USA > New Hampshire > Hillsborough County > Brookline > History of Brookline, formerly Raby, Hillsborough County, New Hampshire : with tables of family records and genealogies > Part 7
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But in the year 1767, only two years before its incorporation with the western part of Hollis to form the new town of Raby, the Mile Slip had a population of only sixty-seven; and as all the circumstances indi- cate that at the time of the incorporation it was the more densely popu- lated of the two uniting tracts, it would seem to be not unreasonable to estimate Raby's population in 1769 as being twice that of the Mile Slip in 1767, or one hundred and thirty-four (134).
In 1771, two years after its incorporation, the town made up its first rate list. By that list the number of the tax payers for that year was
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HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF BROOKLINE
forty-five. In 1775 the rate list shows the number of tax payers to have been forty-five. In other words, it appears that from the year 1771 up to and including the year 1775 there was no change in the number of rate payers. From this fact it is inferred that during the above stated period there was also no change in the number of inhabitants, and, conse- quently, that the town's population in 1775 was substantially the same as it was in 1769, or about 134.
But another fact which tends not only to confirm the probable cor- rectness of the foregoing estimate of the town's population in 1775 as being one hundred and thirty-four, but also to conclusively disprove the reliability of the State Committee of Safety's guess of three hundred and twenty as being even an approximation to the correct number, is that in 1786, eleven years later, the selectmen took a census of the town and found its population to be two hundred and sixty-two (262), as appears by their report to the General Court, of which the following is a copy :
"Pursuant to the Requisition of the Genl Court of the 3d of March last past we have carefully sought the Number of Souls within the town of Raby & find them to be 262 having no Indians no Negro Slaves. Raby June-1786
R. M. McDONALD Selectmen
ROBERT SEAVER of Brookline
JAMES CAMPBL
Honl. E. Thompson Esq. Sec"
Now in 1786, when the above census was taken, the town's popula- tion was found to be 262: by the rate list in the same year its tax payers numbered eighty-six (86), or about double the number of its tax payers in 1775. By the rule of proportion, therefore, it follows that 86, the number of rate payers in 1786, bears the same relation to forty-five, the number of rate payers in 1775, that 262, the number of its inhabitants in 1786, does to the number of inhabitants in 1775; which the solution of the problem shows to have been one hundred and thirty-seven (137). A result which conforms so closely to the results obtained in each of the foregoing estimates as to practically confirm them. Attention is called to the fact that each of the above estimates is based upon the assumption that each of the rate lists for the years 1771, 1775 and 1786, respectively, contains only the names of those who were bona fide residents in Raby in the year for which it was made; when, as a matter of fact, each con- tains the names of some who were non-resident rate payers. So that in each of the above estimates the results obtained are obviously too large.
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HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF BROOKLINE
From the foregoing the writer feels warranted to make the statement that in the year 1775 the population of Raby was not over, and probably considerably under, one hundred and thirty-five (135). The town was still in the log cabin pericd of its existence, not more than two framed buildings having been erected. Its only public building was a log pound. It had neither meeting house nor schoolhouse; the schools, when there were any, being kept in private dwellings in which, also, religious gatherings assembled and town meetings were holden.
The public highways, what few there were of them, were at all times of the year, in a wretched condition and at certain seasons almost im- passable. There was not a horse vehicle in town. Traveling was per- formed on horseback, in the saddle and on the pillion, or by the lumbering and springless ox carts. The surface of the township was still covered with the primeval forests; unbroken, save here and there, at long intervals apart, by the small clearings of the settlers; of whom the majority were engaged in farming, or at least they imagined they were. For farming operations were chiefly confined to pulling stumps and blasting rocks from land which when cleared and cultivated was better adapted to the production of crops of Canada thistles than of grain. There were no grist-mills in town, and no store that deserved the name. Poverty pre- vailed, and for many of the people stagnation and starvation walked hand in hand. The town itself was solvent because it had no debts; not having as yet succeeded in establishing a credit which enabled it to bor- row of its neighbors money for public improvements. But at the same time it was also bankrupt because; when it needed money, the treasury was generally empty.
Such were the conditions prevalent in Raby at the opening of the war. And yet, notwithstanding the paucity in numbers of its people and the poverty of their circumstances, few towns in New Hampshire have a better record in the War of the Revolution than is that of Raby or Brookline. Before the war closed practically all of its entire adult male population served as soldiers in the army.
As has already been stated, when the war opened the rate list shows the number of voters in town as forty-five. Well, on a space in the town's record book especially reserved for the purpose, are recorded the names of Raby's soldiers in the war, with the time, place and length of service of each. This record list was evidently made either during the time the war was in progress, or soon after its close. The number of individual names appearing in the list is forty-two. It was undoubtedly intended to include all who served in the war from this town from its beginning in
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HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF BROOKLINE
1775 to its close in 1783. All the names upon it appear upon the rate lists between those years; and an examination of the rate list for 1783 shows the tax payers for that year to have been fifty-six; an increase of only eleven over and above the number in 1775.
Following is a copy of this list, taken from book number 1, page 44, Raby's Records:
Town's Record List of Raby's Soldiers in the Revolution.
These are the men that went to Cambridge:
L.
Wm. Spaulding and his son. Rates 1. - 13.8 8 : 16 - 6 24 - 0 - 0
Archld. MacIntosh. Rates 0 - 18 - 8 4:16 : 0 12 - 0 - 0 12 - 0 - 0
James Conek
Nathl. Badger for James Badger to Cambridge
Rates 2:19 : 2 12 - 0 - 0
James McIntosh
Nathl. Patten
Rates 3 - 7- 2 6: 3:0 12 - 0 - 0 12 - 0 - 0
Jeremiah Hubert
Rates 3 - 3 - 4 5 :9:6 12 - 0 - 0 : Daniel Shed Jur.
These are the men that went to York one year each man.
Josiah Sewerd. Rate 1 - 0 - 0 : 1 - 16
Wm. Spalding Jr. for his father
John Coneck 0 - 16 - 0 1 - 16 - 0
Archld. MacIntosh, Jr.
Isaac Shattuck. Rate 2 - 13 - 8
t - 11 - 0 30 - 0 - 0
Benj. Patten.
Wm. McIntosh for Nathl. Patten to Vork.
Capt. Samuel Douglass.
These are the men that went to Tygh for five months: Benj. Shattuck. Rates 3 - 1 - 4 : 7 - 5 - 6 6 - 0 - 0 Clark Brown. Rates 2 - 11 - 1 : 5 - 3 - 0 9- 0 - 0
Samel. Russell. Rates 4 - 11 - 8 : 6 - 7 - 0 6 - 0 - 0
Isaac Shattuck
each man half a turn.
George Woodward
Rates 2 - 13 - 8 : 5 - 11 - 0
Rates 1 - 19 - 8 : 3 - 15 - 0 6 - 0 - 0
Isaac Stavens, Jr. Phineas Aston
Rates 0 - 16 - 0 : 2 - 2.
Rate 0 - 1 - 4 12 - 0 - 0 Swaller Tucker
Rates 0 - 18 - 8 2 - 12 - 6 24 - 0 - 0
4
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HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF BROOKLINE
These are the men that went to Canada one year:
Elias Dickey. Rate 2 - 0 - 8 : 6 - 0 - 6 2 - 0 - 0
Caleb Brown. Rates 0 - 16 - 0 :16 - 0 - 0 5-0 - 0
These are the men that went to York three months 5 - 0 - 0 each:
Alon' MacIntosh. Rates 2 - 14 - 0 : 5 - 18
Benj. Muzzey. Rates 2 - 2 - 4
Andrew Russell for his father 5 : 1 - 8. Rates 7 - 13 - 0
These are the men that went to York two months 4 - 0 each :
Randel McDonnels. Rates 1 - 17 - 2 : 3 - 15
James Rolfe R. 1 - 0 - 0 and Moses Lowell's Rates 2 - 10 - 1 2 -2 - 0
These are the men that went to Bent". two months. 7 - 0 each: James Campbell. Rates 2 - 14 - 0 : 6 - 19 - 0
Thomas Alton. Rates 0 - 16 - 0 : 1 - 10 - 0
Andrew Russell for his father.
Jonas Sheed half turn. Rates 0 - 18 - 8 : 1 - 16 - 0 - 0
Sm. Farnsworth half turn. Rates 2 - 0 - 9: 3 - 8 - 0 - 0
These are the men that went to Cambridge six weeks: .
Robert Seaver.
Rates 3 - 1 - 4 : 7 - 7
Clark Brown. Rates
Randel Mcdonnel.
Andrew Russell.
John Conek. Rates 0 - 16 - 0
James Dickay. Rates 2 - 0 - 6
Mathew Wallas. Rate 3 - 10
The men that went on the alarms.
0 - 8 each
Robert Sever. James Dickey. Rates 1 - 2 - 6
Swaller Tucker.
James Campbell.
James McIntosh.
Andrew Russell.
Wm. Spaulding. Clark Brown.
Benj. Shattuck.
Daniel Sheed, Jr.
David Davidson.
Waldron Stone.
0-8 - 0 0 - 8 - 0 0-8 - 0
Rates 1 - 7 - 1 : 3 - 14 - 0
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HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF BROOKLINE
The whole number of names appearing on the list is fifty-six. But it will be noticed that many of the names are repeated; some of them twice or even more times, owing to re-enlistments on part of their owners. Taking out the re-enlistments, the number of the names of those who served the town as soldiers is forty-two (42). Adding to this number the names of Benjamin Patten, Benjamin Osgood, and John Gardner, each of whom enlisted and served as soldiers for Raby, as appears by its records, and also by the State Revolutionary Rolls, and Lieut. John Cummings, Ebenezer Gilson, Ezekiel Proctor and Joshua Smith, all of whom served as soldiers in the Revolution, and all of whom were resi- dents within the chartered limits of this town at the time of its outbreak during its continuance and after its close, and the resulting aggregate shows the number of revolutionary soldiers furnished by Raby to have been forty-eight (48).
Raby, of course, was not large enough to furnish a company con- sisting wholly of its own citizens, and thus its soldiers were forced to enlist in companies from other towns, or in companies forming parts of the State's Continental regiments.
The town sent three commissioned officers into the war, i.e., Lieut. Robert Seaver, Capt. Samuel Douglass and Lieut. John Cummings. Its citizens, as privates, were present and fought at Bunker Hill, Bennington, White Plains and many other battle fields of the Revolution. There were at least nine of its men in the battle of Bunker Hill, as follows: Ar- chibald McIntosh, James Conneck, Nathaniel Badger, William Spaulding, William Spaulding, Jr., Nathaniel Patten, Ebenezer Gilson, Ezekiel Proc- tor and Lieut. John Cummings. Of these nine men, Archibald McIntosh and John Conneck were mortally wounded in the battle and taken prison- ers. They were confined in Boston Jail, where each subsequently died: McIntosh on the 10th day of August, and Conneck on the 24th day of July, 1775. They were the first and only men from this town who were killed in battle during the Revolution. Their names are inscribed upon a memorial tablet in Winthrop Square, Charlestown, Mass., as being among the number of those who were killed at Bunker Hill, and they are credited to Brookline, N. H. In the same battle, William Spaulding, Jr., of Raby, received a wound which rendered him a cripple for the remainder of his life.
The names of Raby's soldiers in the battle of Bennington are as follows: Jonas Shed, John Conneck, Archibald McIntosh, Jr., Ezekiel Proctor, Andrew Russell, James Dickey and Daniel Shed.
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HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF BROOKLINE
When and by whom the news of the conflicts at Lexington and Con- cord were brought to Raby is unknown. But Worcester, in his history of Hollis, says that the news of the British's march from Charlestown was brought to that town by Capt. John Boynton about noon on the 19th of April and that it was immediately carried by mounted messen- gers to other parts of the town. It is very probable that one of those messengers brought the news to this town. But although there is no evidence as to how the news came, there is indisputable evidence as to how it was received. For when, on the evening of the same day, Capt. Reuben Dow's company of ninety-two minute men marched from Hollis for Lexington, seven, at least, of Raby's citizens marched in its ranks. The names of the seven are as follows: James McIntosh, James Dickey, Randal McDaniels, Robert Seaver, Ezekiel Proctor, Lieut. John Cum- mings and Ebenezer Gilson. In addition to those who marched in Cap- tain Dow's company four others, at least, of Raby's citizens, i.e., Elias Dickey, William Spaulding, Daniel Shedd and Samuel Douglass responded to the Lexington alarm. Of the four Dr. Samuel Green, in his "Groton in the Revolution," mentions three as having been members of companies which marched from that town as follows: Elias Dickey, private in Capt. John Nutting's company, William Spaulding, private in Capt. Josiah Sawtelle's company, and Daniel Shedd, private in Capt. Asa Lawrence's company. The fourth, Samuel Douglass, responded to the alarm as cap- tain of a company which marched from Townsend Hill, Mass., near which his residence in Raby was at that time situated.
The first action of the town, as such, relative to the war, so far as its records show, occurred at a town meeting held on the second day of Oc- tober, 1775; when there was an article in the warrant-"To chose a committy for the town concerning arms for the town." This was what was known as a "committee of safety"; an institution common in New England throughout the war. At this meeting Ebenezer Muzzey, James Badger, Robert Seaver, Benjamin Shattuck and Clark Brown were elected, and thus constituted, the town's first Committee of Safety. That they were men of character and good repute in the estimation of their fellow citizens is indicated by their election. That they were patriots is indi- cated from the fact that one of them, Captain Seaver, had already been in the service at Cambridge, and that all the others became soldiers be- fore the war closed. At the same meeting it was also voted-"To act according to the advoice of our Congress." This vote probably referred to the Continental Congress then in session at Philadelphia. It had not yet fully established itself in the confidence of the people and, therefore,
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HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF BROOKLINE
.
this action upon the part of the voters of Raby is significant because it shows their disposition to support those in authority -even though that authority might be deemed questionable -as long as they exercised it in advocating and defending the rights of the people against tyranny and oppression.
The records show no further war action on the part of the town until the next year when, at a town meeting held February 17, 1776, George Russell, James Badger, Benjamin Shattuck, Swallow Tucker and Ebenezer Muzzey were elected a Committee of Safety.
This last committee, for some reason or other, was apparently unsatis- factory; for, at a subsequent meeting held May 22nd of the same year the town voted to choose a new committee and did so. The new com- mittee consisted of Alexander McIntosh, Eson Dise (Dix ?), Clark Brown, Mathew Wallace, Benjamin Muzzey, James Campbell and Daniel Shed.
Of this committee the names of all except Dix appear in the list of the names upon the town's record of those who served as soldiers during the war. It will be noticed that of those whose names have been men- tioned as appearing on the records and holding town offices at this time, but comparatively few are represented in town today by their family names. The names of Dix and Muzzey and many others, as descendants of those whom I have named, have long been unknown here.
It may be well to say, also, that the surnames of many other fam- ilies who have for many years been residents in and prominently iden- tified with the town's history do not appear on its Revolutionary War records, for the reason that their ancestors were not yet inhabitants of the town, but were engaged in making their war records in other towns and localities. The names of Corey, Rockwood, Hobart, Bailey, Foster, Peterson, Burge, Bohonon, French, Kendall, Baldwin, Colburn, Burgess, Pierce, Betterly, Parker, Gould, Cleveland, Stiles, Swett and many others who have resided or are now residing or represented in town do not appear on the records until after the close of the Revolution.
At a town meeting held March 5, 1777, the town voted-"to raise thirty pounds of powder for the town and lead and flints as the law directs and chose Capt. Robert Seaver geat the powder as a committy man." At this same meeting, James Campbell, Clark Brown and Capt. Robert Seaver were chosen as a Safety Committee for the town.
In April, 1777, William Spaulding, Swallow Tucker and Isaac Shat- tuck were chosen a committee "to settle and see what every man has done in the town of Raby since the Concord fite." It does not appear that this committee ever reported; and as it was "so quickly done for,"
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HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF BROOKLINE
one wonders "what it was begun for." At this same meeting it was voted "not to dismiss Capt. Robert Seaver and Mathew Wallace from their training out for three years or during the war."
I have been surprised and interested in my researches in the records to find so many men with military titles among our townspeople at this period in its history. There were more captains and lieutenants-"lef- tenants" they called them then-in this town in proportion to its popu- lation than there were frogs in Egypt at the time of the plague. But on investigation this state of affairs was easily accounted for. For before, through and for many years after the close of the war its male citizens were enrolled and obliged to drill as soldiers in a sort of home guard, known as the train band. In this train band every man of any import- ance in town at some period of his life served as an officer. The result was an abundance of military titles. The only reason that some of them were not brigadier-generals was because the law recognized no such rank in "train bands." But as late as the year 1840, Artemas Ward's idea of a regiment of brigadier-generals could have been realized in Raby, only the regiment would have been a company and its members captains and lieutenants instead of brigadiers.
June 12th of the same year, 1777, the town voted-"To drop the powder that was voted to be raised this year." Whether it was dropped or not does not appear. But if so there was no explosion for there is no report of it recorded subsequently. At this meeting, also, the names of William Spaulding and James Rolfe were added to the committee of safety. It was also voted-"To raise seventy dollars for Benjamin Pat- ten and twenty dollars for Benjamin Osgood if they did serve the town of Raby for three years or during the war," and at a later meeting the town voted-"to allow Benjamin Osgood as much as they allowed Benj. Patten if the said Benjamin Osgood did serve the town of Raby as conti- nental man during the war." This is the first mention of a bounty for soldiers appearing in the records.
1778, town meeting April 23, voted-"Not to send a representative to the convention at Concord for the Sole purpose of forming and laying a permanent system of Government." June 11 "Voted-To give Joseph Osgood thirty pounds as a town bounty which was voted to his son Benj. Osgood in case he did serve this Town in *** the continental service said Osgood an order to the Selectmen on the treasurer of **. '
In 1779 the town voted-"To pay Mr. Daniel Shed, Junior, one thousand paper dollars at the end of one year from the date of his note that we subs promised him paid." This was undoubtedly bounty money
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HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF BROOKLINE
as Shed afterwards served as a soldier. But if he ever received it he cer- tainly did not die from the shock occasioned by the sudden acquisition of so much wealth as would seem to be indicated by "a thousand paper dollars"; for at this time paper currency was greatly depreciated in value and shortly after became worthless. A pair of boots at this time was worth fifty dollars in this currency. At this same meeting it was voted-"To raise men for the war as a town and pay them as a town." April 30 of the same year, 1779, the said Shed note was further consid- ered by the people in town meeting assembled, as is apparent from the following record of that date: "Voted to pay Daniel Shed Juner one thousand paper dollars at the end of one year from the date of the note that the subrs promis him." At the same meeting it was also voted- "To pay Daniel Shed Jr. twenty bushels of Rye Also to allow the said Shed as much as the Sbrs have promised him as a town."
Owing to the scarcity of money and its depreciation in value, the town early in the war adopted the practice of abating its soldier's taxes. Their wages were also paid in part to their families in grain. At a town meeting in November, 1780, an article in the warrant was-"to see if the town will clear John Gardner and William Conneck of their rates (taxes) for going into the army." At the same meeting it was voted- "that the price of grain to pay the soldiers shall be as follows-that endien corn shall be three shillings per bushell and rye four shillings per bushell."
At a town meeting in the spring of 1780 it was voted-"To allow Capt. Seaver fifty dollars for a pair of shoes that Jonas Shed had"; also, "To allow Alexander McIntosh twenty dollars for a pair of stockings that Shed had." At a meeting in June of the same year, William Spauld- ing and Clark Brown were chosen a committee to hire men for the Conti- nental Army; and in July it was voted-"To raise four hundred and fifty dollars to pay the soldiers." In August of the same year, Capt. Samuel Douglass and James Badger were elected as a committee-"To hire a man for the continental army during the war, or three years"; and at the same meeting, Waldron Stone and Captain Douglass were elected delegates to the meeting of the county committee of safety at Temple. April 3, 1781, the selectmen were appointed as a committee to purchase beef for the army, and it was also voted-"To allow David Davidson 34 pounds and ten shillings for sarvis dun, and 20 pounds for sarvice dun in gitting oats."
In 1781 Swallow Tucker, Samuel Douglass and James Badger were elected as a committee-"To hire three men for the continental army
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HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF BROOKLINE
.
during the war, or three years"; and the same year the town voted- "To approve the Constitution and not to send a man to convention."
The constitution which was alluded to in the foregoing vote was that which was framed by the convention holden at Exeter in 1781; and was the same which, after it had been submitted to and approved by the people, was finally accepted and adopted by their delegates in the convention held in Concord in October, 1783. It went into effect in 1784.
The New Hampshire General Court at its session of this year, act- ing under the provisions of an act of Congress calling upon the state to furnish the continental army with ten thousand gallons of West India rum, passed an act apportioning out to the several towns the amount of rum to be furnished by each. Under this act the amount to be furnished by Raby was seventeen gallons.
At the March town meeting of the following year, 1782, there was an article in the warrant to the following effect-"To see what the town will do in regard to their proportion of Rum as was ordered by the 'Cort'." It is evident from what follows that the people fully realized the urgency of the "cort's" order for rum. For, when the article was reached, it was voted-"To take the money that is now ascst to pay for the rum and the cort and assess money immediately in place of it." Doubtless "the money now ascst" was used in accordance with the above vote. But if the rum was purchased and brought into town, it is extremely doubtful if the continental army or, for that matter, the "cort" either, ever had an opportunity to even sample it.
March 29, voted-"To allow Waldron Stone fourteen shillings and James Campbell ten and eight pense for sarvis as soldiers."
May 13, voted-"To raise the soldiers agreeable to act of court"; and chose the selectmen-"A committee to hire them." At the same meeting, Capt. Roberts Seaver, Lieut. James McDaniels and Lieut. Sampson Farnsworth were elected a committee-"To settle with those who have credit due them for war service in the town."
Jan. 23, 1783, voted-"To send the committee of safety a return of the men that belong to this town who have listed in the bay sarvis and claim two of them as our men for the army." The two men especially referred to in the foregoing vote were Benjamin Patten and Benjamin Osgood, who had enlisted in a Massachusetts regiment. The matter was subsequently attended to, as will be noticed in a subsequent page.
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HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF BROOKLINE
February 15th of the same year it was voted-"That Clark Brown have his son's credit for war sarvis as on the town books,-and that Capt. Douglass and Waldron Stone be allowed their credit as on the town books."
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