History of Rockingham and Strafford counties, New Hampshire : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Part 111

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton)
Publication date: 1882
Publisher: Philadelphia : J. W. Lewis
Number of Pages: 1714

USA > New Hampshire > Strafford County > History of Rockingham and Strafford counties, New Hampshire : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men > Part 111
USA > New Hampshire > Rockingham County > History of Rockingham and Strafford counties, New Hampshire : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men > Part 111

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THEODORE ATKINSON Secre

" Entered and Recorded in ye Book of Charters this 11tb dy of May 1750 "P THEODORE ATKINSON Secre"

From this auspicious time the growth of the town advanced slowly. The wheels of government worked more evenly and effectually for the public good. The Captain Richard Kelly upou whom rested the honor of calling the first town-meeting of Salem was a lead- ing and influential citizen, and one of the first to set- tle here. He was of good English stock, and his father and grandfather came from Newbury, Mass., and their ancestors from Newbury, Berkshire County, England, in 1635. His descendants are still with us, and among the most respected and influential of our citizens. Though the town was now in the enjoy- ment of its newly-acquired privileges and grew apace, yet the great portion of the lands were still unsettled and unbroken, and deep forests and wastes stretched

out from the borders of the villages, infested with prowling and ravenous wild animals which were a constant menace and injury to domestic stock, and not unfrequently to the inhabitants. Wolves were num- erous and audacious, and in 1751 the town "voted that any person belonging to the town of Salem who shall kill a wolf in said town shall have £10 old tenor, and for a young wolf £3 old tenor." Exciting and perilous adventures with these beasts are still re- counted, though perhaps with some exaggeration as the stories gain age. It was unsafe for persons to roam about unarmed, especially' at nightfall, and women and children required an escort in case of be- ing out late. Coming back to other matters, we find that among them the town experienced its share of the general impoverishment and financial distress of the province and colonies. The depreciation of the currency embarrassed and confused the operation of law, the progress of industry, and the honest payment of the public and private debts. Appropriations, seemingly recklessly lavish, dwindled down to mere pittances, with a possibility of still more insignificance before they could be applied. So great was the evil that public as well as private liabilities were met and discharged by substituting the necessaries of life in lien of money. It is recorded that the parish voted four hundred bushels of corn to Mr. Bayley as his salary for one year, but probably on remonstrances by the reverend creditor, the vote was reconsidered, and four hundred pounds voted instead. About this time the minister desired a cushion upon the hard oaken bench in his pulpit, but the request was denied by vote of the town. In 1762 Rev. Mr. Bayley re- ceived arrearages of his salary, the receipt for which, written by him, is preserved with the records, and is as follows :

" SALEM, March 31, 1762.

" Received of the town of Salem in the Province of New Hampshire the whole of my Sallery io cash and wood from the begining of the world to March I, 1762. One Thousand Seven Hundred sixty and two. I say received in full by me ABNER BAYLEY.

In 1766 a hitter and hostile spirit pervaded the community, the occasion of it being the attitude and demeanor of a sect residing or recently come among them, known as " Anabaptists," who, by their arro- gance and fanatical claims, with an open avowal of their exemption from the burdens of citizenship, while they yet enjoyed its privileges, despising the magis- trates, claiming to be actuated and moved by divine impulse, incurred the hatred and abhorrence of the zealots of the established religion. Their teachers, Munger, Stubner, Storck, etc., taught that among Christians who had the precepts of the gospel to di- rect, and the spirit of God to guide them, the office of magistracy was not only unnecessary but an un- lawful encroachment upon their spiritual liberty ; that the distinctions occasioned by birth, rank, or wealth should be abolished, and that as neither the laws of nature nor the precepts of the New Testament had pro- hibited polygamy, they should use the same liberty

473

SALEM.

as the patriarchs did in this respect. This sect must not be confounded with the Baptists of the present day. The more fiery of their enemies demanded their ejectment from the place, or legal measures to bring them to terms, but gentler methods prevailed. The lasting honor of the town in refraining from open acts of persecution was assured through the counter-action of the more tolerant and liberal of the inhabitants, who, impressed with the importance of the subject and foreseeing the results of bigoted and harsh meas- ures, drew up a formal dissent to the impending suit against them. The following is a copy :

"SALEM, March 26, 1766.

" We the subscribers enter this our Dissent against the town of Salem Entering into a lawsuit with those people that are proffessed Anabaptists, Because we think it not reasonable to engage in a case where the Law is so plain to the contrary : We enter this our Dissent against ye Proseedings as witness our hands : Steven Wheeler, Evan Jones, Richard Dow, Jr., Na- thaniel Dow, Benjamin Wheeler, Benjamin Rawlings, Richard Dow, William Wheeler, Amos Dow, Benoni Rowell, Benjamin Wheeler, Jr., Nathaniel Wood- man, Israel Young, John Allen, John Clement, Jon- athan Corlis, Jr., Richard Cresey, Oliver Dow, Jo- nathan Corlis (3), Samuel Ordway, James Webster, Jeremiah Dow, Isaiah Rowell, Jr., Richard Kimball, John Johnson, Jonathan Wheeler, Jr., Moody Morss."

The reference in this document to " the Law, etc.," doubtless referred to a stipulation made years before on the subjection of New Hampshire that the re- ligious views of persons settling within the province should be countenanced.

During the year 1766 wolves were again so trouble- some that a reward of ten dollars was voted to any one in the town killing a wolf. The next matter momentous to the interests of the town, province, and the American colonies was the impending war of in- dependence. Salem, in common with other towns, was aroused to the urgent needs of the struggle. Town- meetings were held, and the demands for men and means responded to with alacrity. The following are records of some of the events of the times :

" At the Desire of Some Inhabitants of this town, we have hereby Notified the Inhabitants of this town to meet at the Publick Meeting- House in Salem on tuesday the 25th day of April Iastant at three of the Clock in the after noon in order to Raise a Propper Number of men for the Defence of the Cuntry, and allso to make some provision for their Pay if Called for.

" JOHN HALL,

" JOHN KELLY, Selectmen.

" Dated April ye 22: 1775."

"At a meeting of the Inhabitants of this town on the 25 day April 1775 then voted to Enlist 30 men for the Defence of the Cuntry if called for : voted six dollars per month for Each man when called for : voted the Select mien be a Committee to Provide Provision for the Enlisted Dien when Called for."

Pursuant to a request from the chairman of the committee of the Province of New Hampshire, the selectmen of Salem "notified the freeholders and

other Inhabitants of the town to meet at the public meeting-house on Monday, the 15th day of May In- stant to choose a man to join the Congress at Exeter to consult the affairs of the Province," and at this meeting Caleb Duston was chosen.

" Province of New Hampshire, Į To the Inhabitants and training Sol- Rockingham ss. ) diers Belonging to the town of Salem : Agreeably to a Petition to us Exhibited Desireing us to Notifie sd town as aforesd-These are to Notifie & Desire od Inhabitants & Soldiers to meet together at the Publick meeting house in Salem on tuesday the first day of August Next at four of the Clock in After noon then and there to act ou the following Perticulars :- 11 to Chuse a moderator : 2ly to see if the town of Salem will Chuse a Committee to advise with the Committees of the Neighboring towos on Some Propper measuress for Settling Militia as also to Chuse officers there for if then thought Propper or to act on any measures theu thought Proper by gd Body Presant. Dated Salem July 27 : 1775.

JOHN HALL \ Select men JOHN KELLY ) of Salem."

At this meeting Mr. Thomas Douglass was chosen moderator. A committee was chosen to advise with the neighboring towns on proper measures for "set- tling the militia." Cornet Jonathan Tenny was chosen first committeeman, then Robert Young and Thomas Roberson, all for the "South Company," and Mr. Timothy Duston, Amos Dow, and Philip Clement for the " North Company." They also voted to choose officers for both companies. For the North Company they chose Mr. John Allen, captain ; Mr. Richard Dow, first lieutenant; Mr. Samuel Johnson, second lientenant; and Daniel Gordon, ensign. For the South Company, Mr. Joshua Swan, captain; Mr. Thomas Roberson, first lieutenant; Mr. Abbott Pet- tingill, second lieutenant; and Oliver Kimball, en- sign. "Robert Young, Jonathan Tenny, Thomas Douglass, and John Hall were chosen a committee for the alarm list of the South Company," and "Richard Dow, Benja Bixby, Henry Little, and Wil- liam Hall for the North Company." The following are copies of orders, etc., by the "Committee of Safety of New Hampshire" :

"State of New Hampshire } Exeter August 18th 1781.

In Committee of Safety

(L S.) "To the Sheriff of the County of Rockingham, his under Sheriff, or Deputy, or either of the Constables for the town of Salem in sd state, Greeting. Whereas information has been given to this Committee that Robert Young of Salem in the County aforesaid, yeoman, has been guilty of sundry Practicee inimical to the United States: Therefore you are hereby required in the name of the Government and People of said State forthwith to apprehend the body of the said Robert Young if he may be found in your Precioct and bring him as soon as may be before the Com- mittee of Safety for this State, to be examined touching the matters alledged against him that he may be dealt with as to Justice shall apper- taia. Hereof fail not and make returo of this warrant with your doings thereio.

"M. WEARE, Presidt. "Summon for evidence Moody Morse, Gentleman. William Duty, yeoman. Stephen Currier yeoman all of Salem, Thaddeus Batler of Pelbam Physician. Evan Jones! of -"

"State of New Hampshire Exeter Octo 11th 1783.

In Committee of Safety f To Solomon Wheeler Deputy Sheriff

Whereas the Town of Salem did not make a Return of the men? who were mustered for said Town and that therefore an Extent was issued

1 The Evan Jones used to own what is now Salem town-farm.

2 Daniel Merrill and Henry Lancaster were the two men, a mistake having been made when the muster roll was made.

474

HISTORY OF ROCKINGHAM COUNTY, NEW HAMPSHIRE.

against them for their deficiency of men by the Treasurer but now have made it appear to this Committee they were mustered in season-you are therefore directed to return said Extent into the Treasurers office, said Town satisfying you for your trouble M. Weare President.

" SALEM April 13: 1781.

" We the subscribers whos Names are under written Do Acknowl- odge wee have Recvd of the Selectmen of Salem The Sum of Two Thousand Dollars and a Note for the Delivery of Sixteen Heffars (heif- ers) Each Which Sum We have Recyd as a Bounty from the Town of Salem for the performance of Three years Servce to be done in the Con- tinental Army for said Town.

Capt. Th Young

his Peter X Cross

his John X Howard mark.

Wm Duty

mark.

Evan Jones

Moses Heath

Daniel Woodbury."

In 1777 the towu voted one hundred dollars to each man of the town of Salem "that shall Enlist, in the Continental Army." There were mustered to join the Continental regiments for six months seven men from Salen. Here ends the meagre records of the Revolution in possession of the town. We reluct- antly leave it thus. At the close of the Revolution Salem was one of the larger towns of the county, and had slowly and steadily gained in population despite the drain and untoward experiences of the war. The following gives the population of the town as returned in the census of 1786 :

" State of New Hampshire

Rockingham. S.S. Agreeable to an order received from this Honorable House of Representatives for the purpose of taking the Num- her of Inhabitants, and we have Proceeded and find the White males to be five hundred thirty and one (531) White females five hundred fourty and four (544) = 1075. Male slaves 3, female slaves 4. = 7. Attest

" W'M. THOM - Selectmen "JAMES WEBSTER

for

"RICHARD KIMBALL ) Sulem."

In the journal of proceedings of the convention of New Hampshire which adopted the Federal Consti- tution in 1788, Lieut. Thomas Dow, representative from Salem, voted no. In the convention of 1791, which met at Concord on the 17th of September to revise the Constitution of the State, Lieut. Thomas Dow represented Salem, and voted yes. The doings of the convention held in Concord in May, 1792, were submitted to the several towns of the State to vote on the subjects Aug. 27, 1792, and the vote of Salem was: yea, 9; nay, 1. From this time down to the war of the Rebellion the records are rather mo- notonous and show little else than commonplace civil affairs. What matters of general interest can be culled from the remainder will follow under their respective heads.

CHAPTER LXXI.

SALEM .- ( Continued.)

Ecclesiastical History, Etc.

Congregational Church .- Frequent allusion has been made to this church in giving the history of the old North Parish, as it was intimately connected with

the affairs of the parish for several years. Its organ- ization bears the date of Jan. 16, 1740, and took place in the dwelling-house of Rev. Abner Bayley. (This old house has siuce been owned by the late Isaiah Kelly, and is now owned and occupied by Nathan R. Bodwell, who has recently put it in thorough repair.) The frame of the first house of worship of this church was raised in 1738 and roofed over and enclosed the fol- lowing year, and was first used for publie worship in 1740. Rev. Abner Bayley was its first pastor, who was ordained Jan. 30, 1740, and continued as such for more than half a century. He died March 10, 1798, aged eighty-two years. Ilis labors with the church were eminently successful, and he lived and died beloved and revered by all. In 1796, Rev. John Smith was invited by vote of the town to settle here in the work of the ministry. His answer is given below :

" SALEM, November 26, 1796 ..

"To the church and Inhabitants of the Town of Salem- Haveing re- ceived an invitation by your committee to Settle with yon in the Gospel ministry I have since made it a subject of serious and candid inquiry I hope f have consulted your best interest and the glory of God in form- ing my Judgment upon so important a subject-the noanimity of your choice I view as a weighty consideration in favor of my acceptance of your proposals for my temporal Support as I understand them I am willing to accept of, and viewing all circumstances as far as I am capable it appears to mie that the call of Divine Providence concurs with the in- vitation of the church and Town-I do therefore in compliance with your request, freely consent to settle with you in the gospel ministry Trust- ing the Event with god who is able to overrule it for our mutual happi- ness and for his own glory-if it should be the will of the great Head of the church that the relation proposed Should take place between us may it be for the honour of His name, for the Spiritual Edification of our Souls-from the past testimonies of your candonr towards me I have great reason to expect that you will still continue to exercise that can- donr, forgiveness and charity for which you will frequently find occa- sion and 1 earnestly request your constant petitions at the Throne of Di- vine grace that I may faithfully Discharge my duty as a minister of Christ that I may be furnished with every onnisterial gift and qualifica- tion that god would bles- his preached word aud crown the ordinances of his gospel with success-That you may ever enjoy the smiles of our heavenly Father and be built up in holiness through faith in his Son Shall Ever be the prayer of your humble Servant

" JOHN SMITHI.

" P.S. Your proposals as I understand them are as follows-' Three lmundred dollars settlement voted hy the town-three hundred dollars subscribed by private gentlemen-three hundred dollars Salary annually so long as I continue to preach in Salem common sickness excepted- and fifteen cords of wood annually Brought to my door from the Par- sonage (lot) or elsewhere and the use of the parsonage in sd town while I continue in the ministry.'-These are the Proposals upon which I ac- cept of your invitation

" JOHN SMITH."

Mr. Smith was ordained and settled Jan. 4, 1797. He was dismissed Nov. 20, 1816, and died at Bangor, Me., April 7, 1831. Rev. William Balch succeeded him, and was installed Dec. 1, 1819, and dismissed Ang. 6, 1835. He was followed by Rev. Jonas Fiske, who was ordained Sept. 9, 1840, and dismissed March 8, 1843. Rev. William Hayward was next employed for a time, closing his labors June 6, 1847. Rev. Daniel H. Babcock commenced preaching here Aug. 22, 1847, and continued till Sept. 15, 1849. Rev. John Lawrence began preaching here Nov. 1, 1849, and re- mained for a time. Rev. William Page preached his first sermon before the church Dec. 5, 1852, and was

475

SALEM.

installed pastor Dec. 1, 1853, but on account of fail- Methodist Episcopal Churches .- From the best sources of information on record it appears that Rev. George Pickering, presiding ekler on Boston District of the New England Conference, visited Salem in May, 1805, and preached in the house of Nathaniel Woodman. In the fall of the same year Rev. Daniel Webb assisted Mr. Pickering for several Sabbaths, and then Rev. Alfred Medcalf regularly supplied one- half of the time till the following Conference. ing health he was dismissed Nov. 30, 1858. Rev. John Lawrence was again called to minister to the church in May, 1859, and remained till May 11, 1862. Rev. Joseph Tarleton supplied the pulpit from May 8 to Dec. 7, 1862. Rev. George W. Rogers began to supply the pulpit Jan. 11, 1863, as acting pastor, remaining till the beginning of 1869. Rev. Matthew A. Gates commenced his labors as acting pastor December, 1869, and remained till the close of 1872. Rev. Samuel In 1806 Salem was united with "Salisbury Circuit," which reached from Salisbury, Mass., to Salem, and included the intermediate towns. From this time till Bowker began his labors as acting pastor July 1, 1873, and closed Dec. 31, 1879. Rev. George A. Perkins began his labors here as acting pastor May 30, 1880, : 1831 Salem was embraced in a circuit, and regularly and still remains. Mr. Perkins was formerly a mis- supplied with preachers, as follows : sionary at Constantinople.

The present house of worship was built in 1840, and the old "meeting-house," which had done good ser- vice for a century, reverted to the town and was altered, and has ever since been used as the town- house. It had previously (1833) been removed from its original site a few rods easterly, and placed upon the school-house common. There are a few reminis- cences preserved of the ancient church. The prin- cipal door was towards the river, two other doors, one at each end, also affording passage to the interior. The dimensions of the building are thirty-eight by forty feet. Rough temporary seats of plank sufficed until individuals built pews for their families, grad- ually completing "ye body of ye house." The ex- terior was plain and simple, no steeple adorned it, the windows were small and placed high up from the floor, the largest and most ornate one being back of the pulpit. The pulpit was lofty, and in looking at the preacher it required a painful inclination of the head and neck if prolonged for some time. The pews were roomy and deep, and the seats in them all turned up against the back of the pew, while the congrega- tion were standing in devont prayer. The instant the pastor uttered the "Amen,"-click, click, click, was heard all over the house as the seats fell down in place for the weary worshipers.

No provision was made for warming the meeting- house; men, women, and children went to church in severe winter weather enduring the cold. Stoves and furnaces were unknown, and fireplaces were imprac- ticable for large buildings. It was not till 1824 that a stove was put into the church. The hallowed and old-time features of the house are gone, but its mas- sive oaken timbers are still strong and firm, and in shape and form it preserves a semblance of its former self. The present church is pleasantly located in Şalem village, on the main street. It has been re- modeled and improved, the building raised, and good vestries added. The audience room will seat two hun- dred and sixty persons. Church membership, fifty- two; Sunday-school scholars, fifty ; volumes in library, three hundred and eighty-one. Officers of church : Moses A. Kelly and William P. Brooks, deacons; Edson Emerson, clerk and treasurer.

1806, Alfred Medcalf; 1807, Joseph A. Merrill; 1808, Wm. Stevens, A Medcalf, Thos. Asbury; 1809, Asa Kent, Edw. Hyde, David Wentworth ; 1810, Asa Kent, Benj. Sabin, John Jewett; 1811, John Wil- liams, Orlando Hinds; 1812, Benj. F. Larrabee, O. Hinds ; 1813, Leonard Frost, J. W. Hardy ; 1814, L. Frost, Aaron Lummis; 1815, Ebenezer Blake, E. Marble; 1816, Philip Munger, John Briggs; 1817, Philip Munger ; 1818, Bartholomew Otheman ; 1819, O. Hinds ; 1820, O. Hinds, J. P. Harvey ; 1821, J. P. Harvey, D. Culver; 1822, 1). Dorchester, Jas. Tem- pleton ; 1823, J. Randall, A. Buck ; 1824, O. Hinds, A. Buck; 1825, J. Allen; 1826, H. Foster, Sereno Fiske; 1827, Lewis Bates; 1828, Lewis and Lemuel Harlow; 1829, L. Bennett; 1830, L. Bennett.

In 1831 the church in Salem had grown so that it was made a separate station, and the following min- isters were sent and labored here :

1831-32, Samuel Norris; 1833, A. Brigham ; 1834- 35, Warren Wilbur.

In the year 1836 the parent church divided, the offshoot locating itself at North Salem, while the old society removed from the old meeting-house on Bluff Street to Salem village. They had just erected a new meeting-house in the village. The building vacated had served them twenty-one years. It was a plain wooden house, thirty-six feet square, and covered with a "hip roof." It stood at the foot of " Zion's Hill," near the house of Orlando Woodbury. The interior was neatly but cheaply finished. The pulpit was high ; and in place of pews plank seats with a straight back were used, the men sitting on one side of the house and the women on the other. It accommodated about two hundred and fifty persons comfortably, yet many more used to crowd in on Quarterly Conference days, when the concourse was always so great that none but women could be seated, and the men stood outside at doors and windows, eager to hear the word of life. People from Sandown, Hampstead, Plaistow, and other towns attended these meetings. The old house was sold in 1840 to Col. John R. Wheeler, and a portion of it now stands in Salem village as a dwelling-house.

Resuming the account of the original society we give a list of its pastors : 1836-37, Jacob Stevens ;

476

HISTORY OF ROCKINGHAM COUNTY, NEW HAMPSHIRE.

1838, S. Cushing; 1839, O.G. Smith ; 1840-41, Matthew three thousand five hundred dollars. It has a fine parsonage, valued at two thousand dollars. The church will seat three hundred persons. Sunday- I umes in library, four hundred ; church membership, one hundred. Newhall; 1842-43, A. M. Osgood ; 1844-45, J. L. Slason ; 1846-47, A. C. Manson ; 1848-49, C. C. Burr ; 1850-51, William D. Cass ; 1852, William Hewes; | school scholars, one hundred and twenty-eight ; vol- 1853-54, G. W. T. Rogers; 1855, Justin Spalding; 1856-57, J. L. Trefren ; 1858-59, Elihu Scott; 1860, G. W. Il. Clark ; 1861, Lewis Howard ; 1862, W. II. Jones ; 1863-64, Irad Taggart; 1865-66, O. H. Call ; 1867-69, Theodore L. Flood; 1870-71, David W. Downs; 1872, Abram R. Lunt; 1873-74, Henry Dorr ; 1875-77, A. C. Coult; 1878, N. P. Philbrook ; 1879- 81, Eben C. Berry ; 1882, W. C. Bartlett.

This society rebuilt and enlarged its church in 1872. Spacious vestries were added, a new tower and spire erected, the pews remodeled, and organ loft and choir improved. The organ is one of the largest pipe-organs in use in country churches, and is an instrument of great power and capacity. The church property with parsonage in good repair is valued at eight thousand dollars. The Sunday-school is in a flourishing condition and has one hundred and six scholars, and has four hundred and twenty-five vol- umes in the library. Church membership, eighty- one.

The officers of the church are as follows : Stewards, Jolin C. Ewins, Nathan G. Abbott, Abraham II. Merrill, Charles O. Kelly, Frank T. Kelly, Charles W. Chase, George Wilson, Francis B. Kelly, Silas Carey, Joseph Webster; Trustees, John W. Wheeler, William B. Ayer, Nathan G. Abbott, Francis B. Kelly, William W. Smith, Charles O. Kelly, Charles H. Ayer, George C. Howard, M.D., Andrew Lewis; Sunday-school Superintendent, Charles H. Ayer.

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History of Rockingham and Strafford counties, New Hampshire : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Part 111

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) Publication date: 1882 Publisher: Philadelphia : J. W. Lewis Number of Pages: 1714

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton)
Publication date: 1882
Publisher: Philadelphia : J. W. Lewis
Number of Pages: 1714