USA > New Hampshire > Rockingham County > Hampton Falls > History of the town of Hampton Falls, New Hampshire : from the time of the first settlement within its borders, 1640 until 1900 > Part 32
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The quality and often the quantity of hay was much increased by drainage. Open ditches were cut from two to three feet in depth and six or eight inches in width. As the marsh settled the ditches closed up at the top while remaining open at the bottom for a long time. After being ditched the marsh presented a much improved look, being clean and free from boggy places, and better kinds of grass came in. Since the marsh has been neglected the ditches in many places have become stopped, and it is going back to its former wet and neglected condition.
William A. Hopkins, an Englishman who came to this town about 1848, dug hundreds of miles of ditches, which was his principal occupation until his death, about 1875. He built the house on Murray's row now ocupied by William Brown. He resided here during the remainder of his life. Mrs. Hopkins was of a social nature and noted for her remarkable conversational powers. She died in 1879.
STORES.
PROBABLY there is nothing in which there has been a greater change, from the past to the present time, than in the methods in which the country towns obtain their groceries and family supplies. Fifty years ago nearly all of this class of goods was purchased out- side of the town in the larger towns and cities. From some cause the people of this town patronized the dealers in Newburyport more than in other places. Probably at that time more groceries con- sumed in this town were procured there than in all other places combined. In those days Newburyport was the favorite market town with our people for trade. On almost any pleasant day quite a number of this town's people could be seen there. Farm produce was taken to market there, sold for cash, or was bartered for sup- plies to be taken home. Nearly all the grain bought came from there. Corn was bought in the olden time and taken home to be ground into meal by the local mills. Afterward, and at a compara- tively recent date, meal began to be sold. This was considered to be a great advantage, as it saved the trouble of going to mill. The grain bought in Newburyport in those days was taken home by team. Now, very few, comparatively, of our people go to New- buryport to purchase supplies. A few patronized the dealers in Exeter, but that town had a reputation for demanding high prices, and was a poor market for what farmers had to sell. These causes kept the majority of our people from going there to trade. In later times quite an amount of the town's trade went to Hampton.
The country stores in the earlier times kept only a small stock of goods and of little variety,-only such things as were most likely to be called for. Customers asked for many things in vain. At that time the country dealer was unable to compete in selling price with his brother trader in town. He could not buy on as favorable terms, and the cost of transportation was more. The trade in the country stores at that time was principally with those who did not keep a horse, or from other causes were obliged to trade at home.
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After the railroads were built and people had learned to utilize them a change came. The country stores began to enlarge their facilities and keep a greater variety of goods, until now there are in nearly every town one or more stores which keep a large stock of all kinds of goods which are liable to be called for,-grain, groceries, hardware, medicines, dry goods, clothing, provisions, farming tools, and other things too numerous to mention.
When the modern country store is situated near the railroad sta- tion, goods can be sold as cheap as in any other place. The dealer can receive his goods as cheaply as the trader in town, while his rent and living cost less. The extension of the railroad system all over the country, and the low rates of freight for long distances, have all tended to give the country storekeeper important advan- tages not formerly possessed. In nearly all country towns the necessaries of life are now purchased in the town where used. Nearly all the stores have delivery wagons that carry goods to the homes of the purchaser, and take orders for what may be needed the day following, so that many families never have occasion to go to the store. Since the country stores have increased the volume and variety of their stock of goods, there has been a great falling off in the out-of-town trade in the larger places.
What is true in this respect in nearly all country towns has also become the custom in Hampton Falls. Although there has always been one or more stores in the town since its early settlement, it is only within a very few years that the trade generally has been con- trolled by our local dealers. Now more than three fourths of the necessaries of life used in the town are purchased at home. The great saving in time and travel which is now possible under this method of doing business is not taken into account when people speak of the good old times, which many people appear to regard as better than the present.
The first store kept in the town of which we have any knowledge was on the south road, on the corner where S. B. Pervear now lives. It was in the latter part of the last century, and was kept by Jere- miah Gove's wife. The ledger kept by her is still in existence and shows that she kept a steek of teas, wines, spices, snuff, rum, gro- ceries, etc., and had a good amount of trade in liquids if not in other departments.
Among the earlier storekeepers in the lower part of the town were John Porter and George Janvrin. The present store has been in existence a great many years. In its early days, and it was prob-
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ably put there as soon as built, was a sign over the door which read "Foreign and Domestic Goods." This sign continued and did duty for a great many occupants of the store, until, because of old age and decay, it had to be removed.
Among those who did business in this store were Josiah Batch- elder, who afterward lived in Amesbury and died there a few years ago. A man named Crocker was here for a short time, as was also George H. Dodge. Elijah Valentine, who came from Massachu- setts, occupied the store for a number of years. He removed to Palmer, Mass., and afterward went west. William H. Hills and John N. Sleeper, who came from Plaistow and had been students in the academy, bought out Mr. Valentine and kept the store for a time. Mr. Hills was appointed postmaster. He is still living in Plaistow, where he has a nursery and does some law business. Mr. Sleeper, after leaving here, engaged in the shoe business in Haver- hill and became well off. He died within a year or two. After Hills & Sleeper, Joseph T. Sanborn kept the store for five years or more, until he went to California in 1854. He was succeeded by Enoch J. Tilton, who kept the store for a year or two at this time. Then George D. Dodge, Larabee, and Standley, each successively, were in trade here. Enoch J. Tilton then returned and kept the store a dozen years or so, until 1872. He was appointed postmaster twice during the time, in 1861 and again in 1869. After leaving here he was in trade for a time in Iowa. He returned and was em- ployed at Marche's cash store in Newburyport for a number of years. He was afterward in trade under the firm name of Tilton & Gerrish, until his death in 1885. Up to this time Joseph Sanborn and Enoch Tilton did more business than any who had previously occu- pied the store, but each did his work without the assistance of a clerk. The store was kept again by G. D. Dodge; then by C. C. Green and James H. Sanborn.
The present proprietor, C. N. Dodge, having enlarged the store and keeping a great variety of goods, has been enabled to extend and increase his business along all the lines carried in a country store at the present time. While in the early days of this store one man could attend to all the business which came and have consid- erable leisure, Mr. Dodge and two assistants have more than they can attend to and additional help has to be employed. The post- office has been kept here since 1885.
Cyrus Brown had a store near his residence where he did consid- erable business more than fifty years ago. He met with some
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reverses, but the store continued to do business for a number of years after. The postoffice was kept here for a number of years previous to 1853, when it was removed. The building where this store was kept was destroyed by fire many years ago. James W. Green, a native of Chester, came here in 1853, and opened a store which was connected with his house. He was appointed postmaster in 1853, and held the office about ten years under two different appointments. He continued in business until 1880, when he was succeeded by his son, Charles C. Mr. Green died in 1883. He had considerable trade, but from being over-cautious did not keep the variety or quantity of goods on hand which would have enabled him to make much larger profits. Charles C. Green kept the store until his death in 1885. He was postmaster at that time. Since his decease the store has been unoccupied. George W. Leavitt built a store upon the "heater" which he has since occupied, selling some groceries, cigars, tobacco, confectionery, etc.
BLACKSMITHS.
IN the summer of 1667, Daniel Tilton asked liberty to "set down here as a smith," engaging to do the town's work "upon as good terms as any other man that doeth use that trade in these parts, and that for the term of four years." The town voted to receive him and granted him four acres of land adjoining the farm of Joseph Shaw. The conditions of the grant were that the said Dan- jel Tilton should have liberty to improve it or dispose of it to any other smith that the town could have no exception against, and if any other smith should come and settle in the town within the term of four years and succeed in drawing away the custom from Tilton, that the liberty to dispose of his land to the town, or, on the town's refusal, to any purchaser he could find, be given him. Tilton accepted these conditions and the four acres of land were laid out, having Joseph Shaw's farm on the northwest and the country way on the southeast, the lot being ten rods wide at the northeast end and twenty-two rods at the southwest end and forty rods in length. This lot was situated where the Baptist church and cemetery are now located, at the hill. The farm of Joseph Shaw was afterward ocenpied by Governor Weare, who married Mr. Shaw's daughter, from whom the farm was inherited.
Daniel Tilton was the first of the name of Tilton who lived in the town, and was the ancestor of all of the name who have ever lived in the town. Capt. Jonathan Tilton, who was prominent in town matters in the years just preceding the Revolutionary War, was a grandson of Daniel Tilton. Nathan Tilton, a grandson, had a blacksmith shop near the Unitarian church. His sons, Benjamin and Stephen, were blacksmiths. Benjamin lived where Albert S. Smith lives, Capt. Stephen where Henry H. Knight now lives. He had a shop near his house, and did much of the town's work, probably all in the upper part of the town. He died in 1821. There had been blacksmiths by the name of Tilton in the town for more than one hundred and fifty years, from Daniel, in 1667, till the death of Capt. Stephen in 1821.
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Eben Brown was a blacksmith and had a shop on the spot where Horace A. Godfrey's lawn now is. He was a ship smith, and did iron work for Nathaniel Healey and others, who at that time were building vessels. He must have been there soon after the close of the Revolutionary War. He shod the stage horses. He was a man of ingenuity and designed new patterns of shoe buckles, etc. He came here from Seabrook.
Aaron M. Gove afterward had a shop on the same spot. Before coming here he lived on the south road where Warren B. Pervear now lives, and had a shop there. He came here about 1836, and built the house now occupied by Mr. Godfrey. He died in 1850. There was a blacksmith shop in this immediate vicinity where the stage horses were shod from the time the stages began to run. Jonathan Steward, who was a Revolutionary soldier from this town, appears to have worked here. He disappears from the record, 1787.
About 1835, or after the Christian Baptist society built their new meeting-house, the old building, which had previously been used for a church, was sold to Richard C. Marsh, who moved it to the north side of the road, near Kenny brook, on land now owned by Mr. Towle. The old church was fitted up for a blacksmith shop. Richard Marsh, with the assistance of helpers, oftentimes his broth- ers, who were all blacksmiths, did a large business in horse and cat- tle shoeing. He remained here until 1846, when he removed to Amesbury, where he was a popular horseshoer for many years. He was succeeded by his brother Alfred, who continued here until 1855, when he went west. Alfred did a very large business of horse- shoeing. People at the present time would be surprised to see the number of horses which came here to be shod, some of them from . quite a distance away. Both the Marshes were expert horseshoers. Horses lamed by shoeing were not much heard of after being shod by them. Before locating here both had shod horses for the East. ern Stage Company at their shop in Newburyport. Colonel Col- man, who was agent of the company, said that they were the most skillful shoers he had ever employed. Alfred Marsh was a giant, weighing more than four hundred pounds. He was engaged in blacksmithing and farming after leaving here. He died in the town of Hart, near Winona, Minnesota, in 1868. He had a large family, a number of whom survive him. One or more of his sons were killed in the war of the Rebellion. Some of his sons are en- gaged in the cattle business in the northwest, and have been finan- cially successful.
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HISTORY OF HAMPTON FALLS.
After Mr. Marsh left the shop it remained idle for a number of years. William Truesdale bought it and moved it across the road, living in one part and using the remainder for a blacksmith shop. When he removed to Salisbury, Mass., the old shop was taken down, and the shop now standing at Gravelly ridge was built from the lumber taken from it.
John F. Jones and George S. Merrill occupied the present shop on the main road below the hill. They had a prosperous business for a number of years, in slack times getting carriage work from Amesbury. After a time Mr. Merrill retired, Mr. Jones and his son Charles continuing the business until the death of Mr. Jones in 1889. John Jones was a good horseshoer, and a neat job work- man. Charles went to Amesbury and afterward removed to Con- necticut. J. J. Kelley of Newburyport occupied the shop for a few years. The Harrison brothers, who came from St. John, New Brunswick, are the present occupants and do a large business.
There have been a number of other blacksmiths in the town at different times, of whom we have little definite knowledge. There have been times when considerable of the town's work was taken outside the town to be done. Enoch P. Young of Hampton, who was one of the most skillful workmen ever in this vicinity, has done ¿a great deal of work for the people of this town, as have other black- smiths in Hampton, Seabrook, and Exeter.
SHOEMAKERS.
THE first we remember of shoemakers was when Capt. Caleb Towle made custom boots and shoes in a little shop near his house. Those who wanted foot-wear went there and had their feet meas- ured, oftentimes carrying their own leather, which had been tanned from the hides of animals killed upon the farm. If the customers did not have the leather he would supply it. The first boots ever worn by many of the older men in the town were made by Captain Towle. He also did mending and repairing, called cobbling.
John Brown, Esq., did quite a large business in custom work in the upper part of the town. Sewall Brown did a great deal of mending and cobbling. Before these men made boots and shoes in their shops it was the custom for the shoemaker to take his kit of tools and go from house to house, where he worked until each member of the family was supplied. This method was known as "whipping the cat." All this happened before the days of ready- made goods, and the appearance of boot and shoe stores in every place of any considerable size.
After this there were a great many sale shoes made in the town in little shops or in a room in the dwelling-house fitted for the pur- pose. Ladies' turned shoes were the kind made here. A great deal of money was earned in this town by doing this kind of work fifty years ago. The binding of shoes was quite an industry in many families. The women and girls earned enough in this way to elothe themselves and have some ready money to use for other pur- poses. As they lived at home they had no additional expense to be taken from their earnings. In those days the work was mostly obtained from Lynn, and so much work was done in the towns about here that a number of shoe expressmen found employment in bringing and returning work. Brown Brothers did quite a large business in this line during and in the years after the war.
But the fashion of this world changes, and great changes were made in the methods of shoe manufacturing. Now, the work is
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HISTORY OF HAMPTON FALLS.
mostly done in large establishments by machinery. But very little work is done anywhere by hand. In these large establishments each workman or woman does one thing only, each shoe passing through a number of different hands before being completed. Those who are called expert workmen under this system would be unable to do the entire work and make a shoe. Since the change in the methods of manufacture, those who can obtain work to do at home are comparatively few. In this as in everything else the big concerns are enabled to do the work cheaper, and this makes it impossible for the small establishments to exist and do business. This is not an advantage to the common people, as under the old system many people could employ their leisure time at home in a way which brought in considerable income, and was a great improve- ment to the financial condition of the family.
In 1846 and 1847 Hills & Sleeper, who were at that time occu- pants of the store, employed a number of men in the manufacture of shoes in the room over the store. This was the first instance where a number of men in this town ever worked together under the direc- tion of one man or firm in the manufacture of shoes. Some years after, Ira N. Blake and George T. Stanley manufactured shoes at the same place.
In 1871 and 1872 Jerome Ingalls of Lynn. Mass., occupied the old Rockingham Academy building as a shoe-shop. A large busi- ness was done here, and a great many workmen employed. During his stay a great deal of money was earned by the local workmen, as the prices paid were much higher than at present.
John A. Dow built the shop on the Newburyport road, which was occupied at first by Sweetser of Lynn, afterward by Lancaster of the same place. During his occupancy, Ira N. Blake had charge of the shop and a large amount of business was done. In 1880, Blake & Lancaster moved their shop to Pittsfield, where the busi- ness was much enlarged and continued for a number of years. After them came Tibbetts of Lynn for a few years. This shop has not been in operation for a number of years.
There are usually a few workmen who live here who find employ- ment in the shops at Newburyport, going and returning daily upon the train.
MILK BUSINESS.
IN 1849, the first milk was sent from this town to supply the Bos- ton retail market, and it was probably the beginning of the busi- ness of sending milk from New Hampshire to Boston, which has since assumed large proportions and become a matter of a great deal of importance to the farmers all over the state. A man named MeLoud began the business here, taking from one to two hundred cans daily, which were carried upon the passenger train. Mr. Charles F. Chase collected the milk every morning in season to put it on the first train, which reached here at 7.30 A. M. Milk was then sold by beer measure. Our farmers thought that the cans were very large and that it took a great deal of milk to fill them. There were two sizes of cans in use,-seven and eight quart. The seven-quart can was the same size as those holding eight quarts and one pint, now in general use. The eight-quart cans held nearly ten quarts, wine measure. Mr. McLoud continued the business for two or three years.
In 1852, the business appears to have been managed by the pro- ducers. True M. Prescott went daily to Boston with the milk and attended to its distribution and sale. In 1853, Charles T. Brown was the messenger who went with the milk and made the returns to the producers. Before 1854, the milk was carried to Boston on the passenger train. At this time a change was made and the milk was transported upon the freight train in a car specially fitted for the purpose. The milk was loaded and iced in the evening, and expected to reach its destination in good order next morning. al- though the freight trains at that time did not run with the regular- ity that they do at the present. At first ice was only used in warm weather; now it has been found necessary all the year. About 1855, Mr. F. W. Atkins owned and conducted the business, which he con- tinued to do until the beginning of the war in 1861. He owned the farm now occupied by Albert S. Smith, which he carried on by ten- ants who collected the milk from the farmers and loaded it into
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the car. He built a large and expensive barn upon his farm in 1857.
Mr. Charles F. Chase, who was station agent, conducted the busi- ness for a number of years during the war and a little later. He was succeeded by a man named Tuxbury. His agents who attended to the business here were Gen. C. A. Nason and Mrs. Mary A. Dow. After them Hodgdon & Libby managed the business in such a man- ner as to cause the loss of several thousands of dollars to our farmers.
The business had at this time reached a low ebb, when the Lynn Milk Company acquired it and moved its headquarters to Hamp- ton, where they invested considerable money in building a large stable and ice-house, keeping a number of horses and men and do- ing the whole business of collecting and loading the milk. which now went to Lynn market, where it has continued to go. In 1893, Lemuel Brock of Lynn took the car. He kept the business until the spring of 1896. Mr. Brock treated the farmers better than any contractor we had previously had.
H. P. Hood & Sons now own and conduct the business. Harry B. Brown of this town has collected the milk and had entire charge of the business at this end of the route since it was purchased by Mr. Brock in 1893.
It appears that the farmers of this town have sold milk for about fifty years, and it must be conceded that the business has been a benefit to the town during that time. Much of the ready money which has been received by the farmers of the town during that time has been received from the sale of milk. They have usually been paid every month, so that the money invested has been used often and has become quick capital. A great deal of grain has been fed, and the large amount of good manure made and applied has increased the fertility of the farms, encouraging other money crops to grow, so that there has been an indirect as well as a direct benefit to those who have engaged in the business. Those who have sold milk have, as a rule, been more prosperous than those who have not. Although the price of milk has been low in many instances, it has amounted to a good sum when the whole year is taken into the account.
There has always been considerable fault found with the con- tractors in relation to the methods by which they conduct the busi- ness. The producers justly complain that they have no voice in set- ting the price, or in saying how much they are to receive for the milk; that in flush times they receive a great deal of sour milk which
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is sent back, while as good, or poorer, milk in a scant time is taken without any question. The farmers claim that when they deliver the milk in good order it should be paid for, regardless of the con- dition of the market, and that they should not be called upon to stand more than their proportion of the loss, which in too many instances they appear to do.
ROCKINGHAM ACADEMY.
THE idea of an academy at Hampton Falls was first considered at the Portsmouth Baptist Association meeting held at Chester October, 1833, and a committee was appointed to inquire into and investigate the merits of the project, and to see if the proposed loca- tion was a proper one, and if they should be favorably impressed, to see if the friends of education in that place would erect a suitable building for the purpose. The investigation proved satisfactory, and a committee consisting of George H. Dodge, Richard Dodge, Thayer S. Sanborn, and Nathan Brown promptly erected a building suitable for the purpose at a cost of $1,900, which amount was raised in the town. It was built upon the common opposite the Baptist church. The building was fifty feet in length and thirty-two feet in width, two stories, hip-roofed, with a bell tower, and steeple ris- ing from the center.
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