USA > New Hampshire > Grafton County > Littleton > History of Littleton, New Hampshire, Vol. I > Part 15
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James Avery, the controlling spirit in the first charter of our town, was born at Groton, Connecticut, July 27, 1724. He
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THE SO-CALLED WESTGATE PLAN OF LITTLETON
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155
Charters. - Chiswick.
married Lucy Allyn in 1749. He inherited a considerable for- tune, which he invested in wild lands, becoming the owner of several town charters ; among those in which he had an interest were Franconia, Lincoln, and Landaff. He also had large invest- ments in the New Hampshire Grants. Some of these could not be regarded as very successful investments. The charter of this town cost him three hundred dollars. He had failed to secure its settlement, and when it was about to lapse he disposed of it for five hundred dollars " lawful money " to "Israel Morey, Esq", of Orford in the Province of New Hampshire ; Moses Little, of New- bury, in the County of Essex and Province of Massachusetts Bay, Gentleman ; Moses Little, of Newburyport in the same county and Province, Merchant," to whom he " remised, released and forever quitclaimed " all right, title, and interest in said township of Chis- wick. The deed recites the fact that prior to its date he had for " valuable consideration purchased of each and every one of the forenamed persons (the grantees) their Respective rights in the said Township of Chiswick as by their said deeds to the said James Avery will appear." This deed was executed at New- bury, Massachusetts, March 13, 1769, eight months before the life of the charter was to expire. With it the names of James Avery and his associates disappear from our history.
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History of Littleton.
IX.
APTHORP AND ITS PROPRIETORS.
T r HE purchase price named in the deed of Chiswick would indicate that the title was not regarded as valuable. As a matter of fact, standing alone, it was worthless. It was a physical impossibility for the purchasers to comply with the conditions im- posed by the charter as to settlement within the brief life remain- ing to that instrument. To make the title good, they must, before the 17th of November, 1769, clear and plant forty-five acres for each of the forty-three shares named in the charter. The deed, however, gave the purchasers color of title, and to strengthen this, the first attempt at actual settlement was made. In August, 1769, Colonel Morey sent Nathan Caswell, of Orford, to the township with instructions to pitch a lot, build a shelter, and arrange for a permanent settlement. On this journey he was accompanied by his son Nathan, then a mere lad. Mr. Caswell selected a lot including the meadow now owned by Noah Farr. He built a small hut of logs, covered it with bark, and filled it with wild grass gathered near the bank of the river. He and his son then returned to Orford, marking their route by blazing. trees as they travelled through the wilderness.
Having thus laid the foundation for an equitable title to the township, the proprietors proceeded to secure a renewal of the charter. In their petition to Governor Wentworth for this purpose, they set forth, among other reasons for granting their prayer, and as excusing the failure of their predecessors to settle the grant, the " uncertainty of the survey," the " want of roads, the late great scarcity of provisions," the " great expense to which they had been in beginning the cultivation of the tract," and the " want of time in which to complete the same." Before presenting their petition, the new proprietors took the precaution to secure the kind offices of a friend at Court by interesting John Hurd, then in close relations with the Governor, in their enterprise.
Among the influential men of the time were Jolin and David Page; the latter was the principal grantee of Lancaster. When
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COLMAN'S MAP OF CHISWICK, 1769
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Apthorp and its Proprietors.
the charter was obtained, he supposed his grant embraced the Upper Coos intervale, but in locating it he found the most valuable portion of those meadows covered by a previous grant made under the name of Stonington. The grantees of Stonington, although having been in possession of their charter more than two years, had taken no measures looking to its location or settlement. The proprietors of Lancaster were men of resources, and regarded the obstacles imposed by the Stonington charter as of little consequence, and proceeded to locate their township so as to include within its bounds the coveted intervale. In September, 1769, they secured a renewal of their charter. The new charter is brief in form, but comprehensive in matter ; it confirms the grant as located by the proprietors. Subsequently the owners of the Stonington grant made an ineffectual attempt to recover the lost territory, but were finally quieted by a grant of Northumberland.
This transaction in regard to the location of Lancaster left an unclaimed tract between that town and Chiswick of nearly four miles in length, lying along the Connecticut River and extending back therefrom the width of those townships, containing about fourteen thousand acres. When Moses Little and his associates asked for the renewal of the Chiswick charter, they sought to have these abandoned lands included in the new grant. Their efforts in this direction were successful, owing largely to the skil- ful diplomacy of John Hurd, who, a few weeks later, received his reward by a deed of ten thousand acres adjoining Lancaster and within the northern limits of the present town of Dalton.
Governor John Wentworth issued a new charter, January 18, 1770, and gave it the name of Apthorp, in honor of George Apthorp, a merchant of London, an honorary grantee, and a friend and agent of Mark Hunking Wentworth. It does not appear that the gentleman who received this mark of favor at the hands of the royal governor ever manifested any interest in the town on which his name had been conferred. The stormy events of the next few years probably served to banish the incident from his memory. The title to his share in the grant was some years afterward conveyed to Moses Little, Jr., by the collector of taxes, who had disposed of the lot at a tax sale.
The township of Apthorp was among the largest in the Province. It extended along the Connecticut River from the northwesterly corner of Lyman to the line of Lancaster, a distance of about nineteen miles. The charter gives its area as containing forty thousand eight hundred and fifty acres and forty-eight rods.
Between the date of the purchase of the Chiswick charter and
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History of Littleton.
the grant of Apthorp, Alexander Phelps, of Hebron, Conn., acquired an interest in the title, and in the new charter is named with the Littles and Colonel Morey as jointly interested as a grantee. The Governor and his associates preserved their holdings, and a share of four hundred acres each was given to George Apthorp and Samuel Adams. The additional grantees, who acquired by pur- chase, were Nathaniel Carter, Benjamin Harris, Tristram Dalton, and Nathaniel Tracy, all of Newburyport. The men who had invested their money in the venture were accustomed to the management of such enterprises. All were large landed proprie- tors, with possessions in the Province of New Hampshire, and many had holdings in the District of Maine and the New Hampshire Grants also. Colonel Moses Little was the principal owner of the township, and early manifested a purpose to secure its settlement. It was with this end in view that he persuaded Colonel Morey to purchase an interest in the property, and take immediate charge of the arrangements intended to induce emigration to the grant.
Moses Little was the third of that name, and of the fourth gener- ation from George Little, the first emigrant. He was born at the ancient homestead of the family in Newbury in 1724. When nineteen years of age he married Abigail Bailey, a sister of General Jacob Bailey, a distinguished soldier of the French and Indian and Revolutionary wars, and one of the original proprietors and settlers of Newbury, Vt. From early manhood he was employed in the public service, both in a civil and military capacity. Before attaining his majority he was appointed a Surveyor of the King's Woods, and in his official capacity became familiar with the Crown lands in the District of Maine. He was a large purchaser of these lands in what are now the States of Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont. At one time he owned in his personal right seventy thousand acres of land, and was interested with others in numerous large tracts. He served as a member of the General Court of the Colony of Massachusetts Bay, and also after the Colony became a State. As a legislator, he was a valuable member of the com- mittees on which he served, bringing to the discharge of his duties patience in investigation and a solid judgment which enabled him to reach conclusions that were just and in the best interest of the people. During the troublesome times immediately preceding the outbreak of the Revolution he was employed in securing the settlement and improvement of his lands. At the time of the Lexington alarm he was a Captain of Militia, and responded by leading his company to the scene of action, reaching it, however, too late to take part in the conflict. He was soon after
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Apthorp and its Proprietors.
promoted to the position of Colonel, and commanded his regiment at the battle of Bunker Hill. His conduct in this engagement cannot be more graphically described than by giving an extract from a letter written by an eyewitness of the battle : 1
" Mr. Little of Turkey Hill (who I have lately heard is made a colonel) show'd great courage and marched with those under his command, thro' two regiments of our men who were looking on at a distance but were afraid to advance. We set them an example, it seems they did not chuse to follow - he proceeded till he found our people retreating from the Hill being overpowered by numbers. He cover'd their retreat and got off without much loss. He narrowly escaped with his life, as two men were kill'd one on each side of him and he came to the camp all bespattered with blood."
He was officer of the day when Washington took command of the army at Cambridge, on Monday, July 3, 1775. During his service in the army he won the entire confidence of its commander. During the engagements of Long Island and about New York he was Senior Colonel in Green's brigade, and bore himself with great credit. During the campaign in New Jersey he was detained at Peekskill by illness, and was soon after forced by the condition of his healthi to relinquish the command and return to his home. In 1779 the Legislature of his native State offered him a commission of Brigadier-General and command of the expedition sent against the enemy on the Penobscot. His constitution was so weakened by the hardships of his previous services that he did not feel equal to accepting this command. The last active service he rendered was to visit Washington at Morristown in reference to the situation of affairs in northern New England. The following bill rendered for that service is of interest : -
" Dr. The United States of America To Moses Little on Express from Gen! Bayley To His Excellency Gen! Washington, being 350 miles from Coos to Morristown, Feby, 28, 1781.
To my Expenses on the road to headquarters . 946$ 2
To my Expenses on my return 1146
To my time - 31 days, at 85$ pr day 2635
4727$
April 1781 Sworn to before me JACOB BAYLEY, J. P."
1 Massachusetts Historical Society's Proceedings, 1869-1871.
2 Continental paper was then some $70 for $1 in gold.
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History of Littleton.
It is probable that he had been on a visit to this town and called upon General Bailey at Newbury, and the journey to Washington's headquarters was the result of their conference at that time.
Soon after this journey he was stricken with paralysis, and though he lived until 1798, he never recovered his power of speech nor took an active part in the management of his large estate.
The most active of the proprietors of Apthorp in securing its immediate settlement was General Israel Morey of Orford. His residence near the township, his influence and prominence in the affairs of this part of the Province, his energy and capac- ity combined to make him not only useful but well-nigh in- dispensable to the other proprietors in superintending the early settlement of the property. General Morey, while residing at Orford, had a considerable interest in Fairlee, on the opposite side of the Connecticut River, and frequently held office under both munici- palities at the same time. An example of this dual office-holding is found in the fact that in 1775 he represented the Orford class in the Provincial Congress, which held its sessions at Exeter, and was collector of taxes for Fairlee. For several years the annual town-meetings for Fairlee were held at his residence in Orford, and he often presided as Moderator. In the contentions growing out of the conflicting claims of this Province and New York for juris- diction over the New Hampshire Grants, he was among the most active and influential of the supporters of the claim of the val- ley towns to independence and their erection into a new State. During the War of Independence he bore an honorable and patriotic part, commanding a regiment of militia which was on one or more occasions called into active service in its entirety, and frequently to contribute its quota for the protection of the frontier and the enforcement of the continental armies. As a member of the Provincial Assembly, he was zealous in support of the patriot cause. In 1782 political and business reasons led to his removal to Fairlee. He built the first mill in that town, and represented it in the State Legislature five terms, and was an Associate Judge of Orange County from 1786 to 1790. He seems to have been a man who took more interest in promoting the welfare of the community in which he lived than in amassing wealth. The Rev. Joel Mann, who in his boyhood knew the General well, thus describes his personal appearance : 1 " Gen. Israel Morey was one
1 Centennial Address at Orford, p. 26.
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Apthorp and its Proprietors.
of the early settlers, a placid, easy gentleman, with benignant countenance ; and when I knew him his hair was blanched to perfect whiteness. It seems almost as if I could see him on his gentle horse passing by on summer days, with a slow trot, dressed in light-colored garments, much in Quaker style, with a cloak thrown over one arm, the very personification of quiet enjoy- ment." He lived a life of uncommon activity and usefulness, dying at an advanced age, August 10, 1809.
Moses Little of Newburyport was a cousin of Colonel Moses, and interested with him in many of his land ventures. He left the control of such investments entirely to his more experienced relative, being content to accept his share of the profits when a sale was made. He was a merchant and a man of high repute. Benjamin Harris and Nathaniel Carter occupied practically the same position in regard to the township as that of their neighbor, Mr. Little. They were members of the syndicate which made the purchase of the original grant, but had little or no voice in the management of the property.
Tristram Dalton and Nathaniel Tracy each held a small interest in the purchase of Chiswick, which they subsequently increased by buying the ten thousand acres the proprietors had conveyed to John Hurd, for services rendered, and six thousand acres of Moses Little. Mr. Dalton was one of the most prominent men in the Colony of Massachusetts, a man of large wealth, which was ex- pended with a lavish hand. He became successively a member of both houses of the Legislature, and one of the first Senators of the State in the Congress of the United States. His last years were clouded with accumulated misfortunes. He failed of a re-election to the Senate, and disposed of all his property in Massachusetts, investing the proceeds in Washington real estate. Intending to become a resident there, the vessel conveying his valuable house- hold effects to the Capital was wrecked, and through the dis- honesty of his Washington agent he lost his entire investment in that city, and in his old age passed in a short time from a condi- tion of great affluence to one of extreme poverty. He accepted a position in the Custom House at Boston, and passed the closing years of his life in comparative retirement.
Of Samuel Adams, it is not necessary to speak. His is one of the colossal figures of the heroic age of our country's history. As time passes in its even flight, names that have filled a large space in the public eye constantly fade and disappear; but the fame of Samuel Adams grows clearer and brighter, and will endure so long as the name of our country is known among nations.
VOL. I .- 11
162
History of Littleton.
Possibly too much has been written concerning men whose only connection with our town was that of speculative proprietors. Those, however, who are likely to be sufficiently interested in the story of the inception and growth of this community as to read these pages, will not deem the time wholly misspent which has been devoted to the research necessary to give them a glimpse of the life, character, and methods of those who first became connected with our history.
163
Proprietary Meetings.
X.
PROPRIETARY MEETINGS.
BY ADAMS MOORE, A.M., M.D.
T HERE being no Proprietary Records of Chiswick or Ap- thorp, and only a very meagre record of the division of Littleton from Dalton by the Proprietors, makes the early history of the settlement in this respect a mere matter of tradition. This comes mainly from Moses Little, who was the chief owner after 1798. An attempt to hold proprietary meetings was made for the first time in 1793. Instead of a call for a meeting of the Proprietors of Apthorp, it was a call for a meeting of the Proprietors of Littleton, there being no such Proprietary as Apthorp. The petition for the call was addressed to Hon. Jonathan Warren, one of the Justices appointed to keep the peace in the State of New Hampshire. It was signed by Moses Little and Jacob Bailey, who represented themselves as the owners of more than one-sixteenth part of the township of Littleton. The meeting was warned by the said Justice to be holden at the house of Joseph Merrill, Esq., In- holder in South Hampton, in the County of Rockingham, on the third day of June, 1793. At said time and place the Proprietors present were Moses Little, Esq., Moses Little, Jr., and Michael Little. Michael Little was chosen Moderator, and Moses Little, Jr., Proprietors' Clerk. Nothing more appears to have been done ex- cept to adjourn the meeting to the house of Colonel Joshua Howard, Inholder in Haverhill, on the 15th of the same month.
At the adjourned meeting the only vote recorded was to adjourn to the house of Ephraim Bailey in Littleton on the 18th of the same month.
At the next adjourned meeting a committee was chosen "to allot or lay out all the lands in said Littleton after the several tracts granted to the several persons named in the charter, and the tract granted for the propagating of the Gospel in foreign parts shall be alloted (and all other publick Land if any ) into lots of the contents of one hundred acres each ; and Jacob Bayley,
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History of Littleton.
Esq., Ephraim Bayley and John Bayley and Moses Little Jun. were appointed for that purpose."
Jacob Bayley and Josiah Little were appointed a committee to settle the lines with adjoining towns and perambulate them. Josiah Little was appointed to agree with the State of New Hampshire respecting the outstanding taxes against said Little- ton. This meeting was adjourned to January 22, 1793 (proba- bly 1796), but no record of anything done under it appears.
The next meeting was called at the request of Moses Little and Josiah Little by William Parker, justice of the peace, to be held on the twelfth day of January, 1796, at the aforesaid house in South Hampton. At this meeting two dollars "on each and every hundred acres of land was voted for the purpose of defray- ing the charges in alloting out said town and in making roads and other charges that have, or may arise."
They voted that future meetings shall be called by application of the owners of more than one-sixteenth part of the land in said Littleton, to the Clerk, and be advertised in the New Hampshire " Gazette " three weeks successively. This was agreeable to the statute provision of the State in relation to Proprietors' Meetings. This meeting was adjourned several times, but nothing more was done under it.
Another meeting was called, by application of Moses Little and Moses Little, Jr., to Oliver Peabody, justice of the peace, and was held at the house of James Williams, Inholder in Little- ton, October 27, 1797. Moses Little, Jr., was chosen the Clerk, and Jacob Bayley, Josiah Little, and Moses Little, Esq., were chosen Assessors. Two dollars on each hundred acres of land. This tax was for allotting the town. The former tax might not have been collected. The only remaining record is the lay- ing out of the lot of four hundred acres for the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts in the northeast cor- ner of the town. There is no record that any one of the other four or five hundred acre lots was ever located. That of Ben- ning Wentworth was laid in the northwest corner of Littleton, but no record has been made of it.
One difficulty which seems to have troubled the General Proprie- tors, now reduced to the Little family, to which General Bayley may be considered as belonging, was how to locate the four and five hundred acre lots. The charter of Apthorp was silent on that point. There was much mountain land unfit for settlement, and considerable low rocky pine lands unfit for agricultural pur- poses, while the timber was considered of very little value. Such
1
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Proprietary Meetings.
was the tract assigned to the Society. Another question was lia- ble to be raised, which was, What has become of the Glebe, Minis- ter, and School Lots named in the charter of Chiswick and not mentioned in that of Apthorp ? Could the owners of a part of the rights of Chiswick, not exceeding two-thirds, without any pre- liminary vote of the Corporation, confess a forfeiture of it for the purpose of procuring a new charter and thus extinguishing rights over which they had no legal control ?
The former difficulty was gradually removed by Moses Little, Jr., who succeeded his father as the largest owner in 1798, by purchasing in most of these grants of specific quantities. The second was never seriously agitated by any one having authority to move in the matter. Occasionally a Glebe-right hunter appeared, but never got any consideration from the owners of Littleton. I believe the owners of Dalton did pay something to the Episcopal church of Portsmouth.
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History of Littleton.
XI.
THE SETTLEMENT.
T HE first essential in tracing the history of a community is accuracy. Yet absolute fidelity to this principle in recount- ing the story of the planting and growth of our little republics is wellnigh impossible. Few of the men who penetrated the wilder- ness of Northern New England were men of letters. They seldom left a record of their transactions or of the startling or romantic incidents connected with their lives. Nearly the only source of . information in regard to the early period of our history has been preserved by oral tradition, and is necessarily more or less colored by the character of the various channels through which it has reached us. The personal characteristics of the narrator, pride of ancestry, the imaginative qualities and plain matter of fact have each played their part in giving tone and color to the narrative. The investigator has to grope his way through the legends and traditions with great care, trying each by the test of probability and surrounding circumstances. The currents of information con- cerning the early history of Littleton are not always clear, but their tracing is not obscure ; they flow from a common fountain through several channels and convey the same story. The foun- tain is Nathan Caswell, the streams of transmission his numerous descendants. Their account is supplemented by bits of documen- tary cvidence, a few petitions to the General Court, an occasional affidavit lodged in the archives of the pension department, and a fragment of the first inventory of the town. The sum total of such important facts is very meagre, but it is sufficient to give us an accurate idea of the scenes and incidents connected with the first settlement of Littleton.
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