USA > Maine > Oxford County > Waterford > The history of Waterford, Oxford County, Maine, comprising Historical address, by Henry P. Warren; record of families, by Rev. William Warren, D.D.; centennial proceedings, by Samuel Warren, esq > Part 6
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The church enjoyed its greatest prosperity about 1814. That summer quite a number of converts were baptized in the pond before us. I find no mention of the church as an organization after 1818. The members that signed off from the Congrega- tional to the Baptist church were John Kimball, Samuel Sanders, Samuel Haskell, Josiah Plummer, Stephen Moffits, Benjamin Sawin, Eben Cross, Eben Cross, jr., Samuel Plummer, Nathan Jewett, David Chaplin, Ezekiel Sanders, Daniel Billings, Josiah Houghton, Samuel Haskell, jr., Amos Smith, jr., Sam- uel Page, Jonathan Houghton, Amos Smith, and Or- lando Coolidge. Doubtless this church owed its
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ECCLESIASTICAL AFFAIRS: BAPTISTS.
origin to Mr. John Kimball, who moved from Port- land to Waterford in 1807, and was perhaps the most influential member. Baptist missionaries came to Waterford at his invitation. This church gained some strength from the more rigid of Mr. Ripley's flock, who thought their pastor a little lax in doc- trine. In this connection I will give a brief sketch of Baptist ministers who were raised up in our Waterford church.
JOSIAH HOUGHTON.
He was son of Major Jonathan Houghton. He first learned the cabinet maker's trade, which he left, and after a brief period of study entered the minis- try and was settled in Turner and Winthrop, Me., also in Newburyport, Mass. He was afterward made secretary of the Baptist Home Missionary Society for Maine. He was a man of talents, of fine address, and was highly useful in the ministry.
MIGHILL JEWETT.
He was son of Nathan, and grandson of Dea. Stephen Jewett. He preached for several years in the Baptist, afterward in the Universalist denomina- tion. He had good talents and gifts, but broke down mentally and passed away. He was never set- tled but preached as an itinerant.
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HISTORICAL ADDRESS.
LYMAN JEWETT, D.D.
He was son of Nathan and brother of Mighill. Graduated at Brown University and at Newton The- ological Seminary. He became a missionary to In- dia. He is eminent as a Hebrew scholar, and has translated a part of the scriptures into the Telligu language. He stands high in the foreign field and in the denomination at home.
SAMUEL HASKELL, D.D.
After spending his minority principally in Water- ford, he left town and studied for the Baptist minis- try. He stands high in the denomination, but we have few facts of his life and ministry.
The Methodist church in Waterford properly dates back to 1802. Methodist missionaries came to Waterford that year and made a few converts. In 1806 Waterford was a part of the Poland circuit. In 1810 the first Methodist class was formed; Jo- siah Shaw was its leader. This class consisted of the following persons : Josiah Shaw, Peter Gerry, Mary Gerry, Israel Hale, and Oliver Haskell.
For a number of years they met at Mr. Shaw's house in the winter, in his barn in the summer. Their numbers increased so that the accommodations were inadequate, and a small church was erected in 1818 at what is known as Mutiny Corner, one
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ECCLESIASTICAL AFFAIRS: METHODISTS.
mile west of Waterford City. But the growth of the City village made a change in location desirable, so the old church was abandoned and a church was built on the present site in 1836. It was modeled after the Universalist church in Norway. John San- derson was the contractor. The price agreed upon was $1,425. He took his pay in pews. Oliver Hale, jr., presented the church with a bell. The name " Wesleyan chapel " was given . to this church. In 1844 it was burned; in 1845 rebuilt. During this time the society met in Capt. Abel Houghton's hall. Oliver Hale, jr., presented the new church with a bell. In 1850 the society built a parsonage which they still own.
Naturally there was strong opposition to this Methodist church. Good men doubted the expedi- ency of its establishment; by none however was it so strongly opposed as by the irreligious part of the community. Their traditions were all Congregation- al. It was the standing order; so with the blind instincts of a false conservatism they rudely and bitterly opposed the early Methodist preachers. Of course these missionaries and their friends asked permission to use the old meeting-house-the town's meeting-house. The story runs that the Sabbath following one of these missionary meetings Mr. Rip- ley preached to his people-many of whom had heard the new comer-from the following text:
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HISTORICAL ADDRESS.
" What went ye out into the wilderness for to see, a reed shaken by the wind ?"
Forty years ago the church wielded a wide influ- ence. Its strength was especially in the south and west parts of the town. Many earnest and success- ful preachers were raised up in this church; the fol- lowing is I think a complete list.
JOSIAH SHAW.
He was born in Standish, Me., Oct. 3, 1773; came to Waterford about the year 1796. He was a mem- ber of the convention that formed the Constitution of Maine in 1819, and was a member of the first legislature of the new State in 1820. He was or- dained by the Methodist conference in 1818, and had large influence in this church and in the town. His early advantages were few, but native intellect, a retentive memory, a fine personal presence with a magnetic voice gave him position and power in the church and town. He was a local preacher, did not travel; was always acceptable and highly re- spected.
JOHN SHAW.
He was son of Josiah Shaw, and entered the Methodist ministry in 1821. He was employed on several circuits in the State and was an earnest and acceptable preacher. He was born Feb. 12, 1800, in Waterford, and died in Limington, Me., Aug. 20, 1825.
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METHODIST MINISTERS RAISED IN WATERFORD.
STEPHEN SANDERSON.
He was son of Stephen Sanderson; settled as a farmer in Sweden. He entered the Methodist min- istry as a local preacher, afterward the Congrega- tional ministry. He preached with acceptance, and without salary for some forty years in Sweden, Lov- ell, Stoneham, and elsewhere. He labored hard through the week, studied his sermons while at work and was remarkable for power to quote scrip- ture. He was a good man and citizen, and exerted an excellent influence in his day.
AARON SANDERSON.
He was also son of Stephen, and has honored the Christian ministry for nearly half a century both as preacher and presiding elder over various districts in Maine. His praise is in the churches. He has a son who now stands high as a preacher in the de- nomination.
MOSES SANDERSON.
He is brother to the above; entered the Metho- dist ministry about the same period, but was con- strained, I think from poor health, to leave it for other pursuits.
NATHANIEL PRIDE.
He was a thrifty farmer in town, but felt himself called to the Christian ministry, which he pursued in
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HISTORICAL ADDRESS.
the Methodist connection, as an itinerant preacher, till his death. He was a modest man, of good mind, and left behind an excellent character and record.
WILLIAM BROWN.
He was son of William Brown. He early left farming for study, and afterward entered the Meth- odist ministry. He left his calling for a while for other pursuits ; finally became chaplain in the Fed- eral army ; has since died.
JONATHAN FAIRBANKS.
He was bred a farmer, but felt moved to enter the Methodist ministry without much preparatory study ; but he had good sense, good principles, and loved his work. He was licensed by the Methodist order, and traveled much on different circuits in the State, and was accounted everywhere a useful and faithful laborer.
The school-houses which the town voted to build in 1797 were not completed until 1800. They were located as follows: One about forty rods from Dan- iel Warren's, toward North Waterford, on the upper side of the road; the second was at the City, oppo- site Mr. Stanwood's; the third was near Capt. Thomas Swan's; the fourth was opposite and just below Joel S. Plummer's; the fifth was near the head of McWains pond; the sixth stood near
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SCHOOLS AND SCHOOL-MASTERS.
Jabez Brown's. The reason assigned for not lo- cating one of them at the Flat was that the people there were already blessed with a dangerous number of privileges,-a tavern, post-office, and a church within reasonable distance.
Eber Rice, Esq., and David Chaplin were the first school-masters in Waterford. Miss Eunice Stone and Miss - Baker were the first school-mistresses, so far as appears from the town records. The following is a statement of the manner in which the $100 ap- propriated in 1797 was expended.
David Chaplin, order for teaching a school, $39.00,0
Eber Rice, order for teaching a school, 11.25,0
Samuel Sanders, order for boarding a school-master, 7.50,0
Widow Betsey Sanders, order for boarding a school-master, 5.12,5
Widow Sally Jewell, order for boarding a school-master, 6.75,0
Eunice Stone, order for teaching a school, 13.33,0
Edward Baker, order for his daughter's teaching a school, 5.42,0
There lies before me as I write the arithmetic used by Squire Rice in his schools. It is entirely in manuscript, neatly and even elegantly written, con- taining about as much matter as a copy of "Green- leaf's Common School."
Here let me say a word of these old masters. Squire Rice was the legal adviser of the little colony for a quarter of a century, and town clerk-except the first year-for the first twenty years of the town's incorporated history. The records that he left are
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HISTORICAL ADDRESS.
neat, legible, and clear. He set an example which subsequent clerks have faithfully followed.
May I venture to offer a suggestion. Keep a good town clerk in office till he dies, no matter what his politics. The accuracy and fullness of your rec- ords will depend upon this. You have excellent town records because in the past you made but in- frequent changes.
Squire Rice was the first representative of Water- ford in the General Court of Massachusetts, select- man, and the first justice of the peace.1 An honest, Christian man, he wielded great influence in town.
David Chaplin, known throughout Waterford as " Master Chaplin," was a genius. He read his Greek Testament with ease, propounded and solved theo- logical riddles, made on his anvil (he was a black- smith by trade) a hundred curious things, but could not shoe a horse without " pricking" him. So care- less was he in dress that he was often half undressed. So introspective was he that he made his own world. He had nearly every talent but faculty. He was a giant in stature, as were all the original Chaplins.
But to return to the schools. As illustrating the range of study in our schools in those days, I will
1 Stephen Jewett was appointed in 1799 first justice of peace. He declined the office and recommended Eber Rice. The first deputy sheriff resident in Waterford was Major Hannibal Hamlin, who was afterward high sheriff of Oxford county.
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SCHOOLS AND SCHOOL-MASTERS.
give a recommendation made by the school commit- tee to the town, and adopted March, 1802.
The committee recommend that each school-master open and close his school with due solemnity; that the town during pleasure adopt Mr. Prentiss' new spelling book in the several schools in said town, and that the American Preceptor be considered the classical book for reading in said schools; other books to be occa- sionally used as opportunity may offer. It is further recommended that each scholar whose progress in reading may require shall be furnished with a "Preceptor" above mentioned, and that each lower scholar shall be furnished with a spelling book, and that all who write in said school shall be furnished with necessary imple- ments.
The sensible practice of providing all scholars with school books at town expense is seen to be as old as our schools.
The six districts had expanded by 1830 to twelve; the school-houses then erected have been in turn re- placed. To-day we have almost without exception new school-houses throughout the town.
On the whole, improvement has been made in ed- ucation. The range of study is wider; of necessity the education is broader, if instruction is properly given. Arithmetic is no longer the outmost bound or range of school study. In one respect we have doubtless fallen behind. There are fewer masters than formerly. No substitute has ever been or ever can be found for those bright, ambitious young men, who, if their knowledge was crude, had iron wills ; who knew that lazy boys were the rule and not the
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HISTORICAL ADDRESS.
exception ; who, if they could not arouse enthusi- asm, could inspire wholesome fear of shirking. In those early days a decent self-respect made nearly every ambitious boy a school-master. After he had taught one or two successful schools he could retire to some other occupation without disparagement.1
After building the church and school-houses, our fathers applied themselves to the work of road building; and surely no one can have traveled through the town of Waterford without being im- pressed that they were fond of two forms of labor,- laying stone wall and building roads. Ages hence the use of the unnumbered miles of piled stones in Waterford will be a puzzle to the scientist. For the multiplication of roads in our town there is some excuse. Nature threw in the hills so promiscuously and so inconveniently that a great milage of roads is necessary.
About 1805 the main town road ran from North Bridgton, west of Bear pond, through Waterford City and Flat, the Plummer neighborhood, back of Joshua Sander's, by Peter E. Mosher's and Samuel H. Warren's, to the foot of Bald Pate, where it
1 In 1825 there were 394 scholars in the town. The amount of money raised by taxation was $344. The interest on the school fund was $70. One-third the teachers that year were males. The population of the town was 1,035.
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GROWTH OF TOWN ROADS.
joined the Scoggin trail. There were two branches of this road on the west; one through West Waterford over Sanderson hill, the other from S. H. Warren's to Lovell, known as the Sabattus road. There were three branches on the east; one at Waterford City, over Athertons hill, by Sumner Stone's and McWains pond, to Harrison; the other two at Waterford Flat, the one known now as the old Norway, the other as the old Albany road. Short roads branched from these to different houses. These were all the roads in Waterford.
About this time a road was opened to Sweden, leaving the old road at Meeting-house Corner. Near this date a road was opened from the Jewett guide- board (about a third of a mile east of Peter E. Mosher's) through to Albany and Bethel, by way of Hunts hill. This was called the Sawin road. Pre- vious to this there had been only a foot-path from Dea. Jewett's across to Gen. Sawin's. After this road building our fathers rested until about 1820, when the road by Samuel Warren's was pushed through to Harrison Flat.
About 1835 it was seen to be necessary, on ac- count of the great increase in teaming and general travel, to avoid the hills as much as possible. This led to the building, at great expense, of the road under Bear mountain, which shortened the distance to Portland by three miles. This was built by Capt.
8
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HISTORICAL ADDRESS.
Thomas Swan, who has built many of our modern roads.
Within the next ten years the new road to Nor- way, and the valley road from Waterford Flat to Bethel (through North Waterford and Albany), were built. The Bisbee-town road was extended to Nor- way in 1832; the lower road to Lovell was con- structed in 1858. The building of the road to Nor- way brought back the upper Androscoggin and Coos county travel, which had been diverted by opening a road through Greenwood. The length of roads in town to-day cannot be less than one hundred and fifteen miles.
Eli Longley built the first hotel and store and was the first postmaster in Waterford. Mr. Longley built a log house about half-way between the Con- gregational church and Mr. Douglass', on the east side of the road. His lot included the whole of the Flat village.
The road by his house was a thoroughfare to Ox- ford (Albany) and the plantations on the Androscog- gin, by way of the Scoggin trail. Such drafts upon his hospitality were made that he decided to move down the hill, and open a public house where the Water- cure establishment now stands. He built a one- story house, afterward the ell to a two-story house, which was until about 1820 the only tavern in
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SKETCH OF ELI LONGLEY.
Waterford. In front of it swung his sign, which the oldest of you can remember :
ELI LONGLEY'S INN, 1797.
A man of broad views, he planned for the village which he foresaw would spring up. He laid out this great common even larger than it is now, for in his plan the road from the Plummer neighborhood was to describe the same curve west as east.
He built the store now occupied by Oliver Porter in 1802. This he sold two years later to Calvin Farrar, together with the land south of the road from the brook on the one side to the Pond bridge on the other. He opened, in 1801, the first post- office north of North Bridgton in this (the central) part of Oxford county.
Mr. Longley built the first "potash "1 erected on Waterford Flat. On the common in front of his tav- ern the trainings were held for forty years. In his log house on the side of the hill missionaries preached to the assembled people. At his inn on the Flat were held the first town meetings. His tav-
1 There were two " potash " at the Flat. The first was located just west of A. S. Kimball's house. It was built by Eli Longley about 1800. The second was below Mrs. John Wilkins'. Squire Farrar built it and Levi Brown afterward owned it. As the clearing of land ceased, the supply of ashes was diminished, and these factories were abandoned.
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HISTORICAL ADDRESS.
ern was the social headquarters of the town. Mr. Longley spent his means freely in building up Waterford.
In 1817 he was attacked with the " Ohio fever." He sold his tavern to Capt. Peter Warren of Port- land, and started for the West. The story runs that he found a farm in Pennsylvania that suited him. One evening he negotiated for its purchase. That night it was so cold that the corn froze. The cold season that had disgusted him with Maine had fol- lowed him. He found that there were drawbacks in Pennsylvania as well as in New England. He arose at daybreak, saddled his horse and left the country. He returned to Waterford and tried to re-purchase his inn. Failing in this, he moved to Raymond and bought the hotel so long known as Longley's, afterward Sawyer's tavern. He died there in 1839.
Most of the mill-sites in Waterford were occupied early in the present century. I give their history down to the present time, commencing with those at Waterford City. The sites at Waterford City are numbered from the foot of Tom pond.
Ist. A saw and grist-mill was erected about 1810 by Abram Whitney. The successive owners have been Abram Whitney, Lewis Jewell, Thomas Hap- good, and Cobb & Hapgood.
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MILLS.
2d. A foundry was built here about 1847 by Mil- ler & Cummings, who cast stoves, axle-trees, and plows.
3d. A plaster-mill was built on this site by Josiah Monroe in 1848 ; it was afterward converted into a woodshop by James O. Longley. E. Wilkins has a tannery on this site.
4th. A saw and grist-mill was built here about 1790 by Ezra Jewell. The grist-mill was the first in Waterford. Mr. Jewell's wife tended it much of the time. It was followed by a blacksmith shop, in which was a trip-hammer. This shop was owned and run by Richard Bailey, who was a skillful workman. He made edged tools. Mr. Stanwood purchased this site about 1870, and on it erected his bucket factory.
5th. Isaac Smith built a saw-mill here about 1795. In 1810, Josiah Farrar bought the site and built a cloth-mill, in which wool was carded and cloth was dressed. He also manufactured linseed oil. (There was a great deal of flax raised in Waterford and vicinity at that time.) George K. Hamlin afterward built a saw-mill on this site. It is now occupied by Watson's salt-box factory.
6th. In 1809 Timothy Frisbie built a black- smith shop, where he worked at his trade and made scythes. In 1820 this was converted into a carriage- shop, and has been since used for that purpose.
H
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HISTORICAL ADDRESS.
7th. Oliver Hapgood built a carding-mill on this site about 1810. Daniel Brown, William Morse, Zebedee Perry, and E. W. Ayer have been successive owners.
8th. William Monroe built a tannery here about 1802, where he did a large country business for many years. He was in partnership with Josiah Atherton. He was followed by his son Josiah Monroe, and he by another son, Merrick Monroe. William Monroe was a tanner and currier by trade, a good business man and a public spirited citizen. He was a man of large influence in town and held many local offices.
9th. The first saw-mill in Waterford was built by Jacob Gibson, within a few rods of the outlet of Bear brook, near Josiah Monroe's.
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Pride's saw and grist-mill was built by Jedediah Cailiff, about 1809. Nathaniel Pride succeeded Cailiff, and built a new grist-mill further down the stream. The successive owners to this mill have been Isaac Watson, Rufus Chadbourne, Marshall Sanderson, Amos Upton, and Peter Haskell.
The McWain saw and grist-mill was built about 1830 by David McWain, 2d. The successive owners have been - Andrews, Samuel Hale, Joseph Dan- iels, and Livingston G. Robinson.
Sanderson's saw-mill was built on Mutiny brook,
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MILLS.
about 1835, by Joseph Sanderson. It was sold by him to John Sanderson.
Dudley's mill, on Bear Pond brook, was built by Joseph Dudley, about 1799. Nathan Whitney, Josi- ah Monroe, and the Harrison Water Power Company have successively owned it.
The first saw-mill at North Waterford was built about 1806, by Jonathan Longley (known as Skipper Longley) and Samuel Page, who purchased the mill- site of Major Samuel Warren. Mr. Page sold to James Russell and Gen. Sawin. They re-built the saw-mill with a grist-mill in the lower story. It has had numerous owners since,-Moses Young, Philip Barrows, Danville Bisbee, Lebroke & Bell, Lebroke and Samuel Locke (who re-built the mills sub- stantially as they are now), Lebroke & Edgerley, Albert and Lyman Jewett, and C. G. Knight, who is their present owner. The title to these mills has been so long in dispute that I may have omitted the names of some of the owners.
A fulling-mill was built at North Waterford, just below the saw-mill, about 1820, by Nathaniel Jewett. After his death James Russell and a Mr. Perkins of Conway, N. H., run it until it was abandoned. Farnham Jewett bought and still owns the privilege.
Orlando Coolidge and Josiah Atherton built, about 1833, a saw-mill about a mile below the North Wa- terford mills.
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HISTORICAL ADDRESS.
A shingle-mill was built at Kezar Falls by John Walker, and afterward owned by James Walker, both of Lovell. Fortunately for the lovers of nature, it was not a paying investment.
Lynch's Mills. Mills were built on this site by Benjamin Proctor about 1810. He owned a tract of land which included the present Lynch property, about 2,500 acres in all. In his day, as now, it was the finest body of pine timber in this section of Oxford county. It was sold about 1830 to Daniel Brown, Esq., for less than $3,000. Mr. Brown soon sold it to James Osgood of Fryeburg. Up to this time the mill had simply supplied local demand. Mr. Osgood built new mills and sent some lumber to Portland by the canal.
About 1840 the mill passed into the hands of Moses Petty, who sold a share to - - Caldwell. After Mr. Caldwell's death Mr. Petty again became the sole owner. Mr. Petty sold to John Lynch, about 1850.
I give the history of Lynch's Mills because, al- though located in Albany, it has always had close business connection with North Waterford.
Wild lands of all kinds, especially those covered with pine timber, were a favorite investment with shrewd men in the old States, and in the oldest towns
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WILD LANDS AND PINE TIMBER.
of the new States after the close of the Revolution- ary war. This was natural, for at that time there were no corporations, and one must needs invest his surplus money in navigation or lands. The history of every town in Oxford county would show that until within the last fifty years the most valuable tracts of timber lands were for the most part held by non-residents. The amount of land held by these parties for speculative purposes varied in size from a single lot to the famous Bingham purchase or pur- chases, which in 1803 amounted to 2,350,000 acres in different parts of the Province of Maine.
The legislation of Massachusetts had stimu- lated this non-resident ownership, for hundreds of square miles in Maine had been granted to soldiers, or the heirs of soldiers, who had done service in the French wars, or in some way had served the State. These parties for the most part sold their rights for a trifle, and shrewd men bought them up. For ex- ample, the father of the Hamlins owned land enough in the town of Waterford to present each of his sons with a lot.
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