USA > New Hampshire > Hillsborough County > Hillsborough > The history of Hillsborough, New Hampshire, 1735-1921, Volume 1 > Part 26
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HISTORY OF HILLSBOROUGH.
These settlers were mainly squatters and given somewhat to lawlessness as witness to a letter from Col. John Goffe to Gov. Wentworth relative to Trespasses made by settlers (?) on the Society Land.
Derryfield, September 1st, 1766.
May it please your Excellency
I went at the Request of Masons Proprietors to the Society Land between Petterborah & Hillsborah to see where the Trespassers had been at work & whose Lots they had Improved upon & found thy had cleared, at least cut a grate deal of timber down, had built a camp upon Solly & Marches & on Meservey & Blanchards and your Ex- cellencys Lots on the west side of Contucook River they have done a grate deal of work fenced it all in with a Considerable Good Runing fence have built a camp on it & and altho' no body was their when we were their yet we are prity sure that Doct Perry is the man that has Trespassed upon your lot and petty it is that he should not be prosecuted as he is the Ringleader of all the Rest, the (re), and as soon as they Git to to work again I have 2 men Ingaged to see them at work & acquaint me with their names .- The Land is Exceeding Good but I think your Excellencys is superior to any at that part of the Society Land and that maid them fellows Covet it it is certainly worth money-I intended to have wated upon your Excellency when the Inferr Cort set but I myself when up their with heat and laying out in the Wet so that I have not ben well sence I came from their
I am your Excellencys most Humble & Devoted Servant
John Goffe
His Excellency Governor Wintworth
At the same meeting it was "voted sixty pounds to repair highways. Five pounds to defray town charges this year. Voted to lay the roads two rods wide.
"Voted to send a petition to sessions for a 'Rode through Francis town'." Isaac Andrews was chosen to present the petition.
At an adjourned meeting on April 27, 1774, it was voted that the wages for a man on the highways be fixed at three shillings a day, and the same for a yoke of oxen.
March 30, 1775, on the eve of the Revolution, the matter of bridging the Contoocook at the Taggart hamlet since developed into Bridge Village, it was-
299
FIRST BRIDGE ACROSS THE CONTOOCOOK.
"Voted to reserve one third part of the Highway Rate towards getting or procuring timber to build a bridge over the Contoocook River if Col Hill will give one hundred acres of land or one hundred dollars towards building Said Bridge." At this time there seems to have been considerable opposition to paying the town officials any salary, but it was voted to allow the accounts of the selectmen for the time they had spent in laying out roads, and for whatever money they had paid out.
Nothing came of the vote for building the much-needed bridge, but on April 22, 1776, "Saml Bradford, Archibald Taggart Asa Draser were chosen to Prepare a Bote and to a Gree with a man to Tend the farrey over Hillsborough River this year."
At the annual meeting March 27, 1777, William Jones, Lt. Samuel Bradford and Isaac Andrews were chosen a committee to take care of the ferry for that year. The following year Ben- jamin Kimball, Archibald Taggart and Joshua Estey were chosen to care for the ferry, but nothing was done officially in regard to highways, the war being now the absorbing topic. But the bridge had to come and it was built in 1779, in accordance to a vote made at the annual meeting on March 25th. Lieutenant McNeil, Samuel Bradford, Jr., Archibald Taggart, Nathaniel Howard and Thaddeus Monroe were chosen a committee "to Look out a Place to Buld Said Bridge and over See Carey on Said work." Voted to build bridge across Contoocook river Sept. 23, 1779. Com. Isaac Andrews, Esq., Lieut. Daniel Mc- Neal, Lieut. Samuel Bradford, Ens. Archibald Taggart, Nathaniel Coolidge.
This was a wooden structure spanning the stream at about the same place as the present bridge, but proving unsafe it was reconstructed in 1796. A committee was appointed to remove the old bridge and build a new one to be completed by "Sept. 20, at Bridge Village this year." Bridge to be was set up at auction in two parts and struck off to the lowest bidders. First section was bid off by a man named Ashby for $19.50; second half to James Miller for $19.00, to be finished in 25 days. Thirteen years later, in 1809, it was again rebuilt, Daniel McNeil being the architect at that time.
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HISTORY OF HILLSBOROUGH.
This not meeting the wants of the people, it was voted to have a stone bridge, which was built of split stone by the town in 1824, with the exception of forty feet in the middle which was constructed of wood. Mr. Squires F. Clement was the builder. In 1839, the bridge was again reconstructed, raised 5 feet and a granite arch thrown over the centre of the river in place of the wooden section. This at the time was a highly satisfactory piece of work, and it was considered that the work was done for all time. The contractors were Messrs. Reed and Thomson of Keene.
Preparations were made at the time of the opening of the new bridge to make it a gala occasion. A band was present to furnish music, and the exercises were varied and suitable to the event. Among the other attractions a speaker, a young lawyer from an up-country town, was present to give an address. Finally, after a somewhat lengthy introduction by the chairman, in which his eloquence was pictured in somewhat glowing terms, the young lawyer rose to deliver his speech over which he had labored several days, and he started off bravely with-
"Fellow Citizens: Two hundred years ago this valley was a howling wilderness . . . '
Here he paused. The sight of so many people seemed to daze him. Memory, ever a fickle goddess, deserted him. The words which had come to him so readily at home fled from him! Not willing to give up without another trial, he cleared his throat and began again :
"Fellow Citizens: Two hundred years ago this valley was a howling wilderness " Unable to add another word, he leaped from the platform, crying, "I wish it was now!" and disappeared in the crowd.
Bridges more than roads occupied the minds of the people, for while they could move by blazing paths it was not so easy a matter to ford streams, so at the meeting April 20, 1779, a bridge was proposed at the north branch of Hillsborough River, but it was finally voted not to build one across the river here. However, it was voted to build a bridge over Contention Pond Brook this year. But this vote was rescinded at a meeting August 5, same year. Work, however, was done on the bridge,
301
THE OLD COVERED BRIDGE.
for on September 4, 1780, the selectmen were refused power to complete the bridge, but December 8, though no money was voted for the benefit of the schools, it was decided to finish the bridge which had been a subject of contention, expense and effort for over ten years, due of course to the war. Joseph Symonds and Timothy Bradford were made a committee to see the work was properly done.
At the annual meeting in 1781, interest in the roads began to come to the front again and it was voted to allow a man or yoke of oxen twelve pounds a day for work on the roads.
March 31, 1785, at last the town voted to build a bridge over the North Branch near the house of Daniel McNeil, the town to pay one half of the cost and Mr. McNeil to pay the balance and keep the structure in repair. October 3, he bonded himself to keep the bridge in repair for six years. The following year this vote was rescinded and it is doubtful just what was done at the time, though the bridge was eventually built.
There are current fashions in bridge building just as there is in the cutting of a coat, or the style of the bonnet, and each successive period of time has left behind its specimen to mark that particular era. Seventy-five years or more ago the larger streams in northern New England were spanned by wooden bridges with roofs to protect the traveler from storms, with no doubt the expectation that such protection would prolong the life of the structure itself. Few of these are left to-day, pic- turesque relics of years and customs strange to us. Hillsborough had but one of these bridges, and this was across the Contoocook on the road to Henniker, where the steel bridge now spans the stream. The wooden structure was built by Whitney and Childs of Henniker at a cost of $1,097.66, and the stone work done by Daniel Reed of the town for $420.00. This was in 1844, and the old bridge did faithful work until Sunday, July 2, 1899, it was burned, the cause of the fire being unknown.
That year, 1899, a new bridge, with one span, of 134 feet, a steel truss 23 feet in height on centres, a roadway of eighteen feet, was built. The builders were the Berlin Bridge Company, while C. A. Bailey of Suncook put in the stone work. The total
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HISTORY OF HILLSBOROUGH.
cost was $7,147.48 and it was formally opened to the public October 28, 1899.
Early in the 19th century a bridge of an entirely different construction was a favorite here, and nearly all of the crossings in town were of this pattern, made of stone and earth with one or two archways in the centre. The town has built at different intervals eleven of these bridges with graceful arches curving the larger streams. Hiram Monroe, during that period active in the affairs of the town, was an earnest advocate of this style of bridges, and did more than any other man towards their con- struction, claiming they were cheaper in the end than the wooden structure, and the wisdom of his judgment is shown by the fact that they have withstood the wear and tear of years with com- paratively little expense in repairs, while their contemporaries of wooden construction have been replaced by new ones several times .*
In 1917, 1918, and 1919 the town built eight miles of asphalt and gravel highway, in connection with state aid, constituting a link in the Contoocook Valley highway from Concord to Rindge, connecting the Merrimack Valley. Another section is on the Cheshire highway trunk line from Keene to Concord. The town owns the entire outfit for building these roads, and the work was done under the supervision of Fred B. Monroe, chairman of the board of selectmen.
During the years of reconstruction following the Revolution, with an ever increasing number of schools the people began to care more for the dissemination of news of the day. Con- sequently newspapers multiplied and letter writing became more common. Post-offices were established at greater frequency, and the transmission of mail received more and more attention. To distribute this mail matter regular couriers or post riders, as they were called, were given regular employment. These carriers usually rode on horseback, but even in that case improved roads
*'The first stone arch bridge in this country stands today, strong and pictur- esque, in the town of Ipswich, Mass., a monument to its builder. It was planned by Col. John Choate of that town, and he was looked upon as crazy in his idea. He succeeded after a somewhat stormy discussion in having the bridge built, and it was inscribed in the quaint letters of that time as "Choate Bridge, Built by Town and County, 1764."
It spans the river in two arches, after the style of the "twin bridges" on the Flats near Lower Village, Hillsborough, and the old stone work and masonry looks well today, after over 150 years of traffic .- Author.
303
POST ROADS.
were needed and the streams spanned by better bridges. If that seems like a slow-going age when compared to this, then it must be taken into account that thrift and speed were just as much determining factors as they are to-day. Post-riders vied with each other in their efforts to deliver to the proper persons the goods delivered into their care, and many a merry race was made by these doughty riders.
The matter of suitable roads for these gallant horsemen was carried into general court, and in the House of Representatives, Saturday, February 5, 1791, a bill which had been introduced relative to mail routes was reported upon favorably, and it was voted there should be four post roads in New Hampshire. These were to be loop lines, to start from Concord and return. The first, which interests us, was as follows: Beginning at Concord from thence through Weare to New Boston, Amherst, Wilton, Temple, Peterborough, Dublin, Marlborough, to Keene, and then returning by way of Westmoreland, Walpole, Langdon, Acworth, Charlestown, Claremont, Newport, Lempster, Wash- ington, Hillsborough, Henniker, Hopkinton to Concord, its starting point.
Four days were allowed in which to make this route, and it may be said, and easily imagined that there was no loitering by the way. Relief horses were in readiness every twenty miles, and changing mail sacks in a twinkling the rider would swing from one saddle into the other, and with a merry crack of the whip and a good-natured raillery to the bystanders he was off and away. This route, it is needless to say, went over the hills to the Centre, where the coming of the post rider once a week was hailed as an important event in the quiet lives of the public.
Scarcely a year passed which did not witness the laying out of a new highway or mending some broken link, all of which makes interesting reading but not of sufficient importance to be given space here. The general trend of the roads was westward towards Washington or eastward towards Henniker, and New Boston. What were known as cross roads intersected with these, one of the most conspicuous of these being the road which crossed the Washington route about a mile above Bridge Village and wound over Bible Hill past fertile farms, then well cul-
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HISTORY OF HILLSBOROUGH.
tivated, and into the valley to make another ascent which ter- minates at the Centre. This place was the common magnet for all the highways and byways, and over them, when the town had but one house of worship, all of the inhabitants wended their way on foot or by horse on each succeeding Sabbath, rain or shine, to listen to the word of God as spoken by Parson Barnes or his successors.
Eventually Hillsborough had two post routes. Besides the one mentioned running from Concord to Keene, the second ran from Nashua to Claremont, thus connecting the North Country with Boston. Both of the roads went through Lower Village.
In the warrant for a special meeting to be held in Hills- borough November 18, 1799, was the following article:
Article 3d To see what order the Town will Take Respecting a petition which will be laid before sd Town-praying for the privilege of a Turnpike road from the Easterly bank of the Connecticut river in Cornish through this Town to Amherst Courthouse.
The subject of building this new road had been the common theme of conversation for several months. Besides being con- sidered an important highway, promising as it did a renovation or radical change in the manner of road building. Hithertofore the roads had been built flat, or nearly so; that is the centre had not been raised above the shoulders. The new style, from which it derived its name, was "piked" or rounded, so it could shed the water after the manner of a roof. There was a better bed made by filling in with rocks or gravel. The turnpike was really the beginning of modern methods of road building. The public speakers of the town, both those who were the "watchdogs" of the treasury and those who were always eager to take a step forward in progress, were on their feet arguing pro and con for the new enterprise. Finally it was voted :
That the Turnpike road might be of public utility and not burden- some to the Inhabitants of any Town through which the same may pass-provided the following guard was annexed. To the laws com- monly made on such occasions-viz-that the proprietors shall not cover the old road now occupied.
2d-That in case the owner of the land through which the Road may pass and the proprietor of sd Turnpike cannot agree on Damages, it shall be determined by a committee chosen by the parties.
Photograph by MANAHAN.
THE NEW STONE BRIDGE.
305
"THE TURNPIKE CRAZE."
3d In case the proprietors shall erect a gate in the interior part of said town the citizens of the same town shall not be holden to pay a Tole for passing sd gate provided they do not go out of Town.
-Town Records, Vol 2, pp. 162, 163.
The building of this new style of highway was looked upon at the time by many as an expensive experiment and was de- risively termed "The Turnpike Craze." Within not a very long period New Hampshire came in for four of these lines of roads, which were as much talked about as is said today in regard to the great trunk lines and auto boulevards that are being built now. Their accomplishment also proved that corporate enterprise is not peculiar to the present hustling age, for the undertakings of such enterprises in the closing years of the 17th century was quite as much to the credit of their promoters as anything in that direction of to-day. All credit then to the old turnpike, the pioneer of good roads.
The object of these roads was to develop the resources of the State and to open a better way of travel to Boston and other big cities. This of course was expected to improve the con- ditions of the towns through which the turnpike passed. Hence the towns were expected to lend a financial hand to the under- taking. The construction of the Second Turnpike was pushed with such vigor that it was built during the year 1800 and opened to the public in 1801. The road entered Hillsborough near the Albert Gray place above the Upper Village, and passed in nearly a direct line to Antrim boundary at the Colby place. Here was another feature in road building introduced by the turnpike. While previously roads had been built largely without regard to directness, winding over long and tedious hills to accomodate some isolated farmer or making wide detours to avoid some swampy district, the new highway took very nearly a bee line, hills, which were frequently leveled and swamps that were corduroyed with logs covered with a layer of earth, had no terrors for these builders. In the end the public were greatly benefited by this innovation. Dr. Goodell, in his notes, says truthfully : "What an undertaking to build 70 miles of such road with the primitive implements of those days, through a rough, rocky and wooded country! Hand drills and gun powder to blast
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HISTORY OF HILLSBOROUGH.
the numerous bowlders, oxen for stump lifters, plow and shovel to make the roadbed. Selections were let out to individuals to build. A strip of land four rods wide was purchased and there is no record or tradition that there was any controversy over the settlement of damages."
Its construction, as was intended, stimulated trade. Teams of six and eight horses made regular trips to Boston, carrying lumber and farm products and returning with groceries and general merchandise for the towns along the line, and scores of small teams particularly in the winter. Stage coaches were soon put on to accomodate the public and ran with as much punctuality as the cars of the present day.
Taverns were built to entertain the regular and transient travel, on an average of about two miles apart. A gate was first erected at the tavern of Dea. James Eayrs, called the Heart and Hand, and his swinging sign was in the shape of a heart with a hand painted on it holding a decanter.
As much of the lighter travel continued over the old road to save toll, the gate was moved to Upper Village near the junction of that road. Benjamin Wilkins was gatekeeper for many years, and after its discontinuance in 1837, when the road passed to the town, the gate house was moved back and was for many years the residence of Wirt K. Fuller, one of the noted tanners of Hillsborough.
Notwithstanding its high promise of usefulness the road did not prove profitable as a financial investment to its builders, though a great public benefit, so it was surrendered to the towns through which it passed in 1837.
The court in 1831 laid out what was called for a long time the "New Road to Keene," which ran from Hillsborough Bridge by Branch Village to Stoddard line, and thence by Box tavern and North Nelson to Keene. This was a noted stage road and at one time considerable travel followed this route. Three years later, in 1834, the court laid out a road from Bridge Village by South Village, running to Hancock factory. This was built immediately after. The same year the famous stage route the Forest Road was built, connecting Charlestown with Nashua, passing through Stoddard, Hancock and Greenfield. This was
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OLD ROADS AND TRAILS.
laid out without particular regard for the convenience of the people living along the route, and ran for miles at a stretch through woods hence its name.
At the annual meeting March 7, 1796, William Taggart, William Symonds, Otis Stowe were chosen a committee to build the "Great Bridge," and the carrying out of the undertaking was decided at auction, when Daniel McNeil was the lowest bidder for the contract, his price being $95, the work to be done so the structure would be passable by September 20, or twenty-five days after the removal of the last of the old timbers.
According to the changes in population and business, like people, other roads have come and gone, while some of the old ones are still with us, as they were with our ancestors. The roads of Hillsborough for the most part are hilly and require constant watchfulness and endeavor to keep in repair. The exception is the valley road leading from Henniker to Peterborough and cutting across a corner of this town at the lower part of Bridge Village. The hilliest, as well as the oldest in town, is the road leading from Bridge village to the Center. On the whole a noted change has come and where erstwhile the ox-team and the stage coach wound their way, an automobile is to be more frequently seen in the summer days, but when winter folds her white mantle over the hills and valleys there is little of the old- time bustle to speak of the liveliness of country life. I cannot better close this rather rambling chapter, constructed after the style of the old roads, than by quoting the following excellent article prepared December II, 1915, by Mrs. William H. Story :
OLD ROADS AND TRAILS OF HILLSBOROUGH.
There is an old road scarcely more than a trail and upon this you enter upon the Beard or East Washington highway, a short distance beyond the Thomas Goodale place-turning to the left you come to a point where there are two roads, again take the left of these; and still follow in that direction, at length you arrive at what you feel assured is indeed a veritable trail. Re- cently parties undertook to make this trip-found the path or road in places nearly impassable-as the branches of the trees and rank bushes were grown nearly even with the horse's back ;
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HISTORY OF HILLSBOROUGH.
the road altogether unworked. This district was formerly a prosperous community of thrifty farmers, there being four or five large farms under good cultivation ; one owned and occupied by Mr. Smith-hence the name of the pretty little pond snuggled between her surrounding hills-and also the name of the road through the terminal connecting with the main road leading to Washington Centre coming out near Dole Hill. Another seldom used road, which may be very properly termed a trail, is the Sulphur Hill road. This you enter just east of the Cook place at the Lower Village, past cellar holes and a few old buildings. This was a farming district of many of Hillsborough's most worthy citizens. Part way up the hill there is a "parting of the ways." Now take the left hand division and after a short drive over a still deserted region, you come to the Antrim North Branch road; follow till you come to the Bowling farm, on the left hand side of the road a few rods beyond, pass through an inclosure and you will discover the site of the old Governor Pierce homestead. Return to the place on Sulphur Hill, where the road divided, then take the right trail; ascend the hill, and while passing you will discover on the left hand the decaying sills of an old schoolhouse; then you will soon come to the homestead of Enoch Sawyer, at the crest of the hill; follow the trail and you will find yourself at the Upper Village, just west of the Carter place. This old road is called the Hall road.
A short and wild trail may be found leading into Stow Mountain, by taking the right hand road at the Wall place, on the Washington road; after passing a number of cultivated farms, you come to the old Huntley place; then following an indistinct path up the hill, you find yourself literally upon Stow Mountain. The trail is only marked by cellar holes and broken stone walls. We were informed by one of our oldest inhabitants that when a boy, he with some of his companions followed that road blackberrying, and found that the end of the road was at the summit of the hill, where there were farm buildings owned by Mr. Pike. Younger generations inform us that at the present time there is a trail-perhaps a wood road-passing quite over the mountain.
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