n LIFE AND TIMES HOPKINTON, N. H. -TNT THREE FARTS. PART I. — Descriptive and Historical. PART II. — Personal and Biographical. PART III. — Statistical and Documentary. By C. C. LORD. ftontaxb, ft. p.: Republican Press Association, 22 North Main Street. 1890. L • -4 Zooi 'Of V 1 ' J^u^f^ *.-/-* l o 3 8 Jl+ -3 > f o DC G W o DC FIRST MEETING OF GRANTEES. 15 fourteenth of February next att the house of Mr. James Morris Inn- holder in hopkinton att Ten of the Clock in the fournoon then and there to transact on the following particulars : 1st. To Choose a Moderator & a Proprietor's Clerk & Committee for manageing the affair of the new Town. 2dly. To receive the return of the Committee and Surveyor ap- pointed to lay out the home Lotts. 3dly. To grant money to defray the Charges of the said Survey & other necessary Charges already arisen and further prosecuting of the New Township. 4th. To draw their house lotts and agree upon proper methods for laying out and dividing and disposing of all or Part of the land in said Township as the proprietors shall think proper. 5thly. To determine how Meetings shall he called for the future & finally to act transact all such other things as may then be thought proper for the Service and advantage of the Society. John Jones. Vera Copia. Chars. Morris, proprietors' Clerk. The above and foregoing call was duly regarded and obeyed by the proprietors of the new township, as the fol- lowing record attests : Att a Meeting in Hopkinton february ye fourteenth Seventeen hundred & thirty Six & Seven legally called by Order of the great & general Court and Pursuant to the warrant the following articles were voted and consented to: 1. That Capt. John Jones be the Moderator. 2. That Charles Morris be the proprietors' Clerk. 3. That Ebeneser Kimble be the Treasurer. 4. That the Plan of the Committee as laid out under the Several reservations be received. , 5. That each proprietor hold his lott according to the number drawn by him & manifested in the abovesaid Plan. 6. That each proprietor pay the Sum of Twenty Shillings to the Committee that laid out the lotts, and twelve pence more each for a Kittle & Chain & Twenty two Shillings more therwith for the Plan. 7. That no proprietor shall have liberty to sell his lott without leave obtained first from the Propriety. 8. Granted Twenty pounds to Clear the Road from Rumford to the Centre of the Town, and as far on the Roads of the town North & South as the said money will pay — the whole to be left to the management of the Committee. 9. That a Committee be Chosen to finish the first Division, & to lay out Sixty acre lotts for a second division, & each man to draw his lott ; and if there is any then dissatisfied with their lotts, they 16 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. shall have liberty to apply to the Committee who are impowered to view the said lotts, and if there is just reason for complaint, They are to equalize them by setting of a portion of land at the Charge of the Society, but if no just reason, then the persons so applying must bear the Charge of the Committee. 10th. That John Quarles be admitted as a proprietor in the Room of Joseph Houlton, John Benny in the Room of Samuel Watkins, Samuel Beaver in the room of Joseph Gold & Daniel Stone in the room of Joseph Caller . . . Claflen in . . . Room of Danl. Claflen, Junr. 11. That there be three men Chosen as a Committee to lay out the Second lotts and that Joseph Haven, Ebeneser Kimble & Henry Mellons be the Committee. 12. Granted Twenty five pounds to be paid to that person that undertakes to build a Mill in the propriety near the Place of the Reservations provided he will have the mill compleated on or before the first day of December next and that he will keep the Same in good Repair for five years next ensuing the money to be paid by the first of December next and in case he does not keep the Same in repair then shall the money be returned 'T is agreed that prefer- ence shall be given to the Persons that owns the lotts where the reservations are made ; and that the whole be left to the manage- ment of the Committee chosen to lay out the second lotts. 13. That when tenn f amilys are settled the proprietors will main- tain preaching there. 14. That Andrew Watkins, Abner Bixbe, Joseph Bixbe, Samuel Woodwill, Benjamin Carrell, Edward Carrell, Jonathan Houlton & Daniel Bailey shall have an equal lott in the new township they paying five pounds each of them and paying all Other Charges arising and giving sufficient Security to settle the Same according to the Court acts & further to Settle the same in Person or by their Children or they that refuse to comply herewith to have six pounds allowed & paid them. David Burnap & Daniel Stone appeared and entered their dissent against this last vote. 15. That Mr. Kimble be impowered to give notes of hand to the Persons that Chuse Six pounds and also to take bonds of the Per- sons that Chuse to settle and receive the five pounds of them. 16. That Thomas Pierce, Samuel Gold & Thomas Gold be ad- mitted according to Vote fourteenth. David Burnap entered his dissent against this vote. 17. That John Goady be repaid his Eleven Shillings & Six pence. 18. That Charles Morris, Thomas Walker & Jacob Gibbs be a committee to apply to to call meetings for the future. Attes : John Jones Moderator. A true Coppy — Chas. Morris Clerk. THE LOTS AND THE TOWNSHIP. 17 The clerk further records, — The above Votes were presented to the Court's Committee and on December 8th 1737 were accepted and allowed oft except the Seventh Vote the Tenth Vote & the Seventeenth Vote as also the Dissents against the fourteenth Vote & the dissents against the Six- teenth Vote as pr Coppy of Votes on file. Charles Morris, proprietors' Clerk. The foregoing proceedings afford sufficient evidence of the unfinished condition of the affairs of the proprietors in anticipation of the actual occupation of Number Five. Although the causes of the dissent of the court's committee to certain acts of the grantees are not specified, and the record of their dissent is somewhat obscure, reasons may at least in part be readily conceived. In regard to the seventh vote, it appears that each grantee, having become the legal possessor of a right in the new township, held it in fee simple, with power to dispose of the same ; in regard to the tenth, the General Court had already prescribed the legal method by which a grantee could be equitably substituted ; in regard to the seventeenth, there was probably a simple contravention of equity. The fact that there was no serious obstruction to the admission of new proprietors is evident from the names of such appearing frequently in the pro- gressive record of the transactions of the incipient township.. CHAPTER VI. THE LOTS AND THE TOWNSHIP. Immediately after the close of the record of the first meeting of proprietors, subsequently to the grant, the fol- lowing inscription occurs upon the pages of the clerk's book. Here followeth a list of all the Original Proprietors, who had given bond to the Court's Committee, with the Number of each man's lott, in the same line with his name : — On the road leading to Rumford, on the South Side. 2 18 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. No. 1 John Jeffords 2 . . . Henry Mellen 3. ....... Eben'r Locke 4. ....... Elias Haven 5. . . . . . . . . Jacob Gibbs On the road leading to Rumford, on the North Side. No. 1. ....... James Lock 2. ....... John Brewer 3. ....... James Nutt 4. ....... Josiah Watkins 5 . . . Thomas Mellon 6. ....... Thomas Bixbes On the North Range, beginning att the Meeting house on the East side. N. E. 20 degrees. No. 1 • Richard Potter 2 Rev. Mr. Sam'l Barret 3. ....... David Fauster 4 . Nat'l Haven No. 1, a triangular lott . . ... . Thomas Walker N. W. 14 deg. 2 Henry Walker 3 Caleb Claflin 5. ..... Charles Morris 6. ..... Jason Walker 7. ..... John Jones 8. ..... John Bowker 9. ..... Elisha Haden 10. ...... Ebenezer Coller 11. ...... Samuel Streater 12. . . . . . . Joseph Coller 13 Matthew Taft 14 John Walker On the North Range, beginning at the Meeting house on the west side. No. 1. ....... The minister's 2 John Weston 3 Nath'l Smith 4. ....... David Burnap 1 a triangular Lott .... Edmund Bowker 5. ....... Ministerial Lott 6 School Lott 7. ....... . Eleazer Gile 8 Daniel Mellen 9. . ... . . . • • James Morris THE LOTS AND THE TOWNSHIP. 19 No. 10. ........ Joseph Haven 11. . . . . . . . David Wood well 12. ....... Matthew Lackey 13 Robert Claflin On the South Range, beginning at the meeting house on the west side. No. 1. ....... Joseph Gould 2. ....... . James Wilson 3. . . . . . . . . Daniel Claflin 4 Mark Whitney 5. ....... Joshua Claflin 6. ....... John Quarles 7 Eben'r Claflin 8. . . . . . . . Jedediah Haven 9. ....... . Benj'a Carril On the South Range, beginning att the meeting house, on the East side. No. 1. ....... Paul Langdon 2. ....... . George Carril 3. ...... . Samuel Watkins 4. ....... . Samuel Frail 5. ....... . Joseph Holton 6. ....... . Peter How 7. ....... Simpson Jones 8. ....... . Jabez Potter 9. ...... . Daniel Claflin, jun. 10. ....... Cornelius Claflin These Lotts lying att the Taile of the Lotts, on the East Side of the north range. No. 1. ...... . Ebenezer Kimball 2. ....... . Isaac Whitney The above arrangement of lots shows the occupied parts of the township to be on the north, east, and south, while the west is still a wilderness. A primitive map of the town- ship, embodied in the proprietors' record, affirms its repre- sentation of "No. 5, granted to the inhabitants of Hopkin- ton, and contains the Quantity of six miles square, & is protracted by a scale of 200 perch to an inch." This map was constructed in 1736, the boundaries of Number Five at the time being defined as, on the north, " No. 1, granted to Salisbury & Almsbur}?" men," and " Contoocook Township, granted to John Coffin, &c. ; " on the east, " Rumford ; " 20 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. on the west, " No. 6, granted to John Whitman, Esq., &c." Beginning at the north-western angle of the town, the fol- lowing distances are read: "North 84°, 30" east, 390 perch ; " then follows a southerly jog of 140 perch ; then " north, 75 east, 1049 perch ; " again " north, 15 west, 2100 perch ; " further, " north 84° 30" east, 2038 perch ; " lastly, " north, 15° west, 2100 perch." The intelligent reader is doubtless aware that, reviewing the boundaries of this map, ." Number 1, granted to Salis- bury & Almsbury men," is now the town of Warner; " Contoocook Township, granted to John Coffin, &c," is the original town of Boscawen,- now including Boscawen and Webster ; " Rumford " is Concord, also called " Penna- cook " in the early Proprietors' Record of this town ; " No. 6, granted to John Whitman, Esq., &c," is now Henniker. The distances recorded in this "protracted" evidence of a. survey do not coincide with those given in the first chapter of this volume as mathematical boundaries of the town of Hopkinton. The discrepancy is doubtless the result of in- exactness in the first surveys of the territory of Number Five. The map under consideration gives no interior loca- tions beyond tracing the entrance and exit of Contoocook river and defining measurably two of its tributaries — appar- ently Dolloff's brook and Blackwater river, the latter flow- ing into Number Five from Contoocook township. The course of the Contoocook river through this town is not traced. CHAPTER VII. THE SETTLEMENT. In many respects, the settlement of township Number Five is involved in historical obscurity. Certain particu- lars relating to the situation in this case are reserved for future narration. The inceptive movements of the grantees have been briefly described. The progressive work of ad- mitting grantees, confirming rights, and encouraging set- tlements continued for a considerable time. On the 29th of March, 1737, Andrew Watkins, Abner Bixby, Joseph Bixby, Samuel Woodwill, Edward Carrel, Jonathan Noulton, Thomas Pierce, Daniel Bailey, Samuel THE SETTLEMENT. 21 Gold, and Thomas Gold were admitted by vote, the terms to be equal with others. Eighteen hundred acres of land were also voted to John Brewer and Daniel Claflin, for the "benefit of the Society," to admit six persons to settle- ment. On the 31st of the following May, a gratuity of five pounds each was voted to Daniel Claflin, Sr., and Richard Potter, provided that they would settle, with their families, in the new township before winter. On the 20th day of the next December, one hundred acres of land were granted to John Jones, Esq., for public services to the proprietorship. This act rescinded a vote upon the same proposition on the 29th of March, passed in the negative. On the 29th of March, 1738, at a meeting adjourned from the previous 15th instant, the proprietors passed the following vote : Agreeable to the Eleventh Article granted to Henry Mellon the the Sum of Twenty five pounds of money to be paid Some time in June next on Conditions that he builds a Saw mill and Setts it agoing by the last day of October next (on the Reservation) and keeps the said Mill in Repair for three years next ensuing and give each of the Proprietors an Equal right of Sawing their boards according to the Number of their rights and two Shillings & Six- pence p. hundred during the term of the said three years. The proprietors chose assessors, collectors, treasurers, and committees, and exhibited energy and enterprise in the pre- paratory work of settlement. Special diligence was shown in the direction of opening the road from Rumford to the centre of the new township, from which fact we conclude that Rumford was intended as a base of domestic supplies. It is not to be inferred, however, that the proprietors of Number Five were so immaculate as to escape controversy. There are numerous evidences of a lack of perfect harmony in their proceedings. The records of names entered in protest against acts of the proprietors in assembly are by no means infrequent. On the 20th of December, 1737, Henry Mellen, for him- self, as well as proxy for seven others, and sixteen others in person, recorded their names in protest against the act giv- ing John Jones 100 acres of land for his services in aid of securing the proprietorship of the new township. On the 29th of the next March, James Nutt and fifteen 22 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. others entered a lengthy protest specially against the act empowering John Brewer and Daniel Claflin to dispose of 1,800 acres of land. The protest asserted that the pro- priety pretended " to give away near one quarter of said Township for little or nothing, and the Major part may as well give away all the Remainder except what is already laid out." The sentiment embodied in this protest seems to have been effective, for, on the day it was entered, the position of Brewer and Claflin as a committee was qualified by an instruction. It appears there were six men, pros- pective settlers, viz., Henry Mellen, Joseph Haven, John Benny, James Nutt, Peter How, and Thomas Walker, who were ready to pay 180 pounds for the tract of 1,800 acres ; and the proprietors voted to instruct the committee to dispose of the same to any parties who would give the sum named or more, or, if they saw cause, they could relin- quish their rights as a committee. The protest of Nutt and others, as well as another of John Jones and thirteen others, of the same date as the first, indicated a contro- versy in regard to the eligibility of certain proprietors to vote at the regular meetings, the individuals appearing to have not fully complied at the time with all the conditions of the grant, and the indication being that they did not vote. Strange as it may seem, on the 2d of March, 1739, the proprietors chose Henry Mellen an agent to represent them in a suit already begun against them by John Jones. Between March and October, 1738, we have no record of any meeting of the proprietors. Doubtless the time was occupied measurably with the affairs of actual settlement. We have no positive knowledge in regard to the person who first began domestic operations in Number Five. Tra- dition ascribes that distinction to Richard Potter. With- out attempting to narrate an uncertainty, we pass to the general fact that there was a sufficient settlement in Octo- ber of the year 1738, to insure the privilege of a legal meeting, the first in the territory of the new township. A prefatory note to the record of the incorporating char- ter of the present town of Hopkinton says, — This Township was taken up to he settled, after it was granted & laid out by Order of the General Court of the Province of Massa- chusetts Bay, by the inhabitants of Hopkinton, in said Province, under the name of Number five of the Line of Towns, And was by them called New Hopkinton. FIRST MEETING IN NUMBER FIVE. 23 CHAPTER VIII. FIRST MEETING IN NUMBER FIVE. The following is the record of the call and minutes of the first meeting of the proprietors of Number Five in the new township : These are to notify all the Proprietors of the New Township Number five bordering on Rumford to meet at the house of Mr. Henry Mellen in the Said Township near the Meeting house Spot on Thirsday the nineteenth day of October next ensuing at nine of the Clock in the morning there to act on the following articles : 1st. That whereas there is Several Lotts already layed out that are complained of as not convenient for Settlement whether the Propriety will choose a Committee to view the Said Lotts and if the Said Committee find the Lotts not convenient for Settlement that they be impowered to lay out new Lotts convenient for Settlement and Situation. 2ndly. Whether the Propriety will choose a Committee to lay out a road from the Camp meadow to the Meeting house and from thence to the River and to lay out what other roads the Propriety think proper. 3rdly. To See whether the Propriety will come into Some method to flow the meadows. 41y. To See what further Encouragement the Propriety will give towards building a Saw Mill. 51y. To choose a Proprietors Clerk and Committee man to call Meetings for the future in the room of Charles Morris and what allowance they will grant for his Service hitherto. 6hly. To choose a Committee to present the votes to the Courts Com-tee for approbation. 7hly. To See if the Proprietors will grant furthur Sums of money for the use of the Propriety. 81y. To See if the Propriety will adjourn this meeting to receive the report of the Committee that Exchanges the Lotts. Joseph Haven ) Isaac Whitney >• Com-tee. Thomas Walker ) Hopkinton, Septr 30th, 1738. A true Coppy Examd By Henry Mellen, Clerk At a Meeting of the Proprietors of the New Township number five bordering on Rumford at the house of Henry Mellen in Said Township on Thirsday the nineteenth day of October, 1738 : 1st. Joseph Haven was chosen Moderator of Said Meeting. 24 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. 2dly. Put to vote whether the Propriety would choose a Commit- tee to view Such house or home lotts in Said Township as are Com- plained of as not fit for Settlement & if Sd. Com-tee find Sd. lots not fit for Settlement to lay out new lotts in their room Passed in the affirmative. 3dly. Then voted that Henry Mellen, Timothy Knowlton, Eben- ezer Goddard, Samuel Brewer, and Timothy Clements he a Com-tee to view the lotts as above Said, and if need be to lay out new ones in their room. 41y. Voted that Henry Mellen Timothy Knowlton and Richard Potter be a Committee to lay out highways for the conveniency of the Proprietors of the Township No. 5. 5tly. Voted that there be a highway layd out from Rumf ord line to the meeting house Spot or place ; also from thence to Cuntoo- cook river on the west Side of the meeting house Hill So called where they shall think proper ; also to lay out a highway on the east Side of the Hill To accommodate the lotts on the east Side of the north range ; also to lay out a highway from the meeting house place to the great meadow So called & from the meeting house to the Township No. 6 : These all pased in the affirmative. 61y. Voted that the Common Meadows in No. 5 be flowed on the Proprietors Cost. 7hly. Voted that there be thirty pounds of money more given in addition To the Twenty five pounds formerly granted towards the incouragment of building a Saw Mill on the Reservation To any man that will build Said mill by the 19th Day of October anno Domini 1739. 81y. Voted that Henry Mellen be Proprietors Clerk for the Township No. 5. 9hly. Voted that Ebenezer Goddard be a Com-tee man To call meetings in the room of Charles Morris. lOly. Voted that there be Thirty pounds in Bills of Public Credit raised and gathered on and of the Proprietors of No. 5 Towards the defraying of the Charges of flowing the Common meadows in the S. Township. Illy. Voted that Henry Mellen be the man to receive the Thirty pounds and lay out the Same for the use of the Propriety in flow- ing of the Common meadows in No. 5. 121y. Voted that there be one hundred pound Raised and geth- ered on and of the Proprietors of No. 5 for the clearing and mend- ing of the highways in Sd. Township. 131y. Voted that this meeting be adjourned untill monday ye 23d Day of October Currant, at Twelve of the Clock to the house of Henry Mellens in No. 5 Bordering on Rumford. Joseph Haven, Moderator. The record of the adjourned meeting is as follows : Dr. Ebenezer Lerned. A STRUGGLING TOWNSHIP. 25 October 23d, 1738. The Proprietors according to adjournment met at time and place above Sd. and the Com-tee viz. Henry Mel- len, Timothy Knowlton, Ebenezer Goddard, Samuel Brewer and Timothy Clements reported that they had laid out Six lotts in lieu of Six lotts that they found not fit for Settlement Said six lotts being laid out on the road or highway that leads to Rumford about Six Score rods to the east of the last range and the Proprietors of the Sd. Six Insufficient lotts drew their lotts in Exchange accord- ingly 14hly. Voted That the lott No. 1 (in the Exchanged lotts) be granted in lieu of the lot No 1 in the Skew lotts on the east Side of the north range & the lot No. 2 in lieu of the lot No. 2 in the Skew lots on the east side of the north range : No. 5 in the lieu of No. 1 in the Skew lotts on the east Side of the north range : No. 3 in the lieu of No. 2 lying at the tails of the lotts on the east Side of the north range ; No. 4 in the lieu of No. 5 on the east side of the north range ; No. 6 in the lieu of No. 14 on the east Side of the north range as the Said Exchange lotts are butted and bounded. 151y. Voted that Isaac Whitney, Thomas Walker & Ebenezer Goddard be a Committee to present the votes of the Proprietors of the new Township No. 5 bordering on Rumford To the General Courts Com-tee for their approbation. Joseph Haven, Moderator. A true Coppy Examd p. Henry Mellen, Clerk. CHAPTER IX. A STRUGGLING TOWNSHIP. By the records of the meeting called for the 19th of October, 1738, we have seen the evidence of a new town- ship established and occupied. The infant community had begun a career of hopeful prosperity. It is hardly neces- sary to state that the centre of the new township Number Five was on Putne}^'s hill. A person who now takes a position of observation on this hill, selecting a point near the junction of the old village road, from the east, with the northerly and southerly bill road, cannot fail to locate the direction, if not the exact courses, of the highways con- structed in fulfillment of the 5th vote of the aforesaid meeting. The new township did not flourish according to its first 26 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. anticipation. The period from 1738 to 1765 witnessed a variety of sources of trial. The progressive settlement of Number Five was subject to various annoyances and hin- drances. Doubtless rights were relinquished on the part of different individuals from numerous causes. We might mention particularly a group of ten persons who, in the progress of events, came to be known as " the ten men." Some or all of these were included in the list of ten who were voted into the propriety on the 29th of March, 1737. It seems that these men were a prolonged source of discus- sion, since they never complied fully with all the condi- tions necessary to make them actual proprietors. On the 30th of March, 1739, an article was inserted in the call for a meeting on the 24th of the next May, as follows : To hear & consider the proposals yt. some of both parties have concerted respecting the ten men who claim rights in the Said new Township & to act thence as the Proprietors shall think fit which proposals are as followeth viz. That such of those ten men or their legal representatives as shall come with or Send to Sd. meeting good and Sufficient Bonds to the acceptance of the Proprietors for the payment of thirty pounds for and towards the Building of a meet- ing house and Setling & maintenance of a minister and also consent to pay a proportionable part of the Public charges that have arisen or shall arise in Said new Township untill it be set off by the Gen- eral Court & furnished with ordinary town power & privileges Shall notwithstanding their non Compliance with the Conditions of for- mer votes or grants be admitted to a right equall to others in all divisions of Land in Said Township & shall be freed from any obli- gations to settle their Lots. It appears that this matter dragged along till 1753, when, on the 14th of November, the following act was passed : Voted that the ten men shall be Excluded from their Settelling their Paying the Thirty Pounds Each. On the 24th of May, 1739, a number of important acts were passed as follows : Thirty pounds granted to be expended for preaching the gospel untill the last of October next Ensuing. Granted the Sum of Sixty pounds towards the building a pub- lick meeting house. Voted that Edward Godward, Esq., and Joseph Haven Be Agents to prosecute & defend any Action or Actions Suit or Suits in the Law on Behalf of the Proprietors as necessity may require A STRUGGLING TOWNSHIP. 27 And also to present the votes of the Proprietors to the General Courts Committee for their approbation. Voted that a meeting house he huilded & finished by the last of October next Ensuing the date hereof & that the meeting house be 35 foot in length & 25 feet in Breadth & 8 feet between joints with a Bavil Roof. The reader will be peculiarly interested in the following act, passed May 29, 1740 : Voted that there be Eight Shillings pr. Day allowed to those that have spent their time in killing Rattle Snakes in Sd. Town. In 1757, the first minister of the township was ordained. Preaching had been supported apparently at intervals, and the proprietors, on the 8th of September, anticipated the ordination by the following acts : Voted to Settle Mr. James Scales as a Gosple Minister in this place. Voted 450£ old Tenor to be Raised to Defray the Charges of the ordaining Mr Scales. Voted Five men to be a committee to make Provision for the ordination of Mr Scales. Voted Lt Aaron Kimball Mr. Stephen Hoyt Mr. John Putney Mr. Daniel annis, Mr Joseph Putney be a committee to make Pro- vision for the ordaining Mr Scales. ' Voted Mr David Woodwell Lt Aaron Kimbal Mr Thomas Mer- rill to be a committee to invite churches to assist in the ordaining of Mr. Scales. Voted the 23d day of November Next to be the day to ordain Mr. Scales on. Voted not to Build a meeting House at Present. Voted to call in the money that the ten unsettled Rites was to give toward Settleing a Gospel minister in this place. Voted that the above Said committee which was appointed to Make Provision for the ordination of Mr James Scales to Receive the money of the ten Proprietors for Not Setteling of Rites and to make use of the Sd. money according to the above vote. Voted to give Mr James Scales Sixty Spanish milled Dollars or Equivelent in Paper bills yearly as Long as he does Performe the Business of a Gospel minister in this Township. Voted that Provision to be made in Six Places in this Town for Suporting the People that Shall attend the ordination of Mr Scales. Voted that Lt Aaron Kimbals Mr Matthew Stanley Mr Stephen Hoyts Mr Peter Hows Mr Samuel Putneys Mr Joseph Putneys; be Houses of Entertainment for People at Mr Scales ordination. 28 LIFE AID TIMES IN HOPKINTON. James Scales was duly ordained at the time selected by the vote of the proprietors. The same day a church was organized with the following ten members : James Scales, David Woodwell, Aaron Kimball, Jonathan Straw, William Peters, Joseph Eastman, Jr., Peter How, Abraham Colebe, Matthew Stanley, Enoch Eastman. On the 1st of December, 1759, William Peters was elected the first deacon, and the church was then a complete eccle- siastical function. The vote deferring the building of a meeting house sug- gests the fact that repeated votes to build had as yet proved futile. It appears that during the period under consideration a saw-mill was built. The following act, passed November 14, 1753, throws a ray of light upon the matter: Voted that those men that Built the saw mill Shall have ten acres of Land about Said mill as convenant and what Land Said mill pond flows on the undivided Land. On the 24th of September, 1765, the proprietors passed the following act relating to a corn-mill : Voted to Nathaniel Clement Eighty acres of Land one the north side of the Grate Roade to Rumford said Land Lying Between the Land that John Blaisdel and Joshua Baley now owns so Long as the said Clement his Heirs and assigns shall Keep a corn mill in Re- pare on ardows brook so called on said Land as also the privilege of Keeping a pond wheare he now flows so long as the said Clement keeps a Corn mill in Repare on said Brook and the privilege of one acre of Land abought his House. The history of the township during the period mentioned is involved in peculiar obscurity. An idea of the situation in this respect is revealed by the fact that there was no pub- lic record for the year 1741, nor from 1743 to 1750, nor for 1752, nor from 1754 to 1756, nor for 1759, nor from 1762 to 1764. There were three great sources of trial during this time. They were War, the Mason claim, and the Bow controversy. These matters will be considered in order in succeeding chapters. EARLY PERILS 'OF WAR. 29 CHAPTER X. EARLY PERILS OF WAR. From 1744 to 1763, the New England colonies endured the hardships of almost continuous war. King George's War, or the War of the Austrian Succession, involved the governments of England and France in a struggle over the throne of Germany. Hence the boundaries of the Eng- lish and French colonies in America became border lands of contention. The Seven Years' War was a contest for boundaries between the English and the French. Hence the New England colonies were equally involved in war in either case. There are evidences of early mutterings of war in the early records of the proprietors of Number Five. In the call for a meeting to be held on the 29th of May, 1740, the following article was inserted : To chuse one or more meet persons to prefer a Petition to the General Court on the Behalf of the Propriety praying that they maybe allowed such time (Beyond the time Limited In their Grant) to i'ullfill their Duty of Setling as the Court Shall think fit In Re- spect of the danger of War. The following is the action upon the article : Put to vote whether they will Send a man or men to present a Petition to the General Court for a further time to Do their Duty in Settling their lots or rights In Sd. Township by reason of the War — past in the neg-e. The perils of war did more to disturb the continuous prosperity of the new township than all other causes com- bined. They were the potent cause of the repeated suspen- sion of the records, through the enforced absence of many residents. In the event of war, the French in Canada became the allies of the Indians, who repeatedly made a prey of the English frontier settlements. In view of these hostile wild men, and the dangers from their attacks, three garrisons were early built in Number Five. They were Kimball's garrison, which stood near the spot now occupied by James K. Story, on the road from Hopkinton village to Concord; Putney's garrison, where James Scales was or- 30 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. dained, and which stood near the spot now occupied by the ancient, empty house owned by the heirs of Moses Rowell, on Putney's hill ; Woodwell's garrison, which stood near the residence of Eben Morrill, a half mile east of Contoo- cook village. In spite of these constructive precautions, the inhabitants of Number Five were •repeated sufferers by the incursions of Indians. On the early morning of April 22, 1746, eight persons were captured by Indians at Woodwell's garrison. They were David Woodwell, Mrs. Woodwell, their daughter Mary, their sons Benjamin and Thomas, Samuel Burbank, and his sons Caleb and Jonathan. The garrison stood on the east side of the road now leading to the Hopkinton village and Contoocook road from Mr. Morrill's house, and the stockade, where the cattle were kept, was on the oppo- site side of the path, in a field now owned by Henry H. Andrews. In the early morning mentioned, a man had gone from the garrison to the stockade, leaving the garri- son door open. By this door, the Indians, who had been lurking near, entered and surprised the occupants. A soldier escaped. Mrs. Burbank, wife of Samuel, sprang to the cellar, and concealed herself under a barrel which stood on its end. Mrs. Woodwell had a struggle with an Indian, from whom she wrested a long knife, which she cast into the well. Mary Woodwell, who was only sixteen years old, at first resisted captivity, and an Indian present- ed a musket to her breast, but another Indian, named Pen- no, who had received kindness from her father, interfered, saved her life, and took her for his own captive. The Indians making this capture were of the St. Francis tribe, with head-quarters near the Canada line, and they intended to hold their victims for ransoms, or to sell them to the French, who held them for the same objects. Conse- quently the eight persons, aroused from their early beds, were marched hurriedly towards Canada. Their line of progress was through the present town of Warner, along the valley of the Warner river a distance of five or six miles, thence through Sutton and New London as now located, passing the easterly shore of Little Sunapee lake in New London, and the westerly shore of Mascoma lake in Enfield, thence to the Connecticut river, thence to the St. Francis, at the outlet of which into the St. Lawrence river was an Indian hamlet, the destiny of the company. EARLY PERILS OF WAR. 31 The Indians and their captives were twelve days on their march through the then almost or quite unbroken wilder- ness. The Indians allowed but one meal a day, and that one at evening, when they would cook and eat. Their food was mostly meat, of which there appears to have been a scanty supply. At one encampment, being scantily sup- plied, they killed a dog, of which Mary Woodwell refused to eat. Seeing this, Pernio shot a woodpecker for her supper. Arrived at the St. Francis hamlet, Mary was sold to an Indian squaw, and Jonathan Burbank was also left in an Indian family. The other six captives were taken to Quebec, where Samuel Burbank and Mrs. Woodwell died of yellow-fever while in prison. David Woodwell, his two sons, and Jonathan and Caleb Burbank eventually secured release, the latter by means of funds derived from Chelms- ford, Mass., where the following record is shown : For David Woodwell of New Hampshire and Jonathan Burbank of Penacook, to assist them to go to Canada to attempt the redemp- tion of the daughter of said Woodwell and the brother of said Bur- bank, Captivated at New Hopkinton by the Indians in April, 1746 : Feb. 5, 1749, was collected £13 8s. to be equally divided between them. This money secured Caleb Burbank's release, but it would not have redeemed Mary Woodwell but for strategy. The St. Francis squaw was extremely penurious, and refused to sell Mary for anything less than "her weight in silver." The aid of a French resident of Montreal was secured, and he at length induced a French physician of great repute among the Indians to connive for Mary's release. The doctor advised her to feign sickness, and his medicine helped on the deception. The squaw was then advised to sell the captive, represented as hopelessly ill, and, being alarmed, she took the advice. Mary's price, paid by the French agent, was 100 livres, the equivalent of $1 8.50. It is needless to add that Mary Woodwell rapidly recovered after this transaction. After three years of captivity among the Indians, during which time she planted and hoed corn, pounded samp, gathered wild fruits for the markets, and performed other hard tasks devolving upon a female cap- tive in her situation, Mary was taken to Montreal, where she remained six months. She was then taken to Albany by Dutchmen, who had been to Canada to redeem slaves 32 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. taken b} r the Indians; from Albany, she returned to Hop- kinton, Mass., the place of her birth. In recounting the foregoing narrative of the capture at WoodwelPs garrison, we have been greatly assisted by an article on " Mary Woodwell," written by the late Walter Harriman, and published in Volume IV, No. 6, of the Gran- ite Monthly. A scout of twenty persons from Exeter came to Wood- well's garrison, by way of Boscawen and Warner, a few days after the capture, and found only a mare and two colts on the premises. On the tenth of November of the same year, a Mr. Estabrooks was killed by the Indians, when returning from Rumford, where he had been for the medical services of Dr. Ezra Carter. Estabrooks was only three quarters of a mile from Rumford when killed. The names of parties remaining in Number Five during the wars are only partially known to us. A petition to Governor Benning Wentworth, desiring military assistance, and pre- sented July 13, 1747, contained the names of Samuel Put- ne} 7 ", Abraham Colby, Matthew Stanley, John Putney, Daniel Chase, and Daniel Chase, Jr. Another petition of January 2, 1748, " by inhabitants of Rumford, Canterbury, and Contoocook," is said to have borne signatures of resi- dents of Number Five. Their names were Abraham Kim- ball, Joseph Putney, John Burbank, Caleb Burbank, Joseph Eastman, Daniel Annis. The following section of the narrative of the events of the troublous times now under consideration is from the pen of Alonzo J. Fogg, whose description is so graphic and full that we introduce it : On the morning of April 13, 1753, as Abraham Kimball was driving his father's cow from Putney's fort to Kimball's fort, about two miles distant, he was waylaid by two Indians and taken pris- oner near the foot of Putney's hill, on the east side. He was taken back some distance up the hill into the woods by the roadside, where there were several other Indians concealed. While waiting, they espied young Samuel Putney busily engaged in burning a pile of brush, near the house now standing on the farm owned by the heirs of Ignatius W. Fellows, of Hopkinton village. Here young Kimball had the experience of seeing two Indians creep stealthily along, keeping behind trees, stumps, and stones till they were near enough to spring upon the innocent boy and make him a prisoner, to keep young Kimball company (as they thought) to Canada. These Indians all lived in Canada, and were working in the inter- EARLY PERILS OF WAR. 33 est of the French, who gave them so much money for every captive they could bring from the English settlements, and deliver to the authorities in Montreal or Quebec. Consequently, it was no object for them to kill their victims or burn their buildings, as it had been fifty years before, when they waged war to revenge the wrongs that they considered had been committed on them by the white settlers. In those days, age or sex was not spared by the tomahawk and scalping knife. After young Putney was secured, the two captives were taken about one mile north-east of Putney's fort, to what was called for many years the " Indian camp." This camp was situated near a large stone about thirty rods north of the tannery of Mr. Horace J. Chase, in the suburb of Hopkinton village, and on the road leading to Contoocook. The Indians stayed here till they were joined by another party, who had gone down to Rumford (now Concord) to make a reconnoitre of that settlement and quietly secure a few prisoners without disturbing the inhabitants in the main settlement, who might give them a warm reception if they were discovered in that vicinity. This party returned that evening without securing any captives, and with but little booty. The next morning the whole party started on their journey to Canada. They crossed the Contoocook river at Tyler's bridge, near Boscawen (now Webster), where they killed some cattle and selected the best part of the meat to carry with them. There were living at that time, on a hill west of Boscawen plains, two or three families by the name of Flanders. The men were noted through the whole county in those days as " Indian hunters," and were well known to the red-skins through that whole section to Canada, as they frequently accompanied the celebrated Rogers and his Rangers on their excursions through those wilds. The Indians had many times attempted to kill these men, but always found them on the alert and ready to receive them. This time, they thought they would again make the attempt to destroy their deadly foe. Through one of their scouts, they learned that the Flanders men had left their barricaded homes for the day. They thought this a ' fit opportunity to carry their plans into effect. Accordingly, the whole party secreted themselves behind a log fence in the corner of a field, and close by the path where the white men would come on their return home. Here they patiently waited for the return of their intended victims. Near night-fall, as the Flanders men were ascending the hill, their large Indian dogs showed unmistakable signs, by low growls and raised hair on their backs, that Indians were in the vicinity, and in the range of their path which led to their homes. Not knowing the number of the foes they had to con- tend with, they determined to make a bold charge up the lull, and dislodge their enemy, and reach their houses, where they were better provided for defence against attack. Accordingly, they 3 34 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. ordered their dogs forward, and then gave a long, loud, unearthly- yell and rushed forward, firing their guns. The Indians, who intended to waylay their enemy, were surprised themselves, and imagined that they were discovered, and were attacked hy a large force from Rumford and Hopkinton, and fled from their hiding- place for life. At the first sound of approaching danger, the cap- tive hoys were as much frightened as the Indians, and ran nearly as fast ; hut they soon began to think they were running away from friends instead of enemies, and began to slacken their pace. The Indians were anxious to retain their captives, and tried to assist them along, but soon saw the ruse, as they did not try to hurry, and found that they must lose their prisoners or be taken them- selves. One, a chief of the party, being irritated by the conduct of the boys, raised his hatchet and was in the act of burying it in the head of young Putney, when one of the dogs came up and seized the Indian by the neck, throwing him to the ground and lacerating his throat terribly. After the close of the French war, it was made . known that this Indian died, from the effects of the wounds inflicted on him by the dog, before he reached Canada. This bold attack of the Flanders men liberated the two boys, and they returned home to their anxious parents the day after they were captured. Ezekiel Flanders, one of the party who assisted in liberating Kimball and Putney, was killed by the Indians in 1756, while on a hunting excursion to Newfound lake, near Bristol. The military records of colonial New Hampshire, during the period of the French, wars, contain the following Hop- kinton names, though, identification of the persons is. not sure : Joseph Eastman (probably of Concord), Stephen Hoyt, Matthew Stanley, Ebenezer Eastman, Joseph Putney, John Annis, Enoch Eastman, John Burbank, William Peters, Nathaniel Smith, Sampson Colby, Isaac Chandler, Thomas Merrill, Samuel Barrett, James Lock, John Nutt, John Jones, Thomas Eastman. During the existence of war, many of the residents of Number Five being absent from the township, some re- turned to Massachusetts and others appear to have resorted to contiguous New Hampshire towns, but the facts recov- erable are few. THE MASON CLAIM. 35 CHAPTER XI. THE MASON CLAIM. The original royal patent of Laconia, granted in 1622 to Sir Ferdinando Gorges and John Mason, embraced all the line, of the Atlantic coast tying between the Merrimack and St. Lawrence rivers to the distance of many miles inland. Subsequently, Mason, who is conjectured to have severed business relations with Gorges, obtained a second patent of a considerable tract of territory lying between the Merri- mack and Piscataqua rivers, and which he called New Hampshire. Disaster ultimately fell upon Mason, who an- ticipated, as did also Gorges, the realization of great returns from the supposed supply of precious metals in New Hamp- shire soil. The pecuniary outlay involved in the efforts at colonization was not followed by the expected returns. Mason's American interests became ruined, and he died without attaining the object of his ambition. Neglect and conflagration soon destroyed the remnant of enterprise in the Mason plantation at Portsmouth, and at last nothing remained to the heirs of John Mason but the naked soil. In the year 1691, the Mason estate passed by purchase into the hands of Samuel Allen. The Mason title having become involved in dispute, a legal fiction of the convey- ance to Allen assumed the lands to be in England, that they might be under the control of the king's court. Sub- sequently, through the connivance of the colonial authori- ties of Massachusetts, John Tufton Mason, lineal descend- ant of John Mason, laid claim to his ancestor's estate, involving the fiction of law in the conveyance to Allen. The claim was successful. John Tufton Mason offered to relinquish his title to the assembly of New Hampshire for the consideration of one thousand pounds in New England currency. The proposition was not immediately accepted, and, after notifying the assembly of his determination to sell, Mason, in 1746, conveyed- his interest to twelve lead- ing men of Portsmouth for fifteen hundred pounds. The new proprietors were Theodore Atkinson, Mark Hunking Wentworth, Richard Wibird, John Wentworth, George Jaffrey, Samuel Moore, Nathaniel Meserve, Thomas Packer, Jotham Odiorne, Thomas Wallingford, Joshua Pierce, and John Moffat. These proprietors were liberal in disposition, 36 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPEJNTON. and proceeded to grant townships on condition of industrial and social improvements and advantages, reserving usually fifteen rights for themselves. The original proprietors of township Number Five took measures to secure a second grant of their territory. The reservation of " one fifth," recorded in the legal instrument, has since passed into local possession. The following copy of the conveyance is taken from the proprietors' record of this township : At a meeting of the Proprietors of the Land purchased of John Tuf- ton Mason, Esq., in the province of New Hampshire, held at Ports- mouth, on Fryday, the thirtieth day of November, by adjournment, in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and Fifty : — Voted that there be and hereby is granted in Equal Shares in fee simple unto Henry Mellen, Yeoman, Thomas Walker, Cooper, and Thomas Mellen, Cordwainer, all of Hopkinton, in the County of Middlesex, and the Province of the Massachusetts Bay, and unto such others as they shall admit their associates, so as to make up the Number Seventy in the whole (Preference being first given and offer made unto the original Claimers, in Virtue of the Grant made by the Massachusetts Government, or such as hold under Such Claimers, to be admitted associates if they will) upon the Reserva- tions, Conditions, Limitations, and Provisoes, hereafter mentioned, all the Right, Title, Interest, Claim, Property, Challenge, or de- mands whatsoever of the said proprietors, the Grantors of and unto all that Tract of Land in New Hampshire, Situate on the west- wardly Side of Merrimack River, called and known by the name of Number Five, in the line of towns, so called, as well as by the name of New Hopkinton. According to the bounds thereof hereto- fore run and made in pursuance of the Said Government's Grant ; Reserving unto the Said Proprietors, the Grantors, the one-fifth part thereof, the Same to lie and be set off from the other four- fifths, on the westerly part of Said Tract of Land, and to Extend across the Same from the Northerly to the Southerly Boundary Line thereof, the Said Reserved one-fifth part to be Exempted and exonerated from all Taxes and Charges until the Same shall be im- proved by the s'd Grantors, or Such as shall hold the Same under them. That there be one whole Share reserved within the other four- fifths in some convenient place- for the first Settled Minister there in fee simple, Provided he Shall continue Minister there during his life, or until regularly dismis'd. That there be one whole Share reserved within the Said four- fifths, for the use of the ministry there forever. That there be one whole Share reserved within the Said four- fifths, for the Use of a School there forever. That there be reserved at the place where the old Saw mill THE MASON CLAIM. 37 stood, within said Tract of land, Thirty acres of Land (with so much of the Stream there as necessary), for a Saw Mill Privilege, to he laid out as Commodious as may he ; and that the Grantees and their Associates huild a Saw mill at said place, within two years from this time, at their own cost and Charge. That within three years there be thirty families there, each of them having a house there at least Sixteen foot Square, with a Seller under it, and five acres of Land Cleared and fitted for mow- ing or Tillage. That within seven years there he Sixty familys there, each of them having a house and Seller as afore mentioned, and five acres of Land Cleared and fitted as aforesaid. That within three years a meeting house be Built there, and Con- stant preaching therein at the Cost and Charge of the Grantees and their associates. That within seven years a minister be Settled there, at the Cost and Charge of the Grantees and their Associates. That all white Pine Trees that are or shall be growing on Said Tract of Land fit for His Majesty's use Shall be and hereby are re- served and Granted to His Majesty, his Heirs and Successors. That a Plan of the Said Tract of Land, Having ye Reserved fifth part thereof aforesaid Delineated, described and marked out thereon, be sent by the Grantees to the Grantors within the Space of Forty days from this Time, and also an Instrument in writing, Signed by the S'd Grantees, therein obliging themselves and their Associates to fulfill and Comply with the Conditions herein men- tioned, relating to the Settlement of the Said Tract of Land, Said Instrument to be prepared by the Grantors, and that this Grant shall be of no force or effect to the Grantees untill Such Instrument Shall be sent Sign'd as afforesaid. That in Case any of the Grantees or their Associates, their Heirs or assigns respectively, Shall neglect to do and pei'form what is herein required by them to be done and performed, it shall and may be Lawful to and for the Grantors, their Heirs and Assigns, to enter into and upon Such Delinquent's Share or Right, and to Dis- pose of the same as they shall see meet and proper, as tho' this Grant had not been made. That in case of an Indian war before the limitation of Time is expired for the dowing & performing the Respective matters and tilings herein mentioned to be done & performed, then the like num- ber of years to be Allowed for the dowing and performing the rest after the end of Such Indian war ; And whereas the Said Proprie- tors have already released all their Right in the Township of Bow (as they Claim under the said John Tufton Mason), unto the Pro- prietors of Bow, and it being Suggested that Bow may Take off some part of the Tract of Land called Number Five, alias New Hopkinton, as aforesaid, That the Said Grantors will make up to 38 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. the Said Grantees and Associates out of some other of the Grant- ors' ungranted lands and their Associates, out of the Tract of land what shall he Taken by Bow from the Said Tract of Land Called Number five, alias New Hopkinston, upon a Just admeasurement, & returning the lines of the said Bow according to the Grant there- of. And in case any action or Suit Shall he brought against the Said Grantees, their Associates or their assigns or any that Shall or may hold under them or any of theirs, for s'd Tract of land, or part thereof, They shall be and hereby are obliged to vouch in the s'd Grantors, their Heirs or Assigns, to Defend the Same, and the s'd Grantors hereby promise and engage that they, their Heirs and As- signs, Shall & will at their own Cost and Charge defend one action or Suit upon one Title and pursue the same to final Judgment, Through the whole Corse of the Law (if there Shall be occasion), and in case the final Judgment in Such Trial Shall be against the Said Grantors, the Grantees or owners Shall recover nothing over Satisfaction of and from the Grantors, their Heirs, Executors, ad- ministrators or Assigns. A Copy of Record, attest, Henry Mem/en, Prop'rs Cler. The following is a copy of an instrument certifying the actual settlement and occupation of the township Number Five under the privileges of the Mason grant : To The Honorable Lord Proprietors of John Tufton Mason, Esqr., Grant, so called, in New Hampshire : We Henry Mellens, Thomas Walker, and Thomas Mellens, Agreeable to the Charter Given us of a Township in the line of Towns Number five, or New Hopkinton, so called, Situate on the westerly Side of Merrimack River, in the province afore Said, have Admitted the Persons here- after Named as our Associates and have given the Preference and offer to the original Claimers. Rights. Rights. John Jones, Esqr. Joseph Haven, Esqr. Rev'r'd Samuel Haven John Haven Thomas Byxby Peter How Joseph Haven Timothy Townsend Elder Joseph Haven Simpson Jones, Esqr. Isaac Pratts 2 Jedidiah Haven 1 1 Mark Whitney 1 1 Nathaniel Gibbs 1 1 Isaac Gibbs 1 1 John Jones, Juner 1 1 Benjamin Goddard 1 1 Eleazer Howard 1 1 John and James Nutt 1 1 Daniel Mellen 1 1 James Lock 1 1 David Woodwell 1 7\ / 1 ^ i r a/ THE BOW CONTROVERSY. 39 Nathaniel Chandler, Heirs 1 Matthew Stanley > 1 James Chaclwick, Heirs 1 Abraham Colby 1 Samuel Osgood 1 Sampson Colby 2 Daniel and John Annis 2 Isaac Chandler, Juner 1 Aaron Kimball 1 Abner Kimball, Heirs 1 John Chad'wick 2 John Burbank 1 Thomas Eastman 1 Caleb Burbank 1 Timothy Clement 1 Samuel Eastman 1 John Rust, Heirs 1 Peter How, Juner 2 William Peters 1 Enoch Eastman 2 Ebenezer Eastman 1 Stephen Hoyt 1 Jacob Straw 1 Isaac Whitney 1 Samuel Putney 1 Enoch and Ezra Hoyt 1 Joseph Putney 1 Deacon Henry Mellen 3 Jonathan Straw 2 Thomas Walker 1 Thomas Merrill 1 Thomas Mellen 4 Joseph Eastman 1 Isaac Chandler 1 Jacob Potter 1 Joseph Eastman, Juner 1 Nov'r, 1762. In testimony of what is written, we have hereunto subscribed our names. Henry Mellen, Thomas Walker, Thomas Mellen. Coppy examined p. Geo. Jaffret, Prop'rs CI. Coppy examined p. Enoch Eastman, Prop'rs Clerk. In the above list, the figure " 4," designating the rights of Thomas Mellen, is a doubtful one in the record. The next chapter explains the method by which a con- siderable portion of the reserved fifth part of the township, retained for the benefit of the Masonian proprietors, found a disposal. The whole of it ultimately came into the pos- session of actual occupants. CHAPTER XII. THE BOW CONTROVERSY. As we have already shown, the proprietors of Number Five derived their title from the government of Massachu- setts. The claim of the authorities of Massachusetts to legal jurisdiction over the territory involved, arose, in part, from 40 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. the character of the original charter of the Massachusetts colony, in part from the dependent attitude in which the people of New Hampshire were, in their colonial weakness, willing to put themselves, and, in part, from the apparent hopelessness of the New Hampshire claims to any territory under the charter of John Mason. The township of Bow was granted to Jonathan Wiggin and others in 1727, by the government of New Hampshire. The conflict of interests between the two colonial establishments engendered numer- ous controversial troubles till 1741, when the boundary between Massachusetts and New Hampshire became perma- nently established. Local disputes, however, continued to involve the quiet of the communities for years afterwards. The Bow controversy involved the disquiet of the people of four several towns, — Bow, Concord, Pembroke, Hopkin- ton, as at present designated, — in consequence of the pri- mary conflict of interests above described, Concord and Pembroke being relatively in the same legal position as Hopkinton. Bow succeeded in maintaining its original title, but was obliged to yield over two thirds of its territory to the other-named towns. The boundaries were settled at different times from 1759 to 1765. The territorial claim made by Bow upon Hopkinton included a few square miles of land, triangular in form, and extending into the south- east corner in the form of a wedge, the apex of which was nearly in Hopkinton village. Number Five was repre- sented by several parties in the described controversy. On the 16th of October, 1760, Henry Mellen was chosen an agent in the adjustment of the Bow claim, with the ex- pressed privilege of choosing any one to assist him he thought proper. On the 7th of May of the following year, Dea. Henry Mellen, Adj. Thomas Mellen, and Timothy Clement were chosen a " committee to go down to the lord proprietors and the proprietors of Bow to see if the matter can be agreed upon." On the determination of the contro- versy between Bow and Number Five, in New Hopkinton, in the first instance, the proprietors of Bow maintained their claim, and the loss was made good to Number Five by the Masonian proprietors of the "reservation" in the west part of the township, the evidence of the culmination of the transaction being recorded under the date of January 5, 1767, as follows : Voted that we have Excepted the Lands of the lord Proprietors THE BOW CONTROVERSY. 41 which they voted to us acre for acre that was taken of by Bow being laid out on the Easterly Side of their fifth part of said Township. Though the township of Bow sustained its claim, the township of Number Five ceded no territory to Bow. The adjustment of the claim becoming a function of the General Court of New Hampshire, a committee of the court, acting in conjunction with a committee of Number Five, made an equalization out of the ungranted land of the Masonian pro- prietors. The following record of Number Five, for May 1, 1765, assists the understanding of the reader: Voted that matthew Stanley Isaac Chandler and Jacob Straw be a Committee to Reacon with the Committee that was appointed by the General Cort to Seel Common Land in Hopkinton. The meeting passing this act was adjourned to the 3d of May, when the, following acts were passed : Voted to Confirm Timothy Clement Enoch Eastman and Jona- than Straw as a Proprietor's commitee to Seel a Part of the Pro- prietor's Common Lands in Hopkinton to Pay the Purches and Charges that we have been at with the Proprietors of Bow. Voted to Confairm and alow what said Commitee have Don or shall Do in that Capacity. Voted to Confirm what timmothy Clement Enoch Eastman and Jonathan Straw as our Commitee have Don or Shall Do agreable to the Cort act. The conditions outlined as the above acts are observed to be in fulfilment of a stipulation of the Masonian grant. The following persons were residents and property hold- ers upon the Bow claim in 1763, when, on the 13th of De- cember, an act was passed by the legislature of New Hamp- shire, joining them and their estates to the "District of New Hopkinton :" Abel Kimball, Timothy Kimball, Timothy Clements, Eliphalet Colby, Green French, John Chadwick, Abraham Kimball, Jeremiah Kimball, James Kimball, Moses Straw, Jonathan Straw, John East- man, William Peters, Hezekiah Foster, Jeremiah Kimball, Jr., Thomas Jewett, Reuben Kimball, Daniel Watson, Obadiah Perry, Joshua Bailey, John Kimball, John Jewett, Parker Flanders, Isaac Colby, Thomas Hoitt, Widow Susannah Kimball. In 1772, in consequence of the incorporation of the county of Hillsborough, of which Hopkinton was a part till 1823, 42 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. it became necessary for the provincial authority of New Hampshire to enact that that part of Hopkinton formerly claimed by Bow should be disannexed from Rockingham, county, of which Bow was formerly a part, and annexed to the new county of Hillsborough, legalized in 1771. CHAPTER XIII. THE INCORPORATION OF HOPKINTON. The troublous times incident upon the conflict between the French and English, of which some details have been given, closed in consequence of the " Treaty of.Paris," made in 1763. Domestic peace and safety having been assured to the New England colonies, the condition of frontier town- ships rapidly improved. Number Five, in New Hampshire, so long distressed by dangers and fears, was speedily re- stored to social tranquillity. A prominent result of the restoration of local security was the incorporation of the township. The ultimate accomplishment of this object was implied in the earlier design of the proprietors. As early as October 27, 1757, a petition, asking for an act of incor- poration for this town, was addressed " To His Excellency Benning Wentworth, Esq., Captain General & Governor- in-Chief, in and over his Majesty's Province of New Hamp- shire, and to the Hon ble his Majesty's Council in the Prov- ince aforesaid." This petition was signed by the following persons : Samuel Pudney, Joseph Eastman, Aron Kimball, Joseph Budney, Enoch Eastman, John Budney, Daniel Anis, Caleb Burbank, Beter How, Joseph Or dway/ Matthew Stanley, Abraham Colbe, David Woodwell, Thomas Eastman, Joseph Eastman, Jr., John Chadwick, John Ordway, John Burbank, Jonathan How. The incorporation of Number Five was followed by most decided social benefits, securing more independent legal functions,, and consequent greater public confidence. Sta- bility and constancy at once became more marked in public transactions. The township opened a new volume of rec- ords, of which there has been no interruption since. In subsequent chapters of this work will be found incidental THE INCORPORATION OF HOPKINTON. 43 evidences of the advantages derived from the local incor- porating charter, a copy of which follows : THE INCORPORATING CHARTER. Anno Regni Regis Georgii Tertii, Magnce Brittanicce Francice, et Hibemice, etc., Quinto. [L. S.] An Act to incorporate a Place called New Hopkinton, not within a Place herefore incorporated, together with that Part of the Township of Bow which covers a Part of the said New Hopkin- ton, into a Town, invested with the Powers and Privileges of a Town. "WHEREAS, The Inhabitants of New Hopkinton (so called), to- gether with the Inhabitants of that part of the Township of Bow which covers a part of said New Hopkinton, have petitioned the General Assembly, representing the difficulties which they are under for want of the Powers and Privileges of a Town, and therefore prayed that they might be joined, united and incorporated together into a Town, and be invested with the Powers and Privileges which other Towns in the Province enjoy, THEREFORE Be it enacted by the Governour, Council and Assembly, That that part of the Township of Bow which covers a part of New Hop- kinton be, and hereby is, separated from the rest of the said Town- ship of Bow, and is joined to and united with the said New Hopkin- ton, to all intents and purposes ; and that all the Land Contained within the Bounds and Limits hereafter mentioned, and all the Per- sons who do or sball inhabit the same, their Polls and Estates, be and hereby are, incorporated together into a Town, including all that part of the township of Bow which covers a part of New Hop- kinton, with the Polls and Estates, and are hereby invested and en- franchised with all the Powers and Privileges of any other Town in the Province, and shall be called Hopkinton. The Bounds and Limits, including what has been called New Hopkinton, and also that Part of the Township of Bow which covers a Part of said New Hopkinton, which now together is incorporated into a Town, as aforesaid, are as follows : Beginning at the south easterly Corner, at a Norway pine Tree, with Stones about it, spotted on four sides, and marked on the east- erly side with the Letter R, and on the westerly side with the Letter H. Then running west five Degrees South, Six Miles, to a Hem- lock tree with Stones about it, spotted on four sides, and marked on the easterly side with the Letter H, and with the Figure 5 ; and on the westerly side with the Figure 6. Then running north fourteen Degrees west, six miles, to a White Oak tree, with Stones about it, 44 LITE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. Spotted on four Sides, & marked with the Figure 6 on the westerly- Side, and with the numeral Letter V on the easterly Side. Then running east five Degrees north, three Miles, to a Stake in a Boggy Medow, spotted on four Sides, and Stones about it. Then running north fourteen Degrees west, about 130 rods, to a River on which Almsbury Men formerly built a Saw Mill, to a heap of Stones in the middle of the said River, a little below the said Saw Mill, where it joins to the southwest Corner of Contoocook (now Boscawen). Then running east fourteen Degrees north, by a Part of said Con- toocook (or Boscawen), three miles, to a Stake & Stones, the Stake spotted on four Sides, where it also joins to the northwesterly Cor- ner of Rumford (so called). Then running South fourteen Degrees east, by said Rumford, about six miles and three-quarters, to the first mentioned Bound. And for the more effectual Management of the Affairs of the said Town of Hopkinton, the Inhabitants thereof who are duly qualified to vote in Town Meetings shall meet together annually on the first Monday in the month of March, and chuse such Officers as the Law requires to be chosen in Towns ; And the said Officers, when chosen legally, & sworn to the faithful Discharge of their respective Offices, as the Law directs, shall have the same Power to execute their respective Offices as such Officers have in other Towns in the Province, and shall be subject to the same Penalties, Pains & Forfeitures for refusing to serve when legally chosen, or Unfaith- fulness in the Execution of their respective Offices, as the Law enjoins and inflicts in such Cases. And whereas the Inhabitants of said Town are in Arrears of their Taxes, both to the Province and also towards the Support of the Gospel among them, which they have never yet had Power to assess and collect. Be it further enacted by the Authority aforesaid, That the Offi- cers who shall be chosen in said Town, to assess & to collect neces- sary Taxes there, shall be impowered to exert and execute their respective Offices about any Arrears of former Taxes, as well as about future Taxes, till such Arrears shall be fully discharged. And whereas the Inhabitants of said Town of Hopkinton are in Arrears of the Province Tax for the Years 1762, 1763, & 1764, which they had not Power to assess & collect in the time when the same ought to have been done, and now it would be too heavy a Burden upon them, if required to be all paid in one Year, or in two years, beside the proper Tax for those years — Be it enacted by the Authority aforesaid, That the Arrear Tax for the Province for the year 1762 shall be joined with the proper Tax for the year 1765 ; And that for the year 1763, with the proper Tax for the year 1766 ; And that for the year 1764, with the proper Tax for the year 1767 ; to be then paid respectively : And that the Province Treasurer shall issue his Warrants according. o o E-« CO PU Selectmen Isaac Chandler. ) for Hopkinton. On the 14th of March, 1776, the Colonial Congress passed a resolution recommending the disarmament of per- sons disaffected toward the American cause. The pur- pose of this act was regarded by the Committee of Safety of New Hampshire, so far at least as the following order implies : Colony of New Hampshire, In Committee of Safety, April 12th, 1776. In order to carry the underwritten Resolve of the Hon'ble Con- tinental Congress into Execution, you are requested to desire all Males above Twenty one years of age (Lunaticks, Idiots, & and Negroes excepted) to sign to the DECLARATION on this Paper : & when so done, to make Return thereof, together with the Name or Names of all who Shall refuse to sign the same, to the GEN- ERAL ASSEMBLY or Committee of Safety of this Colony. M. Weare, Chairman. In Congress, March 14, 1776. Resolved, That it be recommended to the Several Assemblys, Conventions, & Councils, or Committees of Safety of the United Colonies immediately to cause all Persons to be disarmed, within their Respective Colonies, who are notoriously disaffected to the cause of America, or who have not associated, & refuse to associate, to defend by Arms, the United Colonies against the Hostile attempts of the British Fleets & Armies. (Copy) Extract from the Minutes, Charles Thompson, Sec'y. THE REVOLUTION. 5£ The selectmen of Hopkinton returned the following sig- natures to the declaration of fidelity to the American cause : Signers in Hopkinton. Richard Carr Rogers, Abner Gorden, Joseph Putney, Peter How, Joshua Bailey, Jotham How, Oliver Dow, Moses Kimball, Benj. B. Darling, Aaron Kimball, Elijah Fletcher, Stephen Harriman, Jon- athan Straw, James Scales, Anthony Colby, Sargent Currier, John (X) Chadwick, Enoch Eastman, Joseph Eastman, John Putney, William Darling, Gideon Gould, Ebenezer Collins, James Smith, Jonathan Starit, Wm. Stanley, Abner Colby, Daniel Stickney, Sam- uel Kimball, Adonijah Tyler, Ezekiel Hadley, Abraham Rowell, John Clement, Daniel Murray, Josephs Stanley, John Blaisdell K Elijah Durgin, Benjamin Eastman, John Jewett, Eliphelet Colby, Daniel Watson, Francis Smith, Aaron Greeley, John Jewett, Green French, Moses Jewett, Jacob Sibley, Elneser Riden (?), Abraham Davis, Isaac Colbey, Jonathan Chase, Nehemiah Colby, Samuel Hoyt, Joseph Flint, Abel Kimball, Asa Heldreth, Samuel Farrington, Jonathan Gorden, David How, Nathaniel Clement, Joshua Morse, Philip Greeley, Nathaniel Morgan, Jacob Hoyt, David Connor, Timothy Darling, Nathan Sargent, Jacob Straw, Moses Emerson, Moses Bailey, Johnthing O'Connor, Ezra Hoyt, Nicholas Colby, Matthew Stanley, Stephen Hoyt, Stephen East- man, John Trussel, Joseph Story, Moses Gould, John Gage, Thomas Bickford, Moses Sanborn, David Young, John George, Joseph O'Connor, Joseph Davis, Thomas Webber, Moses Sawyer, Moses Hills, Richard Straw, William Peters, Jonathan Quimby, John Darling, Josiah Smith, Benjamin Jewett, John Burbank, Caleb Smart, Isaac Chandler, Jeremiah Story, jr., Isaac Fallow, Abra- ham Kimball, Joseph Chandler, John Gage, jr., Nathaniel Kim- ball, Samuel Jewett, Oliver Pierson, Ezekiel Straw, Daniel Cresey, David Fellows, Daniel Noyes, Joseph Clarke, Henry French; Zachariah Story, Nathan Story, David Clough, Jeremiah Story, Joseph Hovey, Samuel Stanley, Joseph Barnard, Ephraim Gay (?), Samuel Stocker, Samuel Harris, William Godfrey, Peter Sargent, John Webber, Moses Connor, Samuel Smith, Mark Jewett, Richard Merrill, Nathan Kimball, Moses Straw, Ralph Judkins, Richard Webber, William Colby, William Davis, Caleb Burbank, Thomas Eastman, Ruben Kimball, William Scales, Jonathan Quimby, Ben- jamin Quimby, Jacob Choat, Joseph Nichol, Samuel Brackenbury, James Kimball, Oliver Sawyer, Benjamin Sawyer, Johnson Guile, Frances Whittier, Isaac Davis, James Clough, Jonathan Hunt, Sam- uel Silver, Philip Godfried, Esq., John Eatton, Joseph Hastings, Sam uel Hadley, Benj. Wiggin, Josiah Judkins, Daniel Flanders. — 161. ( James Smith ) -I John Clement > Selectmen. • ( Benj. Wiggin ) 60 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. The names on this paper are those that Refused to sign to the Declaration Sent from the Committee of Safety to us the Sub- scribers. James Smith, ^ Selectmen John Clement, >- for Benj. Wiggin, ) Hopkinton. Chase Wiggin, Nathaniel Barker, James-JBuswell, James Jewett, ■Christopher Gould, Benj. Brown, Abraham Brown, Nathan Gould, Moses Jones, John Jones, Eastman Hoit, John Currier, Richard Cressy, Benj. Merrill. — 14. The considerate reader will bear in mind that the act of the fourteen men in refusing to sign the declaration does not of itself convict them of disloyalty of heart to the American cause. The steps of resistance to British author- ity taken by the American patriots no doubt seemed des- perate and hopeless to men of more conservative instincts, even though they inwardly admitted the justice of the cause they dared not espouse. When the people of Hopkinton became subject to the necessities of the Revolution, they were under a law requiring all persons between sixteen and sixty years of age to do military duty. Each town was also required to ieep a regular supply of one barrel of gunpowder, two hundred pounds of lead, and three hundred flints. In Sep- tember, 1776, the provincial authority passed an act form- ing two military bands known as the Training Band and the Alarm Band. The first band included all the able- bodied men from sixteen to sixty years of age, excepting certain public officers and employees, negroes, mulattoes, and Indians ; the second, all persons from sixteen to sixty- five not included in the first. In Hopkinton, on the 4th of March, 1776, Major Chand- ler, Joshua Bayley, and Moses Hill were made a local com- mittee of safety. However, the existence of war implies soldiers. They are either volunteers, conscripts, hirelings, or, in the peculiar language of the records of Hopkinton, persons " sent for." Soldiers are recompensed by govern- mental wages, by bounties, or by local allowances. In the progress of Revolutionary events in Hopkinton, there were repeated votes to carry on the war by " rates." The town voted money, corn, and beef for the support of the army. On the 14th of January, 1777, votes were passed to procure shovels, spades, one hundred pounds of Hon. Abram Brown. THE REVOLUTION. 61 gunpowder, with lead and flints ; but the vote to buy "intrenching tools" was rescinded on the 3d of the next March. During the progress of the war, the town allowed parents and masters for service done by their sons and apprentices, gave militia the same pay as soldiers, made Continental soldiers good in respect to the depreciation of money, and chose committees to hire men when "sent for." It also aided the families of non-commissioned officers and soldiers. The town having on one occasion voted to raise twentv- six men, the following act, passed February 8, 1779, became effective through evident opposition, it showing how the dues of citizens were adjusted : Voted that Each and Every Person which was Rated to Pay the hire of the 26 men which was Raised to go in to the Continental Sarvis that went in this Town's Behalf in the year 1777 Shall Each of them have the Benefit of theare Proportion of the Sarvis of them Sd. 26 men according to theire Rats which thay Paid in Sd Rats to hire Sd men according to a Vote Passed to hire Sd 26 men on the Towns Cost without any Deduction Notwithstanding any Vote or Vots Pased in Sd. Town Repugnant to the above Sd Vote Senc Sd Vote was passed. The foregoing record is followed by this memorandum : February 8: 1779 then Mistr Aaron Greeley Liut Jonathan Chase Liut Joshua Morse Joseph Barnard Thomas Webber Eliph- elet Colby Ensla (?) Brown Liut Joseph Chandler Dea Abel Kim- ball Jeremial Story June Moses Emerson Enterd thear Desent against the above Vote. _ The following vote, passed June 3, 1782, is suggestive in a similar connection : Voted that every Person which had theare Recits Sent in a gainst them By this Town Should Recieve the Same Benefit from the 1 own that the Town Received from the State By the Reson of Said Recipts Being Sent in against them. The following votes, passed on the 15th of May, 1777 shed some light upon the price paid to Revolutionary sol- diers by this town : Voted to accept the raits that is already made for the warfare. Voted to allow to those Persons which hired men for three year before thear was any Committee Chose in Town for to hire men 62 LIFE AM) TIMES IN HOPKINTON. for three year Equal month with those which the Committee hired at Ninty Dolars the three year. Hopkinton men fought on many battle-fields of the Rev- olution side by side with others of the different New Eng- land colonies. The records of any distinctive parts per- formed during the war by men of this town are very meagre. While the soldiers were fighting abroad, jDublic vigilance was alert at home. On the 4th of March, 1776, the town passed an act in favor of deposing certain parties, charged with disloyalty to the common cause, from the privileges of public trust, and making official recognition of the same a deed of public hostility. The following is a record of this act: Voted that our Representative Should Use his Enflunc that the two Greens Should Be Put Down from thare office and that if any Person Should go to Peter Green to git a Rit he Should Be Looked upon an inemy to h's Country. Peter Greene, mentioned above, was a physician and justice of the peace residing at Concord. He was arrested on suspicion of being a Tory in 1777. There was once an evidence of public faltering on the part of the people of Hopkinton in view of the trials of the Revolution. The following is the record: Voted to Chuse a Committee to Prefer a Pettition to the ginaral Court to have the act in Regard of the oat of fidelity Repealed. Voted Capt Straw mr Benjamin Wiggin & mr Isaac Bayley the Committee to Prefer Said Pettion. The foregoing votes were passed March 4, 1782. In attempting the recovery of the names of the Revolu- tionary soldiers from this town, we have been greatly assisted by the late Hon. George W. Nesmith, of Franklin, to whom we are indebted for numerous particulars selected from extensive data in his possession. The following were at Bunker Hill, June 17, 1775, in Capt. Gorden Hutchins's company: Nathaniel Clement, Abraham Kimball, William Darling, Thomas Mathews, Jonathan Judkins. John Gorden, Elisha Corliss, Nath. Perkins, and Micah Flanders, members of the same com- pany, are of doubtful residence, though some of them were probably from Weare. Most of the Hopkinton men at THE REVOLUTION. 63 Bunker Hill were enrolled in the company of Capt. Isaac Baldwin, of Hillsborough, who was killed on the field, and whose command devolved upon Lieut. John Hale, of this town, who served with the following others: 2d Lieut. Stephen Hoyt, Serg. Moses Kimball, Corporals Moses Bay- ley, Moses Connor, Reuben Kimball, and Moses Darling ; Moses Trussell, John Putney, Samuel Hildreth, Peter Howe, Timothy Clements, Daniel Cressy, Joseph Putney, Clifford Chase, Richard Straw, Thomas Eastman, Thomas Hills, Benjamin Stanley, John Stanley, Enoch Eastman. Trus- sell lost an arm, and his coat and knapsack. Hildreth, Hills, Chase, and Thomas Eastman each lost a coat. Lieu- tenant Hoyt and John Putney each lost a coat and knapsack. Caleb Smart was also at Bunker Hill, in Stark's regiment, and was wounded. The following privates were enlisted August 2, 1775, and served under Capt. John Parker, of Litchfield, in the northern campaign : Samuel Smith, John T. Connor, Eben- ezer Collins, James Judkins, David Clough, Jedidiah Jew- ett, Daniel Murray, Joseph Stanley. In Col. Benedict Arnold's regiment, that cut through the wilderness of Maine to Quebec in 1775, in Capt. Henry Dearborn's company, were Lieut. Nathaniel Hutchins, and a private named Carr. In the latter part of 1775, thirty-one companies of sol- diers were sent from New Hampshire to reinforce General Sullivan at Charlestown. The officers of the twentieth company were Timothy Clements, of Hopkinton, captain ; Joseph Chandler, first lieutenant ; Amos Gould, second lieutenant. The following enlisted in Col. Pierse Long's regiment, on the 8th of August, 1776, and served four months, or one hundred and twenty-one days : Capt. Timothy Clem- ents, Serg. Moses Darling, Daniel Blaisdell, Isaac Clements. Lieut. Nathaniel Hutchins also belonged to this regiment, being promoted to a captaincy, and, on the expiration of the term of enlistment in the spring of 1777, recruited a com- pany and joined Col. Joseph Cilley's regiment in April. Captain Hutchins retired from service in January, 1781. The following soldiers were enlisted into the continental service by the authority of Colonel Stickney, generally for a service of three years. The enlistments began early in 1777. In Colonel Scammel's regiment, Capt. Daniel Liver- 64 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKTNTON. more's company, were Serg. Samuel Smith, Joseph Bick- ford (died June 20, 1778), B. Sargent, Samuel Judkins; in Colonel Cilley's regiment, Capt. James Gregg's company, Ebenezer Blaisdell, Jr. (died August 15, 1777) ; in Captain Hutchins's company, Serg. Ebenezer Collins (wounded October 7, at Stillwater, N. Y.— died October 26, 1777) ; Serg. John Chadwick, Moses Colby, Daniel Creasy, John Eastman (killed July 8, 1777, at Hubbardton, Vt.), James Edgerly, William Hodgkins, Jonathan Judkins, Samuel Stocker, Enoch Hoit, David Smith (died August 4, 1778), Caleb Smart, Elijah Smart, Jonathan Sawyer, Benjamin Williams, Joseph Eastman (died October 30, 1777, at Sara- toga). Most of these men were enlisted in April, some for less than three years. The following were with Capt. Joshua Bayley, of this town, at Bennington, being enlisted on or about the 20th of July, 1777, and discharged at Stillwater on or about the 20th of the following September : Quartermaster Joseph Stanley, 2d Lieut. Timothy Farnham, 2d Serg. Joshua. Gile, 4th Serg. Peter Howe, 1st Corp. John Burbank, 4th Corp. Ebenezer Eaton, Christopher Gould, Richard Smith, Samuel Howe, David Howe, Jonathan Straw, Jr., Stephen Harriman, Jr., Jonathan Hunt, Josiah Corbet, Moses Emer- son, Moses Jones, Daniel French, Abraham Kimball (se- verely wounded), Caleb Burbank, Ebenezer Rider. The following were enrolled in Capt. John Hale's com- pany, Col. Henry Gerrish's regiment, called out to reinforce General Gates, enlisting in August, 1777, and performing- twenty-eight days' service : Capt. John Hale, Serg. Daniel Flanders, Corp. Jacob Straw, Jonathan Chase, Stephen Hoit, Philip Greeley, Jacob Hoit, Nathan Sargent, Richard Carr Rogers, Joseph Chadwick, Moses Hills, Thomas Hills, Samuel Farrington, David Fellows, Josiah Corbett, Enoch Long, David Kimball, Moses Burbank. The following Hopkinton men enlisted in a company commanded by Capt. Joshua Bayley, and served twenty- five days in August and September, 1778, in the campaign in Rhode Island : Lieut. Thomas Rowell, Serg. Moses Dar- ling, Serg. Abner Chase, Corp. Reuben Kimball, Corp. Levi Hildreth, Oliver Dow, Moses Hills, Joseph Hastings, Jacob Choat, Jonathan Straw, Ezekiel Straw, Samuel Hoit, Timo- thy Darling, David Kimball, Samuel Chase, Richard Smith, William Putney, Timothy Farnham, David Howe, William THE REVOLUTION. 65 Barnard, Joshua Morse, John Clement, William Ayers r Moses Clarke, Joseph Currier, Moses Clement, Jacob Tucker, Ezekiel Goodwin, Ira Waldron ; — these men were in the regiment of Col. Moses Keiley, of Goffstown. Corp. John S. Farnham enlisted into the army May 5, 1779 ; John Eaton and Timothy Farnham, April 5, 1781 ; — these were all discharged in December, 1781. Benjamin Creasy enlisted April 6, 1781, and was discharged March 17, 1782; he was claimed by Henniker. The following were new levies from and for Hopkinton, enlisted before or during 1781, and distributed among different continental regiments : Serg. Isaac Clement (died in December, 1780), Richard Smith, Ebenezer Dustin, Da- vid Howe, Daniel Eaton, Alvaro Currier, Moses Chase, Jonathan Howe, Daniel Stickney, Moses Flanders, Benja- min Quimby, Samuel Howe, Ephraim Hildreth. It further appears that William Clement was quarter- master of Col. Thomas Stickney's regiment in September, 1777, serving from the 29th of that month till the 25th of October. Thomas Eastman and Enoch Hoit were of Col. Joseph Cilley's regiment, Captain Hutchins's company, in 1778, being counted as absentees. John Eastman and John Farnam were in Colonel Stickney's regiment in 1779. The following names of Revolutionary soldiers we are unable to locate : Abram Currier, Samuel French, Michael Stocker, John Robinson, Benjamin Flanders, Jr., Daniel Kimball, Stephen Putney, Jeremiah Tyler, William Stocker. In the absence of any special testimony upon the subject, it may be inferred the Revolutionary soldiers from this town were, as a whole, faithful to their duty. However, as a matter of history, the following document is of interest in this connection : State of > New Hampshire, f In Com tee of Safety, July 5th, 1781. Sir : — You are hereby directed to proceed in searching for Isaac Walker and Wm. Putney of Hopkinton — Michael Ames and Israel Rand of Warner, James Keiley of Stratham and James Randall of Chester or Nottingham, who have lately deserted from Capt. Eben r Dear- ing's Company stationed at Piscataqua Harbour — And if they can be found to secure them & return them to the said company. And all officers Civil & Military are here by required to give you their 5 66 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. aid & assistance in finding, securing and sending on to their com- pany the said Deserters. M. Weabe, Pres*. L*. Joseph Huntoon. On the 13th day of January, 1778, a town-meeting was held in part to see what the town would decide in reference to the "Articles of Confederation of the United States of America." The simple record of the town's decision is as follows : Voted to Reciv the articles of Confederation. CHAPTER XVII. SUNDRY EVENTS FROM 1776 TO 1783. In this chapter are included many incidents properly be- longing to a Revolutionary narrative, but which, for better classification and greater ease in compilation, are reserved for this division of our work. In the immediately preceding chapter, we made a reference to the depreciation of money. The reader of general his- tor}'- understands this reference. Money is the sinew of war. The American colonies, in want of money, issued a continental currency, in bills of paper that rapidly lost value. The records of Hopkinton illustrate the decline of the currency. On March 1, 1779, the town raised <£1000 for the expense of highways, the price of a man's labor a day to be five dollars, and " the same for a yoke of oxen, cart, and plow." On April 4, 1780, the price of labor for a man was voted to be fifteen dollars a day, the same for a yoke of oxen, and one third of the same for a cart, and the same for a plow as for a cart. On March 5, 1781, with £4000 for highways, thirty dollars was decreed the price of a man's labor a day, the same of a yoke of oxen, with ten for each a cart and plow. On February 17, 1780, the dues of the Rev. Elijah Fletcher were voted to be four thousand dollars, to make up the equivalent of the depreciation of money on his salary the year past. During the Revolutionary period, public instruction of children and youth in school was almost or entirely sus- SUNDRY EVENTS FROM 1776 TO 1783. 67 pended. The town also publicly signified its willingness to pay the cost, if complained of for not keeping a school. March 2, 1778, the town voted to sell the school right or school lot, and devote the interest of the proceeds for the support of yearly schools, but this act proved a futile one. There were a few ecclesiastical items transacted during the period under discussion. The subject of public church music was one of consideration at town-meeting. March 1, 1779, the town voted to allot twelve feet of gallery of the meeting-house in front for the use of singers, and that the singers' pew " should be put on the town's cost." On Sep- tember 8, 1783, it was voted that Thomas Bailey, Daniel Tenny, Jacob Spofford, Jonathan Quimby, Jr., Nathaniel Clement, and Isaac Bailey, should sit in the singing pew, to lead in singing, and to take in such singers as they thought proper. There was notable progress made in the construction of bridges during this period. It seems that by July 1, 1779, there was a voluntary bridge of partial construction over the Contoocook river, near Lieut. Benjamin Thurber's house. Such evidence as we have obtained indicates that this bridge was at the place of the first ferry, below the village of Contoocook. On the date above mentioned, a vote to see if the town would assume the cost of this bridge, so far as constructed, passed in the negative, though the town voted to finish the structure. The action in favor of fin- ishing the bridge was reaffirmed on the 7th of the same month, when, also, the selectmen were authorized to prosecute " the offenders in regard to the bridge being flung down." The last act suggests the speculation that parties who built bridges on their own cost assumed the right to " fling down" the same at their own pleasure. The town chose Capt. Stephen Harriman, Eins. Enoch Eastman, and Christopher Gould a committee to finish the bridge, which appears to have been the first one over the Contoocook that was aided by the public authority. About the same time, the town voted to build two bridges over Paul's brook, the first in 1778, succeeding a previous one, near Dea. Currier's house, which means near the present residence of John F. Currier ; and another over Ordway's brook, in 1781, near Abraham Kimball's mill, which is the same as the spot near or where the Buswell's Corner road now crosses Dolloff's brook, at the north-east quarter of the town. 68 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. There were numerous minor acts done during the time under consideration. On March 21, 1777, the town voted to build a "pair of stocks" near the meeting-house ; on the first Tuesday in September, 1779, to give up Thomas Bick- ford's bond to keep a ferry across the Contoocook river ; on March 4, 1782, to give a bounty of five silver dollars for the head of each wolf killed in town by a resident of the town ; and, on the same date, to "lose eighty old continental dollars which were counterfeit of Constable Story." The condition of events anticipative of a new form of civil government was active. The constitutional conven- tion of 1775 not effecting satisfactory results, there followed another of 1778, to which the town sent Captain Harriman. Then followed the revisional convention of 1781, to which Joshua Bailey was sent, and which had nine sessions, and lasted two years, its result eventually being accepted by the people of the state. Hopkinton twice rejected the work of the convention previously to the selection of a committee of examination on the 18th day of November, 1782. This committee was composed of Captain Straw, Mr. Aaron Greeley, Nathan Sargent, Enoch Long, Major Chandler, Deacon Kimball, Lieutenant Chase, Joshua Bai- ley, and Lieutenant Morse. On the 23d of the next De- cember, the town accepted the plan of government with the amendments proposed, and on the 8th of September, 1783, it voted " to accept of the alteration made by the convention in the plan of government." During the transitional progress of civil events, Hop- kinton kept up its representation at the General Court. The following were its representatives : Capt. John Put- ney, in 1776 ; Capt. Stephen Harriman, in 1777 ; Joshua Bailey, in 1778 ; Dea. Abel Kimball, in 1779 ; Moses Hills, in 1780 ; Capt. Stephen Harriman, in 1781 ; Lieut. Jona- than Chase, in 1782 ; Aaron Greeley, in 1783, or till the first Wednesday of the next June, when the new govern- ment became effective. It is noticeable in this connection that when the town chose Capt. John Putney a representative in 1776, it also chose Major Chandler, Capt. Harriman, Lieutenant Dow, Joshua Bailey, Ensign Eastman, Captain Straw, Esquire (?) Clement, Aaron Greeley, and James Smith a committee to instruct him. On March 3, 1783, the town passed the following act : »*tt o O ■-J (X, o u CO PS CO A CONSTITUTIONAL TOWN-MEETING. 69 Voted that Laws now Practis upon Be in fore till June 1784 unless the Constitution takes Plac. On the same date the following was also passed : Voted to grant mr Blaisdell and his Son thear Request in Regard of Changing his name from obee to John and that the Town Clerk govern him Self accordingly. These two votes are not only of historic value, but they are interesting on account of their literary composition. Perhaps the curious reader can tell, by the rhetorical struct- ure of the second vote, what was done in respect to a name, and whose name it was. CHAPTER XVIII. A CONSTITUTIONAL TOWN-MEETING. Constitutional government may be said to have begun in New Hampshire in 1784. Previous attempts at state con- stitutional government had largely been either warlike expedients or peaceful experiments. In attempting to give a general reason for the partly ineffectual attempts at gov- erning the state by representation, we might mention the socially dynamic result of a violent revolt against the gov- ernment of Great Britain. Escaped the bondage of one power, the people hesitated before assuming the too great obligations of another. The freeholders of New Hampshire dreaded any semblance of the former royal powers and priv- ileges They disliked the " image and superscription" of the British Caesar. Sanborn's History of New Hampshire says, — " The hatred of royalty was so intense that every trace of it was swept away. The sign-boards that bore the royal face were torn down ; pictures and coats of arms in private houses were removed or reversed; the names of streets that bore the word ' King,' or ' Queen,' were chang- ed, and even the half-pence that bore the image of George III were refused in payment of dues." Such a popular feel- ing engendered suspicion of the word " governor," and the term "president" was tolerated when the magistrate, so called, was made elective by popular vote. In such a condi- 70 LIFE AND TIMES IF HOPKINTON. tion of social affairs, govermental measures could hardly fail of the severest scrutiny. However, the people of New Hampshire consented to accept the provisions of a constitu- tion, according to which the town of Hopkintou called and held a public meeting, as attests the following record : State of New j The government and People : we notify and warn Hampshire > all the freeholders and other inhabitants paying a Hillsborough ss J pole tax in Hopkinton to meet at the meeting hous on Monday the first Day of march Next at ten of the Clock in the forenoon to act on the following articles Vs : lly to Choos a moderator to Regulate Said meeting. 21y to Choose a Town Clerk. 31y to Choose Selectmen and Assessors. 41y to vote for a President and two Senators to Serve one year from the first Wednesday in June next agreable to the New Con- stitution. 51y to Choose one Person to Represent the Town one year from the first Wednesday of June Next in general Assembly to be holden at Concord agreable to the New Constitution. 61y To Choose a Constable or Constables and all other Town officers as the Law Directs. 71y To See what Sum or Sums of money the Town will Rais to Defray Town Charges and Repare the Highways. 81y To See what Sum of money the Town will Rais to Keep a Town School the year in Suing. 91y To See if the Town will abate mr William Tylers Rats in Constable Hoyts Rate List and all futer taxes in this Town. 10 To See what Bounty the Town will Vote to give to any Per- son that Belongs to the Town for each Wolfs thay Shall Kill the year ensuing. Illy to See what the Town will give Samuel Judkins for his Servis as a Soldier During the war. 121y to See if the Town will hear the Petition of mr Nathaniel Morgin and others in Regard of opening a Road. 131y to See if the Town will grant the following Petition from a, number of the inhabitants .... to throw up the old Road or exchange it from the easterly Sid of mr Samuel Silvrs Land to mr James McHard Land and to Lay out a Road threugh Said Sil- vrs Land to near wheare mr Zachariah Huneford Deceased Did Live and through Land belonging to the Heirs of mr John East- man Deceased to Said mcHards Land thene through Said mcHards Land till it Comes to the old Road wheare it Shall be most Con- venient an to See if the Town will Choos a Committee to Vew & Settle with the owners of Said Land or otherways as thay shall think best : also to See if the Town will Lay out a Road from near wheare Said Huneford Lived threugh Said Silvers Land to mr A CONSTITUTIONAL TOWN-MEETING. 71 Abraham Rowells Land and threugh Said Rowells Land to Said Rowells mills. 141y To See if the Town will fenc the buring yard. Hopkinton February 14 : 1784. Isaac Chandler ) c i + Joshua Bailey >- Aaron Greeley ) at the Annual meeting held at the meeting hous on monday the first Day of march A d 1784 at 10 oclock in the fournoon. lly Voted majr Chandler moderator. 21y Voted Joshua Bailey Town Clerk. 31y Voted to adjourn this meting into mr Wiggins. 41y Voted Joshua Bailey mr Thomas Bailey and mr Benja B Darling Selectmen and Assessors. 51y Voted for Josiah Bartlet Esq President for this State 56 Vote TimtWalkr Esq 2. 61y Voted for Senaters Esqr Blood 28 Esq Page 1 georeg Jackman Esq 2 Joshua Bailey 31 71y Voted mr Aaron greeley Representative. 8ly Voted to Choos a Committee to instruct our Representative. 91y Voted Joshua Bailey major Chandler Eins greeley Dr Clem- ent Capt Hale Dea Kimball Lt Chase Capt Herriman Ens Eastman Capt Straw Capt Moor mr B Darling and mr D Munsey the Com- mitte to instruct our Representative. lOly Voted to Carry on the Rest of the meeting by hand of Vote. Illy Voted to have 4 Constables. 121y Voted mr John Trusel mr William d Colby mr Eastman Hoyt & mr Daniel Stickney Constables. 131y Voted majr Chandler mr Thomas Webber Lt Jonathan Chase Eins Greeley mr Nathan Sargent & mr moses Kimball tithen men. 141y Voted J Quimby Jr D How J Sibley J Plumer Capt Her- riman J Clarke mr moses Kimball Lt Dow John Homes Henry Blak James Putney Dr Currier Thomas Webber Lt Morse Joseph Colby Ju Dr Clement Moses Hills Jr Joseph Clark Capt Hale moody Smith David Colby Joseph Story and mr Isaac Cheeney Sur- vayers of Highways. 151y Voted mr Benjamin B Darling & mr Thomas Bailey Sur- vayes of Lumber. 161y Voted mr John George Clerk of the market. 171y Voted Lt Chase Lt Morse and Capt Hale a Committee to examine the Select mens accompte. 181y Voted mr Isaac Bailey Seler of Lather. 191y Voted mr Joseph Sargent John T. Connor Joseph Chad- wick fenc Viwers. 201y Voted mr Aaron greeley majr Chandler and Eins Eastman Lot Layers. 72 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. 211y Voted Mr David Conner Dear Reaf. ' 221y Voted majr Chandler Pound keeper. 231y Voted Eins Darling mr Benjamin Hoyt Mr David Fellows and mr Joseph Chad-wick Hogg Reafs. 241y Voted that the Select men Should Rais as much money as thay think Propr for the benifit of the Town. 25 Voted to Rais three Shilings on the Pound to Repare the Highways to be Laid out at three Shilings Pr Day for a man and the Same for a yeok of oxen. 261y Voted to Rais Sevnty five Pounds to Keep a Town Schoole. 27 Voted that this meeting be adjorned to meet thirsday at eleven oclock to meet at the meeting Hous. thirsday march 4 met according to adjournment. Persnally appeired Capt Straw enterd his Decent against the Vote of Raising 75 Pound for Schooling. lly Voted to Divid the Town into eight parts for Schooling and that each District Should Dray theare equal proportion of what money thay Pay which Shall Be Laid out for Schooling. 21y Voted to abate mr William Tylers Rats to Constable Hoyt. 31y Voted to Pas over in Regard of Said Tyler futer Rats. 41y Voted to give any Person five Doners that belongs to this Town for every wolf thay Shall kill the year insuing. 51y Voted to give David Kimball five dollerse for the Wolf he Killed. 61y Voted to give Samuel Judkins twenty doners for his Sarvis as a Soldier. 71y Voted to open a Highway from Lt Jacob Straws to the Highway By Jonathan gardinge ( ?) on the east Sid of mr mcHards Land. 81y Voted to Chuse a Committe to Viu the Land menshoned in the warrant for a Road and that the Select men Be the Committe. 91y Voted to fenc the buring yards with Stonwall or Bord fenc. 10 Voted Capt Jonathan Straw to Receive him to Savas as Con- stable in the Roume of William D Colby. 11 Voted to abate John Nichols Rats to Constables french. 12 Voted to except of mr Samuel Hoyt as Constable in the Roum of Eastman Hoyt. Voted to adjorn to the first monday of April three oclock. There is no record to indicate that the adjourned meeting of the first Monday was ever held. The next recorded meeting of the town was on June 1. Since this chapter contemplates the town as for the first time under strict constitutional government, we copy the CONTROVERSY OVER THE MEETING-HOUSE. 73 following paragraph from Fogg's " Gazetteer of New Hampshire " : In May, 1775, the Royal Governor withdrew, and the province was governed by a convention, of which Matthew Thornton was President ; and in January, 1776, a temporary Constitution was adopted under which Mesech Weare was unanimously elected President of the Council, and Chairman of Committee of Safety, till June, 1784. CHAPTER XIX. CONTROVERSY OVER THE MEETING-HOUSE. Succeeding 1784 and preceding 1800, there were several important events that demand separate chapters for their narration. The first of these events that we shall consider was the controversy over the meeting-house. During the progress of this work, we have seen the evi- dence of a public determination to locate the meeting-house on Putney's hill. Subsequently, we have seen the original determination changed, and the meeting-house located at the site of the present village of Hopkinton. Such a modifica- tion of a public purpose could hardly be effected without controversy, and a public controversy is always a hard thing to quell. The meeting-house once located upon the plain, there were not wanting those willing to allow their dissatis- faction to be known to their fellows. More than this, it appears there were eventually more than two places named, each an actual or possible site of a meeting-house. In such a condition of things, a controversy had abundant en- couragement to live. On the 4th day of June, 1787, the matter under consider- ation had obtained such a pitch as to result in a public act of the town as follows : Voted that the meeting Hous shall Stand wheare it now Stands. However the subject was not allowed to rest here, as is indicated by the following act of December 15, 1788 : Voted to Chuse a Committee of twelve men. Voted Mr James Buswell Lt Jacob Straw Capt Darling Capt Moor Capt Herriman 74 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. Lt Morse Eins Eastman Deacon Sargent Lt Farrington Capt Bailey Majr Chandler and Lt Hoyt Be a committee to Consult to gather and agree on a Plac for the meeting Hous and report to the next Town meeting added Daniel Fowler and John Jewett to the Com- mittee. Thus there was selected a committee of fourteen men, presumably all of judgment and influence. On February 2, 1789, the town accepted a report, which was as follows : Hopkinton, December 22 : 1788 at a meeting of the Committee Choosen by the Town of Hopkinton to consult upon a place wheare the meeting Hous ought to Stand lly Voted Majr Chandler moder- ator 21y Voted Lt Hoyt Clerk 31y after we have Considered the matter Respecting the meeting hous we have Examined the Rats and we find the east end of the Town Pays about Eight Pound in fifty in the minister tax more than the west end and is eight Pats in number more : also the travil is thirty Six miles farther to the Com- mon Lot On the Hill So cald then wheare it now Stands according to our Computation : as those two Places are the only ones that was Picked upon by the Committee thearefore we think the meeting Hous ought not to be moved. This report appears to have been signed by a majority of the committee as follows : Nathan Sargent, Samuel Farring- ton, John Jewett, John Moore-, Isaac Chandler, James Bus- well, Benja. B. Darling, Enoch Eastman, Joshua Morse. Within three days after the acceptance of this report, the meeting-house was burned, and, February 5, a warrant was issued for a town meeting " at Mr. Isaac Babson's dwelling," a tavern occupying the site of the present Per- kins Inn, on the 12th of the same month. At this meeting, the following acts were passed : Voted that the Selectmen Should be a Committee to appoint a Jus- tic out of the town to go to such Persons as thay think Proper and Propose Such Oaths as thay think Proper in order to find out who Sot the meeting hous on fire. Voted that the Selectmen Should take Such Persons with them as thay think Proper for theare assistanc. Voted that the Selectmen should take Such Person or Persons as thay think Proper on Suspicion and Sumons Such evidances as thay think Proper to Prove the facts and Prosecut to final Judgement. The foregoing business having been transacted, the sub- ject of a new meeting-house was in the regular order of sequence, and it was discharged as follows : CONTROVERSY OVER THE MEETING-HOUSE. 75 Voted to build a meeting Hous. a Vote to See if thay would have it on the Common Lot Past to the Negitive 59 for 134 against. to have it Near Lt E Straws Past to the Negitive for it 62 against it 129. Voted to have it wheare the meeting hous was Burnt or within a few Rods 129 for 62 against. However, the controversy was so intense and the dissatis- faction of the minority so great, the foregoing action was not held to be conclusive. The aid of disinterested influ- ence was invoked. The following action of the same date reveals the method: Voted to have it Left to the first Selectmen in the three following Towns Namely Gilmantown Linesborough and Washington tbat the first Selectman that is now in office and that if the first man is absent or Cant Com to take the Second. Voted that rar Daniel Flanders and mr James Buswill be a Com- mittee to wait on Said Committee. The committee of selectmen of the three named towns accepted the call and discharged their duty with apparent faithfulness. On March 2, 1789, at a town-meeting called at the Babson tavern and adjourned to "Mr. Babson's barn- yard," the following report was publicly rendered : To the Town of Hopkinton Gentlemen : we, your Committee, appointed to fix upon a Suitble Plac in your Town for you to build a meeting hous upon do Report that we have taken a Vew of the Principle part of your Town and the Situation of Each Part of the Same and have found it to be attended with difficulty Rightly to Settle the matter in Such a way that Each Part of the Town Should have theare Equality of Privileges : the Senter of a Town in a general way is to be attended to in these Cases but we are informed the Senter of the Land in your Town Cannot be Regarded for the above purpose thearefore we have taken a Vew of the other Spots of ground Nominated by the Several Parts of the Town (viz) the Connor near mr Burbank's the Hill the Spot by the School House and the old meeting House Spot and considered them thus : it appears to us that the Spot by mr Burbanks will accome- date the Southwest Part of the Town only: as to the Hill, it appears to us that it will accomedate the Northwesterly part of the Town only : as to the Plac by the School Hous the distance from the old Spot is So Small it is not worth attending to : Thearefore, we, the Subscribers, are unanimus of the oppinion that near the 76 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. Spot wheare the old meeting Hous Stood will be the most Con- venient Plac for you to build a Meeting House upon. Hopkinton, February 20, 1789. Peter Clark, J Ezekiel Hoit, >- Committee. Jeremiah Bacon, ) Of the reporting committee, Peter Clark was from Lyndeborough ; Ezekiel Hoit, from Gilmanton ; Jeremiah Bacon, from Washington. The public presentation of their report was followed by these acts : Voted to Build a meeting Hous agreable to the Report of the Committee. Voted to Choose a Committe of five. Voted Capt Bailey Capt Chase mr Hill Capt Greeley and Lt morse a Committe to make a Draft of the meeting Hous and make Sale of the Pews and Build the meeting Hous. After an adjournment of one week, the town passed the following act : Voted that the meeting Hous Should be 62 feet Long and 46 wid with a Porch at Each end about 12 feet Squer. Preliminarily to erecting the proposed meeting-house, the town discharged certain minor matters. It was voted that the work of construction should be let out to the low- est bidder, and that the excess of money obtained from the sale of pews should be returned to the purchasers pro rata. Captain Straw was given the underpinning of the old meet- ing-house on condition that he find and lay the stone steps to the new one : he was also voted the nails, hinges, and iron of the former meeting-house. The new meeting-house was erected upon the site of the old one, apparently according to the proportions defined in the vote of the town, March 9, 1789. The ultimate style of architecture was superior to that of the old one, if size and stateliness are to be taken into account. The house, eventually moved northerly and improved, had seven entrances. There were three doors at the end, or the side fronting the village square. There were two in each of the easterly and westerly towers. Within the edifice, the cus- tomary high pulpit and sounding-board were on the north, and a large, wide gallery compassed, at least, the east, south CONTROVERSY OVER THE MEETING-HOUSE. 77 and west. In front of the pulpit, and designed for the use of the officers of the church, were a few pews of more ele- gant construction. The rest of the pews were of the usual plain, square kind, with seats hung by hinges rendering them capable of being raised or lowered at pleasure. As may be inferred from what has already been expressed in this chapter, the destruction of the first meeting-house was incendiary. There were, at least, two persons sus- pected of the offence of burning the edifice. On M^y 8, 1789, the town voted to forgive Abel Rowell for his offence in burning the meeting-house, upon condition that his father bind him to labor for the town to the satisfaction of the claim, his father appearing to have made the original proposal to that effect ; but on the same date, the town clerk was asked to record the fact that the father and son had both been asked if they had anything to offer to the town, and they replied that they had not. On the follow- ing 8th of June, the town voted that Captain Greeley should " carry on the lawsuit or cause against Abel Rowell," who was ultimately convicted and imprisoned in the jail at Amherst. The last action of the town in regard to this matter appears to have been on December 6, 1793, when the following was passed: Voted to Discharge and forgive Abel Rowell all the Cost that the Town Was at in Recovering the Execution by Which he is now held a Prisoner in Amherst jail before Said Execution Was Given to Nathan Kendall Deputy Sheriff for Service. In regard to the other suspected party involved in the affair of the burned meeting-house, we present the follow- ing record of December 11, 1794. Voted to Consider Lt Jacob Straw as Innocent of Burning the meeting house that Was burnt in town in February 1789 or acces- sory thereto. 78 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. CHAPTER XX. TROUBLE WITH THE MINISTER. In a previous chapter, we noticed the call of the Rev. Elijah Fletcher to the ministry of the town. The Rev. Mr. Fletcher continued in the pastoral service of the town till his death on the 8th of April, 1786. He was succeeded by the Rev. Jacob Cram, who received a call by the vote of the town on the 10th of November, 1788. The Rev. Mr. Cram was ordained February 25, 1789, at a time when the town had no meeting-house. The ordination occurred in the open air, in front of Benjamin Wiggin's tavern, — the dwelling-house now occupied by Mrs. Helen B. Goodspeed and E. Eugene Dunbar. The new minister was soon involved in a serious trouble. A considerable number of the people of the town appear to have conceived a strong dislike for him and his teaching. A bitter controversy ensued. Its results ramified far and wide in the adminis- tration of public affairs. The precise cause of the difficulty between the Rev. Mr. Cram and a portion of the people of the town is not very evident. A prescribed condition of the settlement of the town, as we have seen, implied the obligation of the settlers to support " a learned an orthodox minister." The intelli- gent reader observes that the required obligation does not define the terms "learned" and "orthodox," which are explained only by the evident disposition of the times and the practice of the people. One informed in the early history of New England clearly understands the reason why, in the fulfillment of their obligations, the residents of Hopkinton, while the requirement existed, supported a minister of the Calvinistic, Congregational faith, not to insist upon the fact that he was always a graduate of a college. We are compelled to assume that the Rev. Jacob Cram was both a learned and an orthodox minister. We assume he was learned, because he was a graduate of Dartmouth college ; we assume he was orthodox, because he was not placed under the ban of his church. We conceive that, outside of any personal defections there may have been between the Rev. Jacob Cram and his people, there was an undercurrent of vexation that culminated eventually in the TROUBLE WITH THE MINISTER. 79 separation of the functions of church and state in New Hampshire. The American instinct, reflection, and action were so predisposed to freedom, a law implying their restriction, if not openly disobeyed, was liable to frequent evasion. It is true that the law of the state, requiring the support of "a learned and orthodox minister," if not dis- obeyed, was evaded by many people in New Hampshire before the year 1819, when the so called Toleration Act was passed by the state legislature. Assuming him to have been a learned and orthodox min- ister, we surmise that the Rev. Jacob Cram may not have been a person who always illustrated the highest prudence. It is among the possibilities that he set forth the orthodox conception of time and eternity with an aggressive empha- sis that created offence. Doing so, he could not fail to intensify the more or less dormant social opposition to the ecclesiastical law of the state. Whatever may have been the exact truth in the Rev. Jacob Cram's case, it is fortu- nate that we have a list of the specific accusations jnade agaiust him, and which accusations, crude as they are in their formulated expression, convey suggestions of valuable historic importance. The following document bears wit- ness to our assertion: Hopkinton Novr 25th 1791. A Complaint to the Congregational Church of Christ in Said town against your Revd Pastor mr Jaiob Cram : 1st In his Deceiving Some of the people in not leting them know his principals before he was Settled in town as your Pastor. 2nd In his saying in Puhlick that Persons can Convert them- selves & in private that Persons can Convert themselves in half an hour. 3rd In his saying in Public that there is enough in a natural man to reunite him to god. 4th In his saying in Publick that a natural man is as dead as a dead Corpse. 5th in his saying in private Conversation that god was the author of every Event that takes Place both in the natural & moral world Sin not excepted. 6th In his saying in public that the Town had been a Cheat & Cheating in tithes & offerings ever Since it was Settled. 7th In his Saying in Public that the apostle Paul is now repent- ing in Heaven & would be to all Eternity. 8th In his saying in Public that it is the duty of Ministers after they had warned the People & given them Instruction if they would 80 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. not repent it is then the Duty of the Minister to Pray that the Lord would Cast them off & send them to hell. 9th In his accusing some of his hearers in Public of going after the Ministers of Hell. 10th In his saying in Public that Children are guilty of [it] that Sin before they are born. 11th In his saying in Public that the greatest Sin a natural man commits is his going to meeting & reading his Bible. 12th In his Saying in private that if a Person can Prove any- thing he had said he would acknowledge it but if he could not he should do nothing about it. 13th In his requesting the town to join with him to Call a Coun- cil to Know the Will of Heaven through them what to do Concerning the Difficulties that had arose on his account in town as he wished not to be a means of breaking the town & afterwards denying that Ever he proposed any such thing. 14th In his requesting Interest for his Settlement & after being Urged not to take any & told it would set the People against him he said he had thought of a way that it might be Put so that the People would not know it. Now we desire you to Call an Ecclesiastical Council to look into the fore going Complaints & grant the town such Relief respecting them as they in their wisdom shall think fit. Joshua Bailey Jonathan Chase Committee Isaac Bailey y for the Aaron Greeley Town Thomas Bailey The reader will observe that the foregoing specifications and accusations are addressed to the church, the acknowl- edged umpire of theology and morals. However, the town, as a civil function, reserved to itself very important related matters which it found difficult to adjust. The Rev. Mr. Cram had not been ordained without opposition, and his ordination being accomplished, there were dissatisfied resi- dents of the town who refused to pay their ministerial taxes. The direct issue of this phase of the situation is revealed by an article inserted in the warrant for a town- meeting on December 13, 1790, as follows : to See if they will Vote to leave the matter to men that Shall be mutually Chosen by both Parties wheather those men that Peti- tioned the Council against the Rev mr Crams ordination and have not generally attended his Public Sarvise Shall Pay the Tax or not that is already assesed against them for his Settlement and Salary trouble with the minister. 81 or any other man or men that has not generally attended on his' Public Servises Sence his Settlement and also respecting the Cattle 1 that was taken from a number of men" by Distrant for Said Taxes 1 if voted them. The record of the meeting that was held hi answer to the warrant mentioned asserts the following: Voted to Leave it to indefrent persons to deside upon the article in the warrant Respecting thos that was against mr Crams orde- nation. Voted to Leave the matter to the four Hond Judges of the Superior Court to Determin the Caus. The progress of the controversy between the minister and a number of the citizens of the town assumed many phases, of which a perfect knowledge is now very difficult. It is evident that the subject had its aggressive legal aspects. The town, once a complainant, became a defendant. Pub- lic deliberations were held, committees were chosen, and at length a council was held ; but the controversy, either in fact or result, dragged along. The vote to refer the matter to the judges of the superior court appears to have been futile, for on March 28, 1791, the town passed the follow- ing act : Voted to except of the Report of the Committee which is as follows : Memorandan we the Subscribors being requested By Joshua Bailey and others acting as a Committee in Behalf of the Town of Hopkin- ton on the one Part and Stephen Harriman and others in behalf of Certain Persons Called the agreeved party in Said Town on the other Part to Heare the Several matters in Dispute subsisting between the partis and give our oppinions theare on Whiather the Said aggrieved party or any of them according to the Constitution and Laws of the State are Holden to Pay the Taxes assessed on them for the year 1789 and 1790 for the Settlement and Support of the Revd mr Cram as a minister in Said Town and Having fully heard the Parties we are of Oppinion that the Said Stephen Herri- man and others are acccording to the afore said principles holden to pay Said taxes accepting the following persons Vs Jacob Hoyt Jacob Sibley and Moses Emerson. Hopkinton Stanford Kingsbury, March 24 : 1791. Jonathan Freeman r Ebenr. Webster. Of the foregoing committee, Sanford Kingsbury was from Claremont ; Jonathan Freeman, from Hanover ; Ebenezer Webster, from Salisbury. 6 82 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. By the character of the foregoing report, the indication is that the town had the legal advantage of the delinquent ministerial tax-payer. However, the report was not final. The same day that it was accepted by the town, a vote was passed " to join with the Rev. Mr. Cram in calling a council to advise with in regard of ministerial matters in town," and the preliminaries were duly arranged. A council was held on January 6, 1792, at the house of Benjamin Wiggin, being composed of the pastors and delegates of the churches in Medway, Mass., Warner, Newburyport, Mass., Concord, Pembroke, and Goffstown, the Rev. David Sanford, of Med- way, being selected as moderator. After deliberation, the council advised that the relation of the Rev. Jacob Cram as pastor of the church and town be dissolved, upon con- dition that the minister's salary be paid and all differences between him and them be consigned to oblivion. On the same day, in fulfillment of the advice of the council, the formal concession of the church was expressed as follows, according to an attested copy of the record: At a meeting of the Church of Christ in Hopkinton the Sixth day ofJanyl792: 1 Voted according to the advice of the Council now seting in town that the Pastoral Relation between the Revd Jaiob Cram and the Church be Dissolved this Day. 2nd Voted to Recommend in the most affectionate manner the Revd Jaiob Cram to the Churches of Christ wherever god in his j vidence shall call him to Preach the Gospel. 3rd Voted the following Recommendation namely We chearfully recommend the Reverend Jaiob Cram as a pious godly Minister of Jesus Christ in gospel standing with this and the sister Churches in the neighborhood and we most affectionately pray that the great head of the Church may Richly furnish him with every gift and grace and bless his labours to the Salvation of many Souls ready to to perish. Signed by the Church Committee. Enoch Long Jotham How Abel Kimball Jonathan Herrick junr Samuel Farrington The town of Hopkinton seems to have been as acquies- cent as the church in regard to the expressed mind of the council, for on the 16th of the following February, a vote was passed " to raise all the money that is due to Mr. Committee of Hopkinton Church. SECTARIAN TOWN-MEETINGS. 83 Cram ;" and on October 7, 1793, the town voted to abate for Capt. Stephen Harriman and seventy-one others the " ministerial taxes that standeth against them in the several constables rate lists in town for the years 1789, 1790, 1791 and 1792." Other abatements were voted later. We have already said that the controversy in fact or result dragged along. As late as August 24, 1795, the fol- lowing act, relating to the old ministerial trouble was passed : Voted that the Selectmen Shall take as much of the ministerial money Which was left of Paying the Revd Jacob Cram as Will Pay the men in Town that has Paid money for to pay Mr Cram So that he might be Settled With more than they Ware taxed to Said ministerial Tax and pay the Same to Said men. We have mentioned the fact that suits in law were brought against the town during the progress of this con- troversy. On August 30, 1790, Capt. Philip Greeley was chosen an agent to defend the suit of Capt. Stephen Har- riman. On November 21, 1791, the town passed the fol- lowing act : Voted to Rule out all the Law Suts that is brought against the Town in Regard of Ministerial Rates Captain Herriman rar Samuel Hoyt mr Jonathan Gordon & mr Jacob Hoyt. The above suits were probably for the recovery of dam- age for distraints for ministerial taxes. It appears that Amos Gordon and Jacob Sibley were at one time granted an execution against the town selectmen of 1789. CHAPTER XXI. SECTARIAN TOWN-MEETINGS. In the last chapter, we spoke of the legal obligation of the town of Hopkinton to support a "learned and orthodox minister." The incidental existence of a ministerial tax- rate was also mentioned. We farther explained a general cause of difficulty in collecting the ministerial taxes. We now propose to be more specific in statement. When New Hampshire ceased to be a British province 84 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. and became an American state, the obligation to support a minister in each town was continued. However, when a state constitution became effective, all denominations of Christians were accorded equal protection under the law. From a spirit of liberality, formulated in the constitution and enacted in popular law, legally organized societies of Christians, not of Calvinistic Congregational confession, were not only tolerated, but their regularly constituted members were exempt from contributing to the support of a minister other than the one of their individual choice. Persons not regularly identified with any other Christian society were considered as under legal obligation to sup- port the Congregational minister of the town and were taxed accordingly. The divided condition of religious matters in Hopkinton engendered so much controversial difficulty that a peculiar scheme arose among the adherents and supporters of the legal church. They, in part, appear to have adopted the conclusion that, if they could not tax the adherents of free religious societies, they could at least tax themselves. However, in attempting to ultimate their conclusion, they fell into a legal delusion, of which they, as a whole, appear to have become at length convinced. The mistake made was the result of thinking that a portion of a town, called together for the purpose, could legally effect, in the name of the town, a measure that was of partial operation. The experiment was twice tried. The following is a record of the first attempt : State of ) To Jonathan Judkins Constable in and New Hampshire > for Hopkinton in the County aforesaid : Hillsborough, ss : ) Greeting — [Seal.] In the Name of the State of New Hampshire you are hereby Required to Notify and Warn all the Congregational Inhab- itants of Said Town that are Qualified by law to Vote in Town affairs to meet at the Easterly meeting house in Said Town on Mon- day the Twentieth Day of July Current at three O'Clock in the afternoon to act on the following articles (Viz) : first : To Choose a moderator to Govern Said Meeting. 21y. To See What Sum of money they Will Vote to Raise by a Tax or Subscription on Said Inhabitants to hire a Congregational preacher or preachers of the Gospel the Current year. 31y. To Cboose Assessors to assess ministerial Taxes. 41y. To Choose a Collector or Collectors to Collect Ministerial Taxes. SECTARIAN TOWN-MEETINGS. 85 Sly. To Choose a Committee to hire a Congregational preacher or preachers of the Gospel to Supply pulpit. Hereof fail Not, and Make Due Return of this Warrant at the place and at the hour for holding Said meeting With your Doings therein to the Town Clerk or in his absence to any one of the Selectmen. — Given under our hands and Seal this fourth Day of July Anno Domini on Thousand Seven hundred and Ninety five. Aaron Greeley ) Selectmen Timothy Darling >• for Joshua Morse ) Hopkinton. State of ) Hopkinton July 20th 1795. New Hampshire > In obedience to the Within Hillsborough ss : ) Warrant I have Duly No- tified and Warned all the Congregational Inbabitants of Said Town Qualified by law to Vote in Town affairs to meet at Time and place and for the purposes Directed in Said Warrant by Posting up a True and an attested Copy of Said Warrant at the Easterly Meet- ing bouse in Said Town fifteen Days before the Day of holding Said meeting. ( Constable Jonathan Judkins ■< for ( Hopkinton. Reed July 20th 1795 Recorded and Examined by Aaron Greeley Town Clerk. The Proceedings of the Congregational inhabitants of Hopkin- ton at their Meeting Called and held at the Easterly Meeting house in Said Town on Monday the twentieth Day July Anno Domini 1795 at three O'Clock in the afternoon. 1st. Voted Joshua Morse Esqr Moderator to Govern Said meet- ing. 21y. Voted to Raise Sixty Dollars for the Support of the Congre- gational ministry Immediately appeared Col. Philip Greeley, John Gage, Col. Joshua Bailey, Jeremiah Story Jr, Nathan Story, Joseph Story Jr, Isaac Bailey, Jonathan Herrick, Enoch Long Jr, Moses Emerson, Anthony Colby, Nathaniel Clement, Lt. Jotham How Gideon Gould, Lt. Samuel Farrington, Jotham How Jr, Daniel Allen, Benjamin Swain, John Hoyt Jr, Moses Hoyt, Enoch Long, Enoch Hoyt, John Boyenton, Peter Darling, Nathaniel Colby, David Colby, Moses Smith, Levi Hildreth, and Entred their De- sent against Said meeting as an Illegall Meeting. 31y. Voted to Pass over the third and fourth articles in the War- rant. 41y. Voted Messieurs John Jewett, Joshua Morse and Thomas Bailey be a Committee to lay out Said Sixty Dollars in hiring a Congregational Preacher or Preachers of the Gospel. 86 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. 51y. Voted that the Westerly End of the Town Shall have as much Preaching at the Westerly meeting house as What money they Pays Comes to. Then the moderator Desolved Said meeting. Attest. Aaron Greely Town Clerk. The reader will observe that the foregoing warrant called the meeting of the Congregational inhabitants at the "east- erly" meeting-house. The term "easterly," applied to the meeting-house, was not used in a call for a town-meeting before 1795. Hence it appears that a second or "westerly" meeting-house had at that time been recently erected. The westerly meeting-house stood at what is now sometimes called Campbell's corner, at the junction of a number of roads on Emerson's hill, where now lives Henry E. Dow. Worship, according to the Congregational order, was con- ducted at the westerly meeting-house with more or less regularity for an indefinite number of years. There was an interval of over two years before a sec- ond sectarian town-meeting was held in Hopkinton. The following is the record of the call and proceedings : State of ) To Jonathan Judkins Con- New Hampshire >• stable in and for Hopkinton Hillsborough ss : ) in the County aforesaid : [Seal] In the Name of the State of New Hampshire you are hereby Required to Notify and Warn all the Congregational Inhab- itants of Said Town that are Qualified by law to Vote in Town affairs to meet at the Easterly meeting house in Said Town on Mon- day the twenty first Day of August Current at three O'Clock in the afternoon to act on the following articles, Viz : 1st. To Choose a Moderator to Govern Said meeting. 21y. To See What Sums of money they Will Raise to Support the Congregational ministry in Town the Remainder of the year. 31y. To See if they Will Vote the ministerial Committee Shall Imploy the Revd Christopher Paige to Preach in Town in Case provision is made for that purpose. Hereof fail Not and make Due Return of this Warrant at the place and at the hour for hold- ing Said meeting With your Doings thereon to the Town Clerk or in his absence to any one of the Selectmen, — Given under our hands and Seal at Hopkinton aforesaid this third Day of August Anno Domini one thousand Seven hundred and Ninety Seven. Aaron Greeley ) Henry Blake >- Selectmen- David Fowler ) THE COUNTY BUILDINGS. 87 State of ) Hopkinton, August 21th 1797. New Hampshire >- Hillsborough ss : ) In Obedience to the With- in Warrant I have Duly Notified and Warned all the Congrega- tional Inhabitants of Said town to meet at time and place and for the purposes Directed in Said Warrant by posting up a true and an attested Copy of Said Warrant at the Easterly meeting house in Said Town in the Most Noted place fifteen Days before the Day of holding Said Meeting. ( Constable Jonathan Judkins < for ( Hopkinton. Reed August 21st 1797 Recorded and Examd : by Aaron Greeley Town Clerk. The Proceedings of the Congregational Inhabitants of Hopkin- ton at their meeting held at the Easterly Meeting house in Said Town on Monday the twenty first Day of August Anno Domini 1797 at three O'Clock in the afternoon : 1st Chose Joshua Morse Esqr Moderator to Govern Said meet- ing. 21y. Voted Not to Proceed on the Warrant. Then the Moderator adjourned Said Meeting Without Day. Attest Aaron Greeley Town Clerk. The prompt action of this meeting in refusing to act under the warrant indicates a general conviction of the illegal character of the assembly. The proposition to hold Congregational town-meetings was not unanimously upheld by the Congregationalists. In the list of dissenters from the action in favor of raising money on the 20th of July, 1795, are strict orthodox names. CHAPTER XXII. THE COUNTY BUILDINGS. In a previous chapter we have mentioned the organiza- tion of Hillsborough county, of which Hopkinton became a part. In the progress of civilized settlements northwardly from the southern portion of New Hampshire, the county of Hillsborough eventually contained the following towns, which were included in Merrimack county at its incorpora- tion in 1823 : Andover, Bradford, Boscawen (including 88 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. Webster), Dunbarton, Henniker, Hooksett, Hopkinton, Newbury, New London, Salisbury, Sutton, Warner, and Wilmot. Andover and Salisbury included portions of the present town of Franklin. The town of Amherst being at first the shire-town, its position in the southern part of Hillsborough county at length incurred great inconvenience to many people desiring to visit the town on county busi- ness. This was the condition of things on November 30, 1787, when the town of Hopkinton passed the following act: Voted that our Representative Should use his influanc in the General Court that if theare is any thing Dun Relitive to the Court Hous heing Removed from Amherst that it Should Stand as near the Senter of the County as is Convenant. The difficulties incident to the location of the county- seat eventually resulted in the selection of a new shire- town, which was to be one of two places for conducting the county business. An act of the New Hampshire legis- lature, approved December 25, 1792, provided that the May term of the Superior Court, and the September and Decem- ber terms of the Court of Common Pleas and General Court of Sessions, held annually at Amherst, should there- after be held at Hopkinton. This provision stipulated that the place of holding the courts in Hopkinton should be in or as near the meeting-house as practicable, and the state act was to be null and void if within two years the town of Hopkinton did not provide a court-house without expense to the county. The conditions of the above act, so far as they related to the obligation of Hopkinton to build a court-house, appear to have been fulfilled ; but the construction of the edifice seems to have been at first the product of private enter- prise. The site was the same as that of the present town- house. The land was given for the purpose by Benjamin Wiggin. The circumstances of the erection of the county- house are inferred from the following acts of the town of Hopkinton, March 8, 1796 : Voted to Take the Court house that is in Town and finish it. — Provide the Present Proprietors of Said house Will Give their Right to the house up to the County and Town and the land it Stands on Immediately appeared Lt Joseph Hastings and Entred his Desent against the last Vote. THE COUNTY BUILDINGS. 89 Voted to Choose a Committee of three to Settle With the Pro- prietors of Said Court house and take Security of them for the Same and for the land that Was approprated for it and finish Said house. Chose Messieus Jonathan Chase Philip Greeley and Stephen Her- riman be Said Committee to take Security and finish Said Court house as aforesaid. An the 1 9th of the next April, the town voted $375 for the completion of the court-house. This edifice, as thus completed, had two stories, the lower having two rooms and the upper only one. It was about two thirds as long as the present town-house, and of corresponding width. On the lower floor were two jury rooms. On the upper was the court-room, with judge's bench of semi-circular arrange- ment in the middle of the west end, flanked by a wall-seat on each side. On the opposite end, and also on the two sides, were three rows of seats. In the centre was the bar — a semi-circular arrangement, with railing and two rows of seats. In opposite and prominent positions in the eastern part of the room were two sheriff's or prisoner's boxes; there was also another, as well as a fireplace, on the north side. In anticipation of accommodating the New Hamp- shire legislature, which met here in 1798, and also in 1801, 1806, and 1807, an addition was made to the court-house, extending the structure, in the easterly direction. By this arrangement, an entrance was allowed in front, opening into a hallway or waiting-room, occupying the whole space of the addition, furnished with a simple encompassing wall- seat. Passing north, one came to a broad flight of stairs, which turned to the left twice and terminated in a narrow hall on the second story. East of this hall was the senate chamber, containing the president's seat in the middle of the south side, and a plain wall-seat around the apartment. Town-meeting was first held in the new court- and town- house on March 4, 1799. A meeting called at the easterly meeting-house passed the following act, apparently just before noon : Voted to adjourn Said Meeting to the upper Part of the Town- house in Said Town to meet at that Place again in one hour. Meetings were subsequently called at the town-house, and on August 6, 1799, the following act was passed : 90 LIFE AND TIMES IN" HOPKINTON. Voted that the Town meetings be Notified in future at the Town- house. Incidentally upon the erection of Hopkinton into a half shire-town of Hillsborough county, a local jail was con- structed. This penal institution was subsequently trans- ferred to Merrimack, on the formation of that county in 1823. The jail was identical with the present residence of Benjamin O. Kimball, situated a few rods out of the village on the South road. The outward aspect of the building is to-day substantially unchanged. The apartments of the edifice devoted to the purposes of a county prison have been reconstructed. The proper prison was on the back part of the lower floor, and extended the whole length of the building, being divided mainly into two rough but strong apartments, which were reached by doors leading from a long, narrow hall. Near the partition was the small, square dungeon. Here, in one or all apartments, prisoners were confined until the year 1852, when the new county jail was built in Concord. CHAPTER XXIII. SUNDRY EVENTS FROM 1784 TO 1799. A matter of adjustment during the period from 1781 to 1799 resulted from the Revolutionary War. The war rates were a subject of record as late as 1788, when, on the 14th of January, the town voted that every person who had hired soldiers during the war should make a return to the selectmen. It appears that, sometime after the Revo- lution, there were soldiers holding the securities of the town for the payment of their services. To some of these the town offered three quarters of the face of the securi- ties, but on the 1st day of June, 1784, John Scales Farn- ham and John Eastman were publicly refused any more pay than what they had received. On the 27th of April, 1786, the town publicly refused to make additional pay- ment to Esquire Farnum and Benjamin Creassy. It ap- pears that Creassy afterwards began a suit against the town, and, on the 4th of June, 1787, Joshua Bailey was. chosen an agent to contest it. SUNDRY EVENTS FROM 1784 TO 1799. 91 A resulting incident of the Revolution occurred on the 13th of November, 1786, when* the town voted to pay for the guns that were lost in the year 1775,. or return others equally good. After the Revolution, a militia system was maintained upon substantially the same basis as that described in a previous chapter. On the 8th of December, 1794, the town voted eight dollars a month, in addition to the amount given by congress, to minute men, when called into actual service, and one dollar as a bounty to each one when enlisted. On the 8th of January, 1798, the town voted minute men twenty shillings a month, and two dol- lars as bounty, upon similar circumstances as before, while militia captains were assured six gallons of rum to distrib- ute among minute men in demand by national authority. During this period, in consequence of the war existing be- tween England and France, the peace of the United States was threatened, but it was secured by the skill of our gov- ernment. In promotion of the military interests of the town, a training field was laid out on Putney's hill in very early times. The training field was located opposite the lot in- tended for a meeting-house, as located by the vote of the town in 1765, at the annual meeting, on the easterly side of the highway. We do not know positively how long the training field was in actual use, but, on the 7th of Novem- ber, 1796, the town voted to lease it for 999 years. Turning from military to civil affairs, we note the public action of the town in reference to the constitutional con- vention which evolved the amended state compact of 1792. On the 8th of August, 1791, Esquire Greeley was chosen a delegate to the convention ; but the amended constitution was rejected by the town on the 7th of August, 1792, there being twenty-two votes recorded against it and none in its favor. It is noticeable that on the 7th of May, 1792, the town " took under consideration " the amended constitu- tion, and, on the 21st of the same month " resumed the consideration " of the same ; but the clerk's record is so incompletely expressed that one can derive no knowledge of the result. Subsequently to the dismissal of the Rev. Jacob Cram, there was no minister settled in town during the period under consideration. The Rev. Christopher Paige received 92 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPEIINTON. a call on the 9th of July, 1787, and was a ministerial sup- ply a large portion of the •time. On March 8, 1796, the town chose Thomas Bailey, Joshua Morse, and John Jewett a committee to employ a minister, and authorized them to employ the Rev. Mr. Paige three months. On the 8th of the next September, a vote was passed raising $100 for the support of preaching for the balance of the year, and the Rev. Mr. Paige was to be employed till the money was expended. On the 25th of March, 1799, the town voted to lay a ministerial tax on the Congregational inhabitants at the rate of twenty cents upon each poll, and upon all ratable estate in the same proportion, such inhabitants to be ascer- tained by their individual consent to the selectmen. In a previous chapter, we have described the obligation of the town at settlement to devote a tract of land to min- isterial uses. The parsonage lot was laid out by due boun- daries, but never was of the public service at first antici- pated, though it was not wholly without profit. At length it became a kind of public incumbrance, and its disposal was a matter of public consideration. On the 8th of March, 1796, the town, not having legal power to sell it, voted to lease the parsonage land " as long as wood shall grow and water run." This act seems not to have been effective, and apparently for the exact limitation of the time of the lease, a second vote, on the 13th of March, 1798, provided for a lease for the term of 999 years. The interest of the money accruing from the lease was for many years divided pro rata among the different religious socie- ties in town. Steady progress appears to have been made in the sup- port and development of public schools during this period. In the year 1789, the state legislature passed an act fixing the amount that towns should be legally required to raise for the support of popular education. The rate of appor- tionment was one pound for every four pounds of the pub- lic taxes assessed upon each town by the state. The rec- ords of Hopkinton do not indicate that the popular vote to raise money for schools was directly affected by this law. Sums varying from fifty pounds to $335 were raised for schools during the time under discussion. The method of using the school-money is somewhat obscurely deter- mined. At the annual town-meeting in 1792, it was voted SUNDRY EVENTS FROM 1784 TO 1799. 93 that there should be no method of distributing the school- money other than that "usual in town for some years last past." In 1794, the selectmen were authorized to distribute the money among the districts according to the scholars from three to twenty-one years of age in each. In 1795 it was voted that a committee from each district should draw its money from the selectmen, each commit- tee to consist of three persons. In 1797,^ the town voted to go back to the method employed prior to the year 1784, and distribute the school-money according to the rate of taxation for schools. In 1798, the method was to be that of 179G, which was the same as that of the previous year. In 1799, the division according to scholars from three to twenty-one years of age was readopted. There is little or no suggestion of the progress made in the erection of school-houses during this period, but the following act of August 26, 1799, is not without interest : Voted that the School he kept in the Townhouse Provided the Committee that imploys the School Master makes the house Good if it is Damaged. The school lot, or right, laid out according to the condi- tion of the settlement of the town, shared the same fate as. the parsonage land. Not subserving the use expected, or being of only partial profit, it was leased for the term of 999 years, agreeably to a vote of the town, passed March 20, 1786. The interest of the money accruing from the lease was for many years divided among the different schools of the town, as was the fund raised for the same purpose. Considerable attention was paid to the construction of important bridges during the time under consideration. On the 30th day of August, 1790, the town voted to repair the bridge near Esquire Poor's. Esquire Poor seems to have been Eliphalet Poor, who was instrumental in the construction of a bridge across the Contoocook river at a j x lint just above the present dam at the village of Contoo- cook, the southerly extremity of the bridge being not far from the present residence of Jeremiah S. Webber. Eliph- alet Poor appears to have been in town as early as 1787. On the 7th of May, 1792, the town voted to repair the "great" bridges over the Contoocook river near Esquire Cross's and Esquire Poor's. The bridge near Esquire 94 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. Cross's was doubtless at the first ferry-site across the river, of which we have already described the location. On the 11th of December, 1794, the town voted to build a bridge across Contoocook river on the falls a little below Poor's bridge, so called, Moses Hill, Abraham Kimball, Joseph Hastings, Jeremiah Emerson, and Jonathan Quimby being chosen a committee to effect the work, Moses Hill being the chairman. This bridge was doubtless on the site of the present Contoocook highwaj'- bridge. On March 3, 1795, further action was taken in regard to the proposed new bridge, among the provisions being that each man that worked on it should have one gill of rum a day. On the 1st day of the next September, the town voted to u set up the bridge at public vendue," in prospect of its erection, and on the 19th of April, 1796, to raise $367 to pay for it. It appears that there was a bridge over Contoocook river at West Hopkinton as early as 1793, being located a little below Abraham Rowell's. On the 10th of April, 1797, the town voted fifty days' work to repair Tyler's bridge, so called, and the bridge over the Blackwater. Such evidence as we can obtain indicates that, at first, many bridges were built in town through the directing labor of the surveyors of highways. The selectmen some- times called the surveyors to their aid in the construction of bridges, and the expense was often cancelled by^ the reg- ular highway tax. This is doubtless a reason why the early town records give such meagre accounts of the con- struction of the first bridges. There were other events of greater or less importance during this period, and we recount some of them in chrono- logical order. On the 14th of March, 1785, the town voted to exempt from paying poll tax all persons above 70 years of age. The Rev. Elijah Fletcher having been buried at the expense of the town, the selectmen's bill of £7 „ 11 „ 7 „ 2 was accepted on the 27th of April, 1786. On the 21st of August following, a vote favoring a state bank was passed ; but a contrary vote, in view of the plan proposed by the court, was passed on the 13th of the next November. On the 4th of June, 1787, the town voted to dispose of all its paper money. On the 14th of January, 1788, Lieutenant Morse was chosen a delegate to the United States Constitutional Convention, with special in- struction to reject the constitution ; but the town after- SUNDRY EVENTS FROM 1784 TO 1799. 95 wards conceded him liberty to act as he thought best. On the 9th of November, 1789, Colonel Bailey, Captain Chase, and Lieutenant Morse were selected to meet in convention at Concord, to consider the towns to be erected into a new county. On the 30th of May, 1791, the town voted to petition the General Court to legalize all the town-meet- ings already called by the selectmen. On the 7th of May, 1792, the town voted to build a pound on Capt. Thomas Bailey's land, u nigh where his old house stood," said pound to be 30 feet square within, 8 feet high, and built with round pine logs, the gate and its posts to be of white oak, the hinges of iron, and provided with a good lock. A warrant for a town-meeting on the 7th of August, 1792, was the first one recorded with the place of the seal indi- cated. The same year the small-pox prevailed in town ; but, on the 20th of September, the town voted to reject the proposition to build a pest-house. In 1793, March 4, the town voted that swine might run at large without being yoked, if no damage was done. On March 8, 1796, the selectmen were authorized to repair the cemetery fence near the court-house, and set the part next the highway as they thought best. On the 13th of March, 1798, the selectmen were authorized to provide scale beams, steel- yards, weights and measures for the town, and of such material as they saw fit. The same day domestic animals were prohibited from running at large within a half mile of the town-house, under penalty of one dollar for a swine, twenty-five cents for a sheep, and $1.25 for a neat creature, unless it should appear that the estray was by accident. The same day a bounty of six pence a head for crows was authorized. On the 27th day of August, 1798, the select- men were authorized to repair the cemetery fence on Put- ney's hill, and cut up the intruding bushes. On March 20, 1799, William Tyler, a poor person, was set up in town- meeting and vendued to bidders for maintenance, Benja- min Titcomb taking him at five shillings a week. The same day the town voted to buy a pall or funeral cloth. On the 18th day of the next November, the selectmen were authorized to repair the guide-posts in town. 96 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. CHAPTER XXIV. THE BEGINNING OF A NEW CENTTTKY. In previous chapters of this volume, we have given atten- tion to certain major and minor affairs in the town of Hop- kinton from the inception of the township till 1799. We now enter upon a series of events dating from the first year of a new century. It is therefore proper to consider the general aspect of local affairs at the pivotal year of 1800. Since the original grant of the township, the population had greatly increased. Sixty proprietors of Number Five had given place to over 2,000 inhabitants of Hopkinton. To be more exact in statement, we present the following results of different censuses already taken: 1767, 473 ; 1773, 943; 1775, 1,085; 1783,1,488; 1786, 1,537; 1790, 1,715 ; 1800, 2,015. This relatively steady increase in pop- ulation marked a period of growth in numbers that contin- ued till about 1830. We will attempt to describe in brief the causes of this prosperity. The reader recollects that in a previous chapter we men- tioned the existence of a comparative wilderness north of the latitude of Hopkinton and south of the boundary of Canada. This vast extent of wild country was destined to become the abode of civilization. As more northerly set- tlements began in New Hampshire, the southern frontier towns became the depot of all kinds of domestic supplies, their wholesale and retail trade receiving a prosperous im- petus. Thus Hopkinton became the centre of a traffic that encouraged population and wealth. More than this, Hop- kinton was for many years a prominent station on a direct line of travel between Boston and Montreal. The elevation of Hopkinton to the position of a half-shire town of Hills- borough county gave a special impulse to prosperity, bring- ing hither courts, judges, lawyers, county officials of vari- ous grades, and all the assemblage of clients and attendants at the different sessions of county judicature. The General Court of New Hampshire, meeting at Hopkinton four times about the time under direct consideration, occasioned the temporary advent of state officials and other influential persons, and aided eminently the social distinction of the town. In 1800, the territory of Hopkinton was largely appropri- M^ / I - Hon. John Burnham. THE BEGINNING OF A NEW CENTURY. 97 ated by thrifty farms. The hills and vales were scenes of prosperous rural industry, while flocks and herds of thou- sands of sheep and cattle roamed in fertile pastures, or were sheltered in the commodious barns of their owners. There were various mills and manufactories upon the important streams in the town, while shops of different sorts were located in the numerous districts in the township. The village of Hopkinton at this time was probably not far from its present extent, though the number of edifices was per- haps somewhat less. From the village square, roads led outward in all directions as now, excepting that the pres- ent direct highway to Contoocook had not been opened be- tween the village and Putney's hill. The prohibition of estrays within a half-mile of the town-house, mentioned in the previous chapter, suggests the probable size of the vil- lage itself. There were three meeting-houses in Hopkinton in 1800. Besides the easterly and westerly Congregational meeting- houses, there was a Baptist meeting-house at the junction of several roads at a point about a mile south-west of the village, on the corner northerly opposite the present resi- dence of George W. French. There appears to have been at first but one resident minister, the Rev. Christopher Paige. The number of legal professional residents in town ap- pears to have been two. They were Baruch Chase and John Harris, and they both lived in Hopkinton village. There appear to have been five physicians in town in 1800. They were John Clement, John Currier, Stephen Currier, Edmund Currier, and Ebenezer Lerned, all of whom probably lived at or near the village except Dr. Clement, who lived on Putney's hill, and Dr. Edmund Cur- rier, who lived in the west part of the town. There were at least two taverns in Hopkinton village in 1800. They were the Babson tavern and the Wiggin tav- ern, already mentioned in the progress of this work. The- ophilus Stanley kept a tavern in earlier times where now live Mrs. Seth E. Brown and the Misses Frye, and he may have done so at the time under discussion. In 1800, the following persons were taxed for mills in Hopkinton : Dea. John Currier, Richard Carr Rogers, Jo- seph Towne, Mark Morrill, Simeon Dow, Jr., Jeremiah Emerson, Esq., Bodwell Emerson, Moses Hills, and Joseph 7 98 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. Peters. Dea. John Currier's mill was on Paul brook, in the present Stumpfield district; Joseph Towne, Simeon Dow, Jr., and Moses Hills were located in business at Con- toocook, which was then little more than a location of a water-power. Jeremiah and Bodwell Emerson did busi- ness at West Hopkinton. Mark Morrill's mill was on Dol- lofPs brook, about a mile below the village. The following parties were taxed for stock in trade in 1800 : Reuben French, Dr. Ebenezer Lerned, Lieut. The- ophilus Stanley, Towne and Ballard, Samuel G. Towne, Joshua Bailey, Esq., Samuel Darling, Jonathan Judkins, Isaac Long, Daniel Moore, Nathaniel Proctor, Silas Thayer, and David Young. These parties were not all merchants, but some were proprietors of shops of miscellaneous kinds. Theophilus Stanley conducted a tannery just east of the village, by the present Mills' brook. Reuben French, Eb- enezer Lerned, Towne and Ballard, Samuel G. Towne, and others were village merchants. Isaac Long was a book- binder and bookseller. Towne and Ballard are also said to have had a store in Contoocook in earlier times. Silas Thayer appears to have been a Contoocook blacksmith. David Young was a cabinet-maker who lived in the pres- ent Gage district at the southern slope of Putney's hill. At the time of which we speak, Hopkinton was visited daily by stages coursing the great northern and southern line of travel which we have just mentioned. There were doubtless regular lines of public communication in other directions, for, as we have seen, the public importance of Hopkinton attracted the attention of people in all parts of the state. Thus a new century dawned in Hopkinton, a centre of political, social, and business enterprise. Other references to the prosperity of the town will occur in subsequent chapters. SUNDRY EVENTS FROM 1800 TO 1804. 99 CHAPTER XXV. SUNDRY EVENTS FROM 1800 TO 1804. In the previous chapter, we said that there appeared to be at first but one resident minister in town in 1800. Dur- ing the year, a minister was called and installed. On the 3d of February of that year, the town voted to call the Rev. Ethan Smith, who was to have a salary of $400 a year so long as a majority of the Congregational inhabitants of the town should agree in respect to him, he being willing to continue the pastor, the perquisites of the ministry in- cluding the interest of the parsonage money. Jonathan Chase, Moody Smith, Benjamin Wiggin, Aaron Greeley, Joshua Morse, Philip Greeley, Jotham Howe, Jeremiah Emerson, John Silver, Isaac Chandler, and Ezekiel Knowl- ton were chosen a committee to wait upon the Rev. Mr. Smith and inform him of the action of the meeting. On the 24th of the same month, the first action was somewhat modified b} r reconsideration. The town voted to pay the Rev. Mr. Smith just $400 yearly. A new committee, con- sisting of Ezekiel Knowlton, Jonathan Chase, Thomas Bai- ley, Moses Long, Enoch Long, Nathan Sargent, Aaron Greeley, Philip Greeley, Joshua Bailey, Timothy Darling, Joshua Morse, Hemy Blake, Benjamin Wiggin, Daniel Flanders, Jonathan Herrick, and John Currier, 3d, was selected to impart to the reverend gentleman the knowl- edge of this transaction. It appears that the Rev. Mr. Smith accepted the terms, for, after an adjournment of half an hour, the town proceeded to take measures antici- pative of an " instalment." Philip Greeley, Joshua Morse, Thomas Bailey, Timothy Darling, and Moody Smith were chosen a committee to perfect the arrangements. . The time set for the installation of the Rev. Mr. Smith was Wednes- day, the 12th of the following March, and the town was to pay the cost of the proceedings. On the 10th of March, 1800, the town voted to set up the collecting of the Congregational ministerial money to the lowest bidder, and Mark Jewett became the collector at a salary of $11.75. On the 4th of March, 1801, the town voted to raise $460 for schools, and that each school-district should draw its L.ofC. 100 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. money from the selectmen by a committee chosen in March and provided with a certificate of a district clerk contain- ing the evidence of the selection of said committee. This restriction of the power of a committee was in compliance with the law of the state. The condition of the town-house was also a subject of public consideration on the foregoing 4th of March. It appears that Philip Greeley, Timothy Darling, and Theoph- ilis Stanley had been selected privately and proposed as a committee to improve the town-house for the accommoda- tion of the General Court, and without expense to the town. The town voted them the proper authority, and chose Joshua Morse, Thomas Bailey, and Jonathan Chase a public committee to advise with them. The same day Benjamin Wiggin was chosen librarian of the books con- taining the laws of the United States, with authority to loan on Saturday afternoons one volume to each person who should apply for it, and grant permission to retain it one week only, and demand twenty cents for each week's neglect to return it as required. These books, in charge of Baruch Chase, may have been the nucleus of the early public library mentioned in a subsequent chapter specially treating of libraries and kindred subjects. The bridges of the town demanded considerable atten- tion during the period under consideration. On the 4th of March, 1801, the selectmen were authorized to inspect Ty- ler's bridge, and make such repairs upon it as they thought proper. The next April appears to have been quite an eventful one for bridges. There had been a freshet on the Contoocook river, or one was certainly anticipated. On the 13th day of the month, the town voted the selectmen authority to repair Rowell's bridge at West Hopkinton, and to secure Hill's bridge at Contoocook, and raise the money for the necessary repairs for all three of the bridges mentioned. On the 8th of January, 1802, the town voted to build a bridge " nigh Tyler's bridge," and granted the selectmen authority to fix the place, superintend the erec- tion, and construct the convenience as best they could. On the 9th day of the following March, the town gave the selectmen authority to raise the money for building the bridge. Among minor acts of this period was the following, passed on the 10th of March, 1800 : DEVELOPMENT OF NATIONAL POLITICS. 101 Voted the Crows heads that are killed in Town Shall be Carryed to Either of the Selectmen or Benja. Wiggin Esqr. and Either of them that the heads are Carryed to Shall Cut of the bill. On the 5th of August, 1800, the town authorized the selectmen to repair the fence of the burying-yard "nigh Dea. John Currie's saw mill," thus indicating the present Stumpfield cemetery. In 1804, John Osgood Ballard became town-clerk. This fact is of special mention, because he was the first clerk to keep the records in an exact and accomplished man- ner. Before 1804, all the clerks' records were of such execution as to make them more or less difficult of perusal and interpretation ; but John Osgood Ballard's records were as clear as print. From this date, our minor annals become more chronological. In the next chapter we shall show how the year 1804 is involved in a specially important matter. CHAPTER XXVI. THE DEVELOPMENT OF NATIONAL POLITICS. In a state of civil liberty, no public question arises with- out developing at least two phases of popular thought. We have already recounted some of the features of public thought in New Hampshire in consequence of the separa- tion of the province from the political control of the mother country. New Hampshire had an experience in this re- spect that was common to all the. new states. Acting in unison, the public sentiment of the states illustrated on a larger scale the essential ideals of each. We need not inform the intelligent reader of the details at large of the general controversy arising in this country in consequence of the attempt to establish an efficient federal government. The Articles of Confederation, deemed too lax, were superseded by the Constitution, a more secure compact. This done, the minds of men swayed between two opinions, relating respectively to the strict and loose constructions of the new national instrument. . In the early days of the republic, the Republicans were 102 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. the strict, or literal, and the Federals the loose, or liberal, interpreters of the Constitution. In the first instance, New Hampshire was preeminently a Federal state. However, the influential citizens seem at first to have largely monopolized national political thought. The masses, for a time, were not generally aroused to a lively interest in general, nation- al, political questions. This apparent fact explains the very limited interest sometimes taken in a presidential vote for some years after the government of the United States was firmly established. The following act of the town of Hop- kinton, on the 15th of December, 1788, illustrates our mean- ing : Voted for Electors for this State J Bailey E Smith R Wallis J Calf & E Tomson Esquires 49 each of them. On the 7th of August, 1792, the town voted for presi- dential electors. The law requiring six electors, the vote stood as follows : Timothy Walker, 22 ; Ebenezer Webster, 16 ; John Bellows, 16 ; Timothy Farrah, 10 ; Joseph Bad- ger, 10 ; Christopher Tappen, 9 ; Jonathan Freeman, 7 ; Bezaleel Woodward, 6 ; Abiel Foster, 6 ; James Sheaf, 3 ; Robert Wallace, 1 ; General Peabody, 1 ; Judge Cogswell, 1 ; General Dow, 1 ; Judge Dana, 1 ; John T. Gilman, 1. There is plainly no evidence of a strict ballot for six electors in the foregoing vote of Hopkinton. On the 12th of the next November, in response to a notification to "vote legally " for six electors to fill any vacancy in the appoint- ment of such officers, the following ballot resulted : Josiah Bartlett, 12; John Pickering, 12; John T. Gilman, 12; Benjamin Bellows, 12 ; Timothy Farrah, 12 ; Timothy Walker, 12. On the 7th of November, 1796, the town cast a unani- mous ballot of 37 votes for electors of President and Vice- President of the United States. In 1800, the electors were appointed by the state legislature. In 1804, there was for the first time a genuine contest ,at a presidential election in Hopkinton. The town-clerk recorded the ballot in the fol- lowing manner : John Goddard, Esq., One Hundred and forty three. Levi Bartlett, Esq., One Hundred and forty three. Jonathan Steel, Esq., One Hundred and forty three. Robert Alcock, Esq., One Hundred and forty three. Timothy Walker, Esq., One Hundred and forty three. SUNDRY EVENTS FROM 1804 TO 1811. 103 George Aldrich, Esq., One Hundred and forty three. William Tarlton, Esq., One Hundred and forty three. Oliver Peabody, Esq., Seventy Eight. John Prentice, Esq., Seventy Eight. William Hale, Esq., Seventy Eight. Timothy Farrer, Esq., Seventy Eight. Robert Wallace, Esq., Seventy Eight. Benjamin West, Esq., Seventy Eight. Charles Johnson, Esq., Seventy Eight. The above vote represents a triumph of the theory of a strict construction of the Constitution. The candidates re- ceiving the majorhVy of the votes of Hopkinton were sup- porters of Thomas Jefferson, a strict constructionist, a Republican in distinction from a Federalist. Thus we rind the town of Hopkinton politically set upon the contested highway of national party controversy. After 1804, there appears to have been no presidential election that witnessed a unanimous ballot in this town. CHAPTER XXVII. SUNDRY EVENTS FROM 1804 TO 1811. In 1804, in compliance with a new aspect of state law, the town of Hopkinton held its annual meeting on the sec- ond Tuesday of March. A previous legal condition re- quired this meeting to be held on the first Monday of the same month. On the second day of town-meeting this year, it being March 14, the town voted to divide the interest of the parsonage fund among the different religious societies according to the polls and estates, the division to be deter- mined by the elders or committees of the several societies. The town also voted to raise $400 for the support of a min- ister, one fourth of the sum to be expended for worship at the "upper meeting-house," presumably the westerly meet- ing-house. On the 7th of August, Aaron Greeley and Enoch Long were chosen a committee to survey and make a plan of the township. The selectmen were also authorized to procure weights, measures, scale beams, etc., for the use of the town, and, on the 5th of November, the same officers were instructed to sell the town's powder to the best ad- 104 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. vantage. At the close of the regular record of the year, we find the following descriptive statement of the clerk : The town standard as follows, viz. : Iron Weights, viz. : One, Fifty six — One, Twenty eight ; . One, Fourteen & One, Seven Pound. Brass Weights, viz. : One four pound, one two pound, one of one pound, one of half pound, one of a quarter of a pound, one of two ounces, one of one ounce, one of half an ounce, and one of a quarter of an ounce. Two small scale beams with brass dishes. One large scale beam with boards and strung with iron wires. Dry Measures of Wood, viz. : One half bushel, one peck, one half peck, one two quart, and one of one quart. Liquid Measures of Copper, viz. : One Gallon, one two quart, one quart, one pint, one half pint, and one gill. The above standard delivered to Benjamin Wiggin, Esq. Novem- ber 22d, 1804. Attest, John Osgood Ballard. Benjamin "Wiggin, to whom the weights, measures, etc., were delivered, was the legal sealer of weights and measures for the year. On the 13th of March, 1805, the selectmen were author- ized to procure three stamps, to mark the letter H, of which one was to be for the use of the sealer of leather and the other two for the sealer of weights and measures. The same day the town voted $600 for schools. The selectmen were instructed to consider the petition of Jonathan Chase and others, and view the situation of Major Darling and Lieutenant Farrington in respect to schools, and also view Chandler's, Fowler's, Rowell's, and Tyler's districts, and report the changes they thought necessary and proper. The addition of a piece of land to the village burying-yard was voted, and the selectmen authorized to purchase it, adopting such measures for fencing the yard by the town as they thought best. The selectmen were further authorized to purchase a piece of land and build a pound within a reasonable distance from the centre of the town, at their discretion. This appears to have been the provision for the present pound in Hopkinton village, on the road leading directly to Putney's hill. SUNDRY EVENTS FROM 1804 TO 1811. 105 It seems that at this time there were niairy outstanding minister's taxes in town, and Joshua Morse, Joseph Towne, Philip Greeley, Aaron Greeley, Nathaniel Colby, Jeremiah Emerson, Ebenezer Lernecl, Moody Smith, Thomas Bailey, Thomas Story, and Jonathan Chase were chosen a committee to consider and report them. They reported such taxes for 1798, 1799, 1800, 1801, 1802, 1803, and 1804, amounting to $141.07, of which sum they deemed $83.30 legal taxes that ought to be collected. This report was rendered at an adjourned meeting on the 21st of March, when it was voted that the minister's money should be raised by a tax of 30 cents on each of the polls of the Congregational inhabitants, and upon their estates in proportion, — such inhabitants to be determined by their personal acknowledgments to the select- men, the money accruing to be devoted to the support of the Congregational minister, and the preaching to be at the east and west meeting-houses " agreeably to the request of the persons taxed and according to the sums they paid." On the 29th of August, the selectmen were authorized to purchase five acres of land, adjoining the village burying- ground, of Major Timothy Darling, at the price of $300, and lay out so much of it for burying purposes as they thought fit. On the same day, the selectmen were authorized to make required alteration in the road from the easterly meet- ing-house to Hill's bridge. This act anticipated the present portion of highway between Hopkinton village and Contoo- cook, extending from the Congregational church to Charles Putman's. Before this road was opened, travel from Con- toocook to Hopkinton village was diverted from a point near Mr. Putman's up the hill to a point near Putney's hill cemetery, and thence easterly down a steep hillside, or else easterly from Mr. Putman's to a point near Stillman B. Gage's, and thence southerly by a now discontinued highway to Horace Edmund's. In 1806, March 12, the town voted to abate a list of min- ister's taxes amounting to $138.82. The minister's tax rate was advanced to forty cents on the poll and on other estate in the same proportion. On the 22d of May, the select- men reported a division of the town into thirteen school- districts. This division was somewhat remarkable, being made wholly by roads and not by territorial boundaries. On the following 27th of October, votes were passed deter- mining whose lands should in certain cases be disannexed 106 LIFE A1STD TIMES EST HOPKl^TON. from one district and transferred to another, but without bounding the lands. In a similar way, non-residents' lands were divided among the majority of the different districts for the purpose of taxation. On the 11th of March, 1807, a vote was passed authoriz- ing " certain persons " to move the easterly meeting-house northerly a distance not exceeding twenty rods, paint it, put a belfrey upon it, and put a bell in the belfrey, procur- ing land conveniently, the whole apparently without ex- pense to the town or injury to public or private property. Those undertaking this enterprise were to give bonds in the sum of ^5,000 to the selectmen as an indemnity. This act appears to have located the meeting-house on the spot now occupied by the Congregational church. On the 25th of the following May, the selectmen were authorized to put a stone abutment at the north end of Hill's bridge, at Contoocook, and make such other repairs as they thought proper. They were also authorized to make such repairs upon the town-house as they thought expedient. March 8, 1808, the town voted to raise $908 for schools. The parsonage money accruing from the interest of the in- vested fund was again divided according to the returns of the elders or committees of religious societies. In 1809, March 14, the selectmen were instructed for the time being to pay to a committee of militia officers the inter- est of the training-field money, awaiting the further action of the town. They were also authorized. to sell the improved ground on the lower floor of the easterly meeting-house for the purpose of erecting pews, and devote the proceeds to painting the house. On the 12th of June, "certain persons" were authorized to make a tower, or belfry, on the east meeting-house and hang a bell in it. The seats or ground " north of the end alleys " were to be sold for the purpose of erecting pews. The money accruing, after cancelling the expense of painting and pews, was to be devoted to the cost of the tower. John Harris, Philip Greeley, and Thomas Bailey, were chosen a committee to act with " the committee of the persons " who were to undertake the erection of the tower. The selectmen were authorized to carry out the provisions in regard to the sale of ground for pews. On the 3d of July, the vote choosing the cooperating commit- tee was rescinded. In 1810, on the 13th of March, the selectmen were THE SECOND WAR WITH ENGLAND. 107 authorized to "clear the common land adjoining the easterly- meeting-house of all incumbrances with the exception of the materials necessary to erect a tower, or belfry, on said meeting-house." The work anticipated by the foregoing acts in relation to a tower, or belfry, was accomplished. A bell was hung in it. It is the present bell in the steeple of the Congregational church. This bell bears the following inscription : " Revere & Son, Boston, 1811." It came from Concord to this town by the way of Dimond's hill. At the house of Daniel Chase, where now lives Walter F. Hoyt, a pause was made, the bell hung between two elm trees, and peals rung for the first time in town. This action was a compliment to Mr. Chase, on account of his personal aid to the enterprise resulting in the bell's purchase. In 1811, March 12, the town voted to pass over the arti- cle relating to raising money for the Congregational minis- ter. In this act, we witness the evidence of a popular dis- position that ultimately separated the affairs of church and state in New Hampshire. CHAPTER XXVIII. THE SECOND WAR WITH ENGLAND. The conflict usually called the War of 1812 found, in its inception, the people of Hopkinton alert to all the interests involved in a national contest. On the 6th of July, 1812, the town voted to allow a compensation of seven dollars a month to all soldiers detached from their regiments as a re- lay corps by order of the government. Ten dollars of each man's wages was to be in advance, and two dollars upon " signing his name." On the 5th of October, 1814, twelve dollars a month was voted to all soldiers put under special governmental requisition, with two dollars upon entering actual service. The price of a month's wages "included the pay given by Government," and the act was to be in force only till the next March. The two dollar clause of this vote, however, was afterwards rescinded. The act of July 6, 1812, was the inciter of an animated discussion. 108 LIFE AND TIMES EN HOPKINTON. Three days after it was passed Joshua Morse addressed a long protest to Nathaniel Knowlton, selectman, against the payment of the bounty, holding that each captain should draft his legal quota without pay. The action of the town, he thought, was unconstitutional and illegal. During the progress of hostilities, two recruiting officers, Gibson and Peck, were stationed for a time at Capt. Bims- ley Perkins's tavern while they enlisted men for the army. The first volunteers from this town were mostly included in the first regiment of New Hampshire troops, enlisted for one year, and rendezvousing at Concord. The field and staff of this regiment were as follows : Aquila Davis, col- onel ; John Carter, lieutenant colonel ; William Bradford , major ; James Minot, first lieutenant and adjutant ; Joseph Low, second lieutenant and quartermaster ; Henry Lyman, acting surgeon's mate ; John Trevitt, acting surgeon's mate ; Timothy D. Abbott, sergeant major; Nicholas C. Beane, quartermaster sergeant ; Thomas Bailey, drum major ; Nehemiah Osgood, fife major. The following members of this regiment were from Hopkinton: Thomas Bailey, drum major ; under Capt. Joseph Smith, Jeremiah Silver, musi- cian, and Charles Colby, Zadoc Dow, Stephen G. Eaton, David Hardy, James Hastings, Bichard Hunt, Isaiah Hoyt, Moses C. Eaton, Ezra Jewell, John Morrill, Samuel G. Tit- comb, privates, all enlisting on the 1st of February, 1813. We are indebted to the late John M. Bailey for the fol- lowing names of soldiers from Hopkinton in this regiment : Moses (?) Eastman, Amri Foster, James Hastings, Samuel Straw. These were in Capt. Elisha Smith's company. East- man died in the service. This regiment went into camp on the 1st of February, 1813, and left for Burlington early in the spring. On the first day of its march, it passed through Hopkinton, halting at the lower village for rations. This halt gave many peo- ple an opportunity to reflect upon the trials of soldiers. Though the troops had marched only seven miles, some were already jagged and footsore. The first regiment of New Hampshire volunteers was soon disbanded. On the 29th of January, 1813, Congress repealed the "Volunteer Act," and the soldiers enlisting under it were reenlisted into the regular United States army, or re-formed into new regiments, to serve till the time of their volunteer service expired, or for a longer time. THE SECOND WAR WITH ENGLAND. 109 The soldiers of the first regiment of New Hampshire volun- teers who were not reenlisted were consolidated with Col- onel McCobb's regiment from Maine, the new organization becoming known as the 45th regiment, with field and staff officers as follows : Denny McCobb, colonel ; Aquila Davis, lieutenant colonel ; H. B. Breevoort, first major ; Daniel Baker, second major; Joseph Low, paymaster; Daniel G. Kelley, sergeant major. The following Hopkinton men were in this regiment: in Capt. Benjamin Bradford's company, Isaiah Hoit and Stephen G. Eaton, corporals, enlisted De- cember 15, 1813, for one year ; Jonathan Burbank, April 15, 1814, for the war ; Henry T. Hildreth, January 24, 1814, one year ; James A. Hastings, December 15, 1813, one year; John Morrill, December 15, 1813, one year ; Benjamin Put- ney, February 28, 1814, for the war, and died in service ; Bus- well Silver, March 23, 1814, for the war ; Moses Tenney, January 24, 1814, one year. The recorded account of enlist- ments shows that soldiers of this regiment sometimes renewed their membership before their previous obligations had ex- pired and for different periods of time, while in other in- stances new men were recruited into the ranks. The well remembered alarm at Portsmouth in 1814, aroused afresh the military spirit of New Hampshire. Dur- ing the winter of 1813 and 1814, British vessels of war were cruising along the New England coast, while maintaining a rendezvous at the Bermuda islands, as well as one at Gardi- ner's bay, at the east end of Long Island, their naval depot being at Halifax, in Nova Scotia. On the 8th of April, 1814, a British force ascended the Connecticut river and destroyed about twenty American vessels collected there for safety. On the 23d of the same month, Admiral Cock- burne, who maintained his head-quarters at the Bahamas, issued a proclamation declaring the whole Atlantic coast of the United States in a state of blockade. Soon after, about thirty or forty coasting vessels were destroyed in Massa- chusetts bay. These facts spread great alarm, not only throughout New England in general, but throughout New Hampshire particularly, on account of the insecurity of the harbor and the town of Portsmouth and the governmental naval station and fort in the vicinity. A detachment of eight companies of militia, under the command of Major Edward J. Long, was ordered to the defence of Portsmouth. Very soon an event occurred, arousing the ardor of the 110 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. people of New Hampshire to a high pitch. We copy an ac- count of the occurrence from the "Annals of Portsmouth," "by Nathaniel Adams : "Tuesday, June 21st, between the hours of 10 and 11 o'clock in the evening, the town was alarmed by a report that the British were landing at Rye beach. Alarm bells were rung and signal guns fired. All the military com- panies turned out and prepared for the attack. A martial spirit prevaded all ranks, and they glowed with ardor to be led to the place of danger. Expresses were dispatched to ascertain the situation of the enemy, and the report proved to be without foundation. It was occasioned by some boats of a suspicious character that were observed off Rye harbor by the guard stationed there. The inhabitants again retired to enjoy the sweets of repose." Although the above affair was only an alarm, there is no doubt the British contemplated an attack on the defences of Portsmouth, and the destruction of the adjacent navy yard at Kittery, Me. Tradition says, that after the close of the war a British officer confessed to an American col- onel that during the investment of the New England coast he ascended the Piscataqua in the disguise of a fisherman and inspected the defences of Portsmouth, on his return reporting to his commanding officer that the place was abundantly defended, and swarmed with soldiers. This information doubtless had its influence in diverting the British from the proposed attack. The popular excitement created by this alarm induced the governor of New Hampshire, on the 9th day of Sep- tember, to order out detachments from twenty-three regi- ments for the stronger defence of Portsmouth. Two days later, he issued general orders putting all the militia of the state in readiness to march at a moment's notice. The de- tachments from the twenty-three regiments were to march to Portsmouth immediately. Arrived at its place of desti- nation, the detached infantry was organized into a brigade of five regiments and one battalion, under the command of Brigadier-General John Montgomery, assisted by James I. Swan, brigade-major, and George H. Montgomery, aide-de- camp. The following Hopkinton soldiers of this detachment were in the first regiment, Lieut. Col. Nat Fisk, in Capt. Jonathan Bean's company : Thomas Towne, first lieutenant, w CO > O ac O SUNDRY EVENTS FROM 1813 TO 1818. Ill acting quartermaster from September 18 ; Moses Gould, sergeant ; Robert A. Bradley, Samuel Burbank, Barrack Cass, David C. Currier, Amos Eastman, John J. Emer- son, Ebenezer Morrill, John Morey, Isaac Pearce, Hazen Putney, Jacob Straw, William Wheeler, privates. These men were all enlisted for a service of ninety days from September 11, 1814. The following were in the second regiment, Lieut. Col. John Steele, in Capt. Silas Call's company : Nathaniel Morgan, sergeant ; Jacob Chase, Amos Frye, John John- son, John Hastings, Alvin Hastings, Francis Stanley (died in service), James Eastman, Amos Sawyer, Jonathan Gove, William M. Crillis, John Burnham, privates. These men were all enlisted on the 2d of October, 1814, to dates run- ning from November 8 to November 19. None of the men ordered to Portsmouth from this town were called into any active engagement with the enemy. We learn from private authority that Joseph Bickford, of Capt. John D. Harty's company, Lieut. Col. Isaac Wal- dron's fourth regiment at Portsmouth, was from Hopkin- ton. He enlisted September 10, 1814, for eighteen days, as a substitute for John Nute. CHAPTER XXIX. SUNDRY EVENTS FROM 1813 TO 1818. In 1813, on the 9th of March, the selectmen were author- ized to make such disposition of the public poor as would best promote the interest of town . In 1815, March 14, the town voted that the claim of Thomas Towne, for money expended while on a march to Portsmouth with a detachment of militia, in September, 1814, be allowed and paid. The amount of the claim was $27.56. In view of the ninth section of an act of the Gen- eral Court to incorporate the proprietors of the London- derry Branch Turnpike, and agreeably to the petition of John Folsom and others, the town voted that the selectmen view the ground from Moses C. Bailey's south-easterly to Bow line, and ascertain what encouragement would be af- forded by the inhabitants in giving land for a highway on the proposed route, and report at the next town-meeting. 112 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. The 22d article of the warrant for this town-meeting contained the following words : " To see if the town will vote that no unlawful traveling, unnecessary labor, or idle walking about be allowed of in this town on the Sabbath." The act of the town under this article was as follows : Voted to leave the further consideration of the 22nd article to the Tythingmen. These officers had general legal cognizance of public abuses of Sunday — a matter to which we shall refer in a subse- quent chapter. On the 14th of the next April, the town accepted the re- port of the selectmen upon the matter relating to the pro- posed new road to Bow line. The selectmen judged the road would be useful to the public, but its construction would be attended by considerable expense. Any other route than that of a straight line they thought impractica- ble. They had not been able to ascertain the amount of damage to individuals through whose land this road would pass, but they recommended that the road should not be made a free one, and that, if it did anything, the town should take some number of shares, become a part of the corporation, and share in the profits, if any accrued. Upon the acceptance of this report, the town voted to invest 81000 in the Londonderry Branch Turnpike, and that the select- men take shares in behalf of the town. The Londonderry Branch Turnpike was incorporated in 1812. The grantees were Richard H. Ayer, John O. Bal- lard, Nathaniel Cavis, Nathaniel Head, Joseph Jones, Sam- uel Farrington, Abraham Gates and their associates. The road was to run from Moses Bailey's in Hopkinton to Bow line, and through Bow to the " Isle of Hooksett falls" in Dunbarton. The road was to be opened in five years from the date of the incorporation, or the incorporating act was to be null and void. The turnpike was to be a toll road, according to specifications of the charter. The portion of the turnpike located in Hopkinton is the road now extend- ing from Isaac Story's towards Hooksett to Bow line, by the way of Farrington 's Corner. On the foregoing 14th of April, the town voted to build a bridge over the Blackwater river, near Maj. Moody Whiting's land, where the old bridge stood, and " that the selectmen ascertain if there be a road from Moses Carlton's- SUNDRY EVENTS FROM 1813 TO 1818. 113 to Blackwater river in the direction to Moody Whiting's and cause the same to be opened." In 1816, March 12, the town voted that the selectmen make just and reasonable compensation to the Baptist Soci- ety for land used as a highway. In 1817, March 11, the town voted that the map of the state " be sett by the year" to the highest bidder, and that " whoever kept the same " should give access to it by the inhabitants of the town for free examination. This was probably a map of New Hampshire, published in 1816 by the authority of the state legislature, and under the supervision of Philip Carrigain, former secretary of state. The map was the result of combining the surveys of the different towns. A minute description of Carrigain's map can be found in Volume I, pages 232-236, of Hitch- cock's Geology of New Hampshire. We do not know how long this map was " sett by the year" by the town of. Hop- kin ton. On the 9th of December of the same year, Matthew Har- vey, for a committee, of which Thomas Bailey, Abram Brown, Ebenezer Dustin, Nathaniel Colby, Thomas Will- iams, Theophilis Stanley, Isaac Long, David Gile, Samuel Bickford, Philip Greeley, and Moses Chandler were mem- bers, reported that the committee had consulted with the Rev. Ethan Smith, Congregational minister of the town, and that he was ready to cancel his contract with the town, provided that all arrearages of his salary were paid, then amounting to about $696, or, otherwise, he intimated his willingness to submit the whole matter to a council mutu- ally called to consider it. The town refused to accept this report, but discharged the committee, declining to consider the subject further. In 1818, March 10, the town authorized the selectmen to receive proposals on account of those persons having their whole maintenance from the town, and contract for their support accordingly. This action is somewhat noticeable in being different from the somewhat prevailing method of selling publicly to the lowest bidder the pauper support. During the period under consideration, the subject of a road from the Baptist meeting-house to Thomas Bailey's house was agitated. The court of common pleas had been petitioned, a committee had been appointed to report upon the subject, and the report had been accepted. On the 9th 114 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. of December, 1818, the town voted that David Greeley, Philip Brown, and Daniel Chase be a committee to petition the court to suspend the acceptance of the committee ap- pointed by that authority. On the same 9th of December, the same committee of the town was authorized to petition the same court for a road to Hopkinton court-house from Henniker North meet- ing-house. The two roads mentioned were eventually constructed. The road from the Baptist meeting-house to Thomas Bai- l's is the present one from George W. French's to Hemy E. Dow's. This road is presumed to include the former track across land belonging to the Baptist society. The Henniker North meeting-house, mentioned in this chapter, stood on the highway from Henniker village to West Henniker, on a site near the present residence of Hi- ram I^ice. This meeting-house was afterwards burned. CHAPTER XXX. TWO MEMOKABLE EVENTS. The year 1819 witnessed two memorable events, of in- terest to the whole state of New Hampshire. The effects of these events upon the town of Hopkinton were deriva- tive, yet they were so important that we cannot ignore them without incurring a culpable neglect. The first of these events to which we call the reader's attention was the passage of the religious Toleration Act by the General Court of the state. The second event was the permanent location of the state capital. In previous chapters, we have had occasion to note evidences of a kind of irrepressible religious conflict among the people of Hopkinton. We have cited the situation more especially in the account of the trouble with the Rev. Jacob Cram and in that of sectarian town-meetings. Without re- ferring to the cause, we have observed the controversial con- dition of things in the vote of March 12, 1811, refusing to consider the subject of raising mone3 r for the support of the Congregational minister, and in the vote of December 9, 1817, ignoring the proposition of the Rev. Ethan Smith. TWO MEMORABLE EVENTS. 115 We have referred to the adoption by the state of a religious- ly liberal constitution, which political instrument we now desire to specially quote. Article 6 of the Bill of Rights of the constitution of New Hampshire asserts that " no person of any particular relig- ious sect or denomination shall ever be compelled to pay towards the support of the teacher or teachers of another persuasion, sect or denomination," and that " no subordi- nation of one sect or denomination to another shall ever be established by law." This article expresses a religious leaven that ultimately leavened the whole lump of the common- wealth in respect to its legal religious attitude. The change culminated slowty. The settlers in New Hampshire who came from Massachusetts were obligated to a provision to support a minister of a certain ecclesiastical order. This they did for a while. One by one new religious orders sprang up in almost every town in the state, and one by one, under the state constitution, the general ecclesiastical organizations they represented were legalized by the state act. Thus the "standing order," or primitive church, lost a portion of its subsistence. In time, also, the people who attended no regular worship began to tire of being taxed for what they did not use. Gradually the whole mass of the people began to discountenance the idea of religious taxation. Hence, for instance, the town of Hopkinton re- fused to raise money for the support of the Rev. Mr. Smith. The matter grew, till, in 1819, the General Court of the state removed the last barrier to practical religious liberty. The Toleration Act separated church and state, and after its passage no man was civilly taxed to support any relig- ious society whatever. The only thing left for many of the towns to do was to dispose of the money accruing from the investments of funds from the leases of ecclesiastical lands. With respect to Hopkinton, we shall speak of the distribu- tion of the " parsonage money " hereafter ; but, after Decem- ber 9, 1817, we cannot historically speak of this town as in any practical sense a function interested in the minister of any particular church. After that date, the town passed no votes relating to the needs or wants of the " learned and orthodox minister." In 1814, the state of New Hampshire began seriously to consider the subject of a permanent seat of government. The General Court had no certain abiding place. In this 116 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. respect, the condition of New Hampshire appears to have been different from every other state in the Union. On the 6th of June of that year, a legislative committee was select- ed to consider the subject of location and matters incident thereto. The committee consisted of John Harris of Hop- kinton, Benjamin Kimball, Jr., of Concord, and Andrew Bowers of Salisbury. Each member of the committee rep- resented a town that desired to become the state capital. The lot of being the chief town in the state fell to Concord, and in 1819 the state legislature occupied the new state- house for the first time. The passage of the Toleration Act affected Hopkinton only religiously. The location of the state capital at Con- cord affected this town socially. The localizing of the Gen- eral Court at Concord was the first severe blow to Hopkin- ton's social prosperity. The attention of publicly influen- tial people began to be drawn away from this town. Four years later occurred another event that was disastrous to Hopkinton's social position among the towns in the vicinity. We are now in the inceptive narrative of a decline of pros- perity. Hopkinton continued to increase in population for a time, but the star of its social prominence was setting. We shall particularize more hereafter. CHAPTER XXXI. SUNDRY EVENTS FROM 1819 TO 1823. In 1819, March 9, the town voted to discontinue the road leading from James Hildreth's shop to John Gage's, and that the selectmen dispose of it to the best advantage. This action is noticeable, because the road described was once a part of one of the two highways leading to Contoocook from Hop- kinton village. We have already spoken of the discon- tinued road as once extending from the present Stillman B. Gage's to Horace Edmund's. In 1820, March 14, the town voted to assess $1,060.20, including the school interest-money, for educational pur- poses. The reader will observe that the amount is in excess of any previous one. This fact marks the increase of the town's prosperity, as the school-money assessed was determined by public valuation. SUNDRY EVENTS FROM 1819 TO 1823. 117 On the same clay, the town voted permission to Roger E. Perkins to build a tomb in the burying-ground near the town-house. The tomb of Mr. Perkins is now standing' in the old village cemetery, being the only tomb in the south part of the town. The town also referred to the selectmen the petition of Phineas Crosby and John Gage, for a highway. This action resulted from the discontinuance of the road in 1819. The wish of the petitioners was not granted, and the road is closed to the public to this day. It is also noticeable that at this annual town-meeting the date of selling the support of the town's poor to the lowest bidder was fixed for the 22d day of March, the time not being usually named in public before this, if at all. The place of sale was to be at the court-house. In 1822, March 12, an expression of the voters was taken in town-meeting with regard to the expediency of erecting a new county. The vote was agreeable to a resolution of the state senate of the previous year. The yeas and nays were required, and the result was as follows : Yeas, 3 ; nays, 324. The town then voted to authorize and require the selectmen to petition the legislature at the next session for a division of the county of Hillsborough into two dis- tricts for the choice of a register of deeds, each district to choose one register. The selectmen reported the same day upon the petition of Samuel Folsom for a bridge across the Blackwater river, deeming the proposition inexpedient, as the expense ex- ceeded the need, and especially as the petitioner asked for a road from the bridge to the top of sand hill, north of Tyler's bridge, and which would cost more than the bridge. However, the selectmen, in view of Mr. Folsom's inconven- ience of highway, recommended that he be excused from paying a highway tax until the town ordered otherwise. The report was accepted. Samuel Folsom lived on the east side of Blackwater river, not far from the present residence of Harvey Chase. The substance of the report mentioned above seems to anticipate the road that now exists, running from the river called Blackwater to a point north of the present Tyler's bridge. The same day the selectmen were authorized to pay a discretionary sum, not exceeding $30, to any person or per- 118 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. sons who would give bonds to the town to maintain a minor that was a pauper until, he became of age ; to cause a fence to be built around the burying-ground near the town- house, and also appoint some person to keep the fence and ground from injury, and to prevent cattle and horses from feeding the lot. The same officers were also authorized to purchase a pall or burying-cloth for the use of the town, the pall to be kept in the westerly part of the township. In 1823, March 11, the town voted that the selectmen assess twenty-five cents on each of the ratable polls, and on other estates in proportion, the same to be applied as a winter highway tax, if the state of the roads required it ; or, if not, the tax was to be abated. Each highway surveyor was to give personal notice to the inhabitants of his dis- trict when labor was required, and, in default of immediate attendance, he was to open the roads and collect his taxes according to law. This action anticipated a permanent system of breaking roads in winter at the public expense. The same day, upon the subject of dividing the county of Hillsborough into two districts for registering deeds, there were 355 votes cast in favor of the measure and 11 against it. During the year 1823, an event of special importance to the town of Hopkinton occurred in the judicial delibera- tions of New Hampshire. We shall give an account of it in the next chapter. CHAPTER XXXII. THE FORMATION OF A NEW COUNTY. In a previous chapter, we spoke of the location of the state capital at Concord, saying it was an event injurious to the prosperity of Hopkinton. We also mentioned a second blow to the public interests of this town. We are now to narrate the second locally prejudicial event, which was the incorporation of the county of Merrimack. The location of the state capital at Concord injured Hop- kinton in view of what the town hoped to become ; the incorporation of the county of Merrimack was disastrous to Hopkinton in view of what it was. Without the honor of THE FORMATION OF A NEW COUNTY. 119 being the state capital, Hopkinton was a shire-town of Hills- borough county ; deprived of the distinction of being a half shire-town, the judicial importance of Hopkinton shrank to comparatively nothing. The courts departed to the new seat of county government — identical with the state cap- ital — and Concord at length took from Hopkinton nearly the last vestige of public judicial distinction. Only the jail lingered here for a considerable time after 1823, as we have seen in a previous chapter. In the chapter just before the present one, the allusions to the votes of Hopkinton upon county questions show not only how much this town had at stake, but how much it was willing to concede in the hope of saving a little. We have already told how the extension of northerly set- tlements in New Hampshire had involved in difficulty the public business of the county of Hillsborough. The de- scribed condition of things at length resulted in the new county of Merrimack. Merrimack county, as originally organized, had fewer towns than now. We give the list of towns as they were at first, they being taken from the counties of Rockingham and Hillsborough. From Rock- ingham county there were taken Allenstown, Bow, Canter- bury, Chichester, Concord, Epsom, Loudon, Northfield, Pembroke, and Pittsfield ; from Hillsborough county, An- dover, Bradford, Boscawen (including Webster), Dunbar- ton, Henniker, Hooksett, Hopkinton, Newbury, New Lon- don, Salisbury, Sutton, Warner, and Wilmot. Let us observe what Hopkinton lost by the change. By the census of 1820, Hopkinton had a population of 2,437 inhabitants — a gain of 221 in ten years. In the next ten years the gain in population was only 37 — a disadvan- tageous difference of 184, which may largely be set down as loss resulting from the change of county relations. The former dependence of Hopkinton upon public patronage is shown to this day by the estates in the village. Large houses and small inclosures indicate a dependence other than upon the fertility of the soil. Many old estates in Hopkinton village were once the residences of professional men, merchants, and business men of the various kinds that collected in a prosperous New England village in the early part of the present century. In 1823, the following persons were assessed for stock in trade : Isaac Bailey, 3d, Abram Brown, Gould Brown, Calvin Campbell, Thomas W. Colby, 120 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. Edmund Currier, Nathaniel Curtis, Timothy Darling, Haw- thorne & Jackman, Isaac E. Herrick, Thomas Kast, Simon Knowles, Isaac Long, Jr., William Little, Samuel Winches- ter. These persons represented a wide range of business, but many of them were located at or near the village. Con- toocook was then but a water-power, with but a few houses in the vicinity. Judging from the representations of some of the older inhabitants of the town, Contoocook, at the time under consideration, hardly held more than a half dozen houses. In a subsequent chapter, we shall speak of a third cause of the decline of social and popular prosperity in Hopkinton. CHAPTER XXXIII. SUNDRY EVENTS FROM 182-i TO 1S30. In 1824, March 9, the town voted that the selectmen receive proposals and contract for the support of the town's poor, or such portion of them as they thought expedient, and that the transaction be effected at the town-house on the 22d instant, at 1 o'clock p. m. The representatives of the town were authorized and instructed to petition the legislature of the state at the next June session for the establishment of Hopkinton as a half shire-town of Merri- mack county. The selectmen were authorized to employ some person " to ring the bell on all occasions " the ensuing year. The bell meant was that of the Congregational church, in which the town still claimed an interest. On November 1, of the same year, the selectmen were authorized to take a title of a piece of ground on Clement's hill for a burying-ground, and fence the same, provided some person would give the land. In 1825, March 8, Abram Brown, Nathaniel Knowlton, and Ebenezer Dustin were chosen a committee to confer with Stephen Blan chard, Jr., with reference to purchasing of him an addition to the burying-ground, near the East meeting-house, and report at the next annual meeting. In 1826, March 14, the foregoing committee, chosen to confer with Mr. Blanchard, reported unfavorably on the project. They objected to the remoteness of the land from SUNDRY BVENT8 FROM 1824 TO 1830. 121 the highway and its unfitness on account of rocks. They stated that they had examined Other plots of ground, and were of the opinion that when the public convenience required it, a lot more suitable than that adjacent to the thru present burying-ground could be obtained. The same day the committee chosen to settle with the selectmen and treasurer were reminded that it was a part of their duty to examine the accounts of the several select- men, and. In]- tlie better information of the town, to report such facts as they thought proper. Philip Brown was chosen an agent to represent the town iii the matter of a road laid out by the committee of the court from Tyler's bridge to Diinbarton line. It was also voted that the " singing society" have liberty to extend their seats in the meeting-house, at their own expense, to a line parallel to the side galleries, embracing the whole front gallery, excepting so as to obstruct pew- holders. On November 25 of the same year, the town voted that so much of the town-house as might be needed lor the use of a grammar school could be appropriated for that pur- pose, reserving to the town at all times the right of the hOUSe for its public business. No alteration in the house waslo be made to the inconvenience of the town, and I he selectmen were to confer with a committee of petitioners in reference to proposed modifications of the edifice. The selectmen were also empowered to alter or make any road from the village to Diinbarton line in accordance with their Conceptions of the public good. This act apparent ly had reference to the present so called "new" road to Dunbarton. Fn 1827, March 13, the town passed a remarkable act. Previously, for years, there had been an irregular attention paid to the supervision of the public schools. This time the matter was put upon a creditable and apparently effi- cient basis. The act of the town was quite elaborate. It provided for a committee of three persons, whose duty it should be to visit the schools at least twice during each term, to make a thorough examination of their government, instruction, and progress, report their transactions at the next annual meeting, give such opinions as they thought- tit upon the expediency of the present plan, implying visits to and examinations of schools, and also to investigate the qualifications of school-masters applying for situations and 122 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. certify the qualifications of competent ones, while the selectmen were to withhold the school-money from any dis- trict that should employ a master unempowered by the cer- tificate of the visiting committee. Under this act, the town chose Rev. Roger C. Hatch, Rev. Moses B. Chase, and Rev. Michael Carlton a "visiting school committee." The action of the town in providing for this committee anticipated the main features of the great law of 1827, setting our state school system upon a firmer basis than it had ever before known, so far as the law related to the duties of a superin- tending school-committee. The predominant features of the law of 1827 are operative, in a slightly modified form, in our present state school system. The same day, the selectmen and committee of subscrib- ers to the fund for a local academy were authorized to determine what part of the town-house should be appropri- ated for the academy, all the necessary alterations to be made at the expense of the subscribers. The selectmen were also authorized to expend such an amount as was necessary for underpinning the town-house and repairing the outside, as the interest of the town seemed to require. The same officers were authorized to attend court and oppose the petition of Richard Bartlett and others for a road from Hills' Bridge, now Contoocook, to the Mast road in Goffstown. This act apparently antici- pated the construction of the present so called Basket Mill road. In 1828, March 11, the town voted to leave the matter of choosing prudential school-committees to the several dis- tricts. This act was in recognition of the state law of 1827, to which we have already referred, and which, in the first instance, provided that prudential committees should be chosen at the annual town-meeting, but later by the dis- tricts themselves. Horace Chase, Bodwell Emerson, and Matthew Harvey were chosen a committee to examine the laws of the town of Portsmouth, providing for the extin- guishing of fires, and report such as they thought applicable to this town. The corporation of'Hopkinton Academy was permitted to fit up the court-room in the town-house for the use of its school, provided that the same corporation would fit up the lower part of the town-house for the accommoda- tion of the town, according to the direction of the select- men, giving the court-room for the use of the town on pub- SUNDRY EVENTS FROM 1S24 TO 1830. 123 lie occasions, and allowing the Episcopal society the use of the same for public worship. We shall speak more particu- larly of Hopkinton academy and the Episcopal church hereafter. In 1829, March 11, the town voted to assess one dollar on each ratable poll, and on other ratable estate in propor- tion, for the purpose of breaking roads in winter. The tax was to be laid out at the rate of ten cents an hour for a man or yoke of oxen. If any person refused to work, the select- men were to collect his tax in money in proportion to the amount of work done by others. If any portion of the tax was not needed, it was to be remitted. The town voted to oppose the laying of a new road from Hill's Bridge to Basset Mill, so called, and that the select- men should appoint an agent for effecting the purpose. In 1830, March 9, the town voted that its portion of the state literary fund be invested by the treasurer, and that the selectmen apply the interest for the support of schools in the same way that the regular school tax was applied. The literary fund, by the law of 1821, accrued to the state, by a tax of one half of one per cent, upon the capital stock of all banking corporations. This fund in 1828 was dis- tributed to the towns according to their apportionments of public taxes. The town negatived a proposition to defray one half of the expense incurred by the agents of Hopkinton and Weare in opposing the construction of the Basset Mill road. The period under consideration in this chapter involved two events of unusual importance that affected or illus- trate the life of this town. One was the Jackson presiden- tial campaign ; the other, the census of 1830. Each of these two events will be treated in a separate chapter. 124 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. CHAPTER XXXIV. THE JACKSON PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN. By the context of the previous chapter, the reader will understand that, by the Jackson presidential campaign, we mean the first instance of General Jackson's candidacy for the office of chief magistrate of the nation. We are there- fore contemplating the presidential campaign of 1828, es- pecially with reference to the popular enthusiasm of the support of Gen. Andrew Jackson in this town. Incidentally, there were perhaps several reasons for the unusual ardor of the people of Hopkinton during the presi- dential campaign of 1828. The town was predominantly Republican, or Democratic, as both terms were used in the earlier part of the present century to denominate the party opposed to the Federal, or Whig, political organization. As we have already seen, Hopkinton became positively anti- Federal in the presidential election of 1804, giving the major- ity of its votes to Jeffersonian electors. In doing this, Hop- kinton defined a political position that was maintained in national affairs for more than a half century. Yet, previous- ly to 1828, there had been a lull in national political contro- versy, and it is often said that a calm antedates a storm. After the war of 1812, with its controversies and excite- ments, had passed, there seems to have followed an inter- vening season of rest, before the energies of political enthu- siasm broke forth again in the first campaign of General Jackson against John Quincy Adams. How great the lull was of which we speak may be inferred from the records of the town-clerk. In 1816, there was in Hopkinton a differ- ence of opinion upon the presidential question represented by the numbers 211 and 95, not to mention a scattering vote or two. However, in 1820, with scarcely any opposi- tion or scattering votes, there were cast 104 votes for presi- dential electors. More than this : in 1824, with a somewhat irregular cast, but with scarcely a sign of opposition or dis- sent, the highest candidate for presidential elector received only 66 ballots. Such indeed was the quietus that antici- pated the activity of 1828, illustrating an inevitable law of social and political dynamics. Yet we must not overlook another feature of the situation. Andrew Jackson was a &z & c^ tf/t a. THE JACKSON PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN. 125 man of great personal reputation and influence. At the present day, we would call him personally magnetic. Be- sides this, he was General Jackson, the hero of New Or- leans, whose name and fame were celebrated to the utmost bounds of our national domain. The presidential campaign of 1828, so far as Hopkinton was concerned, was probably conducted with the demon- strations incidental to the customs and facilities of the times. The details recoverable are meagre. However, there need be no hesitation in saying such general enthusi- asm was probably never witnessed on a similar occasion in this town. Indeed, it would seem that the first question asked concerning a stranger was, " Is he a Jackson man ? " The zeal of childhood and youth emulated that of man- hood. " Are you a Jackson boy ? " was the question asked of one urchin by another. The ardor of the time culmi- nated in the following vote for electors of president and vice- president on the 3d of November, as attests the record of the town-clerk : For John Harvey, two hundred and seventy-two votes ; " Benning M. Bean, two hundred and seventy -two votes ; " William Pickering, two hundred and seventy-two votes ; " Jesse Bowers, two hundred and seventy-two votes ; " Aaron Watson, two hundred and seventy-two votes ; " Jonathan Nye, two hundred and seventy-two votes ; " Stephen P. Webster, two hundred and seventy-two votes ; " Moses White, two hundred and seventy-two votes ; " George Sullivan, one hundred and sixty-seven votes ; " Samuel Quarles, one hundred and sixty-seven votes ; " Samuel Sparhawk, one hundred and sixty-seven votes ; " William Bixby, one hundred and sixty-seven votes ; " Nahum Parker, one hundred and sixty-seven votes ; " Thomas Woolson, one hundred and sixty-seven votes ; " Ezra Bartlett, one hundred and sixty-seven votes ; and " William Lovejoy, one hundred and sixty-seven votes : Which votes were declared in open town-meeting. On inauguration day the next March, there was a grand celebration on the top of Putney's hill. A deep, light snow had just fallen, but that was no hindrance to the ultimate object. A cannon was dragged through the snow from the village, by the Contoocook road, to the summit of the hill near the old cemetery, and the repeated discharges of the piece made the atmosphere ring. There was standing near 126 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. by the empty former residence of Nathaniel Rowell. His- tory says a temporary bar was established in the otherwise unoccupied farm-house. An eye witness, a Jackson man, represents the occasion as one of the " drunkenest times he ever saw. " We draw the mantle of charity, remembering this celebration was in a former and different time. In 1832, though there was less excitement during the campaign, the town of Hopkinton cast 310 votes for Jack- sonian electors against 141 for the opposition. . CHAPTER XXXV. THE CENSUS OF 1830. By the census of 1830, the population of Hopkinton was found to be 2474. In the first instance, this enumeration is remarkable for two reasons. Ever since the first census, in 1767, there had been a steady increase of population ; ever since that of 1830, there has been a general decrease of the same. By the census of 1860, there was an increase of nine persons over the number of those found by the pre- vious census. In one other instance — the census of 1880 — the decline in population was indicated in arrest, 22 more persons being found than in 1870. The causes of the steady increase of population till 1830, and the general decrease since, are complex. For an under- standing of them, we must look into the composite life of society itself. We have already remarked the circum- stances which once existed to attract people to Hopkinton for homes or on business. A new town in a commercial and legal centrality must thrive in population. We have pointed out the circumstances that took away Hopkinton's prestige as a half shire-town and incidental capital of the state. We have shown that this loss tended to a reduction of the number of inhabitants. Yet after the events of 1819 and 1823, the population increased slightly till 1830. We must seek a reason for this phenomenon. The effect of the permanent location of the state capital and the county-seat of Merrimack at Concord upon the population was gradual. Much of the attendance upon state and county events in Hopkinton was transient. Then SUNDRY EVENTS FROM 1831 TO 1836. 127 the commercial importance of the town partly depended upon relations of longer continuance. Years passed before Concord became such a centre of trade as virtually to de- stroy the commercial prosperity of Hopkinton. The farms, too, were stationary, and supported their usual number of operators and occupants. There was also exhibited the natural tendency to the numerical increase of domestic establishments, so common in the earlier life of New Eng- land. More than this, the grand march of popular domes- tic migration had not been fully inaugurated. Soon after 1830, the tide of local emigration had begun effectively to surge. Large commercial and manufacturing centres began to attract the young of both sexes. The store, the shop, the mill, — each got its share of recruits from the town of Hopkinton. Then the newer states of the west began to draw away their quotas of adventurers. The varying dispositions of the young in respect to a choice of a calling helped on the tendency to depopulation, because Hopkinton, declining in commercial importance, no longer offered the multiple industrial resources it once had. Add to all the facts we have described the later stimulus to popular mentality through improved educational facilities and the attendant and consequent partial suppression of the propagative instinct, and we have compassed the pre- dominant causes of the comparative depopulation of which we are talking. The census of 1830 represents a pivotal stage in the history of Hopkinton. The present time affords no special indication of a reactive tendency in population. CHAPTER XXXVI. SUNDRY EVENTS FROM 1831 TO 1836. In 1831, March 8, the town voted to discontinue the road laid out by the selectmen the previous year from the north- easterly end of Blackwater bridge easterly, through lands of Samuel Folsom, Josiah Rogers, and Stephen Sibley, to Con- cord line. In 1832, March 13, Stephen Sibley, Ebenezer Dustin, aud John Whipple were chosen a committee to examine the 128 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. pauper accounts of the town for the previous ten years, collect information in regard to the expense of towns that had purchased farms, and established poor-houses for the support of their paupers, and report the facts at the next annual town-meeting. The town voted to purchase a large and a small burying- cloth, to be kept at Sumner Fowler's house, near the Union Baptist meeting-house. The Union Baptist meeting-house was the same as the Freewill Baptist church, of which we shall speak particularly in another chapter. The selectmen were authorized to begin a suit against Jesse B. Hardy, to recover pay for 1792 feet of three inch pine plank, which he agreed to furnish for the purposes of a bridge near Silas Hardy's. The selectmen were also authorized to pay the town of Weare the sum of 125.15, it being the difference between one third and one half of the expense of surveying a road between Sutton South meeting-house and Nashua village. The petition of William A. Kent and others, for a road from Warner, through a part of Hopkinton, to Concord, and also that of Daniel Farmer and others, for a road through a part of Hopkinton to Amoskeag, formed the sub- ject of an article of the warrant for this town-meeting. The matters involved were referred to the discretion of the selectmen. On the 16th of March, the selectmen were authorized to repair Hill's bridge, at Contoocook, by building a new and substantial wooden pier, supply the bridge with new plank and railings, and make such other improvements as they thought necessary. The selectmen were also instructed to oppose the appoint- ment of a committee on the petition of Charles F. Gove and others for a road from Hill's bridge to Bassett's mill in Weare. In 1833, March 12, the committee chosen to report upon the expense of paupers and the subject of a town farm and poor-house reported. Their report was accepted but not put upon the record of the town. However, the next day, at the adjourned town-meeting, the town voted to purchase a farm, stock, furniture, and other materials necessary for the establishment of a poor-house, and that the town's paupers be removed to the poor-house as soon as it should be ready to receive them, and that the selectmen be author- SUNDRY EVENTS FROM 1831 TO 1836. 129 ized to appoint an overseer of the farm and the paupers. Stephen Sibley, John Silver, and Daniel Chase were chosen a committee to carry the main purpose into effect. On the same day, the town voted to accept the legacies bequeathed it by Dr. Ebenezer Lerned, deceased, and that the town treasurer receive the same, and, upon the payment of them, give the executor a good and sufficient discharge. On the 15th of the following June, at a special meeting, the committee, chosen in March to purchase a farm for the establishment of a poor-house, reported verbally that they had purchased the farm of Daniel Chase, had taken a deed of the same, and given their note to Mr. Chase for the sum of $3,000, with interest after the first day of March, 1834. Singular as it may seem, there was an article in the warrant for this special meeting to see if the town would sell the farm again, but the article was passed over and the meeting dissolved. In 1834, March 12, the foregoing committee to purchase a town farm reported formally. In addition to facts already given, they affirmed that the estate contained about 169 acres, and that the cost of stocking and furnishing was $442, the farm being then ready for occupation. The same day the town voted to make the poor-house a house of correction. The poor-farm, as it was called, was located on Dimond's hill, being an estate of which the present house and land of Walter F. Hoyt were formerly a part. On the foregoing 12th of March, the town passed an act authorizing the town treasurer to give a discharge to the executor of the will of the late Dr. Ebenezer Lerned, on account of the bequest of a female charity fund, according to the provisions and specifications of the will. The dis- charge was to be procured by the payment of the fund to the treasurer on or before the first day of the next April, with interest for the previous year. The fund amounted to $500. It exists as a public provision to this day. The Basset Mill road came up again for consideration on the 5th of July, when the town voted to postpone the build- ing of that part of it located in Hopkinton. On the 26th of the same month, the town refused to reconsider the vote of the 6th, and also refused to instruct the selectmen to contract for its construction, acting under two separate articles in the warrant. 130 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. In 1835, March 11, the selectmen of the previous year made a verbal report of their investigation in relation to the support of paupers, and their report was accepted, but there was no record made of its substance. Nathaniel Curtis was made an agent to collect of Hugh McAllister, executor of the will of Dr. Ebenezer Lerned, two legacies of $500 each, bequeathed to the town of Hop- kinton. On the 31st of August, the Basset Mill road came upon the public conscience again. The road had been laid out by the court's committee, and this time the town voted that the selectmen should appoint an agent to make an application to the Justices of the Court of Common Pleas, in the fol- lowing September, for leave to discontinue the portion of the road lying in Hopkinton, according to an act of discon- tinuance already passed by the town. In 1836, March 9, the selectmen made a report upon the conduct of the poor-farm, and their report was accepted. The legacies of the late Dr. Ebenezer Lerned were consigned by vote to the Franklin Bank in Hopkinton as a loan. The selectmen were instructed to make the Basset Mill road that season. The same day the selectmen were authorized to hire a sum not exceeding $1,000, it being such a portion of $2,000 raised by vote of the town for defraying town charges. On the 7th of the next November, the sense of the town upon the expediency of the establishment of an insane asylum by the state was taken. The vote stood 75 in the affirmative and 70 in the negative. The subject of rebuild- ing Tyler's bridge was referred to the selectmen, the vote prescribing the following lucid expression of the method : " in such a manner as they shall think proper between this time and the fifteenth day of December next, and that it be completed in the course of the next summer." The selectmen were also authorized to hire a sum not exceeding $1,000, upon the credit of the town, for defraying town expenses. The Lerned legacies, the Franklin Bank and the Basset Mill road will be subjects of further remark in future pages of this work. A LEGAL TRAGEDY. 131 CHAPTER XXXVII. A LEGAL TRAGEDY. The year 1836 witnessed a scene in Hopkinton that was the only one of its kind ever occurring in the town. On the 6th of January, Abraham Prescott, of Pembroke, was hung for the murder of Mrs. Sally Cochran of that town. It will be remembered by the reader, that although the courts of Merrimack county had been located at Concord, the jail, originally the property of Hillsborough county, re- mained in Hopkinton till 1852. Consequently the execu- tion of Prescott, in 1836, occurred at Hopkinton. Abraham Prescott is represented as a feeble-minded youth, who was a kind of protSge of the Cochran family, of whom Chauncey Cochran, husband of the murdered woman, was the responsible head. In his simple mind, Prescott, as the story goes, conceived that, making wa}' - with Mr. and Mrs. Cochran, he would certainly inherit their property. By a stupid project, he decoyed Mrs. Cochran into seclusion, and then dealt her a fatal blow. This was on the 23d of June, 1833. Prescott afterwards confessed the deed, and was tried for, and convicted of, mur- der at the September term of the Supreme Court in the year 1834, his sentence to be hung on the 23d of December, 1835, being pronounced. Very strenuous efforts were made for a commutation of the sentence, the miserable youth's mental condition being urged as a motive for legal consideration. A reprieve to the 6th of January was obtained, but no appeals affecting the executive attitude of the governor and council, the doomed culprit went to his fate on the expiration of the reprieve. Prescott was a long time confined in the jail at Hopkin- ton. Andrew Leach was the jailer. In the jailer's family at the time of the reprieve was Mrs. Clarissa G., daughter of Mr. Leach, and wife of Capt. Robert Chase, of Newbury- port, Mass. She was only 22 years old, having with her a daughter, Mary Ann L., of the age of 22 months. In re- lating the circumstances attending the execution of Pres- cott, we draw from the description of Alonzo J. Fogg, who has already written a graphic account of the affair. Mr. Fogg says : 132 LIFE AND TIMES EST HOPKINTON. The reprieve of Prescott was not generally known, or at least not credited, and on the first day appointed for his execution many peo- ple from Pembroke and the adjoining towns congregated at Hopkin- ton village to witness the public execution. When the news was broken to the large assemblage, by the proper authorities, that the governor had reprieved Prescott for fourteen days, it created great indignation with a large majority. They honestly felt that the hand of justice had been held too long, and made up their minds that the gallows should not be robbed of its deserving victim by any execu- tive interference. After dark, the more determined portion of the indignant people, who comprised some of the most respectable residents of Pembroke, collected in the vicinity of the jail and demanded of Mr. Leach the keys of the cell of the condemned man, but he wisely refused to comply with their request. At this time, Mrs. Clarissa Chase was confined in bed with an infant son two days old. But in this condi- tion her courage and respect for the legal rights of the prisoner did not forsake her. She said, — '' Father, never give up Prescott to that cruel mob till we are all dead. " The violent demonstrations of the people without, however, had a powerful effect on her weak and nervous system, and a few minutes after she spoke to her father she went into convulsions. At this crisis, a mother's appeal came to the rescue. Mrs. Leach unbarred the outside door, opened it, and there she stood, a frail and helpless woman, before an infuriated mass of men crazed for blood and revenge. At her appearance with only a lighted candle in her hand, the crowd were hushed to silence in a moment. She told them of the situation of her daughter within, and appealed to their sympathy, and asked them to desist in their unlawful effort to secure the prisoner within the cell unless they desired to sacrifice her only child to gratify their base design. Mrs. Leach's supplication had its desired effect, and the mob quietly left the jail and repaired to the Perkins hotel, where they hung Prescott in effigy on the limb of the large elm in front of the house, which plainly foretold what might be expected the 6th of January, if justice was further de- layed. The execution of Prescott, occurred at the north of the vil- lage of Hopkinton, in the pasture now owned by Horace G. Chase, having been recently purchased by him of George W. Currier. The conformation of the land on three sides of the portion of the lot lying nearest the highway makes a kind of natural amphitheatre. Near the centre of the amphitheatre are two boulders of granite of considerable size. These stones mark the location of Prescott's scaffold, to which he was escorted from the jail by the music of drum A LEGAL TRAGEDY. 133 and fife, his conveyance being preceded by a wagon con- taining his coffin. At the scene of the execution an im- mense crowd was gathered. The doomed man was swung off into eternity without a struggle. Indeed, he seemed hardly alive when he reached the scaffold. Imbecility, fear, remorse, one or all, had engendered a horrid passivity that was apparently unable to resist the last stroke inflicted by this world. We further quote from Mr. Fogg, as follows : Mrs. Chase never recovered from the fright and excitement at- tending the delay of Prescott's execution, and December 26, three days after, her spirit took its flight through that dark vista to an unknown God. Her little daughter, Mary Ann L., through neglect and excitement, was soon taken sick, and followed her mother Jan- uary 21. In the Hopkinton village cemetery, near the centre of the grounds, a small marble headstone marks the spot where Clar- issa G. Chase, and her daughter, Mary Ann L. Chase, are taking their last rest in the same grave. When these tragic events were taking place in the village of Hop- kinton, Capt. Chase was at sea, and on his return, and learning the sad fate of his wife and child, his feelings can better be imagined than described. For several years he remained single, but at length married. He took his wife with him on a long voyage : his ship came in collision with another vessel and sank to the bottom of the ocean, carrying him and his wife with him to make their long and last sleep in a watery grave. This last act in the tragedy finished the earthly career of all of Capt. Chase's family save one. The infant son was only five days old when its mother died, and was named Robert Green Chase. He was educated for the Epis- copal church, and settled in the ministry at Philadelphia, where he became a popular divine. He married, and the fruit of his union was a daughter. In 1866, Mr. Chase spent his summer vacation on the coast of Maine. By accident, Mr. Chase and wife were drowned, leaving his daughter an orphan, who now resides in Phil- adelphia. 134 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. CHAPTER XXXVIII. SUNDRY EVENTS FROM 1837 TO 1844. Iii 1837, January 28, the town of Hopkinton voted to receive of the state the respective portion of the deposits of the public money consigned to the town of Hopkinton by virtue of an act of the legislature, passed January 13, 1837, and pledged the faith of the town for the safe keeping and repayment thereof, and appointed Stephen Sibley an agent to receive and execute certificates of deposit therefor. Mr. Sibley, as agent of the town, was to pay over to the town treasurer his deposits for the time being, and the treasurer was to give a special bond to the town for the faithful dis- charge of his trust, and loan the deposits, with the direc- tion, consent, and approbation of the selectmen, for the time being. This action related to the reception and dis- position of the " surplus money," from the United States treasury, there being, by an act of congress of 1836, $41,- 000,000 distributed among the several states of the Union. In law, the sum distributed was a " deposit," but, in fact, it was a gift that was never refunded. On the same day, the selectmen were authorized to rebuild Tyler's bridge as they thought proper. In 1838, March 13, the committee of the town, chosen to audit and settle the accounts of the town treasurer, found him charged with cash received of Stephen Sibley, agent of the town, to the amount of $6,102.06, upon which deposit interest had been collected to the amount of $37.46, mak- ing in all $6,139.52, which was accounted for by adequate securities. The next day, the sense of the voters was taken upon the expediency of the state legislature passing a law author- izing town-clerks to record deeds. There were 110 votes in favor of the proposition, and 241 against it. It was voted that the interest on the public deposits be appropriated to defraying town charges the year ensuing ; that the selectmen effect an insurance upon the pauper farm ; to accept the report of Stephen Sibley, agent for the receipt of the public deposit, and discharge him from his agency. On the 20th of the next August, the town voted to pass over an article relating to building a stone bridge over the Contoocook river, near Moses Tyler's, and also to pass over SUNDRY EVENTS FROM 1837 TO 1844. 135 one relating to one or two stone abutments at Tyler's bridge. In 1839, on the 16th of February, the following act was passed by the town : Voted that the town relinquish to the First Congregational Society in the town of Hopkinton all right and title that they have or may have or may claim to have in the meeting house occupied by said society- There were 82 yeas and 58 nays to the proposition, which apparently anticipated a purpose to repair the meeting- house by the society. The remodelling of the meeting-house will be a future subject of this work. On the 9th of the following March, the selectmen were authorized to collect, or cause to be collected, by the 15th of the next September, 75 per cent, of all the securities on account of the surplus revenue belonging to the town, and apply the same to the outstanding debts of the town and the incidental expenses for the ensuing year. The town also voted to appropriate $3,000 towards the establishment of an insane asylum in the state, provided that the institution were located within the limits of Hop- kinton. Horace Chase, Hamilton E. Perkins, and- Stephen Sibley were made a committee to consider the laws relating to the extinguishing of fires, and report at the next annual town- meeting. The selectmen reported the location and boundaries of the several school-districts in town. Their report was accepted, and the boundaries became a matter of record. This action was authorized the year previous. The districts located were nineteen in number, and were described by metes and bounds territorially. In 1840, March 11, the subject of repairs upon Hill's bridge at Contoocook was referred to the selectmen, who were to examine it at once, ascertain where repairs were needed, and make comparative estimates between the expense of a stone bridge, and that of a wooden one, and that of a wooden one with stone abutments without a pier, reporting at the town-meeting in November. The same officers were also authorized to enclose the village burying- grouud with a good, substantial board fence, with good split stone posts, not less than six feet in length, the fence to be 136 LIFE AND TIMES IN" HOPKINTON. not less than four feet high, and of a style discretionary with the officers, the structure to have regard to decency and durability. The selectmen were also authorized to fence the burying-ground on Clement's hill according to their proper discretion. The residue of the surplus revenue belonging to the town was by vote applied to the defraying of town expenses the ensuing year, while the equivalent of the interest was to be deducted proportionately from each poll tax. The town voted to fit up the town-house for the accom- modation of the court, in case the town was made a half shire-town of Merrimack county ; also, to defend a suit brought by the town of Henniker, for the support of Anna Dodge, wife of Asa Dodge. On the 2d of the next November, the selectmen reported with reference to their inspection of Hill's bridge. The town then voted " that the selectmen cause Hill's bridge to be rebuilt next season according to the present plan of said bridge, and that they repair or rebuild the abutments with stone, as in their discretion will be for the best interest of the town, and that they make such preparation this season for rebuilding the same as they may think necessary." In 1841, March 10, the selectmen were authorized to divide one year's interest, at 6 per cent., of the surplus rev- enue among all the persons who were taxed in town the ensuing year, the distribution to be equal. It was voted that one fourth of the school money be equally divided among the districts, and the residue equally according to the scholars, as formerly. One dollar was voted to each soldier of the third com- pany of infantry that did military duty in 1840. In 1842, March 10, the selectmen were instructed to pur- chase a bier for each of the graveyards in town ; to divide the school-district in Contoocook by the river ; to print the report of town expenditures in pamphlet form, the number of copies to be sufficient to supply one to each legal voter ; to divide one year's interest of the surplus revenue among the several tax-payers ; to authorize the selectmen to hire as much money as they deemed expedient to defray town charges, the sum raised being $1,700. The selectmen were also directed to administer the fol- lowing oath to each person before taking an inventory of his property : SUNDRY EVENTS FROM 1837 TO 1844. 137 You solemnly swear, or affirm (as the case may be), that you will make true answers to such questions as shall be asked you in refer- ence to your property and estate, liable by law to taxation ; So help you God. After taking the inventory, the selectmen were to pro- pound the following: Upon the oath you have taken, have you now given a true account of all your property and estate, liable by law to taxation on the first day of April instant, according to your best knowledge and belief ? Have you neither transferred, concealed, kept back, nor in any way disposed of any of your money, or securities, or other property of any description, with a design to avoid or diminish your taxes ? On the 5th of the following December, Moses Colby was chosen an agent of the town to oppose a road laid out by the road commissioners from Bell's tavern in Henniker to Stan wood's tavern in Hopkinton. Bell's tavern was on the site of the present Henniker hotel, and Stanwood's tavern on that of the present Perkins Inn. On the 5th of June, 1842, James Straw signed an indent- ure allowing the selectmen of the town to drain Wolf meadow, the consideration being $2. Wolf meadow is now flowed by Whittier's pond, at the westerly junction of the old and new roads running between Hopkinton and Con- cord. In 1843, there was a hard struggle over the subject of the 4th article in the warrant for the annual town-meeting on the 14th of March. The article related to the choice of two representatives to the General Court. The clerk's record gives no details of the ballots, but mentions the conclusive fact that the article was indefinitely postponed on the sec- ond day of the meeting, apparently in the afternoon. On the third day of town-meeting, the matter of purchas- ing a piece of land for a burying-yard near the lower vil- lage was referred to the selectmen. A year's interest of the surplus revenue was by vote divided as formerly, and an- nually so until further ordered by the town. The select- men were instructed to cause one third of the school-money to be collected by the first day of the next September. The town voted to raise $2,000 for current expenses, authoriz- ing the selectmen to hire such a sum as they deemed neces- sary, not exceeding $1,000, the rate of interest to be 6 per. cent. 138 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. The same day, the following act was passed : Yoted the town give to Widow Catherine S. Lerned all the school book fund that can be realized from the Franklin Savings Bank, being the same school book fund bequeathed the town by Doct. Ebenezer Lerned, deceased, provided the heirs at law to the said Lerned shall signify their assent in writing to such appropriation and waive all advantage by reason of such disposition of said fund. On the 10th of the following August, the selectmen were instructed to divide the town into school-districts to the number of 20, according to law. On the 7th of October, the same officers were authorized to purchase a piece of land near the east village for a burying-ground. On the 14th of October, the record was made of the action of the selectmen in dividing the town into twenty school-districts, the action being in response to a petition, of the 9th of the same month, signed by Chase Fowler, Hazen Kimball, Sumner Carlton, Moses Stanley, Timothy Tilton, John Tilton, George S. Daniels, M. W. Merrill, John F. Sargent, Joel Chandler, and Gilman Fifield. In 1844, March 13, a record is made of an alphabetical list having been lodged with the town-clerk, and posted in the store of Stephen B. Sargent, fifteen days prior to the 12th of March, and of each voter being checked on the list in the vote for representatives to the General Court. Pre- viously to this time, the detailed ballots for representatives had been sometimes recorded, but not always — in fact, never till a late period. The school-money raised, exclusive of the interest on the school-fund, was only 8850, whereas for some time previous it had been $1,060.20. It was voted to postpone the reading of the report of the superintending school-committee, and authorize the select- men to procure 600 printed copies of the same for distribu- tion among the legal voters of the town. The selectmen were authorized to compromise with the petitioners for a new road from Henniker to Hopkinton, that the road might leave the route laid out by the commis- sioners near the Henniker line ; thence keeping on the west side of the Contoocook river to a point near Smiley's mills, at West Hopkinton ; thence to the house of Deacon White ; thence to the burying-ground by the bridge over Paul brook ; thence to the Basset Mill road near the blacksmith- SUNDRY EVENTS FROM 1837 TO 1844. 139 shop of George Choat, — instead of building said road on the route established by the commissioners. Thomas Bailey, Abram Brown, and Nathaniel Kimball were chosen a committee to confer with the selectmen in reference to the purchase of a piece of land for a burying- ground near the East village. On the 3d day of August, Thomas Bailey and Cyrus Bar- ton were chosen agents to effect a possible compromise in the matter of a road from Henniker to Hopkinton. The poor-house in town was voted a house of correction. The overseer was to be the keeper. The following by-laws for the government of the house of correction were adopted : First. Every inmate of the house of correction, when able to labor, shall be kept diligently employed under the direction of the keeper. Second. If any inmate shall refuse to obey the orders of the over- seer of the house of correction, such overseer may punish such in- mate by confining him in solitary imprisonment not exceeding 48 hours at any one time. On the 17th of the same month, the agents appointed by the town reported that they had not been able to effect any compromise with reference to the Henniker and Hopkin- ton road. The selectmen were then instructed to build the road laid out upon the petition of L. Smith and others, the building of it to be sold at the lowest price by auction ; that a covered bridge be built across the river, with a span not exceeding 150 feet, with stone abutments ; the work of constructing both the road and the bridge was to begin im- mediately. It is noticeable in this connection that the bridge was to be "built on the Ex plan," referring, doubtless, to the diagonal arrangement of its timbers. The selectmen were authorized to hire any sum of money not exceeding $ 5,000, to defray the expenses of the town that year. On the 15th of the next October, the town reconsidered so much of the foregoing action as related to the bridge over the Contoocook river on the new Henniker and Hop- kinton road, and voted that the structure should be an arched one of stone. At the presidential town-meeting in November, the sub- ject of the expediency of abolishing capital punishment was considered. There were 70 votes in favor of the abolition of such punishment, and 172 in the negative. 140 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. It was voted that copies of the report of expenditures of the selectmen the ensuing year be printed in sufficient num- bers to supply all the legal voters with one each, to be de- livered at the next annual town-meeting. CHAPTER XXXIX. THE GREAT RAILROAD CONTROVERSY. In the year 1844, the town of Hopkinton sustained the result of one of the greatest social agitations that ever oc- curred within its limits. For the time then being, every other political subject appears virtually to have succumbed to it. At the annual town-meeting in March, it was the predominant theme. Two representatives were chosen to the General Court with special reference to it. They were Samuel Colby and Moses Colby. Samuel Colby was a Dem- ocrat, but he was not chosen on that account ; Moses Colby was a Whig, but that fact did not determine his election. Both of these gentlemen were chosen because of their oppo- sition to a certain project represented by the railroads. In fact, the great railroad controversy in Hopkinton was at its height, and, so far as Hopkinton's choice of represent- atives to the General Court went, the railroads were de- feated. It is an item of interest in this connection that there was no railroad in Hopkinton at the time, nor does it appear that there was any immediate prospect of one being in town. However, there were railroads in other parts of New Hampshire, and projects for the extension of their ramifi- cations, and the great railroad controversy was by no means local with any town in the state. This controversy arose out of the question of what is sometimes called eminent do- main. Eminent domain means the right of government to take private property, or allow it to be taken, for public uses. The 5th amendment to the Constitution of the United States provides that such property shall not be taken " without just compensation." The principle involved in this amendment is equally recognized in civil law. How- ever, this idea was not simply embraced in the matter of - *\ THE GREAT RAILROAD CONTROVERSY. 141 controversy under discussion, but the subject of the public or private nature of a railroad corporation was emphatically broached. The way of presenting the subject is easily illus- trated. A common highway is a public benefit, and, once decreed necessary, its right to pass, by the concession of the owners of private property, from its inceptive point to its termination, is unquestioned. However, such a high- way is free in its provisions ; but a railroad is restrictive in its benefits. No one is charged for using a common high- way, but a pecuniary fare is collectible by a railroad. Out of this distinction arose a great contest in New Hampshire. Apparently many people neglected to reflect that a manu- factory, located on a stream of water, has the right under the law to the eminent domain, so far as the necessary flowage of private lands is concerned, though it charges a price for the services it renders its patrons. But men do not always mind such considerations when in the heat of a great con- troversy. In the end, however, the legal expedients were equal to the exigencies in the railroad case. The railroad was the inevitable certainty. The age demanded it and the spirit of the age endorsed it. It remained only for the state either to claim the eminent domain for the use of the rail- road, or to confirm the railroad as a public institution. In the progressive legal history of the state, as we are told by presumed authority, both things have been done. The majority against railroads once prevailed in Hopkin- ton ; but in the end the involved ascendant idea was de- feated. To-day railroads are extended through private property, even though they are not free in their provisional accommodations. In closing this chapter, we present the clerk's record of the ballots by which Hopkinton's represen- tatives to the General Court in 1844 were elected. The following is the first ballot : Samuel Colby had John Burnham " Moses Colby " John Paige " Jonathan Jones " Old Dan Tucker " P. Clough " Joseph Dow " The following is the second ballot : -32 votes 78 ' 31 « 14 ( 3 < 1 t 1 i 1 EC 142 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKZNTON. Moses Colby- John Burnham David N. Patterson Joseph Dow John Paige Moses Copps Temperance, Horace C. Stanley John Repeal Levi Straw, Jr., had 127 votes. 103 7 1 2 1 1 2 1 1 In this chapter, we have briefly shown how intense a pub- lic controversy may be ; in a subsequent chapter, the reader will observe how readily the mind of a community can be reversed to favor that which it once opposed. CHAPTER XL. SUNDRY EVENTS FROM 1845 TO 1850. In 1845, March 12, the selectmen of Hopkinton were instructed to adjust the account of the town against the town of Weare, for the support of Gilman Lull, as in their judgment would be for the best interest of the town. It was voted to dispense with the services of the superintend- ing school-committee, so far as the examination and in- spection of schools were concerned. On the 26th of the following August, the town voted to rebuild Ro well's bridge, at West Hopkinton, with such variation as to place as the judgment of the selectmen might indicate, said bridge to be built of stone, provided the cost should not be over $2,500, and the builder would warrant the bridge to stand from three to five years after completion, the construction to be sold by auction to the lowest bidder. On the 23d of the next September, the selectmen were instructed to purchase a burial-cloth for the use of the grave- yard near the town-house. It was also voted to sell land for private burial-lots in the same graveyard. The select- men were instructed to purchase land for enlarging the yard. On the 29th of the following November, the town voted SUNDRY EVENTS FROM 1845 TO 1850. 143 to reconsider, from and after the first day of the next April, a vote passed at the annual town-meeting in 1843, to divide one year's interest of the surplus revenue at 6 per cent, among the resident tax-payers equally. In 1846, March 11, the collecting of town taxes was struck off in open town-meeting to the lowest bidder, and John Foss became collector at a salary of $24. The sum of $3,000 was raised for town expenses. Horace Chase, Nicholas Quimby, and Phineas Clough were chosen a com- mittee to consider and report at the next annual town- meeting what part of chapter 111 of the Revised Statutes, relating to the extinguishing of fires, it was expedient to adopt, and also to consider and report a code of rules and by-laws, such as should be thought expedient and proper, according to chapter 31 of the Revised Statutes, and an act entitled " An Act in addition to chapter 31 of the Revised Statutes,"' passed June, 1845. It was voted that the selectmen purchase a grave cloth for the graveyard on Clement's hill. A provision was made for printing the selectmen's report. In 1847, March 10, the town voted against the proposi- tion to establish a county poor-farm. The committee of March 11, 1846, to consider and report in reference to the extinguishing of fires presented a by-law in 23 sections ; another of four sections, relating to horses, neat cattle, etc., running at large, and respecting the kindling, guarding, and safe-keeping of fires, etc., was reported. The Hon. Matthew Harvey introduced a measure for the consideration of the town, which adopted it. The act pro- vided for the annual distribution of the equivalent of the interest of funds realized from the lease of the parsonage, school, and militia lots in town. The sum of $88 was to be divided among the different religious societies in proportion to the taxes paid publicly by each ; the sum of $34.93, among the several school-districts, as the town might direct ; the sum of $4.24, among the several militia companies equally. The aggregate, of $127.17 was to be an annual appropriation. The town treasurer was empowered to collect one half of the securities of the town, excepting the literary fund and the legacies, and appropriate the same as the law required, and that the remainder be collected the next year. In 1848, March 15, the town voted to appropriate $23.28 144 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. of the literary fund for the support of a teacher's institute in Merrimack county. A vote being taken on the expediency of the General Court passing a law prohibiting the sale of wines and spirit- uous liquors, except for chemical, medicinal, and mechan- ical purposes, the result was 103 in the affirmative and 57 in the negative. Nicholas Quimby was chosen an agent of the town, to convey by deed, and by the direction of the selectmen, any real estate that might come into the absolute possession of the town during the ensuing year. The services of a superintending school-committee, so far as relating to the visiting of schools, were dispensed with by vote. On the 7th of the next November, the town voted to paint the town4iouse. The same day the selectmen, were instructed to suspend the collection of the securities of the town and retain in the treasury uncollected securities sufficient to account for the parsonage, school, and training-field funds, until the question then pending in the Supreme Court in relation to the town of Henniker was decided, and which involved the subject of the right of towns to appropriate the principal of the described funds, and assess a tax to pay the interest. The court decided that such a tax could not legally be assessed. In 1849, March 13, the town voted to raise 3 per cent, of the school-money for the support of a teacher's institute in Merrimack county, also to adopt the provisions of chapter 727 of the Pamphlet Laws of the state, passed at the Novem- ber session of the legislature of 1840, and relating to engine- men. In 1850, March 13, the selectmen were directed to in- struct the collector of taxes to abate 3 per cent, of all taxes paid on or before the first day of September, 2 per cent, of all paid on or before the first of November, and 1 per cent, on all paid on or before the first of January ; the selectmen were to allow the same rates of premium to the collector for all taxes paid into the town treasury on or before the 5th day of each respective month mentioned ; and this arrangement was to be in force till otherwise ordered by the town. It was voted that any person paying 75 per cent, of his THE INTRODUCTION OF THE RAILROAD. 145 highway taxes into the town treasury on or before the first clay of September should be entitled to a receipt in full for such taxes. The selectmen were instructed to purchase a piece of ground for the burying-yard in the northerly part of the town, the present cemetery at Blackwater being pre- sumably indicated. The town voted to purchase two hearses, one to be kept in Hopkinton village and one in Contoocook. On the 15th of April, the foregoing vote in relation to the payment of highway taxes into the town treasury was reconsidered, and another vote, to a similar effect, with the time changed to on or before the first day of June, was passed. The selectmen were instructed to purchase two new hearses with any unappropriated money in the town treasury. During the period embraced by this chapter, the Mexican war occurred. The war not being popular in New England, little personal interest was taken in it by New Hampshire people. Capt. Paul R. George, of Hopkinton, was quarter- master of Col. Caleb Cushing's Massachusetts regiment, taking along with him Elbridge Burbank and Daniel Caiton. All three returned. Philip Perry, of this town, was also a soldier of that war, according to private information. CHAPTER XLI. THE INTRODUCTION OF THE RAILROAD. In a previous chapter, speaking of the year 1844, we told of the ardent opposition of the town of Hopkinton to rail- roads. If one living at that time had been foretold that in less than five years a large party in this town would be equally as earnest in promoting the advancement of a scheme to construct a railroad within the limits of Hopkinton, he might have treated the statement with contempt as well as surprise. Yet, in the progress of events, the implied state of things came to pass. In a very few years after 1844, many people in Hopkin- ton became interested in a scheme which ultimately con- 10 146 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. structed a railroad from Concord to Bradford, with a branch line from Contoocook to Hillsborough Bridge, the com- pleted project affording no less than three stations in this town, namely, at Tyler's, Contoocook, and West Hopkin- ton. The evidence of a progressive railroad scheme, interest- ing to the town of Hopkinton, is found in two votes of the town, passed March 13, 1849, as follows : Voted that this subject [of the 10th article in the warrant] be left with the selectmen, and that they be instructed to avail themselves of all the advantages the law gives them, with a view to have a bridge built across the public highway, near the dwelling house of Moses Tyler, for the use of the Concord and Claremont railroad company. Voted that the selectmen be instructed to request the corporations of the several railroads in Hopkinton to build and tend gates wher- ever the said railroads shall cross the public highway in said town. The following act of the town, passed March 13, 1850, is also of interest in this connection : Voted that notice be given to the Concord and Claremont and Contoocook Valley railroad corporations to build, maintain and tend gates at the several places where the said railroads cross the public highways in this town, in accordance with the requirements of chap- ter 142 of the Revised Statutes. The foregoing votes, or acts, implying the cautionary prudence of the town of Hopkinton, were measurably fruitless so far as the exact text of their language was con- cerned. No bridges were built over the highway by rail- roads in this town, and scarcely any gates were constructed and tended at crossings. Such permanent precautions against danger at railroad crossings as the law effectively prescribed were and are of a different kind. However, we are to speak further, not of precautions and obstructions, but of enthusiasm and encouragement in view of the pro- posed railroad project we have described. The principal support of the railroad was the money subscribed for its stock. Not only was money rapidly forthcoming, but the wildest conceptions of the potency of the investment were everywhere afloat. Such was the readiness to exchange money for railroad stock that the ordinary, private bor- rower, with good and sufficient security, could hardly ob- tain a hearing. The popular enthusiasm culminated in 1850, in the early fall of the year, when trains began to run THE INTRODUCTION OF THE RAILROAD. 147 regularly between Concord and Contoocook. A day of great festivity was held. The railroad officials extended the favor of a free ride to and from the city of Concord. The proffered courtesy was accepted by a large company, filling a long train. The people of Contoocook had determined to be liberal in promoting the festivities. A subscription had been raised, a public dinner provided, music and artillery secured. About one thousand persons sat down to eat. The food was set upon a row of tables at the station, a shed having been erected for their accommodation. About fifteen mem- bers of the Warner artillery came with a. gun and music to do the military honors. The gun was posted on the in- terval on the north side of the river, just below the rail- road bridge, towards which spot a signal was given to fire. Speeches were made, the band played, the cannon thundered. It was indeed a gala occasion. The pecuniary expense of the dinner eaten on this occasion amounted to $200. In the course of time, the emotions of people most inter- ested in the railroad project received a serious reverse. The assessments upon original stock, for the completion of the enterprise, created the wildest consternation. To be rid of their obligations, many people made heavy sacrifices. The aggregate loss to Hopkinton residents was very large. Many thousands of dollars were the cost of a blind zeal in the first instance. Such is life many times over. The facilities for railroad travel to Bradford and Hills- borough Bridge were eventually completed. The line from Contoocook to Hillsborough Bridge was built by Joseph Barnard, then of Contoocook, his work as construc- tor of the road-bed being done in 1849. Since the introduc- tion of the railroad into Contoocook, many changes and improvements have been made at the station. Railroad con- nection, in later years, has been extended to Claremont Junction on the one hand, and to Peterborough on the other, as continuations of the former lines to Bradford and Hills- borough Bridge respectively. 148 LIFE AM) TIMES IN HOPKINTON. CHAPTER XLII. SUNDRY EVENTS FROM 1851 TO 1855. In 1851, March 12, the town voted on the expediency of the state legislature's passing the homestead exemption act, securing each family the value of $500 free from attach- ment, levy, or execution, with 209 votes in favor of, and 128 against, the project. On March 13, the town voted to raise $1,200 for schools, and that the 24th dividend of the literary fund be added to the amount, and that one half of the whole be equally divided among the school-districts, and one half among the same according to the number of scholars in each. The selectmen were instructed to build a hearse-house at Contoocook the present year. In 1852, March 3, the town voted to repeal the 14th and 15th sections of the by-law of the town relating to the ex- tinguishing of fires, and passed March 9, 1847. The by- law referred to was reported on March 10, it being the sec- ond day of the annual town-meeting, but the clerk of that year, 1847, did not record its adoption. The 14th section provided that a majority of the fire-wards could destroy a building to stay the progress of a fire ; the 15th, that the selectmen could assess the damage upon the tax-payers, unless the fire started in such building, or the same would have burned in any case. On the 10th of May, the town voted to discontinue the road laid out by the road commissioners from the house of William Rogers to Henniker line, and the selectman were authorized to petition the court of common pleas for a dis- continuance. The town voted to rebuild Rowell's bridge, at West Hopkinton, of wood, with stone abutments, and the select- men were instructed to make it of such a model as they deemed for the interest of the town, and locate the same accordingly. The selectmen were also instructed to build a wooden suspension bridge over the river at Contoocook, the same to rest upon two stone abutments raised to a suf- ficient height to allow water to pass at ordinary freshets, the manner of covering the same to be left to the discretion of the selectmen. The matter of rebuilding Tyler's bridge was left to the discretion of the selectmen, who were authorized to employ suitable persons to convey foot-pas- SUNDRY EVENTS FROM 1851 TO 1855. 149 sengers across the river at Tyler's and Smiley's, the latter being at West Hopkinton. The selectmen were authorized to hire a sum not exceeding $5,000, at 6 per cent., for the purpose of building and repairing bridges in town. A part of this action resulted from the great freshet of the spring of 1852, and which carried off Rowell's bridge and also the bridge on the Henniker -new road, so called, of which we shall say more hereafter. On the 8th day of the next July, the selectmen were in- structed u to build a new wooden covered bridge at Con- toocookville without roof," whatever that may have meant, and sell the work to the lowest bidder. On the 2d day of November, after a comparatively quiet campaign, the people of the town voted at the presidential election. The Democratic electors received 279 votes, the Whig 102, the Freesoil 46. It is thus seen that the Dem- ocratic majority was 131. This large majority resulted from two causes. The Democratic candidate for President was Franklin Pierce, a popular man : again, he was a citizen of New Hampshire. The possibility of having a President of the United States from New Hampshire aroused state pride, and gave Franklin Pierce many a vote he would not other- wise have received. At the same election, the town voted on the expediency of the bill entitled "An act for the suppression of drinking houses and tippling shops " being enacted into a law. The vote stood 29 yeas and 187 nays. The selectmen were authorized to appoint an agent to sell or buy the interest of Amos Frye in the cider-mill on the pauper farm. In 1853, March 9, the town seemed to be a little hilari- ous, it being the second day of the annual meeting, or else there had been an unusual number of marriages during the previous fiscal year. The motion to choose ten hogreeves prevailed, and subsequently a vote to choose ten more was passed. The following twenty hogreeves were chosen : Moses T. Kimball, William R. Chase, Lucius H. Tyler, William Winchester, Melvin Colby, James. H. Emerson, William H. Leslie, George W. Piper, Carlton Weeks, Al- fred N. Chandler, William H. Boutwell, Stephen B. Clarke, Jr., Horatio J. Chandler, Josiah D. Cilley, James Kezar, Samuel A. Hardy, George L. Dow, David Everett, Lozaro Currier, Henry M. Fuller. 150 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. The town voted to raise $2,000 for current expenses, and the selectmen were authorized to borrow $4,000 upon the credit of the town. On the 21st of March, the selectmen were instructed to build a covered bridge across the river at Contoocook, like or similar to the one built at West Hopkinton the year previous, except that it was to be with or without an arch, according to the discretion of the selectmen, and the abut- ments were to be raised sufficiently to allow water to pass in the greatest freshets, and the structure was to be built that season. In 1854, March 14, there was a remarkable contest for representatives to the General Court. Isaac D. Merrill was chosen a representative upon the second ballot. The town then voted ten times for another representative, but with- out a choice, and the contest was abandoned. We shall refer to a cause of this contest in the next chapter. ' In 1855, March 14, the agent of the town pauper farm was requested hereafter to make an annual detailed report of all produce raised, all articles bought and sold, and all receipts and expenditures connected with his agency, said report to be made to the selectmen and published in their annual report. The town auditors were by vote ordered to cause their report of the treasurer's account to be pub- lished with the selectmen's and superintending school-com- mittee's report, this arrangement to obtain until otherwise ordered by the town. The selectmen were authorized to purchase a good fire safe, for the better preservation of the records of the town. CHAPTER XLIII. A POLITICAL CRISIS. The year 1855 witnessed a peculiar crisis in political affairs in Hopkinton. For the first time in the history of the town, two representatives who were not Democrats were elected to the General Court. The town had before experienced ardent contests over the election of its repre- sentatives. It had sometimes failed of an election. Once Mrs Betsey t. Kimball A POLITICAL CRISIS. 151 it sent a Whig to the General Court on a railroad issue. In 1855, from a purely political motive, the town of Hopkin- ton elected two representatives who in no sense owed any- thing to the Democratic party. This was the first severe blow that party ever received in this town. The cause of the defeat of the Democratic party in the contest for representatives to the state legislature was some- what remote. There had been murmurings of a storm in the national Democratic party for years. The fugitive slave law, the Mexican war, and the admission of Texas had all contributed more or less to disaffection in the northern states of the Union. Then the proposition to repeal the Missouri compromise capped the climax, and the crisis had begun. But this was not all of the matter involved in this chapter. The Whig party, too, was in a state that was more than disaffection. The structure of the Whig party began to topple in the days of the administration of John Tyler ; it trembled in 1850, when Daniel Webster made his famous speech that cost him much of his northern pop- ularity ; it tumbled to pieces after the election of Franklin Pierce in 1852. In consequence of the disaffection in the Democratic party and the disintegration of the Whig party, a large mass of voters found themselves politically home- less. Bees driven from their native hive will make an attempt to swarm elsewhere. In like manner, dissatisfied Democrats, stranded Whigs, impatient Freesoilers, impetu- ous temperance men, and nondescript voters rushed for the American party, otherwise the Know-Nothing party, which, while it more or less directly catered to the whims and opinions of the great mass of political wanderers, tried to rally its supporters to the standard bearing the legend, "Americans must rule America." Such was somewhat the condition of things in New Hampshire in 1854. That year, in Hopkinton, Isaac D. Merrill, an unswerving Democrat, was elected representa- tive, as we have before seen, only on the second ballot. In ten ballots more, no Democrat was found equal to the occasion of a majority, though several were tried. Possibly Jonathan Jones might have been elected, but he declined to continue the contest. In 1855, however, the Democratic party in Hopkinton was at sea on the subject of representa- tives. There was an important falling off of the governor's ticket. At the end of the first day of town-meeting, on the 152 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. second ballot, Timothy Colby, Jr., an American, was chosen representative. The town-clerk thus records the result : Isaac D. Merrill had two hundred and forty votes . . 240 Timothy Colby, Jr., had two hundred and fifty-five votes 255 Joseph Stanwood had one vote 1 Ira A. Putney had one vote 1 Cyrus Dustin had one vote 1 The foregoing figurative statement was followed by the usual specification of the terms of the election, and the clerk then recorded the adjournment of the meeting till the next day. It appears that there was an earnest canvass of political forces between the evening of one day and the morning of the next. The Democrats rallied a second time around the standard of Isaac D. Merrill. It was in vain. Paul R. George was the leader of the American forces, and his influence was unconquerable. The town-clerk thus records the ballot of the morning of Wednesday, the second day of town-meeting : Isaac D. Merrill had two hundred and one votes . 201 Paul R. George " two hundred and twenty five " . 225 Cyrus Dustin had eight " . 8 Philip Flanders had one vote . 1 Isaac D. Herreld had one ........." . 1 The same year, the town chose three American selectmen and an American superintending school-committee. The next year, it swung back into the Democratic column. The position, however, was not secure, Out of the political chaos that agglomerated at first in the American party came the Republican party. The struggle continued with wavering results till the town cast a majority of its votes for a Republican candidate for every important office. SUNDRY EVENTS FROM 1856 TO 1861. 153 CHAPTER XLIV. SUNDRY EVENTS FROM 1856 TO 1861. In 1856, March 12, the town voted to use the check-list in balloting for selectmen. The selectmen were authorized to lay out $75 in clearing the town-farm meadow. The presidential campaign of 1856 was peculiarly active and enthusiastic. The Democratic party supported James Buchanan, a man of wide repute as a public official and statesman. The Republican party had come into existence as a national organization, and was both young and vigor- ous. John C. Fremont, its candidate, bore a reputation as an explorer and soldier that awakened great acclamations. The presidential ballot in Hopkinton, on November 4, gave 286 votes to Democratic electors, and 280 to Republican ones. In this ballot we see the evidence of the aggressive energy of the new party that was fast pushing the old one to the wall. In 1857, March 10, the town voted for only two candi- dates for governor of the state. Thus, in state affairs, had the prevailing contest narrowed down to an issue between Democracy and Republicanism. On the next day the town voted to dispense with the check-list in balloting for selectmen. The subject of rebuild- ing Tyler's bridge that season, or of preparing to rebuild it the next season, was referred to the discretion of the select- men, who were authorized to hire a sum of money not ex- ceeding $2,500 for the purpose. The sum of $200 of the principal of the literary fund was ordered to be appropriated for the benefit of district schools the current year. This was the beginning of a practice that in the end appropriated all of the accumulated literary fund. In 1858, March 10, the town voted that when the county of Merrimack began a- suit against the town of Hopkinton, for the support of Benjamin Rowell, confined at the state insane asylum, the selectmen should defend the same. On the 23d of the next September, the selectmen were authorized to build a bridge across the Blackwater river, near the house of Enoch J. Chase, similar in plan and equal in material and workmanship to that over the river at Con- toocook, other minor particulars being described, and they 154 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. were authorized to hire a sum not exceeding 8400 for the purpose. In 1859, March 9, James Hoyt was chosen an agent of the town to defend the suit of the County of Merrimack against the town of Hopkinton for the support of Benjamin Rowell. In this suit the county was defeated. We shall mention Benjamin Rowell more at length hereafter. In 1860, there was a hard struggle for a representative to the General Court. James M. Burnham led the Demo- cratic forces till the second day of the town-meeting, or March 14. Four ballots were cast without a choice, and then the Democrats rallied to Ira A. Putney, who was chosen on the fifth ballot. The Republican candidate was Isaac H. Chandler. John M. Bailey was then chosen a second representative by the Democrats on the first bal- lot. Town-meeting having been adjourned from Wednesday, March 14, to Friday, March 16, it was further adjourned to Saturday, March 17; when, with other business, the town voted to widen on the west side, for the breadth of a rod, the highway from the foot of the hill south of the house of John Foss to the house of Moses Hoyt, 2d. This act was in view of the frequent accumulations of snow in this sec- tion of road in winters. On the 19th day of June, a town-meeting was held to consider what action ought to be taken in view of the pos- sible local prevalence of the cattle disease known as pleuro- pneumonia, which was prevailing in other parts of the state, particularly in Hillsborough. The selectmen were author- ized to enforce any law that the legislature passed in rela- tion to the disease, and, in view of the danger of cattle run- ning at large, the same officers were requested to put in force the by-laws of the town in relation to the subject of such cattle. The concern for pleuro-pneumonia proved to be only an alarm, for there was no case reported in the town, as we believe. The presidential election on the the 6th of November was somewhat notable in its result. The Republican ticket carried the day by one majority. The long Demo- cratic ascendancy in presidential matters was broken. Yet the Democratic party was divided into the Douglas and the Breckinridge factions. The vote stood thus : Lincoln elec- tors, 253 ; Douglas, 169 ; Breckinridge, 83. I^p-r&^k^-^ THE GREAT REBELLION. 155 In 1861, March 12, the town voted once for a represent- ative without a choice. The next day, four ballots were cast without a choice, and the contest was abandoned. The leading Democratic candidate was Ira A. Putney ; the Republican, Warren M. Kempton. The state of the politi- cal atmosphere was clouded by secession, and the Demo- crats could not rally their forces to the standard of one candidate. The meeting was adjourned to Thursday, and again to Friday, 15th, when the routine of the annual town business was completed. On Friday, the surveyors of highways were required to return their warrants to the selectmen on or before the 1st day of July, with their doings inscribed thereon, on the year after the expiration of their office. The old surveyors were required to return their warrants to those then in office, and who were to return them to the selectmen. The town voted to dispense with the liquor agent. The selectmen were authorized to consult with the citizens and make such improvements upon the town hall as they thought proper, and build a suitable desk for the use of the town. The intelligent reader is already aware that the year 1861 ushered in a series of martial events that made a prominent chapter in the history of our country. The part Hopkinton bore in these events will form the subject of our next chapter. CHAPTER XLV. THE GREAT REBELLION. The civil war of 1861 found the citizens of this town in a state of mind common to a large part of our county's population. So long a time had passed since the people of our town had taken any active interest in war, the ex- perience had become regarded as a comparative impossi- bility, as it had been conceived that the threatened contest, if occurring, would be of the shortest possible duration. However, when, on the 12th of April, the bombardment of Fort Sumter made the issue of war inevitable, the ardor of our populace became deeply aroused. Bells were rung, 156 LITE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. flags suspended, processions formed, and speeches made. One evening, soon after the fall of Sumter, an effigy of Jefferson Davis was hung and burned in the village square. At or about the same time, a procession, headed by the Hopkinton cornet band, marched through the principal streets of the village, halting at the residences or business places of prominent citizens, who made brief patriotic ad- dresses. Capt. Herman H. Green, Judge Horace Chase, Prof. Dyer H. Sanborn, and Rev. Edwin W. Cook thus spoke to the people, who vociferously applauded every specially patriotic utterance. The next Sunday, in the afternoon, the Rev. Mr. Cook, of the Congregational church, preached a sermon upon the issues of the day. The call of the President of the United States, issued on the 15th of the month, asking for an army of 75,000 volunteers, confirmed the patriotism of many of our young men, and they soon began to enlist into the ranks. The first man enlisted in the town was James B. Silver ; he was enlisted in Dea. Nathaniel Evan's store, where Charles French now trades, by Joab N. Patterson, of Contoocook, who had himself recently enlisted and taken out authori- tative papers as a recruiting officer. Other parties from this town had enlisted in Concord. Patterson enlisted a considerable number of men, who made a rendezvous at Contoocook, till they were ordered to the camp of the Second Regiment of New Hampshire Volunteers, at Ports- mouth. On the day of their departure, they were escorted through the main street of the village by the Hopkinton cornet band, which also accompanied them to Portsmouth. A large number of people witnessed their departure with evident grief for the occasion and the absence. During the progress of the war, Hopkinton did its part in maintaining the cause of the Union. Subsequent to the beginning of hostilities, one of its first public acts was to adopt the state law, passed June session of the legislature of 1861, authorizing the towns to provide assistance for the families of volunteers; — this was done on the 29th of October. The summer of 1862 witnessed a new impetus in local military affairs. On the 4th of August of that year the President issued a call for 300,000 men for a service of nine months. Under two calls of July 1861, and July, 1862, the government had already made demands for 600,000 men THE GREAT REBELLION. 157 for three years. Impelled by these calls, at a public meet- ing held on the 26th of August, 1862, the town voted to pay #150 each to all soldiers who had enlisted for the war since the last call for troops ; to all who, subsequently to the first of August, had enlisted to fill up the same, $200 each ; to all who would enlist for nine months, $75 each ; and to all who would from that day enlist for three years, or during the war, $200 each. The same day a vote was passed to assist the families of soldiers to an extent not exceeding twelve dollars a week, a sum equivalent to four dollars for a wife and the same amount to each of not more than two children. Soon after, Patriek H. Stark and Daniel E. Howard were made enlisting officers. On the 2d of October of the same year, another vote was passed, giving $150 to each man enlisting for nine months, or $200 each if the entire quota was filled. The year 1864 was one of great military activity in the United States. The resolution to maintain the integrity of the Union became as determined as the urgency of the situation was great. On the 1st of February of that year, a call was issued for 500,000 men for three years, a part of whom were to be credited to a draft, which was ordered under a call of the 17th of October, 1863, for 300,000 men, and which draft was not completed, owing to a defect in the law under which it was made. The call of February 1, therefore, formed a total of all calls after the vear 1862. On the 14th of March, 1864, an additional call for 200,000 men was issued, to be succeeded by a call for 500,000 on the 18th of July, and by another and a last one for 300,000 men on the 19th of December of the same year. The urgency of the national situation during the memor- able year of 1864 induced a spirited activity among the people of New Hampshire. Such words as were uttered by Governor Gilmore in his proclamation of the 16th of July fully awakened the people of the different towns to a practical comprehension of the situation. " Our quota," said the governor, "is to be filled by volunteering, if we can, — by drafting, if we must." In view of the existing crisis, the town of Hopkinton took formal action on the 4th of June, voting to raise $40,000 for the encouragemeut of voluntary enlistments, and also to pay $300 each to drafted men or their substitutes. On the 8th of November, the town voted to authorize the selectmen to enlist or 158 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. otherwise procure soldiers in anticipation of- any call, this being the last public action in relation to providing means for paying soldiers during the war, which closed in 1865. The liberality of the town is established by the fact that the amount of money authorized to be appropriated for the uses of this war, exclusive of sums paid to soldier's families, amounted to $102,540. The responses to the appeals of the town for volunteers were fully as ready and prompt as could be expected in a town of the same population and character. Only a few men were drafted into the army of the United States. We think, also, that none of our people were compelled by the draft to take a position in the ranks of war. Of those entering the army many returned, but, also, many died. Some of the bodies of the dead were brought home and interred, but others sleep in distant or unknown grounds. The memor3 r of the dead is cherished in the hearts of a grateful people. The report of the adjutant-general of New Hampshire for 1865, Vol. II, thus states the summary of our war record : Enrolment, April 30, 1865, 180 ; total of quota under all calls from July, 1863, 86 ; total credits by enlist- ments or drafts, 115 ; surplus, 29. The following is a list of soldiers, apparently actual resi- dents of Hopkinton, who served in the war of 1861 in New Hampshire troops : SECOND KEGIMENT OF INFANTRY. FIELD AND STAFF. Joab N. Patterson, Lieutenant-Colonel, commissioned, June 21, 1864 ; promoted to Colonel, January 10, 1865 ; appointed Brevet Brigadier-General, U. S. Volunteers, March 13, 1865 ; mustered out as Colonel, December 19, 1865. LINE OFFICERS. Company B. Frank W. Morgan, First Lieutenant, commissioned, June 24, 1864 ; promoted to Captain, April 1, 1865 ; see infra. Charles Holmes, Second Lieutenant, commissioned, July 1, 1861 ; promoted to Captain, 17th U. S. Infantry, November 11th, 1861 ; see infra. THE GREAT REBELLION. 159 Company C. Samuel F. Patterson, First Lieutenant, commissioned, September 1, 1865 ; mustered out, December 19, 1865 ; see infra. "William Montgomery, Second Lieutenant, commissioned, June 18, 1863 ; transferred to Company H ; see infra. Company E. Charles W. Dimond, Second Lieutenant, commissioned, October 17, 1865 ; mustered out, December, 19, 1865 ; see infra. Company F. Frank W. Morgan, Captain, commissioned, April 1, 1865 ; mustered out, December 19, 1865 ; see supra. Company H. Joab N. Patterson, First Lieutenant, commissioned, June 4, 1861 ; promoted to Captain, May 23, 1862 ; wounded at Gettysburg, July 3, 1863 ; promoted to Lieutenant-Colonel, June 21, 1864 ; see supra. William Montgomery, Second Lieutenant, transferred from Com- pany C ; mustered out, June 21, 1864 ; see supra. Non-Commissioned Staff. Charles W. Dimond, Commissary-Sergeant, appointed, June 10, 1865 ; promoted to Second Lieutenant, October 17, 1865 ; see supra. Non-Commissioned Officers and Pricates. E. "Western Boutwell, Company B, mustered in August 9, 1862 ; discharged for disability, at Concord, March 29, 1863. Proctor Collins, Company H, mustered in, June 5, 1861 ; mus- tered out, June 21, 1864. Hiram Cutler, Company B, mustered in, September 17, 1861 ; discharged on account of wounds, December 14, 1862. Johnson N. Danforth, Company B, mustered in, September 17, 1861 ; wounded, August 29, 1862 ; died of wounds, October 4, 1862. John Danforth, Company B, mustered in, August 9, 1862 ; wounded severely and missing, July 2, 1863 ; gained from miss- ing ; mustered out, June 7, 1865. Charles H. Danforth, Company B, mustered in, August 9, 1862 ; mustered out, June 6, 1865. John S. Daniels, Company B, mustered in, August 9, 1862 » wounded, June 3, 1864 ; mustered out, May 17, 1865.- 160 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. Charles W. Dimond, Company C, mustered in, January 27, 1864 ; promoted to Commissary-Sergeant, June 10, 1865 ; see supra. Levi W. Dimond, Company H, mustered in, September 2, 1862 ; mustered out, June 9, 1865. Joshua Downing, Company H, mustered in, June 5, 1861 ; dis- charged for disability, August 1, 1861. James Foster, Company H, mustered in, August 12, 1862 ; died of disease at Falmouth, Va., January 26, 1863. William H. Foster, Company H, mustered in, June 5, 1861 ; died at Hopkinton, April 11, 1864. William H. Goodrich, Company H, mustered in, June 5, 1861 ; discharged for disability, August 1, 1861. Alfred S. Hastings, Company B, mustered in, June 1, 1861 ; missing, July 2, 1863 ; gained from missing ; mustered out, June 21, 1864. Charles Holmes, Company B, First Sergeant, mustered in, June 1, 1861 ; promoted to Second Lieutenant, July 1, 1861 ; see supra. Francis S. Hoyt, Company B, mustered in, August 12, 1862 ; captured, July 2, 1863 ; died in the hands of the enemy, November 5, 1864. Burleigh K. Jones, Company B, mustered in, September 20, 1861 ; died of wounds, June 25, 1862. Luther D. Jones, Company B, mustered in, September 1, 1861 ; mustered out, August 24, 1864. Willard H. Kempton, Company B, mustered in, August 11, 1862 ; wounded, June 3, 1864 ; promoted to Corporal, July 1, 1864 ; mustered out, June 9, 1865. Charles A. Milton, Company B, Sergeant, mustered in, June 1, 1861 ; appointed a Medical Cadet, October 1, 1861 ; died May, 1862, at Mound City, 111. William Montgomery, Company H, Corporal, mustered in, June 5, 1861 ; promoted First Sergeant ; wounded severely, July 2, 1863 ; promoted Second Lieutenant, June 18, 1863 ; see supra. Timothy G. Moores, Company B, mustered in, August 9, 1862 ; discharged for disability, March 14, 1863. Frank W. Morgan, Company B, mustered in, September 20, 1861 ; promoted to Corporal, August 9, 1862 ; promoted to Ser- geant, July 1, 1863 ; reenlisted, January 1, 1864 ; see supra. Frederick H. Nichols, Company B, mustered in, Sept. 20, 1861 ; wounded slightly, July 2, 1863 ; mustered out, August 24, 1864. Lucius P. Noyes, Company B, mustered in, September 17, 1861 ; missing, July 2, 1863 ; promoted to Corporal, July 1, 1864 ; promoted to Sergeant, August, 1864; mustered out, September, 16,1864. THE GREAT REBELLION. 161 William A. Patterson, Company B, mustered in, August 9, 1862 ;' promoted to Corporal, July 1, 1864 ; mustered out, June 7, 1865. Samuel F. Patterson, Company B, mustered in, September I7 y 1861 ; mustered out, September 17, 1864 ; commissioned First Lieutenant of Company C ; see supra. Thomas W. Piper, Company B, mustered in, September 17, 1861 ; promoted to Sergeant ; died of wounds, August 19, 1864. John C. Rand, Company B, mustered in, August 11, 1862 ; killed at Bull Run, Va., August 29, 1862. Lewis N. Relation, Company C, mustered in, June 1, 1861 ; died of wounds, July 26, 1861. Martin P. Rowell, Company E, mustered in June 3, 1861 ; dis- charged for disability, August 2, 1861. Abram M. Rowell, Company E, mustered in, June 3, 1861 ; reenlisted, January 1, 1864 ; discharged at Frederick sburg, Va., December 4, 1865. Jolin G. Rowell, Company G, wagoner. Adoniram J. Sawyer, Company H, mustered in, June 5, 1861 ; promoted to Corporal, January 1, 1864 ; mustered out, June 21, 1864. James B. Silver, Company H, Corporal, mustered in, June 5, 1861 ; discharged for disability, November 19, 1863. George H. Straw, Company H, mustered in, June 5, 1861 ; missing, July 2, 1863 ; mustered out, June 21, 1864. Henry C. Tyler, Company B, mustered in, September 17, 1861 ; discharged for disability at Concord, July 9, 1863 ; reenlisted, January 1, 1864 ; promoted to Corporal, January 1, 1864 ; pro- moted to Sergeant, July 10, 1864 ; promoted to First Sergeant, December 10, 1864 ; promoted to First Lieutenant, November 1, 1865 ; mustered out as First Sergeant, December 19, 1865. Moses C. Tyler, Company B, mustered in, September 17, 1861 ; discharged, July 9, 1863. Richard A. Walker, Company E, mustered in, June 3, 1861 ; wounded, May 5, 1862 ; died of wounds, July 20, 1862. SIXTH REGIMENT OF INFANTRY. PRIVATES. James M. Hook, Company I, mustered in, November 28, 1861 ; discharged for disability at Newport News, Va., September 23, 1862. 11 162 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. Charles H. Smart, Company I, mustered in, November 28, 1861 ; reenlisted, December 19, 1853 ; wounded, May 12, 1864 ; pro- moted to Corporal ; promoted to Sergeant, July 1, 1865 ; mustered out, July 17, 1865. SEVENTH REGIMENT OF INFANTRY. LINE OFFICERS. Company D. James M. Chase, Captain, commissioned, November 6, 1861 ; wounded slightly, February 20, 1864 ; mustered out, December 22, 1864. Grovenor A. Curtice, Captain, commissioned, December 22,1864; mustered out, July 20, 1865 ; see infra. Non-Commissioned Officers and Privates. Herman Burt, Company D, mustered in, November 6, 1861 ; discharged for disability, July 17, 1862. Lucius H. Chandler, Company E, mustered in, November 7, 1861 ; reenlisted, February 28, 1864 ; died of disease at Hopkin- ton, April 19, 1864. Grovenor A. Curtice, Company D, mustered in, August 21,1862 ; promoted to First Sergeant ; promoted to Captain, December 22, 1864 ; see supra. Charles B. Danf orth, Company D, mustered in, August 21, 1862 ; wounded and captured, Olustee, Fla., February 20, 1864 ; exchanged, May, 1865 ; discharged at Goldsborough, N. C, July 20, 1865. Gilbert F. Dustin, Company D, mustered in, November 6, 1861 ; promoted to First Sergeant, November 6, 1861 ; missing at Fort Wagner, S. C, July 18, 1863. Jonas Foster, Company E, Corporal, mustered in, November 7, 1861 ; promoted to Sergeant, June 5, 1864 ; reduced to ranks ; pro- moted to Sergeant, August 1, 1864 ; mustered out, December 22, 1864. Thomas B. Heath, Company H, mustered in, September 10, 1862 ; promoted to Corporal ; reduced to ranks ; mustered out, June 26, 1865. Warren E. Kimball, Company E, mustered in, August 21, 1862 ; wounded and captured at Fort Wagner, S. C, July 18, 1863 ; died at Charleston, S.C., July 22, 1863. Warren Lewis, Company H, mustered in, August 30, 1862 ; transferred to Veteran Reserve Corps, March 29, 1864 ; discharged at Hilton Head, S. C, September 10, 1864. THE GREAT REBELLION. 163 Edmund D. Lewis, Company E, mustered in, November 7, 1861 killed at Morris Island, S. C, July 28, 1863. Joseph C. Lewis, Company H, mustered in, August 30, 1862 mustered out, June 26, 1865. Warren F. Locke, Company D, mustered in, August 21, 1862 promoted to Corporal ; promoted to Sergeant, May 1, 1865 ; muster ed out, June 26, 1865. Charles A. Morrill, Company E, mustered in, August 21, 1862 mustered out, June 26, 1865. Joseph C. Relation, Company H, mustered in, August 30, 1862 died of wounds, August 6, 1863. Onville Upton, Company D, mustered in, November 6, 1861 promoted to Corporal, June 2, 1863 ; wounded, May 10, 1864 mustered out, December 22, 1864. EIGHTH REGIMENT OF INFANTRY. Field and Staff Officers. Charles A. Moulton, Assistant-Surgeon, commissioned, September 7, 1863 ; promoted to Surgeon, November 25, 1863 ; died at St. James Hospital, New Orleans, La., September 24, 1864. NINTH REGIMENT OF INFANTRY. Privates. Martin T. Crowell, Company B, mustered in, July 18, 1862 mustered out, June 10, 1865. Francis R. Moore, Company B, mustered in, July 12, 1862 mustered out, June 10, 1865. Alonzo Rowell, Company B, mustered in, July 12, 1862 mustered out, June 10, 1865. ELEVENTH REGIMENT OF INFANTRY. Privates. William H. Raymond, Company D, mustered in, August 29, 1862 ; discharged for disability, March 30, 1863. George L. Raymond, Company D, mustered in, August 29, 1862 ; wounded, December 13, 1862 ; wounded severely, May 12, 1864 ; died of wounds, May 18, 1864. 164 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. THIRTEENTH REGIMENT OF INFANTRY. Privates. George W. Nichols, Company C, mustered in, September 19, 1862 ; discharged near Portsmouth, Va., October 18, 1863. FOURTEENTH REGIMENT OF INFANTRY. LINE OFFICERS. Company A. George F. Blanchard, Captain, commissioned, November 22, 1864 ; mustered out, July 8, 1865 ; see infra. Company C. George F. Blanchard, Second Lieutenant, commissioned, Septem- ber 22, 1863 ; promoted to First Lieutenant, February 19, 1864 ; see supra. Non-Commissioned Officers and Privates. George M. Barnard, Company H, mustered in, September 24, 1862 ; promoted to Corporal, January 20, 1864 ; wounded slightly, September 19, 1864 ; promoted to Sergeant, October 1, 1864 ; mustered out, July 8, 1865. George F. Blanchard, Company H, Sergeant, mustered in, Sep- tember 24, 1862 ; see supra. Henry H. Blanchard, Company H, mustered in, September 24, 1862 ; mustered out, July 8, 1865. Samuel G. Bradbury, Company H, mustered in, September 24, 1862 ; discharged for disability at Portsmouth Grove, R. I., October 12, 1863. George O. Colby, Company H, mustered in, September 24, 1862 mustered out, June 24, 1865. Daniel Downing, Company H, mustered in, October 14, 1862 died of disease at Baltimore, Md., February 6, 1865. Moses K. Eaton, Company H, mustered in, September 24, 1862 died of disease at Washington, D. C, September 21, 1863. Arthur T. Goodrich, Company H, Corporal, mustered in, Sep- tember 24, 1862 ; died at Washington, D. C, September 12, 1863. David Harrington, Company H, mustered in, September 24, 1862 ; died of disease at Poolsville, Md., February 23, 1863. Hiram Nichols, Company H, mustered in, September 24, 1862 ; died at Washington, D. C, January 9, 1864. Marsell Sourell, Company C, mustered in, September 22, 1862 ; deserted at Poolsville, Md., February 3, 1863. THE GREAT REBELLION. 165 SIXTEENTH REGIMENT OF INFANTRY. LINE OFFICERS. Company D. Daniel E. Howard, Captain, commissioned, November 4, 1862 ; mustered out, August 20, 1863. Nonr Commissioned Officers and Privates. Charles Ash, Company D, mustered in, October 24, 1862 ; died at New Orleans, La., February 15, 1863. Augustus Barnard, Company D, Sergeant, mustered in, October 24, 1862 ; mustered out, August 20, 1863. Otis M. Brown, Company D, Musician, mustered in, October 24 1862 ; mustered out, August 20, 1863. Orrin Chase, Company D, mustered in, October 24, 1862 mustered out, August 20, 1863. George E. Crowell, Company D, mustered in, October 24, 1862 mustered out, August 20, 1863. George A. Currier, Company D, mustered in, October 24, 1862 mustered out, August 20, 1863. Ira K. Dimond, Company D, mustered in, October 24, 1862 mustered out, August 20, 1863. Eben H. Dustin, Company D, mustered in, October, 24, 1862 died at Baton Rouge, La., May 6, 1863. Hanson D. Emerson, Company D, mustered in, October 24, 1862 mustered out, August 20, 1863. Byron E. Kempton, Company D, mustered in, October 24, 1862 discharged for disability at Concord, April 22, 1863. Thomas Kenniston, Company D, Corporal, mustered in, October 24. 1862 ; mustered out, August 20, 1863. Charles N. Kezar, Company D, mustered in, October 24, 1862 ; mustered out, August 20, 1863. Newton G. McAlpine, Company D, Wagoner, mustered in, October 24, 1862 ; mustered out, August 20, 1863. George McKensie, Company D, mustered in, October 24, 1862 ; mustered out, August 20, 1863. George W. Mills, Company D, Corporal, mustered in, October 24, 1862 ; mustered out, August 20, 1863. James F. Mills, Company D, mustered in, October 24, 1862 ; deserted at Concord, November 20, 1862 ; apprehended ; transferred to Company D, Fourteenth Regiment, N. H. V. ; died at Natchez, Miss., January 29, 1864. 166 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. Jacob M. Morrill, Company D, mustered in, October 24, 1862 mustered out, August 20, 1863. Henry E. Moulton, Company D, mustered in, October 24, 1862 died of disease at Butte de la Rose, La., May 14, 1863. Edward G. Runnels, Company D, mustered in, October 24, 1862 mustered out, August 20, 1863. Horace Smart, Company E, mustered in, October 23, 1862 mustered out, August 20, 1863. George W. Smart, Company E, mustered in, November 21, 1862 mustered out, August 20, 1863. Brackett B. Weeks, Company D, mustered in, October 24, 1862 died at New Orleans, La., June 10, 1863. William H. Weeks, Company D, mustered in, October 24, 1862 mustered out, August 20, 1863. N. Cogswell Weeks, Company D, mustered in, October 24, 1862 mustered out, August 20, 1863. Jacob Whittier, Company D, musician, mustered in, October 24, 1862 ; died at Hopkinton, August 18, 1863. EIGHTEENTH REGIMENT OF INFANTRY. LINE OFFICERS. Company G. Clarion H. Kimball, First Lieutenant, commissioned, January 24, 1865 ; promoted to Captain, July 29, 1865 ; not mustered ; mus- tered out as First Lieutenant, July 29, 1865. Non-Commissioned Officers and Privates. David M. Chase, Company E, mustered in, September 26, 1864 ; mustered out, June 10, 1865. Edward F. Chase, Company B, mustered in, September 13, 1864 ; promoted to Corporal, January 1, 1865 ; mustered out, June 10, 1865. Hiram Cutler, Company A, Corporal, mustered in, September 13, 1864 ; mustered out, June 10, 1865. Charles E. Harrington, Company A, Corporal, mustered in, September 13, 1864 ; promoted to Sergeant; mustered out, June 10, 1865. Timothy G. Moores, Company H, Corporal, mustered in, February 21, 1865 ; mustered out, July 29, 1865. John F. Mudgett, Company D, mustered in, September 14, 1864 ; mustered out, June 10, 1865. THE GREAT REBELLION. 167 Frank Stevens, Company B, mustered in, September 14, 1864 ; mustered out, June 10, 1865. Moses C. Tyler, Company B, Corporal, mustered in, September 13, 1864 : reduced to ranks, November 22, 1864 ; mustered out, June 10, 1865. Edson Upton, Company D, mustered in, September 19, 1864 ; mustered out, June 10, 1865. FIRST REGIMENT OF CAVALRY. Privates. Alonzo Burbank, Troop L, mustered in, January 18, 1862 promoted to Corporal ; mustered out, January 19, 1865. William H. Downing, Troop L, mustered in, February 8, 1864 mustered out, July 15, 1865. John H. Kimball, Troop G, mustered in, August 16, 1864 mustered out, June 5, 1865. Byron E. Kempton, Troop G, mustered in, August 16, 1864 mustered out, June 5, 1865. FIRST REGIMENT HEAVY ARTILLERY. Non-Commissioned Officers and Privates. Samuel E. Crowell, Company L, mustered in, October 4, 1864 ; transferred to Company A, June 10, 1865 ; mustered out, Septem- ber 11, 1865. Hanson D. Emerson, Company E, Corporal, mustered in, Sep- tember 5, 1864 ; reduced to ranks, January 31, 1865 ; promoted to Corporal, March 1, 1865 : mustered out, June 15, 1865. George W. Mills, Company E, mustered in, September 5, 1864 mustered out, June 15, 1865. Joseph P. Morrill, Company B, mustered in, August 20, 1863 mustered out, September 11, 1865. Adoniram J. Sawyer, Company K, mustered in, September 17 1864 ; mustered out, June 15, 1865. Frederick P. Scott, Company E, mustered in, September 5, 1864 mustered out, June 15, 1865. Horace Smart, Company E, mustered in, September 5, 1864 mustered out, June 15, 1865. William S. Smart, Company E, mustered in, September 5, 1864 mustered out, June 15, 1865. 168 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. George H. Straw, Company I, Corporal, mustered in, September 7, 1864 ; reduced to ranks, October 5, 1864 ; mustered out, June 6, 1865. Barlow Upton, Company G, mustered in, August 31, 1864 ; transferred to Company E ; mustered out, June 15, 1865. George N. Watkins, Company E, Sergeant, mustered in, Septem- ber 5, 1864 ; mustered out, June 15, 1865. FIRST REGIMENT OF U. S. SHARPSHOOTERS. COMPANY E (ORGANIZED IN NEW HAMPSHIRE.) Private. George N. Watkins, mustered in, September 9, 1861 ; discharged for disability, August 9, 1862. SECOND REGIMENT OF U. S. SHARPSHOOTERS. COMPANIES F AND G (ORGANIZED IN NEW HAMPSHIRE.) Non-Commissioned Officers and Privates. Henry H. Crowell, Company G, mustered in, August 27, 1862 ; transferred to Company H, 5th N. H. V., January 30, 1865 ; mustered out, June 6, 1865. Gilman K. Crowell, Company E, mustered in, August 28, 1862 ; promoted to Corporal, March 1, 1864 ; wounded slightly, May 6, 1864 ; transferred to Company K ; discharged, October 9, 1864, near Petersburg, Va. Lewis E. Crowell, Company E, mustered in, August 28, 1862 ; killed in action, near Spottsylvania, Va., May 12, 1864. William H. Goodrich, Company F, mustered in, November 26, 1861 ; reenlisted, December 21, 1863 : transferred to Company H, 5th N. H. V., January 30, 1865 ; absent, June 28, 1865 ; no dis- charge furnished. Clarion H. Kimball, Company E, mustered in, August 27, 1862 ; promoted to Corporal; discharged to accept promotion, October 16, 1864. See 18th Regiment, Company G. Joseph P. Law, Company G, mustered in, December 12, 1861 mustered out, December 12, 1864. Joseph Mills, Company F, mustered in, November 26, 1861 discharged for disability, March 24, 1862. Alfred A. Rollins, Company E, mustered in, August 30, 1862 wounded severely, May 3, 1863 ; transferred to V. R. C, October 17, 1864 ; mustered out, June 29, 1865. SUNDRY EVENTS FROM 1862 TO 1872. 169 Joseph S. Thompson, Company F, mustered in, November 26, 1861 ; promoted to Corporal ; reenlisted, December 21, 1863 ; wounded, June 5, 1864 ; transferred to Company K, 5th N. H. V., January 30, 1865 ; transferred to Company F ; mustered out, July 8, 1865. Charles F. Whittier, Company F, mustered in, November 26, 1861 ; died, December 31, 1861. The following soldiers of this town were in the troops of other states : Fifth Maine Infantry. Frederick G. Sanborn. Fifth Massachusetts Infantry. Horatio E. Clough. Eleventh Massachusetts Infantry. Jonathan G. Emerson. Twenty-fourth Massachusetts Infantry. Edgar Clough. Second Massachusetts Light Battery. Ezra Folsom. One hundred and forty-second Illinois Infantry. Joseph B. Dustin. In the foregoing list of soldiers, no account is made of non-resident substitutes. The data of soldiers in New Hampshire regiments, or United States troops recruited in this state, are mainly derived from the reports of the Adjutant-General of New Hampshire. CHAPTER XLVI. SUNDRY EVENTS FROM 1862 TO 1872. In 1862, March 12, the town voted to adopt the provi- sions of chapter 2494 of the Pamphlet Laws of the state in reference to vaccination. The implied law was ■ approved July 3, 1861 ; it related to the exclusion of children who had not been vaccinated, or who had never had the small- pox, from the public schools. On the 14th day of the next May, the town voted to build a wooden bridge, on stone abutments, over the Con- toocook river, on the new road to Henniker, and the select- men were instructed to decide upon the plan of the bridge and receive proposals for building it. They were also em- powered to hire a sum of money not exceeding $2,500 for the purpose. This bridge was to be in place of a stone bridge carried away by a freshet in the spring of 1852. The 170 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. town at first refused to replace the stone bridge, on the plea of insufficient travel ; but a suit being instituted in Hen- niker, the court ordered a new bridge. In 1863, March 11, the town voted to raise $3,000 for defraying town charges and expenses for the ensuing year. This and other increased sums for the same purpose resulted from the existence of the war of 1861. On the subject of instructing the representatives at the General Court to oppose the purchase of a county farm, the town voted affirmatively. The sense of the voters on the subject of purchasing such a farm was taken. The yeas were 4 ; the nays, 163. In 1864, March 9, the town voted to adopt the provi- sions of chapter 2721 of the Pamphlet Laws relating to school text-books. This act provided that all books then in use should continue in use three years, and all new books introduced should be in use three years after their introduction, unless the town voted otherwise. Any super- intending school-committee violating this act should forfeit $10 for the use of the schools, and any legal voter could complain of a violation. The town voted to dispense with a liquor agent. In 1865, March 15, the town voted to raise $8,000 for town charges and expenses. On the same day, the town voted that the selectmen, as agents of the town, should examine the title of a piece of land, offered by David B. Story and Franklin D. Frost, for a burying-yard, and if found good, to purchase the lot at a cost of $300, the tract containing about 10 acres. * This was in pursuance of a recommendation of a committee of the town chosen on the 8th day of the previous November, and consisting • of Horace Chase, Samuel S. Page, and John S. Kimball. By vote of the town, the moderator appointed a committee of five to lay out the lots and avenues of the new cemetery. The committee were Horace Chase, John S. Kimball, Elmer B. Dunbar, Isaac Story, and Isaac H. Chandler. These acts relate to the cemetery east of Hop- kinton village. The .town voted not to purchase a county poor-farm. In 1866, March 14, the town voted to raise $5,500 for town charges and expenses. The selectmen were authorized to build a fence around the new cemetery near Hopkinton village, or rather such a SUNDRY EVENTS FROM 1862 TO 1872. 171 part as they thought necessary, and as near the plan received of Horace Chase as they thought best. In 1867, March 13, the town authorized the selectmen to take lumber from the town farm to fence the new burying- yard. Upon the subject of abolishing pauper settlements in town, the vote stood — 14 ayes, 239 nays. On the 7th of the following August, the town voted to compensate those, or their heirs, who enlisted in the late war under the expectation of bounties implied by the act of the town on the 26th of August, 1862, and who had not been paid. The sum of $4,000 for the proposed object was appropriated, the selectmen being authorized to hire the same. In 1869, March 11, the selectmen were instructed to appoint a liquor agent. They were also directed to procure two more ballot-boxes, so that state and county officers, representatives to the General Court, and selectmen could all be voted for at one act of balloting. On the 9th of the next November, the town voted upon the proposition to establish a state police, according to an act of the General Court of July 8 of the same year. The vote stood — yea, 30; no, 69. In 1870, March 9, the town raised $5,000 for current ex- penses ; voted to dispense with a liquor agent ; to find its debt in 5 — 20 bonds, to an amount not exceeding $25,000, said bonds to be of denominations not less than $100 and not exceeding $1,000, at a rate not exceeding 6 per cent, in gold semi-annually, the interest to be paid at the office of the town treasurer. John F. Jones, Josiah B. Richardson, and James M. Connor were chosen commissioners to prepare, negotiate, and sell said bonds. The town also pledged itself to pay them. In 1871, March 14, the town voted upon the proposition to sell its town farm. The vote stood — 75 in favor of, and 98 against, the proposition. In 1872, March 12, the annual town-meeting assembled, but owing to defects in the notice, adjournment was taken after voting for state and county officers, and for represent- atives. A subsequent meeting was called for the 28th of March, when the town voted that the selectmen appoint a committee of three to dispose of the town farm, out lands, and personal property, with power to sell and convey the same. The town also voted to raise and appropriate $200 172 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. above what the law required for the support of common schools. Subsequently to the transactions of the annual business of the town, the selectmen appointed Isaac Story, Joseph Barnard, and Ebenezer Flanders a committee to sell the town farm, out lands, and other property implied in the existence of the town pauper establishment. CHAPTER XLVII. A NEW TOWN-HOUSE. On the early morning of the 29th of March, 1873, a con- flagration destroyed the Hopkinton town-house; including the apartments of Hopkinton academy in the upper story. The flame was first discovered in the middle, rear portion of the second story, and there being no adequate provision for the extinguishing of such a fire, the building was con- sumed. The cause of the fire is to this day unknown. At the time of the destruction of the town-house, there were suspicions of incendiarism and ascriptions to accident, but nothing certain was ever established. The loss of the town- house, however, aroused an unfortunate controversy. The town having two villages, there was a disposition on the part of some of our citizens to contest the location of the new town-house. Consequently, there was considerable difficul- ty in securing an agreement to build the needed edifice. On the 22d of April, 1873, a town-meeting was held on the site of the burned town-house, to ascertain the mind of the legal voters in regard to the formulated proposition to re- build. Local excitement ran high, and there was much discussion of the question, a party favoring the commit- ment of the whole subject. A number of citizens, led by Col. E. C. Bailey, of Contoocook, desired to prevent the erection of a new house on the old spot, or to secure two town buildings, one in each section of the township. How- ever, when it was shown, by a copy of the legal instrument rendered by Benjamin Wiggin, that there was a reversion of the property used as a site of the court-house unless the same was perpetually devoted to public uses, the tide of m GO 3 w o w o A NEW TOWN-HOUSE. 173 opinion was turned in favor of rebuilding on the old spot. The town voted to appropriate 13,000 for the erection of a new town-house, and the three selectmen — John F. Burn- ham, Horace F. Edmunds, and Thomas B. Richardson — and Isaac Story were made a building committee. The local controversy refused to be quelled so easily. A second town-meeting was called in Contoocook on the 13th of May. The most important business done at this meet- ing was to reduce the building fund of the town-house to $2,500 instead of 13,000, and to place James M. Connor upon the building committee. This action, however, had but little weight, since the right to hold a town-meeting at any other place than the site of the town-house was ques- tioned, and no means had been provided for raising the building fund. A difficulty also arose from the fact that the people of the southern section of the town desired to place a second story upon the new building, for the accom- modation of a hall for general public uses, and private sub- scriptions were pledged for the extra constructive expenses. Several legal points being involved, a third town-meeting was called on the old site of the town-house on the 21st of June. It was voted at this meeting to instruct the select- men to borrow $2,500 to be used in the construction of a new town-house, and to pay the interest and one fifth of the principal annually till the whole debt was cancelled. The building committee was instructed to erect a house with two stories, with internal arrangements suitable for the general uses of the inhabitants of the town, and to en- ter upon the work immediately. On the 2d of July, Messrs. Burnham and Richardson re- signed their positions on the building committee, but the preliminary advance of the work was not hindered by their resignations. Soon, according to accepted proposals, the work of erection began. The foundation stones were bought in Henniker, and drawn by our own citizens. John W. Page had the lumber contract; Isaac K. Connor, of Warner, the carpenter work ; Henry Foster, of Weare, the mason work ; Melvin Colby, the painting. On the 11th of October, an attempt was made to secure an injunction of the proceedings. A petition signed by James Hoyt and four others set forth the opinion that the action of erection was illegal, on the ground that to satisfy all demands of the law the building committee should act 174 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. in entirety. Messrs. Burnham and Richardson having re- signed, the implied necessity failed to exist. A bill of equity was framed, and application made to Chief-Justice Jonathan E. Sargent to grant a temporary injunction, con- straining the acting members of the building committee from proceeding with the work of erection. Upon the hear- ing, however, the chief-justice held that all the proceedings of the town in relation to the proposed erection of the town-house were legal, and that the majority of the com- mittee had full power to proceed to the work. The litiga- tion ended here. John Y. Mugridge, of Concord, and Clinton W. Stanley, of Manchester, were counsel for the petitioners, and Hawthorne & Greene, of Hopkinton, for the defendants. At this time the frame of the new house had progressed as far as the roof, and no suspension of work resulted on account of the litigation. The new town-house was finished in the early part of 1874, and dedicated on the evening of the 3d of the next March. A large audience was in attendance. The dedi- cation was under the conduct of the new building commit- tee, who selected the following officers of the evening : President, Hon. Horaoe Chase ; vice-presidents, Samuel S. Page and George B. Hardy; secretaries, John F. Jones and John F. Currier ; toast-master, Dea. John M. Harvey. Very excellent vocal and instrumental music was provided hj our own local talent. Jonah Campbell's drum corps gave exhibition of the stirring music of '76. The pro- gramme of the exercises was as follows : Invocation — Rev. Abraham Snyder. Quartette singing — " When I can Read my Title Clear." Sentiment — " The New Town House." Response by Carlos G. Hawthorne, Esq. Sentiment — " Our Town's People." Response by Hon. Horace Chase. Music — Galop, by orchestra. Sentiment — " The Fertility of our Soil." Response by James M. Connor. Sentiment — " The Matrons of Hopkinton." Response by Rev. Mr. Snyder. Solo singing — " Waiting," by Miss Ella F. Underhill. Sentiment — " Our Hills and Vales." Response by Charles C. Lord. Sentiment — " The Daughters of Hopkinton." Response by Her- man W. Greene. SUNDRY EVENTS FROM 1873 TO 1880. 175 Instrumental music — " Varsovienne," by orchestra. Sentiment — " Hopkinton's Sons Abroad." Response by letter from Col. David A. Warde, Concord. Singing glee — " Woodland Echoes," by double quartette. Sentiment — " Old Hopkinton Academy." Response by letter from Rev. Silas Ketchum, Bristol ; also by Dea. John M. Harvey. Sentiment — " Ye Ancient Martial Music." Response by the drum corps. At the conclusion of the programme the audience sang "America," and then diverted themselves with promenad- ing to the music of the drum corps, continuing this exer- cise till a late hour in the main upper room, which was dul} r christened " Lyceum Hall." CHAPTER XLVIII. SUNDRY EVENTS FROM 1873 TO 1880. In 1873, March 26, the town raised $4,000 for current charges and expenses. The sum of $500, in excess of what the law required, was raised for the support of common schools. The subject of the exemption of new manu- facturing establishments being considered, the town voted that a committee of two persons be chosen to act with the selectmen in receiving proposals from any company wishing to establish business in town. Ten or more legal voters were empowered to call a meeting in anticipation of exemp- tion. Edwin C. Bailey and Aaron Smith were selected for the committee. The subject of repairs upon the town- house was referred to the selectmen. On the 13th of May, the town voted to sell the hearse in Contoocook. In 1874, March 11, the town raised $3,000 for current charges and expenses. Upon the recommendation of the selectmen and committee upon the exemption of manu- factories from taxation, the town voted to exempt for the term of ten years any manufactory with a capital of $10,000 or more. The selectmen were authorized to purchase additional land for the Contoocook cemetery, and to build a hearse-house at the lower village. In 1875, March 10, the town decided to next select the 176 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. superintending school-committee — one for three years, one for two years, one for one year — preserving the implied relation of a partial board of experience in office all the time. This by-law was never carried into effect. In 1876, March 15, the selectmen were authorized to purchase blinds for the town-house, and also to repair the fence of the Stumpfield cemetery. In 1877, March 14, the selectmen were authorized to repair the fence of the lower village cemetery. In 1878, March 12, the selectmen were authorized to purchase two hearses, one for each village, at an expense not to exceed 8300 each ; these are the hearses now in use in the town. The same officers were authorized to build two tramp-houses, at an expense not exceeding $200 ; these tramp-houses are now standing in town, one being in each village. The town voted to dispense with the liquor agent. On the 9th of April, the county farm building having been burned, a town-meeting was held with special relation to pauper affairs. The town voted, 151 to 9, in favor of supporting in town or city all paupers having a legal settle- ment. In regard to rebuilding the county-farm buildings, the vote stood 110 to 7 against the proposition. On the 5th of the following November, the town held its first biennial election under the state constitution as revised by the convention of 1876. The reader will here- after bear in mind that all state and county officers and representatives to the General Court, chosen in November biennially, assume the actual duties of their office on the following June. In 1879, March 11, the town raised only $2,000 for cur- rent expenses and charges. It was also voted to purchase a road machine at a cost of $125, and to raise $500 for the expense of working it. In 1880, the town voted to dispense with a liquor agent, and to enforce Sections 15 and 16 of Chapter 109 of the General Laws of New Hampshire relating to the sale of cider, lager beer, and malt liquors. These two sections of optional statute law were afterwards made affirmative by the state. THE FREE HIGH SCHOOL. 17T CHAPTER XLIX. THE FREE HIGH SCHOOL. In the 3^ear 1880, the permanent establishment of a free high school plan was broached in Hopkinton. The need of such a system was urged in behalf of the common schools, which were said to need the stimulus of a higher grade of free public instruction. The new plan was elaborated and proposed by Charles C. Lord, chairman of the superintend- ing school committee. Presenting it at the annual March meeting of the town, he was supported by a large number of citizens, and the measure was finally adopted almost without a dissenting voice. We give a brief description of the new free high school plan. For years it had been the custom of the town to raise $500 annually for common schools, the amount being in excess of the sum required to be raised by law, and to divide the whole school-fund among the respective districts — one half equally among the districts and one half equally among the scholars. By the new plan, it was proposed to distribute the legal school-money, or amount required to be raised by law, by a new division, giving two thirds to be equally distributed among the districts, and one third equally among the scholars. This was proposed with a view of favoring the less populous districts, which might be located farther from the villages, and, consequently, less accessible to the privileges of the proposed high school instruction. The usual sum of $500 was to be raised and divided equally between two free high school districts, to be located respectively in the northern and southern portions of the town, according to the provisions of chapter 90 of the General Laws of New Hampshire, and used for free high school purposes as far as the money would go. It was also estimated by the advocates of the new plan, that, with proper economy and the employment of a single teacher in each case, the amount appropriated would secure two respectable terms of high school in each district, which, it was assumed, would occur in the spring and fall of the year. It was also urged that the adoption of the free high school plan would result in bringing a 'larger number of the children of the town, and especially more of those of advanced years, under the influence and within the privi- 12 178 LIFE AND TIMES EST HOPKINTON. leges of public instruction. The town was also urged to try the experiment one year. The plan having been adopted, the superintending school- committee and the selectmen of the town were made a committee to lay out the town into two high school dis- tricts, which work was accomplished on the 15th day of the following May. High school district school-meetings were subsequently held, officers chosen, and arrangements com- pleted for schools, which were opened the next autumn. In high school district No. 1, in the south part of the town, a fall and also a spring term were taught by Charles M. Sar- gent, of New Loudon ; in high school district No. 2, in the north part of the town, a fall term was taught by Thomas B. Richardson, of Contoocook, and Miss Lillian M. Whitney, of Newport, and a winter one by Miss Whitney alone. In the south district, school was kept in the village common school-house, and in the north district in Contoocook academy. During the progress of this school year, an active contro- versy was waged among the citizens of the town in respect to the merits of the high school plan. However, at the end of the year, the superintending school-committee reported the following summary of the statistical result : 1879. 1880. Whole number of scholars in town . . . 396 405 Scholars at school during year .... 315 327 Scholars at school over 16 years of age . 23 49 The above statement of the town school officers formed the basis of a general deduction on the part of the advocates of the high school plan that their case was proved, the ex- periment having justified their claims, and therefore the town would be consistent in continuing the schools. How- ever, the opposition proved too strong, and the town refused to raise any money for the high school, on the occurrence of the next annual March meeting. On the 13th of April, 1881, in consequence of a petition of citizens, the selectmen of the town issued a warrant for a town-meeting on the 30th day of April, but with- out indicating any particular month of April, to see if the town would abolish, the two high school districts formed the previous year. A town-meeting having been assembled on the 30th of April, 1881, Carlos G. Hawthorne recorded THE FREE HIGH SCHOOL. 179 a protest against the " pretended warrant," which was claimed to be incompetent "on account of insufficiency." During the progress of the meeting, Benjamin O. Kimball made a motion " that the town now proceed to vote on the article 2d," or the article to see if the town would abolish the high school districts. After some intermediate matters had been transacted, Mr. Kimball's motion was put and carried without opposition, and the meeting then adjourned without date. This action only inflamed public controversy. It was urged on the part of the advocates of the high school plan that a vote to proceed to act was not an action itself; but the opposers of the high school as strenuously urged that the high school districts had been effectually abolished. The question reached a climax in the spring of 1882. A school-meeting held in high school district No. 1, and com- posed wholly of friends of the measure, voted to raise a certain sum of money for the support of a school the ensu- ing year. This action was substantially taken on the fol- lowing legal assumption : That the town had legally established two high school districts under the provisions of chapter 90 of the General Laws of the state of New Hampshire ; or, if there had been any legal remissness in the transaction, the two districts, being subject to the rules and regulations affecting common school districts, were confirmed in their establishment by the operation of law, they having acted as school-districts for one year ; and the two high school districts had never been legally abolished. A certificate of the vote of this so called high school district was presented to the selectmen, who took counsel of William L. Foster, of Concord, before attempting an assessment. Judge Foster's opinion, seconded by Josiah Minot, virtually affirmed the position taken by the oppo- nents of the high school plan, asserting practically the in- adequacy of the act establishing the high school districts, the validity of the warrant of the meeting of April 30, 1881, and the sufficient efficacy of the vote under Mr. Kimball's motion to abolish the districts. The high school contro- versy ended after this opinion was made public. 180 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. CHAPTER L. MEMORIAL SERVICES FOR PRESIDENT GARFIELD. The year 1881 witnessed a profound and solemn grief that affected a whole nation. The town of Hopkinton was not indifferent to the sentiment of general mourning. We need not inform the intelligent reader that the public sense of calamity originated in the criminal wounding, painful illness, and sad death of James A. Garfield, presi- dent of the United States. President Garfield was shot on the 2d day of July. The news found the people of Hopkinton in a peculiar situa- tion. It had been determined to celebrate the Fourth of July at Hopkinton village. The celebration was to take the form of an old-fashioned training, under the command of Col. William Colby. When the day arrived, the sense of public calamity was so great that a celebration was not held, but a meeting at the town hall resulted in the selec- tion of a committee — Charles C. Lord, Herman W. Greene, and Colonel Colby — to consider a future public observance in accordance with the ultimate developments in President Garfield's case. The assembly then repaired to the Con- gregational church, where religious services were conducted by Rev. Adoniram J. Hopkins and Rev. Daniel Sawyer. Upon the event of President Garfield's death, through a preliminary gathering, arrangements were made for a pub- lic funeral service on the 26 th of September, the day ap- pointed by President Arthur for public mourning through- out the nation. A gathering first occurred at the town- house, from which a march was taken westward as far as the house of Capt. William Palmer, and then eastward, in return, to the Baptist church. The procession was headed by the Hopkinton Cornet Band, which performed funeral music on the march. The officers of the inarch were James M. Connor, marshal ; Charles C. Lord, drum-major ; Her- man W. Greene, color-bearer. On the route of the proces- sion, nearly every house was decorated with mourning em- blems. During the march, the church bells were tolled — the Congregational by Albert Hardy, and the Baptist by George W. Mills. At the church the following order of exercises was observed : SUNDRY EVENTS FROM 1881 TO 1889. 181 1. Introductory dirge, " We honor the hrave," by the band. 2. Opening prayer by Rev. Adoniram J. Hopkins. 3. Hymn, " Ho ! Reapers of Life's Harvest," a favorite with the deceased president. 4. Scripture selections by the Rev. Mr. Hopkins. 5. Memorial prayer by Rev. Harlan P. Gage. 6. Hymn 944, " Asleep in Jesus," selected for the funeral at Cleveland, Ohio. 7. Addresses by Rev. Mr. Hopkins, and Rev. Mr. Gage. 8. Hymn 485, " Nearer, my God, to Thee," also President Gar- field's favorite. 9. Benediction by the Rev. Mr. Hopkins. During the singing, Frank L. Flanders presided at the organ. At the close of the services, the people remained till the band was stationed outside, and then departed while k ' The Better Land" was performed as a solemn dirge. The same day, funeral solemnities were observed in the Freewill Baptist church at Contoocook, Rev. Benjamin P. Parker and Rev. Charles H. Leet, officiating. The churches were solemnly decorated on the day of this memorial ser- vice. On the previous Sunday, proper observations upon the death of President Garfield were made in nearly or quite all the churches in town. Several if not all of the churches were also draped in mourning. CHAPTER LI. SUNDRY EVENTS FROM 1881 TO 1889. In 1881, March 8, a singular contest arose in town. For years it had been the custom to leave the appointment of the superintending school-committee to the selectmen. This year, owing to the effects of the high school contro- versy, there was much disaffection in general school affairs. The superintending school-committee of the previous year had been personally or officially identified in support of the free high school plan. The opponents of the high school predominated in 1881. Consequently, it was only natural that a change should be proposed in the method of select- 182 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. ing a superintending school-committee. Though the high school proposition was not directly asserted in the contest, yet the general condition of feeling tended to invite sharp controversy to every phase of public educational thought. A motion having been made and passed in town-meeting to choose a superintending school-committee by ballot, all people were not ready for the occasion. No general con- certed action having been taken, the ballot, implying the election of a board of three officers on one ticket, culminated in a most incongruous result. Only 122 ballots were cast, but the whole number of candidates, male and female, seri- ously and ludicrously presented, was 69, not one of them having a sufficient number for a choice. The meeting hav- ing been postponed till next day, a succession of ballots resulted in the choice of Benjamin P. Parker, Elbridge G. Kimball, and Hannah M. Edmunds. The same day the town raised $300 for the use of the road machine, having refused to raise anything the previous year. In 1882, March 14, the town voted to raise $100 for the services of Memorial day, the amount to be expended under the direction of the Hopkinton Veterans' Association. In 1883, March 13, the town voted to raise $300, to be used in making up any deficiency less than $100 to any school-district in town. The two union districts were excepted from this general provision, though Farrington's Corner was to receive $80 from the town. The sum of $200 was voted for repairs upon the town-house, the sum to be expended at the discretion of the selectmen. In 1884, March 11, the same general provision for school-districts was made as on the previous year, except that the deficiencies were made up from the literary fund and the dog-tax. It was voted to exempt the kit manufac- tory of Frank I. Morrill & Co., at Contoocook, from taxa- tion for the term of three years, the valuation not to exceed $3,000. The town adopted the amendment of chapter 55 of the General Laws, relating to the delivery of inventory blanks. By this act, the laws of 1883, allowing selectmen or assessors to present inventory blanks to the property owner at the time they called to examine the estate, at the same' time filling them, became of force. It was also voted that the next annual town report should contain the list of resident and non-resident tax-payers. On the 26th of July, a hearing was had before the selectmen upon a petition of ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY. 183 citizens to drain the Frog pond in Hopkinton village, according to the provisions of chapter 108 of the Laws of 1883. The substance of the petition was adopted, and the pond was drained that season. On the 4th of November the town voted $1,000 for repairs upon Tyler's bridge. In 1885, March 10, the town voted to prohibit trout-fish- ing in its waters for three years. The state law admitting of this prohibition was repealed in 1885. The selectmen were authorized to appoint fish wardens in all the school- districts of the town. The bequest of $100, for the benefit of the Jewett Road school, by Helen Young Bailey, was accepted by the town. In 1887, March 8, the town voted to distribute its high- ways into six districts. This indebtedness of the town having been cancelled, the sum of $1 was voted for town charges and expenses the current year. The sum of $400 was raised for a fire-proof vault at the town-house, for the better preservation of records and documents. The bequest of Charles G. Green, of Boston, Mass., for the preservation of his mother's grave in the village cemetery, was accepted by the town. The bequest was $200, the annual income to be applied to the purpose described. In 1888, March 13, the town voted to exempt the Hopkin- ton hotel association from taxation for the term of five years. It was also voted to return to the former system of highway districts. In 1889, March 12, the town voted to raise $250 in ex- cess of the amount required by law, for the support of com- mon schools. A by-law for the suppression of truancy was also passed. CHAPTER LII. ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY. In earlier chapters of this work, we have detailed many items of ecclesiastical history, the Congregational church being a legal function of the town. In a particular chapter, we showed the legal separation of the church and state to have occurred in 1819. We also showed that, before 1819, the town of Hopkinton had practically abandoned and ignored any administrative interest in the Congregational 184 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. church. In the progress of this work, we have also seen that the town not only ceased to hold meetings in the meeting-house, but also relinquished all its right and title therein to the First Congregational Society. We propose now to consider briefly the history of the Congregational church as an independent establishment. We have already described the exterior of the Congrega- tional meeting-house as it was made under the supervision of the town. If there is any doubt about the interior, we will repeat that it contained the accustomed high pulpit, sounding-board, gallery, and square pews. A few pews, nearest the pulpit, devoted, according to custom, to the use of the dignitaries of the church, were of better finish. With the addition of the belfry and bell, the structure remained substantially intact till 1829, when it was remodelled into the form of the present church, which was dedicated on the 26th of December of the same year. A town clock was placed in the tower of the remodelled church, and a weather- cock was placed upon the spire, to be afterwards superseded by the present vane. In the progress of time and events, the first church in Hopkinton developed more and more as an ecclesiastical organization and function. Special evidences of religious progress antedate the separation of the town and church. In 1817, a Sunday-school was opened in the school-house at Farrington's Corner. About 1821, another similar school was opened on Beech hill. In 1822, a Sunday- school was opened in the church. In 1848, a constitution was adopted and regular officers chosen. Stephen Sargent was the first superintendent under the new regulation. In an earlier chapter, we narrated the organization of this church with ten members in 1757. The church has since increased greatly, but is subject to influences affect- ing most country churches, owing to a prevailing tendency to a decline of population. The following is a list of all the pastors and ministers of more extended supply since the organization of the church : James Scales, ordained November 23, 1757 ; dismissed July 4, 1770. Elijah Fletcher, ordained January 27, 1773 ; died April 8, 1786. Jacob Cram, ordained February .25, 1789 ; dismissed January 6, 1792. Rev. Ethan Smith, in- stalled March 11, 1800 ; dismissed December 16, 1817. Roger C. Hatch, ordained October 21, 1818 ; dismissed ECCLESIASTICAL HISTOKY. 185 June 26, 1832. Rev. Moses Kimball, installed May 7, 1834 ; dismissed July 15, 1846. Rev. Edwin Jennison, installed June 6, 1847 ; dismissed September 5, 1849. Christopher M. Cordly, ordained September 5, 1849 ; dismissed February 4. 1852. Marshall B. Angier, ordained June 8, 1853 ; dis- missed March 28, 1860. Rev. Edwin W. Cook, installed March 6, 1861 ; dismissed December 13, 1864. William H. Cutler, ordained December 20. 1865 ; dismissed May 8, 1867. Rev. John K.Young, D.D., supplied from June, 1867, through October, 1874. Rev. Clarendon A. Stone, installed Decem- ber 29, 1874; dismissed September 1, 1881. Edgar T. Farrill, ordained September 27, 1882 ; dismissed November 20, 1885. Rev. Myron W. Adams, installed December 2, 1886; dismissed August 30, 1888. Rev. Til ton C. H. Bouton, acting pastor since April 1, 1889. The West Congregational meeting-house, of which we have already given some account, was of the usual spacious, uncouth style of architecture prevailing in the early days. There does not appear to have been any regular, separate organization connected with this meeting-house, which was taken down in 1831. In 1834, Dea. Amos Bailey, of West Hopkinton, died, willing a large portion of his property to the Congregational church. A half of his bequest was to be paid to any society of the Congregational order maintaining regular services in the west part of the town. In the hope of securing the aid, a society was organized with its head- quarters at Contoocook. The Union meeting-house was built, and Rev. David Kimball, of Concord, employed to preach. Upon a legal trial of the question, however, it could not be made to appear that Contoocook was in that part of the town implied in the will of Deacon Bailey, and the bequest was lost. The Second Congregational Society, as it was called, kept up a nominal existence until the year 1851. The old-fashioned two-storied farm-house, standing near the old graveyard on Putney's hill, and owned by the descendants of Moses Rowell, is said to have been the first parsonage in the town, the residence of Rev. James Scales, the first local minister. A branch organization of the New Hampshire Cent Societj", projected in Concord in 1804, has for many years existed in connection with the Congregational church. 186 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. The " Woman's Auxiliary Board of Foreign Missions," connected with this church, was organized November 4, 1873, — Mrs. Catharine B. Symonds being chosen president, and Mrs. Maria G. Barnard secretary and treasurer. On Sunday, November 22, 1857, the date being one day in anticipation of the one-hundredth birthday of the Con- gregational church in Hopkinton, the Rev. Marshall B. Angier, pastor, preached a centennial discourse, which occupied the place of both the forenoon and afternoon sermons. In the forenoon, the Rev. Mr. Angier spoke from Zechariah I, 5, — " Your fathers, where are they ? " The discourse of the earlier day embraced the history of the church, and a sketch of the different ministers and pastors, for a hundred years. In the afternoon, he spoke from Psalm XLV, 16, — " Instead of thy fathers shall be thy children, whom thou mayst make princes in all the earth." The discourse of the later day dwelt upon the " duties, obligations, and privileges of the generations succeeding the fathers." There was no observance of the centennial of the church other than that implied in the services incident to the discourse of the pastor. Diversity of religious belief is natural among men. Although Hopkinton was settled by people of nominally and legally orthodox faith, actual dissenters from the popular belief soon began to assert themselves. At length, a gathering of an organized Baptist church in this town was effected through the missionary labors of Rev. Dr. Hezekiah Smith. This organization was at first a branch of the Baptist church in Haverhill, Mass., the subordinate com- pact being formed in 1769. The following were the origi- nal members : Mary Emerson, Anna Brackenbury, Abigail Rogers, Susanna Blaisdell, Benjamin Rogers, Samuel Brack- enbury, John Blaisdell, John Jewett. On the 8th of May, 1771, the church at Hopkinton became independent. In its earlier days, the influence of the church at Hop- kinton was widely extended. Branch churches were organized in Bow, Goffstown, and Londonderry. The subordinate organization included also people of Bedford, Merrimack, Derryfield (now Manchester), and Nottingham West (now Hudson). Among the early laborers in the local Baptist field and vicinity were Elders John Peake* Job Seamans, Thomas Paul, John Hazen, and Dr. Samuel Shepherd. ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY. 187 The first years of this church were attended by trials. The War of the Revolution depressed it, but it rallied again in 1789. It received a new impulse from a great revival in 1793. The walls of a church were enclosed in 1795, but the edifice was not completed till at least twenty years after. This house was very much like most of the country meet- ing-houses built at the time, being huge, square, high, and galleried. It stood on a spot of ground northerly opposite the house of George W. French, near the convergence of a number of roads, near the foot of Putney's hill. The Baptist church also suffered from internal doctrinal dissen- sions. Being at first devoted to the tenets of Calvinism, a schism afterwards destroyed the unity of church confession, and the organization separated from the general body of Calvinist Baptists in the state. The subsequent conduct of the organization was essentially on a Free or Christian Baptist basis till about the year 1822, when the Rev. Michael Carlton, a pronounced Calvinist, became its pastor. It was urged, on the part of the Calvinistic branch of the society, that a decided affirmative attitude on the original basis of religious doctrine was necessary in the church, in order that it might retain its ecclesiastical property. The point was sustained. The opposing element, led by Dea. Jonathan Fowler, separated from the main organization and formed the nucleus of the present Freewill Baptist church, at Contoocook. Since then the two Baptist bodies have held on in their respective and unmolested ways. In 1831, the Calvinists built a new church, of modern country style, in the easterly part of Hopkinton village, about a mile east of their former place of worship. The new edifice was framed out of the timbers of the old West Congregational meeting-house. The old Baptist church was taken in bulk or in parts to Concord, where its substance was embodied in a new structure. The Baptist church in Hopkinton village was neatly repaired in 1854. A parsonage, includ- ing a vestry, was erected nearly opposite the church in 1869. The Calvinist Baptist church, in common with others, has felt the depressing effect of the later changes in the tide of population, though more or less than others. Its congregation has diminished. The organization, however, has had important donations. The widow of the late Samuel Smith left a generous bequest to this church about 188 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. the year 1868. In the year 1871, George E. Crowell of Brattleborough, Vt., presented a cabinet organ. Mrs. Sarah Jones, in 1876, gave the church its bell. The church was again remodelled into its present form in 1885, when a pipe organ was purchased. Elder Elisha Andrews, the first pastor of this church, was settled in 1795, and preached half of the time for three years. For seventeen years after, the preaching was mostly supplied by the deacons. Elder Abner Jones was settled in 1815 ; resigned in 1821. Michael Carlton was ordained June 27, 1822 ; resigned September 14, 1832. Rev. Andrew J. Foss was installed March 17, 1833 ; remained three years. L. B. Cole, M.D., was ordained and installed April 18, 1837 ; remained two years. Rev. Samuel Cooke was settled May 19, 1839 ; remained six years. King S. Hall next became pastor, ordained April 22, 1846, resigned September 28, 1851. Rev. Samuel J. Carr was settled March 14, 1852 ; remained four years. Rev. Jonathan E. Brown became pastor April 2, 1857 ; resigned September 7, 1862. Christie W. Burnham was ordained October 14, 1863 ; remained till the last Sunday in August, 1871. Rev. Abraham Snyder was settled January 1, 1872 ; resigned December 27, 1874. William S. Tucker was ordained September 28, 1875 ; resigned May 18, 1879. Rev. Adon- iram J. Hopkins was installed November 29, 1879; continued till October 1, 1883. Willard E. Waterbury was ordained February 27, 1884; dismissed May 1, 1887. Herbert E. Thayer, the present pastor, was ordained September 7, 1887. There are numerous subordinate organizations connected with the Baptist church. The Cheerful Workers' Mission Band was organized September 19, 1884, with the follow- ing officers : President, Mrs. Frank W. Paige ; vice-presi- dent, Mrs. Edward E. Chase ; secretary, Mrs. Charles French ; treasurer, Miss Clara M. Fellows ; director, Mrs. Willard E. Waterbury. The object of this society is to increase the interest of its members in mission work. The Junior Department of the Mission Band was organized April 6, 1889, with the following officers : Presi- dent, Vira C. Paige ; vice-president, Henry W. Goodrich ; secretary, Maud E. Paige ; treasurer, Helen Symonds. This department was organized to include younger people than would naturally belong to the Cheerful Workers' Mis- sion Band, but its purpose is the same. ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY. 189 The Young People's Society of Christian Endeavor was organized May 12, 1887, with the following officers : Presi- dent, Henry A. Dairy mple ; vice-president, Galen E. Blanchard ; secretary, Mrs. Henry A. Dalrymple ; treasurer, Mrs. Galen E. Blanchard. The object of this society is to promote earnest Christian life among its members. The Woman's Mission Circle was organized September 28, 1888, with the following officers : President, Mrs. Herbert E. Thayer ; vice-president, Mrs; Horace J. Chase ; secretary, Miss Lizzie 8. Fellows ; treasurer, Mrs. Galen E. Blanchard ; solicitor, Mrs. Henry A. Dalrymple ; solicitor for Helping Hand, Mrs. Ruhama Chase ; solicitor for Home Mission Echo, Mrs. Henry A. Fletcher. The object of this circle is to aid the Woman's Baptist Foreign Missionary Society and the Woman's Baptist Home Mission Society. The Bennet Band of Mercy was organized November 17, 1888, with the following officers : President, Annie B. Merrill ; vice-president, Fannie B. Russel ; secretary, Vira C. Paige ; treasurer, Maud E. Paige. This society is named for Miss Laura E. Bennet, of Boston, Mass., a benefactress of the organization. CHAPTER LIII. ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY. [Concluded.] In 1800, Hopkinton had advanced to a position of wealth and influence. Social beliefs and forms were multiplying in proportion. In the village were many families of dis- tinction. A considerable number of these were Episcopa- lians by faith or practice. There was also a quota of Epis- copalians among the farming population. About this time, or a few } r ears later, a number of prominent families came over to the Episcopalians from the Calvinists. In 1803, an Episcopal society, called Christ's church, was organized, worshipping in the court-house. The following were the original subscribers to the consti- tution of Christ's church : 190 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. Benjamin Wiggin, John Jewett, Moses Kelley, Baruch Chase, John Osgood Ballard, John Harris, Henry P. Chase, Stephen Bean, Daniel Chase, Bodwell Emerson, Thomas G. Wells, J. Stark, Robert Crowell, Nathaniel Knowlton, Ebenezer Dnstin, Jacob Silver, Timothy Darling, Enoch Gould, John White, Isaac Dimond, Joseph Bartlett, Calvin Dimond, Abel Conant, Peter C. Farnham, Thomas W. Colby, Joshua Whittier, Jacob Rogers, Silas Rogers, A.W. Buswell, John Whipple, Ezekiel Dimond, Horace Chase, Matthew Harvey, Herman Hastings, Nathaniel Emerson, James Hudson Ballard, Andrew Leach. The Rev. Samuel Meade was the superintendent of this movement. Various clergymen officiated for longer or shorter periods for Christ's church, till the year 1826, when the Rev. Moses B. Chase became the rector. During the rectorship of Mr. Chase, important changes took place. A new parish was formed. In 1827, it was incorporated under the name of St. Andrew's church. The first wardens were John Harris and William Little. The first vestrymen were Matthew Harvey, Horace Chase, Nathaniel Curtis, and J. M. Stanley. A new stone church was begun the same year. It was dedicated June 25, 1828. Rev. Mr. Chase continued rector till 1841. The church flourished during his ministry. During later years, the Episcopal church declined with the business prosperity of the town. However, worship has been maintained most of the time. Important improve- ments have from time to time been made in the interior of St. Andrew's church. During the ministry of the Rev. Mr. Schouler, the chancel was reconstructed. It was further improved in 1875, when the church was also frescoed and painted The first church organ ever in town was set up in St. Andrew's about the year 1846. It was purchased of the Rt. Rev. Carlton Chase, and had been his parlor organ. The instrument is still in its accustomed place in the un- used gallery of the church. It did musical service till 1873, when a new organ was temporarily put in St. Andrew's, being located at the left of the chancel. The next year the present elegant organ was set up at a cost of about $2,000. St. Andrew's church is much indebted to the energy and liberality of its friends at home and abroad. Its elegant font was obtained through the enterprise of Miss Lucy A. ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY. 191 Lemecl. The first altar and lectern cloths, together with the chandeliers and lamps, were the gifts of Mrs. G.. T. Roberts, of Philadelphia, Pa., who also gave two bronze altar vases in memory of George A. Greene. The Rev. Thomas J. Drumm, the present rector, gave the church a beautiful silver communion chalice last Easter. Rev. Charles W. Coit gave the Gospel-rest, as a memorial of Elizabeth T. Lerned, the present year. Contracts are al- ready made for the location of two memorial windows in the church. One of these windows is in mem'ory of Miss Charlotte G. George, being the gift of Mrs. Salvadora G. George, and the other of William W. Winans and Susan M. Stark, and the gift of Mr. and Mrs. Robert B. Currier. Since 1841, the following have been stated clergymen of St. Andrew's church : Rev. Calvin Walcott, one year from the second Sunday in May, 1842; Rev. Silas Blaisdell, 1845 to 1847; Rev. Henry Low ; Rev. Edward F. Putnam ; Rev. N. F. Lud- lum ; Rev. Francis Chase, one year to November 3, 1862 ; Rev. William Schouler, July 1, 1865, to January 29, 1868. Since February 2, 1868, the church has been supplied by Rev. Henry A. Coit, D. D., of St. Paul's School, Concord. During most of this period till the spring of 1879, the Rev. Hall Harrison was the rector. On the 25th of May of the same year, the Rev. Robert A. Benton became the rector, continuing till the 23d of August, 1884. On the 11th of the following September, the Rev. Charles A. Morrill be- came the rector ; he resigned on the 18th of September, 1888. The Rev. Thomas J. Drumm became rector on the 1st of the following October, and is the present one. The defective records of this church make the foregoing clerical statement necessarily incomplete in chronological facts. We have already mentioned the defection in the original Baptist church in this town, and which resulted in the sep- aration of a party, led by Dea. Jonathan Fowler, who organ- ized the Freewill Baptist church. This organization took definite form on the 17th of September, 1823, the }^ear of the separation, and consisted of twelve members, being at first known by its corporate name, the Union Baptist church. The names of the first members were Jonathan Fowler, Benjamin Eastman, Simeon Dow, Levi Straw, 192 LIFE AISTD TIMES IN HOPKINTON. Nathan Morgan, Timothy Hunt, Levi Straw, Jr., Henry- Dodge, Jonathan J. Straw, Ira Morrison, Thomas Eaton, Thomas White. On the 28th of September, 1826, Jonathan Fowler and Thomas White were chosen deacons. The society was in- corporated on the 30th of June, 1827. A public meeting- house was constructed the same year, being raised April 11, finished October 27, and dedicated October 29. Vari- ous improvements have been made on this house from time to time since its erection. In 1871 a bell was added, large- ly through the energy of Mrs. Jacob S. Tuttle. In 1884, a kitchen was built under the church, mainly by the ladies of the society. The location of this church at Contoocook is suggestive, in view of the valuable moral results wrought by its influ- ence. In the earlier times, Contoocook had an unenviable reputation. The higher social laws were here measurably- set at defiance. A minister on his way to preach at Con- toocook was told he was going to a bad place. Now all is changed. The influence of the Freewill Baptist church has- been largely instrumental in promoting the improved order of things. Rev. David Harriman was pastor of this church from its foundation till May 10, 1828. Rev. Arthur Caverno suc- ceeded till February 24, 1833. Rev. David Moody followed till February 27, 1837. Rev. Hiram Holmes and others supplied till November 30, 1837. Rev. John L. Sinclair was subsequently pastor till November 11, 1839. Rev. Abner Coombs was installed July 16, 1840 ; dismissed May 15, 1842. Rev. D. Sidney Frost became pastor May 19, 1842 ; dismissed April 17, 1845. Rev. Barlow Dyer became pas- tor May 18, 1845; dismissed March 4, 1849. Rev. S. T. Catlin became pastor December 20, 1849 ; dismissed in 1851. Rev. Francis Reed became pastor May 20, 1851 ; dismissed in March, 1859. Rev. C. H. Witham became pastor the first of July, 1859 ; dismissed June 2, 1861. Rev. Thomas Keniston and others supplied from June, 1861, till May, 1863. Rev. Asa Ranlett became pastor May 23, 1863; dismissed in October, 1865. Rev. John L. Sin- clair became pastor a second time in January, 1867 ; dis- missed in March, 1869. Rev. George W. Knapp became pastor in March, 1869 ; dismissed in March, 1873. Rev. John C. Osgood became pastor in June, 1873 ; dismissed in ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY. 193 March, 1878. Rev. Charles W. Griffin became pastor May 13, 1878 ; continued till March 14, 1880. Rev. Benjamin P. Parker became pastor April 18, 1880; dismissed in April, 1883. Rev. Daniel I. Quint became pastor in April, 1883 ; continued till April, 1885. Orren T. Lovejoy sup- plied from April, 1885, till April, 1886 Rev. Francis H. Lyford followed Mr. Lovejoy, and is the present pastor. The Ladies' Benevolent Association, connected with the Freewill Baptist church, was organized June 25, 1884, with the following officers : President, Mrs. Rosa E. Quint ; vice- president, Mrs. Timothy B. Eastman ; secretary and treas- urer, Mrs. Mary I. Morrill ; executive committee, Mrs. Edgar W. Stevens, Miss Stella G. Wright, Miss Minnie E. Cooper, Miss Lillian C. Mudgett, Miss F. Gertrude Morrill. On the 22d of November, 1889, Miss Kate I. Lyford, of the Haverhill, Mass., Advocates of Christian Fidelity, or- ganized an association of Advocates among the young peo- ple of the Freewill Baptist church, the following being officers: Marj^ E. Sanborn, president; Clarence T. Eliot, vice-president ; Lizzie I. Morrill, secretary ; Guilford Q. Dow, treasurer. In the earlier part of the present century, there was a great revival of Universalism in New Hampshire. Rev. Elliahan Winchester and Rev. Hosea Ballou preached the doctrine far aud wide, gaining many hearers and making many converts. The church grew and multiplied in many places. Previous to 1840, there were many persons in Hopkinton who entertained some sort of preference for the Universalist form of religion. A church, to be known as the Union meeting-house, was projected as early as 1835. On the 5th of December of that year, a meeting was held at the house of Clement Beck, at "Stumpfield," to take into consideration the erection of a house of worship. Moses Hoyt, 2d, was chosen moderator, Joseph Huse was clerk, and Moses Ho} r t, Moses Copps, and Nathaniel Colby were a building committee. The enterprise was effected by the creation of shares, which were sold at $25 each. The following were subscribers to the stock : Capt. Parker Pearson, Oliver Noyes, Moses Copps, Moses Hoyt, William Straw, James Huse, William Cressy, John Smiley, Joshua Raymond, Benjamin Rowell, Jr., Moses Rowell, Abraham Davis, Robert Bartlett, Jacob Straw, 13 194 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. Nathaniel Colby, Joseph Felch, Lewis Straw, Micah J. Flanders, Samuel Kimball, Rufus Sawyer, David Plummer, James Hoyt, Jeremiah Silver, John A. Fuller. The whole number of shares sold was thirty-one. Rep- resentatives of different faiths in the vicinity took shares. The meeting-house was built in 1836, on a lot north of the road leading from Hopkinton village to Henniker, east of the house of Charles Barton, about three miles from the village. There was never any settled minister in this place. Among those preaching here more or less were Rev. Alonzo A. Miner, Rev. J. P. Atkinson, Rev. N. R. Wright, and Rev. J. F. Witherel. The meeting-house was seriously damaged by fire on the 5th of February, 1837, and was subsequently repaired. In 1865, the house was sold to Robert Wilson, and was subsequently moved to Clement's hill, where it was remodelled into a barn belonging to Alfred S. Hastings. The society had dwindled, in common with many others similarly situated. A second Universalist society was organized shortly after the first. The new organization had its head-quarters at Contoocook. A church, called a Union house, was erected in 1837. It is now owned by the New Church, or Swedenborgian society. The Second Universalist society for some time had considerable vigor. Rev. J. F. Witherel and Rev. Robert Stinson were settled ministers at different times. A good deal of enterprise was shown in the efforts for propagating the faith. Rev. Mr. Witherel, in company with Rev. J. Sargent, of Sutton, published the Universalist Family Visitor, a monthly periodical. The first number was issued in April, 1841. The Visitor had twelve pages, was of common tract size, and set forth the favorite princi- ples with talent and vigor. We have not been able to find any records of the Second Universalist society, which kept up a nominal existence till quite late. The New Jerusalem Church, more commonly called the New Church, was founded through the missionary labors of the Rev. Abiel Silver, a native of this town, who first preached a number of discourses in the Union church at Contoocook, in the summer of 1851. Rev. Mr. Silver was then a resident of Michigan, visiting his old home and familiar scenes. The appreciation of his discourses induced ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY. 195 a contribution in money to the reverend gentleman, who returned its equivalent in theological works of Emanuel Swedenborg, or in collateral publications of the New Church. In a year or two after, further interest in the New Church was awakened in Contoocook and vicinity. Rev. Mr. Silver returned, and preached at length, and finally concluded to make the village his permanent place of resi- dence. The Union church, which had stood for years unoccupied by any society, became a place of weekly worship under the ministrations of the Rev. Mr. Silver. The interest grew till the meeting-house was filled to its utmost capacity. Hearers were present from various parts of Hopkinton and surrounding towns. In 1857. a perma- nent church organization was effected. On the 24th of May of that year, the Rev Thomas Worcester, of Boston, Mass., instituted the society. The following are the names of the original members of the church : Abiel Silver, Edna H. Silver, Nathaniel L. Noyes, Sarah A. Noyes, Mary Nichols, Rhoda Cutler, Sullivan Hutchin- son, Edna C. Silver, Charles Gould, Erastus E. Currier, Lucy H. Currier, Elizabeth C. Dean, Joseph Dow, Asa Kimball, John Converse, Urania N. Converse, Rhoda C. Putnam, Joanna L. Chase, Alonzo Currier, Emily Currier. Rev. Abiel Silver continued to preach at Contoocook till April 4. 1858, building in the meantime the house now owned by John W. E. Turtle. On the 15th of August, 1858, the Rev. George H. Marston became the minister of this church, continuing till the month of October, 1862. After October, 1871, the Rev. Charles Hardon was the reg- ular minister for several years. The interim between 18(52 and 1871 was employed by different readers and preachers. Walter S. Davis occupied the desk of this society as a reader for a number of years. Charles C. Lord acted as reader for this church for a brief period, and afterwards as a licensed preacher, finishing his work about the close of the year 1865. The Methodists had a foothold in this town quite early. In 1812, their allotted portion of the minister's tax was very small. Regular worship was held in the academy at the lower village. Rev. Stephen Eastman, Rev. John Eng- lish, and Rev. Joseph Hayes were among the ministers sup- 196 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. plying preaching. The Methodist Biblical Institute, at Concord, furnished preachers to a greater or less extent. We have not been able to find any local records of this society, which abandoned services about the year 1850. Previous to the year 1871, there had been a number of Methodist families living for a longer or shorter time at Contoocook. Preaching had also been sustained to some extent during a few years. On the 20th of March, 1871, at a meeting held at the house of George H. Ketchum, legal organization was effected as follows : Rev. Lewis- Howard, president ; George H. Ketchum, secretary ; W. A. Patterson, treasurer; John F. Burnham, Warren M. Kemp- ton, Samuel Curtice, financial committee. The society proposing to build a church, on the 10th of the next month, at a meeting at Mr. Ketchum's, David N. Patter- son, Tyler B. Hardy, and Samuel Curtice were made a building committee. The following were original members of this society : Samuel Curtice, Tyler B. Hardy, Willard Allen, George H. Ketchum, Warren M. Kempton, John F. Burnham, Charles E. Taylor, William A. Patterson, Grovenor A. Curtice, David N. Patterson, Lewis Howard, John L Taggart, Thomas B. Jones, Sylvester W. Perry, Edward B. Kemp- ton, James M. Burnham, Charles H. Danforth, Jonathan Clark, James E. Taggart, Elijah Spencer, Daniel B. Aus- tin. The church was erected the same year, at a cost of some- thing over $2,000, on land purchased by the society of Samuel Curtice, and was dedicated on the 16th of Novem- ber. It is a neat and tasty edifice. The society, though small, is active. The following have been preachers : Rev. Lewis Howard, from 1870 to 1873; Prof. J. B. Robinson, 1874; Rev. Ezekiel Adams, D. D., 1875; Rev. Joel A. Steele, 1876 ; Rev. Lewis Howard, 1877-78 ; Rev. C. H. Leet, 1879-'81 ; Rev. N. M. Bailey, 1882- , 83 ; Rev. Sullivan Holman, 1884 ; Rev. Robert T! Walcott, 1885 to 1887; Rev. Edwin S. Coller, 1888-'89. "WILLIAM H. LONG. EDUCATIONAL HISTORY. 197 CHAPTER LIV. EDUCATIONAL HISTORY. In the progress of this work, we have noted frequent acts of the town relating to schools of different grades. We now purpose to consider facts that have as yet been untouched, or only partially stated. The records are too meagre to afford adequate knowledge of the first schools and school- houses. Previously to 1805, the law providing for a town system of schools, the number of places of public instruc- tion increased, and when, in the year mentioned, a district system came into vogue, it found its own implied conditions practically in operation. Schools continued to increase in number under the district system till they reached twenty- one, though they were numbered inconsecutively from one to twenty-four. In 1877, the different school-districts in Hopkinton, as classified and numbered by custom and law, were as follows : District No. 1 Village. " " 2 Emerson's hill. " "3 Hatfield. " "4 Sugar hill. " " 5 South road. " " 6 Jewett road. " " 7 Main road. "8 Beech hill. " "9 Tyler's. " "10 Contoocook. " "11 Clement's hill. "12 Stumpfield. " "13 Putney's hill. " "14 Gage's. " "16 West Hopkinton. " "17 Currier's. "18 Buswell's Corner. " "19 Blackwater. " "20 North Contoocook. "21 Davisville road. "24 Farrington's Corner. Of the foregoing districts, Numbers 18 and 24 were union districts, each representing portions of the town of Hopkinton and the city of Concord, but both were supervised 198 LIFE A1STD TIMES IN HOPKINTON. by the town superintending school-committee of Hopkin- ton. Previously to 1886, when the state returned to a town system, under the law passed in 1885, school-districts 17 and 21 had been discontinued. Upon the issue of the change of system of 1886, the town of Hopkinton conveyed its interest in the Farrington's Corner school-house to the city of Concord, which in turn relinquished its interest in the Buswell's Corner school-house to the town of Hopkinton. Since 1886, the number of schools kept in Hopkinton has fluctuated between twelve and fifteen. In the early part of the present century, considerable attention was given to improved public instruction as im- plied in the existence of private or select schools, which gave special attention to branches of study of a higher grade. The court-house was a frequent accommodation for these schools. Among the teachers were Miss Catha- rine Perkins, sister of the late Roger E. Perkins, and the second wife of Dr. Ebenezer Lerned ; Miss Harriet Per- kins, daughter of Roger E. Perkins ; Miss Mary Ann Stan- ley, daughter of Theophilus Stanley ; Miss Betsey Blan- chard ; Samuel Cortland ; John H. Stark ; Jonathan Farr, of Dedham, Mass.; Horace Chase, afterwards Judge Chase; and perhaps others. John Harris, Esq., at one time kept a reading-school in the main room of the court-house. Pupils were admitted by cards. The teacher took great pride in good reading, in which he was reputed to be an adept. During his school a prize was offered for the best rendering of the scripture passage, " What went ye out into the wil- derness to see," etc. At the time under consideration, there were, as in later times, special schools for instruction in penmanship, in which remarkable proficiency was sometimes attained. The most memorable school, not an incorporate institu- tion, was kept by Master Ballard. John Osgood Ballard was born in Warner in the year 1768. In quite early life, he came to Hopkinton and began a career by teaching school in different districts. Subsequently he entered into trade, being at one time a partner of the late Joseph Towne. Later, he opened a store in the east end, lower floor, of his dwelling-house, the same now owned by Dr. Henry M. Dearborn. He closed his mercantile course with a financial failure. The misfortune was the result of the decline of prices at the close of the war of 1812. In the EDUCATIONAL HISTORY. 199 attempt, in part, to reverse fortune, he opened a select school. This was about the year 1816. His school-room was his former store. The old shelves still remained. Around the larger part of the circuit of the room he built a sloping desk into the wall. In front of this was a plain board seat without a back. Pupils using this seat and em- ployed at the desk faced the walls. In reversing their posi- tion, they lifted their feet, swung them round, and were thus enabled to meet the gaze of their instructor, whose desk was on the west side of the room, near the fireplace. There were numerous seats, or chairs, in different parts of the room. The course of study pursued at Master Ballard's school was mostly confined to the English branches. Instruction was thorough. Proper attention was paid to reading and spelling, as well as to defining. The spelling-book and dic- tionary were studied by many or all of his pupils. Master Ballard was himself very accurate in the use and under- standing of English words. The discipline at Master Bal- lard's school was not altogether unlike the popular disci- pline of the times, yet it had an element of mildness fore- shadowing the better times that were coming. He kept and used a rawhide, though he sometimes raised it omi- nously in the face of a frightened pupil and remarked, — "You, sir.'" allowing it afterwards to descend in mercy without a blow. To illustrate a phase of persuasive discipline on Master Ballard's part, we have his advice to a youthful pupil whom we will call Johnny, and who was somewhat identifiable by his habitually dirty hands. Accosting this pupil one day, Master Ballard impaired, — " Johnny, does your father keep hogs ?" " Yes, sir." " Does he sometimes boil potatoes for them ?" " Yes, sir." " Does he sometimes mash the potatoes with meal ?" " Yes, sir." " Well, the next time he mashes the boiled potatoes with meal, won't you take some and " Here Master Ballard motioned with his own hands in imi- tation of scrubbing them with mashed potatoes and meal. Sad to relate, we have no account of the effect produced on Johnny's mind by this eloquent appeal. 200 LIFE AND TIMES EST HOPKINTON. Master Ballard kept an uninterrupted school for about thirty years, but during his later work he received some assistance, particularly from his son, afterwards the Rev. Edward Ballard. On a plain slab in the old cemetery in Hopkinton village can be seen the following inscription : JOHN OSGOOD BALLARD, died Apkix 27, 1854. M 86. The modesty of this inscription will not prevent the fondest recollections of Master Ballard, cherished in the hearts of his many grateful pupils. The educational histor}^ of Hopkinton involves the nar- ratives of two special institutions, which are considered in two separate succeeding chapters. CHAPTER LV. HOPKINTON ACADEMY. This institution, which attained a widely extended and honorable celebrity, was founded principally by Dr. Eben- ezer Lerned, through whose dominant exertions a prelimi- nary meeting was held on the 11th of September, 1826. James Stark was made moderator of the meetiug, and Philip Brown, clerk. After deliberation, Rev. Roger C. Hatch, Rev. Michael Carlton, and Horace Chase were made a committee to solicit subscriptions. Abram Brown, Par- ker Pearson, and Philip Brown were afterwards added to this committee. A contribution of five dollars was to make one qualified to vote for officers. On the 24th of February, 1827, the movement had at- tained such proportions as to warrant the selection of a committee to report a plan of organization. Ebenezer Lerned, James Stark, Stephen Darling, Stephen Sibley, and Abram Brown were made this committee. They re- ported on the 3d of the following March. Their plan was accepted, and Ebenezer Lerned, Philip Brown, and Stephen HOPKINTON ACADEMY. 201 Sibley were selected to procure a preceptor. Two weeks later a permanent organization was effected, as follows : Trustees, Ebenezer Lerned, president, Abram Brown, Stephen Sibley, Matthew Harvey, Phineas Clough, Roger C. Hatch, Michael Carlton. Horace Chase was secretary, and Philip Brown, treasurer. Upon the establishment of Hopkinton academy, the court- house became a subject for. structural changes. In due time, improvements were made in the upper story. The building had practically ceased to be the property of either Hillsborough or Merrimack counties, especially as the courts of the latter had been established in Concord from the incorporation of 1823. The court-room and senate chamber were remodelled. Entrance was effected at either end by a hall and stairway. In the former apartment, a platform and teacher's desk were located on the east ; in the latter, on the north ; opposite either were plain wooden seats and desks, arranged in rows in the usual manner. Between these two rooms were smaller apartments, devoted to recitations, drawing garments, and a laboratory. In 1827, a bell was presented to the institution by Isaac Chandler, of Boston, Mass., a former and a later citizen of Hopkinton, the gift being acknowledged by a vote of thanks on the 30th of April. School began in the spring of the same year, under an arrangement admitting of four terms of twelve weeks each a year. The first term began on the first Wednesday in May. The hours of study prescribed for the first term were from 8 A. M. till 12 m., and from 1 to 5 P. M. The study hours of the remaining terms were left to the discre- tion of the trustees. There were to be reviews once a week. An act for the incorporation of Hopkinton academy was approved on the 26th of June. The first preceptor of Hopkinton academy was George Peck, who remained but a short time. The catalogue of the fall term of 1827 gave the following board of instruc- tion : Jeremiah Russell, A.B., preceptor; Mr. Jeremiah Gates, assistant preceptor ; Mr. Luther Cross, lecturer on chemistry. The following persons were trustees : Ebenezer Lerned, M.D., president; Abram Brown, Esq., Mr. Stephen Sibley, Phineas Clough, Esq., Rev. Roger C. Hatch, Rev. Michael Carlton, Rev. Nathaniel Williams, Concord; Hon. Henry 202 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. B. Chase, Warner; Artemus Rogers, Esq., Henniker; Philip Brown, Esq., treasurer ; Horace Chase, Esq., sec- retary. The resident students in the gentleman's list were, — Philip Brown, Jr., Alpheus R. Brown, William S. Chandler, Isaac C. Chandler, Moses T. Clough, Hilliard L. Currier, Fred- eric R. Harvey, Thomas B. Jewell, John Kelley, John T. G. Leach, Edward A. H. Lerned, Benjamin F. Long, Isaac L. Long, Charles E. Long, David S. Page, Abram B. Sib- ley, Nathaniel C. Smith, Edmund E. Smith, Solon Stark, and Isaac Story. In the ladies' list were, — Sophia W. Bailey, Catharine W. Bailey, Mary G. Bailey, Sarah L. Brown, Helen M. Chase, Paulina Clark, Hannah S. Currier, Ann L. Darling, Mary Darling, Margaret H. Hall, Margaret E. Harvey, Eliza O. Jewell, Clarissa G. Leach, Catharine C. Lerned, Judith Morse, Martha W. Rogers, Nancy G. Sibley, Sarah Silver, Bridget Stark, Mary Stark, Martha H. Story, Mary J. B. Tyler, and Hannah Weeks. The whole number of gentlemen was 47 ; ladies, 26 ; — total, 73. This catalogue contained only the list of officers, instructors, and students, and the recapitulation of the lat- ter. It was printed on plain paper, with a coarse, brown cover. The next year the school was divided into special male and female departments. The catalogue for the fall term announced the following instructors : Rev. Jacob Nash, A.M., preceptor; Miss Judith D. Peabody, preceptress. The students were,— gentlemen, 45 ; ladies, 32 ; — total, 77. Hopkinton academy advanced rapidly in success and popularity. In 1830 there were 113 students ; in 1831, 159 ; in 1835, 162. Among the earlier preceptors were Enoch Colby, Enoch L. Childs, and Moody Currier, with a large corps of assistants, in the male department. In the ladies' department were Miss Caroline Knight, Miss Mary L. Childs, Miss Lucy Adams, and Miss Mary Y. Bean, with various aids. Subsequent to this time many residents of this town remember many principals ; more recently, Pre- ceptors M. C. Stebbens, Dyer H. Sanborn, William K. Rowell, John T. Clark, Stephen W. Clark, and their assist- ants ; also Miss J. E. Stebbens, Mrs. M. A. Rowell, Miss Clara Flint, and other teachers. About the year 1843, the academy experienced a heavy HOPKDSTTON ACADEMY. 203 reverse, by which its available funds were reduced from $2,500 down to $500. The misfortune was induced by the business failure of Nathaniel Curtis, a merchant of Hopkin- ton village, in whose hands were considerable sums of the institution's means. An investigation showed an actual deficit of $1,765 18, arising from bad notes and expendi- tures above the income. The authorities of the academy failed to put in their claim in bankruptcy, and never re- covered their losses. For several years, the school fluctuated to a greater or less extent in consequence of this calamity. The institution received an important impulse in 1851, when a new charter was approved on the 4th of July. By the new arrangement, the sum of ten dollars contributed by an individual made him a trustee. The board of trustees was increased, improvements made, and prosperity fol- lowed. The time-honored institution declined again, how- ever, from the same causes that have ruined many enter- prises of its kind all over the country. Changes in popula- tion, and the increase of local high schools in larger places, have wrought results against which none but well founded or denominationally supported institutions can contend. Last of all, and sad to relate, Hopkinton academy, as a material structure, went up on the wings of flame on the morning of March 29, 1873. Many a precious memory was quickened, and many a deep regret experienced, when it perished. As an institution, Hopkinton academy nomi- nally exists, but its direct influence is nothing. In the days of its pristine and meridian usefulness, the instruction taught at Hopkinton academy was thorough and efficient, confirming the purposes of the institution, as defined in the catalogue of 1835 : " It is designed, in the course of studies pursued and in the instruction given, to develop and strengthen the faculties of the mind, as well as to store it with useful knowledge. Efforts are made to lead the mind to think and reason upon the subjects pre- sented." 204 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. CHAPTER LVI. CONTOOCOOK ACADEMY. Previously to the establishment of Contoocook academy, frequent temporary high schools had been sustained in Con- toocook village. Among those teaching them were Rev. Robert Stinson, Walter Harrimam, Prof. Dyer H. Sanborn, Capt. Orville Smith. A decided effort for an academy was made in 1855. On the 15th of December of that year, a preliminary meeting was held in what was then Merrill's hall. George L. Kimball was chairman, and Frank A. Kimball, secretary. Messrs. John F. Burnham, and Frank A. Kimball exhibited a voluntary subscription list amount- ing to $1,450. After consideration, it was voted to aban- don this list, on the assurance of pecuniary aid encouraged by the Rev. Abiel Silver, in case the proposed institution came under the control of the New, or Swedenborgian, church. The reverend gentleman pledged $500 from a friend in such a case. The plan being received favorably, Abiel Silver, Asa Kimball, and Isaac D. Merrill were chosen a committee to obtain subscriptions. Contributions came in rapidly, and soon amounted to $3,000 or more. Of this sum, John H. Williams, of Waltham, Mass., gave $1,000 ; Jacob Silver, of Michigan, $500 ; Abiel Silver, $200 ; John Burnham, $200 ; William Howe, $150 ; Asa Kimball, $140 ; Isaac D. Merrill, $100; Capt, Paul R. George, $100. Other persons gave smaller amounts. There are now fifty-seven shares in this institution, rated at $10 each. On the 18th of January, 1856, a building committee was appointed. It consisted of Abiel Silver, Asa Kimball, Jacob M. Morrill, and Isaac D. Merrill, and Mr. Merrill was also treasurer. On the 24th of the same month, Abiel Silver, Isaac D. Merrill, and George W. Morrill were chosen a committee to draft a constitution. On the 13th of March, it was voted to secure a charter, and Phineas Clough, 2d, was added to the committee on subscriptions. Building operations began the same spring. The charter was approved July 11. The securing of the act of incorporation was attended with some difficulty. The subject of a charter first came before the New Hampshire legislative committee on incorporations, which body, not CONTOOCOOK ACADEMY. 205 comprehending the significance of the name " New Church," were disposed- to treat the matter with supreme indifference. Isaac D. Merrill, however, was a representative for this town, and a member of the committee on education. Through his influence and official position, the charter be- came a fact. Although the work of building was not com- pleted, yet, upon the act of legal incorporation, a meeting was held in " Academy Hall," among the lumber and shav- ings, and the organization effected as follows : Abiel Silver, president ; John Burnham, vice-president; William Howe, N. A. Davis, Horace C. Stanley, Ebenezer Morrill, Paul R. George, Samuel L. F. Simpson, Hamilton E. Perkins, and Joseph Dow, directors ; Abiel Silver, John Burnham, Isaac D. Merrill, and Alonzo Currier, executive committee ; Abiel Silver, Rev. William B. Hayden, and Asa Kimball, property board of trustees. On the *24th of August, George L. Kimball, Isaac D. Merrill, and Samuel L. F. Simpson were chosen a committee to arrange for a term of school. The first term of Contoocook academy began in the autumn of the same year, with about eighty pupils. Am- brose Wayland Clark, of Dartmouth college, was principal. He remained but a short time, owing to a more advan- tageous opportunity for employment. In 1858, Rev. George H. Marston, of Limington, Me., came to Contoocook to be- come the successor of the Rev. Abiel Silver as minister of the New Church, and also to take charge of the academy. He was associated with Miss Amy Andrews, of Boston, Mass., who afterwards became his wife. He remained till some time in the year 1862. Since that time there hava been different teachers in charge of the institution. John C. Ager, Thomas B. Richardson, Sullivan C. Kimball, Rev. Charles Hardon, and others have taught for longer or shorter periods. Contoocook academy stands on the high land south-west of the village of Contoocook, on a site purchased by the corporation of William Howe, for the sum of $ 150. It is a neat building, two stories in height, containing Academy hall above, and drawing- and recitation-rooms below. In the tower is a bell. Walter S. Davis is president of the corporation. 206 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. CHAPTER LVII. . MILITARY ORGANIZATIONS. Organization for military offence and defence is coexist- ent with the history of society. The soldier has everywhere kept pace with the civilian. When America was settled, armed men were among the colonizers. The early proprie- tors of Hopkinton brought with them their arms and mu- nitions of war. The soldier became a specially important social factor in the early history of this town. The naturally exposed con- dition of the frontier settlement, the early occurrence of the French and Indian wars, and the subsequent event of of the Revolution compelled a prolonged public resort to arms. This phase of local history has already been de- scribed in previous chapters of this work. Upon the establishment of a free government in New Hampshire, provision was made for adequate public protec- tion. Our state constitution says, — " A well regulated militia is the proper, natural, and sure defence of a state." Acting upon this sentiment, in the year 1786, the legisla- ture of New Hampshire passed a law instituting a Training Band of men from sixteen to forty years of age, and an Alarm List of men from forty to sixty. Each town of thirty- two privates and the requisite number of officers was enti- tled to form a company : a town of ninety-two could have two companies. In the progress of time, population increased, citizens liable to military duty were multiplied, and military organ- ization was extended. In the year 1792, a law was passed making companies in Boscawen, Salisbury, Andover, New London, and Kearsarge Gore constitute a first battalion, and the companies of Hopkinton, Warner, Sutton, Fishers- field (now Newbury), and Bradford, a second battalion, which should together constitute a 21st regiment. In 1819, the companies in Boscawen, Hopkinton, Salisbury, and Andover were made to constitute a 21st regiment. In 1842, the companies in Hopkinton, Henniker, and Warner were made to constitute a 40th regiment. In 1851, the New Hampshire militia, except what existed upon paper, was practically abolished. MILITARY ORGANIZATIONS. 207 The militia law of 1792, with some modifications and amendments, was the essential law until the abolition of ancient military customs Under this law, the private mili- tia of this town was called out for inspection and exercise in drill at least twice a year — in spring and in fall — dressed in their common garb of citizenship. The officers of militia were attired in a swallow-tailed coat, with bell buttons,' and wore a bell-crowned cap and plume. Independent companies, however, were thoroughly uniformed. A body of cavalry, known as " The Troop," belonging to the old 21st regiment, and subsequently mustering with the new 40th regiment, contained members from Hopkinton, who were dressed in a red coat trimmed with yellow facings, white pants, a bell-crowned cap, and a white plume with a red tip. Connected with the old 21st regiment, and continuing till 1851, was a company of Hopkinton riflemen, who for many years wore a blue suit — spencer and pants — a bell-crowned hat, and a black plume ; afterwards they adopted a gray suit, with a modern cap, surmounted by three black feathers. There was also a company of light infantry, dressed in a blue coat and white pants, the pants being ornamented on the lower leg with two rows of black buttons, and wearing a bell-crowned cap, with a white plume tipped with red. The light infantry was subse- quently superseded by "The Cold Water Phalanx," a com- pany of men dressed in a black velvet coat trimmed with red, and white pants bearing a red stripe, and also wearing a modern cap with three white feathers. Music is always regarded as an aid to the metrical exe- cution of military drill. For the support of martial music, the state provided each compauy with a fife, a snare drum, and a bass drum. The first bass drum used was propor- tionately longer in form than the present one, was slung horizontally from the neck, and played with two drum- sticks, one in each hand. If companies desired other instru- ments of music, they were allowed to provide, at their own expense, as many as they wished. The old military prac- tices developed a good use in stimulating the musical tal- ents of the young. Instrumental music was- cultivated everywhere, and military bands frequently established. There was in Hopkinton, at the close of the old military system, a band of no mean ability, being composed of play- 208 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. ers upon clarionets, bugles, trombones, and other instru- ments. Subsequently to 1851, the interest in martial music rapidly declined to complete extinction. It revived again, however, in 1859, when the Hopkinton Cornet Band was organized, under the leadership of Melvin Colby. This organization expired in 1873, but, in 1877, a new one was formed under the old name, and under the leadership of John F. Gage. The Contoocook Cornet Band was organ- ized in 1861, under the leadership of William H. Hardy ; re- organized in 1875, under the leadership of Cyril T. Webber. A noted martial musician of this town was Jonah Camp- bell, a famous drummer, who died on the 6th of May, 1880, at the advanced age of 84 years. George Choat, a cele- brated fifer, died on the 13th of September, 1888, at the age of 89 years. CHAPTER LVIII. SECRET SOCIETIES. The devotees of the Masonic order were quite early rec- ognized in Hopkinton. Doubtless a greater or lesser num- ber of the early emigrants were Masons. In 1803, there was a Palladian Society in Hopkinton. Its first meeting was held on the 10th of January of that year, at the house of John Harris. The original members of this organization, which existed for a longer or a shorter time, were John Harris, Aquilla Davis, Timothy Darling, Stephen Blan- chard, Stephen Bean, Samuel Darling, Benjamin Eaton, Joseph Estabrook, Joshua Darling, Mark Jewett, Henry B. Chase, Daniel Moore. In the year 1807, February 16, a society was formed to be known as Trinity Chapter. In the priority of chapters in the state, Trinity was the second one established, Han- over being the first. In 1819, there were six chapters in New Hampshire. The same year, on the 10th of January, the Grand Royal Arch Chapter was organized at Concord, John Harris, of Hopkinton, being chosen grand high priest. At a commu- nication of the Grand Royal Arch Chapter soon after, at Keene, we find three men present from Trinity — Stephen SECRET SOCIETIES. 209 Sibley, proxy for M. E. H. Chase, priest ; Enoch Darling, king ; and Imri Woods, scribe. At a meeting of the Grand Royal Arch Chapter at Con- cord in 1824, the returns from Trinity Chapter were as fol- lows : M. E. Harrison G. Harris, H. P. ; Stephen Blanchard, Jun., K. ; William Little, S. ; John Harris, treasurer; Rev. John Law ton, chaplain ; Artemas Rogers, marshal ; Enoch Darling, R. A. C. ; Imri Woods, C. H. ; Aquila Davis, P. S. ; G. M. V., Jacob Silver, John Silver, Jr., Thomas Waterman ; stewards, Jacob Silver, Aaron W. Buswell ; tyler, Nicholas Tyler. Members — William Bartlett, Abram Brown, Stephen Blanchard, Isaac Bailey, Bela L. Butler, Albe Cady, Daniel B. Emerson, Austin Gage, Isaac Hill, Joseph Hnse, Abel Hutchins, Stephen Putney, Daniel Chase, Ebenezer Cressey, Joshua Darling, Stephen Davis, Stephen Sibley, Thomas Raymond. About this time, Masonic hall was erected in Hopkinton. It stood opposite the Congregational church at the corner of the main street and south road, on the spot now includ- ed in the yard of the old Gilman house, now owned by Mrs. G. G. Bailey. It was one of the old, primitive, New England style of edifices, two-storied, square, uncouth, and with a profusion of windows. Dedication day came on the 18th of May, 1825, when, with the usual pomp and cere- mony, the premises were formally assumed by the chapter. The laying of the corner-stone was a part of this demon- stration. In it was deposited a copper box, containing a variety of documents. On the cover was the following in- scription : Masonic Hall, erected by Trinity Chapter, which was instituted 16th Feb'y., A. L., 5807. Incorporated 12th June, A. D., 1807. This corner-stone was laid in Masonic form by the High Priest of Trinity Chapter, assisted by the other officers and members in pres- ence of many brethren of the mystic art and a vast concourse of people, 18th May, A. D., 1825, A. L., 5825, and in the year of the discovery, 2356. Este Perpetua. M. E. Stephen Blanchard, Jr., high priest ; E. Jacob Silver, king ; E. Daniel Chase, scribe ; C. Stephen Sibley, treasurer ; Horace Chase, secretary. The box is now in the possession of the New Hampshire Antiquarian Society, and can be seen at its rooms at Con- loocook. The contained documents are in a state of partial 14 210 LIFE AM) TIMES IN" HOPKINTON. decomposition, as they were found when taken from their original position. Free Masonry did not find in Hopkinton a permanently organized existence. In the course of the experience of Trinity Chapter, certain divisions or difficulties arose which tended to disturb its abiding-place. The climax of matters is found in the report of the Grand Royal Arch Chapter at Concord, 1847-'48. There was presented a petition, the re- sult of a communication at Hopkinton, May 19, 1847, repre- senting " that a change of said Trinity Chapter would mate- rially advance the good of Masonry, and have a tendency to restore said Trinity Chapter to its former rank in the Ma- sonic order." The petitioners, therefore, prayed " the M. E. Grand Chapter, that Trinity Chapter, now located in Hopkinton, may be permitted to remove to Concord, agreeably to the vote of said Trinity Chapter." The petition was duly signed by Nicholas Fowler, Daniel Chase, and Hosea Fessenden, the act of petitioning taking place, as by date of instrument, on June 9, 1847. In compliance with its request, Trinity Chapter was removed to Concord. Organized Masonry ceased to exist in Hop- kinton, and a year or two afterwards the hall of Trinity Chapter was sold and removed to Penacook, where it has since been devoted either to business or to domestic uses. The Patrons of Husbandry became established here in 1875. Agreeably to a petition signed by James M. Con- nor, Joseph Barnard, John F. Currier, and about twenty others, men and women of this town, State Deputy C. C. Shaw, of Milford, organized Union Grange, No. 56, in Lyceum Hall, on the evening of the 12th of May. The following persons subscribed their names as charter mem- bers : James M. Connor, Judith Connor, Joseph Barnard, John F. Currier, Mrs. Ellen Currier, Charles Gould, Miss Clara I. Gould, Timothy Colby, Frank W. Paige, Moses E. Dodge, Mrs. Abbie C. Dodge, Henry H. Crowell, Alfred N. Chandler, Mrs. Helen M. Chandler, Isaac Story, Mrs. Lydia Story, George E. Merrill, Woodbury Hardy, Edward G. Runnels, John H. Dodge, Mrs. John H. Dodge, William S. Straw, Mrs. Mary A. Straw, William Sweatt, Benjamin Hoyt, Amos Frye, Jr., Horace F. Edmunds, Ellen G. Edmunds, John M. Foss. SECRET SOCIETIES. 211 The following list of officers was elected : Master, Isaac Story ; overseer, Joseph Barnard ; lecturer, Charles Gould ; steward, Moses E. Dodge ; assistant steward, John F. Cur- rier ; secretary, James M. Connor ; chaplain, Timothy Colby ; treasurer, Henry H. Crowell ; gate-keeper, Horace F. Edmunds ; Ceres, Mrs. Alfred N. Chandler ; Pomona, Mrs. William S. Straw ; Flora, Miss Ellen G. Edmunds ; chorister, Edward G. Runnels ; business agent, Amos Frye, Jr. Union Grange is to-day in active existence as a success- ful organization. Of the organization of the Odd Fellows in this town, we have obtained but little information. Kearsarge Lodge, No. 23, was instituted in Contoocook on the 22d of Decem- ber, 1876, by Grand Master Alonzo F. Craig, and Grand Secretary Joel Taylor. The following is a list of the orig- inal charter members ; Edson Upton, John F. Jones, George C. Blaisdell, Edgar W. Stevens, Isaiah S.Livingston, Henry E. Wheeler, Henry D. Dustin, John C. Osgood, Grovenor A. Curtice, John G. Colby, Isaac K. Connor, Warren C. Johnson. Among the officers chosen for the first term were Edson Upton, N. G.; Isaac K. Connor, V. G. ; Grove- nor A. Curtice, secretary; John F. Jones, treasurer. Kearsarge Lodge is now in a flourishing condition. In 1889, Eagle Encampment was transferred from Henniker to Contoocook, thus enlarging the local interests and oppor- tunities of the order. In the year 1874, a lodge of the Independent Order of Good Templars was organized in Contoocook, but it became defunct in a few years. In 1878, on the first day of June, Washington Lodge, No. 46, was organized at Hopkinton village. The following were original members: Rev. C. A. Stone, D. L. Gage, Elijah Spencer, Mrs. S. E. Spencer, William Win slow, Mrs. Winslow, Mrs. Sarah Nichols, Sumner E. Spencer, George N. Kimball, Willie Winslow, Mis. Sarah Gale, Georgia A. Rogers, Carrie Winslow, Sarah Winslow, Etta Brockway, Fred J. Brockway, Susie F. L. Bailey, Moses W. Burbank, John H. Sargent, Joseph L. Hagar, Rev. William S. Tucker, Carrie B. Dunbar, Charles H. Stone, Harvey L. Boutwell, Henry B. A. Boutwell, Frank Burbank, Emma Sanborn, Helen Colby, Maggie French, Mrs. A. G. Straw. 212 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. The following were the original officers: W. C. T., Joseph L. Hagar; W. V. T., Mrs. Spencer; W. S., Sumner E. Spencer; F. S., Sarah Winslow; T., Rev. Mr. Stone; M., John H. Sargent; C, Rev. Mr. Tucker; I. &., Maggie French; O. G., Charles H. Stone; A. S., Georgia A. Rogers; D. M., Harvey L. B out well ; R. S., Emma San- born ; L. S., Carrie B. Dunbar; P. W. C. T., Elijah Spen- cer. There was no permanent organization of the Grand Army of the Republic in this town till 1882. Previously to that year, a movement in the direction of a permanent organiza- tion was made in Contoocook, bat the plan was not fully ultimated. On the 7th of July, 1882, a permanent organi- zation was effected at the lower village. A meeting hav- ing been called, Department Commander Haynes detailed comrades for temporary officers as follows : Com., M. A. Haynes ; S. V. C, I. W. Hammond ; J. V. C, D. B. New- hall ; A., Natt Shackford; Q. M., F. D. Bachelder ; S., J. N. Patterson ; C, A. B. Thompson ; O. D., J. E. Randlett; S. M., J. S. Hubbard; Q. M. S., C. H. Ordway. The roll- call showed fifteen members present. Commander Haynes administered the obligation, and ordered an election of officers, which resulted thus: Com., William Montgomery; S. V. C, Frank W. Morgan ; J. V. C, Joseph P. Morrill; Q. M., Eli A. Boutwell; O. D., Edward G. Runnels; C, Woodbury Hardy; S., Samuel E. Crowell ; S. M., George A. Libby ; Q. M. S., George W. Nichols. Henry H. Crow- ell was appointed adjutant, and Comrade W. E. Stevens administered the obligation. Col. Putnam Post, No. 5, at present contains a numerous membership and is in a pros- perous condition. Col. Putnam Woman's Relief Corps, No. 25, was organ- ized February 25, 1885. The following were the original officers: President, Mrs. Linda M. Morgan; S. V. Presi- dent, Mrs. Abbie A. Brown; J. V. President, Mrs. Hattie N. Chase ; secretary, Mrs. Roxanna W. Kelley ; treasurer, Mrs. Mary J. Tasker ; chaplain, Mrs. Harriet W. Boutwell ; conductor, Mrs. Jennie Runnels ; guard, Mrs. Mary J. Chase. This organization is active and prosperous. INTELLECTUAL INSTITUTIONS, ETC. 213 CHAPTER LIX. SPECIAL INTELLECTUAL INSTITUTIONS AND ENTERPRISES. There was a circulating library in this town in the early part of the present century. It was for a considerable time kept in the office of Bavuch Chase, a lawyer, who occupied as a place of business the building now used as the village post-office. After the death of Mr. Chase, the books found their way into the house of his widow. They lay stored many years, and, it is said, in the end were sold for old paper. They were disposed of during the late war, when old papei was very high. We have never been able to ascertain the date of the establishment of this library, the number of its volumes, or the conditions of its use. During the practical usefulness of Hopkinton academy, the "lyceum" was a prominent feature of its indirect privi- leges. The lyceum was an organization of present and past students, and admitted of a variety of rhetorical and liter- ary exercises. A prominent feature of the lyceum was the debate which tended to develop the public controversial abilities of the disputants. When Prof. D} T er H. Sanborn became the principal of Hopkinton academy, a lyceum known as the "Sanborn Adelphi" came into existence. In due time, a library of quite respectable proportions became the property of the organization. The books were con- tained in a case which was kept in the east room of the academy. Professor Sanborn taught a year or two, and then opened a select school at Contoocook, where he collected quite a large number of scholars, some of whom were members of the Sanborn Adelphi, organized at the lower village. In the process of events there arose a dispute about the possession of the Sanborn Adelphi library. Certain stu- dents came down from Contoocook to the lower village, where the subject in controversy was ardently discussed on either hand. At length disputation resulted in an active contest. An attempt being made to convey a portion of the books to Contoocook, a general scramble ensued, and every member present seized and personally appropriated as many volumes as his individual prowess enabled him to control. Thus ended the Sanborn Adelphi library, the time being not far from 1855. 214 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. The Contoocook library was founded in 1871. The enterprise was the result of a preliminary effort of the young people of the place, who gave a number of public en- tertainments, the funds accruing from which laid the basis of the ultimate scheme. The enterprise having made some progress, a meeting for organization was held on the 4th day of January, the result being as follows : President, George W. Morrill ; vice-presidents, Joseph Barnard, Anson White ; secretary, Harvey Campbell ; treasurer, Isaac D. Merrill; trustees, Thomas P. Richardson, Rufus P. Copps, Walter S. Davis, Charles Gould, John F. Jones. The provisions of the constitution require a membership fee of $2, and a subsequent annual tax of $1 as a reading right. The association has about 100 members. The num- ber of volumes in the library is over 1,500. In many instances books have been temporarily loaned to the insti- tution. There are about fifteen honorary members, some of whom have made donations to the library. Mrs. C. L. George at one time presented the association with $50. The library is located in Curtice's block. Mrs. Charles Hardon is the librarian. The Hopkinton village library was founded in 1871, and in a manner very like that obtaining at Contoocook. Con- siderable means was at first obtained by a series of enter- tainments given by the people of this vicinity. At length a stock company was formed, a subscription of $10, paid in five annual instalments of $2 each, making one a perma- nent member of the organization. On the 17th of March, a meeting of stockholders was called, and temporary organi- zation effected as follows : President, Carlos G. Hawthorne; secretary, Herman W. Greene ; treasurer, Isaac Story. The following were appointed directors with power to choose executive officers: H. W. Greene, Isaac Story, S. Smith Page, James M. Connor, Charles C. Burnham, John F. Currier, True J. Putney, Carlos G. Hawthorne, Christie W. Burnham, Melvin Colby. Permanent officers were chosen as follows : President, Herman W. Greene ; vice- president, Charles C. Burnham ; secretary, Lewis D. Evans; treasurer, Isaac Story ; librarian, Miss Anstice I. Clarke ; executive committee, Carlos G. Hawthorne, James M. Con- nor, John F. Currier. This association has a very long list of honorary mem- INTELLECTUAL INSTITUTIONS, ETC. 215 bers. Important donations have been received from Messrs. G. Theodore Roberts of Philadelphia, and Robert H. Tewksbury and J. C. Dow of Lawrence, Mass. The num- ber of volumes is over 1,000, besides numerous magazines and pamphlets. The library was first opened in a room over the present store of Charles French, from which it was taken to the post-office building, which it now occu- pies. For a year or two this library was idle, owing to a lack of funds and the occupancy of the post-office building bj T the Hopkinton Times. The library is now in active use, being in charge of Lewis D. Evans, the village post- master. The New Hampshire Antiquarian Society, which has its head-quarters at Contoocook, was incorporated on the 2d of July, 1875. This organization was the result of an associa- tion called the Philomathic Club, which was formed at Hopkinton, November 19, 1850. The original members of this club were only three in number — Silas Ketchum, George H. Crowell, and Darwin C. Blanchard — all of them young men, who sought only mutual improvement by asso- ciating together. The meetings of the club were held in private houses, and at length the number of members was increased to seven. The following statement is from the pen of Mr. Ketchum : " In the lapse of years, these members became dispersed into five different states. Once at least each year a meeting was held, at which so many as could be were present. Nearly all were men of liberal education and literary pur- suits. Common proclivities of mind and taste induced them to collect whatever fell in their way that was unusual and curious. Without any design, but by common consent, these articles were brought to the meetings and deposited in the club-room at Hopkinton. This process went on for fourteen years. In 1872, the head-quarters of the club were established at Contoocook." On the 19th of November, 1873, the Philomathic Club was dissolved, and the New Hampshire Antiquarian Society was organized in its stead. Rev. Silas Ketchum was made president, and continued a member till his death in 1880. The society's collection of books, specimens, etc., amounts to many thousands of articles, which occupy a number of rooms in Jones's building, close by the bridge across the Con- 216 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. toocook river. This collection is the frequent resort of vis- itors, and it receives frequent additions. The societj^ holds meetings quarterly, the third Tuesday in July being the time of the transaction of its annual business. A building for the reception and preservation of the library and museum of the New Hampshire Antiquarian Society was projected in Hopkinton village in 1889. The unfinished edifice is the gift of Mrs. William H. Long, of Boston, Mass., and will cost the munificent sum of $10,000. The structure of brick and stone, elegant and ornamental, occupies the site of the residence of the late Timothy Chandler. The edifice will bear the inscription, " The William H. Long Memorial Building." In this chapter, we have already mentioned the Hopkin- ton Time*. This paper, published weekly by H. Sumner Chase, was first issued in June, 1880. Its first location was in the old post-office building. In the fall of 1880, it was removed to Contoocook and issued in a room over Wads- worth's machine shop, in Bailey's mill. In the year 1882, it was removed to Bailey's block, where it continued to be issued till 1883, when it was located in the present Highland hall. In January, 1885, the paper was consolidated with the Kearsarge Independent, of Warner, and the combined sheet became the Independent and Times. CHAPTER LX. TAVERNS AND HOTELS. The first house of public hospitality in Hopkinton was a tavern. Now we have hotels. Names, like other things, therefore change. Among the first taverners in Hopkinton were Benjamin Wiggin and Theophilis Stanley. Several persons quite early were engaged in hotel keeping on the site of the old Perkins House. The most notable of these earliest landlords was Mr. Wiggin, who was justice, post- master, and trader also. He came to this town from Strat- ham, N. H., and became established as a landlord as early as 1786, which date was inscribed upon his old-fashioned THE PERKINS INN. TAVBENS AND HOTELS. 217 swinging sign-board, one half in each upper corner. On the bottom of this sign-board was the significant announcement, "Entertainment by B. W." This sign-board also bore a painted representation of a man on horseback, followed by two dogs. Never were worse proportions delineated. The man's waist was shrunk up to comparative nothingness, while his lower extremities enlarged into feet of enormous proportions. Benjamin Wiggin's hotel is still standing, be- ing the house already located in an earlier chapter of this work. The house of Theophilis Stanley is still standing, and has also been located. In early times. Maj. Isaac Babson kept a tavern on the site of the present Perkins Inn. We do not know when this tavern was opened to the public. Thedate " 1786" was once discovered on the lathing of one of the rooms. Sub- sequently to 1800, it was purchased by Roger E. Perkins. Later, the house was kept by Bimsley Perkins, but with a respite from 1816 to 1818. and it became his by purchase in 1826. Under the care of Bimsley Perkins, this tavern be- came the most noted public house between Boston and Montreal. The house was square, two-storied, and had a gable roof. Under Bimsley Perkins's management, the elite were served at this tavern in the days of Hopkihton's high- est prosperity. There were important out-buildings erected during this time. In consequence of social changes which we have already mainly related. Perkins's tavern was closed to the public about the year 1^47. On the 1st of December, 1864, the edifice was reopened as a public house by David B. Story, and became a modern village hotel, accommodat- ing numerous summer boarders yearly. In 1870, a Man- sard roof was put upon it. and other improvements were made. On the night of the 5th of October, 187*2, the Perkins House went up on the wings of flame. The fire Mas accidental. Elder Joseph Putney's tavern stood on the highest point of road between the two villages in town, on the site now occupied by the house of Charles Putnam. It was part of a large farming establishment, and was patronized by the more lowly among travellers. To obtain a clearer idea of life in a public accommodation like Joseph Putney's, we must understand a feature of ancient travel which was more or less exhibited in or around all country inns. In 218 LITE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. the olden time, all freight was of course carried through the country on wheels andrunuers, and, in many instances, by the owners themselves. Teamsters were often inclined to indulge only the most economical fare. When teams, large and small, put up for the night, the drivers often brought their own provisions, thereby saving all expendi- tures except for lodgings, grog, and hay. It was a pict- uresque sight when a large company of travellers gathered around the open fire, and refreshed themselves, each from his own box of edibles. Elder Putney was particularly hospitable to his guests, always furnishing them with plenty of cider for nothing. His supply of winter apples was just as free. The average patronage of a house like Joseph Putney's would surprise the modern inquirer. The num- ber of horses and men requiring to transport freights was large, and the accumulation of small teams swelled the travel immensely. Elder Putney was a man of remarkable generosity and integrity. His temperament was strongly religious, impelling him to officiate publicly in the school- house close to his home. From this fact it is probable he received the title of " Elder." Upon the death of his wife he abandoned public hospitalities. He died Sept. 20, 1846, aged 93. He was a soldier of the Revolution. The first public house in Contoocook stood on the site of Curtice's block, which is in part the original structure, since remodelled. At first there was a plain, one-storied, ungainly building opened to the public by Daniel Page. When the later Central House was projected, the idea of the necessity of competition first entered into the mind of the proprietor of the old hotel, and an extra story was added. Not far from this time, Mr. Page sold out his stand to his sister Susan, afterwards the wife of Simeon Tyler, who lived in the district known as Tyler's bridge. Miss Page was sadly unfortunate in the ultimate of her proprietorship. She sold the house for railroad stock, and lost it all. The stand ceased to be open to the public about the year 1834. The second hotel built in Contoocook was erected in the autumn of the year 1831, by Messrs. Sleeper & Wheeler. Both landlords were young men. The enterprise did not flourish in their hands, and in about a year the property went into the hands of Herrick Putnam, who kept the doors open for about a dozen years. Mr. Putnam was followed TAVERNS AND HOTELS. 219 by Rufus Fuller, of Bradford, who conducted the establish- ment till about twelve years later, when he died. For years the place was kept by Henry Fuller, son of Rufus, and af- terwards by Walcot Blodget, son-in-law of the elder Mr. Fuller. It changed hands frequently till 1872, when it fell into the possession of Col. E. C. Bailey, who kept it open till 1878, when he tore it down and began the erection of a hotel on the site of the present new house of Walter S. Davis ; but the scheme was never ultimated. The old Cen- tral House stood on the western apex of Mr. Davis's pres- ent lot. The Putney House in Hopkinton village was built to supply the place of the Perkins House, burnt in 1872. In the summer of that year, George G. Bailey determined to make Hopkinton village a place of residence, bought the old Isaac Long place, and fitted it up for the convenience of his family during the hot months. A year or two after, he purchased the old Dr. Wells house, adjoining the Long place, moved it back, established connection between the two, and made the hotel a nice and convenient one, in a pleasant, shady spot. The structure included two stories with a Mansard roof. The complete establishment had a front extension of 125 feet and a rear one of 190. After the erection of this house, an elegant hall, a bowling-alley, and other additions were constructed. Mr. Bailey conducted the Putney House a few years, and then closed it to the public. In the summer of 1886, it was reopened by Kimball & Green, Mr. Bailey having died, and it was called the Mt. Putney House. On the night of the 23d of the next December it was burned, and the vil- lage of Hopkinton was destitute of a public house. The Mt. Putney House stood on the site of the present summer residence of Horace G. Chase. In 1886, July 1, the present Highland House was opened in Contoocook, by H. Sumner Chase, who also opened Highland hall, making an elegant and commodious public establishment. The present Perkins Inn in Hopkinton village was for- mally opened to the public on the 4th of July, 1888. The want of a public house hafd been deeply felt. In the sum- mer of 1887, a project in anticipation of a new one was 220 LITE AND TIMES IN HOPK1NTON. originated by Miss Kate P. Kimball, who gave inspiration to the people, collected subscriptions for stock, and, in fact, became the virtual cause of the present inn, begun in the fall of 1887, when, in anticipation of its construction, Miss Kimball herself removed the first earth on the selected site. The new project advanced so rapidly after its inception, that, on the 25th of August, a voluntary corporation, with a capital of $10,000, was formed under the General Laws of the state, and the following ten directors were chosen : Robert R. Kimball, Horace G. Chase, John F. Currier, Arthur W. Goodspeed, Robert B. Currier, Herman W. Greene, Lewis D. Evans, John S. Kimball, Samuel S. Page, John G. Brockway. These directors again organized thus: President, Robert R. Kimball; clerk, Lewis D. Evans; treasurer, John S. Kimball ; executive committee, Herman W. Greene, Horace G. Chase, John F. Currier. The enter- prise advanced so favorably that on the 6th day of April, 1888, the capital stock was increased to $12,000, its present limit. The new hotel occupies a position on the corner of the village square and Main street, fronting the square to the east and the street to the south. The structure extends 80 feet each east and south, with a lateral breadth of 40 feet to each of the two wings that compose it. At the ex- tremity of the southern wing, at the west, there is an addi- tion of 36 by 34 feet. The main edifice is three stories in height, including a Mansard story, and has a veranda 200 feet long and 10i feet wide. At the principal corner of the building is a tower and flag-staff of an elevation of 83 feet, in front of which the veranda is extended 4 feet in breadth, forming a beautiful and spacious porch. The new hotel contains no less than 52 rooms, arranged and constructed according to all the purposes of a house of its kind. The office, entered from the east, is 22 by 40 feet in size ; the reading-room, 16 by 24i; two ante-rooms, each 12 by 16 ; the dining-room, 34 by 39 ; the parlor, occupying the most conspicuous corner on the first floor, 32 by 36. The guest chambers, on the second and third floor, vary in size, but principally range from 12 by 16 to 16 by 16. It is a nota- ble fact that there is not a room in this house that has not a window opening to a pleasant prospect, for the village and surroundings are full of natural beauty. The addition to the south wing, partly devoted to culinary purposes, has TAVERNS AND HOTELS. 221 four stories including the Mansard. The whole structure is painted in the following manner : The body is Tuscan yellow ; the Mansard, gasholder red ; the roof, slate ; the Minds, maroon; the Mansard is encircled by a stripe of slate with a band of fancy shingles in the middle. The plan of the hotel was furnished by Dow & Wheeler, Concord, and it was mainly constructed by our own local workmen. The lumber was largely furnished by Johnson & Richards, and came from the forest of Stillman B. Gage. The mas- ter carpenter was Elmer B. Dunbar. F. E. Williams, of Penacook, built the chimneys. George F. Tilton was su- perintendent of the painting. The lathing was done by Edgar Atwood, of Penacook, and the plastering by Mr. Williams. Since its erection, the Perkins Inn has been supplied with a steam-heating apparatus. The Perkins Inn is a name that commemorates Capt. Bimsley Perkins, the famous proprietor of Perkius's Tav- ern. It was one of three names proposed by Miss Kate P. Kimball, and it was the final selection of a committee of proprietors. Upon the opening of the new hotel, Frank A. Hale became the landlord. The old swing-sign of Benja- min Wiggin, retouched with paint, still invites the public to hospitality at the Perkins Inn, being hung to an elm that stands near the chief corner of the edifice. It is a tradition that Lieutenant Cross, who lived near the first ferry across the Contoocook river, kept the first tavern in town. In the earlier times in Hopkinton, there were numerous houses that combined the features of a farming home and a country tavern. In later times, a num- ber of persons have kept public houses of greater or less importance in the villages. Among them may be men- tioned Daniel Flanders, at Hopkinton village, and Edward D. Burnham and Charles E. Taylor, at Contoocook. 222 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. CHAPTER LXI. AN AGRICULTURAL SKETCH. An early occupation of civilization is tilling the soil. In a new country, farming is often the main support of the population. The first settlers of Hopkinton were mostly farmers. The condition of agriculture was, of necessity, crude. Its profits were uncertain in a corresponding degree. Besides the natural uncertainty of the seasons, the lack of intercommunication between localities, and the at- tendant imperfect means of transportation, made the con- sequences of local failure more disastrous. The soil, how- ever, was new and fertile. When it brought forth, it did so abundantly. It was only when it failed through drought, flood, or cold that the population suffered — mostly through difficulty of communicating with distant and abundant supplies. As population and social facilities increased, the farms were not only self-supportive, but on fertile years corn and grain were stored in the granaries of the industrious. Con- sequently, in the earlier times, the farmers of Hopkinton sold corn and wheat, instead of buying them as they do now. In the case of infertile seasons, the stores of accumu- lated products became available in the suppression of famine. In 1816, there occurred a prominent illustration in kind. The year was very unfruitful through an intensity of cold. On inauguration day, in June, there was snow to the depth of four inches on a level. An early frost in autumn killed all the corn. The farmers cut it up and stooked it, but, being in the milk, it heated and spoiled. As a consequence of the induced scarcity, corn sold in Hop- kinton as high as $3.50 a bushel. Corn and grain have been sold in this town and taken to Vermont for consumption. People then could not antici- j)ate the times that were coming. One of our former townsmen tells us' that he well remembers the very first time his father bought a barrel of flour. The price jDaid was only four dollars, but the act of purchase was deemed so extravagant as to be almost culpable. It could not then be popularly foreseen that the time was at hand when it would be almost as rare for a farmer in Hopkinton to raise his own flour as it was then rare for him to pur- chase it. James M. Connor. AN AGRICULTURAL SKETCH. 223 In the earlier times, the production and maintenance of farm animals were also much larger. In districts where it is now comparatively rare to find a yoke of oxen, the supply of this kind of stock was multitudinous, the stock of different farmers being recorded by ear-marks on the book of the town-clerk, for perfect identification when astray or on common land. Nothing was more common than to own several yokes of large oxen, to say nothing of the usually attendant array of steers. Not more than sixty years ago, Reuben E. French, a former townsman, seeking cattle for the down-country markets, bought over seventy head in one day. They were all purchased in one district in this town, and the transaction required less time than half a day. At the present time it is nothing uncommon for a man to travel over parts of several towns to buy a single yoke of oxen. Besides the usual complement of horned stock and general farm animals, there was at one time quite a specialty in sheep. Stephen Sibley and Joseph Barnard were prom- inent growers of this kind of stock. Their flocks were counted by hundreds. Considerable effort was made to secure improved animals. Stock was imported from Ver- mont, New York, and perhaps other states, and the quality of the local flocks materially advanced. In 1838, at the American Institute fair in New York, a silver medal was awarded to " Barnard and Sibley," for the best exhibition of fleeces of American wool. In 1851, at the World's fair in London, a bronze medal was awarded to Joseph Barnard for an exhibition of wool by the lot. The prosperity of this branch of farming industry early met with an ignominious defeat. The revenue laws of 1832 and 1833, reducing the duties on imports and discouraging local manufacturers, so reduced the price of wool as to materially depress the interests of sheep-raising. The flocks declined. A little impulse was given to this branch of industry during the war of 1861, owing to the demands for wool created by the army, but it was only temporary. The soil of this town was adapted to growing all the staple crops of New England, but its subjection to the uses of the husbandman was a work of prodigious effort. The dense, heavy forests so extensively prevailing, were subdued by labor without direct profit. Wood and timber, so much in excess of the demand, were comparatively worthless. 224 LITE AND TIMES ES" HOPKESTON. Even many years after the complete occupation of the township, a large pine tree, several feet in diameter and full of clear stuff, was sold on the stump for the insignifi- cant sum of twenty-five cents. The freedom with which the best of timber was employed in the humblest uses of building attests the low marketable estimate placed upon it. Acres upon acres of primitive forests were cut down, the logs rolled in heaps, and the fallen debris — trunks, branches, and boughs — burned to ashes. Following this exceedingly laborious toil came not only the difficult task of plowing- and planting, but the almost endless labor of removing the rocks and stones that thickly cumbered the surface of the ground. Stones were utilized in the division of lots by walls, which were often thick, or double. On an ancient location on Putney's hill can be seen stone walls that are six or eight feet in thickness. Heaps of stone thrown up in waste places are significant monuments of the severe toil through which the early inhabitants of this town reclaimed the wil- derness. With experience and increased social facilities came im- provements in the quality of the products of the soil. The introduction of improved varieties of fruit, largely through Abraham Brown, mentioned in Part II of this work, was a more notable event on account of the facilities for improve- ment afforded by the process of grafting. About seventy- five years ago, the Baldwin apple was introduced into this town by Stephen Gage. Since then it has become the- standard winter apple in every household in the community. We may not speak of the many varieties of roots, seeds, and. scions that have come and gone, or come and remained, since the earlier times. The history of our town, in this- respect, is substantially uniform with that of many others in its vicinity. Upon the ancient farm of Warren Huntoon, upon Putney's hill, lies an ancient broken grindstone, a symbolic relic of a past rude husbandry. It is of common granite rock, and for a long time was the only grindstone in the immediate vicinity. People came long distances to grind their scythes upon it. Before its use, people of this town used to go to Concord to grind their scythes. A general scythe-grinding took place only occasionally. The scythes, were kept sharp with whetstones as long as practicable, and then a person gathered up the dull scythes, in the. neigh- AX AGRICULTURAL SKETCH. 225 borhood and took them away for grinding. Snaths at that time were made by hand. The axe-handles were straight. The plows were at first of wood, faced with iron. Imple- ments of all kinds were rude and imperfect, besides being mostly the product of the skill of the local blacksmith and carpenter. The introduction of modern implements has been a gradual but comparatively thorough work. The ancient richness of the soil having been in a great measure exhausted, the introduction of fertilizers from out- side has become a permanent traffic. The utilization of the newer and richer fields of the West has brought to our doors an abundance of corn and grain, and the incidental forms of cereal products. In the incidental improvements of farming — draining, building, etc. — our town has made creditable progress. The proximity of Hopkinton to Con- cord and Penacook — populous places — has latterly given an impulse to the department of the dairy. Improved dairy stock has been introduced to a considerable extent, and the same may be said of other farm animals. In the early part of the present century, considerable active interest in improved agriculture was taken by sev- eral prominent citizens of this town. One or more cattle shows were held in the village, on the land of Dr. Ebenezer Lerned, and were participated in by citizens of other towns and perhaps other states. In 1880, a branch of the Kear- sarge Farmers' club was organized in Hopkinton. The first officers were, — J. F. Currier, president; C. C. Lord, secre- tary ; and Joseph Barnard, director. Meetings were held in winter, alternating once a week between Hopkinton vil- lage and Contoocook, for about two years. During the second year, various experiments were tried and reported. There were exhibitions of poultry and produce at some of the meetings. Special attention has been paid to the breeding of Guern- sey stock, on the farm of Joseph Barnard, for forty years or more. C. and G. M. Putnam, of Putney's hill, have for years given much attention to full-blooded Devon stock. The late Daniel Dustin gave much ' attention to improved sheep. In later years much attention has been paid to improved poultry. Willard T. Greene, Edward G. Run- nells, William C. Russ, J. Arthur Jones, Sumner E. Spen- cer, and others have produced excellent birds of different varieties. 15 226 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. Within a few years, the practice of selling milk at the railroad station has been cultivated by numerous farmers. The marketing of cream has of late years been an impor- tant agricultural factor. For a number of recent years, D. Carlton Tucker conducted a local creamery at West Hopkinton. CHAPTER LXII. A SKETCH OF MANUFACTURES. In earlier chapters of this work, we have recorded sun- dry acts of the new township in encouragement of local mills or manufactories. Under the aid thus given, such works as were implied increased to an observable extent. In 1791, when the town appears to have first recorded its inventory in a book, the following persons were taxed for mills: Nathaniel Clement, Moses Titcomb, Jeremiah Story, Amos Bailey, Levi Bailey, Joseph Barnard, John Currier, Eliphalet Poor, Abraham Rowell, and Simeon Dow, Jr. The principal business done at these mills was probably sawing lumber, grinding corn and grain, or fulling and dressing cloth. We have already seen how Nathaniel Clement was voted a gratuity by the town so long as he kept a corn-mill in repair. This was in the year 1765. In the progress of events, it appears that Nathaniel Clement and Jeremiah Story were at one time in partnership. The site of Clem- ent's mill, in 1765, was just east of Hopkinton village, at the outlet of Mill's meadow, near or where is now the pres- ent mill of John Rogers. Whether Storj^ was a partner at this point is not clear. Later, the works were moved down-stream, to the present mill-site, at the end of the path that continues from the lane leading from the village main street, between the house of George W. Currier and the N. H. Antiquarian building, by the graveyard, to the Chase woods. Afterwards, a re-location was made near the head of the present Chase (formerly Colby's) pond. Still more recently, the site was taken where the old mill known as Kimball's stood, within the recollection of many persons now living, it being where Dolloff's brook crosses A SKETCH OF MANUFACTURES. 227 the highway, the stream moving eastward, about a mile from Hopkinton village on the Webster road. It appears that Clement and Story were in partnership some of the time before 1798, when both ceased to be taxed for property in mills. Moses Titcomb's mill is said to have been still farther down-stream, on Dolloff's brook, perhaps near its mouth. Joseph Barnard's mill is also said to have been on the unoccupied site, where Webber's mill recently stood, on the present farm of Dr. Charles P. Gage, of Con- cord. In a previous chapter, we located the mills of John Cur- rier, Eliphalet Poor, and Simeon Dow, Jr. Abraham Rowell's mill was at West Hopkinton. We cannot describe the location of the rest. In the earlier times, manufactures were very much scat- tered. In fact, every household was a manufacturing es- tablishment in a small way. Once small mills, and shops, manufactories of lumber, leather, and various domestic articles, in whole or in part, were scattered through the town, occupying nearly or quite every available water priv- ilege, while some, like tanneries, were often on highland locations. Since the earlier times, many men have been en- gaged in manufactures in this town. We can only men- tion some of the more important establishments and owners. The principal water-power being on the Contoocook river, at the village of the same name, which has grown up in a large measure in consequence of the local, natural privi- leges offered by the stream, there have been a number of the more important works in this town. Mills of greater or less importance were located early at this point, among the operators being Benjamin Hill, who was taxed for mill property in this town as early as 1795, and whose family name gave the euphonious title of " Hill's Bridge" to the present village of Contoocook. As the place increased in size and importance, more notable works were established. As soon as 1825, Abram Brown was a mill operator or owner. In company with John Burnham, he carried on a notable business in the lumber and grain line for about thirty years. The grist-mill operated by these two men was conducted by the sons of John Burnham till the fire of 1873, which consumed it. In 1826, or thereabouts, Joab Patterson established himself here in the business of a 228 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. clothier. Subsequently lie took into partnership his brother, David N., and till about 1860 the two carried on business, but subsequently to 1844 following the manufacture of woollen cloths, which they sold largely to people in the vicinity in exchange for wool or cash. For a short time, another brother was connected with them. On the north side of the river, a mill, on the site of the present saw-mill operated by Frank I. Morrill, was built by Hamilton E. Perkins in 1835. It was subsequently burned and re- built. The present grist-mill occupies a building erected for miscellaneous purposes by H. E. Perkins, a short time after his first. Messrs. Kempton & Allen began the manu- facture of mackerel kits about 1850, first in the present Morrill saw-mill ; afterwards one or both occupied the old Patterson factory, where business was kept up till the fire of 1873. For a few years subsequently to 1864, Jonathan M. and George W. Morrill carried on woollen manufactur- ing in the present grist-mill building, which was then the property of Capt. Paul R. George or his heirs. In 1874, the brothers Morrill & Kempton, kit manufacturers, erected a steam mill about a half mile north of the village, which was burned in 1883 and afterwards rebuilt. Grinding was also done at their mill during the first years of its existence. A year or two subsequently to the erection of this mill, Colonel E. C. Bailey put in the machinery of the present grist-mill, having become the sole owner of the Contoocook water-power in 1875. In 1883, the present mill-dam was reconstructed, and, in 1887, the whole power was purchased, by Walter S. Davis, who now owns all the works except the saw-mill of Frank I. Morrill. About 1815, Thomas Kast began the manufacture of leather on the spot now occupied by Horace J. Chase, em- ploying the present water-power. He kept up the business for about thirty years, and then sold out to Jonathan Osgood. In 1852, the works passed into the hands of Mr. Chase, who has made numerous important additions and im- provements to them. This establishment has been twice burned out — once during its occupancy by Mr. Kast and once since owned by Mr. Chase. About 1830, William Clough established a mill at what is now known as " Cloughville." Several sons of Mr. Clough have since been engaged in different kinds of wooden manufactures here, and several mills have at times been in operation. As A SKETCH OF MANUFACTURES. 229 soon as 1835, John Smiley became engaged as a miller at West Hopkinton, on the site of the old Rowell mill. For about thirty years " Smiley's Mills" was a popular grinding station for the vicinity. Grinding is no longer done at this station. The traveller who now takes his way in the val- ley between Putnej^s and Beech hills, crossing the tortuous Dolloph's brook where it runs easterly across the road, at the site of what was formerly Richard Kimball's mill, will hardly conceive that here, where is now nothing but trees and bushes, was once a mill three stories in height, where, in addition to sawing lumber, the managers ground and bolted as good meal*and flour as perhaps can be made at any place. Yet it was so. Several parties were at differ- ent times interested in this mill. Nathaniel Clement and Jeremiah Story once did business in partnership at this location. The Clement family was prominently connected with this mill in later times. The mill-site was in posses- sion of the Story family till 1877. About 1835, much enthusiasm was aroused over the manufacture of silk. Silk worms and mulberry trees were procured from older communities, and work begun in earnest. Silk thread and cloth were manufactured, but the enterprise died about as suddenly as it was born. The pro- ducts of this business cost more than the income. Our people could not successfully compete with the cheaper labor of Europe. In some instances, remnants of the old mulberry orchards can be seen to this day. There were two persons who became specially noted for their proficiency in silk manufactures. Mrs. Betsey T. Kim- ball, wife of Nathaniel, made silk cloth, and once was awarded $3 for the best silk dress by 'the Merrimack Coun- ty Agricultural Association, better known as the "cattle show." Mrs. Kimball's home was on Beech hill, where now lives her grandson, Gilman B. Kimball. Mrs. Abram Brown, of Putney's hill, was also a manufacturer of silk cloth used for dresses. We believe these were the only persons who made themselves garments of domestic silk. In 1889, the following persons were taxed for property in mills, machinery, etc.: Eli A. Boutwell, Frank H. Carr, Joseph S. Clough, Harvey Chase, Henry H. Crowell, Walter S. Davis, Eliza J. Gage, Frank I. Morrill, John Rogers, Leon D. Whittier, Nahum M. Whittier. 230 LIFE AND TIMES IN HOPKINTON. CHAPTER LXIII. A SHORT SKETCH OF TRADE. Trade is essential to civilization. An incipient commu- nity has its quota of tradesmen. Soon after the first occu- pation of the township of Hopkinton, stores, or domestic trading posts, for the accommodation of the public, began to spring up. Reliable data of the earliest conditions of trade in this town are very meagre. In 1791, the follow- ing persons were taxed for stock in trade and money at in- terest : Capt. Joshua Bailey, Capt. Chase, Daniel Herrick, Samuel Harris, Capt. Stephen Harriman, Theophilis Stan- ley, and Benjamin Wiggin. It is reasonable to believe that only a part of these were engaged in actual traffic in merchandise. Some may have been small manufacturers. Theophilis Stanley and Benjamin Wiggin were taverners, though Wiggin also kept a store, while Stanley worked a tannery. Many of the conditions and changes that naturally affected trade in the early history of Hopkinton have been described at length in this work. We have specially men- tioned the number of persons taxed for stock in trade in 1800. We have shown the advance and decline of busi- ness prosperity in town in later years. For further specifica- tion, we will add that the persons taxed for stock in trade in 1810 were Abram Brown, Thomas W. Colby, Reuben French, Ebenezer Lerned, Isaac Proctor, Theophilis Stan- ley, Stephen Sibley, Joseph Towne, and Thomas Williams ; in 1820, Buswell & Way, Calvin Campbell, Thomas W. Colby, Timothy Darling, George Dean, Thomas Kast, Isaac Long, Jr., Ira Morrison, Stephen Sibley, Joseph B. Towne, and Thomas Williams. In the better days, there was a large wholesale and retail business done in Hopkinton village. At one time, Towne & Ballard occupied the edifice now used by Charles French. The whole lower floor of this building was in use by this firm, and uumerous clerks found busy employment, while strong teams from the upper country resorted here for the products of trade and barter. During this period, the stores of Thomas W. Colby, Lerned & Sibley, and Thomas Williams were notable places of business. Colby's Joseph Stanwood. A SHORT SKETCH OF TRADE. 231 store occupied the corner now used by Kimball & Co.; Lerned & Sibley, the building lately occupied by Miss' Lydia Story ; Thomas Williams, a building standing be- tween Mrs. John S. Kimball's and the Congregational meeting-house. t At this time, besides other stores, were the usual attendant establishments representing the multiple business wants of a complex community. In the earlier times, trade was not so closely confined to the village as now. One of the outposts of business was on the Concord road, near the present residence of Joseph L. Hagar. Abel Kimball and Nathaniel Proctor were trad- ers at this point, as may have been others. Different par- ties have also traded in a store that stood near the present residence of Perley W. Beck, at the four corners at « Stump- field." Among those trading in Hopkinton village in later times, Joseph Stan wood, Stephen B. Sargent, James Fel- lows, and Nathaniel Evans are prominent. Among the earlier traders in Contoocook was Solomon Phelps. Eben- ezer Wyman came to Contoocook about sixty years ago, and about forty years traded most of the time, doing a miscellaneous business. Herrick Putnam and Isaac D. Merrill were also well known merchants in this locality. The capital of the state being located at Concord, the proximity of Hopkinton to the seat of state government has been detrimental to local trade. People who go to Con- cord for any purposes implied in the existence of a lar