USA > New Hampshire > Grafton County > Bristol > History of the town of Bristol, Grafton County, New Hampshire, Volume I > Part 49
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This mortar was formally dedicated as a monument Nov. 4, 1898, under the auspices of Nelson Post, G. A. R. Nelson Post and Relief Corps, and the officers of the town attended in a body. The day was a delightful one, a large concourse of people were present and the exercises passed off pleasantly and creditably to all concerned. The exercises took place at two o'clock. There was singing by a chorus under the leadership of Fred H. Briggs, when Charles E. Davis, chairman of the board of selectmen, formally invited Nelson Post to dedicate the
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memorial to the purpose for which it had been placed there. Nelson Post then went through the dedicatory service of the Grand Army of the Republic, under the leadership of John F. Phillips, commander. He was assisted by James W. Saunders, adjutant ; William F. Hanaford, senior vice-commander ; Simeon H. Cross, junior vice-commander ; Daniel K. Cummings, officer of the day ; George H. Fleer, officer of the guard, and Moody O. Edgerly, chaplain. George C. Currier, Benjamin Gray, William C. Kelley, and Charles H. Proctor acted as guards. E. C. Paige represented the army and Master Herbert Varney the navy. As the flag was unfurled, "The Star Spangled Banner" was sung and the mortar uncovered by Mrs. Abbie F. Gray and Miss Clara Gray.
These services over, the president of the day, Capt. R. W. Musgrove, made a few opening remarks, and then introduced Hon. Henry M. Baker, ex-congressman, who delivered a fine dedicatory address. This was followed by singing, after which the memorial was formally again turned over to the town for its care and preservation.
On the face of the mortar is fixed a white bronze tablet on which are the following inscriptions :
In memory of the men who fell in defence of their country, from Bristol, during the War of the Rebellion, 1861 to 1865.
Charles W. Cheney, killed at Chancellorsville, Va.
Gustavus Emmons, killed at Chancellorsville, Va.
Henry R. Kidder, killed at Chancellorsville, Va.
Dan P. Nelson, killed at Chancellorsville, Va.
Corp. Charles G. Smith, died of wounds received at Chancellors- ville, Va.
Robert Easter, died at Washington, D. C.
William P. Harlow, died at Washington, D. C.
Henry A. Fellows, died of wounds received at Gettysburg, Pa.
Adna M. Hall, died of wounds received at Gettysburg, Pa.
Roswell D. Swett, died at Boston, Mass.
Albert Nelson, died at Bristol, N. H.
Corp. Abbott C. Musgrove, killed at Deep Bottom, Va.
Benjamin Saunders, died in rebel prison.
Merrill Simonds, died at Christianville, Va.
Moses Dustin, died at Concord, N. H.
John A. Gray, died at Manchester.
Charles H. Marden, died of wounds at Kearneysville, Va.
Franklin W. Belcher, died at Darnestown, Md.
Moses Ash, died of wounds at Fort Monroe, Va.
Henry Mitchell, killed at Farmville, Va.
Denis Leary, killed at Spottsylvania, Va.
Edwin Plummer, died at David's Island, New York Harbor.
This mortar was on the ship Orvette. She was in the following bom- bardments : Forts Jackson and St. Phillips, La., Apr. 16-24, 1862 ; Vicks- burg, Miss., June-July, 1862; Port Hudson, La., Mar. 14, 15, 1863, and May 8-June 26, 1863 ; off Fort Powell, Grant's Pass, Miss., Feb. 16-29, 1864 ; off Port Royal and Morris Island, S. C., 1864-5.
Erected through the efforts of Captain William A. Beckford, by the town of Bristol.
FOWLER'S DI
SOLDIERS' MONUMENT, CENTRAL SQUARE
CHAPTER XLIII
INCIDENTS AND ANECDOTES
These are the tales those merry guests
Told to each other, well or ill ;
Like summer birds that lift their crests Above the borders of their nests,
And twitter, and again are still.
-Longfellow
CAREER OF JOHN S. EMMONS
About 1843, John S. Emmons, then a young man twenty- three years of age, forged the name of his uncle, John Emmons, to a note of $100 or more and negotiated the same. He was arrested by Deputy Sheriff Jeremiah H. Prescott and, in the even- ing of the same day, went to his home in the Fisk block, in com- pany with the sheriff, to obtain additional clothing. Being granted permission to visit his chamber unattended, he promptly escaped by way of a window and took to the woods. In May, 1844, he was captured and lodged in Haverhill jail. He broke jail in August and went to Massachusetts, where he pursued a career of crime and served several short terms of imprisonment in Lowell and Cambridge. In the summer of 1848, he returned to the scenes of his old home and was the terror of this section for several months. He lived in the woods eluding arrest, and hardly a day passed that did not add to the excitement caused by his depredations. He obtained his food by gathering berries, milking cows in the pastures, entering dwellings and stores at night and stealing supplies. Every door was barred and every window carefully fastened, but no precautions were sufficient to keep Emmons out. His tracks were easy to find in the woods where he had passed a night or partaken of a meal ; but his capture was not so easy. His depredations gave a sense of insecurity to this entire section of the state.
One morning in the early fall Emmons was seen in the woods south of the village, and a company was promptly called together by the deputy sheriff, armed with the muskets of the Bristol Phalanx, and started in pursuit of the outlaw. New Chester mountain was surrounded with armed men. During the afternoon the guard, stationed at the high bridge over Smith's river, saw Emmons approaching on the run and prompt- ly secreted themselves under the bridge, while Emmons passed
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over safely and took to the woods on the south side of the stream.
One evening, a week or two later, Josiah S. Ingalls, an old acquaintance, who was one of the sheriff's party, was at work in the carriage factory of Lovejoy & Kelley, when in walked John S. Emmons. He spent a half hour talking of himself and his career and of local affairs, and then took his departure. Among other things, he stated that on the day of the hunt for him, he followed the party back and was in Bristol village that evening.
John S. Emmons was latter arrested in Keene for passing counterfeit money, and sentenced to the state prison in Concord for five years and ten days from April 4, 1851. On his release, he continued his career of crime and is said to have died in the prison at Charlestown, Mass.
TERRIBLE FATE OF EMIGRANTS TO MINNESOTA
Early in the nineteenth century, a boy by the name of Joseph Brown came to Bristol and was given a home in the family of David Powell, who lived in the Locke neighborhood. But little is known of the boy except that he came from Boston. He was kindly cared for by the Powells, and grew up with the nine sons and daughters of the Powell family. On the 22nd of October, 1816, Joseph Brown married Mary Fellows, a daughter of John Fellows, a Revolutionary soldier from Bristol, then living on Bridgewater hill. . They had four children : Lois, who married David Bartlett, of West Plymouth, and died there in 1893 ; Theodore, who died at two years of age ; Jonathan, and Horatio. The mother died in 1841 or '42. Joseph Brown resided for a time on the hill where his children are supposed to have been born, and then removed. to New Hampton, where he was for nearly ten years employed by Col. Rufus G. Lewis on his farm. Then he returned to Bridgewater and, about 1855, went with his children, Jonathan and Horatio, to Minnesota, and settled about fifteen miles west of New Ulm on the Cottonwood river, where he took up a Revolutionary War land warrant which his wife's father had drawn from the government. Here they became extensive farmers, while Jonathan devoted a part of his time to surveying. Near them soon after located two young men from Alexandria by the name of Burns, for whom has since been named the village of Burnsville.
In 1862, while enjoying the fruit of their labors with bright prospects for the future, occurred the awful Sioux massacre. The alarm of an uprising of the Indians had come so often in the past, only to be proven false, that the people had become accus- tomed to this state of affairs, and when the alarm rang out in 1862, the people were at first incredulous. But, alas ! it was then a horrid reality. With the suddenness of a hurricane, a thou- sand Indians took the war path, and over a vast stretch of terri-
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tory a carnival of death reigned. Men, women, and children were slain with the bullet and tomahawk, or put to torture ; scores of women were carried into a captivity worse than death, and the lurid glare of burning homes lit up the heavens for a hun- dred miles.
When the truth dawned upon the Brown family they, like the Willey family in the White Mountain Notch at the time of the freshet in 1826, left their home to meet destruction outside, while their home escaped. Loading as many of their earthly effects as possible into a two-horse wagon, they, together with a hired man, hastened towards New Ulm. Unfortunately the In- dians were at that very moment concentrating about New Ulm to destroy it, and as this little party of four hastened on their way, they were discovered by the Indians and every one put to death.
At the commencement of the massacre the two young men, spoken of above, had been boarding for some time at the Brown home, but were temporarily absent on a trip thirty miles distant up the river. On their return they found two women refugees, one badly wounded, whom they conveyed to the Brown house, and there they left them, and also set out for New Ulm. They were five days on the way, creeping along cautiously, lying in hid- ing two whole days, but escaped and reached their destination just after the Indians had been repulsed.
When the attack on New Ulm commenced, a company of volunteers left Lesueur for their relief. Among them was Dr. Otis Ayer, well known in Bristol as a native of the Ayer farm on the New Hampton side of the Pemigewasset. With this re- enforcement New Ulm made a stubborn resistance and the Indians were finally repulsed after about one-third of the town had been burned.
Six weeks after this fight the soldiers moved through the adjoining country to bury the dead scattered all over the prairie. Dr. Ayer was with those who found the remains of the Brown party and there he found the family Bible in which were the names of the deceased, whom he recognized as old acquain- tances. Near at hand sat the faithful family dog, which for six weeks had kept faithful watch over the remains of his master and family. Every afternoon this dog left his charge, went home, drove up the cows as he had been accustomed to do, and after being fed, so those in the home said, he disappeared, and resumed his guard over the dead.
MOLLY BURTON AND THE DOCTOR
"Molly Burton" and the Doctor occupy a unique place in the history of Bristol. Molly was the only real witch that ever lived in town, and that she was a witch and was in league with the Devil, could be easily proven by the testimony of some of the best men and women of the town ; everybody spoke of her as a
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witch, and even her husband declared she was possessed of a devil, and he knew and realized this on many occasions.
Molly's name and influence were not confined to the limits of this town, and wherever she was known she was feared, and not without cause, for not only here but also in all the adjoining towns there were times when persistent churning would not bring butter, and the witch could only be driven from the creamn by turning in scalding water. In many cases hogs could not be fatted ; cattle, while quietly grazing, would suddenly run about, shaking their heads as they went ; farming tools would mysteri- ously disappear, or fall to pieces just when needed ; the women were troubled by their nutcakes soaking too much fat ; the pork would all try away ; strange noises were heard at night; and many other manifestations, seen and heard, proved that a witch was about and Molly must be the one. And then the fact that she was a witch was tested in many ways. It was said that Molly did not and could not enter a house where a horseshoe was nailed near the door; one man stuck a pin in her track as she walked the street and she instantly squatted down and could not rise till the pin was removed; and another man who was savagely attacked by a dog, hit the dog on the head with his walking stick, and then to satisfy himself that the dog was bewitched by Molly he hastened to her home where he found her on the lounge with her head tied up suffering from a wound like that inflicted on the dog. It was not, however, as a witch that Molly was chiefly feared by the Methodists. She used to attend the old Methodist chapel at the base of Sugar hill, and, after the custom of those days, to deliver an exhorta- tion at the close of the sermon. When she arose there was always a sensation because everyone knew that somebody would get hit. She was well versed in the Bible and she would hurl all the curses and maledictions to be found therein at whomso- ever and whatever she would. Usually it was some individual, as when she said "cursed be Esquire Atwood in the name of the Lord, if he kills one of my dogs," and here it may be remarked that she always had several canines, that she had named War, Famine, and Pestilence; or it was the "fiddle" introduced into the choir that aroused her ire, when she "thanked God there would be no fiddle in Heaven." She usually had a word of admoni- tion for the sinners present, and closed with these words "Oh tarn ye, oh, tarn ye, for why will ye die."
Of course such exhortations from such a person could not be tolerated, and many expedients were resorted to to make her stop. Once the minister told her from the pulpit that she must not speak, when she instantly arose with fire in her eyes and hurled her maledictions at him with no uncertain effect. On one occasion, two of the officers of the church carried her from the building ; but a slight interruption like this did not discon-
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cert her and she continued to talk till she reached the door, when she said, "Well ! I am more favored than my Lord. He had but one jackass to ride, while I have two."
Dr. Burton was the husband of Molly. He had two profes- sions, medicine and divinity. His knowledge of medicine was acquired by long years of practice with roots and herbs, and he had the reputation of being quite skilful in this line. His inspiration for preaching was drawn from a mug of cider. While Molly always sought the church to do her preaching, the Doctor did his on the streets, and a single mug of cider would keep him on Zion's walls all night. He usually chose a dark night for his best efforts, and he would station himself in front of the different houses in the village by turn and preach till the lights went out, then he would betake himself to the base of Sugar hill and con- tinue to preach till his inspiration was gone, which sometimes did not occur till the grey hours of morning. On one occasion his preaching was rudely interrupted by a game played by the boys that terribly frightened the Doctor; but when he realized that he was still on earth, he said, "Let us return thanks for this great deliverance," when he varied the exercises by offer- ing a prayer.
In addition to the dogs that Molly claimed as her own, the Doctor had two hounds that always followed him in his peram- bulations, and so he was always sure of an attentive and patient audience. Sometimes when the Doctor was drunk the devil reigned in him as well as in Molly, and it is said that on one occasion he knocked Molly down and stood over her with a broomstick, and to her efforts to rise he said, "Well! Molly I tell you what it is, the farther you get up, the farther you have got to fall."
But in spite of these little episodes Molly and the Doctor lived happily together. Molly always had her mite for the con- tribution box, and both had many a kind deed for the suffering, and when he came to his last sickness she tenderly cared for him, and later erected at his grave in the Bristol cemetery a plain marble slab. Many who knew Molly and the Doctor do not recognize the name on the slab for it reads "William Borden." Some time after the death of the Doctor, Molly removed to an adjoining town, where she died and filled a pauper's grave.
MILLERITE POTATOES
At the time of the Millerite excitement, in the fall of 1843, David Trumbull had a large field of potatoes that he declined to dig because he would not live to need them. One day Hezekiah Sargent asked permission to dig some of them. "Yes," said Trumbull, "dig all you wish. I only want a few to last me the short time I shall stay here." Sargent dug all except a few rows. Time wore away, the world continued to turn on its
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HISTORY OF BRISTOL
axis, and as Trumbull's supply of potatoes was getting low, he called on Sargent for some, when Sargent coolly replied that he did not know as he had any to spare.
EXTRACT FROM RECORDS
This may Certify whom it May Concern that Mr. Jonathan Palmer of Alexandria and Mrs. Lydia Quimby of New Chester have Been Published in the Town of New Chester-New Chester, October ye 22th 1781 Carr Huse Town Clerk.
N. B. Mr. Jonathan Palmer Jr. was the Man Meant to Be Published -and without any Doubt with Me, was universally taken to Be the man Attest Carr Huse Town Clerk.
AN OLD PIT OPENED
In May, 1884, in making excavations for a new boiler-house by the New Hampshire Pulp and Paper company in what was once the tan yard of White's tannery, a tan pit, covered up thirty-five years before and forgotten, was opened. It was full of liquor and sole leather. The liquor was still as bright as when put in and the leather was in a perfect state of preserva- tion.
VITAL STATISTICS
Vital statistics were regarded as of little importance seventy- five years ago. The records of births, marriages, and deaths were very imperfectly kept or not kept at all. An intention of marriage was usually filed according to law which ran like this : "Marriage is intended between John Jones of Bristol and Sally Smith of Bridgewater." This declaration was recorded by the town clerk with date, but in very many instances there was no record of the marriage. Clergymen and justices of the peace frequently performed the ceremony on the simple request of the contracting parties, and afterward, if the parties desired, a record was made. The following is taken from the town books :
Martha Ingalls and myself, Peter Drown, were married Nov. 29, 1829.
The following is a copy of a paper presented to Rev. Wal- ter Sleeper :
Mr. Sleeper -
Marriage is intended between me and Miss Martha Johnson please perform the serimony and I will hold you harmless for anything here- after.
Bristol, Apr. 10, 1823.
Samuel C. Brown.
The ceremony was performed the same day. Henry Bailey and Nancy Barnard were married on the strength of the follow- ing paper :
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INCIDENTS AND ANECDOTES
This may certify that whereas Henry Bailey and Nancy Barnard both of Bristol, intends marriage we the subscribers being the nighest relation to the said Nancy and sister do hereby and in this way freely give our consent
Bristol, Nov. 3, 1827.
Polly Mason Susan Mason
A FEARFUL RIDE
Perhaps no better coasting was ever afforded in Bristol than in January, 1883. A slight rain, followed by freezing, made the roads in prime condition, and the beautiful moonlight eve- nings called out large crowds to enjoy this exhilarating sport. South Main street, from Abram Dolloff's residence to Central square, was alive with both sexes and almost all ages, both as participants and spectators. One of the traverse sleds used, that outstripped all the rest, was twenty-two feet long and would carry from twelve to fifteen men, and, when heavily loaded, traveled with the speed of an express train. Monday evening, Jan. 13, ten young men took a ride on this sled. The party consisted of James B. Huckins, Elmer T. Sanborn, Arthur K. Drake, John P. Drake, William B. Locke, Elbridge S. Bickford, Wesley M. Preston, Edward F. Kendall, Edward M. Drake, and Edward Huckins. They moved down the hill with great velocity, but when going at its greatest speed the sled crossed a water-bar which caused it to spring so high that the transom bolt came out, and the bed-piece settled down on the sled in a way that made steering impossible. James B. Huckins, who held the ropes, called to his companions to jump; but he, Elmer T. San- born, and Edward M. Drake were the only ones who succeeded in getting off. Straight as an arrow and with fearful velocity the sled sped on ; it passed within a foot of the post-office steps, then through the lattice woodwork between the bridge and Post- office block, as though it were but a cobweb ; cleared the fifteen- foot wall with a fearful leap, plunging its load of seven human beings into the middle of Newfound river. E. M. Drake was instantly over the wall and on the ice that skirted the river, assisting his companions out of the water. One was just about to be carried under the ice below, by the strong current, when pulled out. Elbridge S. Bickford succeeded in climbing onto the ice about the pier and was drawn up to the bridge by a rope. The others, with some assistance, succeeded in gaining a foot- hold on the ice on the south shore. The strangest part of the affair was that no one was drowned or sufficiently injured to pre- vent his assisting himself. William B. Locke had one bone of his wrist broken, and this was the only injury received worth men- tioning.
In 1859, an agreement between two individuals concerning the building of a division fence was put on record in Bristol.
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The line described commenced near "a stake and stones in the center of a culprit, thence south to a stake and stones in the center of the next culprit, thence to stake and stones in the curve of the road, thence to stake and stones in center of next culprit, thence to stake and stones in center of last culprit between our lands."
At one time there were three men in town by the name of Samuel Sleeper. There was Samuel who settled on the Aaron Sleeper farm ; his son Samuel, who afterwards changed his name to Samuel Thomas Worthington Sleeper, and Samuel Sleeper, second, who lived on Hemp hill. It was proposed by the crowd that the first and last named should have titles, and that the one that would furnish the most rum as a treat should be called colonel and the other captain. Samuel Sleeper, second, fur- nished a gallon and the other only a quart ; so Samuel, second, won the title of colonel, and the other was thereafter called cap- tain.
HENRY JOHNSON
On the morning of July 13, 1853, the body of Vice Johnson, as he was commonly called, was found in the old stable once connected with the Prescott inn on South Main street. The story of the life of Johnson is a pathetic one. In boyhood, though an orphan, his prospects for life were bright. Of a hap- py, cheery disposition, he was a welcome guest in every home. In company with Ebenezer Fisk, he was baptized and united with the Free Baptist church. He married, and children came to gladden his home. Then the demon rum got in its work. His friends and his family left him and he became an outcast. For many years he was a prominent figure on the streets of Bris- tol ; sometimes at work, but generally idle; sometimes drunk and sometimes sober ; sometimes with three meals a day and as often with none. On Friday, the 12th, he had eaten inordinate- ly, sought a bed on the hay, with no covering, and died before morning. On Sunday the funeral occurred in the Free Baptist church where every seat was occupied, but no relatives accom- panied the remains. The officiating clergyman was Rev. Ebenezer Fisk, the boyhood friend and schoolmate of the deceased. He pictured as only he could the career of the deceased, emphasizing that passage of Scripture that says that no drunkard can inherit the kingdom of heaven. Overcome with emotion he sank to his seat, and though no relatives were present, the tears shed were many. The remains were interred in a pauper's grave.
Less than a hundred years ago the wearing of flowers or
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even gay ribbons on the bonnets of the ladies was unknown. A lady dressed tastily, according to modern ideas, would then have been thought to be attracting the attention of the vulgar. About the year 1825, Miss Jane Bartlett entered the old Metho- dist chapel one Sunday with a flower on her bonnet. This the minister detected, and from the desk commanded her to remove the flower before taking a seat in the house of God. With this the young lady complied.
POST-OFFICE BURGLARY
On the early morning of June 24, 1894, post-office burglars visited the Bristol post-office. Curtis E. Eastman, the post- office clerk, who roomed in the rear of the post-office, heard burglars at work on the street door. His room was connected with the post-office by folding doors, across one of which was a table used in the office. Taking a revolver, he crept under the table. The burglars effected an entrance and then made their way behind a counter to the rear of the room where the office was located. One of the burglars then struck a match to light a lamp, and as soon as the light enabled Mr. Eastman to see his man, he fired. The man fell with a groan to the floor. The light went out and both men scrambled to the door, leaving their hats behind them. Upon reaching the door, one of the men fired a shot at Eastman; but that he was slightly discon- certed was seen in the fact that the bullet struck the ceiling over Eastman's head. Mr. Eastman gave his guests a parting shot as they opened the door. John H. Thurston, who lived in the rear of the post-office, was promptly on the scene, the village was aroused, and the burglars traced to the farm of Frank W. Robinson in New Hampton, where they had stolen a horse and carriage and escaped. They were traced by Policeman Frank S. Kirk, through Sanbornton and Gilmanton, to Rochester ; but, as neither the government nor individuals stood ready to pay expenses, further search was abandoned and the guilty parties were not apprehended.
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