Gc

974 .402

C419C

v.l

1247277

M. L,

GENEALOGY COLLECTION

t i

ALLEN COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY

833 00085 1284

Gc 974,

v.l

124'

A DOCUMENTAHY HISTORY

OP

CHELSEA

Committee of Publication

CHARLES F. ADAMS CHARLES C. SMITH HENRY W. HAYNES

Digitized by tlie Internet Arcliive in 2015

https://archive.org/details/documentaryhisto01cham_1

A

DOCUMENTARY HISTORY

OP

CHELSEA

mCLUDING THE BOSTON PRECINCTS OF WINNISIMMET EUMNEY MARSH, AND PULLEN POINT

1624-1824

COLLECTED AND ARRANGED, WITH NOTES

BY

MELLEN CHAMBERLAIN

IN TWO VOLUMES

Volume I

BOSTON

PRINTED FOR THE MASSACHUSETTS HISTORICAL SOCIETY

1908

THE UNIVERSITY PRESS, CAMBRIDGE, U. S. A.

CONTENTS

,:, Page

Illustrations ix

Peefatoey Note, by the Committee of Publication . . xi

Memoie of Mellen Chambeelain, by Heney W. Haynes xvii

CHAPTER I

Introduction 1

CHAPTER II

The Planters at Winnisimmet 6

Appendix. Samuel Maverick 13

CHAPTER III

Samuel Maverick's Palisade House 20

Appendix 1. Maverick's Place of Residence .... 28

Appendix 2. Early houses at Chelsea 33

Appendix 3. Samuel Maverick and Dixy Bull ... 36

Appendix 4. Will of Ellas Maverick 38

Appendix 5. Maverick's Descendants 43

Appendix 6. The Brintnall Family 46

Appendix 7. Jonathan Green 53

Appendix 8. Dyke and Dam at Island-End River . . 55

Appendix 9. Location of the Maverick Ferry Landing 57

CHAPTER IV

The Indians at Winnisimmet 60

Appendix. Their Places of Abode 70

Indian Deeds

CHAPTER V

72

vi

CONTENTS

CTTAPTER VI

Pa OH

Allotments of Land 81

Appendix 1. The Great Allotments 12.i

Appendix 2. Houses on the Pratt Estate .... 134

Appendix 3. Way and Ireland 13?

Appendix 4. The Pratt Family 140

Appendix 5. The Cheever Family 150

Appendix G. The Newgate Farm 1G5

Appendix 7. Simeon Stoddard's Fence 171

Appendix 8. Cogan and Doolittle 173

Appendix 9. Cogan and Floyd 178

Appendix 10. James Bill 193

Appendix 11. The Tuttle Farms 20

Appendix 12. The Cole, Hasey, and Lewis Farms . . 230

Appendix 13. The Sale Farm 254

Appendix 14, Deane Winthrop 263

Appendix 15. Samuel Bennett's Farm 267

Appendix 16. Maiden Owners of Land in Chelsea . . 293

CHAPTER VII

GOVERNOE BeLLINGHAm's ESTATES AT WiNNISIMMET . . 294

Appendix 1. Lieutenant John Smith 319

Appendix 2. Comparative Value of the Bellingham

Farms 321

Appendix 3. Inventory of Edward Watts and Will of

Eebecca Watts 323

Appendix 4. Letters of John Tudor 334

Appendix 5. The Watts Family 338

Appendix 6. Henry Howell Williams 363

Appendix 7. The Eustace Family 365

Appendix 8. The Gary Family 369

Appendix 9. Stephen Kent 374

Appendix 10. The Scnter Family 378

Appendix 11. Farm of Daniel Watts 387

Appendix 12. List of Plans 391

CHAPTER VIII

GovEENOK Bellingham's Will 393

CONTENTS vii

CHAPTEE IX

Page

Coxiest for the Bellingham Estates begins .... 420

Appendix 1. Inventory of Eichard Bellingham . . . 427

Appendix 2. Suit of John Blake 429

Appendix 3. Suits of Oxenbridge and Smith . . . 438

CHAPTEE X

GovERxoR Bellixgham's Will before the General

Court 441

Appendix. Suits of Nicholas Eice 451 '

CHAPTEE XI

Eichard Whartox sues for his Services 464

Appendix 1. Hammond vs. Bellingham 472

Appendix 2. TMiarton vs. Stoddard and Eanger . . 479

Appendix 3. Wharton vs. Eustace 481

Appendix 4. Bellingham vs. Eustace 483

Appendix 5. Thomson vs. Eustace 489

CHAPTEE XII

GovERxoR Bellixgham's Estate by Descent .... 495

Appendix. The Marriage Settlement 502

CHAPTEE XIII

The Bellixgham Will Case Eeopexed 528

Appendix. Appeal of Eev. James Allen 540

CHAPTEE XIV

Suits for the Bellixgham Estates Eesumed .... 544

Appendix 1. Pembroke and Hiller Suits 551

Appendix 2. Watts and Townsend Suits 559

VI] 1

CONTENTS

CHAPTEli XV

Page

The Clergy of Boston make an Address to the Gen- eral Court 572

CHAPTEE XVI

A Long Truce 576

Appendix. Letters of Joseph Hiller and Elizabeth

Bellingham 579

CHAPTER XVII

The Bellingham Will in Town Meeting 584

Appendix 1. Col. Thomas Goldthwait G02

Appendix 2. Allen vs. Eustace GIO

Appendix 3. Danforth vs. Sargent et al 614

CHAPTEE XVIII

The End Near: Thompson sues for the Eustis Farm . 623 Appendix. Writ of Execution 633

CHAPTEE XIX

Captain Egbert Keayne's Estate in Eumney Marsh . 635 Appendix 1. The Chamberlain Family of Eumney

Marsh 651

Appendix 2. Colonel Nicholas Paige 656

Appendix 3. The Tenants on the Farm 663

ILLUSTRATIONS

Page

Portrait of Mellen Chamberlain ....... Frontispiece

House of Mellen Chamberlain xix

Boston Harbor in 1711 1

Yeamans House 96

Deane "Winthrop House 121

Pratt House 134

Map of Winthrop and Plan of Bill Farm 193

Bellingham Farms 291

Portraits of Samuel Cary and his Wife 310

Gary House 314

Carter House 318

Portrait of Thomas Goldthwait 603

Chelsea in 1739 668

1

i

1

PREFATOUY NOTE

MOXG tlie papers left by Judge Chamberlain is one

/% headed " Memoranda for a Preface," at the beginning of which he says, "' These Memoranda, written at different times, doubtless contain much irrelevant and repetitious matter, and will require careful revision." He then unfolds his well- known views as to the genesis of the Massachusetts town, end- ing with the suggestion, " Perhaps the greater part of the foregoing, instead of belonging to the Preface, would with some modification more properly form part of the Introductory Chapter." As the views thus presented are much more clearly and forcefully stated by him in two papers printed in the Proceedings of the Historical Society,-* it has not seemed de- sirable to reproduce them here. Of much greater interest and value is the account Avhich he gives of the circiunstances that led him to undertake the preparation of a History of Chelsea and of the method pursued by him. " In 1876," he says, the City Council of Chelsea asked me to prepare a history of the municipality, as other tovms were doing, as a centennial memorial. ... I was then heavily weighted by public duties which left little time for other work, and I was not inclined to accept the invitation ; but as one long resident in the city, with some participation in its municipal affairs, and often a recipient of its honors, I could not refuse without the most cogent reason. . . . Accordingly I looked into the books most likely to contain the results of previous investigations, and found a few pages. I asked at the City Hall for the old tovm files ; there was not a scrap. With like result I sought his- torical papers in the old garrets in Revere; but the oldest inhabitant could not suggest new fields of investigation. I knew that for the first hundred years the territory which was incorporated as Chelsea was merely an outlying precinct of

* "The New Historical School," in 2 Proceedings, v. 2G5-278; "The Genesis of the Massachusetts Town," ibid., vii. 214-242.

Xll

PREFATORY NOTE

Boston, without municipal life of its own; and tliat for the second hundred ytsars, as well as for tlic first, its largest pro- prietors were mainly non-residents whose genealogies would not he required. These circumstances were not promising for the production of a work of value or interest; hut, lessening as they did the prospective lahor of writing a History of Chelsea, they made a refusal to undertake it more difficult. Under these circumstances I undertook the work, and seldom have I made a more serious mistake. For though with small expectations, yet as something proper to be done, I began an examination of the archives at the State House, and had not proceeded far before discovering material which compelled me to search page by page the two hundred volumes of State Papers, as well as the Boston Town Records, not then printed, the records of the Suffolk Courts, the Registry of Deeds, and the Probate Office. The results amazed me, not only by the mass and value of the materials which I found, but even more by the fact that I had conunitted myself to a work requiring years for its completion.

" Not only new materials, but new subjects for Chelsea his- tory, were discovered. 'No one had ever supposed that the first settlement in the upper bay was made at Winnisimmet, instead of Noddle's Island, and that it was there that Samuel Maverick palisaded his house in 1625. But when I learned this it made necessary a reconsideration of the mooted ques- tion of the first settlement of Boston harbor.

" The learned editors of Sewall's diary, warranted by the record, had said that Governor Bellingham's will, in which he devised his estates at Winnisimmet for pious uses, was set aside by the General Court in 1676; but this proceeding, far from being the end, was near the beginning of a contest which raged for one hundred and fourteen years, and was finally settled in 1787, before Judge Increase Sumner, whose notes, rescued from a paper mill, gave the only clue then discovered to the history of a case which was the subject of an opinion by William Cowper, afterward Lord Chancellor of England, and of a decision of Sir Nathan Wright, Lord Keeper of the Great Seal.

" At Winnisiromet was the northerly terminus of the first ferry from Boston, and the beginning of the first county road in Massachusetts, and perhaps botli were the first on the west-

PREFATORY NOTE

xiii

ern continent. These facts give distinction to Winnisimmet, and made it imperative to trace their history.

" From the Winnisimmet shores of Chelsea Creek, in May, 1775, British and American parties met in conflict in an attempt by order of General Ward to remove the live stock from Hog and ISToddle's islands. This was the second mili- tary engagement at the opening of the Revolutionary War. From Winnisimmet v^as observed in flank the movements of the British at Bunker Hill, and during the siege of Boston sev- eral comjDanies had barracks there.

" Finally, the records of the Runmey Marsh church during the very able pastorates of Thomas Cheever, Phillips Payson, and Joseph Tuckerman are of more than ordinary value, and these I have thought it best to present in their most authentic form.

" Much of this material, though not all, I had collected in the intervals of official duties, and for its preservation I printed it in the weekly issues of the Chelsea ' Telegraph and Pioneer,' the first of the articles appearing ISTov. 20, 1880, and the eighty-first and last July 14, 1883. At first my embarrass- ment was in the meagreness of material, which led me to print in full every document I found. But when the mass of these, by frequent additions (which have not yet ceased), became embarrassing a new question arose, how to treat these docu- ments. ... I have finally decided to print in full every im- portant paper, and to call the result ' A Documentary History of Chelsea, with !N^otes,' and have followed this course in respect even to the voluminous documents of the Bellingham will case. With some experience as a reporter of legal de- cisions, I reduced several of the cases to the form in which they usually appear in the volumes of Judicial Reports when all matters not essential to the legal understanding of the case are omitted. This is doubtless best for the bar, — indeed, it is the only practicable course ; but for those who desire to trace the crude and tentative progress of jurisprudence in Massachusetts, nothing could be more worthless. Besides, the merely formal parts of documents — the recitals, the descrip- tions of persons, and the names of witnesses — often give facts of great value not always conveniently preserved in foot- notes. Again, the plan I have adopted treats for the first time, and is not likely to be repeated, the course of judicial

xiv

rilEKATOliY NOTE

liroccedings in a series of iinporl.ant cases in the Massachu- setts Courts, of the Colony, Province, and Commonwealth. It is true that the records are incomplete. Some things needed to complete them still elude the most thorough search; ljut it is to 'be hoped that many will yet come to light from the least probable sources. . . .

" With these views of the requirements of a town history — at least, the history of Chelsea — I had, in 1892, so far com- pleted my work, as I thought, that I informed the Council and requested that the publication should be begun, having little doubt of my ability to keep in advance of the press until tlie work should be finished ; but while the City Council was con- sidering the matter the greater part of the old town files, with many papers of the Bellingham will cases, which had long been sought for in vain, were unexpectedly found in a house remote from Chelsea in which they had lain for more than a hundred years, having been carried thither by a former town clerk on his removal to that place. He was also executor of one of those who succeeded to the Bellingham estates. At first I hoped that I might be able to introduce this new matter into the text, or add it as notes, and thus avoid rewriting the work ; but this was found to be impracticable, and now (ISTovember, 1897) I am still reconstructing and rewriting the greater part of it. As I may not live to complete this History, I leave these memoranda ^ of my connection with a work which has taken more time than I anticipated,, and prevented my under- taking more than one book much more to my taste. But on the whole, perhaps, I ought to regret neither the time nor the labor I have bestowed on it, even though I may not live to complete it, since the history of Chelsea presents some facts of unusual interest, which are not likely to have been dis-

" As bearing on these " memoranda," the following extract from the will of Judge Chamberlain is explicit : —

" To the Massachusetts Historical Society I give my incompleted manu- script (typewritten) history of Chelsea with the ten bound folio volumes of manuscripts, plans, engravings, photographs and materials used in the preparation of said history and may be useful in its completion, with the copyright of said history, and the profits from the sale thereof. I hope to communicate to said society in a separate paper my views in respect to the completion of said history; but lest I fail to do so, I will say here that I wish to have the manuscript placed in the hands of a thoroughly competent person for completion and revision, to whom I give the largest discretion in respect to ojiiissions, condensation, changes and additions,"

PREFATORY NOTE

XV

covered by any one without my opportunities, some of which have been purely accidental. . . .

" It was not my original intention to bring the History down to a later period than that of the organization of the Win- nisimmet Co., say about 1833, leaving the history of the town after ISTorth Chelsea was set off and the history of the city after its incorporation to another. And I should have treated the history of Winthroj) more fully, if I had not hoped that this would be undertaken as a separate work by another hand. . . .

" Documents purporting to be complete in all cases follow their originals where I have had access to them, but in many cases they exist only in copies made by those who followed the orthography, punctuation, and abbreviations peculiar to their own times. Town and Church records, so far as I give them, are exact copies, with these exceptions that from the latter I have omitted baptisms and deaths, which are given in the Appendix, and from both I have omitted the words ' It was voted,' and connected the sentences by semicolons." ^

The circumstances under which Judge Chamberlain's manu- script was bequeathed to the Historical Society, and its pub- lication undertaken, are fully stated in the Memoir of him in this volume.

In the preparation of the copy for the press the first twenty- seven chapters and the lists of town officers and inscriptions in the burying-ground, as well as Sections VI. and VII. in the General Appendix, were assigned to Miss Jenny C. Watts, a graduate of Radcliffe College ; and the remaining chapters and the other parts of the General Appendix to Mr. William E. Cutter, librarian of the Woburn Public Library, and author of a History of Arlington. Matter added by either of them is enclosed in brackets ; but, in accordance with the manifest desire of the author, as set forth in his will and his instruc- tions to the Society, the committee of the Society to which the material was entrusted has exercised a much wider latitude both of investigation and development of the subject matter

' In printing these extracts from Judge Chamberlain's rough draught or "Memoranda for a Preface," the Committee have made such omissions and such verbal corrections as they believe he would himself have made in a final revision, but they have preserved its statements and opinions as he left them.

xvi

PRKFATORY NOTE

in the case of the earlier tliau of tlie later period dealt with. This course was dictated by considerations too obvious to call for any detailed statement or explanation, and the wide dis- cretion explicitly left with the Society by Judge Chamberlain makes unnecessary any justification of the course thus pur- sued. The Index has been ])repared by Rev. T. Frank Waters, of Ipswich, author of " Ipswich in the Massachusetts Bay Colony."

It cannot be doubted that if Judge Chamberlain's health and strength had permitted him to make a final revision of his manuscript, his History of Chelsea would have approached much more nearly to the high ideal which he set before him- self; but it is not believed that he would have essentially modified his opinions, or changed his statement of fact except in so far as they would necessarily have been affected by the coming to light of documents supposed to have been lost or the discovery of new historical material.

Charles F. Adams. .Chakles C. Smith. Heney W. Haynes.

MEMOIE

OF

MELLEN CHAMBERLAIN.

BY HENRY W. HAYNES.^

Mellen Chamberlain was born in Pembroke, New Hamp- shire, June 4, 1821, the second of the five children of Moses and Mary (Foster) Chamberlain. The earliest known ances- tor of the family was Jacob Chamberlain, born about 1690, according to the inscription upon his gravestone in Rumney Marsh (now Revere), Massachusetts, where he died in 1734. He married, in 1714, Abigail, daughter of William Hasey, of Rumney Marsh. Maiy Foster was the daughter of Rev. Abiel Foster, of Canterbury, New Hampshire, a descendant of John Rogers, the fifth President of Harvard College, and of Governor Thomas Dudley. Moses Chamberlain was a farmer, who also carried on the business of a country shopkeeper. The son helped his father in both occupations, attending the district schools of the town, and later the Academy in Pem- broke, until his fifteenth year, when the family removed to Concord, New Hampshire, in 1836. For the next four years he pursued the studies preparatory for college at the Literary Institute of that place, continuing to assist his father and teaching district schools in the winter. In 1840 he entered Dartmouth College, and graduated, in 1844, with a class in which were included an unusual number of men wlio after- wards attained distinction. During his college course he taught school three winters in Danvers, Massachusetts. His college rank was sufficiently high for him to be chosen into the Phi Beta Kappa Chapter of the college. All his life long he looked back with gratitude to his Dartmouth training, and ever cherished a warm affection for his classmates, which was fully reciprocated by them. His college on its part

1 Reprinted from tlie Proceedings of the Massachusetts Historical Society, 2d Series, vol. xx. pp. 119-146.

XVI 11

MEMOIR OF MKLLEN CTfATtTBRRLATN

rcf^arded liiin as a wortliy son, and bestowed upon hi in tlie lionorary des^iee of Doctor of Laws in 1885; and liis fellow alumni twice called U{)on liim to he their spokesman in exi)ressii)jf their admiration for Dartmouth's greatest son, Daniel Webster, — !i,t a dinner in 1882, and at the dedication of his statue in 188G. In May, 1844, a little before his graduation, Mr. Chamberlain was chosen piineipal of the high school at Brattlel)or()Ugh, Vermont, and there he remained until late in 1846. In an "Address at the Dedication of the Brooks Libiary Building, at Brattleborough, Vei'mont, Janu- ary 25, 1887," he gives a charming account of his life as a teacher, and of the town and its society, which at that time included a notable number of cultivated citizens and summer visitors of distinction, especially drawn thither by the estab- lishment of one of the earliest " Water Cures " in this country. From Brattleborough he entered the Dane Law School at Cambridge, Massachusetts, in the late autumn of 1846. lie was soon made the Librarian, and remained there for two years, receiving the degree of Bachelor of Laws in 1848, He himself says that this "situation brought him into official relations to the college, and afforded him social privileges, which otherwise he could not have had." Among the most valued of these he regarded the opportunity of passing some months in the capacity of private tutor in the family of Clian- cellor Kent at Kent Place, Summit, New Jersey. In January, 1849, lie was admitted to the bar in Boston, and opened a law office on Washington Street, which he shared with the late John S. Holmes. Later he removed to No. 35 Court Street, where the late Seth Webb was his office companion, and after Webb the present writer shared the office with him from 1856 to 1867. On June 6, 1849, he was married to Martha Ann, daughter of Colonel Jesse Putnam, of Danvers, Massachu- setts, whose acquaintance he had made during his terms of school teaching in that town, in his college course. In a let- ter to his father, written from the Law School at Cambridge, October 3, 1848, he says: —

" I intended to have entered my profession about this time, but the retirement of the old professors brought on new ones, who knew nothing of the affairs of the school, and they insisted upon my staying thiii term, which I agreed to do for three hundred dollars extra. . . . On the first of January I shall have seven hundred and thirty dollars

MEMOIR OF ]MELLEX CHAMBERLAIN

XIX

in pocket. If there is any such thing as luck in tlie world, I have hail it. Trne, I have worked like a dog and lived like a miser. ... I iiave arranged to get married, and suppose that my money will carry us to January, 1850. when the purse will be empty. At twenty-eight one may get married, and it becomes a matter of necessity, when one has lived so long alone as I have. But notwithstanding the apparent rasli- ness of this step I have no fear. My life will be insured, so that in case I should be taken away, Martha will not be left destitute, and that's all I care about. But I will not anticipate that. Ten years unassisted toil have given me strength and power to do and to dare. You will gather from what I write that I am in excellent spirits ; I am so."

His anticipations were fully realized ; his marriage brouglit him at once into a large and agreeable family circle, and his professional earnings proved sufficient for their modest wants. He soon began to secure a considerable office business, to which was a'dded a fair share of court practice, and he also reported court business for the "Boston Advertiser." But his main occupation was that of a conveyancer. Two or three large farms in Chelsea began to be cut up for building pur- poses about this time, and the Winnisiminet Land Company concluded to sell all of its extensive lioldings. Mr. Cham- berlain began a thorough study of the titles to all the real estate in Chelsea, and his knowledge became so extensive that hardly a land title could be passed in that community without consulting him. The results of his investigations were con-- signed to twelve laige folio volumes, which by his last will' were bequeathed to the city of Chelsea and have been placed in its Public Library.

Immediately upon their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Chamberlain went to live in Chelsea. After several changes of residence he built a comfortable house, pleasantly situated on Washing- ton Avenue, upon the western slope of Powderhorn Hill, with ample grounds in the rear in which to cultivate fruits and flowers. There he passed the remainder of his life. Mrs. Chamberlain died suddenly, April 25, 1887, leaving no chil- dren. Their union was a signally happy one, and from her loss he never recovered. Their home was the centre of much intellectual life, at which for many years gathered weeklj^ a class of young people of both sexes for the study, under his guidance, of English and American literature. In his later

XX

MEMOIR OF MELLKN CIIAMI5KRLAIN

years Mr. Chamberliiin was in the liabit of passim^ a portion of every summer at Boar's Head, Hampton Beach, where he was accustomed to meet a congenial company of friends, of whom tiie Late (Joveriior and Mrs. Charh-s II. Bell, of New Hamp- shire, and our associate member Rev. Dr. Slafter, were among his most intimate companions.

Soon after his estaljlishment in Chelsea Mr. Chamberlain began to be called upon by his fellow citizens for various soi ts of public service, as school committee man, selectman, alder- man, on the organization of the city, in 1857, and for six years as City Solicitor. In 1858-1859 he was chosen a Representa- tive to the General Court from the Thirteenth Suffolk District, and was made a member of the special committee on the Re- vision of the Statutes. In 1863-1864 he was elected to the State Senate, and during the latter year was the chairman of the Judiciaiy Committee. Those who served with him in the legislature were accustomed to speak of his public services as of great value, and to esteem his powers as a debater as of a high order. He was an excellent public speaker, logical and impressive, while his remarkable memory readily supplied him with an abundance of illustrations to enforce and enliven his arguments, and his tall and eiect figure, his dignified bearing, and his strong and commanding countenance lent additional energy to his words.

On June 29, 1866, he was appointed by Governor Bullock an Associate Justice of the newly created Municipal Court of the City of Boston. Mr. George B. Chase, in a most sym- ])athetic tribute to his memory before this Society,^ has given an amusing account of the circumstances of this appointment. From June, 1866, to December, 1870, he served as Associate Justice, and then was appointed by^ Governor Claflin Chief Justice, which office he continued to hold till August, 1878. His services on the bench thus cover a period of twelve years. Mr. Chase has also quoted the opinion of one of his associates, the late Chief Justice Parmenter, as to his special qualifications for the office, and the method and quality of his work in it.

In the summer of 1875 Judge Chamberlain made a visit of six months to Europe, where his taste for art, scenery, his-

1 2 Proceedings, vol. xtv. p. 273.

MEMOIR OF IMELLEN CHAMBERLAIN

xxi

tory, and literature was ampl}' gratified. His letters home were exceedingly entertaining. Several of them appeared in the Boston newspapers, and attracted more than usunl atten- tion. In England and Ireland he took every opportunity to visit the courts, and always received a most polite welcome.

In xVugust, 1878, Judge Ciiaraberlain was called to be the Librarian of the Boston Public Library, succeeding our late associate Justin Winsor. This positioji he continued to hold until October, 1890, when he resigned on account of failing liealth, after another twelve years' term of faithful service. The circumstances of this appointment are amusingly told by Mr. Chase in an account of his interview with our late associate Mr. William W. Greenough, for so many years the President of the Board of Trustees of the Library. His first report as Librarian 1 shows how strenuously he took hold of his new duties, and what fresh measures he suggested, most of which have become a pait of the permanent administration of the Library. Among these were the appointment of a night watchman to insure protection against fire, and the installa- tion of a self-registering clock to make certain his actual presence ; a thorough examination of the Library to discover its most important deficiencies, mainly incomplete sets of periodicals, serials, and continued works, and a permanent arrangement by which these could be gradually secured; and the employment of a bookbinder to take down each volume from the shelves, dust it, and make any needed repairs to the binding ; by this measure the annual closing of the Library for cleaning purposes could be dispensed with. But his most im- portant suggestion was for a conference with the Superin- tendent of Public Schools, our late associate Dr. Samuel Eliot, and a committee of the masters of the schools to devise some system whereby in his own words " the best literature of the Public Library shall find its way into the public schools . . . and become an instrument in the hands of the public teacher of imparting knowledge at the public expense to those whom the city is under legal obligations to educate." He also makes the recommendation that " a course of lectures be established . . . designed to induce the critical and apprecia- tive reading of the best things in literature by those who

1 Twenty-seventh Annual Report of the Trustees of tlie Public Library, 1S79, p. 17.

XX 11

MEMOHl OF MELLEN CHAMJ3ERLAIN

luig'lit rc'])iiir to tlieiii for instrucLioi), as thei'C always is in every corninunit}' a coiisidei'ahlc iiiiinhcr of persons wlio would gladly avail themselves of sucii oitpoi tiuiilies." It has taken some time to realize, hut we all now perceive what suhslaiiLial fruit this wise and far-seeing suggestion was destined to pro- duce in these later years. In his annual report of the follow- ing year^ he says : —

" In my annual report t)f last year I suggested to the Trustees the propriety of setting apai't some por tion of ilie annual appropriation for hooks to meet the requisitions of tlie teachers of the puhlic scliools by tlie purchase of such books as in their judgment might be ut^eful to their pupils, and those to have their local habitation in the several houses under their charge, but always to remain the property of tlie Pulilic Library. . . . Some diificulties arose with respect to these requests. In the first place there were no more than two or three copies, instead of fifty, of each in the Library, and no funds from which they could properly be purchased ; and secondly, the nature of the loans and the time for which they were desired were in contravention of the Library rules."

Eventually the books were purchased from funds supplied from a private source, presented to the Liljrary and accepted by the Trustees, upon the condition that they should be loaned according to the wishes of the donor. After a year's use iia one of the schools they were returned in good order to fulfil similar requisitions for other schools. The reading of these books was not a part of the regular school exercises ; each pupil was expected to read his copy at home, as he would rea;d any other books taken from the Pul)lic Library, but to be examined once a week upon what was thus read. The cost of the experiment for a year was less than fifty dol- lars. Thus was taken the first step in the important work of supplyiiig "supplementary reading matter" to the schools from the Public Library. Another improvement suggested was to have irnportant new English publications forwarded promptly by mail for the use of the patrons of the Library, instead of waiting to have them sent in the usual slow course of purchases by the foreign agents of the Library. He also introduced a method of covering with linen canvas the heavy, costly volumes, that were subjected to great wear and

1 Eeport, 1880, p. 19.

MEMOIR OF MELLEN CHAMBERLAIN

xxui

tear in their use, and this style of binding has been substan- tiall}^ adopted for the greater portion of the books newly added to the Library', and of the older volumes as their binding wears out.

Such were some of the new ideas introduced into tlie man- agement of the institution by the new Librarian. Though it cannot be claimed that he developed remarkable executive ability in this office, he certainly made a satisfactory officer in all of his relations with the public ; and. he won the i-espect and affection of all its employees, from the highest to the lowest. The opinion of his services held by the Trustees, of whom the writer was one during nearly the whole of his term of office, is manifested by the tenor of the resolutions adopted by them on accepting his resignation : — -

" Whereas, Hon. Mehen Chamberlain has been constrained by the impaired condition of his health to resign tiie office of Librai'ian of the Public Library, and the Ti'ustees have reluctantly accepted his resignation, to take effect on the First day of October next.

Voted, That the Trustees hereby place upon their records the expres- sion of their regret for tlie loss which the Library must sustain in no longer benefiting by the services of so accomplished so faitliful a scholar as Judge Chamberlain has shown himself to be during his twelve years of service.

Voted, That the special attainments of the Librarian in the study of early American history have proved of essential advantage to the Library iu bringing up that department to the liigli standing that had already been reached in other branches of knowledge.

Voted, That the Trustees hereby convey to Judge Chamberlain tlie expression of their respect and regard, their regrets that their pleasant intimate relations must cease ; their hope that his enforced leisure may result in restored health, and their wish that his life may long be spared to give to the world from his stores of knowledge."

The antiquarian tastes of Judge Chamberlain were devel- oped in his early youth, and were fostered after his removal to Concord, New Hampshire, in 1836, by his intimacy with John Farmer, the archivist of the State of New Hampshire, whom he assisted in some of his historical and genealogical investi- gations. He began at that time to gather his remarkable col- lection of autographs, to which he afterwards added such letters, documents, and other manuscript material, portraits, and engravings, as he could obtain by exchange with other

XXIV

MEMOIR OK MKI^LKN CHAMBERLAIN

collectors, uiid by purchase as his iucoine increased. lie was nil iiidelaLigable searcher of old garrets and all oiit-ol'-the- way repositories of letters and other jjapers, making rcjpeated journeys thioiigliout New England for that purpose, and nuinbered among his correspondents, with whom he made con- stant exchanges, all the prominent collectors of this country; Hiuong whom were his boyhood friend, Dr. George fl. Moore, of the Lenox Library in New York, Dr. Sprague, of Albany, Mr. Taft, of Savannah, and Mr. Gilmore, of Baltimore ; from the latter he obtained Southern autographs and documents. Persoiialh', or by order, he attended all the autogi'apli sales in this country, and through dealers' catalogues added to his stores by purchase from England, France, and Germany. Thus his collection gradually grew to be of incalculable value, and it became a matter of great anxiety with him to decide what to do with it. To prevent the possibility of its ultimate dis- persal, if left to his heirs, he concluded to provide by his last will tiiat it should become the property of the Boston Public Library. In 1893, seven years before his death, he made an arrangement with the Trustees that it should be deposited in a I'oom to be specially prepared for it in the new Library build- ing and set apart as its permanent home, though he retained his property in it during his lifetime. It will hardly be neces- sary to attempt to give here an account of its treasures, as the Trustees published, in 1897, " A Brief Description of the Chamberlain Collection of Autographs, now deposited in the Public Library of the City of Boston." This was based in part upon an elaborate article, contributed by the late Rev. Julius H, Ward, to the "Boston Sunday Herald," of April 7, 1895, from memoranda furnished by Judge Chamberlain him- self. To this publication the Trustees added, in 1898, a sup- plement containing " The Texts of the Four Great Documents," reprints of " The Address to the King, 1774," the " Declara- tion of Independence (1776)," the " Articles of Confedera- tion (1777)," and the " Constitution of the United States (1787)." To these texts are affixed the autographs of the respective signers. These four texts have been removed from the rest of the collection, and with a series of sixty-three framed tablets, made up also of detached autograph signatures, grouped and illustrated by portraits, biographical sketches, and historical notes, are now displayed upon the walls of the

MEMOIR OF MELLEN CHAMBERLAIN

XXV

room foi- Younger Readers. These two pamphlets, liowevei', are intended onl}' to be preliminary to a complete description and analysis of the whole collection, now in course of prepa- ration ; they are sufficient, however, to indicate that The Chamberlain Collection of Autographs and Manuscripts will eventually prove one of the richest sources of information available for the students of American History, a worthy monument to the raeiuory of its creator.

A very interesting example of Judge Chamberbiin's skill and judicial temperament in the investigation of questions bearing upon the genuineness of autogi'aph signatures can be found in a note, appended to the " Bulletin of the Boston Public Library, No. 79, May, 1889," upon an " Autograph which may be Shakespeare's." In 1880 a copy of North's Plutarch, 1603, had been purcliased by the Library, which, though complete and in the original binding, was in bad con- dition and was consequently sent to the bindery for repairs. There was found to be a fold of parclmient, about two inclies wide, running the entire length of the hinge of the cover, a strip of paper of the same width and length, together with two or more shorter strips, on one of which at the beginning of the volume were written the words " William Shakespeare, hundred and twenty poundes." The paper bearing the name of Shakespeare is a fold, organically a part of the volume when it was purchased, as appeared by the sewing, but at what time the name was written on it is the important ques- tion. The strips of paper at the end of the volume also con- tained some writing, a couple of Latin quotations which must have been there when the volume was originally bound. All of these writings, including that containing the name of Shakespeare, though not in the same ink, are in the ink and handwriting of the seventeenth century, and probably were concealed from view until the linings of the inside covers became detached. There was also a worm-hole, running through the parchment, the title-page, and three hundred and ten pages of the text. This hole pierced between the words "and" and " twenty," in the Shakespeare writing, and it must have been bored after the writing was made, as other- wise the pen would have caught upon its edges, which plainly did not happen. Judge Chamberlain proceeds to discuss the question whether it is an autograph writing, and whetlier it

xxvi

MEMOIR OF MELLEN ClJAMJiERLAIN

is ill tlie handwriting of Siial<esp(3aro, at consideialjle length and with great acuteness. (Quoting tlie opinion of thi'ee ex- jxTts, colleciois of autograplis of hnig exj)erience, he concluded that tlie writing is an original signature, not a man's name written hy anotiier, or an imitation. He insists that the writ- ing hears a sti'ong resemhlance to the known genuine signa- tures of Shakespeare, and discusses the possibility of its being a forgery ; deciding against its being such, and laying stress upon his familiaiity with the history of historical, literary, and autograph forgeries in England and America. His conclusion is that " the Library autograph presents more reasons in favor of its genuineness and too few objections to warrant an ad- verse judgment." Eight process plates are appended to the article showing the title-page, witli the paper fold at the hinge containing the worm-hole, also the same turned back uj)on the cover, the hinge at the end of the volume, with the strips of parchment and paper bearing writing, and the same with the strip turned down disclosing writing otherwise concealed ; there are also added four pages of facsimiles of Shakespeare's autographs, together with enlargements of the same and also of the Ireland forgeries and of the Library signature.

Judge Chamberlain was elected into the Massachusetts Historical Society January 9, 1873, and immediately began to take a prominent part in its proceedings. He delighted in his membership, and was most assiduous in his attendance at the meetings. To its published volumes he made numer- ous valuable and interesting contributions, while in the dis- cussions that arose he was ever ready to draw upon his stores of knowledge with a fulness and accuracy of memory truly remarkable. He served frequently upon the committees, from 1885 to 1888 was a member of the Executive Committee of the Council, and presented the annual report in 1888. The notes contributed b}' him as one of the editors of Sewall's Letter-Book, 1886-1888, are marked by his usual thorough- ness and accuracy. He was also one of the members of the Committee to publish a volume of Belcher Papers, in 1892, and in 1894 was made one of the Publication Committee of the Bowdoin and Temple Papers.

Since his contributions to the successive volumes of our Proceedings form a substantial portion of his published work and are of great variety and of exceptional value, it seems

MEMOIR OF MELLEN CHAMBERLAIN xxvil

advisable to give a complete list of them, with the volumes in which they can be found, in order to facilitate ready refer- ence to them. His first paper was a "Sketch of the Life of Rev. Samuel Henly " (Vol. XV. p. 230). Next appeared a study of "The Currency Question in Provincial Times" (Vol. XX. p. 32); and in tlie same volume (p. 223), a discussion of " The Charges against Samuel Adams."

In the first volume of the second series (p. 211) he gave an account of the remarkable very early "Map of Eastern Massachusetts," discovered by our associate Mr. Henry F. Waters, in the Sloane Collection of the British Museum, and published by the Trustees of the Boston Public Library in the Bulletin for October, 1884:, from which it was reproduced in Winsor's "Narrative and Critical History of America" (Vol. HI. p. 381). In the same volume of our Proceedings (p. 273) appeared a notable paper on " The Authentication of the Declaration of Independence, July 4, 1776," in which, after a thorough study of the original records and of all tlie available evidence, he proves that the signing did not take place upon the Fourth of July. He suggests that the Declaration should liave been preceded by some such recital as the following : "The foregoing Declaration having been agreed to on July 4th by the delegates of the thirteen united Colonies, and the same having been engrossed, is now subscribed, agreeably to a Reso- lution pas^ed July 19th, by the Members of Congress present this 2nd day of August, 1776." On page 266 of the same volume he showed that "Samuel Maverick's House" was not built on Noddle's Island, East Boston, some time before 1628, as stated by Edward Johnson in his " Wonder-working Provi- dence," but was erected in 1625, — as he himself states in the valuable manuscript, " A Brief Description of New Eng- land, etc.," discovered by Mr. Waters in the British Museum and printed on page 236 of the same volume of our Pio- ceedings, — and was built in " Winnisime," upon land now in the grounds of the United States Marine Hospital in Chelsea.

In Vol. II. 2d ser. p. 122, he told of an interesting episode in the history of "The Old Pi-ovince House," which had escaped the notice of local antiquaries : its occupation by the Earl of Bellomont, when Governor, for fourteen months, from the latter part of May, 1699. On pages 275-305 of the

x:r,iii

MEMOIII OK MIOLLIW CIIAMIiKRI.AIN

same volmue Iio i)riiit(!(l a Journal of Captain Heniy Dearborn on "Arnold's Expedition to Quebec."

For the next volume (Vol. HI. 2d ser. pp. 102-l.">i5), lie contributed three otiier ".Journals of Captain lleniy Dear- born," belonging to the Boston Public Library and covering tlie period from July 25, 1776, to March 1, 1783. On page 371 he called attention to the new edition of the " Massachu- setts Colonial Laws," in the Revision of 1672, published under the editorial supervision of our late associate Mr. William H. Wiiitmore, and he has no doubt that tliis will stimulate, and go very far to answer, inquiry on a great many subjects of historical interest. Among matters instanced was the fact that the Geuei'al Court of Massachusetts had passed laws going far beyond the Acts of Parliament that were supposed to give validity to Writs of Assistance in the Colonies, which were so grievous to our ancestors a hundred years later. So, too, tlie requirement that revenue cases should be tiied in Admiralty, vphich caused much dissatisfaction when enacted by Parliament, was in substance the Massachusetts law of 1674. Also we find, among other invasions of the King's prerogative, that the Colonists apparently claimed the right to grant and annul patents.

In Vol. IV. 2d ser. p. 48, Judge Cliamberlain gave an account of the efforts of Samuel Adams to safeguard " New England Fisheries" in the negotiations for peace with Great Britain, as proved by the original draft of documents in Adams's handwriting in his own possession. On page 82 of the same volume he printed the first eight pages of the " Journal of the Committee of Correspondence " of Massa- chusetts, with the other Colonies, in 1773, from the original in the possession of the Boston Public Library.

To Vol. V. 2d ser. p. 265, he contributed a paper on " The New Historical School," devoted principally to criticism of the late Professor Alexander Johnston's " History of Con- necticut." As a disciple of Edward A. Freeman, Professor Johnston had propounded the theory that Connecticut towns came originally from the forests of Germany to England, and from England to Massachusetts Bay, whence three of them ( Watertown, Newton, and Dorchester) migrated to Connec- ticut as organizations, and there, in 1669, set up a common- wealth as the result of their joint corporate action; that these

MEMOIR OF MELLEN CHAMBERLAIN

XX ix

towns having created a commonwealth, became a jDattern for towns in other commonwealths; and so happily had their sys- tem of confederated towns worked, and especially in relation to the commonwealth, tliat the Connecticut delegation in the Convention of 1787 was able to persuade that body to form the Constitution of the United States on the same basis, — the Senate with its equal and unalterable representation of sovereign States answering to tiie independent Connecticut towns, and the House of Representatives answering to the Connecticut Council, both being elected by popular vote. To this reasoning Judge Chamberlain replies that the fallacy of this scheme lies in its theory respecting towns : their existence independent of some sovereign power, and in call- ing the towns the political cell from which the common- wealth was evolved. A town can be the germ of nothing but a greater town, never of a commonwealth. The rights and duties of towns are communal, and for such rights and duties they may provide; but even these powers are delegated, not inherent. The rights and duties of the State primarily concern sovereignty, external relations, and general laws affecting the inhabitants of all the State. He then proceeds to state his own views of the question : that our English ancestors did not bring with them English towns or English churches or British institutions ; but as occasion required they builded for themselves, as Englishmen always and everywhere had done and still do. Analogies do not con- stitute identities, instincts are not institutions; nor does simi- larity of design or adaptation of institutions indicate heredity, or even relationship. " The genesis of American Common- wealths," according to his view, "is historically clear: (1) They originated with mere adventurers for fishing, hunting, or trading, who, without territorial ownership or by state authority, established themselves on the coast. Among these, though with other views, must be included the Pilgrims, driven out of their course by adverse circumstances, as well as the first settlers of Rhode Island and Connecticut. (2) They originated with those who had purchased lands and obtained charters from the crown. (3) They were founded under Proprietary governments. (4) They were founded as Royal governments." Judge Chamberlain admits that the Connecticut delegation had great influence in the Conven-

XXX

MIOMOIR OF MELLEN CHAMBERLAIN

lion: fii'st, l)('c;uis(; Slierman, Joliusoii, and Eilswoi't li were very able men, and tlie only three veiy able men from any State who worked together; ami, secondly, because Cf)iiriec- ticut, beini^' neither one of the largest nor one of tl)e sinallcst States, held a position of great inHiience as a inediator between ihe two classes of States.

In the same volume (Vol. V. 2d ser. p. 313) .ludfre Cham- berlain gave an account of the sale of the Aspinwall-Barlow Library in New York, February 3-8, 1890. This sale at- tracted great attention in Boston, as the City Council had made a special appropriation of -120,000 for the purchase of rare and costly books on American history not to be found in the Public Librarjr. He recounts the history of the Library, so far as it could be discovered, and gives a statement of the valuable purchases made from it, of which a com[)lete list can be found in Bulletin of the Public Library, No. 82, October, 1890, pp. 359-376. The most imi^ortant acquisitions were a Latin copy of the first work ever printed about the discovery of America — a translation of the First Letter of Columbus to the King and Queen of Spain in 1493. The price paid was $2,900 ; and though the copy is not unique, it is very rare, as only four other copies are known, — two in the British Museum, one in the Royal Library in Munich, and one in that of Mr. Brayton Ives in New York. It has been claimed for this edition that it is tlie earliest of all that were published ; but this is not Mr. Win- sor's opinion, who states that there may be about thirty copies known of the eight editions, and of all these not more than five or six are ever likely to come on the market.^ The Trus- tees of the Library immediately published a facsimile of the letter, in the Library Bulletin referred to, with a ti'anslation into English b}' Mr. R. H. Major; but as that translation was made from a different Latin text, of another edition, the pres- ent writer, at the request of his colleagues, prepared a new translation, which was printed sepai'ately in 1891. Besides the Columbus Letter there was purchased, for the sum of $6,500, " A true copie of the Court Booke of the Governor and Society of Massachusetts Bay in New England." This is the most perfect copy known of the first volume (in manuscript) of the Massachusetts Colony Records, and contains historical matter of great importance nowhere else to be found. The ' 2 Proceedings, vol. v. p. 307.

MEMOIR OF MELLEN CHAMBERLAIN

XXXI

precise date of the copy, tliough very early, has not been ascer- tained ; but it is certain that some marginal notes are in the handwritin'T' of Governor Richard Bellingham, whicli aihls weight to the suggestion that this was the official copy. Inas- much as this costly purchase was made solely to prevent so im- portant an historical document relating to our own State from passing into other than Massachusetts hands, it seems to be eminently fitting that the Commonwealth siiould assume the cost and the ownership, and that its final resting-place should be in the State Library, as a companion to the manusci'ipt volume of Governor Bradford's History. ^

To Vol. VI. 2d ser. p. 258, of our Proceedings Judge Cham- berlain contributed a " Memorial of Daniel Leonard," Chief Justice of Bermuda, to the Lords Commissioners of the Treas- ury in reference to his salary in that office, and called attention to the singular circumstance that it was nearly fifty years after the publication of the " Massachusettensis " Letters, in reply to those of John Adams, under the signature of " Novanglus," before Adams learned that their author was Leonard, having always attributed them to Jonathan Sewall. On page 400 of the same volume he showed that John Trumbull, in his " McFingal," had alluded to the controversy in a way that points to Leonard as the author, and makes it quite clear that it was not Sewall. Later, on page 401, he gave certain particulars relative to Nathaniel Rogers, a Boston merchant, a graduate of Harvard, in 1762, who contributed the preface to Wood's " New England's Prospect." Rogers wrote from Boston to Thomas Whately, in London, December 12, 1768, one among the '• Hutchinson Letters," in. which he proposes his own appointment to the place of Secretary of the Colony, when Andrew Oliver, then Secretary, should be advanced to the Lieutenant-Governorship. His death, in 1770, defeated this purpose. On page 433 of the same volume he printed a " Me- morial of Captain Charles Cochrane," presumably addressed to Lord George Germaine, setting forth his militaiy career in this country from the arrival of the British army at Boston in 1774. Captain Cochrane was killed at Yorktown, October 17, 1781, the only officer of the British army who fell during the siege.

To Vol. VII. 2d ser. p. 127, of our Proceedings Judge

Chamberlain contributed an article on Governor Winthrop's

1 It was printed in 1890 in Whitmore's "Bibliographical Sketch of the Laws of tlie Massachusetts Colony," p. xxv, and in 1904 in Noble's " Records of the Court of Assistants," vol. ii. p. 115.

XXXll

MEMOIR OF MELLEN CTlAMnERLAIN

EsLiite," with a facsimilo of an unrocordtMl deed from him to John Newgate of hinds in Runmcy Marsh (Chelsea), drawn and witnessed by Tliomas Lechford, the hiwyer, now in the pos- session of Charles P. Greenongli, Esq. He adds: " Winthrop's alloUnent is in plain sight of my own honse, and in the last tiiirty years I liave often climbed its rounded height, and never, I thinlf, without consciousness that it was once Winthrop's; but not until within a few months have I known that it was in any way associated with so pathetic an incident in the life of one who by great service and high character gained the esteem and love of his contemporaries, and has since taken liis place among the founders of states." The " pathetic incident " referred to was the serious impairment of Governor Winthrop's property, owing to the rascality of his bailiff, James Luxford, by which he lost everything but honor. Later in the same volume (p. 214) he took part in the discussion on " The Genesis of the Massachusetts Town," carded on between Mr. Adams, Mr. Goodell, Professor Channing, and hinlself. In his portion he develops at considerable length arguments employed in his paper upon "The New Historical School"; but devotes especial attention to the '• parochial theory," which traces the origin of the New England town to the Eng- lish parish. In this connection he studies with great care the reasoning of Toulrain Smith, who claims that in England the parish antedates the town, and that its original functions were secular and not ecclesiastical, and shows the impossibility of its application to the origin of New England towns. As to their origin he says that there are at least three theories, — that they were native to the soil, that they were copies of English prototypes as those were of German, or that they were essen- tially reproductions of the English parish. Judge Chamberlain argues for the first theory, — that the origin and development of the town were due to certain conditions peculiar to them- selves. The sporadic settlements in New England were made on territory not capable of instant and effective protection by an acknowledged sovereign, so that the inhabitants were forced to postpone communal affairs to affairs of state, such as war and peace, territorial limits, jurisdiction, and defence. From the first those village communities exercised certain rights and performed certain duties, not unlike those which afterwards ap- pertained to them as incorporated towns. By common consent

MEMOIR OF MELLEN CHAMBERLAIN

XXXlll

tliey divided some lands among themselves, and held other lands for common use ; in both cases assuming corporate owner - sliip, so far at least as to make good title in the allottees. Then followed, later, the erection of these communities into bodies politic, owing their corporate existence to, and exercising all their functions in strict subordination to the paramount power, the State. Finally, as early as 1636, there was promul- gated in Massachusetts a setting forth of their rights, powers, and duties with a completeness and precision to which tiie advanced civilization of two and a half centuries has found little to add. He then goes into a detailed account of all those original scattered settlements by name, arguing that their records from what may be called the historic period, though meagre, throw some light upon the antecedent period. Finall}^ he enters into an examination of Mr. Adams's paper, which had preceded his own, and shows in wliat respects they agree and in what tliey differ.

In Vol. VIII. 2d ser. p. 108, treating of " The Transfer of the Colony Charter," he showed that the King's Charter, dated March 4, 1629, granted to the purchasers from the Plymouth Council, constituted them a body corporate with power to establish two governments, — one for themselves as a corpora- tion in England, and another for the colonists or plantation in Massachusetts Bay, and that this dual government under the Charter has been misunderstood by many writers, including Mr. Doyle in his " History of the Puritan Colonies." On page 123 of the same volume may be found an article by him on "The Talcott Papers," which form Volume IV. of the Col- lections of the Connecticut Historical Society. These consist of papers, correspondence, and documents (chiefly official) during Joseph Talcott's governorship of the Colony of Con- necticut, 1724-1741. The most interesting subject comprised in this volume has to do with the celebrated law-suit of John Winthrop, grandson of Governor John Winthrop, of Connec- ticut, against his sister Ann, wife of Thomas Lechraere. Ac- cording to the laws of Connecticut, the landed estate of John Winthrop's father, Wait Winthrop, dying intestate, would be distributed by giving a double portion to tlie oldest son and the remaining third to his sister. But, dissatisfied with this division, he claimed the whole of the realty, as he would be entitled to do by the laws of England, on the ground that the

XX.MV

MEMOIR OK MKLLEN CHAMBERLAIN

Colony law was invalid, bcini^ in conti'aventioii of lln; Cliiirter of King (Jhai'lcs II., in which forbade llu; making of any

law "contrary to the laws of this realm of England." 'J'liis was not the view taken by Thomas Lechmere and his wife, and in 1724 they l)egan proceedings to recover one-third of the real estate. These proceedings, brought before different courts in Massachusetts, Connecticut, and England, terminated ill a decree of the King in Council, February 15, 1728, wiiich declared the Connecticut law void, reversed the judgments of hei" courts, and gave the whole real estate to John Winthrop. The appalling result of this decree can be easily understood ; it affected every person in Connecticut; it reversed the policy of the distribution and the settlement of estates, which had prevailed from the beginning in Connecticut and the other New England colonies; it unsettled the foundations of prop- erty, and threatened universal litigation in families. In this alarming exigency the first question was as to the likelihood of the reversal of the decree as matter of law; or if not, whether the King b}'' a supplementary charter would rescind that clause, which forbade their passing any law contrary to the law of England ; and if this lay outside of his power or will, then could and would Parliament do so? In the un- settled state of the royal prerogatives Connecticut might well doubt whether to seek relief from the King oi- from Parlia- ment ; and as it turned out, she could apply to neither with safety. Judge Chamberlain gives a most interesting narrative of every step taken in the long course of proceedings by the various counsel of Connecticut before the King in Council and the Board of Commissioners for Trade and Plantations, from 1728 down to July 18, 1745, when, after a case, essentially the same, carried by api)eal from Massachusetts to the King in Council, had been decided differently, and the Massachusetts law, although contrary to the English law, had been sustained, the original decree was reversed, the ancient law restored, and the peril to the charter avoided. Incidentally Judge Chamberlain discusses the question of the constitutional rela- tions of the Colonies to the King and to Parliament, in their progress towards independence of both. He shows that the Colonies in their disputes about their boundaries, or conflicting grants within their own limits, based their respective claims on grants from the King as rightful owner of the fee of lands dis-

MEMOIR OF MELLEN CHAMBERLAIN

XXXV

covered under the English flag; yet, when their exigencies required, they sought the intervention of Parliament against the King, and wlienever they deemed it safe, they practically denied the authority of both. So Parliament, though recog- nizing the King's property in colonial lands, and his jurisdiction over their inhabitants, yet gradually began to invade his pre- rogatives, and finally transferred them to itself. The British statutes are full of acts regulating colonial domestic trade, manufactures, finance, and internal government, all of which iire really prerogative matters. Thus we see that colonial affairs were an important factor in British constitutional progress.

In Vol. IX. 2d ser. p. 105, Judge Chamberlain brought to the attention of our Society the fact that the inhabitants of Chelsea, on December 14, 1781, made a contribution of money "for the distressed inhabitants of South Carolina and Georgia, who are driven from their habitations by the British troops." No mention of this had ever been made by any historian of Massachusetts, known to him, and it seems to have been entirely forgotten.

To Vol. X. 2d ser. p. 463, he contributed some extracts from a lost Diary of Samuel Holten, a member of the Conti- nental Congress, from Massachusetts, 1778-1783 ; and also a paper, believed to be in the handwriting of William Paca, a signer of the Declaration of Independence, from Maryland, containing the substance of a conversation of Mr. James Wilson, a signer of the Declaration and afterwards Judge of the Supreme Coui't of the United States, about the serious condition of American affairs in March, 1778. On page 503 of the same volume he printed certain extracts from manuscripts of General William Chamberlin, relating to the Battle of Bennington, and some doggerel verses descriptive of the fight.

To Vol. XI. 2d ser. pp. 286-299, he contributed an inter- esting review of the principal contents of the Bowdoin and Temple Papers, then just published by our Societ3\ He believes that these writings will enhance the already high reputation of James Bowdoin, and serve to modify somewhat the historic judgment respecting his son-in-law. Sir John Temple, as well as to throw light upon the true history of the American Revolution and upon two conspicuous actors

MEMOIR OF MELLEN CHAMBERLAIN

tlierein. Incidentally he criticises Bancroft's historical work, us iui[)aiicd by its manifest partisanship, notwilhstanding iis great and manifest excellences. Judge Cliamberhtin wonders why James Bowdoin is never mentioned with " tiie Otises, tiie Adamses, the Warrens, and the Hancocks," for he rendered services second to those of no otlier, and under circumstances which ordinarily disqualify a man for leadership in a revolu- tion. Neither his independent fortune, nor his aristocratic position, nor his personal friendships, nor that conservatism which culture is supposed to engender, swerved him hy a hair's breadth, or for a moment deadened his zeal in the patriotic cause till its complete triumph. Judge Chamberlain's opinion of Temple is somewhat qualified; his abilities and his services to the cause of the patriots are beyond question, but his connection with the abstraction and traiismission to Boston of "The Hutchinson Letters" implies such a violation of the sacredness of private correspondence that it is doubtful whether he is entitled to share in that charitable consideration which all will readily accord to others of the Boston patriots. The Bowdoin and Temple Papers are of great value in cor- recting popular errors in regard to the causes of the American Revolution. They prove that the Grenville policy of drawing a revenue from the Colonies, after the excessive expenditure incurred in the subjugation of Canada, was intended to support the expense of the military establishment in the Colonies, and not to be applied to the payment of the debt thus incurred ; also that the modification of the cliarter in Massachusetts, in 1774, was a plan duly considered and determined upon without special reference to any pai ticular exigency, and not a malig- nant exercise of power provoked by the destruction of the tea in 1773. So, too, the " Molasses Act " of 1773, which caused much discontent in Massachusetts, as seriously affecting one of her great industries, — that of distilling lum from molasses for West India consumption, — was made inoperative by rea- son of the great inducements it offered to smuggling; and its enforcement was one of the causes of the Revolution. And, finally, the Stamp Act of 1765 was preceded by a careful investigation of the resources of the Colonies, and an endeavor to learn what subjects and what mode of taxation were least objectionable to the Colonists. At the November meeting of this Society, 1897, Judge Chamberlain joined in the tributes

MEMOIR OF MELLEN CHAMBERLAIN

xx::vii

to the memory of Justin Winsor, dwelling especially upon the admirable chai'acter of his administration of the Boston Public Library, his method of historical composition, and his unusual qualities as a presiding officer.

The last time Judge Chamberlain took part in our pi'o- ceedings was at the June meeting, 1900, when he s[)0ke ex- temporaneously on the social and economical revolution in New England, which began al)Out fifty years ago, and which seemed to him to have produced far greater and more important changes than the political revolution that preceded it. He gave some interesting reminiscences of his own boyhood on the banks of the Merrimac, of the emigration to the Western States, of the decline of the rural districts, and of the effects consequent upon the opening of the first long railroad line.

As a writer upon historical topics Judge Chamberlain first attracted attention by a notable address before the Webster Historical Society, January 18, 1884, after he had passed his sixty-second year, on "John Adams the Statesman of the American Revolution." In the report of the Council of this Society for that year the present writer said of that address that " he has traced the secret springs of that great movement with a depth of philosophical insight superior to any previous treatment of the subject." This estimate of the value of that study has been confirmed by the opinion of numerous students of history. Let me dwell briefly here upon certain considera- tions that were either specially brought out or were put in a new light in this aildress. The period of John Adams's life included was the nine years covered by the American Revo- lution, and the principal object of the paper was to point out how there can justly be claimed for him the foremost place among such statesmen as Samuel Adams, John Jay, Thomas Jefferson, and even Benjamin Franklin. It was because John Adams possessed two of the prime faculties of a great states- man, " the historic imagination, wliich develops nationality from its germ ; and clear intuitions of organic constitutional law," It was especially this sublime, intuition of nationality which distinguished him among his contemporaries. When the declaration of the Continental Congress, September, 1774, went forth, tlie cause of Massachusetts became the cause of all the Colonies ; it was nationalized, and this was John Adams's greatest feat in statesmanship. The value of this

XXXVIII

JVHOMOIIl OK MELLEN CHAMBERLAIN

politic stroke became apparent in the next session of Congress in Ma)-, 1775. lie then developed his plan of severing at once every political tie which bound the separate Colonies to Gi'eat liritain through their royal governments, and of laying the basis for independence by the erection of State govern- ments in their stead ; this eventuated in the Declaration of Independence.

When John Adams entered public life, in 1774, he was probably well qualified to conduct causes and to ai-gue questions of public law before any tribunal sitting in West- minster Hall, and he might have re[)resented with distinction any Euglish constituency in the House of Commons. By his mental constitution as well as by special education he was constructive ; before he tore down, he planned reconstruction. Thus he maintained, first in Massachusetts and later in the Continental Congress, that the people of the Colonies were actually living under constitutional governments that had been developed gradually among themselves, and not living under the royal charters ; these constitutions he claimed were inviolable. As a consequence acts which under the royal charters would have been rebellion to the British constitution were, on the contrary, a justifiable and patriotic defence of the constitutional liberties of the people. Tiie Colonists claimed all the rights of Englishmen, and while they never disputed the reasonable exercise of its powers by Parliament, the}^ repudiated the assumption that colonial legislation or colonial courts of law could be controlled by the royal prerogative.

Judge Chamberlain does not find the causes of the Ameri- can Revolution in such acts of provocation as the passage of the Stamp Act, Writs of Assistance, and the attempt to tax the Colonies without representation, as is the generally ac- cepted opinion. These were the occasion rather than the cause of the Revolution. They only hastened a crisis which could not have been averted. The true causes lay in the innate temper of the Colonists, their English love of freedom, their jealousy of commercial interference, and their increasing reliance upon their charters as the real foundations of their governments and of their political rights.

But what attracted most attention in this address was the assertion that " the American Revolution in its most vital and

MEMOIR OF MELLEN CHAMBERLAIN

xxxix

most potent foi'ce was religions rather than political." He claims that tlie encroachment of the English Church upon the New EngLind ecclesiasticism, and the Puritan apprehen- sion that it would become the State religion, irritated and alarmed the Puritan mind, until the Revolution followed as a consequence. In Virginia it was otherwise; there "it was essentially a question of taxation"; the Colonists there were mainly identified with the English Church, and there could arise no ecclesiastical issue. Subsequently he qualified this statement by adding " it was one cause ; no one claims that it was the sole cause." In a note appended to the reprint of the address he says, " Notwithstanding what I say about Ecclesiasticism as a cause of the Revolution, some of my critics have substituted the for This seems to me hardly ingenuous, considering the prominence given to this cause throughout the course of his argument. His view seems to be develojDcd from John Adams's opinion, quoted by him in an- other note to the reprint, tiiat " the apprehension of Episcopacy contributed fifty years ago as much as any cause to arouse the attention of the common people. . . . The objection was not merely to the offline of a bishop, but to the authority of Par- liament over the Colonies." ^ In still another note Judge Chamberlain adds : " When this address was delivered, in 1884, it was, so far as I had noticed, the earliest historical presentation of ecclesiasticism (associated with political lib- erty) as one of the causes which brought on the Revolution. I restricted the influence to Massachusetts and Virginia." Naturally he attributed a somewhat overweening importance to the special cause that he believed to have been his own discovery. In the same note he continues, " By some inad- vertence at the time when this paj^er was preparing I failed to consult Foote's 'Annals of King's Chapel.' Had I read this work I should have seen that I had been anticipated in my views, and have acknowledged the industrious research, can- dor, good judgment, and literary ability which, as I think, have been combined in an equal degree in no historical work by an American since Belknap's 'History of New Hampshire.' Had I done so, it would have saved me vast labor and much thought, which I do not, however, now regret, for I was enabled to form an independent judgment, which happens to

1 Works, vol. X. p. 185.

xl

MEMOJU OF MKIJ,KN CIIAMRERLAIN

ac(;f)i(l will) tlmfc of Mr. Fonte." Uiiqiiestioiuihly tlieso novel views of Ju(l<.re Chiimberliiiii attracted much attention and wore wiilcly comrneiited ii[)Oii in i)riviite corninutiicatioiis and in the [xiblic [iress. They met witli almost universal ajipi'oval at the time, as not only new but true. There were some who dissented, it is true, but Judge Chamberlain always pleased himself with believing that his views have been genei'ally accepted as true by the writers of later historical monographs. This cannot be said, however, of one of the latest studies of the subject, " The Anglican Episcopate and the American Colonies," by Artliur Lyon Cross. ^

What is regarded by many as the ablest of Judge Chamber- lain's historical writings is the chapter on "The Revolution Impending," contributed in 1888 to Vol. VI. of Winsor's "Narrative and Critical History of America." This was written at about the same time as a paper read before the American Historical Association at its Boston meetingp in May, 1887, on "The Constitutional Relations of the American Colonies to the English Government at the Commencement of the American Revolution," and each study supplements the other. These papers show a sure insight into the hid- den springs of political activity in the Colonies ; while his familiarity with the legislative acts of the mother country, his knowledge of the principles of the common law, and his judi- cial cast of mind shed a flood of light upon points obscure to or misunderstood by writers who have not enjoyed the advan- tage of a similar legal training. He was thus able to give a more philosophical treatment of the causes and a wider in- terpretation of the results of the Revolution than it had pre- viously received. He starts with the assertion that it was no unrelated event, but formed a pare of the history of the Brit- ish race on both continents, standing midway between the Great Rebellion and the Revolution of 1688, on the one hand, and the Reform Bill of 1832 and tlie Extension of the Suf- frage in 1884 on the other. It was not a quarrel between two peoples, but a strife between two parties (the conservatives and the liberals) in both countries, that went on at the same time and with nearly equal step. Its purpose in Great Britain was to regain liberty, and in America to preserve it. It not only liberated the English colonies in America, but wrought 1 Harvard Historical Studies, vol. ix. 1902.

MEMOIE OF MELLEN CHAMBERLAIN

xli

"with other forces in transfeniiig the prerogatives of the ciown to Parliament. Tlie American Revolution was one of those great world movements whicli mark constitutional progress.

The recognition of these historical papers as of permanent value was immediate, and gave him great satisfaction. Espe- cially agreeable to him was tlie appreciation of his .views shown by a French historian, M. Charles Borgeaiid, in his " Etablissement et Revision des Constitutions en Amcrique et en Europe," who quotes at some length from his "Revolu- tion Impending," and adds, "it would be difficult to indicate more clearly the real character of the American Revolution."

In 1890 Messrs. Houghton, Mifflin, & Co. published a selec- tion of the more important of Judge Chamberlain's writings in a volume of 476 pages, 8vo, under the editorial supervision of Mr. Lindsay Swift, of the Boston Public Library. The book had a most cordial reception from scholars and the lit- erary journals, and immediately passed into a second edition. The title was "John Adams the Statesman of the American Revolution, with other Essays and Addresses, Historical and Literary." The contents comprised, besides the titular address, the one before the American Historical Association, and three articles selected from the Proceedings of this Society. There were also added a review of McMaster's " History of the People of the United States," reprinted from " Tlie Andover Review," June, 1886, and one of Palfrey's "History of New England," taken from " The Nation" of July 10, 1890. Besides these tliere were also included various occasional addresses and a few literary articles from periodicals. The titles of these will be given here in order that the list of his published writings may be complete ; they comprise " Remarks on Daniel Webster as an Orator," made at the dinner of the Alumni of Dart- mouth College, June 28, 1882, and an address at a later dinner on the occasion of the Dedication of a Statue of Daniel Web- ster. At the dedication of Wilson Hall, Dartmouth College Library, June 25, 1885, he made the principal address on "The Scoi)e of a College Library." To the "Dartmouth Monthly," October, 1886, he contributed an article on " Land- scape in Life and in Poetry " ; and at the dedication of the Brooks Library Building at Brattleborough, Vermont, January 25, 1887, he delivered the principal address on " The Old and the New Order in New England Life and

xlii

MEMOIR OF MELLEN CHAMBERLAIN

Lollei's." On Deceiuljer 30 of the siune year he peifonned iho siiine service iit the dediciitioii of the Woods Meinojial Librjuy JUiilding, at Jiarre, Massaelmsetts ; the suhject of liis address was "Imaginative Literature in Public Libraries." liefore the Massachusetts Society for Promoting Good Citi- zenship he delivered an address, at Boston, on February 25, 18^9, on " Josiah Quincy, the Gi'eat Mayor." To the " Cen- tury Magazine," September, 1893, he contributed an article entitled " A Glance at Daniel Webster," and he read a paper before the Bostonian Society, on December 12 of the same year, on " Political Maxims." The latest of these occasional addresses was made at a dinner of the Sons of the American Revolution at Concord, Massachusetts, April 19, 1894.

The literary quality which marks the style of these addresses and essa3 S is uncommon. No one can read the volume through without recognizing their charm, and feeling regret that their amount is so limited. The present writer has previously re- maiked that, in his opinion, for sound scholarship, critical sagacity, sober judgment, and catholicity of taste the volume ranks as equal to any that our generation has produced, and he expressed the belief that it would long hold a cherished place upon the shelves of tlie lovers of refined literature. The literary critic of the "• New York Times" goes stdl farther in his commendation of Judge Chamberlain's style. In " a reply to correspondents," January 7, 1899, he says: "Letters come to the editor now and then asking for his advice as to the for- mation of a good stjde, as to learning how to write, or as to what is good style. They are the most difficult questions to answer. But in answer to all such appeals we would say, read Judge Chamberlain's volume. Spend some days and niglits with Addison, if you will, but keep others for the Judge."

Judge Chamberlain's interest in historical studies, so early manifested, received an equally early recognition. He was elected a meml/er of the New Hampshire Historical Society, when he was onl}^ nineteen years old, the youngest member ever chosen. Shortly afterwards he was made a Correspond- ing Member of the Royal Society of Northern Antiquaries at Copenhagen, Denmark. Besides his membership in our own Society he was elected a Corresponding Member of the New York, Connecticut, and Pennsylvania Historical

MEMOIR OF MELLEN CHAMBERLAIN

xliii

Societies, and a Resident Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, in the Class of Political Economy and History.

His professional and public duties would seem to have left him little time for other work ; but after he came to tiie Public Library we have seen that he was frequently called upon to deliver addresses, and his stores of knowledge were always at the service of those who sought him ; his help was often asked b} writers whose researches had led them to the literary treasures under his keeping ; this was freely and gladly rendered, and has often been gratefully acknowledged.

Judge Chamberlain was of a very social disposition, a most agreeable companion, delightful in conversation, — a truly " clubal)le man,'" as Dr. Johnson called Boswell ; and his membership in the St. Botolph and Tavern Clubs was a source of great happiness to him in his later 3'ears.

For several years his health had been precarious, and finally disease of the heart, accompanied by an acute attack of Bright's disease, developed, and he died on the 25th of June, 1900, having just completed his seventy-ninth year. His funeral took place from the little Congregational Trinitarian Church near his home, with which he had been connected more than twenty years, having been a member of the com- mittee which erected it. The services were veiy largely attended by members of the city government of Chelsea, representatives of the Board of Trustees of the Boston Public Library, and members of this Society, besides many relatives and friends. His body was laid to rest in Danvers Cemetery by the side of his wife, in accordance with his own request.

Twenty years before his death he had printed in a local newspaper " The History of Winnisinmiet, Rumney Marsh, and Pullen Point"; and several years subsequently the city of Chelsea appropriated a few hundred dollars to be expended by him in gathering materials and expanding his work. He continued at this task steadily for years, but it grew rapidly under his hands, and after the unexpected discovery of new material, it became apparent to him that he would not live to complete it. He accordingly made provision by his last will that the unfinished material should be placed in the pos- session of the Massachusetts Historical Society, and the sum of -fOjOOO be paid over to it by his executors to complete and

xliv

MICMOlll OK MKLLEN CIIAMI5KRLAIN

print tlie work, witii an additional two-ninths of tlie le.sidue of his estate, alter the payment of certain legacies.

At first certain of the lieirs-at-law tlu'eatened to oppose the probating the will, on account of their objection to some bequests contained in it, — not, liowever, to those given to this Society. Tliese objections were ultimately withdrawn, and the will allowed, and at the Annual iMeeting of this Society in April, 1901, tlie President announced the receipt from the executors of the incomplete manuscript of The Histoiy of Chelsea, with ten bound folio volumes of manuscripts, plans, engravings, photographs, etc., used in its pre{)aration. Two years later, at the Annual Meeting in 1903, the Treasurer reported that some questions had arisen under the will, and the instructions of tlie Supreme Judicial Court had l)een re- quested ; it was expected that these would soon be handed down, when it could be ascertained just what sum would be available for the purposes intended by Judge Chamberlain, but that it would be much less than had been anticipated by him. At the December meeting of the same year the Treas- urer informed the Society that a part of the bequest had been paid over, and thereupon a committee, consisting of the President, the Treasurer, and the present writer, was ap- pointed to publish The History of Clielsea. At the following Annual Meeting in April, 1904, the Treasurer reported that lie had received from the executors the sum of $5,520 on account of the bequest, and that a further sum of about an equal amount was expected on the final settlement of the estate.

The Committee of Publication has intrusted the prepara- tion for the press of the manuscript and illustrative ma- terial to Miss Jenny Chamberlain Watts, a relative of Judge Chamberlain, who had proved her capacity for such work by her valuable notes contributed to " The Diary of John Quincy Adams," published in the Proceedings of this Society, and other literary work ; and to Mr. William R. Cutter, Librarian of the Woburn Public Library, the author of the Histor}' of Arlington ; and it is expected that the printing of the history will be begun in the immediate future.

HISTORY

OF CHELSEA

CHAPTER I

FROM 1739 to 1846, Chelsea included the present city of the same name, with the towns of Revere and Winthrop, all of which, from 1634 to January 10, 1738/9, were parts of Boston, and severally known as Winnisimmet, Rumney Marsh, and PuUen Point In 1739 ^ this territory, on the petition of its inhabitants, but with the strenuous opposition of Boston, was set off and incorporated as the town of Chelsea ; from that date its municipal history begins. But for a hundred years these outlying communities, though parts of Boston and subject to its municipal control, had lives and interests not quite the same as those of the principal settlement, from which they were separated by more than a mile of water, the confluence of the Mystic and Charles rivers.

I shall, therefore, give some account of this region, and of its inliabitants, when first settled by Englishmen; and of the life these settlers and their descendants -led, so far as I may from the scanty facts that have been preserved; and, this period passed over, give the municipal history of the town from its civil and ecclesiastical records.

It is no longer possible to trace in their original complete-

* Non-observanee of the differenoe between old style and new, led to a mistake in the date of the City Seal. Chelsea was set off from Boston and incorporated as a town January 10, 1739. It then included the towns since known as North Chelsea and Winthrop. North Chelsea, including Winthrop, was set off and incorporated as the town of North Chelsea March 19, 1846. Winthrop was set off from North Chelsea and incor- jiorated March 27, 1852. The name of North Chelsea was changed to Revere March 24, 1871. Chelsea was incorporated as a city March 13, 1857.

VOL. I. 1 1

2 HISTORY OF CHELSKA [Chap. I

iiess the features of Winnisimraet, where English jjlanters, as early as 1025, made the first known sottlemcnt in the u{)per l)ay of Boston. The planters' names, save Samuel Maverick and John Blackstone, and all evidence of what particular fields they cultivated, and of their pursuits, have passed away. Apart from encroachments made hy the sea on the easterly horders of the town, — wearing away headlands and islands and turn- ing marshes into solid land, — man has wrought changes in hoth.^

An accoimt of some later changes is still possible. There are those now living who remember, not withoiit regret, the transformation of the bold outline of the Chelsea shore from the slope of the United States Hospital grovmds easterly to the foot of Highland Street; and especially of the central elevation, near the present ferry landing, on which, until thirty years ago, stood Judge Samuel Watts' mansion.^ The northerly side of the Government Hill has been reduced to form the plateau for the Marine Hospital. The valley east- erly was partially filled in constructing the approach to Chel- sea Bridge. Judge Watts' mansion site, cast into the sea, now forms Medford and Front streets. Winnisimmet Street, from the Ferry to Broadway Square, has been reduced eight or ten feet, — indicated by the elevation of some houses still standing on its easterly side. The construction of Marginal Street changed the outline of that shore; and the cutting do"\vn of Powderhorn Hill, now going on, disfigures the most

In 1C33 Noddle's Island was estimated at 1000 acres, and the flats about it at 1200 or more; but by survey made about 1800 it contained only OGG acres of tipland and marsh, though great pains had been talcen to protect the headlands. A similar change has been long going on among other islands in the harbor, and along the eastern shore. Sumner, East Boston, 9.

^ Position shown on Pelham's Map of Boston and vicinity, 1775. A view is given on the vignette of the Tradesman's Bank bills about 1850. In " Chelsea as It Was," a series of papers by Simeon Butterfleld, Esq., an old and respected citizen of Chelsea, printed in the "Chelsea Record," beginning January 14, 1882, it is stated that the house of the Williams' farm, that is the Watts mansion, stood on the spot where the hotel was afterwards built. He gives no authority for the erection of a hotel, and I have always supposed that the' Watts mansion and the hotel were identical buildings. The architecture of the hotel, like that of the Han- cock house, was that of the first half of the eighteenth century. [See Suff. Deeds, L. 351, f. 153; L. 354 f. 248; L. 410, f. 304.J

Chap. I] HISTORY OF CHELSEA 3

conspicuous object seen northerly from the great city. A marked change was made in the aspect of Chelsea by the eonstrnction of Island End Dam, in 1789, on its southwesterly side and of Eastern Avenue on its easterly side.* At high- tide the sea once covered these marshes and made the upland peninsula picturesque, and the intersecting creeks were used for the transportation of farm produce to ships in the har- bor or to the adjacent city.^

Winnisimmet must have been very attractive to its first visitors, for, looking southward from its shore across the chan- nel, they saw Eagle Hill, the northwesterly and the highest point on ISToddle's Island, sloping from an elevation of one hundred and twenty feet to mean Ioav tide ; and farther south the Boston Hills and Dorchester Heights, the latter untouched as when their possession by Washington's troops forced the evacuation of Boston by the British army, March 17, 1776. Southwesterly they saw across the Mystic, in Charlestown, Moulton's Point, thirty-five feet high, now razed. Chosen, in 1631, as the site of a fortification to command the river in case of invasion, it was abandoned, it is said, when the channel was foimd to hug the Winnisimmet shore beyond the reach of the ordnance of that day. It was on this point, in full view from the Chelsea shore, that Howe's forces made their first landing at the Battle of Bunker Hill, June 17, 1775. The first Eng- lishmen saw other natural scenery now vaguely imagined — when the rivers, unvexed by bridges, ran seaward past shores and around islands, the beauty of which was heightened by primitive forests. jSTo marvel, therefore, that the first settlers

* See Sumner, East Boston, 555, 572-575.

° The late George A. Gerrisli told me that he had often sailed his pleasure boat from his father's house on Everett Avenue over the marsh at hightide to the Mystic River.

" The original height in feet above mean low tide, of some of the hills in and about Chelsea, was as follows: Fort Hill, about 80; Copp's Hill, 58; Beacon Hill, 138; Breed's Island, 105; Point Shirlej^, about 60; Winthrop Head, about 90; Beachmont, about 119; Beach View Hill, about 1-34; Sir Harry Vane Hill, or Mt. Revere, 192; Newgate Hill, or Mountain Avenue, 173; Shurtleff' Hill, about 100; Maverick, or Govern- ment Hill, about 100; Mt. Bellingham, 110; Powderhorn Hill, about 230; Sagamore Hill, or Mt. Washington, about 200; Woodlawn Hill, about 160; and Belmont Hill, Everett, about 140. Proc. Boston Nat. Hist. Soc, XX. 226.

4

HISTORY OF CHELSEA

[ClIAP. I

in the upper bay, of all places, chose as their home Win- nisimmet with its strong soil, warm southern slopes, and un- equalled prospects.

William Wood, in the colony from 1020 to 1033, saw this and wrote: " The last Towne in the still Bay is Winnisimet ; a very sweet place for situation, and stands very commo- diously, being fit to entertaine more planters than are yet seated : it is within a mile of Charles Towne, the River onely parting them. The chiefe Hands which keepe out the Winde and the Sea from disturbing the Harbours, are first Deare Hand, which lies within a flight-shot of Pullin-point. This Hand is so called, because of the Deare which often swimme thither from the Maine, when they are chased by the Woolves : Some have killed sixteene Deere in a day upon this Hand. The opposite shore is called Pullin-point, because that is the usuall Channel. Boats used to passe thorow into the Bay; and the Tyde being very strong, they are constrayned to goe ashore, and hale their Boats by the sealing, or roades, where- upon it was called Pullin-point.''

Whatever abatement the first settlers about Boston Bay, after a year's trial of its stubborn soil imder the scorching heats of summer and the no less severe frosts of Avinter, found necessary to make from the glowing account of the country by Captain John Smith,^ or by Thomas Graves,^ the engineer sent over to discover mines, erect fortifications, and make sur- veys, or by the Rev. Francis Higginson,^** — aware, as he says, vi the proverb that " Travellers may lie by authority," — or even from the more rational account in the letter of Thomas Dudley to the Coimtess of Lincoln,^ ^ the planters at Winnisim- met had special reasons for contentment. Their land fairly

' New Englands Prospect (Prince Soc. ed.), 44, 45. The name "Pullen Poynte" is in Mass. Col. Rec., i. 78, September 18, 1630; " Winnett- semett," ihid., 82, November 30, 1630; and " Rumney Marshe," iUd., 130, September 25, 1634, but later than Wood, 47 ; and " Powder Horne Hill " is in Mass. Col. Rec, i. 101, November 7, 1632.

' Description of New England in Force's Tracts, ii. 6.

" Young, Chronicles of Mass., 264.

" Ihid., 242.

" Ihid., 301-341. For the disillusionment alluded to see the remark- able letter of Pond, from Watertown, March 15, 1631, to his father,

in England. 2 Proc. Mass. Hist. Soc, viii. 471.

Chap. I]

HISTORY OF CHELSEA

5

repaid the labor it required. The surrounding seas and rivers tempered the severity of the climate, and furnished fish both for food and for enriching the soil. Natural marsh grasses, later of much commercial value, were substitutes until the uplands gTew English grasses.

6

HISTORY OF CHELSKA

rCiiAi'. II

CHAPTER II

THE PLANTERS AT WINNISIMMET

HUTCHINSOI^, writing of 1G26, says, " I find mention made of planters at Winisimet about tlie same time, who probably removed there from some of the other planta- tions." ^ But who these planters were, when or whence they came, or of their manner of life we know nothing.

In 1614 Captain John Smith explored the coast of ISTew England, looked into Boston harbor, and named the Charles. Probably for more than a century before this, fishermen from Europe had found their way hither, repaired their vessels,

' Hist, of Mass. (ed. 1795), i. 15. J. G. Palfrey (Hist, of New Eng., i. 233) says that William Jeffrey and John Burslem probably had cottages there in 1628. When Morton, in June, 1628, was sent to England, for conduct at Mount Wollaston dangerous to the plantations. Governor Bradford says that "those that joyned in this acction (and after con- tributed to ye charge of sending him for England) were from Paseataway, Namkeake, Winisimett, Weesagascusett, Natasco, and other places wher any English were seated." (Hist, of Plymouth, Charles Deane, ed., 240.) His " Letter Book " gives the contributions :

£ s. £ s.

Plymouth 2 10 Natascot 1 10

Naumkeak 1 10 Mrs. Thomson ... 15

Paseataquack ... 2 10 Mr. Blackston ... 12 Mr. Jeffrey and Mr. Edward Hilton ... 1 0

Burslem 2 0

Were Jeffrey and Burslem of Wessagusset, where Charles Francis Adams places them with the remnant of Gorges' company (Proc. Mass. Hist. Soc, xvi. 198), or of Winnisimmet? Samuel Maverick resided there as early as 1C25; but he may not have joined the movement against Morton. (See A Briefe Discription of New England in 2 Proc. Mass. Hist. Soc, i. 238.) If so, who represented Winnisimmet, unless Jeffrey and Burslem? If they resided there, they left no mark. [Jeffrey and Burslem dwelt at Wessagusset; Prince Society edition of New English Canaan, 24. As the widow of David Thompson married Samuel Maverick, possibly the con- tribution of Winnisimmet was included under her name. See appendix to this chapter.]

Chap. II] THE PLANTERS AT WINNISIMMET

7

and traded "with the natives. But the first permanent settle- ment in Boston harbor was at Winnisimmet, perhaps in 1624, certainly not later than 1625, when and where was " forti- fied " the oldest permanent house within the Massachusetts Bay Colony.^

This Avas Samuel Maverick's Palisade house. The date of its fortification is given by himself. In A Briefe Discrip- tion of ~Ne\v England,^ about 1660, he says, " Two miles Sowth from Eumney Marsh on the ISTorth side of Mistick River is Winnisime which though but a few houses on it, yet deserves to be mencond One house yet standing there which is the Antientest house in the Massachusetts Government . a house which in the yeare 1625 I fortified Avith a Pillizado and filankers and gunnes both belowe and above in them whicli aAved the Indians v;ho at that time had a mind to Cutt oft' the English, They once faced it but receiveing a repulse never attempted it more although (as noAv they confesse) they repented it when about 2 yeares after they saw so many Eng- lish come over."

But whence or with whom Maverick came, or of his parent- age, we know nothing. Those of his name lived in Devonshire, about forty miles from Exeter, and of these was the Rev. John Maverick, Avho came over in 1630, and settled in Dorchester, where he died in 1636. It has been said, but with little reason, that he was the father of Samuel Maverick.* At

" Charles Francis Adams claims that Gorges' settlement at Weymouth, in 1G23, was permanent. If so, houses older than that of Maverick's, at Winnisimmet, must have been built there ; but tliey were doubtless log huts, which soon disappeared. Three Episodes of Mass. Hist., i. 144, 342.

^ Found in the British Museum by Henry F. Waters, and printed in 1884 in 2 Proc. Mass. Hist. Soc, i.'231; also in New Eng. Hist, and Gen. Reg., January, 1885; also in a pamphlet.

* Sumner, Hist, of East Boston, 71; but see Savage, Gen. Diet., iii. 181. Josselyn, who was entertained by Samuel Maverick in 1638, and may have learned his personal history, says of the arrival of Winthrop, in 1G30, that in his party was " Mr. Maverich (the Father of Mr. Samuel Maverich, one of his Majesties Commissioners)." 3 Coll. Mass Hist. Soc, iii. 377. Josselyn is not reliable. The filiation is, however, in the His- tory of Dorchester (p. 404), which is supposed to be based on- the manu- scripts of .James Blake, who died in 1750. But if Samuel Maverick was the son of the Rev. John Maverick, who with his party were set ashore at Nantasket and left to shift for themselves without shelter in 1630, it is remarkable that the son was not the first to assist his father and

8

HISTORY OF CIIKLSEA

[Chap. II

ono time it seemed probable that Maverick, Blackstone, and Walford were of Gorges' eoinpany, which setthjd on Weston's deserted plantation at Weymouth ; but Maverick came a year later."

Samuel Maverick, born about 1G02, was twenty-two years old when he came to America in 1G24J Neither the family name of his wife Amias,° nor the time or place of their mar- riage is known.** Their children were Nathaniel, Mary, and Samuel, There was an Elias Maverick here in 1630, who became the owner of that part of Winnisimmet not included in Samuel Maverick's deed to Richard Bellingham in 1634/5 ; and a Moses Maverick at Marblehead, 1635, who paid rent for Noddle's Island in 1636, having charge of it during

open his hospitable house to him, as a few days later he did to Winthrop and his party; or, if he did, that Roger Clap, who came over with the father, made no mention of it in his minute account of the landing. [Roger Clap wrote over forty years after the event.] Rev. John Mave- rick, the non-conformist, and Samuel Maverick, the Church-of-England man, may have been father and son, and have come from Devonshire; but searches of the parish registers in that county thus far afford no evidence of it.

° [See the appendix to this chapter.]

" He may have come by way of Piscataqua. Under Sagadahoek, Pop- ham's settlement of 1607, he says: "I found Rootes and Garden hearbs and some old walles there, when I went first over which shewed it to be the place where they had been." Briefe Discription of New Eng., cited above, 232. He knew David Thompson of Piscataqua before the latter settled his island in Boston Bay; for in 1625, Thompson assisted him in building his house at Winnisimmet. Antipas Maverick once lived at Kit- tery, near Piscataqua, as did Mary Hooke, Maverick's daughter. Sumner, East Boston, 168. " There were very friendly relations between Vane and Samuel Maverick, an Episcopalian, a sympathizer with the Gorgeses, an owner of land at Agamenticus . . . Maverick's son married a daughter of John Wheelwright. Anthony Checkley, Maverick's friend, married an- other. Edward Lyde, one of the first wardens of the Episcopal church in Boston, married a third daughter. Edward Rishworth, son of one of the principal opponents of the Colony, married a fourth." Pub. of the Col. Soc. of Mass., i. 284. [See the appendix to this chapter.]

' Briefe Discription of New Eng., cited above, 246.

* Their eldest son was of age not later than 1650, and their marriage probably not later than 1628. See Sumner, East Boston, 107, 161; for a fuller account of the Maverick family, ibid., pp. 161-177. Mary, daughter of Samuel Maverick, married first John Palsgrave, February 8, 1655/6; and second, Francis Hooke, September 20, 1660. Samuel, son of Samuel Maverick, married Rebecca, daughter of the Rev. John Wheelwright, in 1660, and died in Boston, March 10, 1663/4. See N. E. Gen. Reg., xii. 155 ; xvi. 333.

Chap. II] THE PLANTERS AT WINNISIMMET

9

Samuel Maverick's absence in Virginia ; " and, as already said, an Antipas Maverick at Kittery, Maine, where lived Mary Hooka, Samuel Maverick's daughter/" Elias, Moses, and Antipas may have been brothers or relatives of Samuel Maverick.

Among the earliest grants by the Great Council for ISTew England was that to Robert Gorges, youngest son of Sir Fer- dinando, December 30, 1622, described as " all that Part of the Main Land in New-England . . . situate, lying and being upon the I^^orth-East side of the Bay, called or knowne by the l^ame of Alassachuset, . . . together with all the Shears and Coasts along the Sea, for ten English Miles, in a streight Line towards the ISTorth-East, accounting one thou- sand, seven hundred and sixty yards to*the Mile, and thirty English Miles (after the same rate) unto the Main Land through all the Breadth aforesaid, together with all the ] slots and Islands, lying within three Miles of any Part of the said Lands. . . . " These bounds, from the Charles on the soiitli ten miles north towards Salem and thirty miles into the country, included Charlestown (and the modern towns set off from her), Chelsea, Revere, Winthrop, and East Bos- ton, but not necessarily Boston.

A government was formed for this territory, and in 1623 Robert Gorges came over as lieutenant-general and governor, with a suite of officers, to set up his court. But Winnisimmet, the most eligible place within his grant, was not its chosen seat. On the other side of the bay, at Wessagusset, now Weymouth, Thomas Weston's deserted plantation, outside the limits of his grant. Gorges made his settlement, September, 1623. It did not prosper, and the next year Gorges, disap- pointed and in failing health, returned to England with a part of his company, leaving his affairs with an agent.

It has been said that some of those whom Gorges left

' Sumner, East Boston, 80. [See also infra, chap, iii., Appendix 1.] " Ibid., 108.

" Ebenezer Hazard, Hist. Coll., i. 153. The southerly bound of Eobert Gorges' patent presents this difficulty that it does not include Weymouth, the seat of his plantation, nor, necessarily, Boston, which Thomas C. Amory assumes to have been within his patent, and by him conveyed to William Blaxton. Collections of the Bostonian Society, i. 6, 12.

10

IIISTOIIY OK CHELSEA

[CiiAi>. ir

at Wessaj^nssot made s(!l,t,l('iiiciits in (Ik; Itay, as ]>la(;k.stone',s at lioston, Walford's at Charlcstown, and yamuel Maverick's at Winnisimraet. Frothingliairi thinks it not improbable tliat the planters at Winni,si)rnnet, of whom Hutchinson speaks, were of the Gorges' colony; and Lewis wriles that Gorges, who " came over in 1023, took possession of his lands, and probably commenced a settlement at Winnisimet, which was also included in his grant." Thornton also says that " Gorges had attempted to establish a colony within the bounds of his patent, which he had taken possession of in person, but was not successful." These statements, though not improbable, rest on no disclosed authority.

Robert Gorges' lands, it is said, descended to his brother John, who, in January, 1628/9, conveyed to Sir William Brereton " all the land in breadth lying from the east side of Charles riv6r to the easterly part of the cape called ISTahant, and all the lands lying in length twenty miles [Gorges' grant ran ten miles to the northeast and thirty miles inland] north- east into the main land, from the mouth of the said Charles river, lying also in length twenty miles into the main laud from the said Cape ISTahant. Also two islands lying next unto the shore between Nahant and Charles river, the bigger called ' Erereton,' and the lesser ' Susanna ' " — later known as ISToddle's Island and Hog Island. John Gorges, probably in 1628, leased a j)ortion of this territory to John Oldham (murdered by the Connecticut Pequots in 1636) and John Dorrell. But the title of John Gorges was disregarded in the Massachusetts Bay Charter from the King of March 4, 1628/9."

" Hist, of Cliarlestown, 9. " Hist, of Lynn, 43.

" Landing at Cape Ann, C4. [See infra, the appendix to this chapter.] Lewis, Lynn, 43, 44.

" Gorges' heirs and Sir William Brereton urged its recognition, but the Company pronounced it invalid J^ebruary 10, 1029/30 (Mass. Col. Kec, i. 68). A document cited in Lewis' Lynn gives Gorges' title, the conveyance to Sir William Brereton, and its succession in his line. His grant and the Oldham lease conflict. Young, Chronicles of Mass., 169; Sumner, East Boston, 47 et seq. ; Mass. Col. Rec, i. 389. Sir William is said to have sent over several families, who, with their servants, im- proved his purchase; but all evidence of this has disappeared. [The facts of the ease seem as follows: Captain Robert Gorges, also David

Chap. II] THE PLANTERS AT WINNISIMMET

11

Both tlie deed and lease of John Gorges included old Chelsea, and the Company recognized some equitable interest, if not a legal title, in the settlers near Gorges' tract. There is no known deed of Winnisimmet to Samuel Maverick and John Blackleach," yet their 2:)Ossession of it was not dis- turbed and their deed to Richard Bellingham in 1635 was recognized as valid by Boston in 1640."

Thompson, died before 1628. The Council of New England, regarding the grant to Captain Gorges as having lapsed, conveyed the territory to Sir Henry Rosewell and liis associates, March 19, 1627/8. But John Gorges, elder brother of Captain Robert Gorges, came forward as liis heir, claimed the land, and deeded part of it in January, 1628/9, to Sir William Brereton, who was prepared to send over families to take possession. The Massachusetts Bay Company secured in the following March a Charter from the King, confirming their grant of March 19, 1627/8, and were then in a position to refuse to recognize this grant to Brereton, and did so February 10, 1629/30.]

" John Blackleach, owner with Samuel Maverick of Winnisimmet, joined in the deed of it to Richard Bellingham in 1635; but it does not appear that he lived there. He was a merchant at Salem in 1634, free- man May 6, 1635, and, with his wife Elizabeth, was admitted to the church there. In 1636 he was a deputy to the General Court ; in 1C37, Salem gave him three hundred acres, and in 1638/9, as he had "not suffi- cient ground to mayntaine a plough, the towne for the furthering of his endeavours in plowing, and for his incouradgement therein," made an additional grant. March 12, 1637 /8, " There is dewe from Mr Black- leach to the eountrey, for wine bought & sould by him, four pounds, three shillings & id." (Mass. Col. Rec, i. 224.) May 29, 1644, " Mr Blackleach his petition about the Mores was consented to, to be coinitted to the eldrs to enforme us of the mind of God herein, & then further to consider it." {Ibid., ii. 67.) The " Mores " were doubtless Moors; and what the General Court wished to learn the " mind of God " about was the African slave trade. [In 1649 he is described as of Boston, and his wife Elizabeth is stated to be " the daughter of M' Robert Bacon mariner deceased, who sometime lived in Wapping & afterward near Cree Church in London." (Boston Rec. Com. Rep., xxxii. 223).] The record of Connecticut, in 1669, mentions his efforts to convert the Indians. He died at Wethers- field, August 23, 1683. For his will and other facts, see N. E. Gen. Reg., April, 1882, 190; and for letters from him, 4 Mass. Hist. Coll. vii. Index.

" [See appendix to this chapter. Even if Maverick could claim no title to the land from Gorges, he was entitled to consideration as an " Old Planter." When Endicott came to Salem, September 6, 1628, he found there, as elsewhere on the coast, Englishmen in possession of lands which they claimed by occupation. April 17, 1629, the Company in England instructed him to permit them to " enjoy not only those lands which formerly they have manured, but such a further proportion as by the advice and judgment of yourself, and the rest of the Council, shall be thought fit for them, or any of them." And in directing him to send

12

HISTORY OF CHELSEA

[Chap. II

coloiiista to take po.-iHCHHion of MiiHHacliuHeltH Bay, tlie Company added thin " caution . . . that for Hueh of our countryitien an you find tliere planted, ho as they l)e wiilijig to live under our government, you endeavour to give them all iitting and due accommodation as to any of ourselves; vea if you see cause for it, thougli it be with more than ordinary privi- iegcH in point of trade." Young, (')ironicles of Mass., 145, 150. See ibid., 74-7(i for the regulations of the Company as to the allotment of lands to its own people; also Mass. Col. Rec, i. 303, 399, 405. J

Chap. II]

APPENDIX

13

APPENDIX

[All that is known of Samuel Maverick leads to the inference that he had some connection with the Gorges settlement. A young man of about twenty-two, of ability and'education, given the title of " Mr." in the early records and grants, and possessed in 1630, at least, of some property, Samuel Maverick seems to have be- longed to the Gorges group. About the time Eev. Mr. Morell returned to England, and Blackstone removed to Boston, he for- tified a house at " Wiimisime," which lay within the limits of the grant to Captain Eobert Gorges, and, according to Johnson's Wonder Working Providence,^ he was assisted in so doing by David Thompson, who had been chosen by the Council for ISTew England as their agent or attorney to take possession of the land in the name of the Council and deliver possession to Cap- tain Eobert Gorges.^ Possibly Captain Gorges, who came over in September, 1623, and spent the first winter at Weston's de- serted plantation, outside his grant, finding there some huts already standing, on his return to England, in 1624, left direc- tions with David Thompson, as his agent, to confirm the posses- sion of the land by effecting a settlement within his grant, and that Winnisimmet was chosen for the purpose as good farming land with a southern aspect; it was also easily defensible, being surrounded by river, sea, and marshes, and possessing a valuable spring of fresh water not far from the shore on the southern slope of the hill. Also it " overlooked the anchorage ground of the inner harbor," and the outlet of the Mystic Eiver, — as Blackstone's house did the outlet of the Charles, — and thus might prove a coign of vantage from which to control the trade of the bay.

That David Thompson dwelt with his family on Thompson's Island cannot be positively asserted. According to the Court record, the son claimed, in 1648, that his father, in 1626, " did

» Edition of W. F. Poole, 37.

» E. Hazard, Hist. Coll. (ed. of 1792), i. 154; Gorges' Description (Prince Soc. ed.), chap, xxiii.

14

HISTORY OF CHELSEA

rciiAi'. 71

erect llu! forme of a habital" tliorc; if so, it was unsubstantial and, a[)pamitl_y, lia<l disappeared hefon^ tin; coming of Wintlirop in It was forgotten by Williain Blackslone in 1G50, tliougli

he nmembcred the island well, mentioning that it alone of the islands in the bay possessed a natural harbor, and that the settlers about the bay kept their hogs there, — doubtless during the planting season. Thompson possessed, according to Maverick, " a Strong and Large House " enclosed " with a large and high Palizado and mounted Ounns " at the mouth of the Piscataqua.'' A statement made by Hubbard is of interest in this connection, for Samuel Maverick, who married Thompson's widow, did obtain in Noddle's Island (East Boston) and the Chelsea peninsula * land which tallies with that which Hubbard mentions, and as- suming that Thompson, accompanied by Maverick, came to the Bay under the directions of Captain Eobert Gorges or the Council for New England, the statement is in accord with all existing knowledge of the matter and would tend to place Thompson with Maverick at V/innisimmet. As Hubbard (H.C. 1642) had sources of "information not open to investigators of the present day, his statements are worthy of careful consideration though he was not a " critical historian " of the modern type. He wrote that David Thompson removed to Massachusetts Bay a year (?) after his settlement at Piscataqua. " There he possessed himself of a fruitful island, and a very desirable neck of land, since con- firmed to him or his heirs by the Court of the Massachusetts, upon the surrender of all his other interest in New England, to which yet he could pretend no other title, than a promise, or a gift to be conferred on him, in a letter by Sir Ferdinando Gorges, or some other member of the Council of Plymouth." ^ Probably if Captain Eobert Gorges or the Council for New England wished to induce David Thompson to leave his house at Piscataqua and six thousand acres of land with the " power of Government " therein, it would have been necessary to offer some greater induce- ments than Thompson's Island. As a trading station it was doubt- less valuable, but as a place of residence during the many months of a Nev/ England winter, unattractive. The discovery recently made that Samuel Maverick married Thompson's widow and hence, on the arrival of the Massachusetts Bay colonists in 1630, controlled his claims, affords a clue to the explanation of what

» 2 Proc. Mass. Hist. Soc, i. 234.

* See Wood's Map of Massachusetts, 1633, for the peninsula form of Winnisimmet, in Youn^, Chronicles of Mass., 389. Hubbard, Hist, of New Eng., 105.

Chap. II]

APPENDIX

15

has previously seemed mysterious, — his extraordinarily large pos- sessions and influential position. Noddle's Island alone contained twenty times as many acres as were allotted to Blackstone. Thomas "Walford, at Charlestown, does not seem to have been treated with consideration.

In connection with Hubbard's statement, with its suggestion as to the liberality of Massachusetts, it is of interest to note that Noddle's Island was granted to Maverick at the time when Sir Christopher Gardiner was intriguing against the Massachusetts Bay Company in England. Sir Christopher appeared in Bristol August 15, 1633, and immediately began to make trouble for the colonists, as appears in letters from Thomas Wiggin to " Master Downinge " and Sir Jolin Cooke, dated August 31 and Novem- ber 19.'^ Sir Ferdinando Gorges and Captain Mason took the opportunity presented by these complaints, and those of Thomas Morton and Philip EatcliiTe, to petition the King against the Massachusetts Bay Government. The matter was considered by the Privy Council January 19, 1632/3, when the authority of the Government at Boston was confirmed. The result of the case before the Council was known in Massachusetts in May, 1633. In the meantime the Governor and Assistants, who met April 3, had granted to Maverick Noddle's Island, and to Blackstone fifty acres of land in Boston ; and in J uly " the governour and as- sistants sent an answer to the petition of Sir Christopher Gardi- ner, and withal a certificate from the old planters concerning the carriage of afi:airs, etc." The following year, in April, 1634, when grants of land were made by the General Court to the leading men of the colony, John Oldham received five hundred acres. The grant to Maverick in April, 1633, was a perpetual lease at a nominal rent. The General Court, at the July session of 1631, had given the Governor and Assistants power to lease the islands in the bay ; hence, apparently, the form of the grant.''

Almost the whole of modem Chelsea, about one thousand acres, traces its title back to three men, — Samuel Maverick, Elias Maverick, and John Blackleach. There was a difference of but two years in the ages of Samuel and Elias Maverick, and Elias was in Massachusetts as early as the summer of 1630, the time of

" 3 Coll. Mass. Hist. Soc, viii. 320-324.

' Bradford, Hist, of Plymouth Plantation, ed. of Charles Deane, pp. 290-298; Savage, Winthrop, i. 100, 102, 103, IOC. In tlie latter part of February, 1632/3, in Winthrop's diary, is a record wliich seems to show that he heard then of the failure of an attack upon Massachusetts by Gardiner; but see the entry in May. (See Hutchinson, Hist, of Mass.; ed. 1795, i. 37.)

16

HISTORY OF CHELSEA

[Chap. II

llic coming of Winthrop, and the keeping of written records. Yet. he owned at WinniHi:iirii(;t only one iiundred acres. William Blackstone, a bachelor, received but fifty. According to the gen- eral regulations of the Company, a settler could claim fifty acres for each member of his household.'* The most j)rohable explana- tion for the exceptionally large holdings of Samuel Maverick in Chelsea and East Boston is that through his marriage with Mrs. Thompson there became united under his control the claims of a settlement which followed in the wake of Captain Eobert Gorges' visit to New England. Winnisimmet was evidently pros- perous before it was sold by Samuel Maverick and John Black- leach in February, 1634/5. The vote of May, 1634, directing Winnisimmet to join itself either to Charlestown or to Boston mentions " howses " there. The first ferry across the harbor was kept by a resident there, — Thomas Williams alias Harris, who was recognized by the General Court as ferryman at the May session of 1631. The tax assessed on Winnisimmet in Jn\y, 1631, two years after the settlement of Charlestown and one year after the coming of Winthrop, was one-sixth that paid by Charlestown; in February, 1631/2, over one-seventh that of Charlestown and Medford combined; in October, 1633, two-thirds that of Medford and one-sixth that of Charlestown, Boston, or Eoxbury. The first two levies were to meet the expenses in- curred in fortifying Newtown; the last, the general expenses of the colony. Further evidence on this point is given by the Winthrop Map," about 1633.* There W^innisimmet, Wesaguscus (Weymouth), and Agawam (Ipswich) are represented by three houses; Salem, Saugus, Charlestown, New town (Cambridge), Dorchester by four houses ; Watertown by five houses ; Boston by a fort, a windmill, and five houses; Eoxbury by eight houses. Single houses are also represented, — Ten Hills, Mr. Cradock's at Medford, and Mr. Humphrey's at Saugus. No house is pic- tured on Noddle's Island, which is there represented as a well wooded isle, — a reminder of the fact that during Maverick's ownership the inhabitants of Boston were permitted to cut wood there.

The grant of Agamenticus, in December, 1631, seems further evidence of a connection between Gorges and Maverick. At the instigation of Lieutenant-Colonel Walter Norton, and with the as- sistance of Sir Ferdinando Gorges, a grant of land was made

' Records of the Company, under date of May 21, 1629. Mass. Col. Ree., i. 364, 309, 405.

" Justin Winsor, Nar. and Crit. Hist, of Amer., iii. 380.

Chap. II]

APPENDIX

17

December 2, 1631, to " Ferdinando Gorges, sonn and heire of John Gorges of London" (elder brother and heir to the lands and claims of Captain Eobert Gorges) ; to several men by the name of Norton in England; to Eobert Eainsford, the younger, of London; and to eight men of New England, among whom was Samuel Maverick Esq.^" W™ Jeffryes gent and John Busley gent, both almost beyond a doubt members of Eobert Gorges' Comjjany, were among the eight New Englanders. Lieutenant- Colonel Walter Norton is found, as Mr. Walter Norton, among " Those who wish to be freemen," in October, 1630, and was admitted, the following May, as Captain Walter Norton; he settled at Agamenticus before 1634.^^ Ealphe Glover Merch*, dwelling here in 1630, the owner of a shallop, and found with it in the company of Elias Maverick, also applied for admission in October, 1630, but died before July, 1633, without having taken the freeman's oatli.^^ The other grantees in New England were Thomas Graves, engineer, Tho. Coppyn Esq and Joell Woolsey gent. Of the latter two nothing is known; their names were omitted at the confirmation of the grant, March 2, 1631/2. It is not improbable that a number of the old planters, in the main a remnant of the Gorges settlement, united to secure this grant, and that it was made in 1631 by the Council for New England to the heir of Captain Eobert Gorges, and to them as a compensation for the injury to his and their interests caused by the grant to the Massachusetts Bay Company. John Gorges, it is known, had laid claim to the territory. He had ignored the grant to Sir Henry Eosewell and his associates of March 19, 1627/8, and signed a deed to Sir William Brereton in January, 1628/9, a deed de- clared by the Massachusetts Bay Company invalid, February 10, 1629/30. Although Maverick's name is in the list of those who wished to be freemen in October, 1630, he did not take the oath until October, 1632, after the grant of Agamenticus. Note also the visit of the bark Warwick, presumably the bark of that name fitted out by Gorges, to Winnisimmet, March 19 to April 9, 1632.1='

In this connection, considering the question of a possible re- lationship between Samuel Maverick and Eev. John Maverick, it may be worthy of note that the latter with his followers chose for their settlement Dorchester, which lay incontestably beyond the

" Proc. Amer. Antiq. Soc, April, 18G7, 101.

" Belknap, Hist, of N. H., Appendix vii. ; Gorges' Description, chap. xxv.

" Mass. Col. Rec, i. 78, 82, IOC.

" Savage, Wintlirop, i. 71, 72; also 7, 39.

VOL. I. 2

18

HISTORY OF CHELSEA

[Chap. II

limits of tlie grant to Captain Robert Gorges. If the southern hound of his patent was a line due west from the end of I'ullen I'oint, the Boston peninsula lay north of tliis, Dorchester did not. When Hir Ferdinando (jorges was intriguing against the Colony in England in 1(>;J4, the Dorchester people and the con- gregation of Kcv. Thomas Hooker, -which settled first at Mount Wollaston but was ordered by the General Court to remove to ^iCw town, began to agitate a removal to Connecticut. The Endi- coit andWinthrop colonists were anxious to establish settlements within the grant to Captain Gorges, in order to hold the territory against him.

Possibly, Maverick came to America with Captain Christopher Levett, who arrived at David Thompson's house at Piscataqua in the winter or early spring of 1623/4. Captain Levett found there Captain Eobert Gorges, — who had arrived twenty days before in a little ship of Weston's that he had seized at Plymouth, — and learned that he had been appointed a member of Captain Gorges' Council. Levett staid at David Thompson's a month, complain- ing that the snow interfered with his surveys, and then, in two open boats, coasted with his men along the Maine shore in snow and fog as far as Sagadahock, seeking a place to establish a settle- ment. If Maverick was of this party, it would explain his entry under the heading Sagadahock quoted above.'* Levett, it is to be observed, bestowed especial pi'aise upon Agamenticus, of which place Maverick was one of the grantees. Captain Levett left some of his men in New England, intending to return, but was unable to do so. Compare with Maverick's Briefe Discription, Captain Levett's A Voyage into New England.'*

J. P. Baxter, in his volume on Christopher Levett, printed by the Gorges Society,'® states, on the authority of Frank W. Hackett, that Maverick married the widow of David Thompson, and that her father was William Cole of Plymouth, England. The fol- lowing facts confirm this statement. Among the notarial records of William Aspinwall are copies of an indenture, dated April 1, 1615, between " W™ Cole of Plymouth in the County of Devon Shipwright " and " David Thompson of Plymouth aforesaid Apothecary & Ems his now wife " and " daughter of the said W™"; also of a receipt, dated January 3, 1625/6, for money paid

" Supra, note 6 to chap. ii.

" Coll. Maine Hist. Soc, ii. 74. For the date of Maverick's arrival in New England see 2 Proc. Mass. Hist. Soc, i. 246; 4 Coll. Mass. Hist. Soc, vii. 318.

" Page 90, note 42.

Chap. II]

APPENDIX

19

Cole by .liis " daughter Amies Thomson," for which he was to account to her husband, David Thomson. These papers were brought to Aspinwall, May 26, 1648, " by the said Amies or Ernes."' Mrs. Amias Maverick, in her letter of November 20, 1635, speaks of her " ffatherles children." This letter is. addressed to Mr. Robert Trelawny, merchant, at Plymouth, England, where the father of the writer seems to have been then living.^* Decem- ber 25, 16-43, John Thompson, who regained Thompson's Island as son and heir of David Thompson, assigned a bill to " my ffather m"" Samuell Maverick." ^^J

" Boston Rec. Com. Rep., xxxii. 128-130.

" Maine Hist. Soc, Doe. Hist, of Maine, iii. 70-78.

" Boston Rec. Com. Rep., xxxii. 70; see also 30, 320, 327.

20

IIISTOIIY OF CHELSEA

ICllAI'. Ill

CHAPTER III

SAMUEL maverick's PALISADE HOUSE

OF Samuel Maverick at Winnisimmet between 1025 and the coining of the Puritans to Salem in 1628 we know little; nothing of Blackstone at Boston, or of Thompson in connection with the island of his name in the bay. They were young men ; Thompson was probably married in England. They were Ejjiscopalians, neighbors, and, with Thomas Wal- ford at Cliarlestown, apj^arently sole possessors of the lands in the upper bay.^ At Winnisimmet, in 1625, Samuel Mav- erick " fortified " his Palisade House — " The Antientest house in the Massachusetts Government." ^ In this house he entertained Governor Winthrop and his party of exploration when they came wp from Salem into Boston Bay, June 17, 1630;^ and here, August 16, 1631, some of Maverick's friends, — among whom was Edward Gibbons (his neighbor up the Charles, in what is now Somerville) afterwards a noted man, — fell under the displeasure of the Court of Assistants and were fined " for abuseing themselues disorderly Avith drinkeing to much stronge drinke aboard the Frend- shipp, & att M"" Maiiacke his howse at Winettsein*." * It was while Maverick was living in this house, as Winthrop records, December 5, 1633, that " John Sagamore died of the small pox, and almost all his people; (above thirty buried by Mr. Maverick of Winesemett in one day.) . . . Among others,

' Maverick says that between 1626 and 1633 " wee could not make in all three Hundred men in the whole Countrey, those scattered a hundred and ffiftie Miles assunder " and " all the Houses there, except three or fewer at New Plymoutli, and those which I had could not be valued worth 20011)." A Briefe Discription of New England, 2 Proc. Mass. Hist. Soc, i. 247.

Ibid., 236.

' " We lay at Mr. Maverick's." Savage, Winthrop, i. 27. * Mass. Col. Rec, i. 90; Discharged, ihid., 243.

Chap. Ill] SAMUEL MAVERICK'S PALISADE HOUSE

21

Mr. Maverick of Winesemett is worthy of a perpetual remem- brance. Himself, his wife, and servants, went daily to them, ministered to their necessities, and buried their dead, and took home many of their children." ^

The precise site of Samuel Maverick's Palisade House is not now determinable. Wood's Map of 1633 places Winnis- immet at the confluence of Mystic and Island End rivers, on the estate not included in the Maverick-Blackleach deed to Richard Bellingham of February 27, 1634/5. Remains of an ancient ferry-way, recently existing near the United States pier on the old Samuel Maverick estate, indicate that the AVinnisinunet Ferry of 1631, granted to him in 1634, had its northern landing westerly of Chelsea Bridge, not far from the supposed site of his house, ^[othing now marks more pre- cisely its site unless, possibly, some old elms.^

Here Samuel Maverick lived from 1625 until the erection of a house at Noddle's Island. On this island, which the Court granted him on certain conditions, April 1, 1633, his wife is foimd, [N'ovember 20, 1635, during her husband's absence in Virginia. From this time his history belongs to East Boston.''

The life and character of the first permanent settler of "Winnisimmet, and one of the earliest in Massachusetts Bay, are of interest and, after 1634, fairly well kno'wn. But his pursuits, as those of Blackstone, Walford, and Thompson, while sole occupants of the upper bay, are mainly conjectural. From kno^TO facts, however, we may infer that Maverick traded for furs with the Indians and also with sporadic settlers and fishermen along the coast ; he seems to have chosen his residence with reference to such trade, for which it was especially favorable. He was surrounded by Indians, and once incurred their hostility, but finally gained their friendship. At the mouth of the Mystic, and not far from that of the Charles, — rivers rising in the most populous seats of the Indians, — he was near the point which they passed in going

" Savage, Winthrop, i. 119, 120. [See appendix to this chapter. No. 1.]' ° [See Appendix 2.]

' Now the subject of special study by Frank W. Hackett, Esq.. of Washington, D. C, the results of which are expected in a volume of the Prince Society.

22

HISTORY OF CHELSEA

[Chap. Ill

to Eevere Beach, where lately existing shell heaps indicated their presence in great nuiiilKir.s.'* In 1(;;50 he owned a pin- nace which, with Winthroj) and Dudley, he sent to JSTarragan- sett for corn." Though living in New England, Maverick retained his English connection, — for about 1030 he, " S"" Ferdinando Gorges, MT Godfrey, Alderman ffoote of Bristol " and others were grantees of York in Maine, and of lands adjacent, on which " at great Cost and Charges wee setled many ffamilies."

Maverick's conduct and writings evince a strong and dis- ciplined mind. He rendered essential services to Winthro2:)'s company when sorely needed ; and his hospitality, courteous bearing, and humane acts were remembered years later, even when ecclesiastical animosities had arrayed the colonists into hostile parties, in one of which he was conspicuous. Though, as he said of himself, as well as of some others, he was in "no way dissonant from ye best Reformation in England, and de- sireing alsoe to have a body of Lawes to be Established and pub- lished to prevent Arbitrary Tiranny," yet they were deprived of English immunities, subjected to oppressive fines, imprison- ment, and indignities, which excuse any resentment afterwards shown towards the government which inflicted them.-^-^ He died between October 15, 1669, and May 15, 1676.

* The General Court, October 16, 1629, gave to the joint stock of the company the exclusive trade in furs for seven years, — a trade denied to their own planters. Mass. Col. Rec, i. 55, 389. It is doubtful if this rule was enforced. [See ibid., i. 389, 390, 399.]

" [Transferred to Appendix 3.] A Briefe Discription of New England, quoted above, 233. [See supra, appendix to chap. ii. The land at Agamenticus was granted December 2, 1631, to thirteen men, of whom Maverick was one; but Mr. Godfrey and Alderman Foote were not. Edward Godfrey is said to have been the first settler (about 1630) ; and March 22, 1637, the grant of December, 1631, was " renewed againe unto Edward Godfrey and others therein named." (Proc. Amer. Antiq. Soc, April, 1867, 101, 105, 130; Coll. Maine Hist. Soc, ix. 344.) The Ferdinando Gorges in the grant of December, 1631, was " Ferdinando Gorges, sonn and heire of John Gorges of London, Esqr." His grandfather. Sir Ferdinando, died in 1647, and his father, John Gorges, in 1657; the grandson was spoken of as " Sir Ferdynando Gorges " in January, 1663/4, by John Mason in a letter to John Winthrop, Jr. (4 Coll. Mass. Hist. Soc, vii. 424; N. E. Gen. Reg., xxix. 46. ) ]

" Maverick's A Briefe Discription of New England, 240. [See Savage, Winthrop, ii. 262, 278-295, 301. This was in 1646. See also C. F. Adams, Three Episodes in Mass. Hist.]

Chap. Ill] SAMUEL MAVERICK'S PALISADE HOUSE

23

The later history of Samuel Maverick's estate at Winnis- immet not included in the Maverick-Blackleach deed to Bell- ingham, and now belonging to the United States, is as follows : " Upward of twenty yeares " before 1662, Samuel Maverick sold twenty acres to William Stitson by deed only known as recited in the latter's conveyance of the same to Elias Mav- erick in 1662.^^ There is no known conveyance of the remaining hundred acres, but as they were occupied by Elias Maverick, and disposed of by his will, his title is unquestionable. ^ ^

William Stitson,-'* from 1632,'^ lived in Charlestovra, where he was of the church, March 22, 1633, and deacon from October, 1659, until his death, — thirty-one years and five months, as is inscribed on his gravestone. He was a freeman June 11, 1633, of the Artillery Company 1648, and repre- sentative 1667—1671.-'® His wife Elizabeth, widow of Thomas Harris, died February 16, 1670, aged ninety-three; and he

" William Stilson of Cliarlestown to Elias Maverick : " All yt parcell of land at winesimit, wch upward of twenty yeares I have quietly posessed by graunt and purchasse from Mr Samuell Maverick; all which land is twenty acres, or thereabouts be it more or lesse Taeing bounded on the East by a fTence of Railes betwixt it and the farme of the worshipfull mr Richard Beligham esquire: and on ye west joyning to the land of ye aforesd Elias Maverick on ye North by a Creeke running towards powder horne hill and on ye South by the salt water." 8th of ye 2d month, 1C62. Wife Elizabeth releases dower. (SufT. Deeds, L. 4, f. 40.) [No precise date can be inferred for the purchase by Stilson. He owned it in Novem- ber, 1640. See the boundaries of the Bellingham estate in Boston Rec. Com. Rep., ii. 57. See Mass. Col. Rec, iii. 422, 423; iv. Pt. i, 288,]

" [See Appendix 4 to this chapter.]

Variously spelt Steedson, Stidson, Stilson, Stetson, Studson, Stutson, Steedsonne, Stitson; the last by himself in his signature to a deed in my possession.

" [This is from Wyman; Frothingham places him under the year 1637. Until Maiden was settled, the church nearest to Winnisimmet was in CharlestovsTi, and Elias Maverick, as well as Stitson, attended church there. The deposition of William Stitson taken June 15, 1680, shows that he married the widow of Thomas Williams alim Harris between May, 1631, and September, 1634; and lived at Winnisimmet. Possibly he was in CRarlestown before his marriage. (See infra, chap, xxiii. ; also xxii. note 4.) W^yman gives his possessions in Charlestown under the year 1638. In 1642 he was chosen selectman; he served Charlestown twenty years in that capacity.]

" According to Frothingham (p. 87), he was representative for six years, — first in 1646, and for the last time in 1671. [He was elected Clerk of the Market in 1646, and a representative for the first time in 1667. Mass. Col. Rec, iv.]

24

HISTORY OF CHELSEA

[Chap. Ill

married the widow of Captain Francis Norton August, 1670. IIIh will is dated April 12, ICHS, and lie died April 11, 1091, ill liis ninety-first year. Though chielly resident of (Jharles- towii, I have given some particulars of his life, because he probably lived at one time at Winnisiriimet, on the Samuel Maverick estate, a part of which he certainly owned. In 1031 Thomas Harris kept the ferry between Winnisimmet, Charles- town, and Boston. As has been said, Stitson married his Avidow, and continued the ferry. He had acquired an interest in it before 1635, when he sold it to Richard Tjellingham, owner of the reversion.^ ^ His allotment at Pullen Point was January 8, 1037/8,^* on what grounds, unless he was then a citizen of Boston, it is difficult to conceive. Besides, in Oliver's adjoining allotment, he is called " William Stidson of Wyne- semitt:"-'^ Nor is his name found among the inhabitants of Charlestown, January, 1634/5.^*^ He may have been then living at Winnisimmet, though November 30, 1640, he was styled as of Charlesto'wn.^^

Elias Maverick, born about 1604, died September 8, 1684, aged eighty. Probably he was a brother of Samuel Maverick, and possibly came over with him in 1624. Found at Win- nisimmet in 1630,^^ he was admitted to the Charlestown church February 9, 1632/3,^'^ and took the Freeman's oath the following June. In 1635 or earlier, it would seem, he married Anne Harris, daughter of Thomas and Elizabeth. She joined the same church October, 1639, and died at Read- ing September 7, 1697, aged eighty-four. Iler gravestone is at Reading.^^ He was of the Artillery Company, 1654.^^ He was buried at Charlestown, where his gravestone was

" Infra, chap. xxii.

" [The allotment was recorded on that date; it may have been made two years earlier. See chap. vi. Appendix 1.] " Infra, chap. vi. " Frothinghani, 84, note. " Infra, chap. vii. Mass. Col. Rec, i. 78. Wyman. • " Ibid.

[The General Court, at its May session in 1CC4, confirmed Elias Maverick as ensign of the North Company of the militia in Boston; in 1671 it granted his request for a dismissal from the place of ensign. Mass. Col. Rec, iv. Pt. ii. 105, 505.]

Chap. Ill] SAMUEL MAVERICK'S PALISADE HOUSE

25

lately, but -not now, to be seen. Wyman gives bim no estate in Cbarlestown, nor does it appear that he ever lived there. For the most of his adult life he lived where he died, on the westerly part of the Maverick estate (now belonging to the United States). Winnisiinmet Ferry, starting from his grounds, touched at Charlestown, where he found his most convenient church relations.^® That he was a legal resident of Boston January 8, 1637/8, is clear from his allotment at PuUen Point.^" He owned twenty acres at Hog Island. At his death, in 1684, he owned that part of Winnisimlnet not included in the Maverick-Blackleach deed of 1635 to Richard Bellingham. By the deed from Stitson to him, April 8, 1662, it appears that he then owned the westerly part of this estate. But there is no recorded conveyance from Samuel to Elias Maverick ; and the conjecture is that at some time before 1642 title was by deed unreeorded.^^

The children of Elias Maverick, presumably born at Win- nisimmet, were, according to Wjman,^^ (1) John, born 3, bap- tised 27 (12 mo.) 1635/6. (2) Abigail, Aug. 10 (14) 1637; m. MatthcAv Clark. (3) ' Elizabeth, 2 (4) 1639; m. John Johnson. (4) Sarah, 20 (12) 1640/1; m. [Samuel] Wal- ton. (5) Elias, 17 (1) 1643/4. (6) Peter, of Boston. (7) Mary, m. Aaron Way, junr of Winnisimmet.^^ (8) Riith, m. Francis Smith, son of Lieut. John Smith of Winnisimmet,^^ 1679. (9) Paul, b. June 10, 1657. (10) Rebecca, Jan. 1, 1659/60; m. [George] Thomas.

[See 3 Coll. Mass. Hist. Soe., i. 257-264. In 1678 Elias Maverick was active in securing the election of Daniel Russell to tlie pastorate of the Charlestown church.] " Infra, chap. vi.

^ [Possibly Elias Maverick received this land as an "Old Planter"; there was a difference of but two years in the ages of Elias and Samuel Maverick, and the former was found here in 1630, when written records begin.]

^ Page 681. [To these should be added James, the inventory of whose estate was sworn to by the father, October 31, 1671. Suff. Prob. Rec, L. 7, f. 158.]

[November 3, 1696, Samuel and Sarah Walton, George and Rebecca Thomas, Aaron and Mary Way, Francis and Ruth Smith, signed a release, acknowledging the receipt of legacies from their father, Elias Maverick. Suff. Deeds, L. 17, f. 351.] =1 Wyman, 1002.

Ibid., 876.

26

inSTORY OF CHELSEA

[Chap. Ill

Elias Maverick's estate at Winnisimmet remained in pos- session of Ilia heirs until 170!), when it passed to John Brintnall,'*'* who for fifteen years had been lessee of the ff^rry and keeper of the adjacent inn. As early as 1740, probably much earlier, the Maverick estate had been divided into two farms by a line running from the Mystic Iliver northerly over the hill; and between 1740 and 1753 both farms were sold by John Brintnall to his son Benjamin.''" In 1769 Benjamin sold the westerly farm, and in 1772 the easterly, to Jonathan Green.^''^

January 31, 1791, Green sold his estate to Aaron Dexter for £900.'^^ It then consisted of a hundred and sixteen acres, on which were two dwelling-houses, four barns, and out- houses ; " Reserving nevertheless out of the Premises " an acre and a half of " Marsh Land where a Dam or Dike now is, from said Island River to the Upland of the Premises ; —

^' [See Appendix 5.]

" Suff. Deeds, L. 24, ff. 118, 191; L. G2, f. 117. [For John Brintnall as an innkeeper, see chaps, vii. and xxiv.] [See Appendix 0.]

^« Suif. Deeds, L. 61, f. 80; L. 79, f. 131; "L. 82, ff. 267, 268. On the northerly side of this estate, between the head of High Street and Broad- way, was lately an old decayed tomb said to be that of the Brintnall family. It was also said that the strip of land running from the tomb to Broadway was reserved as a right of way thereto ; but if by deed recorded, I have overlooked it. [The tomb is mentioned in the deed of 1772, cited below; the eastern boundary of the land conveyed therein is so drawn as to leave a riglit of Avay from the tomb to the " country road," or the present Broadway. Its site is marked on the " Plan of the Naval Hospital Estate in Chelsea," by S. P. Fuller, in the Massachusetts Archives. In the "Executors Account" of the estate of John Brintnall, 1731, is a charge of 7s. for " Making a Drein for the Tomb." Suff. Prob. Files, 6157.]

SufT. Deeds, L. 118, f. 173; L. 120, f. 232; L. 356, f. 68. [See ap- pendix 7.]

[Subject to a mortgage to Dr. Ebenezer Putnam of Salem for £450.] [When the direct tax of 1798 was assessed, the estate was divided into two farms. Charles Stearns was tenant of the westerly 90 acres, which, with the housing thereon, was vahied at $3,190; Daniel Mason, of the eastern 27 acres, valued at $975. The house of Charles Stearns cov- ered 741 feet, was two stories, and had fifteen windows. There was a "Kitchen," which covered 558 feet, was one story, and had nine windows; also a woodhouse that covered 495 feet, was two stories high, and had two windows. These, with an acre of ground, were valued at $715. There was a corn barn; also three barns measuring respectively 70 x 34, 50 x 30, 30 X 20; also a wharf 63 x 28 feet. The house of Daniel Mason was de- scribed as a " Verry Old House," and was valued at $40 ; there was a

Chap. Ill] SAMUEL MAVERICK'S PALISADE HOUSE

27

And also saving and reserving twelve feet in wedth on each side of the said Dam all the way from the said Island End River to said Upland, Adjoining to said Acre and an half of Marsh." 40

Dr. Dexter sold to Richard Williams, Samuel Chittenden, and others several lots on the westerly side of Broadway, from Beacon Street southerly and for $18,000 the re- mainder (one hundred fifteen acres) to the United States, September 22, 1823, confirmed December 4, 1826. The IS^aval Hospital was erected in 1835, and the Marine Hospital in 1857.''2

barn 30 x 20, and " one tan House " 50 x 24. Direct Tax of 1798, at tlie N. E. Gen. Society.] *» [See Appendix 8.]

" [Aaron Dexter, to Salem Turnpike and Chelsea Bridge Corporation, July 4, 1804, a lot 82 x 132 feet, on the westerly side of Broadway. April 30, 1805, for $400 each, two lots of the same size as the foregoing, on either side thereof, — that to Williams adjoining it on the southwest, that to Chittenden on the southeast. A strip of land three rods wide lay between these three lots and the eastern boundary of the estate. Hop- kins' Atlas, iv. Plate C, shows their location. Suff. Deeds, L. 214, f. 17; L. 220, f. 123; L. 212, f. 27. Presumably the lot belonging to the corporation was intended for the gate-keeper, as the company in 1805 requested the town to discontinue the old road along the shore from the ferry landing to Dr. Dexter's gate, and, failing therein, proposed to move the gate to the bridge, wher.e it stood when the survey of the United States Hospital grounds was made by S. P. Fuller, in 1827.]

^ [Transferred to Appendix 9.]

28

HISTORY OF CHELSEA

[CirAi'. Ill

APPENDIX 1

Who "Mr. Maverick of Winosemett " was, and the site of liis Palisade House, have troubled historians. Edward Johnson's Wonder-Working Providence says: "On the North side of Charles Eiver, they [Winthrop's company in 1G30] landed neare a small Island, called Noddells Island, where one Mr. Samuel Mavereck then living, a man of a very loving and curteous be- haviour, very ready to entertaine strangers, yet an enemy to the Eeformation in hand, being strong for the Lordly Prelaticall power, on this Island he had built a small Fort with the helpe of one Mr. Dai)id Tompson, placing therein foure Murtherers to protect him from the Indians " ; ^ but see Samuel Maverick's Palisade House, by Mellen Chamberlain.^ The question was settled by Maverick himself. [In order to reconcile the statement of Johnson that the fort was built by Maverick on Noddle's Island (East Boston), and Maverick's own statement, that in 1660 it was still standing at Winnisimmet (Chelsea), it has been sug- gested that the term Winnisimmet included the island (East Boston) as well as the mainland (Chelsea). There is no warrant for such an assumption. When Maverick became a resident of the island, he called himself Samuel Maverick of Noddle's Island,^ and his wife, in November, 1635, nine months after the sale of Winnisimmet to Richard Bellingham, dated her letter from '■ Nottells Hand in Massachusetts Bay." ' Before 1635, the refer- ence is always to Winnisimmet in connection with Mr. Maverick; after 1635, to Noddle's Island.

It seems certain that Samuel Maverick was living at Win- nisimmet when the colonists arrived in 1630. Winthrop wrote, under date of December 24, 1630, that three of his servants were driven by the wind upon Noddle's Island and forced to spend the night there without fire or food; this would not have been the case if Samuel Maverick had been living then on the island in- stead of at Winnisimmet.* In July, 1631, Noddle's, Thompson's,

1 2 Coll. Mass. Hist. Soc, ii. 86. See Sumner, East Boston, 82-85.

=' 2 Proc. Mass. Hist. Soc, i. 360 et seq.

" Boston Ree. Com. Rep., xxxii. 48, 70, 117, etc.

* Savage, Winthrop, i. 39.

Chap. Ill]

APPENDIX 1

29

and other islands were placed in the hands of the Governor and Assistants, " to be lett & disposed of by them to helpe towards pnblique charges, & that noe pson w^soeu"" shall make any vse or benefitt of any of the said ilelands, by putting on cattell, felling wood, raiseing slate, &c, without leaue from the Gou""" & Assistants for the time being"; and in April, 1632, the latter gave to John Perkins the exclusive right to shoot or trap fowls on Noddle's Island. This action would not have been taken if Samuel Mav- erick had been living there. An especial grant was necessary to insure Noddle's Island to Samuel Maverick, and this was not made until April, 1633. In the meantime Winnisimmet was already in his possession, confirmed to him, presumably, by the officers of the Company under its regulations as to " old planters." Samuel Maverick was living on Noddle's Island when Edward Johnson settled at Charlestown in 1636; this may account for the statement in the Wonder-Working Providence.

As to Winthrop, Johnson says he landed " neare a small Island," — presumably at Mr. Maverick's, as he was entertained by him. Although the natural inference from the passage quoted is that Maverick was then living on the island, Johnson may not have intended to convey that idea. Presumably Samuel Maverick's residence on Noddle's Island dates from the year 1635 ; it could not have been earlier than the summer of 1633. Note also in this connection that the "Winthrop map, about 1633, pictures " Nottles Island " as wooded, and places no house thereon, while a group of houses appears at Winnisimmet.

The following order by the General Court which met March 4, 1634/5, is of interest in this connection: " It is ordered, that M'^' Sam'^ Mafiacke shall, before the last of Decemb*" nexte, remove his habitacon, for himself & his ffamily, to Boston, &, in the meane tyme, shall not giue intertainem* to any strangers for longer tyme then one night, without leaue from some Assistant; & all this to be done vnder the penalty of c'." Considering Maverick's reputa- tion for hospitality (Josselyn writes "Mr Samuel Maverick . . . the only hospitable man in all the Country, giving entertainment to all Comers gratis " ) , and the fact that the ferry on the road to Lynn had its landing on his grounds, that he had easy access to the shipping in the harbor, and owned ships himself, it is not surprising that he became an object of suspicion to the colonial tind town authorities at a time when the charter seemed in danger, the arrival of Sir Ferdinando Gorges as general Governor of New England was feared, and the colony was being fortified to resist him.

30

HISTORY OF CHELSEA

[Chap. Ill

In the yoars 1G34 and 1G35 there was a strong movomcnt in England for the a))rogation of the cliarter of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, and the appointment of a royal governor, — a move- ment in which Sir Ferdinando Corgos and the Council for New England participated. ]n February, lG3;}/4, an order was issued to Mr. Cradock to bring the patent of the Massachusetts liny Company before the Council. April 28, 1G34, a commission was issued by the King to the Archbishops of Canterbury and York and nine others, giving them powers of control over all New Eng- land, including the right to remove governors and revoke letters patent " surreptitiously " obtained or " hurtful " to the prerog- ative royall." Three days later a commission for a general gov- ernor of New England was issued. Sir Ferdinando Gorges being the governor chosen.^ A ship was building to carry the governor to New England. In September, 1634, Winthrop recorded that warnings from friends in England — to the effect that ships and soldiers were preparing " to compel us, by force, to receive a new governour, and the discipline of the church of England, and the laws of the commissioners, — occasioned the magistrates and depu- ties to hasten our fortifications " ; a statement amply substantiated by the records of the General Court for the session beginning in September, 1634. At this same Court, as it happened, Winni- simmet was placed under the jurisdiction of Boston.

In January, 1634/5, the ministers of the Massachusetts Colony, convened at the call of the Governor and Assistants, advised re- sistance to the rumoured governor " if we were able." The same Court which ordered Maverick to remove Ms habitation to Boston appointed a Board of War with extensive powers, including the right of life and death over " any that they shall iudge to be enemyes to the comonwealth," and to order out troops in case of war; ordered that an oath of fidelity should be taken by all men over sixteen years of age ; appointed a beacon on Sentry Hill and a watchman from April to October; decreed that the fort at Castle Island should be fully finished, ordnance mounted and the like before any other fortification should be proceeded with ; and forbade any one to visit a ship without leave from an Assistant until it had lain at anchor twenty-four hours, and made it " ap- jiarent y* shee is a ffriend," under pain of confiscation of all his estate."

With such an excitement brewing, the town and colonial

" Palfrey, New England, i. 391-404; Hutchinson, Hist, of Mass., i. Appendix 4.

" Savage, Winthrop, i. 143, 144, 154; Mass. Col. Rec, i. 125, 136-140.

Chap. Ill]

APPENDIX 1

31

authorities, not unnatTirally, looked with suspicion on Mr. Mav- erick, because of his early relations with Sir Ferdinando Gorges. Apparently he found his six months' experience under the juris- diction of Boston unpleasant, and decided to sell his lands at Winnisimmet. Noddle's Island was not placed under the juris- diction of Boston until March 9, 1636/7. In the meantime the Massachusetts Bay Government could, at this crisis, scarcely tol- erate a man of doubtful loyalty in a place so accessible to the ships in the harbor as Noddle's Island. At least Maverick did convey to Eichard Bellingham the lands at Winnisimmet, February 25, 3634/5, and the General Court, which met a week later, ordered him to remove his habitation to Boston. It is interesting to note that Blackstone, about this time, left Boston and settled in Cum- berland, Ehode Island, within the limits assigned to Lord Gorges in the division of land among themselves by the Council for New England.' Also the General Court which ordered Maverick to remove to Boston expressed a desire that Mr. Allerton should remove from Marble Harbour, and ordered him to appear at the next General Court, at which time, in May, 1635, it was re- corded that Mr. Allerton had given his housing at Marble Head to his son-in-law, Moses Maverick, who also managed, apparently, the estate of Samuel Maverick during the latter's absence in A'irginia the following winter, as he then paid to the General Court the rent for Noddle's Island.

But the danger passed. A few weeks after the order directing Maverick to remove his habitation to Boston, that is, on June 16, 1635, Winthrop recorded ^ that it was certified by " a letter from the Lord Say, and report of divers passengers," that the " great ship to send over the general governour . . . being launched, fell in sunder in the midst." Two months later, August 17, 1635, a ship arrived, bringing word that as it lay near Bristol, on May 27, Sir Ferdinando Gorges came on board, asked if there were pas- sengers bound for Massachusetts, and assured the Eev. Daniel Maud of " his good will to the people there in the Bay, and promised that, if he ever came there, he would be a true friend unto them." ^ Inasmuch as the Council for New England was still seeking the revocation of the charter of the Colony,^° such promises

' November 10, 16.34, a rate of six shillings was assessed on every householder in Boston to pay him, and he probably left Boston the fol- lowing June. Young, Chronicles of Mass., 170, note.

« i. 161.

' Journal of Richard Mather, Young, Chronicles, 451. " Records of the Council for New England in Proe. Amer. Ant. Soc, April, 1867; Hubbard, Hist, of New Eng., 180, 226-231.

HISTORY OF f'lTKLRKA

[C;iiAi'. Tir

were oC so mewl ml; (hibious viiliic, hiii llio destruction of the ship w'liich Kliould liiive Iji-oiif^ht liini wiiH a certain boon. 'I'he Cen- eral Court, wliicli mot So))i(Miil»('r ;'),-ir)35, voted, " 'I'he order that eiiioyiK'd M"" Sam" MaQaci<e to remove his liabitac-Tm to Boston before the hist of J)eeeinb'' nextc is repealed." It also rescinded tlic order as to visiting ships in the harbor. In November, Mrs. Amias Maverick was living on Noddle's Island, as she dated a letter there on November the 20th."

It is interesting to note, however, that Samuel Maverick went that autumn to Virginia and remained there for nearly a year, not returning until August 3, 1636. Boston was apparently will- ing to welcome his return, as, under date of April, 103G, Wintlirop wrote there was some thought of sending the " Blessing " to Virginia " for Mr. Maverick and his corn." Certainly by the summer of 1636 all danger from Sir Ferdinando Gorges had passed. George Vaughan wrote from London in April that he had no encouragement as to New England, that " they were cjuite could in that matter, Mr. Mason being ded and Sr Ferdinando minding only his one divityon."

" Doc. Hist, of Maine, iii. 70-78.

" Belknap, Hist, of N. H., i. Appendix xi. See C. F. Adams, Three Episodes of Mass. Hist, for further information as to the general governorship.

Chap. Ill]

APPENDIX 2

33

' APPENDIX 3

[In 1678 there were two farmhouses standing on the present hospital grounds, and these continued, apparently, for over one hundred years, as two houses appear on the direct tax of 1798. The easterly one was then described as a " verry old house," and was valued at only forty dollars; the westerly was the principal dwelling on the estate. The site of the latter is marked by a well, while the easterly house stood a little below a spring of fresh water. A spring is marked on the plan of the Naval Hospital grounds, by S. P. Fuller, dated December, 1827;^ and in the spring of the year a rill of water still descends the hillside from this site toward Broadway. In 1681 the spring was deemed so valuable that Elias Maverick, in dividing his estate among his sons by will, provided that a way should be left open to the spring for the watering of the cattle, and that half an acre should be left in common about it. Trumbull interprets the name Winnisimmet to mean " at the good spring." ^ Doubtless the first house at Win- nisimmet was located near a spring of fresh water. This was also a defensible position. The westerly farmhouse was on low land, while the easterly was on the hillside, controlling the only point at which access to it could be had from the mainland without crossing swamp or river, — the course followed later by the road from Lynn to Winnisimmet ferry. This can be seen by following the line of marsh traced on the maps of the Naval Hospital grounds in 1837, and of the Ferry Farm, as recorded by the Winnisimmet Company.^ The easterly house stood on land which Samuel Maverick sold to William Stitson, keeper of the ferry previous to August, 1635, later a resident of Charles- town; from him the title passed to Elias Maverick by deed re- corded in 1663 ; he in turn conve3fed it to his son Elias in 1678. The westerly farmhouse was on the one hundred acres of land hdng west of this, of which there is no record until Elias Maverick devised it by will in 1681 ; it seems reasonable to assume that it

* Mass. Archives. Maps and Plans, 1826. ' New English Canaan, Prince Society Publications, xiv. 229. ' Suff. Deeds, L. 3.51, f. 153. See also infra, the map of Chelsea, showng- the location of the Bellingham farms. VOL. I. — 3

84

HISTORY OF CHELSEA

[Chap. Ill

was Uio liind oonfirmcd to liim as an "old planter." In 1G35, or earlier, VMiin Maverick married Anne II arris, the stepdaughter of William Stitson, the ferryman. The westerly house may have dated from this marriage. Ellas Maverick was living there at the time of his death, in 1684. It is known that more than one house stood at AVinnisimmet before the estate was sold to Richard Bellingham in February, l()34/5,'* and tliat in addition to Samuel Maverick, his wife, his children, and his servants, William Stitson, the ferryman, was living there with his family. Maverick may have lived in the house described six months after the sale as the farmhouse of Richard Bellingham. What is supposed to have been the oldest house on the Ferry Farm of Governor Bellingham stood a very little east of the house below the spring,^ and the Winthrop plan (circa 1633) places at Winnisimmet one large house, and two smaller houses west of it. All is conjecture.

However, the first house built doubtless stood near a spring, and as Maverick states that it was still standing in 1660, it seems reasonable to assume that it was the house mentioned in the deed of 1678, and that it was occupied in the early days of the colony by the ferrymen at W^innisimmet, Thomas Williams alias Harris, in 1631, and William Stitson later. The road to the ferry passed its door.® For the benefit of any who may wish more exact informa- tion as to the site the following items are added. In 1678 the western boundary of the land conveyed by Elias Maverick, Senior, to his son Elias, ran from a point one rod west of the northwest corner of the house " unto the Marsh upon the backside of the hill North-East " in such a way as to include fifteen acres of upland, — the eastern boundary being the farm of Samuel Bellingham. The spring is not mentioned therein, but in 1681 it was described as " the spring that is aboue his house." Below the house, toward the sea, lay the garden.

There may have been more than one spring on the hillside. August 22, 1836, the W^innisimmet Company, in conveying Lot 6 on Chestnut Street, near the United States Hospital grounds, on the northeast side of the hill, reserved " the reservoir of water on said lot," and the right " to lead water into the same from the springs & sources above " ; also a " right to use and take away the water," and " to lay suitable pipes and conduits " for said pur- pose.^ It is said that this water was carried to Chelsea House,

* See appendix to chap. ii.

" See that marked Tav. on the plan in Sufif. Deeds, L. 351, f. 153.

° Infra, Appendix 9.

' Suff. Deeds, L. 839, f. 198.

CfiAP. Ill]

APPENDIX 2

35

then a place of public resort, formerly the mansion house of Samuel Watts. Also in 1836 Sarah Green, who had lived in 1T85 in the eastern house, on what is now the Kaval Hospital estate, as a nurse in the family of Jonathan Green, testified that she went on the Ferry Farm " to the spring for water several times a day while I resided in Chelsea." As she was seventy-one years of age in 1836, and had not visited Winnisimmet for fifty years, she may have forgotten the exact site of the spring she visited. So far as the records show, there was no change in the western boundary of the Ferry Farm from its purchase by Eichard Bellingham, in 1635, until after its purchase by the Winnisimmet Company, in 1831.]

30

IJISTORY OF CHELSEA

[Chap. HI

APPENDIX 3

One of Maverick's pinnaces was taken by Dixy Bull, the noted pirate, against whom an expedition was fitted out, and for which another of his pinnaces was chosen. The cost was " Paid by a bill from Mr. Samuel Maverick, being husband and merchant of the pinnace, for a month's wages, to Elias Maverick, £2. Paid, for victuals upon his account, £2 5s." ^ [Samuel Maverick had been one of the grantees of Agamenticus in December, 1631.^ When the patent was confirmed in March, 1632, some names were dropped and four were added, — " Seth Bull, Cittizen and Skinner of London, Dixie Bull, Matthew Bradley of London, Gen*, and John Bull, Son of the said Seth." ^ Immediately thereafter, ap- parently, a ship was sent forth commanded by Dixie Bull ; but it was seized by the French, if the report which came to Winthrop may be trusted, and Bull turned pirate.* Possibly this explains Winthrop's record in December, 1632, that the pirates, besides promising future good behavior, " had given another pinnace in exchange for that of Mr. Maverick, and as much beaver and otter as it was worth more." ^ A few months later, however, Maverick's pinnace was sent out " to take Dixie Bull." Win- throp reported that " after she had been forth two months, she came home, having not found him. After, we heard he was gone to the French." " Clap said : " These Men fled Eastward, and Bull himself got into England; but God destroyed this wretched Man."

Governor Dudley wrote to the Countess of Lincoln : " About the end of October this year, 1630, I joined with the Governor and Mr. Maverecke in sending out our pinnace to the Narragan- setts, to trade for corn to supply our wants ; but after the pinnace

* Drake, Boston, 148, note. [2 Coll. Mass. Hist. See, viii. 233.] ^ Supra, appendix to chap. ii.

" Proc. of Amer. Ant. Soe., April, 1867, 105.

* Savage, Wintlirop, i. 79, 90. » Ihid., 98.

" Ihid., 104.

' Memoirs of Roger Clap, in Young, Chronicles of Mass., 303.

Chap. Ill]

APPENDIX 3

37

had doubled Cape Cod, she put into the next harbour she found, and there meeting with Indians, who showed their willingness to truck, she made her voyage there, and brought us a hundred bushels of corn, at about four shillings a bushel, which helped us somewhat." * March 14, 1633, " The bark Warwick arrived at ISTatascott, having been at Pascataquack and at Salem to sell com, which she brought from Virginia " ; March 19, " she came to "Winysemett " ; and on April 9, " the bark Warwick, and Mr. Maverick's pinnace, went out towards Virginia." August 3, 1636, " Samuel Maverick, who had been in Virginia near twelve months, now returned with two pinnaces, and brought some fourteen heifers, and about eighty goats, (having lost above twenty goats by the way). One of his pinnaces was about forty tons, of cedar, built at Barbathes, and brought to Virginia by Capt. Powell, who there dying, she was sold for a small matter." ^"J

' Young, Chronicles of Mass., 322, 323. ' Savage, Winthrop, i. 71, 72. " Winthrop, i. 191, 466.

38

HISTORY OF CHELSEA

[CllAP. Ill

APPENDIX 4

Will of Elias Maverick''-

I, Elias Mavericke Senior, of Winnasimmet, within the Towne- ship of Boston in the Countie of Suffolke, in New-England, being through the mercie of God in a competent measure of health, & vnderstandinge, (though aged, & know not the tyme of my dis- solution w'^*^ cannot be longe) being desirous to put my house in order, so that as much as in me lyeth all controversies about my outward estate after my decease may be p*''^vented Doe make this my last will & Testament (& hereby revoke all former wills & Bequests) in manner & fforme ffollowinge.

Imprimis I resigne vp my Soule, to Almighty God, my Creator & Eedeemer & my Bodie to be decently interred, according to the discretyon of the Survivinge. And for my tempall estate I thus & thus dispose of it. Hirst of all I giue vnto my Beloued wife Anna, all my temporall estate, both in land houses and mooueables, (after due debts & ffunerall charges discharged) during her natu- rall life, if she remayne a widdow, otherwise to enioy one third during her natural life pvided also, that she shal freely consent, to those termes that I shall hereafter expresse. It I giue to my son Elias, ffiue acres of land as an addition to the land, & house that I formerly gaue him, as also that out- house, that I built, not farre to the westward of his house, to him, his wife & Children for euer accordinge to the tenor of his deede of Gift, acknowledged & recorded pvided that there shalbe at all times, half an acre of land left in comon, about the spring' that is aboue his house w*** a convenient highway therevnto ffor watering of Cattle.

It. I giue to my son Peter fiue pownds starling after my wiues decease.

It. I giue to my son Paul Mavericke twentie fiue acres of land, next vnto my son Elyas his land, w'^'^ I wil giue in p'"sent possession by deede of gift, to him his wife & Children, pvided that his ffather in Law Liu* John Smith (whose daughter Jemimah he married)

' Suff. Prob. Files, 1374 ; A. D. S. with official endorsement of probate.

Chap. Ill]

APPENDIX 4

39

will giue as a portion to his sayed son in Law with his daughter, one halfe of that some of money that tlie sayd land shalbe prized at by indifferent men chosen on either side, w'^'' if he refuse to doe, then he shall enioy it after his mothers decease. It. I giue to my Grand son Jotham Mavericke the son of my son John ffiueteene acres of land adioyning on the west syde of my son Pauls land, after his Grandmothers decease to him & his heires for euer, with this j»viso, that he shal haue liberty to sel or alienate the same, if he see good, vnto any one or more of his vnckles before mentioned but to no other man or men. It I giue to my Grand son James Mavericke, the son of my Son Peter fiueteene acres of land next vnto my Grandson Jotham, to him & his heires ffor euer, w*'^ the same j)viso that is giuen to his Cousin Jotham.

Be it knowne that my intent, in the division of the aforesayed peels of land is, that each of my sons & Grand sons shal haue such pportion of marish land, as is answerable to theire quantitie of vpland that falls to theire share.

As for my dwelling house, outhouses, orchard, come ffeild & so much land adioyning next the Creeke as will make vp Ifourty acres, w*'^ the orchard & Come ffield & medow pportionable, I giue to my fine daughters, either to be sould or let, to each of them an equal pportyon, but if my sons Elyas, & Paul, whom I doe make joynt Executors of this my Will, will pay vnto each of theire sisters viz : Abigaile Clarke, Sarah Walton, Mary Waye, Euth Smith & Ee- beckah Thomas, ffiuety pounds apeece, taking in the mooueables, & a quantitie of marish w'^^ I haue at Hogiland, of twenty acres of lande & vpward, for to helpe pay theise legacies, then the sayd housing & land shalbe theirs to enioy, & also they shal pay vnto each of my Grand children and Great grand children fine Shillings apeece.

ffurther my will is, that, wheras I am bound by obligation, vnto my ffather in law William Stitson, to keepe him sixteene sheepe yearely, with theire increase, tyl towards winter, & then to be left to the same number, during his natural lyfe, that my two sons Elyas & Paul my Executors shal make good this engagement after their mothers decease & not before, as also that the former lega- cies shal not be payed til that tyme.

As for my servant Jonas Holmes I giue the remaynder of his tvTne vnto my deare wife if She Hue so long, or else to my Execu- tors. & hauing forgotten, to express Euth Johnson my Grand daughter, that now Hues with me, I leaue it with her Grand mother to doe as she pleaseth.

40

HISTORY OF CHELSEA

[Chap. Ill

And I dosiro, & intreato, & appoynt, ray trusty & wolbolouod ^f^iondH my ffathorinlaw Deacon William Stitson, Aron Way Senio!', & William Ireland Senior, to be Ouerseers of this ray Will & to advise & counsell my Executors.

The land was measured to be 120 acres, if it fall short, or exeede my will is that each diuidend, be pportionably abated or en- larged.

In the Prsence of vs Signed & sealed

whose names are subscribed this thirteenth of October Anno William Ireland Sener Dom' one thousand six hun- John Barnard dred eightie one

William Ireland Jun p me Elyas Mavericke

John Senter

This will exhibited for probate by Elyas Maverick and Paul Maverick the two Execute™ therein named before the County Court sitting in Boston. 6°. Noverab?" 1684. William Ireland Senior and William Ireland Jun? and John Senter three of the witnesses Subscribed psonally appearing made Oath that they did see and heare M? Eli as Maverick Signe Scale and publish his Instrumt to be his last will and Testam* and that he was then of disposing mind to their understanding. Attest?

Is? Addington Clrc.

A TRUE InVENTOEY'^ OF THE ESTATE OF ElIAS MaVERICK Sen? OF WiNNISIMMET DECEASED

I6'^ Septemb- 1684.

£ : s : d

Imp'.' his wearing Clothes 10 : 00 : 00

It . one Bedstead, Bed, Bolster & all other Furniture belonging

to ye_ Bed 6 : 00 : 00

It . one Bedsteed . 10? chaire & Chest .5? — : 15 : 00

In another Chamber . Chest and wheeles and other Lumber . 2 : 00 : 00

It . one Bed and Furniture in the garrett 5 : 00 : 00

In the Hall . one Bed . Bolster and Furniture belonging to y£-

Bed 8 : 00 : 00

It . a Trundle Bed with its' Furniture 4 : 00 : 00

It . Tables, Formes chaires Cushion's & carpet to y? table . . 3 : 00 : 00

It . two Bibles and other Bookes 2 : 00 : 00

It . warming pan andirons & other things 1 : 00 : 00

It . 3 p?- Sheets w'!' Table Linnen 5 : 00 : 00

It . 2 . guns, sword and bandileers 1 : 00 : 00

It . 2 . pots . 2 . tramels . 2 . p- Andirons, 2 . spits, tongs & Fire

Shovels 3 : 00 : 00

It . dripping pan, earthen ware & other things . 20? Churn &

milke vessels . 25» 2 : 05 : 00

" Suff. Prob. Rec., ix. 203.

Chap. Ill] APPENDIX 4 41

It . gridiron and frying pan : 5' Barrells keelers table &

forme .30? 1 : 1.5 : 00

It . Cash with other plate 10 : 00 : 00

It . 2 . Oxen : 6 . Cowes, one bull one heifer, three Calves . 3.

horses with Fodder 40 : 00 : 00

It . 30 . Sheep and Lambes £ . 8 : Swine . £7 15 : 00 : 00

It . Cart and plough with all Furniture belonging thereto & horse taeklin with a cros betle & wedges grindstone &

Sythes 5 : 00 : 00

It . houses and Land Meadow and upland 700 : 00 : 00

More one Cow Common in Boston. £820 : 15 : 00

John Smith

William Ireland Senr

Boston: 6o Novembr 1684.

Elias and Paul Maverick the two Execute? made Oath in County Court then sitting that this is a just and true Inventory of the Estate of their late Father Elias Maverick dece4 so far as hath come to their knowledge and that when more appeares they will cause it to be added —

Attestr Is • Addington Clrc

42

HISTORY OF CHELSEA

[CuAP. HI

APPENDIX 5

[Matthew Clakk, who married Abigail Maverick, June 4, 1655, lived first at Winnisimmet, where a daughter, Abigail, was born June 17, 1656; later at Marblehead. John Johnson, who married Elizabeth, October 15, 1656, was of Charlestown and Haverhill; she died March 22, 1673/4. Peter Maverick and John Maverick (who married Catharine Skipper, April 9, 1656) lived in Boston. The latter was described in deeds as a shipwright, owned a house at the North End of the town, and died before 1680.^ James, Elias, Jr., and Paul Maverick lived at Winnisimmet. These are the names on such tax lists as have been preserved: 1674, Elias Maverick and Elias Maverick, Jr. ; 1681, the same, also Paul Maverick; 1687 and 1688, Widow Maverick and Elias Maverick; 1692, Elias and Paul Maverick; 1695, Paul Maverick; 1702, Paul Maverick and John Pratt. In 1687, the Widow Maverick was taxed for one poll, two horses, two oxen, six cattle, twenty sheep, and two swine; Elias, for one poll, two horses, nine sheep, and one swine. His housing was valued at three-fifths that of the western farmhouse. In 1702, John Pratt was taxed for one negro man, two cows, twelve sheep, and three horses; Paul Maverick, for three cows, twenty sheep, and one horse. As " Sea bookes and Instruments " and over a tun of logwood appear in the inventory of the estate of James Maverick, taken in 1671 by two of the neighbors at Winnisimmet, and as Elias Maverick, Jr., was described in legal documents as a " ship- wright," it would seem that the family utilized their frontage on the sea and Island End Eiver in addition to cultivating their fann.

Elias Maverick, Jr., married Margaret Sherwood December 8, 1669. She was admitted to the Charlestown church August 8, 1675. The children recorded to them are : Elias, born November 4, 1670 ; 2 Margaret, married John Pratt, July 29, 1691 ; Elizabeth.

^ Vital Records of Boston ; SufT. Prob. Rec, L. 9, ff. 6, 7 ; SuflF. Deeds, L. 11, f. 392; L. 17, f. 351; L. 24, f. 137; Wyman, 555; Boston Rec. Com. Rep., i. 25.

' Presumably the son, not, as Sumner (East Boston) suggests, the

Chap. Ill] APPENDIX 5 • 43

According to Wyman, all three were baptized August 22, 1675. Abigail, baptized September 24, 1676 ; ^ Samuel, baptized August 14, 1687. Elias Maverick died before November 2, 1696, as on that date his son-in-law, John Pratt, was appointed administrator of his estate, and, five months later, guardian of his son Samuel. In September, 1697, three children were living, — Margaret Pratt, Abigail Maverick, and Samuel Maverick.*

In 1678, Elias Maverick, Sr., conveyed to his son Elias and the heirs of his body lawfully begotten, the house in which the son then dwelt, with the land which Elias, the father, bought of William Stitson. In January, 1695/6, Elias Maverick gave twenty acres of land near this house by deed of gift to his son-in-law, John * Pratt, of Boston, inn-holder.^ In the tax list of 1695, both Elias Maverick, Sr., and John Pratt appear in division num- ber one (the North End) of Boston, yet the inventory of the estate of Elias Maverick was taken by men of Winnisimmet.* John Pratt was host of the well-known Salutation Inn, near the landing-place of AVinnisimmet Perry in Boston. Thence he removed, early in the autumn of 1697, " to Winnysimtt into his owne House standing night y^ fferry, there — where- into he hath removed his wines beare and other necessaryes for y* accommodation of man & horse." He petitioned the Suf- folk " Court of Quarter Sessions for the Peace," October 5, 1697, for permission to continue at Winisimmet his vocation as innkeeper.® He increased his lands by purchase, and Feb- ruary 8, 1708/9, with his wife Margaret, conveyed to John Brint- nall, for £400, forty-five acres, including the easterly homestead with twenty-six acres.'' He was then described as of Salem, innholder.

Paul Jklaverick married Jemimah Smith, daughter of Lieut. John Smith of the adjoining Ferry Farm on the Bellingham estate. He owned the covenant at Charlestown, September 11, 1681. His children were : Moses, born February 8, 1680/81, baptized Septem- ber 11, 1681, died January 28, 1685; Jotham, baptized October

father, married Sarah Smith, February 3, 1695/6. She married George Robinson, April 7, 1698, and on April 27, 1699, was appointed adminis- tratrix of the estate of her former husband, Elias Maverick, of Boston, "Mariner." Suff. Prob. Rec, L. 14, f. 35; Vital Records of Boston. ^ See Sumner, East Boston, 166.

* Wyman; Suff. Frob. Rec, L. 11, ff. 227, 261, 275; Sufif. Deeds, L. 14, flf. 431, 432; L. 18, f. 2.

» Suff. Deeds, L. 11, f. 81; L. 17, f. 251. ° Mass. Archives, cix. 121. ' Suff. Deeds, L. 24, f. 118.

44

HISTORY OF CHELSEA

[Cjiai'. hi

28, 1G83; John, biipiizcd, aged one year, August 14, 1G87.* Paul Maverick received by the will of his father twenty-five acres, and acquired, by payment of legacies to liis sisters, the •western farndiouse and fifteen additional acres. March 1, 1708/9, he conveyed to his son, John Mavericli, joiner, the westerly homestead with forty acres, the consideration being £300. June 17, the latter conveyed the same to John Brintnall (his imcle) for £440." In June, 1709, Jemimah Mavericl< applied, in the name of her husband, Paul Mavericl<:, for a license to sell strong drink as an innholder from " Mr. Hillier's House in Middle Street," Boston, it having been previously a licensed house. She stated that her husband was absent at sea and that she wished the business to retrieve losses in his estate.^" At the January term of the Court of General Sessions of the Peace, in 1709-10, Jemimah Maverick was fined for selling strong drink without license.^^ Later she married Henry Eichman, of Boston.^^

James, son of Peter Maverick, received from his grandfather Elias fifteen acres of the farm at Winnisimmet. From a deposi- tion taken in 1718, and recorded at the Suffolk Eegistry, it is learned that he was a ferryman, and lived at Winnisimmet, where two children were born to him and his wife Hester, — Martha, born April 17, 1693, and James, born, the deposition states, October 2, 1699. Presumably the latter date is a mistake of the copyist, as James Maverick must have been twenty-one years of age when he joined in the conveyance to Brintnall, November 1, 1715. July 16, 1703, Hester Mavrick of Lynn, widow of James Mavrick late of Boston, presented a petition to the Governor and Council for permission to sell a part of her husband's estate, the half " of a Small Plot of Ground " with " a little old house on it " on Wing Lane in Boston. She said that her " husband did about Eight years Since go out of this Port in a Voyage bound for Lon- don, & was then taken by the ffrench, & Since not heard of by any of his Relations, he Left me two Children a boy & a girl, with nery Small matters to Support & maintain them." The house was not sold until 1728. August 7, 1705, the widow married Benjamin Whitney, and November 1, 1715, Benjamin and Esther Whitney of Framingham, and her children James and Martha Maverick, conveyed to John Brintnall fifteen acres lying between

' Wyman.

" Suff. Deeds, L. 24, f. 134, 191; L. 28, f. 257.

" Original Papers, City Clerk's Office, Boston, ii. See also Suff. Deeds, L. 24, f. 135.

" Court Records, 201.

" Suff. Deeds, L. 24, ff. 132-137 ; L. 28, f. 257.

Chap. Ill]

APPENDIX 5

45

the lands conveyed to Brintnall by John Pratt and by the son of Paul Maverick; the consideration was £50, and there was no mention of buildings.^^ Later Martha Maverick married Thomas Bellows of Southboro.]

" Su£F. Deeds, L. 33, f. 15; L. 30, f. 75; L. 46, f. 151; Mass. Archives, xvii. 93 ; Sumner, East Boston.

40

HISTORY OF CHELSEA

[Chap. Ill

APPENDIX 6

[John Brintnall, first of the name, was a son of Thomas and Esther Brintnall/ a brother of Captain Thomas Brintnall, of Framingham, and hence an uncle of the William Brintnall who graduated from Yale College in 1731. October 9, 1721, Lieuten- ant John Brintnall executed a deed of gift of the farm to his son Thomas Brintnall, to take effect at his death (confirmed by will dated September 15, 1731). The "Condition & limitation" of the deed was " that his said son Thomas Brentnall shall not have or possess the abovegranted Farm & other the premisses before he comes to the Age of Twenty one years but that he shall be brought up to learning out of the profits & Incomes of the farm until he hath Commenced once, after which time he shall have twelve pounds yearly & every year out of the profits & Incomes of said farm for and towards his Maintenance until he comes of age or until the decease of L* John Brintnall & Phebe his wife." ' A son Thomas was born to John and Phoebe Brintnall, October 17, 1708. This lad would have been nearly nineteen in 1727, when a Thomas Brintnall graduated from Harvard Col- lege, where Edward Wigglesworth — brother of Eev. Samuel Wigglesworth, who had married Mary Brintnall, elder sister of Thomas of Winnisimmet — was a professor. Presumably the graduate of 1727 was Thomas Brintnall, of "Winnisimmet. In June, 1728, he joined the church of Thomas Cheever at Rumney Marsh, and in August, 1729, and June, 1732, was chosen a delegate to the Ecclesiastical Councils, to which the church was invited. For Harvard men these councils were essentially alumni meetings, and were appreciated as such. Thomas Brintnall, of Winnisimmet, died in the summer of 1732, as August 23, his elder brother John petitioned to be appointed executor of his father's estate in the place of his brother Thomas, deceased.^ Thomas Brintnall (H.O. 1727) is starred in the catalogue of 1733. The following items from the " Inventory ' of the Estate

* See chap. xix. Appendix 3.

' SuflF. Deeds, L. 46, f . 100 ; Suff. Prob. Rec, L. 29, f. 266.

• Suff. Prob. Files, 6167; Suff. Prob. Rec, L. 31, f. 347.

Chap. Ill] APPENDIX 6 47

of M"" Thomas Brintnall late of Winnisimet," handed to the Court by his sister Esther, denote a student in the family.

" 1 Clock £8. 1 Desk with Drawers 72/ £ 11 " 12 " —

1 looking Glass 15/ five Vols of the Roman History 50/ 4 " 7 " —

History of the World 1 " 5 " —

Whistons Theory of the Earth 15 " —

Doctr Hornecks 2 Volumes 24/ Coles Engr Dictionary 3/ 1 " 7 " —

Baleys English Dictionary 1 " — " —

Greek Lexicon 15/ Doctr Mathers Life 5/ 1 " — " —

Greek Testament 4/ Lattin Testament 2/ 6 " —

Tull'ys orations 1/ Psalm Book 4/ Bible 4/ 0 " —

26 bound Books 30/ 30 stitched Books 10/ 2 " — " —

Silver Watch 100/ bleu Great Coat 40/ 7 " _ " _ "

According to the deed of gift of 1721, on the death of Thomas Brintnall without heirs, the estate descended to Benjamin Brint- nall, grandson of the grantee, John Brintnall, and son of John and Deborah Brintnall, then resident in Lynn. First, however, the farm was to be rented, and the rentals paid to the children of Lieutenant John Brintnall — Phcebe Sprague, John Brint- nall, Mary Wigglesworth, James and Esther Brintnall — till each had received two hundred pounds. Phcebe Brintnall, widow of Lieutenant John Brintnall and daughter of Captain John Smith of the Ferry Farm, also held a life interest in the estate. Ac- cording to the Chelsea vital records, she died in 1753, the 19th day of the second month. The children of John and Phcebe Brintnall were:

Phoebe, bom November 22, 1691 ; married by Nicholas Paige, Justice of the Peace, January 25, 1709/10, to Stower Sprague of Maiden, greatgrandson of Ealph Sprague and of Nicholas Stowers, the first settlers in Charlestown. She died March 15, 1741/3 — gravestone at Maiden.*

John, bom November 3, 1693; married August 28, 1712, Deborah Mellins, daughter of William Mellins of Maiden; was a tanner at Maiden, a schoolmaster in 1721, in which year he sold his lands there ; ^ he lived thereafter on a farm in Lynn given him and his son Benjamin by deed of gift from his father ; he removed thence' to Winnisimmet. His will was probated November 18, 1746.

* Boston Rec. Com. Rep., ix. 249; Wyman; SufT. Deeds, L. 62, f. 117; there is a discrepancy of a year between her age as calculated from the dates of her birth and death, and her age as given on her gravestone.

' Boston Rec. Com. Rep., ix. 249; Wyman; Maiden Vital Records; Corey, History of Maiden, 360 note, 491, 492 ; Middlesex Probate Files, 1767.

48

HISTORY OF CHELSEA

[Chap. Ill

Mary, married by Eov. Joseph Sewell, June 30, 1715, to Rev. Samuel Wigglesworth of Ipswich, son of Kev. Michael Wiggles- worth of Maiden. She died June G, 172.'}, aged twenty-eiglit."

James, bom November 18, 1699, married August 6, 1724, Mary Basset. She owned the covenant at Charlestown, April 18, 1725, was admitted to the church January 21, 1727/8, and had two cliildrcn baptized there in 1725 and 1727. In 1727/8 James is spoken of as late of Charlestown, now of Falmouth in the County of York, Sadler. March 16, 1728/9, he had a son James bap- tized in the right of his wife by Rev. Thomas Cheever. Later Ebenezer Thornton obtained judgment for the rent (£.3 per quar- ter) of a house near the North Battery, which James Brintnall, " Sadler or Gentleman," had occupied from April to October,

1729. In November, 1732, he dated a petition from Winni- simmet, and February 3, 1733/4, had a son Thomas baptized by Rev. Thomas Cheever. February 7, 1737/8, he was of Charles- town. He is described by his father, in his will, as " my un- worthy son James," and by his widow, in applying for letters of administration in 1747, as " late an Ensign in Captain Wins- lows Company of Foot in y^ Expedition to Carthegena."

Esther, bom July 5, 1701, married January 24, 1733/4, by Rev. Thomas Cheever, to Samuel West of Salem.*

Thomas, bom October 17, 1708; died in 1732. .

Benjamin, bom March 25, 1714; died April 13, 1714, aged twenty days.

Judging from the inventory of his estate November 22, 1731, John Brintnall was prosperous. The total sum, which included little land, as that had been conveyed to his sons by deeds of gift, was £885 4s. &d. Among the items were : " Imprimis his Books," £3 18s.; "his goold & silver," £77 18s; " peuter," £12; "the negro woman," £25; "the two negro men," £200; "the clock," £8. The appraisers were Joses Bucknam of Maiden, Thomas Pratt, and Samuel Tuttle.® John Brintnall attended the church in Maiden. He died October 7, 1731, aged seventy years.

September 11, 1732, Phoebe Brintnall, widow, and John Brint- nall were appointed to execute the will of Lieutenant John Brint- nall in the place of Thomas Brintnall,. deceased. November 6, 1732, James Brintnall petitioned that his mother and brothers

' Boston Records; Felt, Ipswich, 282.

' Suff. Prob. Rec, L. 40, f. 116; Suff. Prob. Files, 8826; Suflf. Deeds, L. 56, f. 16; Wyman; Rec. of Suff. County Court, 1727-1728, 313; 1729-

1730, 202, 403, 404.

" Suff. Prob. Rec, L. 30, f. 362; L. 31, f. 115; Suff. Deeds, L. 56, f. 16, " Suff. Prob. Files, 6157.

Chap. Ill]

APPENDIX 6

49

and sisters be cited to appear before the court in order to arrive at a better understanding of his father's will. Apparently, by a clause therein, John Brintnall intended to cancel all gifts to his son James, including possibly the legacy of £200 mentioned in the deed of gift of 1721. October 27, 1735, James Brintnall and Stowers Sprague complained to the court that four years had passed since their father died, and no account had been rendered, and no rent fixed on the farms, and they petitioned that the matter be examined into and the farms rented to the highest bidder. All concerned were cited to appear December 9, 1735; an account was placed on file; Samuel Watts was ap- pointed guardian of " Benjamin Brintnall — a Minor aged about Twenty Years Son of John Brintnall of Winnisimit " ; and February 25, 1735/6, John Brintnall and Samuel West of Salem became the guardian's bondsmen.^* February 7, 1737/8, John Brintnall secured a release of the farm at Winnisimmet from the heirs of his father, • — - Mary Wigglesworth of Ipswich, grand- daughter of John Brintnall, deceased, for £150; James Brint- nall of Charlestown for £200; Esther and Samuel West of Salem for £300 in bills of credit ; Phoebe and Stowers Sprague.^^ But he did not, apparently, end his indebtedness. In 1752, Samuel Wigglesworth and Thomas Cheever testified that he gave bond to Esther West to secure the legacy due her. After John Brintnall's death, Samuel West, June, 1748, sued his executors for twenty pounds still due, he claimed, on a debt of £60. The matter seems to have been difficult of adjustment, as Samuel Wigglesworth certified that he attended, as a witness in the case of Capt. Samuel West vs. John Brintnall's heirs, the court at Salem in 1748, and at Ipswich in 1752.^^

John Brintnall, second of the name, was living in Lynn when his brother Thomas died in 1732.^^ July 8, 1733, he had a son Thomas baptized by Eev. Thomas Cheever. Presumably he was then living at Winnisimmet, though he was not dismissed from the church in Lynn until September 19, 1737, — the j^ear when Benjamin Brintnall attained his majority, and the father and son thereby obtained an assured title to the farm. March 22, 1737/8, the South precinct in Maiden voted " To grant y^ request of m"" Benj? Brintnall and others to buld a sete behind y^ forth

" Suff. Prob. Rec, L. 29, ff. 266-271; Prob. Files, 6157, 6827.

" Suff. Deeds, L. 56, ff. 15, 16; L. 62, f. 117.

" Suff. Early Court Files, 45,726, 64,261, 69,392, 70,092.

A farm in Lynn had been given him by his father. See Vital Records of Lynn for four children born there. VOL. I. — 4

50

HISTORY OF CHELSEA

[Chap. Ill

Seat in y* mens side Callery, and to have it for thear own, with- out any Disturbance."*'' After the settlement of Kev. William McClenaehan over the Clielsea church in 1748, Benjamin Brint- nall and his brother John transferred their membership from Maiden church to Chelsea.

In 1740 John Brintnali and his son Benjamin divided the farm by a line running from the Mystic Kiver northerly over the hill. The son received a deed of the eastern farmhouse with fifty-eight acres, and quitclaimed to his father the western farmhouse with sixty acrcs.*^ In July, 1743, the father and son exchanged farms. The right of dower of Phoebe Brintnali, widow of Lieutenant John Brintnali, was reserved.*"

John Brintnali, second of the name, by will probated in 1746, gave the eastern farm to his son John Brintnali, — brother of Benjamin Brintnali, owner of the western farm, — subject to certain legacies to his six daughters, the maintenance of his widow, Deborah, and the right of three daughters, Phoebe, Deborah (bom in Lynn, May 29, 1727), and Mehitabel, to live in the house until their marriage.*'' The other three daughters of John and Deborah Brintnali were Jemimah (presumably married Thomas Patten of Maiden, December 4, 1745), Esther (bom in Lynn, August 18, 1722 ; presumably married Nathan Dexter of Maiden, June 26, 1744), Mary (born in Lynn, June 16, 1724; pre- sumably married Nathan Shute, November 14, 1745)." Phoebe** was married by Eev. Phillips Payson to John Eeed of Boston, September 14, 1758; Mehitabel to David Barker, December 27, 1759.

The intention of marriage of Benjamin Brintnali and Elizabeth Waite of Lynn was recorded in Chelsea, March 7, 1741. She died September 24, 1770, aged forty-eight. Their children, as recorded at Chelsea, were :

Benjamin, born in 1743, the 8th day, 10th month (married Rachel, daughter

of Samuel Watts, jr.,2« October 11, 1770).

Elizabeth 1745 23 12 (married Richard Floyd of

Boston, June 30, 1768).

" Corey, 543 (note), 211, 610 (note). " Suff. Deeds, L. 61, f. 80; L. 82, f. 268. " Ibid., L. 79, f. 131 ; L. 82, f. 267.

" Suff. Prob. Rec, L. 39, f. 243. For the inventory, see Prob. Files, 8608.

" Maiden Vital Records.

" According to Wyman, born December 31, 1713.

See chap. vii. Five children recorded at Chelsea, 1771-1778.

Chap. Ill]

APPENDIX 6

51

Esther	1747	21	7	(died 1747 - 8 10).
Ezra	1749	21	1	(married Elizabeth Watts, daughter of Samuel Watts, jr., June 2, 1774).
Abigail	1750	15	10	(married Joseph Oliver,^^ April 18, 1771).
Esther	1752	5	6	(married Tileston Clark, June 16, 1774).
Pliebe	1754	26	9[V]
Jonathan	1756	1	&
Mary	1758	5	6	(baptized May 14, 1758).
Thomas	1760	3	1	(baptized January 6, 1760).
William	1761	28	7	(baptized August 2, 1761).
Samuel	1763	3	3	(baptized March 13, 1763).

The intention of marriage of John Brintnall of Chelsea and Deliverance Bean of Boston (born July 4, 1733, daughter of Caleb and Deliverance Bean),-^ was recorded in Chelsea, July 2, 1753, and in Boston, August 13. Their children were: John, born in 1753, the 24th day of the 8[?]th month; Deliverance, in 1755, the 12th day of the 11th month; William, in 1756, the 18th day of the 4th month; (died in 1758, the 6th day of the 1st month). The wife. Deliverance, died October 21, 1759, aged twenty-seven.

September 1, 1761, the town of Chelsea chose Benjamin Brint- nall town clerk " in the room of m"" John Brintnall who was gon in his Majestys Seruise." In April, 1761, the General Court voted to raise 3,000 men for garrison duty in order to release the regular troops for offensive warfare in the South. John Brintnall enlisted forty-five men, and served as Second Lieutenant under Captain Lemuel Bent from April 18 to December 13; under Cap- tain Gideon Parker from December 13, 1761, to July 6, 1763. In the account of Captain Parker is a charge of £3 12s. for the pas- sage of Lieutenant Brintnall, his sergeant, and his servant, from Halifax; in 1761, the servant was William Townsend, private. Brintnall served as Lieutenant from July 1, 1762, to January 1, 1763 (company unknown) ; and from January 2, 1763, to July 16, 1763, under Captain Wm. Barron.^^ February 20, 1764, Lieuten- ant J ohn Brintnall and another were " drowned attempting to go to Castle William in a small Canoe." ^* His intention of marriage

^ See E. D. Harris, Descendants of Captain Thomas Brattle, 63, note.

^ Boston Records. Apparently John Brintnall attained his majority five years after his father's death. Suff. Prob. Files, 8608.

^ Mass. Archives, xcviii. 425, 436; xcix. 146, 162, 168, I80o, 181, 200, 277.

** Church Records of Chelsea.

52

HISTORY OF CHELSEA

[Chap. Ill

will) Joruslia Blowers of Boston was recorded at Chelsea, April l7(}o, and in Jjoston, Mareli :>l ; the inarriaffe itself is not on record in either place. At the time of his death he was school- jnaster at Winnisimnict.''^

By deed in 1761 from his brother, and by bond of May 28, 1764, to pay an annuity to his mother, Deborah, Benjamin lirint- nall o])tained title to the eastern farm.^" In April, 17G8, the mother Deborah died, aged seventy-three years. She had been schoolmistress at Winnisimmet in 1755 ; Jan. 13, 1752, the select- men's records state that the " Widow Brintnall " was willing that those ill of the smallpox should be removed to her house. March 6, 1769, Benjamin Brintnall was living apparently in the eastern house, as when he conveyed the title of seventy-seven acres and the westerly farmhouse to Jonathan Green, a bond was drawn for the peaceful removal from that house of the family of Stephen Greenleaf before March 16.^' Jonathan Green and Benjamin Brintnall were kinsmen. In 1712 the parents of the latter chose their uncle Joses Bucknam their guardian. Lydia Bucknam, the sister of Joses, was the mother of Jonathan Green. Benjamin Brintnall continued to live in the eastern farmhouse after its sale to Green in 1772, and there seems to have been an agreement by which he might, under certain conditions, redeem it for £361 IBs. 2^.^" Benjamin Brintnall held many town offices, in- cluding that of town treasurer; he was chosen a deacon in the church in 1749. Occasionally he taught the school at Winnisim- met. Many legacies and large families were a heavy burden; in the latter years of their ownership, the farms of Benjamin and John Brintnall were encumbered by a long series of mortgages.^" August 3, 1780, Deacon Benjamin Brintnall married Eebecca, daughter of Eev. Joseph Emerson of Maiden and widow of Jacob Parker; thereafter he lived in Maiden, where he died July 26, 1786, aged seventy.]

Abigail Hawks was paid £1 13s. 4d. for " Bording mr John Brint- nall Deceasd the Town's School masteE five weeks " in January and Feb- ruary, 1764, at 6s. 8d. per week. Chamberlain MSS., v. 57. Also ibid., 95.

Suff. Deeds, L. 95, f. 209 ; Prob. Files, 8608. " Rougli draft in Chamberlain MSS., iii. 121.

S. S. Greene, Descendants of Thomas Green of Maiden (1858), 32. 2" Chamberlain MSS., iii. 135.

Suff. Deeds, L. 60, f. 79; L. 65, f. 70; L. 81, f. 222; L. 83, f. 14; L. 82, f. 269; L. 95, ff. 210, 211 ; L. 97, ff. 222, 223 ; L. 100, f. 25; L. 104, f. 219; L. 105, f. 145, etc.

Chap. Ill]

APPENDIX 7

63

APPENDIX 7

Jonathan" Green was of Stoneham, where his family had long lived. [According to W. B. Stevens, History of Stoneham/ he was the son of Jonathan, and grandson of Samuel, Green of Maiden; was born in that town November 23, 1719; but when a bo}^ was carried to Stoneham on his father's removal thither. He had served the town of Stoneham as town clerk and town treasurer for twenty years, and had also been active in the militia, — hold- ing the rank of Captain.] On his removal to Chelsea in 1769 he became, as he had been in Stoneham, an important citizen, — • was assessor, town clerk, [selectman, town treasurer] and repre- sentative to the General Court. Hon. Samuel Watts was his neighbor, only a road separating their estates. He was one of the administrators of Watts' estate, and as such hunted up the papers which in London, or in Boston, had been used in defending the Bellingham Will suits, of which we shall hear much, — mainly from papers preserved by Jonathan Green.

In the War of the Eevolution, Mr. Green was efficient in many ways. His house was on the hill now belonging to the United States, across, the Mystic from Bunker Hill ; and from it he and many other people from Chelsea and other towns witnessed the battle of the seventeenth of June, 1775. His estate, near the British lines, was so accessible by water to General Howe's troops, that the Committee of Correspondence ordered him to remove his live stock to Stoneham.^ His farm houses and barns were used for barracking our "Main Guard" then commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel Loammi Baldwin.

" This certifies that our main Gard that was kept at Winnesim- met made use of the two Dwelling houses Belonging to Capt. Jonathan Green at s? winnesimmet from September to January Last past.

March y^ 28*1' 1776.

Loammi Baldwin Colo." ^ " Dec^ ye 23^ 1775 the Officers of the Companies stationed ai Chelsea to Jon^ Green D"^ To two Cords one foot & a half of

^ Pages 65, 99-104. See also S. S. Greene, Descendants of Thomas Green of Maiden, 32; Corey, Maiden, 501, 632.

^ See infra, the itemized account of the damages he sustained from the war. Chamberlain MSS., v. 175-177.

' A. D. S. Chamberlain MSS., vi. 23.

54

HISTORY OF CHELSEA

[Chap. Ill

wood Dolivorcd at tho Card house at winnoscmmit for the ubc of the Card since the first day of this Instant

Jon^i Green." *

On this estate, in 1779, Jonathan Green hoarded the town schoolmaster at Winnisimmet four weeks at £3 10s. per week; and in 1780 for nine weeks at £12 per week, — such had heen the depreciation of paper money. Two and one-fourth cords of wood for this school cost the town £135.^

[December 21, 1785, Jonathan Green conveyed to Josiah Capen of Chelsea, Gentleman, one hundred fifteen acres " with two dwell- ing houses three barns one Cyder house one chaise house one wood house one little house bounded Southerly on the river that runs from Boston to Medford to Low water mark westerly and North- westerly on the mill river partly and westerly partly on Marsh of Thomas Sergeant Northerly on Marsh of Moses Collins and also westerly on said Collins marsh Northerly Northeasterly and Easterly on the Island end river so called and Easterly on land of Samuel Watts excepting out of said piece of Land the road or way that goes by said Easterly house." By the same deed he conveyed four acres in the dammed marsh, in what was formerly the Tuttle farm (in what is now Eevere). The lands were con- veyed subject to a mortgage of 480 " pounds of lawful silver money " to Ebenezer Putnam of Salem, physician. December 22, 1785, Josiah Capen mortgaged the land to Jonathan Green to secure a part of the purchase money, and August 28, 1787, quitclaimed the land to Jonathan Green of Stoneham for £700, and a release from his mortgage bond. He included also in the couTeyance a pew in the southeast comer of Chelsea meeting- house between the pews of Samuel Watts and Samuel Pratt.'']

* ChaTriberlain MSS., iii. 149. [Draft in handwriting of Jonathan Green. He delivered four cords six feet of wood at the guard house between October 1 and November 25, 1775. Ibid.]

° Chamberlain MSS., vi. 125, 163. [Bills in the handwriting of Jonathan Green, with the order for payment endorsed on the back. For boarding the schoolmaster in March and April, 1779, Green charged £4 16s. a week. Ibid.]

" Suff. Deeds, L. 154, ff. 71, 73; L. 161, f. 29. [Stevens states that Green returned to Stoneham in 1786 and was " the most active man of the town in public affairs." In 1836, Sarah Green of Stoneham testified that she had lived in Jonathan Green's family for one year from April, 1785, and that he removed to Stoneham in April, 1786. Peter Green et al. V. Chelsea, March term of the Superior Court, 1836. He was chosen selectman of Stoneham in 1788, town clerk in 1789. He represented Stone- ham in the Convention that ratified the Federal Constitution. He died August 25, 1795.]

Chap. Ill]

APPENDIX 8

65

APPENDIX 8

DYKE AND DAM AT ISLAND-END RIVER

Among the ■old Chelsea marshes — such as " The College Marsh," "The Town Marsh," " The Dammed Marsh" — was that which, without any descriptive name, lies between Chelsea and Everett and stretches from the mouth of Island-End River to the foot of Powderhom HilL Originally this marsh was inter- sected by several creeks which were navigable by shallow boats, and at high tide the whole was covered by water.

In the lifetime of Hon. Samuel Watts, and of his brother Daniel, the principal owners of this marsh, there appears to have been no attempt to exclude the tide waters from overflowing it; but when, near the close of the last century, it had chiefly passed from those families, the several proprietors united for the build- ing of a d3'ke and dam, and February 17, 1789 [Samuel Danforth (son-in-law of Hon. Samuel Watts)], Samuel Watts (son of Hon. Samuel Watts), Benjamin Blaney (then owner of the estate on County Avenue, later known as the Heard Estate), Isaac Smith, Daniel Waters, Ezra Sargent, Nehemiah Oakes, Calvin Chittenden, Moses Collins, Jonathan Green, Mary Haugh (Hough), Joseph WTiittemore, and Aaron Dexter, proprietors of a marsh lying on each side of Island River, running into Maiden [later Everett], and Chelsea, were authorized "to make and maintain a dam for the purpose of fencing out the sea from the said marsh." ^

February 3, 1791, Jonathan Green, then owner of the United States Hospital grounds, with some adjacent marsh land, sold

* Massachusetts Acts and Resolves, chap. 74 Acts of 1788. [The peti- tion to the Legislature, dated January 15, 1789, was signed by all the proprietors of the marsh except Mrs. Haugh, who was living at a distance. The marsh contained about three hundred acres. The dam was to be built across Maiden River above the landing-place; and the dyke was to run from the dam across the marsh to the upland on Captain Jonathan Green's farm. Its situation can be seen on the plan of the Naval Hospital grounds drawn by S. P. Fuller, December, 1827, in the Massachusetts Archives. For the ownership of this marsh, see chap. vii. appendix.]

66

HISTORY OF CHELSEA

tClIAP. Ill

to the same proprietors one and orui-half acres of " marsh land where the said Dyke now is, being of an equal width from the River to the Upland — and also twelve feet in Width all the way from the Eivcr to the Upland on each side of said Dyke." '

' Suff. Deeds, L. 171, f. 248.

Chap. Ill]

APPENDIX 9

57

APPENDIX 9

Hon. John Low, a surveyor thoroughly acquainted with Chel- sea, says that the original Maverick Ferry Landing was westerly of Chelsea Bridge, and that Eichard Bellingham, after his purchase of that part of the Maverick estate to the east thereof, built a new landing on his own estate, between the present bridge and ferry landing. There is much to confirm this statement. That there were old ferryways not far easterly of the bridge I per- sonally know, as the late James Hovey and myself, near neigh- bors, often made use of them in bathing, summer mornings long before the world was up. [When Benjamin Brintnall, in 1769, conveyed to Green the westerly seventj^-seven acres of the estate, — retaining the easterly forty acres; — the east bound of the land sold began " at the Southeast corner, of said tract of land, at a heap of stones on the edge of the bank, at the Sea, a little North- east of the old Winnessimmet Ferry Ways so called," and ran northeasterly over the hill, and across the marsh about two rods, to a ditch in the marsh; thence southwest to Mill Eiver. This proves conclusively that at some time in the past there were ferryways on what is- now the Naval Hospital estate. The same deed gave to Green " forever, an uninterrupted passing open way, the whole wedth between the bank of said Sea, up. to my inclosure from the South easterly corner of said tract of land Eastwardly to the open County Eoad forever, (to lay common for ever for the use of the said Jonathan Green . . . and all other persons that have any concerns with him or them)." This grant of a right of way would not have been necessary if the public road from Winnisimmet Ferry started at that time from the beach at the eastern comer of the estate conveyed. In 1713, Edward Watts, who had recently taken possession of the Ferry Farm, petitioned for leave to erect a gate on the road between his house and that of John Brintnall, on the ground that such had been the custom " above these fifty years." ^ Obviously the

* Mass. Archives; infra, chap. xxv. appendix.

58

HISTORY OF CHELSEA

[Chap. Ill

forry must have started from a landing on the Fe^ry Farm at til at period, as a gate, on the road from Lynn to the ferry, would have obstructed travel too seriously, and would not have been desired by the owner of the ferry franehisc. In 1836 Sarah Green testified that in 1785 the ferryways stood " opposite said Watts' tavern house. They went nearly straight up towards said house." * Until the laying out of the Salem Turnpike, the road which ran " Westerly of Winnesimit Ferryways " was the only connection of the Brintnall, later the Green, farmhouses with the outer world by land.] The southerly boundary in Green's deed to Dexter was partly on the Mystic River and partly on the old road, which indicates that it went westerly of the bridge, through the United States grounds, to the original ferry landing. This piece of upland and flats not included in Dexter's purchase had heen used for many years as a town landing, and the town's title to it rested on long possession. April 7, 1806, a committee was appointed by the town " to treat with William Hall respecting building a wharf on the Town Landing near Chelsea Bridge"; but May 5, the town voted not to accept his proposal.

The heirs of Jonathan Green, who died at Stoneham in 1795, brought suit for the property, and prevailed in the Supreme Court.^ The case of Peter Green et als. v. Chelsea, March 1, 1836, is No. 125 on the docket; and among the papers are references to the title from Samuel Maverick, votes of Boston and Chelsea, and the deposition of Rebecca Hays, daughter of Jonathan Green, who lived on the place some years. What disposition the Greens made of