USA > New Hampshire > Cheshire County > Fitzwilliam > The history of Fitzwilliam, New Hampshire, from 1752-1887 > Part 11
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JOHN FASSETT came to Monadnock No. 4 possibly in the fall of 1768. but more probably in the spring of 1769. At a pro- prietors' meeting held November 14th, 1769, he was chosen one of the Board of Assessors, and also one of a committee to lay out roads in the township. The family came from Massa- chusetts, but from what town is not certainly known. A family account is that he came from Lexington, while another account states that he came from Boylston. His wife Isabel was admitted to the church in 1771 on a letter from Temple- ton. Mr. Fassett was one of the six individuals that consti- tuted the church of Monadnock No. 4 at its organization and the settlement of its first pastor, and April 18th, 1771, was elected its first deacon. From the beginning he took a deep interest in all that concerned the welfare and prosperity of this people, and for a long course of years was relied upon as a faithful and trustworthy representative of this church in ecclesiastical councils. And he was equally confided in by the proprietors and town in all their arrangements, filling every office to which he was called to the satisfaction of all con- cerned. Deacon Fassett built his house (covered on its sides and roof with bark) upon his original Lot 13, Range 9. In this he lived six years, the happiest, he was accustomed to say, of his life ; and there six of his children were born. Later he exchanged farms with Deacon Oliver Damon, and removed to what is still known as the Fassett Farm, Lot 15, Range S.
TOLMAN FAMILY.
THOMAS TOLMAN Was from Dorchester, Mass., and his an- cestors are reported to have been among the first settlers of Boston and vicinity. Mr. Tolman was a man of considerable importance in the early times of Fitzwilliam, especially in that part of the town where the village of Troy now stands. The
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HISTORY OF FITZWILLIAM.
forest there was very heavy, and he felled with his own hands the first tree to make an opening for the log hut into which his family was introduced as early as the year 1768. His was the first house built and occupied in what is now the pleasant and flourishing village of Troy. Being an active, energetic, and vigorous man he made great improvements. Dr. Gideon Tiffany had contracted with the proprietors to erect in the town a good grist-mill, but failed of having it accepted, and Mr. Thomas Tolman completed a mill in 1769 that answered the purpose. This was known far and wide as the Harrington Mill. Near it he erected, a little later, a good saw-mill, which was close by the spot where the bridge in the village of Troy now stands. With plenty of lumber at his command, Mr. Tolman soon exchanged his log hut for a good substantial framed house, which afterward was opened as an inn. Not many years ago this house (with its location slightly changed) was owned and occupied by Mr. Joseph Haskell, it being the oldest dwelling in that part of Monadnock No. 4.
BENJAMIN TOLMAN was, like his brother Thomas, a man of energy, but possibly not equally methodical and persistent in his work. He had, it appears, resided for a season in Attle- borough, Mass., before migrating in 1770 to Monadnock No. 4. Here he built a log-house in which he resided for ten years with Hepzibeth, his wife, who was the daughter of Jacob Newell, also one of the early settlers. Mr. Tolman found it necessary to have a road to reach his log hut and farm which the proprietors were slow to furnish, and so he made it to suit his convenience, without asking leave of the owners of the intervening territory. Ile had fourteen children, born be- tween 1782 and 1807, all but two of whom seem to have lived to reach maturity. Of these seven were living in 1859, when the history of Troy was printed.
FARRAR FAMILY.
MAJOR JOIN FARRAR Was a native of Framingham, Mass., in which place he was highly respected and honored before his removal to Monadnock No. 4. His name first appears upon
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THE FARRAR FAMILY.
the records of the proprietors under date of October 11th, 1768, when he was chosen a member of a new committee raised to locate a meeting-house and to lay out a burying- ground. That he removed his family to this place as early as 176S is somewhat doubtful, for his youngest child, Hitty, is re- corded as having been baptized in Framingham, October 14th, 1771. In 1769 Major Farrar appears to have held the office of deputy sheriff in Middlesex County, Mass., and he held other important offices in Framingham as late as 1774. It is nearly or quite certain that for some years after 1768 he re- tained his residence in Framingham while he was active in promoting all the civil and religious interests of Monadnock No. 4, going back and forth between the two places as cir- cumstances seemed to require .*
He was twice married, his first wife having been a daughter of Rev. John Swift, of Framingham, who left two children, two others having died in infancy, while Deborah Winch, his second wife, had nine children. His house here was in the northern part of the town, and Lot No. 23, Range 7 (now Troy), constituted his farm. In 1770 he was the moderator of the proprietors' meeting, and as acting chairman of a com- mittee chosen for that purpose, reported upon the matter of a suitable site for the meeting-house and the place for the cemetery. He was also upon a committee in 1770 to obtain a minister, and was plainly a very active and influential man in all the movements and projects of the early settlers. For some time before his death, which was the result of a violent fever and occurred January 7th, 1777, he was the clerk of the proprietors. His death was a great loss to the settlement.
His son, WILLIAM FARRAR, Was sixteen years old in 1768, and if the family of Major Farrar came to Fitzwilliam at that time, he doubtless came with his mother and the other chil- dren. His home was near that of his father, and he was geu-
* Probably the easiest way to harmonize the several matters respecting Major Farrar's residence is to suppose that he was here a considerable part of the years 1768- 70, as he held three offices in Monadnock No. 4 during the year last mentioned, but was in Framingham, Mass., much of the time 1771-75. In 1776 he held seven offices here, but none during the five previous years.
9
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HISTORY OF FITZWILLIAM.
erally known as Colonel BILL Farrar, to distinguish him from Colonel Daniel W. Farrar.
JOHN FARRAR, JR., son of Major John Farrar, was the eldest of the nine children of Deborah Wineh. He is remembered as a very genial man and an agreeable, jovial companion. His patriotism led him into the Continental Army during the Revo- Intionary War, in which his peculiar characteristics rendered him a great favorite among his fellow-soldiers. Some amus- ing anecdotes are related of him, setting forth his ingenious methods for obtaining fresh provisions for himself and his comrades when supplies for the troops were scanty. After the close of the war Mr. Farrar lived for some years in Fitz- william, but died in South Hadley, Mass., March 20th, 1809.
SILAS WETHERBEE was from Westborough, Mass., and must have come to Monadnock No. 4 as early as 1766 or 1767. At a meeting of the proprietors October 7th, 1767, they voted " to Captain Silas Wetherbee £13 68. Sd. for his encourage- ment in building a saw-mill in said township." This mill was what has since been known as the Scott Mill, on Scott Brook, and derived its name from Benjamin and Barakiah Scott, father and son, the father having bought ont the improve- ments made by Silas Wetherbee. The Seott family owned the premises for a considerable period, and carried on the busi- ness either alone or in connection with Esquire Kendall.
Mr. Wetherbee was a member of the committee of five that selected the site for the meeting-house and cemetery.
THE KENDALL FAMILY.
EDWARD KENDALL, a native of Leominster, Mass., came to Monadnock No. 4 in 1768 or 1769, and made an opening on what has since been known as the Davidson place, building his honse on the Rindge road, east of the present village, near the dwelling of the late Mr. Luke Bowker. Judged by the offices of trust which he held here, Mr. Kendall must have been a very capable and worthy man. His death occurred at Leominster, where his only daughter lived, the wife of a Mr.
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THE KENDALL FAMILY-CALEB WINCH.
Lincoln. His only son, Edward, settled in Westminster, Mass., and was a cabinet-maker. Deacon Edward Kendall, now of Worcester, Mass., is a son of the second Edward men- tioned above.
SAMUEL KENDALL, a brother of the first Edward above men- tioned, came from Leominster in 1769 and settled where Cap- tain William F. Perry afterward lived, Lot 14, Range 2. He was usually known as Esquire Kendall, for he was for many years a justice of the peace. By trade he was a carpenter, and was considered so capable in this line that he was employed as the master workman in framing and erecting the meeting- house. He was quite a farmer also, while for many years he was called to do a large part of the most important publie business.
He and William Locke, who were near neighbors all their lives, after they came to Monadnock No. +, were married on the same day.
CALEB WINCH came from Framingham, Mass., as early as 1768, and was one of the six original members of the church in this place. He built for himself a log-house in that part of Monadnock No. 4 which since 1815 has belonged to Troy, owning Lots 20 and 21, Range 6. At once he became a man of note in the township, for he was energetic, enterprising, and deeply interested in every measure that concerned the common welfare. His name appears upon the records both of the pro- prietors and town in connection with important offices, while he was among the first to respond to the call of his country when the Revolutionary War broke out. Mr. Winch was in the battle of Lexington, and followed the British troops in their retreat to Boston. The circumstances of his family were such that he could not long remain in the army, but there was not in the region a truer and more devoted patriot. His wife's name was Mehetable, and they had ten children, born between 1770 and 1788. Mr. Winch died in 1826.
The following account of his experience as a civil officer is worth preserving. Being the collector of taxes, he had occa-
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HISTORY OF FITZWILLIAM.
sion to seize and drive off the only cow of an honest but very poor man with a large family, who was not able to satisfy the demands of the law. The route of Mr. Winch with the cow took him past the door of Rev. Mr. Brigham, his minister. The pastor learning the circumstances at once turned the cow backward, and insisted upon her being driven home immedi- ately, under the promise that he himself would see that the tax bill should be settled. This act seems to have been char- acteristic of Mr. Brigham.
THE HEMENWAY FAMILY.
Of those bearing this name in the early days of Fitzwilliam, JOSEPH HEMENWAY was by far the most prominent in the history of the township. He came from Framingham, Mass., about 1769, and his home was on what is now called the Hol- man place, now or lately owned by Mrs. Stephen Perham. Tradition asserts that his wife was a sister of Daniel Mellen, Sr., but according to the history of Framingham she was Mary Adams. A younger brother of Joseph, Joshua Hemenway, married Zerviah, the youngest daughter of Daniel Mellen, Sr., and hence probably the mistake. Joseph Hemenway was the moderator of a number of proprietors' meetings, and filled ac- ceptably various other offices in the early years of the town.
Of the others bearing this name who settled in Monadnock No. 4 but little is known. The birth of only a single Hemen- way child is recorded.
In 1807 one S. (probably Sylvanus) Hemenway made a map of Fitzwilliam from actual survey. At this time the Legisla- ture required the towns throughout the State to furnish town maps made from actual survey, and from these town maps Philip Carregain made a map of the State, which is known as Carregain's map, and which was for a long time the founda- tion of all the maps of the State wherever published. A copy of Mr. Hemenway's map has been very carefully made, and in a somewhat reduced form is here given. While this map evi- dently does not give all the local roads leading from house to house, it is quite certain that it gives all the turnpike roads,
Bounded S 82° E
6 y Marlboro 1390 Rods
Bounded by
Swanzey N 4E 260 Rods
MAP of
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FITZWILLIAM. Surveyed by S. Hemingway.
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Bounded by Jaffrey 5,813/4° E 586 Rods
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Turnpike Road
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The boundary lines of Fitzwilliam are all laid down from
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THE BRIGHAM FAMILY.
all the county roads, and all the town roads that lead directly to the adjoining towns. This man was a near relative of Joseph Hemenway, before noted, but it is impossible to state the exact relationship.
BRIGHAM FAMILY.
REV. BENJAMIN BRIGHAM is the prominent figure in the chapter on early ecclesiastieal history, and to this the reader is referred. Ilis life and work were closely identified with all the secular, educational, and religions interests of the town, and he was honored and beloved by all the people.
ELISHA BRIGHAM, son of the first pastor, kept what was called the Crosby Store for about two years, the funds for the same, it was understood, having been furnished by General James Humphrey, of Athol, his brother-in-law. After this Mr. Brigham removed to Boston and was a elerk for a Mr. Williams, whose sister he married, at the south end of Wash- ington Street. Later he removed to Cineinnati, O.
LIEUTENANT LEVI BRIGHAM and Tabitha, his wife, were from Westborongh, Mass. They came as early as 1771 or 1772, since the eldest of their children, Lydia, was baptized here in Angust of the latter year. Lieutenant Brigham was collector of taxes and constable during the first year after the incorporation of the town, and one of the selectmen in the year following. In 1775, when the militia of Fitzwilliam were organized, Levi Brigham was chosen lieutenant ; indeed, from time to time he seems to have held nearly every office in the gift of the people. Mr. Brigham owned Lots 6 and 7, Range 6.
SILAS ANGIER and Elizabeth Drury, his wife, were from Framingham, Mass., but resided for a few years after their marriage in Temple, N. H. They came to Fitzwilliam in. 1779. Mr. Angier owned Lot 8, Range 7, and Lot 6, Range 9. IIe built his house by setting posts in the ground and cov- ering the same with slabs brought through the woods by
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HISTORY OF FITZWILLIAM.
marked trees with great diffienlty from Allen's mill in Royal- ston. Mr. Angier cut the large maples and birches upon his land, burned the brush, and put in his corn and potatoes with a hoe without ploughing.
DUNCAN CAMERON, a native of Scotland, was a soldier under General Burgoyne, and in the battles of Bennington, Vt., and Stillwater, N. Y., before the British army surrendered to the American General Gates. Unlike most of those who were taken prisoners with him, Mr. Cameron was pleased with our country, and upon being exchanged he came to Fitzwilliam and settled down as a suceessful farmer, loeating himself in the northern part of the town. Near the close of the century he removed to Vermont.
ABEL BAKER, Lot 12, Range 12, came quite early from Walpole, Mass., and settled in the western part of Fitzwil- liam, of which he was regarded as the first settler. He boarded at a Mr. Jillson's in Richmond while he was building his log hut. His wife was Harriet Smith, of Medfield, Mass.
Mr. Baker had remarkably large eyebrows, which were cov- ered with very long hair, the whole giving him an appearance that sometimes frightened strangers and children. Having no children of her own to caress, Mrs. Baker is reported as hav- ing conceived a great fondness for cats, and the great number of these animals in and upon the bed (said to have been in one instance twenty-eight) served to vex the soul of her hns- band. Notwithstanding this domestic trial, Mr. Baker lived to accumulate considerable property.
THOMAS CLARK, Lot 18, Range 12, came from Wrentham, Mass., in 1779 and located in the north-west part of Fitzwil- liam, where he built, like most of the first settlers, a log-house to be the home of himself and family. This location was within the limits of the present town of Troy, and we are in- formed, in the history of that town, that his hut had no chin- ney, but was warmed from a stone fireplace in the centre of it, the smoke escaping through a hole in the roof left uncov-
.
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THOMAS CLARK-STEPHEN HARRIS.
ered for this purpose. Mr. Clark, who was ingenious as well as industrious, followed the example of Stephen Harris, who lived three miles or more from him, and in addition to carry- ing on his farm made various articles of wood for household use, as plates, trays, spoons, mortars, etc., either entirely by hand or assisted by the rudely constructed lathe of those days. At that time pewter plates and cups were used to some extent on the table, but crockery was too expensive and perishable, so that in families of moderate means wooden dishes were gen- erally regarded with favor. At a little later period brown earth- enware was substituted for wooden platters and other dishes.
STEPHEN HARRIS, Lot 11, Range S, started on the morning of March 3d, 1771, for Monadnock No. 4 with his wife and children on a sled drawn by oxen. They came from Fra- mingham, Mass. He had a hard drive and they had a hard ride of four days before reaching their destination, but finally arrived at the house of Joseph Hemenway, who was probably his old neighbor.
Mr. Harris had been here during the autumn of 1770, at which time he had purchased land and built a log-house which stood directly behind and within a few feet of the late dwell- ing of Abel Angier.
After clearing ont the snow from his house and warming it up. the family took possession of it on March 9th, 1771. They brought with them neither bedstead, chair, nor table, and for a time their beds were spread upon the split logs that made the floor of their dwelling. Their first table was made of a large slab brought from a saw-mill, with legs inserted in auger-holes. Blocks of wood furnished them seats as they met for their meals, which consisted of hasty-pudding, a little venison, and bean porridge. On the 27th day of the same month Mrs. Harris attended the ordination of Rev. Benjamin Brigham, drawn through the snow upon a hand sled by her husband and a hired helper. These were the grandparents of the late Deacon Joseph Harris and Mr. Ebenezer Potter. Their neighbors in their new home were Mr. Benjamin Bige- low on Fay Hill, John Fassett, and John Chamberlain.
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HISTORY OF FITZWILLIAM.
Stephen Harris was an industrious and enterprising man, and held many offices. He was a farmer, and besides had a shop in which, during stormy weather, he manufacturered chairs with seats made of elm bark procured from Gap Mountain. He was also a turner, like Thomas Clark already mentioned, and with his lathe made similar articles for table use.
CAPTAIN JONATHAN LOCKE, better known as Esquire Locke, was a native of Holliston, Mass., but came to Monadnock No. 4 from Framingham." He located upon wild lands, Lot 20, Range 11, and lived in a log-house. This was in 1770. Later he built a framed house which is still standing, being the premises so long known as the Reed House, and which is now occupied by Mrs. Milne. This house has stood about one hun- dred and fourteen years, and is doubtless the oldest house in Fitzwilliam. In 1772, at the request of his father, Esquire Locke removed to Ashby, Mass., to take the charge of his father's farm, and there he resided till his death. He was one of the committee, in 1770, to notify Mr. Brigham of his call to the pastorate in this township, as he was also to attend the ordination in behalf of the proprietors. A very warm friend- ship sprang up between Mr. Loeke and his pastor, and it is said that the latter walked the house in distress during the whole night previous to the departure of Mr. Locke for Ash- by. In that town he held various important offices, and was a member of the Massachusetts Provincial Congress at Salen, and of a convention called to frame a constitution for that State.
Near the junction of the old and newer Royalston roads were the honses of the brothers Abijah, Stephen, and Elipha- let Richardson. Stephen owned Lot 4, Range 11, while Lot 3 in the same range belonged to Eliphalet. This family came from Royalston. Stephen married Rhoda Daniels. He was a healthy, robust man, but while returning home from the vil-
* At a little later date two of his brothers came to Fitzwilliam. Deacon John Locke settled on Lot 16, Range 4, where Samuel Kendall now resides. William Locke lived on Lot 11, Range 2.
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STEPHEN RICHARDSON-FORRISTALL.
lage during a cold night, December 31st, 1790, he missed the road in the darkness and wandered into the field, about fifty rods south of the cemetery, to an oak-tree. He was found the next morning dead by John Osborn, one of the scholars of District No. S, while on his way to school. Among Dr. Cum- mings's papers these items are found : " Captain Richardson was a stout man ; served as an ox-frame to have his oxen shod." "Captain Richardson came to town and made a be- ginning on his farm before the Revolution. Ile went to Miss Daniels, of Keene (whom he afterward married), and offered to deed to her his property if she would marry him ; but she chose to remain single until the result of the war should decide the fate of the country."
Captain Stephen Richardson was in the Continental Army about three years.
JOSEPH FORRISTALL came from Holliston, Mass., when he was twenty years of age. For a few months he had been in the Continental Army, and was stationed at Ticonderoga. His wife was Hannah Mellen. The one hundred and twenty acres of land (Lot 19, Range S) upon which this young couple set- tled were purchased by the father of the bride, who came with Mr. Forristall and aided him in making a clearing and partially building a framed honse. This was in the antumn, and early in the following spring the family took possession of their dwelling, though the floor of the house was not laid till the succeeding fall. The history of Troy states that the family came to town in 1779, but the town records make it very cer- tain that they did not come till 1781.
JESSE FORRISTALL, an older brother of Joseph, came abont the same time, and settled in the extreme south part of the town.
JOSIAH HLASKALL lived on Lot 8, Range 11. For ten years or more he carried the mail from Worcester to Boston, and was distinguished for his politeness. He commenced with one poor horse, but before he left the ronte he had a covered stage, with four horses.
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HISTORY OF FITZWILLIAM.
He made a weekly trip, but his route was somewhat circuit- ous, as it passed through Winchendon.
Mr. Haskall was a basket-maker, and once made on a bet a bnshel basket that, when filled with water, lost but two quarts during a night.
SCIPIO JAWHAW, from whom Sip Pond was named, was a negro, who lived with his squaw wife north-east of the north end of the pond. He was an expert fisherman, and quite a character in the early years of the settlement. His wife, it is said, pretended to be a witch, to the great annoyance of the neighbors.
SAMUEL BENT and Mary, his wife, were from Sudbury, Mass., and came to Fitzwilliam in 1780. Mr. Bent owned a part of Lots 7 and 8, Range 1. He, with two of his neigh- bors, killed a moose south of Sip Pond. It is related that Mr. Bent, with his neighbors Mr. Clark, Mr. Goodnow, and Sip, were out upon the pond for fish during the famous dark day, May 19th, 1780. For a considerable time, as the darkness came on. the fish took the hook very quickly, but as the dark- ness increased, till nothing scarcely could be discerned, they ceased to take the bait, and the company were glad to leave their sport for their homes.
SAMUEL DIVOL owned a part of Lot 6, Range 2, and either he or William Divol built the first saw-mill in that part of the town. At a more recent date Milton Chaplin had a mill on or near the same location which was afterward owned by Elisha Chaplin, and was consumed by fire a few years since.
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