USA > Maine > York County > York deeds, Book IV 1684-1699 > Part 1
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Gc 974.101 Y8d Bk. 4 1128628
M. L
GENEALOGY COLLECTION
E
ALLEN COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY 3 1833 01083 7174
YORK DEEDS.
BOOK IV.
1684-1699
Gc
77.4.101
1654-1699
PORTLAND: JOHN T. HULL AND B. THURSTON & CO. 1888.
PRINTED BY B. THURSTON & CO.
1128628
CONTENTS.
PREFACE
Pages
5-17
REGISTER'S CERTIFICATE,
Page
19
ERRATA
Page
20
YORK DEEDS .
Folios
1-162
INDEX .
Pages
1-158
1. Grantors
Pages
1-57
II. Grantees .
. Pages 58-115
III. Other Persons
Pages 116-127
IV. Places
. Pages 128-134
V. General .
Pages
135-158
-
PREFACE.
ON the 5th of February, 1684, Edward Rishworth made the first record in the volume which he marked on a fly leaf, " The fourth Book of Records for Deeds &e in the County of York." The last record, in the regular series, was made by Joseph Ham. mond, July 25, 1699. Four conveyances were afterward record- ed, in 1700 and 1702, on pages previously left blank1; and three supplementary records were affixed to the proper documents in 1700, 1718 and 17192; but the regular series ended in July, 1699. The book was in use for fifteen years.
During five of these years, New England was the scene of in- tense political excitement, which culminated in revolution. The charter of the Massachusetts Bay company was annulled by a de- cree in chancery in 1684; but the reorganization which would naturally have followed, was delayed nearly two years by the death of Charles II, the accession of James II, and the rebellion of the Duke of Monmouth. During this interval, the government under the charter continued by its own momentum. In May, 1686, Joseph Dudley was proclaimed president of the council of Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Maine and Narraganset, and in December Sir Edmund Andros arrived at Boston in the character of captain-general and governor-general of the same territory and also of Plymouth. There was no provision in the new govern- ment for a general assembly of representatives of the people. Public affairs were to be administered with the advice of the council appointed by the king; but the commonalty could be heard only by petition. Thomas Danforth had been president of Maine under the Massachusetts charter, but his authority now ceased. Edward Tyng of Falmouth, Francis Champernon of Kittery and Bartholomew Gedney of Salem, were appointed coun- cillors for Maine.8 The county of Cornwall, east of the Kenne- bec river, was still a part of New York; and thither, in 1686, 1 Fol. 161, 150, 69. 2 Fol. 151, 158, 128.
3 1 Williamson's Maine, 584 n. Gedney had large interests in Maine, and sometimes re- sided at York. Champernon did not take his seat in the council.
6
PREFACE.
Governor Dongan of New York sent John Palmer, a member of his council, with John West as deputy secretary, to reestablish the land titles and especially to provide for the regular collection of quit-rents and customs. Edward Randolph, member of the New England council and secretary of the board, was charged with similar duties. His deputy secretary and register for Maine, ap- pointed in 1686, was Thomas Scottow, son of Joshua Scottow of Scarborough.1 Probate business was administered by the govern- or through his deputies, and appeals might be taken to the gov- ernor in person.2 In 1687 Joshua Scottow was appointed surro- gate for Maine, and his son was designated for register of the new probate court.8 A member of the council always presided at the county courts, and was assisted by resident justices of the peace. Appeals were heard in Boston by a superior court consisting of a majority of the council. Dudley, as president of the council, be- came chief justice of the superior court. It was ordered that all public records of the former governments should be brought to Boston.
Before the end of the year 1687, Governor Andros had secured the submission of Rhode Island and Connecticut to his authority. In April, 1688, he was commissioned governor of the Dominion of New England, meaning all the English territory north of the 40th parallel of latitude, including of course New York and the Jerseys, and extending eastward to the river St. Croix. Under the new commission he had 42 councillors - John Palmer among the rest ; but five constituted a quorum, and the governor's au- thority was practically absolute. Legislative, judicial and execu- tive powers were all vested in his will. The people chafed under this arbitrary government. They resented the exaction of fees for new patents and quit-rents for the enjoyment of their lands. So far as they could, they evaded the acts of trade and naviga- tion, which obstructed their commerce. They watched with keen interest the ferment in the mother country. They suspected An- dros of a plan to hold New England for King James in any case, even if the sceptre should be wrested from the king. They thought he was negotiating for this purpose with the French and their Indian allies. At last, on the 4th of April, 1689, they heard
1 In 3 Palfrey's New England, 503 n., the name is printed incorrectly Sutton. It was sometimes written Scottoway, and appears in the form Skottowe, on the title-page of Mr. B. C. Skottowe's Short History of Parliament, published in 1886 or 1887.
2 3 Palfrey's New England, 522.
8 Willis's Law, Courts and Lawyers of Maine, 55.
7
PREFACE.
that William of Orange had landed in England. On the 18th of April they rose, seized and imprisoned Andros and 25 of his principal officers,- Randolph, Palmer, West, Dudley and others,- and reestablished the governments which had been dissolved in 1686 and 1687.
In Maine, Danforth was restored to the office of president and Charles Frost, Francis Hooke, Edward Tyng, John Davis, Joshua Scottow, Samuel Wheelwright and John Wincoll were reap- pointed councillors. These temporary arrangements were ap- proved by King William, and continued until the charter of 1691 passed the seals. By that instrument Maine, Cornwall, Massa- chusetts and Plymouth were consolidated in one royal province, called the province of Massachusetts Bay. The governor, lieu- tenant governor and secretary were to be appointed by the king. The council was to be chosen annually by the general court. The house of representatives was to be chosen by the people in their towns. Maine was to have three councillors, and Job Alcock and Samuel Donnell of York and Samuel Heyman of Berwick were named in the charter for the first council. These names were proposed by the Rev. Increase Mather, who was the agent of Mas- sachusetts in London when the charter was granted. His ac- quaintance in Maine appears to have been limited. At the first election, Alcock and Heyman were dropped and Francis Hooke and Charles Frost were elected to their places. Sylvanus Davis was designated for Cornwall. He lived at Falmouth, but owned lands on the eastern side of the Kennebec and was consequently qualified though not a resident of the territory which he was to represent. The charter was brought over by Sir William Phips, the first governor, and the provincial government was inaugurated May 14, 1692. Sir William died in London, Feb. 18, 1695. The administration was continued by the lieutenant governor, William Stoughton. Richard, earl of Bellomont, was appointed governor in November, 1697, but did not arrive in Boston until May 20, 1699.
During the ten years from 1689 until 1699, the war known as King William's war had raged in Maine. James Stuart arrived on the coast of Ireland in March, 1689, with a French fleet and French troops, to recover the crown which William of Orange had accepted from the Westminster convention a month before. War between England and France was proclaimed in Boston on
8
PREFACE.
the 7th of December, 1689, but the declaration lagged more than a year behind the fact. The French resented the intrusion of New England fishermen upon the Acadian fishing grounds and the meddling of New York buyers with the fur trade on the great lakes. The dispute about the fur trade had ended in hostil- ities between the French and the western Indians, and in 1688 Canada was invaded by the fierce Iroquois. At the same time, the eastern tribes, encouraged by the French, drove out the Eng- lish planters on the Sheepscot and the Kennebec, and broke up the settlement at North Yarmouth. In 1689 the stockade at Pem- aquid was burned and the country east of Falmouth was aban- doned to the savage enemy. In 1690 the French themselves took part in the conflict. Parties of French and Indians destroyed the plantation at Salmon Falls, in Berwick, and burned Fort Loyal in Falmouth, leaving the town desolate. The people of Scarbor- ough, Saco and Cape Porpoise fled to Wells, which became the frontier town. Troops were sent from Massachusetts and Ply- mouth, and Major Robert Pike, of Salisbury, then 74 years old, was appointed commander-in-chief of all the English forces east of the Merrimac. Major Elisha Hutchinson, of Boston, was as- sociated with Pike in November, for the negotiation of a truce with the Indians, which was accomplished, but hostilities were renewed in the spring of 1691. Wells was beset; the settl e- ment at Cape Neddick was laid in ashes. Major Pike, worn out with anxiety and responsibility, fell ill in September, and Major Hutchinson succeeded him in the chief command, which he held until Governor Phips became ex officio commander of all the pro- vincial forces in May, 1692.1 In February of that year, a great part of York was burned, and in June Wells was attacked but was successfully defended. In August the governor proceeded in person to Pemaquid, where he ordered a stone fort to be built. The work was finished in a few months, and in 1693 a fortress, also of stone, was erected on the right bank of the Saco, near the falls. The Indians were now closely pressed by the rangers, and professed to be tired of the war, but in 1694 they rallied and pen- etrated to Kittery, the last town in Maine. There were no oper- tions in 1695 on a large scale, but the whole country was infested by prowling savages and about 40 English people were killed or
11 N. E. Hist. and Gen. Register, 301. 2 Hutchinson's Massachusetts, 66. Pike's New Puritan, 120, 128, 145.
9
PREFACE.
carried into captivity. Among the captives, Major Joseph Ham- mond of Kittery was perhaps the most distinguished. In 1696 the new fort at Pemaquid was taken and demolished. Peace was concluded between the French and English in 1697 ; but the In- dian war continued during the year 1698, and was ended at last by the treaty signed at Mare Point in Casco bay, Jan. 7, 1699.
The confusion of the times is reflected in the records now printed. Although the fourth book was in use from 1684 till 1699, it was not in continuous use. From 1687 until 1689, the register used the book now numbered sixth. From 1690 until 1696, the records were continued in what is now the fifth book, and from 1696 till 1699 the register returned to the fourth book. The records of the fifteen years are thus scattered through three volumes. The re- gisters during this period were Edward Rishworth, from 1684 to 1686; Thomas Scottow, from 1686 to 1689; John Wincoll, from 1689 to 1694; and Joseph Hammond, senior, from 1694 to 1699.
When Rishworth wrote his last official line in June, 1686, he had been recorder of the province for nearly 33 years. He was first appointed in October, 1651, and had held the office continu- ously, except in 1668 and 1669, when Peter Weare occupied the place. He was now an old man. His wife's name appears for the last time in the volumes now printed, under the date 1675.1 She doubtless died before 1682, when he conveyed his dwelling and lands in York to his son-in-law, John Sayward, for £60, to be de- voted mainly to the payment of his debts, receiving also Sayword's bond for an annuity of £6 and free use of a lower room in the house with "comfortable diet," fire wood and keeping for a horse.2 Sayward married Rishworth's daughter Mary. After her hus- band's death she married again and was Mrs Mary Hall when she. filed the inventory of her father's estate, Feb. 25, 1691.8 The estate was valued by Abraham Preble and Matthew Austin, at £39. It was a year after Rishworth's death, when York was. burned by the French and Indians in February, 1692. His son- in-law, Mr. Dummer, the, minister of York, was slain, and his. daughter, Mrs. Lydia Dummer, was borne away to captivity and death. This horror, Rishworth was mercifully spared.
Thomas Scottow, son of Joshua Scottow, merchant, was born in Boston, June 30, 1659, and named for an uncle who once lived on the City hall lot in School street, and sold it to the town in
12 York Deeds, 180.
2 3 York Deeds, 121. 8 5 York Deeds.
10
PREFACE.
1645.1 Thomas the younger was graduated at Harvard college in 1677, at the foot of a class of six. His father had bought Abraham Jocelyn's farm on Black Point river in Scarborough, in 1660, and in 1663 had advanced £310 to Henry Jocelyn, taking a mortgage on lands, buildings and other property, at Black Point. In 1666 the debt had increased to £484, and was secured by a new mortgage covering specifically the Cammock patent of 1500 acres at Black Point with 750 acres adjacent granted directly to Joce- lyn by Sir Ferdinando Gorges, and the neighboring islands called Stratton's islands. It appears that an extensive fishing business was carried on at Black Point, in which Scottow had become in- terested, probably by furnishing supplies, and in the course of time Jocelyn had fallen heavily in debt to the merchant. Possession of the mortgaged property was given to Scottow in July, 1668, and in 1670, or about that time, he came to Scarborough to live.2 In 1671 he was licensed to sell wines and liquors to his fishermen and others. When the first Indian war began, in 1675, Captain Scottow succeeded in obtaining a detachment of troops from Bos- ton to defend his property at Black Point. Captain John Wincoll also came to the relief of Scarborough with the Kittery company of 60 men. In the fall of 1676, the place was deserted by the English inhabitants, but was speedily reoccupied. When the gov- ernment of Maine was reorganized in 1680, Captain Scottow was appointed one of Governor Danforth's councillors, and in 1681 he gave a lot of a hundred acres on the plains near the great pond for the site of a fort and of dwellings which might be occupied in safety near the fortification. The fort was built by the town. Captain Scottow was also one of the trustees to whom Governor Danforth, in 1684, confirmed the land within the town of Scar- borough for the benefit and use of the inhabitants and their suc- cessors.8 In July, 1686, his son Thomas became deputy clerk and register of deeds for Maine under Edward Randolph who, as has been stated, had a royal commission as sole register in New Eng- land, by himself or his deputies.4 In September, 1687, Joshua Scottow received from Governor Andros his commission as depu- ty judge of probate for Maine, and his son was appointed register of probate. Thomas was also admitted attorney of the inferior
1 2 Memorial Hist. of Boston, XXXIII.
21 York Deeds, I. 92, 137, 163. 2 York Deeds, 6, 98.
1 3 Maine Hist. Collections, 115 &c.
4 The commission is printed in 27 Mass. Hist. Coll. 161.
11
PREFACE.
court of common pleas in Maine about the same time.1 His last record as register of deeds is dated April 14, 1689, four days be- fore the revolution in Boston. During the remainder of the year he remained at Scarborough, in command of the fort on the plains ; but in May, 1690, Fort Loyal at Falmouth fell, and thereupon the garrison at Black Point drew off to Wells. It was a dozen years before the settlement at Scarborough was revived, and in the in- terval both Scottows passed away. The father died January 20, 1698, leaving his estate to his wife during her life, then a double portion to his son Thomas, and the rest equally to his daughters Elizabeth, Rebecca and Mary. What became of Thomas was un- known, until his will was recently discovered in England. It is described as follows :
Will of Thomas Scottow, of Boston in New England, now bound forth on a voyage to sea in the ship Gerrard of London, Captain William Den- nis commander, 14 Nov. 1698, proved 4 Sept. 1699. To my loving sister Elizabeth Savage of New England aforesaid, all my real and personal es- tate in New England of what kind soever. To my loving friend Marga- ret Softly, of the parish of St. Paul, Shadwell, in the county of Middle- sex, widow, all and singular such moneys, salaries and wages whatsoever as is and shall become due to me for my service in said ship, to her own use in satisfaction of what I shall owe and be indebted unto her at my death, and I appoint her my executrix.2
Elizabeth Scottow, to whom her brother thus left his estate in New England, had married Thomas Savage in 1664. Their daughter, Lydia, married Timothy Prout, bringing to him her share of the Cammock patent. Her husband afterward bought the rest of the patent from the other heirs and removed to Scar- borough, and Black Point thus became and remains Prout's Neck.8
After the revolution of April, 1689, John Wincoll of Kittery was chosen clerk of the courts and recorder of the province of Maine, at York, on the 20th of December. Captain Wincoll was then about 67 years old. He came from Watertown, Massachu- setts, to Kittery, while still a young man, and was one of the sign- ers of the submission to the government of Massachusetts in 1652.4 The first representative of Kittery in the general court at Boston, in 1653, he was reëlected in 1654 and 1655, and was also one of the selectmen of the town in 1654, and many times afterward. After his service as deputy in 1655, he appears to have returned
1 4 Maine Hist. and Gen. Recorder, 292.
$ 3 Maine Hist. Coll. 221.
3 39 N. E. Hist. and Gen. Register, 169 . 4 Sullivan's Maine, 343.
12
PREFACE.
to Watertown for a time. At any rate he sat for Watertown in the general court for 1658, and in an extensive timber grant from the town of Kittery in 1659, he is described as John Wincoll of Watertown.1 This grant conveyed to him the right to cut timber above Salmon falls on the great Newgewanac river to the northern boundary of the town and three miles from the river eastward into the woods. Having secured this privilege he built two saw mills at Salmon falls, where he lived for many years. He was aided in this enterprise by Thomas Broughton, a Boston mer- chant, who had previously been interested in a mill at Sturgeon creek, where Wincoll bought a house and land in 1651.2 In 1676, a fourth part of the property and rights at Salmon falls was con- veyed to George and John Broughton, sons of Thomas, to satisfy their claim. Appointed a justice of the peace by John Archdale in behalf of Ferdinando Gorges, in 1663, Wincoll was reappoint- ed to the same dignity by the royal commissioners who in 1665 overthrew the short-lived Gorges government. After the author- ity of Massachusetts was restored, in 1668, Wincoll remained in private life for a season in consequence of his acceptance of office from the obnoxious royal commissioners; but from 1671 to 1686 he was continuously in the magistracy - associate of York county from 1671 to 1680, justice of the peace in Governor Danforth's council from 1680 till 1686. He was again deputy for Kittery to the general court in 1675, 1677 and 1678. He was also for many years town surveyor ; a large part of the real estate in Berwick was platted by him, and he was often employed as referee in the division of important properties, such as the Lewis and Bonython patent at Saco in 1680 and the Shapleigh estate in Kittery in 1684. As early as 1670, he was captain of the Kittery company. In Oc- tober, 1675, while he was with his company at Scarborough, which was beset by Indians, his house at Salmon falls was burned by the enemy. In the second Indian war when the greater part of the settlement at Salmon falls was burned by a party of French and Indians in March, 1690, Captain Wincoll's house was twice assaul- ted but the enemy were beaten off by six or seven men who were within.8 On the 1st of November, 1692, Wincoll was reappoint- ed clerk of York county under the new Massachusetts charter, and in 1693, when the probate court was reorganized, he was ap- pointed register. He continued to serve as clerk of courts and
2 2 York Deeds, 161.
1 Infra, fol. 8.
& Mass. Archives cited in Hull's Fort Loyall, 56.
13
PREFACE.
register of deeds and of probate until October 22, 1694, when he was killed by a fall from his horse.1
Joseph Hammond of Kittery was appointed clerk and register to succeed Wincoll, Dec. 4, 1694. He was born in Wells, in 1647 or 1648, the second son of William Hammond, who died in 1702 at the extraordinary age of 105.2 His son Joseph was born in 1678. Joseph Hammond, senior, settled in Kittery. He was a carpenter,8 but as skilful with a pen as with the tools of his trade. In 1692 he was chosen town clerk, and the Kittery records show a marked improvement after they came into his hands. He was interested in military matters too, and in 1695 had risen to the rank of major. In July of that year, he was captured by Indians near Saco fort and taken to Canada. Count Frontenac, the French governor, respecting the prisoner's rank, it is said, treated him with great kindness, and he was exchanged and sent home, arriving in Maine after an absence somewhat less than six months.4 From 1698 till 1703, and again in 1705, he was a mem- ber of the governor's council.5 In June, 1700, he was appointed a judge of the county court of common pleas, to fill a vacancy caused by the death of Samuel Wheelwright. It appears to have been the practice at that time to select one of the four judges of common pleas for judge of probate. At any rate Francis Hooke and Samuel Wheelwright had filled both offices simultaneously and Hammond succeeded Wheelwright in both capacities. In 1707 he was appointed commissioner of oyer and terminer to try Jo- seph Gunnison for murder. He died Feb. 24, 1710. Joseph Ham- mond, junior, was 22 years old in 1700, and was then appointed clerk and register, succeeding in after life to others of his father's dignities.6 Both were men of good repute, esteemed by all who knew them.
John Newmarch, whose name figures in the records as clerk and register in September, October and November, 1695, was a young minister at Kittery, temporarily appointed to fill Hammond's place during the major's involuntary journey to Canada. Newmarch
$ Infra, fol. 3.
1 See Savage's Genealogical Dictionary and indexes to York Deeds, s. v. Wincoll.
29 N. E. Hist. and Gen. Register, 312.
4 2 Hutchinson's Massachusetts, 85.
5 4 Palfrey's New England, 600. Williamson (2 Maine, 75) says he was a councillor nine years, but gives no dates. Palfrey is undoubtedly right.
6 It has been supposed, by reason of the identity of the names, that the elder Hammond was register of deeds until 1710, when he died; but a careful examination of the records shows that he retired from the office in 170 ), soon after his appointment to the bench. The writing of father and son is much alike, and the signature remains "Joseph Hammond, register," instead of "Joseph Hammond, Jr.," as might have been expected.
14
PREFACE.
belonged to an Ipswich family and was a graduate of Harvard college in 1690.1
With these facts and dates in mind, it becomes possible to un- ravel the snarl in which the York records between 1684 and 1700 were left. Those records are scattered through three volumes, the fourth, fifth and sixth in the registry of deeds. The fourth was opened by Rishworth in 1684 and continued by him regularly till June, 1686. The fifth had been opened by Rishworth in July, 1680, as a special record of probate business, which had not be- fore been separated from the ordinary proceedings of the courts and records of conveyances. In this book he not only recorded current probate business but transcribed earlier records from time to time, so that finally he had completed a record of probate pro- ceedings for ten years, from 1676 to 1686. Scottow, beginning in July, 1686, continued the record of deeds in the fourth book and added an inventory to the probate record in the fifth book. But in February, 1687, Scottow opened a new volume for deeds, now the sixth, and in September of the same year, opened what is now the first book of probate records. The fourth and sixth books of deeds were in Scottow's keeping, probably at Scarborough. The fifth, a probate record, for which Scottow had no further use, ap- pears to have remained at York. It has been supposed that Scot- tow perhaps resided and kept his records in Boston during his term of office2; but that is doubtful. After he left college in 1677, he often witnessed deeds executed at Scarborough, and the probability is, that he lived there constantly with his father.8 The earlier records were removed to Boston, in pursuance of the order issued by Governor Andros in May, 1687, but the current volumes re- mained with the deputy register at Scarborough, and the forgotten fifth book with Rishworth at York. Thomas Scottow, as has been stated, commanded the fort at Black Point in 1689. When the gar- rison withdrew in 1690, the Scarborough records were carried to Boston for safety,4 and Scottow's Maine records of course went with the town books. Meanwhile Wincoll had been appointed clerk and register, and he, searching for a record book, came upon Rish- worth's fifth volume. He continued the probate record as a gen- eral record of deeds; and turning the book upside down, began at the other end a court record. Having this double character,
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