USA > New Hampshire > Rockingham County > Windham > The history of Windham in New Hampshire (Rockingham country). 1719-1883. A Scotch settlement (commonly called Scotch-Irish), embracing nearly one third of the ancient settlement and historic township of Londonderry, N.H > Part 8
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" Their bones are dust, Their good swords rust - Their souls are with the saints, I trust."
IN March, 1744, the French and Indian war was commenced, which lasted till October, 1748. The Indians joined sides with the French, and came on marauding expeditions from Canada and Nova Scotia around our defenceless settlements, and waylaid, killed, sealped, or took captive to Canada those whom they could find. People upon the frontiers were obliged to retire for safety to the forts maintained at public expense, and to the private houses surrounded with palisades of timber. In such fear did the people upon the frontier live, that many of those settlements were abandoned for several years. Windham escaped the ravages of the merciless foe, but she shared in the general alarm, and her sons aided in defending other towns in the State from the enemy.
July 5, 1745, the Indians committed several murders at "The Great Meadow," now Westmoreland. Scouts were immediately ordered out by the governor. Among others was Capt. Peter Pattee, of Londonderry, with a party of cavalry.
On his muster-roll* are the names of William Campbell, Wil- liam Gregg, Jr., Hugh Smiley, and William Smiley, of Windham. They were to scout in the Merrimack valley. They enlisted Aug. 24, 1745, served three days, and each man received 5s. 13d.
On the muster-rolls, in the State Department of Massachu- setts, I find the following, which appear to be Windham men : In Colonel Moore's regiment (1745), William Earl Treadwell, Adam Galt, David Kincaid, and John Simpson, the latter ascribed to Londonderry, but was of Windham.
* Adjt .- Gen. Rep. 1866, vol. ii, p. 78.
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HISTORY OF WINDHAM IN NEW HAMPSHIRE.
The year 1746 was noted for the disquiet of the people and continual alarm, on account of Indian atrocities. The fall of the fortress of Louisburg had exasperated the French and their Indian allies, and frequent attacks were made on our frontier settlements. Forts and garrison-houses existed in various parts of the Province, and parties of men were continually "scouting " for the Indians; and yet, in spite of all precautions, the Indians were often successful in their attacks, and in the spring of this year the government was obliged to send extra men to guard the garrisons while the people did their planting.
On the twenty-seventh day of April, 1746, the Indians made an attack at Hopkinton, and eight persons were taken captive. They were pursued by Capt. John Goffe, of Londonderry, with a company of fifty men, and in six days he was at "Penacook " (now Concord). While there news came of an attack on Con- toocook (now Boscawen), and Captain Goffe went immediately in pursuit of the enemy, who escaped. This scout ended about May 20 .* A portion of the company re-enlisted for ten days, and among them were Halbert Morison, of Windham Range, James Vance and William MacAdams, from Windham.
On the 14th of July, 1746, Capt. Andrew Todd, of London- derry, started on a scout to Canterbury and vicinity, with twenty- three men, and among them Hugh Thompson and William Cald- well were from Windham.t
A bounty was offered by the government of New Hampshire for Indian scalps and Indian captives. For a scalp, a bounty of €200 in bills of credit, and for an Indian captive above twelve years of age, £205. This was to encourage independent organi- zations to hunt and destroy the hostiles.
After August, 1747, thirty men were scouting from London- derry to Barrington for six weeks. These scouting expeditions explain the following vote upon the Windham records : -
May 31, 1748. - Voted, "That each man that is gone to the woods for us this year shall have forty shillings old tenor per month above the province pay "; and this is the final town action during this war, though Indian depredations continued till far into the year 1749.
THINGS LOOK WARLIKE IN WINDHAM, 1752.
In 1752, at the annual meeting, March 9, a controversy arose respecting the rights of voters. The selectmen and moderator permitted those to vote who many in the parish thought had no legal status in town, and a board of officers was elected. The
Adjt .- Gen. Natt Head, in his account of this affair, says the muster-roll of the company is lost. This is a mistake. I have examined it, and it can be found in Vol. xv, N. E. Hist. and Gen'l Reg., in the Society's rooms in Boston, Mass.
+ Adjt .- Gen. Rep. 1866, vol. ii, p. 91.
55
TROUBLE WITH SALEM, 1752, ETC.
dissatisfied ones immediately withdrew in a body, held a different meeting, and elected another set of town officers. Both boards of officers doubted their power to act legally, and things remained in a chaotic state till Feb. 2, 1753, when a petition signed by forty-one of the freeholders, stating their grievances, was pre- sented to the governor and council, praying that the proceedings of both meetings might be declared void.
In the house of representatives, Feb. 22, 1753, the proceedings of both meetings were declared to be void, and Peter Gilman, Esq., was authorized to cause a notification to be put up for the people of Windham to meet on the first Tuesday of March, 1753, for a choice of officers for 1752, and the said Peter Gilman, Esq., was to be moderator of said meeting. A new board of officers was chosen from among the petitioners, the vanquished became the victors, and so ended the dual government of the town.
TROUBLE WITH SALEM, 1752, AND DISMEMBERMENT OF WINDHAM.
Salem originally belonged to the Methuen district, was incor- porated as a district in 1741-2, and incorporated as a town in May, 1750. In 1741, when the lines were established between Massachusetts and New Hampshire, it was cut off from the towns of Methuen and Dracut.
As will be seen by the map, Windham, at the time of its incor- poration, included about one third of the present town of Salem. The easterly boundary of the town commenced, northerly on the eastern line of Londonderry, and ran south, passing through the northeast portion of Hittitity Pond, including the Saunders farm, Salem Depot, crossing the turnpike, Policy Brook, and Manches- ter & Lawrence Railroad, near the Oliver Russ place ; thence in a southerly direction till it struck the original southerly line of Londonderry, northeast of the farm lately owned by Cyrus Wil- son in Salem ; thence in a northwesterly direction following the original Londonderry line till it reached Beaver Brook, and on the same till it reached the northerly boundary of Windham.
In order to give an intelligent account of the causes for the dismemberment, some of the first acts of the first settlers will be reviewed. Soon after Windham became a town, the cemetery on the plain was laid out. It was the intention of our Scotch ances- tors to follow the custom of the Fatherland, and have the kirk or church close to the church-yard, which would not be far from the centre of the town ; but this plan was defeated, and the church was erected on the hill. This was unsatisfactory to citizens of the town farthest away, and there was continual agitation on the subject of finding the "town's centre." Many of the citizens of that part of the town, which is now Salem, were of different blood and different faith, and though they worshipped with the Scotch Presbyterians in the church on the hill, still there was little affinity between the "English Congregationals" and the
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HISTORY OF WINDHAM IN NEW HAMPSHIRE.
Scotch people. They did not coalesce any more readily than oil and water. The Scotch had not a high opinion of "the English bodies "; and the latter did not like the Scotch or their form of worship, and thought it hard that they should be taxed to sup- port the Presbyterian church. Salem having been settled by the English, many of the inhabitants in the southeast part of Wind- ham thought they would be benefited by being disannexed from Windham and annexed to Salem. Many of the people of the northerly and westerly sections of Windham thought they would be benefited by having the English families disannexed from Windham, for then "Samson would be shorn of his locks," and sometime the church would be put in the centre of the town, and more convenient for them. So the two portions joined hands, and by strategy secured a vote of Windham for the dismember- ment of the town. The town of Salem also voted in favor of having the lines changed so as to include the English Congrega- tionalists.
On the ninth day of January, 1752, " to quiet all strife," the lines were changed to the locality in which we find them to-day. But by the provisions of this Act, those who wished could, by notifying the selectmen of Salem and Windham, still retain their connection with Windham, so far as religions affairs were con- cerned, and though they were residents of Salem, after having signified their desire to worship in Windham, could not partici- pate in religious matters in that town.
NAMES OF WINDHAM MEN ANNEXED TO SALEM.
From unpublished State papers I extract the following: On Jan. 19, 1757, the following men lived in that part of Salem which was formerly Windham, and paid their province tax in Windham : Samuel Armour, Robert Spear, John Dinsmore, Francis Dins- more, William Saunders, John Obber, Oliver Saunders, John Obber, Jacob Obber, Eben Woodbury, George Corning, John Corning, Robert Ellenwood, Jonathan Woodbury, John Hall, Oliver Kimball, Edward Bailey, John Griels, William Leach, John Hall (?) or Hill, Nathaniel Woodbury, Abial Pitman, John Ober, Jr., Moses Morgan, JJonathan Morgan, Joshua Thomson, Andrew Balch. This list includes the larger part of the Windham men who were annexed to Salem.
In 1754, as a result of this dismemberment, the town was so greatly weakened by the release of so many from their ministerial taxes, that Rev. William Johnston was obliged to leave for want of adequate support,* and the town was destitute of a stated min- istry till the settlement of Rev. John Kinkead, in October, 1760.
Many persons were taxed by both towns, which engendered bad blood, lawsuits, and expense. James Treadwell was taxed in
* New Hampshire Town Papers, vol. ix, p. 513.
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THE LAST FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR.
Salem. He refused to pay his taxes there, was arrested, and lodged in jail. Windham espoused his cause, prosecuted the Salem constable in 1756, and the case was in court till 1759, when it paid James Treadwell £29. 16s. for his trouble on Salem account. Others would pay double rates rather than contend.
THE SCOTCH PEOPLE IN SALEM REMAIN SCOTCH STILL.
Though Salem received a large addition of territory by the changing of the lines between the towns, still her inhabitants came far short of being a homogeneous people. The Scotch who had been set off to Salem remained Scotch still, in their habits, customs, manner of living, thoughts, and religions faith. Town lines could not change their characters. They united with their countrymen in their place of worship at the head of Windham Range, paid their taxes for the support of the Presbyterian min- ister in Windham, "and from choice always belonged to a training company " in Windham. They belonged " to a different regiment from the rest of the inhabitants of Salem," and had been " called upon and had done their proportionate part in carrying on the war against Great Britain " with the inhabitants of Windham.
But having been taxed in Salem, they on Jan. 3, 1778, petitioned the government of New Hampshire to be reunited to Windham. After stating their case, and speaking of the people of Windham, said, " We have always associated and been connected with them as brothers, but have never associated with the other inhabitants of Salem." This petition came before the House, Feb. 27, 1778, and the prayer was not granted. The signers were as follows : - Isaac Thom. William Smith, Jr. John Campbell.
Josiah Hadley.
Solomon Smith.
David Nevins.
William Thom, Jr.
William Gordon.
Richard Hennesey.
William Smith.
Thomas McGlanghlin.
Nathaniel Gorrell.
Jacob Hardy.
James McGlaughlin.
Gain Armour.
Hugh Campbell.
The people in that part of Salem continued to worship in Wind- ham, and pay ministerial taxes, till 1797. On March 8, 1798, Windham voted in all future taxes to omit those living in Salem ; neither were they taxed for the building of the "old meeting- house" at the centre. From this time henceforth the people of Scotch descent in Salem have been entirely separated in religions and town affairs from their Presbyterian relatives in Windham.
The site for the meeting-house established, Sept. 9, 1794, "at a red oak tree, marked N. 31°, E. 33 rods from the N. E. corner of the graveyard in the westerly part of Windham." *
THE LAST FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR.
In April, 1748, the preliminaries of peace between England and France were signed at Aix-la-chapelle, Germany, and a definite
·
* Town Records, vol. ii, p. 75.
5
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HISTORY OF WINDHAM IN NEW HAMPSHIRE.
treaty signed the following October. In 1754, hostilities con- menced anew, two years before the formal declaration of war by England against France, which was made May 17, 1756. It was the conflict of differing civilizations, and did not cease till French- Catholic supremacy was overthrown in Canada, the province con- quered and placed under the rule of the English government. As an integral part of the British dominions, Windham was called upon to contribute her share for the prosecution of the war, and her sons left the delights of home and fireside for the sufferings of the march, the duties and privations of the camp, and the perils of the battle-field.
Windham voted, Dec. 2, 1755, £90 old tenor to Samuel Thomp- son, William Thompson, and Hugh Dunlap, as an encouragement to them for enlisting as troopers in the late expedition. Daniel Clyde was also a trooper. They enlisted Sept. 22, 1755, in Col. Peter Gilman's regiment and Capt. James Todd's company. Sam- uel Thompson was clerk of the company. They were all dis- charged Dec. 13, 1755. This regiment marched to Albany by way of Charlestown, N. H., but was in no active service, and the campaign ended in December.
Among the men in Capt. Robert Rogers' company, Col. Jona- than Bagley's regiment, left to garrison the forts near Lake George in 1755, was William McKeen, who first owned the McKeen place in Windham. He enlisted Nov. 25, 1755; discharged June 6, 1756. Time of service, 6 months, 24 days.
In August, 1757, the French and Indians captured Fort William Henry on the north shore of Lake George. Among the garrison of 3,000 which surrendered was Thomas Dunlap, and perhaps others of this town. Out of a New Hampshire regiment of 200 men, eighty were slaughtered by the Indians after the surrender. Mr. Dunlap was pursued by a savage, who caught him by his cuc, and tore out a large part of the hair in his head. He, however, escaped, and reached the fort, and was protected by the French.
For the Crown Point expedition of 1757, New Hampshire furnished a regiment of 500 men, under the command of Nathan- iel Meserve, colonel, and John Goffe, lieutenant-colonel.
In Capt. Hercules Mooney's company, with Alexander Todd as first lieutenant, were the following Windham men :-
1Ingh Quinton, enlisted March 5, 1757; discharged Nov. 5. William Campbell, enlisted March 5, 1757 ; discharged Ang. 9. Richard Caswell, enlisted March 5, 1757 ; discharged Nov. 5. Thomas Dunlap, enlisted March 5, 1757 ; discharged Nov. 5. William Thompson, enlisted March 5, 1757; discharged Ang. 9. David Campbell, enlisted March 5, 1757 ; discharged Nov. 5.
A part of this regiment went from New York, with its colonel, to serve with the Earl of Loudon at Halifax, while the remainder, under Lieutenant-Colonel Goffe, was posted at Fort William Henry, and was there at the time of the massacre. It is almost sure that the Windham men were connected with Lieutenant-
59
THE LAST FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR.
Colonel Goffe's detachment, and were at the surrender of Fort William Henry, after making a memorable and gallant defence for six days. Thomas Dunlap, previously mentioned, who was there, it will be seen, belonged in the same company with the other Windham men.
In 1758, another New Hampshire regiment was raised for the Crown Point expedition. It was commanded by Col. John Hart, of Portsmouth, John Goffe, lieutenant-colonel, and Dr. John Hale, of Hollis, surgeon. A portion of the regiment (which num- bered 800 men) joined the expedition against Louisburg, and the remainder, under Lientenant-Colonel Goffe, did duty on the west- ern frontier. The Windham men were : -
James Mann, enlisted April 27, 1758; discharged Oct. 31, 1758.
He was in Capt. Nehemiah Lovewell's company. In Capt. Alexander Todd's company were, -
Joseph Park, enlisted April 26, 1758; discharged Oct. 30, 1758. Matthew Templeton, enlisted April 24, 1758; discharged Oct. 27, 1758. James Gilmore, enlisted April 28, 1758; discharged Oct. 4, 1758. Hugh Quinton, enlisted April 12, 1758; discharged Oct. 30, 1758.
John Gregg, of Windham, died at Schenectady, N. Y., Sept. 19, 1758. Capt. David Gregg, his brother, was an officer, and commanded the bateaux on the North River.
In 1759, the men whose names are here given were from Wind- ham, and did duty at Fort Cumberland, N. S., in Capt. Thomas Cheever's company.
Robert Mann, enlisted March 31, 1759; discharged Aug. 29, 1760. Time, 74 weeks; pay, £33. 6s.
John McConnell, enlisted April 6, 1759; discharged Sept. 16, 1760. Time, 75 weeks, 5 days; pay, £34. 1s. 5d.
"John Kinkied, Wyndham," enlisted March 31, 1759; discharged Nov. 24, 1760. Time, 86 weeks, 3 days; pay, £38. 17s. 10d.
John Morrow, enlisted March 31, 1759; discharged Nov. 26, 1759. Time, 34 weeks, 3 days; pay, £15. 9s. 10d.
James Mann. enlisted March 31, 1759; discharged Nov. 24, 1760. Time, 86 weeks, 3 days; pay, £38. 10d.
James Thompson, enlisted April 6, 1759 ; discharged Nov. 24, 1760. Time, 85 weeks, 4 days; pay, £38. 10s. 2d .*
In 1760, a regiment of 800 men was raised for the invasion of Canada. John Goffe was colonel. The regiment went to Crown Point. They were forty-four days in cutting their way to the foot of the Green Mountains, which they crossed by packing or hauling their stores over the mountains on horse harrows. The Windham men were, in Capt. Alexander Todd's company, -
* See Mass. Rec., Muster-Rolls, at State Dept., Boston, Mass., vol. xeviii, p. 178.
P
.
4
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HISTORY OF WINDHAM IN NEW HAMPSHIRE.
Samuel Thompson, sergeant, enlisted March 6, 1760; discharged Nov. 13, 1760.
Hugh Quinton, enlisted March 11, 1760; sick and went to Albany, N. Y., Oct. 24, 1760.
James Gilmore, enlisted April 8, 1760; was at No. 4, now Charlestown, N. H.
Alexander McCoy, enlisted March 14, 1760; was at No. 4.
John Stewart, or Stuart, who enlisted March 26, 1760; Robert Stuart, who enlisted April 7, 1760, and who were at No. 4; probably the two brothers of that name in Windham Range.
In Captain Hazzen's company were, -
Jolin Dinsmore, enlisted March 10, 1760; discharged at Albany, Nov. 21, 1760.
Robert Speer, who lived on "Speer's Hill," enlisted March 10; discharged Nov. 27, 1760.
In the Billeting Roll of the company commanded by Alexander McNutt, raised out of Colonel Osgood's regiment for the reduc- tion of Canada, are the names of Windham men, namely : Rob- ert Kinkead, John Morison, James Dunlap, Samuel Morison, Wil- liam Kinkead.
NEW HAMPSHIRE MEN SERVE IN A MASSACHUSETTS REGIMENT.
Lieut. Samuel Morison, of East Windham, enlisted April 28, 1760, and served till Nov. 30, 1760. He and others were in a Massachusetts regiment. They joined men from Andover, and he received his commission as lientenant from Governor Hutchin- son, of Massachusetts. It is now in my possession. He served at Fort Cumberland. Time of service, 31 weeks; pay, £38. 15s.
John Morison, his son, enlisted May 26, 1760; discharged Nov. 30. Time. 27 weeks; pay, £12. 3s.
James Dunlap, enlisted May 26, - 1760; discharged Nov. 30, 1760. Time, 27 weeks; pay, £12. 3s.
Samuel Clyde, afterwards colonel, and celebrated as a man and soldier at. Cherry Valley, N. Y., in the Revolution; enlisted May 26, 1760; discharged Nov. 30. Time, 27 weeks; pay. £12. 3s.
Thomas Dunlap, served same time, and received same pay.
Jolm Mc Adams, enlisted May 27 : served 26 weeks, 6 days ; pay, £12. 1s. 9d. William McKeen, the same time and pay.
James Cowan, served 27 weeks from May 26. Pay, £12. 3s.
These were all at Fort Cumberland, Nova Scotia.
There may be errors in the foregoing list, but it is substantially correct.
Doubtless there were other men from this town who did service in the army, whose names will never be known. Dur- ing the "Seven Years' War," as appears from this list, fifty-five different men (or the same men at different times) were in the army. This was a heavy burden upon the young settlement, and we can look back with pride upon this page of our local history which
61
PAPER CURRENCY. - OLD TENOR, NEW TENOR, ETC.
glows so brightly with the spirit of patriotism and self-sacrifice. In Paris, in February, 1763, the treaty of peace was signed between England and France, by which the colonial possessions of France, including Nova Scotia, Cape Breton, Canada, and the islands in the river and gulf of St. Lawrence, were ceded to Eng- land. Thus ended the conflict for supremacy in America between the two great powers of Europe. When peace dawned, the joy of the colonists was great. As the world advances to a higher plane through conflict, suffering, and sacrifice, so the stern disci- pline which the colonists had endured was a great benefit to them. It developed the manhood of the people, strengthened their deter- mination and resolution, aroused a martial spirit, and fitted them for that greater conflict of the Revolution which was so rapidly approaching.
PAPER CURRENCY. - OLD TENOR, NEW TENOR, ETC.
Any one familiar with the Windham records has not failed to notice the constantly recurring allusion to the paper currency then in use, such as " Mass. Old Tenor," "N. H. Old Tenor," "Mass. New Tenor," "N. H. New Tenor," "New Emission," and "law- ful money "; each apparently differed from every other in value. These names and their true significance are not understood by many of the present time. The value of this paper money was variable and uncertain, and from 1741 to 1765 there appears to have been little if any metallic money used as a medium of ex- change in New Hampshire.
In Massachusetts, bills of credit were issued in 1690, which were redeemed yearly till 1704, when the public necessities were so urgent as to induce the General Court to defer payment of taxes for two years, and afterwards for thirteen years. The British Parliament at length interposed, and limited the postponement of taxes till 1741. In this time new emissions of paper money were sent forth, expressed as Old Tenor, Middle Tenor, New Tenor first, New Tenor second. The depreciation of these bills can be seen by the following : -
In 1702, an ounce of silver brought Gs. 10 1-2d .; in 1705, 7s .; in 1713, 8s .; in 1716, 9s. 3d .; in 1717, 12s .; in 1722, 14s .; in 1728, 18s .; in 1730, 20s .; in 1737, 26s .; in 1741, 28s .; in 1749, 60s.
ORIGIN AND VALUE OF TIIE MASSACHUSETTS OLD TENOR.
An ounce of silver, valued at 6s. Sd., was equal to (50) fifty shillings paper money. After March 31, 1750, all debts should be considered as contracted on the basis of silver coin at 6s. Sd. per oz. This was the origin of "Lawful Money," three ounces of sil- ver being equal to one pound of lawful money.
In 1765, in New Hampshire, the people would pay their taxes in coin, or "in any of the bills of credit extant at their present
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HISTORY OF WINDHAM IN NEW HAMPSHIRE.
value." In 1770, the legislature voted to borrow money so as to sink all the outstanding paper bills of credit of this province, and in 1771 paper currency disappeared. New Hampshire followed Massachusetts closely in much of her legislation, and it is fair to suppose that this record of the Massachusetts currency during the years named represents substantially the condition and value of the currency of New Hampshire during the same period.
EXEMPTED FARMS.
The "exempted farms," in the act of incorporation of the town, were those of men who wished to retain their political, social, and religions connection with Londonderry, as they lived near the border. It is very probable that while the "exempted farms" of some of them were within the limits of Windham, the owners lived over the border in Londonderry.
LAWSUITS.
There was a great deal of litigation by the town in the early days of its history, and so a committee was often chosen to look after and manage the lawsuits for the town. Two important causes, and prolific of contention, were the taxes on the "ex- empted farms," the boundary line between Windham and Salem, and the taxation of people in Salem who worshipped in Wind- ham, and to all intents and purposes were Windham people. The vague terms of the settlement of the boundary line between Salem and Windham in 1752, capable of double construction, was the cause of this double taxation.
CIVIL AFFAIRS.
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