USA > New Hampshire > Hillsborough County > Hillsborough > The history of Hillsborough, New Hampshire, 1735-1921, Volume 1 > Part 34
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Resolved that said Selectmen be and hereby are authorized, Em- powered and instructed, annually and in the month of November of each year, to draw their warrant upon the Treasurer of Said Town for the Sum of one hundred and twenty dollars, as the income of Said fund the same to be yearly expended for the benefit of the inhabitants of Said Town in the Maintenance of a Public Library in Said Town forever.
Resolved that the Public Library hereby established Should be forever known as the Fuller Public Library of Hillsborough.
Resolved that the selectmen of Said Town shall forever be Trustees of Said Library, and that two other Trustees shall be chosen by Said Town by ballot as follows; at the first Election of Trustees the first person so chosen shall serve two years and the Second person chosen shall serve one year, and thereafter one trustee shall be chosen an- nually who shall serve two years.
393
FULLER PUBLIC LIBRARY.
Vacancies in said board of Trustees to be filled be appointment of Selectmen and that said Trustees Shall have authority to appoint Librarian and establish rules and regulations for the management of said Library subject always to the approval, in struction and control of the Town by vote at any legal meeting.
Resolved, that the rules and regulations so established shall be printed and inserted in every Book belonging to said Library together with the following statement, viz .; The Fuller Public Library of Library of Hillsborough, was established in the year 1877, by request of Mark Fuller a respected citizen of Said Town who died September 23d, 1876.
Resolved, that, in order to further provide for the faithful fulfill- ment of the second condition is made and accepted, the Selectmen of Said Town be and hereby are instructed and directed annually and in the month of May of each year to Visit the Fuller Plat in the Cemetery heretofore named, to carefully examine the Same and to see that said Plat is and forever shall be kept in good and Suitable condition, and that Said Selectmen be and hereby are authorized and empowered to draw their warrant upon the Treasurer of Said Town for such sum of money as may be necessary to defray the expense thereof
Resolved that the substance of the last foregoing resolution shall be printed with the rules and regulations of said Library as here- inafter provided
Resolved that, in order to attest the good faith of the Town in accepting this bequest upon the stated conditions; in grateful acknowledgment of the same, and as a mark of respect to the Memory of our deceased fellow townsman, the Town Clerk is directed to record these resolutions in the Town records and to deliver an attested Copy of the same to Sarah C. Fuller, widow of said deceased, and also to his nephew Wirt X. Fuller of Boston, Massachusetts.
Immediate action was taken to complete the organization, and in the fall of 1877 the library was opened with Willis G. Buxton, Librarian. From that day the library has been well patronized, this patronage steadily increasing year by year. February 1, 1920, there were 6,601 volumes in the library, with a circulation for the preceding year of 8,432 books. The financial statement made by the trustees showed that the income from the Fuller Fund for the year was $105; from fines, $35; town ap- propriation, $395; cash on hand at the beginning of the year, $97.85, making the total receipts $632.85.
The management of the library has been with a Board of Trustees, consisting of two members acting in conjunction with
394
HISTORY OF HILLSBOROUGH.
the Selectmen. One Trustee is elected biennially for a term of two years. The membership has been :
1877-78, Rev. Harry Brickett. 1887-94, Marcellus H. Felt.
1877-98, Charles W. Conn. 1895 to date, George W. Haslet.
1879-80, Cornelius Cooledge. 1897-1902, John Goodell.
1881-86, Brooks K. Webber. 1905 to date, Leon S. Hill.
Four persons have acted as Librarians during the 43 years since its incorporation, as follows :
Willis G. Buxton, from the opening to the fall of 1881.
Mrs. Brooks K. Webber, 1881 to 1890.
Mary Bixby, succeeding Mrs. Webber and continuing until the fall of 1903.
Mrs. Ada H. Brown, 1903, to the present time.
WATER SUPPLY.
Hillsborough has an abundant supply of excellent water, the source being Loon Pond. October 18, 1886, Messrs. Goodhue and Birnie of Sprinfield, Mass., gave a bond to the town for the purpose of laying the pipes and constructing a system of water works for the town. The work was undertaken and carried out, the company putting in an iron pipe cement lined. This system was in operation for ten years, when it was purchased January II, 1897, by the Hillsborough Bridge Village Fire precinct at a cost of $45,000. The Water Commissioners at this time were Stephen Dennison, Brooks K. Webber and John B. Smith.
Soon after its purchase by the town a reconstruction of the whole system was begun, and this work has been continued until; a greater part has been relaid. The main line of pipe was relaid in 1910 at an approximate cost of $26,000. The original cement- lined pipe has been replaced by cast iron. The pipe starts at sixteen inches, reduced to fourteen inches, fire protection con- sidered, twelve lines of hose giving satisfaction. The average pressure is seventy pounds to the square inch.
According to the commissioners' report for 1920 the total cost of water works has been to January 13, 1920, $76,347.69, divided as follows :
395
VILLAGE FIRE PRECINCT.
CONSTRUCTION ACCOUNT.
Original cost,
$45,000.00
Extensions,
5,182.29
Excess renewals,
24,829.19
Service connections,
609.69
Building account (gate house),
160.00
Meter account,
566.52
Total, $76,347.69
The number of hydrants is 44; number of service connec- tions, 427.
William Oscar Story, Superintendent, Clerk and Manager of the works for twenty-two years, recently resigned from the office, deserves a large share of the credit for the success of the water works among the best in the state for its size.
The Board of Water Commissioners at the present time com- prises Victor Mosley, Stillman H. Baker, Alfred L. Mansfield, Jesse C. Parker and Charles A. Jones.
HILLSBOROUGH BRIDGE VILLAGE FIRE PRECINCT.
The growth of Bridge Village in the number of its in- habitants and increase in valuation of property made it apparent that precautionary measures should be taken towards fire protec- tion. Accordingly a petition was circulated and signed by some of the leading citizens for the formation of a fire department, and the following action taken by the town :
March 23, 1870, upon a petition of twenty-four legal voters of Bridge Village, it was
Voted "Pursuant to the foregoing application of ten or more of the legal voters of Hillsborough Bridge in the town of Hillsborough, we here by fix by suitable boundaries a village fire district including said village to be known as the "Hillsborough Bridge fire district, and to be bounded as follows,
Beginning at the town line between Hillsborough and Deering, at the corner of John Codman farm, and southwest corner of Hiram Grimes running northerly on said Codman's line to land owned by Warren W. Hill (known as the Smith farm), thence northerly on said Hill's east line to the river crossing the river to the northeast corner of the Preston land thence northerly and westerly on said Preston east and north line to the Henniker road, crossing the said road to the northeast corner of William T. Whittle land thence westerly on said
396
HISTORY OF HILLSBOROUGH.
Whittle's north line to the old road running by said Whittle's house. Thence northerly on said road to the northeast corner of Abel C. Burnham's meadow. Thence westerly on said Burnham's north line to J. S. Burtt's land to James Newman's land. Thence westerly on said Newman's north line to Herbert Kimball's land. Thence westerly, on said Kimball's north line to northeast corner of Samuel M. Baker's land. Thence westerly on said Baker's north line crossing the road leading from Bridge Village to Hillsborough Centre to Luke Mc- Clintock land. Thence southerly on said McClintocks east line to land of Erickson Burnham. Thence easterly and southerly on said Burn- hams and east line to northeast corner of Silas N. Sawyers farm. Thence westerly on said Sawyers north line to the Bible Hill road. Thence northerly on said road to the northeast corner of Charles D. Robbins land, thence westerly on said Robbins north line crossing the Beard road and river to the northwest corner of said Robbins land. Thence southerly on said Robbins west line to Antrim line. Thence easterly on Antrim and Deering lines to the bounds first mentioned Witness our hands first day of July 1870.
George Brockway, Erastus Wilson George E. Hoyt
A true copy attest
Wm B Whittemore Town Clerk
Above report of the Selectmen was adopted by the town at a special meeting called in Newman's Hall August 6, 1870.
PLAN OF FIRE PRECINCT.
In June, 1886, Mr. George C. Patten prepared a plan or map of the proposed territory covering the fire precinct, the following being a copy of his Field Notes submitted to the town:
Field Notes and Description of a Survey of the Fire Precinct Hills- borough Bridge, N. H., Surveyed by George C. Patten, June, 1886.
Beginning on Deering line being the north line of said Deering and the south line of Hillsborough at the corner of land owned by George Burnham ; thence s. 87 W. following the line of said towns until said lines intersects the westerly boundary of land owned by F. C. Grimes ; thence north 45 rods; S. 83 W. 16 rods; N. 6 W. 37 rods by said Grime's land, to the highway leading from Hillsborough Bridge to Lower Village; thence N. 70 W. 58 rods by said highway to corner of Bower's land; thence N. 4 E. 17 rods by said Bower's Land; S. 83 W. 5 rods; N. 4 E. 46 rods to N. E. corner of said Bower's land and land of heirs of Ammi Smith; thence S. 83 W. 56 rods ; N. 4 E. 62 rods to Dascomb lot by land of said Smith heirs; thence S. 85 W. 18 rods ;
397
FIRE AND WATER SYSTEMS.
N. 4 E. 40 rods; N. 83 E. 58 rods by said Dascomb lot to land of Dr. Burnham; thence N. 9 E. 54 rods ; N. 83 E. 18 rods by said Burnham's land to land of A. J. Barney ; thence S. 9 W. 8 rods; N. 83 E. 68 rods ; N. 3 E. 8 rods by Burnham lot to corner of Marcy lot; thence by the Marcy lot N. 83 E. 54 rods to the Centre Road; thence N. 41 W. 92 rods by said road; thence N. v20 E. 18 rods; thence N. 88 E. 110 rods by land of Herbert Flanders to the corner of the Lacy Lot; thence same course by land of Alvah Merrill 38 rods to land of Ed Gould; thence N. 10 rods ; S. 86 1-2 E. 30 rods and also 52 rods by land of said Gould and Levi Bixby to corner of land of said Bixby and Seth Millen ; thence S. 24 E. 60 rods by said Bixby land to old Henniker road ; thence by said road S. 14 W. 44 rods to land of William Whittle; thence E. 38 rods ; S. 6 W. 32 rods ; thence S. 75 E. 4 rods by land of said Whittle to the New Henniker road; thence N. 15 E. 42 rods to corner of land of Mrs. William E. Gould; thence S. 60 E. 37 rods by said Gould land to the railroad thence by the railroad N. 38 E. 91 rods to the river bend ; thence by the river S. 16 E. 70 rods; thence S. 65 1-2 W. 50 rods; S. 14 W. 138 rods ; S. 77 E. 80 rods ; S. 12 W. 87; S. 87 W. 52 rods by the river left bank; thence S. 14 1-2 E. across the river and highway 60 rods to the corner of said George Burnham land, the place of beginning and bounds first mentioned-The whole of the above description being conformity to a plan or map of said precinct drawn by George C. Patten dated June, 1886, to which reference may be had for more particular description.
GEORGE C. PATTEN, Surveyor.
Marcellus H. Felt was President of the first meeting and Frank E. Merrill was made Clerk, a position the latter held for a considerable period. Three fire wards, a term which has since been changed to "commissioners" were chosen as follows: Ed- win B. Morse, Ruthven Childs and Lewis W. Gallond.
The present Commissioners are John B. Tasker, John H. Grimes and Daniel W. Cole.
The judicious manner in which this department has been managed during the 34 years of its existence is shown by the figures which place its total indebtedness at $26,650.00, while there was a balance in the treasury January 31, 1920, of $530.63, leaving the net debt $26,119.37. To over-balance this are the unavailable assets of the department, viz :
Water system, valued at $76,347.69
Precinct building and lot 5,000.00
Fire apparatus 2,000.00
Total, $83,347.69
398
HISTORY OF HILLSBOROUGH.
While Bridge Village has, no doubt, had its share of small fires it has not been visited by a serious conflagration, due largely per adventure to the effeciency of its fire department.
ELECTRIC LIGHT AND POWER COMPANY.
In January, 1894, the Hillsborough Light and Power Com- pany was organized and incorporated under the laws of New Hampshire with sufficient capital to carry on an extensive business. The stockholders were Col. James F. Grimes, Henry Emerson, Dr. John Goodell, David H. Goodell, Wilson D. For- saith, Harvey Jones, James S. Butler, Henry C. Colby, George W. Lincoln. Land and water power on the Contoocook River below the covered bridge in Henniker were purchased of John C. Campbell, George B. Codman, Baxter Codman and William Merrill. A power house and dam were built just over the line between Hillsborough and Henniker, and about half way between the villages. The power at the falls here is sufficient to produce double the energy that is now required.
March 4, 1895, the town contracted with the company to illumine the streets of the village with sixty-four electric lights of twenty-five candle power and one of fifty.
The town paid the company for lighting the streets during the year 1919, $2,235.57.
BOARD OF TRADE.
Not many years since civic bodies formed to improve the business conditions of a town or hamlet were unknown and un- thought of, and affairs of public interest were generally left to be looked after by some public spirited individual or ignored. This did very well until public affairs became more complicated by the entrance of manufacturing interests, which in turn created many other lines of industries. Then the Board of Trade, or an organ- ization composed of leading citizens, was formed to promote the growth and prosperity of the place. Hillsborough saw the ad- vantage likely to result from such an association, and about twenty years ago formed its Board of Trade, William H. Mana- han, Jr., as its first President. The history of this body of active; citizens does not read very differently from that of another com- munity off its size and character.
399
THE RAILROAD.
In many, many ways not only has Bridge Village but the whole town been benefited by its steady upbuilding. Among the things it has accomplished or been largely instrumental in ac- complishing has been "Merchant's Week," "Clean-Up Week," doing publicity work, encouraging and organizing the Contoocook Valley Highway Association, bringing into town new enterprises, until to-day the Board of Trade represents the greatest factor for public good in town. The President at the present time is Charles F. Butler, who is also Town Clerk, and Daniel W. Cole is Secretary.
The popular slogan of this popular body of public spirited citizens ever is :
Come to Hillsborough. For Nestled 'mong New Hampshire's foothills, Rarest jewel in her crown, Clothed in colors like the morning, Proud of all this wide renown,
Is HILLSBOROUGH.
THE RAILROAD.
The roads of a country are the arteries of business, and according to the facilities by which a district may be reached by the traveling public or commodities moved, depends very largely the success or failure of such a place.
Hillsborough is no exception to this rule, and by the ever- changing means of transport is the progress of the town definitely marked on the highway of time. If the coming of the post rider was hailed with delight, the appearance of the stage driver was doubly so. The building of the turnpike denoted a still greater stride. Then a mightier step was taken when the whistle of the iron horse rang up and down the Contoocook valley. The Con- toocook Valley Railroad was incorporated June 24, 1848, from "any point on Concord or Northern Railroad, in Concord, to any! point in Peterborough." Its terminal, however, was at Bridge Village for nearly twenty years, or until June 7, 1869, when the Hillsborough and Peterborough Railroad was incorporated July 7, 1869, "From any point in Center Village in Peterborough to
400
HISTORY OF HILLSBOROUGH.
present terminus of Contoocook Railroad in village of Hillsbor- ough Bridge." The track from Concord to Bridge Village was completed in December, 1849; the balance to Peterborough in June, 1870.
BANKS.
Valley (State) Bank was chartered July, 1860. The Pre- sident was John G. Fuller ; cashier, John C. Campbell ; directors, John G. Fuller, Ammi Smith, John G. Dickey, James F. Briggs, Joshua Marcy, Stephen Dow Wyman, Francis N. Blood. Pre- sident John G. Fuller died within a year, and Stephen Kendrick was chosen to succeed him. This bank was succeeded by the National Bank.
The First National Bank of Hillsborough was chartered in December, 1868, and organized with a capital stock of $50,000. Stephen Kendrick was President until his decease in 1884, when he was succeeded by James F. Briggs, in August. John C. Camp- bell was cashier from 1868 until his death. The first board of directors consisted of Stephen Kendrick, Stephen D. Wyman, James F. Briggs, George Noyes, Jonas Wallace, James Chase and Edward P. Howard.
Officers at the present time: President, Ruthven Childs ; Vice-President, Alba Childs; Cashier, Alfred L. Mansfield. Di- rectors : Ruthven Childs, Alba Childs, Alfred L. Mansfield, An- toinette Childs, John S. Childs.
Hillsborough Savings Bank was organized in 1889. Hon. John B. Smith was its first President. Directors were: Samuel W. Holman, W. D. Forsaith, Alba Stephenson, James F. Grimes, Ruthven Childs. The officers to-day are: President, Ruthven Childs; Vice-President, William P. Childs; Second Vice-Pre- sident, Alfred L. Mansfield ; Treasurer, John S. Childs. Directors, in addition to the above named officials, William D. Forsaith, John H. Grimes, William H. Roach.
HOTELS.
The most prominent resort in a town in the days of auld lang syne, with the exception of the meeting house, was the public hostelry, then known as "The Tavern." Here the towns people were wont to gather to discuss the topics of the day, and here
HOTEL
OBILES HIRE A SONABLE TE THE BEST DES OILS
Photograph by MANAHAN.
VALLEY HOTEL, 1921.
40I
THE BRADFORD TAVERN.
gathered the strangers for entertainment. Many of the latter class were travelers from afar, bringing with them the news from the outside world, which constituted almost entirely the intelli- gence the country people obtained.
Situated as Hillsborough has been, first on the main lines of the stage coaches, and then on the railroad, the town has been fairly well represented by its public houses, three of which stand out conspicuous above the many that have come and gone with the current of the rolling years.
The first tavern in town was opened on Bible Hill by Capt. Samuel Bradford at the very beginning of the second settlement in the early sixties of the 18th century. Here were held nearly if not all of the public meetings or gatherings of the members of the embryonic town. Was it some matter concerning the establishment of the church in that little corner of the universe, the good people came hither. Was it something of moment relat- ing to the incorporation of a new township, the stalwart inhabi- tants met here and propounded those questions which arise upon such occasions. Here, perhaps more than at any other place in town were discussed the trials and tribulations incident to the carrying on of a war that cast its gloom over the land. In fact, few indeed must have been the matters that concerned the affairs of the little commonwealth that did not have their origin here. Captain Bradford must have been an ideal landlord.
No doubt the Bradford Tavern brought in a substantial income to its genial owner. It was not, however, until ten years after the close of the War for Independence that taverns began to be numerous in town, and the keeper invariably had a license to dispense the beverage which has since been removed by national legislation. The following list has been compiled from the town records :
INNKEEPERS OF HILLSBOROUGH. 1792-1809.
1792 James McColley, Moses Steel.
1793 John Dutton, John Curtice, William Taggard, Enos Towne, George Descomb, Jonathan Herrick, James McColley.
1794 Moses Steel, Nehemiah Jones, (last kept at Dr. Joseph Monroe's house), John Dutton, Wiliam Taggard, George Descomb, Jonathan Harrick.
402
HISTORY OF HILLSBOROUGH.
1795 Moses Steel, John McClintock, Nehemiah Jones, (at Dr. Monroe's house), John Dutton, Benjamin Pierce, George Descomb, William Taggard.
1796 Moses Steel, Nehemiah Jones, John Dutton, William Taggard, Asahe Gowing, Benjamin Pierce.
1797 George Descomb, William Tolbert, John Dutton, Moses Steel, Nehemiah Jones, William Taggard, Going and Richardson.
1798 John Dutton, George Dascomb, Nehemiah Jones, William Tolbert, Benjamin Pierce, William Taggard, Moses Steel.
1799 Moses Steel, John Dutton, William Taggard, Benjamin Pierce.
1800 James Willson, John Dutton, Benjamin Pierce, George Descomb, William Taggard.
1801 William Whiting, John Dutton, Benjamin Pierce, George Des- comb, William Tolbert, William Taggard, Jonathan Easty, Thomas Nichols, James Willson, Lt. John McNiel.
1802 Benjamin Pierce, John Dutton, Darius Abbott, William Taggard, George Descomb, James Wilson, William Tolbert, Jonathan Bailey, Timothy Wyman (in house lately occupied by James Willson, John Towne, Lt. John McNiel.
1803 George Little, (near "Great Bridge," so called), Benjamin Pierce, James Willson (at his store), John Dutton, Benjamin Pierce, George Descomb, William Taggard, John Shed, Otis How (in house lately occupied by John McClintock), John Towne, James Ayers, (in house lately occupied by William Whiting), Timothy Wyman (in his store), James Ayers (in a house near the turnpike gate.)
1804 George Little, Benjamin Pierce, John Dutton, William Taggard, George Descomb, John Shed, Joseph Chapman (sell liquor in his store.)
1805 John Dutton, Timothy Wyman (sell liquor in his store.) Ben- jamin Pierce, George Descomb, William Taggard (sell liquor in his store), John McNiel, William Tolbert, John Gilbert (sell liquor in his house), Dutton & Barnes, Josiah Coolidge (at the store of George Little at the "Great Bridge," so called).
1806 Lt. John McNiel, John Shed, James Eayrs, Timothy Wyman (to sell liquor in his store) ; Josiah Coolidge (to sell liquor in his store).
1807
r Samuel Barnes; also to Dutton and Barnes (to sell liquor at their store), William Taggard, Lt. John McNiel, James Eayers, Timothy Wyman (to sell liquor at his store), Benjamin Wilkin (at the toll house).
1808 Dutton and Barnes, (to sell liquor at their store), John McNiel, James Ayers, Timothy Wyman (sell at his store), Samuel
403
PUBLIC HOUSES.
Barnes, Mrs. Lucy Coolidge (to sell for one month at the house lately occupied by Josiah Coolidge), John Dutton.
1809 James Ayers.
SPECIAL ACT OF TOWN.
That there was no prejudice against the use of liquor in those days, even upon religious occasions or at least those as- sociated with religious endeavor, is shown by the following privilege extended to two of the townsmen at the ordination of the minister at the Centre church; while similar favors were shown to Messrs. Daniel Chase and Ezekiel Little at the same time and place :
June 17th, 1805. This may certify that we do allow John Taggard and Jonathan Sargent, Jr., to sell spirituous liquors at and about the time of Ordination on the Common Southeasterly of the Meeting house.
Elijah Beard, Andrew Sargent, Jacob Spaulding,
Selectmen.
In stage coach days, when country travel was at its zenith and the merry crack of the old stager's whip rang cheerfully over scenes that are now deserted, at least half a dozen inns stood at about equal distances apart on the old turnpike to care for the wayfarers and enliven travel along the broad highway of life. If I have been correctly informed the following hostelries, either contemporanously or otherwise catered to the comfort of man and beast: Beginning in order at the lower end of the route, Colby Tavern, St. Charles at Lower Village, Carr House, Wilson House, Wall Tavern, and McCoy Inn.
Nathan Howe kept a tavern on the Second New Hampshire turnpike at about equal distance between the Governor Pierce residence and Washington Centre for several years prior to his decease in 1807.
Two of the most noted public houses during the days of the stage coach were the Pierce Mansion and Wilson House. These were both kept by leading citizens of their day and both received a liberal patronage.
404
HISTORY OF HILLSBOROUGH.
THE AMERICAN HOUSE.
The American House was opened about 1810 by Cyrus and Jonathan Sargent, who seemed to have prospered here for a little over five years, when they sold out to another. The house had several owners the succeeding years, until 1832 it was purchased by Daniel Brown, who had previously been living on a farm. Mr. Brown immediately became a very popular landlord, so that his patronage steadily increased. The American House became noted for its public gatherings, balls, suppers and public meetings. In 1834, July 21, he was appointed postmaster, which office he held until his death November 24, 1847.
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