USA > New Hampshire > Strafford County > New Durham > The history of New Durham, New Hampshire: from the first settlement to the present time > Part 6
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In September, 1855, the following appointments were recorded; one to Thomas Bennett, and one to Charles Bickford, co-owner of the Downing and Bickford store.
"Appointment of an Agent for the Sale of Liquors for 1855 We, the undersigned, having confidence in your ability and integrity to perform the duties do hereby appoint you ... an Agent for said town of New Durham for the purchase and sale of spiritous and intoxicating liquors, and Wine for the Commemoration of the Lord's Supper, hereinafter designated namely, Cognac Brandy, Holland's Gin, New England rum, Alcohol, New York Gin, Madeira Wine and Port Wine. And you are to sell said liquors and wines at the store now occupied by you . . . and at no other place.
And you are to sell said liquors and wines to be used in the Arts, or for Medicinal, Mechanical and Chemical purposes and for no other use or purpose whatever. And you are to conform to the Statute of the State of New Hampshire, passed July 14th, 1855, entitled "an act for the suppression of intemperence" And you are not to sell less than one half pint, nor more than one gallon to any person at any one time. And you are to sell at twentyfive per cent
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profit. And having this appointment recorded by the Town Clerk, you shall have the powers, perform the duties and be subject to the liabilities of such office until the first day of April, 1856, or another person shall be appointed in your stead, unless sooner removed by the appointing power.
Given under our hands this 11th day of September, A.D. 1855.
Samuel Downing, Jr., Charles B. Edgerly John L. Jones New Durham
Selectmen of
A true copy of the original
Baalis B. Tebbets, Town Clerk of New Durham."
These regulations did not completely halt the use of liquor, of course. Many were the excuses and reasons conjured up in order to buy a jug of rum! But the nights of drinking and brawling at taverns were over, and, for that reason and others, the day of the country tavern was coming to an end in any case.
In the 1800's the lot of the housewife eased materially, though a woman of today would shudder at her "conveniences". There was no plumbing or central heating, but there were many major im- provements, such as the cast iron stove, now used for the cooking which had been done in the fireplace. The spinning wheels and looms were put away, for cloth in great variety could be bought by the yard. Pewter and wooden dishes were replaced by ironstone china and Staffordshire ware from England. Glass dishes came into use, brittania and glass "fluid lamps" which burned whale oil took the place of candles. This was the era of the tin peddler, whose fascinating array of wares and fund of newsy stories made his visits so welcome.
This was the time, too, of the "quilting bees". These occasions were anticipated with pleasure, for there were few social gather- ings besides weddings and funerals in those days.
No bride-to-be would dream of setting up housekeeping with- out a supply of quilts; she and her mother and sisters worked in- dustriously for months to prepare the "pieced" tops. When they were ready, women neighbors and friends were invited to the house where the large frame quilting frame was set up. The quilt top, batting and back were stretched and fastened tight to the frame, chalked string snapped down to mark lines, and two or three women on each side began to ply their needles. A bountiful noonday meal was served, the visitors usually contributing a pound of butter, a pail of cream or perhaps a pudding. When the light began to fail, the men would call in to accompany their womenfolk home.
Women turned to all manner of handwork in those days; they drew designs of ferns and flowers on to a backing and hooked a rug from the scraps of cloth left over from sewing. Some ambitious ones cut designs into oiled paper and stenciled the bare walls of the
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rooms; we would guess that they were adept at hanging wallpaper too !
Many household items, formerly made at home, were now avail- able at the store. An inventory which Thomas Bennett recorded in 1843 is a revealing picture of the old-time country store, with its iron stove and wood box, its shelves filled with a satisfying variety of goods. A few items on his list were:
Box stove and funnel, matches, cigars, snuff, straw bonnets (.25), band boxes, neck stocks, calico, English gingham, battiste, shaving soap, tea, salt, coffee (.08 a pound), sulphur, umbrellas, pepper, flax, nails, jugs, pitchers, hay forks, hoes, butter (.10 a pound), N. E. rum, brandy, wine, chalk, rice, bar soap, milk pails, ax handles, molasses, "rolls room paper, colored ground", buffalo skin, wheat, barley, oats, rye and beans, trunk locks, scissors, chisels, teaspoons, whip thongs, sheeting, flannel, broadcloth, bed cords, plates, glass nappies, wash bowls, tea sets, lamps, salts, ink- stands, chocolate, cough candy, lustre salts, lustre pitchers (.18) casters, fur hats, arithmeticks, geographies, readers, linsey, lawn, cambric and "chilley", Saxony, sattinet and velvet, alpaca, canvas, handkerchieves, Highland shawls, fringe, crepe, edging, insertion and footing, gloves, caps, shoes, a brass clock, sewing silk, ribbon and paint.
Though cash money was scarce in most households, a little went a long way. One dollar spent at Mr. Bennett's store in 1843 would buy a pound each of coffee, crackers, raisins, dried apples, butter, pork, soap, rice, sugar, spice, a gallon of molasses, a corn broom for Mother and a cigar for Father !
At this time all of the store-keeper's goods had to be brought to town over the road by horse-drawn wagons from Dover, the nearest large trading center. It was a two- or three-day journey.
The coming of the railroad was a real boon to these men, but others viewed its onset with alarm. Farmers predicted that the noise would make horses run away, the hens stop laying, and the cinders and smoke would set fire to their houses and fields. Many were quite positive that it would not last and that it was a great waste of money. Some of the newspapers of the day agreed.
In 1847, the charter for the Cocheco railroad was granted, the line to run from Dover through Rochester to Alton Bay. In spite of the intense rivalry between this line and the Great Falls and Con- way line, culminating in the famous "Railroad Riot" of 1849, the Cocheco opened a road as far as Farmington in 1849 and went through to Alton Bay in 1851. In 1860 the name "Cocheco" was changed to "Dover and Winnipiseogee" and the road later leased to the Boston and Maine railroad.
Land damages were awarded to three New Durham men: George Ela $2.00, Benjamin Berry $5.00, Stephen Davis $5.00 and to two non-resident land owners.
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-
EF
This house is typical of many houses in New England built from 1770 on. This one on New Durham Ridge, built around 1800, was the home of Elder David Edgerly in 1850, is now the home of Mr. William Nehring.
Transportation by railway was one of the major reasons for the closing of many country taverns which were often on winding, hilly stage-coach routes. Taverns in the larger towns continued to do business as hotels; inns and "genteel boarding houses" at scenic spots around the lake region were accessible by railway. The train carried passengers, freight and mail directly, smoothly and with (a moderate degree of) speed and comfort undreamed of in the "old days". At the depot, the train was met by a baggage wagon and greeted by inhabitants who made a practice of going down to see the train come in every day.
In 1856, a splendid map of Strafford county was published. Some of the information thereon may be of interest here.
There were 12 district schools in town. Three stores: Thomas Bennett's on New Durham Ridge, Downing and Bickford's and Sewell Randall's, plus a "shoe manufactury" at the corner of the main road leading to Merrymeeting Lake. The Free Will Baptist church, the Friends' Meeting House and the Town Farm were located on the Ridge road and there was a small Meeting House near Shaw's pond.
The Powder Mills were operating at the outlet of Merrymeet- ing Lake and there were grain and saw mills in several other sec- tions.
The population numbered 1048, with one free colored, *; in 1860, it was 1173, more than ever before or since. Many of the following names, marked as having homes here, were descendants of the earliest settlers - there were often several families of the same name but we shall name them only once in each area.
At New Durham corner lived the families of Berry, Burnham, Colomy, York, Tash and Hayes. On the road from there to the Middleton line we find Rand, Witham, Tash, Willey, Hayes, Corson, Davis, Mitchell, Tebbets and Savage.
On the main Ridge road were Brooks, Roberts, Pinkham, Leigh- ton, Jones, Randall, Edgerly, Evans, Littlefield, Willey, Chamber- lain, Libbey, Hayes, Bennett and Stevens. On the road south of the Ridge are Gray, Elkins, Boodey, Joy, Penny, Horne, Stanton, Evans, Grace, Howe, Pinkham, Young, Beck and Berry.
At Downings Mills (so-called at the junction of the Merry- meeting and Bay roads) were Wentworth, Randall, Berry, Leigh- ton, Edgerly, Rines, Hoyt, Downing, Bickford, Morrison, Glidden and Rollins. At Powder Mills Village are Morrison, Williams, Far- rell, Blake, Johnson, Berry, Duffie, Edgerly and Colomy.
* This man was the son of a negro couple who worked on the Gov. John Wentworth "plantation" in Wolfeborough. They stayed on after the Governor's departure, and shortly afterward the man was killed in a logging accident. The widow's mind became deranged and she took her little son and wandered away, ending her rambles in New Durham, where they were taken in by the family of Samuel Willey. The boy was known as "Remus Willey" and lived all his long life in this town.
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Other names in outlying sections include French, Caverly, Stillings, Perkins, Johnson, Mitchell, Lucas, Horne, Gleason, Deal- ing, Roberts, Perry, Boston, Rines, Corson, Chesley, Langley, Hunt, Kent, Webster, Willey, Miller, Coburn and Tebbets.
The care of the town's "paupers" had been a problem since the earliest years of the settlement. Wanderers coming in "without the consent of the town" were promptly banished by the constable, but legal residents who came upon hard times were the responsibility of the Selectmen. At every annual town meeting for many years, anywhere from six to a dozen persons were "put up for vendue", the old and feeble, the little children abandoned or orphaned. Families in better circumstances bid for them and were paid by the town for their care in amounts ranging from thirty seven cents a week to forty dollars or more a year. The town made every effort to locate relatives who could be made to support their kin, and what possessions these people had, such as a piece of land or a dozen sheep - even their bed and bedding - became the property of the town, to be sold at public auction. In certain cases, the town abated the taxes of residents who would take care of their own parents !
In 1828 the town reconsidered buying a farm for the town poor and appointed Joseph Boodey, Esq., Samuel Jones and Reuben Hayes, Esq. as a committee to look into it. Apparently there was no farm available, for the next year they adopted a new plan: that of "letting out" all the poor to one man; Joseph Buzzell took them, for $299.50, he to furnish them with doctor's care, meat, drink and suitable clothing. This was done for several years, the price going up each year. In 1834, David Steele took them for $562.00, to "pro- vide them with suitable meats, drinks, clothing, washing, lodging, medical aid, nursing, etc., and in case of the decease of any of them to decently bury them."
In 1839, Captain Benjamin Savage took over the care of the poor for $500.00, plus the occupancy, use and income of "the farm belonging to said town." The next year, they "bound out" all the children at the farm who were old enough to work.
In 1841, there was lively discussion about selling the farm, but they did not do so; instead, the Overseer of the Poor made some changes in the management. In 1866, another committee was ap- pointed to see about selling it, but it was not done. In 1868 it cost $1,000 to operate the farm; around 1870, it was finally given up, the old and feeble and the orphan children boarded out as formerly, receiving board and care, medicine and finally burial at the town's expense.
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CHAPTER FOURTEEN Mills
One of the stipulations in the charter of New Durham, dated May 5, 1749, was that "there be 20 acres of Land Left in Some Suitable Place for a Privilege and Accomodation of a Saw mill ... the owner ... of such mill Shall Saw the Logs of sd. inhabitants to the halves;" it further states that if no particular person will under- take the venture, then the inhabitants are to run the mill and share the expense. When the land was surveyed and the plan drawn up in May, 1750, there was no mill site reserved, but the grantors ac- cepted the plan as it was.
It seems that there was no mill built for a number of years. An excerpt from an early book of records reads as follows:
"Monday, June 25, 1764
Met according to adjournment and voted -
1st. That Thomas Tash Esq., shall have eight hundred pounds old tenor of the proprietors to build a Grist Mill and Dam in New Durham and compleat her fit to grind by the first of November next and to keep her in repair for fifteen years. And said Thomas Tash Esq. and his heirs is to run said Mill for- ever and to have the customary tole of other mills in this province.
2dly. That each proprietor shall pay twelve pounds old tenor for the above said Mill and other incident charges.
3dly. Voted that Col. Joseph Smith Esq. and Major Thomas Tash Esq. both of Newmarket shall be agents to apply to the General Court for us to get an act or law for to compel the proprietors to pay this charge and any other that is or shall be due for the promoting the settlement of the above said town.
Thomas Tash, Town Clerk."
That these gentlemen were not wholly successful is indicated by the report that the final sum paid Major Tash was some 70 pounds for the building of the Mill, which bears out the family tradition that Major Tash built the mills "at his own expense."
In the report of settlements made in 1770, a John Doo is listed as owning Lots # 97, on which he has a house, and # 65, on which he has two mills, "grist and saw". This is the location where Col. Tash later had his mills; the road to it ran southwesterly from the Bay road, crossed what is now Route 11 and continued as the (later called) Quaker road to the Ridge.
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A later report of the same year lists John Younge as the owner of the Lot # 65 with the two mills. It is also recorded that "a Saw mill Etc was burnt" on Lot # 17, owned by Paul March. This is in the area of the Mill Pond on the river from Merrymeeting Lake; not the one we know today but farther upstream.
The Meeting House and several large dwelling houses were built here in the early 1770's; the specifications for the minister's house in 1773 called for it to be "borded, clabborded and shingled." With the population increasing, more and better houses were built and the saw mills ran profitably.
At the end of an inventory taken in 1784, the assessors rate the profits of Willey's Grist mill and saw mill; Col. Thomas Tash's saw mill, Esq. Paul March's mill, and Chamberlin's mill.
In 1796, Joseph Gilman ran a fulling mill on the river coming from Cold Rain pond, at a dam near what is now the property of the Farmington Fish and Game Club. This part of the river was then called "Fulling Mill Brook", later named "Ela's River"; by whatever name, it was the main branch of the Cocheco river. One road at this junction led to the "Plains" as it does today; the other, known as the "Jewett road" ran north northwest to strike the Merrymeeting road north of one of the "March's ponds," where Captain James Jewett had lumber mills. He owned eight lots in the second division in 1815, lot #9 encompassing the profitable outlet from Merrymeeting lake, and operated these mills until his death in 1822.
Nicholas Noyes bought the Jewett properties and ran the mills until 1835, when he sold out to David Steele, lawyer and Dr. John P. Elkins. There is no doubt that Nicholas Noyes found the mill operation profitable, for he had no property of any kind when he arrived in New Durham in 1820; in 1826, he records having "money at interest" to the amount of $7,000! A real fortune in those days, and not an inconsiderable sum today.
The partnership of Elkins and Steele lasted only a year. Dr. Elkins carried on for five years (Stephen Pendergast having a quarter interest for two years) then sold the mills to Jonathan B. Mooney in 1843. Mr. Mooney moved to Alton in 1850 and sold the properties to George Mathewson of Dover.
Chamberlin's mills were located on a small river on the south side of New Durham Ridge, his Lot # 40 running along the Farm- ington boundary line.
Lt. Ephraim Chamberlin, listed on the 1784 inventory, could have been the owner of these mills; in 1806, Ephraim is not listed, but Isaac is, and the latter ran two mills continuously until 1838, when he presumably died. In 1840, his son Isaac Jun., took over and carried on until 1843, when the wheels of that mill stopped forever.
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Nathaniel W. Ela of Dover bought the Tash mills and much of the property of Col. Tash who died in 1809, and operated them until 1839. He lived in Dover but his son George Ela lived in New Durham in the former Josiah Edgerly house, and kept the house as a tavern as before. He also served as Town Clerk and Selectman. When his father died in 1842, George inherited his property, which amounted to about 600 acres. But the mill wheels of the Tash-Ela mills were silenced forever, too.
Willey's mills, recorded in 1784, were located on Lots # 17, 18 and 19 on the Merrymeeting River. Samuel Willey, David Willey and Samuel, Jun., were the co-owners until 1819 when the elder Samuel died. Various Willeys continued ownership, namely David, Joseph and Samuel B. Willey until 1836, when Samuel Downing bought a two-thirds share. By the next year he owned it all. Down- ings Mills functioned for many years, and the corner where it was located bore this name as long as it was there, and even longer.
John Hiner owned a mill in 1815; Benjamin Cook and Eben Garland took it over in 1816 and in 1819 David Shaw became owner, his brother Isaac joining him seven years later. The location, Shaw's pond, is in the second division. These mills closed down in 1833. Captain William Horn (e) had a mill in 1815, too, located on the northern boundary of New Durham and Wolfeborough. This mill closed about the same time as did Shaw's.
Other men who had brief careers as mill owners were Solomon and Enoch Davis in the Shaw's pond area; Capt. Samuel Clark, at the eastern end of Merrymeeting; Lucius Powers, east of the Devil's Den, and Benjamin Chesley, near the Brookfield boundary line. Capt. John Colomy had a saw mill for several years (1804-1808, perhaps longer) and Samuel Hodgdon was right across the river. This was known as "Colomy's river", which comes from March's ponds and is now known as the Hayes brook. They were near the Middleton boundary line, almost to that of Farmington. Reuben Hayes was a mill owner from 1817-1835, but as he had many hundreds of acres all over the town, it is difficult to locate his parti- cular mill. It is likely that he bought Capt. Clark's property as de- scribed above.
George Mathewson of Dover, who bought the mills at the out- let of Merrymeeting Pond, started the manufacture of gunpowder in 1852 or 1853, his first superintendent being Parker W. Horne, followed by Alvin White and Samuel H. Berry. There were many alterations and additions necessary to convert the old saw mill to a powder plant, and eventually there were eight separate and well- spaced buildings used for this business: charcoal, mixing, wheel and corning mills, steam drying, excelsior, salt peter refining, pack- ing mills and a dry house. There was also a blacksmith shop and boarding house on the premises.
From 1856 to 1861 it was called the "Eureka Powder Works" (this name is on the little orange cans which are sold in Antique
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shops today) and from then it was known as the "Union Powder Works Co."; sometime in this period Mathewson failed and the property was acquired by Lewis P. Childs of Providence, R. I.
This was a hazardous business, calling for strict regulations to prevent sparks and explosions. The buildings were several rods apart, walkways were swept daily; carts, tools (such as shovels) and some machinery were of wood, and workmen were not allowed to smoke anywhere on the premises.
Even with these precautions there were minor accidents. In 1858 the upper wheel, or grinding mill exploded, killing a man named Blake. Two others were killed when the same mill blew up again later.
In September or December (accounts differ) of 1860 occurred one of the most dreadful catastrophies in New Hampshire. A spark ignited powder in the dry house, the flash caught the press mill, fire from the press mill ignited the kernelling mill which exploded. Only one building was left standing at the end of the holocaust and many men lost their lives. It was said that the blast was heard and felt for a radius of fifty miles around and it can well be believed, for twenty five tons of gun powder exploded that day!
There have been many stories as to the cause of the disaster, some logical and some fanciful. One that was widely circulated* went thus:
"What caused the explosion?" I asked my informant.
"Well, nobody knows and probably ever will know the truth of the matter; anyway, there's a mystery about it."
"What is the mystery?"
"Well, you see, . .. a man who worked in one of the mills didn't get along smooth with his wife, and at noon on the day of the explosion she blew him up. When he went out of the door the man allowed that when the clock struck two she would see a blowup that she would remember, for he had got tired of being blown up on a small scale."
"But that does not prove that the man did it."
"I know it don't prove anything, but it was just two o'clock when the mill went up."
Another story concerns one of the workmen who was blown through a wall. Badly burned but alive, he was packed in potato peelings, the women of the village peeling bushels of potatoes for many weeks to keep him in fresh supply. He recovered and lived to a good age.
The mills were rebuilt and the demands of the Civil War gov- ernment took the whole supply of gunpowder made in New Durham.
From the Rochester Courier.
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The mill stepped up production to supply Army cannon and musket as well as Navy cannon.
There were other accidents after the great explosion, for it was highly dangerous work. In 1874, some local men took it over and from then on the records are vague. For many years the old powder mill lay in ruins with nothing but the boarding house and the stone walls of the powder magazine to show where New Dur- ham's biggest industry had been.
In 1944, construction of a State Fish Hatchery was com- menced and in 1947 it began operations. Mr. Frank Seaver is the present superintendent and welcomes visitors to this interesting spot.
Powder Mill Village is an attractive small community today, old and new homes side by side amidst pleasant wooded surround- ings. There is nothing left to mark the site of death and destruc- tion of one hundred years ago.
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CHAPTER FIFTEEN The Civil War
President Abraham Lincoln issued a proclamation on April 15, 1861 calling for 75,000 men to serve three months to suppress the Rebellion. New Hampshire men responded to the call, and New Durham furnished her share of soldiers as long as the war con- tinued. The following list, compiled from the "Register of New Hampshire Soldiers and Sailors, War of the Rebellion", by Ayling, gives the name, age and date of enlistment. Those starred were born in New Durham.
Batchelder, Mayhew C., 26, Aug. '62; * Berry, George E., 18, Aug. '62; Berry, William E., 44, Aug. '64; Boodey, Horace P., 18, Aug. '62; * Bickford, Jackson C., 19, July '61; Bickford, Anson, 26, Aug. '62, Killed June 3, '64, Cold Harbor, Va .; Cobb, William H., 30, Aug. '62; * Chesley, John F., 35, Oct. '61; Colbath, John S., 19, Oct. '61; * Colomy, James P., 18, Oct. '61, Died of disease Jan. 15, '62; * Colomy, John, 42, Aug. '62; Clark, David J., 27, May, '61; *Davis, George F., 18, Aug. '62; Davis, Thomas N., 44, Aug. '62; Drew, John S., 18, Aug. '62, Died of disease Dec. 23, '63; * Durgin, Edwin R., 18, Aug. '62, Died of disease Dec. 14, '63; * Edgerly, Daniel M., 19, Aug. '62; * Edgerly, Shadrach A., 40, Oct. '61; * Evans, Charles M., 21, Aug. '62; * Evans, George A., 28, Aug. '62; * Hayes, Alonzo E., 18, Mar. '64; * Hayes, Nehemiah B., 19, Aug. '62; * Ham, Penuel C., 38, Nov. '61, Captain; * Horn, Stephen B., 18, May '61; Horne, Ira B., 18, Oct. '62, Died of disease Nov. 11, '63; * Jenkins, William P., 25, Dec. '61; * Joy Christopher C., 26, Aug. '62, Killed July 2, '63 at Gettysburg; * Jones, George F., 21, Oct. '61; Locke, Benjamin T., 25, Jan. '62, Killed Aug. 25, '64 at Kearneyville, Va .; *Mitchell, Thomas E., 29, Sept. '61; * Mitchell, Alvin, 21, Aug. '62; *Penney, John W., 20, Oct. '61; Person, Rorace B., 32, Aug. '62; Pinkham, John Q., 30, Sept. '61; Pinkham, Jeremiah S., 24, Aug. '62, Died of disease July 21, '63; * Pinkham, Justice, 34, Aug. '62, Died of disease March 4, '63; Rand, Cyrus, 18, May '61; Rand, Ira, 18, May '61; * Randall, John F., 20, Aug. '62, Killed May 3 at Chancellorsville, Va .; * Randall, Franklin W., 18, Oct. '61, Awarded Gillmore medal "for gallant and meritorious conduct"; * Randall, Isaac, 43, Sept. '64; * Randall, Moses, 35, Aug. '64; Rines, Alvah C., 36, Sept. '64; Rollins, Solomon, 21, May '61; Rollins, Elisha E., 25, Aug. '62, Died of wounds June 7, '63; Rollins, Cyrus C., 27, Aug. '64; * Runnals, John S., 18, Sept. '61; * Runnals, Paul M., 27, Oct. '61; Runnals, Joseph, 43, Aug. '64; * Savage, Moses H. 33, Aug. '62, Killed May 3, '63 at Chancellorsville, Va .; Streeter, Roswell, 35, Aug. '62, Died of disease May 24, '63; * Tash, William H., 25, Sent. '61; Towle, Charles F., 36, Aug. '62; Towle, Exekial, 30, Aug. '62;
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