USA > New Hampshire > Merrimack County > Concord > History of Concord, New Hampshire, from the original grant in seventeen hundred and twenty-five to the opening of the twentieth century, Volume I > Part 66
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That this quaint petition was well founded the following year, 1746, sadly proved, for that was the year of the ambush and massacre on the Millville road. Rumford was at that time the most important frontier settlement in the province, and containcd, according to a rec- ord, fully one hundred houses and ploughed lots. This, however, did not probably represent the number of permanent inhabitants. Suc- cessive periods of the town's growth saw the population of thirty settlers in 1730 increase to three hundred and fifty in 1746, then advance in 1767 to seven hundred and fifty-two, and in 1775, accord- ing to the census ordered by the Provincial Congress, the population . rose to one thousand and fifty-two. In 1790 the population of Con- cord was seventeen hundred and forty-seven, and one decade later it was ascertained to be two thousand and fifty-two. And this repre- sented the steady growth of almost pure husbandry, for manufactur- ing was but little known. Except in the few sawmills and grist-mills and the traders' stores scarce a man found employment other than on the farm; everyone lived by the sweat of his own brow, sustained by the produce of the soil, warmed by the logs cut with his own hand, clothed from the flax of his fields and the fleece of his flocks.
Broadcloths and cottons were only for the well-to-do; flour, hams, oil, were not imported, but like the flesh of the ox and the swine were raised at home; and any surplus was sure to be " sleighed " away to " the ocean side, there to be exchanged for salt, molasses, iron, and other indispensable articles which the interior could not supply. In those days a mechanic was a man of importance, whose skill and craft were held in high esteem; for the carpenter, the mason, the tailor and the blacksmith, were the peers of any in the community.
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MATERIAL DEVELOPMENT.
The fortunate location of Concord in being eentral and accessible had a good deal to do with its growth and material advancement, and notwithstanding it was for many years a part of Rockingham county, it had repeatedly been dignified by the meetings of the gen- eral court.
Main street was in the early days, as it is now, the principal resort of business, yet no man could positively describe its limits or its exact boundary. Consequently, in 1785, a committee appointed at a town- meeting undertook to make a survey of this thoroughfare, which re- mains to this day substantially as they fixed it, but not until after the abutters had had their say respecting the width. The committee, consisting of Benjamin Emery, Joseph Hall, John Bradley, Reuben Kimball, and Joseph Farnum, laid out Main street with an eye to its future, making it ten rods wide, but encroachments began right away, continuing until the landowners on each side had all advaneed their bounds at least two rods towards the middle of the street line. The original width of the street is shown more than a century later by the position of the Herbert dwelling, which alone remains to tell the story of the generous dimensions of aneient Main street. When Main street was laid out there was no street running parallel, though several incipient streets extended from it at right angles. Pleasant street, called the Hopkinton road, was the most traveled highway leading to Concord "street." One after another streets were made, -Washington, Franklin, School, and Centre were among the earli- est,-but names were withheld for many years, many thoroughfares being designated by the name of some prominent householder that happened to dwell near by.
Not long after the beginning of the nineteenth century the peril from conflagrations was more than once brought home to the inhabi- tants of the main village, and an organization against fire was insti- tuted. As yet there was only a small engine, called number one, so every householder was required to keep leather fire buckets on his premises, and to hold himself in readiness to respond to the call of the fire wards in case of necessity. It was not until 1818 that the March meeting voted one hundred dollars " towards the purchaseing an Engine and the necessary appratas for said Engine." There were now two "tub" machines, and to promote efficiency the town offered a premium of five dollars to the company first to arrive at a fire.
The second war with England tended to enlarge the business of Concord, for it has been estimated that fully five hundred soldiers, from first to last, made the town their headquarters. Two large buildings were fitted up as barracks, one at the lower end of Main street and one at the North end, the latter being called the Carrigain
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HISTORY OF CONCORD.
barracks, from the owner of the property. The situation of Concord gave it a military importance, inasmuch as troops on their way towards Canada or on their journey to the sea-coast made it an assembling place during the whole period of the war. The town contained at this time not far from twenty-five hundred inhabitants, trade was brisk and increasing, the people were generally prosperous, and contented at the visible progress of public and private affairs.
That the town was increasing is shown by the action of the March meeting in 1812, when one thousand dollars were raised for schools, fourteen hundred to defray the necessary charges, and three hundred and fifty to pay for the preaching. And in 1814 these sums were considerably augmented.
In 1818 the citizens exceeded all previous records in the town expenditures, by voting fourteen hundred dollars for schools, as much more for town expenses, three hundred dollars for painting the meet- ing-house, and forty dollars for ringing the bell; and as evidence of the stricter moral tone of the community the selectmen were empow- ered to prosccute all persons caught retailing spirits " contrary to law except on public days."
At about this time a very important commercial undertaking which contributed materially to the advancement of local interests was the completion of the Middlesex Canal. An era in prosperity was surely begun when, in June, 1815, the first regular freight boat from Boston to Concord floated slowly to its landing-place laden with merchandise. The locks and the warehouse at the Concord (lower) bridge being completed, canal service was now regularly established and continued until the opening of the railroad in 1842. The number of boats in use was about twenty, of an average capac- ity of twenty tons, each worked by a crew of three men. The trip from Boston to Concord generally took three days and a half. The freight charges were at first twelve dollars a ton, but these were gradually lessened until within a few years less than half that sum was demanded for transportation.
It is not unprofitable to examine the votes of different elections and see what bearing they have on the progress and development of Concord. Assuming the popular vote to be an index respecting the whole number of people, one may trace the advance of population from year to year with pleasing results. In 1800 the vote for gov- ernor was Timothy Walker 124, John T. Gilman 104, and four scat- tering. Five years later the governor vote was as follows: John T. Gilman 183, John Langdon 190. In 1810 a very considerable in- crease is shown, John Langdon receiving 230, and Jeremiah Smith 239. The annual check-list did not show noticeable increases until
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MATERIAL DEVELOPMENT.
1816, when that year's election proved that the town contained upwards of six hundred voters, scattered, to be sure, yet the increase was principally in the vicinity of Main street. The federal census of 1820 gave the number of inhabitants as twenty-eight hundred and thirty-eight, a gain of almost a thousand souls since the beginning of the century.
While the market prices were never uniform, the current schedule for certain articles during the decade, 1805-1815, was not far from the following : Corn, $1.12 1-2 to $1.33; wheat, $2.00; oats, 50 cents; veal, 4 to 6 cents a pound ; while among the real estate values of that time was a lot of desirable property near what is now the site of State block, at the corner of Main and School streets, which was sold to Benjamin Damon in 1810 for four hundred dollars.
To a person visiting Concord in the period embraced in the years, let us say, from 1800-1820, and strolling along Main street from Horseshoe Pond hill to Butters' tavern, that person would probably have found the dwellings and the business places of the growing town nearly as follows: Starting from the point mentioned and pro- ceeding towards the lower end of the village street, the first object that met his gaze was the Parson Walker dwelling, a historie place even in that day. Then, after a long break, came some wooden stores and Barker's tavern. Just below was the Carrigain house, then called the Carrigain barracks; a name derived from the War of 1812, and close by stood the residence of Dr. Peter Renton, one of the early celebrities of Concord. This house afterwards became the home of John Abbott, one of the city's first mayors. Farther down the street stood the Herbert property, a store and' a tavern; while a few steps distant was the Herbert house, which now, after a lapse of more than a century, remains a venerable landmark of the ancient town. Sam- uel Sparhawk's house, built by Daniel Livermore in 1785, was then used as Concord's first banking institution ; for in the north room the famous Concord bank had had its place of business since 1806, the rest of the house being occupied by the cashier and his family. Jo- seph West's store was not far away, and near by stood the dwelling of Samuel Morril. The next neighbor to the south was the Reverend Asa McFarland, whose house was built in 1799. On the site of the present residence of Henry Robinson stood the house of Dr. Peter Green, which was destroyed by fire in 1846. Below was the John Whipple place, and its nearest neighbor was John Odlin's one-story house, set on the brow of a considerable ridge that crossed Main street in those days. The highway passed over this rise and then descended abruptly into the neighborhood long known as Smoky Hol- low, where several tan-yards belonging to Captain Ayer were located.
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HISTORY OF CONCORD.
In the depression were Ivory Hall's jewelry shop, Farley's store, and a blacksmith shop carried on by a Mr. Dewey. Then came the Chad- bourne house, a very pretentious structure in its day, which later became the residence of Governor Onslow Stearns. A score of rods beyond was the old Stickney house and lot, through which extended a lane leading from the street to a well-used cider-mill and continu- ing on to the Merrimack, where a small ferry was maintained. This old lane has in our day become known as Bridge street. The site afterwards covered by the Stickney lower blocks was then partly occupied with small shops, such as McClure's barber shop, Jacob B. Moore's bookstore and printing-office, Hill's cabinet shop, and Engine house No. 1. These buildings and Will- iam Gault's grocery store were all wood- en structures, as was also Farley's block, built in the early twenties, and extended along the wide stretch substantially from Bridge street to Rumford block. On the present Rumford block site Joseph Low had his dwelling-house, and close by was the post-office, presided over by Mr. Low, while the upper story was occupied by Farmer & Morrill's drug store. The next lot was the homestead of Governor Isaac Hill, and adjoining stood the print- ing-office whence issued the redoubtable Patriot. The site and family name are preserved to-day in the Gov- ernor Hill block.
The Chadbourne and Stearns House.
Proceeding along the street, the stranger came to the well-known firm of George Hutchins, the largest business house in the town, and probably the largest and widest known north of Boston. The next door was the Phenix, the original of the name, kept by Abel Hutchins, and already famous for its hospitality. Between the Phenix and what is now Depot strect were two well-remembered buildings, one called Atwood's and the other Leach's, the latter famed for its unique bow windows and other architectural features. Osgood's tavern, after- wards Wiggins', renowned as one of Concord's earliest hostelries, stood about where the First National bank now stands. Dr. Thorn- dike had an apothecary store in this vicinity, while from what is now ' Pleasant strect to the tan-yard opposite the residence of the late J. Stephens Abbot were half a score of dwelling-houses and shops. There then followed an extensive stretch of land from this point sloping towards the Merrimack and extending to the lower end of Main street, broken only by the Rogers house and Butters' tavern,
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MATERIAL DEVELOPMENT.
which in the days of our grandfathers was the virtual beginning of Concord to travelers coming from down the river. The Rogers house was a curiosity even in those times, for every boy knew the story of the famous Indian fighter, Major Rogers, and people paused to stare at the home of the son of the celebrated ranger.
Having reached the southern limits of business Concord, let the stranger cross Main street opposite West and stroll up the west side to the locality he started from and take notice of this part of the center village. There were a few shops and houses clustered at the south end of the street, among them Shute's store, which enjoyed a good acquaintanceship in and about Concord. Then came the small wagon shop built a few years before by Lewis Downing, where the sight of half a dozen workmen under one roof prompted the stranger to pause a moment. The owner of the wagon shop lived next door, and the Harris house was his nearest neigh- bor. That was built of brick, as was Major Bullard's, which was the show house of that period. The Bullard house is to-day trans- formed into the residence of Benjamin A. Kimball. Near Fayette street stood the house and work-shop of Major Timothy Chandler, as celebrated a clock maker as there was in the state. His skill was merited, and the quality The Rogers House. of his work gave to Concord a wide reputation. Approaching the Hopkinton road (Pleasant street) were Wood's bakery,-now the site of Norris's large manufactory,-Harris's store, and the Deacon Wil- son place, comprising a large garden and dwelling-house, afterwards purchased in part by the church society called the South Congrega- tional, which erected thercon a large wooden meeting-house with con- venient basement. Across Pleasant street, on the lot now covered by Masonic Temple and adjoining buildings, was the well-known corner so long occupied as a trading place, dating from the old McMillan store of about the time of the Revolution. In the twenties this cor- ner contained several one- or two-story structures, the principal one being the store of Asaph Evans, a prominent citizen of carly Con- cord. From Pleasant street to Warren were scattered buildings, all wooden, used as stores, among them that of William Kent, who kept hardware and groceries.
Next in local importance was the justly-celebrated "Anchor hotel," kept by Benjamin Gale, which stood on the site now owned by the State Capital bank and the land of Stevens & Duncklee. Then came
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HISTORY OF CONCORD.
the famous Concord or Kent bank, rejoicing in a fine brick building, one of the few in town,-an object of pride to the townspeople and of wonder to visitors. Farther up the street was the jewelry shop of William Virgin ; the shop of Quaker Sanborn, as he was called, a cordwainer and shoemaker; and near by was Chase Hill, harness- maker, while in the corner where State block stands was the garden and dwelling-house of Deacon Benjamin Damon. On the opposite corner, on the site of the Board of Trade block, stood William Low's mansion, and adjoining it was the well-known Columbian hotel. This neighborhood was the business center of the town, its busiest place and general open market for wood, hay, and country produce even to times very recent. There was the brick block erected by Isaac Hill, containing stores filled with West India goods and general merchan- dise, and the celebrated Franklin bookstore, separated from the state house yard by a high stone wall. Park street was not then in exist- ence, but the northeast corner abutting on the state house park was occupied by the famous "green store " and the dwelling of Jacob Emmons. Proceeding northerly the stranger passed the drug store kept by Dr. Thomas Brown, and came to Captain Richard Ayer's cattle pen, as it was called. This property extended back from Main street nearly to State, and was opposite our Bridge street. Just north of the present Commercial House was Blanchard's first churn shop, with a dwelling-house or two, while on the corner of Mont- gomery street stood the Abbott house, remodeled and changed but still recognized as the birthplace of Concord's first child,-now the upper story of the barn attached to the house of the late E. S. Nut- ter, on the corner of Main and Montgomery streets. Next came the depression near the present court house, through which ran a brook, the site of Ayer's several tan-yards and curry shops, and a ruined mill once used for pressing oil from flax-seed, while in the hollow along the street stood the famous hay scales. In a corner of the present county lot, near Main street, was the small wooden structure serving both the county and the town as the only public building. Farther on, topping the elevation on the north side of Court street, was the well-known Stickney's tavern, with its quaint sign representing the Indian chief. Then came a blacksmith shop where W. P. Ford's office is, and beyond was the John West house, afterwards the home of Edward H. Rollins. Joshua Abbott lived near the site of the North church, and in the vicinity were Emerson's harness shop and one or two trading places. Nathaniel Abbott, one of the leading citizens, lived farther along, while at the corner of Franklin street was the residence of Charles Walker. Across Franklin street stood several stores, the principal one being
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MATERIAL DEVELOPMENT.
Pecker & Lang's, and near by were the dwellings of Robert Davis and Captain Seth Eastman. Next was the John George tavern, famous for its sturdy proprietor and his good entertainment. This property still remains in the George family. Benjamin Kimball, one of the town leaders in ability and business capacity, lived in the house just north from Captain George's, and this house is standing at the present time almost as its builder left it. At the junction of Main street and Church was the Fisk store, which was long an insti- tution of early Concord. Then in imposing form rose the famous old North meeting-house, the scene of so much of New Hampshire's polit- ical history, while down the hill opposite the Walker house was the one-story building once used for state offices and legislative sessions.
The growing necessity for making a new county had for several years been manifest, not only to the inhabitants of Concord but to the inhabitants of many of the adjoining and neighboring towns as well, for as it then was every deed must be sent to Exeter, where the shire records were kept, and every juror and every suitor was com- pelled to make a long and expensive journey in order to reach the courts. So, in 1823, the county of Merrimack was formed, and Concord was made the shire town. This change was not without its advantages, so the town- meeting appropriated eight hundred dollars, which, to- gether with nearly as much more raised by subscrip- tion, was expended in en- larging and re-arranging the town house so that it might be suitable for the holding of courts and for other county pur- poses.1
At this period (1823-24) the population of all Concord was es- timated at about thirty - one hun-
Hay Scales in Smoky Hollow.
1 The acre of land afterwards used as the City Hall lot was sold in 1756 for ten dollars,
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HISTORY OF CONCORD.
dred and fifty souls, and contained the following number of stores and industries : General traders, twenty ; sawmills, six; grain mills, seven; clothing mills, four; carding machines, three; bark mills, two; tanneries, seven. Besides these were eleven taverns and twenty schoolhouses, and other places of business, such as printing-offices, binderies, and small mechanical shops, among them the young indus- try afterwards to become famous as the Abbot-Downing Company.
Looking back at the central village, or "the street," as it appeared at about this period, one sees the locality as it was nearly a century after the town was settled. There were but two well-defined streets, Main and State, although Green street at that time contained two or three habitations, while running at right angles, then as now, were Franklin, Washington, Centre, and Pleasant streets, the last-named "the Hopkinton road." The whole number of dwellings was estimated at less than two hundred, and business Concord comprised stores, taverns, print- ing-offices, and a considerable number of small shops giving employment to a few score of workmen. The population scat- tered over this area was reck- oned at eleven hundred, or one third the entire census of the town, and of this the larger number lived north of the present city hall. Three schoolhouses fur- nished the educational facilities of the district, one a two-story brick house standing on the site of the residence of ex-Governor Frank W. Rollins, another-called the Bell schoolhouse-near the present high school, and the third a one-story house on South Main street.
House where First Legislature Met in Concord.
South street of to-day was not then in existence, though a few years later Major Bullard, venturing into that remote locality, built a house for himself and freely offered large lots to any person who would follow his example. To the west there was nothing but the wooded hills, with here and there a few cleared spaces and pasture lands.
On looking toward the west from North State street, the cye in . 1825 beheld a wide strip of swamp land, overgrown with alders and bushes, which extended from near the old state prison through the entire town to West street and beyond, then farther west was rising ground used for pasture and tillage, while beyond was Whale's Back and the Sand Hill,
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MATERIAL DEVELOPMENT.
In those days there was but little invested capital in any indus- trial pursuit ; such mechanical industries as there were got along without machinery save of the rudest kind, and steam power was unknown in Concord street. What is now Penacook was a place with less than a score of houses. In 1825 the ratable polls in Con- cord were six hundred and ten; the amount of stock in trade was assessed at thirty-four thousand dollars, money at interest less than twenty-five thousand, while the assessed valuation of the town was about eight hundred thousand dollars. With the accessions in the way of public buildings and the increasing wants of a growing population, there came the necessity of larger appropriations, for in the outlay of that year were found these items: Portsmouth turnpike, five hun- dred dollars ; bridges and roads, twelve hundred and eighty-six dollars ; new town house, six hundred and fifty-four dollars ; paupers, seven hundred and thirty-two dollars, and for the militia eighty-three dollars.
In 1834 the town-meeting voted "that whereas, from the great increase of inhabitants in the compact part of the town, new streets or highways may be required-therefore streets may be authorized by the selectmen . and that suitable names may be given." The committee designated to give names to the streets was William A. Kent, Abiel Walker, and Timothy Chandler. It is of interest to know that from that day to this scarcely a name has been lost, not- withstanding great changes in the use and destinations of the early village thoroughfares. In all, the committee gave names to twenty- seven streets, including one large square called Rumford park. This land, comprising five acres, bounded by Rumford and Merrimack streets, was presented to Concord by George Kent, a prominent citi- zen, who intended it for a public recreation ground.
A village directory, the first of its kind, was published in 1830, and furnishes an interesting glimpse of the central town as it then appeared. It contained the names of two hundred and sixty-four persons, designating them as the principal merchants, mechanics, farmers, and professional men of the period.
The following is the number of business places and firms then found in the center village: Apothecaries, three ; lawyers, eight ; bakers, two; barbers, two; blacksmiths, five on the street and as many in East Concord ; boat builders, two; bookbinders, three firms ; butchers, three ; chairmakers, four ; wagons, one : clockmakers, two; coopers, three ; cordwainers (shoemakers), seven ; distillery for New England rum, two; gravestone maker, one; hatters, six ; jewelers, four; joiners, six ; livery stable, one ; masons, two; tailors, five ; milliners, four; newspapers, three ; painters, five ; potters, two (on
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