USA > Rhode Island > Newport County > History of Newport County, Rhode Island. From the year 1638 to the year 1887, including the settlement of its towns, and their subsequent progress > Part 3
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HISTORY OF NEWPORT COUNTY.
autumn and removed to Plymouth. Here he met with many of the representative Indian chiefs of the surrounding wilderness and spent much time in studying their language, among whom were Massasoit and Miantonomi, the latter being a chief of the territory now embraced in Newport county. Two years later he resumed the pastoral position which he had left at Salem, but after another period of controversy extending over nearly another two years, he was duly banished from that colony by the solemn and decorous pronunciamento of the general court. This action was not an unusual one in those times, but was con- sistent with the laws under which they lived, and in harmony with the general tone of popular sentiment. 'The banishment of a member for teaching doctrines in opposition to their ac- cepted laws was no more an exhibition of intolerance than the execution of any punishment for the violation of law at the present time. The difference is in the color of the glass through which we look.
But it is not purposed here to discuss the propriety or ex- pediency of the banishment of Williams. We have only to deal with the fact. The order of banishment was dated Sep- tember 3d, 1635, and the language was as follows :
" Whereas Mr. Roger Williams, one of the elders of the church of Salem, hath broached and dyvulged dyvers newe and dangerous opinions, against the aucthoritie of magistrates, as also writ letters of defamacion, both of the magistrates and churches here, and that before any conviction, and yet maine- taineth the same withont retraccion, it is therefore ordered, that the said Mr. Williams shall departe out of this jurisdiccion within six weekes nowe next ensueinge, which if he neglect to performe, it shall be lawfull for the Governor and two of the magistrates to send him to some place out of this jurisdiccion, not to return any more without licence from the Court."
A strong character will always draw to itself strong adherents. So Williams had many ardent friends and followers. The rumor gained credence that a new colony was thus to be formed, and the fears that under his leadership such a colony would be planted somewhere near their own, which must of course be weakened by withdrawals of members to form the new one, prompted the general court again to consider the matter, and on January 11th they resolved to send Williams to England. But before the messengers sent to apprehend him reached Salem
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HISTORY OF NEWPORT COUNTY.
he had taken his departure, journeying through the wilderness southward. Some account of his movements is given in his own language at a subsequent time, as follows :
" I first pitched and began to build and plant at Seekonk, now Rehoboth, but I received a letter from my ancient friend, Mr. Winslow, then Governor of Plymouth, professing his own and others love and respect to me, yet lovingly advising me, since I was fallen into the edge of their bounds, and they were loth to displease the Bay, to remove to the other side of the water, and then, he said, I had the country free before me, and might be as free as themselves, and we should be loving neigh - bors together."
After leaving Salem in January, as we have seen, he was, as he says,, "sorely tossed, for fourteen weeks, in a bitter winter season," between Plymouth and Seekonk, where he fixed his habitation in the following spring. After remaining but a short time he heeded the warning of his friend Governor Wins- low, and embarking in a canoe with five associates sailed across the water and up Providence river to the point where he estab- lished his plantation in May or early June, 1636. In his sojourn in the wilderness he was sheltered and fed by friendly Indians, and on his way to the site of his plantation he was greeted by others in the same amicable manner. With the Indians Wil- liams continued to maintain friendly relations. He purchased land of them, the chiefs at that time being Canoniens and his nephew, Miantonomi, both of whom made their residence gen- erally on the island of this county which perpetuates the name of the former. Williams, with his twelve associates, founded the settlement of Providence on a more broad, civil platform, and one in which entire freedom from ecclesiastical character was aimed at.
It was well for the new settlement that the friendship of the Narragansett Indians had been cultivated, for about this time the great chief of the Peqnods, Sassacus, was growing in bitter determination to annihilate the whites and subdue the Indians of all the country adjoining his own territory. In the expe- dition which the English sent under Capt. John Mason in 1637 to break the power of this threatening monarch, Miantonomi, with two hundred of his bravest Narragansett warriors, joined as against a common foe. Thus augmented, and with the addi- tion of other Indians from the Nianties and the rebellious Pe-
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HISTORY OF NEWPORT COUNTY.
quods under Uncas, the forces of Mason numbered about five hundred strong.
Attacking the Pequod fort at Mystic at early dawn of a June morning, taking it by surprise, this force with wild vengeance applied fire and sword relentlessly, till seven hundred victims had fallen. The fleeing remnant of the nation were pursued along the sound shore westward, with sad slanghter by the way, until the remnant were overtaken and captured near Fairfield. except that Sassacus and a few others escaped to the Mohawks. only to meet death at their hands.
Thus the great nation of the Pequods was wiped out, and the English settlers breathed free of the terrors on their account which had made residence in the new country peculiarly hazardons.
Though the scenes of the Pequod war were enacted in other fields than Newport county the influences exerted here must have amounted to a powerful factor in the means which brought such auspicious results to the white settlers of both this locality and Massachusetts bay. The scenes which took place here, on Conanient island, perhaps turned the tide of events, and in their final development gave to the white settlers an overwhelming victory for all time instead of a complete extermination of their feeble numbers by the combined forces of the bloodthirsty sav- ages. The Peqnod embassadors sent to secure the co-operation of the Narragansett Indians were already in conference with Canonicus and Miantonomi on the island of Conanient, when Roger Williams, being apprized of their movements and pur- poses. came down the bay to intercede with his friends. the Narragansett sachems. Though the latter had already entered into negotiations with the Pequods to join them in their war upon the whites, Williams threw all his energies into the cause, and at the imminent risk of his life, for three days and three nights labored by entreaty, argument and expostulation, to pre- vent the proposed alliance. His efforts were at last crowned with success, the proposed compact was completely nullified and the friendly relations of the Narragansetts with the colon- ists fully established.
History can never tell what direful results would have fol- lowed had it not been for that interview on Conanicut and the herculean struggle of Williams' superior intellect with that of the untutored savages. But the aspects which seem to have
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HISTORY OF NEWPORT COUNTY.
been entirely changed by it, when the fate of a coming nation hung quivering in the balance, strongly suggest that but for that interview the feeble colonies of white settlers then in New England might have been completely annihilated before the sweep of tomahawk and firebrand, wielded without mercy by reckless savage hands.
While the field was being prepared for the occupation of a new race by the confirmation of friendly relations with the Nar- ragansetts, and the removal of possible danger from the hostile Peqnods, agencies were at work in Massachusetts bay prepar- ing the seed which was soon to be planted here, as the nucleus of civilization in Newport county. We turn now to look briefly at the working of those agencies and the development of their results.
From the early days of the Christian church, when the apos- tle James wrote his general epistle, there have been at times persons who taught the doctrine that faith in Christ relieves those holding it from all obligation to keep the moral law. Those holding this doctrine were called Antinomians. The doc- trine appeared in Germany in the time of Luther, by whom it was vigorously opposed, and in England during the protector. ate of Cromwell, when some of its votaries maintained that "as the elect cannot fall from grace nor forfeit the divine favor, any wicked actions which they may commit are not really sinful ; and that consequently, they have no need to confess their sins or to break them off by repentance." It appeared again in the following century, when its supporters maintained that it was a logical consequence from the doctrines taught by Calvin. From England the doctrine was brought to the new settlements in America by Mrs. Anne Hutchinson, a lady of considerable enl- ture and liberal education, who arrived in Boston September 18th, 1634. She became a member of the Boston church, and rapidly acquired influence. Meetings of the women of the church were held under her direction, in which she tanght her peculiar relig- ions speculations. Among them was the tenet that the person of the Holy Spirit dwells in every believer, and that the inward revelations of the Spirit, the conscious judgments of the mind, are of paramount authority. Among those who accepted her doctrines were Henry Vane, John Cotton and John Wheel- wright and nearly the whole Boston church. The neighboring churches and clergy however, were strongly opposed to them.
2
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HISTORY OF NEWPORT COUNTY.
The contest in 1636 became violent and all-pervading. Bancroft says, -" The dispute infused its spirit into everything ; it inter- fered with the levy of troops for the Pequot war ; it influenced the respect shown to the magistrates, the distribution of town lots, the assessment of rates ; and at last the continued exist- ence of the two opposing parties was considered inconsistent with the public peace."
The peculiar tenets of Mrs. Hutchinson were among a long catalogue of opinions which were condemned as erroneous by an ecclesiastical synod held at Newtown, Mass., August 30th, 1637, and in the following November she was tried by the general court, and together with a number of her associates sentenced to banishment from the territory of Massachusetts.
Nineteen of these exiled colonists, under the leadership of John Clarke and William Coddington, were welcomed by Roger Williams to establish a plantation near him, and by his recom- mendation purchased of the Indians the island of Aquidneck, now known as Rhode Island. Here a body politic was formed on democratic principles, in which no one was to be "accounted a delinquent for doctrine." Mrs. Hutchinson, with her hus- band and sons, joined the new settlement, and remained there until 1642. when, her husband having died, she removed with her family into the territory of the Dutch near New York, where during the following year she died at the hands of the Indians who were then at war with the Dutch.
We are now prepared to consider the actnal circumstances of the purchase and settlement.
The initial part of what is now the county of Newport was the insular territory. Of that, the island lying in the bay, against the northern part of Rhode Island, now known as Prudence, but called by the Indians Chibachuwese, was the first purchase from the Indians of which we have any knowledge. This was first purchased by one Mr. Oldham, as will shortly be seen, upon conditions of settlement which were not fulfilled, hence the sale was void. Later it was sold to Roger Williams and Governor Winthrop. The date of these transactions is not known, but it was probably some time during the year 1636. The purchase was made of the two chiefs, Canonicus and Mian- tonomi. Previous to the transaction Roger Williams wrote to Governor Winthrop in regard to his motives and purposes that "Cannonnicus gave an Island in this Bay to Mr. Oldham, by
19
HISTORY OF NEWPORT COUNTY.
name Chibacknwesa, uppon condition as it should seem, that he would dwell there neare unto them. The Lord (in whose hands all our hearts are) turning theare affections towards my- selfe, they desired me to remove thither and dwell nearer to them. I have answered once and againe, that for the present I mind not to remove ; but if I have it from them, I would give them satisfaction for it, and build a little house and put in some swine, as understandinge the place to have store of fish and good feedinge for swine. Of late I have heard, that Mr. Gibbons, upon occasion, motioned your desire and his own of putting some swine on some of these islands, which hath made me more destre to obtain it, because I might thereby not onley benefit myselfe, but also pleasure yourselfe, whom I more desire to please and honour. I spoke of it now to this sachem, and he tells me, that because of the store of fish, Cannonniens desires that I would accept halfe, (it being spectacle-wise, and between a mile or two in circuit, as I guess) and he would reserve the other ; but I think if I goe over, I shall obtain the whole."
But the first definite and most important transfer of the ex- tensive insular lands of this county was made in the year 1637. The following is a copy of this conveyance :
" The 24th of ye 1st month called March in ye yeare (soe com- monly called) 1637.
" Memorandum. That we Cannonnicus and Miantunnomu ye two chiefe Sachims of the Nanhiggansitts, by virtue of our Generale command of this Bay, as allso the perticular subject- inge of the dead Sachims of Acquednecke and Kitackamuck- qutt, themselves and land unto us, have sold unto Mr. Cod- dington and his friends united unto him, the great Island of Acquednecke lyinge from hence Eastward in this Bay, as allso the marsh or grasse upon Quinnnientt and the rest of the Islands in the Bay (exceptinge Chibachuwesa formerly sould unto Mr. Winthrop, the now Governour of the Massachusetts and Mr. Williams of Providence) ; allso the grasse upon the rivers and coves about Kitickamuckqutt and from these to Panpansquatch, for the full payment of forty fathom of white beads, to be equally divided between ns. In witnesse whereof we have here subscribed.
" Item. That by givinge by Miantunnomus' ten coates and twenty howes to the present inhabitants, they shall remove
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HISTORY OF NEWPORT COUNTY.
themselves from off the Island before next winter. Witness our hands.
"The marke of X CAUNONNIOUS
" In the presence of " Ye marke of X YOTUESI
" ROGER WILLIAMS
"The marke of X MIANTUNNOMU " RANDALL, HOLDEN
" Ye marke of X ASSOTEMUET
" Ye marke of X MISHAMMONI
"CAUNONICUS, his son."
Other memoranda relating to the transaction have been pre- served, among the most interesting of which are the following : "This witnesseth that I, Wanamatrannemit ye at present sachem, inhabitant of ye Island, have received five fathom of wampum and doe consent to the contents. Witness my hand. Ye marke of WANAMATAUNEWIT " In ye presence of RANDALL HOLDEN."
" Memorandum. That I, Onsamequin, freely consent that Mr. William Coddington and his friends United unto him shall make use of any grasse or trees on ye maine land on Powakasick side, and doe promise loveinge and just carriage of myselfe and all my men to the said Mr. Coddington and English his friends united to him, havinge received of Mr. Coddington five fathom of wampum as gratuity from himselfe and the rest.
" Dated the 6th of the fifth month, 1638. " Ye marke of X OUSAMEQUIN
" Wituesse
ROGER WILLIAMS,
RANDALL HOLDEN."
Existing receipts from Miantunnomn, Weshaganesett, Wani- menatoni and Canonnieus show that during the year 1639 Cod- dington and his associates paid to the Indians at different times, to satisfy them for this purchase, twenty fathoms wampum, twenty-five coats, thirteen hoes and two "tarkepes." The In- dians now removed from the island of Aquidneck and its neighboring islands, and surrendered them to the peaceable and undisputed possession of the white purchasers. The first settlement was made at Pocasset, in the northern part of the island, near the present village of Portsmouth.
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HISTORY OF NEWPORT COUNTY.
. William Coddington, whose name appears prominent in the first purchase of lands of this conuty, was previous to that, one of the magistrates of the Massachusetts colony. He was one of a company of nineteen persons who associated themselves to- gether at Boston for the purpose of settling as a colony at some place southward, and accordingly sent out a committee of their number to select a place and secure territory upon which to locate. They made choice of the beautiful islands and shores of Narragansett bay. as has been seen, and two and a half cen- turies of enlightened progress confirms the wisdom of their choice. The deed was taken, as we have seen, in the name of " William Coddington and his friends." It was so held by Coddington until April 14th, 1652. when he executed an instru- ment transferring all rights which he might claim under the deed to the company of which himself was but a single member, holding equal rights with the others
Soon after the purchase of the " plantation " the settlers who located npon it entered into a compact, of which the following is a copy :
" The 7th day of the first month, 1638.
" We whose names are underwritten do here solemnly in the presence of Jehovah incorporate ourselves into a Bodie Politick and as he shall help, will submit our persons, lives and estates unto our Lord Jesus Christ, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords and to all those perfect and most absolute lawes of his given us in his holy word of truth, to be guided and judged thereby.
Exod. 24. 3, 4. WILLIAM CODDINGTON, JOIN CLARKE,
2 Cron. 11. 3. 2 Kings. 11. 17.
WILLIAM HUTCHINSON, Jr.,
JOHN COGGESHALL,
WILLIAM ASPINWALL,
SAMUEL WILBORE,
JOHN PORTER, JOIN SANFORD,
EDWARD HUTCHINSON, Jr., Esq., THOMAS SAVAGE, WILLIAM DYRE, WILLIAM FREEBORNE."
PHILLIP SHEARMAN, JOHN WALKER.
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HISTORY OF NEWPORT COUNTY.
RICHARD CARDER, WILLIAM BAULSTON, EDWARD HUTCHINSON, Sen'r., HENRY X BULLE, his marke, RANDALL HOLDEN."
William Coddington was chosen a judge and the little colony promised to " yield all due honour unto him according to the lawes of God." At the same time William Aspinwall was ap- pointed secretary and William Dyre was made "Clarke of this Body."
Meetings of the colony were held at irregular intervals, some- times of a week or two and sometimes of a month or more, whenever occasion demanded, which in those primitive days was frequent. At these meetings laws and orders were passed, lands allotted to individual settlers, and provision made for the needs of the colony in various directions as those needs ap- peared.
The colony flourished during the year 1638, and such was its rapid growth and the prospects of future prosperity that it was soon deemed expedient and desirable that a new colony or em- bryo town should be established on the southern part of the island. On the 28th of April, 1639, William Coddington and eight others decided to found such a plantation, and the steps which followed resulted in the foundation of what afterward became the town, and still later the city of Newport. Though the official vote which constituted the first act toward establish- ing the new settlement bears the above mentioned date, the 12th of May is the traditional date on which the settlement was be- gun. This is attested by the inscription on the monument to the memory of William Coddington, which marks his resting place in the burial ground on Farewell street, near the Second Baptist church in Newport. It is a stone slab, standing in the middle of the plot, and bears the following legend of the time of which we are writing :
" THIS MONUMENT Erected by the Town of Newport on the 12th day of May, 1839, being the Second Centennial Anni- versary of the settlement of this Town ; To the memory of WILLIAM CODDINGTON, ESQ. That illustrious man, who first purchased this Island from the Narragansett Sachems Canoniens and Miantunomo for, and on account of himself and Seventeen others his associates in the purchase and settlement.
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HISTORY OF NEWPORT COUNTY.
" He presided many years as chief Magistrate of the Island- and Colony of Rhode Island-and died mich respected and lamented on the 1st day of November 1678, Aged 78 Years- and was here interred."
If we may be pardoned for the digression, we would linger in this ancient burial place a moment longer to speak of two or three others of the first settlers of this island whose remains lie buried here. Doubtless beneath the grass and in spots other- wise hall hidden in this enclosure
" There lie memorial stones whence time has gnawed The graven legends ; "
but the "legends" upon some of them are still intelligible. Among them is a monument to Henry Bull, " Late Governor of this Colony aged 85 years deceased Jannary 22d 1692. He was one of the eighteen original purchasers of this Island who set- tled the town of Pocassett or Portsmouth in 1638 ; and one of the eight who settled the town of Newport in 1639." Others bear the inscriptions of William James, Sr., who died October 19, 1697 ; John Easton, governor, who died in 1705 ; and Edward Thurston, who died in 1706.
A little confusion appears to exist in regard to the exact number of the first settlers here. It seems probable that one of the nineteen, Randall Holden, was not a member of the com- pany at the time the purchase was made, but joined or re- joined it abont the time the compaet was entered into. He then a few years later separated from the company. Hence we find the original number of settlers spoken of sometimes as eighteen and at other times as nineteen.
We now behold the island of Aquidneck with two settlements in active and prosperous existence upon it. The usual labors of a new settlement engrossed their attention. What with break- ing roads. clearing up woods, exterminating wolves and foxes, opening a trade in lumber, building vessels and laying the foundations of a well established and regulated local govern- ment, these towns were soon advanced to a more prosperous and important position than their elder sister, Providence. During the summer of 1638 Richard Dummer began building a mill. For this publie convenience he was granted a share in the common proprietorship equal to a $150 estate. In the lat- ter part of the same year Mr. Esson was encouraged to build a water mill for the use of the plantation. and for that use he was
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HISTORY OF NEWPORT COUNTY.
permitted to fall and carry away any timber that might be necessary. At this period the general meeting of the people empowered creditors to sell property of absconded debtors, also appointed men to trade with the Indians, and fixed the rates at which venison should be bought and sold. These prices were three half pence a pound to be paid for it in trade with the In- dians, and two pence a pound was the price at which it was to be sold, a farthing to each pound to be returned into the public treasury as revenue. Ou training days all men able to bear arms, between the ages of sixteen and fifty years, were required to exercise in military drill. In 1639 fences of either hedge or post-and-rail were required to be made around corn ground. Keepers were appointed for the cattle which ran at large in the common pasturage. from April 15th to November 1st. The set- ting of fire on any lands for purposes of clearing was forbidden, except during certain specified days in March. This indicates the prevalence of a custom of burning grass and shrubs. Stocks and whipping posts were among the first institutions set up for the public weal in these primitive towns. The fields and woods were held largely in common, and the falling of timber, which was plentiful here, was regulated by the towns. Those who were licensed to ent timber and saw it into lumber were forbid- den to sell any lumber ontside of the town or to any one in the town withont license from the proper authorities. The prices, which were then regulated by law, were eight shillings per hun- dred for inch boards and seven shillings per hundred for half inch boards ; and twelve pence per foot for clap-boards and palings.
On the 12th of March, 1640, a compact amounting to a gov . ernment was entered into by a union of the two towns occupy- ing the island. It was agreed that this should be under a gov- ernor or deputy governor and assistants. The governor and two assistants were to be chosen from one town and the deputy and two other assistants from the other town. The governor and all his assistants were invested with the authority of jus- tices of the peace. The election of all town officers was now ef- fected by the united towns. The first officers of the primitive state thus organized were: William Coddington, governor ; William Brenton, deputy governor; Nicholas Easton, John Coggeshall, William Hutchinson and John Porter, assistants ; William Dyre, secretary, and Henry Bull, sergeant. The term
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