USA > New Hampshire > Hillsborough County > Mason > History of the town of Mason, N. H. from the first grant in 1749, to the year 1858 > Part 28
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Such was the humble, carnest life of him, of whose history and character, it is proposed here to give a brief outline. His was the quiet life of a retired pastor of a country church ; of one, whose highest ambition it was, to be a faith- ful preacher of the gospel, to those whom God had placed under his care. It is the object of this sketch, to enable those who read it, to form a distinct idea of his individual character, of his manner of life, and of the general results of his labors; and the many friends who revered and loved him
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while living, to preserve a fresh and vivid memory of their departed pastor, counselor and friend.
Ebenezer Hill, the subject of this memoir, was born in Cambridge, Mass., January 31st, 1766. He was the youngest son of Samuel Hill and Sarah Cutler, his wife. His father was born in Boston, but of his parentage and ancestry, nothing is certainly known. He was a carpenter by trade, but never rose above the condition of the most humble poverty. He served as a common soldier, in the war of the revolution, and returned to Cambridge at its close, to resume his occupation as a carpenter. After his son Samuel settled in Mason, he came to that place, and resided there with him, most of the time, till the close of his life. He died at Mason, June 21st, 1798, aged about sixty-six years. His mother, Sarah Cutler, was born in the year 1733, in what was, April 24th, 1746, incorporated as the second precinct of Concord, and afterwards on the 19th of April, 1754, incorporated as a town by the name of Lincoln. Her father, Ebenezer Cutler, was one of the petitioners for the incorporation of the pre- cinct. She was a woman of great energy. With very scanty means, and, in a great measure, with the labor of her own hands, she provided for the support, training and education of her children. In October, 1781, she purchased a lot of land in Cambridge, thirty feet square, for the price of "nine pounds, twelve shillings, lawful money of this Common- wealth." It is described in the deed, as lying "on the north side of the house of Moses and William Boardman, deceased ; on the road leading to Lexington." It was about one mile northerly of the colleges. Upon this plot, she placed a small cottage house, in which she and her family resided. The building was a portion of barracks occupied by the Rev- olutionary army, when stationed at Cambridge. The land was appraised by three disinterested persons, in June, 1796, at one hundred and thirty-five dollars. It undoubtedly com- prised, at that time, the principal part of the family estate. About the year 1790, she went to Mason, and resided there
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with her son Ebenezer, until the close of her life. She died December 30th, 1808, aged seventy-five years.
Two sons, Samuel and Ebenezer, were their only children. Samuel, the eldest, was born in 1764. He was a carpenter by trade, and followed that occupation through life. It seems that the brothers at an early period, formed the reso- lution to fix their residence in the same town. Samuel writes to Ebenezer from Goshen, Vermont, under date of November 24th, 1787, as follows: "If things will permit, as you wrote to me about our living in one town, I hope, that by the blessing of God, we shall; but when, I know not, but must wait God's own due time." This purpose, so early formed, was accomplished. Samuel came to reside in Mason, proba- bly, in the year 1792. He was certainly resident there early in 1793, and there he passed the remainder of his life, a useful, industrious man, noted for sterling integrity and inde- pendence of character; a good husband, father, and citizen. He died May 23d, 1813, aged forty-nine years. His first wife was Dorcas Wyeth, born in Cambridge. She died at Mason, January 19th, 1807, at the age of thirty-seven years.
His second wife, was Mary Adams, daughter of John and Mary Adams, born in Mason, August 11th, 1780. They were married in September, 1809. This wife survived him, and is still (January, 1858) living in widowhood, at Mason.
Ebenezer, the second son of Samuel and Sarah, was the favorite son of his mother. By the devotion, on her part, of all her means to that end, he was prepared at the age of sixteen years, to enter Harvard college. His preparatory studies were pursued at the grammar school in Cambridge, under the tuition among other teachers, of the late Rev. Dr. Bancroft, of Worcester, and Rev. Dr. Kendall, of Newton. Students were then admitted to the college, upon a personal examination into their literary qualifications, made by the officers of the college; and if found by them to be sufficiently grounded in the requisite preparatory studies, and to furnish the proper testimonials of moral character, their names were
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entered upon the books of the steward as students, on their producing the bond, and making the payments required by the college laws. A printed extract from these laws, was delivered to the student, whose examination had been found to be satisfactory, pointing out what further was required to be done on his part, before he could become a member of the college. This document, as well as the bond he gave, was found carefully preserved, among his papers. It is thought that as a matter of curiosity, and as illustrating the manners of the times, most readers of this book, will feel interest enough in the subject, at least to excuse its insertion. It is as follows :
"Extract from the second and third laws of Chapt. 1st, of the College Laws.
CHAP. I. PART OF LAW 2D.
" The Parents or Guardians of those who have been approved on Examination, or some other person, shall pay three pounds to the Steward, towards defraying their College Charges ; also, give bond to the Steward, with one or more Sureties to his Satisfaction, in the sum of two hundred ounces of silver, to pay College Dues Quarterly, as they are charged in the Quarter Bills, Viz : the Stewards, Glaziers and Sweep- ers. And in case of Death or Removal before College Charges arise, to the sum of three pounds, the Steward shall return the remainder to the person who gave the bond."
In the original paper the sums expressed were "thirty shil- lings," which was erased, and "three pounds" inserted; and "Forty pounds" erased, and "two hundred ounces of silver" inserted; and "thirty shillings" erased, and "three pounds" inserted.
"Part of Law 3d. Every one that has been accepted, shall, as soon as may be, exhibit to the President, a Certificate of the Steward, that the foregoing rules have been complied with. Upon the receipt of which, the President shall sign an
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. Order for the Admission of such Person, in the following words :
Cantabrigiæ Augusti.
Addmittatur in Collegium Harvardinum. A. B. Præses.
And the Order shall be kept on File by the Steward. And no one shall be allowed to take Possession of any chamber in the College, or receive the Instructions of that Society, or be considered a member thereof, until he has been admitted according to the form prescribed."
This paper is dated July 19th, 1782. At the foot, is a memorandum in the hand-writing of Joseph Willard, the president, and signed by him as follows :
"The above alterations were made in conformity to a late order of the Government of the College.
J. WILLARD, Presdt."
Upon the first page of the same sheet, is the admittatur in the words following :
"FORM OF ADMISSION.
"Cantabrigia Julii 13º 1782. Admittatur in Collegium Harvardinum Ebenezer Hill.
JOSEPHUS WILLARD, Præses."
The bond required, was signed by his mother's brothers, Elisha Cutler of Waltham, yeoman, and Jonas Cutler of Groton, shop-keeper, and is dated August 13th, 1782.
He thus become a member of this venerable and useful insti- tution, and supported by the exertions of his mother, and his expenses borne, in part, by the aid furnished by funds liber- ally and thoughtfully contributed by benevolent persons, to enable students in want of pecuniary means to pursue their studies, he completed his college course with commendable diligence, and a fair exhibition of scholarly attainments, but without displaying any striking traits of character, or meet- ing with any note-worthy incidents ; a sample of that class of
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industrious, persevering and conservative students and pro- fessional men, who have contributed in no small degree, to make the character of the New England people and their institutions, what it has been, and, it is hoped, will continue to be, for all coming time.
Of his student life, few memorials remain; but these are enough to prove it to have been both pleasant and profitable. He always spoke of, it as if the associations connected with it were agreeable, and there remain indications of his progress, which shew that it must have been with him a time of indus- try, and of creditable success. His knowledge of the Latin language, was quite accurate, and he retained his fondness for that noble speech until his old age.
While in college, he acquired a habit of exactness which remained with him through life. His penmanship, which was always singularly uniform, close and beautiful, was carly acquired. A blot or illegible word, or word misspelt, will hardly be found in all his manuscripts, which are very numerous, embracing a period of more than seventy years. There is no difficulty, in recognizing the same beautiful hand through the entire period. A sample of his hand-writing, being a fac simile of a page of one of his sermons, will be found among the illustrations of this work.
There is now, in the possession of the writer, a manuscript book of one hundred and thirty foolscap pages, containing a system of mathematics, as taught while he was a member of the college, being, in fact, the exercises required to be wrought out by the student, in that branch of study ; embrac- ing arithmetic, algebra, geometry, surveying, drawing, &c., all written and executed with the most singular neatness and care. The diagrams are drawn with great beauty and accuracy, and some of them are carefully and tastefully colored. There is, also, in the same possession, a letter written on his eightieth birth-day, which, when compared with the manuscript book, shews the same hand almost unchanged. Nor did it ever change, until his powers so
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failed that his trembling hand no longer obeyed his will, and the feeble lines traced by it, too plainly showed the decay of old age.
He graduated at the commencement, in 1786. Among his class-mates were the Hon. Timothy Bigelow, many years speaker of the house of representatives, of Massachusetts ; Rev. Alden Bradford, secretary of the commonwealth, and author of a valuable history of the state; Rev. Dr. Wm. Har- ris, president of Columbia College; Hon. John Lowell, distinguished as a jurist, a politician, a controversial writer and an agriculturalist; Hon. Isaac Parker, chief justice of the supreme judicial court of Massachusetts; and Thomas W. Thompson, and Christopher Grant Champlin, members of the house of representatives and of the senate of the United States. Of his intimate friends in the class, the Rev. Jacob Norton, formerly of Weymouth, survived him. He died at Billerica, where the last years of his life were spent, January 17th, 1858, at the age of ninety-three years, eleven months, five days, being, at the time of his death, the oldest surviv- ing graduate of Harvard College.
There is a fact worthy of a moment's notice, as an indica- tion of the comparative longevity of the New England clergy. In his class, the number of graduates was forty-five. Ten of these were clergymen. When the triennial catalogue of 1839 was published, but fifteen of this class were living, and of that number, seven were clergymen. As another indica- tion of the same fact, it is worthy of note, that on the first day of May, 1854, there were residing in the state of New Hampshire, within a distance not exceeding in all fifteen miles of each other, three congregational clergymen, whose united ages would make two hundred and seventy-eight years ; Rev. Laban Ainsworth of Jaffrey, at the age of ninety-seven, Rev. Gad Newell, of Nelson, at the age of ninety-three, Rev. Ebenezer Hill, of Mason, at the age of eighty-eight years ; all of them enjoying a comfortable measure of health, and all of them residing in the town and society in which they
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were originally settled in the ministry ; Mr. Ainsworth having passed his one hundredth, and Mr. Newell his ninety-sixth year, still (January, 1858) survive. Another remarkable instance of the longevity of the clergymen of that time and region, is presented in the fact, that in February, 1858, there were living, four graduates of Dartmouth college, whose united ages exceeded four hundred years ; viz : the Rev. John Sawyer, D. D., of Bangor, Maine, one hundred and two years and four months, the Rev. Laban Ainsworth, of Jaffrey, N. H., one hundred years, seven months, the Rev. Ethan Osborn, of Fairton, N. J., ninety-nine years, five months, and the Rev. Zachariah Greene, of Hampstead, L. I., ninety-nine years, one month ; all undoubtedly natives of New England.
Soon after graduating, in the autumn of 1786, he com- menced school-teaching in Westford. He remained there, and in that employment, about two years. Here he formed the acquaintance with his first wife, Mary Boynton, daughter of Nathaniel Boynton, and Rebecca (Barrett) his wife. While residing at Westford, he seems to have finally determined on, and made choice of the gospel ministry, as his profession and business in life. In a letter from his friend and class- mate, Tapley Wyeth, dated June 9th, 1787, occurs this sen- tence. "I am glad to hear you are determined on the study of divinity ; the prospects are bright, when compared with those of the other learned professions." This, to be sure, was a very mundane view of the subject, but it was one per- fectly in accordance with the notions on this question, by many entertained at that period. With the subject of this memoir, there is reason to believe, that the considerations finally inducing him to the adoption of this line of life, were of a much more grave, serious and appropriate character. The citation is made, rather to show that at this early period he had made known to his friend, his determination to adopt the clerical profession, rather than to indicate his ultimate inducements to that choice.
It was, in those days, customary for young men soon after,
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if not before, graduating, to make choice of a professional life according to their several tastes. It was not then, as now, among the clergy calling themselves orthodox, deemed an essential qualification, before commencing the study of theol- ogy, that the student should possess and profess personal piety, and manifest it by uniting with some church ; but the embryo preacher chose his profession, undoubtedly in most instances, with serious reflection and consideration; and acquired his piety and religious experience, not before, but after he commenced his theological studies. Whether Mr. Hill's thoughts were turned in this direction, before, or soon after graduating, is not now known, but it is understood that he had in his own mind, made choice of this walk in life, before he was the subject of any personal religious impressions. While engaged in his duties as a teacher at Westford, the thought occurred to him, when contemplating his purpose of a clerical life, how inconsistent it would be for him to undertake to teach others the way of life, and become their spiritual guide, when he was himself ignorant of "the way, the truth and the life." This reflection fastened itself upon his mind, and led to deep, serious, and anxious enquiry, resulting in religious conversion, and the full and sincere dedication of his life and all its energies, to the work of the ministry. This incident of his religious life and experience, a subject to which he was, in his intercourse with his most intimate friends, singu- larly sparing in any allusion, is preserved alone in the mem- ory of Mrs. Dunster, who in a venerable old age, with a remarkable preservation of mental vigor, remains in the year 1858, the sole surviving member of the church as constituted at the time of his ordination as its pastor. The authority for this statement, is the funeral sermon, preached at Mason village, after the death of Mr Hill, by the Rev. Mr. Kellogg.
A singular incident connected with his school-teaching at Westford, was brought to light a few years before his death. As it exhibits a remarkable instance of firmness, decision of character, energy and perseverance in a yankee boy, conduct-
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ing him to the most honorable and useful stations in life, it is hoped that the use made of the correspondence, as an illus- tration of the manners of the times and the characters of the actors, by its introduction here for that purpose, will be pardoned. In January, 1848, Mr. Hill received by mail the following letter :
M-, Vermont, Jan'y 4, 1848.
REV. EBENEZER HILL,
My Dear Sir :- I noticed, not long since, your name as a clergyman in Mason, in a New Hampshire register. My object in writing to you is, to ascertain if you are the person, that taught a district school in Westford, about the winter of 1788. Will you be so kind as to inform me by mail, and if I find that you are the same person, I will then, inform you of my object, in asking for this information.
Yours, with great respect, J- R -.
To this letter, Mr. Hill replied as follows :
MASON, JAN'Y 10, 1848. MR. J-R -:
SIR :- I received a line from you, requesting information, whether I am the person who taught a district school in Westford, in the winter of 1788.
In answer to your question, I say, I graduated at Cam- bridge, in the year 1786, and in the autumn of the year, took the town school in Westford, for a year. This school, I kept two years, removing from one distriet to another. Whether the turn came to the Forge, or Stony Brook district in the winter of 1788, I do not recollect. But of this I am sure, that there was no school kept in the town, in those two years, other than was taught by me, and, for a season, after quitting the schools, I remained in Westford, and made that town my home, so that I feel confident, that no school-master of the name of Hill, taught a school in Westford, but myself.
I shall, sir, with some degree of excited curiosity be wait- ing, for the promised information, respecting the enquiry.
Respectfully yours, EBEN'R HILL.
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To this the following reply was received :
M-, Vt., Jan'y 18, 1848.
REV. EBENEZER HILL :
Dear Sir :- Yours of the 10th instant is received, in whichi you say, you taught school in Westford two years, commenc- ing in the autumn of 1786. I am satisfied, that you are the person I have been anxious to find, for the last half century or more. I am the son of J- R-, living in the east part of the town. I attended your school in the winter of 1787, and in the fall of the same year, when you kept in the middle of the town, also, the winter school of 1788, you kept in the district where my father resided. Col's Wright and Osgood lived in the same district. I think you boarded with Capt. Peletiah, or Capt. Thomas Fletcher, both winters. All passed pleasantly, till the last week in February, when for some trifling fault, in (say whispering,) being then only eleven years of age, you called me up, and ordered me to stand out in the middle of the floor, about an hour before the school closed in the afternoon, and let me stand there without my reading or spelling, until the school closed for the day, and without your saying a word to me; which I considered a great insult. I therefore remained, until you and the scholars had retired, except a young man (Levi Wright) who was to take care of the house. I then thought of revenge, &c., and collected your books, inkstand and ruler, with intent to burn them up; but before I could effect the object, Levi Wright discovered what I was doing, and inter- fered, and saved all except the inkstand, ruler, and a small book or two, say to the value from three to six shillings worth. Wright told me I should be whipped to death the next day, which brought me to my senses. I then resolved to leave the country. I had an uncle visiting at my father's, who lived at Plymouth, N. H. I resolved to go home with him, to get clear of punishment, and finally persuaded my father to let me go, though he would not if he had known the reason, and I was off in a day or two; so I escaped the
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punishment I so richly deserved, without my parents know- ing my erime, and I never returned [to reside in the town.] I have ever regretted my fault and error, and have intended, if ever I could see you, or learn your place of residence, to make an apology and satisfaction, though, perhaps, you have long since forgotten the transaction. I now sir, enclose to you $5,00, to pay debt and interest, ,which I hope you will receive with the same kind feelings, which I have in sending it to you ; and wish you to consider my extreme youth when the error was committed. Perhaps you may have some curi- osity to know my success in life, &c. I resided in Plymouth until May, 1803, when I came into this state and engaged in trade, and followed trade successfully about thirty years. In public life, I have been eight years a representative to the legislature, a justice of the peace thirty years, a judge of our courts some years, also, judge of probate in this county, one of the electors of president and vice president of the United States, (Harrison) one of the council of censors to revise the constitution of this state, county treasurer the last twenty years, and many minor offices. I now live in retire- ment, being seventy-one years of age. Respectfully yours, with my best wishes for your health and happiness.
J-R -.
P. S. Will you be so good as to acknowledge the receipt of this, and oblige J. R.
The substance of Mr. Hill's letter in reply, is as follows : HON. J- R ----.
Dear Sir :- Yours of the 18th instant, came safe to hand, and you may be assured it has been read repeatedly, with deeply interested feelings. I thank you for the favor. It has led to some reflections on the ways of Divine Providence in bringing about events very important, yet unlooked for, and unexpected. Who would have thought that the wild freaks of a boy eleven years old, in attempting to escape punishment for a pardonable fault in school, would lead him
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to forsake his father's house, and all the endearments of home and family connections, and youthful acquaintances ? that such an event, should be the first step to bring that youth to fill places of honor and trust to which few aspire, and to which very few attain ? And yet, had one link been wanting in the chain of events which placed J- R-, the little lad, with his distant relatives in Plymouth, he would not be, as at this day, the Hon. J- R-, in Ver- mont, having filled most of the various offices of high and honorary trust. With respect to the " debt and interest" of which you write, I had no debt, and the circumstances named, were entirely forgotten. If debt was due to either, it was rather to you, than to me. However, I receive the sum gratefully, as a token of your kind remembrance and contin- ued friendship. I rejoice in the blessings which God has bestowed upon you, and hope still to enjoy your kind remem- brance while I remain on earth. Judging from the pleasure I have received in the sketches of your life, I am led to presume that it will not be entirely uninteresting to you, to learn some of the events of my life since the time to which your letter refers.
After leaving the school, I made Westford my principal home, until I went to read with Dr. Payson of Rindge. In the year 1790, I was ordained pastor of the congregational church in Mason, and that relation has continued to the pres- ent day. I have had two colleague pastors settled with me, but now am alone in that office. I have been blessed with an unusual degree of health, having in all my ministry, but very few times been taken off from public ministerial labors, for want of health, and through the abounding mercy of God, have been spared to see the last day of January, 1848, which completed my eighty-second year of pilgrimage on earth. But four or five are now living in the town, who were at the head of a family, when I became their minister." The letter closes with some particular details of his family, which will be more pertinently introduced in another connection.
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To resume the narrative. After elosing his school-teaching at Westford, he pursued the study of theology with the Rev. Seth Payson, (afterwards known as Dr. Payson,) of Rindge, N. H. While residing at Rindge, and in his family, he united with the church in Rindge, by profession, September 28th, 1788.
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