USA > New Hampshire > Strafford County > Dover > Landmarks in ancient Dover, New Hampshire > Part 8
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seems to have been the only fortified garrison on the north side of the Cochecho river Feb. 17, 1696-7, when the government ordered that the bridge (boom) "broken and gone," should be speedily repaired, in order that Heard's garrison might be relieved in case of an attack by the enemy. Six men were ordered to be sent to Heard's garrison Ap. 15, 1697. (Ibid., 2 : 223, 227.) This garrison is mentioned Jan. 16, 1721, when Stephen Varney conveyed to Wm. Welland "30 acres of land, which was the homestead of John Heard, deceased, lying in Cochecho, beginning at the highway at the back side of Lt. Tristram Heard's house, and running W. by N. to the end of the lot, taking in the Old Gar- rison House."
VI. MEETING-HOUSE FORT or GAR- RISON. Capt. Peter Coffin agreed, the 4th, 5 mo., 1667, to build a fort about the meeting-house on Dover Neck, 100 feet square, with two Sconces 16 feet square, all the tim- bers to be 12 inches thick, and the wall to be & fect high, with sills and braces. It was ordered by the Gov- ernor and Council, March 13, 1683-4, " that the meeting-house at Dover be immediately fortified, and a line drawn about it, which meeting-house shall be the main garrison for de- fending the inhabitants against the attacks of the enemy; also that the house, formerly called the Watch House, be a by-guard." (Ibid., 1:499.) " The garrison about ye ministry house on Dover Neck" is spoken of May 11, 1697. (Ibid., 17 : 656.) This house and its fortifica- tions are now gone. The land where it stood was purchased a few years
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Landmarks in Ancient Dover.
ago by the Hon. C. H. Sawyer and Mr. E. R. Brown, and presented by them to the Congregational Society of Dover. (See Nutter's Hill.) The guard house, mentioned above, is re- ferred to in Job Clement's will of Sept. 4, 1682, in which he gives his grandchild Jane Kenney a part of his six acre lot " near the watch house on Dover Neck."
VII. OTIS' GARRISON. This garri- son stood about half way between Heard's and Waldron's garrisons, on the brow of a hill on the west side of what is now Central Avenue, near Milk St. It was built by Richard Otis, ancestor of the present writer, who settled in Dover as early as 1655. The N. H. authorities ordered, March 13, 1683-4, that his house should be immediately fortified, as one of the " by-garrisons " of Cochecho, for the security of the neighboring inhabi- tants. (N. H. Prov. Pap., 1:499.) It was destroyed by the Indians June 28, 1689, on which occasion Richard Otis was killed, together with his son Stephen and daughter Hannah. His wife, and twenty-eight other inmates of the garrison, were taken captive.
VIII. PAINE'S GARRISON. Mention is made of Thomas Paine's garrison being surrounded by a band of Ind- ians in the night of June 27-28, 1689. (Ibid., 2:51.) It was prob- ably destroyed on that occasion, for no mention is made of it subse- quently. Dr. Quint says it stood close to the house of the late Capt. James Varney, on the turnpike road (Portland St.), near the corner of Rogers St. ; but on what authority does not appear. It was undoubt- edly on that side of the Cochecho river, however-probably on Mt. Raw-
lings, where Thomas Paine acquired land and a dwelling-house March 5, 1673. (See Mount Rawlings.)
IX. PINKHAM'S GARRISON. This garrison was built by Richard Pinck- hame, of the Dover Combination. It stood on the west side of Dover Neck, on gently sloping land overlooking Back river, that for six generations remained in possession of the Pink- ham family, covering a space of about 250 years. It is now owned by Mr. Charles Thompson. About four rods west of his house stood the garrison, which was taken down about 1825.
X. SAMUEL TIBBET'S GARRISON. Mentioned in 1696, when Richard Clay was stationed there from Ap. 13 till June 8. This garrison was on Dover Neck. Samuel Tibbet's land in the upper part of Dover Neck, on the east side, is mentioned in 1702. He was still living Feb. 9, 1733-4, when he declared himself to be 67 years old. "Capt. Samuel Tibbets " is spoken of Ap. 17, 1742, as "deceased." See Watering qut. p.26c.
XII. VARNEY'S GARRISON. This garrison was on the Blackwater road in Dover, some distance N. W. of Willand's pond. It was no doubt built by Stephen Varney, who, Oct. 24, 1719, acquired part of Win. Pom- frett's hundred-acre grant in Coche- cho woods, bordering on Mr. Rey- ner's 400 acre grant, at the east. It was a large garrison of two stories, the second story projecting about three feet beyond the first. During the French and Indian wars of the last century it is said to have afforded shelter to all the neighboring farm- ers. It was still standing in 1834, in which year it is mentioned as the " Old Garrison " on Whitehouse's
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Landmarks in Ancient Dover.
map of Dover. It was taken down not long after, and some of its tim- bers were used in the construction of the Bickford house near Faggoty bridge, now owned by Mr. Moses Hussey. The cellar, however, can still be traced.
XIII. WALDRON'S GARRISON. This garrison was built by Major Richard Waldron, founder of the Cochecho settlement. It stood north of the Cochecho river, on the west side of Central Avenue, between First and Second streets, directly behind the National Block, which, as Dr. Quint says, should have been called Wal- dron's block. The present Court House stands on a part of this garri- son site. This garrison was destroyed in the attack of 1689, on which occa- sion the Indians, by way of revenge for numerous wrongs, put Major Waldron to death in the most bar- barous manner. garrisms
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There were other Dover garrisons on the west side of Back river. (See Back River Garrisons.)
DOVER LANDING. See Cochecho Landing.
DOVER NECK. This neck is men- tioned in 1643, when Wm. ffurber had a grant of "two house lots con- taining six acres, on the east side of ve neck of Dover, butting on ye fore side of the river, next Joseph Austin at the north." Dover Neck and Point constitute a tongue of high land that extends between Fore and Back rivers to the main body of the Pascataqua. Belknap describes it as a ridge "about two miles long, and half a mile wide, rising gently along a fine road, and declining on each side like a ship's deck."
DOVER POINT. This name is now
given to Hilton's Point, at the lower end of Dover Neck.
DOVER POINT FERRY. This name was given to a new ferry from Dover Point to Newington, established by the Pascatagna Ferry Co. in 1856. It was connected with Dover city and Portsmouth by means of a daily stage-coach. The ferry here in early times was called the Bloody Point ferry and Knight's ferry.
DOVER RIVER. This name is given to the Cochecho river on Pike's map of Somersworth in 1805. " Cochecho or Dover river " is mentioned in Mer- rill's Gazeteer of N. H. in 1817.
Dow's HILL. This name is now given to the highest point of land in Newington, from Amos Dow, to whom Seth Walker conveyed, Sept. 25, 1816, a tract of land on the N. W. side of the road to Bloody Point ferry, adjacent to the Huntress and Rollins lands.
DOWNING'S CREEK. See Uncle Siah's Creek.
DOWNING'S PLAINS. So called from John Downing, who acquired land in the Pitch-Pine plains of Newington Feb. 14, 1723-4. (See the Gore.) Richard Downing's land in the upper Pitch-Pine plains of Newington is mentioned in 1770. (See Pitch-Pine Plains.) And Feb. 27, 1799, Bar- tholomew Downing and Richard D. Hart advertised for sale " 100 acres of corn land on Downing's Plain in Newington." Sa Narrow Lane 6. 154
DOWNS' BROOK. This brook is in Somersworth, below Great Falls, and so named from an old family in that vicinity. A quitclaim to 60 acres of land at Indigo Hill, lying between the lands of Wm. Downs and Paul Brown, joining the river at the north-
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Landmarks in Ancient Dover.
east, was given to Samuel Downs March 13, 1750, by the other children of Thomas Downs, who, says the deed, "upward of thirty years ago was killed by ye Indians." A part of the old Downs land is now owned by Mr. Morrill.
DRAM ROCK. This rock, according to Dame's map of Newington in 1805, is in the Long Reach, off the Newing- ton shore, about half way between Bloody Pt. and the Portsmouth line. It is apparently the same as Shag Rock, and no doubt derived its name from the boatmen who regarded it as a signal for a dram when they as- cended the river.
DREW'S HILL. This is a steep hill in the Back River district, about a mile below Sawyer's bridge across the Bellamy. Along the upper side of this hill runs the old mast road from Wingate's Slip (now Ford's Landing) to Madbury. The name is derived from John Drew, who ac- quired several of the twenty-acre lots on the west side of Back river, grant- ed in 1642. His land here is men- tioned Nov. 22, 1698, when John Laighton of Rochester sold Shadrach Hodgdon 20 acres on the west side of Back river, where said Laighton had built a house in which he then lived, bounded northeasterly by Back river, S. E. by Hodgdon's land, S. W. by Drew's land, and northwesterly by the highway " from mast bridge to ye river, at a place cald ye Slip"-being lot No. 21, granted Henry Beek in 1642, and laid out to Thomas Layton, his successor.
DREW'S MARSH. This was a small marsh in a bend or bow of Johnson's creek, on the south side ; and north- east of a little run of water from a
spring near the Jones house in Dur- ham. It is mentioned in some depo- sitions of Aug. 1, 1776, made by Stephen Pinkham and others, who testified that this marsh had long been owned by the Drews of Back River.
DREW'S POINT. Mentioned Sept. 7, 1738, when John Downing of New- ington and his wife Elizabeth con- veyed to Benjamin Mathes 50 acres of land in Durham, " beginning at Oyster river, near ye Pint cald Drew's Point," and running along a highway from the river between said land and the lands of Joseph Stevenson and Thomas Footman till it came to the highway " from ye falls to ye ferry called Bickford's ferry," bounded north by the river, and east by Caleb Wakeham's land,-which fifty acres formerly belonged to James Langley, and was part of the estate of his father James Langley. (See Lang- ley's Point. )
DREW'S WINDMILL. See Dam's Windmill.
DRY HILL. This name is given to Gage's hill in the Dover Sun of Ap. 17, 1813, when mention is made of land on Dry Hill belonging to the estate of Samuel Bragg, Jr., formerly editor of that newspaper. And Capt. Moses Paul also speaks of " Dry Hill" in his diary of 1852. It is otherwise called Faggoty hill and Gage's hill.
DRY PINES. Mentioned March 19, 1693-4, when Richard Pinkham had a grant of 30 acres of land " between ye drie pines and Abraham Clark's." And that same day Zachariah Pitman had a grant of 20 acres " in ye Dry Pines, between Jnº Knight's and Zach- arias field's." Pitman conveyed this land to John Drew Aug. 16, 1697.
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Landmarks in Ancient Dover.
Elijah Drew and wife Abigail, Nov. 29, 1762, conveyed to, Shadrach Hodgdon 25 acres of land, bounded northerly by the highway that leads from the country road to Clement Meserve's, westerly by said Meserve and Samuel Hayes, and easterly by part of the estate of John Field, de- ceased ; which land, called the Dry Pines, formerly belonged to Joseph Drew, father of said Elijah. John Knight's land at Mast bridge was afterwards acquired by Benedictus Torr. And Samuel Hayes' land, above mentioned, was conveyed to him Dec. 3, 1737, by Daniel, son of Zacharias Field. The Dry Pines, a portion of the tract generally called Field's plains, were in the upper part of the Back River district. (See Field's Plains. )
The DUMP. This name is now given to a deep ravine at the eastern side of the Waldron cemetery on Chapel St., Dover, into which, for a time, was dumped the refuse of that vicinity. A small brook flows through this ra- vine and empties into the Cochechio river. See Broadway Brack.fo127.
DUMPLING COVE. This cove is on the Newington shore of Little Bay, at the lower side of Dame's Pt., now Joshua's Pt. It is mentioned the 11th, 10 mo., 1656, when Richard Catter's (Carter's) grant of 40 acres of upland in 1652, was laid out " south of the . freshett at Dompline Cove," bounded north by Henry Lankstar's land, and south by that of John Dam. Henry Langstar's grant of 200 acres in 1652 was laid out in 1659, " beginning at Doempling Coue in the letell Bay, and so up the freshett to the parting of it," thence over to "the freshett that goeth into the broad Coue below
foxe poynt, thence over the mouth of the crike to a maple tree, thence to the north side of a little swamp, thence to a Rock a little below Tern- ing Poynt, and up the little bay to Doompline Cove." Henry Langstar, Oct. 27, 1704, conveyed to his daugh- ter Mary all his land on Little Bay, beginning at the mouth of a creek in Broad Cove, and running up Little Bay as far as Dumpling Cove, to the southwest side of the freshet ; which land was granted said Henry Lang- star the 9th, 5 mo., 1652.
Sarah Levett, " widow and relict of James Levett," conveyed to Joseph Adams, "preacher of the Gospel," March 15, 1721, a tract of 40 acres. " bounded somewhat northerly on ye lands that were formerly old Mr. Langstar's, now in ye possession of Mr. Eleazar Coleman, somewhat westerly on ye river that runs into ye Great Bay, somewhat southerly by the lands of Mr. John Dam, and somewhat easterly by the lands of said Adams ; "-the land thus bound- ed being " at or near a place called Dumpling Cove, and formerly granted by the town of Dover to one Richard Cater " (Carter. )
Joseph Adams of Newington, Dec. 18, 1783, conveyed to Jolin Gee Pick- ering 20 acres of land in Newington, " supposed to be half of the farm where said Adams then lived," be- ginning at Joseph Dame's land, and running along Little Bay to the land of James Coleman. This land is now owned by Mr. Gee Pickering of Ports- mouth, and the Dame land adjoining by the heirs of Mr. Joshua Pickering.
Dumpling cove is sometimes called Sow-Pit cove, probably a corruption of Sow and Pigs, a name given to a
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Landmarks in Ancient Dover.
cluster of rocks in the river near this cove.
DUNN'S WOODS. These woods are in Dover, adjoining the road to Dur- ham. They were acquired early last century by Benedictus Torr, and now belong to Mr. Simon Torr. For the last fifty years they have been known as "Dunn's woods," for the strange reason that Samuel Dunn, of Dunn's tavern, Dover, owned land adjoining, that was almost entirely woodless. In days by no means dis- tant, these dark, damp, lonely woods, enclosed by hills, and remote from any dwelling, were said to be the scene of many a robbery by day and supernatural occurrence by night, stories of which at once delighted and terrified the neighboring children. The ghost stories sprang chiefly from the delusive phosphorescent lights which on dark nights were often seen gleaming here and there among the bogs and decayed wood. Torr's woods, as they should be called, are now fast disappearing, and with them the nocturnal lights which once star- tled the belated traveller.
DURHAM. This name was given to the Oyster River parish when it was incorporated as a town May 15, 1732. It included the present township of Lee till the latter was incorporated Jan. 16, 1766, and a part of New- market, ceded to that town July 2, 1870. The name of Durham was apparently given at the request of the Rev. Hugh Adams, then the minister at Oyster River. In his address to the General Court in 1738, he says this parish "was chartered into the township of Durham" in answer to his petition " for its privi- leges and said name, as therein
pleaded for." (See N. H. Prov. Papers, V : 35.) The name of Dur- ham may have been chosen in order to commemorate the palatine form of government originally accorded to the New Hampshire settlement, if credit is to be given to the so-called Charter of Charles I to Capt. John Mason, Aug. 19, 1635, granting him the province of New Hampshire, "with power of government and as ample jurisdiction and prerogatives as used by the bishop of Durham." (Ibid, 1: 37.) The bishops of Dur- ham, England, it will be remembered, formerly exercised the semi-regal powers of a count palatine. It does not appear, however, that Capt. Mason or his heirs ever attempted to exercise such prerogatives in New Hampshire.
Similar powers were also conferred on Sir Ferdinando Gorges in the Royal Charter of April 3, in the fifteenth year of the reign of Charles I, granting him the Province of Maine, with " all the Powers, Rights, Franchisses, Immunities, Royalties, & Priviledges wch are enjoyed or ought to be enjoyed by the Bishop of Dureseme in the County Palatine of Duresme." (See Baxter's Sir Ferdi- nando Gorges, 3 : 304.)
The first government established in Maryland was also palatinate, according to the charter from Charles I to Cecilius, the second Lord Balti- more, June 20, 1632, conferring on him prerogatives as ample as those exercised by the Bishop of Durham, which, as implied above, fell little short of royalty itself.
DURHAM CORNER. This corner is at the centre of Durham village, where three roads meet, coming from Dover, Lee, and Newmarket.
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Landmarks in Ancient Dover.
DURHAM FALLS. This name is often given to the lowest falls in Oyster river, and to the village of Durham itself. (See Oyster River Falls.) A road, laid out "from Durham Falls to Coos," is mentioned July 13, 1768, as " beginning at Durham Falls," and thence running to Madbury Meeting-house, thence through Barrington by Levi Daniels' house, etc. (N. H. State Pap., 18 : 584.)
Durham Falls bridge, across Oyster river at the foot of the lowest falls, is mentioned Oct. 8, 1770, when Wm. and Avis Odiorne conveyed to Tim- othy Meder the "Mansion House " where they then dwelt, together with a barn and warehouse, and one acre of land, bounded S. by land of Abra- ham Perkins, deceased, E. by the road from Durham Falls bridge to Nottingham, and N. and W. by John Hanson's land.
DURHAM LANDING. A landing- place at the head of Oyster river, according to a vote of the town of Dover, Oct. 27, 1701, was laid out June 14, 1703, beginning at high- water mark by Geo. Chesley's fence, and running by his fence to the top of the hill by Bartholomew Steven- son's house, (now Mr. Wm. P. Ffrost's), "thence N. N. W. to a pitch pine on the east side of the mast path which leads from Oyster river, thence to the fence on the west side of the aforesaid path, then south- ward, as the fence goes, till it comes to the fresh river above the saw-mill, all which land thus laid out is to lay open for a public landing-place." (Dover Records.) This landing- place included, not only the slope of Log hill in front of the Ffrost resi-
dence, but all the land on the south side of the road immediately above the saw-mill, now enclosed as house- yards, which, within the writer's recollection, lay open as a place for lumber for the convenience of the mill, and still properly belongs to the town or the mill privilege.
DURHAM POINT. This name is now given to the entire district between Little Bay and the lower part of Oyster river, but strictly speaking the point itself is at the mouth of the river on the south side. It was originally called Oyster River point or Bickford's point.
DURHAM RIVER. D. Smith, on his map of 1805, gives this name to the fresh-water part of Oyster river. He confines the name of " Oyster river " to the tidal or salt-water portion, below Durham falls.
EDGERLY BROOK. This name is often given to Daniel's brook, the southern branch of Crummit's creek, from Samuel Edgerly, to whom 30 acres were laid out Oct. 15, 1714, " beginning at a hemlock tree on a little hill on the west side of a path that leads from Oyster River to John Daniel's." This land is still owned by the descendants of the above Samuel. (See Daniel's Brook.)
EEL-POT CREEK. This creek runs through the land of Mr. Rufus W. Weeks of Greenland, and empties into the Great Bay, about fifty rods above the mouth of Winnicot river. It is mentioned Nov. 22, 1716, when Henry Langstar, of Piscataqua, New Jersey, by virtue of a power of attor- ney from his father John Langstar, son of Henry Langstar (otherwise Langstaffe) of Dover, deceased, con- veyed to Henry Nutter a tract of 20
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Landmarks in Ancient Dover.
acres in Portsmouth, on ye western- most side of Greenland river, in ye Great Bay, bounded upon Ealpole creek."
EELWEIR FALLS. (See Cochecho Falls. )
EELWEIR PLAINS. Mentioned Nov. 5, 1741 (see Sandy Log Hill). and again Nov. 2, 1773, when John Twombley and Sarah conveyed to Thomas Hayes 37 acres on the wester- ly side of the Cochecho river, " at or near the Eelware Plains, so called," formerly laid out to Joseph Hanson, which land said Twombley bought of Ephraim Hanson, deceased.
EGG POND. This name is some- times given to No-Bottom pond.
ELIJAH'S LEDGE. This is a quarry in Horne's woods, so called from Elijah Edgerly, who sold it to the Newmarket Manufacturing Co.
EMERSON'S BROOK. This brook, otherwise called Great Brook, is in the southwestern part of Lee. It flows through the lands acquired by Samuel and Solomon Emerson in the middle of last century (see North River), and empties into North river a little below Harvey's mill. A place in the channel, called the Round Hole, seems to indicate that there was once a dam here. The Emersons, how- ever, acquired the neighboring privi- lege on North river, where Samuel Emerson had a mill at the beginning of this century.
FABYAN'S POINT. This point of land, originally called Starbuck's Pt., is on the Newington shore of Great Bay, at the upper side of Herod's Cove, otherwise Laighton's. It is mentioned May 30, 1721, when Mary, widow of Thomas Pickering, and her three sons, James, Joshua, and
Thomas, conveyed to John Fabins all right to a tract of land, commonly called Starbuck's Point, on Great Bay, with one half of ye salt marsh thereto adjoining. John Fabyan is mentioned in 1713 among the petitioners for Newington to be made a separate parish.
FAGGOTY BRIDGE. This is a small bridge across Faggoty brook, on the road from Dover to Rochester, at the foot of Faggoty hill, now Gage's hill. It was so named because the road at this point lay across a bog that had to be filled in with faggots and small trees, to give it stability. It is men- tioned Dec. 22, 1720, when 60 acres of land, granted Tobias Hanson in 1702, were laid out to him " between fagote bridg and the 'old bold spit," on the east side of Wm. Pomfrett's grant, then in possession of Ephraim Went- worth, Thomas Downs, and Stephen Varney. Tristram Heard, in his will of Ap. 18, 1734, gives his son John 30 acres of land "above Faggoty bridge." And June 23, 1736, eleven acres were laid out to Thomas Var- ney on the N. E. side of Faggoty bridge, beginning at the S. corner of Jos. Heard's land, north of said bridge, and thence running S. E. by ye road 47 rods.
FAGGOTY BROOK. This brook rises in a marsh in the Page pasture, Dover, and crosses the Rochester road at the foot of Gage's hill. then flows through the lands of Mr. Free- man Babb and Andrew Rollins, and erosses the road above Mr. Andrew Rollin's house. in Rollinsford, and empties into Rollin's brook.
FAGGOTY HILL. This name was generally given to Gage's hill till the middle of this century. In an adver-
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Landmarks in Ancient Dover.
tisement of 1802 it is called " Fag- gotty bridge hill."
FALLS HILL. The hill in Durham village on which the Congregational meeting-house now stands is repeat- edly called by this name in the rec- ords of last century. May 25, 1736, Nathaniel and Valentine Hill sold Thomas Pike, Jr., of the bury New- town, three acres on the west side of Falls hill, bounded northerly by the mast way, and westerly by the way leading towards ye spruce swamp and little mill (Chesley's mill). This land Thomas Pike conveyed to Joseph Atkinson Sept. 12, 1738, when Falls hill is again mentioned, as well as the other bounds. Timo- thy Jones of Stratham, innholder, and Elenor his wife, Sept. 4, 1747, conveyed to Abednego Leathers of Durham, mariner, three acres of land, with dwelling-house, barn, and malt- house thereon, which land and build- ings Jones had bought of Dr. Joseph Atkinson, "lying on the west side of a hill called and known by the name of Falls hill, bounded N. by the mast path, W. by the usual way leading to the spruce swamp, and S. and E. by the land of Nathaniel and Valentine Hill." This land was afterwards acquired by James Laigh- ton, and is now owned for the most part by Mrs. Cook.
Deacon Hubbard Stevens of Dur- ham conveyed to Moses Emerson1 of Haverhill, Mass., May 23, 1751, a quarter of an acre of land, with a
dwelling-house on it, on the west side of a hill called by the name of Falls hill, lying between the country path (the road to Madbury) and the mast path, which land said Stevens bought of Nathaniel Hill. Here, at a later period, stood Ballard's tavern, now owned by Mr. Hoitt.
Both of these tracts originally be- longed to Valentine Hill's grant of 500 acres, which comprised all the land from Durham falls, including the greater part of the present vil- lage, to the western boundary of the land owned by the late Benjamin Thompson.
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