USA > New Hampshire > Hillsborough County > Brookline > History of Brookline, formerly Raby, Hillsborough County, New Hampshire : with tables of family records and genealogies > Part 14
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Still further north, on the east side of the highway and at or near the point where it unites with the highway leading from Brookline, via the Ezra Farnsworth place, to Mason, is a cellar hole which marks the site of the dwelling house formerly of Samuel Farnsworth, Jr. The house was destroyed by fire many years ago. To the northeast of the Shattuck millsite and but a short distance from it, on the old highway leading · from Brookline to Milford, via the Nathaniel Hutchinson place, are to be found at the present time several cellar holes, each of which marks the site of ancient dwelling houses.
Of these cellar holes, one, located on the east side of the highway just north of the site of the old district number 6 schoolhouse, marks the site of a dwelling house which in the fore part of the last century was occupied by Thomas Tarbell, originally of Pepperell, Mass. He was the same Tarbell who, at a later date, operated the old Wyman, now Pierce's mill in South Brookline, and lived in the old Wyman, now Luther J. Lawrence place on Townsend hill. Passing along this highway north from the Tarbell cellar hole, the next cellar hole on the east side of the road is that of a dwelling house formerly occupied by Withee, originally of Mason, and an early settler in this town. Still further north on the west side of the road is located the cellar hole of a dwelling house once occupied by Jeremiah Harwood, northwest of and distant but a few rods from which is the cellar hole of the dwelling house of his son, Jeremiah Harwood, Jr.
At the end of a lane which leads out of the east side of the highway at a point just south of the Jeremiah Harwood, Jr., house cellar hole is located the cellar hole of the dwelling house formerly of Amariah Ames, who came here in the fore part of the last century from Wilmington, Mass. This house was at one time occupied by Kimball Shattuck, a son of Abel Shattuck.
Coming back from the Ames' cellar hole to the highway and passing on still northerly, the next cellar hole to be encountered is located on the west side of the road. It marks the site of the dwelling house formerly of David Stickney, who settled here about 1825, coming here from Town- send, Mass. On the west side of the highway north of the Stickney house cellar hole, there is located the cellar hole of a house of which the former occupant is unknown; nearly opposite to which on the east side of the highway is the cellar hole of the dwelling house formerly of
Peacock; north of which on the same side of the road is the cellar hole
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of the dwelling house formerly of Wilkins. On the west side of this highway, not far from the Milford boundary line, and at the end of its limits in Brookline, is still standing the old Nathaniel Hutch- ingson house, which was built by Mr. Hutchingson not far from the year 1808 and which, although it is one of the oldest houses in town, is at the present time in an excellent state of preservation.
The Abel Spaulding Sawmill.
This mill was originally located in that part of the Mile Slip which now constitutes the southwest corner of Milford, but which, until the incorporation of Milford in 1794, constituted the northwest part of Brook- line; its site being about four miles north of Brookline village on the north bank of the brook formerly known as Swallow's stream, but which at the present time, for obvious reasons, is known as Spaulding's brook; its exact location being at the point where the brook crosses the highway leading from Brookline, via the old Sampson Farnsworth place, to Milford.
The mill's site is located upon land which was conveyed by William Spaulding, Sr., to his sons Thomas and Abel Spaulding by his deed April 9, 1784. It is probable that at the time of this conveyance there was or previously had been a sawmill on the brook at or near the site of the present mill, for the deed of conveyance mentioned the brook as the "Mill Stream." Tradition says that the original Spaulding sawmill was built by Abel Spaulding, Sr., in 1784, soon after he purchased its site from his father. At the decease of Abel Spaulding, Sr., the mill passed into the hands of his son, Abel Spaulding, Jr. Abel Spaulding, Jr., died in 1849, and was succeeded in the ownership of the mill by his son, Alfred Spaulding.
For a period of about eighty years from the date of its erection the mill did a profitable business, its products finding a ready sale in this and also in the neighboring towns. But during all of this period, the forests in the vicinity of the mill, upon which it depended for the supply of lumber with which to carry on its operations, were being gradually depleted of their growths. In the latter part of the fifties the diminu- tion in the amount of standing timber in the vicinity of the mill had increased to the extent that the advent of the day when the mill would be compelled to go out of buisness, on account of lack of the supply of lumber with which to operate it, became only a question of time.
About 1860, Alfred Spaulding, who then owned and was operating the mill, equipped it with additional machinery in the form of saws for
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manufacturing barrel staves and leads. This increase in machinery, while it added to the mill's capacity for production, had also the effect of in- creasing its demand for lumber with which to operate. For a few years the supply of lumber continued to partially meet the mill's demands for it. But by the middle of the sixties the greater part of available forest growth in the vicinity of the mill had been practically denuded of its marketable timber and, as a result, the supply of timber necessary to the mill's existence ceased longer to be forthcoming; and in 1870, Alfred Spaulding closed out the plant for good. At the present time (1914) the mill is in ruins.
Abel Spaulding, Sr., by whom the sawmill was built, was a son of William and Hepzibah (Blood) Spaulding of Pepperell, Mass., where he was born June 12, 1749. He married Lucy Wethee Wetherell, by whom he had several children, among whom was his son, Abel Spaulding, Jr., who was born in Pepperell, Mass., March 2, 1782.
Abel Spaulding, Jr., married at Pepperell, Feb. 19, 1815, Anna Shat- tuck. He died in Milford, April 17, 1849, at the old homestead. His wife, Anna, died April 8, 1883. His children, all born on the old home- stead, after it was set off from Brookline into Milford, according to the records, were as follows:
1. Elizabeth Ann born in Milford Feb. 9, 1816, m. Justus Peabody Dec. 3, 1840, res. Millerton, N. Y.
2. Josephine Augusta, born in Milford Feb. 10, 1818, m. Ezra Farnsworth in 1842, res. Brookline, N. H.
3. Alfred, born in Milford Dec. 9, 1819, res. in Brookline, died un- married at Samuel Bancroft's in North Pepperell about 1905.
4. William, born in Milford Dec. 10, 1821, m. Abby R. Stearns March 27, 1855, res., Ayer Junction, Mass.
5. Edward, born in Milford Sept. 3, 1824, m. 1st, Olive C. Atherton, m. 2d, Jennie Ambrose, res., Brooklyn, N. Y.
6. Jolın, born in Milford March 2, 1827, m. 1st, Maria J. Smith Sept. 25, 1851, m. 2d, Mrs. Emma L. Hart, Oct. 30, 1885, res., San Francisco.
7. Alonzo Jasper, born in Milford April 5, 1830, m. Rosanna Harris, res., Arkansas City, Kan.
8. Erastus, born in Milford Aug. 14, 1832, m. Lizzie Kent, May 8, 1860, res., Dayton, Org.
9. Andrew, born in Milford May 21, 1834, m. Susan Shockley, April 5, 1865, res., San Francisco.
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The log cabin of Abel Spaulding, Sr., at the time of his settling in Brookline in 1784, was located a few rods north of the sawmill. Its cellar hole is still in existence.
North of the cellar hole of the Abel Spaulding cabin and but a short distance from it is a cellar hole which tradition says marks the site of the location of the cabin of Daniel Shed, after the close of the Revolution. Still further north on the east side of the highway are two additional cellar holes, of which one marks the site of the cabin of William Green, and the other that of Phineas Holden. On the west side of the highway north of the mill, from which it is distant about one-fourth of a mile, is located the cellar hole of the cabin of James Badger, a resident of and one of the leading citizens in the Mile Slip before the Slip became a part of Brookline. He is said to have been born in Ireland in 1749, and to have come from Ireland to America with his parents when he was a child. His wife's name was Martha -; she was born in 1742, and died May 27, 1812.
On Raby's book of records of its soldiers in the Revolution appears the following entry: "Nathaniel Badger for James Badger to Cambridge Rates 2; 19; 2."
During the years of his residing in Raby he was one of its leading citizens. He was moderator in 1774, town clerk in 1774 and 1775, town treasurer in 1775, and selectman in 1773 and 1774. He was the father of eight children, all born in this town. His family record is given in a subsequent page. He died at Milford, Jan. 28, 1841, aged 97 years.
North of the site of the James Badger cabin on the west side of the highway and just north of the north boundary line of the town is to be seen the vestiges of the site of the old number 8 district schoolhouse, in Milford. The school building itself, at the present time, is located on the old Moses Shattuck place in Brookline, where it is utilized as a dwelling house.
In the field to the northeast of the sawmill and but a few rods dis- tant from the same, one may still gaze upon the cellar hole of the cabin of Jonas Shed, another of the town's Revolutionary soldiers; of whom and his brother, Daniel Shed, another chapter in this book speaks more definitely. In 1840 this cellar hole was occupied by the dwelling house of Otis Horton, which, one winter's evening during the forties Samuel Gilson, Jr., moved "cross lots" over the snow to a new location on the poor farm road, and in which he resided for many subsequent years
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The Sawtelle-Newell Sawmill
This mill was built about 1785 by Major Eli Sawtelle, a son of Capt. Ephraim Sawtelle. It was located about two and one-half miles north of the present village Main street, upon the stream then known as Ben- nett's brook; but which at the present time is known as the Scabbard Mill brook. The mill was never used for any other purpose than that of sawing out boards and planks. In the thirties of the last century it was operated by Samuel Newell, who is supposed to have owned it with Saw- telle. The mill ceased to be operated about 1840. It finally rotted down. All traces of the mill disappeared many years since. Its site, however at the present time may be located by the vestiges of its dam, some of the stones used in the construction of which are still in evidence at a point on the stream almost directly west of the old Eldad Sawtelle place on the west side of the Milford highway, three miles north of the village Main street. The cellar hole of Samuel Newell's dwelling house is located in the open field west of the Eldad Sawtelle place
The Sawmill of Dea. Thomas Bennett.
This mill was built by Dea. Thomas Bennett about 1800, soon after he settled in town, coming here from Groton, Mass. It was located about three miles north of the present village Main street on the stream then known as Bennett's brook, but known at the present time as the Scabbard Mill brook.
Deacon Bennett owned and operated the mill for more than forty successive years. In 1840 he sold the mill plant to Thomas Melendy, Jr., and Alpheus Melendy. The following year Alpehus Melendy con- veyed his interest in the mill to his partner, Thomas Melendy, Jr., who thus became the sole owner of the plant.
In 1841 Thomas Melendy tore down the old mill and built a new mill upon its site in which, in addition to the old-fashioned "up and down" board saw, he installed a saw for getting out barrel staves and heads.
In 1853 Mr. Melendy sold the mill to John Q. A. Hutchingson, who operated it until 1855, when he sold the plant to Beri Bennett, a son of Dea. Thomas Bennett, by whom the mill was owned and operated for the following thirty years.
During Beri Bennett's ownership the mill building was thoroughly repaired, and the machinery was subjected to such changes and alterations as were necessary to enable it to meet and comply with such changes in
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the nature of manufcatured lumber as the public's demand for the same then required of mills of its description. The old up and down board saw was taken out and a circular saw installed in its place; the old stave saw was also replaced by a new one; and such changes made as were necessary for increasing the mill's facilities for production.
For many years following these changes, Mr. Bennett operated the mill successfully. But the cares and incidents attendant upon his increas- ing years finally compelled him to retire from business. In 1885 he sold his farm, including the mill plant, to Joseph H. Russell of Cambridgeport, Mass. Prior to his sale to Russell, however, he had already disposed of the mill's machinery. This machinery was subsequently installed in the Rockwood sawmill in South Brookline. For several years after its sale to Russell the mill building remained standing. But in the meantime its timbers were gradually decaying. They finally fell apart, and such por- tion of them as was not used for firewood was swept down the stream by floods. At the present time only the old foundations and some remnants of its dam are left to mark the former site of the mill.
Following are the names of the several owners, and the dates of their respective ownerships, of the Bennett sawmill, as recorded in the Hills- borough Registry :
Deacon Thomas Bennett, 1800, to April 2, 1840; Thomas Melendy, Jr., and Alpheus Melendy, April 2, 1840, to April 2, 1841; Thomas Me- lendy, Jr., April 2, 1841, to Sept. 22, 1853; John Q. A. Hutchingson, Sept. 22, 1853, to Oct. 11, 1855; Beri Bennett, Oct. 11, 1855, to Feb. 4, 1885. At which latter date Bennett conveyed the farm and mill to Joseph H. Russell, whose heirs at the present time are still in possession of the premises.
The John Conant Sawmill.
The first sawmill to be erected on the Nissitisset river within the limits of this town was built between the years 1785 and 1790 by John Conant, of Townsend, Mass. It was located on the east bank of the stream, about two hundred rods below its outlet from Muscatanipus pond, its site being the same as that afterwards occupied by the "Upper saw-mill," so called, of Ensign Bailey.
At the time the mill was built, Conant, probably to avoid the expense of building a dam, conceived the idea of bringing the water from the pond to the mill by means of an artificial channel or ditch. He carried out his idea and caused the ditch to be constructed. Tradition says that so
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far as the conveyance of water by means of this ditch was concerned, the experiment was a success, but that the water conveyed by it failed to develop power sufficient to turn the mill wheel and that, as a result of this failure, Conant subsequently spent more time in d-g the ditch than it would have taken him in the first instance to dam the river.
The ditch left the pond at a point on the south shore just west of the big granite boulder near the Orman F. Shattuck boat landing and, passing in a southwesterly direction, crossed the highway a few rods south of the present pond bridge, from whence it continued to the mill. North of the highway all traces of the ditch have long since disappeared. But south of the highway its course is still distinctly defined.
Several years after the mill was built, James Campbell, of Brookline, having bought one-half of the mill, entered into a partnership with Conant for carrying on its business. Feb. 8, 1796, Conant and Campbell sold the plant to Joseph Stickney and Benjamin Campbell, both of Brookline. The consideration for the sale was twelve hundred dollars. The descrip- tion of the premises conveyed, as set forth in the deed, contained the following proviso-"Allowance had through the same for a road with a dwelling house and a sawmill and cornmill standing on the same and the damb that raises the pond for the use of said mills." From this "pro- viso" it would seem that the sawmill at this time was operated in connec- tion with a gristmill. If so, the gristmill was, so far as the writer has been able to ascertain, the first mill of that description to be located on the river in this town.
From Stickney and Campbell the mill passed into the ownership of John Colburn. Colburn operated the mill until July 5, 1808, at which date he conveyed it to Ensign Bailey, who continued to own it until his death in August, 1863. Aug. 11, 1864, the heirs of Ensign Bailey sold and conveyed the mill together with the sawmill known as the Bailey "lower mill" and located on the stream below it to Charles A. Priest and J. Alonzo Hall. Sept. 2, 1869, Hall and Priest sold the mills to James W. Cook of Reading, Mass., and S. Abbott Putnam of Lyman, Mass., and the same date Cook and Putnam sold and conveyed both plants to J. Alonzo Hall and Joseph Peterson, both of this town. July 21, 1874, Hall and Peterson sold the upper or Conant mill to James W. Cook and William H. Hall. Sept. 14, 1877, James W. Cook sold and conveyed to William H. Hall his undivided half in the mill; and on the 5th day of Oc- tober, 1877, William H. Hall sold the plant to John S. Daniels and Na- thaniel Hobart. Feb. 7, 1885, John S. Daniels disposed of his interest in the mill to David H. Kendall, Henry S. Manning, Charles W. Hughes
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and Horace Richmond; who, in company with Nathaniel Hobart, under tlie firm name of Hobart, Kendall & Company, operated the plant until June 15, 1886, at which date the company sold the entire plant to Albert L. Fessenden, of Townsend, and John Buffum, of Boston, to be held in trust by them for the benefit of its creditors. Aug. 28, 1888, the trustees sold the mill privileges and site to William G. Shattuck; and on the 19th day of December of the same year, Shattuck sold the plant to George W. Bent, of Boston, Mass. At the present time the mill premises and privileges are owned by the Fresh Pond Ice Company, of Somerville, Mass.
Nov. 27, 1889, the mill buildings were destroyed by fire. At the present time they have not been rebuilt.
The Ensign Bailey Sawmill, Tannery and Sash and Blind Shop.
The second sawmill to be erected on the Nissitisset river below its outlet from the pond was erected by Ensign Bailey in 1805 on land which was conveyed to himself and his brothers, Kendall and Laomi, by Swallow Tucker by his deed dated December 21, 1804.
At the date of this deed there was already a dam across the river below the Conant sawmill. This dam was mentioned in the deed as "Shannon's dam." Its site was identical with that of the dam now stand- ing on the stream a few rods north of the railroad passenger station in the village; which was erected by the late Ensign Bailey, and in the con- struction of which it is probable that some of the materials used were obtained from the Shannon dam.
The Bailey sawmill was located about one hundred rods south of this dam on the north side of the river at a point in the same nearly opposite the iron bridge which at the present time spans the stream at Bond street.
In addition to the machinery necessary for its use as a sawmill, the mill was also equipped with a gristmill, the latter being the second mill of its description to be located on the river in this town. At the same time at which he built the sawmill, Mr. Bailey also erected another and much larger building to be used for the purpose of carrying on the tan- ning business, in which he was an expert. This latter building was lo- cated to the east of and but a short distance from the sawmill. The water necessary for operating both sawmill and tannery was obtained by means of an artificial canal which connected the plants with the mill pond above the dam. At the present time (1914) the vestiges of the canal are still in evidence.
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For many years after their erection, Mr. Bailey occupied these build- ings in carrying on his business as a miller and tanner; in the manage- ment of which he was highly successful, accumulating a comfortable for- tune, and also acquiring a far more than local reputation as a citizen and man of affairs whose word was "as good as his bond."
About the year 1830 Mr. Bailey erected on the premises a building in which he installed a plant for the manufacture of window sashes and blinds. The building was located on the east side of the river adjacent to the mill-dam. This manufactory was the first and, for that matter, the last plant of its description to be established in this town. For many years the plant did a large and successful business, its products being in constant demand in this and the neighboring towns. In or about 1860 the plant went out of commission. In the latter part of the nineties, the building in which it was located-the old "Sash and Blind Shop"-was removed from its original site near the mill-dam to a new site on the east bank of the river west of the old sawmill, where it was fitted up as a kit mill. It was subsequently occupied by Charles W. Smith, a son of William J. Smith, as a wheelwright shop.
In 1863 Ensign Bailey died, having retired from business several years prior to his death. On the 16th day of Aug., 1863, his heirs sold the mill plant, which included the "upper" and "lower" sawmills, to Charles A. Priest and Joseph A. Hall, who immediatley formed a part- nership under the firm name of Priest and Hall, and established them- selves in the milling business in the old Ensign Bailey, or "lower," saw- mill.
Priest and Hall carried on business in the old Bailey mill for five years. By the end of this period their business had increased to the ex- tent that the firm was compelled to look for larger and more commodious quarters. They found them in the old tannery building, into which, in 1868, the company moved its business, leaving in the abandoned sawmill only the stave and head saws. In the tannery building, in addition to the machinery brought from the old sawmill, the firm also installed a circular board saw, a kit machine and a planing mill.
After doing a prosperous business in the new plant for five years, Priest and Hall, on the 2nd day of Sept., 1869, sold the entire mill property, including the upper and lower sawmills, to James W. Cook and S. Abbott Putnam. The same date Cook and Putnam sold and conveyed the entire mill property to Joseph A. Hall and Joseph W. Peterson, who formed a partnership in the mill and lumber business and located their business in
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the Ensign Bailey sawmill. July 21, 1874, Hall and Peterson sold the upper sawmill, or old Conant mill, to William H. Hall.
Hall and Peterson continued to operate the Ensign Bailey sawmill plant until the year 1877. In the latter year poor health compelled Mr. Peterson to withdraw from the firm; and Jan. 11, 1877, he sold and con- veyed his undivided one-half part of the old Ensign Bailey sawmill plant to William J. Smith. Mr. Peterson died Aug. 31, 1884.
Soon after his purchase of the Joseph W. Peterson interest in the Ensign Bailey sawmill plant, William J. Smith entered into a partner- ship with Joseph A. Hall for the purpose of operating the sawmill and the lumbering business connected with it. This partnership lasted until 1895. In the latter year, Mr. Smith became financially embarassed and assigned his property, including his interest in the mill, to Enoch J. Col- burn, as trustee for the benefit of his creditors. Sept. 5, 1895, the as- signee sold the Smith interest in the mill, subject to the value of a mort- gage held by the Congregational Church and Society upon the same, to Perley L. Pierce. December 14 of the same year, Perley L. Pierce sold and conveyed his interest in the mill to Thomas S. Hittinger of Townsend, Mass., and April 21, 1898, acting in his capacity as trustee of the gift of James H. Hall to the Congregational Church, Mr. Pierce sold one un- divided half part of the plant to the said Thomas S. Hittinger, thus com- pleting Mr. Hittinger's title to that part of the plant which had been formerly owned by William J. Smith. April 19, 1898, Alpha A. Hall, as administrator of the estate of his father, Joseph A. Hall, sold and con- veyed the other half of the plant to William S. Hittinger, who thus be- came the sole owner of the original Ensign Bailey sawmill plant. April 23, 1898, Mr. Hittinger sold the plant to the Fresh Pond Ice Company, by which it is owned at the present time (1914).
Soon after its purchase of the property, the ice company tore down and removed all the buildings standing upon the premises. These build- ings have never been replaced; and there are at the present time no indications that they 'ever will be. Thus the old Ensign Bailey sawmill became a memory only. Today the valuable water power by which it was for so many years operated is unutilized.
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