USA > Maine > Cumberland County > Portland > The history of Portland, from its first settlement: with notices of the neighbouring towns, and of the changes of government in Maine, Part II 1700-1833 > Part 12
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109
Trade.
C. 6.]
to 50 masts a voyage.1 In time of war these ships were convoyed by armed vessels, the arrival of which in this harbour is frequently noticed in Mr. Smith's Journal .?
On the conclusion of the war of 1744, the trade of the town ac- quired a new stimulus, by the accession of some very enterprising men. Among these was Capt. Alexander Ross, who came from Stroma, in Scotland. He commenced business in a store which stood in Fore-street, near where the three story house occupied by Mrs. Oxnard now stands ; this store he afterwards moved into Mid- dle-street and connected it with a house which he built on the corner of the street leading to clay cove, and which is now standing. He carried on until the time of his death a large and profitable business with the Island of Great Britain, and was the most wealthy merchant of his day in this town.3 Not long after Mr. Ross, Robert Pagan,
1 Doug. 2. 53. 2 A number of masts taken from the woods previous to the revolution, now lie in a decayed state in a cove at Purpooduck, a few rods east of Vaughan's bridge. They were kept a number of years at great ex- pense, and finally abandoned ; some have been cut up.
List of Prices of Masts, &c. given for year 1770 in England.
MASTS.
BOWSPRITS.
YARDS.
Diam'r. Length. Price.
Diam'r. Length. Price.
Diam'r. Length. Price,
In.
Yd.
St.
In.
Yd.
St.
In. 25
Yd.
St.
36
36
£110
38
25
£48
35
35
88
37
25
42
24
34
25 12.
34
34
72
36
24 1-2
36
23
32
20 08.
33
33
56
35
23 1-2
34
22
31
16 16.
32
32
44 16.
34
23
32
21
29 1-2 14 08.
31
31
35 04.
33
22 1-2
24 16.
20
28
11 12.
30
36
28
32
211-2
23 04.
19
27
04.
29
29
22 08.
31
21
20 16.
18
25 1-2
7 04.
28
29
18 08.
30
20 1-2
27
29
14 08.
29
191-2
16 12
17
24 1-2
5 04.
26
28
12 16.
23
19
616.
27 20
18 1-2
5 07.
17 1-2
4 16.
The price at the King's navy yard for 36 inch masts in 1768, was £153. 2.
3 Capt. Ross brought his family here Nov. 23, 1753 ; he died in Nov. 1768, aged 59, leaving but one daughter, who married the late Col. Wm. Tyng, and died without issue.
The following extracts from Mr. Smith's Journal will give some idea of the trade here : "1756, Sept. 28. Capt. Ross had a large ship launched. Oct. 30, in the harbour are Rouse, Tenney, Granger, the Deal ships and a snow from Boston.
1761, Aug. 23. Capt. Ross came in, in a large ship to load, as did Captain Malcom, sometime ago, beside which there lie here the three mast ships and the man of war.
1762, Oct. 29. Capt. Ross in a large ship of 700 tons, came here to load, as did a snow of his a few days ago, beside which there are 5 other ships and snows
14
1
35
£25 12.
4
110
Trade. [P. II.
another Scotch merchant came here from England to reside. He pursued on a large scale the lumber business and ship building. The ships which were built were not generally employed in our trade, but with their cargoes sent to Europe and sold. Mr. Pagan kept on the corner of King and Fore-streets, the largest stock of goods which was employed here before the war ; he was a man of popular man- ners and much beloved by the people, but taking part on the unpop- ular side in politics at the commencement of our revolutionary strug- gle, he left the country, and after the war established himself in the - province of New-Brunswick, where he died about 1825. His wife whom he married in this town was a daughter of Jeremiah Pote, also a respectable merchant of that day.
In addition to the timber and lumber trade, a few vessels of a smaller class were employed in the West India business, maintain- ing a direct intercourse with the Islands and bringing home rum, su- gar and molasses in exchange for lumber and fish. This had grown up a few years previous to the revolution to become an object of con- siderable importance. A number of vessels were also employed in the fishery.
The following table will show the quantity of shipping owned here at different periods before the revolution ; it does not indicate the extent of our trade because it does not include the large lumber ships which although owned abroad, regularly visited our harbour.
Year.
Tons.
Class.
Remarks. The largest of these was 80 tons.
1752, 1367,
7 schrs. 15 sloops.
1753, 1344,
1 brig of 100 tons,
the rest schrs and sloops.
The brig belonged to Jere- miah Pote.
1754, 1237, schrs. and sloops.
here a loading. (Snows had two masts and were rigged like brigs at the present day ).
1763, Aug. 27. Capts. Darling and Haggett in mast ships came in last night as did two ships before this week to load by Capt. Ross.
1766, Nov. 1. There are six large ships now lying in the harbour." Mr. Smith's Journal does not present a full account of the arrival and departure of vessels, nor have we noticed all that he has mentioned ; sufficient is given to show the character of our ante-revolution foreign trade.
111
Trade.
C. 6.]
1773, 2020,
The principal owners were Enoch Ilsley 403 tons, Sim- eon Mayo 163, Benj. Tit- comb 130, Jer. Pote 122, Jedediah Preble 110, Ste- phen Waite 105, Thomas Sandford 90.
1 1774, 2555,
Of this E. Ilsley owned 272, Pote 203, S. Waite 185, S. Mayo 183, R. Pagan 175, B. Titcomb 175, T. Sand- ford 140, Jed. Preble 135, Thos. Oxnard 121.
The shipping contained in the table was owned wholly by persons who lived on the Neck. There was beside this a considerable amount of tonnage owned in Cape-Elizabeth, more probably before the revolution, than there is at this day. As early as 1745, there were owned in that precinct 5 schooners and 5 sloops, and at a subsequent period the West India business was carried on there to a considera- ble extent, principally by Wm. Simonton and Ezekiel Cushing. Mr. Simonton had a large and valuable wharf in the cove which bears his name, where not only his own but other vessels were found pursuing a profitable traffic.2 More commercial business was done at Cape-Elizabeth previous to 1760 than on the Neck. Simonton's cove was frequently thronged with vessels, and mechanics from this side often sought employment there. But the revolution proved · very destructive to that town ; it drew off a large proportion of its active population and annihilated its commerce ; it has never recov- ered from the blow.
.
1 The vessels built in the thirteen colonies amounted in 1769, to 20,001 tons.
" 1770, " 20,610 "
" 1771, " 24,068
In 1772, 182 vessels were built, whose tonnage amounted to 26,514 tons. Seyb. Stat. 310.
2 Col. Cushing did his business on the point where he lived, and which now bears his name. His house was two stories, the lower one of which is now standing. He was one of the most respectable men in this vicinity, was con- nected with the family of the same name in the old colony from which he came. He married a daughter of Dominicus Jordan of Cape-Elizabeth, and died in 1765. Wm. Simonton is the ancestor of all of that name, in this neighbour- hood, he died in 1794, aged 100 years.
112
Collection of the Customs. [P. II.
Falmouth was the only collection district in Maine previous to the revolution. In 1701, naval offices were established by law in every sea port in the province, " for the entering and clearing of all ships and other vessels trading to and from it," and a fee table was pre- pared for their regulation.1 The colony laws relating to imports were numerous. At first small duties were laid upon wines and spirits, which were afterwards extended to " all goods, wares, mer- · chandizes and provisions of all sorts, excepting fish, sheep's wool, cotton wool, salt," and a few other articles of common necessity. By a statute passed in 1670, by Massachusetts, the duty was ad valorem, one penny for every 20s. value, but the tariff was then as now, the subject of continual alteration.
When the naval office was opened in this port, we have been una- ble to ascertain. Moses Pearson is said to have been the first naval officer, which was probably about 1730. He was succeeded by Enoch Freeman in 1749, who was appointed deputy collector in 1750. But the business of the town increasing, it was thought proper to establish a collection district here in 1758, and Francis Waldo was appointed the first collector. There were at that time but two collection districts in Massachusetts, the new one included all the harbours from Cape Porpus to the Kennebec. Allon M'Lean was Waldo's deputy until 1760, when he was accidentally killed .?
For several years previous to 1767, there were four surveyors general on the continent, appointed by the crown at the expense of
1 The fee for entry of vessels from all places abroad except from Pennsylva- nia, the Jerseys, Connecticut, Rhode Island and New-Hampshire, was one stilling, and from those provinces six pence per entry or 4s. a year at the master's choice. " For clearing and certificate of the lading 2s. 6d." Prov. L. 1701. By subsequent laws, the fees were increased.
2 Francis Waldo was the 2d son of Brig. Waldo, and graduated at Hav. Col. 1747. He never was married, a disappointment in that quarter in 1768, in- duced him to abandon the idea ; he writes in Sept. of that year, " Miss - has behaved in a manner so base, ungrateful and false, that I don't expect any further connection there." He was representative of the town in 1762 and 1763 ; at the commencement of the revolution he went to England and never returned. His estates here were confiscated under the absentee act in 1782 and sold. He died in London.
M'Lean was killed in the house of Captain Ross, in Middle-street in March 1760, by the falling of the garret floor loaded with corn. This fell upon M'Lean in the chamber, carried that floor down and killed John Fleet in the kitchen. They were both from Scotland, each 26 years old, and buried in one grave. Great sympathy was excited by the occasion, Mr. Smith says, "it was the largest and most solemn funeral that ever was in town." A monument was erected over their grave with an ap- propriate inscription.
-
-
113
Collection of the Customs.
C. 6.]
£1000 sterling each ; from their decision an appeal lay to the office for American affairs in London. John Temple was surveyor general for the northern district including all New-England, and resided in Boston.1 He had a general superintendance of the officers of the customs throughout his district. In 1767, this system was changed and a board of commissioners was established at Boston for the colo- nies, to whom was entrusted the powers exercised by the surveyors general and the board of American affairs at London. When the English government commenced the system of raising a revenue from America, an increased activity and vigilance was communicated to all the offices connected with the collection of the customs, accom- panied by a multiplication of officers. In this port in 1763, iu pur- suance of strict orders from the surveyor general, Mr. Waldo issu- ed a proclamation against smuggling of rum, sugar and molasses, which had previously been winked at and the officers were directed to execute the law with vigor. In 1765, Arthur Savage was appointed comptroller of the port, and about the same time Thomas Child was appointed tide surveyor.2 Mr. Waldo was frequently absent from his post, sometimes on voyages to England, during which times Mr. Child discharged the duties of his office as deputy.
In 1770, George Lyde was appointed collector of the port by the board of Commissioners, who appointed Thomas Oxnard of this town as his deputy. At the commencement of the revolution, the officers of the customs here were Mr. Lyde, Mr. Oxnard, Mr. Child weigher and guager, David Wyer senior, tide surveyor, and Arthur Savage comptroller. On the breaking out of the war, all the persons connected with the custom-house, except Mr. Child, joined the royal party and left the country. Mr. Child was then appointed to the principal charge of the post by Massachusetts, under the title
1 John Temple married a daughter of James Bowdoin of Boston, Jan. 1767. 2 Savage had been an auctioneer in Boston ; in 1757, he kept on the northi side of the town dock ; he was paid by fees. He came here in July 1765, and lived in a house which has since been very much altered and is now oc- cupied by Moorhead as a public house. Mr. Child's salary as tide surveyor, was £25 sterling a year, and when he acted as deputy collector in the absence of Mr. Waldo, the collector allowed him 12 per cent. of his fees. Mr. Savage was often absent, particularly after the popular excitements commenced here; on such occasions he confided the duty of his office to Mr. Child. In 1769, Mr. Child was appointed " land waiter," with a salary of £30 st. and weigher and guager with an allowance of 3d. on a cask of molasses, and 6d. on a cask of sugar, &c. He married a daughter of Enoch Freeman, by whom he had several children ; his widow is still living.
114
Traders. [P. II.
of naval officer, and held it until his death in 1787. Before the revolution, the custom-house was kept in a dwelling-house on the corner of King and Middle-streets, and was burnt in the conflagration of the town.
The amount of duties paid at the office here before the revolution, we are unable to ascertain. The comptroller's fees for entering and clearing vessels for one month from Sept. 10, 1770, were £11. 1. ; in 1771, from June 27 to July 20, they were £16. 8. 4. ; from Dec. 11 1771 to Feb. 11 1772, they were £20. 17. and the same year from Feb. 22 to May 8, two months and a half, £19. 16. 4. lawful money.1
Beside the officers of the customs, there was established at Bos- ton a general impost officer, chosen annually by the general court, with a salary of £200, who superintended the collection of the ex- · cise ; he had a deputy in each of the out ports, with a salary of £40 a year. In 1756, the law was altered and the excise was farmed out. In 1763, Theophilus Bradbury was chosen collector, and Francis Waldo and Stephen Longfellow, the same year were ap- pointed to farm out the excise on tea, coffee and China ware for the county of Cumberland.
The principal traders in town previous to the revolution, were Alexander Ross and Robert Pagan before mentioned, Thomas Smith who commenced in 1756, and kept on the corner of Essex and Middle-streets, Enoch Freeman, Thomas Mosely, and Enoch Moody ; there were beside a few shops where small articles were to be found, kept by Barbara Robinson, Mary Moody and Mary Bradbury. In 1760, the following persons were licensed to retail tea, coffee, &c. viz. Enoch Moody, Alexander Ross, Wm. Buck- nam, John Marston, Mary Bradbury, Mary Woodbury and Esther Woodbury.2
At the time of the revolution, in addition to most of the above,
' The amount paid into the colony treasury by the excise, import and ton- nage duties, was in 1726, £8,800 equal to $10,878 of our money.
" 1747, £17,616
" 1748, £33,420 old tenor, equal to $13,500 of our money.
2 These I think all lived upon the Neck but Wm. Bucknam, who lived at New-Casco. The licensed innholders in town in 1760, were Jane Woodbury, Wm. Bucknam, Robert Mitchell, (Spurwink) Joseph Parker and Robert Thorndike, (Cape-Elizabeth) Joshua Freeman, (Neck) John Thomes, (sign of the red cow on the road to Stroudwater) Charles Gerrish and Samuel Conant.
115
Wharves. C. 6.]
stores were kept by Richard Codman on the corner of Exchange- street, Thomas Cummings and John Butler in their houses in King- street. Alexander Ross and Thomas Mosely had died ; the widow of the latter succeeded to his business and kept in Fore-street. The mode of doing business was different at that day from what it is at present ; there was no separation in the branches of trade, but the same store contained English and West India goods and groceries without distinction. The dealing in the absence of a free circulation of money was by barter ; there was but little of the common medi- um of exchange at that day more than was necessary to answer the immediate uses of the people, for the payment of taxes and other necessary purposes. The currency was entirely in silver and gold, the transportation of which was burdensome and unsafe ; there were no banks, and after 1750 no paper money.1
Before the revolution there were no wharves of any considerable length in our harbour ; the longest extended from Jordan's point ;2 another of less length projected from the other side of that cove near the town landing, which was called Pote's wharf, from Jeremiah Pote who owned and occupied it ; the principal mercantile business was done at these two wharves. It had been in contemplation to unite the two and form a dock, but they were both destroyed in the conflagration of the town, and the project defeated. On the revival of trade business forsook its former places and advanced further westward. There was a wharf on each side of the entrance into clay cove, one called Preble's, the other Pearson's, from their res- pective owners ; there was also a short one in the cove called Tyng's wharf, which still remains, being a little west of the railway, having received a large addition. Beside these, which were all of short extent, there were breast works where Central and Long wharves and the Pier, now are, which were occupied for mechanic shops. On Waite's breast work, where Central wharf is, stood Deacon Titcomb's blacksmith's shop ; on Deering's, near the foot of Ex- change-street, was a boat-builder's shop, in which Mr. Deering
1Some of the old people who lived through those days and down to ours, came very reluctantly into the modern mode of doing business. Moses Plum- er, who had acquired considerable property before the revolution, never would come into the new fashion, but always would trade in the old way ; he was so tenacious of the ancient custom, that he acquired the name of the "Old Way," which he retained for many years.
? This was called Distillery wharf, from a distill-house situated upon it.
116
General description of the Neck. [P. II
laboured many years with an industry which enabled him to accu- mulate a handsome estate.1 There was no wharf or breast work previous to the revolution above Waite's. Mr. Mayo did his busi- ness at Distillery wharf, and was a proprietor with the Waites and Major Daniel Ilsley in the distillery. Brigadier Preble and the Ox- nards had stores on Preble's wharf, and Ephraim Broad kept a large grocery store there a short time before the war.
Having now made a hasty review of the commercial character of the town to the period of the revolution, we propose to close this chapter with a notice of its general situation and appearance.
The condition of the town even so late as the revolution, can hard- ly be conceived of by those who have lived but one generation. A bare statement of the fact that in 1769 a bear was killed in Brackett's swamp and still later, in 1772 that a moose was started in the fields north of Congress-street, and killed upon the flats of Back Cove, will make a deeper impression of the narrow extent of our settlement and the thinness of the population than any detailed description that we could give. Where these wild animals then strayed, we find streets and permanent buildings and cultivated gardens. At that time there was no house upon the Neck north of Congress-street, and the back fields as they were then called, were covered with bushes intermixed with tall forest trees.2
At the time of the destruction of that part of Falmouth which is now Portland, there were upon the Neck 230 dwelling-houses. The public buildings were the meeting-house of the first parish, the epis- copal church which stood on the corner of Church and Middle- streets, a new court-house nearly finished, on the corner of King and Middle-streets, a town-house in Greele's lane, now Hampshire-
i Nathaniel Deering with his brother John came here from Kittery, to which place their ancestor emigrated from Dartmouth in England, and where Nathaniel the oldest was born in 1739. In 1764, at the early age of 25, he married Dorcas, the second daughter of Deacon James Milk. During the war he opened a store in clay cove, which was kept by his wife, a very sagacious, shrewd and enterprising woman, and on the conclusion of peace, he engaged in navigation and pursued it with success, until his death in Sept. 1795, aged 56. He left two children, James, and Mary married to Com. Edward Preble, who are both now living. His wife survived him more than thirty years. John Deering died in 1784, aged 44, his widow, another daughter of Deacon Milk, is still living in the mansion house in Exchange-street, which they occu- pied before the revolution, it is on part of the Milk estate.
2 " We hear from Falmouth, Casco Bay, that since last spring, there has . been raised the frames of above fifty dwelling-houses, within half a mile of each other." Bost. Ev. Post July 15, 1765.
. C. 6.] General description of the Neck. 117
street, originally the first meeting-house, and a jail which stood where the town hall now stands. These buildings were all of wood, few were painted, and those few generally red.' Two or three houses had brick ends,? and about the same number were three stories high.3 The most ancient and dense part of the town was destroyed, the old- est house which now remains is one built by Enoch Moody in 1740; it now belongs to his heirs, and stands on the corner of Congress and Franklin-streets. Another ancient one stands in the rear of Warren & Hersey's brick building in Fore-street, one story high, and was built by Benjamin Proctor on his father's lot ; the old tav- ern house now kept by Kendall opposite the city hall, is an ancient building ; it was formerly one story and was built by John Marston, who kept tavern in it several years previous to the revolution. ' The M'Lellan house in Maine-street, just above Beaver-street, was built in 1755 by Hugh M'Lellan of Gorham, who brought the frame from that place. The lot, when the house was erected, was five acres, and extended from Maine to Spring-street. Down to the period of the revolution, there was but one house above this on the same side of Maine-street until you came to Mr. Frost's, near Stroudwater bridge-the land was entirely vacant on the one side to Anthony Brackett's house, which stood where Brackett-street now joins Bridge-street, and on the other the view of the harbour was uninter- rupted. All the upper part of the town above this five acre lot was owned by Joshua and Anthony Brackett, by inheritance from their father Joshua the son of Thomas Brackett and Mary Mitton, and was improved by them as a farm, a large part of it being covered with wood.4 In 1745, the hill from High-street, westerly, was covered
1 Deacon Codman's, corner of Temple-street, Dr. Watts', corner of Lime- street, both now standing, Mr. Waldo's below Deacon Freeman's, in Middle- street, and two or three others were painted a light colour ; the meeting- houses were not painted.
2 Mr. Butler's in King-street, and Greenwood's, now owned by Mrs. Jewett in Middle-street ; these were just built when the war broke out. Greenwood's was raised in Oct. 1774.
3 Butler's, Watts', Greenwood's and Brigadier Preble's, now Moorhead's tavern ; the latter, after the war, wasreduced a story, but which within a few years has been restored.
4 Joshua Brackett was born in Greenland, N. H. where his father lived after the first Indian war, in 1701 ; Anthony was born in the same place in 1707. When they came here we cannot ascertain, it was however previous to 1728. Joshua built a log hut in the woods where Gray-street now is, and cleared a spot for cultivation ; for many years he sent large quantities of wood cut upon this land to Boston ; he said that he had worked many a night by moon-light, - 15
-
.
118
General description of the Neck. [P. II.
so thick with sapling pines that in the expressive language of an old settler, a dog could hardly get through them ; but that year the in- habitants were so much alarmed lest the Indians and French should find shelter among them, that they entirely cleared the land. A new growth of hard wood sprung up, and on the south side of this tract large trees were standing at the beginning of the war ; the large oaks which now stand on Mr. Vaughan's land, were about five feet high in 1776. In 1745, there was little better than a foot path over this hill, where Maine-street now is, through the woods to the settlement. The densest part of the population was between King and Exchange- streets, but even in that quarter there were large spaces of unoccu- pied land. Between Congress, then called Queen or the Back- street and Middle-street, west of Essex-street, then called Fiddle- lane, where Federal-street now passes, was a continued swamp to Temple-street, in which grew alder and whortleberry bushes five or six feet high and some large trees, the stumps of which were stand- ing as late as the revolution. Near the junction of Federal and Court-streets was a pond, which continued until after the war dis- charging itself into Fore river, by a brook of considerable size. This brook crossed Fore-street, near the foot of Exchange-street, over which was a stone bridge about fifteen feet wide.1 At the time of which we are speaking, the water flowed up from clay cove to Tur- key-lane, now Newbury-street, in a creek sufficiently large to allow boats to pass : an arch was thrown over it in Middle-street, under which they sailed ; persons now living can remember having seen boats in the creek as high as Turkey-lane. There was also a swamp as late as 1750, in the rear of Judge Freeman's house, and another
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