USA > Maine > Cumberland County > Windham > Windham in the past > Part 6
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NORTH YARMOUTH DIVISION
Sergt. James Tuttle, in command. James Buxton, Ephraim Sturdivant, 'James Anderson, Amos Harris, William Hooper, Gideon Eaton, Corpl Nicholas Loring, Benjamin Walch, Jacob Brown Jnr., Benjamin Brown, Joseph Drinkwater, Samuel Royall, Abraham Pettin, Noah Mitchell, Joseph Howland, Joseph Mitchell, John Stevens.
SCARBOROUGH DIVISION
Sergt. Richard Hunniwell, in command. James Libbee, Thomas Foss, Richard Carter, Axul Robarts, Josiah Hunniwell, Jethro Starboard. Timothy Haynes, Daniel Moody, Robert Mun- son, Samuel Laraby, Walter Foss Jr., John Libbee, Noah Libbee.
Turned over from Capt. Jonathan Beans' Company : Jacob Eastman, Eleazer Chase, Peter Calton, Obadiah Maxwell, Jacob Barker, William Holt, Jacob Blaisdell, Jeremiah Springer.
NEW MARBLEHEAD DIVISION
Sergt. Thomas Chute, in command. William Meayberry, John Farrow. John Farrow Junr, John Bodge, David Webb, William Maxwell, Thomas Bolton. Gershom Manchester, Stephen Manchester, Curtis Chute, Seth Webb, William Bolton, Samuel Webb, Abraham Anderson, John Wight, Thomas Meayberry, John Webb.
GORHAMTOWN DIVISION
Sergt. John Phinney, in command. Jacob Hamblen, Jere- miah Hodgdon, Stephen Phinney, Clement Meserve, Eliphalet
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WINDHAM IN THE PAST
Watson, John Phinney junr, William McLallen, Edmond Phin- ney, Hugh Mosier.
"Wages of Sergeant 2€ 1s. 3d. per month. Wages of Private 1£ 11s. 3d. per month."
Massachusetts Archives, Vol. 92, p. 73.
It will be seen by the foregoing roll, that while Capt. Berry was in command, all the men in the New Marblehead garrison were rated as government soldiers and paid accordingly, 'which, in their straitened circumstances, must have been a great help, as they were exposed to great danger in cultivating their farms.
Capt. Berry was succeeded by Capt. Daniel Hills of Newbury, who assumed command of the forces operating in this vicinity, in May, 1748, and his company was composed principally of men belonging to different towns in Massachusetts.
At first, he adhered to the previous arrangement and kept the eighteen New Marblehead men, including Rev. John Wight, who acted as Chaplain, Sergt. Thomas Chute, Z. Hunnewell, and the two Knights, in the New Marblehead quota; but in the winter of 1748, he retained only six'in the government's pay.
Feeling aggrieved at this arbitrary action on the part of Capt. Hills, the inhabitants of New Marblehead petitioned the Governor as follows :
"To His Excellency William Shirley Esqr Commander in chief in and over His Majisties Province of ye Massachusetts Bay in New England and to the Honble the Council and House of Representatives in General Court Assembled.
"The petition of us the Subscribers, Inhabitants of New Marblehead in the County of York and Province aforesaid.
"Humbly Showeth That Whereas Your Excellency & Honnrs in your knowledge, wisdom and goodness have for our Incourage- ment, been pleased to vote pay & subsistence to eighteen men of ve town in Sumer and nine in the Winter Season for several years since the war whch we gratefully acknowledge hath been a great kindness to us and without which we apprehend we could not have subsisted and held our possessions by reason of ye ex- posedness of our Settlements & by which we are hindered from making any great improvements of them and now to our Grief and Discouragement, Capt. Daniel Hills (who had the command of ye forces for ye year 1748) informs us his ordrs are to detain
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twenty men in the town aforesaid and Gorhamtown none of which to be Inhabitants, but all. Western men, and that we should have no pay or subsistence in the winter season Except we in- listed into the service as Western men; accordingly six of our Inhabitants inlisted under him. Now if such his proceedings be agreeable to ye intentions of yr Excellency & Honours, we shall lay our hands upon our Mouths, but if not we humbly pray yr Excellency & Honours would Exhibitt particular for our obtain- ing what yr Design was concerning us particularly (as we ap- prehend we are all benefitted by ye aforesaid vote.) We hereto- fore have made an averidge of ye pay and subsistence among the whole of us. without being monthly entered & ingaged in ye service, it being for ye care of ye officer in making up his Muster Roll; but by ye scheme or method proposed & practiced by the said Capt. Hill none of us can be benefitted by yr grants but those inlisted ; which Administration we humbly concive inconsis- tent with your intentions. Wherefore (if it be so) we beg the in- terposition of yr Excellency & Honours for us that we may be dealt with according to your wise and gracious designs concern- ing us. And as two of our young men who have continued with us through the war are arrived at full age, and six of our former inhabitants who at ye beginning of ye war removed from us and listed in the service being affraid they should not be able to sup- port themselves here are now returned with their families, we therefore likewise humbly pray your Excellency & Honours would add them to our number of Eighteen unto whom you have heretofore allowed full pay and subsistence in the Summer Sea- sons and we shall as in duty bound ever pray &c.
Thomas Chute
John Meayberry Curtis Chute
John Farrow
Thomas Bolton
William Maxwell
William Meayberry
David Webb
Abraham Anderson
Hugh Crague
Thomas Meayberry
Nathaniel Starboard
William Bolton Caleb Graffam
John Manchester
Gershom Manchester
John Farrow Jr.
William Langothe
John Webb
William Elder
Jonas Knap
John Bodge
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WINDHAM IN THE PAST
"In the House of Representatives April 14, 1749. Read and Ordered that the consideration of this Petition be deferred to the next sitting of this Court.
"Sent up for Concurrence.
T. HUTCHINSON, Speaker.
"In Council April 14, 1749, Read and Concurred.
J. WILLIAMS, Secretary
"Consented to.
W. SHIRLEY."
Massachusetts Archives, Vol. 73, p. 348.
Among the papers put in a testimony by the petitioners, we find the following :
"Thomas Chute, Thomas Boulton, Abraham Anderson, David Webb and Thomas Maberry, all inhabitants of New Mar- blehead, of full age, testify and saith that Capn Daniel Hills conduct and practis here from about ye 9th of December 1748 to May ye twenty fourth 1749 ; has been as follows :
"At ye settling of his company that his orders was to detain but twenty men, and them all to be Western Men or such as would due the duty of Western men; telling them they must march and scout with him wherever he went, (*if it was to Georges on Panopscout or Sebaycook) wherever he required them to march which was what the inhabitants here had never been required to do all the war before but notwithstanding our In- habitants was willing to comply with the condissions rather than to be put out of pay ; but Capn Hill declared to us that he could alow but four Inhabitants which four should be them that had pleasured him in going to Sebacook to look out a convenient Tract of Land for a Township as we have good reason to think rather than any views he had of serving the publick by search- ing for ye Enemye; & as soon as ye sd Capn Hills had settled his company for ye winter wch was about ye beginning of Decr he & his Lutenant & Insigne & all his Western men went home to the Westard and none of them ever returned to us again till about ye 20th of Feb'y last and ye Capt did not come till some-
*This inclosed in parenthesis is erased in the original.
·
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time in March & about ye 9; of this Instant May ye said Captn Hills took out his company (in ye very time when the Inhabitants should have planted there corn) without the least prospect as we apprehend of being serviceable to the Public good leiveing the garrison very weke and the Inhabitants that was left at home to work in theire fields without any gards as he has always done since he kept our garrison this Spring & his sone that is in pay has not been with us this five or six months.
"New Marblehead May 26th 1749.
THOS. CHUTE, his THOS. X BOOLTON, mark ABRAHAM ANDERSON. DAVID WEBB, THOMAS MEAYBERRY."
Massachusetts Archives, Vol. 73, p. 359.
"Memorandum of ye Inhabitants of New Marblehead that Capt Hils continued in pay is as follows : John Farrow Jr., Mr. John Wight, Samuel Webb, Stephen Manchester, Curtis Chute, Seth Webb,-which has received lowance which we alow to be Equil in Vallue to Eight pounds a month. And ye names of ye Inhabitants that is not bin in pay is as follows : John Farrow, Thomas Boolton, David Webb, John Webb, Thos Chute, Willm Mabery, Gersham Manchester, Abraham Anderson, John Bodge. Thos. Mabery, William Maxwell, William Boolton.
(Signed) THOS. CHUTE."
Massachusetts Archives, Vol. 73, p. 359.
To the foregoing charges Capt. Hills made the following defence :
"To his Excellency William Shearly Esqr Capn Genrl Com- mander in Chief in and over his Majesties province of the Massa- chusetts Bay in New England & to the Honnble his Majesties Counsell & Representatives in Genl Court Assembled.
"Your humbel servant humbly showeth & myt beg leave of your Excellency & Honrs to offer these few lines to your wise consideration in which i shall offer nothing but ye truth which
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WINDHAM IN THE PAST
I should not have troubled this Honble Court with att this time if thair had not been two petitions sent to this as in complaint against my past conduct, one from Gorhamtown, the other from New Marblehead, the former thay keep private, but the latter i saw, which setts things in but a poor light & so Represented as I am perswaded thay themselves if cald would not be willing to make oath to, hoping they may be cald thair to. but I would take leave to inform your Excellency and Honrs the truth and valaity of my conduct relating to these places, sum time in the beginning of last May 1748 I was sent from Newbury with a Capns Commision & ordered from the Capn Genl to Command the before mentioned places and Saccrappa & to take into the Province pay 18 of the Inhabitance of New Marblehead; 14 of Gorhamtown &; 11 of Sacrappa as Province Solders, and also : 30: Westard men to jone me with theme for the safety & defence of these places & anoyment of the Enemy & to Scout as need Required; and according to those orders & in obidance to his Excelleneys command directly i proceeded according to those just orders I had received; but was not joyned with the West- ward men till ye: 19: day of June, when immediately on receive- ing them i posted :10: at each place before mentioned according to my orders and put the Westward men directly to watch and guard ; and all I required of ye Inhabitance Solders was only to take their turn with the Westard Solders to wateh by knight & take the gards on the Sabbath Days this was all the Duty I required of them for the whole Summer & keep the Westward Solders constantly to gard the Inhabitance Solders att their work Except so many as was needfull to keep the forts; & I did not so much as put the Inhabitance Solders to one days duty, but this would not give them contentment, for many of them, if I was not misinformed said to ye Westward Solders, that their Captn had no command of them nor could Require none & had nothing more to do with them than to give them allowance and git their wadges for them & likewise told the Westward Men that thay were only sent to waight on them at their pleasure, Which things are of evil consequence and hard for Westward men to bare; when we spaired no pains by Day or by Knight for them and the safety of those places. But to return, after the Inhabitance Solders had got throw thair Husbentry work, I was ordered to march into the woods att which time I ordered :4:
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of the Inhabitance Solders of New Marblehead, :4: of Gorham- town and :3: of Sacrappa to goe this martch of 10 days; about the latter end of September we marcht with 42 men these In- habitance Solders mentioned, part of that number. Again in October I was ordered to Martch in ye woods with :60: men for 3 weeks, when I took one Inhabitance Solder of Sacrappa and ordered :4: of New Marblehead and 4 of Gorhamtown to goe the Marteh when they refused or neglected on a pretence to bee sick and so did goe the martch except one from Sacrappa making this excuse as they ever did that that the Cort had ex- cused them from Duty and I required no further duty of them because twas to no porpose and abought the 28 of November i received orders from the Captn Genl to dismiss all my men except 20 with myself and to follow Capt Jonathan Beans Direc- tion herein & he thought best to keep in but 8 or 10 of the In- habitance Solders & on the 29 of November I cald my men togather & offered more of the Inhabitance to be Solders than would except of it but I took into Province pay or continued 6 of the Inhabitance of New Marblehead and 5 of Gorhamtown ; at which time 3 of Sergt John Phinneys had the offer to be con- tinued solders but they all refused and sundry att each place and would not stand as Solders except I would make them (the) promos that they should not doe duty as solders which I thought not proper to do but I told them plainly that if any duty was required of me I should expect that thay would doe duty Equall to Westward men but I did not know that any would be required more than just to keep the forts and as far as reason would allow I would favor them; but this was still their reply, the Cort did not expect duty from them, this is the way with Inhabitance Solders. But having past throw the Winter without doing any more than keeping the forts & thay think this to be hard to garde att all insomuch that one of them have hired or agreed with a Westward man to take his place and will not be a solder though but one day duty in Eight or :10: is Required of them or him ; but I believe the same man has signed that petition that Mr. Chute Brought to be in pay and to doe no duty att all. As to what thay say to the Corts votes I never heard anything of it directly or indirectly till about ye 5, or 6 of March last past ; and altho thay contend to bee Solders thay declare thay will not
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WINDHAM IN THE PAST
except they are excused from Duty but this I Rest with your Excellency & Honrs wise conduet. Give me but twenty West- ward men an i will keep these two forts and anoyment of the Enemy, one Hundred pounds old tenner a year Cheper to have Every Inhabitance Removed than to have besides these Inhabit- ance put ve Province to more Charge than two Thousand pr year besides what men i ask for to keep them; I have now but :7: Westward men to keep these two distant forts and if the Inhabitance Solders myt be excused from duty and I have orders to (put) :9: into pay of the Inhabitance of New Marblehead I shall not have a man but myself to keep this fort if thay myt be excused from duty. Moreover I am ordered to scout every day which (I think) hard for this was never Required of King or Ruler for one man to scout alone for thair is not a man of ye Inhabitance Solders willing to scout a day. I think it a grate hardship ever to have an Inhabitance Solder att all; by reason all offesers complain of them and it Exposes the Westward Solders to double Duty & offesers are eontemned by them & thay sett bad examples to all Government for they will not bee under Government by which Reason the Westward Solders undergoe grate hardships and goe in grate dainger of their lives for want of good and obidant Solders. In short the Inhabitance Solders are never willing & hardly ever ready tis more work and pains to take care of twenty Inhabitance Solders than 100 Westward Solders, they are but a trouble & charg and little or no profite to King or Country; for if thay are ordered to stop thay dont mind it that thereby all are Exposed to dainger. Did not Captn Burns att Brunswick loose his life last Spring for want of me ? and sum others lost thair lives with him by reason ye Inhabitance Solders were taken up about thair work and many times I have scouted with but :3: : 4: or :5: men because these Eastward Solders must bee att thair work and many more Instances might bee added of this but to Relate one half would be too tedious. Are Westward men to plenty or of to little value that thair lives are nothing worth. But I humbly submit all to your Excellencies and Honrs wise conduct with this humble desire to know wheather Inhabitance Solders are to doe duty or not or att least how mutch is to bee Required of them that so hereby further
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desputs may be prevented. All which is the desire and prayer of your unworthy but very Humble & Dutifull Servent.
DANIEL HILLS, Captain.
"Dated at New Marblehead Aprill 4th, 1749."
"Moreover in Sergt Thos Chutes & Companeys petition thay have declaired that I denyed to put any of the Inhabitance into pay & utterly excluded them unless they would enlist in West- ward Mens places, which utterly false; because I first offered the Inhabitance to the number of :10: or 11 to bee Solders before I dismissed any of the Westward Solders, that I might know how many of them would accept of it, att which time I told them I should expect them to do duty as well as the Westward Solders. He also says that six families have lately moved into that town and thairby the town is strengthened or to that purpose which is not so for thair is but two famelyes more than was last year & one of them is a Solder under myself, the other :4: are only men that came to work for awhile and i asked them if they designed to tarry ye summer and thair answer was no for thair famelyes are att Falmouth & Elsewhere, and should not stay any longer thair than thay could work without dainger and if they should hear that the enemy doe any Damage thay should be gone, for one of them have moved his fameley.
D. HILLS."
"In the House of Representatives
April 14, 1749.
Read and ordered that the consideration of this Memorial be referred to the next sitting of the Court, and that the Commissary general be directed to detain in his office the next Muster-Roll of the Memorialist in the Meantime.
"Sent up for Concurrence.
TH. HUTCHINSON, Speaker.
"In Council April 14, 1749. Read and Concurred.
J. WILLARD.
"In Council June 3, 1749. Consented to.
W. SHERELY."
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WINDHAM IN THE PAST
The following affidavit was sent as a part of Capt. Hills' de- fence :
"Stephen Manchester of full age testifieth & saith that I was under the command of Capt. Daniel Hills & that about the last of Sept. A.D. 1748 that I went with sd Hills ten days march from Gorhamtown up to the head of Sebago Pond & so back into the woods which according to my Judgment was about eighty miles from the place where we first began our march & that there was no time spent in looking after lands for a Township but on the same day we landed our Whale boats wee returned directly home & Farther saith that the last Spring Capt. Hills & men have made it their constant practice to watch guard & scout round about the people of Marblehead Town. He further saith that there were six of the Inhabitants of Marblehead in the pay of the Government under the command of Capt. Daniel Hills the Winter past, more of the Inhabitants had the offer made them by C'apt. Hills to be put in pay but they would not except of it.
STEPHEN MANCHESTER."
Massachusetts Archives Vol. 73, p. 354.
At the same date, the said Stephen Manchester made oath to the above before Jabez Fox, Justice of the Peace.
The following paper was also put in as evidence :
"Falmouth March 18, 1749. Captain Hills, On receiving this i desir youle as soon as possable keep your men dayly scouting back of the Inhabitance you have the care of to prevent thair being surprised by the Enemy for by what I can learn the prospect of piece is over and wee cant bee too upon our garde. If you have Western men enough for a small scout for Descovery without ye Inhabitance Solders, would have you leave them that thay may make what preperations they can to get their seed into the ground without which they cant well bring ye year about. I am Sir
Your Humbl Servt
ENOCH FREEMAN.
"a true Coppey attest pr mc
DANIEL HILLS Captn."
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Massachusetts Archives, Vol. 73, p. 347.
The foregoing papers show plainly the feeling which existed in the minds of the inhabitants of New Marblehead, not only against Capt. Hills, but also against the arrangement of the General Court, which placed an outside company in their gar- iison and a stranger in authority over them. According to the order of the Council, Capt. Hills' Muster-Rolls were retained and presented by the committee to whom this affair was com- mitted.
"Muster Roll of Capt. Daniel Hills Company From March to December 1748 at New Marblehead.
OFFICERS
Daniel Hills of Newbury, Captain.
Samuel Gilbirt of (Bartley) ? Lieutenant.
Gidding Downer of Newbury, Ensign. Benjamin Dane of Ipswich, Clerk.
Paul Crocker of Lynn, Sergeant.
Thomas Chute of New Marblehead, Sergeant.
William Knights of Falmouth, Corporal.
Simon Wheeler of Concord, Corporal. John Lull of Ipswich, Corporal.
"CENTINELS" OR PRIVATES
John Wite of New Marblehead, Richard Woodbury of Row- ley, Jonathan Willis of Topsfield, Benja Burnam of Ipswich, Jonathan Farrow of Concord, Samuel Stickney of Rowley, William Jones of Manchester, Samuel Majory of Salem, John Boy of Lynn (Nathan Breed), Nathl Rawford of Lynn, Jnoa Mansfield, Daniel Gilman of Salem, Jona Farrow Jr. of Concord, Joseph Kilham of Ipswich, William Lakeman of Ipswich, John Martin of Ipswich, Nathan Courser of Newbury, Richard Pea- body of Boxford, Levi Androus of Boxford, Benjamin Brown of Ipswich, Humphrey Pierce of Wenham, Nathl Kinble of Wenham, Samuel Goodridge of Wenham, Francis Knowlton of Wenham, Isaac Andrews of Wenham, Zor'ble Hunniwell of Falmouth, William Knights Jr. of Falmouth, Joseph Knights of Falmouth, John Farrow of New Marblehead, Thomas Bolton of New Marblehead, Samuel Webb of New Marblehead, Gershom Manchester of New Marblehead, Abraham Anderson of New
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WINDHAM IN THE PAST
Marblehead. Stephen Manchester of New Marblehead, John Bodge of New Marblehead, John Farrow Jr. of New Marblehead, Curtis Chute of New Marblehead, Samson Wheeler of Concord, James Melvin of Concord, Charles Shadrock of Beverly, Daniel Hills Jr. of Beverly, John Meservy of Salisbury, James Carr of Boston, Hugh Crage of New Marblehead, John Webb of New Marblehead, Seth Webb of New Marblehead, David Webb of New Marblehead, Sergt John Phinney of Gorham, Jacob Hamlen of Gorham, Clement Meservy of Gorham, Jeremiah Hodgdon of Gorham, Daniel Mosier of Gorham, Hugh MeLallin of Gorham, Edward Phinney of Gorham, Clement Meservy Jr. of Gorham, John Phinney Jr. of Gorham, Wm. McLallin of Gorham, Tim- othy Collins Cloutman of Gorham, Aaron Hubbard of Topsfield, William Bolton of Ipswich."
During the winter and spring of 1748-9, Capt. Hills con- tinued in command with his Company consisting mostly of "Westward," that is, Massachusetts men, with but six of the Inhabitants of New Marblehead borne upon his roll. Several of his men, however, were absent and were allowed to employ inhabitants to fill their places. There was some trouble about the payment of these, Captain Hills probably refusing to sign vouchers, except for the regularly enlisted men.
The following from the Council Records show how the mat- ter was adjusted :
"In the House of Representatives Aug. 17, 1749.
"Voted, that the Pay and Subsistence due to the five In- habitants of Gorham Town & New Marblehead, who did the duty of five Western men while absent from their duty, together with the other Inhabitants Soldiers born on Capt. Daniel Hills Muster Roll be paid to Capt. Moses Pierson to be by him equally distributed among the sd Inhabitants-soldiers according to the Order of this Court."
Accordingly, this was done, and the troublesome incident was finally elosed,-let us hope to the satisfaction of all parties con- cerned.
Negotiations for a treaty of peace, which had been in prog- ress during the summer, resulted in a general conference of the commissioners of the several colonies with the Indians at Fal- mouth, October 14, 1749. The chiefs of the Penobscot, Nor-
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ridgewock, and St. Francis tribes were the representatives of the Eastern Indians, and the leader was Toxus, Chief of the Penobscots.
This treaty, which was signed Oct. 16, 1749, gave new courage to the settlers, and they began to venture out from the garrison and return to their former homes. Several new settlers came in at about this time, and some of those who had left at the beginning of the war returned. But the causes of trouble were not removed; and, by winter, complications had arisen in many places on the frontier.
In December a very serious quarrel occurred at Wiseasset between the English and the Indians, in which the English were plainly at fault; and in the affray one Indian was killed and two others were severely wounded.
This unfortunate affair, happening so soon after the conclu- sion of the treaty, produced grave apprehensions that it might cause a renewal of hostilities, and the government took immedi- ate action to conciliate the Indians. They caused three of the most guilty white men, Obadiah Albee, Richard and Benjamin Holbrook, to be taken into custody. They were brought to Falmouth and placed in the care of Gowen Wilson, but a mob of their sympathizers soon rescued them. The excitement was so high between the friends of good order and the disorderly ele- ment that a jury could not be found to condemn them ; when. for their own safety. they surrendered themselves to Capt. Bean at the Truck House and were carried to York. The judges and the better classes condemned Albee as a murderer, but the jury, in the face of positive evidence, acquitted him. The Govern- ment then removed the others to Middlesex County for trial ; but there is no record showing that their trial ever took place, and they were probably finally released.
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