> 3X ^ >» Z> »> - J j> ?> »::i3>:. > SB *) ^A^^ 3> )¥» ral* .= >->o *::> > »^ 3:> 'V^ LIBRARY OF CONGRESS, PRESENTED BY UNITED STATES OP AMEEIOA. » 3, » OH > 9;. ) 3 3> )»■*' ': R '*T> : ipi^ :^^ Z ■n^ - j B ^»> > > x> •> :> m ) > 3 ^) 3 -» 3 D) :> :► J ID :> ■'J -)2> - > ^ > , > ^:> > js?? > ^)> J> i^ > ' J> > J > J> ^ J ^ ) ~' :> ) ^ > ) O _ 3 V > » . ) ^) J > ■> ;) ■^ ^ ) ^ 1 ^ ^ ) ^^ : > > > .Ji > s> ■If )^ >5» ^ > > > 5^ .3:) :> -.> O 7 ■•J^>>j)^:>;;^:.^.;. i» 3> 3^>3 3 3 3;3 ► :> o 5 5^ 3& > > x> >3:^ .>3 > >:> > » -■■■■ »^^ ^InJim > jjo » > )D) .: )D) : J)) )>^> i )^ > aj)> ■■> . J) ):> > :> >' 3 5 ) > > t^ >3 ) HISTORICAL DISCOURSE COMMEMORATIVE OP THE CENTENNIAL ANNIVERSARY CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH, PLYMOUTH, N. H. Preached Dec. 24th and 318t, 1865, By henry a. HAZEN, Pastor. With Intkodttotion and NOTE^»ef.A9fNP95tHE Early History of the Town. BOSTON: CONGREGATIONAL PUBLISHING SOCIETY, Congregational House. 1875. 1^ r' . 'il .« » dJjf INTRODUCTORY NOTE. In 1865, the writer, then pastor of the Congregational Church in Plymouth, N. H., prepared and preached, on the last two Sabbaths of the year, an historical discourse, commemorating the centennial of its organization. It has since lain quietly in his desk. But friends, whose opinion he could not undervalue, have urged that it should be published ; and, as centennial contributions are now in order, it is here recast and oifered to them, in the hope that it may not be without some interest and future value. In revising, I have not sought to preserve any minute consistency between the dates, 1865 and 1875. And I have omitted the introductory and concluding reflections, to make room for more valuable notes of the early history of the town. These I have felt at liberty to expand rather freely, and some corrections of current errors will be found. The history of the town ought to be carefully written, and I shall be glad if its future compiler finds some assistance here. My special thanks are due to Rev. Georce Punchakd for the use of manuscript sermons, and other materials, from which I have freely drawn ; also, for many suggestions, and for proof-reading. The Index does not include all proper names, but is believed to be sufficiently full for easy reference to every important topic. H A. H. BiLLEEiCA, Mass., May, 1875. DISCOURSE. We must go back one hundred and fi%-three j^ears, for the first recorded appearance of Englishmen in the vicinity of Plymouth. The Indian roamed here, and hunted on his excursions ; although no tribes were located nearer than New York and Canada. But in the summer they encamped, and planted corn on the rich meadows of the Coos, and possibly here on the Pemigewasset ; and they caught the trout, and chased the deer, amid the wildest recesses of the White Mountains. The story of the earliest coming of white men to this part of New Hampshire, has special and romantic interest to Plymouth, for it is connected with a bloody encounter in this very village, — its one and sufficient taste of war, — and has left its permanent memorial in the name of Baker's River. In the spring of 1712, Captain Thomas Baker (Note A) left Northampton, Massachusetts, with a scouting party of thirty-four men, passed up the Connecticut River, to Haverhill, and there turning east, ascended the Oliverian, and came down the Asquamchaukee, as the Indians called the stream which here enters the Pemigewasset. Guided by a friendly Indian, he discovered and completely surprised the savages, at the mouth of the river, on its north bank. The sachem's name was Walternummus and the story runs, that he and Baker levelled their guns at each other at the same instant. The Indian's bullet grazed Baker's left eyebrow, doing him no harm ; but Baker's ball entering the breast, the sachem leaped in the air, and fell dead. Many of the savages were killed, and the survivors fled, giving Baker's party opportunity to rifle their tents, and carry away as many beaver-skins as they could. But the Indians rallied, pursued, and, coming up with Baker's party in Bridgewater, just south of Walter Webster's tavern, another smart skirmish followed. The Indians were repulsed, however, and Baker escaped with his rich booty, and, on May 12, applied to the Massachusetts legislature 6 PLYMOUTH, N. H. for the bounty promised for Indian scalps, receiving pay for a larger number than the}' could recover, as the enemy admitted a larger loss. The next forty years saw many Indian parties passing up and down this valley on the war-path, and some unfortunate prisoners returning with them to the St. Francis, from Rochester, Exeter or Hopkinton. These were the years of Lovewell's expeditions and dis- aster, and of the capture of Louisburg, — a brave exploit, in which New Hampshire men bore an honorable part. The attractions of the fertile Coos meadows were discovered by hunting parties and Indian prisoners, and their importance, as a strategical point against French and Indian invasions, could not be overlooked. A project was formed to establish a strong and semi-military colony, with a grant of four townships, in the Connecticut Yallej', at Haverhill and Newbury, and in 1751 and 1752, became a leading feature in the policy of the government (Note B) . The secretary of the. Province, Atkinson, in a letter written 1752, November 19, saj's, " We are noio upon a Project (which I believe will take effect), of settling a Tract of the finest Land on the Continent, caU'd by ye Indians, Co-OS, which Lyes upon Connecticut River, about 90 miles northerly from the Province Line. We have alread}' enlisted about four hun- dred Proper men. They are to cut a road to that Place, build two Garrisons, with sufficient accommodations for the 400 or 500 men," etc., " & all their land under tillage be in sight of and defended by the Garrisons ; tis a great undertaking, and a good one ; for I really believe if we do not settle it the French will; for tis the main passage made use of by the Indians from Canada to this country." An exploring party had visited Coos the previous spring, and about the time this letter was written, a committee were appointed by the Governor and Assembly, with power to lay out and cut a road. They reported in April, 1753, that they " have been upon the spot, and have searched out a convenient wa}' where a road might be cut & Bridged, without any uncommon charge or Difficulty, commencing at the Crotch of INIerrimack river, where the rivers of Pemidgwasset & "Winnipiseocce meet, «fc Ending about Ten miles below the head of the s"^ Tract of land, called Co.-os." This party had the services, as guide, of a j'oung man who had been taken prisoner while hunting in Rumney, the spring before, and learned the route from his Indian captors. He was from Derryfield, now Manchester, and his name was John Stark, the future hero of HISTORICAL DISCOURSE. 7 Banker Hill and Bennington. The road, however, was not opened ; but in 1754, Captain Peter Powers, of Mollis, set out, June 15, from Rumford, with another party, for more extended investigation. He went as far as Lancaster, and his journal is preserved (Note C). Governor Went worth, in his message (1753) repeated and enforced the arguments for this settlement. He sa^^s : " Your resolve in this momentous Concern, you may be assured, will not only recommend you to his Majestie's especial favor, but must finally be your great securit}^, as it will cut ofi" all communication the Indians can have between our frontiers and the French Fort at Crown Point, make their incursions from St. Francis more difficult, and, in case of another war, be of great advantage to an army invading Canada." But the French and their Indian allies were as fully alive to the value of the Coos. Captain Stevens, of " No 4," Charlestown, reported a visit from the Indians in 1753. " They manifested great uneasiness at our Peoples going to take a view of Cowass Meadows last spring"; and, on leaving, told him, with great deliberation, "/o?* the English to settle Cowass was what they could not agree to, and they must think the English had a mind for war if they should go there," These threats of their foes, and the expense and diffi- culty of the enterprise, delayed it until the French and Indian war, which soon came. And the Coos was not settled till Wolfe had stormed the Heights of Quebec, Montreal had capitulated, and the French were finall}- driven from Canada, more than 200 years after Cartier's first attempt to plant a French colony and mission there. A picture must have suitable background to bring out the proper effect of its colors and shades, and the scenes thus briefly suggested are the background on which we must project the Plymouth settle- ment, if we would understand the motives that inspired it, or the training of the earl^' settlers for their work. Doubtless they had been awaiting their opportunity for ten j-ears, and passed through the anxieties and the hardships of the French war with this among the plans which cheered them. And in that war, several of the Plymouth men bore active part. David Hobart, Josiah Brown, Joseph Blanchard, Samuel Cummings, David and Abel Webster, John Willoughby, and perhaps others, were in the service, and took part in the battles around Ticonderoga, and in Canada. Peace brought the opportunity, which was promptly improved, to push the new settlements. The first, in Grafton County,, was made 8 PLYMOUTH, N. H. in 1761. A grant of Haverhill and Newburj^ was made to Captain John Hazen (Note D), of Haverhill, and Jacob Bailey, of Newbur}', Massachusetts ; and, in the summer of that j'ear, two men in Hazen's employ, came on and established themselves on the Little Ox Bow, in North Haverhill, Hazen and Bailey, with their families, following in 1762. Lebanon was next occupied in 1763, Lyme in 1764, and Campton (Note E), Hanover, Orford and Runine}^ in 1765. In November, 1762, a party of eight explorers came up from HoUis, to cut a path and select a place for a settlement. Their names were Elnathan Blood, Josiah Brown, Jotham Cummhigs, Colonel David Hobart, Zechariah Parker, David Webster. John Willoughby and his son, afterwards " Elder" Willoughby (Note F). The valuable intervales on the rivers attracted them to this place. Returning to Hollis, they procured the charter of Plymouth, 1763, July 15, and pushed with energy their plans. Eight men were employed here through the season of 1763 (Note G), and others the last part of the year, in preparing for families ; and some of these men spent the winter in the town. In the spring of 1764, the first families arrived (Note H). There is some conflict of testimony' as to the time and order of their coming ; but Abel Webster, John Willoughby, Jr., Silas Brown and others, were certainly here in June ; James Hobart and Zechariah Parker, probably ; and perhaps David Webster and Josiah Brown. Before the year ended, Jotham Cummings, James Blodgett, Samuel Dearborn, Ephraim Weston and Stephen Webster, with their families, had arrived, — all from Hollis, except Weston, Dearborn and Stephen Webster, who were from Chester. In the spring of 1765, so many were ready to go, that in April, the proprietors voted to hold their next meeting in Pl^-mouth ; and, May 19, they did meet at David Webster's. In 1767, when a census was taken, there were 227 inhabitants in this town. In Haverhill there were 172 ; Lebanon, 162 ; Hanover, 92 ; and Orford, 75. No other towns in Grafton County are enumerated, and Plymouth shows a more rapid growth than any other of these towns. In 1774, the population was 345. Plymouth was chiefly a Hollis colony. Of the fifty-five names in the charter, besides those of Governor Wentworth and seven others, members of the council, or otherwise public men, two-thirds are Hollis men, counting as such half a dozen from the adjacent towns. And of the eightj'-three names which stand on a school-tax bill, in 1775, more than twenty are cer-s HISTORICAL DISCOURSE. M tainly from Hollis, and probably thirty (Note I). It was good blood, too, that Hollis had to give, and did give, to the new settlement. The high character which she has always maintained, and the large number of useful and eminent men whom she has fur- nished the world, indicate the quality of the original stock from which so many of the Plymouth settlers came, and of which, we may add, they did not prove themselves unworthy. They developed enterprise, sagacity, character, which we, who come after them, may well honor, while we commemorate. When they planted this town, they had no neighbors nearer than Haverhill above, and Bakerstown, now Franklin, below. There was no road for twenty- live miles, and when Colonel Webster drove the first ox-team to Plymouth, he must needs come along the intervales, and in the bed of the river. His wife accompanied him on horseback, with her infant son David in her arms. In after years, she could never describe, without tears, the incident of her arrival, in early evening, at Lieutenant Brown's camp, on the Lower Intervale, and the joy she felt when she sg-w the torch-light there. Some extracts, from a manuscript statement of Jotham Cum- mings, Jr., son of the early settler, will help us to appreciate what it cost the fathers to make homes here for themselves. He says : " My mother rode through from Hollis on horseback, brought a child on her lap, and baggage, which contained all her furniture to keep house with. Their sufteriugs for a few of the first years were most distressing. They had to go to the meadows and pull wild onions, and fry them in the fat of bear- meat, to subsist upon, without a morsel of bread. My father, with others, went to Concord on snow-shoes, with hand-sleds, and hauled up three bushels of corn-meal each ; and for a number of years,— as late as the Revolutionary War,— I well remember how good a piece of bread tasted, after being without it for three weeks.* Most of the efficient men were gone to meet the invading army of Burgoyne, and left their wives and children to be a prey to wild beasts and tories. In the night the woods Avould ring with the howling and fighting of wolves and other furious animals ; and, what was worse, alarms would frequently come down, that the British and Indians were coming upon us from Canada. I remember Avell, that on one Sabbath they had got down as far as Haverhill, and were hourly expected here. ■ Every man who had a gun carried it to the meeting- house, Avhere were assembled the women and children, to seek protection from the sanctuary. Though not five years old, I walked beside my mother, with an infant in her arms, three miles, to attend meeting ; most of the way, * And even in later years, the first settlers would be obliged to economize, by mixing the meal with mashed potatoes, in making bread. 2 10 PLYMOUTH, N. H. woods. Heads of families, wlietlier professors or uoii-pvoftssors, habitually taiiglit tlieir childien the Assembly's Catechism on the Sabbath; and our venerable Pastor collected the children once or twice a year, at the meetiiig- honse, to recite the catechism, and receive religious instruction." These closing sentences renoind us of facts which must not be for- gotten in the most summary account of the planting of Plymouth. The early life of the settlement fell upon those days of trial and of glory, when the nation was 'schooling itself in the ideas of freedom, girding on its armor, and fighting bravely and successful!}' the battle of independence. While the Plymouth men were subduing the forests, and making for themselves comfortable homes here, tliey were discussing also British 'aggressions upon thiir Colonial rights. The Stamp Act ; the Writs of Assistance ; the tax on tea ; the clos- ing of the port of Boston, — were gradually preparing the people for the hour of trial ; and when it came, they were not behind their neighbors in prompt and courageous service. At least three men from Plymouth were in the heat of the battle of Bunker Hill. Nahum Powers was a private in Colonel Prescott's regiment, which built the redoubt and fought from it ; and Josiah Brown and Samuel Dearborn were lieutenants in the regiment which, under Stark, threw up the rail-fence breastwork, and repulsed the British veterans so successfull)'. In October, 1775, the selectmen of Plymouth l^eported " eight men gone in the army." Of these, the first place, no doubt, belongs to David Hobart. Twenty years before, he had been a sergeant in Captain Powers's company, Colonel Joseph Blanchard's regiment, fighting for Crown Point and Ticonderoga ; and throughout that war, he proved himself so competent an officer, that when the Revolution- ary War broke out, he was appointed colonel of the r2th regiment. In this capacity he did good service, and, at the battle of Benning- ton, distinguished himself, leading the attack on the right wing of the British, which was the decisive stroke of the battle (Note J). David Webster was the worthy companion of Hobart. He had also served in the Seven Years' War, being i:i Captain Hazen's company in 1757 and in 1760, in the famous Ranger's corps of Rogers and Stark. The cannon of Bunker Hill, heard in Plymouth (Note K), summoned him to the field. He was appointed ensign in Hobart's regiment, and rose through all the grades, to its command. In this capacity, he served in Poor's New Hampshire brigade, at Saratoga, and shared in the memorable victory over Burgoyne HISTORICAL DISCOURSE. 11 (Note L). His brother, Amos Webster, commanded a company in Morgan's famous light artillery-, whose services were particularly effective in this campaign, and fell in the battle of Stillwater. Jotham Cummings was an officer in 1775, in a company of rangers, for the defence of the frontiers on Connecticut River ; and John Willoughby, besides other services, was one of the volunteers, and placed in command of a Coos company, when the approach of Bur- goyne summoned Stark and the whole State to their brave and suc- cessful attack ui)on him. And there were, of course, man}' others from Pl^'mouth, who, in humble stations, shared the perils and glor}' of the Revolution. Their names deserve to be reverently sought out, and carefulh' remembered. But Plymouth was not wholly patriotic. 1775, February 17, the town voted " That the Honorable John Fenton, Esquire, represent this Town in General Assembly." Previous to this time, Plymouth, like all the recently chartdred towns, had not been admitted to representation in the General Assembh", that body claiming the right, and contesting it warml}' and successfully with the Governor, to determine when towns should receive this privilege. Probably, authority had been received from Governor Wentworth for this Plymouth election : but when Fenton presented himself, with repre- sentatives from Lyme and Orford, they were promptly refused admittance. Possibly, politic motives, of favor at court, where he was evidently a favorite, may have influenced the selection of Fen- ton. But some distrust was felt, and they proceeded to instruct him. "Sir: We, the freeholders of the town of Plymouth, being highly im- pressed with the most favorable sentiments of you, from the many eminent services conferred on this County, and the town of Plymouth in particular, since your first acqnaintance with us, should think it needless, at any other time than this, to give you instructions respecting your conduct as our Representative in General Assembly. But when we reflect on the moment- ous aftairs now pending between Great Britain and her Colonies, and the imminent danger that threatens them (for we look upon the interest to be mutual), we trust that you will not construe oiu" instructing you to arise from any distrust or want of confidence, but from anxious wish and hearty desire to see the strictest harmony once more established between our parent state and her Colonies, according to their Charter and other rights, as they have been practised from the first accession of the august House of Hanover, to the time of the Stamp Act. We, therefore, think it our duty to instruct you as our Representative. " First. That you will do everything in your power to preserve the laws 12 PLYMOUTH, N. IT. of tbe laud inviolate, and, by every legal uicaiis, prevent a diminution of them in every respect whatever ; for, should the people either throw them aside, or in any manner disregard them, we apprehend that anarchy and confusion must quickly ensue. "Secondly. We recommend to you in the strongest terms, to discounte- nance every act of oppression, either as to the perst)ns or properties of individ- uals, as we look upon such i)roceedings to he highly prejudicial to the common cause, and directly tending to fill the minds of the people with jealousies and distrusts, the bad effects of which must appear obvious to every man of common understanding. " Thirdly. We desire that you will not, on any account, give np, or in any manner suffer a diminution of the rights and privileges we now enjoy, as we live under good and wholesome laws ; and, Fourthly. That you will do the utmost in your power to keep harmony in the House, that the publick affairs of the Province may be discussed with coolness and impartiality ; much depending on such conduct at this time of our difficulties ; also, that you will endeavor to have the House open, that those out of doors may be Acquainted with the debates of their Members, the practice of secrecy heretofore used, tending much to the disquiet of numbers of their constituents." Fenton needed tbeir watching ; and we may surmise that his influence toned down these resohitions, and explains their cautious generalizations and the lack of the fervent patriotic tone with which so man}' towns spoke when Lexington and Bunker Hill were at hand. This man was the clerk of the court of Grafton Count}', which was established in 1773, and was doubtless a friend of Governor Wentworth, who appointed him. He did not return to Plymouth. He sent, from Portsmouth, April 25, a warning to the people of Grafton Count}', to stay at home and attq^d to their farming : saying, " I am informed, that if the People of the Back settlements take up arms, a number of the Indians & Canadians will fall upon them." The Provincial Congress asked his authority. He was forced to admit that he had none ; and he made himself so obnoxious to the patriots, that he was seized at the house of Governor "Went- worth, dispossessed of the records of the court, voted " not a friend to this country," and imprisoned at Exeter and at Hartford, where General Putnam's influence procured his release, on condition of his leaving the country.* We return to the history of the church. The charter does not contain the provision, so often inserted, requiring the proprietors to * See N. H. Prov. Records, vol. 7, page 445, and passim. HISTORICAL DISCOURSE. 13 settle a minister ; but it was not needed, to stimulate those Hollis men. Intending to make homes for themselves in the wilderness, these sons of Puritans and Pilgrims must needs take their church with them. 1764, April 16, they met in Hollis, and organized this church,— before a single family had come to Plymouth (Note M). The church is thus as old as the town, and older, by six months, than any other in Grafton County. I know of but one other instance of promptness like this among our New Hampshire towns, in laying the spiritual foundations. The church in Hampton, the first in the State, was formed in Massachusetts, and emigrated, with its pastor. Rev. Stephen Bacheler. And so substantially our fathers came to Plymouth. The same day the proprietors voted " to hire Mr. Nathan Ward, to preach four days in the township aforesaid, and that Ensign [David] Hobart wait upon Mr. Ward for that purpose." The warrant under which this action was taken, contained the clause, " To see what method the Proprietors will take about settling a minister at Plymouth"; and thus the name so honored in the history of the. town, is associated with it from the beginning. Mr. Ward came on in May, and a faded memorandum, in the handwriting of Deacon Willoughby, tells us, that on the 19th " Mr. W. preached, in the forenoon, from the P' chap, of Isaiah, and the 19 verse; and, in the aternoon, from Luke, the IS"' chapter and the 24"^ verse." This first sermon in Plymouth was preached at the house of Colonel David Webster. This was as early as the arrival of the first woman in town, and probably a little earlier. July 9th, "the proprietors voted (1) to allow Abel Webster 20 pounds, old tenor, for boarding Mr. Ward twelve days, & (2) to give Mr. Ward a call to settle in the work of the Gospel ministry in Plymouth." September 6\ "Voted to hire 2 days. Preaching at Plymouth, this fall." It is not strange that Mr. Ward's decision was not immediate. Plymouth was in the wilderness and its pros- pects by no means assured. Tradition says, that he passed the winter in the settlement; but the proprietors found that farther action was necessary to secure his services; and, on the 12th of February, 1765, a meeting was held, " to see what encouragement they will give Mr. Nathan Ward to settle," etc. ; and it was voted, "to give Mr. AVard 150 ounces of silver, or the value of it in N. H. money ; as, also, 30 cords of wood, annually, until the town shall increase to the number of 100 families, & then to add 5 14 PLYMOUTH, N. 11. ounces every year to his salary, till it amounts to 200 ounces, & so to remain during the time that he is able to earr_y on the work of the ministry." 2. Voted to give Mr. Ward Si 20 for his encouragement, etc., " besides the rights given him by the charter." There is much in -this action which, after the lapse of a centur}^ may instruct us. Observe the permanence of the relation in the ideas of the fathers. They had no thought that, after a few 3-ears, their pastor was to leave them for another field of labor. And the provision for his support was generous. An ounce of silver was reckoned at six shillings and eightpence ; and, at this rate, his salar}- was $166.66, with three-quarters of a year's salary added, as an " encouragement." AVhen increased, it would amount to $222. The right of land was sufficient for two good farms ; and this, with the wood and the smaller expense of living, makes it certain that few ministers in Grafton Count}- to-dav have as liberal a sup[)ort as the fathers gave Mr. Ward. And thej' would take no advantage of a depreciated currency. Hard money, or its equivalent, they promised. When the Revolution came, with its Continental cur- renc}', this provision would be like a gold salary, in these days of greenbacks, to a minister. These overtures Mr. Ward accepted; and, 23d April, 1765, the proprietors voted that David Hobart, John Brown, William Nevins and Stephen Webster be a committee to act in behalf of the pro- prietors of Plymouth, in respect to the ordination of Mr Ward. And, June 13, it was "voted to raise 17 pounds 15 shillings, old tenor, upon each right, for Mr. Ward's salary- for the year ensuing : & 12 pounds 15 shillings upon each right for Mr. Ward's settlement, and 3 pounds on each right for ordination expenses." This whole sum, taking the legislative assessment of the value of wheat the same j-ear, and reckoning old tenor at a quarter of the value of new tenor,, would be equivalent to 400 bushels of wheat. An ounce of silver would, at that time, purchase four or five times as much provisions as it will now. Abel Webster was the collector. Mr. Ward went to Newburyport for installation, July 10. He had there an influential friend, Ebenezer Little, who owned extensive rights of land around Livermore's Falls, and was thus interested in the development of Plymouth. " Hear him preach," was Mr. Little's suggestion to the council, when, not full}- satisfied with his examina- tion, or remembering, perhaps, his Separatist ordination in Newton^ HISTORICAL DISCOURSE. 15 they hesitated. And wlien he had preached, their doubts had vanished. Who was this man? His ancestor, William Ward, came from England about 1G46, and settled in Sudbury, Massachusetts. John, his son, removed to Newtown, now Cambridge, and there Joseph, the father of Nathan, was born and lived. He did not enjo^' the advantages of earl}' education ; but, led to Christ, under Whitefield's preaching, he found employment for his large natural endowments in the ministry. The friends of Whitefi.eld, not sat- isfied with the position of some of the churches and ministers, organized new churches, known as Separatists ; and Mr. Ward gathered such a church in Newton, and was ordained its pastor about 1750. They were called by their opponents, "New Lights," in derision, and encountered much ridicule and opposition. Although ordained clergymen were exempt from taxation, he was taxed ; but' remonstrated and sent a memorial to the town meeting in Newton, 1755, March 13, which does credit to his manly and Christian temper. How long Mr. Ward remained at Newton is uncertain ; but, in 17G0, he was preaching in Newcastle, Maine, and, for a year or two, negotiations were in progress looking to his settlement there. Rumors that his dismission from Newton, and, perhaps, his Separa- tist settlement there had been irregular, were investigated by a com- mittee ; their report (1761, January 16), was ver}^ favorable to Mr. Ward. They still endeavored to settle him, but the town was not strong enough to undertake his support ; and the effort failed. Providence was reserving him for Plymouth, and guiding him thither ; and, at the appointed time, he was read}' to put his hand to the foundations here. He was no common man. Like his three immediate suc- cessors in office, he was tall, with a fine physique, and a voice of remarkable power. Tradition tells some rather incred- ible stories of the distance at which his preaching could be heard. It would be strange, in view of his lack of education, if he had been distinguished for scholarship ; but he was a hard-working minister, "■eminent for piety, zeal and earnest inculcation of the doctrines of grace.'" For thirty-two years he stood at his post. Through all the hardships of the early years, all the perils of the Revolution, all the responsibilities of the succeeding 3'ears, he led his people faithfull}-, — a pati'iot, and true spiritual shepherd, 16 PLY3I0UTH, N. H. winning souls and commending himself to every man's conscience in the sight of God.* The infirmities of age led him to ask i-elease from pastoral care in 1798, after which he lived six years among his people, loving and beloved. Plymouth should hold his name in honor, and liis grave, in the Baker's River Cemetery, should be a hallowed spot. Mr. Ward's sermon, alluded to above, was certainly the first l)reached in Grafton County ; and no other town in this region, if in the State, was as prompt in planting the church and the ministr}' as Pl^'mouth. Haverhill and Newbury were occupied two years earlier ; bat Mr. Powers, their first minister, did not arrive till the autumn of 17G4, — five months later than Mr. Ward's coming to Plymouth. His call, too', must have been the first ; but the dela}- of his answ^er gave time for the installation of Mr. Powers, in February, before his own ; and Mr. Powers was thus the first pastor in the county. In Lebanon, the church was not organized until 17G8 ; in Orford, in 1770 ; and in Hanover and Lyme, in 1771. In the Proprietors' Record, two other references are made to Mr. Ward. 176G, Jul^^ 17, it was "Voted to give Mr. Ward the eleventh lot of intervale on Baker's River, instead of the Second in the great Horse Pasture, which was designed for the first settled minister." And, in 17G7, the3' "Voted to pay Abel Webster in common land, for the right he purchased for Rev. Mr. Ward's settle- ment." The place secured b}' this exchange to Mr. Ward, was that on wdiich he lived and died, on Meeting-house or Ward Hill, a little be^^ond the old church and the store, and now (18G5) belonging to Mr. Stafl^ord, a lineal descendant. The great Horse Pasture was on the Pemigewasset Intervale, opposite the village. Most of it is now on the Holderness side of the river, as the channel has changed, formerly running near the bluffs, on the east side. The object of the exchange was probably to secure to the pastor a residence more central, and nearer the probable location of the meeting-house. In 1767, the town voted to build a meeting-house. Until this was done, Mr. Ward must have preached from house to house, or, ver\' probabl}' , at Colonel Webster's, whose house was already a public house, — a prophecy, however humble, of the stately Pemigewasset, which has just been built on the same grounds. After much discussion, it was decided that the new house should stand at the foot of Ward Hill. The road then ran south-east from * In 1791, Dartmouth College conferred the honorary degree of A. M. upon him. I HISTORICAL DISCOURSE. 17 that point, and came into the present river road, near the carriage- shop, below the village. The meeting-house faced south on this road, standing a few rods south of Mr. Harris's house. Behind it stood " the whipping-post and stocks, designed for those who were disorderly on the Sabbath, and who were guilty of other crimes ; but they proved such a terror to evil-doers that they were seldom if ever used." This house was rude in architecture, though, doubtless, superior to the dvyellings of those who built it. It was of logs of uniform size, and hewed in the best manner ; fastened at the ends, neatly matched ; and the cracks were stopped with clay. It was about forty feet by fifty, and two stories high, with glazed windows. It had galleries on three sides. There was a square pew in each corner, and an elder's seat. The rest of the floor was occu- pied with long seats on each side of a central aisle. The right side and gallery were occupied by the women ; the left by the men. This house Avas first used in 17G8, though not finished till 1770. It stood till November, 1787, when it was burned. The town had been talking and voting for three years about a new cliurch, and the fire was supposed to indicate some person's unregulated zeal to hasten the building thereof. " This first church," we are told, '' was well filled on the Sabbath, as it was disreputable to be absent from public worship, or to refuse to pay the minister's tax. None had to stay at home for want of clothes, as the men wore tow frocks and went barefoot, and the women wore their check and home-spun gowns" ; and some of them went barefooted to the edge of the wood behind the old house, and there put on their Sunday shoes, which were taken off at the same spot on their return from meeting. The congregation was gathered from a circuit of nearly seven miles, in every direction. There were Ramseys from Rumney, Hazeltines from Hebron, Boardmans from Bridgewater, and Cooks and Merrills from Campton Bog. Indeed, in the earliest days, it was said, one or two families came from beyond Bristol ; and as late as 1830, Mr. Punchard's congregation represented nearly the same large circuit. After this old meeting-house was burned, worship was held in " King George's" barn, and at Colonel Webster's.* The second meet- ing-house, still standing on Ward hill, and recently sold at auction * Forty years ago there were at least half a score of different families of Georges in different parts of Plymouth, and among them the excellent Mr. Kiiig George, so named for a respected ancestor. On the first Sabbath on which a young candidate preached to this people, a notice was put into his hands to the effect that there would 18 PLYMOUTH, N. H. by the town, which had to this time held its meetings there, was voted into being in 1783 ; but discussions of location and size were carried on till 1787. In March the town voted " to raise 100 pounds ($333) towards building, in merchantable wheat & pease, at 5 shil- lings ($1.65) per bushel, r3e at 4 shillings, &, Indian corn at 3, by December 25, next." No man was to pay more than one-fourth of his tax in "pease." It was no small sum for the town to raise in the poverty of the times. William George, Benj. Goold and Lt. Brown were a committee to provide a frame, fifty-six by forty-five feet, in complete order to raise. In August Esquire Merrill and Lt. Bailey were added to the committee " to place the sills." In Sep- tember another committee was chosen " to make arrangements for raising the house." They were to secure one hundred men, fix the time, and give notice. In October, 1 787, the frame was raised " amidst the rejoicings of nearly the entire male population of the town." But the one hundred pounds would not finish the house, and the pews were sold at auction (or the right to build them in a chosen place) , to raise more money ; no one being permitted to bid who had not assisted so far. More than the appraisal was paid for the pews ; the whole sum realized being about $1,500. The first choice be- longed to Mr. Isaac Ward, in payment for the land on which the house stands. The second was bid off by Esquire George for $40. This house also was not finished for some years. A temporary scaffolding served for a pulpit : the singers occupied a long work- bench in the middle of the house, and rough board seats were used for some time. The pews were not put in the gallery till 1796. And stoves were not introduced for thirty or more j'ears after ! ! The records of the church during Mr. Ward's ministr}- are unfor- tunately lost, and of the history little is preserved. But the fidelity of the fathers in laying the spiritual foundations here received early reward in a powerful revival in 1767, when twenty were gathered into the church. Compared with the population this must have been the most general revival Plj-mouth ever enjoyed ; and Capt. Samuel Dearborn, its first convert, was probably the first person who made a public profession of religion in Grafton County. The Revolution- be a lecture at King George's on Tuesday evening. Supposing "King" was a niclt- name, and not knowing that the town was full of Georges, the young minister, after some hesitation, announced that there would be preaching at Mr. George's on Tues- day evening, to the utter bewilderment of the people, who might as well have been told that there would be preaching "somewhere " on Tuesday evenmg.— [Note by G.P.I HISTORICAL DISCOURSE. 19 ary period was very generall}' marked b}' spiritual declension among the churches, and no other revival is recorded here until 1790, and of this no details are preserved. The Baptists, in 17S0, secured b}' vote of the town exemption from paying minister's rates. In 1796 the town gave them the use of the meeting-house one-third of the time, but they did not long use it. A small church was organized in 1837, and for five years or more had som6 preaching in the school-houses ; but it soon became extinct. In April, 1798, after Mr. Ward's dismission, a meeting was called " to see if the town will take some probable & effectual measures to procure an honest, learned, ingenious, & well qualified candidate for the Gospel ministry." Samuel Emerson, Lt. Josiah Brown, Dea- con Elisha Bean, and Capt. AVilliam Webster were appointed a committee for this purpose. They procured Mr. Daniel Hard}', who preached for some months, and received a call to settle ii^ October, 1798. But for some reason, not recorded, he was not installed. In 1799 the same committee invited Mr. Drur}' Fairbank to preach here. He also received a " call," was offered a salary of 100 pounds ($333.34), accepted, and was ordained 1800, January 8. The churches represented in the ordaining council were Holliston, Mass., Rev. Timothy Dickinson, pastor ; Concord, Rev. Asa McFarland ; Thornton, Rev. Noah Worcester ; Bpscawen, Rev. Samuel Wood ; Salisbury, Rev. Thomas Worcester ; Andover, Rev. Josiah Badcock ; Sanbornton, Rev. Joseph Woodman ; and Hebron, Rev. Thomas Page. Mr. Fairbank continued in this pastorate eighteen years, and was a useful minister. Dr. Stone, of Concord, says of him : " He was a man of great native kindness and sociability, very fond of societ}'^, and he would at times be jocose and gay, but never undignified nor compromising his ministerial character. In talents he was respecta- ble ; in scholarship not above mediocrity ; but in common-sense, discernment of character, and knowledge of men and things, few excelled him. His preaching was not very methodical, but orthodox, spiritual, and pungent, often eccentric and striking. In pastoral duties he was faithful and abundant, having a woi'd in season for all. His brethren esteemed and loved him." Mr. Bunchard adds, " He was one of the most genial and kindl}' old men I ever knew." Two seasons of spiritual refreshing blessed Mr. Fairbank's min- istry. One came soon after he was settled in 1800, and was quite 20 PLYMOUTH, N. H. extensive, resulting in more than thirty conversions. And in 1815 another revival added twenty to the church. Mr. Fairbank was settled and supported by the town. But *' minister's rates " were becoming unpopular, and man}' were restive under the charge. In 1818, therefore, when he found occasion to ask for an increase of salary or dismission, the town took the op- portunity' to rid itself of the system, and for this, more than for any personal unpopularit}', Mr. Fairbank was dismissed. The ncxtj'ear he removed to Littleton, where he was installed 1820, Ma}' 3. From this pastorate he was dismissed 1836, March 13, and retired to a farm on which the rest of his life was spent. Rev. Jonathan Ward succeeded Mr. Fairbank. He was not installed, although the church desired it ; but remained " acting pastor " for eleven years. A son of the first pastor, his first and only pastorate had been in Alna, Me., from which he was dismissed in 1818, July 22. He was eminently a faithful and devout minister, and the fruits of his labors here were doubtless more enduring than immediate. He sowed good seed, of which the harvesting was left to others. Not, however, that he did not himself see of the fruits. In 1820 a work of grace was enjoyed, and twenty-eight were added to the church soon after. And tokens of good were granted during the last year of his ministry, in which twenty members were received into the church. The last years of Mr. Ward's ministry were also distinguished by the great temperance reform. Previous to that time " the whole region was steeped in rum." The farmers were involved in debt to the storekeepers, many of the farms were mortgaged, and men were everywhere sinking to ruin through intemperance or moderate drink- ing. This temperance reform was very extensive and thorough in Plymouth and the vicinity, and during the great revivals of the succeeding years brethren were accustomed to speak of it as the work of John the Baptist before the coming of Christ. The first Methodist meeting-house was built in 1826 ; the old brick church in the west part of the town, which w-as taken down last spring. The church in the village was not built till 1833, and has been twice enlarged.* Until 1839 these churches were supplied with circuit preachers ; since that time preachers have been stationed in the town, and the church has been prospered. * In 1872 this meeting-house was sold and a fine new house erected ; a pleasant witness to the prosperity of this sister church. HISTOKICAL DISCOURSE. 21 Mr. Ward preached his farewell sermon 1829, September 20. It produced a deep impression. The text was 2 Cor. xiii. 11 [Note N]. With great modesty, he reminded the church of his labors, his pray- ers and tears and watching, in earnest desire for their welfare. He spoke of his own infirmities, took blame to himself for the low estate of Zion, and said he was ready to unite with them in obtaining another pastor, who might with God's blessing be more useful. The hearts of the people were melted by his words ; every feel- ing of alienation was overcome ; deep seriousness was awakened in many minds b}^ the good man's earnest appeal, and the way was w^onderfull}^ prepared for the seasons of refreshing which quickly followed. " Father" Ward was a man of superior powers and fervent piety. He was tall and slender ; " with large, striking features, and bright blue eyes ; in speech, modest, moderate and gracious; singularly plain in dress, and absolutely unw^orldly in spirit ; eminent for variety and copiousness in prayer ; frugal, studious, reflective ; of heavenly temper, and so pure in life that no evil thing could be said of him." He was a man of prayer, and often spent much or all of Saturday night pleading for a Sabbath blessing. Once a Universalist called for argument, and, at his study door, overheard Mr. Ward praying for him. He soon renounced his former faith and found hope in the mercy of Christ. In the pulpit Mr. Ward's manner was bad, but the matter of his preaching was sound and strong. He was a clear and able reasoner, a thorough Calvinist. He had no worldly wisdom, but preached the strong doctrines of the Bible, with the utmost plainness. He went from Pl^'mouth to Brentwood, where he supplied the church three or four ^-ears, and spent his closing years in the famil}- of his daughter there, often preaching for sur- rounding churches. He was especially interested in the study of the prophecies, finding comfort and hope in the millennarian theory of Christ's second advent. The Sabbath succeeding Mr. Ward's farewell, Mr. George Puuch- ard was engaged to supply the pulpit. But he was suddenly attacked with brain fever, and months elapsed before he was able to visit Plymouth. In the emergency, Rev. .lames Hobart, tlien on a visit to his native town, was employed. He entered at once, with all his characteristic earnestness, into the labors for which Father Ward had prepared the Avay, and went from house to house, preach- ing in every neighborhood, and pleading with men to be reconciled 22 rLYMOUTII, N. II. to God. And when Mr. Piinchnrd was nble to come to Plymouth, he really found a revival of religion in progress. Mr. Hobart, though never a pastor, has good title to be remem- bered in Plymouth. One of the first born children of the town, a son of James Hobart, and a ministerial child of this church, he was called at this time to do Plymouth a service, which, though not protracted, was of inestimable value. He had just been dismissed from a pastorate of thirty years, at Berlin, Vt., where he gathered a Congregational church and labored with fidelity and success. Three powerful revivals blessed his ministr}^ there, in one of which fifty-six united with the church, and he left it with more than a hundred members. His later years were given to labors in the home missionary fields of Vermont and New Hampshire ; too many to be catalogued here. I doubt if the full list is recorded anj'- where, except on high. He seemed to know no weariness of body or mind, if he might preach Christ to men. After he was ninety years old he preached on one Sunday in three places, walk- ing from his home seven miles to the first, then five to the next, and five more to the last. And a month before his death he walked seven miles on his wa}' to Norwich, Vt., to the General Convention [Note J]. Mr. Pnnchard was ordained 1830, March 11, and begun his mem- orable ministry. By God's blessing it was more fruitful than any other which Plymouth has enjoyed. The way was prepared for his coming; and the times were propitious, in that it was a pei-iod of extensive and powerful revivals. But the fact should still be em- phasized, that for the rich and peculiar mercies granted to this church, much was due to the earnest and faithful preaching, and the wise pastoral labors of Mr. Punchard. Although he is still living, his ministerial work ended in Plymouth more than thirty years ago, and may therefore be properly regarded as a matter of history. He was a sound and acceptable preacher, understood men well, and had great practical sagacity. His piety was genuine and natural, and he was devoted to his work ; a true shepherd of the flock. He not only worked himself, but he knew how to inspire others, and develop their activity ; and under his training, the church was led to unusual practical efficiency.* * One peculiarity of Mr. Punchard's ministrations at Plymouth, was the introduc- tion of expository discourses into the regular Sunday serrices. During his entire HISTORICAL DISCOURSE. 23 The spiritual work which had really begun before Mr. Ward's farewell, continued in power, and for six years the church enjoyed almost a continuous revival. The first protracted meeting was held soon after Mr. Punchard's ordination. Ministers were present from neighboring churches for thirty or forty miles around, of whom Dr. Nathan Lord of Dartmouth College, Rev. Samuel Goddard of Norwich, Vt., Rev. Robert Blake of Piermont, and Rev. Daniel Sutherland of Bath, all men of wonderful powers, are specially remembered. Of this meeting I can give some descriptive words, from Mr. Punchard's sermon, when bidding farewell to the old church : — " The scenes which we witnessed, and the influences which manj of us felt, in this house, can never be forgotten. On the last day of that meeting, par- ticularly, there were tokens of the divine presence in this place such as I have rarely if ever since witnessed. Who that was present, will ever for- get the last afternoon ! The stillness of death reigned. Those who were not convinced, were awed. The arrows of the Almighty had been fastened in many hearts ; the church trembled, lest they should be drawn forth, and the wounds healed by other hands than His who made them. But their fears were groundless ; God was present. He gave wisdom to the simple, and power to the weak. ... It was felt to be holy ground ; and the place of our assembling was shaken by the hand of Him whose presence filled it. The Holy Ghost came down upon us (I had almost said), like a mighty rushing wind, and filled all the place. . . . Language can hardly exaggerate the deep solemnity and thrilling interest of the last hours of that meeting." The whole town was moved. The men of influence in the parish were nearly all converted. People came from far to attend the meetings, — eight and ten miles and more. More than one hundred members were received to the church in 1830 and 1831. The influences of the good work were lasting, and bless us still. In 1832, again, the Holy Spirit's influences were specially manifest. And 1835 was also a year of comparative prosperity. A protracted meeting Avas held in the early part of the year, and Christians were deeply interested. In August the General Association met in Plymouth, and left gracious influences. The impenitent were much ministry, of about fourteen years, bis habit was to occupy the forenoon of every Sunday with the exposition, in course, of a portion of Scripture, followed by prac- tical remarks and applications. In this way the entire New Testauieut, and cousid- eral)le portions of the Old Testament, were brought under a critical and experimen- tal consideration, in the course of his ministry; and these careful and systematic expository discourses he always regarded as the best and most etfective part of his ministerial labors. 24 PLYMOUTH, N. 11. awakenerl. Bat at this time the church did not seem as fully aroused as in the earlier season, and the blessing did not become as general as for a time it promised to be. The question of a new meeting-house was now demanding atten- tion. In fifty 3'ears of use the old house had become uncomfortable, and must have repairs. It was owned by the town, which caused friction when improvements were needed. This, too, made it often the scene of hot political strife, not in keeping with God's house. And changes in population made it less convenient for the majority of worshippers. There was, of course, agitation and opposition ; but the result was the building of this house, which was first occupied in 1837, January 1, having been dedicated the week previous. In bidding farewell to the old house, the pastor preached an impressive and valuable sermon from Exodus xxxiii. 15, reviewing the historj^ of it and the scenes it had witnessed. There the fathers worshipped for fifty years ; there the spiritual life of many had been awakened or quickened, and the Spirit had been poured out in wonderful power. Hallowed associations should still cluster around it and the place and hill, " beautiful for situation," on which it stood. The later years of Mr. Punchard's ministry were disturbed some- what by the local mutterings of the great anti-slaver}^ conflict. The position of the majority of the church, and of the pastor, was not unlike that of the body of the churches. But some leading and able members came into ardent sympathy with men and opinions sincerely believed to be dangerous and infidel, and the strife assumed very trying phases in its heat. Mr. Punchard and the church were assailed in the newspapers, in the bitterest terms, and felt it their duty to separate themselves from three or four of the hostile members. It is too soon, even yet, for a thoroughly dispas- sionate estimate of those days ; but the light of recent events will help us to a better understanding of them. Mr. Garrison's position is certainly very much modified, and if death had spared his scarcely less able follower, N. Peabody Ilogers, the sun of his life might have come to a different setting. In the spring of 18-12, Mr. Punchard's health became impaired, and his voice entirely failed. Alter six months' absence, he re- turned ; but soon found himself unable to resume pastoral labor. In March, 1843, he submitted to the church the alternative of dismis- sion or a year's release. Reluctant to lose their loved pastor, they chose the latter. But after a long voyage he was still disabled ; HISTORICAL DISCOURSE. , 25 and while be was again absent at sea the council met, which advised his dismission. He preached his last sermon in Plymouth, in December, 1844. Going to Boston he became joint proprietor and editor of the " Daily Evening Traveller " newspaper, and con- tributed to make it one of the best newspapers of the land. After eleven years he became Secretary of the N. E. Branch of the Amer- ican Tract Society for a time ; but afterwards- returned again to the '• Traveller." He has also continued the studies, begira in Plym- outh, into the . polity and history of Congregationalism ; and his " View," and " History," in new editions, are already standards in our religious literature. During Mr. Punchard's disability, and after his dismission, Rev. Enoch Corser supplied the church for a year or more. Rev. J. U. Parsons was also briefly employed. In 1845, March, Rev. William R. Jewett came to Plymouth. He had been six years pastor in Griswold Ct. His ministry here continued seventeen years. He was installed at Fisherville, 1863, September 16, and dismissed, 1874, September 10. Of his labors, so recent and familiar to 3-ou, it would scarcely be proper for me to speak particularly; but you would expect me to recognize the learning, the zeal and the fidelity which characterized them. A very healthful spiritual con- dition marked the early years particularly, and in three years, from 1846, forty-eight members united with the church. The present vestry was built during his ministry in 1851. His successor. Rev. Henry A. Hazen, came to Plymouth in October, 1862. The table of pastors appended [Note O] contains all I need say of him. It would be pleasant to gather up and record many interesting memorials of good men and women, who have been members of this church, but space and time forbid. The field would aflford rich gleanings. The officers, however, should have mention. The deacons have been Stephen Webster, Francis Worcester, John Wil- loughby, Benjamin Goold, Elisha Bean, Joshua Fletcher, Jotham Cummings, Asa Robbins, Ebenezer Bartlett, Jr., James Morrison, Alvah McQuesten, David Clough AVebster, Washington George, William Wallacs Russell, Jr., and Simeon Sanborn. " Elder " Stephen Webster (Note L) was born in Chester, 1717-18, February 18, and the ancestor of all the Plymouth Websters. He taught the first school in town, and was a most worthy man. Francis Worcester was a man of high standing 4 26 PLYMOUTH, N. H. and cl)aracter in Ilollis ; often an officer of the town and moder- ator of its meetings, as he was also in Plymouth. There was scarcely a more valuable man among the first settlers. John Willoughby came with his father in the first exploring party who selected the location of Plymouth, and was here in May, 17G4 ; per- haps had spent the winter in town. July 20 he set out for Monson, an old town, which in 1770 was divided- between HoUis and Am- herst, to visit his family ; and 1765, October 5, he " came to Plym- outh with" his " family, in the 30th year of his age." No man has been longer or more honorabl}" connected with this church. He died in 1834, June 22, aged 98, having been a member of the church sixty- nine years, and a deacon sixty-seven years. At his funeral his pastor said he was one of the, most perfect examples of a blameless and holy old age he had ever known, and that ever}' remembrance of him was pleasant and honorable. Joshua Fletcher was a man of good attainments and piety. In 1798 he removed to Bridgewater, and became acting pastor of the branch of Hebron church in that town — an office which he held for more than twenty j^ears. His son, long the only deacon of that church, was buried from Holderness last Sabbath. Deacon Bartlett was no common man. He came from Newbury- port, and was half brother of the founder of Andover Theological Seminary. He had a good mind and deep piety, excellent judgment, suavity of manner, and carried the savor of his profession wherever he went. He was so kindly, gentle and natural in manner that he talked with all on religious subjects without offence. " He alwaj's reminded me," Mr. Piinchard says, " of the Apostle John, and I re- garded him as the purest and most lovable of men with whose acquaintance I was ever blest." Deacon Robbins was an excellent man ; and David Clough Web- ster is entitled to a warm tribute in our memories to-day. His death, in 1862, was a loss which the church still and deeply- feels. Of the deacons still living, I must not say more than to bear testi- mony to their worth. Justly estimated, I think we should find no reason to say that "the former days were better than these." And there is one other name which deserves mention here : Mr. William Green was for twent}' years the faithful, exact, and admirable clerk of the church. His records are neat and full, and whoever has occasion to trace the history of the church will wish that they had always been kept as well. He is the only layman who has long held HISTORICAL DISCOURSE. 27 the office, and your experience should dispose you hereafter to entrust these duties to the hands of your laymen. And in the Sabbath school, tract distribution, and all charitable activity, the church needs more like Mr. Green, — earnest, devout, and ready workers. Of ministers, this church has not been a fruitful mother. It began well with " Father Ward " and James Hobart, but only four other names can be added to the list. For convenience I group these names with those of the pastors in a table [Note O], and add here a few words. Jonathan Ward, Jr., son of Rev. Jonathan, was a young man of much promise, and his early death, three months after his settlement at Biddeford, was deeply lamented. James Wilson Ward, his brother, was a thorough scholar, a sound theologian, and an effect- ive preacher. His ministry in Abington was honored and useful. He was acting pastor in Lakeville, Mass., from 1863 to 1869, and resided there till his death. The Rev. William H. Ward, oriental scholar and editor of the "■ Independent," and James W. Ward, Jr., Andover, 1865, are his sons. Milton Ward, son of Benjamin, studied medicine, and practised in Windham. After the death of his first wife, he read theology, and was settled a short time pastor at Hillsborough. He then became a presbyter of the Protestant Epis- copal Church, and did mission service in many places, — in Lynn, Nashua, and Michigan, — and died at Detroit. He printed some ser- mons of merit, and published a volume of poems which were praised by so good authorit}" as the "North American Review" (vol. 29, p. 49). Nathan Ward, son of Samuel, began life as a blacksmith; then read medicine in Coventry, Vt., and went as a medical mission- ary to Ceylon in 1833. Besides medical duties, he superintended the mission schools. In 1846 he returned, practised his profession in Burlington, Vt., till 1853 ; received evangelist ordination, and was acting pastor at North Troy and Westfield till 1860. He then pro- posed to return to Ceylon, and sailed October 30, but died at sea, November 29. A faithful and a good man. William J. Tucker was sou of Henry and Sarah W. (Lester) Tucker, but nephew and adopted son of Rev. William R. Jewett. After a fruitful ministry of nine years in Manchester over the Franklin Street Church, he has just been installed, 1875, May 12, over the Madison Square Presbyterian Church in New York City. 28 PLYMOUTH, N. H. Three ministers have found their wives in Plymouth. Milo P. Jewett, LL.D., an eminent Baptist minister and educator, was mar- ried, in 1834, to Jane, daughter of Hon. Moore Russell. Rev. C3'rus Richardson married, 1871, Jan. 18, Annie, daughter of B. B. Dear- born ; and Rev. William J. Tucker, 1870, June 22, married Char- lotte H., daughter of John Rogers. To her it is onl}^ an act of justice here to say, that most of the labor of preparing the very complete tables in the Manual, published in 1867, was done b}- her. The General Association of New Hampshire has three times met in Plymouth— in 1813, 1835, and 1849. In 1813 the Moderator was Rev. Isaiah Potter, of Lebanon, and Scribe, Rev. John H. Church, of Pelham. Subjects of discussion and action were the report of the Committee upon the measures which resulted in founding Kimball Union Academy, the Religious Tract Committee, the Plan for the Widow's Charitable Fund ; also to establish a cotton factory, and by its profits secure funds for the Missionar}' Society ! More practicable than the last were the Temperance Resolutions, one recom- mendation being to the Ministerial Associations and Ecclesiastical Bodies to exclude the use of ardent spirits from their meetings. Sermons were preached by Rev. Eli Smith, of Hollis, Rev. Wm. F. Rowland, of Exeter, and Rev. James Murdock, of Massachusetts. At the meeting in 1835, Dr. Barstow, of Keene, was Moderator, and Rev. Samuel Harris, of Windham, preacher ; 2,158 additions to the church were reported ; more than 2,000 b}' profession. Tem- perance, the baptized children of the church, and the use of the Catechism, and the Sabbath, were among the subjects of discussion. The Trustees of Gilmanton Academy and of Holmes Plymouth Academy" came before the Association for support in their plans to establish theological schools ; but the Association wisely declined to assume responsibility for either. The Gilmanton plan went for- ward to a short-lived and doubtful success. The Plymouth Trustees appointed Rev. B. P. Stone, of Campton, Professor of Theology ; but no class was formed, and the enterprise died. An incident of this meeting is recorded by Dr. Boutou. "The celebrated lecturer on slavery, — George Thompson, of P^ngland, the guest of N. P. Rogers, Esq., — was present, and a request was made that he might be allowed to speak on the subject. A sudden and intense excitement arose ; most of the audience were on their feet. Even the calmness and meekness of the venerable Secretar}', Dr. Church, was disturbed. Rising in his place with the decision and HISTORICAL DISCOURSE. 29 authorit}' which could be better assumed bj^ him than any other man (he had been Corresponding Secretar}'^ from the beginning, in 1809, and remained so till his death, in 1840), he said, ' That subject is inadmissible here ! ' And it was not then admitted." In 1849, John M. Whiton, D.D,, was Moderator. Preachers: Thomas Savage, of Bedford, and Professor D. J. No^-es, of. Dart- mouth College. The topic of Christian union was considered, and resolutions were passed upon the subject of slavery, and commend- ing the position of the A. B. C. F. M. upon it. Plymouth has always had musical talent for the service of song. More than fifty years ago, Jacob Merrill was the zealous and good leader of the choir, and his children's children to-day are only true to their family history in the fidelity with which they assist the praises of God's house. The Sabbath school was established here during Mr. Jonathan Ward's ministry. Probably a good lady had such a school earlier ; but it was not permanent. At first it was held in the school- houses, and in the morning. The present arrangement, between the services, was not adopted till 1837. Since that time its super- intendents have been William Greene, Wm. W. Russell, Deacon McQuesten, Deacon George, and Deacon Russell, and its work has been done with efficiency. In the enterprises of Christian benevolence, Plymouth has always taken much interest. The monthly concert was early established, and long held on Monday afternoon. It then secured a more general attendance, and the collections then taken made a larger proportion of all that was given to the cause of missions. In 1830, these col- lections averaged $4.45 per month; in 1831, $8.56. This year, they have been $5.17. In 1834, the whole sum raised for benevo- lent objects was $683, half of it for the Education Society. In 1841, $361 were reported ; last year, $480. iS'ot the progress, certainl}^ which the calls of Providence and the prosperity God has given demands. In the national conflict, which has issued in rebellion and emanci- pation, this church has given no uncertain sound. Its S3'rapathy for the slave found earlj^ and energetic expression, and in the war we have done what we could, both by prayer and labor, for the triumph of justice and libert}'. In the various charities which the needs of the soldiers and the suttering have evoked, we have gladly borne part. We rejoice, with deep and devoted thanksgiving to 30 PLYMOUTH, N. II. the God of battles, in the return of peace, the salvation of the Union, and the overthrow of slavery ; and we trust that the God of our fathers will be with their children, and make the future of our dear country more beneficent and glorious than the past has ever been. Postscript, 1875 The histor}' of the past ten 3'ears would record the ministr}^ of Mr. I^ichardson, during which the church was repaired and greatly Improved, and an excellent organ procured ; the establishment of the State Normal School in Plymouth, bringing some increase of strength and congregation, and more of responsibility to the church, and a pleasant gain in the number of chm'ch-members, fort3'-nine being received, thirty-eight by profession. Since the ordination of Mr. Scott, thirt}' have been added to the church, twenty-five b}^ profession. A parsonage was built in 1874 ; and the members reported in the Minutes were 155 — males, 34 ; females, 121 ; with 25 non-resident. Altogether, the outlook of this church for the futui'e is one which may cheer its members, while it incites them to renewed fidelity. May the next centennial record still more glori- ous fruits of Christian labor, more assured progress towards the coming and kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ. NOTES. 31 :n^otes. Note A (page 5). — William Little, Esq., of Manchester, author of the valuable History of Warren, has investigated the conflicting accounts of Captain Baker's expedition with care, and I am indebted to his Avork for the substantial correctness (as I believe) of the narrative given. Cap- tain Thomas Baker was born in Northampton, 1682, May 14. In 1709, February 27, he was captured by the Indians, and taken with them up the Connecticut River to Lake Memphremagog. He was ransomed in 1710. In Canada, he no doubt met a young English woman, who, when three months old, Avas taken captive with her mother, named Otis, at Dover, in 1689, at the time of the great massacre in which Major Wal- dron was killed. She had accepted her fate, been educated by the priests, and married an Indian. But, in 1714, her husband having died, the desire sprang up, awakened, perhaps, by her acquaintance with Baker, to return to her friends She was permitted to do so, married Captain Baker, and united with the church in Northampton. A Catholic priest sent her a long letter, in the hope of reclaiming her, which, with a reply written by Governor Burnett, of Massachusetts, is published in " New Hampshire Historical Society's Collections," vol. 8, p. 405. They after- wards removed to Dover, where Captain Baker died, about 1753, and his wife in 1773. Their son. Col. Otis Baker, was a leading man in Dover, and often represented the town in the Assembly. Note B (page 6).— See "New Hampshire Provincial Records," vol. vi., pages 161, 199, 321, and passim. These Records are of great value, and their publication is creditable to the State, which is fortunate in the services of so competent an editor for the work as Dr. Bouton. It should be carried to completion, in the same thorough and libei-al spirit which has prosecuted it so far. Note C (page 7). — See Powers' " Coos Country," p. 17 and ff. The undoubted value of this little volume is impaired by the freedom with which it takes statements on trust without careful comparison with accessible records. Its errors are numerous. Note D (page 8).— Captain John Hazen, the first settler of Grafton County, was descended in the fourth generation from Edward Hazen > who came from England and settled in Rowley, Mass., in 1648 He was son of Moses Hazen, and nephcAV of Richard, the surveyor of the line between Massachusetts and New Hampshire, and was born in PlaistoAV, N. H., 1731, August 11. In the French and Indian war he was an efficient 32 PLYIMOUTII, N. H. officer, and in the Crown Point expedition of 1757 he was first lieutenant in Captain Jacob Bailej^'s company, Colonel Meserve's- regiment. In 1758 he was a captain under Colonel Hart. In 1760, Colonel John Goffe raised a regiment for the expedition to invade Canada, in which Hazen was again captain, and David Webster was in his company. This force spent forty-four days in cutting a road from " No. 4" to the Green Moun- tains, Avhich they crossed, " packing or hauling their stores over the mountains on horse-barrows." After his return he removed to Haverhill, Mass., but soon joined his friend. Colonel .Jacob Bailey, in the enterpi'ise, which the war had sus- pended and modified, of settling the " Cohos Country," and obtained the charter of Haverhill, N. H. In a few years he removed to St. Johns, Canada. Hei*e he amassed a competence, but, espousing the patriot cause, he was forced to leave the country with General Sullivan's re- treating army, and his fine residence was burned to prevent its afi'ording shelter to the enemy. • He raised a battalion of his French neighbors and others, and did such good service for his country that he was advanced to the position of a general oflicer. This last statement rests on the authority, generally excellent, of Colonel C. E. Potter's Military History of New Hampshire, above referred to. But I have a suspicion that some- thing of General Moses Hazen's later experience has been credited to Captain John Hazen. He settled in Albany, where he suffered from par- al}sis in 1785, and died a few years after. General Moses Hazen, who cut and gave his name to " Hazen's Road" through northern Vermont in 1779, was his brother, born 1733, June 1. He passed through a similar expea'ience in Canada. He commanded a regiment in the Revolutionary War, which was selected by Congress to receive all foreigners who were willing to serve, was known as ' Congress' Own,' and was independent of any state connection. He was made brigadier- general by brevet, 1781, June 2. Died in Troy, N. Y., 1803, February 4. See " Adjutant-General's Report, New Hampshire," 1866, vol. 2, p. 211, and " Governor and Council," Montpelier, Vt., 1873, vol. 1, p. 218. Note E (page 8).— This statement was made on the authoi-ity of Farmer & Moore's " Gazetteer," confirmed by the undoubted tradition in Plymouth that when the settlers first came to the town there was no other settlement between Haverhill and Stevenstown (Franklin). Rev. Isaac Willey's " Histoi-ical Discourse" at Campton, since published, claims a settlement in that town in 1762, but the evidence adduced is not conclusive, and I leave the account first given without change, except to add here an interrogation. Note F (page 8).— John Willoughby's statement to Rev. Mr. Ptoch- ard, preserved in his funeral sermon. Note G (page 8). — Proprietor's Record. NOTES. 33 Note H (page 8).— Captain David Webster, carried in his mother's arms to Plymouth, assured Mr. Punchard that she was the first woman in town. But the notice of Colonel Webster, his father (in Farmer & Moore's " Collections," vol. 3, p. 270), says they began housekeeping, 17 November, 1764. Either some error of the month has crept into this date, or the emphasis on housekeeping is intended to suggest that the arrival was earlier. The known facts of the progress made that year, make it incredible that there were not women in town before November • and if their going had been so long delayed, they would probably have waited till spring, rather than faced a Plymouth winter for the first time at that season of the year. Note I (page 9).— It is due to these grantees and early settlers that their names should be recorded here. I give them alphabetically, "h" indicates residence in Hollis, or, in three or four cases, a town adjoining ; " p," settlement in Plymouth ; and " c," a member of the governor's council or legislature. Ames, Stephen.'' Atkinson, Theodore.<^ Atkinson, Theodore, Jr." Blanchard, Joseph, Esq.'' Blood, EInathan.b Blood, Elnathan, Jr.'' Brown, John.'> p BroAvn, Josiah.*" p Cowan, James. Cummings, Ebenezer.h Cummings, Jotham.*" p Cummings, Samuel, Esq.'' Cummings, Samuel.'' Cummings, William.'' Davis, Thomas. Emerson, David, Jr.ii Gaffield, Nath'l. Goodhue, Samuel.'' Hale, Samuel. Hartshorne, Ebenezer.'' Harvell, John. Grantees of Plymouth. Hildredth, Jacob. Hobart, David.'' p Hobart, Gershom.'' p Hobart, James.'' p Hobart, John.'' Hobart, Jonathan.'' Hobart, Peter.ii(p?) Johnson, Jonathan.'' Keyes, Abner.'' Keyes, Jonas. Lawrence, Oliver.'' Lund, Phineas. McCluer, Thomas. McCluer, William. Marsh, Onisephorus. Merrill, Moses. Merrill, Thomas. Nabor, James. Nevins, William.'' Nutting, William. Patten, Matthew, Esq.<: Parker, Benjamin.'' Parker, Oliver. Parker, Zechariah.'' p Peirce, Richard.'' Phelps, John.'' Phillips, Amos. Powers, Francis.'' Powers, Nahum.'' p Powers, Stephen.'' Read, William.'' Smith, Col. Joseph." Temple, William, Esq." Thompson, Samuel. Underwood, James." Warner, Joseph. Weare, Meshech." Webster, Abel.'' p Wentworth, Benning." Willoby, John.'' Willoby, John, Jr.'' p Wright, David. Ambrose, Samuel. Barnes, James. Bean, Elisha. Blodgett, Ebenezer. Blodgett, Ebenezer, Jr. Blodgett, James, Blodgett, Jeremiah. 6 Names on School Tax Bill in Plymouth, VJlb. Brown, John.'' Brown, Lt. Josiah.'' Brown, Silas.'' Calfe, John. Cowan, John. Cummings, Jothara.'' Dearborn, Benjamin. Dearborn, Benjamin, Jr. Dearborn, Peter. Dearbora, Samuel. Dow, Moses. Draper, Jacob. Durkee, David. -- Eliot, Edmand, of Campton. 34 PLYMOUTH, N. H. Emerson, Dr. Peter.'' Emerson, Samuel.'' Evins, Edward. Pent on, John. Fiske, Amos. Fletcher, Gershom.'' Goold, Benjamin. Grenough, William. Hardy, . Hartshorne, Ebenezer.' Harvell, James. Hobart, Col. David."' Hobart, Gershom.'' Hobart, James.'' Hull, George, Hull, Nathanael. Keyes, Ephraim. Keyes, Jonas.'' Lovejoy, Phineas. Lucas, Thomas. Lund, Ephraim. Merrill, Jacob, Esq. McCluer, Thomas. Marsh, Onisephorus. Marsh, Jacob. Marsh, Samuel. Nevins, David. Parker, Eleazer. Parker, Zechariah.'' Patterson, George. Phillips, Amos.'' Phillips, Benjamin. Powers, Nahum.'' Ramsay, Hugh. Read, Joseph.'' Richardson, Zebediah. Ryan, James. Simpson, William. Snow, Widow Miriam. Stearns, Peter. Tatton, William. Taylor, Edward. Thompson, Amos. Ward, Enoch. Ward, Jonas. Webber, John. Webster, Abel." Webster, Amos.'' Webster, David.'' Webster, Nathanael. Webster, Stephen. Wells, Benjamin. Wells, Jonathan. Wells, Paul. Wells, Winthrop. Wheeler, Daniel. Wheeler, David. Wheeler, JoseJ;)h. . Wheeler, Thomas. Willoughby, John.'' Worcester, Francis.'' Wright, Dr. Abijah. Note J (page 10). — Rev. Peter Hobart, born in Hingham, England, in 1604, came to this country in 1635, and was installed the first pastor in Hingham, Mass., September 18, where he died 1679, January 20. Of eight sons, four graduated at Harvard, — Joshua and Jeremiah in 1650, and Gershom and Nehemiah in 1667, — and all became "respectable" min- isters. Nehemiah was settled in Newton 40 years ; Joshua in Southold, L. I., and Jeremiah in Topsfield, Mass., and Haddam, Ct. ; was grand- father of David Brainerd, the missionary. Gershom was ordained the second pastor in Groton, Mass., 1679, November 26. He was dismissed 1704-5, January 22, and died 1707, December 19, aged 62. His son Gershom was the father of Gershom, Jonathan and John, of the Plym- outh grantees, and his son Peter the father of Peter, David and James. Colonel David Hobart was born 1722, August 21, and was one of the most active and influential of the settlers of Plymouth. After the Revo- lution, he lost his wife, and married again in Haverhill, Mass., removing to that town, where he died. History has perversely sought to rob this good man and brave soldier of his laurels. Colonel Stark's report of the Bennington battle spells his name Hubbard, as was often done, and so it has gone into Belknap's history and all others, and the world has wondered who the brave Colonel " Hubbard " was ! Note K (page 10). — Could the cannon of Bunker Hill be heard in Plymouth ? The distance in air line is one hundred miles, and atmos- pheric conditions must have been favorable ; but the testimony cannot be lightly set aside. That the tradition prevailed all along the Connecti- cut Valley is certain. I have met it as far west as Barnard, Vt., from the NOTES. 35 son of Thomas Freeman, who with others affirmed the fact as unques- tionable. [See Thompson's Gazetteer of Vermont, part 3, page 7.] It is reported from Hanover ; and in Hartford, Vt, men were that day shin o-Hng the house in which I was born, and heard the cannonade distinctly, "xhe Plymouth account is still more conclusive. The obituary of Colonel Webster [published in Farmer & Moore's Historical Collections vol 3 page 272J stated that he ordered the long roll to be beaten, collected the people ; and, after deliberation, went below to learn what was going on and take part, if necessary. Many were living at this time (1824) who must have known the facts, and who would have denied these state- ments if not true. And if true, they settle the question. Note L (page 11) .-Elder Stephen Webster, who came from Chester to Plymouth, was the brother of Abel, the proprietors' clerk, and the father of Colonel David, Amos and Lydia, the wife of Samuel Cummings, Esq., of Hollis, a leading man in that town, and very active among the' Plymouth proprietors. He was son of Nathan, one of the first settlers of Chester. His father, also I^athan, of Bradford, Mass., was son of John Webster, who came from Ipswich, Engand, to Ipswich, Mass., free- man, in 1635. Ezekiel and Daniel Webster were descendants of his son Thomas, through three generations of the name Ebenezer. Note M (page 13) .-For the recovery of this long-lost date I am in- debted to the Ward Genealogy. For many years the formation of the church had been associated with the installation of Mr. Ward, and dated a year too late. The centennial discourse was as much out of time the error not having been till recently proved, although for some time sus- pected. Note N (page 21).— Dr. Bouton, in his interesting discourse preached at " Father" Ward's funeral, gives a different text for this farewell ser- mon. But the concurrent and independent statement of at least three persons who heard the sermon and remembered it well, inclines me to trust their memory of it, as given above. 36 PLYTVIOUTH, N. H. in ^• •* ^ 1— ( iH J3 a P .o a ' 03 »^ a >-> a fi oo co" 1 1 CO oo 1 1 1 ' ^ » t^ >> ' a c3 ^ a rH 3 •-3 a a 00 oo" 1 CU e^" oT CO r fl o> to <1 '"' r-( I-H '"' a o • m ,^ t2 a o 'O a o < (N _C3 "3 >. 3 a a a "m •^ ^ _ ►t> hi ^ ^ a i CQ ■S 00 CO 00 a C3 a ca . ^ O CO 13 ^-* ^ ^ ^ o" !7) 1 hi s CQ ■2 s o" «r o" en CO o e3 IH 00 OD 00 00 . "a 00 oo" o> a w ^ fo to CO a 00 CO 00 00 bD o o t. Fi Fi ^ a a > "rt 01 > >• > 5 A M M o 1? o O o o H -a -d o b a a a a ^ H O 1 > •3 a o •s a 4) O o a ta ^ ^ o a a Pi l^ 3 o a> o o o cS u ^ fe w e^ !B oa K! H P3 "O a . M M 00 e3 3 a ' -a O ^* a a C3 5 CJ5 to CO CO s t»» ,a a 1 ' 3 h> f=( (N 1 00 S rH 00 O C4 o IH [> > ' o! o o <) !2i tzi ■^ '"' tH ?-t r r m > : a rt a a o > -3 .2 a o o "S ^ 'C a ^ S <1 a o c3 ^ ^ 04 > 3 h) a a' 03 to in" ^ 00 fH of a 00 •3 o 3 3 a" > a 00 n iT p- c ^ o a a o > o -3 if > "3 Ih o « <1 Izi « O •< e-r rH C) ^ 1— 1 f< o O O o o O Q Q Q « « « co" cf § 04 >> "a Ml > >. • > "^ < o '^ o !2i M to' CO ^ '-' ^ ^ rH o 3 S » S 5 3 5 3 2 1 d5 a >> a rt ^ a s I s »r (U a o p 1 a a* ! a" o a" 03 J3 h) a o •-> i c3 % V -3 C3 a 3 ^ ^ ^ ^ INDEX. Academy, Holmes Plymouth, Theolog jcal School proposed, Anti-Slavery Conflict, Atkinson, Theodore, Bailey, Capt. Jacob, Baker, Capt. Thomas, Baker, Otis, Baptist Church, Bartlett, Dea. Ebenezer, Battle with Indians, Benevolent Contributions, Bennington, Battle of, Blake, Rev. Robert, Blanchard, Col. Joseph, Blodgett, James, Blood, Elnathan, Bouton, N., D. D., . Brown, Lt. Josiah, . Brown, Silas, . Bunker Hill, Battle of, Campton, . Census, Early, . Charter of Plymouth, Charter Names of Grantees, Chester, .... Church, Date of Organization Coos, proposed Colony at, Coos, Powers' History of, Corser, Rev. Enoch, Cummings, Jotham, Cummings, Jotham, Jr., Statement of, Cummings, Samuel, Deacons, List of, Dearborn, Samuel, . Fairbank, Rev. Drury, Fenton, John, Esq., Fletcher, Elder Joshua, Page 28 24 6,33 8 5,31 31 19 ' 26 6 29 10 23 7 31,35 8,10 8 10 8,32 8 8 33 8,35 13, 35 6 31 25,36 8, 11 9 7,36 26 8, 10 19, 36 11 26 General Association, Meetings in P., George, King, . George, Dea. "Washington George, William, Esq., . Goddard, Rev. Samuel, . Goold, Dea. Benj., . Grafton County Settlement, " " Organization Grantees of Plymouth, . Green, "William, Hanover Hardships of Early Settlers, Hardy, Daniel, Haverhill Hazen, Rev. H. A., . Hazen, Capt. John, Hazen, Gen. Moses, Hobart, Col. David, Hobart, James, Hobart, Rev. James, Hobart, Genealogical note, Hollis, .... Instructions to Representative, Jewett, Prof. M. P., Jewett, Rev. "Wm. R., . Lebanon Little's History of "Warren, Lord, Nathan, D. D., Lyme, .... McQuesten, Dea. Alvah, Meeting-houses, Merrill, Jacob, Methodist Church, . Ministers from Plymouth, Ministers' Wives from Plymouth, Monthly Concert, . •Morrison, Dea. James, ,17 0, Page 28 17 , 26, 29 18 23 26 7 12 33 27,29 8,16 9 19 8 36 8,31 32 10, 34 8 21,36 34 8,33 11 28 25, 36 8,16 31 23 11,16 26, 29 18, 24 18,29 20 27,36 28 29 26 38 INDEX. Page Newcastle, Mo 15 Newton, Mass., Mr. Ward's Separatist Ordination in 15 Newbury, 8 Normal School, N. H. State, ... 30 Orford, 8, 11, 16 Parker, Zechariah, 8 Parsons, Rev. J. U 25 Pastors, Table of, 36 Protracted Meetings, . ... 23 Powers, Capt. Peter, .... 7 Powers, Rev. Peter, . . . . 16 Powers, Rev. Grant, .... 31 Powers, Nahum, 10 Punchard; Rev. G 21, 36 Revolutionary War 10 Richardson, Rev. Cyrus, . . 28, 30, 36 Robbins, Dea. Asa, .... 26 Rogers, John, 28 Rogers, N. Peabody, .... 24 Rumney 8 Russell, Hon. Moor, .... 28 Russell, William W., . . . . 29 Russell, Dea. W. W., Jr 26, 29 Sabbath Schools 29 Sanborn, Dea. S 26 Scott, Rev. G. H 30, 36 Page Stark, Gen. John 6, 11 Stevens, Capt. Phineas, . 7 Stone, Benj. P., D. D., . . 19, 28 Sutherland, Rev. D., 23 Tax-payers, 1775, . 33 Temperance Reform, 20 Thompson, George, . 28 Tucker, Rev. W. J., 27 28,36 Ward, Rev. J. W., . 27,36 Ward, Rev. Jonathan, . 20,36 Ward, Rev. Jonathan, Jr., 27,36 Ward, Rev. Milton, 27,36 Ward, Rev. Nathan, 13,36 Ward, Rev. Nathan, M. D., 28,35 Ward Ancestry, 15 Webster, Abel, 7,8 Webster, Amos, 11 Webster, Col. David, 8 10,35 Webster, Dea. D. C, . 26 Webster, Elder Stephen, 8, 26,35 Webster Genealogical Note, 35 Wentworth, Gov. B., 7, 12,33 Weston, Ephraim, . 8 Willey, Rev. Isaac, . 32 Willoughby, Elder John, 8,11, 13, 26 Worcester, Elder Francis, 25 HISTORICAL DISCOURSE COMMEMORATIVE OF THE CENTENNIAL ANNIVERSARY CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH, PLYMOUTH, N. H. Preached Dec. 24th and 31st, 1865, Bt!( HENRY A. HAZEN, Pastok. With lUTKODroTioN and Notes belatikg to the Eaklt Histoby of the Town. BOSTON: CONGREGATIONAL PUBLISHING SOCIETY, Congregationai, House. 1875. 1^8; g C ^.-^. ^ C #1 C< ■( c <.G«. c « c (€« CC I e (€fC < «Kit (tccT'C^ar «C< <^«" ' CC«t'X < CC*..<:' ^.(« c c c c c C V c . < c «c c cc c «C C CC c CC c ^.C^t^C^ ^<: c c? c c , .c o, c Ct ' < c c , C_ '' ■' c . Cc <: ' ' cc • < ;. <5:4''c «:.