revolution, to go at large, " being duly ringed and yoked." Deer-reeves were annually chosen to protect the deer which were found quite abundant in the woods. Wolves howled in the forests, and occa- sionally annoyed the inhabitants so much that re- wards were publicly offered, and appropriations made by the town, to any person who should de- stroy one. The roads, except the main county road from Salem to Ipswich were little more than cart paths and lanes leading to the various farms. Col. Porter has informed me that his mother told him when she first came to Wenham, which must have been about 1750, that they were obliged to trace their way by marks upon the trees. Each man lived for himself and very much within the circle of his family, satisfied with managing his own affairs and contented to have his neighbors do the same. Newspapers and books were extremely rare, and the means of travelling quite limited. For many years the inhabitants seem to have troubled themselves but very little about public affairs. From 1747 to 1767, a period of twenty years, the town sent only once a representative to the General Court. In those days each town was required to pay the salary and expenses of its own delegates, and this, with the fact that little interest was taken in State affairs, may perhaps account for it, that they so seldom sent any one.
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HISTORY OF WENHAM.
The population of the town continued gradually to increase, from its settlement until 1725 or '30, after which it remained nearly stationary for a hundred years or more. At the death of Rev. Mr. Gerrish, in 1720, the number of inhabitants is stated to have been three times as large as at his ordination, in 1673. In 1733, the number of men paying a poll tax was 114; in 1750, they had de- creased to 106, but in 1775, rose again to 123. From these data we may suppose the population of the town to have been about 500 persons - as many probably as it would support in the then rude state of agriculture and in the entire absence of the manufacturing arts .* One son in every family usually remained at home to inherit the farm and see his parents comfortably supported in their old age ; the rest of the family went abroad to seek their fortunes in the world, according to the ap- proved New England style. Most of them proba- bly emigrated to Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, and the more recent towns in the central and west- ern part of Massachusetts. Thus families original- ly settled in Wenham might now be traced into nearly if not quite every State in the Union.
*Until the close of the Revolution it was a general practice for fathers to entail their property so that it could not be sold by their heirs. Evenafter the law authorizing it was repealed, the custom still continued, of giving to the oldest son, or to the one who remained at home, the largest share of the property. By this means, the estate was kept together and preserved often for many generations, in the family name. Probably there have been more changes of real estate during the last thirty years than occurred in the one hundred and sixty years from the settlement of the town to the beginning of this century.
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HISTORY OF WENHAM.
Thirty-three, out of the first sixty-three years of the last century, were consumed in wars with the French and Indians. Wenham did not suffer so much as many of the frontier towns, from the di- rect assaults of the savage, but she contributed freely her share of recruits to the forces raised by the colony, for the common defense. The burdens of the war were still more felt in the taxes impos- ed for its maintenance, and in the frequent derange- ments of the currency, produced by the large re- missions of bills of credit. After the war of George II., which ended in 1748, the value of these bills became so much depreciated that the town was obliged to add £220 to the salary of Rev. Mr. Warren, in addition to the £130 a year on which he was settled. Yet Mr. Swain who was ordained two years later, was contented with but £70 a year, which in the new emission was perhaps real- ly worth as much as £350 of the old. It is hardly possible for us who have never known the evils in- cident to an uncertain and fluctuating currency, to conceive of the annoyance and embarrassments which it must have occasioned. In many places salaries were made to depend upon the price of provisions, and rose or fell according to the cost of the various necessaries of life. Farmers were obliged to take the pay for their productions, in bills, which in six months, perhaps, were not worth half what they had been taken for. In order to live at all, the people were obliged to use a de-
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gree of economy which their descendants would consider distressing.
Their ordinary fare was frugal but wholesome. The well known bean porridge, for breakfast ; bread, cheese and cider for luncheon ; pork and beans, or salt fish, or, perchance, a boiled dish for dinner, with bread or hasty pudding and milk, to which, if it were a special occasion, gingerbread, and apple or berry pie, were added, for supper ; such was their ordinary plain but substantial diet. Flour was seldom seen ; bread was generally made of corn, barley, or rye meal ; hominy and johnny cake were favorite dishes. Fresh meat was a rare luxury, only known when, at rare intervals, a calf or sheep was killed, or when the fortunate hunter brought in a supply of game. It was a long time before potatoes were introduced to general use ; cabbages, onions, beans and turnips, were the sta- ple vegetables. Tomatoes and many other articles which now stock our markets, were wholly un- known. Tea and coffee were scarcely known till the time of the Revolution .* Their diet was fari- naceous, rather than animal, and if not rich, it was at least wholesome. Dyspepsia was scarcely heard
* During the war, " liberty tea," as it was called was very gene- rally used as a substitute for that of China. It was made of the four leaved loose-strife, or " Lysimochia quadrifolia." The stalks were pulled up, stripped of their leaves and then boiled, after which the leaves were steeped in the liquor of the stalks, and then removed in platters and put in an oven to dry. This tea, which sold for six- pence a pound, would go as far as the same quantity of China tea. In place of coffee, burnt rye, peas, beans and bread were often used. The principal beverage, however, was cider or home brewed beer."
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of, and the demand for " physic and the physician," was evidently much less than in these degenerate days of luxury and progress.
The houses of the first settlers were, probably, mere cabins, built of logs. Of the structures built a little later, many still remain, but generally, so al- tered, that those who built them could hardly re- cognize the work of their own hands. A few of them still retain the gable ends and projecting second story - so built, it is said, for protection against the " bloody salvages." Timber was abun- dant in those days, and, as the architects consulted strength and durability, rather than taste, they often consumed materials enough on one building to construct two or three in our times. The houses usually contained few apartments, but these, although low studded, were of good size. Often, only one room was finished, the rest of the house being used for drying apples and storing corn and other vegetables, or appropriated by the children for their play. At one end was an immense chim- ney, with a fire-place large enough to hold a good sized " back-log," and also to accommodate the younger members of the family. No lack of fuel, then ; thirty to forty cords of wood was the com- mon yearly allowance for the minister-an amount which would now be worth more than the entire salary then given. The windows were small, pro- tected by shutters, and often covered with oiled paper. The door was strong, and though opened by
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a latch-string, was thick enough to be bullet proof. The floor was of split pine, roughly smoothed with an adze, while the hearth of large, flat stones, oc- cupied one entire side of the room. The furniture was of the simplest character - two or three high- backed chairs, a massive table, a settle, and perhaps a large chest, with carved front, while around the walls were placed some birch-bark boxes for cloth- ing. In the cupboard might be seen wooden bowls and trenchers, horn drinking cups, and earthen platters. An old, but trusty fire-lock, and a sword, if the occupant chanced to be an officer in the militia, hung from the ceiling. On the mantle stood an hour-glass for the purpose of marking the time, and beside it the well thumbed Bible, which, with possibly an almanac, and a copy of the Pilgrim's Progress or Saint's Rest, constituted the entire literary stock of the family. The houses that were built a little later, say one hundred to one hundred and fifty years ago, were usually two stories high, with the second story jutting out a foot or more over the lower. The roofs were gen- erally hipped or gambrel, and the windows were about two and a half feet long by one and a half wide, and set with diamond-shaped panes of glass three or four inches long. As lime was little known or worked in those days, the walls of houses were daubed with clay mixed with straw. The rooms, instead of being papered, were nicely white-wash- ed. Few houses had more than one chimney. In
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