USA > Maine > Oxford County > Paris > History of Paris, Maine, from its settlement to 1880, with a history of the grants of 1736 & 1771, together with personal sketches, a copious genealogical register and an appendix > Part 11
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Oliver Hubbard,
Levi Hubbard,
Samuel Stephens,
Joseph Hammond,
Jarius Shaw,
James Daniels
Richard Gerrish,
John Daniels,
Jonas Bisco,
Nathan Pierce,
John Daniels, Jr., Josiah Smith,
Lazarus Hathaway, Jr. Lemuel Jackson,
Cyprian Stevens,
James Broke, Isaiah Willis,
John Reckord,
Jesse Cumings,
Nathaniel Pratt,
Winslow Reckord,
Solomon Jordan, John Billings, John Willis. Ephraim Rowe. Joseph Willis,
Seth Carpenter, Lemuel Holmes,
Joseph Perry,
Caleb Cushman,
James Bowker, Samuel Maxhamı,
Joseph Holmes, Daniel Staples,
John Besse, Jr.,
Solomon Shaw,
Thomas F. Chase, Gardner Chase, Levi Rawson,
Sam'l P. Croswell, Benjamin Hammond, Lemuel Jackson, Jr.,
Moses Twitchell,
Lazarus Hathaway,
Wm. Ryerson, Job French,
Gilbert Shaw,
Benj. Cooper,
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HISTORY OF PARIS.
Rufus Albertson,
Joseph Blake,
Luther Pratt,
Edmund Dean,
Joseph Sturtevant,
Moses Buck, Jr.,
Elias Partridge,
Asa Dean,
David Dudley,
Uriah Ripley,
Asaph Churchill,
James Lebaron,
George Ryerson,
Nicholas Chesley,
Luke Ryerson, Jacob Twitchell,
Perez Churchill,
Benj. Chesley,
Josiah Bartlett, Jr.,
Amasa Fobes,
Eleazer Cole,
Cornelius Perkins,
Isaac Jackson,
Luke Owens,
Daniel Fobes,
Enos Buxton,
Abner Shaw,
Seth Fobes,
Nathan Woodbury,
Merodach Smith.
Josiah Bisco,
Jonathan Cummings,
Ebenezer Rawson,
Jonas Cummings,
REMONSTRANCE NO. 2.
The Honorable General Court may hereby be informed that the Sub- scribers were signers to a Petition for a Division of the Town of Paris, which Petition was Presented to us before we had any previous knowledge of any Such design and being much Importuned and urged on by Sugges- tions, which now appear to us groundless and calculated to mislead those whom the promoters of sd. Petition could find unprepared either by a fore thought upon the Subject themselves and unassisted by the advice or opinion of others. In the foregoing Situation the Subscribers were inad- vertantly led into an Error of Signing, but after the promotion of Said Petition, were convinced that a decided majority of the Inhabttants in Pub- lick Town Meeting were against a Division, also knowing that a number of the Subscribers acted in Said meeting against sd. Division and others of us withheld our votes from being in favor of Said Division, we then flattered ourselves that our Names would not have been made use of by them to accomplish a purpose which they then knew that we were opposed to, but to our Supprise they have done it. Therefore having now no other way to withhold our consent to Said Petition, We Pray the Honorable General Court to Consider us not as Petitioners for, but against a division of sd. Town as we are in Duty bound.
Enoch Hammond. Joshua Besse, Jr. John Starbird.
Joshua Besse. John Tuell. Abiezer Andrews.
Timothy Smith. Thomas Stevens. Jeremiah Rolf.
Joseph Besse. Caleb Swift. Job Lurvey.
John Besse. Joseph Churchill.
John Robinson.
Silas Maxham. Silvanus Robbins.
Samuel Briggs.
Asa Sturtefant. Asa Barrows.
Moses Buck.
Samuel King. Simeon Walton.
Robert Wightman.
Edward Andrews.
Abner Rawson, John Warren, Gershom Cole,
It will be noticed that the petitions for a division of the town bear the names of 88 persons, while the remonstrance has 85. The town in the first instance therefore, was very evenly divided, but "remou-
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HISTORY OF PARIS.
strance number two," bears the names of twenty-five of those who signed the petition for a division, and set forth that they did so under a misapprehension of the facts which had been misrepresented to them. If there had been any chance for a division before, this would naturally have put a stop to the proceedings, and doubtless the matter was disposed of in much the best way.
CHAPTER XVIII.
THE EARLY SETTLERS.
Their Habits and Customs .- Their Dwellings and Surroundings .- Their Mode of Living .- Their Devotion to Things Sacred .- Their Rude Farm Utensils .- Their Toils and Hardships.
There are quite a number of people now living in this town whose memory goes back to the days of small things, so to speak, to the tinie when rigid economy must be practiced in all the affairs of the household, and when industry and frugality were among the first lessons impressed upon the minds of the young. But the genera- tion now upon the stage of life knows little of these things, and it is for their benefit and for the information of those who will come after them, that this chapter is written.
"Should auld acquaintance be forgot, and never brought to mind?
"Should auld acquaintance be forgot, and the days of auld lang syne?"
No ; we should never forget our ancestors, the dangers to which they were exposed, their enforced economy, their privations and hardships endured, that they might leave comfortable homes to their posterity.
.
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HISTORY OF PARIS.
A saw and grist mill were built on Stony Brook in 1783, the year after the first settlers came. Previous to that, the settlers were obliged to go to New Gloucester to mill, pound their corn by hand, or grind it in a hand mill. Some did one way and some another. The hand mill used by the Willis family is still in existence. Very little flour was used by the first settlers. If a small quantity was obtained at any time, it was put away for "company." The first houses 'were built of logs and covered either with hemlock bark, peeled off in June, or with strips split from cedar or pine. The single room below was used for kitchen, dining room, sitting room and sleeping room. Over this was a room reached by a ladder where the children slept. The doors were made of planks hewed out with an axe, were hung on wooden hinges and fastened by a wooden latch. There were no glass windows, but light was admitted by means of oiled paper. Oftentimes families moved in before chimneys or even fireplaces were constructed, the fire being built upon the ground, and the smoke escaping through holes in the roof. Chimneys when built, were made of rough stones cemented by clay, and from the chamber through the roof, sticks of wood split out the right size, were laid up cob-honse fashion, the interstices being filled with clay. The chinks between the logs in the walls of the house, were also filled up with clay or mud, which when it became hard, made everything snug and warm. There was no floor save the eartlı and this soon became hard and smooth under the constant tread of busy feet. The primitive crane was of wood hung horizontally over the fire from which were suspended "hooks and trammels" upon which the kettles were hung. After the saw mill was built, as tim- ber was everywhere plenty, boards began to be used for covering houses and for laying floors, though it was eight years after the Jacksons came before the first frame honse was built.
The first frame houses were small, of one story, and very low in the walls, generally not over seven feet between the upper and the lower floors. Afterwards additions were made, as the families became larger, or the means for doing so became available. Fire- places were very large, taking in wood from four to six feet in length. In building a fire, the first thing in order was a backlog, a section ent from a large birch, beech or maple ; upon this was placed a log a little smaller called the "back-stick ;" in front and elevated above the hearth, at first upon stones selected with reference to shape and size, and later upon andirons, was placed the forestick, and upon
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HISTORY OF PARIS.
this was piled the cleft wood sufficient for the purpose. It made a splendid fire, and in the cold winter evenings, its genial warmth and pleasant light reached the remotest corner of the room, and made everything cheerful. Wooden stools were used for seats, or chairs bottomed with strips pounded from the black ash. Against the wall were the shelves called "the dressers" upon which were placed the tin and wooden dishes, and perhaps a few pieces of crockery ware. Near by hung the knife basket. In this single room were also a cradle, a spinning wheel, a linen wheel, and at certain seasons of the year, a loom. These were the musical instruments with which our great-grandmothers amused themselves. This description is of the primitive house and its adornments. ' As additions were made to the house, or new and more commodious houses built, the house- hold furniture was appropriately distributed to the various apart- ments.
The diet of our ancestors was by no means varied, nor composed of the choicest viands. Bean porridge was a staple article, because cheaply and easily made. Bread and milk and mush and milk or molasses, formed a standard diet for the young who were taught to believe that it was next to their natural pabulum. Stewed peas sometimes took the place of beans. Rye could be easily grown on new land, and rye bread, either unmixed or mixed with corn meal, was a very common article of food. Molasses was indulged in but sugar was rarely used. A single sugar loaf weighing five or six pounds, would last a family for a whole year, being brought out only when the minister or some other honored guest happened to come in. Ardent spirits were regarded as indispensable and were found in every house. Families who were able to indulge in it, bonght brandy and West India rum, while those whose means were more limited, contented themselves with New England rum or potato whiskey which after a short time, they manufactured for their own- use. Fat pork was the meat generally eaten, though in the early times, wild meat, fish and wild fowl, were by no means scarce in their season. They lived on coarse food, but good health and active employment gave them an appetite and relish for what they had.
Very little pride was shown by our ancestors in the matter of dress. The clothing of the first settlers was largely if not entirely of home manufacture, and made from wool and flax. Every farmer raised a field of flax, a very rare sight in these days ; but to them it was indispensable. Cotton cloth and calico cost more than ten
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HISTORY OF PARIS.
times as much as now, and were beyond the reach of the majority. After being pulled, the flax was spread out and exposed to sun and rain until the woody portion was well rotted, then it was broken, that is, the woody stalk was broken into fragments, after which they were whipped from the fiber by means of a wooden knife called a swingle. Lastly the swingled fibre was drawn through a hatchel formed by long iron teeth set in a board. The flax was then spun on a small tread-wheel, while the tow, or that portion separated from the flax by drawing it through the hatchel, was carded into rolls and spun on the large or spinning wheel. In making cloth, the linen thread was used for warp and the tow yarn for filling, and the woof or web was called "tow and linen cloth." This was used for every- day wear in summer by both sexes, for towels and also for bed- clothes. When used to make clothing, it was generally colored with the bark of certain trees or shrubs, or with coloring substances extracted by boiling, from certain plants. Wool was picked and oiled by hand, carded by hand and then spun the same as the tow. It was sometime after the settlement, before a carding mill was built in Paris, and machine rolls made. But they came in time, and also fulling mills in which homemade cloth was fulled and dressed, and were regarded as great improvements as indeed they were, over the old methods. The men wore cloth breeches, and yarn stockings which came to the knees and were confined to the breeches by iron or brass buckles, sometimes but rarely, of silver. Buckles were also worn on the shoes. Women wore long-waisted dresses, aprons, vandykes and coolers. Cloaks with hoods attached were common. Men wore wigs made of human or goat's hair, but later it became the fashion to wear the hair long, comb it back from the forehead and fasten it with a ribbon or string.
The method of going from place to place for quite a number of years after the town was settled was either on foot or on horseback. The husband in riding to church, sat in front, and his wife behind him on a pillion. Blocks were placed at the church and at the house, the top reached by steps, from which the ladies could mount the horses. The roads at best were rough, and often parties in going to church were obliged to travel quite a long distance through the woods, through paths marked by spotted trees. The first wagons were large and clumsy, the bodies resting directly upon the axles, and the seats upon the bodies, without springs or anything to relieve or mitigate the jolting over our rough roads ; there was little
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HISTORY OF PARIS.
if any pleasure in riding in them, but they were found highly useful upon the farm and for going to mill or to market. The first chaise created a sensation in town, almost equal to that made by the com- ing of the cars many years later. In winter, sleds were early used, and people often went to church or to visit their neighbors, upon a sled drawn by a pair of oxen. The story has come down to us of one man who, in times of scarcity of hay, would visit his friends quite often, and always with two pairs of oxen.
Attending church on the Sabbath, and observing the sacredness of that day, was the constant practice of our early settlers, and a duty, the importance of which they did their best to impress upon the minds of their children. They were the descendants of the Pilgrims and Puritans, and the faithful observance of the Sabbath was a highly prized legacy received from their ancestors. The masses went to meeting, none but the sick ever thinking of staying at home. Mothers took their babes in their arms, and the aged were also there. the two extremes meeting to honor the sacred day. No person staid away on account of poor clothes, for pride had not the power then that it has now. Six days they toiled with all their might. rising early and often prolonging their labor till late at night, but on the Sabbath they rested. In the early times, churches were never warmed, and even when the first church was built on Paris Hill. the means for warming were very inadequate. Fortunately, Elder Hooper's sermons were brief, rarely occupying more than half an hour, so that his hearers did not suffer as they did in many places. where the prosy discourse would occupy two hours in its delivery. Strict attention was always paid to the minister, and sleeping in church was a thing unknown. The utmost decorum was also observed in going to and from the church, and also at home, during the entire day. Children were not allowed to indulge in play of any kind, and every outburst of youthful feeling in this direc- tion, was checked and forbidden. They may have carried their notions a little too far, but certainly not as far as modern practices are carried, in the opposite direction.
They were hospitable and neighborly. When a neighbor called, he was not permitted to leave until friendship had been pledged in something that was "warming and exhilerating." If one fell sick, all turned out and put in his crops, or harvested them, as the case might be, cut his fire-wood and looked after his comfort and that of his family, in various ways. Politeness was taught to children,
,
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HISTORY OF PARIS.
obedience to parents, and respect to old age. Scholars on entering the school-room, always made their manners, and the same when the school was visited by the parents, by the minister or by the com- mittee. These practices, trifling perhaps in themselves, tended to the decorum and general good appearance of the school, and also reacted upon the scholars themselves, making them more gentlemanly and lady-like in their deportment, in school and out, and doing them good in a variety of ways. Girls in the days of which we are speak- ing, helped their mothers and did not consider it a degradation to do housework of every kind. In cases of emergency too, they often worked in the field, in planting time, dropping corn and other seed, raking hay in its season, pulling flax, picking up potatoes, gathering fruit and husking corn. But carding, spinning, weaving, making clothes for the family, making butter and cheese, doing the house- work and taking care of the large families that were fashionable in those days, kept the mother and her daughters pretty busy without out-door labor.
The loss of fire by the early settlers, was often attended with con- siderable inconvenience. In the winter season it was easily kept, because it was kept burning nearly all the time, and when not burn- ing, it could be covered or "raked up," but in summer it would oftenl' go out. When this happened, various means were resorted to for restoring it. Sometimes powder would be flashed in the pan of the old flint-lock gun, sometimes flint, steel and decayed wood were resorted to, but oftener, some one would be sent to the nearest neighbor and bring the fire in a dish, or rolling a piece of old cotton clothi tightly and lighting one end, it would burn very slowly and could in this way be carried quite a long distance.
The farming utensils used by our ancestors were very rude when compared with those now in use. Plows were made of wood covered with strips of iron, and had straight handles. Of course good plowing was out of the question with such an implement. Hoes, shovels, and hay and manure forks, were made of iron, rudely con- structed and very heavy and unwieldly. Scythe snaths were nearly straight, and the scythe bore little resemblance to the one now in use. They had no such implements as pulverizing harrow, horse hoe and rake, mowing machine, harvester, manure spreader, etc. No labor-saving machines at all had they, and the few simple tools they had were forged by the common blacksmith. Yet with all these disadvantages, they raised good crops and cultivated large
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HISTORY OF PARIS.
areas. though of course, they labored much harder than farmers do in our day. Oxen were used to do the farm labor, and for many other purposes for which a horse is now employed. Hay and other crops for some years, were hauled to the barn on sleds.
The early settlers were not without their superstitions. They believed in the signs of the zodiac, and did not put in their seed, harvest their crops or kill their meat without consulting the "almanack." to see if the sign was right. Many of them believed in witchcraft, and the belief in ghosts and hobgobblins was almost universal. To see the new moon first over the left shoulder, por- tended bad luck. and Friday was an unlucky day, anyway. It was regarded as a misfortune to be born on that day and nobody ever thought of being married. starting on a journey or commencing any important work or business on Friday. Some people claimed to ' have the power or faculty of "charming" wounds or bruises, and thus easing pain. The sight of a comet foreboded war or some great national calamity, and an unusually bright northern aurora, or a meteoric shower portended the speedy coming of the "Judgment Day." Traces of these superstitions still exist in some families and localities, but as a general thing, they have disappeared. An old Almanac-maker ventured to say many years ago, that there was "neither sense nor reason in these things," and some people believed him. though others clung to their superstitions until the light of knowledge showed up their inconsistencies and fallacies.
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HISTORY OF PARIS.
CHAPTER XIX.
ANNALS CONTINUED.
Abstracts from the Town Records .- Stirring Resolutions with Regard to the Direct Tax .- A Cold Season .- Accidents and Incidents.
1803.
Five hundred dollars for schools and eight hundred for roads. "Voted to divide the school district where Nicholas Chesley lives, between Nos. 10 and 11." Josiah Bisco was chosen a committee to represent the town in the General Court.
There were three accidental deaths this year which cast a gloom over the entire settlement. March 20th a son of Caleb Cushman, aged 6 years, run under the axe of an older brother who was chop- ping wood, and his head was cleft in twain, killing him instantly. June 23, Oliver, son of Gen. Levi Hubbard was killed by a falling tree, and July 25th, John, son of Abijah Warren, met with his death from a limb falling upon him while he was felling trees.
The question of a division of the town which was agitated last year was passed over in silence so far as the records show, this. year.
1804.
One thousand dollars for roads were raised, and five hundred for schools, and the usual vote was passed "to divide the school money by the estate in each district." The selectmen were directed to petition the General Court for permission to sell the school and min- isterial lands in Paris. At a meeting to vote for representative, Levi Hubbard had 43 votes, and Josiah Bisco 10. It was voted that the interest money due the town be devoted to town purposes. It was voted to build two new bridges across the river this year, one at Bisco's Falls, and the other near the northwest corner of the town. Jacob Twitchell contracted to build the bridge at Bisco's Falls for ninety-nine dollars. Permission having been received to sell the public lots, a committee consisting of Ebenezer Rawson, Josiah Bisco and Levi Hubbard, was chosen to sell and convey the same. Nineteen electors of President were voted for this year, and fifty-four votes were thrown for them. Hon. James Sullivan headed the list. The opposition list was headed by Hons. David Cobb and Oliver Wendell at large, and eighteen votes were cast for this ticket. Seventy-two votes, in all, were polled, more than were thrown at any
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HISTORY OF PARIS.
previous election. The meetings were first called at the "Meeting House," this year.
1805.
At this meeting, Dr. Samuel P Croswell was elected clerk. He was a physician and trader. The usual amount was voted for town purposes ; also one hundred and twenty dollars interest money. Six roads laid out by the selectmen were accepted. A petition was presented from the school districts on the westerly side of the river asking that the lines of the districts might be readjusted. The petition bears the following names which shows some of the persons then living in that part of the town : David Dudley, Caleb Swift, Joseph Churchill, James Lebaron, Lemuel Holmes, Morton Curtis, Samuel Briggs, Ephraim Rowe, Joseph Willis, Luther Pratt, Sylva- nus Robbins, Nathaniel Pratt, Josiah Bisco, Josiah Bartlett, Jr., John Robinson, Jonas Bisco, James LeBroke, Timothy Smith, Eleazer Cole, Lemuel Perham, Joseph Holmes and Lazarus Hatha- way. Levi Hubbard was elected representative. The committee appointed to dispose of the public lots reported the following :
"Lot 19-20 sold in three divisions, the first to Daniel Pond and David Bemis, for $603 ; the second and third to Jeremialı Rolf for $1122 : number 2 in the 9th range to Stephen Blake for $330 ; number 8 in the 5th to James Daniels for $307. These were the ministry rights, and the amount received was $2362. The two lots in the school right were sold, the first, number 3 in the 8th, to Enoch Shaw for $700, and the second, number 3 in the 9th to Jacob Gur- ney for $768; total school fund, $1568." The selectmen were instructed to write to the town of Raynham, asking that town to take care of Job French. The town treasurer was instructed to pro- cure a pall for the use of the town, and deposit the same with the town's minister. At a meeting in July, the support of Job French was set up at auction and bid off by James Hooper at ten shillings per week. The town voted for Register of Deeds for the new county of Oxford : Josiah Bisco had 8, Isaac Sturtevant, 28, Joseph Rust, 8, and Eleazer Hamlin 3. At a meeting the 18th of November, a committee was chosen to memorialize the General Court against making Fryeburg a half shire town. An agent was appointed to go to Taunton and Raynham to ascertain the legal residence of Job French.
Oxford county was established this year and Paris became the shire town. The first term of the court of Common Pleas was held
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on the second Tuesday of June. Samuel Frye of Fryeburg pre- sided, with Samuel Parris of Hebron and Luther Cary of Turner as associates. Dr. Cyrus Hamlin was clerk.
1806.
Twelve hundred dollars for roads and five hundred for schools. It seems that Rev. James Hooper contemplated leaving town, for a committee was raised "to treat with Mr. James Hooper and see upon what terms he will tarry in town." The committee reported at the same meeting in substance as follows :
"Said Hooper saith if said town will give him the interest of the money for which the ministry land was sold, from the time of the sale of said land annually, so long as said Hooper shall supply the pulpit in this town, as minister of said town, it will give him full satisfaction."
ISAAC BOLSTER, LEVI HUBBARD, EBEN'R. RAWSON, SAML. STEPHENS, JOEL ROBINSON,
Committee.
The report was accepted. It was voted to take off Joseph Cole and Peter Chase from their present school district and annex them to the Bemis district. Eleazer Hamlin received 50 votes for county Register to 21 for Joseph Rust. Three hundred dollars were raised for the support of poor and to defray town charges. This was the first pauper money raised as such. Jonathan Shurtleff's annual sum for keeping his brother Thomas was increased to forty dollars. An action was authorized against any town where Job French belonged, for his support. Levi Hubbard received 80 votes for county treas- urer. Elias Stowell was elected representative, receiving 81 votes to 15 for Jonathan Bemis. It was voted to give a bounty of five cents per head for killing crows. The town clerk, Samuel P. Cros- well was absent from several meetings, and Zachariah Soule acted as clerk pro tem, except the two last when Alanson Mellen acted as clerk. Several roads were accepted this year.
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