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THE
DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD
ESSEX COUNTY, MASS.
By SIDNEY PERLEY,
AUTHOR OF "HISTORY OF BOXFORD, MASS."; "GOODRIDGE MEMORIAL;"
"POKTS OF ESSEX COUNTY, MASS."; "HISTORIC STORMS
OF NEW ENGLAND;" ETC.
SALEM, MASS.
PUBLISHED IiV Till''. ESSEX INSTITUTE.
1893.
IN EXCHANGE
OCT 1 S 1914
INTRODUCTION.
Many of the facts contained in this volume were ob-
tained when material for the History of Boxford was be-
ing gathered from 1876 to 1880. Together with additional
information gleaned from old people and records during
the three years next succeeding, they were published in
an order similar to the present in the Georgetown Advocate
in 1883 and 1884. The sketches were extensively read by
old residents and natives, who corrected errors and fur-
nished much additional information. At the request of
the late Dr. Henry Wheatland, president of the Essex In-
stitute, the sketches have been revised and greatly en-
larged, and are now published by the Institute.
Sidney Perley.
Salem, Mass., March 10, 1893.
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
The following pages contain sketches of the history of
the houses of Boxford, both of those now standing and of
those known only in history. Concerning a number
of old cellars to be found in the town little or nothinsr is
known. The writer has gathered much information rela-
tive to the homes of Boxford and places it in this form that
their history may not pass into oblivion.
1.
Eobert Gould Cellar. —Robert Gould, who is said
to have come from New Jersey and to have been born
about 1795, built, about 1846, a small house in the woods
about half a mile east of the residence of the late Isaac
Hale. After living there about a year, his house was de-
stroyed' by tire, and he disappeared from the neighbor-
hood.
2.
Joseph Holden Cellar. — The old Holden cellar, so
called, in the Ridges, was covered by a dwellinga hundred
years ago. Joseph Holden was living there in 1791. lie
was a brother of James Holden, who lived at No. 204,
near the residence of Mr. James A. Elliott. The old
house was set on tire and burned down about eighty-live
years ago.
(l)
2 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
3.
Residence of L. S. Howe. — The residence of Mr.
Leverett Saltonstall Howe was built by himself, on land
bought of Isaac Hale, in 1849. Mr. Howe was from
Linebrook Parish, Ipswich.
4.
Residence of E. Howe. — Mr. Edward Howe erected
his house in 1844, on land bought of Isaac Hale. Mr.
Howe is a brother of Mr. L. S. Howe (No. 3) and was
also from Linebrook Parish. He married, for his first wife,
Mary Ann, daughter of the late Gen. Solomon Lowe, in
1841, and at first resided in the house now owned and oc-
cupied by his brother, Mr. William A. Howe, at the vil-
lage, opposite the post office (No. 104). Mrs. Howe died
in 1842, and he exchanged houses with his brother William
who then owned and occupied the present home of Mr.
Daniel Bixby (No. 10). Upon his second marriage, in
1844, he erected his present residence and has since lived
in it.
Mr. Howe began shoe-manufacturing in No. 104 at the
village in 1838 and built the factory at his present resi-
dence in 1845. His son William Wallace Howe became
a partner with him in 1876, and the firm name since that
time has been " E. Howe & Son."
Prof. James Hamilton Howe, dean of the department
of music in De Pauw University, Greencastle, Ind., is a
son of Mr. Edward Howe, and was born in this house in
1856.
5.
Residence of W. W. Howe.— Isaac Hale built his
shoe factory in 1859, and manufactured shoes for several
years. In 1887, the building was purchased of John
Hale, who then owned it, by Mr. William W. Howe (so
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 3
of Mr. Edward Howe of No. 4), who remodelled it into
a very pleasant home. Since it was finished in 1888 he
has resided in it.
6.
Residence of Mrs. Margaret Hale. — The land on
which the house of Mrs. Isaac Hale now stands, for a con-
siderable distance around, was two hundred years ago in
the possession of Thomas Perley. He was a son of Allan
and Susanna (Bokenson) Perley, the emigrant ancestors
of the Perley family in America, was born in what is now
Topstield in 1(341, and lived first in Rowley. Purchasing
a large tract of land in Boxford of Richard Dole of New-
bury, he built a house on the site now occupied by the
residence of Mrs. Hale, about 1684, and afterward lived
there. He died Sept. 24, 1709. He was an influential
man, being one of the early representatives to the Gen-
eral Court and an incumbent of most of the town offices.
He was the ancestor of the majority of the Perleys in
America. His descendants have been prominently before
the world, holding many offices of trust and honor, being
teachers of morals, religion and science, practitioners of
medicine, the law, etc. His wife was Lydia Peabody,
daughter of Lieut. Francis Peabody, the holder of vast
tracts of land in this section of New England.
Mr. Perley was succeeded on the homestead, by a devise
in his will, by his son Thomas, who was born in 1668 and
who resided with his father as long as the latter lived. He
married, first, Sarah, daughter of Capt. John Osgood of
Andover, in 1695. She died in 1724, and Lieutenant Per-
ley, as he was then called, married, second, Elizabeth,
widow of Joseph Putnam of Salem village and mother of
Gen. Israel Putnam, in 1727. The general was :it this
time about eight years of age, and as his mother was his
guardian it is probable that he spent several years of his
4 TTTF DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
minority in his step-father's home at this place. Boxford
was a place he liked to visit, even after he became fa-
mous. Mr. Perley was a farmer of large means, a store-
keeper and a public man. In the militia company of the
town he became a captain, and in his public duties he rep-
resented the town in the halls of legislation in 1700, 1702,
residence ov Mrs. Margaket Hale.
1703, 1707, 1709, 1718 and 1719. He died in 1745, at
the age of seventy-seven, having been the lather of eleven
children. Among his descendants was Dr. William Put-
nam Richardson. In his will he divided his farm between
his sons Thomas and Asa. Thomas had that part now
known as the Cleaveland farm, and Asa's portion included
the homestead.
Asa Perley took up his residence in the house in which
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. O
he was horn (in 1716) and had always lived, after his
marriage, in 1738, with Susanna Low of Essex. He was
afterward married to Mrs. Apphia Porter of D;mvers and
to Mrs. ltuth Kimball of Bradford. In 1760, or about
that date, he took the old house down and erected the
mansion now standing. After completing the house and
caring for the surroundings he set out a sapling elm,
which has grown to be one of the largest and most beau-
tiful elms in the state. Here Asa lived while passing
through his distinguished career. For ten years he was a
selectman; in 1771, 1772, 1780 and 1781, he was repre-
sentative from Boxford to the General Court, and in 1775
— that noted year in the history of the nation — he was a
member of the Provincial Congress. The records of this
Congress show that in it he held prominent positions, and
private papers in the possession of his descendants indi-
cate that he was privy to those secret discussions and ma-
noeuvres that characterized the opening months of the
American Revolution. It is a fact worthy of mention
that seven of his sons fought in that struggle for inde-
pendence. Major Pei ley, so called from his position in
the militia, died at his home in April, 1806, at the age of
nearly ninety. His widow survived him but fourteen
days, and within a fortnight their aged remains were both
laid to rest in mother earth. Among the descendants of
Major Asa Perley are Prof. John Perley of the Maine
Wesleyan Seminary and College, liev. James E. Clark of
Maine, Theodore Ingalls King, professor of music, Wash-
ington, D. C, and Hon. Dudley W. Adams, master of
the National Grange of the Patrons of Husbandry.
At Mr. Perley's death, the place came into the posses-
sion of his son Samuel. Samuel was bora in 1757, mar-
ried Phebe Dresser of Rowley in 1798, and from that time
resided with his aged parents and carried on the firm.
6 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
Little more than a year passed after the death of his par-
ents, when, one day early in June, 1807, he cut himself
with a scythe while mowing. From the effects of this
wound he died on the eighteenth of the same month at the
age of forty-nine. His widow was left in rather strait-
ened circumstances, with three young children to provide
for, — their ages being seven, four and three years. She
did her duty nobly. She cultivated the farm, carried her
produce to market, carefully husbanded that which was left
to her care, and reared her children to honest and noble
manhood. Her first born, the Hon. Ira Perlcy, chief jus-
tice of the supreme court of New Hampshire, and the
most distinguished of the American Perleys, here at his
mother's knee learned his first lessons ; here by the light of
the hearth fire pored over his first school books ; here in
this home grew in love for honesty and in integrity, de-
veloping manly character. Her second child inherited a
feeble constitution and died at the age of twenty-live. The
youngest child was Dr. Daniel Perley, who practised med-
icine in Georgetown and Lynn, and was the author of
"Perley's Grammar." The children arc all dead, the last,
the doctor, dying in Lynn in 1879 of paralysis. Mrs. Per-
ley carried on the farm until 1833, when it was sold to
Israel and Isaac Hale. She afterward lived with her son
Daniel in Georgetown and Lynn, and died in the latter
place in 1850. Her remains lie by the side of those of her
husband in Boxford and her epitaph, "All the days of my
appointed time will I wait," is very expressive as she was
a widow nearly half a century and had reached the age
of four score and seven.
In 1835, Israel Hale sold his interest in the farm to his
partner and brother Isaac Hale. Isaac, then twenty-one
years old, lived upon the place from that time, his mother
keeping house for him. In 1837, he married and till his
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 7
death in October, 1875, resided there. His widow still
lives upon the place.
Mr. Isaac Hale was born in the old Hale house (No. 9)
in 1814, and was son of Joseph and Martha (Friend) Hale.
He had but one child, which was still-born.
7.
Old Hale Cellar. — There was an old cellar about two
rods southeast of the little Hale house (No. 8), which was
tilled up some sixty years ago. A very old house stood
there.
8.
Little Hale House. — This house was built by Mr.
John Hale in 1823 for a store, but was never used for that
purpose. It was first occupied by Abraham Howe. The
builder lived in it from 1825 to 1830. Mr. Hale then
lived in Mrs. Perley's house (No. 6), 1830-1832, and
carried on her farm. His house, during this time, was oc-
cupied by Jonathan Chapman and John Perley. Mr.
Hale then moved back to his house and lived there from
1832 to 1834, when he bought and removed to his last
residence (No. 42). The house has since been occupied
by John Fegan, William Bly, John Sawyer, Samuel Shep-
herd (who used it as a shoe manufactory about a year),
John G. Bailey (who resided there over twenty years) ,
William Gunnison, Jacob Kent, Oliver B. Fogg, Jules
Hould and Frank Laporte. It is now in the possession
of Mr. Lewis D. Hale of Haverhill, who inherited it from
John Hale.
9.
Old Hale House. — This house was built by Joseph
Hale about the time of his marriage, which occurred in
1749. He was a son of Joseph and Mary (Hovey) Hale,
and was born in Boxford Sept. 14, 1727. His wife was
8 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
Sarah Jackson of Topsfield. They had six children : Sarah,
the oldest, married John Platts of Bradford, and settled in
Ilollis, N. II., in the beginning of the Revolution; Mary
married Levi Goodridge, who was living at the Daniel
Gould place, and settled in Westminster, Vt. ; Joseph died
at the age of two years ; Hannah married Caleb Jackson
of Rowley, and was the grandmother of Daniel and Luther
Jackson of that town ; Joseph (second child of that name)
settled on the old place ; and Mehitable married John
Merrill of Rowley in 1786.
Joseph Hale, jr., married Martha Friend in October,
1796, and settled on his father's homestead. All of his
children were born there. Among them were John, born
1801, who lived in Nos. 6, 8 and 42 ; Joseph, born 1805,
who lived there and in No. 14; Isaac, born 1814, who
lived in No. 6 ; Martha, who married and resided in Row-
ley ; and Israel, who lived in Stowe, Vt. Mr. Hale died
in 1818, and the houselot and buildings descended to his
son Joseph as his share of the estate. Widow Hale lived
with her son Isaac at No. 6 from 1835 for several years,
and then remarried and settled in New Hampshire.
The son Joseph lived on the old place until his removal
to No. 14 in 1837, when he sold to his brother Isaac, who
owned it as long as he lived (till 1875) and then it came
into the possession of his brother John, who died possessed
of it in 1888. Mr. Lewis D. Hale of Haverhill now owns
it, having inherited it from John Hale, who was his grand-
father. It has been a tenement house since 1837.
10.
Residence of D. Bixby. — This house was erected by
Mr. William A. Howe in 1841. He resided in it until
1843, when he sold it to his brother Mr. Edward Howe
and removed to his present residence at the village (No.
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. V
104). Mr. Edward Howe sold the place in the same year
to Mr. Daniel Bixby, who has since owned and occupied
it. Mr. Bixby was a son of Daniel and Sarah (Towue)
Bixby, and was born in Topstield in 1815.
11.
Residence of J. P. Cleaveland. — What is now the
Cleaveland farm was originally included in the Hale place,
as it is now called. Capt. Thomas Perley lived in No. 6 and
at his death, in 1745, devised this portion of his farm to his
son Thomas. This son was born in 1705 and married , in 1731 ,
his step-sister, Eunice Putnam, sister to General Israel, and
probably soon after built his house where James P. Cleave-
land, Esq., resides. Mr. Perley died in 1795, aged ninety,
having been a widower for eight years. He was a man
of property, of prominence and influence. His oldest
child, Huldah, married Joshua Cleaves of Beverly and
removed to Bridgton,,Me., when the town was first set-
tled. Her daughter Huldah was the wife of Rev. Nathan
Church, the first minister of Bridgton. Mr. Perley's next
child, Rebecca, died, unmarried, in 1813, at the age of
seventy-nine. She always lived in the east end of the
house. His son Israel, being sent to New Brunswick by
the governor of Massachusetts in 1761 on important busi-
ness, settled at Maugerville, on the St. John river. He
had a family of fourteen children, and among his descend-
ants are Col. Charles Strange Perley of Buford, N. B.,
Hon. James Edwin Perley of Woodbridgc, Cal., Hon. Wil-
liam Edward Perley of Blissville, N. B., and other distin-
guished men. His daughter Mary married Lieut. John
Peabody of North Andovcr, and finally settled in Bridg-
ton, Me. His son Oliver settled at Maugerville, N. B.,
in 1760, and his house is the oldest now standing in tin'
town. The Hon. Moses Henry Perley of New Brunswick
2
10 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
was a grandson. His son Thomas lived in No. 24, and
Enoch settled in Bridgton in the very earliest period of
its history. He was a man of uncommon ability and promi-
nence. Gen. John Perley of the Maine militia and Major
Thomas Perley were his sons. Among his descendants
are also Dr. Thomas F. Perley of Portland, Hon. Samuel
Farnsworth Perley of Naples and Dr. George Putnam Per-
ley. Aaron, the youngest son of Thomas Perley, resided
upon the homestead.
Aaron Perley was married in 1786 to Mehitable Wood,
who lived where the third-district schoolhouse now stands.
He resided in the old house until 1818, when he moved it
to where it now stands (see No. 12), and built on the
original site the house now the residence of Mr. Clcave-
land. Mr. Perley resided in his new house until his death
which occurred in the winter of 1831-2. His wife died in
1853, at the age of ninety-one. Mr. Perley was wealthy,
influential, and one of the two or three principal men
in the town and parish. He had ten children ; of whom
Israel died in New Brunswick, leaving a son Augustus of
New York city ; John was for many years a shoe-dealer
in Salem, where he died a few years since, for whom Per-
ley Block was named, his residence having occupied the
site; Enoch attended Exeter Phillips Academy in 1812,
and died two years later; Rebecca died, unmarried, eight
years ago at the homestead ; Harriet married William \.
Cleaveland, Esq., of Topsfield ; and Thomas lived at home.
Capt. Thomas Perley carried on the farm after his fath-
er's death, until 1856, when he died at the age of fifty-
eight, having never married.
His brother-in-law, Mr. Cleaveland, then moved to the
place and there spent the remainder of his days. He died
in 1872. His widow survived him about seven years, dy-
ing in 187fJ, at the age of seventy-five. Their son, Mr.
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 11
James Putnam Cleaveland, the present possessor, lias re-
sided on the place since his lather's death.
12.
Old Aaron Perley House. — Aaron Perley moved
this house to its present site from where the residence of
James P. Cleaveland, Esq., stands, in 1818, when Mr.
Perley built that house upon the old site. This house has
always been owned in connection with the farm, and has
been occupied by tenants, generally by those who have
been employed upon the farm. See No. 11 for its earlier
history. The chamber in this old house, that General Put-
nam used to occupy when he visited his sister, has been
pointed out with much pride by an aged granddaughter of
the builder, now deceased.
13.
Residence of W. P. Cleaveland. — The residence of
Mr. William Perley Cleaveland was built by Mr. John H.
Potter of Topsfield for Mr. Cleaveland in 1858. Warwick
Bodwell lived there two years, and Mr. Cleaveland board-
ed with him. Then the owner married and has since re-
sided upon the place. He carried on the butchering busi-
ness there more than a score of years, He was a son of
Wm. N. Cleaveland, Esq., who resided in No. 11, and was
born in Killingly, Conn.
14.
Residence of T. P. Killam. — The old house thai
formerly occupied the site of Mr. T. Perley Killam's
house was built by Nathaniel Perley about 1759. Mr.
Perley was a son of Amos and Margaret (Cogswell) Per-
ley and was born in 1735, it is supposed in the old house
that once stood in the pasture owned by B. S. Barnes,
Esq., situated near the Great Meadows. The house of
which we are writing was 24 x 40 feet, with two huge
12 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORP.
rooms in front, and a large kitchen and two bedrooms in
the rear. It was two stories in height, and had the old-
fashioned, long, low hack roof. The barn was quite large,
36 x 50. Here Mr. Perley reared his large family of nine
children, and died in July, 1810, at the ago of seventy-
live. Here, in 17 63, was born his son Nathaniel Perley,
Esq., who was a gifted lawyer and a prominent member
of the Kennebec bar in Maine. Here were born also his
sons Amos, Jesse and Arte mas Ward, the founders of three
families. Lois, another child, married Benjamin Adams
of Georgetown in 1798, and became the mother of Mrs.
Col. Kimball and George W. Adams of Georgetown, and
of the late Benjamin of Topsfield and Charles H. of Dan-
vcrs, the deputy sheriff. Mehitable, another daughter of
Mr. Perley, who died in 1835, left a legacy in her will
toward building the present East Parish church.
Mr. Perley was known as "Cooper Nat," being a cooper
by trade. His workshop stood over the old cellar in the
same lot with the house and was built about 1760. Of
this shop we will speak in No. 15.
After his death, Mr. Perley's son, Artemas Ward, re-
sided upon the place until the buildings were burned to the
ground in April, 1832. His son, the late Dea. Haskell
Perley of Georgetown, has told the writer of several in-
cidents of the house having caught fire. One, relating
more particularly to himself, occurred before he was mar-
ried, when he was at work for the season on a farm in
Topsfield. He said he retired one night, but he could not
sleep. A strong presentiment that something was wrong
at home came over him. He tried to throw off the disa-
greeable feeling, but could not ; and at length, just be-
fore midnight, he went to the stable, threw the saddle on
one of the horses and seating himself upon it started to-
ward home. When he came within sight of the house he
saw a light in one of the front rooms and thought some-
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 13
thins; must be wrong for the family to be up at that time
of the night. He felt convinced that his presentiment was
not an illusion. On riding up in front of the windows he
saw the room on fire. Jumping from his horse he went to
the back room where the pails were kept, caught up two
of them, went to the well and filled them with water and
entering the burning room threw the water upon the lire.
By repeating the application several times he entirely put
it out. Doors were not locked in those days, else the
fire would have been more serious. The few coals left
in the fireplace when the family retired doubtless fell
against the wooden fireboard, after a while setting it on fire,
and but for the providential appearance of young Haskell
the house must have been burned and perhaps the inmates
themselves might have found a tomb then and there. With-
out disturbing the family, Haskell put up his horse, went
into the house and to bed. The next morning the family
were surprised to find him at home, but were amazed when
he related to them their narrow escape from death.
After the house was burned Artemas removed to Tops-
field, where he resided, except a short time when he was
at Hampstead, N. H., till his death which occurred in
1862. Joseph Hale bought the farm of Mr. Pcrley about
1839, and building a small house (No. 15), where the old
cooper shop used to stand, lived in it until he had erected
the present house and barn in 1841-2. Hale disposed of
the place in 18G2, since which time it has been occupied
by Tobias Keed, George T. Savory, William Dow, George
B. Merrill, Walter R. Arrington and the present owner,
Mr. Thomas P. Killam.
15.
Joseph Hale Cellar. — The little house that used to
stand on the corner near the site of the old fourth-dis-
14 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
trict schoolhouse was the cooper shop built by Nathaniel
Perley about 17G0. After his death in 1810, it was used
as a tenement until it was so far decayed as to be unfit for
use. The building was low studded, contained two rooms,
had one chimney, in the middle, and a cellar. In 1814,
Jacob Lofty lived there. He died there the next year.
John Woodman, the blacksmith (who as well as Mr.
Lofty worked in the shop near by), lived there for about a
year. This was about 1822. The building disappeared
soon after. In 1840, Joseph Hale, who was born in No.
9 and who had purchased this farm of Artemas W. Per-
ley, enlarged the cellar and erected over it a small house,
about 12 x 16 feet. It contained but one room in front
and a pantry and bedroom in the rear on the ground and
was one story in height. Mr. Hale lived in this house
about one year, until his new house, No. 14, was finished.
After Mr. Hale's removal, the house was occupied by Ja-
cob Knight, Hasket Bixby and George Smith. Mr. Smith
was living there in 1844, when the house by some means
caught on fire and was burned to the ground. The cellar
has since remained uncovered.
16.
Ezra Wildes Cellar. — The house in which the family
of Ezra Wildes lived during his service in the army of the
Revolution stood over the old cellar which is situated some
twenty-live rods west of the residence of Capt. John Pea-
body. Zebulon Wildes, father of Ezra, owned the house
lot and probably lived in this house in 1750. A part of
the house was taken down about 1776, and the rest re-
moved to No. 18, afterward forming part of the old house
there. The cellar has been uncovered since that time.
Ezra afterward lived for a short time in No. 36. He was
a fiddler, and was commonly known as "Fiddler Wildes."
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
15
From him perhaps his descendants in Georgetown inher-
ited their musical gifts.
17.
Residence of John Peabody. — Capt. John Peabody's
house was built by Charles Perley about 1830. Mr. Per-
ley was born at No. 18 in 1794, and was son of Amos Per-
ley. He resided in his new house until about 1834, when
he sold out to Mr. Peabody. Mr. Perley moved to his
birthplace, and there died of consumption in October, 1837.
His wife joined him the following February. They left
»
Residence of John Peabody.
two young children. Mr. Peabody was born in No. 68
in 1806 ; married Henrietta Baker of South Georgetown
in 1831 ; and resided for three years in No. 18, where was
born his son John Perley Peabody, the veteran dry and
fancy goods dealer of Salem. Mr. Peabody has resided
at this place fifty-six years.
18.
Residence of Humphrey Perley.— A house wasbuill
on the same site as the present residence of Mr. Hum-
phrey Perley, probably by Josiah Bridges, a blacksmith,
as early as 1710 and perhaps earlier. He was son of Ed-
16 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
mund Bridges, the immigrant from England, and was
born about 1650. He married, first, Elizabeth Norton,
and second, Ruth Greenslip, in Ipswich, where he at first
lived, removing to Boxford just before 1680. For £50
he sold his homestead, consisting of ten acres of land (the
same now included in the homestead) and dwelling house,
barn, shop, well, etc., to Cornelius Balch of Boxford in
1713, and removed to Wenham.
Mr. Balch was from Topslield and was a cooper by
trade. He died in Boxford in 1740, and his widow Mary
and son Cornelius Balch, jr., conveyed the place to Jacob
Easty of Topsfield, to which place they removed.
Mr. Easty was a husbandman and resided at this place
until 1744, when he sold out to George Start of Topsfield
for £87 10s.
Mr. Start was a tailor and probably lived there about
six or eight years, when the place came into the posses-
sion of Capt. Francis Perley, who lived where Mr. De W.
C. Mighill now resides (No. 74). Captain Perley's son
Capt. William Perley, of Bunker Hill fame, was married
March 26, 1761, and commenced housekeeping at this place.
Here on Dec. 24 of the same year was born his son Rev.
Humphrey Clark Perley, minister at Methuen and Bev-
erly. When an old man, he often pointed this out as his
birthplace.
By the will of Capt. Francis Perley, in 1765, this place
came into the possession of his son Jacob. William moved
to a house which he had just erected (No. 75), it being the
present town almshouse. Jacob was born in 1751 ; mar-
ried in 1775 : became the owner of the house which stood
over the Ezra Wildes cellar (No. 16) ; took down a part of
the house; and, removing the remainder to the present
site of this house, added it to it. It was thus made two
stories in height, about thiity-two feet in length, with a
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
17
common pitch roof and fronting to the south. Jacob Perley
removed to Reading in 1777, and thence to Byfield in 1779.
Among his children, born in Byfield, were Hon. Jeremiah
Perley, who married Mary Dnmmer, was a legal writer,
and for many years a successful lawyer in Maine, and Put-
nam Perley, a deacon of the Byfield church. Jacob Per-
ley died in 1832, at the age of eighty-one.
Mr. Perley sold this place March 28, 1786, for the sum
of £220, to Amos Perley, jr., a son of Nathaniel Perley
who lived in No. 14. Amos was the first born of nine
children, and, marrying two years after the purchase of
iim
ULD AMOS i'KKLlSV lloL'oE.
this place, he settled upon it. Here his nine children were
born, and here he resided until his death, which occurred
Aug. 3, 1829, at the age of seventy. His widow (who
was before his marriage to her the widow of Phineas Knnd-
lett, who lived in No. 100, and whose maiden name was
Kimball) married Capt. John Kimball of West Boxford
three years after Mr. Perley's death, the place being after-
ward occupied by Capt. John Peabody till about 1834, and
till 1838 by the family of Mr. Perley's son Charles. Of
Mr. Perley's other children, Greenleaf died ai Calcutta,
when on an East India voyage ; Nathaniel resided in Tops-
18
THE DWELLINGS OF LOXFORD.
field and Danvers, and became a general in the state mili-
tia ; Frederic was a grocer at Topsfield and a shoe manu-
facturer in Danvers, where he died very suddenly in 1879 ;
and Amos Proctor, who was for many years a grocer at
Danvers, of the firm of Perley & Currier.
The farm was sold Nov. 15, 1839, by the heirs of Amos
Perley to Alpheus A. W. Lake of Charlestown. Mr.
Lake let the house to his father Enos Lake, Avho died here,
and to Daniel Boardman, Benjamin Symonds, Daniel
lli',S10Jb.N<JE Ui-' iiUJli'llKJLi i'Jilii-lii.
Noyes, and an Indian family, who were addicted to the in-
temperate use of tire water.
Mr. Lake sold the place to John Perley of Ipswich,
June 7, 1856, and by him it was deeded shortly after to
the present owners. The old house was taken down in
1859, and the new one completed the following year.
The Perley Brothers began their carriage business there
in November, 1873.
" It may be small and poor and lowly, yet
"We love it always; memory may All
Her chambers full, and time and care may chill
Our hearts, yet stands the dear old homestead set
In picture that we never can forget." II . II.
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 19
19.
Residence of Elbridge Perley. — Mr. Elbridge Per-
ley erected his house in the winter of 1889-90.
20.
Residence of Prof. C. H. Moore. — The summer res-
idence of Charles Henry Moore, professor of art in Har-
vard College, was built by Samuel Goodale about 1830.
Mr. Goodale was from New Hampshire. He married
Nancy, sister of Daniel Boardman, now of Georgetown,
but who lived for a while at No. 18. Mr. Goodale was a
stone mason, and he worked at that trade and upon his
land, residing in this house, until his death, which oc-
curred in January, 1872, at the age of seventy-three.
Mrs. Goodale died the November previous, at the age of
sixty-five.
Mr. Goodale's executor sold the place, in the spring of
1873, to John T. Kennett of West Newbury. Mr. Ken-
nett resided there until the spring of 1887, when he sold
out to Professor Moore of Cambridge, who has remodelled
and improved the house and since then has spent his sum-
mers there. Mr. Kennett removed to Georgetown, where
he died the next year.
21.
Pekley Cellar near Great Meadows. — It is believed
by the writer that the old Perley house that once stood
over the cellar situated in Mr. Barnes' pasture near the
Great Meadows, was built and occupied by John Perley
(son of Allan Perley, the emigrant), the first of the name
born in America, who settled in Boxford as early as 1683.
He died in 1729, at the age of ninety-three. I lis wife had
preceded him to the grave eleven years before, and both
their monumental stones are well preserved over their re-
mains in Harmony Cemetery.
Mr. Perley was his own executor; consequently no rec-
20 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
ord of the settlement of his estate is found in the probate
office. On Christmas clay, 1728, he deeded this place in-
cluding the buildings and fifty acres of land to his son
Jeremiah Perley.
Jeremiah Perley probably conveyed it to his brother
Lt. Thomas Perley, who, after having lived a while at
Topsfield, removed to the old homestead about 1712. He
died there in 1740, aged seventy-two.
His son Amos then came into the possession of the place
and probably carried it on until his death in the spring of
1748. His widow married, secondly, Lt. Mark Howe of
Ipswich and removed thither in 1759. From Amos was
descended the late Hon. Nathan W. Hazen of Andover.
In 1833 the house was gone, and the land owned by
Thomas Perley.
22.
Hazen Cellar. — There is an old cellar near the Great
Meadows in the pasture owned by Mr. Chester Killam,
known as the Hazen cellar. It is understood that Jacob
Hazen, who came from Eowley and married Abigail Spof-
ford in 17(51, lived there. They had seven children born
there, the last in 1774, and soon after, probably, they re-
moved to Bridgton, Me. Their daughter Hannah, born
in 1764, was the "witch" of Spofford's Hill, in Georgetown,
a century ago. She married Thomas Dresser in 1791,
and removed to Andover, Me. The late Hon. N. W. Hazen
of Andover was a grandson of Mr. Hazen. Several of
the sons settled in Bridgton, and have numerous descend-
ants.
The old house has probably been gone three quarters of
a century, as no one living remembers it.
23.
Jewett Cellar. — There was an old cellar near the
residence of Mr. Chester Killam, in the southeast coiner
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 21
of the field around the house. It has been filled up many
years, and no signs of it now remain.
Thomas Jewett was born in Rowley in 1666, married
Hannah Swan in 1692, and came to Boxford about 1703,
having married a second wife Faith. He purchased the
hind, built the house and founded the home of which we
are now writing. He died in 1731, at the age of sixty-
five.
His son Ezekiel (born 1693) came into the possession
of the place, and carried it on after his father's death.
He had a family of thirteen children, and among them was
Rev. David Jewett, the first minister of Candia, N. H.,
who was born at this place in 1743. Mr. Jewett died in
the fall of 1775, and four years later his heirs sold to Dea.
James Chute of Rowley, who was to come into possession
upon the widow's death. Some of the children were then
residing in New Hampshire. Deacon Chute was connected
with the family, his wife's sister having married Rev. David
Jewett, one of the heirs. The widow died probably in
1780, and in the next year Mr. Chute came from Rowley
to Boxford to live. The inventory of Mr. Jewett's estate
shows him possessed of the following articles of dress :
One beeveret hat, a brown all wool coat, a fustian jacket,
a pair leather breeches, a fustian coat, a linen jacket, an
old blue serge coat, a blue jacket, an old brown coat, an
old brown fly coat, an old blue great coat, a cotton and
linenjacket,twopairof old linen trousers, two woolen shirts,
three old linen shirts, a pair of bine vain stocking-, three
pair of old brown stockings and a pair of old leggings, a
pair of leather spatter lashes, etc. His real estate was
valued at £278, and is described as follows: "The home-
stead and a wood lot parted from it by land of Jacob Ila-
zen, containing in the whole about sixty-three acres lying
in Boxford, also a piece of fresh meadow lying partly in
22 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
Boxford and partly in Rowley, containing about five acres,
also about three acres salt marsh lying in Rowley."
Mr. Chute was born in Rowley in 1751 ; and married a
daughter of Deacon Richard Thurston of Georgetown four
days before the battle of Bunker Hill. Before 1810, he
had removed to Byfield, where his wife died in 1819.
He then went west, and died at Madison, Ind., in 1825,
at the age of seventy-four. The Rev. Ariel Parish Chute
was his grandson. Mr. Chute's daughter Mary, who mar-
ried Col. Jeremiah Column of Newbury, and sons Daniel
and James, were born here. Daniel, born in 1787, gradu-
ated at Dartmouth College in 1810. His daughter Eliza-
beth married Gov. Conrad Baker of Indiana. James, born
in 1788, graduated at Dartmouth College in 1813, and
was a Presbyterian minister at Fort Wayne, Indiana. His
second wife was a widowed daughter of Rev. Samuel
Crane, a missionary to the Tuscarora Indians.
On his removal to Bytield Deacon Chute sold the place
to Thomas Perley, Esq., of Boxford, who took the old
house down, and removed to his new house in the same
lot. See No. 24.
24.
Residence of Chester Killam. — Thomas Perley,
Esq., purchased the farm of the late William E. Killam
of Deacon Chute (see No. 23) about 1809. In December
of that year he married Sarah, daughter of Thomas Wood,
who was born in No. 34. In that, or the following year,
he built the house now standing, and afterward resided
in it. He was a brother of Aaron Perley, and was born
in No. 12 in 174(3.
Mr. Perley's barn stood originally about halfway from
the present barn to the house. It was struck by lightning
and binned September 2(5, 1829. A long carriage house
stood on the site of the present one, and was burned at
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 23
the same time. In it was a number of barrels of vinegar,
which burst with the heat, making a noise as loud as a can-
non. In the northwest chamber of the house, cheese was
manufactured, and the heat was so great that the cheese
melted. All the glass in the rear side of the house cracked
into minute fragments.
He was the leading man in the town for many years.
He gave $1050 towards founding the First Church fund,
and liberally subscribed to every good object, his income
enabling him to gratify himself in that direction. He held
all the various offices in the town, and was a representa-
tive to the General Court nineteen years, from 1792 to
1810 inclusive. He died childless in 1831, at the age of
eighty-four. His widow continued to reside upon the
place until her decease in 1854, at the age of eighty-nine.
Mr. Perley is remembered as a man of short stature, and
as always wearing his clothing in the continental style.
After his decease his widow was commonly spoken of as
the "widow Squire."
The farm was then occupied by a Mr. Knapp, who lived
there a short time, and it was then sold by the heirs of
Mr. Perley to Eben S. Baldwin, a mariner of Salem, Oct.
26, 1857. He resided upon the farm until June 2, 1862,
when he sold out to George A. Todd of Rowley and re-
moved to Salem, where he died. Mr. Todd's son, William
G. Todd, then occupied the place until the spring of
1865, when it was purchased by the late William E. Kil-
lam, who resided there till his death in 1877. He held
the offices of town treasurer, school committee, selectman,
town clerk, etc., for several years. His son Mr. Chester
Killam has since carried on the farm.
During the autumn of 1862, while the camp was located
here, some Boston parties hired the buildings and kept a
public house which was called "Hotel Lauder."
24 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
25.
Clougii Cellar. — In the aiders near the gtiideboard
at the junction of the roads leading from Georgetown to
Salemand from Georgetown to Mr. B. S.Barnes' residence,
a century and a half ago stood the house of Daniel Clougii.
He came from Topsfield in 1736, having married Ruth
Wright there in 1734, and had three children, Elizabeth,
Ruth and John. His wife Ruth evidently died here as in
1739 he was published to Elizabeth Galloway of Ipswich.
How long this house has been gone is not known.
26.
M. Butman Cellar. — Matthew Butman married Faith,
daughter of Thomas Jewett who lived in No. 24, in May,
171(5, and he probably erected on land of her father a
house over what is known as the old Butman cellar, about
the time of his marriage. He was undoubtedly from Bev-
erly. His wife died during the winter following their
marriage, at the age of twenty-two, and thus early termina-
ted their wedded bliss. Her remains repose in Harmony
cemetery on the plain below her residence, and the monu-
mental tablet over them is the oldest one now existing in
the yard, appearing as fresh and perfect as those of recent
date. Her epitaph is as follows :
"Under this turf you may behold
A lamb of God lit for ye fold."
Mr. Butman married a second wife in 1720, and she be-
came the mother of five children.
He was the constable in his parish in 1736, but how
much longer the family remained there is not known. His
son John was living on the place in 1791, and continued
to live there until the old house was taken down in 1795,
which was probably done by Thomas Dresser, who had
bought it with the lot in April of that year.
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 25
27.
Residence of T. B. Masury. — Where Mr. Masury's
house stands, the old Wallingford house, as it was known
for many years before its demolition, once stood. It was
built in 1711 by Thomas Hazen, who lived in the old Per-
kins' house (No. 30), and was not wholly finished Feb.
28, 1711-12, when he sold this lot of land to Timothy Per-
kins of Topsfield, who, in 1720, sold it to his son Nathan-
iel Perkins, who lived at No. 30.
This part of the original farm probably returned to the
Hazen family from Mr. Perkins. Mr. Hazen's son John
married Mary Bradstreet of Topsfield about 1711, and
probably lived at this place till his removal to Lyme and
ultimately to Norwich, Conn. His cousin Israel, son of
his uncle Edward Hazen, probably also lived here. The
place was undoubtedly kept in the possession of the family
until 1784, March 10, when Moses Hazen, for £120, con-
veyed to Mary, the wife of Benjamin Wallingford, a part
of the land Avith the westerly half of the house, a right to
the well, and the easterly half of the barn which then stood
on the opposite side of the road. Mrs. Wallingford was the
mother of John Sawyer Blaisdell, better known in his time
as Johnny Blaisdell. Her first husband was John Blaisdell
of Chelmsford, who died "in the army of the Havannah"
soon after Johnny's birth in 1757. When Johnny was
two or three years old, with his mother he came to New-
bury, her native place, and when about eighteen went
with her to Byfield. While living in Byfield he married
Jane Adams of Rowley Dec. 13, 1781, and the following
extract from the Byfield church records proves the tradi-
tion that he lost his children :
"Two infant female children of John Blaisdell <li''<i <>nc in March
1782 yt lived but a little while. The other died in April 1783, who
lived about a fortnight."
i
26 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
The loss of these children and of his wife at about the
same time, it is said, partially bereft him of his reason,
and he was afterwards distinguished for his eccentricity, or
what the Scotch would call "daftness." Johnny afterwards
resided with his mother.
Mrs. Wallingford, a daughter of John Sawyer of New-
bury, was quite handsome in her youth, being known as
"fair Rosamond." Mr. Wallingford died in 1796, and
the family were soon in destitute circumstances. The
mother died in 1820 at the age of seventy-two, and Johnny
continued to reside in the west part of the house alone,
until his tragic end on Saturday evening, Jan. 7, 1832,
when he fell into the tire-place, and his remains were found
shortly after partially consumed.
The place, afterwards known as the " Wallingford," came
into the possession of Major Paul Nelson about 1800, and
continued to belong to him probably until his death in
1857, since which time it has been owmed by Mr. Thomas
B. Masury. In 1878 Mr. Masury demolished the old
house and erected his present residence upon the same site.
The old house was two stories in height with the old
fashioned lean-to, and the old well-sweep in front betokened
the days of "auld lang syne." On the window ledge of
the living room was the noon sun-mark, which was al-
ways in order and a good time-keeper when the sun sJione.
During the years the house was possessed by Major
Nelson, it w r as occupied by various tenants, Joseph Adams,
a man named Darling and others. Miss Mary Ann Friend,
daughter of John Friend, and afterwards wife of Prof.
George Conant of Coshocton, Ohio, and Alexander, N. Y.,
was reared here, her parents having removed from Andover.
She died at Alexander in 1883, at the age of fifty-three,
being a person much loved, and admired for her literary
tastes and productions. In 1847, lluldah llarrhnan, the
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 27
centenarian, could recall the names of one hundred faini
lies who had made this old house their home.
In 1736, when the throat distemper prevailed so fatally
among children over a large extent of country, several
died in this house. In 1776, the small-pox had come to
the inmates, and several were sick with it.
One of the residents always expressed a wish that he
might never live to see a road past the house, and in this
desire he was gratified, for before the Salem thoroughfare
was opened he had followed in the train of his predecessors
and was no longer numbered with the living.
28.
Albert Nelson Cellar. — Cornet Nelson moved a
peat house from the meadows to a situation opposite the
residence of Mr. T. B. Masury in 1857 and remodeled
it into a dwelling. He left his family, who were living
in Georgetown, and began a hermit's life in his new quar-
ters. He added to the building from time to time, and
continued to reside there until 1886, when he went to
Rowley and took up his residence in a similar habitation
near the marshes. The next year, he was found dead in
his house there. In 1888, the house in Boxford came
into the possession of Mr. Masury, who removed the build-
ings. Mr. Nelson was an eccentric man of considerable
natural ability. Ex-mayor Richards of Haverhill is his
grandson.
29.
Hardy Cellar. — In 1865, after the close of the war
of the Rebellion, Chandler 15. Hardy built a small house
on the southeast side of the road about half way from the;
residence of Mrs. Clara Tidds in Georgetown to Marden's
railroad crossing, where the cellar can be seen. Mr.
Hardy lived there till the autumn of 1868, when the house
28 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
was destroyed by fire, which was set out of enmity to Mr.
Hardy, by a girl living in the family.
30.
Perkins Cellar. — Some fifty rods nearly north from
the residence of Mr. Francis Marden, in a pleasant clear-
ing, are an apple tree and the remains of a well, near
which is a slight indentation in the ground which is all
that now remains of the cellar over which stood the Perkins
house. It was only one story in height, and w:is built ( ?)
and occupied by Thomas Hazen, son of Edward Hazen,
who was born in Rowley in 1657. He married Mary,
daughter of Thomas Howlett, in 1684, and came to Box-
ford to live at this place immediately after. Feb. 28,
1711-12, he sold the farm to Timothy Perkins of Tops-
field.
Mr. Hazen had a family of eleven children, all of whom
lived to grow up, and most of them followed their parents
to Norwich, Conn., about 1713. Mr. Hazen held quite
an honorable position in the town, having served as town
clerk one year, and as selectman seven years. His de-
scendants are many and of a distinguished character. One
of them is Rev. Hervey Crosby Hazen, lately a missionary
to India, and now a clergyman in Spencer, N. Y. Oth-
ers are Hon. Abraham D. Hazen, the late Third-assistant
Postmaster-General, and Gen. William B. Hazen, who
distinguished himself under Sherman in the war of the
Rebelliou, particularly by his brilliant capture of Fort
McAllister, near Savannah, on the "March to the Sea."
We could name many others, but space will permit only
mention of the following: Rev. Austin Hazen, pastor in
Hartford and Berlin, Vt. ; Rev. Allen Hazen, tor many
years a missionary in India; Rev. Jasper Hazen, one of
the oldest and most honored ministers of the Christian de-
nomination ; Rev. Henry A. Hazen, author of the History
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 29
of Billerica, Mass. ; Rev. Timothy Allyn Hazen of Go-
shen, Conn. ; and Rev. James King Hazen, Secretary of
the Board of Publication of the Presbyterian church
(South) at Richmond, Va.
Mr. Perkins conveyed the farm to his son Nathaniel
Perkins in the spring of 1720. Nathaniel was born in
Topsfield in 1689, and married Hephzibah, daughter of
Edward Hazen (brother of Thomas, above named), in
1716, and took up his residence here. Mr. Hazen had
lived here, we presume from the removal of his brother
in 1712, and continued to do so. Dr. David Wood, be-
sides being a widely known physician, was a justice of the
peace, and, in 1736, he charged Nathaniel Perkins for
writing "his father Hazen's will." Mr. Hazen died in
1748.
Nathaniel Perkins was a selectman in 1724 and 1745,
and an ensign in the militia in 1734, was made a lieuten-
ant in 1735, and a captain in 1742. He had nine chil-
dren. He died in 1773, at the age of eighty-four. In
his will he calls himself a "gentleman." His wife died
before 1768.
Mr. Perkins' youngest son Jacob succeeded him upon
the place, having married Mercy Fowler of Ipswich in
1759. He served eight months in the Cambridge cam-
paign in 1776. Shortly after his return late in the au-
tumn, the small-pox prevailed in the Walliugford house,
and one morning when the wind blew fresh from the south-
east, Mr. Perkins informed his family in a manner ex-
pressing great alarm, that he was assured the malady would
reach them, for the smoke from the chimney of the Hazen
house had been driving directly towards them. His fears
were shortly fulfilled, and hi; was the first one to be made
a victim. It is understood licit his wife was away at the
time of his sickness and a young girl had the care of him.
One day she went out coasting down the slopes around
30 TIIE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
the place and failed to administer the medicines at the
proper times. From this neglect, it has come down by-
tradition, Mr. Perkins died. He was buried on a knoll
a few rods west of the house, and but a few small frag-
ments of a gravestone remain to mark the spot. The in-
scription upon it was as follows : —
IN MEMORY OF
MR. JACOB PERKINS,
WHO DIED JANUARY
11, 1777, IN Ye 47th
YEAR OF HIS AGE.
Mortal man cast an eye,
Read your doom,
Prepare to die.
Trees have grown up over and around his grave, and it is
so completely obliterated that the next generation will not
know that any human remains find rest beneath the soil
of the knoll, or that in this spot a happy family once had
their hearthstone.
After Mr. Perkins' death this was used as a pest house,
and it is a tradition that a beautiful daughter of Deacon
Isaac Perley, who lived at the Harden place (No. 31),
and also Thomas Wood, who lived where the Third-Dis-
trict schoolhouse now stands, were victims to the dread
scourge in this house.
Mr. Perkins had no children. In his will, which was
made two and a half years before his death, he gives all
his property to his wife. His estate amounted to £3,597.
His widow married, secondly, Col. David Ilobart of Ply-
mouth, N. II., in 1779. Colonel Ilobart was a native of
Groton, born in 1720, and settled in that part of Hollis,
N. II., known as "One Pine Hill," about 1748; being
afterwards one of the grantees and first settlers of Ply-
mouth, lie was a sergeant in the French war in 1755,
and in 1777 was colonel of the Twelfth New Hampshire
regiment under General Stark at the battle of Bennington,
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 31
where he greatly distinguished himself for his gallantry
and good conduct, for which he received due commenda-
tion from General Stark, in his report of the battle. Af-
ter the death of his first wife Col. Hobart removed to Ha-
verhill, Mass., and lived there the rest of his days, dying
in his seventy-ninth year. His widow Mercy died at the
same place in 1811. They had but one child, Deborah,
who married Nathaniel Hills, an apothecary in Haverhill.
31.
Residence of F. Marden. — The old one-story house
that formerly stood in the rear of the residence of Mr. Fran-
cis Marden was occupied a hundred and twenty years ago,
tradition says, by Isaac Perley, who was known as "Dea-
con." He had a daughter of about twenty years of age,
who was famed for her beauty. When the small-pox
came into this neighborhood, and the Perkins house (No.
30) was opened as a pest house, several of those who
deemed themselves in danger took up their residence in
it willing to run the risk of living or dying, as the laics
might determine. It was believed that the disease would
prove harmless to persons in perfect health who properly
met it when it showed its first symptoms, and they would
have but the varioloid at the most. The deaths of num-
bers proved how uncertain this theory was. Mr. Perley's
daughter was one of those who went there to escape a more
dreadful form of the disease, but met it and died.
It is said that Mr. Perley very soon after removed to
Boston, Me., being succeeded upon the farm by Benjamin
Emerson before 1791. He was a stone-mason by trade,
and a relative of the Topsfield family of that name, being
known as "Brother" Emerson. lie fell from a load of
hay and broke his neck in August, 1823, when lie was
sixty-eight years old.
Shortly after the death of Mr. Emerson, his daughter
32 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
Betsey, into whose possession the place came, took down
the old house, and built on the same site another small
one-story house immediately afterward. She lived in it
here until about 1860, when she moved the house to
Georgetown, where an addition was made to it. It is the
house on Main street now owned by Mr. James Sullivan.
The present "Davis" house, as it is called, standing only
a few rods from the site of the old house, was built about
1800, presumably by Mr. Emerson. A Mr. Davis owned
the farm many years ago. By the side of the "Davis"
house stands the residence of Mr. Francis Marden, who
came from Maine, married a daughter of Mr. Davis, and
built the house in 1850. He now owns and cultivates the
farm. In the Davis house resides Mr. Marden's son Alvin.
32.
Joseph Killaju Cellar. — The old Killam house, once
standing east of Stevens' pond, was erected about 1730
by Jacob Perlcy, son of Jacob, who lived at No. 76. He
wa.s born in 1700, and married Sarah Morse of Newbury
in 1729. He died in the summer of 1750, leaving a widow,
Sarah, and several children : Isaac, who lived at No. 31 ;
Jacob, who settled in Chester, N. H. : Benjamin, who lived
on the old homestead ; Sarah, who married Jacob Wyman
of Bradford; and John who settled in Haverhill. The
last-named Jacob Perley was grandfather of Rev. Joshua
Perley Eaton of Bangor, Me.
Mr. Perley was succeeded on the place by his son Ben-
jamin, who was born in 1735, and married, first, in 1759,
Hannah Clarke of Boxford ; and, second, in 1773, Ap-
phia Andrews of Danvers. In 1783, he sold out to Dan-
iel Nurse, and removed to Topsticld, where he remained
a few years and then settled in Dunbarton, N. H., where
he was burned to death trying to extinguish the flames of
his burning house, while the rest of the family were at
THE DWELLINGS OF B OXFORD. 33
church. This was in 1816, when he was in his eighty-
first year. He had twelve children, all but the young-
est having been born in Boxford, and more than sixty-
two grandchildren.
Mr. Nurse married Eunice Perley of Boxford in 1759,
and removed to this house in 1783. He was probably
from Danvers. In 1790 he removed to Rowley, where
the family own a private cemetery on the road leading
from Rowley to Ipswich. He was a private in Capt.
William Perley's company of minute men, which marched
to the battle of Lexington April 19, 1775, and was sta-
tioned two months in the following winter at Winter Hill.
Moody Perley, a son of Moses Perley who lived in No.
76, was living here in 1791. Two years later he married
a Gould from Topsfield, and had one or two children born
here. April 1, 1802, he sold the place to Joseph Killam,
and removed to the Adams house (No. 95).
The place was then occupied by Mr. Killam until 1815,
when he died at the age of thirty-eight. He was born in
No. 147, in 1777, and was the father of the late Capt.
John Killam and Capt. Hosea Killam, both of George-
town, and grandfather of Ubert Killam, cashier of Mer-
rimac National Bank, Haverhill. The family resided upon
the homestead until 1830, since which time no house has
stood there.
33.
Home of Hon. Aaron Wood. — On the site of the late
residence of Charles C. Stevens an old house once stood.
It was doubtless built before 1750. The Hon. Aaron
Wood lived at this place from the time of his marriage
until his death in 1791. The old house, in which he kept
a country store in his early life, was burned, with part of
the furniture, October 22, 1774. The following is a copy
5
34 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
of the account of the fire as it appeared in the Essex Ga-
zelle of the following week : —
"Salem, October 25.
" Lafifc Saturday the Dwelling Iloufe of Aaron Wood, Efq : of Box-
ford, was con fumed by Fire, together with Fart of his Houfehold Fur-
niture."
Mr. Wood immediately built a new house upon the
same site
Mr. Wood married, for his first wife, Jane, the widow
of Dr. Eliphalet Kilburn an early physician of Kowley.
She was the grandmother of Hon. Charles Kilbourne Wil-
liams, governor of Vermont. She died in 1775, and her
funeral was held on the day of the battle of Bunker Hi 11.
The following obituary notice is copied from the contem-
porary Essex Gazette:
"Ou Thurfday, June 15th, ultimo, died at Boxford, of an Apoplexy,
in the 68th Year of her Age, Mrs. Jane Wood, the virtuous confort
of Aaron Wood, Efq: of that Town. In her were happily united
the affectionate Wife, tender Parent, indulgent Miftrefs, fincere Friend,
and, to crown all, exemplary Chriftian. --- Her Friends are left to
mourn their own Lofs, but they rejoice in the Reafon there is to hope
that fhe has exchanged a World of Mifery and Trouble for a State of
Happinefs and Joy. — - Her Remains were interred on Saturday fol-
lowing with every Mark of Refpect, and in a ftrict Conformity to the
Method recommended by the Honorable Continental Congrefs."
In 1776, Mr. Wood married Mrs. Lydia Barnard,
daughter of Phineas Warren of Wall ham, and widow of
David Barnard of Watertown. In 1775, the British drove
the General Court from Boston, and the following winter
Air. Wood and others of the Representatives boarded with
Mrs. Barnard in Watertown. Mr. Wood fell in love with
his hostess, and married and brought her to Boxford. She
was a woman of strong mind and body, weighing «over
two hundred pounds. When the British retreated after
the Battle of Lexington, they passed by her house. One
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 35
of the privates had stolen a horse, and was making his re-
treat in style. He said something to Mrs. Barnard that
was not acceptable to her patriotic mind, and she pulled
him from the horse and took him prisoner ; and, it is said,
this was the first prisoner taken during the Revolution.
On the day that Mr. Wood died, his tailor, Thomas
Perley (see No. 24), was cutting him a suit of clothes
preparatory to returning to the State legislature. Mr.
Wood had just brought in a handful of wood, and had sat
down in a chair, when he suddenly expired. The follow-
ing obituary notice of Mr. Wood is copied from the Salem
Gazette, published in the month of his decease : —
"Boxfokd, Jan. 21, 1701.
" « No man hath power over the fpirit to retain the fpirit. Yet, bleffed
are the dead, that die in the Lord: they reft from their labor, and their
works follow them.''
" THURSDAY the 20th inftant, the Honorable AARON WOOD, Efq.
in the 72d year of his age — being in his ufual health and vigor, fitting
in his chair, and his family round him — left this bufy fcene of life, and
in an inftant of time, without any apparent diforder, and fcarcely a
ftruggle, or a figh, pai'i into the world of fpirits; perhaps in as eafy
and Hidden a manner as ever anyone did. Iu juftice to his memory, it
maybe truly faid, that through the whole of his life, he was exemplary
for virtue, ferioufnefs, piety and devotion ; and a conftant walker with
God, in all his ordinances. He was a kind and tender hufband ; cheer-
ful, fincere and agreeable to his friends; candid and forgiving to the
envious. Integrity and ability graced all the important offices which
he for many years held in the Town, County and State. In a word, he
was plain and unaffected iu his manners; fteadyand refolute in his con-
duct; humane, temperate, juft and bountiful, lie fpent feveral years
of the youuger part of his life, as a faithful and int'i.ructivc mailer, in
teaching a public fchool; and altho God, in his all-wife Providence,
withheld from him the bleffing of Ions and daughters, yet lie was pof-
feffed of an uncommon parental affection, and regard for the educa-
tion of the rifing generation; which is very amply proved by his laft
will and tefcament, which bequeathed all his real eftate to the fupport
of a Grammar School, in the town of Boxford, forever — an example
worthy of imitation. In his more public character, he was judicious,
firm & perfevering, in every public truft which he had the h c to
30 TIIE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
hold. The laft 30 years of his life have been moftly employed as a
Member of the General Court, in the nioft critical and trying periods,
in the Senate, in the Council, and Conventions: all which important
places he has held, and difcharged the feveral duties thereof, with
fuch firmnefs, wifdom and juftice, as to approve himfelf to his Country
to his Confcience, and to his GOD. In him, the Commonwealth have
loft an able Statefman, a generous Patron, and a real Friend ; his Wife,
an endearing Hulband; and the World, an honeft Man.
" ' The juft man's ways are God's delight,
He orders all his fteps aright.' "
It is supposed the epitaph upon Mr. Wood's monumental
tablet is the widow's lamentation :
"Yet my fond hope would hear him speak again
Once more at least one gentle word & then
Aaron aloud I call in vain I cry
Aaron aloud ; for he must ne'er reply
In vain I mourn & drop these funeral tears
Death & the grave have neither eyes nor ears."
She afterwards married Mr. Benjamin Spofford, and died
in 1839 at the age of ninety-five.
The season after Mr. Wood's death the farm was carried
on by Jonas Warren, and a year later it was leased to dif-
ferent parties for one thousand years. The main portion
of the farm was leased to Dea. Parker Spofford, who re-
fitted the old mansion, as far as need be, into a tine country
tavern. This was one of the stopping places of the famous
stage-driver Pinkham, whose route was over the old An-
dover road. The first post-office that existed in the town
was kept in this tavern until 1820, and the good old dea-
con carried the mail matter with him when he went to
church, and distributed it to the respective owners. This
tavern flourished till Mr. Spofford's death in 1836.
. Josiah Kimball soon after succeeded Mr. Spofford in the
possession of the farm as well as the deaconship that his
death had rendered vacant. Deacon Kimball removed to
Lawrence in 1852, and thence to Boston, where he died
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 37
three or four years ago. His remains lie in Harmony Cem-
etery near his old home here, and his heirs have erected
over them a fine marble monument.
The farm soon after came into the hands of Mr. Charles
C. Stevens, and he resided there until he removed to South
Framingham some six years since. The place was occu-
pied by tenants a year or two and was accidentally ( ?)
burnt in 1877. Mr. Israel Herrick then purchased the
farm, but the cellar remains as the fire left it. Mr. Ste-
vens made it a summer boarding house, its pleasant loca-
tion and the proximity of a beautiful pond rendering it
attractive to city people.
A part of this farm was a portion of old Camp Stanton,
where several regiments of volunteer soldiers were quar-
tered and drilled in 1862. The muster was also held here
in August, 1868. This plain is believed to have been used
as a training field as early as 1775.
An incident occurred in 1827 which should be given in
connection with this house. Flint Tyler, an old man,
who then lived at the Adams house (No. 95), was one
morning going home from Topsfield way, and when near
the Savage house saw that this house was on fire. Mr.
Barnes was then living at the Savage house, and Mr. Ty-
ler leisurely got out of his wagon, went to the door, and
knocked. Capt. John Pcabody, who was there, came to
the door, and being informed by Mr. Tyler of the cause
of alarm, hastened to the wagon, got in, and hurried Mr.
Tyler to follow his example and drive as fast as possible
to the fire. But the beast was never known to hurry, nor
be hurried, nor Mr. Tyler either. About half-way across
the plain, Mr. Peabody jumped from the wagon, being
exasperated at the slow jogging of the animal, and ran to
the scene of danger. Mr. Spofford's family were at din-
ner. Mr. Pcabody burst into the room where they were
38 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
eating, and hurriedly called for an axe stating that the
house was on tire. The Deacon was perfectly bewildered,
and throwing up his arms, shrieked : "Where ! where ! !"
But one of the daughters was more composed, and, getting
an axe, she showed Mr. Peabody to the garret, where by
a few minutes of quick chopping he cut away the burning
boards, and saved the house. As he cut away the last
fragment of blazing board, he looked out of the aperture
he had made, and saw Mr. Tyler just tying his horse to
the garden fence. By prompt and decisive action the
house and much other valuable property was saved. A
storm had been brewing for several days, and a strong
easterly wind carried the cinders from the chimney to the
dry, parched roof, which immediately ignited. Mr. Pea-
body stopped to help Mr. Sponbrd fix the damaged por-
tion, and immediately after this was done the rain began
to fall, a long storm ensuing.
34.
Thomas "Wood Cellar. — Where the present Third-
District schoolhouse now stands was an old cellar; and
over this cellar a century ago stood an old-fashioned house,
with the lean-to and huge chimney. It is said that around
tins house and its accompanying farm buildings were fruit
trees and shrubbery of all kinds, which rendered the place
very inviting. The first owner of this homestead known
to the writer was Thomas Wood, brother to Hon. Aaron
Wood. They were sons of John Wood, who was born
in 1G80, and who may have lived, and his children been
born, at this place.
Thomas Wood married Margaret Perkins of Topsfield
in 1757, and resided here as long as he lived. lie died
of the small-pox Feb. 13, 1777, aged forty-nine, lie
entered the pest house (No. 30) received inoculation and
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 39
died there. His widow continued to reside here a short
time, then sold out to Stephen Peabody, who about 1795
moved the house to where it now stands, removed the
leanto and remodeled the chimney. It is now known as
the "Butcher Peabody house" (No. 7(3). The widow Wood
afterwards built a small house on the Chapman road be-
yond the pond, and resided there many years. She at
length died in 1830, having attained the age of one hun-
dred and one years and ten months. They had eight chil-
dren. Their daughter Mehitable married Aaron Perley,
and Jenny became the wife of Dr. James Buswell of Dun-
barton, N. H.
Thomas Wood owned the land now included in the new
portion of Harmony Cemetery, which lie sold to a company
of proprietors in 1766.
35.
Chapman Cellar. — Daniel Chapman of Linebrook
Parish, Ipswich, married Hepzibah Howe in 1764, came
to Boxford the same year, and built on the Chapman road
the house that used to stand over what is now known as
the old Chapman cellar. Mr. Chapman resided here un-
til his death, which occurred in 1799, at the age of fifty-
nine years. His son Daniel then lived upon the plaeo till
his death, in 1835. Johnson Savage was the last resident.
He died here in 1846. The old house fell down about
1848. It was old-fashioned, with a lean-to, two stories
in height, and contained on the first door two front rooms,
a backroom and pantry. Mr. Francis Savage, principal
of the Amesbury high-school, was born here.
36.
Pkggy-Wood Cellar. — About 1780, Margaret, widow
of Thomas Wood, who lived at No. 34, and who died in
40 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
1777, built on the west side of the Chapman road near the
pond a small house, to which she removed when she sold
the farm to Stephen Peabody. The house was 16x20
feet, one story in height and contained but one room. She
lived there but a short time, and then the house was in-
habited by Ezra Wildes (who had lived at No. 16), his
family consisting of his wife and nine boys. The Peggy-
Wood house, as it was called, has been gone more than
half a century, and a maple tree nearly a foot in diameter
now rises from the cellar and shades the whole cavity.
37.
Savage House. — This house was probably built about
1773 by Amos Perley, who lived in the residence of B.
S. Barnes, Esq., No. 39. A blacksmith's shop stood near
the cemetery, in which, we should judge from the town
records, John Stiles worked in 1774 and later, and in which
bullets were run for the use of the soldiers during the
Revolution.
About 1786, Mr. Perley sold the place, which consisted
of a house and barn and forty acres of land, to Thomas
Butman of Marblehead, whose son of the same name took
up his residence in this house. Here were born several
children to him and his wife Sarah.
Mr. Butman, senior, removed to Tyngsborough, Mass.,
and Dec. IS, 1793, for £180, sold the farm to Thomas
Dresser of Boxford, who was born in the Dresser house,
No. QG. He was a blacksmith, having learned the trade
in his father's shop. lie married Hannah Hazen, the
"witch," and about 1800 removed to Andovcr, Maine.
The place was then owned by John Dorman of Boxford,
who in IN 13 sold out to Phineas Barnes. His son Mr.
Phineas \Y . Barnes lived here a number of years, having
removed from No. 39, and carried on the butchering busi-
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 41
ness. He removed to No. 100, where he continued his
calling. The place was then owned for many years by
William J. Savage, who sold out and left the town about
1877. The place was then let for a time, and at length
purchased by Samuel Clark, who, after residing here a few
years, sold out to B. S. Barnes, and removed to George-
town, where he now resides. Mr. William P. Keyes
bought and refitted the house, seven years ago, making it
much more convenient and pleasant.
38,
Amos Stevens' House. — The late Amos Stevens built
his residence in 1840. He died in 1877, at the age of
sixty-four, and his widow has since resided upon the place.
His epitaph :
"He put his trust in God."
39.
Residence of B. S. Barnes. — The residence of Benja-
min S. Barnes, Esq., was built by Paul Prichard, a house-
wright, about 1749, when he came to Boxford and married
Hannah, sister of Cooper Nat Perley. They resided in
this house until the beginning of the Revolution, when they
removed to New Ipswich, N. H. In Boxford Mr. Prich-
ard held several offices of honor and trust, and was one of
the substantial and influential citizens of his day. He
contributed liberally of his means to support the war of
the Revolution, and had two sons in actual service. In
New Ipswich, he was a selectman three years and a rep-
resentative of the General Court in 1779. He died in
1787, aged sixty-four years. Mrs. Prichard was a woman
of uncommon energy of body and mind, and could accom-
plish the ordinary labor of three persons. She had made
the subject of midwifery a study, and had considerable
42
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
practice in Boxford. In curing scrofula, salt rheum, liver
complaint, etc., her fame was quite extensive. She also
gained a successful practice in her adopted town. She
was always ready to answer calls, and allowed no weather
to detain her; and, though unusually corpulent, when the
roads were blocked up with snow and others would quail
at the undertaking, she would mount her snow-shoes and
breast the storm over hill and dale. This she continued
to do until very far advanced in life, to the great annoy-
ance of the accredited physician. She was a widow
RESIDENCE OF B. S. BARNES.
twenty-three years, dying in 1810, at the age of eighty-
one. Jeremiah Prichard, for many years the American
Consul at Porto Rico, was their great grandson. Among
their descendants was also Moses Prichard, of Concord,
for many years sheriff of Middlesex county, Mass.
This place then came into the possession of Amos Per-
ley, who removed to Buxton, Me., at the beginning of
this century. It was then owned by Benjamin Spofford,
who died in 1830, and Phineas Barnes who married his
daughter moved to this place from No. 37. He resided
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 43
here until his death, in 1856, since which time his son B.
S. Barnes has been in possession. Mr. Phineas Barnes,
jr., resided here a short time, and continued his butcher-
ing business, until he removed to No. 37.
Mr. Phineas Barnes, senior, was born in Waltham in
1780, and died at the age of seventy-five. His epitaph:
" He has left this world, his toils are o'er,
In sweetest songs of praise adore,
Where parting friends shall meet again,
Free from all sorrow, grief and pain."
Mrs. Barnes died in October, 1850, five years before
her husband, at the age of sixty-four. Her epitaph :
"Mother, thou hast gone to rest,
We no more will weep for thee,
For thou art now among the blest ;
Where thy spirit longed to be."
On another stone in the same lot is the following in-
scription :
WILLIE
Was with us 5 yrs. 2 mo.
But is not
for God took him.
40.
Black Cellar.— Near the residence of B. S. Barnes,
Esq., on the side of the hill in his field, about halfway
from his house to Mrs. Killam's, was an old cellar, of
which most signs are now gone. Cooper Nat Perley, who
was born in 1735 and died in 1810, said a Black family
lived there, and that when he was young he "used to go up
and see their girls."
Later investigation has shed more light upon the his-
tory of this old place. James Black, whose wife Abigail
died in 1720, he having married her about 1700, doubtless
lived there from the latter date. He had sons, Edmund,
James, John, Josiah and Daniel, and a daughter Abigail,
44 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
who married Timothy Sessions of Andovcr. The son
Daniel was bom in 1715, and married Sarah Symonds of
Boxibrd in 1740. Daniel owned and lived on this place.
He had several children, Sarah, Jane, Lydia, Hannah,
Daniel, Daniel, Jacob and Samuel. Both himself and wife
were members of the church, and as long as Rev. Mr.
Rogers remained here their children were baptized in the
First Church ; after his departure the next two new mem-
bers of the Black race were baptized in West Boxford, the
next one in Linebrook Parish, and the last one, of whom
we have any record, in West Boxford. It was these four
<lirls that Nat Perley used to " go to see." In March, 1762,
Mr. Black sold out to Jacob Perley of Boxford, and re-
moved to Holden in Worcester County, where he settled.
This was probably the Jacob Perley who removed to Ches-
ter, N. H., finally settling in Wilton, Me.
41.
John Hale Cellar. — An old house once stood in the
pasture about fifty rods south of the residence of B. S.
Barnes, Esq. Nothing is now known of it. A John Hale
is supposed to have lived there in 1757, which a deed of
that date seems to prove. He probably moved to the
General Lowe homestead (No. 48) shortly after the above
date. Mr. Hale was probably a son of John and Mary
(Watson) Hale, and perhaps born at No. 7 in 1717.
42.
John Hale House. — The farm owned and occupied by
the late John Hale was in the possession of William Wat-
son as early as 1(587. Mr. Watson came from Ipswich,
and probably lived in the old house that used to stand at
this place.
lie married, first, Sarah, daughter of Allan Perley, in
THE DAVELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 45
1670 and, second, Mary, widow of Thomas Hale of New-
bury, in 1695. Mrs. Hale had conic to Boxford with her
son Joseph in 1691. Mr. Watson died June 27, 1710,
and his widow at the age of eighty-five, Dec. 8, 1715.
His daughter Mary had married his wife's son Joseph in
1693, and these children became possessors of the farm.
By her and a second wife Joseph had fifteen children born
here. He was the ancestor of all the Hales that ever re-
sided in Boxford, and of thousands in this and other states.
Among the descendants of Joseph Hale are Dr. Joseph
Hale of Miller's Corners, Ontario Co., N. Y., Hon. Eu-
gene Hale, M. C. from Maine, Hon. Artemas Hale, M.C.
from Massachusetts, and many others that are distin-
guished. Mr. Hale was himself a member of the General
Court, and was very prominent in the town as a select-
man, a captain in the militia, and as town clerk for ten
years. He died in 1761, lacking only seven days of com-
pleting his ninetieth year.
This place afterward came into the possession of Phineas
Perley who was born in what is nosv the town almshouse in
1766. Mr. Perley died in Ipswich in 1832, by the burst-
ing of a blood vessel while rowing a boat, and his family
continued to reside upon the place a year or two after his
decease. Dr. Joseph G. Perley, a veterinary surgeon,
who recently died in Lynn, was his son ; Dr. Albert Lam-
bert of Springfield, and .Rev. Alexander Sternson Twom-
bly, Charlestown, are his grandsons.
In 1834, the place was purchased by Mr. John Hale
(then living in No. 8), who resided upon it until his death
in 1888, at the age of eighty-six. The place has since
passed into the possession of Alvin C. Norcross of Boston,
who now owns it. Two of Mr. Hale's >ons gave up their
lives in the service of their country during the late Re-
bellion. Mr. Hale, for a few years, manufactured shoe.--
46 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
here, .and built a large factory building, which was trans-
formed into a summer hotel by his son John in 1889.
See No. 43.
43.
Hotel Placidia. — This summer resort was a portion
of the John Hale farm, and the hotel building was the
shoe factory mentioned in No. 42. The owner, Mr. John
Hale, inherited this building and the land under and ad-
joining from his father, the late John Hale, in 1888.
Mr. Hale fitted up the factory into the capacious three-
story structure as it now exists. Situated on the shore of
a beautiful lake, and near cool, shady groves, the resort is
attractive. Mr. Hale resides in the hotel the year round.
44.
Residence of W. M. Andrews. — Mr. William M.
Andrews built his house in 1874, on land purchased of the
late Amos Stevens.
45.
Residence of A. H. Towne. — Mr. Albert H. Towne
built his residence on land purchased of Mr. Eben N.
Price of Salem, in 1888.
46.
Residence of J. Leavitt. — Mr. Joseph Leavitt of
Boston moved to Boxford and built his present residence
in 1888 upon land purchased of Mr. Leverett S. Howe.
47.
Railroad Station. — The railroad station was built by
the Danvcrs & New bury port Railroad Company in 1853.
It came into the possession of the Boston & Maine Rail-
road in 1859. The house portion of the depot has been
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 4 7
occupied by the several station agents, viz. : S. Page Lake,
John Hale, jr., Samuel McKenzie, William J. Badger,
Charles W. Gardner and Albert G. Hurlbntt. These
gentlemen are all living, except Messrs. Lake and Badger.
In January, 1889, the East Boxford post-office was es-
tablished, and located in the station, Mr. Hurlbutt being
postmaster.
48.
Gen. Lowe Cellar. — The General Solomon Lowe
mansion was built about 1740 by John Hale, who was
born in Boxford in 1717, being a son of Joseph and Mary
(Watson) Hale. He married in 1738 Priscilla, who was
a daughter of Stephen Peabody, and was born in 1719 in
No. 68. Mr. Hale died in 1771, leaving a will, in which
he devised the farm to his son Eliphalet, who was then
but eight 3'ears of age. The next spring the widow's
dower was set off. A part of this dower consisted of one-
third part of the mill. Mr. Hale's children were six in
number, three daughters and three sons. In 1774, his
widow married Thomas Hammond of Swanzey, N. II.
It is probable that the young son, Eliphalet Hale, died
before coming of age, and that his brother John, who was
born in 1745, became possessed of the place. John mar-
ried Sarah Lord of Ipswich in 1765, and resided here.
A very short time after his marriage he went to the Brit-
ish Provinces, it is said, to escape some corporal punish-
ment that he anticipated. This Miss Lord was doubtless
a sister of Lucy Lord, the wife of Nathan Lowe, who, in
17(57, came from Ipswich and hired this farm. Mrs. Hale
may have resided with them as long as she lived.
Mr. Lowe had nine sons, all but the oldest having been
born here. The eighth son was Solomon, who was famous
as a military general. He was born April !•, 17M2, and
held the office of General from 1S20 to 1840. He was a
48 THE DWELLINGS OF BOX FORD.
member of the General Court in 1823, 1827, 1828 and
1841. He resided upon this place until about 1857, when
he removed to West Newbury, where he died April 3,
1861, lacking six days of being eighty years old. The
remains of General Lowe repose in his tomb in Harmony
Cemetery. Upon the face of the tomb are illustrations of
himself and his four wives engraved on marble tablets.
The tomb has attracted many visitors. His spirited mil-
itary funeral will long be remembered by those who were
present.
The General's son, Major William Lowe, was born here
and from 1857 lived upon the place. He died in 1870,
from injuries caused by a bull which attacked him in his
eowyard. His family continued to reside upon the home-
stead until the buildings were completely destroyed by
fire early on the morning of June 21, 1874. The cellar
remains uncovered.
The saw-mill was built about 1770, as it was called a
new mill in 1772.
49.
N. Lowe Cellar. — Between Mr. Eben N. Price's barn
and the railroad station, stood a house a hundred and twenty
years ago. When Nathan Lowe came to Boxford from
Ipswich in 17G7, he is said to have bought this place,
which he lived upon. A short time afterward lie removed
to the Lowe house, No. 48.
Gen. Lowe's brother, Jeremiah, carried on the tanning
business here near the brook.
In 180G, Mr. Lowe sold the tannery, adjoining land,
etc., to his brother Solomon Lowe and Moses Dorman,
lor *t;23.50.
50.
Residence of J. H. Janes. — John Smith lived at the
.lanes place on the .lanes road, probably from the time of
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 49
his marriage in 1733. He had six children, one of whom,
John, settled on the St. John river in New Brunswick
about 1770. The first-mentioned John married Hannah,
daughter of Stephen Peabody, who resided in No. 68.
The place came into the possession of Nathaniel Perley,
who lived in No. 14, and he gave it to his son Jose
Perley about 1789. Jesse immediately built a new house,
the one now standing, which was raised on the first day of
September, 1790. It was a severe task, for the timber
was wet and heavy, there having been the week previous
one of the greatest rains known for many years. Jesse
lived here until his death, which occurred in 1840, at the
age of eighty-four. His wife had died six years before,
at the age of eighty-eight.
Mr. Henry Janes then purchased the place and lived
upon it until 1886, when he died, being very aged. His
son, Joseph H. Janes, who had for several years occupied
a portion of the house, has since resided upon the place.
51.
Residence of Benjamin Hood. — The old Hood house
is quite ancient. It is a long, one-story building, and
appears to be at least one hundred and fifty years old.
Benjamin Hood of Topsfield married Sarah Cross of Box-
lord in 1777, and probably lived in this house. Francis
Hood lived here from about L804, and here his children
were born. His son Benjamin and daughter Sarah have
resided upon the place all their lives. In 1874 they built a
large, new house in front of the old house, the latter now
being used for a woodshed.
52.
Gunnison Cellar. — The old Gunnison house was in
the possession of the Smith family a century ago. Jacob
7
50 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
Smith lived there in 1791, and it was probably his daugh-
ter Hannah that William Gunnison married aboul 1820.
Mr. Gunnison's children were born there, and the house
was occupied by his family until 1880. it remained with-
out a tenant during the remaining days of its existence.
It was purchased in 1887 by Mr. Benjamin Hood, who
took it down. A part of the chimney and the oven and
fireplace still remain on the site, showing with what gi
gantic proportions those things were constructed in the
early days.
It is said that a Perkins family lived there before the
Smiths.
53.
Solomon Pekley House. — The ancient house, once the
residence of Mr. Parker Brown Perley, and in which he
was horn, has nol been occupied since he elected his new
house about 1870. Although but a lew rods apart, the
old house is situated in Boxford and the new one in Tops-
field. Samuel Brown married Olive Gage in 177.'), and
resided in this old house. They had eleven children.
The youngest child Clarissa married Solomon Perley,
grandson of Maj. Asa Perley of Boxford, in ISM, and
settled on this place. They had but one child, Parker
Brown, who is above mentioned. Solomon Perley died
of old age in 18(>u\ His widow survived him, and with
her bachelor son, lived in the old house until 1<S7<), and
on the place until death released her April 11, 1881.
"Aunt Clary," as she was generally called, was eighty-
three years old.
54.
Andrews Cellar. — There is a cellar some distance
Miithwest of the old house of .Mr. Parker B. Perley (No.
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 51
53). Nothing is as yet positively known of the house
that stood here. The writer believes, however, that this
was the place which Joseph Andrews of Salem (formerly
of Boxford) deeded in 1710 to his sons Joseph and John,
to Joseph the west part of the house and barn and to John
the east part. Joseph Andrews, the father, was son of
Robert and Grace Andrews of Boxford, and was born in
1657. He resided on this place, probably, until 1705,
when he removed to Salem, where he afterward lived.
55.
Jackson Cellar.— On Jackson plain between the old
and new location of the road leading from the railroad
station to the First church is an old cellar. The site was
occupied by a house one hundred and thirty years ago,
in which dwelt, it is said, Jacob Dwinnells.
In 1765, or before, Joshua Jackson of Rowley became
possessed of the place. In that year, he married the young
widow of Timothy Dorman, who was the grandmother of
Moses Dorman , Sen. , Esq. She was a daughter of Nathan-
iel Burnham, who may have lived on this place, and who
removed to Bolton, where he was living in 1771. Mr.
Jackson was born in Rowley July 1, 1733, as July 1, 1790,
he writes, "I am tifty-seven years old to-day." John Stiles,
the blacksmith at the Savage place, hired the house and
lived here from Jan. 1, 1766, to March, 1768. David Foster
then lived here a while, probably two years. Mr. Stiles
hired it again April 17, 1770, and this time lived here five
or more years. During the first portion of this last period
Mrs. Lydia Simmons lived in the foreroom.
A1 a cost of £51 13s. lid. Mr. Jackson built a new
barn, raisin- it Nov. 25, 1766. The carpentry work was
mostly done by Asa Stiles. In L779, Mr. Jackson re-
moved to the farm himself, and afterward resided upon
52 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
it, perhaps as long as he lived. He was here in 171*7.
and probably died about that time. Mr. Jackson was the
ancestor of the Rooty-Plain, Rowley, Jacksons, and of
those in Londonderry, N. H., and in the town of Winchen-
don in this state.
The old house was standing in 1814, but in a very dilap-
idated condition. At that time the house was occupied by
Asa Andrew's, whose death occurred that year, and his fu-
neral was held here. An old gentleman, who was present
at the funeral, says that the floor of one of the rooms had
fallen in, and through the space he could see a hen sitting
on her nest in the cellar below. That the people might
see the remains, the coffin was carried across the old road
and placed under a button-wood tree, which was many
years afterward cut down and sawed into chopping blocks
for shoe factories.
56.
Henry PerleyCellak. — The old Russ, or Henry Per-
ley house was built, about 1754 by Joseph Matthews upon
land of his father-in-law Ephraim Dorman, who lived at
No. 57. Mr. Matthews had one child, Ephraim, with
whom he marched in Capt. Gould's company to the battle
of Lexington. Ephraim also served at Cape Ann, Rox-
bury, Winter Hill and Ticonderoga. During the period
of the Revolution, Joseph Matthews was the grave-digger
for that part of the town, having been appointed to that
office by the parish. In 17!)."), Mrs. Matthews, who was
still living in Boxford, in consideration of the support she
had received of the town of Boxford " for the eight years
past /'conveyed to it her interest in the estate other brother
Elijah Dorman. She was then doubtless without means
and a widow.
Henry Perley, son of Major Asa lVrley (see No. (J),
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 53
married Eunice Hood of Topsfield in 1781, and after liv-
ing in Andover live years purchased this estate and settled
upon it. Mr. Perley had served through the whole war.
and now settled down to a life of repose. His wife died
in 1790, and he married, secondly, Mehitahle Peabody in
1799, by whom he had one child, Leonard. Mr. Perley
died there in 1838, aged eighty-live. His widow survived
him six years. The late Major Samuel Perley, who lived
at No. 173, was his son. His son Henry also lived upon
the place until his death, in 1841. Subsequently, it was
owned but not occupied by the family, various tenants
making it their home. The more conspicuous of t hese were
Major Moses Rea Russ and Otis Pickard. Mrs. Russ died
there quite suddenly Oct. 29, 1868; and May 20, 1870,
Major Russ fell from a scaftbld in his barn and was instantly
killed. His age was seventy-four. He lived at this place
for more than twenty years, and was famous as a drummer.
Mr. Pickard resided here for several years, and he, too,
was a drummer. He first practised the art of hair-dressing
here and still pursues that business in Georgetown, to
which place he removed. The house was then empty for
several years, it having become almost uninhabitable. The
owner, Mr. Henry E. Perley of Georgetown, took it down
in 1883.
57.
Samuel Dorman Cellar. — About half way between
the cellar over which the Henry Perley house stood and
the East Parish parsonage, on the same side of the road, is
an old cellar. When that road was laid out in 1803, this
was called "the old cellar."
Samuel Dorman, an aged bachelor, was the last occu-
pant of the house that stood here. IK- was son of Ephraim
and Martha Dorman, who lived across tin- road at No. 58.
54 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
Samuel was horn in 171<>, and died at this place a few years
prior to 1800.
Samuel's brother Elijah, a wheelwright by trade, who
died in Boxford in 1791 or 1792, without children, lived
with Samuel at this place awhile. Elijah was horn in
1714. After Samuel's decease the house immediately went
to decay, being gone before 1800.
58.
Ephraim Dorman Cellar. — Across the road in front
of the East Parish parsonage, in the field belonging to Mr.
John Averill, was an old cellar. On this spot Ephraim
Dorman settled in 1710. lie was a cousin of Timothy
Dorman, who lived at No. 119, and a son of Ephraim and
Mary Dorman, and was born at Topsfield in 1677. By
his wife Martha, he had six children. He died in 1724,
leaving quite a large estate. No division of the property took
place until 1741, when it was made by the widow and heirs.
The six children were : Capt. Ephraim, who was one of
the first settlers of Keenc, N. II., and whose death occurred
there in 1795, when he was eighty-five years old ; Mary,
who married Joseph Matthews and lived in No. 5(5; Eli-
jah, who resided at this place and at No. 57 ; Samuel, who
lived at No. 57 ; John, who fell a victim to the throat dis-
temper of 1787, at the age of eighteen : and Sarah, who
died two days after her brother John, at the age of thirteen.
The house has probably been gone a century, and the cel-
lar is filled up.
59.
East Parish Parsonage. — The parsonage in the East
Paiish was built by subscription in 1870. It was occupied
by Rev. Sereno D. Gammell from L870 to 1880; by Rev.
William P. Alcott from 1881 to 1**;; ; and by Rev. Robert
R. Kendall from 1884 to the present time (1891).
(55)
56 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFOKI).
60.
Residence of F. A. Howe. — This house was ;i purl of
the Stickney house (No. (57), ;m<l was moved to its pres-
ent site in .March, 1851. John X. Towne then occupied
it until 1874, when he removed to Georgetown :md after-
ward to Taunton where he died in 1891. Since Mr. Towne
moved away it has been occupied by Mr. Frederic A.
Howe, who has been engaged in the grocery business for
many years, and the master of the Boxford post-office lor
a score of years.
61.
David Butman Cellar. — A short distance northwest
of the East Parish church in a pasture is a cellar. Over
this cellar stood the home of the Boxford Buswells. Sam-
uel Buswell, horn in 1 ( > 2 <S , removed from Salisbury to Box-
ford in 1 < > 7 2 , and settled at this place. Whether or not he
built the house is not known, but it. is presumed that he
did. He married Sarah Keies in 1656, and they brought
their six children with them. They had two more born
to them in Boxford. His son Samuel settled in Bradford,
and Robert in Andover.
Mi - . Buswell was succeeded on the homestead by his
son John, who was born in Salisbury in 1659. lie mar-
ried Elizabeth, daughter of Robert Stiles. lie was the
first grave digger chosen in Boxford, having been elected
to that office by the town in 1716.
John Buswell was succeeded on the farm by his son
John, who was born there in 170.'). He married Abi-
gail Cummings in 1743, and died in 1751. His widow
married Jonathan Whipple of Danvers six years later.
Mr. Buswell had two children, Ruth, born in 1746, and
John, born in 1748. John settled in Rindge, N. H., and
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 57
Ruth resided on the old place. At the age of twenty-eight
the publishment of her intention of marriage with .John
Love appears on the Boxford records, but she preferred
being an old maid to marrying him and so she forbade the
granting of a certificate. Her remonstrance was as fol-
lows :
"Whereas one John Love, a Trantient Person, did di-
rect the Clerk of this Town to publifh an Intention of Mar-
riage betwen himfelf and me the subscriber which was
accordingly done by the said Town Clerk upon the 30th
of January, A. D. 1775, in the ufual way of publifhing
intentions of Marriages : — I do hereby strictly forbid the
said Town Clerk to give out a Certificate of such publica-
tion — Uy, becaufe the said John Love is a Trantient Per-
fon and not Much Known in this Place : 21y, becaufe I
never had any conjugal Converfation with him the said
John : and 3dly Becaufe I never gave any consent to the
said John for such Publication —
"Boxford, January 31, 1775. Ruth Buswell."
And so poor John was forced to become a "transient"
person in some other place, and he is not heard of again in
Boxford. Perhaps Ruth would have done well if she had
yielded to his charms, for the husband she did get was "no
'count," as her old neighbor Phillis would have said. In
1778, she married David Butman of Dan vers, and remained
on her father's place. Her husband was known as "King
David." He was by trade a cooper, was short of stature,
and had curly hair. lie was as lazy as she was smart.
She cultivated the farm, doing the plowing, hoeing, hay-
ing and harvesting herself. One day in May, 1810, she
had been plowing all day with oxen hired of Joseph S.
Peabody, who lived at. the old Spiller place (No. 68) and
just after dark drove them home. She ran back to do her
chores, was taken sick that night, probably from over-ex-
58 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFOKD.
ertion, and survived l)iit a few days. If any woman was
ever entitled to suffrage, we have her here. Her husband
left this mundane sphere in 181(5, at the age of sixty-
eight. They had four children, Joseph, Esther, Hitty and
John.
The old house was taken down about 1822, and the barn
was moved to the Sayward place (No. 99) by Capt. Davis,
where it is still standing.
62.
Residence of Mary A. Perley. — Miss Mary A. Per-
ley of Brooklyn, N. Y., erected her residence in 1888, and
has since made it her permanent home.
63.
Residence of F. J. Stevens. — The farm belonging to
the late Daniel Gould contained originally eighty-five acres,
and before 1723 was in the possession of Ebenezer Kim-
ball. April 10th of that year he sells the farm with the
buildings thereon to Samuel Goodridge of Newbury. Mr.
Goodridge was a son of Benjamin Goodridge, who, together
with his wife and two children, were slain by the Indians
while at family prayer in their house at Georgetown, Oct.
23, 161)2. Samuel Goodridge had settled upon this farm
three years before he obtained his deed of it. The old
house which was then standing occupied the corner of the
garden on the left hand as one enters the yard when com -
ing from the church. It stood very near the wall. It was
probably taken down about 1745, and the cellar was filled
up about 1790 by Daniel Gould, a later owner.
Samuel Goodridge had the care of the first meeting-
house in the town for awhile. He was living in 1759, but
when he or his wife died is not known, and no sell lenient
of his estate is on record. He married Hannah Frazier of
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 59
Newbury in 1710, and had ten children, live of whom
were born at this place. Among his descendants are Rev.
Charles G. Porter of Bangor, Me. ; Ambrose H. Good-
ridge, publisher of the old Boston Atlas; Gov. Caleb D.
Randall of Michigan ; Hon. Allen Goodridge of Washing-
ton, D. C, and Rev. Edward Goodridge, rector of the
American Episcopal Church at Geneva, Switzerland.
Mr. Goodridge sold the farm to his son Benjamin in
1742. Benjamin erected, about that time, the present
residence of Dr. Stevens, where it now stands. The
reason Mr. Goodridge was accustomed to give, for build-
ing his house so far from the road, was to escape the nu-
merous calls for cider from travellers. Benjamin owned
the place until May 3, 1784, when he sold to Daniel Gould
for £540. Mr. Goodridge then removed to Bald Hill
(No. 135), where he lived but a few months and then re-
moved to Middleton. In 1789, he settled in Westminster,
Vt., where he died in 1805, at the age of eighty-four. He
had a number of children, who settled in Vermont. The
family is noted for the longevity of its members.
Daniel Gould, the successor of Mr. Goodridge, was a
native of Topsfield, and resided upon this farm from 1784
till his death, which occurred in 1826, at the age of sev-
enty.
Mr. Gould's son Daniel succeeded him upon the place
and continued to reside in the house until 1843, when he
removed to his new house (No. 64). The old house was
then occupied by Mr. Albert Brown until about twelve
years ago, since which time Dr. Stevens has resided there.
64.
Residence of Mary A. B. Gould. — The home of Miss
Mary A. B. Gould was erected by her father, the late
venerable Daniel Gould, iu 1812. He moved into it, fr
60 TIIF. DWELLINGS OF BOXFOKD.
his old house (No. 63) Jan. 1, 1843, and resided here,
until his death in 1888, at the age of eighty-nine.
65.
Residence of Israel Hehrick. — The old house that
once occupied the site of the residence of Mr. Israel Her-
rick was early in the possession of the Bixby family. A
part of the present house is probably a portion of the early
dwelling of the Bixbys. Probably Joseph Bixby settled
here in 1660, having at that time built the house. He
came from Ipswich. He married Sarah, widow of Luke
Heard of Salisbury (having previously lived in Ipswich)
in 1647. Her maiden name was Wyatt. At the time of
her marriage with Mr. Bixby her parents were living, and
her mother was the owner of land in Asington, County of
Suffolk, England. Mr. Bixby died April 19, 1700, "be-
ing aged," and his widow survived him four years, dying
at the age of eighty-four. They had nine children.
Mr. Bixby's son George succeeded him on the home-
stead. He had two sons, one of whom died young. Mr.
Bixby probably died in 1729, as that was the last year in
which he was taxed.
He was succeeded on the farm by his son Gideon, who
was born in 1699. He married Rebecca Foster in 1751,
and died about three years later, leaving one child. His
widow married Solomon Gould of Topsfield in 1756, who
lived but a few years. Her son, Gideon Bixby, sold
the place in April, 1774, for £436, to John Herrick of
Boxford, and his mother released her right of dower in it.
The farm then consisted of one hundred and eight acres.
Mr. Herrick was a cooper, and came from Wenham ten
years before. He lived at No. 163, until he removed to
this place, and Gideon Bixby removed to No. 163, an ex-
change of places having been effected.
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 61
Mr. Herrick was succeeded on the farm by his son Is-
rael, who remodelled the house about 1800 anddiedabout
1815.
Israel Herrick's son William Hale Herrick was the next
possessor of the place. He was born in 1806, and died in
1858. He married Lois Killam, and had three sons :
Israel, who has lived upon the farm since his father's de-
cease, being an extensive farmer and mill owner ; William
Augustus, who was a prominent lawyer in Boston, com-
piler of the standard Town Officer, and editor of several
legal works, having been born in this house in 1831 ; and
Samuel Killam, who lives in Georgetown.
66.
The Dresser Cellars. — Nathan Dresser, son of Dan-
iel Dresser of Rowley, came to Boxford in 1728, and
erected the house in which he resided. It stood on the
old Dresser road, not far from Mr. Israel Herrick's, the
cellar being plainly visible at this time. He was a black-
smith by trade, and he erected a shop near his house. He
did considerable business. It is probable that his father
Daniel lived here with Nathan. Daniel was quite an ex-
tensive farmer. Dr. David Wood calls him " Neighbor
Daniel Dresser." He was there in 1735 and as late as
1740. On Dr. Wood's account book is the following item
against Mr. Dresser: "Jan: 1737-8 to my son and six
cattle to fech a load of hay from Rowley marshes 14s."
We do not know when Nathan died. By his wife Lydia,
he had four children born in Boxford, one of whom was
John, who was born in 1735. He learned the blacksmith's
trade with his father, and alter his father's death carried
on the business until after 1800. By his two wives, Jane
ilarriman and Mehitable Dickinson, Mr. Dresser became
the father of sixteen children. One of these was Thomas,
62 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
who learned his father's trade and established a black-
smith's shop at No. 37. Another son, Nathan, also
learned the trade and became his father's successor at the
old place. The old house soon became untenantable, and
the cellar alone remains to mark the spot about which so
many recollections must have clung.
Nathan was born in 1790. He built a new house a
short distance south of the old one on the same side of the
road, in which he resided till his death in September,
1829. He also continued to work at his trade in the old
shop until his decease. His widow Susanna, who was
daughter of Nathaniel Long, who lived at No. 205, the fol-
lowing year married Elijah Wilson of Salem, N. H., and
continued to reside here. Mr. Wilson demolished the
shop about 1835.
Mr. Dresser's son, James M. Dresser of Georgetown,
sold his interest in the place to Augustus Hayward in
1843. The place was conveyed by Stephen Cook of Box-
ford to Gamaliel Harris in 1860, and also in 1863. The
house was hauled to Georgetown about fifteen years
ago, and is still used as a dwelling. The barn was pur-
chased and removed to their farm by Henry and Charles
Perley and is still used for the purpose originally intended.
67.
Stickney Ckllars. — Northwest of Cedar Pond, and
about a quarter of a mile west of the old Dresser cellars
(No. 66), once stood the old Stickney house. Joseph
Stickney, son of Benjamin and Mary (Palmer) Stickney,
born on Long Hill, in Georgetown, in 1705, settled here
in 1728 on one hundred acres of land, which he purchased
the next year of his father-in-law, Capt. Samuel Pickard
of Rowley, who owned large tracts of real estate in this
neighborhood, which had been used for pasturage. Mr.
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 63
Stickney married, first, Jane Pickard of Rowley, and
second, Hannah, daughter of Samuel Goodridge who lived
at No. 63. Mr. Stickney was deputy sheriff of the county
of Essex in 1737. He died in 1756. His widow mar-
ried James Barker of Rowley, and died in 1806, at the
age of ninety-four. In his will he gives one-third of the
farm to his son Joseph and the other two-thirds to his son
Samuel. His interest in the saw-mill owned in connection
with Jonathan Wood he gives to his son Jedediah, who
became his successor on the place. They had sixteen chil-
dren : 1. Moses, who having received his portion of his
father's estate and being a man of great enterprise, in 1752,
attempted, with Richard Peabody and seven others, the
settlement of Rowley, Canada, now Jaffrey, N. H. But
the settlement was soon abandoned in consequence of in-
cursions of the Indians, and he returned to Boxford. He
soon after settled in Holden, in Worcester county, Mass.,
and afterward lived in Temple, N. H., and at Springfield,
Vt., where he died in 1819, at the age of ninety. Moses,
his eldest son, who was born in Boxford in 1751, died in
Jaffrey, N. H., at the age of one hundred years and three
months. 2. Elizabeth, who died at the age of sixteen.
3. Jane, who married Thomas Carleton. 4. Joseph, who
resided in Boxford until about 1774, when he removed to
New Ipswich, N. H., where he died in 1818. 5. Jede-
diah, who resided on the old place. 6. Hannah (a twin),
who married Dea. Joseph Emery, jr., and died at Pem-
broke, N. II., at the age of ninety-seven. 7. Abigail
(twin with Hannah), who married Abraham Tyler of Box-
ford. 8. Susanna, who married Phineas Carlton of An-
dover. 9. Samuel, who lived in Boxford, Danvers, Wen-
ham and at Beverly, where he died in 1802 at the age of
sixty. 10. Anna, who married Daniel Peabody of Box-
ford. 11. Lemuel, who died in Berlin, Vt., in 1824, at
64 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
1 ho age of seventy -nine. 12. Eliphalet, who lived in Ben-
nington, Vt., and at Hartwick, N. Y., where he died in
1<S21 , aged seventy-four. 13. Amos, who settled in Jaffrey,
N. H. 14. Asa, wlio resided in Danvers. 15. Elizabeth,
who died young. 16. Thomas, who lived in Amherst and
Hillsboro', N. H., Hartland, Conn., and at Fairfax, Vt.,
where he died in 1839 at the age of eighty-four. Among
the descendants of Joseph Stickney are Dr. Orvil P. Gil-
man of Salem, N. Y., Charles Blackmail Stickney, Esq.,
of Norwalk, O., Rev. Levi Stickney of Lapeer, Mich.,
Rev. James M. Stickney of Wyoming, III., Dr. Eliphalet
Stickney of Jay, N. Y., Levi Dodge Stickney of Jackson-
ville, Fla., a politician, attorney and author, and Major
Horace Newton Stickney of Tennessee.
It is probable that Joseph and Samuel resided here
with Jedediah until their removal from the town. Jedediah
was born at this place in 1735, and married, for his first
wife, Margaret Tyler in 1757. In 176!) he bought out
Samuel's, and in 1771 Joseph's share in the farm. "Peggy"
Stickney, his wife, died in 1786. He married, secondly,
in 1796, Sarah, daughter of John Herrick, who lived at
No. 65. Lieutenant Stickney died in 1809, at the age of
seventy-three, and with his first wife lies buried in the an-
cient cemetery, where their stones are two of the twelve
still remaining there. He gave the farm to his son An-
cil. He had nine children, and among his descendants is
Dr. Ancil Stickney of Auburn, N. Y.
Ancil Stickney was born here in 1762, and married Me-
hitable Perley, a daughter of Cooper Nat Perley, who
lived in No. 14. Mr. Stickney was a Revolutionary pen-
sioner, and was town treasurer of Boxford for many years.
lb- died here in 1835, at the age of seventy-two. His
wife died in 1837, and in her will she expresses her desire
that a stone or stones be erected at the graves of her hus-
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 65
band's nephew and niece, Mr. and Mrs. Samuel Stiles.
She gave all her personal property not otherwise be-
queathed towards building the present East Parish church.
They had no children.
In his will Mr. Stickney gave the farm to his nephew,
Oliver Tyler Peabody, who was born in 1799. Mr. Pea-
body married Sarah A. Towne, and removed in 1854 to
Verden, III. His son Henry Oliver Peabody, the inven-
tor of the world-renowned Peabody breech-loading rifle,
was born here in 1826.
The house was let to tenants during the last years of
its occupation of this site, and the east end of it was event-
ually moved to the north corner at the junction of the
streets near the First Church, being now the residence of
Mr. Frederic A. Howe, No. 60.
There was another small house standing near this, and
owned in connection with it, which is also gone.
68.
Old Spillek House. — This house was built by Capt.
Stephen Peabody in 1708. He was a son of William Pea-
body, and was born near where No. 69 now stands, in
1685. He lived in this house until his death, which oc-
curred in 1759. His widow survived him five years.
They had nine children, one of whom, Francis, settled at
Mangerville, on the St. John river in New Brunswick, and
with James Symonds and James White, his sons-in-law,
were among the earliest English settlers in that Provinee.
It lias been asserted that his brother-in-law, John Hale,
and himself were tories and that they tied to New Bruns-
wick for political reasons, but it is untrue. Stephen's son
William settled in Amherst, X. II. Among the descend-
ants of Stephen is Ins grandson Col. Stephen Peabody of
Mont Vernon, N. II.
66 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
His youngest son Richard, born in 1731, next resided
upon the old place. He commanded a company of sol-
diers at Ticonderoga and Lake George during the strug-
gle for independence, and several of his sons served with
him, the youngest in the service being but thirteen years
of age. Capt. Peabody was a prominent citizen of the
town, and died in this house, where he was born and had
always lived, in 1820, at the age of eighty -nine. By his
wife Jemima, daughter of Jonathan Spofford of George-
town, who had died eight years before him, he had twelve
children. The oldest son, Stephen, lived in No. 69. John
settled in Lunenburg. William, born in 1768, was a phy-
sician in Frankfort and afterward in Corinth, Me. Sam-
uel was an attorney-at-law in New Hampshire and Massa-
chusetts. Samuel's son, Charles A., was judge of the
United States Provisional court for Louisiana, at New
Orleans, and chief-justice of the supreme court of Louisi-
ana. Capt. Richard's youngest son, Joseph Spofford Pea-
body, lived at home until 1816, when he moved to New
Portland, Me.
After Capt. Peabody's death in 1820, the farm was in
the care of his son Samuel, who settled the estate, and
he let it out until the spring of 1826, when it was sold to
Nathaniel G. Spillcr. He lived here until some twenty-
live years ago, when he sold out to Mr. Joseph II. Janes.
While Mr. Janes owned it, it was occupied by different ten-
ants, the principal one being William Bly.
About live years ago the homestead was purchased by
William A. Herrick, Esq., of Boston (who was born in
No. 65). Mr. Herrick spent his summers here until his
death in 1885, and his family now make the place their per-
manent home.
In connection with this homestead was an old grist-mill,
that occupied a site on the brook near the house. It was
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 67
built before the house was, by the father of the builder of
the house, who was the settler of this immediate neighbor-
hood. The original building was blown from its foundation
into the pond during the terrible gale of September, 1815,
but was immediately reerected by Capt. Richard Peabody.
Mr. Spiller had purchased the mill in connection with the
homestead, and about 1845 sold it, with the water privi-
lege, to William A. Gurley and Joseph Farley, who took
down the mill building to give place to an ideal saw-mill
which was never built. The lumber which they hauled
there for the construction of the mill rotted on the ground,
and the massive stone wall that they erected by the side
of the brook for the foundation still remains.
" Tis a country scene — a homestead old,
The high, steep roof with moss o'ergrown ;
The hearth's large wood-fires kept off the cold
When winter's storms have fiercely blown ;
But the old folks have left their pleasant room,—
Man's daily pathway leads but to his tomb !
"There's a singing brook from living streams ;
It sweetly runs through clover fields,
And joyful thoughts of my youth it briugs,
As life's pure nectar now it yields ;
And the old saw-mill stands a ruin there; —
May man and time that dear old ruin spare !"
69.
Residence of Rev. A. B. Peabody. — A few rods
northwest of the "Butcher Peabody" house, where there
is now a small grove of Gilead trees, William Peabody
lived from 1684 to his death in 1700, at the age of fif-
ty-three. He was son of Lt. Francis Peabody of To] >s-
fiekl, the immigrant ancestor. When the house was
taken down, we do not know. His son Stephen built No.
68. His son Oliver, born here in 1698, was distinguished
for his labors among the Indians, and as pastor of the
68 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
church at Natick. Other descendants of this William
Peabody are Hon. Oliver Peabody of Exeter, N. H., pres-
ident of senate, treasurer of state, etc. ; Rev. Stephen
Peabody of Atkinson, N. H. ; Rev. Ephraim Peabody,
pastor of King's Chapel, Boston ; and others.
The "Butcher Peabody" house was moved from the site
it occupied at No. 34, which was where the third-district
schoolhouse now stands. (See that number.) The house
was removed to its present site by Stephen Peabody, Esq.,
its owner, about 1795, the lean-to being taken off, and
the main part of the house raised up. Mr. Peabody re-
sided in it until 1830, when he died at the age of sixty-
nine. On the day of his death he was in the best of health,
and at work in his field. It was a hot day, and being
very thirsty he drank cold water freely, after which he
dropped to the ground and expired almost immediately.
He was a justice of the peace and a prominent citizen.
Of his three children, who were born to him of his wife
Anna Killam, from the south part of the town, only Sam-
uel had children. He resided upon the place after his
father's death and carried on the trade of a butcher, which
gave to the place the name it now bears. Samuel died in
September, 1862, having been prosperous in his business.
Of his children, Samuel Porter lives in No. 193. Ste-
phen, a school teacher for twenty-tive years or more, now
lives in Newburyport where he has been a member of the
city council ; Mary Ann gave to the First church the
"Mary Ann Peabody Sunday-school Library," and died
in 1865, at the age of forty-one ; Melissa married the late
John Q. Batchelder, and resides in No. 79; and the
youngest child, Albert Bradstreet, born here in 1828, was
a Congregational clergyman at Stratham and Caudia, N. II.
Rev. Albert B. Peabody, the last named son, now owns
and resides upon the old homestead.
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. (>9
For a score of years the house was let to various ten-
ants, among them being Joseph Peabody, Caleb Mortimer,
Leander Russell and Scidinore Gurley. Mr. Gurley lived
there until the fall of 1890, when Rev. Mr. Peabody re-
paired the house, and took up his abode therein.
70.
Hannah Wood Cellar. — Near the willow tree which
stood by the ice houses at Stevens pond is an old cellar.
In 1761, Joseph Simmons conveyed the house which stood
over this cellar and the lot to Solomon Wood. In 1770,
Hannah Wood of Boxford, singlewoman, sells the lot of
two and three-fourths acres, with the house, to Aaron
Wood, Esq. It was standing a few years later, but was
probably gone before 1800. The widow of Squire Wood,
who died in 1835 at the age of ninety-five, said that a
family of Hessian soldiers lived there in Revolutionary
times.
71.
Old Wood Cellar. — On the right-hand side of the
road leading from the camp ground to West Boxford, op-
posite Stevens pond, is an old cellar. It was undoubtedly
an old Wood homestead, perhaps where the first Daniel,
and also his son John lived.
72.
Residence of Henry Perley. — The residence of Mr.
Henry Perley was built about 1745 by Solomon Wood,
son of John Wood, who was born in 1722. Mr. Wood
was a man of much learning for his time, a surveyor of
note and a blacksmith. I lis shop stood near the house.
Mr. Wood died in 1766, and by his wives, Hannah Jewel I.
and Mehitable Peabody, he had six children. One of them,
Solomon, jr., resided on the place.
70 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
Solomon Wood, jr., was born in 1763; married Phebe
Perleyin 1784, and had several children born here. Mr.
Wood died in 1829, and his widow followed him three
years later. Their epitaph is : —
"May we meet in Heaven."
Of their children, Phebe, who married Samuel Hood,
died at Georgetown in 1884 at the age of ninety-two ;
Oliver lived in Groveland and died unmarried in 1803, at
the age of seventy-five ; Betsey married Samuel Dale and
resided in No. 175; Sally married George H. A. Batchcl-
der, and lived in Haverhill ; and Hannah, the oldest child,
was the mother of the late Albert Perley, into whose pos-
session the farm came. Mr. Perley died in February, 1876.
His widow resided upon the place, together with her two
youngest sons, until her death in 1889, and her son Henry
Perley has since lived here.
73.
Dollof Cellar. — "Deacon" Rufus Burnham, who then
lived at No. 78, built the Dollof house about 1822. His
carpenters were Phineas Barnes and Josiah Woodbury.
He had just before lost his wife, and had become per-
manently blind. He was a Revolutionary pensioner, and
was much esteemed by his neighbors, who gave him money
enough to build this house (as he did not own the Batchelder
Place, where he lived), which might be to him a home
where he could quietly pass the rest of his days. He died
in 1836 at the age of eighty-seven. He had three children :
Sarah, who married, as his second wife, Joseph Stickney
Tyler, who had lived in No. 94 ; Seth, who resided in the
Davis house (No. 251); and Hannah, who died unmar-
ried in 1834, at the age of forty-nine.
Mr Burnham was succeeded upon the place by Mr. Ty-
ler, who married his daughter Sarah. Sarah died here in
THE DWELLINGS OF EOXFORD. 71
1858, aged seventy-eight. Mr. Tyler married, thirdly,
widow Surah (Stuart) Esney of Georgetown, whose daugh-
ter married his son Ira S. Tyler, who lately died in George-
town. This third wife hung herself in this house in 1860.
Mr. Tyler died in 1864, at the age of eighty-eight, and
the heirs sold the old homestead to Mr. Sylvester Dollof.
Mr. Dollof was a carpenter, and resided here until 1867,
when he removed to Bradford where he now resides. He
subsequently let the house to various tenants until it \v:ts
burned down in the spring of 1876.
74.
Kesidence of David DeW. C. Mighill. — The house
that formerly occupied the site of Mr. David DeWitt Clin-
ton Mighill's residence was built by Capt. Francis Perley
about 1734. He was born at No. 76, in 1706, and was
son of Lieut. Jacob Perley. Capt. Perley was a promi-
nent man in the town, quite wealthy and did an extensive
business in tanning. He boarded a number of the French
Neutrals that were here from 1756 to 1760. He died in
1765. His wife was Huldah, sister to Gen. Israel Putnam,
who after his decease married Timothy Fletcher of Wes<-
ford, and removed thither. His eldest child, William, a
commander at battle of Bunker Hill, resided in No. 75 ;
Huldah married Col. John Robinson of Westford, a com-
mander at battle of Concord, and distinguished for his un-
flinching patriotism ; Francis succeeded his father on the
place ; Amos lived at No. 39 ; and Jacob lived awhile at No.
18, removed to Reading and finally settled in Byfield,
where he died at a good old age, a deacon of the church.
Capt. Perley was succeeded on the homestead by his
son Francis, who was born in 171.*), and married, first, in
1771, Ruth Putnam of Danvers, and second, in 1786,
Hannah Payson, 2d, of Rowley. He also became a captaiu
72 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFOKD.
in the militia. He removed to Rowley about 1800, and
died there suddenly in a tit in 1810 at the age of sixty-
tive. Capt. Perley had thirteen children, of whom Fanny
married Dr. Dennison Bowers of Boscawen, N. H., in
1791, and resided in this house for a few years after her
marriage ; Nancy died in Boscawen at the age of twenty-
seven : Francis died at sea ; Ebenezer Putnam lived in
Rowley ; James lived in Rowley and Boston ; and Edward
Payson died abroad.
The writer has been told that a Chapman family lived
upon the place about 1805. Daniel Bodwell, from Me-
thuen, was living there in 1812. He was a blacksmith,
and worked in a part of the barn. The old house, being
then very dilapidated, was taken down and the present one
erected, presumably by Samuel Perley, who bought the
farm at auction in 1812, it being sold by Capt. Francis Per-
ley's widow, who was administratrix, to settle the estate.
The advertisement of this auction, as it appeared in the
Salem Gazette, was as follows : —
BY ORDER OF COURT,
Will be sold at Public Auction, on the premises, on Tuesday the 10th
day of March next, at one o'clock P. M.
A FA KM in Boxford, belonging to the estate of Capt. Francis Pbk-
ley, late of Rowley, deceased. Said farm consists of about 70
acres of wood, tillage, and pasture Land, with the buildings thereon.
For further information inquire of JAMES PERLEY, of Rowley, or
DANIEL IK (DWELL, ou the premises, where the conditions will be
made known.
HANNAH PERLEY, admx.
Rowley, Feb. 7. 1812.
Samuel Perley was from Rowley. He settled upon the
farm immediately, having married withLydia Perkins, and
lived there until his death, which occurred in 1848. He
was born in 1770, being a son of John Perley of Rowley
and brother of John Perley, who gave a fund wherewith
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 73
to found a free school in Georgetown. He had two sons
and one daughter, neither of whom was ever married. The
children lived upon the place,— Lydia till her decease in
1857, Samuel till his death in 1869, and Stephen Perkins
until 1873, when he sold out to Mr. Jophanus Adams of
Georgetown. In 1875 Mr. Adams sold the place to Mr.
Samuel Clark.
Mr. Clark lived here a short time and then bought the
Savage house (No. 37), to which he removed. He sold
this place to Mr. Sewall T. Johnson of Newburyport, in
1876. Mr. Johnson repaired the house extensively and
resided here until the next year, when he sold to Mr.
Mijrhill, who has since lived here.
75.
The Town Almshouse. — The almshouse was erected
by Capt. William Perley in 1763. He moved here from
the Amos Perley house (No. 18). He was a son of Capt.
Francis Perley and a nephew of Gen. Israel Putnam, and
was born in No. 74 in 1735. Capt. Perley was a promi-
nent citizen of the town. He was the captain of the min-
ute men here atthe beginning of the Revolutionary struggle,
and led his men in the battle of Bunker Hill, when eight
of them fell, their bodies, as far as we have learned, being
never brought home. Capt. Perley died in 1812, aged
seventy-seven. By his first wife, Sarah, daughter of Jacob
Clark of Topsfield, he had twelve children, of whom, Rev.
Humphrey Clark Perley, who graduated at Dartmouth
College in 1791, was a clergyman in Methuen and Beverly,
and died in Georgetown in 1838 ; William resided in
Georgetown and Haverhill ; Phineas lived at No. 42 ; and
Oliver in Georgetown. Capt. Perley married, secondly,
the widow of Dr. William Hale, who resided in X<>. 99.
Capt. Pei ley's youngest son Abraham succeeded him np-
10
74 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
on the place. There his six children were born. About
1825, the farm was sold to Capt. Jacob Tovvne, formerly
of Salem, and, in 1847, he sold it to the town of Boxford
for a town farm. The town repaired the buildings and
have continued to use the place as a town farm ever since.
Mr. Towne died in 1853 at the age of seventy-three.
The first master of the almshouse, or superintendent of
the town farm, was Jonathan Martin, who remained three
years, removing to Byfield, where he died in 1880 at the
age of eighty-four. His successors have been David Wes-
ley de la Fletcher Hood, 1850-1852 -, 1 Joseph N. Jaques,
1852-1854 ; Parker P. Pingree, 1854-1857 ; William J.
Savage, 1857-1863; Peter Strout, 1863-1870; Charles
E. Morse, 1870-1880; Rufus W. Emerson, 1880-1883;
Henry K. Kennett, 1883-1885 ; and Charles Perley, 2d,
1885-1891.
76.
Jacob Perley Cellar. — About 1697, Thomas Perley
erected a house near Lake Reynor for his son Jacob, to
whom he deeded the house and land about it in 1704. The
house stood a few rods northeast of the barn belonging to
the farm of Messrs. Patten and Metcalf, on the south side
of the road. The exact location of the cellar is now almost
unknown, as it has been filled up and ploughed over for
many years. The house was large and had a leanto. The
chimney was constructed on the outside of the house, and
the oven opened outward. From the oven, it is said, on
Saturday nights the contents were sometimes purloined,
leaving the family without their usual Sunday beans, pud-
ding and brown bread.
Mr. Perley removed to Bradford about 1737, and died
there in 1751. He had seven children, probably all born
1 Mr. Hood died there Marcb 22, 1852,
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFOKD. 75
in this old house. He married, first, Lydia Peabody ; sec-
ond, her cousin Lydia Peabody ; and third, widow Mehita-
ble Brown of Rowley. Of his sons, Jacob and Nathan lived
inBoxford (Jacob at No. 32) ; Francis lived at No. 74;
and Moses settled on the old place.
Moses Perley, who succeeded his father on the home-
stead, was born in 1709, and married Hannah Frye of An-
dover in 1740. Col. Peter Frye was her own cousin.
Colonel Frye was a loyalist, and his daughter Love married
for her first husband, Dr. Peter Oliver, another loyalist,
and secondly, Admiral Sir John Knight of the British
navy. Lady Knight died ather seat near London in 1839.
Gen. Joseph Frye was another first cousin. Moses Per-
\ay died in October, 1793, at the age of eighty-four, and
his widow followed him nine days later, at the age of sev-
enty. Their bodies repose in Harmony cemetery. Of
their thirteen children, Moses was a soldier and died in the
Revolution ; Hannah married Lieut. Daniel Clarke of
Topsfield, who removed to Georgetown and for several
years kept a tavern on Central street, dying in 1799
at the age of sixty -three ; Stephen and Jeremiah settled in
Topsfield ; Nathan built the Tidd house on Nelson street,
Georgetown, and resided there : Jeremiah lived in Boxford ;
Sarah was the grandmother of the prominent Topsfield
Balches ; Moody married, and lived in Nos. 32 and 95 ;
Phebe married Solomon Wood, who lived in No. 72 ami
Eliphalet, the youngest child, resided on the old place.
It is singular that of these seven sons there are no living
male descendants bearing the name of Perley.
Eliphalet was born in 1765, and resided in the old house
until 1817, when he built the present residence of Messrs.
Patten and Metcalf farther up the slope of old Baldpate,
to which he removed, and then demolished the old house.
76 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFOliD.
77.
Residence of Messrs. Patten and Metcalf. — Eliph-
alet Perley, having come into the possession of No. 76
(which see), built this house and took down the old one.
He never married, and lived in his new house for sev-
eral years, presumably until the death of his maiden sis-
ter Betty in 1822. He afterward lived in Georgetown,
where he died of old-fashioned consumption at the age of
eighty, in 1846. When in his prime Mr. Perley was a
large, strong, athletic man, who often mowed all night
when there w r as a moon, and worked as hard at other kinds
of farm labor.
In 1825, the farm was sold to Moses Bradstreet of Row-
ley. He died here shortly after buying the place, and in
1829, the heirs, Matta Bradstreet, widow, Abigail Wildes,
widow, and Samuel Bradstreet, all of Topsfield, conveyed
it to Sylvester Cummings for two thousand dollars.
Mr. Cummings resided here, and upon his death the
farm descended to his daughter Judith, wife of Erastus
Smith. She sold it to Augustus M. Perley in 1868.
Mr. Perley lived here several years, and in 1876 con-
veyed the place to Dea. Jacob Symonds Potter.
Mr. Potter resided here several years and his heirs sold
out to Mr. Junius D. Hayes of Clinton, Mass., in the
spring of 1884. He resided here about a year, and then
removed to Georgetown, selling this place to the present
owners, Messrs. Patten and Metcalf.
Mr. El bridge Perkins, of Topsfield, occupied the place
from 1880 to 1882.
78.
Residence of Murray R. Ballou. — Mr. Ballou's house
was erected by Dr. David Wood about 1701. He was
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 77
son of Daniel Wood and was born in Boxford in 1677.
He was a physician with a large practice, a justice of the
peace, a mill owner and an extensive farmer. He was
one of three to build the saw-mill in front of his residence
in 1710. He was a leader in the social life of his time
and region, and died Aug. 30, 1744. By his wife Mary
he had eleven children, of whom Daniel resided at No.
284 ; Sarah married Aaron Kimball ; David lived at No.
289 ; Hannah married Josiah Johnson of Woburn ; Jon-
athan succeeded his father on the homestead ; Mary
married Rev. Jacob Bacon of Plymouth ; Mercy married
Isaac Adams, who lived in No. 84 ; and Samuel gradu-
ated at Harvard College in 1745, settled in Windham,
Conn., where he was a Congregationalist clergyman, and
later a chaplain in the Revolution, being taken prisoner
at the capture of Fort Washington in 1776, and dying on
board the prison-ship Asia the following winter, at the
age of fifty-two. Hon. Bradford Ripley Wood, LL.D.,
member of the Twenty-ninth Congress, and United States
minister to Denmark from 1861 to 1865, was Samuel's
grandson.
Dr. Wood's son Jonathan succeeded him on the home-
stead. He did considerable farming, and among his an-
imals was a line bay horse, which he valued very highly
as a saddle horse. On the night of February 21, 1775,
his barn was entered and this horse together with an ex-
cellent saddle and a bridle was stolen. lie advertised for
their return in several issues of the Essex Gazette, but as
far as the writer has learned never heard from them again.
The following is a copy of his advertisement : —
"QTOLEN out of the Barn of the Subfcriber, in the Night of
^the 21ft Inftant, a large bright bay HORSE, with a ruffet limiting
Saddle and bridle, about 7 Years old, with a final! Star In his Forehead,
about 15 Hands high, is a natural Pacer and ran trot (bine. Who-
78 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
ever takes up faid Horfe, Saddle and Bridle, and returns them fafe to
me, fhall have Three Dollars Reward, and all neceffary Charges paid
by me.
"Boxford, February 22, 1775. JONATHAN WOOD."
Mr. Wood married twice ; first, Sarah Redington, and
second, Sarah, widow of Dea. Abner Spofford of Rowley.
Mr. Wood died in 1781, at the age of sixty-four. He
had eight children, of whom David was a revolutionary
soldier, and lived at No. 97 ; Jonathan livedon the home-
stead ; Eliphalet was a revolutionary soldier, and resided
in Loudon, N. H. ; Sarah married Gideon Bixby ; Enoch
resided in Loudon, N. H. ; and Abner lived in Loudon,
N. H., and Newburyport, Mass. The following is the
inscription on his gravestone in Harmony Cemetery : —
IN
Memory of
M r Jonathan Wood
who departed this Life
June y e 19"' 1781,
In the 65 th year
of his age,
I yet dofpeak though I am dead.
A Sovereign God made this my bed.
And what 1 have to fay to thee
Prepare for Death to follow me.
Mr. Wood was succeeded on the farm by his son Jon-
athan, who was born in this house in 1751. He married
Abigail Hale of Brookfield in 1787, and became a deacon
of the First Church and captain of the militia. He died
Jan. 3, 1797, at the age of forty-five, from an accident.
The following obituary notice appeared in the Salem
Gazette a week after his decease :
■• Boxford, J"». 7, 1 7H7.
"On Tuefday laft departed this life, Capt. Jonathan Wood, in the
4(ith year of his age. The circumftances which occafioned his death
arc really melancholy, <>n Saturday morning, 31fi id' December lad,
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 79
about day break, he went into his Barn, and afcended a Scaffold about
14 feet, from which he accidentally fell on the top of a Sleigh -which
ftood on the floor, whereby his head and neck were injured to fuch a
degree as to prove fatal; however he arofe from the fpot, and went
into his Houfe alone. Laft Friday his remains were interred. On the
folemn occafion was delivered a well adapted difcourfe by the Rev.'
Peter Eaton, from thefe words, ' For man alfo knoweth not his time.
The funeral proceffion confiftecl of his difconfolate Widow and Chil-
dren, a large train of bereaved Friends, the Officers of the regiment to
which he belonged, and the company of militia recently at his com-
mand, under arms, a numerous retinue compofed of feveral claffes of
people from this and the adjacent towns. He was a moft benevolent,
faithful & conftaut bofom friend; a kind, tender and affectionate
Parent of five young Children ; a feeling and affable brother; A ufeful
member of the Society in which he lived, both in a public and private
capacity. In him were united both the Christian and military Soldier ;
he was a ftrict obferver both of the laws of his God and of his coun-
try; and his death is greatly lamented."
Capt. Wood was the father of the late Capt. Enoch
Wood, who resided at No. #9, and grandfather of Judge
Charles A. Peabody of New York.
Rufus Burnhain, son of Nathan, born in Boxford in
1748, married Sarah Chapman in 1777, and resided upon
this farm until he built the Dollof house (No. 73) about
1822, to which he removed.
The heirs of Deacon Wood sold the farm in 1825 to
Capt. Jacob Batchelder of Danvers, who opened a tavern
here which flourished for many years. He died in 1853,
at the age of seventy-three. His wife was Mary, daugh-
ter of Joseph Cummings of Topsfield, where she was born
in 1779. She survived her husband and died of old age
in 1873, at the age of ninety-one. Her epitaph is, — "The
Lord is my strength and song, and he is become my sal-
vation." Among the children of Capt. Batchelder were
Lydia, who married Daniel Gould ; John Quincy, who
died in the Rebellion; Edward G., who lived upon the
place; Samuel II., who lived across the road, and lately
died at Methueu, having been lor two sessions a mem-
80 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
ber of the State Legislature ; Dr. Joseph of Templeton ;
and Jacob for many years a teacher at Lynn, where he
was highly esteemed as an educator and citizen, and where
he was for some years librarian of the public library.
After the death of Capt. Batchelder, his son Edward G.
resided on the place. He served in the war of the Rebel-
lion, and after the decease of his wife lived here alone.
On Sunday, May 11, 1879, he was found dead in his gar-
ret having committed suicide by hanging the Wednesday
previous. The house then remained unoccupied, and in
the possession of Mr. Batchelder's nephew, Samuel P.
Batchelder, until 1884, when he sold the place to Mr.
Murray R. Ballou of Boston, who resides in the old tav-
ern, which he has greatly improved.
79.
Residence of Mrs. J. Q. Batchelder. — This house was
built about 1844 by John Quiucy Batchelder and Samuel
H. Batchelder brothers, sons of Capt. Jacob Batchelder,
who resided in No. 78. One-half of it has since been oc-
cupied by John Q. Batchelder and his family, he having
died of typhoid fever on board the hospital-ship Euterpe
in October, 1862, and buried in the Soldiers' cemetery,
near Mill-creek hospital.
The other half of the house was occupied by Samuel
until 1875, when he removed to Methueu where he lately
died. Since his removal his part of the house has remained
unoccupied.
80.
Fred SroFFORD House. — Ebenezer Kimball probably
resided upon this farm about 1725. He was succeeded
by his only child Jonathan Kimball, who died in 174b",
leaving a daughter Hepzibah. She married Rev. Hezekiah
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 81
Smith of Haverhill, in 1771. The next year Mr. Smith
sold the farm, consisting of seventy-one acres, and the
house, barn, etc., to Bradstreet Tyler of Boxford for
£455 15s. Mr. Smith was a Baptist clergyman, and
preached in Georgetown and Haverhill.
Stephen Spofford lived there about 1800. He was born
in the next house on the same road (No. 82) in 1753, and
was the son of Samuel and Mary (Poor) Spofford. He
married Sarah Chadwick of Boxford in 1782, and had two
children : Frederick, who lived on the homestead, and
Polly, who became the wife of Samuel Peabody.
Capt. Frederick Spofford married, first, Mary, daugh-
ter of Amos Kimball, who lived at No. 214. She died in
1810, at the age of twenty-three ; and he married, second,
in 1812, Deborah Wilkins. He died there in 1854, and
since that time some portion of his family have resided
upon the place until within six or seven years. His young-
est sou, Mighill Wellington Spofford, was the last of the
family to live there. Captain Spofford had eleven chil-
dren, the oldest of whom was Charles A. who resided at
No. 82. Another son, Augustus F., settled in Platteville,
Wis., and a daughter is the widow of John Preston of
Georgetown.
81.
Residence of Jeremiah Dacey. — This place on "Old
Shaven-crown hill" was probably originally settled by
Abraham Tyler, son of Jo I) and Elizabeth (Parker) Tyler,
born in Boxford in 1735. He married, first, in 1756,
Abigail Stickney, by whom he had fifteen children ; and
second, in 1780, Jerusha Mersay, by whom he had one
child. Of his children, Joseph S. lived at Nos. 73 and
94, and William on the homestead.
Mr. Tyler was succeeded on the farm by his son Wil-
li
82 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
Ham, who was horn there in 1774. He married Abigail
Barker of Haverhill in 1799, and had a son William, and
a daughter Salenda, both of whom resided upon the
place. The children obtained the title to the property,
and forced their parents in their old age to seek a home
at the almshouse, where they soon after died.
The son William married Mary S. Donnan and had
two daughters both of whom died young. He lived only
a few years after his marriage, and during that time resided
here, replacing the old buildings by those now standing
about 1850.
The daughter Salenda married Nelson Bodwell in 1826,
and after living in Simmiersworth, N. H., Methuen,
Mass., and in New York state, settled on this place after
William's death. They continued to live here until 1868,
w h they sold the place to Mr. Jeremiah Dacey, from
Ireland, the present owner and occupant. Mr. Bodwell
removed to Georgetown, where he lived until the decease
of his wife about 1882, when he removed to Andover.
They had three children, the eldest being Leonard War-
wick, who lived in No. 13.
Abraham Tyler's third son was Jacob, a twin with Eliz-
abeth, who was born at this house February 17, 1770. He
married Lavinia , and after the birth of his first
child in 1795, removed to Concord, N. II., where he re-
mained until about 1847, when he settled in the West
parish of Rowley, Mass., which was afterward taken from
Rowley and incorporated as the town of Georgetown. He
died there September 11, 1865, at the age of ninety-five.
The present Tyler families of Georgetown are his de-
scendants, through his son Caleb Greeuleaf Tyler, who
died there June 8, I860, at the age of fifty-four, having
been a prominent manufacturer.
Other children of Abraham Tyler were Molly, who mar-
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 83
ried John Peabody in 1788, Priscilla, Avho married Ben-
jamin Robinson in 1794, Isaac, who married Dorcas Good-
ridge in 1794, and Elizabeth (the second child of that
name, and not the twin with Jacob), who married David
Colbnrn, jr., in 1797.
82.
Residence of H. Merritt Spofford. — This house
was built by Samuel Spofford about 1717. He was a son
of Samuel Spofford who resided on the rt old farm " on
Spofford's Hill, in what is now Georgetown, was born in
1690, and married Sarah Stickney of Bradford in 1717.
The house was originally built in the style that then pre-
vailed, and so remained until a few years ago, when it was
extensively repaired and modernized. They had five
children, the oldest of whom was Bethiah, who was blind
many years. They had, also, Sarah, who died of the
throat distemper in 1736, aged fifteen years; Thomas,
who settled in Andover ; Amos, who settled at No. 83 ;
and Samuel, who lived on his father's place.
Samuel Spofford, jr., was born in 1722, and married
Mary Poor of Newbury in 1752. They had six children :
two by the name of Moses, who died each at the age of
one month, the last one of canker ; Molly, who died at the
age of three years ; Samuel, who resided on this place ;
Parker, who lived at No. 33 ; and Stephen, the eldest son,
who resided at No. 80.
Mr. Spofford was succeeded on the homestead by his
son Samuel, who died there, Feb. 12, 1846, at the age of
eighty-six. He never married, but hired housekeepers,
one maiden lady, Nancy Springer, serving him in that
capacity many years. In 1841, he conveyed the farm to
Moses Dorman, jr., to dispose of for the payment of his
debts, and Mr. Dorman sold it to John Tyler of Boxford
in 1844.
84 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
Mr. Spofford's nephew, Charles Arlington Spofford
(son of Capt. Frederick Spofford), born at No. 80 in 1812,
moved to this place about three years before Samuel's de-
cease, and afterward lived there, buying the farm of Mr.
Tyler in 1849. Mr. Spofford married Sarah Hardy, and
had two children. He died in 1883, and since that time
his son H. Merritt has carried on the farm.
83. ,
Residence of Israel F. Spofford. — The house that
originally stood where Mr. Israel F. Spofford lives was
doubtless built by Amos Spofford about 1754. In that
year he married Abigail Pearl, from No. 259. He was
born in No. 82 in 1729. They had nine children, of
whom Benjamin settled in Fryebnrg, Me. ; Amos in Me-
tlnien : Samuel in Portland, Me., and at No. 252; Daniel
in Bine Hill, Me. ; and Thomas, the youngest son, on his
father's place.
Thomas Spofford was born in 1767, and married Eliza-
beth Foster in 1791. He built the present house in 1805,
on, or nearly on, the site of the old house. They had
seven children, of whom Phineas settled in Beverly ; Eliza
was the first wife of the late Ephraim Cole, and the old-
est child Aaron became his father's successor on the old
place.
Capt. Aaron Spofford was born in 1793, and married
Betsey Foster in 1822. Mr. Spofford was a soldier in the
war of 1812, for which he received a pension. He had
ten children : Mrs. Samuel Killam; Phineas, who was a
captain in the Confederate army during the Rebellion, and
later high sheriff of Cheraw county, S. C. ; Mrs. John
Hale; Aaron, who was killed in the battle of Groveton,
Va., Aug. 30, 18(52, while lighting in the Union army;
Daniel Webster, who served in the Union Army, and
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
85
now resides in Georgetown ; Israel F., who resides on
his father's place ; and others. Captain Spofford died in
1879, at the advanced age of eighty-six. He was suc-
ceeded on the homestead by his son Israel F., who has
since resided there.
84.
The Old Adams House. — The house in which Mr.
Charles A. Thwing recently died was erected by Thomas
THE OLD ADAMS HOUSE.
Spofford about 1702. He was a son of Samuel and Sarah
(Burkbee) Spofford of Rowley, where he was born in
1679, and was the firsl of the name to settle in Boxford.
By his wife, Bethiah Haseltine, whom he married in 1702,
he had ten children. \\\ 1716, he sold the place to his
brother-in-law, Isaac Adams of Rowley, and removed to
Lebanon, Conn. lie is the ancestor of the numerous
86 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
Spafards, Rev. Henry A. Spafard of Brooklyn, N. Y.,
being one of his descendants.
Mr. Adams probably never lived here. He died in Row-
ley in 1738, and in his will devised this farm to his son
Isaac, who was born in Rowley in 1713. He came here to
live with his mother, who died in 1775, at the age of nine-
ty-one.
At the age of twenty-nine, Mr. Adams married a daugh-
terof Dr. David Wood, and had ten oreleven children. Mr.
Adams was commissioned captain of the Second company
of militia in Boxford Sept. 1, 1762. The original commis-
sion is in the possession of his great-granddaughter, Miss
Rebecca T. Wood of West Boxford. He served on the
committees chosen to build the second meeting-house in
West Boxford ; and in 1780, was one of a committee of
live chosen to examine the state constitution agreeably to
a resolve of the General Court June 15, 1779. He was
in his day one of the principal men of Boxford. lie
served as a selectman for fourteen years ; and was the
representative to the legislature from 1783 to 1786, in-
clusive, and in 1788, live years in all. He had the good of
the country at heart, and even when he had reached the
age of eighty he took great interest in the affairs of Con-
gress. Dr. Jeremiah Spofford remembered being at Mr.
Adams' house about 1795, a year or two before the old
gentleman's death. He described him as a man of short
stature, and as wearing a small red cap, which fitted close
to his head. Mr. Adams died in 1797, aged eighty-three.
His wife survived him six years. His epitaph is as fol-
lows : —
"Affectionate as a husband, tender as a parent,
Useful in lite, resigned in death, render his
memory dear to surviving friends.
His God sustains liini in his linal hour!
His 1 1 ii : 1 1 hour brings glory to his God!"
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 87
Four of Mr. Adams' sons served in the army of the
Revolution, his son Isaac being one of the victims of the
battle of Bunker Hill. Several of his sons settled in
Rindge, N. H. Two great-grandsons are Edwin Spofford
Adams, principal of a school in Brooklyn, N. Y., and
Moses Sawin Adams, Esq., a prosperous attorney in
Wichita, Kansas. Mr. Adams' daughter Mary married
John Tyler, and was the mother of the late Mrs. Enoch
Wood.
Mr. Adams' youngest son Israel, born in 1761, mar-
ried Lucinda Baxter in 1808 and resided here the remain-
der of his life. He died in May, 1834, and his widow
went to Rindge, N. H., where she died in 1864, at the
age of ninety. Mr. Adams was a selectman in 1799,
1800 and 1803. In 1811, he w r as one of a committee
of three chosen by the town to superintend inoculation
to prevent the prevalence of small-pox.
The next occupant was Isaac, a grandson of Capt. Isaac
Adams and son of David. He was here as early as 1822.
He was the father of Chandler Braman Adams, U. C.
1855, and of Charles Israel Adams, D. C. 1852, a law-
yer in Boston, who were both born in this old mansion.
Mr. Adams also bore the title of his grandfather, that
of captain. In November, 1869, he sold this place to Perry
M. Jefferson of Andover, who sold to Charles H. Mears
and John F. Baldwin, co-partners, of Lowell, the follow-
ing month. They sold to Charles F. Winch of Wilming-
ton in 1870, and he conveyed it to Anna E. Thwing in
1872. Mr. Thwing came from Lexington, and resided
upon the farm until his death in 1889.
85.
The Samuel B. Carleton IIousk. — The farm which
was in the possession of the late Samuel B. Carleton has
88 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
been in the Carleton family for several generations. Jo-
soph Carleton, a grandson of George Carleton (who was
the first settlor in Boxford of that name, having come
from Bradford in 1727, probably settling on this place),
was born in Boxford in 1754 or 1755, married Sarah
Wood in 1780, and settled on this homestead. They had
a Large family.
Joseph Carleton's third child was named Leonard. He
was born in 1786, married Sally Barker of Andover in
LSI 7, and settled on this place. Here was born his son
and the recent owner and occupant of this farm, the late
Samuel Barker Carleton, who always resided' upon the
homestead.
A Carleton from this place was killed at the battle of
Bunker Hill June 17, 1775.
86.
The Gragg House. — The small house occupied by
Lawrence Fagan was the old Gragg place, having been
built probably about 1771 by Reuben Gragg, who came
from Rowley, his wife being Betty Carlton of Boxford.
He probably resided here when he died in 17SJ6, at the
age of fifty-one.
George Porter, a resident of Boston, inherited this
place from his aunts Misses Xabby and Rebecca Gragg.
He sold it to John McCabe, who after living here nine or
ten years sold out to Stephen Perkins in 1870. Mr.
Perkins lived here till his death, when his daughter-in-
law, Mrs. Kate Perkins, the present owner, bought out
the other heirs, and has since made it her home. Mr.
Fagan married Mrs. Perkins' sister.
87.
Residence of William Wright. — Mr. William
Wright came from Lawrence, bought a piece of very un-
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 89
even sprout land near the old Fowler place, and cleared
it up, building upon it a residence for himself and family
in 1879. By his assiduous labor, he made the land very
productive.
The Fowler House. — The old Fowler house was
owned and occupied by Nathan Kimball, son of John and
Elizabeth (Chapman) Kimball, who lived at No. 90. He
was born in 1706, married Sarah Goodridge (from No.
63), and died in 1784, at the age of seventy-eight.
On one of the oaken posts of this house is engraved
"1712." Probably this was the date of the erection of the
house, but we do not know who built it, or who occupied
it before Nathan Kimball took up his residence there.
Mr. Kimball had eight children, one of whom, Nathan,
jr., born in 1749, married Mary Poor of Newbury in 1770,
and settled on this place. They had three children : Asa,
who graduated at Brown University in 1796, and died in
1801 ; Stephen ; and Mary (or Polly) who married Jona-
than Foster, and lived at No. 92. Mrs. Kimball spent
the last of her days with her daughter, Mrs. Foster.
Mr. Kimball was succeeded on the homestead by his
son Stephen, who married Elizabeth Hasselton of Haver-
hill iu 1795, and died in 1813. They had several chil-
dren, one of whom, Harriet, married Samuel Fowler, who
Mas born in Salisbury in 1792. After Mr. and Mrs. Fowl-
er's marriage, they lived tirst in Bradford, then moved to
this place, and made many repairs and alterations. He
did quite a business here in the manufacture of shoes. He
was a youthful acquaintance of lion. Caleb Cushing, and
always his fast friend. He died in 1881, at the great age
of eighty-nine. His wife had preceded him to the grave
about four years and a half. Among the children of Mr.
90 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
Fowler are Nathan K., who resides at No. 291, and Ste-
phen K., who has returned to the old homestead after many
years' residence in Rome.
89.
Residence of John T. Wood. — A few feet east of the
residence of the late Capt. Enoch Wood was an old cellar,
where stood the most ancient house in this neighborhood.
It was doubtless built by Moses Tyler about 1(366. He
was born in Andover, probably in 1642, and Avas son of
Job and Mary of that place, and it is thought that his father
lived here in the house with Moses. Quartermaster Moses
Tyler married Prudence, a daughter of George Blake (who
lived at No. 242), by whom he had eight children. She
died in 1689, and he afterward married Martha , who
died in 1735, at the age of eighty-six. His son Moses
lived in Andover. Mr. Tyler was living in 1712, but it
is not known just when his death occurred.
His son .John was his successor on the old place. He was
born here in 166!), married Anna Messenger of Boston,
and was a sea-captain a long term of years. His wife died
in 1746, aged sixty-nine, and he followed her suddenly in
1756, at the age of eighty-seven. They had ten children.
Capt. John Tyler built a new house where the present
house stands, some little time before his death, but he al-
ways lived in the old house. He may have built this
house for his son Gideon when he was married in 1748.
We know no more of the old house.
Gideon Tyler lived in the new house, and, about 1775,
built an addition to it, again adding to it a short time be-
fore his death. He was born in 1712, and married Mehit-
able Tyler in 1748, being quite a prominent man, ensign
in the militia, etc. They had eight children. His wife
died in 1777, and his death occurred in 1800, at the age of
eighty-seven.
BJfi'^/.'/i'H
Hi:
Pi
■Mr
92 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
He was succeeded on the old place by his son John Tyler,
who was bom in 1751, a twin, and married in 1791 Mercy,
a daughter of Isaac Adams, who lived in No. 84. His
daughter Mehitable married Capt. Enoch Wood, and after
Mr. Tyler's death, Captain Wood retired from the sea and
settled on the place, which has since been known by the
Wood name. Mrs. Wood's sister, Miss Mercy Tyler,
died there in 1880, at the age of eighty-seven.
Captain Wood died in 1882 at the age of eighty-four, a
gentleman honored, revered and loved. His widow has
recently followed him. Here was born his son Enoch
Frank, a teacher, whose lovely traits of character embalm
his memory.
The present occupants of the place are Captain Wood's
children, John T. Wood and Rebecca T. Wood.
90.
Residence of Lucy S. Kimball. — The farm on which
the late Moses Kimball resided was settled in the seven-
teenth century. Near his house, a little to the southeast,
the foundation of an old chimney was unearthed several
years ago. There stood the residence of John Kimball,
who settled in Boxford as early as 1669. He made his
will in 1718, and it was proved in 1721. In it he gave
this place to his son John, entailed to John's children.
Corporal Kimball, by his wife Sarah, had seven children,
two sons and live daughters.
Miss Lucy S. Kimball, the present owner, writes that
the next house that was built on this place stood on the
opposite side of the road, a little to the southwest.
Mr. Kimball's son John took up his residence on this
farm. He was born in 1685, married Elizabeth Chapman
in 1705, and had one son and six daughters. He died in
1763, aged seventy-eight.
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 93
He was succeeded on the place by his only son Nathan,
who was born in 1706, married Sarah Goodridge, from
No. 63, in 1730, and had four sons and four daughters.
Removing to No. 88, which house he may have built, he
died in 1784, aged seventy-eight. Two of the sons died
in infancy; another, Nathan, settled at No. 88.
The other son, Moses Kimball, succeeded his father on
this farm. He was born in 1740, married Rebecca Poor
of Newbury, and in 1766 built this house. He had two
sons and two daughters. He served in the Revolution,
and when away on an expedition his boys were engaged in
making a sled fur their steers. The large elm tree now
standing in the dooryard was then small, and the boys be-
gan to cut it down, thinking it would make a fine neb for
their sled. But they were discovered by their mother and
the chopping was stopped just in season to save the life of
the tree. Mr. Kimball died in 1795, and his widow mar-
ried, secondly, John Runnells of Bradford, and died in 1821.
Mr. Kimball's son Samuel, the first child born in this
house, his birth occurring Jan. 18, 1767, built a house at
No. 92 in 1794, lived there a few years, then removed to
that part of Bradford which is now Groveland, and as long
as his brother John lived always spent his birthday at the
old place.
The other son, John Kimball, born in 1769, settled on
the old place, which his father deeded to him in 1792.
lie married Ruth Eastman of Haverhill, N. H., in 1792,
and died in 1850, at the age of eighty. He had two sons
and six daughters.
The eldest son Moses, born in 1798, succeeded his father
on the homestead and married Mary Stone, daughter of
Rev. Peter Eaton in 1833. She died in L846, and he in
1879, at the age of eighty-one. Their only child, Miss
Lucy Stone Kimball, has since resided upon the place.
94 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
91.
Jonathan Foster Cellar. — An old cellar was un-
earthed ;i few years ago a short distance west of the resi-
dence of Mrs. J. Edwards Foster (No. 92). The house
that stood here ^vas built in 1730 by Jonathan Foster on
his return from Haverhill, wbere he had been living. He
w:is a son of Jonathan Foster, and was born in Boxford in
1 <Ji*4. The walls ot the old house were filled in with
bricks, and some of the windows were of diamond-shaped
panes, set in lead. Mr. Foster married Hannah Peabody
and had five children.
His son Jonathan, born in Haverhill in 1727, married Re-
becca Dornian from No. 119, and settled here on the old
place. Another son Richard lived at No. 15H. Jonathan
(jr.) was in the French and Indian war of 1759 in the
company of Capt. Israel Herrick of Boxford. His journal
kept on the expedition to Canada is in the possession of
Mrs. M. F. Howe of Methuen. Mrs. Foster died in 1794,
at the age of sixty-one, and the following is her epitaph :
"Beneath this stone rests the mortal part
Of her who onee delighted every heart
How good she was ami what her virtues were
Her guardian angel can alone declare
The friend that now this little tribute pays
Too exquisitely feels to speak her praise."
Captain Foster lived here till the house was considered
unsafe, and then resided with his eldest son Israel Foster
in No. 93, where he died in 1813, at the age of eighty-
five. He had six children, Israel, who lived at No. 93;
Charles, who lived in Andover ; Betsey ; Amasa, who set-
tled in Weare, N. II.; Jonathan, who lived at No. 92;
and Phineas, who was a merchant, having settled in Boston
in 1805.
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 95
The house remained uninhabited for some time, and was
taken down in 1814 or 1815.
This farm is said to have been at some time in the pos-
session of Zebadiah Foster.
92.
Residence of Mrs. Susan R. Foster. — Where the
late Jonathan Edwards Foster resided stood a house built
by Samuel Kimball in 1794. It was owned and occupied
by Jonathan Foster in 1800, and was burned on Wednes-
day night, November 27, 1811. The present house was
built by Mr. Foster the following year. He was born in
1774, being the son of Jonathan Foster, who lived in No.
91, and married Mary Kimball, from No. 88, in 1800.
She died in 1854, and he in 1856, at the age of eighty-
two. They had six children.
Mr. Foster was succeeded on the place by his son Jon-
athan Edwards Foster, who was born here in 1815, mar-
ried in 1843 Susan R., daughter of the late venerable
Benjamin Peabody, who lived in No. 260, and died of the
small-pox in 1867. They had five children. Since her
husband's death Mrs. Foster has resided on the place, and,
with her son Reginald D. Foster, carried on the farm.
93.
Residence of Samuel Stas. — The house in which Mr.
Samuel Sias resides was doubtless built by Israel Foster
about 1794. lie was a son of Capt. Jonathan Foster, was
born in No. 92 in 1765 and married Mehitable Carleton.
lie was a prominent man, representing the town in the
General Court three years, L815— 1817.
Benjamin French bought the place of Mi-. Foster's heirs
in April, 185(5, removed from the Holyoke house (No.
226), and resided here until July, 1M72, when he sold
96 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
out to Mr. Sias, who with his son John has resided here
since that time.
94.
Residence of B. Ford Parsons. — Joseph Stickney
Tyler, born in No. 81 in 1776, being son of Abraham and
Abigail (Stickney) Tyler, probably built this house. He
married, in 1798, Hannah Nelson of Rowley, who lived
with her parents a few rods beyond the old turnpike gate
in Linebrook parish. Her father was Joseph Nelson from
Georgetown, then a part of Rowley, and her mother, Han-
nah Wallingford of Groveland, then a part of Bradford.
Mrs. Tyler died in 1832. They had eight children, three
of whom died in infancy (Hannah, Ancill and a babe three
days old), and five lived to be old, viz. : Hannah, wife of
the late Richard Spofford, Mary, Abigail S., Roxannaand
Ira S. Mr. Tyler resided in this house awhile, and then
removed to No. 73. It ultimately came into the posses-
sion of Bradstreet Tyler, who in 1832 sold it to Benjamin
McLaughlin of Rowley. The next year Mr. McLaughlin
sold it to Ezra Town of Boxford, who sold it in 1836 to
Richard Spofford of Boxford. In 1841 Mr. Spofford sold
to Charles F. Kimball of Boxford, who now resides in
Lynn. In 1844 Mr. Kimball built an addition to the
house and otherwise improved the place, residing on it un-
til 1870, when he conveyed it to Charles II. Jackman of
Haverhill who, the next year, sold it to Mrs. Laura Ham
of Georgetown, who owned it five years. In 1876, she
sold it to Mr. Charles C. Hilton of Lynn, who resided upon
the place until September, 1882, when he sold out to
Warren B. Pitts of Lynn. Mr. Pitts lived here till his
death in 1887. His widow, who was the executrix of his
will, as such, sold the place the same year to Mr. B. Ford
Parsons of Natick, and removed to Lynn. Mr. Parsons
has since resided upon the place.
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 97
95.
Eesidence of D. Lewis Adams. — This house was owned
by Bradstreet Tyler before 1795, as in that year he con-
veys the place, with the buildings thereon, to Daniel Kim-
ball of Boxford for £350. Mr. Kimball removed to
Newbury, and in 1803 sold the place to Moody Perley,
who removed here from the old Killam house (No. 32).
Several of his children were born here.
In 1820, Mr. Perley sold out to Bradstreet Tyler of
Boxford, and removed from the place. In 1824, on Christ-
mas day, Mr. Tyler sold the farm to Flint Tyler of Box-
ford, a shoemaker by trade, and originally from Bradford,
where he had married Jerusha Hardy of that place in
1815.
Flint Tyler sold out to James Nason of North Andover
in 1858, and Mr. Nason to David Ambrose of Lawrence in
1861. Mr. Ambrose went into the army, and while at
Port Hudson, La., gave a power of attorney to George P.
Wilson of Lawrence to sell this place, and he conveyed it
in 1863, to John J. Leighton of Middleton, N. H. Mr.
Leio-hton, who was then living in North Andover, in 1868
conveyed the place to Joseph B. Adams of Boxford. Mr.
Adams removed to Lynn, and in 1872 sold to Daniel Ad-
ams, who had just come from the Dominion of Canada
and settled upon this place. He died in 1875, at the age
of sixty-seven years. His grandfather was a native of
Massachusetts. Since Mr. Adams' death, his widow and
family have resided on the farm, his son D. Lewis Adams
carrying it on.
96.
Old Tyler Cellar. — Across the highway from the
Adams house (No. 95) is an old cellar. A Tyler family
13
98 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
lived there, and the late Mrs. Enoch Wood thought it was
that of the grandfather of the late Capt. John Tyler. The
house that stood over the cellar has probably been gone a
century.
97.
Richard Spofford House. — Before 1770, Asa Tyler
owned the Richard Spofford farm, and probably lived there.
He sold the place to Jonathan Wood who lived at No. 78,
and Mr. Wood by his will, dated Dec. 13, 1779, and proved
Sept. 3, 1781, devised to "my son David the house bought
of Asa Tyler and the barn which I built on the south side
of the way." David was born in 1748, and resided here.
He probably took down the old house, and built the pres-
ent one. He died here about 1820, being unmarried.
His mind was greatly troubled by what he conceived
to be a terrible sin, of which he was guilty, and he became
fearful that he would not be forgiven. At last he confessed
the matter to one of his friends. Dr. Amos Spofford who
lived on Baldpate hill, in what is now Georgetown, had a
great barn one hundred feet long ; and Mr. Wood wished
that he might have one as large and as good as that. It was
this sin of covetousness or envy that worried his scru-
pulous conscience.
In 1822, Eliphalet Wood of Loudon, N. II., probably a
brother and an heir of Mr. Wood, sold the farm to Win-
gate Ilsley of Rowley. Mr. Ilsley, still of Rowley, con-
veyed it to Richard Spofford of Boxford April 13, 1824,
and on the sixth of the following month Mr. Spofford was
married in the house to Hannah Tyler.
Mr. Spofford was born in No. 82 in 1797, being son of
Thomas and Elizabeth (Foster) Spofford, and brother of
the late Capt. Aaron Spofford. Mr. Spofford died here
in 1864, and his widow at No. 90 in 1891. They had
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 99
seven children, one of whom, Thomas Little Spofford, re-
mains in town.
The cider mill across the road was built in 1830, and the
barn was destroyed by fire in February, 1873.
A part of the land was purchased by Miss Adams in
1880, but the remainder of the farm still belongs to Mr.
Spofford's heirs. The house has been unoccupied for
many years.
98.
Residence of Charles A. STETSON.-^-The old house
which stood on the site of the residence of Mr. Stetson
was built by Jacob Wood, son of Daniel Wood, the first
settler in Boxford of the name of Wood, about 1715. He
died in 1731, and his brother John was appointed adminis-
trator. He had one hundred and forty acres of land in Box-
ford, and other lands in Ashford, Conn., and Suncook,
N. H. The homestead wassettled on Nathan, the only son
that grew to manhood. Only four children out of a fam-
ily of eight survived him. The other three were Hannah,
who married Joshua Andrews ; Bridget, who married
John Pemberton of Rowley ; and Phebe, who married Job
Tyler of Haverhill.
Nathan Wood, who succeeded his father on the home-
stead, was born in 172L, and married his cousin Elizabeth
Wood in 1746.
Dr. Jeremiah Spofford, who remembered the old house
here about 1795, wrote of it as follows : — "This house
by the side of the pond I well remember, with its low-
descending lean-to; and its long ladder reaching from
the ground to the chimney was ever in its place, that
they might the more readily quench the sparks and cin-
ders which often circled above the chimney-top in the
cold winter evenings."
100 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
Mr. Wood died in 1804, at the age of eighty-three. In
his will, which was made in 1801, he gives his land and
buildings and his stock of cattle, horses, sheep and swine
1<> his only surviving son Moses. He had eight children :
Moses ; Sarah ; Dolly, who married Jacob Perley ; Phebe,
who married John Barker, 3d, of Andover ; Jacob ; Lydia,
who married Amos Gould ; Betty ; and Hannah, who
married Jacob Hazen of Bridgton, Me.
Moses Wood, who succeeded his father on the place,
was born here in 1748, and married, in 1778, Sarah Bar-
ker of Andover. Mr. Wood became depressed in mind,
and at length hung himself in his house in 1810, at the
age of sixty-two. The fact that his parents were cousins
was fixed upon as the cause of his suicidal end. His fam-
ily continued to reside upon the place. He had ten chil-
dren, two sons and eight daughters, and of them, Sally
married Col. Joseph L. Lowe; Dolly married his brother
Gen. Solomon Lowe ; Betsey and Pamely never married
and lived in Danvers ; and Lucy married Benjamin Abbott
and lived in Providence, R. I.
The old house Avas blown down in the terrific gale of
September 23, 1815, and the family immediately erected
the. present house. About 1830, they removed to Danvers,
and tenants occupied the house, John Brown being the only
one we have heard of who lived here for a considerable
length of time. He moved to this place from No. 205,
and carried on the butchering business several years.
The heirs sold the farm April 1, 1837, to Seth Stetson,
a blacksmith of Danvers, for $1(500, and John Brown
immediately removed to No. 242. Widow Wood died in
Danvers the next year, at the age of eighty-four.
Mr. Stetson moved here and carried on the farm as long
as he lived. He was born in Hanover in 1773, and died
here of dropsy in 1851, at the age of seventy-eight.
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 101
After Mr. Stetson's death, his son George lived on the
place, where his children were born. He died in 1869,
aged forty-eight. His family have since resided upon the
farm, his son Charles A. Stetson being the present owner
and occupier.
99.
Residence of Rev. William P. Alcott. — This house
was erected by Dr. William Hale about 1770. In that year,
he married Anna Porter of Danvers, and commenced the
practice of physic in Boxford, where he was born in
1741, being son of Thomas Hale. He died in 1785, in his
forty-fourth year, leaving two young daughters. The
following obituary notice of Mr. Haie is found in the Salon
Gazette for August 16, 1785 : —
"On the Gth Inftant died at Boxford, after a long indifpofition, Dr.
William Hale, in the 44th year of his age ; who, foralmoft twenty years,
was a fkilful, faithful and fucceisful phyfician. His lofs is already re-
gretted, and it is apprehended will be more senfibly felt in the circle
of his late practice, which was not confined."
Doctor Hale's widow married Capt. William Perley who
lived at No. 75. Captain Perley sold the place to Samuel
Holyoke in 1801, and in 1814 he sold out to Tobias Davis,
a sea-captain of Salem. In 1826, Captain Davis re-
turned to Salem, and sold the place to Col. Charles
Peabody. Colonel Peabody at that date obtained the com-
mission of postmaster, and, buying of James Whittemore
his store at the Holyoke place, moved it to his residence,
where he opened his store and post-office.
Colonel Peabody removed to Barre, Illinois, in 1837.
While Rev. John Whitney preached here he boarded with
Mr. Peabody. In the year mentioned Mr. Peabody sold
to Elisha G. Bunker, who for a year had kept a tavern at
No. 242 in West Boxford. Here he continued the store
and post-office until about, 18G6, when he removed to Sa-
102 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
lem. One of his successors in the government office thus
wrote of him about ten years ago :
"He came to this place to live some forty-three years ago,
and the familiar sign that hung upon his store, which read
'E. G. Bunker, W. I. Goods,' is, I doubt not, well re-
membered by all who used to journey through our town
in the stages which were run in those clays, either by Pink-
ham, or Ililliard, or Pickett. Mr. Bunker served in the
war of 1812, and received a pension.
" We desire to speak more especially of Mr. Bunker's
qualities as a townsman and a neighbor. During his thii
ty years residence in Boxford, the humble individual now
writing was his nearest neighbor, and we always found him
to be a quiet, peaceable man, content to mind his own bus-
iness, kind and obliging. . . He was postmaster here
over fourteen years, and then, as now, in this town a man's
tenure of office did not depend upon his political views.
Mr. Bunker was a thorough Democrat in politics. Our
town was decidedly Whig in those days, but the majority
were so magnanimous that Mr. Bunker was removed
from office but twice, we believe, — once in General Har-
rison's term and once in General Taylor's. But in both
cases Mr. Bunker managed to keep a foothold or gain a
position, so that in a short time he easily ' routed the ene-
my.' And as in those days our town was decidedly Whig,
so now it is Republican. Notwithstanding this, we have
one of the most unyielding, defiant Democrats for post-
master."
The next owner and occupant of the place was John B.
Twisden, who conveyed it to John S. Sayward of Augusta,
Maine, in 1869. Mr. Sayward came here to pass the
remainder of his days. He died in 1875, at the age of
seventy.
Mr. Sayward was born in Ncwbun port, but removed to
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 103
Bangor, Me., about 1830, and was one of the founders of
the Bang or Whig. For about twenty years he was editor
of that paper, an excellent journal in every way. About
the year 1856, the old firm of Smith and Say ward having
been broken up, Mr. Sayward bought the interest of the
Hon. J. G. Blaine in the Kennebec Journal, and removed
to Augusta. His connection with that journal continued
about twelve years, until his removal to Boxford. He set
a very high estimate upon the power of the public press,
and was governed in all that he wrote by a deep and real
sense of his responsibility. What he was as an editor he
was in private — faithful, loyal and genial, with quick per-
ception of what was true and beautiful, and with an extra-
ordinary love for the young and a never-failing fund of
sympathy and charity for them. No man was ever more
respected and loved by those whom he employed, or made
them more his companions and friends without laying aside
his dignity, and his sparkling good humor and beautifully
even temper were proverbial in the society of the two cit-
ies of Maine, where the greater part of his life was spent.
Mr. Sayward embraced the doctrines of the New Church,
or Swedenborgians, and held to them with characteristic
enthusiasm. But his heart was light and liberal, and there
was not a tinge of narrowness or sectarianism in his com-
position.
The family of Mr. Sayward continued to reside upon
the place until about 1880, when Col. Fred Galbraith, Mr.
Say ward's son-in-law, removed to San Diego, Cal. After
that time the house remained unoccupied until the home-
stead was sold to Rev. William F. Alcott in 1883. lie
now resides here.
As is usual with most old places, there is more or less
romance attached to this, from a tale that has come down
through the many decades that this old house is haunted.
It is said that after Dr. Hale's death, at the weird hour of
104 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
midnight, his pestle could be heard grinding imaginative
herbs and drugs in the mortar.
100.
Residence ofF. D. Allen. — Josiah Woodbury bought
the land on which this house stands of John Butman in
October, 1816, and erected the house the next year, taking
ii}) his abode therein.
We have been informed that the widow of Phineas
Rundlett also lived in this house at the time of her mar-
riage with Amos Perley in 1823.
Mr. Woodbury died at his son-in-law Captain Davis'
(No. 99) in 1843, at the age of eighty-nine.
While the place was in the possession of the heirs of
Mr. Woodbury, the house was occupied by Daniel Wells
who lived there several years before 1847, and died in
1855, at the age of fifty-two, and by the late Ancill Dor-
man, Esq., from 1847 to 1850.
Isaiah Woodbury of Salem, master mariner, left two
children Nathaniel A. and Isaiah. Their mother and guar-
dian, Susan A. Woodbury, sold her and their interest in
the place in 1845 to Francis A. Fabens, Esq., of Boston.
Mr. Fabens sold out to John Clifton of Salem in 1847, and
Mr. Clifton sold to Phineas W. Barnes of Boxford in 1849.
Mr. Barnes was then living at No. 37, and he moved to
this place, where he continued his business of butchering,
building the present barn for a slaughterhouse. In 1858,
being afflicted with rheumatism he discontinued the busi-
ness of a butcher and from that time till 1^65 kept a gro-
cery store where Mr. F. A. Howe now carries on the same
business. Mr. Barnes then opened a grocery in North
Andover, where he continued in the trade until 1872-73,
when he removed to Denver, Col. He has been engaged
in business there since that time.
In 1866, Mr. Barnes conveyed the house and lot to
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 105
Asher C. Palmer of Boston, who resided here until 1883,
when the place was sold to Mr. Frederic D. Allen, profes-
sor of philology in Harvard college, who has since spent
his summers here.
101.
Residence of S. A. Bixby. — The late Deacon Samuel
Bixby built this house in 1828. Before that date he,
with his parents, had resided at the Holyoke place, having
removed there from No. 163. They all removed to this
new house as soon as it was ready for occupancy. Mr.
Bixby was married in 1830 to Eleanor E. Johnson of
Andover, and eleven days later his father(Gideon Bixby)
died. His mother died in 1837. Here Deacon Bixby
lived till his death, which occurred in 1881, at the age of
eighty-two. His wife had died a short time previous.
His son Stephen A. Bixby succeeded him on the place, and
still resides there.
102.
Residence of Mrs. Sally Rea. — This house was
erected by the late Jeremiah Rea, being raised June 28,
1840, on land purchased of Richard K. Foster in the fall
of 1838. He resided in it until his death in 1890, and
his widow until her death in 1891, at the age of eighty-
three.
103.
The Todd House. — The new town hall was erected in
1890 over the cellar of the old academy which was built
about 1825, as a place for holding meetings, by the Third
religious society, which had just been established. In
182(!, Major Jacob Peabody, a merchant of Boston and a
native of Boxford, was instrumental in incorporating the
14
106 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
building into a school-house. The school was private, and
of an academical grade. Through Major Peabody's in-
fluence, the academy flourished for two or three years.
On Sundays, preaching was carried on in the interest of
the disaffected members of the church. The preaching
was sometimes by the professors of the academy, and by
"reverend" gentlemen, among whom was one Robertson.
Their doctrines were veiy liberal. The iirst professor in
the academy was Mr. Leavenworth. From a section of
one of the early printed catalogues, the date of which is
none, we learn that the examining committee were Rev.
Brown Emerson of Salem, Rev. Jared Reid of Reading,
and Mr. Levi Pratt, Mr. Giles Lyman and Mr. Lucian
Farnham of the Andover Theological Seminary. The
prudential committee were Major Jacob Peabody and Col.
Charles Peabody. T. I. Farnham was preceptor. About
fifty students (of both sexes — the young gentlemen being
but a small number in the majority) are catalogued.
The building was afterward remodelled into a dwelling-
house, and was first occupied by Rev. William S. Coggin
upon his settlement over the church here in 1838. In 1842
he built his present residence (No. 107) and removed to
it the same year.
The house was afterward occupied by Maj. William
Lowe and Mr. William G. Todd and Roscoe W. Gage
respectively, until it was burned on the night of December
26, 1867, the last two named families then living there.
The cellar remained uncovered until L890, when the town
hall was erected.
104.
Residence of W. A. Howe. — This house was erected
by Mr. Edward Howe in 1841. The next year Mr. Howe's
wife died, and in 1843 he exchanged this house for the
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 107
present residence of Mr. Daniel Bixby (No. 10), where
Mr. Howe's brother, Mr. William Appleton Howe, resided.
Mr. Edward Howe vacated the premises and his said
brother moved in the same year and has since lived upon
the place.
Mr. Edward Howe began his shoe business here.
In the north part of the house two or more families have
resided. Two of them were those of Solomon W. Lowe
and Benjamin Kenney.
105.
The Abbie Bacon House. — The present public library
building in the East parish was built as a dwelling house by
Mrs. Abigail Bacon, widow of Dr. Josiah Bacon, thirty-
five years ago. The carpenters were the late Samuel N.
and Deacon Joshua Ayers ; the mason, Nicholas Tuttle ; the
hod-carrier, Andrew Berry ; and the late Amos Stevens
was the one employed to bank up the house.
The shed used to stand, roofless, near the old church,
and it is said had been originally annexed to the church of
the "dissenters" across the street. In this shed the youth
of the neighborhood played at "hide and seek" until it was
moved to Mrs. Bacon's house, on rollers, by Elisha G.
Bunker.
Mrs. Bacon died in 1868, and then her daughter Abbie
resided in the house till her decease in 1878. The house
was bought by the library association soon after, and fitted
up for its present use.
106.
Kesidence of I. W. Norwood. — This house was erected
by Jefferson Kimball in 1810. He came from North An-
dover, and boughl tie- bouse lot of Daniel and Dean An-
drews, with the shop thereon, lie settled here, and worked
108 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
in the shop blacksmithing. He served the town as rep-
resentative in the legislature, and was a prominent man
in town affairs, until he sold the place to Mr. William H.
Kimball of Boxford in 1871, when he removed to Fitch-
burg, where he died in 1879. The purchaser resided here
until 1879, when he removed to Danvers Centre, where
he has since lived. He sold the place in 1878 to Mr. Wil-
liam B. Howe, who shortly after disposed of it to Miss
Mary Perley of Salem. In 1888 it came into the posses-
sion of Mr. I. Walter Norwood, who now resides here.
See No 110.
107.
Residence of Eev. W. S. Coggin. — Rev. William
Symmes Coggin of Tewksbury was settled over the First
church in Boxford in 1838. He resided first in No. 103,
and in 1842 built the house in which he has since lived.
He resigned his pastorate in 1868.
108.
Residence of S. F. Ayers. — This house was built by
Samuel N. Ayers for himself in 1844. Mr. Ayers was a
native of Wolfsboro', N. H., and his wife, who was Miss
Lucy P. Fuller, was born in Salem, N. H. It was occu-
pied by him until his death in 1873, at the age of fifty-four.
Since that time his son, S. Frank, has resided here. Mr.
Ayers was a carpenter, and several of the modern houses
in this vicinity were erected under his supervision.
Several families have resided in the northwestern part
of the house, among them being those of Solomon W.
Lowe and Rufus W. Emerson.
109.
Residence of P. Strout. — The house that formerly
stood upon the site of Mr. Strout's new house was erected
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 109
by a company of proprietors in 1852, and after it was fin-
ished was sold at auction, being bid off by Alfred Brown.
Mr. Brown manufactured shoes and lived here some years.
Daniel Russell removed here from Bald hill (No. 117), and
was the first occupant of the northern half of the house,
living here from the fall of 1852. He removed to No.
118 about 1855, when Mr. Brown sold the place to
Messrs. Nathaniel Grant Spiller and Peter Strout, and
went to New Hampshire. Upon partition Mr. Strout took
the northern half and Mr. Spiller the southern half. Mr.
Spiller died here in August, 1883, at the age of eighty-
two and his widow continued to reside here. With the ex-
ception of a few years, when he was superintendent of the
town farms of Boxford and North Andover, Mr. Strout
resided in his half of the house. When Mr. Strout was
away, his part of the house was occupied by Mr. William
W. Dresser. The house was burned on the night of April
6, 1890. Mr. Strout immediately erected the present house
upon the same site.
110.
Residence of H. Newhall. — Mr. Henry Newhall
built his house in 1872, and has since resided in it.
His blacksmith's shop was built by Thomas Dewksbury,
who died, unmarried, in 1832, at the age of twenty-five.
It stood originally between the residences of Messrs. I.
W. Norwood and S. Frank Ayers, and was used there by
Jefferson Kimball for many years (see No. 106). It was
moved to its present site June 1, 1874, by Mr. Newhall.
111.
The Holyoke Mansion. — The old Ilolyoke house oc-
cupies the site of the parsonage built by the town for the
first minister of Boxford, Rev. Thomas Symmes. In April,
1701, the town voted to build him a house 48 x 20 feet,
110 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
two stories in height, with a hack-room of 16 or 18 feet
square. The house was finished and taken possession of*
by Mr. Symmes in July, 1702. Here he lived until his
dismissal in 1708, and four of his children were born
here.
Rev. John Rogers, the successor of Mr. Symmes, settled
here immediately after Mr. Symmes went away, and con-
tinued to reside in this house until his removal from Box-
ford in 1743. He afterward resided with his son, Rev.
John Rogers, who was settled at Leominster, and died
there in 1755. Mr. Rogers had nine children, all born
here, and all baptized in the little ancient church that stood
on the hill north of his residence.
Mr. Rogers' son Benjamin lived in this house after him.
Benjamin married, first, Mrs. Alice (Perley) Foster,
widow of Thomas Foster, by whom he had eight children.
She died, and he married, second, Lois Perue in 1751.
By her he became the father of two children. He died in
March, 1761, and his widow married, in December of the
same year, Ephraim Houghton of Lancaster, to which place
she doubtless removed. Some say that Mr. Houghton be-
longed in Harvard, the publishment on the Boxford town
records calls him of Lancaster, and his marriage record in
Harvard calls him of that town. However, nothing more
is known of her and little of her children, who doubtless
removed with her wherever she went.
In 1759, two years before his death, Mr. Rogers (the
rest of the heirs having quitclaimed to him their interest
in the estate) sold the house and lot to Rev. Elizur Hol-
yoke, who was settled over the church here in that year.
The next year the old house was taken down and the pres-
ent one erected by Mr. Ilolvoke's father, Samuel Ilolyoke,
a merchant of Boston. Rev. Mr. Ilolyoke afterward re-
sided in the new house.
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. Ill
Rev. Elizur Holyoke was born in Boston in 1731, and
was a nephew of Edward Holyoke, president of Harvard
college, and a great-grandson of Eliznr Holyoke of Spring-
field, for whom Mount Holyoke was named. 1 Rev. Mr.
Holyoke died after a paralytic illness of thirteen years, in
1806, at the age of seventy-four. His widow, who was
Hannah, daughter of Rev. Oliver Peabody of Natick, sur-
vived him two years.
Stephen Gould moved Mrs. Holyoke from Natick to
Boxford upon her marriage in 1759, and he was the only
person she knew in church the next Sabbath except her
husband.
Mr. and Mrs. Holyoke had eight children, namely, Sam-
uel, Samuel, Elizur, Elizabeth, Oliver Peabody, Edward,
Hannah and Charles. The second Samuel was the dis-
tinguished musical composer and publisher. He produced
*' TJarmonia Americana," "The Instrumental Assistant"
"The Columbian Repository of Sacred Harmony." Like
most of those who have become deservedly distinguished
he died poor and without a home. After the other chil-
dren had all gone Hannah continued to reside in the old
house until 1865, when she died at the age of ninety-one.
She was never married, and during her lifetime a part of
the house was occupied by different tenants, among whom
was Benjamin French.
In 1866, Miss Holyoke's executors sold the place to Mr.
Elvin French, the well-known musician, then residing in
Lowell but who was horn in this house, being son of Ben-
jamin French above named. Mr. French has now lived
here several years.
Decay was fast creeping upon the old mansion, and but
for the reviving hand of Mr. French, it must have soon
beennumbered with the things that are gone. Mr. French
has put in new timbers, new windows and doors, and re-
1 See Holland's Bay Path.
112 THE DWELLINGS OE BOXFOKD.
paired it all through, but in such a manner as to allow all
that is interesting in it to remain. Strangers desire to
frequent the old house, and examine its passages, halls, and
numerous rooms, each containing some curious work of
antiquity. Of this mansion, Mrs. Martha L. Emerson
wrote several years ago :
" 'Neath sheltering elms the ancient dwelling stands
Where several highways socially clasp hands;
Its general air speaks of the 'auld lang syne,'
And years have left their marks in many a line.
"The moss-grown shingles, broken and decayed;
The loosened clapboards, where the winds have played ;
The shattered window-panes, the door-stone low, —
All tell the story of the long ago.
"Within, what tales those mouldering walls could tell,
If they could break their silence' mighty spell, —
Of childhood, age, of happiness and tears,
Of life and death, through all these hundred years !
"Old sunken floors, by many footsteps worn;
Paper once gay, but mildewed now and torn :
The embellished doorways, and the panelled hall,
The generations of the past recall.
"Two antique portraits, older than we know, —
Perchance were old a century ago, —
Hang in the upper hall; faint shadows they
Of faces long since passed from earth away.
"Up narrow winding attic stairs we climb,
To see the only gleam a bygone time
Has left of horror in this lonely place,
Which soon will crumble, and will leave no trace.
"From a high beam there still suspends a rope,
Where, years ago, some one bereft of hope
Essayed to end her life ; but all in vain :
Life's rugged pathway she must walk again."
112.
Eesidence of D. W. Conant. — Mr. Daniel W. Con-
ant's house was erected in 1835 by Dea. Putnam Perley,
who lived here about a year, and then went to the West,
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. H 3
settling in Pecatonica, 111. He was a son of Artemas W.
Perley, and was born at No. 14 in 1810.
Deacon Perley sold the place in 1836 to Frederic Per-
ley of Danvers, who conveyed it in 1840 to Leonard Per-
ley of Boxford, a son of Henry Perley, having been born
in No. 56 in 1800.
In 1851, the house was struck by lightning, and the
following account of it appeared in the Salem Gazette at
the time : —
"In Boxford, 9 o'clock Friday evening August 22, 1851, the house of
Leonard Perley was struck with lightning and slightly injured The
fluid descended the kitchen chimney, and struck Mr. Perley who was
sitting near the lire-place. His arm and leg were scorched andhewas
stunned, but was speedily restored by the application of cold water
The lightning passed over the bell pull to the front door, which it shat-
tered. Two girls who were in the entry were much affected by the
electricity."
Mr Perley died there in 1857, "respected and lament-
ed." By his wife Mary, daughter of Nathaniel Wells,
he had six children, none of whom now live in Boxford.
His daughter Julia Ann married Samuel A. Cummings,
the well-known shoe-knife manufacturer.
In 1857, Mr. Conant purchased the place and has since
occupied it.
1 113.
Residence of S. W. Howe.-A little farther east from
where the house of Mr. Solomon W. Howe now stands
was the residence of William Foster, one of the earliest
settlers of Boxford. He was a son of Reginald Foster ot
Ipswich, an emigrant from England, where William was
born in 1633. The house was built about 1660. In 1587,
Mr Foster was licensed to keep an ordinary, and the town
meetings were held here until the meeting house was built
in 1702 Mr. Foster was an important man in the town
and doubtless there was much of interest that rim.- around
this early settlement. Mr. Foster died in 1713, at the age
114 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
of eighty. By his wife, Mary, daughter of "William
Jackson of Rowley, he had nine children.
His son Samuel Foster, who was born at this place in
1682, succeeded him on the homestead. He married Mary
Macoon of Cambridge in 1703, and died in 1747. They
had six children, the fourth of whom was William.
William Foster, the sou, was born in 1713, and resided
here. He married, first, , who was the mother
of his son William and, second, Mary Clark of York, Me.,
in 1747, by whom he had two children, Hannah and Sam-
uel. In March, 1756, he sold the place to Jonathan Bix-
by of Boxford, and removed to Newbury.
Jonathan Bixby was son of Jonathan and Sarah (Smith)
Bixby and was born in 1696. He married Ruth Fuller
ofMiddleton in 1735, and they had fourteen children: 1.
Nathaniel, who at the age of twenty was a private in the
company of Capt. Israel Davis in the expedition against
the fort at Crown Point in the French war in 1756. Na-
thaniel was taken sick at Fort Edward, and brought to
the hospital at Albany. His uncle, Elias Bixby, was liv-
ing at Sheffield, Mass., and hearing of Nathaniel's condi-
tion went to see him, and found him almost beyond hope
of recovery. His uncle took him to his home in Sheffield,
where by careful nursing and good doctoring, after a stay
of five weeks, he was able to come home (in October of
the above mentioned year), his uncle attending him the
one hundred and sixty miles of the journey. 2. Elizabeth.
3. Sarah. 4. Huldah. 5. Eunice, who died in 1759, at
the age of sixteen. 6. Annah. 7. Lucy, who died at the
age of two years. 8. Nancy, who died young. 9. Lucy.
10. Apphia and 11. Mary (twins, Apphia married John
Powers of Salem, and Mary, Daniel Perkins of Topsfield).
12. Ruth, who married Nehemiah Fuller. 13. David.
14. Jonathan.
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 115
Mr. Bixby sold this place to Asa Peabody of Boxford
in 1771, and removed to Middleton, where he died in the
winter of 1780-81.
Asa Peabody was a son of John Peabody, and was born
in Boxford in 1741. He was the treasurer of the town
for a long period. He died in 1807, and was the giver of,
and first interred in, the cemetery near the church. The
inscription upon his gravestone is as follows :
In memory of
Mr. Asa Peabody,
Obt. Oct. 19, 1807,
Aet. 67.
Lived respected &died lamented.
First interred & giver of this ground.
Mr. Peabody married Susannah, the only daughter
among the eleven children of Maj. Asa Perley, who lived
in No. 6. Mr. Peabody had nine children.
Artemas Peabody (Asa's son j then lived here until 1816,
when the place was purchased by Joshua French, a truck-
man of Salem, who had two daughters, the oldest of whom,
Hannah, became the wife of Charles Bixby of Boxford.
The old house was struck by lightning June 25, 1820,
and the following account of it was published in the Salem
Gazette on the same week : —
"At Boxford, about 5 o'clock on Sunday afternoon, the houfe of
Mr. Jofhua French, formerly of this town was ftrucls by lightning.
It flrft ftrack the chimney, when it apparently feparated, one branch
entering the chimney, and the other paffing out fide the houfe, tearing
otr the fhingles, &c. in its progrefs. The brafs top of a pair of i
in the fire-place, was melted. Mr. French was fitting at a front win-
dow; the lightning ("hatter, d the cafing againft which his head was
refting; he was thrown by the fhock fenfeless on the floor, and re-
mained fpeechlefs for about 15 minutes, every one fuppofing him to be
dead, and his hair was confiderably burnt. But he gradually recovered,
and is now doing well. Several other perfons in the houfe were (tunned
by the fhock, but not feverely injured."
Mr. French sold the farm in 1825 to Daniel and Dean
116 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
Andrews, who lived here together nearly to the time of
Daniel's marriage in 1844, their maiden sister, Mehitable,
keeping house for them until Dean's marriage in 1838, after
which time she moved hometo her father's house, where she
died in 1870.
Dean Andrews erected the present house in 1843,
Samuel N. Ayers being the carpenter. Mr. Andrews
died in 1869, and since that time his widow and son-in-law
Mr. Howe, have resided there.
114.
W. Foster Cellar. — About one-fourth of a mile easter-
ly from No. 113, on land now belonging to the Dean An-
drews estate, stood an old house. The cellar and well
may still be seen. The house has probably been gone more
than a century. The old people sixty years ago appeared
to know nothing about it, or who lived here. The late
Ancill Dorman once wrote : " Possibly William Foster
(See No. 113) might have built herein the first place, and
got burnt out."
115. -
T. Dorman Cellar. — There is an old cellar and well
some eighty or a hundred rods northeasterly of the resi-
dence of Mrs. Eunice A. Howe (No. 121), and about mid-
way between Mrs. Howe's and the Dunnell cellar (No.
122). It has been said that Timothy Dorman lived here
a short time after his marriage with Eunice Burnham in
1754, and that his eldest child Eunice was born here. The
writer knows nothing more of the place. (See No. 120.)
116.
Old Conant House. — The old Conant house was owned
by Jacob Andrews in 1777, when he sold it to John Stiles
of Boxford, blacksmith. It was afterward owned by
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. H 7
Samuel Peabody, who was also a blacksmith, and who died
in 1824. He was a large muscular man, having great
strength, which the practice of his trade helped to promote.
William Gurley was living there at the time of Mr. Pea-
body's decease, Mr. Gurley's son Samuel Peabody having
been born there.
The late Ancill Dorman thought that the house of Jo-
seph Peabody stood here or a few feet east of Ms residence
(No. 117). This Joseph Peabody was a son of Lt. Fran-
cis Peabody, and was born in Topsfield in 1644, settling
in Boxford in 1671.
In 1823, Samuel Peabody sold the place to Samuel An-
drews, who conveyed it in 1835 to the late Maj. William
Lowe. The house was occupied most of the time that
Mr. Andrews owned it by William Gurley and Ste-
phen Hammond (who was, before and after his living here,
of Topsfield) and his mother, who came here in 1828.
They removed to the Nat Dorman house (No. 120).
Jesse Perley, jr., son of Jesse Perley who resided at
No. 50, lived here from 1838 until his death which oc-
curred in 1851, at the age of fifty-six. His widow, who
was Sally, daughter of Simon Gould of Topsfield, survived
him six years." The whole family had the small-pox there
in 1841. Mrs. Perley's mother was Sally White, a lineal
descendantofPeregrineWhite^vhoenjoyedtheprerogativ*^
of being the first white person born in New England, and
she possessed a silver spoon that belonged to her distin-
guished ancestor.
= After the decease of Major Lowe in 1870 (who owned
the property), it was sold at auction to Mr. Daniel W.
Conant, who has since owned the place. It has recently
been occupied by various families, among whom we re-
member those of Dexter Kenney, George Goodwin and
Charles B. Tibbetts.
118 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
117.
Eesidence of J. S. Dorman. —This house, the resi-
dence of the late Ancill Dorman, Esq., was built in 1835
by Daniel and Dean Andrews, and was first occupied by
Capt. William Lowe and Edward A. Chapman, both fam-
ilies living there several years. Mr. Dorman bought the
premises in March, 1850, and took up his residence here
early in the following month. Mrs. Sarah S. Hale also
lived in this house for several years. Daniel Russell lived
in one part of the house for a short time before the fall of
1852, when he removed to No. 109.
Mr. Dorman was a selectman of the town for nearly a
score of years, and town clerk for ten years. He was a
son of the late Moses Dorman, Esq., and was born at No.
119. He died here in 1886, and his widow followed him
in 1889, since which time their adopted son Mr. John S.
Dorman has resided on the place.
118.
Residence of A. L. Russell. — This house was built
by Dean Andrews about 1830. Charles Perley, son of
Henry Perley, who was born at No. 56 in 1811, lived
here from about the time of his marriage in 1835. After
several years he removed to Georgetown, where he died
in 1877.
William Tufts purchased the place of Daniel and Dean
Andrews, who then owned it together, soon after Mr.
Perley moved away, and resided here from the time of
bis marriage with Lucy B. Towne in 1842. After two
years his poor health rendering him unable to work longer
at his trade of shoemaking, he conveyed the place back
(in 1844) to the Messrs. Andrews and removed down East
to try farming. He died in 1846, at the age of twenty-
ei<;ht : then followed the deaths of his two children, and
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 119
his widow was gathered to the rest of the family in 1850,
at the age of thirty.
The house was subsequently occupied by Isaac Frye,
Joseph W. Moulton, William Reynolds, and perhaps oth-
ers until 1853, when Daniel Russell moved here from No.
109, and continued to reside here until his death in 1878.
He was a son of Peabody Russell, and was born on Bald
hill in No. 135. Since his death the house has been owned
and occupied by his son Mr. Arthur L. Russell. Mr.
Russell was a well-known agent of a Lowell marble com-
pany for several years before his decease.
119.
The Moses Dorman House. — This house was built
originally by Timothy Dorman, a son of Thomas Dorman
of Topsfield, where he was born in 1663. He married in
1688, and built this house immediately afterward. The
present house bears very little resemblance to the original.
Mr. Dorman died about 1740, at the age of seventy-six.
By his wife Elizabeth Knowlton of Ipswich he had six
children.
His son John settled on the homestead. He was born
in 1696, and married in 1730. The year before his mar-
riage he built on what is now the westerly portion of the
house, in which he resided as long as his father lived.
He died in 1775, at the age of seventy-nine. By his wife
Rebecca Smith, who died in 1794 at the age of eighty-six,
he had live children, one of whom, Rebecca, married Capt.
Jonathan Foster and lived at No. 93.
His youngest son John, who was a deacon of the church,
married and settled on the old place. He was born in
1738, and married Hannah Jackson of Rowley in 1762.
He Berved in the Revolutionary war, and in the winter of
1777-78 was stationed at Winter Hill.
120 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFOTU).
Following are copies of two letters he sent home to his
wife. It seems that his mother was then alive unci living
with him.
"Winter Hill January the 2 : 1778.
" my Dear
"these Lines Come with my Love to you and to our
Children and duty to our mother hopeing they will find
you well as they Leave me at this time Send me if you
Can a blanket that mother offered me to Cary to the Lake
or Some other for we have not Covering a nouf and Send
me that Pillow that I laid upon at home if you Can Send
my other Shirt and you may Send me Some Butter if you
Can as well as not Send nic word how you ail are By Na-
than Sticknee make your Selves as Comfortable as you
Can and I have time to Rite no more at this time But I
Remain your most affectionate husband
"John Dorman
"PS give your Self no uneasiness if you cannot Send
me these things"
"February the 2 : 1778 my Dear these LinesCome With
my tenderest Reguard to you and our family I have Sent
two Shirts to l>e Washed By Seth Burnara and you may
Send them by him Send me five or Six dollars by Serjent
Andrew Peabody when he Comes for it and So No more
at present 1 am in health." (No signature.)
Deacon Dorman died in 1792, at the age of fifty-three.
The following is a transcript from the death column in the
/Salem Gazette for April 10, 1792 : —
"At Boxford, Deacon John Dorman, aged 55: he fuftained the town
offices of Clerk, Treasurer, and Selectman, and was a very ufefnl and
•worthy man."
And thefollowing obituary notice of Deacon Dorman is
from the Salem Gazette for April 17, 1792: —
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
121
"Boxfonl, April 10, 1792.
"Is there not an appointed time to man upon earth?
"Died, in this town, the 2d inft. aged 53, Deacon John Dorman ;
occafioned by a hurt he received the Saturday preceding : while load-
ing fome plank into a waggon, he unfortunately fell, which brought
one of the plank with fuch force upon his body, as brought on a fpeedy
dilTolution. In this man, independence & impartiality were con-
fpicuous— teftified by his conftitnents in placing him in offices impor-
tant in the town. The tears fhed at his interment, & the gloom which
hung on the countenances of the multitude who paid their refpccts to
his remains, emphatically announce his worth. — Fearing God as a man,
and loving him as a chriftian, he met death, with dignity and comfort;
not only knowing, but declaring, in whom he trufted."
THE MOSE8 UOllMAN inn. E.
His widow survived him thirty years, and died at the
age of eighty-seven. They had six children, the second of
whom was Moses, who became prominent in the town, as
a member of the General Court, town clerk, selectman,
etc., residing upon the homestead. He was horn in 1765,
married Huldah, daughter of Jacob Gould (who lived at
1G
122 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
No. 138), in 1801, and died in 1850 at the age of eighty-
four, leaving four children : Moses, who was prominent in
town business and in the settlement of estates ; Mrs. Ben-
jamin Pike of Topsfield ; Mrs. Benjamin French of Box-
ford ; and Ancill, who resided in No. 117.
The late Moses Dorman, Esq., lived on the old place.
He was born in 1803 and died in 1877. His widow, a
third wife, survived him and died in 1880. Since her
death the house has been occupied by summer tenants.
Air. Dorman's children were Mrs. J. H. Janes of Boxford ;
Moses H. of Brooklyn, N. Y., a merchant in New York
city and a deacon of the Baptist church in Brooklyn ; Mrs.
John E. Herrick of Peabody ; Franklin W. of New York
city; and the late Thomas P. of Boxford.
120.
The Nat Dorman' House. — This house was built about
1757 by Timothy Dorman, who was a son of John and
Rebecca (Smith) Dorman, and who was born at No. 119
in 1730. Nathan Andrews (father of the late Dean,
Daniel and Samuel Andrews), who was born in 1754, re-
membered seeing the frame up and partly boarded.
Timothy Dorman married Eunice Buraham of Lunen-
burgh in 1754. She was born in Boxford in 1735, and
was a daughter of Nathaniel Burnham. Mr. Burnham
removed with his family to Lunenburgh about 1750; and
in 1771 he was living in Bolton. His son Reuben Burn-
ham lived first at Lunenburgh; in 1758, removed to Ips-
wich; in 17(54, toTVinchendon : in 17(>7, back to Ipswich ;
in 1769, to Boxford ; and a few years afterward settled in
Bridgton, Me., where he died. Mr. Dorman became the
father of but two children, who bore the names of their
parents, Eunice and Timothy. Eunice, the daughter, is
said to have been born in the old house that used to stand
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFOItl). 123
in Widgen pond pasture (No. 115) where the cellar may
yet be seen. Mr. Dorman died in 1764, and his widow
married Joshua Jackson of Rowley the next year. Mr.
Jackson afterward removed to Boxford, and lived in No.
55.
Timothy Dorman, the son, who was born while this house
was being built in 1757, probably spent his early life with
his step-father. He came into possession of this place,
and married Deborah, daughter of Allen Perley of Line-
brook parish, Ipswich, in 1782. Mr. Dorman served in
the Revolution, and many years afterward was wont to
speak of being present at the taking of Burgoyne, though
it appeared that he did not get there until after the sur-
render had actually taken place. He served with Caleb
Jackson, his step-brother, who on a visit to Mr. Dorman
in his old age reminded him of the following incident. On
one occasion, being near the enemy's quarters, a British
bullet struck his canteen and spilled most of its contents.
"There, faith," exclaimed Timothy, "I've lost my grog !"
"But," added Caleb, "you managed to save us one £Ood
drink from what remained." "Uncle Tim" professed to
have forgotten all about it until Caleb's reminder. Mr.
Dorman drew a pension a few of the last years of his life.
He was deaf and blind for many years before his death,
which occurred in 1835, at the age of seventy-eight. His
widow survived him about four years. They had several
children.
Timothy's son Nathaniel settled upon the place. He
was born in 17U0, and married in 1825, about which time he
built an extension on the east end of the house, and at-
tached to it an old one-story building used by his brother
Timothy sonic seventy-live years ago as a shoemaker's
shop and small grocery store. The carpenter work was
done by Johnson Savage and an old man known as "Boss
124 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFOKD.
Chandler." Mr. Dormun spent his days in this house, and
died in 1868, at the age of seventy-eight. By his two
wives, the last of which survives, he had three children,
one of whom was the wife of Daniel Wilkins, and another
is the wife of John B. Lake of Tops field.
Dean Andrews bought the place of Mr. Dorraan in 1860,
and the next year raised the store part to two stories, the
whole being newly clapboarded and painted. Matthew
Hale performed the carpenter work. The barn, which was
built about 1810, Thomas Peabody of Topsfield being the
carpenter, was taken down about ten years ago.
After Mr. Dorman's death the house became a tenement,
and was occupied by various families. Mr. William Good-
win, a native of England, lived in the house a number of
years, and in 1891 bought it.
121.
Residence of Mrs. Eunice Howe.— The land where
this house stands belonged in the seventeenth century to
Abel Langley of Rowley. In 1718, John Andrews, who
had come into possession of it, conveyed it to Capt. John
Andrews, and two years later Capt. Andrews sold the place
to his son Robert, whose dwelling-house and out-buildings,
which he had probably erected between 1718 and 1720,
were situated where Mrs. Howe's house now stands.
Robert Andrews was born in 169—, and married Debo-
rah Frye of Andover. He died in 1751, having had live
children, the third of whom was Nathan, who was born in
1726.
Nathan Andrews succeeded his lather on this place. He
married, first, Mehitable Foster of Andover the same year
his fattier died. She died in 1760, and he married, second,
Widow Sarah Symonds in 1764. She died in 1801, and
he followed her five years later at the age of seventy-nine.
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 125
He had four children, three daughters and one son, all by
his first wife.
Mr. Andrews' only son was Nathan, who was born in
1754, married Esther Kimball in 1783, and lived here.
His wife died in 1791, and he married, second, Eunice
Kimball the next year. He was the father of the late Sam-
uel, Daniel and Dean Andrews , Mrs. Eunice Howe and
others. In 1851, Samuel Andrews built the present house
on the site of the old one, which was taken down to make
room for it. Asa P. Towne was the carpenter. Samuel
Andrews died unmarried in 1879, at the age of eighty-five.
His sister Eunice, who had lived with him, married Abra-
ham P. Howe in 1871, and has since resided on the place,
which she now owns. Mr. Howe died a few years after
the marriage.
122.
T. Dwinnell Cellar. — Quite a little distance east of
the house of Mrs. Eunice Howe (No. 121) was the resi-
dence of Thomas Dunnell, the father of Jacob Dunnell
who lived in No. 179.
Thomas Dunnell was a son of Thomas and Dinah (Brims-
dell) Dwinnell of Topsfield, where he was born in 1711.
He married Hannah Towne there in 1738, came to Box-
ford about 1762, and settled on this place.
He stole something from a neighbor, and to emphasize
his denial of the theft said, "If I stole it, I hope to rot
alive," and the tradition is that such a judgment came up-
on him, and he died of slow mortification. We believe
his death occurred about 1778.
123.
Residence of W. II. Shirley. — This house wasowned
and occupied by Solomon Gould from about 17(35 to 1795,
126 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
when he removed to Middleton, dying there in 1806 or
1807. lie was son of Solomon Gould of Topsfield, where
he was born in 1738, and married Mehitable Perkins in
1761. They had four children, two sons and two daugh-
ters, the daughters dying of consumption. On his removal
to Middleton, Mr. Gould sold the place toPhineas Foster
of Salem, who was a son of Richard Foster of Boxford,
where Phineas was born in 1704, and removed to Salem
in early life. In 1795 he married Priscilla Killam, and
for his second wife a Flint. He came here to live, and
died in 1846, at the age of eighty-one. His son Charles
sold one undivided half of the place to Moody Perley, who
with his sister Abigail, both of whom never married, re-
sided there until the decease of Moody in 1886. In 1890,
the place was purchased by Mr. William H. Shirley of
Marblehead, who has improved it.
124.
Ricker Cellar. — There is an old cellar about equidis-
tant in an air line between Mr. William H. Shirley's and Mr.
George W. Twitchell's residences. It is said to have been
occupied more than a hundred years ago by a family bear-
ing the name of Ricker.
125.
Residence of W. Smith. — The site on which this house
stands was occupied until 1879 by the ancient Smith house
which was probably erected by Robert Smith about 1665.
lie was the ancestor of Joseph Smith, the Mormon prophet.
The Smith that the oldest residents of Boxford remem-
ber to have resided there was Nathaniel, grandfather of
the late Nathaniel. He was born in 1724, probably in the
old house, being a son of Jacob and Rebecca (Symonds)
Smith.
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 127
He died there in 1802, at the age of seventy-eight, and
the following is a copy of his obituary notice found in the
death column of the Salem Gazette for January 19, 1802 :
"At Boxford, Mr. Nathaniel Smith, aged 78. In his death, the pub-
lic are deprived of a good member of fociety. He was an affectionate
hufband, an indulgent parent, and a fincere chriftian. He has left a
large number of relatives to bemoan his lofs. Being fenfible he was
near the approach of his diffolution, he refigned himself with calm-
nefs and tranquility, and was ready to fay, '■not my will, Lord, but
thine be done.' He exercifed great patience in his laft licknefs, and a
cheerful refignation to the divine will. The intereft of religion appeared
to lie near his heart; and for the falvation of finners his prayers were
affecting. He expired rejoicing Hn hope of the glory of God!' "
Mr. Smith married Sarah Burpee of Rowley in 1751, and
resided here, where his twelve children were born. The
youngest of them was Joseph Smith, who was born in
1771, and married, first, Hepzibah Chapman of Ipswich,
and, second, Kezia Gould. He died in 1826, and his wife
survived him. Two of his sons, Nathaniel and Calvin, re-
sided on this place. The latter died in 1870 and the former
in 1879. Calvin Smith's son Walter built the present
house in 1885, and lives in it.
126.
Residence of W. I. Smith. — Mr. Whipple I. Smith
built his house about 1870, and has since resided in it.
127.
R. Andrews Cellar. — A few rods south of the resi-
dence of Mr. Whipple I. Smith is an old cellar, over which
probably stood the house in which Robert Andrews the
emigrant lived. He is said to have been born in one of
the Boxfords of England, and he settled here about 1656,
his family then consisting of himself and wife and six
children. The writer thinks that Mr. Andrews lived at
first nearer Pye brook, and that he built this house a short
time before his death, which occurred in 1668. His widow
128 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
Grace survived him thirty-one years. He requested in his
will (which was made but thirteen days before his death)
to be buried in Topsfield, and doubtless he and his widow
were interred in the old cemetery there. They had ten
children, and among their descendants is John Albion An-
drew, Massachusetts' loved war governor. Two or three
generations of Mr. Andrews' descendants probably lived
on this place ; but very little is known of it, the house hav-
ing probably been gone much more than a century.
128.
"Aunt Ginny House." — The house that once occupied
the site of the present "Aunt Ginny house" was burned a
hundred years ago. The present house was erected im-
mediately afterward by Jacob Andrews. He was married
in 1761 and his nine children were probably born in the
house that was burned. The oldest child, Jacob, born in
1762, married Jane, daughter of Simon Gould of Topsfield
in 1792, and lived in the present house for many years but ,
we believe, had no children. She was called "Aunt Jen-
nie" or" Ginny" by all.
The place has been occupied for several years by Mr.
Bert Tyler.
"A few brief years, ami the old house no more
Will stand a way-mark on Time's stormy shore;
And few will mourn, as lew will ever prize
This relic of the past with all its teachings wise."
129.
Residence of G. W. Twitcuell. — Where Mr. George
W. Twitchell resides formerly stood an ancient house oc-
cupied by Stephen Gould. He was a son of John Gould
of Topsfield, and a brother of Capt. Jacob Gould, who re-
sided at No. 138. He bought the farm in 1762 of John
Symonds, who had probably lived here and had removed
to Worcester county. Stephen Gould removed to Hills-
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 129
boro', N. H., and John Gould (brother of Cornelius Gould,
who resided in No. 153), then lived here. At length
he removed to Springfield, N. H., where he died. Shortly
afterward the place came into the possession of Moses
Gould of Topsfield, a son of Daniel and Lucy (Tarbox)
Gould, and brother of Rev. Daniel Gould. Ho tore the
old house down and erected the present one nearly on the
same site in 1824. Mr. Gould was born in 1766, and in
1798 married Anne Mectun, who had been brought up by
Zaccheus Gould of Topsfield. They had three children,
Moses, who lived on this place awhile, Daniel Tarbox,
who died unmarried, and Nancy, who married Daniel An-
drews and lived at No. 131.
Moses Gould, the son, was born in 1800, married Ly-
dia Abbot Russell, and resided a number of years in Balti-
more, Md. While he was at the south, the place was oc-
cupied awhile by Samuel Towle, and for about eleven
years from 1838, when his house became uninhabitable, by
Joseph Symonds who about 1^49 removed to his daughter's
in Augusta, Me., where he died. Mr. Gould returned to
his old home, and died here in 1843, at the age of forty-
three. His family continued to reside here. Most of the
time since 1873 his son-in-law, Mr. Twitchell, has lived
on the place. Mr. Gould's widow, who married for her
second husband Deacon Leonard Grover of Bethel, Me.,
resided here from 1880 to 1884.
130.
Symonds Cellar. — Near the First-district school-house
is the old Symonds cellar. This is the site of the house in
which lived Samuel Symonds, who settled in Boxford in
1663, having married Elizabeth, a daughter of Robert An-
drews, by whom he had eleven children. He died in 1722,
at the age of eighty-four, and his widow survived him
17
130 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
nearly three years. He was the grandfather of Rev. Dr.
Andrew Eliot of Boston, who was chosen president of
Harvard college, but who declined the honored position
on account of church ties. Through Dr. Eliot Mr. Sy-
monds was an ancestor of a long line of distinguished men.
Oct. 2, 1716, Mr. Symonds deeded this farm to his son
Joseph on condition that he would support his parents
during the remainder of their lives, reserving the east
part of the house for his and his wife's use.
Joseph was born in 1(585, married Mary Peabody in
1710, and died here' in 1755, his widow surviving him six
years. They had seven children, three sons and four
daughters.
Mr. Symonds' son Stephen settled on the old place.
He was born in 1728, and married, first, Mary , who
died in childbirth in 1758, and, second, Mary Nurse of Dan-
vers in 1764. lie first belonged to the church in Tops-
field, and was dismissed to the First church in Boxforu in
1759, being chosen deacon in 1765. lie died in 1808,
at the age of eighty, having had six children, five daughters
and one son.
The son was Joseph, who succeeded his father on the
homestead. lie was born in 1770 and resided here until
1838, when the old house was so dilapidated that it was
uncomfortable to live in, and two of his children being
sick, at the invitation of his neighbor, he removed to the
Gould house, No. 129, where his sick children died and
the family resided for about eleven years. His wife died
here in 1835. lie removed from the Gould house to his
daughter's in Augusta, Me., where he died. Mr. Symonds
was rather shiftless, and let his house go to ruin. After
it was down, he had an idea of building a new one, and to
that end hauled many massive rocks to the old cellar, where
they still remain.
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 131
The present highway runs between the cellar and well,
but the old road ran south of the well. This gave quite
a space between the house and road.
131.
Residence of A. G. Huntoon. — The residence of the
late Daniel Andrews was raised June 14, 1842, being
built by himself. He lived in it until his death in 1879,
and his widow until she died in 1884. From 1880 to
1884, Mr. George W. Twitchell resided there, and then
removed to No. 129. In 1889, Mr. Albert G. Huntoon
of Danvers purchased the farm, and has since lived there.
132.
Samuel Gould Cellar. — In the left-hand corner pas-
ture as one turns down the road to Mrs. Daniel Andrews',
in going from Howe's mills, there was a house in 1800.
This was land belonging to Capt. John Gould, the brave
old patriot during Governor Andros' sway. He probably
obtained it from his father, Zaccheus Gould, the emigrant.
The land and probably the house that stood here were
owned and used by the proprietors of the Iron Works,
which were in progress here from 1668 to 1680. The old
smelting furnace was situated in the same lot, the remains
being plainly recognized to-day.
Capt. Gould sold the place in 1695 to his son Samuel
Gould. Capt. Gould was a resident of Topsfield, and his
son Samuel lived there also until 1699, when he moved to
this place. He was born in 1670, and married Margaret
Stone in 1697.
In 1714, his house was destroyed by fire, and for that
reason the town abated his taxes for that year. lie erect-
ed a new house and continued to reside here.
Mr. Gould died in 1724, at the age of fifty-four. His
132 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
children were: Sarah, who died in 178(5, at the age of
eiffhtv-eiffht, unmarried ; Samuel, who resided on the
homestead ; Moses, who settled in Lunenburg; Jonathan,
who settled in Shirley ; Patience, who married Edmund
Towne of Oxford ; Margaret ; Zaccheus, who went to
Lunenburg; and Hubbard, who went to Brookfield.
Among his descendants is Sylvanus Owen Gould, Esq., of
Buffalo, N. Y.
Samuel Gould, the son, was born here in 1701, and
married Mehitable Stiles of Boxford in 1726. They re-
sided here until 1746, when they removed to Brooktield,
where they died. Their children were : Samuel, who re-
sided in Brookfield, Amherst, Charlemont and Heath, and
died in 1791 ; Mehitable, who married Peter Lamson and
moved to New Hampshire ; Jeremiah, who died in Charle-
mont in 1809 ; Nathan, who went to Virginia, where he
died in 1816; Jonathan, who probably died young ; Eli,
who lived in Amherst ; and Deliverance, who married
Reuben Nims of Shelburne.
When Mr. Gould left town, he sold out to Samuel Fisk
of Boxford, May 23, 1746, for £918. Mr. Fisk was son of
Samuel and Sarah Fisk, and was born in Boxford in 1716.
He married Judith Noyes of Newbury in 1738, and lived
in Boxford for twenty years afterward. He owned this
farm, however, but two years.
In 1748, for £1620, he sells the farm, then consisting
of seventy-six and one half acres, to Ebenezer Curtis of
Boxford. Mr. Curtis married Elizabeth , and first
belonged to the Second church in Bradford, but in 1759,
upon Mr. Holyoke's settlement over the church here, was
dismissed to the First church in Boxford. They had three
sons and five daughters.
He sold the place in 1790 to Stephen Perley of Tops-
field, who the next year conveyed it to Cornelius Gould.
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 133
Mr. Gould was a son of Joseph and Ruth (Emerson)
Gould, and grandson of Rev. John Emerson of Topsfield,
having been born in Topsfield in 1767. He wasa brother of
Daniel Gould, who lived at No. 63. In 1797, Mr. Gould
sold to Jacob Andrews, a farmer of Boxford (who lived
at No. 128, and removed to Dan vers. The next year Mr.
Gould came back and lived at No. 153.
The buildings were standing in 1797 and the farm then
consisted of fifty-five acres. Mr. Andrews took the old
house down before 1805.
133.
Residence of A. Frame. — A few rods east of the res-
idence of Mr. Andrew Frame once stood an old house,
the east end of which was two stories, and the west end
one and a half stories in height, being built in the most an-
cient square form. The barn stood near the present high-
way. This old house was occupied a hundred and fifty
years ago by Nathaniel Symonds, who was a builder and
lived here alone. He was the eleventh and youngest child
of Samuel Symonds, and was born in 1687, probably at
No. 130. His father conveyed this place to him October 2,
1716, with the buildings thereon, Nathaniel having probably
built the house about 1710. He removed to Middleton about
1745, and built a small house near Thomas' mills, in which
neighborhood his brother Samuel Symonds resided. He
died there, unmarried, in 1769, at the age of eighty-two.
It is a tradition that Nathaniel Symonds was in the habit
of walking to Simon Gould's in Topsfield, Sundays, for
the purpose of getting shaved. Mr. Symonds reared one
ol'liis nephews, Stephen Symonds, and Mr. Gould advised
old Mr. Symonds to persuade the young man to marry
sonic "likely" young woman, and bring her home there
that their domestic affairs inierht be better managed. The
134 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
old gentleman did so, the young man followed the advice,
and Mr. Symonds gave him the farm. This seems to be
true as Stephen Symonds owned the place in 1777, when
he sold it to Abraham Smith of Boxford for £320.
The next year, Mr. Smith sold out to John Williams of
Salem, mariner, for £400. In 1798, Mr. Williams hav-
ing died, his widow Anna and the other heirs sold the
farm to Oliver Peabody.
Mr. Peabody was a son of Bimsley and Ruth (Marston)
Peabody, and was born in Middleton about 1775. lie
moved to this place from No. 149, where his father lived.
He married, first, Sarah Estey of Topsh'eld in 1800, and,
second, Lois Chapman of Boxford, who was born in
No. 35. Mr. Peabody built the present house between
1835 and 1840. The carpenter was his son-in-law Charles
Bracket of Topsfield and the mason work was done by a
Mr. Brown of Danvers.
Mr. Frame, the present owner, came from Maine to
Middleton in 1850, and settled on this place in 185G, hav-
ing lived here since that time.
134.
Gallof Cellar. — At the foot of Bald hill, and at the
west end of Crooked pond is an old cellar. Here, Zach-
ariah Curtis built his house upon land belonging to his
father Zaccheus Curtis, it having been devised to him in his
father's will, which was dated in 1710 and proved in 1712.
Zaehariah Curtis was born in 1688, probably in No. 136.
His wife was Love , and their children were Love,
who married Joseph Beal and lived in Sudbury, Zaehariah,
and Abiel, the last two being of Salem and minors in 1732.
Mr. Curtis died in the winter of 17 15—1 <>.
The widow of Mr. Curtis married Thomas Gallop in
1719. Mr. Gallop was born in Stonington, Conn., in
1683, removed to Plainfield, Conn., in 1G95, and after-
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 135
ward removed to Newbury, Mass., where be was living
when he became acquainted with the widow Curtis, whom
he married there. He was the eldest son of John Gallop
and Elizabeth Wheeler, and a grandson of Capt. John
Gallop, who was slain in the great "swamp fight" Decem-
ber 19, 1675. His great grandfather was Capt. John Gal-
lop, who was educated at a military school in Holland,
and, coming to New England in 1630, died in Boston in
1649.
The Gallop genealogist carries the ancestry back twenty
generations, as follows : —
1. Malcolm Canmore, king of Scotland, and Lady Margaret Athe-
ling ;
2. Henry I (Beauclere) and Matilda;
3. Geoffrey Plantagenet and Matilda;
4. Henry II and Eleanora of Aquitaiue;
5. John and Isabella of Angouleme;
6. Henry III and Eleanor of Provence ;
7. Edward I and Marguerite, daughter of Phillip le Hardi, king of
France ;
8. Prince Thomas Plantagenet ;
9. Sir Thomas Mowbray and Margaret Plantagenet;
10. Thomas Mowbray and Elizabeth Fitzalan;
11. Sir Pobert Howard and Lady Margaret Mowbray ;
12. Sir John Howard;
13. Thomas Howard and Agnes Tylney;
14. Lord William Howard and Catherine of Broughton.
15. Sir William Paulet and Agnes Howard;
16. Thomas Gallop and Frances Paulet;
17. John Gallop and Chrestabel (?) ;
18. John Gallop and Hannah Lake;
19. John Gallop and Elizabeth Wheeler;
20. Thomas Gallop and Love Curtis.
Upon Mr. Gallop's marriage with Mrs. Curtis, he camo
to Boxford and lived at Mrs. Curtis' home, and probably
both died here. They had six children, Abigail, William,
George, Jeremiah, Sarah and Mary, bora between 1720
and 17.')!>. Mis. Gallop was admitted to the First church
in L745.
136 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
In March, 1730, the town of Box ford voted that "In-as-
much as Thomas Gallop is returned back again into our
town after he was warned to depart out of said town and
carried out by the constable by virtue of a warrant from
a justice of the peace as the law directs, the town have
chosen Cornet Stephen Peabody to prosecute the said
Thomas Gallop as a vaggebon or to prosecute the affair in
any other method as he shall think proper to prevent the
charge of the said Gallop's support for the future being
laid on our town." In March, 1733, the town "allowed
Joseph Symonds, John Wood, James Curtis and John
Bixby four shillings to each of them for service done at
Salem to prevent Thomas Gallop from coming to a town
charge. " After this he was let alone.
Mr. Gallop was a most confirmed smoker. He had a
leather bag, in which he carried his tobacco and pipe, sus-
pended from his neck by a string. A slight search among
the ruins of this old dwelling has brought to light many
fragments of old clay pipes, thus conclusively proving the
tradition of Mr. Gallop's principal failing.
The Gallops were here as late as 1777.
This Thomas Gallop is the ancestor of the Essex county
family of that name.
The place was next in the possession of Thomas Gould,
who came from Topstield, and died here in 1778.
We know no more of this old homestead. It was prob-
ably decayed and gone before 1800. No one would now
recognize the place as the site of a house, as only a few
stones remain to mark its position.
135.
Residence of E. L. Hooper. — The Hooper place on
Bald hill was owned by Joseph Gould of Topstield in
1778. The next year he sold it to his son Daniel Gould
of Topstield. The farm then contained fifty acres, with
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 137
house, barn, etc. Daniel Gould was born in Topsfield in
175G, married Sarah Bradstreet of his native town in 1778,
and resided on this farm until 1784, when he sold it to
James Russell, a farmer of Middleton, and removed to No.
63, where he afterward lived and died.
Benjamin Goodridge, from No. 63, came here on Mr.
Gould's removal, and lived for a few months in 1784, re-
moving to Middleton, and afterward to Vermont.
In the latter part of the year, Mr. Russell moved from
Middleton, and resided here as long as he lived. By his
wife Rebecca he had nine children, Joseph (who was born
in Middleton), Rebecca, James, Perkins and Peabody
(twins), Poll}', Almody (son), Daniel and Samuel. Polly
married a Mr. Peabody of Reading, and was the survivor of
the family, living to be almost a century old.
Mr. Russell conveyed the farm in 1824 to his sons Pea-
body Russell and Perkins Russell. The latter, who resided
in Salem, sold his interest in the place to his brother Pea-
body in 1846.
Peabody Russell, born here in 1789, always lived on the
homestead. He had several children, among whom was
Daniel, who resided in No. 131 and other houses. Mrs.
Russell died in 1845, at the age of fifty-nine; and Mr.
Russell followed her the next year at the age of fifty-six.
Peabody Russell's son Daniel came into the possession
of the estate, and in 1847 sold it to Capt. Ebenezer L.
Hooper and John B. Graves, jr., both of Marblehcad.
The place was sold the next year to Joseph Russell of
Marblehead. In 1855 he conveyed it to Mr. Hooper, who,
after having been a sea-captain for many years, retired,
and has since resided upon this farm.
136.
Curtis Cellar. — There is an old cellar about a quarter
is
138 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
of a mile west of Mr. George W. Curtis' residence, where,
it is said, stood the original Curtis house. Zaceheus Cur-
tis, from Gloucester, erected his house here, when he set-
tled iu Boxford about 1661. By his wife Joanna he had
half a dozen children, of whom Zaceheus, jr., became the
ancestor of the late Francis Curtis, and Ephraim, under
his father's will, which was made upon his death-bed in
1682, became possessed of the old place, which he resided
upon.
This is all we know of this old cellar.
The following lines were written years ago, but the
writer is unknown :
" O little house lost in the heart of the cedars,
What would I not give to behold you once more!
To inhale once again the sweet breath of your roses,
And the starry clematis that climbed round your door —
" To see (he neat windows thrown wide to the sunshine;
The porch where we sat at the close of the day,
Where the weary foot traveler was welcome to rest him,
And the beggar was never sent empty away;
"The wainscoted walls, and the low-raftered ceilings;
To hear the loud tick of the clock on the stair ;
And to kiss the dear face bending over the Bible,
That, always was laid by my grand father's chair!
" O bright little garden beside the plantation.
Where the tall lleurs-de-lis their blue banners unfurled,
And the lawn was alive with the thrushes and blackbird-.
I would you were all I had known of the world !
" My sweet pink pea-clusters ! My rare honeysuckle !
My prim polyanthuses all of a row!
In a garden of dreams I still pass and caress you,
But your beautiful selves are forever laid low.
" For your Avails, little house, long ago have been levelled;
Alien feet your smooth borders, O garden, have trod;
And those whom I loved are at rest from their labors,
Reposing in peace on the bosom of God !"
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 139
'137.
E. S. Gould House. — The small house in which Mr.
Justin Curtis resided a few years ago was built by Eben
S. Gould about 1873. A Mrs. Johnson also lived here
awhile.
138.
Jacob Gould House. — The house in which Capt. Ja-
cob Gould resided during the Revolutionary period is quite
old.
Captain Gould was born in Topsfield in 1729, and was
a son of John Gould. He married Elizabeth Towne of
his native place in 1751, came toBoxford and it is believed
built this house three years later.
Mr. John H. Gould of Topsfield, the genealogist of the
Gould family, thinks that Captain Gould's father, John
Gould, moved to Boxford from Topsfield and built this
house about 1725, and that Capt. Jacob was born in it.
There is evidence to show that he is right.
There used to be an old house here, and perhaps the
father built the old one, and the son the present one. In
the old house about seventy years ago lived Molly Smith.
She was quite aged, and the house was also very old. She
had one room, in which she kept a loom and used to weave
as lone: as she was able. The house was a mere shell. Mis.
Eliza G. Lane, a lady who was born at this place in 1804,
writes : —
"The room was ceiled, and looked very black, the en-
try and upper part being nothing but boards. I think
grandmother told me that her lather Gould built it for one
of his children, but which I cannot tell, though I am in-
clined to think for a daughter. One of his children lived
in it. The house has been down as many as sixty years.
This Molly Smith lived with her mother over in the woods
140 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
south of Stoney field. Molly was quite aged. She prob-
ably looked older to us when we were children than she
really was.
" I well remember many pleasant chats I heard between
my grandmother and her, and also visiting her, or running
in as we called it. Many pleasant recollections come to my
mind of bygone days, and some painful ones also."
Jacob Gould was chosen captain of the military com-
pany of this parish, and marched with them under his com-
mand when the news of the battle of Lexington came.
He died in 1809, at the age of eighty. He had twelve
children, one of whom was Huldah, mother of the late An-
cill Dorman, Esq. His son Jacob settled at No. 142, and
John in this place.
John Gould was born at this place in 1778, and married
Polly Prince of Dan vers, who died in 1847. Mr. Gould
followed her in 1864, having passed his life of eighty-five
years on his birth-place. He left three children, Mrs.
Lane, who has already been mentioned, Olive, who always
lived at home, and died at the age of seventy, having never
married, and Polly.
Mr. Gould took down the oldest part of the house
about 1824, and built the eastern end. The chimney being
in a bad condition he erected the present one at that time.
Benjamin Herrick of Topsfield was the carpenter and
Porter Bradstreet of the same place was the mason em-
ployed in making these changes in the house. Of the
present house Mrs. Lane writes as follows : — 'I think the
westerly partof the house is some over two hundred years
old according to the information I received from my grand-
mother, and that the easterly or more ancient part was
built forty or fifty years before. There were three windows
in that part of the house, one decent sized one and two
smaller ones. One had only four squares in it. Upstairs,
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 141
the room was only a shell, and had one small window, with
diamond-shaped glass set in lead as a sash. There was a
door on the easterly end of the house that opened outside.
That room was quite large and ceiled with dark looking
boards.
"Mr. Joseph Gould ofTopsfield Avent up into the woods
with his team and was some distance above the house, when,
by some means, the tackling that held the horse gave way
and the chains fell on his heels. This frightened him
so that he ran down the road past the house very furiously
with the chains striking his heels. He began to descend
the hill, a few rods beyond the house, when he turned a
somersault. When he got up, his head was toward the
house and the open door. There was no fence around the
house, and he came rushing in at the door. He ran fu-
riously into the fire-place, hit his head pretty hard and per-
haps burned himself a little. There were eight persons
in the room. My grandfather, then almost four score
years of age, was sitting with myself and baby-brother in
a chair on the left side of the fireplace when the horse
ran down by. Grandfather got up to look out, with us in
his arms, thus saving his own and our lives, as the horse,
not satisfied with his place in the chimney, kicked up, I
think three times, and then turned to the door that led in-
to the front entry. He stopped, after breaking up the
chair that my grandfather had been sitting in and some
other things. [This was about 1*07.] Grandma stepped
up behind the bed in the southeast corner of the room.
A granddaughter of hers fourteen years of age was there,
and also the daughter of a neighbor of about the same age.
Father was out not far from the house, and he ran to the
window very much alarmed (as well he might be !), ask-
ing, 'Where are the children?' Grandfather said, 'In
here,' and father rushed to the back window, taking us as
142 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFOHI).
we wore handed out to him. He then came in and led
the horse out. It was very providential that no one was
hurt.
"Respecting the west room that we lived in, the fireplace
was so high and wide that we used to sit, on what they
called forms, in the corners, and look out at the top of the
chimney.
"My grandmother used to tell us that her mother Gould
said when she first came there to live, it was a wilderness
and the wolves would come in the night, sit on the hill in
front of the house, and howl. She also told us that her
husband and one of his sisters, when children, were sent
to the field some distance from the house, and when turn-
ing; to come home thev saw a large hear on the hill a little
distance off. Having heard folks say, if you face a bear
he will turn away, they stopped a minute or two, and
the bear turned away. The next day he was killed, and
carried down past the house on a load of wood."
The next year after Mr. Gould's decease, the adminis-
trator sold the farm at auction, to Eliezer Lake of Tops tie Id
and Mrs. Nancy Andrews of Boxford. The latter bought
the house and land adjoining. The daughter Olive had
the easterly room, and passed her life there, dying in 1871.
After the house was repaired, the westerly part was rented
at different times to a number of small families, and some
time after the death of Olive the place was sold to Mrs.
Alice G rover of Salem, who came and lived here per-
haps two years. She then sold it, in 1878, to Mr. John C.
McLaughlin of Salem, who now owns and resides upon it.
139.
Residence of G. W. Curtis. — The residence of the
late Francis Curtis was probably built by his father who
bore the same name. Mr. Curtis was born ill 1805, mar-
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 143
ricd in 1836, and lived in this house until his death in
1878. Since that time his son George W. Curtis has re-
sided upon and carried on the place.
140.
S. Stevens Cellar. — Two or three rods north of the
residence of the late Zaccheus Gould stood the house of
Samuel Stevens in 1761. He lived here several years.
The house has probably been gone three-quarters of a cen-
tury, and the old cellar was visible as late as 1830.
141.
Z. Gould House. — The residence of the lale Zaccheus
Gould was erected by Mr. Andrew Gould of Topsfield in
1835. He built the barn in 1840. He lived in the house
until 1847, when he sold to Amos Fiske, and Mr. Fiske
conveyed the place to Zaccheus Gould in 1868. Mr.
Gould died here a few years since, and his family have
continued to reside upon the farm. See No. 142.
142
Gould Cellar. — Across the road from the residence of
the late Zaccheus Gould stood a very old house, endwise
to the road. It was one story high, and had two rooms in
it, one of which was plastered. There was also a back
room on the end next the road.
James Curtis, the great-grandfather of the late Francis
Curtis, lived here. July 26, 1785, he conveyed all his real
estate in Boxford to his grandson John Curtis. There
were about one hundred acres of land and the buildings.
''Jeames" Curtis, as he was popularly called, married Sarah
Buswell in 1731, and had. seven children, Sarah, Daniel,
Eleanor, John, Asa, Moses, and Hannah.
John Curtis, who succeeded his grandfather on the place,
144 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
was born in Boxford in 176G, married Eunice Harris of
Ipswich in 1785, and had two children born here, who were
named John and Eunice, respectively. In 1788 he sold
out to Eleazer Flint, a Reading gentleman.
The next year, 1789, Mr. Flint sold to Capt. Jacob
Gould and Ruth Curtis (mother of the above-named John
Curtis). In 1795 (Jacob Gould, jr., having meantime
occupied the house) Mrs. Curtis conveyed her half to Jacob
Gould, son of hey associate purchaser.
Jacob Gould, son of Capt. Jacob Gould, who lived in
No. 138, was born in 17(34, married Ruth, daughter of
Thomas Pcabody of Middletou in 1789, and lived in this
house until 1830, when he sold the place to Mr. Andrew
Gould of Topstield. He removed to Brighton, N. Y.,
where he lived with his son Samuel P. Gould till his death
in 1850. His youngest child was the first wife of the late
Moses Dorman, Esq. Mr. Gould's second child was
Gen. Jacob Gould of Rochester, N. Y., who was born in
this house in 1794. A sketch of General Gould by Dr.
Joseph E. Bartlett of Boston, who was born in the neigh-
borhood, has been furnished these pages as follows : —
"Until his majority he attended the district school — worked upon his
father's farm and the farms of his neighbors — made shoes — taught
school — and took an active interest in military affairs. On reaching his
majority he set out for the West on a horse lent him by his father.
When he reached Schenectady, N. Y., concluding to stop there, the horse
was sold and the proceeds sent back to the lender. He engaged in the
shoe trade and was successful there ; but in a few years moved on to
Rochester, N. Y., where he resided the rest of his life.
'•In business, financial, masonic, military, social and political circles,
he was always conspicuous in the front rank. At an early age he be-
came mayor of the city, major-general of the militia, filled the highest
offices in the masonic order, and was U. S. marshal for his district
for many years. All these successes and honors seemed naturally to
come to hi in, as if by right.
'•General Gould was of a majestic presence. His temperament san-
guine, hopeful, courageous, and he possessed that marvelous power
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 145
of magnetism which never failed to impart to every one who came within
the sphere of his influence a bountiful share of those qualities. When
his own success and business standing had become assured, he induced
his younger brothers— Samuel and George— to follow and locate near
him, where both achieved success and became marked men in their re-
spective neighborhoods.
" Another remarkable characteristic of General Gould was his love of
kindred and abiding attachment for his old native home — seldom failing
to make an annual visit thither— calling upon all the old neighbors and
still living companions of his youth, and Anally persuading his aged
parents to dispose of their little patrimony, and go with him to a new
home near by his own, where, cheered and sustained by filial love, they
spent the remainder of their days in plenty and in peace."
For several years before 1790, the school for that portion
of the town was kept in this house. In 1789, Daniel Gould
of Topsfield, who was afterward a clergyman in Bethel,
Maine, taught here. A panel from the old house, on which
Daniel Gould carved his name, is preserved by Mr. John H.
Gould of Topsfield.
When the school-house in this district was burned about
1815, the school was again kept in this house until a new
school-house could be built.
Mr. Andrew Gould of Topsfield at last bought the place
in 1830, and after living in the old house five years took it
down in 1835, building the present one across the road. The
old barn stood several rods northeast of the residence of
the late Z iccheus Gould, and it was taken down by Mr. An-
drew Gould when he built the new one in 1840. See No.
141.
143.
Iles Cellar. — The lies house, which stood a few rods
south of the residence of the late Zaccheus Gould, was quite
ancient. It was gambrel-roofed, one story in height, and
contained two rooms. Seventy-five years ago the inside
was unfinished. William Iles, who is said to have come
from England, married Elizabeth Curtis in L719and prob-
ably lived in this house. They had live children : Elizabeth,
l'j
146 TILE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
who married Benjamin Curtis of Middleton, William, who
resided on this place, John, Jacob, and Mary.
William lies, jr., was born in 1723, married Martha
Booth of Middleton in 1744, and had four children : John,
Jacob, Mary and Martha. The father removed to Rindge,
N. H., where he went by the name of Earl.
The son Jacob lies lived here after his father's departure
till near the close of the century. He was born in 1748,
and, by his wife Relief, had three children born here, Jon-
athan, who died young, Relief and Jonathan.
A Booth family, relatives of Mrs. lies above, also lived
here for a time. One of the daughters, Mary, married Rev.
Daniel Gould of Topsfield, who was afterward a clergyman
in Maine. William Booth, the father, went to Hillsborough,
N. H.
James Curtis (the old folks used to call him Jeames)
bought half of this house of William lies in 1761. He was
the great-grandfather of the late Francis Curtis. Here
James' children were perhaps born.
During the war of 1812, the house was occupied a part
of the time by two families from Salem, who were among
those who thought the British would burn the seaport
towns, and so fled to the country for security.
A Brown and also a Bligh family lived here at some pe-
riod. At the beginning of this century Ezra Wildes was
living here, and soon after John Perkins, who was called
"John Enoch."
The house was bought by Cooper Henry Perkins of
Salem about 1821, and he removed it to Topsfield, living
in it during the rest of his life. The house is now occu-
pied by his grandson, Mr. William Andrews.
144.
Residence of T. Fuller. — The William Henry Mun-
day house was built by Dr. George W. Sawyer, on land
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 147
formerly owned by Oliver Peabody, in 1847 or 1848.
The place came into the possession of Mr. Munday, who
lived here several years. About 1880, the property was
sold to Mrs. Charles Collyer of Lynn, who lived here.
The house was then occupied by different tenants until
18 ( J0, when Mr. Thomas Fuller, who lived at No. 145, pur-
chased it, and has since resided in it.
145.
Fuller House. — Mr. Thomas Fuller, a native of Dan-
vers, and a veteran of the war of the Rebellion, who ex-
perienced more than his share of the vicissitudes of the
service, built a small house for himself near Fish brook in
1874. He lived in it alone, having never married, un-
til he bought and moved to No. 144 in 1890, where he
has since resided.
146.
Residence of T. Sawyer. — The farm of Mr. Thomas
Sawyer belonged about 1800 to Thomas Killam of Mid-
dleton. Dr. George Whitfield Sawyer of Ipswich, a brother
of John Sawyer (see No. 154), father of the late John
Sawyer, married Mr. Ki Ham's daughter Polly in 1801.
In 1803, Dr. Sawyer came here to live, his father-in-law
having given him the place.
Dr. Sawyer was born in Ipswich in 1770. After hon-
oring his profession of medicine for many years by a life
of integrity and trust, he died in 1855, at the age of eighty-
five. He had several children, one of whom, Thomas,
succeeded him upon the farm, which he has since carried
on. Mr. James B. Sawyer, a son of Thomas, also resides
here.
147.
Residence of S. Killam. — The farm now in the pos-
session of Messrs. George B. and Samuel Killam, brothers,
148 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
was a part of the five hundred and fifty acres granted by
the General Court to Governor John Endieott in 1639.
The land then came into the possession of his son Zerub-
babel, who built the present house about 1682, and died
in 1684, willing the place to his son Joseph Endieott. It
soon came into the possession of Joseph's brother Zerub-
babel Endieott, Avho conveyed the farm, which then con-
tained one hundred acres, with the house and barn, to
Thomas Killam of Wenham, Jan. 15, 1701-02, for £180.
Mr. Killam removed to the farm, and afterward resided
there.
He was a son of Daniel and Sarah (Safford) Killam of
Wenham, and was born about 1653. He married Martha
Solart of Wenham about 1680, and had several sons, one
of whom, Samuel, married Grace, daughter of Zerubbabel
Endieott, from whom Mr. Killam purchased the farm.
Mr. Killam's son John succeeded him on the place. lie
was born in Wenham in 1695, married, in 1725, Abigail,
daughter of Samuel Symonds, one of the neighbors, and
had three children, one of whom became the wife of Capt.
Israel Herrick, of French war and revolutionary fame,
and Mary married Benjamin Thompson of Wilmington.
Mr. Killam's other child John settled on the farm.
Mr. Killam died in 1738, when John was but nine years
of age. The widow resided upon the place and reared
her children. John, at the age of thirty-four, married
Priscilla Bradstreet of Topsfield, a descendant of Governor
Bradstreet, and had a family of ten children: — Anna mar-
ried Stephen Peabody, who resided at No. 69; Priscilla
married Phineas Foster, who lived in No. 123 ; John died
at sea, unmarried ; Abigail married Benjamin Upton of
Reading; Elizabeth married Billy Bradstreet of Boxford;
Molly married John Curtis of Boxford ; Joseph resided
in No. 32 ; Samuel lived on his father's place ; Oliver
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 149
settled at No. 153; and Asa, born in 1785, served in the
army in the war of 1812, came home and helped his
father in haying, and left home to go to Boston, being
never heard from again by any of his relatives or friends.
Samuel Killam, the successor of his father on the home-
stead, was born in 1779, married Lois Holt of Reading in
1807, and had ten children. Two of their sons, Samuel
and George B., have since resided on the farm. Two other
sons became physicians, and upon beginning their practice
bad their names changed to Bartlett. One of these, Joseph
Elbridge, practised for many years in Boston and Charles-
town, and was for several years president of the Mystic river
association. The other, Cyrus, is the superintendent of
the State asylum for the insane at St. Peter, Minn.
148.
G. B. Killam Cellar. — On the southeast side of the
road leading from Mr. Thomas Fuller's to the late Joseph
N. Pope's house in the rear of the residence of Messrs.
Samuel and George B. Killam was an old cellar. No one
remembers the house. The well was on the northwest
side of the road. The land now belongs to Mr. George
B. Killam, and was a part of the old Killam homestead,
No. 147.
149.
Bimsley Peabody Cellar. — Near the residence of
Messrs. George B. and Samuel Killam, at the junction
of the roads to the west of the house, is a cellar over
which stood an ancient dwelling, two stories in height,
about twenty-five feet long and eighteen feet wide, with
the end toward the road.
The first family that lived here, of which we have learned,
was that of Amos Gould, who married Iluldah Foster in
1759. lie died in 1772, and in 1782 the heirs, Iluldah
150 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
Gould, weaver, Ezra Gould and Amos Gould, yeomen,
and Phebe Gould, spinster, all of Boxford, sold the place
to Bimsley Peabody. The farm then consisted of twenty-
five acres. The widow Gould married Capt. Benjamin
Kimball two years later, and removed to Bridgton, Maine.
How long Mr. Peabody lived here is not known. He
was succeeded upon the place by his son Oliver Peabody,
and he was followed by Joseph Averill of North Andover,
and by Charles Smith, respectively. About 1865, the
place was purchased by Mr. Samuel Killam, who, after let-
ting it to transient tenants for several years, took it down
iii 1878.
150.
S. Killam Cellar. — Between the B. Peabody cellar,
No. 149, and the residence of Messrs. George B. and
Samuel Killam is an old cellar on land of Mr. Samuel
Killam. No one remembers the house that stood there.
151.
Elliot Cellar. — In the pasture near the river, south
of the house of Messrs. George B. and Samuel Killam,
is an old cellar. No one remembers the house that stood
over it. It is probable that in 1782 Stephen Elliot owned
and lived upon the place. The land now belongs to Mr.
Samuel Killam.
152.
Pope House. — The residence of the late Joseph N.
Pope was the armory that was built by the town in 1840
for the accommodation of the Boxford Washington Guards,
at an expense of $370. It was built by David Dwinnell,
and stood in the corner of Eev. Mr. Alcott's field north-
erly of Rev. Mr. Coggin's. A few years later it was sold
to Mr. Pope, who removed it to its present site and fitting
it up into a dwelling house occupied it until his death,
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 151
■which occurred about 1880. His widow died two years
later, and since that time her sister lies occupied the house.
Mr. Pope was from Salem. He died without issue. lie
was noted for his modesty and patriotism, never failing as
each succeeding Independence day dawned to float from
the gable of his house the loved stars and stripes.
153.
O. Killam House. — The Oliver Killam place was a part
of the eight hundred acres that Zaccheus Gould owned.
Thomas Newmarch of Ipswich came into possession of a
part of it, at least, and in 1701 he sold one-fourth of it to
Thomas Cummings of Topsfield. Mr. Cummings prob-
ably resided on a portion of this two hundred acres. The
farm of Mr. Killam came into the possession of Jacob
Cummings, a son of Thomas, and in 1788 he sold it to
Edmund Herrick ofMiddleton, with the buildings thereon.
He was a son of John Herrick, who lived at Nos. 65 and
163.
Mr. Herrick lived here ten years. By his wife Hitty
Curtis of Middleton he had six children : Hitty, who
married Dodge of Wenham, Artemas, who lived m
Methuen, Lucy, Almira, Pamela, and Caroline, who mar-
ried Seth Burnham and lived at No. 251.
In 1798, Mr. Herrick sold the farm to Cornelius Gould
of Danvers for $1250, and returned to Middleton. (See
No. 170.) The farm then consisted of one hundred and
fifteen acres. Mr. Gould had removed to Danvers the
year before from No. 132. He had, by his two wives,
Pbebe Porter and Lydia Jenkins of Andover, eight chil-
dren, one of whom, Joseph Porter, died in Middleton in
1881, being upward of eighty years of age. One of the
daughters, Betsey, married Oliver Killam, who was born
in No. 147 in 1781. To him Mr. Gould conveyed the
place in 1820.
152 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
Mr. Killam resided here, and was the father of the late
William E., and of Oliver P. and Leonard beside others.
After his death in 1865, the place remained in the posses-
sion of the heirs for several years, and was finally sold to
Mr. Henry K. Kennett in 1876. He lived here a short
time, and then conveyed the farm, in the same year, to
Messrs. Henry A. Putnam and E. Paysou Trask of Dan-
vers. The house is now and has been for several years
past occupied by Mr. John Gould.
154.
Residence of Mrs. John Sawyer. — The residence of
the late John Sawyer was undoubtedly built by Stephen
Gould about 1750. Mr. Gould was a son of John and
Hannah (Curtis) Gould, who lived at No. 138, and was
born in 1724. He married Hannah Perkins of Topsfield
in 1748. They had eight children, one of whom, Elijah,
was in the army of the Revolution and died at the age of
twenty-three, two others died young, and the rest of them
settled in Mont Vernon and Hillsboro', N. H. March 26,
1762, Mr. Gould sold out to Ebenezer Killam of Box-
ford, for £313, "the farm on which I now live," there
being about sixty-eight acres, and the only incumbrance
"the highway lately laid out by the court of general ses-
sions of the peace." This was doubtless the road by Howe's
mills. Mr. Gould then bought and removed to No. 121).
Mr. Killam was a son of Thomas and Sarah Killam,
and was born in Boxford in 1714. Thomas* lather Thomas
Killam was from Wenham, and the father of the heads of
the three Killam families that settled here in the begin-
ning of the eighteenth century, Samuel, Thomas and John.
Ebenezer Killam married Hannah Lummus (then spelled
" Lummux") of Ipswich Hamlet, in 1738. He married,
for his second wife, in 1767, widow Mary Peabody. He
had several children.
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 153
June 10, 1771, ho conveyed the farm to his son Thomas
for £200. The place is described as follows: — "A certain
farm situate and lying- in Boxford aforesaid, with a dwell-
ing house and a barn thereon standing and containing by
estimation about one hundred acres be the same more or
less and is bounded as followcth, beginning at a stake
and stones at the southwesterly corner thence running
easterly by land of Jacob Cummings as Cummings' land
goes across both the town and county road to a stake and
stones near the Fishing brook, so called, thence running
northerly by said brook to land of Richard Foster to a
stake and stones by said brook, thence running and turn-
ing by said Foster's land till it comes to a stake and stones
at a corner, thence southerly still by said Fosters land to
a stake and stones by land of Elijah Porter, thence south-
erly by land of said Porter to the last mentioned bounds,
with all the appurtenances ; and also another lot of meadow
land lying in Boxford aforesaid in Long meadow, so called,
and contains about live acres more or less, and is bounded
on the easterly and southerly sides by meadow of John
Stiles and heirs of Abraham Redington, deceased, and on
all other sides by meadow and upland of Jacob Cummings."
Mr. Killam may have removed from town.
He was succeeded on the place by his son Thomas, who
was born in Boxford in 1744. He married Sarah Fuller
of Middleton in 1771, and died about 1782. His widow
married, secondly, in 1785, Samuel Wilkins, jr., of Mid-
dleton, whither the family removed. Mr. Killam had sev-
eral children, one of whom, Polly, married Dr. George
W. Sawyer, and another, Sarah, who was born herein
1778, married the Doctor's brother, John Sawyer, a native
of Ipswich. The farm came into the possession of this
John Sawyer about 1800, when bis marriage occurred.
Mr. Sawyer resided here as long as he lived, and both
20
154 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFOKD.
his wife and himself died here at a good old age. After
his death the farm came into the possession of his son
John, who owned and carried it on until his death in 1891,
at the age of eighty-seven. His widow and daughter Mary
still reside there.
155.
R. K. Foster House. — The residence of the late Rich-
ard K. Foster was built by himself in 1841. lie was horn
in No. 156, and died here in 1889. Since his death his
son Richard Allen Foster and son-in-law Leander II.
Cheney have resided on the farm.
156.
R. Foster Cellar. — The old Foster house that re-
cently stood over the cellar across the road from the res-
idence of the late Richard K. Foster was very ancient,
being called "the old dwelling house" in 1762.
This was an old Stiles place. In 1762, John Stiles of
Boxford, for £200, conveyed it with half of his right in
the saw -mill to his grandson Edmund Stiles. In 1764,
Abraham Redington sold to Richard Foster of Boxford
one-half of the corn mill and one-half of the saw mill for
£173, and on the same day Mr. Foster purchased the farm
of Mr. Stiles for £260 13s. 4d.
Richard Foster was son of Jonathan and Hannah (Pea-
body) Foster and was horn in No. 1)1, in 1733. He mar-
ried Elizabeth Kimball of Andover in 1761, and had seven
children. One of them was Phineas, who lived at No.
123, and another was Asa, who was horn in 1766.
Asa married Dolly Morrill of Salisbury in 1802, and
succeeded his father on this place, dying here in 1831 at
the age of sixty-live. Their three children were sons, the
youngest of whom, horn in ISO!), was Richard Kimball
Foster, who took the old house down about 1875. He
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 155
built a new house across the street, No. 155, and resided
there from 1841 to his death in 1889.
Otis Atherton lived in this old house about 1835, and
died here. He came from Mansfield. His widow died at
Oniville, near Providence, R. I. Mr. Atherton was father
of Mr. William H. Atherton and of Hiram Atherton,
father of George W. Atherton, president of the Pennsyl-
vania State College, who was born in Boxford.
157.
J. K. Cole House. — Between the road and the house
where the late Dea. John Kimball Cole resided was an
old house owned by John Stiles in 1768. Mr. Stiles
married Phebe Merassir, and in 1769 sold the place to
Simeon Stiles for £133 6s. 8d. Simeon was a son of
Benjamin and Elizabeth (Foster) Stiles, and was bora in
Boxford in 1744. He was a grandson of John and Elea-
nor (Pearl) Stiles, of Boxford. He had five children bom
here, and his wife Mary died here in 1826, at the age of
eighty-live. Mr. Stiles survived her until the spring of
1831, when he died at the age of eighty-six.
The old willow in the yard was brought from Danvers
as a walking stick by Simeon Stiles in the revolutionary
era. He placed one end of it in the ground, and it took
rool , being to-day sixteen feet in circumference. The mid-
dle of the 1 ree ha n decayed and fallen out, so that its trunk
is divided into two parts, a fence [>assing between them.
Mr. Stiles' youngest son Asa resided upon the place and
look care of it during his father's declining years. In
1850, Asa sold to Mr. Cole, who removed here from
Topsfield. Asa Stiles removed to the old Foster house,
No. 156, and subsequently died, at the age of eighty-two,
at Moses Gould's, No. 129, where he was boarding. He
was born in March, 1779, and died in March, 1861.
156 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
Mr. Colo was born at No. 209, in 1814, was a member
of the Slate legislature in 1862, and deacon of the First
church from 1852 to 1889, and died in 1891. His family
continue to reside upon the place. Among his four chil-
dren is Mr. Jefferson K. Cole, a school teacher in Pea-
body. Deacon Cole took the old house down and erected
the present edifice in 1856.
158.
Stiles Cellar. — There is an old cellar a few rods south
of the residence of Mr. Samuel A. Frye. In 1769, this
was called in a deed "an old cellar.' 1 A Stiles family is
supposed to have lived there.
159.
Residence of S. A. Frye.— Where Mr. Samuel A.
Frye's house stands, William Harrison Harriman of Grove-
land erected a two-story dwelling house in the summer of
1838. He resided in it until 1845, when he sold the place
to Augustus A. Hay ward of Boxford, and then removed to
Georgetown, where he kept a store for many years. Mr.
Ilayward lived here until 1849, when he sold to Nathan
Towne of Boxford, and built the house No. 162, to which
he removed. In 1872, Mr. Towne sold out to Theophilus
and Samuel A. Frye and, three years later, Theophilus
sold his interest in the place to Samuel, who has since
owned and occupied it. The buildings were burned on the
night of June 17, 1882, and the next fall Mr. Frye erected
his present residence on the same site.
160.
Emery Cellar. — A number of rods east of the resi-
dence of Mr. Samuel A. Frye, on the same side ofthest rcet
was an old cellar. The lot in which it is located has been
known for three-quarters of a century as the "Briggs' Or-
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 157
chard," it having been a portion of Parson Briggs' farm.
The oldest inhabitants do not remember to have ever seen
the house.
Stephen Emery, from Newbury, married Deliverance
Stiles in 1743, and resided on this place. He died be-
tween 1755 and 1760, and his widow married in 1764
ElishaTowne, father of John Towne, who lived at Nos.
176 and 177. This John Towne was the grandfather of
Mr. Henry A. Towne. Mr. Emery had six children:
David, Stephen (who died in infancy), Stephen, John,
Jesse and Rebecca. John was born in 1750, married
Elizabeth Perkins in 1769, and probably lived here. He
had only two children baptized here, Francis and David,
in 1 7 7 1 and 1772. In the latter year he removed to Rindge ,
N. H., where he founded an extensive family. Two or
more of the Emerys served in the Revolutionary army.
Deliverance Stiles' sister Abigail married John Emery
of Newbury, doubtless a brother of Stephen Emery.
Stephen Emery had a gate at his end of the road that
now leads from Mr. Frye's house to the late Deacon Cole's
house. It was called "Emery's gate" in 1753, and as late
as 1823.
161.
Residence of W. French. — May 10, 1852, Lurena
R., wife of Abraham T. Pierce of Boxford, bought a house
lot of Augustus Hay ward, who then owned the (iillis place.
No. 163, and built the present residence of Mr. Walter
French upon it. Her heir-at-law, Miss Sarah Cordelia
Pierce of Danvers, sold the place to Mi 1 . French in 1874,
and he has since lived there.
162.
IIayward House. — Augustus Hay ward lived with his
grandfather Nat Lone; at No. 205. lie married, and for
158 TIIK DWELLINGS OF BOXFOHD.
a while resided where Mr. S. Porter Peabody lives. No.
193. In 1848, he bought of Dean Andrews the mills
now in the possession of Mr. Solomon W. Howe, and built
this house the next year, moving here from No. 159. He
ran the saw- and grist-mill and did considerable in the
ship-timber business.
He died in 1872, childless, and the place came into the
possession of his sister, Mrs. Albert Perley, being occupied
by tenants, Mr. John Cass living there for several years
prior to 1891, when he moved into his new house, No.
298.
163.
Hotel Redington. — This house was probably built by
Thomas Redington at the beginning of the eighteenth cen-
tury. He was a son of Thomas and Mary (Kimball)
Redington, married in 1723, Hepzibah, daughter of Thom-
as and Sarah (Osgood) Perley, who lived at No. 0, and
resided on this place.
In 1751, he sold the farm and half the corn-mill to
Thomas Andrews, who was a son of John and Patience
(Andrews) Andrews. He was born in Boxford in 1717,
married Margaret Bradstreet of Topsfield in 1739, and
had children, David, Jonathan, Elizabeth and Mary, born
in Boxford.
Mr. Andrews sold the place to Jacob Kimball of Tops-
field, blacksmith, in 1704, and the next year Mr. Kimball
sold out to John Herrick of Topsfield for £453 6s. 8d.
Mr. Herrick removed to the farm, and lived there for
several years. He was a cooper by trade.
In 1774, Mr. Herrick exchanged farms with Gideon
Bixby, who owned the farm now in the possession of Mr.
Israel Herrick, No. 65. This farm then contained one
hundred acres.
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 159
Mr. Bixby's mother moved to this house with him, and
died here in 1795. The Salem Gazelle, in its issue of
Feb. 10, 1795, contained the following obituary notice of
her : —
"Monday morning, January 19th, departed this life Mrs. Rebeccah
Gould of Boxford, in the 75th year of her age— A fincere chriftian,
who through life adorned the doctrine of God her faviour, ever kept
up an equanimity of mind through all the changing fcenes, and 'pa-
tience pofleffedher foul.' 'As Ave are all journeying to our 'long home,'
let us be followers of them, 'who through faith and patience, inherit
the promifes.' The regret expreffed by her furviving children and
friends, fenfibly fpeaks her worth. Her remains were decently in-
terred the Wednefday folloAvhig, a large number of people collected,
and a well adapted difcourfe was delivered by Francis Quarles A. M.
from Pfalm xvi. 'J. 'Myflefhfhall reft in hope.' "
In 1816, Mr. Bixby sold the place to Abner Wood, a
merchant of Newbury port, and he sold it to Samuel Pea-
body, jr., of Boxford, in 1818.
In 1842, Mr. Peabody sold the place to John K. Cole,
who, in 1850, conveyed it to Augustus I lay ward, who
owned it until 1855, when he sold out to Osgood Dale, jr.,
of Boxford. In 1859, Mr. Dale conveyed the place to
his father Osgood Dale, sr., and in 1868 Mr. Dale's heirs,
Osgood Dale of Groton, Mass., and David T. Dale and
Henry W. Dale, both of Chester, N. II. sold to Dan-
iel S. Gillis, who had come from Maine five years pre-
viously. Mr. Gillis resided upon (he place until his death
in 1891. He dropped dead while lifting a trunk into a
carriage in front of his residence which he had conducted
as a public house for several years, under the name of
Hotel Redington.
164.
Residence of J. Aveeill. — Mr. John Averill's house
waserected byJamesM. Peabody in 1844. Mr. Averill
has lived here many years.
160 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
165.
Residence of II. Moulton. — Capt. Henry Moulton,
formerly of Wenham, on retiring from the sea, came to
Boxford and built a bouse in 1874, and has since resided
in it.
166.
James Andrews Cellar. — There was an old cellar on
the southwest side of the road about one-fourth of the way
between the residence of Mr. Samuel A. Frye and the
Second-district school-house. Over this cellar stood a house
long gone and almost forgotten, the cellar having been
filled many years ago.
The first occupant of this old house that we have learned
of was James Andrews, who moved to this place from the
Twisden house, No. 175, in 1769. He had lost a very
promising son, nineteen years old, the year before, and in
the summer of 177o, another son, eighteen years of age,
ran away, probably going to sea. Mr. Andrews inserted
the following notice in the Essex Gazette, at the time,
hoping that he might find him :
"Whereas my Son, James Andrews, a little upwards of eighteen Years
old, without any Leave or Licence from me, abfented himfelf from my
Bufinei's one Week fince, and I am appreheniive that he intends to flap
himfelf to go to Sea. as he faid he would : Therefore I hereby caution
all Maiiers of Veffels not to f hip him on board any of their Veffels, aor
make any Bargain or Bargains with him, and alto all other Perfons
from making any Bargains with him. as they may exped to anfwer
the Penalties of the Law.
"July L9, 177.'.. "JAMES ANDREWS, of Boxford."
Probably the same year the family removed to Bridg-
fon, Maine, which was then being settled. This James
Andrews was an uncle to "Sir" Nathan, father of the late
Samuel, Daniel and Dean Andrews.
The next owner was Elijah Dwinnell, a tailor by trade.
He was a son of Thomas and Hannah (Towne) Dwin-
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 161
nell, and was born in Topsfield in 1739. lie married
Sarah, daughter of Elisha Towne, and after living al this
place resided at the Towne farm, No. 17(5. In the spring
of 1774, he sold this place to John Smith of Boxford for
£102 15s. The barn then stood across the street, and
the well was southeast of the house.
Before 1813, this real estate probably became a part of
the adjoining Symonds farm, the buildings being none.
167.
Residence of Cornelius Pearson. — Mr. Cornelius
Pearson's house was built probably by Abraham Redington
about 1763. He was a son of Thomas and Hepzibah(Per-
iey) Redington, and probably born at No. 163 in 1721).
lie married Sarah Kimball in 1757, and moved here from
No. 173. He was a housewright by trade. He sold out to
his wife's brother-in-law Moses Putnam in 1766, but prob-
ably continued to live here until 1770, when he removed
to Waterville, Maine, whore he died in L805, being one
of the first settler--. He had seven children, one of whom
Samuel lived in Hampden, Maine, and was a member of ihc
Maine legislature in 1850, his .-on being adjutant-general
of the state and mayor of Augusta.
Mr. Redington had made potash at this place, and when
he sold out to Mr. Putnam the potash works were except-
ed. They are mentioned in 1775, but in a da-d of the
place in 1777, they are not referred to.
Moses Putnam was from Darners. He married, in 1771 ,
Rebecca Kimball, a sister of hi- grantor's wife. They had
two children born here, Stephen and Sarah. Mr. Putnam
sold this place to Jacob Perley of Boxford in 1775, and
probably removed from low n.
Jacob Perley was a son of ('apt. Francis and Huldah
(Putnam) Perley, and was born in No. 75 in 1751. lie
21
162 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
married Dolly Wood in 177;"), and lived the lirsl two
years of his married life on this place, where their firsl child,
Jacob, was horn. In 1777, Mr. Perley sold out to Daniel
Adams, of Beverly, and removed to Reading, lie died
in Byfield parish, Newbury, in 1832, at the aire of eighty.
His son, Jeremiah, born in Byfield in 1784, was a promi-
nent lawyer in Maine.
Daniel Adams, the next owner, probably never lived
here. He was a mariner. In 1781, he sold out to Joseph
Symonds of Boxford, who had probably hired the place,
and lived upon it, while Mr. Adams owned it.
Mr. Symonds was a son of Joseph and Sarah (Gould)
Symonds, and was born in 1754. He married Susanna
Hale in 177(), before which time he had lived a while in
Bradford. He was a blacksmith by trade.
Miss Lucy Peabody (who was born in 1784) said that
she attended school in the east chamber of this house , and
that the scholars would slide down the back roof of the
blacksmith shop of Mr. Symonds, which stood near the
house.
Mr. Symonds had a large family of children. His son
Samuel, on a Saturday afternoon in October. 1804, went
to West Boxford on a cavalry parade. When his mother
was putting the brown bread, pudding and beans into the
oven to be baked thai afternoon, she saw what appeared to
her to be spots of blood on the bricks. Some two hours
afterward the lifeless body other son was brought home.
While riding down the hill near Dr. Eaton's residence he
had fallen from his horse and been instantly killed.
Captain Symonds sold the farm in 1813 to Jeremiah
Young of Newburyport, and removed to Bradford, where
he was killed by lightning June 18, 1823. His wife sur-
vived him. In tin- conveyance the blacksmith shop was
excepted, and was to be removed within six months.
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 163
While hero on a visit, Captain Young's mother, Mrs.
Rebecca Young of Wellfleet, died in 181D, at the age of
ninety-four. Captain Young took a number of the students
of the academy to board, and among them was Gen. Fred
Lander, who met his fate on the western frontier. General
Lander's brother Edward, a western judge, and now of
Washington, D. C, also lived here while he attended the
academy.
Captain Young resided here until 1840, when the place
was sold at auction to Daniel Wells, who lived here a few
years. By the foreclosure of a mortgage the place came
into Mr. Young's hands again.
The heirs of Captain Young sold the farm to Jonathan
Pearson of Newburyport in 1845, and upon his decease it
passed to his son Mr. Cornelius Pearson, who is the pres-
ent owner and occupier.
168.
W. Gukley House. — William Gurley built a small
one-story house near the residence of Mr. Cornelius Pear-
son at the close of the war of the Rebellion, and lived in
it until his death, which occurred in 1873, at the age of
seventy-eight. His widow then occupied it until she died
about 1888. Since then the house has been moved up the
street to the Towne road.
169.
Residence of W. G. Matthews. — The house in which
Mr. William G. Matthews resides was buili by Maj. Sam-
uel Perley in 1840. He sold it in 1870 to Mr. Augustus E.
Bachelder of Boston, who has since owned it. The west
end was occupied by Miss Lucy Peabody, who died in
1869; then by Whittemore ; then by William Twis-
den : and lor the last \\>w years Prof. Geo. II. Palmer
made it his residence. Theeasl end svasfirsl occupied by
104 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
Samuel Horace Towne, now of Beverly; then by Orrin
Stone; then by the late George Perley, Esq., son of the
builder, from his marriage in 1845 to 1848; then by Na-
than Towne; then by Stephen Pen body, late ofNewbury-
porl : then by William While : then by AlbeH Brown from
1857 to 1870; and since the latter date by Mr. Matthews.
170.
Briggs House. — This house belonged to John Willet,
a weaver, in 1774. lie came from Newbury, where he
married Mary Noyes in 175!). In 1766, the land belonged
to the Peabody farm, No. 172, and probably Mr.
Willet built the house in or just before 1774. In 1781,
the farm consisted of fifty-seven acres. The barn stood
in the latter year about live rods east of the house. Mr.
Willet had two children baptized in Box ford : Moses, in
1776, and Silas Noyes, in 1780. He sold the farm to
Elisha Gould of Middleton in 1781.
Mr. Gould was a son of Daniel and Lucy (Tarbox)
(ioidd of Topsfield, and was born in 1755. He married
Elizabeth Peabody of Middleton in 1779. They bad three
children, all daughters. Mr. Gould sold the place to Ed-
mund Herrick of Middleton in 1799. Mr. Herrick had
lived in No. 153, which see.
Mr. Herrick divided the farm, selling most of the land
to Richard Foster and Asa Foster in 1801, and the house
and house-lot of one acre to Enoch Foster of Salem, a
cordwainer, in I.S02.
Mr. Herrick removed to Chester, N. H., having married,
first, Mehitable Curtis of Middleton in 1786 ; and, second,
Rachel White. By his first wife he had eight children:
Mehitable, who married Benjamin Dodge of Wenhain ;
Artemas, who resided in Methuen : Lucy, who married E.
Stevens of Danvers; Almira, who married Timothy J.
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 165
Stevens : Pamela ; Caroline, who married Seth Burnham of
Boxford; John, who resided in Salem; and Israel.
In 1809, Mr. Foster, still of Salem, sold the place to
Rev. Isaac Briggs, from York, Maine, who had been set-
tled over the first church here the year before.
In 1833, Mr. Briggs removed to Chatham on ('ape Cod,
and in 1835 sold out to Messrs. George Harriman and
William Peabody, both of Boxford. Mr. Peabody con-
veyed his interest in the place to Mr. Harriman in 1839.
Mr. Harriman was from Groveland, and resided here
while he owned the place.
Samuel Adams removed here from No. 193 about 1839.
His wife died here in February, 1841. Then Mr. Adams
hoarded out in Middleton, where he died about 1845. He
had three daughters, one of whom died when only thirteen
days old.
Samuel's father, Dea. John Adams, spent a consider-
able portion of the time with his son here. He went
about attending to the spiritual, and also to the temporal
wants of the sick and suffering of the neighborhood for
miles around. He was born in Hamilton, and settled in
Salem, where he was a deacon of the Tabernacle church.
His last days were spent in his native town, where he died
in a good, old age, leaving a memory sweet with Christian
influences.
William E. Kil lam bought the place of Mr. Harriman
in 1847, and lived here until 1865, when he sold the farm
to Mr. William G. Todd, and moved to No. 24.
.Mr. Todd sold out to Lucy M., wife of Dea. Julius A.
Palmer, in the same year, and she conveyed it to Mr.
Augustus E. Bachelder in 1869. In L881, Mr. Bachelder
sold it to Mr. Erving Winslow of Boston, who resided
here one or two summers, and then conveyed the place (in
1884) to Prof. Geo. 11. Palmer, who has recently married
166 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFOBD.
Miss Alice Freeman, president of Wellesley college, and
now resides here.
171.
Palmer House. — The Deacon Palmer house was built
in 1826 by Maj. Jacob Peabody. Dea. Julius A. Pal-
mer of Boston married a daughter of Major Peabody,
and the place came into his possession. Deacon Palmer
spent his summers here until his death in 1872. The
place still remains in the possession of the family.
Mr. Palmer was an original proprietor of the widely-
known firm of Palmer, Baehelder & Co., jewellers, Bos-
ton, and was a state senator from Essex county in 1869.
172.
J. Peabody Cellar. — (apt. John Peabody, one of the
earliest settlers of Boxford, built his residence, about 1660,
where the barn of the late Deacon Palmer now stands.
Mr. Peabody was a son of Lt. Francis Peabody, an emi-
grant from England, and was the first Peabody born in
America. He was born in 1642, and in 1665 married
Hannah, a daughter of Robert Andrews of the village.
She became the mother of his eleven children, ami died in
1702, being buried in Maiden. The next year he mar-
ried Sarah Mosely of Dorchester, and died 5 July, 1720,
at the age of seventy-eight. He was the first school-
master of Boxford ; was town clerk for twenty-four years :
was captain in the militia; was for many years a select-
man, mid several times represented the town in the early
sessions of the General Court. Of his children, John died
in Spain when about thirty years of age ; Francis died in
France, ;it the age of t wenty-six ; Moses died ill Cocheco,
now Dover, NT. II., when about twenty years old: and
Ruth was the mother of the Hon. Aaron Wood.
Captain Peabody's son David — Ensign David, as he was
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 167
called — settled on the homestead. He married Sarah
Pope of Dartmouth in 1704, and died in 172(5 at the age
of forty-eight. She married, secondly, Joseph Kinsman
of Ipswich ten years later and removed thither, taking
the younger children with her. One died there of the throat
distemper the same year, at the age often years. The son
named David was the grandfather of George Peabody, (he
London banker, and the son named Thomas resided in
West Boxford, we believe in the house of his grandson,
the late Benjamin Peabody (No. 260).
Ensign David's son John Peabody was his successor
on this homestead. He was born in 1714, married Mary
Chadwiek in 1736, a month before his mother married
Mr. Kinsman and removed, and died in 1765. Two years
later his widow married EbeDezer Killam. John had ten
children, among whom were Moses, who resided upon the
place, Asa, who resided in No. 113, and Jedediah, who
in 1780 settled in Warner, N. H., where he lived tor a
short time in a house that stood in the "Peabody pasture,"
so (-ailed, now owned by Joshua Sanborn, and removed to
and settled in Henniker, X. H. Dr. Leonard W. Pea-
body of Henniker was Jedediah's grandson.
Moses Peabody who succeeded his father on the place
was born in 1744, and married Hannah Foster in 1767, both
being admitted to the First church the next year. Moses
had ten children, among them being Jacob, the father-in-
law of Deacon Palmer, Lucy, who taught in our schools,
and who is mentioned in connection with No. 1<">7, Charles,
who resided in No. 09, and Nancy, who was the wife of
the late Maj. Samuel Perley.
The old house stood until the spring oi 1*63, when Dea-
con Palmer took it down. For several years it had served
as a tenement house. It was a large two-story square man-
sion, and. some think, originally a garrison house, be-
168
THE DWELLINGS OF KOXFORD.
cause one end was lined with bricks. The chimney was
very largo, measuring forty -five feet in circumference at
its base. There were three fireplaces in it on the ground
floor, and another in one of the chambers. While in the
last days of its existence it presented a most forlorn and
OLD PEABODK MANSION.
dreary appearance. It stood in an open field, and in front,
near the road, was an old tumble- down wall over which
the blackberry and other vines grew luxuriantly.
In connection with the picture of the old house is given
a cut of the ancient beaufet that occupied a corner of one
THE DWELLIXGS OF BOXFOED.
169
of the front rooms in the first story. When the old man-
sion was taken down the beaufet was brought to Salem and
is now in the studio of
Mr. Edwin N. Peabody
on Summer street. It
is the most artistic closet
of this kind that we have
ever seen.
Moses Peabody by his
will, dated Jan. 16,
1815, £uve this place to
The
in
March, 1826, and the
same month Charles sold
it to his brother Jacob
of Boston. In the same
year, Jacob built the
]h house now standing, No.
$A 111, and moved into
cv^ his son Charles,
will was proved
l J i
it.
i%
In 1837,
the
barn
V£
here stood
street.
across
the
THE OLD BEAUFET.
173.
G. Perley House. — The George Perley place was
owned years ago by Nathan Kimball. In 1763, it was
sold by Abraham Redington to Nicholas Dodge of Beverly,
a cooper, with the buildings (hereon, and removed to the
Pearson house. No. 167.
Mr. Dodge turned farmer, and resided here Tor twelve
years. By his wife Experience, he had at least two chil-
dren, Lydia and Isaac. In the fall of 1775, for £240, he
sold out to Elijah A.verill of Middleton, shoemaker.
22
170 TITK DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
Mr. Averill removed here where he resided for the rest
of his life, lie died in 1809 or before, leaving a widow
Hannah. He had a daughter Hannah horn here who sur-
vived him. The widow married, second, a Mr. Peabody,
and resided in Middleton, where she died in 1825, leaving
a will in which she gave all her real estate in Boxford
with the buildings thereon to Jonathan Kenney, "the be-
loved friend and intended husband of my daughter Hannah
Averill." The will was disapproved. The next year Maj.
Samuel Perley bought the farm (with (he barn on the south
side of the road) of the heirs who were as follows, viz. : —
Edmund Perkins, Esq., of Lyndsboro, N. II., Timothy
Berry of Beverly ; Bill Russell, Esq., and wife Phebeof Wo-
burn ; widow Rhoda Symonds, widow Lucy Lang, .Jonathan
Berry, Nathaniel Gerry and wife Nancy all of Salem ; Jo-
seph Berry of East Andover, Me., Joseph Lathrop and
wife Betsy of Boston, .Joseph B. Thownes and wife Harriet,
Jonathan B. Perkins, William Berry and wife Caroline,
Hamilton L. Perkins, Hamlet II. Perkins, Tarrant Aug.
Perkins, Bimsley Perkins, Dw Elvenezer Lamed and wife
Catherines., all of Hopkinton, N. H. ; Joshua Lovejoy and
wife Sarah of Sanbornton, N". II. ; Nehemiah Perkins of
Stowe, Vt. ; Josiah Boynton and wife Lydia of Westford ;
Andrew Perkins of Philadelphia, Pa. ; Timothy Perkins,
Warren Perkins, Andrew Perkins, Elliot Perkins and
Jonathan Perkins, all of Reading, and Betsy Perkins of
Reading, single- woman.
Of Mrs. Peabody, the place was hired by Mr. Peabody,
father of the wife of Maj. Samuel Perley, who lived in
the old house. He bought the place and built the; present
house on the site of the old house in 1830, afterward
living and dying here. His son George Perley also passed
most of his life here, and his family and sister still keep
possession.
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 171
174.
Residence of R. W. Emerson. — Mr. Rufus W. Emer-
son erected his house, on land bought of Misses Sarah P.
and Lucy A. Perley in 1884, and lias since resided in
it.
175.
Residence of S. Twisden. — Mr. Samuel Twisden's
farm was owned by James Andrews in 17(58. lie was a
son of Robert and Deborah Andrews, and was born, per-
haps on this place, in 1721. He married, first, Ruth Wood
in 1746-47. She died in 1764, and he married, second,
Elizabeth Bryant in 1765. In 1769, he removed to No.
166, selling this place, with the buildings thereon, to his
brothei* Nathan Andrews. The farm consisted of one hun-
dred and ten acres.
The year before his removal from this farm, James An-
drews' son John died here. The Essex Gazelle, in its
issue of Sept. 13, 1768, contains the following obituary
notice of him :
"Danvers, September 12, 1768. We hear from Boxford, that onTuef-
day, the 6th Inftant, died there, Mr. John Andrews, a Youth of exem-
plary Virtue, the eldeft Son of Lieut. James Andrews, of that Town, in
the 20th Year of his Age. He had been fome Years In the Study of
Phyfick, in the Theory of which he was a very confiderabie Proficient;
and, had he lived, was likely to have made a fhining Practitioner in thai
Profeffion. Hewas employed by the Selectmen of this Town to keep
a School the laft Winter, which he performed to general Acceptance;
and from hence, at the Bequeft of the Selectmen of Boxford, he re-
moved there on the fame Bufinefs, where he alfo performed to general
Satisfaction; but by his intenfe and too clofe Application to his Bufi-
nefs, and Study, he broke his ( 'on ft i tut ion, and fell into a < 'on linn pi ion ,
of which he died, to the great Grief of his Parents, and much lamented
by all who knew him."
The farm was nexl owned by Thomas Gould, who came
from Topslield. He was a son of Thomas and Mary
(Gould) Gould, was born in Topslield in 17.'>2, and mar-
ried Anne Perkins of Topsfield in 1757. They had ten
172 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
children. He died in 1 778, and his widow married, second,
Andrew Foster of Andoverin 1786. This farm continued
in the possession of the family until 1800, when Mr.
Gould's youngest son Andrew Gould, who was born here
in 1 777, having got five-sevenths ol the farm into his hands,
sold out to John Towne, jr., of Box ford, and removed to
Middleton. lie was a shoemaker by trade.
Mr. Towne sold the place in 1809 to his brother Solo-
mon Towne, who was a sea-captain, and a resident of Sa-
lem. The present house was an old building, that Captain
Towne made into a house about 1826, taking the old
house down.
The place then came into a broker's hands, and was
bought by Samuel Dale in 1830. Mr. Dale resided here
until he was drowned in Rowley river, while boating suit
hay, Sept. 10, 1836, at the age of thirty-six. His epitaph
is as follows : —
"Entwined by all the tender tics of life,
To a dear child, and a beloved wife,
I strove in vain my precious life to sa\ .
But sunk in death beneath the briny wave.
■•Farewell! farewell! a sad, a long farewell!
With my dear friends on earth no longer can I dwell;
Friends and companions all. a sad a last adieu.
Prepare to follow me, I cannot conic to you."
The heirs of Mr. Dale, namely, his widow Betsey P.
Dale and son Herbert A. Dale, both of Georgetown, sold
the place to Mr. Samuel Twisden of Lynn in the spring
of 1855, and he has since lived here.
176.
Towne Cellar. — On the south side of the road about
twenty-live rods east of the residence of Mr. Henry A.
Towne, stood an old house a hundred years ago. This
was the residence of Elias Smith previous to 17(!7. Mr.
Smith married Ruth Stiles about 17 1 7, and had three sons,
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 173
John, Nathaniel and Elias. Elias sold his undivided half
to John in 1767, and removed, we think, to No. 52.
John Smith was horn here in 1724, and married, first,
Mary Foster in 1751, and, second, Martha Towne of Tops-
field in 17G0. He had two children, Abraham and Amos,
one by each wife. Mr. Smith resided here until he sold
out to Elijah Dwinnell of Boxford in 1777, and then prob-
ably removed from the town.
Elijah Dwinnell was a son of Thomas and Hannah
(Towne) Dwinnell, of Topsfield, where he was born in
1739. He married, in 1762, Sarah, sister of John Towne,
who afterward owned this place. He settled on this
farm in the spring of 1777. He was a tailor by trade.
The next day after his purchase he sold to his brother-in-
law John Towne an undivided half of the farm, buildings,
vie.
Mr. Dwinnell sold out his interest in the place in 1783,
to Elisha Qiiimhy of Londonderry, N. H., and removed
from the farm. Mr. Quimby, and John Dwinnell with
him, both of Londonderry, sold in 1789 to Thomas Emer-
son of Topsfield, who sold in April, 1790, to Asa Towne,
the eldest son of John Towne, the owner of the other half
of the place. Asa was then of Andover. He was a car-
penter by trade, and in 1790 built the residence of Mr.
Henry A. Towne for his father, who removed to it, and
in 1808 bought out Asa's interest in the farm. Asa was
then of Charlestown, and a trader. The old house was taken
down shortly after the new one was built. Sec No. 177
John Towne the first mentioned above was a son of
Elisha and Sarah (Rhodes) Towne, and was Lorn in
Topsfield in 1710. His father came to Boxford, married
widow Emery, and resided at No. l<i() from 17G4.
177.
Residence of II. A. Towne. — The residence of Mr.
174 TIIK DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
Henry A. Towne was built by his grandfather John Towne
on his own land in 1790, his son Asa being the carpenter.
Mr. Towne had previously lived in the old house, No. 17(5,
which stood across the street about twenty-five rods east
of the present house. John Towne married Anna Cum-
mings of Ipswich in 17(53, and had several children : Asa,
Sarah, Anna, Amos, John, Solomon (who lived at No.
183), Joseph, Daniel, Samuel, Lucy and Oliver. He
died in 1830, at the age of eighty-nine. The Salem Ga-
zette in its issue of March 12, 1830, contained the follow-
ing notice of his death : —
"In Boxford, on Monday morning, Mr. John Towne in the 90th year
of Ms aye. He was a soldier in the French war, 1759, and during most
of the Revolutionary war. He was in the battle of Bunker Hill, and
never saw the spot again until the lute half century anniversary, when
he visited Boston to attend the celebration. His death was very
sudden, he having retired to bed late ou Sunday evening in his usual
good health and spirits."
The powder-horn that Mr. Towne carried in the battle
of Bunker Hill is in the possession of his great-grandson,
Mr. Horatio Towne of Boston.
Mr. Towne's son Samuel succeeded him on the place.
He was born here in 1783, married Charlotte Fletcher,
and was the father of Henry A. Towne, the present owner
and occupier of the farm, which descended to him from his
father.
178.
Cummings Cellar. — A quarter of a mile east of the
residence of Mr. Henry A. Towne is the "Molly farm,'
on which lived Jacob Cuinmings and perhaps his father
before; him. His father was Thomas Cummings, who was
born in 1670, and who was sou of Isaac Cuinmings of
Topsfield. His wife died here in 1738, at the age of fifty-
six. He had four children born here between 1708 and
1717. The house has probably been gone fifty years.
Thomas Cummings bought two hundred acres of land here
of Thomas Newmarch of Ipswich in 1701.
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFOKD. 175
Jacob Cummings was born in 1714. He married in
1745, and had seven children. He died in 1803, at the
age of eighty-eight, his wife having preceded him sonic
twenty years. Until 1788, he lived at No. 153. In that
year he sold the place to Edmund Herrick of Middleton.
Mr. Cummings passed the last of his days we believe at
No. 156. Two of his sons were Dudley and Thomas —
two queer characters — whose uon compos mentis state is
well known to the older inhabitants. They lived with
John Sawyer — father of the late resident of that name —
until their deaths. Thomas was born in 1765, and died in
1834, at the age of sixty-eight. Dudley was born in 1748,
and hung himself in Willis' woods, at "the college," in
the summer of 1815. He went to "the college," which is
a short distance from the site of the house, to gather herbs,
carrying with him a line with which to tie his bundle. He
stretched the line from one tree to another, several feet from
theground, near a large ledge whose perpendicular side was
near the trees. Letting the larger part of his body lie on
the top of the ledge, he placed his neck upon the line, and
there lay until death ensued.
This was the home of Molly Smith for awhile, and this
fact gave the name to the place. She also lived at No.
138.
179.
J. Dwinnells Cellar. — Jacob Dwinnell, or Dunnells,
lived in Willis' woods, at the locality known as "the col-
lege," west of the residence of the late John Sawyer, and
about a mile southeast of the house of Mr. Henry A.
Towne. He was born in Topsfield in 1744, and was son
of Thomas Dwinnell who resided in No. 122. II.' mar-
ried in L768, Mehitable, daughter of Elisha Towne, and
sister of John Towne, who lived at No. 177, and had nine
children, all born here. One of them was David Dwin-
17(j THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
nell, who was well known here fifty years ago as a carpenter
and builder. He was horn in 177!), and died, unmarried,
af Samuel Towne's, where he had lived for years, Jan. 10,
1855, at the age of seventy-five.
We know nothing more of the old house; it was prob-
ably taken down at the beginning of this century.
180.
Residence of J. Parkhurst. — The residence of John
Parkhurst, Ks<j., was built by Mr. Oilman Harris in 1875.
The next year Mr. Parkhurst bought it of Mr. Harris,
and finished off the basement story into a store where
he has since carried on the grocery trade. William W.
Dresser, E. Choate Gurley and Frank L. Parkhurst lived
in the house pari until Mr. Parkhurst, the owner, removed
herefrom No. 183 in 18*7.
181.
Residence of W. II. Atherton. — The residence of
Mr. William II. Atherton was built as a barn by David
Dwinnell near the Jerry Pea house. Mr. Atherton's
brother purchased it, drew it to where it now stands, and
made it into a house in the summer of 1850.
182.
Rea Cellar. — On the opposite side of the street from
the residence of Mr. William II. Atherton, was an old cel-
lar, which was filled a few years since by Mr. John Park-
hurst, who now owns the field.
Dea. Aaron Kimball lived here before 1747. He was
a son of Richard and Hannah (Dorman) Kimball, and was
born in Boxford mi 1705. He married, first, Sarah Wood
in 1733 ; and, second, widow Mehitable Kimball of Brad-
ford in 17G7. He was the grandfather of Capt. Samuel
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 177
Kimball. Mr. Kimball was u shoemaker by trade. In
1747, for £900, he sold this place to his brother Ephraim
Kimball, who was of Boxford, and a cooper. The farm
consisted of thirty acres. Deacon Kimball removed to
No. 195, which he purchased at that time.
Ephraim Kimball was born in 1721. He married Eliza-
beth Gray of Andover in 1747. They had four children
born here : Peter, Hannah, Susannah and Elizabeth. In
1762, Mr. Kimball sold out to Joshua Rea of Beverly,
for £313 6s. 8d.
Mr. Rea married, first, in Beverly, Sarah , and she
was admitted to the church here in 1764. She died a few
years later, and he married, secondly, Hannah Peabody in
1776. Mr. Rea died in 1784. In his will, which was
proved, he gave all his real estate to his sons Joshua and
William, equally. To his son Joshua he gave his "white-
headed cane," also his sword, best powder horn and car-
tridge-box. William lived with his father for some time
after coming of age. To his son Jonathan Frye Rea he
bequeathed £66 13s. 4d. He also made bequests to his
daughters, Mary Rea, Sarah Dwinnell and Lydia Peabody.
Dea. John Dorman was the executor of the will.
His son Jonathan Frye Rea, who was born here in 1777,
also lived here with his brother William. He was the
father of Jeremiah Rea who was born here, and who re-
sided at No. 102.
Joseph Willis and Samuel Phillips lived here while they
worked for John Bentley in the cotton factory. In 1837,
the house was owned by George Blackburn, and was gone
a few years later.
183.
Bentley House. — At the match factory, iron manu-
facture was carried on as early as 1795. In 1805 there
was here a fulling mill owned and carried on by Justus
23
178 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
Coburn. Owing notes as follows, to Ebcnezer Peabody,
$300; Phineas Foster, $100; David Cummings, $400;
Andrew Peabody, $200 ; David Kimball, $100, and Moses
Hale, $184, he mortgaged the mill and house, etc., to the
two latter, David Kimball of Box ford and Moses Hale of
Chelmsford, Oct. 1, 1805, to secure the payment of the
above-mentioned notes. The mortgage was assigned to
Enoch Foster of Boxford in July, 1807, and, for $1300,
April 28, 1809, Foster sold the mill, dwelling house, barn,
etc., to Capt. Solomon Towne. Only one acre of land
went with the mill.
Mr. Towne let the mill to Jabez Hay ward in 1817.
He put in a grist- and bolting-mill, and lived in this house,
being here only during that year.
The mill and house came into the possession of George
Blackburn, of whom the mill was hired by Hiram Ather-
ton. Mr. Atherton's father, Otis Atherton, lived in No.
156. Hiram Atherton came here from Newburyport, and
his son George W. Atherton, president of the Pennsyl-
vania State College, was born here. Hiram left town,
and by the assistance of the ladies of the parish, who be-
came much interested in the development of his talents,
the son obtained his education.
Captain Towne and others, who were interested in a
mortgage upon the property, in 1829 conveyed it to Henry
Gray of Roxbury, a merchant. The mortgage of one
thousand dollars was held by the trustees of Phillips'
Academy in Andover.
The place then passed into the hands of Charles Mclntire,
a broker of Boston, who sold it in 1831 to George Black-
burn, a merchant of Boston, who leased the factory to
various parties, one of whom was Peres Foster, who moved
here from Norton, Mass., May 1, 1838. Mr. Foster manu-
factured cotton batting, wicking, twine and wick-yarn.
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 179
Mr. Foster moved to Foxboro', Mass., in the fall of 1843.
His daughter married Daniel Russell, who lived in No.
118.
Mr. Foster's successor was John Bentley. He came
the summer before Mr. Foster's departure. He was a
native of Yorkshire, England. Another one who came
with him was James Leach, a native of Taungend, England,
who died in this house of the small-pox in 1854, and was
buried seventy-five rods north of the house. Some of Mr.
Bentley's employes were Joseph Willis and Samuel Phil-
lips who lived in No. 182, and his son James Bentley
who lived with his family in the other part of this house.
Mrs. Bentley died about 1855, and Mr. Bentley died in
the almshouse in 1865. July 10, 1866, Mr. Blackburn,
then of Roxbury, sold the mill and land to Samuel A.
Carlton of Somerville and Ezekiel G. Byam of Charles-
town, match manufacturers, who established the business
here, under the firm-name of Byam, Carlton & Co. In
September, 1867, they manufactured the first matches
made here. It is now owned by the Diamond Match Co.,
of New Haven, Conn., to whom it was sold by Byam,
Carlton & Co.
Mr. John Parkhurst moved to this house from Charles-
town May 10, 1869, and has since been the agent of the
mill owners, residing in this house until 1887, when he re-
moved to No. 180.
184.
Residence of W. P. Howe. — The house in which Mr.
Willard P. Howe lives was built on land bought of Mr.
S. Porter Peabody, by Mr. Joshua W. Cunningham in
1884. He lived here until the next year, when he sold
the place to Mr. Burpy Stevenson and removed to Maine,
his old home. Mr. Stevenson sold it to Mr. Howe in 1888.
180 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
185.
Residence of D. Kenney. — This was a carpenter
shop built by Mr. Elisba B. Peabody near the residence
of his father Mr. S. P. Peabody, in 1880. He finished it
into- a dwelling bouse in 1883, having moved it to the
present site, and it has since been owned and occupied by
Mr. Dexter Kenney.
186.
Residence of J. W. Parkhurst. — The house in which
Mr. J. William Parkhurst resides was owned in the last
century by John Foster, son of John Foster, jr., of Ando-
ver. He was born in 1760, and married Dorcas Towne
of Andover in 1782. His son, Joseph, succeeded him on
the place.
Joseph Foster was born in 1783, and died, unmarried,
in 1864, at the age of eighty. His epitaph is : "He denied
himself for others good."
The farm is now owned by Mr. John Parkhurst. For
more than twenty years after the death of Mr. Foster the
house had various tenants, perhaps those who lived there
the longest being Samuel P. Gurley and Samuel Perley.
187.
E. Stiles Cellar. — Across the street from the barn
belonging to the residence of Mr. J. William Parkhurst,
No. 186, was an old cellar, over which, as late as 1765,
stood a house, which was occupied in 1707 by John Stiles.
He was a son of Robert Stiles, one of the earliest settlers
of Boxford, who lived where the late Dea. John K. Cole
resided (No. 157}, and was born there Jan. 30, 1661.
John Stiles was made a freeman in 1690. He married
Deliverance Towne of Topsfield in 1684, and had five
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 181
children. His wife died in 1705, and Dec. 15, 1707, he
sold the place to his brother Timothy Stiles.
Timothy Stiles was born Oct. 1, 1678, where John was
born; married Hannah Foster of Audover in 1702, and
lived on this farm and in this house. He died in 1751,
having had a family of nine children.
Timothy Stiles' son Ezra was the next owner and occu-
pier of the place. He was born in the same house in 1715,
and married Mary Warren in 1740. She died, and he
married, secondly, widow Sarah Johnson of Andover in
1760. By both wives he had a family of thirteen children.
In October, 1765, Mr. Stiles sold out for £100, to
Timothy Stiles of Boxford, probably his eldest son, who
lived here until the close of the century, about which
time the house went out of existence. Most of the farm
lay in Andover.
188.
G. Stiles Cellar. — About a quarter of a mile north-
west of the old Foster house, near the match factory, is an
old cellar. The house that stood over it has probably been
gone more than seventy-five years. It was the house of
Gideon Stiles, an uncle of Mrs. Nathaniel Long. Gideon
was a son of Timothy Stiles, and was born, probably at
this place, in 1711. He married Sarah Faulkner of An-
dover in 1736, and had children, named David, Jesse and
Sarah, baptized here.
189.
Residence of D. Moore. — The residence of Capt.
Dennison Moore was erected by Richard Foster Gurley
in 1853, on land bought of Tobias F. Gurley the year be-
fore. Mr. Gurley moved to Haverhill about 1885, and
died there. Captain Moore has since resided on the
place.
24
182 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
190.
Hussey House. — The residence of the late Franklin
Hussey Mas built by Mr. Oilman Harris in 1874. Mr.
Hussey lived in it from that time until about 1885, and
since then it has been unoccupied a part of the time.
191.
Residence of G. W. Foster. — Mr. George W. Foster's
house was erected by Mr. Gilman Harris in 1873. Mr.
Foster bought it shortly afterwards, and has since lived
in it.
192.
E. B. Peabody Cellar. — Mr. Elisha Bradstreet Pea-
body built for himself, in 1883, a house across the road
from his father's, Mr. S. Porter Peabody. He lived here
until 1885, when he moved the house to Danvers.
193.
Residence of S. P. Peabody. — The farm of Mr. Sam-
uel Porter Peabody was early in the occupation of Thomas
Pickard, who was a brother of Samuel Pickard, the first
occupant of No. 195. He was born in Rowley in 1691,
married Mehitable Dresser, about 1720, and died in 1770.
1 lis children were Rebecca, who married Sampson Kilborn ;
Mehitable, who married John Dickinson of Rowley ;
James, the only son; and Elizabeth, who married Andrew
Felton, jr., of Danvers.
James Pickard, the son, came into the possession of the
place by his lather's will. A lew years later he sold out
to Samuel Kimball and David Kimball, brothers. The
farm contained at that time one hundred acres. Mr. Pick-
ard was born here in 1727, married Hannah Nelson of
Ipswich in 1754, and had nine children horn here.
Samuel Kimball sold out his undivided half to David
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 183
in 1783. These were sons of Dea. Aaron Kimball, who
resided at No. 195. The present house was built by
David Kimball about 1800, on the site of the old one. Mr.
Kimball married Rebecca Flint of Dan vers in 1774, and
had a large family, seven of their children having been
baptized in church at one time.
When Mr. Kimball died, the place came into the pos-
session of his son Josiah, who married Mary W., daughter
of Dea. Parker Spotford and resided at No. 33. In 1844,
he sold this place to Mr. Peabody the present owner.
While Mr. Kimball owned the place, Samuel Adams
came from Salem, where he was born, married Sarah But-
ler of Topsheld in 1835, and first resided in this house.
About 1839, the family removed to No. 170.
"There was a time when this old house
Was full of mirth and glee,
But one by one the household went
And left it all to me. —
A quiet house of vacant rooms, each made a sacred place
By echo of a missing voice, or dream of vanished face."
194.
Residence of S. Peabody. — Mr. Samuel Peabody
built his house in 1882, a short distance from his father's,
Mr. S. Porter Peabody.
195.
Residence of D. Bkemner. — Between the house
of the late Capt. Samuel Kimball and the sired stood the
residence of his grandfather Dea. Aaron Kimball. The first
owner and occupant of the old house was Samuel Pickard.
lie was a son of Samuel and Elizabeth (Hale) Pickard,
and was born in Rowley in 1689. lie married, first,
Phebe Bixby of Boxford in 1713, and, second, Lydia
Clarke before 1747. lie had three children baptized in
Boxford, Samuel in 1714, Phebe in 1723, and Jonathan
184 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
in 1726. In 1747, for £2130, he sold the farm, contain-
ing one hundred and twenty acres, to Dea. Aaron Kim-
ball, who had just sold No. 182, where he had lived.
Deacon Kimball was a son of Richard Kimball, and was
born in 1705. By his wife Sarah Wood, he had live
children, the two youngest being sons. The tirst, David,
built and lived in No. 193. The other son, Samuel, re-
sided on the homestead.
Samuel Kimball was born here in 1747. The mother
of his children was a daughter of General James Mugford
of Marblehead. Mr. Kimball had but two children,
Samuel and Mary (who died unmarried in 1868). Mrs.
Kimball died in 1847, at the age of seventy-nine.
Samuel Kimball, jr., born here in 1801, married Eliza-
beth, daughter of John Sawyer, in 1831, and built the
new house when he was married, taking down the old
one at the same time.
Captain Kimball died in 1885, at the age of eighty-four,
and since that time his son-in-law, Rev. David Bremner, has
resided here.
196.
Residence of D. Lehan. — Mr. Dennis Lehan erected
his house about 1870.
197.
Residence of T. Condon. — Mr. Thomas Condon built
his house about 1870.
198.
Residence of C. Kaler. — The residence of Mr. Cor-
nelius Kaler was the school-house which stood near Moses
Kimball's in West Boxford. When that district was dis-
continued in 1869, Mr. Kaler bought the building, moved
it to its present site, and finished it into a dwelling-house,
in which he has since resided. In 1884, he remodelled and
improved the house.
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 185
199.
Residence ofT. Lehan. — Capt. Samuel Kimball built
the house now in the possession of Mr. Thomas Lehan in
1862. It was owned and occupied before Mr. Lehan lived
in it by Abraham Hill.
200.
Residence of C. E. Mortimer. — Mr. Caleb E. Mor-
timer's house was built by Capt. Samuel Kimball about
1849, for his engineer, a Mr. Calligan, to live in. Mr.
Kimball afterward sold it to Mr. Dennis Lehan, who re-
sided here till about 1870, when he built his new house,
No. 196. The Mortimer family have owned it since.
Mr. Joshua W. Cunningham also lived here for a year
or two, until he had completed a new house for himself,
No. 184.
201.
Residence of J. B. Fiske. — The residence of Mr.
Joseph B. Fiske was erected by Mr. William Sawyer in
1844. He removed in 187-, and sold the place to Mr.
Fiske, who came from Topsfield, and has since resided on
this place.
202.
Residence of J. A. Elliot. — The residence of Mr.
James Albert Elliot was built by Mr. William Sawyer in
1866, and sold the next year to Mr. Edmund Kaler of
Bradford. In 1873, Mr. Kaler sold the place to Mr.
Elliot, who has since lived here.
203.
Residence of T. Woods. — The house of Mr. Tim-
othy Woods was built by himself about 1866.
204.
James Holden Cellar. — A short distance north of the
186 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
residence of Mr. J. Albert Elliot (No. 202) is an old cel-
lar, known as the Holden cellar. Here James Holden,
was living in 1783. He was a brother of Joseph Holden
who lived in No. 2, in the "Ridges." James Holden married
Rebecca Ireland in Linebrook parish, Ipswich, in 1760.
No one knows how long this house has been gone.
205.
Residence of H. Berry. — This has been known for
many years as the Long place. It was probably settled
by Timothy Foster, a son of William Foster, who kept
the ordinary at No. 113. He was born there in 1672.
He married, first, Mary, daughter of Ephraim Dorman,
and, second, Ruth Andrews in 1715.
Lieut. Jeremiah Foster, son of Timothy, next owned the
place. He was born in 1701 ; married, first, Abigail Wood
in 1731, second, widow Bridget Pemberton in 1755. He
died in 1785, leaving a family of thirteen children. His
daughter Huldah married Amos Gould, and Hannah mar-
ried Dea. Moses Peabody. The eldest child, Jeremiah,
inherited the farm.
Jeremiah Foster, jr., was born in 1732, and married
Abigail , who died a widow in 1807, aged eighty-
four. Mr. Foster sold the place to Nathaniel Long of
Boxford in 1801.
Mr. Lonjr came from Andover having married Elizabeth
Stiles of that place in 1788, and resided here until his death,
which occurred in 1819, at the age of fifty-eight. His
widow continued to reside upon the farm until her death
in 1849, at the age of eighty-eight. Mr. Long built the
present house. They had two or more children, Nathaniel
who died in 1823, at the age of thirty-five, and Sukey,
who married Nathan Dresser, and lived at No. 66.
John Brown came here from Methuen and lived a few
years from 1819. He probably removed from here to No.
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 187
98. Augustus Hayward also lived here a short time about
1835, and in 1813 came into partial possession of the
place.
In 1850, the farm belonged to Dorcas D., wife of Henry
Atherton, who sold it to Amos Berry of Andover in the
spring of that year. Mr. Berry and his son Horace have
been the occupants since that time.
206.
Residence of J. R. Webster. — The house of Mr.
John R. Webster was owned by John Kimball, son of
Richard, who also may have lived here. Richard was born
at No. 90, in 1673. He married Hannah, a sister to Eph-
raim Dorman, who settled at No. 58. He died in 1753,
and she in 1748. They both lie buried in the ancient
cemetery in the East parish. They had nine children
among whom were Dea. Aaron, who lived at No. 195;
Amos, who settled at No. 207 ; Ephraim, who lived at No.
182 ; and John, who resided on this place.
John Kimball was born in 1713, and married, first, Sarah
Barker of Andover in 1744. He married, second, Hannah
(Wood), widow of Joshua Andrews in 1764. He died
in 1796, at the age of eighty-three. He had seven chil-
dren, all by his first wife, as follows, viz. : Daniel, who died
young; Mehitable ; Asa, who succeeded his father on the
place ; Sarah ; Mary ; Daniel, who married Sarah Pearsons
of Newbury in 1789, lived a year or two at No. 95, and
removed to Newbury ; and Esther who married Nathan
Andrews, the father of the late Daniel Andrews. The un-
married daughters resided on the place with Asa.
Asa Kimbali married .Mehitable Symonds in 1787. The
division of his estate occurred in 1812.
The place was afterwards in the possession of Mehitable
Audrews, sister to the late Samuel Andrews, who was
188 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
born in 1788, and died in 1870, at the age of eighty-
two.
Maj. Samuel Perley lived here a number of years at the
beginning of this century, and removed to No. 173. Mr.
Webster has lived on the place for many years.
207.
Kesidence of O. P. Killam. — Mr. Oliver Porter Kil-
lam lives on the old Enoch Kimball place. Mr. Kim-
ball's father, Amos Kimball, was son of Richard Kimball,
and was born in 1707, probably in No. 206. He settled
on this farm, and married, first, in 1736-7, Margaret,
daughter of Joseph and Joanna (Dodge) Hale, who lived
in Boxford. She was born in 1712-3, and died in 1764,
aged fifty-one years. He married, second, widow Abigail
Sessions of Andover in 1765. She was daughter of James
Black of Boxford and widow of Timothy Sessions of An-
dover, and died in 1784, at the age of sixty-six. He died
in 1788, at the age of eighty. He had nine children,
and his first wife was the mother of them all. Their names
were Jesse, Joanna, Jethro, Enoch, Eli, Peggy, who died
at two years of age, Lydia, Amos, who lived at No. 214,
and Joseph.
His son Enoch Kimball was born in 1743, married Hul-
dah Gould of Topsfield in 1777, and resided on this farm.
They had eight children : Huldah, Elijah (who died at the
age of four months), Moody, Dorcas, Hannah, Sally,
Elizabeth and Enoch.
His son Moody Kimball succeeded him on the place.
He was the father of Mrs. Killam who still resides there.
Mr. Killam took the old house down and built his pres-
ent residence in 1853. He was a son of Oliver Killam,
and was born in No. 153. In 1845, he erected his barn,
in 1861 his carriage house and wood-shed, and in 1870
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 189
his pump and store-house. Samuel N. Ayers was the
boss carpenter in erecting all the buildings.
Since the above was written Mr. Killam has died ; and
his son Charles, the well-known caterer of Beverly, soon
followed him.
208.
Residence of W. K. Cole. — Mr. William Kimball Cole
built his house near the home of his uncle, the late Eph-
raim F. Cole, in 1883.
209.
Residence of Mrs. E. F. Cole. — When this house
was erected we have not learned. Kimball Cole married
Abigail Runnells of Methuen in 1804, and resided here.
They had seven children, Sarah Foster, Rebecca, Ephraim
Foster, Mehitable Barker, Abigail, John Kimball and Wil-
liam Runnells, all of whom are now dead. John K.
resided in No 155, and William R. in No. 244.
Mr. Cole was succeeded on the farm by his son Ephraim
F. Cole, who was born in 1809. He died here in 1879,
at the age of sixty-nine. His widow resides upon the
homestead. One of their sons, George S., is a deputy
sheriff, and resides in Andover.
210.
Scales Cellar. — A short distance to the northeast
of the residence of the late Oliver P. Killam (No. 207) in
the Scales' field, so called, is an old cellar. Over it, one
hundred and seventy years ago stood the house in which
James Scales and his family lived. James was a son of
James and Sarah (Curtis) Scales of Rowley, where he
w;is horn in 1679. He married his cousin Sarah Curtis
of Boxford in 170.'), and settled on this place, and probably
25
190 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFOKD.
built the house of which we are writing, as lie was a car-
penter by trade. Mr. Scales was in humble circumstances,
yet helped one son through college, and reared a family
of nine children.
The History of Henniker, N. H., in which town some
of the family settled, states that Mr. Scales and a brother
were killed by the Indians near their own door in 1725.
This may be true, as the entire family left Boxford about
that time.
James, one of the sons, born here in 1707, graduated,
at Harvard College in 1733, was licensed to preach in 1743,
and was the first minister in Canterbury, being afterward
settled at Hopkinton, N. H. He died at the latter place
in 1776.
How long the house stood after this family had gone
from it is unknown ; but the old dwelling has been among
the things that are not, a long, long term of years.
211.
Old Kimball Cellar. — On the right-hand side of the
road leading from the residence of the late O. P. Killam to
the West-parish church is an old cellar. There are two
apple trees there, which were very old ninety years ago.
The apples are a pretty striped variety. The late Mrs.
Capt. Enoch Wood thought that a Kimball family resided
there, as the lot has been known by the name of Kimball
for very many years.
212.
Old Ames Cellar. — Across the street southwest from
the residence of the late Capt. Enoch Wood, on the road
leading to the match-factory is the Ames cellar. This
was probably the site of the original Ames settlement in
the town, being occupied as early as 1(JG1 by Robert Ames,
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 191
or Eames. His wife Rebecca was the witch of that name
who was condemned to death for the crime of witchcraft
in the memorable year of 1692. She was taken from the
court room to the ancient gaol in Salem and confined there
awaiting execution until the general delivery of the pris-
oners who were held there under sentence for the crime
whereof she was condemned. Though she was not as pure-
minded and of such a heroic nature as were some others of
those who suffered at that time, yet her husband felt the
trial through which they had passed, and died the next
year. But she survived all her tribulations and did not
die until 1721, when she was more than eighty years old.
The family were poor in those times, but in the course
of the next three-quarters of a century became affluent.
They had several children, but which one settled on the
home place we have not learned. Their son Joseph mar-
ried and resided at No. 251, dying at the age of seventy-
two in 1753. Among his nine children was Jonathan,
who was born in 1712, and marrying in 1737, settled up-
on this place. They had six children, one of whom was
Jonathan, who married Ruth Perley of Linebrook parish,
Ipswich. A few months after her marriage, she was taken
sick and soon died, her death occurring on the first day of
June, 17(59. She was a very handsome young lady, and
of an excellent disposition and family. The neighbors
suspected that something was wrong about her sickness,
and some of them, particularly Mrs. Moses Kimball, who
lived at No. 90, endeavored to see her during her illness,
but Mrs. .Ames, the mother-in-law, would permit no one
to go into the room. After her burial, the suspicion that
she had come lo an unnatural end so increased and wrought
Upon the feelings ol the people that t wenty-nine men signed
a complaint to three coroners, which was agreed to by her
relatives, requesting that a court of inquisition on the body
192 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
might be held. Monday, July 10, was therefore appointed
for that purpose, and on that date a promiscuous multitude
thronged the meeting-house where the court was held.
Seventeen physicians were summoned to appear, four as
witnesses and the other thirteen as a jury. A solemn, si-
lent sadness pervaded the assembly during the prayer and
the charge given by the coroners to the jury. The whole
assemblage then proceeded to the burying-ground in good
order, though while the grave was reopened there was
much crowding, until the people were told that they should
all have a chance to see the remains. The verdict of the
jury, that the deceased came to her death by poisoning,
fell heavily upon the ears of the Ames family. During
the examination several parts of the testimony pointed
strongly to the husband and his mother as the guilty par-
ties, especially to Mrs. Ames. They were arrested on
the charge of murder and on the eighteenth of the month
were committed to the gaol at Salem to await their trial.
A sister of the husband was also indicted as an accessory,
but was probably not confined in jail. They were tried
in the superior court at Salem, the trial commencing Nov.
21, at nine o'clock in the morning and continuing into
the night until two o'clock, when the case was given to the
jury, and the court adjourned until nine o'clock in the
morning. Before the trial came off, to secure his own
neck, Jonathan turned state's evidence against his mother,
but both judges and jury placed very little dependence
upon his testimony, as a son who would strive to hang his
own mother would not shrink at lying to save his own neck.
Three of the four judges thought that Mrs. Ames was
guilty, but the fourth was very uncertain as to the weight
of the evidence. The jury, after being out for a long time,
reported that they had come to the conclusion that upon
the evidence she was not guilty, and she, with her son and
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 193
daughter, was discharged. The family left the town as
soon after this as possible.
How long the old house has been gone is a question, but
it is doubtful if it was occupied after the Ames family left
it. The old cellar remains with the growth of sumach and
blackberry vines in and around it, a memento of the ter-
rible history that surrounds it.
213.
Old Cushing Cellar. — At the southwest corner of the
junction of the roads near the residence of the late Capt.
Enoch Wood, stood the residence of Job Tyler, son of
Moses and Prudence (Blake) Tyler, who was born at No.
89 in 1675. By his first wife, Margaret, he was the father
of several children, one of whom, Job, settled at No. 219.
Mr. Tyler married, secondly, Priscilla Peabody in 1736.
In 1738, he sold out to Rev. John Cushing, the first min-
ister of the second church in this town. Mr. Cushin<>- was
a son of Rev. Caleb Cushing of Salisbury, where he was
born in 1709. He was a grandson of the Rev. John Cot-
ton, and a brother of Caleb Cushing, state counsellor,
and of Rev. James Cushing of Phiistow, N. H. His grand-
father Cushing was John, one of the governor's assistants
in 1688. Mr. Cushing graduated at Harvard college in
1729, and settled in the ministry here in 1736. He prob-
ably built this house about the same time. Mr. Cushins
married Elizabeth Martin of Boston in 1740, and they
had but one child, John, who was born the year succeeding
their marriage. The father died in 1772, in his sixty-
third year, continuing the pastor of this church till his
death.
John, the son, graduated al Harvard college in 1761s
and marrying Elizabeth Bagley in 1766, lived with his
father, alter whose death he came into possession of the
194 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
place. With his wife and five children, in 1780, he removed
to North Yarmouth, Me., and afterward to Waterford, Me.,
where he died in 1815. He was a justice of the peace,
and a very prominent man in the town.
In the year of Mr. Cushing's removal (1780) he sold the
place to Paul Spofford, who lived in that part of Rowley
which is now Georgetown, for £13,000. The farm then
contained eighty acres. Mr. Spofford was a son of Capt.
Abel Spofford, who lived in what is now Georgetown on
the west side of Baldpate, on the farm now in the posses-
sion of Mrs. William P. Perley, and was thirty-one years
of age when he bought this place.
Mr. Spofford had a bondservant named Adam Simson,
who ran away in the summer of 1781, and he advertised
for him in the Salem Gazette, as follows: —
"DUN-AWAY/wm the fubfcriber on the 20th of July
-L^- laft, a bond fervant, named ADAM 8EMS0N, an
Mfh fellow, about 18 years of age, of a middle ftature :
Had on when he ran-away a brown wooling coat, blue wooling
waiftcoat, checked Unning shirt, and striped linning and wool
trowfers. Whoever will take upfaidfellow, or give informa-
tion to his mafter fhall have one paper dollar (old emiffion)
reward paid by PA VL SPOFFOBD.
"N. B. Allperfons whatever are hereby forbid harboring,
concealing, or employing f aid run-away , as they would avoid
the penalty of the law.
"Boxford, Auguft 1, 1781."
Mr. Spofford never married. In 1784, he sold the farm
to his father, and soon after died of palsy. His father
conveyed the farm in 1785 to Jeremiah Harriman of Row-
ley, who afterward lived at No. 216, selling this farm with
the buildings thereon to Amos Kimball, who lived across
the street (at No. 214). Of the house after this date the
writer knows nothing.
214.
Residence of Rev. S. Rovve.— The farm owned and
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 195
occupied by Rev. Samuel Rowe and Mr. Isaac Wyatt was
formerly in the possession of Zebediah Foster, son of Jona-
than and Abigail (Kimball) Foster, who was born in 1702.
He married Margaret Tyler in 1723-24, and settled here,
where he died in 1772, at the age of sixty-nine. They
had nine children, one of whom, Dudley, resided upon the
place with his mother, who died in 1784, at the age of
eighty-one.
Dudley Foster was born in 1737, and married Rachel
Steel of Andover in 1767. They had four children at
least, Phebe, Mary, Mehitable and Rachel. Dudley and
his mother sold the place in 1777, to Amos Kimball of
Andover, blacksmith. Mr. Foster probably removed to
Andover.
The present house was built by Mr. Kimball about
1780. He was a son of Amos Kimball, who lived at No.
207, where he was born in 1 752. His early years were spent
in Andover, where he learned the trade of a blacksmith.
He came to this place and established a home and a shop.
He married Mary Stiles of Andover in 1779, and she died
in 1791, at the age of about thirty-eight. His children
were Elizabeth, who died in 1821, at the age of forty, un-
married ; Polly, who died in 1783, at theage of five months ;
Amos, who succeeded his father on the place ; Mary, who
married Frederic Spofford, and lived in No. 80; Charles;
and Lucy who died at the age of sixteen. Mr. Kimball
died in 1824, at the age of seventy-one.
Messrs. Rowe and Wyatt, who were from New Glouces-
ter, Me., in 1870, purchased the farm of John F. Kimball
of Andover, who then owned it. Mr. Kimball was a son
of Amos and grandson of the above named Amos Kim-
ball who died in 1*24. Messrs. Rowe and Wyatt moved
here April 29, 1870. They are deaf mutes, and Mr. Rowe
is an evangelist of the Congregational church to the deaf
196 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
mutes of Maine. He was the first Congregational minister
thus ordained in the United States. His ordination took
place in the church at West Box ford in 1878.
215.
Old Palmer Cellar. — A short distance west of the
residence ot Rev. Samuel Rowe (No. 214) is an old cel-
lar, over which stood a house wherein John Palmer lived
from 17 06 to 1780. He came from Rowley, where he
had married Mary Creasey. Here was horn his distin-
guished son Timothy Palmer, the famous bridge builder.
How long the house stood after 1780 is not known.
216.
Old Porter Cellar. — In West Boxford, near the
North Andover town line, on the south side of the high-
way leading from the residence of the late Capt. Enoch
Wood to North Andover, is an old cellar. Near this
cellar stood the old house in which George Blake lived.
He came from Gloucester in or about 1675, having been
born in 1611, and made a freeman in 1651. He died in
1698, at the age of eight}^-seven. His wife Dorothy sur-
vived him till 1702, when she died. They had six daugh-
ters and one son, the latter surviving but sixteen days.
The daughters were Rebecca, born in 1641, who married
Robert Eames, lived near her father's and became the
witch of 1692; Deborah; Prudence, who married Moses
Tyler, and lived near her father; Elizabeth, who married
Matthew Perry, and lived in Boxford and Bradford ; Mary,
who married Zaccheus Curtis; and Ruth. In 1709, an
old record reads, "On the south side of said road near
where George Blake's old house stood." So his residence
survived him but a few years.
John Ames, or Eames, as the name was then commonly
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 197
spelled, probably bought this place after the decease of Mr.
Blake, as in 1709 he was living in the house which stood
over the cellar named at the beginning of this sketch, and
in which he lived several years previously. He was a son
of Robert Eames, and grandson of Mr. Blake, and was
born at No. 212 in 1670. He married Priscilla Kimball
and had seven children.
In 1716, Mr. Ames sold the place, then containing one
hundred acres of land, to Benjamin Porter of Wenham,
for £350, and probably removed from town. He was a
son of John and Lydia (Herrick) Porter, and was born in
Wenham in 1692. He probably built the house himself,
as he was a carpenter, a trade characteristic of this branch
of the Porter family. Mr. Porter married Sarah, daughter
of Moses and Ruth (Perley) Tyler, who may have lived
at the Captain Wood place (No. 89). She was born in
1696, and died here in 1767, at the age of seventy-one.
Mr. Porter died in 1778, at the age of eighty-six. Their
remains lie' in the ancient cemetery near their dwelling.
Their children were Mary, who married Dea. Thomas
Chadwick; Moses, who settled, we believe, where Edward
E. Pearl, Esq., resides (No. 221) ; Benjamin who was his
father's successor on the homestead ; Sarah ; Tyler ; and
Lucy, Avho died in 1755, at the age of nineteen.
Benjamin Porter, his father's successor on the farm, was
born here in 1721. Before his marriage it seems that he
resided in Exeter, N. II., and had become a member of
the church there. He married, first, Ruth Foster of An-
dover, in 1744. She, after becoming the mother of nine
children, died in 1760, at the age of thirty-seven. He
married, second, Mary Sherwin, in 1763, by whom he had
four more children. Mr. Porter died in 1784, at the ago
of sixty-two. In his will he bequeathed four pounds to
the Second church. His children were: Lydia, who
2G
198 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
married Daniel Farnham of Andover; Mehitable, who
married Asa Sherwin ; David Foster, who married Susan-
na Towne of Londonderry ''formerly of Boxford) in 1771,
and removed to Denmark, Me., afterward settling in
Dixmont, Me. (it is said that his six children were born
in Boxford) ; Lucy, who married Asa Barker of Andover at
the age of fifteen ; Sarah, who married Samuel Kimball ;
Benjamin, bom in 1754, married Polly Sargent and re-
moved to Winthrop, Me., in 1780, and in 1788 to Vienna,
Me., where he died in 1837 ; being father of Dr. Byron
Porter of Bangor and Waterville, Me., and grandfather
of John C. Porter, professor of mathematics in New York
Central college; of Col. Thomas W. Porter, Boston,
Mass., a lawyer, and colonel of the 14th Mass. regiment;
of Dr. Byron Porter of Newport, Me. ; and of Dr. Parker
Cleveland Porter, a surgeon in the Army of the Potomac ;
Ruth, who died at the age of twenty-two in 1779 ; Tyler,
into whose hands the homestead came ; Jonathan, who died
in infancy; Susanna, who died in 1799, at the age of
twenty-six; Jonathan, who died in 1782, at the age of
sixteen; Mary, who died in 1824, unmarried, at the age
of fifty-seven; and Mehitable, who married Stephen Pea-
body in 1791.
Tyler Porter, who succeeded his father on the farm, was
born here in 1758, and married Abigail Johnson of An-
dover in 1779. He lived on this old place until 1800,
when he sold out and removed to Sebago, Me., where he
died in 1842, at the age of eighty-four. Their children,
all born in Boxford, were as follows: Ruth, who married
Jonathan Poor of Sebago ; Jonathan, who lived in Boxford
and was the father of Capt. J. J. Porter ; Tyler, who re-
sided in Weston, N. Y. ; Stephen, who resided in Portland,
Me. ; Benjamin, who lived in Merrimac, N. H., and Seba-
go and Buxton, Me. ; Rufus, born at this place in 1792, died
THE DWELLINCxS OF BOXFORD. 199
in New Haven, Conn., in 1884, at the age of ninety-
two ; and Henry, who died in Portland, Me., in 1870. The
son Rufus was proficient in his youth as an artist, as some
of the houses in the parish, whose walls he ornamented,
bear proof. Having removed to Maine with his parents,
he settled first at Portland, and served in the 1812 war
with the Portland light infantry, being its last survivor.
He afterwards lived at New Haven, Conn. He became
an inventor, and was the founder of the Scientific Amer-
ican, a journal of world-wide fame. The number of his
inventions were legion, and many of them were of great
utility.
It may be interesting to know that this house was the
home of quite a number of Africans in early times. Mr.
Benjamin Porter, first named, owned more slaves than any
one else in the town. Candace, a negro woman, was
baptized in 1758. Ammy married John, who belonged to
Joseph Noyes of Newbury, in 1734. Tamsin had a hus-
band, probably, somewhere, and her three children, Caesar,
Pompey and Phillis, were baptized in 1737, together with
herself. She, however, was not much benefited by the
baptism, for she would still get drunk. These were only a
part of Mr. Porter's slaves. He had quite a family in
all.
Tyler Porter sold this farm in 1800 to Simeon Foster of
Andover, and in 1804 Mr. Foster conveyed it back to Mr.
Porter, who, two days later, conveyed it to Jeremiah Har-
riman and Jeremiah Harriman, jr., of Boxford. Mr. Porter
had already removed to Pleasant mountain gore, York
county, Maine. Mr. Harriman was from Rowley, and had
been living in town for several years. He and his wife died
on the same day, February 25, 1824, he, at the age of eighty-
four, and she, who was a second wife, at seventy-one. Mr.
Harriman was the grandfather of the late D. F. Harriman.
200 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
The old house was taken down by Jeremiah's son Dan-
iel Harriman and converted into the "Ocean house," No.
223, in 1836.
217.
Residence of L. G. Whittier. — Mr. Levi G. Whit-
tier built his new house in the West parish, on the road
leading from the sand pit to the Hubbard place in North
Andover, in 1883.
218.
Peter Pearl House. — The Peter Pearl farm was origi-
nally in the possession of Job Tyler, a son of Job Tyler,
who lived at No. 213. He was born in 1705, and married
Elizabeth Parker of Bradford in 1730. He had a negro
woman servant, who was called "Notur." Mr. Tyler was
the father of Abraham Tyler, who lived in No. 81. His
son Phineas, born in 1736, was the first baptized in the
first West-parish church, the service occurring Dec. 12,
1736. After living in Boxford many years, Phineas re-
moved to Leominster. Bradstreet Tyler was another son.
There were twelve children in all — eight sons and four
daughters. Mr. Tyler probably moved to No. 286.
Bradstreet Tyler lived here after his father.
In 1802, Stephen Tyler, who had owned the place some
years, sold to James Fletcher of Ashby. The farm con-
sisted of a hundred and twenty acres. Mr. Tyler's wife
was named Patty.
Mr. Fletcher resided here, and died about 1805. In
1807, his widow Rebecca Fletcher, and children Jonas
Fletcher, a cooper, Betsey Fletcher, Susanna Fletcher,
single-woman, and Abel Fletcher, carpenter, all of Box-
ford, sold the place to Billy Bradstreet of Rowley.
The present house was probably built by Mr. Bradstreet
about 1810. He occupied it a few years; and after his
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 201
death it came into the possession of widow Nabby Killam,
who sold it in 1819 to Jacob Perley of Boxford.
]\Ir. Perley was a son of Benjamin Perley, who lived in
No. 32, and was born in Topsfield in 1783. He married
Sarah Perley of Boxford in 1814, and they had two children,
daughters, Harriet Newell and Apphia Ann. Mr. Per-
ley died in 1821, aged thirty-seven. His administrator
then sold the place in the spring of that year to Peter
Pearl, who was the eleventh and youngest child of John
and Elizabeth (Kimball) Pearl of Boxford, where he was
born in 1791. Mr. Pearl was a prominent man in the
town. His two daughters Misses Eunice and Hattie Pearl
reside upon the place. Mr. John T. Wood also lived there
a few years ago.
The Rev. Charles M. Pierce resided in this house during
his ministry in the parish at the beginning of the war of
the Rebellion.
219.
Job Tyler Cellar. — On the same farm and a short
distance in the rear of the Peter Pearl house (No. 218),
is what is known as the "Job Tyler cellar." This is the
site of the house in which Job Tyler resided early in the
eighteenth century. Sketch No. 218 gives an account of
him. How long the house was standing has not been de-
termined.
220.
Greenleaf Cellar. — Near the sand-pit in West Box-
ford, on the north side of the road stood the Greenleaf
house, which was moved about 1871 to South Groveland,
near Johnson's pond, where it now stands.
221.
Residence of E. E. Pearl. — The farm of Edward E.
202 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
Pearl, Esq., was originally an old Porter homestead.
Moses Porter, son of Benjamin and Sarah (Tyler) Porter,
was horn in No. 216 in 1719. In 1741 he married Mary,
daughter of Edmund Chadwick of Bradford, and built this
house at about that time, it is supposed. He died here
in 1811, at the age of ninety-one years and eleven months.
He had two other wives, Sarah Ayers of Haverhill and
Mary Low of Wenham, both widows, the last being his
cousin. He had eight children, all by his first wife : Asa,
the oldest, graduated at Harvard college, 1762, and set-
tled in Newburyport, as a merchant. He was a gentleman
of the old school ; during the Revolutionary war he was a
devoted loyalist; and removed to Haverhill, N. H., before
1780, where he was a large landholder. Sabine's History
of the Loyalists says of him : "He suffered in person and
property, in consequence of his adherence to the royal
cause, and was compensated by grants of crown land in
Canada. He was on terms of intimacy with Governor
Wentworth, and other gentlemen of rank, and was him-
self a person of highly respectable character." He died
in 1818 at the age of seventy-six. He had two sons who
graduated at Dartmouth college. William resided on the
homestead. Mary died at the age of four years. Moses
was a wild young man, and is said to have married Ann
Kay. Fie lived here for many years. Aaron, born here
in 1752, was a physician of eminence in his profession,
first at Biddeford, and afterward at Portland, Me., where
he died in 1837, at the age of eighty-five. He married
Paulina, daughter of Richard King of Scarborough, Me.,
and sister of Hon. Rufus King, the first United States
Senator from New York, minister to England, etc., and
half-sister of Hon. William King, the first governor of
Maine. His granddaughter, Sarah Leland Coffin, mar-
ried Rev. Charles Beecher of Georgetown ; another grand-
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 203
daughter, Isabella Porter Jones, married Rev. Edward
Beecher ; and his daughter Harriet was the second wife
of Rev. Dr. Lyman Beecher and the mother of Rev.
Thomas K. Beecher of Elmira, N. Y. This shows how
the Beechers and this family have such complicated re-
lationships. Mary married Joseph Hovey of Boxford.
Lucy married Col. Benjamin Towne ofMethuen, and died
in Belfast, Me., at the age of eighty-one. James, the
youngest child, died at the age of three. Among the de-
scendants, not already named, of this Moses Porter, first
mentioned, are the wife ofjRev. Charles E. Blood of Man-
hattan, Kas., and Wataga, III. ; Prof. William Coffin of
Illinois college; the wife of Rev. John W. Bradshaw of
Batavia, 111. ; the wife of Rev. Edwin E. Bliss, mission-
ary near Constantinople, Turkey ; Rev. Frederick William
Beecher of Wellsville, N. Y. ; Eugene Francis Beecher,
editor of the Brooklyn Monthly; Rev. William B. Jones
of St. Louis, Mo. ; Rev. Francis Jones ; Henry A. Jones
of Albany, N. Y., state librarian ; Rev. George Wash-
burn of Constantinople, Turkey ; the wife of John Hooker,
Esq., an attorney of Hartford, Conn. ; Rev. James C.
Beecher ; Dr. John Tyler Goddard of New York City ;
and the wife of Rev. Samuel Phillips of Groton, Mass.
William Porter, born here in 1744, married, in 1767,
Mary, daughter of Isaac Adams, who lived at No. 84.
He always resided here, and died in 1822, at the age of
seventy-eight. He had nine children, one of whom, Mary,
married Amos Carleton at Haverhill about 1805, and
settled upon her father's place. Among Mr. Porter's
descendants are the wife of Rev. Peter MeVieker of To-
peka, Kas. ; the wife of Henry H. Markman, Esq., of Mil-
waukee, Wis; Gen. Charles Porter Mattocks, now a law-
yer of Portland, Me., having been several years attorney
for Cumberland county ; the wife of Hon. Isaac Dyer of
204 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
Baldwin, Me.; Hon. Charles William Porter of Platts-
burg, Mo.; Rnfns King Porter, Esq., of Machias, Me.;
and Dr. George Thatcher Porter of Calais, Me.
In 1860, Amos Carleton sold out to James Carleton,
who resided here until 1876, when he sold to Mrs. Pamela
AV . Tyler. He then removed to Georgetown, where he
afterward resided. Mr. Pearl came into possession of the
some fourteen years since, and shortly afterward erected his
large and convenient barn.
222.
Residence of C. R. Anderson. — The late Capt. Jon-
athan Janus Porter built his mill-dam in 1836, splitting
the stone and doing the work generally himself, and erected
the mill the following year, Oscar G. Ingalls being associ-
ated with him in the conduct of the mill. Mr. Porter
built his late residence in 1837, and his barn in 1845.
After the decease of his wife, he conveyed the farm in
1878 to Mr. Charles R. Anderson the present owner, with
whom he resided, and died in 1891, at the age of eighty.
223.
"Ocean House." — The house near the late D. Francis
Harriman's, known as the "Ocean house," was built for
"Aunt Polly Foster" and D. F. Hairiman out of the old
Porter house, No. 216, with the addition of new lum-
ber, in 1836, a four-tenement house being constructed.
Joseph Brown lived here for six or eight years, and Thomas
B. Parker eight or ten years. It has also been occupied
by Samuel Jenkins, Charles R. Anderson, Mrs. Lucy
Harris, William Newhall, J. B. Frost, Warren Noyes,
George Hudson, John Baker, William Merrill, Frank W.
Chase and many others.
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 205
224.
Residence of G. A. Harriman. — The residence of the
late D. Francis Harriman was built by his father, Daniel
Harriman, about 1816. Mr. Harriman was born in Row-
ley in 1783, and his father (Jeremiah) removed to Boxford
when Daniel was less than ten years of age. Daniel mar-
ried Jane Dole of Methuen, and died of dropsy in 1863,
at the age of eighty years. His son, Daniel Francis,
afterward possessed and carried on the farm until his death
in 1884, since which time his son Mr. George A. Harri-
man has lived there.
225.
Residence of J. Horace Nason. — The house of Mr.
John Horace Nason was early occupied by a family bear-
ing the name of Willard, and was afterward owned by
Greenleaf Dole, who lived here. About 1850, Mr. Dole
sold the place to the late D. Francis Harriman, and on the
death of Mr. Harriman in 1884 it came into the possession
of Mr. Nason and his wife, who was Mr. Harriman's
daughter. They have lived there many years.
226.
Residence of Spoffordand Rokes. — This house was
built by Henry C. Sullivan in 1830, on land he bought of
Greenleaf Dole the year before. The timber for this house
was hewn near Fish Brook on the Towne road by Capt.
J. J. Porter, William Henry and Mr. Sullivan. In 1831,
he sold it to William Henry, who had lived at No. 242.
In 1836, Mr. Henry sold to Francis Perley Robinson of
Boxford, cordwainer, who in 1842 conveyed itto Solomon
Wildes, a tavern keeper of Boston, and then removed to
Boston. Mr. Wildes was originally of Topsfield. In 1850,
27
206 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
he sold out to Aaron L. Parker of Boxford, who removed
from No. 234, and resided here until his death in 1875.
It is now owned by his widow.
Mr. Benjamin French resided here awhile, removing to
the Foster house, No. 93. On the same day that Capt.
Porter was married in one part of this house, a daughter
of Mr. French was buried from the other part. The house
is now occupied by Messrs. Alden Spofford and Meander
Rokes.
227.
Morse's Store. — The country store kept by Mr. G. S.
Morse near the West Boxford church is located in a build-
ing erected for that purpose about ten years ago by E. E.
Pearl, Esq. The second story is finished into a tenement
in which has resided Mr. Frank Jaques.
228.
West Parish Parsonage. — The parsonage in the West
parish was built by the parish in 1875, at a cost of about
$5,000. It has been occupied by but two clergymen, Rev.
James McLean, from 1876 to 1878, and Rev. Charles
Lawrence Hubbard trom 1879 to the present time.
229.
Residence of W. R. Kimball. — The house of William
R. Kimball, Esq., was built by Mr. James Carleton in
1840. Mr. Carleton lived in it for some time, renting half
of it to Mr. Samuel W. Jenkins and afterward to Mr.
Franklin Jaques. Mr. Carleton sold to Robert Carleton
and John William Brown. Mr. Brown was son of John
Brown, who lived at No. 242, and was born in Methuen
in 1815. He married, in 1836, Mary C. Ayer of Ando-
ver, by whom he had five children, the oldest two of whom
served in the war of the Rebellion ; one of them dying at
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 207
the front. Mr. Brown bought out Mr. Carleton, and in
1871 sold the place to Mr. Kimball, the present owner
and occupier, who is a native of Bradford.
230.
Timon's Cellar. — Where the barn of Mr. Eobert
B. Anderson stands, once stood the house which, was
occupied and owned by Timon, a negro. The following
note concerning Timon and his wife is of value and inter-
est :
"Timon Freeman & Flora his Wife came to Boxford to
live the 5th of November 1788, and were taken into Town
by wee the Subscribers. They came last from Andover.
"Thomas & Samll Chadwick.
"Boxford Novr 19th 1788."
He was sometimes called Timon Chadwick. He lived and
died in this house, his death occurring July 10, 1805, at the
age of eighty-four. His wife died on New Year's day,
1815, at the age of eighty.
231.
R. B. Anderson House.— This house was owned, May
8, 1804, by Willard Lane. He was a blacksmith and his
shop stood on Moses Porter's land. On the day above
mentioned, he sold out to Benjamin Ames, jr., of An-
dover, an innkeeper. A year later Mr. Ames sold to
Joseph Damon Woodworth and Gardiner Ames, both of
Boxford. In 1825, it was occupied by a Mr. Stiles, who
married a sister of Amos Carlton. It was owned by
Thomas Chadwick and descended from him to Samuel and
Mary Chadwick. When Mr. Anderson came from Salem
N. II., he lived here, and boarded Miss Mary Chadwick
as long as she lived. The place was purchased by Mr.
208 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
Anderson's son William, and thence came into Mr. Ander-
son's possession.
Mr. Anderson came to Boxford in 1829, to teach his
trade' of a blacksmith to the late Moses Kimball who had
bought out Thomas W. Durant on his removal to Canada.
Mr. Anderson worked for Mr. Kimball until about 1845,
when he built a shop for himself near his residence, and
continued to work at his trade in this new locality till
about 1874. He married, first, Irene Cluff of Salem,
N. II. , and, second, widow Harriet Chase of North Andover.
Mr. Anderson and his wife both died a year ago. He
had eleven children, one of whom, Charles R., lives in No.
222 ; and another, David Mighill, was a soldier in the war
of the Rebellion.
232..
Residence of J. A. M. Spofford. — In 1804, the Sam-
uel Clement house was called a "new" house, having been
erected just before that date by Phineas Cole, who kept a
tavern in it, and soon afterward removed to Pelham,
N. II., where he instituted another public house. Mr. Cole
was a son of Samuel Cole, and was born in No. 236 in
1744.
In 1811, Mr. Cole sold the place to Samuel W. Cle-
ment of Boxford who lived in this house for many years.
After the decease of his widow in 1877, at the age of
ninety, the place was occupied by Fred Thomas. In 1881,
it was sold to Mr. Patrick Duffy of Groveland, but as his
wife would not come here to live, he sold out the next year
to the late Edwin S. Adams, who had formerly lived at
No. 238. Mr. Adams moved here in the fall of 1882, and
remained until his death, which occurred in 1887. His
widow, a second wife, survived him but six days. The
estate was inherited by Mr. Adams' sister, Mrs. Julia A.
M. Spofford, who has since resided upon it.
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
209
233.
Residence of A. P. Hovey. — The residence of Mr.
Albert Parker Hovey was erected by Franklin Jaqnes
about 1848, and he resided in it until about 1889, when
he died, the place being sold to Mr. Hovey, who now re-
sides there.
234.
Residence of G. S. Morse. — The residence of Mr.
Gardner S. Morse was built by his grandfather Jacob C.
MORSE HOUSE.
Parker in 1799. Mr. Parker, who had been living in No.
239, removed to this house as soon as it was ready, and
resided there until his death, which occurred in 1 <s2">, at
the age of fifty-three. His widow died there in 1850, at
the age of eighty-four. The three children born to them
210 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
have all died within a few years at advanced ages, leaving
a numerous posterity.
After Mr. Parker's death, the house was occupied by
his son Aaron L. Parker and his son-in-law Samuel Morse.
These two men had nine sons, all of whom enlisted into
the service of their country, one of them being starved
to death in the rebel Libby prison.
In 1850, Mr. Parker removed to No. 22G, where he died
in 1.875. Mr. Morse continued to reside here until his
death, in 1872 ; and his widow died here in 1881.
Among the children of Aaron L. Parker are Chandler
L. Parker, the musician, formerly leader of the Groveland
brass band, Thomas B. Parker of Georgetown, and Gil-
man P. Parker of Bradford. Anions; the children of Mr.
Morse are Mrs. Charlotte N. S. Horner of Georgetown,
and Gardner S. Morse, who has lived upon the old place
since the death of his parents.
235.
Dowen Cellar. — Robert Do wen married MarySnelling
in Haverhill Nov. 13, 1719. They had several children,
and after the husband died the widow came to Boxford and
lived in a pasture, on the hills near Mare pond, a short
distance east of the residence of Mr. Gardner S. Morse.
Sixty years ago, there were here three cellars, and an old
well partly filled up. These can still be defined, though
time has brought them nearly to a level with the surround-
ing surface. Her house is said to have been a sort of cave,
an excavation made in the side of a hill, stoned up at the
sides, and the top covered with boards or similar material.
Around these cellars was what was known in the early
days of this century, as Dowen's orchard. No trace of it
now remains. Among their children was Mary, who was
admitted to the Second church in 1744, and in 1751
married Amos Foster of Upper Ashuelot, now Keene,
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 211
N. H. Another child, John, born about 1727, was bound
out by the selectmen, June 21, 1739, to Ebenezer Web-
ster, a farmer of Haverhill, for nine years and six months.
Mrs. Dowen was known as "Mother Dowen," and was
also known to live principally by stealing. Sheep and
other animals were her general prey. To hide her thefts,
she threw the refuse into Mare pond, having done her
slaughtering in the hollow of a large buttonwood tree, which
stood near. Dr. David Wood supplied her with rye, wheat,
corn, etc., at different times, as his account book shows,
which was paid for by her brother Mark Snelling's labor.
She was living in August, 1736, but probably died very
soon afterward.
This Mark Snelling was a mulatto, born about 1720,
and lived most of his time with Dr. Wood, though he
probably made "his home with Mrs. Dowen. At length he
took to himself a wife, and became the father of Asa Snel-
ling, whom our old residents remember as living at Phineas
Perley's and dying there in 1823, at the age of eighty-six.
Mrs. Horner adds : "The very little that is known of
that little settlement hardly saves it from oblivion, but
with charity we may conclude that they had some of the
virtues as well as the vices of humanity."
236.
Residence of George Doherty. — The house of Mr.
George Doherty was probably built by Samuel Cole about
a century ago. The house that formerly stood on the
same site was occupied by Ebenezer Burbank, who in
1717 sold the farm to John Cole of Lynn, formerly of
Maiden, who was a cooper by trade. This tract of land
was the sixty-seven acres laid out to Thomas Leaver
in 1666. Mr. Cole settled here with his children, Samuel
212 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFOKD.
and Anna. Samuel was born in 1687. The father died
in 1737, very suddenly, at the aire of sixty-eight.
Samuel Cole inherited the place from his father and set-
tled upon it. lie died in 1765, and his widow Susanna in
1785, at the age of ninety-five. Samuel hadfive children,
one of whom, John, settled in Amherst, N. H., and Samuel,
the first-born, resided on the old homestead.
Samuel Cole, the last named, was born in 1716, and
married Bethiah Hardy of Bradford in 1738. By her he
had fifteen children, and she died in child-birth in 1764,
at the age of forty-one. He married a second wife, Abi-
gail Currier of Haverhill. She died in 1795, aged eighty
years, and he in 1805, at the age of eighty-eight. Four
of his sons, Daniel, Benjamin, Solomon and Simeon,
settled in Boxford.
Simeon Cole, the youngest son of Samuel, lived on his
father's place. He was born in 1762, and married Polly
Smith of Rowley in 1785. One of his sons was Manly
Cole, who settled on the homestead. He was the father
of David Mighill Cole and Caleb M. Cole who reside in the
West parish. In 1878, the farm was sold by Caleb M.
Cole, who then owned it, to Mr. Doherty, the present
owner and occupier.
237.
Residence of Daniel With am. — Mr. Daniel Witham
built his house, on land given him by Edwin S. Adams,
in 1877, and has since resided in it.
238.
Residence of Michael Murphy. — Mr. Michael Mur-
phy resides upon the Adams farm, which was probably
the land of Theophilus Binder of Ipswich, whose daughter
Martha married William Knowlton of Ipswich in 1729,
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 213
and they settled on this place. Among their children
was Thomas, who was a lieutenant-colonel in the Revolu-
tionary war, and the friend of Putnam, Reed and Wash-
ington, of whom the latter said "He would he an honor
to any country." He was born here in 1740. Mr. Knowl-
ton was a housewright. In 1748, he sold out to Stephen
Merrill of Boxford, and removed to Ash ford, Conn.
Mr. Merrill lived here until his death, which occurred
in 1785, at the age of seventy-eight. His son Jesse doubt-
less succeeded him on the place.
In 1823, the place was purchased by Daniel Adams,
who had been living in No. 291. Here, Mr. Adams re-
sided until his death, which occurred in 1828, at the age of
fifty-two. He was a small and an active man, and quite
musical in his tastes, having taught a singing school in his
neighborhood several winters. Mrs. Adams survived un-
til 18G8, when she died at the age of eighty-eight. They
had two children, one daughter, the widow of the late
Leverett W. Spofford of Georgetown ; and one son Edwin
Strong, who was born in 1806, and who married his cousin
Miss Elvira Chase in Troy, N. Y., in 1843. She was a
native of Groveland.
The son settled on his father's place, and here the couple
passed all their married life. The separation came at last,
in the summer of 1879, and Mrs. Adams crossed the
bounds of life at the age of seventy. She was a lady of
taste and benevolence and was esteemed by all who knew
her. Mr. Adams sold the farm to Mr. Murphy three years
later ; and marrying, secondly, Amanda Davis in 1882 he
purchased the Clement place (No. 232), where he after-
ward lived.
239.
Old Ross Cellar. — Opposite the residence of Mr.
28
214 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
Isaac C. Day is an old cellar. We do not know when, or
by whom, the house that once stood over it was built.
Toward the close of the eighteenth century, the house
was occupied by Jacob C. Parker, son of Aaron and Lydia
(Chandler) Parker of Andover, where he was born in
1772. He married Sally, daughter of John and Rachel
(Lufkin) Smith in 1793, and began housekeeping in this
house. In 1799, he built the Morse house, No. 234, and
removed thither.
Moses Davis then lived here. He married Sarah .
In 1805, he sold out to Daniel Adams of Boxford, who be-
gan housekeeping here immediately.
He was born in North Andover, Mass., in 1775, and
was the son of David Adams of that place. When Daniel
was very young his father removed from North Andover
to Deny, N. H., and while yet in his teens Daniel came
to Boxford, and worked out as a farm-laborer. At the
age of twenty-nine, he married Sophia Kimball of Brad-
ford, she having removed from Boxford with her step-
father and mother a few months before. The couple lived
in this house until 1815, Avhen Mr. Adams sold out to
William Ross of Boxford, who resided here until about
1835, when he built the Day house (No. 241), and removed
there. The work on the new house was done by James
Carleton, to whom Mr. Ross conveyed the old house as
part pay for his labor on the new edifice, and it was torn
down.
Mr. Ross married, first, Martha Carleton in 1818. She
died in 1833, having been the mother of Harriet A., Harri-
son O., Martha Elvira, William Warren and Julia Ann.
He married, second, Mary F. Tyler, in 1834, and she be-
came the mother of Mary Jane, Caroline Maria, and Char-
lotte Frances.
Mr. Adams, who was the father of the late Edwin S.
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 215
Adams, then removed to the house now occupied by Mr.
Nathan K. Fowler (No. 291).
240.
Residence of B. P. Hale. — Mr. Benjamin P. Hale
built his fine residence in 1889, and has since lived in it.
He is a principal owner of the Groveland mills.
241.
Residence of I. C. Day. — The residence of Mr. Isaac
C. Day was built by William Ross, who lived on the op-
posite side of the road at No. 239. This was about 1835.
The carpentry work was done by James Carleton. Mr.
Ross moved to this place, where he continued to reside un-
til his death. It was then occupied by his son Harrison O.
Ross, who devised it in his will to his wife, Martha Ann
Ross. In 1877, she sold the place to John T. Day, who
died a few years ago, after making great improvements.
242.
Residence of John I. Ladd. — The timber for the
house of Mr. John I. Ladd was cut in the summer of
1830, and it was immediately framed and erected. The
builder of the main part of was a carpenter named
Henry C. Sullivan. He had an apprentice at that time
named William Henry, who the next year completed the
house. He put on the ell, and the next year sold the place
to Ephraim Foster of Boxford, who settled here. Mr.
Foster's father was Simeon Foster, a native of the lower
part of North Andover, called Pilfershire. Ephraim's
mother was Polly Harriman, aunt to the late D. F. Har-
riman. Mr. Foster married Orrissa, daughter of Parson
Wilmarth of Georgetown.
Mr. Foster died here in 1835, leaving a fund to the
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 217
schools of his parish, and the house and laud to his widow,
who married Dr. John T. G. Leach of Lowell the follow-
ing winter. The next year, she conveyed the place to
EHsha G. Bunker of Barnstead, N. H. Mr. Bunker kept
a tavern here for about a year, and, in 1837, having sold
the homestead to John Brown, removed to No. 99.
Mr. Brown was a son of Joshua and Rachel (Buck-
minster) Brown (see No. 25(3). He continued the tavern
business for a short time only, but resided here until his
death, which occurred in 1855. Mr. Brown was born in
New Hampshire, and was reared at the Hubbard place in
North Andover, near the Boxford line. He married Alice
Jennings, and removed here from No. 98. He was a
butcher, and had six children.
By foreclosure of a mortgage the place next came into
the possession of John Tyler, and the next year, in 1857,
he sold it to Orville L. Hovey who resided here till his
death, which occurred in 1872. He willed this place to
his wife who still retains it. She married Mr. John I.
Ladd of Groveland in 1875, and they have passed their
married life at this place.
In 1873, Mrs. Hovey took down the large barn and
four sheds, which stood back of the present barn. These
sheds were standing there fifty years ago, and had been
used, probably, in connection with the church. In 1878,
Mr. Ladd made some alteration in the house and place.
Ephraim Foster, while he owned it, put some paper on
the walls of three of the rooms, representing Bonaparte's
campaign in Egypt. It was considered a great curiosity,
and many came to see it. It was in sheets and very hard
to match, costing, it is said, seventy-five dollars. A part
of it remained on the walls until 187(5.
It is thought by Mr. Ladd thatEzekiel Ladd, who died
in 1714, resided on this corner.
218 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
243.
Eesidence of Albert Morris. — A Mr. Mears built a
house in a clearing in the pine woods on the Uptack road
near the late Mr. Timing's about 1879. The authorities
required him to take up his abode elsewhere, and the own-
ers of the materials, of which the house was built, sold
it in 1881 to Mr. Albert Morris, who removed it to near
Harriman's hall, and finished it. Mr. Morris has since
that time resided in it.
244.
Residence of Mrs. W. R. Cole. — The residence of
Mrs. William R. Cole was built by Simeon (?) Pearl about
1814, the carpenter being Samuel W. Clement. Mr. Pearl
was a son of John Pearl, and was born at No. 259, in 1774.
He lived here until his death which occurred in 18 — , and
then his widow owned it, renting it a number of years,
and finally selling it to Richard Smith, who afterward sold
it to Miss Charlotte Barker. She made extensive repairs
upon it, and resided in it about ten years, from 1865 to
1874. The next year (1875) she sold out to Mrs. Cole,
who has since lived in it. Mrs. Cole had lived first at the
Ephraim F. Cole place (No. 209), and after her husband's
death removed to No. 271, where she remained but a
short time, moving to this house.
This, with a number of houses in the neighborhood, had
the walls of the best room decorated with landscapes of
various descriptions, containing figures of men, horses,
trees, etc. In two houses in the village the walls remain
as thus originally decorated. The artist was Rufus Porter,
who died in New Haven, Conn., in 1884, at the age of
ninety-two.
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
219
245.
Residence of W. F. Harriman. — The residence of
Mr. William F. Harriman was erected by Samuel Kim-
ball and son for Thomas Wendell Durant, a blacksmith, in
1824. Mr. Durant's shop stood in what is now the yard
in front of the house of Mr. William E. Perley. He
was an exceptionally fine workman. His father lived in
Georgetown. He sold out to Joseph Pike of Bradford in
1829.
Mr. Durant was a typical New Englander. He is said
to have been born in Boxford in 1790, and to have spent his
boyhood in that town and at Topsfield, beginning to do
blacksmithing in Boxford on his own account in 1812.
After selling out in 1829, he went to Canada, but about a
year later returned, settling in Boston, where he became a
trader, and soon afterward a note broker. About 1845, he
returned to Canada, living at Stanstead. In 1865, his
wife died, and he brought her remains to Haverhill, Mass.,
in his carriage, which was a combination of runners and
wheels. He then lived with his wife's relatives in Haver-
hill. The assessors learned that he had wealth, and taxed
him two thousand dollars, which they collected. Being
averse to paying taxes, he gave the Massachusetts bible
society fifty thousand dollars, which was all his property,
upon condition that they pay to him ten per cent annually.
He was then seventy-seven years of age. He died in 1889,
at the age of ninety-nine, bequeathing to the same society
all his estate which amounted to about one hundred and
thirty-live thousand dollars more than his previous gifts.
In the same year that Mr. Pike bought out Mr. Durant
he sold to Elbridge Little of Bradford. Mr. Little kept
a store ; and, in 1830, he sold the blacksmith's shop to
Moses Kimball. The shop stood in what is now the front
220 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
yard to the house of Mr. William E. Perley. When Mr.
Little bought the plaee he mortgaged it back to Mr. Pike
for all it was worth. In less than a year Mr. Pike re-
sumed possession. He was a shoe-manufacturer. Upon
his death in 1830, the place Avas sold by auction to Capt.
William Farnham of Boxford for $840. Mr. Pike always
lived in Bradford.
Mr. Farnham lived here and at the Crowninshield place
in Topstield. When he died in 1844, the place descended
to his wife's brother and sister, Moses Kimball and Mrs.
Capt. George Pearl. While they owned it, the house was
occupied by A. P. Hovey and E. E. Bean. Mr. Kimball
and Mrs. Pearl, in 1875, sold out to D. F. and William F.
Harriman. The latter has resided here since that time,
and now owns the place.
246.
Residence of W. E. Perley. — Mr. William Elbridge
Perley's house was built by Benjamin Woodbury about
1860. He was a blacksmith, and worked in the shop here,
mentioned in No. 245. He died in 1862, and his adminis-
trator sold the place to John G. Harriman of North An-
dover. Mr. Harriman resided here until 1865, when he
sold out to Sarah E., wife of Augustus Williams of North
Andover. In 1871, she sold the place to Mr. Perley, who
has since resided there.
247.
Residence of A. J. Henly. — Mr. Alonzo J. Henry
built his house in 1867, and his barn the year before. He
built his blacksmith's shop about the same time, hired a
man to teach him the trade, and carried on an :ictive and
lucrative business until his health failed, nearly a score of
years ago. Since then, he has devoted most of his time to
agricultural pursuits.
THE DWELLINGS *0F BOXFORD. 221
248.
Eesidence of I. W. Andrew. — The residence of Mr.
Isaac W. Andrew was built by Thomas Chadwick shortly
after he bought the land here of Samuel Chadwick in 1788.
In 1808, he sold the farm to Edmund Kimball a merchant
of Newburyport. Mr. Chadwick was son of Dea. Thomas
and Mary (Porter) Chadwick, and was born in Boxford in
1751. He married Susanna Porter in 1796, and resided
here until he sold out. Among his children were Mary P.
and Thomas R. Chadwick.
Mr. Kimball conveyed the farm to Abijah Northey, jr.,
a merchant of Salem, in 1814. Mr. Northey resided here
until 1835, when he sold out to Samuel Groce, another mer-
chant of Salem, who lived here till 1837. He then sold the
place to Jonathan Andrew of Boxford. Mr. Andrew was
a native of Maine, and a lineal descendant of Robert An-
drews, one of the first settlers of Boxford. One of his sons
was John Albion Andrew, the loved war-governor of
Massachusetts, who was reared on this farm. After the
decease of Mr. Andrew, his son, the present owner and
occupant, came into the possession of the place and has
since retained it, having been for many years an official in
the Boston custom house.
249.
Dr. Eaton House. — Rev. Peter Eaton was born in
Haverhill in 1765, graduated at Harvard college in 1787,
and was ordained over the church in West Boxford in Oc-
tober, 1789. The next spring he bought of Moses Porter
for two hundred pounds, about forty acres of land a quarter
of a mile west of the church, and on it erected his resi-
dence, lie married, first, in 1792, Sarah, daughter of
Rev. Eliab Stone of Reading. An infant daughter, Mary,
2*J
222 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
died :it the age of fourteen months in 1797, and the follow-
ing is her epitaph : —
"Early, bright, transient as the morning dew-
She sparkled was exhal'd and went to heaven."
Mrs. Eaton died in the winter of 1823-24, and the fol-
lowing obituary notice appeared in the column of deaths
of the Salem Gazette, in its issue of January 20, 1824 : —
"In Boxford, on Thursday evening, Mrs. Sarah Eaton,
wile of Rev. Dr. Eaton. She appeared as well during the
day as usual, rode out to visit a sick friend, and in the
evening, while sitting with the family, her work was ob-
served to fall from her hands ; she was speechless, and ev-
idently deprived of her reason. She continued to breathe
until 12 o'clock, when the lamp of life was extinguished."
He married, secondly, the widow Sarah Swett of Ando-
ver. In this house he resided through his ministry of
filly-seven years, and died in 1848, at the age of eighty-
three.
He was distinguished for his generous spirit and moral
worth, and was loved by the flock over which he had the
spiritual charge. Among Dr. Eaton's children were Pe-
ter Sidney, born here in 1798, a clergyman at Amesbury,
now Merrimac ; John Hubbard, born here in 1806, a min-
ister, and connected with the American Tract society ; and
Mary Stone, who married the late Moses Kimball of Box-
lord.
Dr. Eaton sold his farm to Jonathan T. Barker of An-
dover in 1847, the year before his death. In 1864, Mr.
Barker sold out to Henry Barker of Boxford, who resided
upon it till 1880, when he conveyed the place to Lawrence
Carey of Lawrence, who afterward resided here. Mr.
Barker removed to Peabody, where he died three or four
years later, upward of eighty years of age.
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 223
250.
Residence of J. Henry Nason. — The farm of Mr.
James Henry Nason was in the possession of Joseph Eames
before 1730. In that year he sold it to his brother Nathan
Eames. The farm then consisted of a hundred acres, with
house, barn, etc. Joseph Eames was a son of Robert and
Rebecca (Blake) Eames and was born in Boxford in 1681.
He married Jemima , and had nine children born here,
viz. : Abner, who died in 1745, at the age of thirty-four,
unmarried ; Jonathan, who lived at No 212 ; Joseph ; Na-
than ; Jacob, who married Anne Wallis of Salem in 1744 ;
Moses, who married Rebecca Johnson of Andover in
1752, and died in 1754; Mary, who died in 1749, aged
twenty-eight; Jemima, who died in 1745-6, aged twenty-
one; and Hannah, who married Jacob Buck of Haverhill
in 1752.
Nathan Eames (or Nathaniel, as he was at first called)
was born in 1685. He married, and lived on this farm
from the time of his purchase of it in 1730 to 1762, when
he sold to Joseph Robinson, a yeoman of Andover, for
£800. The farm then consisted of one hundred and thirty-
one acres, with the house, barn, etc. Nathan married
Mary , who survived him. He died suddenly Jan. 11,
1765, aged eighty years. His widow died July 17, 1765,
at the age of seventy-eight. They are not known to have
had any children.
Joseph Robinson was son of Joseph and Elizabeth (Ste-
vens) Robinson of Andover, where he was born in 1710—
11. He married Mehitable Eames of Boxford in 1733.
In the spring of 1770, he advertised this farm for sale
in the Essex Gazette in its issue of March 13-20, 1770.
The following is a copy of the advertisement : —
"To bo fold, by the Subfcriber, in the North Parifh in Boxford, a
FARM of about one hundred Acres of good Land, confisting of good
224
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
Mowing, Tillage, Pa (luring and Orchard, with a large Dwelling-Houfe,
with throe Cellars under it, two of which are pointed with good white
Lime; alio ;i large Barn, a Cyder Houfe, Mill, and Prefs under it. — Said
Farm is well wooded and watered, and chiefly well fenced with good
Stone Wall, and is one Mile and a Quarter from the Meetiug-Houfe in
faidPariih. Joseph Robinson."
Probably Mr. Robinson did not find a purchaser for his
place as he continued to reside here until his death, which
occurred in 1777, at the age of sixty-seven. His wife died
in 1783, at the iige of seventy. Their six children were
born in what is now North Andover, and were as follows :
Nathan, who died in infancy ; Mary, who married Henry
Bodwell of Andover; John, who succeeded his father on
the homestead : Mehitable, who was the wife of James
JOSKPH KOBINSON HOUSE.
Frye of Andover; Elizabeth, who died in 1777, at the
age of thirty-one, unmarried ; and Jeremiah, who died un-
married in 1780, at the age of twenty-six.
John Robinson was a major in the militia, served in the
French war, and also in the Revolution, and was a justice
of the peace. He was instrumental in preventing a mutiny
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 2 25
among the soldiers during the terrible winter they spent
at Valley Forge, and for this and other valuable services
General Washington presented him with a sword, which
is now in the possession of his great-grandson Prof. John
Robinson of Salem. Mr. Robinson was born in Andover
in 1739, and married Rebecca, daughter of Daniel Wood
of Boxford in 1763. He was also a deacon of the Sec-
ond church ten years. About 1790 he built on his own
land the house now in the possession of Mr. Paul C. Davis
(No. 251), to which he removed. He died there in 1810.
Mr. Robinson's daughter, Rebecca, married Isaac Bar-
ker of Andover in 1790. To Mr. Barker, Mr. Robinson
conveyed this farm in 1804. Mr. Barker lived here until
after 1820, and then removed. He sold the place to his
brother-in-law Nathan Robinson of Salem in 1827.
The place was next occupied, but not owned, by Oliver
Foster who was son of Israel Foster, and was born in No.
93 in 1799. He married Rebecca Foster, his cousin, in
1823, and resided here. He had but one child, Charles
Oliver Foster, born in 1824, who resided upon the place
with his mother and died unmarried in 1875. Mr. Foster
died a year after his marriage, and when his son was only
eighteen days old. In 1828, his widow married her old
lover Benjamin Robinson, jr., who wasason of Benjamin,
and a grandson of Major John Robinson, who formerly
owned this place, and was probably born here in 1797.
In 1831, Mr. Robinson bought this farm of the owner,
Nathan Robinson of Salem, having resided here since his
marriage. About 1845, he took the old house down, and
erected, from rocks taken from the south shore of Mitchell's
pond, the present stone edifice. Over the front door are
two parts of a stone in which are imperfections having
the appearance of a fossil butterfly. An old stage-driver
has told us that he often stopped his horses here, and let his
226 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
passengers take :i look at the curious stone. Mr. Robin-
son died here in 1855, having been the father of Eliza Ann,
Rebecca Jane Foster, John Vose, Charlotte Priscilla, and
Enoch Kimball. The sons now reside in Peabody.
Mr. Nason has owned and occupied the place several
years.
251.
Residence of Paul C. Davis. — The residence of Mr.
Pan! C. Davis was erected by Maj. John Robinson (who
lived at No. 250) about 1790. He died here in 1810, at
the age of seventy. The following obituary notices of him
are copied from the Salem Gazette, the first from the death
column of its issue of Feb. 2, 1810, and the second from
the issue of Feb. 9, 1810.
"At Boxford, on the 22d alt. Joiin Robinson, Esq , aged 70. He
had been to a neighbour's, and complained of feeling a little unwell, but
being better, set out for home with a Mr. Carlton ; they rode together
about half a mile, and parted; Mr. R. rode about fifty rods further,
when it is supposed he got off his horse, fell on his face, and instantly
expired. He was seen by a woman, who alarmed Mr. C. when he re-
turned and found him a little out of the path, dead : this was not more
than five minutes from the time they had parted. He was subject to
fainting fits; and when on horseback, he felt one coming on, he us-
ually got oft' and sat down. He was a good man. Blessed ai-e the dead
that die in the Lord."
"■Tribute to departed worth — We lately mentioned the sudden death
of John Robinson, Esq., of Boxford. We have since received the
following notice of his character: — Few characters have been more
endeared to the circle of their acquaintance than the deceased. His
disposition was mild and amiable; his manner modest and unassuming.
Through life, he was the open, undeviating friend of morals, religion
and good government. Endowed with a sound understanding and
discerning mind, his conduct was regulated by the maxims of wisdom
and experience. The offices which he sustained, both civil and mili-
tary, were discharged in a manner honorable to himself. In the com-
mencement of the revolutionary contest, he discovered himself the firm
and inflexible patriot. Taking an active part in the Held, his bravery
in the hour of peril secured to him the confidence of his associates in
danger. Since the establishment of independence, he has regarded the
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 227
fortunes of his country with anxious solicitude. Pure in his morals,
rational in his religion, the beauties of each were exemplified in his
life. In his death, his family have lost a tender friend, society a val-
uable member, religion an ornament, and his country a useful citizen."
Major Robinson's widow died about three months after
himself, at the age of sixty-seven. His large family of
eleven children were born at No. 250, and were as follows,
viz. : Israel ; John, who became a physician, and died in
1790, at the age of twenty-five; Rebecca, who married
Isaac Barker of Andover, and lived at No. 250 from 1804 ;
Benjamin, who also probably lived at No. 250 before his
brother-in-law 7 Isaac Barker died ; Nathan, who settled at
Salem, and who was the father of Dr. Horatio Robinson of
that place; Aaron, who lived in Andover, Danvers and
Salem, and who was the grandfather of Prof. John Robin-
son of Salem; Deborah, who married Samuel Spofford,
and lived at No. 252 ; Elizabeth ; Joseph ; Sarah ; and
Jeremiah.
The next year after Mr. Robinson's death, his adminis-
trator, Charles Foster, sold the farm to the deceased's son
Aaron Robinson. In 1813, he sold it to Joshua Emery of
Newbury, a housewright.
Mr. Emery lived here four years, till 1817, when he sold
out to John Bacon, Esq., of Boxford. The Rev. Samuel
Hopkins Emery of Taunton was a son of Joshua, and was
born here in 1815.
In 1818, Mr. Bacon sold the farm to SethBurnham, son
of Rufus Burnham, who lived at No. 63. On the after-
noon of Saturday, August 8, 1829, there was a thunder
shower, during which Mr. Burnham's barn was burned.
The tol lowing account of it is copied from the Salem Ga-
zette of August 11, 1829:—
"The; storm commenced at Dr. Eaton's parish, West: Boxford, about
3 o'clock in the afternoon, . . . attended with very severe thunder and
lightning. The wind veered from South West to North Eastand Mew
228 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
almost a hurricane. The rain fell in torrents, accompanied with hail
about the size of walnuts, prostrating the corn and grain in every di-
rection, and destroying more or less glass. A barn, belonging to Mr.
Burnham, was struck by the lightning and burnt to the ground, with
its contents, — hay, grain, farming tools, chaise and wagon, &c. The
dwelling house of Mr. Burnham was saved by the active exertions of
his neighbors. The wind blew so violently atone period of the storm,
that the people hastened to the parts of their houses most remote from
their chimneys, in the expectation that they would be blown over."
Mr. Burnham lived here until 1857, when he soM out
to Rev. Gabriel H. DeBevoise of Andover. Mr. Burn-
ham married, in 1818, Caroline, daughter of Edmund
Herrick, who lived at Nos. 153 and 170, and had one child,
Charlotte. Mrs. Burnham is still living, and, we believe,
resides in Waltham.
Mr. DeBevoise sold out to Hon. William A. Russell of
Lawrence in 1867, having removed to Walpole, N. H.
We believe he is now residing in western Massachusetts.
In 18(38, Mr. Russell sold the place to Mr. John Barker
of North Andover. Mr. Barker lived here until 1873,
when he sold to Mr. Davis, the present owner and oc-
cupier.
252.
Residence of Miss R. W. Cakleton. — Where Miss Re-
becca W. Carleton resides stood the Samuel Spotford house,
which was probably built, about 1805, by Isaac Barker,
who owned No. 250. Mr. Spotford was living here in 1808,
and probably hired the house of Mr. Barker, their wives
being sisters. Mr. Barker sold out to Mrs. Spoflord in
1817. Mr. Spotford was born at No 83, in 1764, being
son of Amos Spotford, married Deborah Robinson in 1793,
and was drowned in Great pond in Andover, in January,
1833. He had lived a short time in Portland, Me., before
going to Andover, and came from Andover to Boxford in
1817. They had nine children: Rebecca, who married
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 229
Peter Pearl ; John, who was drowned in the Merrimac
river; Joseph, who died in Haverhill; Amos, who was
drowned in the pond near the house in 1814, when in his
seventh year; Sarah, the mother of Hiram N. Harriman,
Esq., of the Georgetown Advocate; Harriet, the mother
of Mr. George B. Austin, now residing in No. 280; Na-
than, who was lost at sea; and two others. The house
was burned some years ago.
Miss Carleton's residence was a shop that was moved
there, we believe.
The place is now owned by Mr. James H. Nason, who
bought it of Robert E. Carleton of Lawrence in 1877.
253.
Sargent Cellar. — There is an old cellar in Mr. D. M.
Cole's orchard, between the late John Pearl's and Miss
Carleton's houses, over which stood a house once occupied
by a family named Sargent. The orchard is now known
as the Sargent orchard. The head of the family was Mo-
ses Sargent, who came from Methuen, and married, in
1767, Esther, daughter of Stephen Runnells. The house
has been gone nearly a century.
254.
Residence of J. M. Pearl. — The residence of the
late John Pearl was probably built by Daniel Mitchell
about the time he purchased this land, and the old Ilovey
place across the street, of the heirs of Luke Ilovey in 1812,
as stated in No. 255.
Mr. Mitchell lived here until about 1860, when John
Pearl bought the place. He lived here until his death in
1890, since which time his widow and son John M. Pearl
have resided on the place.
30
230 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
255.
Luke Hovey Cellar. — There is an old cellar across
the road from the residence of the late John Pearl known
as the Luke Hovey cellar. This land, bounded on the
northwest and northeast by the roads and on the south by
Mitchell's, or Rush pond, and containing about forty-five
acres, was owned in the seventeenth century by John
Hovey of Topsfield. His son Luke, born in Topsfield
in 1676, married Susanna, daughter of Moses Pillsbury,
probably of Newbury, in 1698, and on this land of his
father built himself a house in 1700. Aug. 28, 1706,
his father deeded the land to him. Old Mr. Hovey had a
"great English bible," which he gave in his will to his son
Luke, to be bequeathed by him to his son, and so down pos-
terity. In the will of the son, who died in 1787, he ear-
ned out the wishes of his father, and the bible is probably
still in existence. Mr. Hovey died here in 1751, at the
age of seventy-five, and his widow in 1767, at the age of
ninety. They had nine children, viz. : — Susanna, who was
born in 1699, and married, first, Aaron Brown, and, second,
William Lake man of Ipswich ; Dorcas, who married John
Foster of Andover; Hannah; Elizabeth, who married
Benjamin Kimball of Wenham ; Luke, who lived here and
at No. 254 ; Abigail ; Joseph, who lived at No. 283 ;
Mary, who married William Woster of Newbury ; and
Abijah, who married Lydia Graves of Haverhill, und re-
moved to Lunenburg about 1750.
In his will, Mr. Hovey devised this place to his son Luke.
Mr. Hovey had built a house near the brook at the south-
east end of his lot in which he lived the last few years of
his life. The latter house came into the possession of bis
son Joseph, who resided there. The old place was occu-
pied by Luke Hovey, jr., who was born here in 1708, and
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 231
who married, first, Dorcas Kimball of Bradford, second,
widow Esther Runnells, and, third, Mehitable English,
having by the three marriages eleven children, whose names
were Thomas (died at the age of three), Thomas (married
Sarah Carlton), Elizabeth (married Brown), Abi-
gail (married Baker), Olive (married Gage),
Phineas, Luke (died in infancy), Luke (resided on the
homestead), Washington, and Mehitable.
Mr. Hovey's barn was struck by lightning in a thunder
shower, July 14, 1772, and burned. The following is a
copy of the notice of the fire which appeared in the Essex
Gazette the next week : —
"SALEM, July 21.
"A large Barn, belonging to Mr. Luke Hovey, of Boxford, was fet
on Fire, laft Tuefday, by a Flafh of Lightning, and entirely confutned,
■with four Tons of Englifh Hay."
Mr. Hovey died in 1787, and his widow continued to
reside in the west end of the house.
His son Luke was given the farm, and he resided on it.
He was born in 1749, married Hannah Kimball of Bradford
in 1775, and died here in 1798. His heirs conveyed it,
December 17, 1812, with the buildings thereon, to Daniel
Mitchell, a cordwainer of Bradford. There were forty-six
acres, of land, and the consideration was twelve hundred
dollars. The heirs were Hannah Hovey of Boxford, widow,
Isaac Hovey and Luke Hovey, both of Boxford, cordwain-
ers, Celinda Hovey of Boxford, singlewoman, Leonard
Hovey of Bradford, cordwainer, Dorcas Hovey of New-
buryport, Guy Carleton of Roxbury, and his wife Abigail,
and John Barnes of Deerfield, N. H., and his wife Susanna.
The house was probably taken down about that time.
25 fi.
Residence of D. M.Cole. — A short distance southeast
of Mr. David Mi-dull Cole',^ residence once stood a house
232 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
built by a Mr. Sherwin, who resided here until near the
close of the last century.
This was a part of "Mr. Nelson's Great Farm" of two
thousand acres, which was laid out to him in 1667. This
particular portion of it was owned in 1708 by Capt. John
Peabody of Boxford. Then, the line between this and the
Pearl farm, was one rod east of this house. In 1708, Mr.
Peabody let the place to Jabez Dorman of Topsfield, who
married Hephzibah Perley of Boxford in 1715, had a son
Jabez, born the next year, and both mother and son died
before the year was out. In fact before the year had ex-
pired he had married Abial Foster, and the next year had
another son born, who was called by the same name. He
immediately removed to Arundel, Me., where he was liv-
ing in 1728.
John Buckminster, or Buckmaster, as the name was of-
ten spelt, also resided here in 1788, having come from Es-
sex. His father probably lived here with John and John's
sister Rachel, who married Joshua Brown in 1788, and lived
in New Hampshire. (See No. 242.) John married Deb-
orah, daughter of Joseph and Mary (Varnum) Wood of
Boxford Nov. 29, 1788. She was born in No. 284 July
2, 1763. Mr. Buckminster was a seaman, and about all
of his married life was spent on the ocean. In 171)1, when
he was at Martinique, in the West Indies, his wife received
from him the following letter : —
"Martinique, Feby 28th 1791
"Ever Pear and Loving Wife once More I take this opportunity to
inform yon that I am Well at Present and hoping these fe"\v lines Will
find you the Same by the blessing of God I have Nothing New to Write
you only We are in hopes to Sail in 25 Days — I Should have Wrote to
Joseph but have Not time So beg to be Excused Likewise to fanny
"Give My Duty to father and Mother and kind Love to all Enquir-
ing friends
"I Remain your Loving husband
"John Buckminster."
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFOKD. 233
He came home after the writing of this letter, and went
away for the last time early in 1794. While at the port
of Charleston, S. C, he sent the following letterto his wife :
"Charleston March 8th, 1794
"My Dear —
'•I Take this opportunity to Inform you that I am very well
and Hope these few Lines will find you and the Children the Same. We
had seventeen Days passage to Charleston We are now Lying Wait-
ing for a freight and Expect to go to some part of Holland And Ex-
pect to be back in about Seven Months. I Should be Glad the joiner
would go on with the House as fast as possible. I wish you to Speak
to your Uncle about a Deed of the Land. I was there the Day before
I sailed, but He being Gone from Home I Could not see Him. If Ba-
ker does not Get the boards as soon as the Joiner wants them, Send
for them. If Carleton Does not take the leather of Baker Let him
wait till I Come Home — If the Clapboards are not sentdowneto Chad-
docks from Derry Let the Joiner Try and Get them. Get somebody
to plough a Garden spot In the Spring
"Remember me to Your father & mother &c And so I remain your
Dear and Loving Husband
"John Buckminster.
"I send you something more than twenty pounds of Indigo which
you may sell for what you Can or keep it till I come home The Indigo
is to be left at Mr. Abel Greeuleafs in Newburyport."
He brought from sea at one time a red silk umbrella,
the first umbrella ever seen in this parish. His wife's moth-
er, Granny Wood, called it a "brillio."
His wife never heard from him again after she received
this last letter. He sailed for Holland, as intimated in
his correspondence, and when near there a shot from an
armed vessel, engaged in the French revolution, took off
his head. This was the first and only shot tired upon them.
His age was only twenty-five. The young bride was thus
left a widow with three children, the oldest of whom was
only four years of age. She became insane, and afterward
lived in a part of her mother's house, No. 284. Their chil-
dren were as follows: Elizabeth, born Nov. 11, 1789,
John Blake, Sept. 8, 1791 ; and Mary, April 20, 1793.
234 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
Mrs. Buckminster died in October, 1804, at the age of
forty-one. Of the children, Mary died Aug. 29, 1797,
aged four years. Elizabeth, or Betsey, as she was com-
monly called, was unmarried in 1813, when she was living
in New Rowley (now Georgetown), and when visiting her
brother John in Danbnry, N. H., became acquainted with
Dea. John Taylor, whom she married. John B. was a
member of the West Boxford company of foot in 1812,
and married Charlotte Crombie of Georgetown (then a part
of Rowley) in 1813. In the spring of 1815, he moved from
Georgetown, where he had lived since his marriage, to Dan-
bury, N. H. He stayed there until 1822, when he returned
to Georgetown. In 1832, he built the house afterward
belonging to his son, the late G. N. Buckminster, in which
he resided during the remainder of his life, dying from the
effects of a frozen toe, at four-score years of age, leaving
a memory sweet with kindnesses, benevolence and Chris-
tian fortitude.
Probably from his marriage in 1792 with Hannah Por-
ter this old house was occupied by Zachariah Bacon, who
came from Bradford. The house was also occupied, at the
beginning of this century, by William Porter and James
Cobnrn. Mr. Coburn was living here in 1820. He was
a son of David Coburn, who lived at No. 263, and was
born in Nottingham-west, N. H., in 1783.
The last occupant was Theodore Reynolds. The house
was taken down in 1836 by its owner, Joshua T. Day.
Mr. Cole built his residence in 1853, and has since re-
sided in it. He is a son of Manly Cole, and was born in
No. 236.
257.
Doctor Bacon House. — The residence of the late EI-
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 235
bridge Perley was erected by Dr. Josiah Bacon. He was
a son of William Bacon, who is said to have moved here
from Boston, and who is claimed to have been a descendant
of Lord Francis Bacon, the distinguished philosopher and
scholar of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Doctor
Bacon bought this land in 1814 of his brother John Bacon,
and probably built the house the same year.
Doctor Bacon was born about 1785, and married Abi-
gail Ayer about 1813. They had three children, Edward,
Sally Ayer, who was born in 1816, and died, unmarried, in
1854, and Abigail. He practised medicine here from about
1813 to about 1840, when the influence of intoxicating
liquor drove his patients from him, and shortly after led
him to the town almshouse, where he died in 1855, at the
age of seventy. His widow was for several years the
housekeeper of General Lowe, and after his marriage with
Mrs. Merriam, Mrs. Bacon built what is now the public
library building in the East parish, and lived there until
her death. Her daughter Abbie, born in 1821, lived there
after her mother's decease until death released her from
her loneliness in 1878. Edward Bacon, born in 1814, was
found drowned in a pond in Groveland, Dec. 23, 1881, hav-
ing evidently committed suicide. He was the last of the
Doctor's children. John Bacon, Esq., the author of Ba-
con's Town Officer, was the Doctor's brother. Squire Bacon
lived in that part of Boxford, which is now in Groveland.
The farm was quit- claimed to Elbridge Perley by Brad-
street Tyler in 1841. Elbridge was a son of Benjamin
Perley, and was born in Dunbarton, N. H., in 1810. Mr.
Perley died here in 1876, and his widow and son John E.
have since resided upon the place. Mr. William E. Per-
ley, who resides in No. 246, is another son. Three of his
sons served in the war of the Rebellion, and two died from
the effects of the service.
236 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
258.
Residence of M. P. Whittier. — The residence of Mr.
Marshall P. Whittier was erected by his father Francis C.
Whittier about 1850. He removed here from No. 278,
and died some two or three years ago, since which time
his son has resided upon the place.
259.
Residence of J. H. Webster. — The old Pearl place
was the tract of two hundred acres laid out to John Sandys,
in right of his father Henry Sandys, in 1667. It was bound-
ed on the southwest by "Mr. Nelson's Great Farm" of
two thousand acres, and came into the possession of Joseph
Dowding, a merchant of Boston, who sold it to Cornelius
Browne, a farmer of Reading, for £70, Sept. 10, 1703.
Mr. Browne probably came here the following spring and
built the present house. His wife Susanna died here in
1734, at the age of seventy-four.
In 1738, the place was sold by Mr. Browne to Richard
Pearl of Bradford, housewright. Mr. Browne retained half
of the house and barn. The farm then consisted of one
hundred and forty acres. Mr. Pearl's father was John
Pearl, from Skidby, Yorkshire, England, a miller by trade ;
and his mother was Elizabeth, daughter of Richard Holmes
of Rowley. Richard was born in what is now Groveland
in 1702. He built the original mill, in connection with
another man, that occupied the site of the first factory of
E. J. M. Hale in South Groveland. Richard lived first in
Andover, and came to Boxford as above. About that time
he erected in the rear of his house the first grist-mill that
existed in the 'West parish. Richard died in 1793, at the
age of ninety-one, his wife Sarah having died seven years
previously. His daughter Elizabeth married Lt. Ebenezer
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
237
Peabody, who resided in No. 260, and his son Richard died
of the small-pox in 1760, at twenty years of age.
Mr. Pearl's son John succeeded him on the place. He
was born in 1738, and married Eunice Kimball in 1765.
He had a family of eleven children, the youngest of whom
was Peter Pearl, who resided in No. 218, and another of
them was Simeon Pearl, the grandfather of Mr. J. M.
Pearl, who resides in No. 254.
After Mr. Pearl's death his son John came into the pos-
session of the place. He was born in 1768, and in 1794,
married Mehitable Hall. He died in 18—. Their son Ru-
fus died in the summer of 1797, aged but one year. The
following is his epitaph : —
"Fresh in the morn, the summer rose
Hangs withering ere 'tis noon
We scarce enjoy the balmy gift
But mourn the pleasure gone."
His son, George Pearl, was the next proprietor of the
ancient homestead. He was born in 1798, and always re-
sided there. When the old meeting-house in this parish
was taken down in 1843, Mr. Pearl purchased the porch,
and annexed it to the east end of his house where it still
remains. He died in 1878, and his widow survived him
several years. His family still reside upon the place. This
is also the home of James H. Webster, Esq., a son-in-law
of Mr. Pearl. Mr. Pearl was a prominent man, being the
representative of the town to the state legislature in 1857.
260.
Benjamin Peabody House. — The residence of the late
Benjamin Peabody was built by his father, Lt. Ebenezer
Peabody, about 17 — . Ebenezer was born in 1742, and
served through the Revolutionary war, his special service
being prosecuted with Col. Alden in his New York expe-
dition in 1778 against the Indians, lie married, first, Eliz-
31
238 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
abeth Pearl in 17(54. She died in 1776, at the age of thirty-
two, and he married, secondly, in 1780, her sister Sarah.
He died in 1829, at the age of eighty-three.
Mr. Peabody had twelve children, one of whom, Benja-
min, horn in 1789, settled on the place in 1819. His wife
was Rachel Hunting of Boston, whom he married in 1815.
He went to Boston when quite young to live, and continued
to reside there four years after his marriage. Mr. Peabody
was a man of large size, and of an iron constitution. Mrs.
Peabody was quite diminutive in stature, and was distin-
guished for her kind and motherly qualities. He died in
1879, and she followed him three years later.
Of their family of eight children, the oldest is the widow
of Jonathan Edwards Foster, and resides in No. 92. The
next married John P. Foster of North Andover. The next,
Thomas Isaac, was a teacher of the Farm school in Boston
harbor, and, in 1842, went out sailing with the boatman and
twenty of his pupils, when the boat was upset and all were
drowned. He was twenty-two years old. Caroline A. is
the widow of the late Samuel H. Batchelder of Methuen.
Eliza O. is the wife of Mr. Isaac W. Andrew, who resides
in No. 248. Ada B. is the wife of Mr. William P. Cleave-
land, who resides in No. 13. Benjamin Franklin, the
youngest son, was the last of the family to reside on the
old place. He died a few years ago, and the homestead is
now owned and occupied during the summer months by a
Mr. Wilmarth of Boston.
261.
Residence of V. V. Moulton. — Mr. Valorus Valentine
Moulton built his house in 1849, and has since lived in it.
262.
ODGI
Dodge built his residence about 1870.
Residence of G. S. Dodge. — Mr. George Stanwood
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 239
263.
Residence of Charles Stiles.— The house of the late
Elijah Stiles was occupied in 1820 by David Coburn,
who came from Nottingham-west, N. H. , about 1788. By
his wife Sarah he had at least three children : David, who
married here in 1797 ; James, who lived in No. 256 ; and
William Merrill, who was born here in 1790. Dr. Jere-
miah Spofford of Groveland, as guardian of Sarah Coburn,
of Boxford, a person non compos mentis, sold this place to
Benjamin Robinson of Boxford, yeoman, in 1840. The
farm then consisted of twenty acres. Upon Mr. Robinson's
death, his administrator sold it to Elijah Stiles of Boxford
in 1842. Mr. Stiles died here in 1881, and his son Charles
resides upon the farm, which lies on the northwest border
of Johnson's pond, on a part of which he has fitted up
a pleasure resort known as Stiles' grove.
264.
Enos Reynolds House.— The old house that stood
where the residence of Miss Harriet Reynolds stands, was
built quite early in the eighteenth century, as in 1799 it
was very old and dilapidated. In the old house, from the
time of his marriage probably in 1754, lived Stephen Rnn-
nells, as the name was then spelled and pronounced. His
wife was Hannah Pearl. He was a cooper by trade, and
died young in 1771, having had seven children. His widow
continued to live here, and died in 1822, at the age of
eighty-six.
One of Stephen Rnnnells' children was Enos, who was
born in 1757. He was a soldier in the Revolution, and
was at the battle of Bunker hill, and went with Arnold to
Quebec, where he was taken prisoner by the British, and
afterwards escaping, swam across Lake Champlain on a
240 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORB.
board and returned to his family who had given him up
as dead. He was so disguised by small pox, from which
he had suffered at Quebec, that his mother at first supposed
him a stranger while drinking at the family well in the
door-yard on his return. He was also with General Sul-
livan in 1777 in his expedition against the Indians in the
state of New York, — at Cherry Valley, Saratoga and other
places. He was also one of the personal guard of Major
Andre in his cell on the night before his execution, and was
much touched by the demeanor of the condemned.
In 1782, Mr. Reynolds married Sarah Simmons, and
settled on the old place, which he carried on during the
rest of his long life. He erected the presenthouse, raising
the frame Sept. 11, 1799. Mr. Reynold* was a carpenter
and did the work himself. It has been shingled twice and
clapboarded once since it was built. Some of the timber
and some of the finishing of the old house were used in
the new. The panelling at the end of the dining-room and
one side of the sitting-room was old when it was used
again.
Mr. Reynolds died in 1845, at the age of eighty-nine.
He was a prominent man in the town, and possessed excel-
lent qualities of mind, body and heart. He had twelve
children, eight of whom we would specially mention as
follows : —
1. Stephen, who became a sailor and ship owner, and
about 1825 sailed to the Hawaiian Islands where he sold
his vessel to King Kamehameha, w r ho sailed to England in
it. The king died in England, thereby causing so long a de-
lay in the payment for the vessel that Mr. Reynolds became
firmly established in business at Honolulu, and remained
there until 185(5, when he came home and died the next
year, at the age of seventy-four. It is said that the natives
tried to persuade him to become their king.
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 241
2. Eliphalet, who was a shoemaker, and died in New
York in 1838.
3. Samuel, who was a morocco dresser, and died in
West Boxford in 1855.
4. Frederick, who was a carpenter, and died at the
homestead in 1867, at the age of eighty-two.
5. Matilda, who married Jedediah Barker of Boston.
Her husband died in 1868, and she returned to the old
homestead where she died in 1884, at the age of ninety-six.
6. William, who was a sailor, being drowned in Bos-
ton harbor in 1818.
7. Rebecca Eveline, who visited the Sandwich Islands
alone at different times, going around Cape Horn the first
time in 1851-52 and crossingthe Isthmus of Panama the sec-
ond time in 1856-57, when her brother Stephen returned
with her. She was a teacher distinguished for force of
character, remarkable intellect, energy of will, integrity of
conscience, and a spirit of self-sacrifice. She died in 1865,
at the age of sixty-one.
8. Harriet, who was born in 1799, was the survivor of
the family. In early life she taught school for ten years
in her own district, and afterwards elsewhere. She was
very pleasant and graceful in her manners. She died at
the homestead in 1891, at the age of ninety-two.
Miss Harriet Reynolds had a blue platter, brought from
Delfthaven, presumably by the first Pearls who came over.
It is of Delft ware, and used to stand on the dresser in the
old Pearl house, No. 259. The groove of the dresser was
not deep enough to secure it, so a nail was driven in, and
the constant wear against the nail wore the edge of the
platter to the depth of nearly an inch, so long had it been
there.
265.
Sessions Cellaij.— A hundred and twenty years ago
242 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
Josiah Sessions lived on Sessions hill near the Reynolds
place (No. 264) in West Boxford.
Mr. Sessions was born in Bradford April 14, 1721, being
son of Josiah and Anna Sessions of that town, lie mar-
ried Martha , by whom he had a son Stephen born in
Boxford, December 2(3, 1775, who married, in 1 7 i) 7 , Polly
Adams of Epping, N. II. The family possessed but little
character, and obtained their living mostly by stealing.
The cellar of his house yet remains. The house was torn
down in a search for stolen goods, some fifty years ago.
The barn was taken down in 1840 or 1841, and part of the
timber used in building on the kitchen part of the Reynolds
house, No. 264.
Joseph Sessions, who died "in ye strong-house" in 1779,
was probably a member of this family.
266.
Runnells Cellar. — Beside the Sessions house, No.
264, another one used to stand on the top of Sessions hill in
the West parish, on the same side of the road as the res-
idence of Mr. Daniel Reynolds. Mr. Reynolds lived there
when he built his house.
267.
Thomas Peabody Cellar. — On the opposite side of the
road from the residence of Miss Harriet Reynolds, near
the brook, is the site of an old house. It was probably
built by Ensign David Peabody (from Xo. 140). He died
in 1726, at the age of forty-eight, and his widow, in 1736,
married Joseph Kinsman of Ipswich, whither she removed.
She died here, very suddenly, in 1756, at the age of sev-
enty-two, and was buried in the old cemetery in this parish.
Mr. Pea body's son Thomas, born in 1705, lived here after
his mother's marriage. He married Ruth Osgood of Ando-
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
243
ver in 1738, and died here in 1758, at the age of fifty-two.
His widow continued to reside here until she married Ben-
jamin Milliken of Bradford in 1763. Mr. Peabody had
nine children— four sons and five daughters.
His son Ebenezer, who was born in 1742, married in
1764 and resided here until about 1790, when he built the
house lately owned and occupied by his son Benjamin
Peabody. See No. 260.
Mrs. Barker, who was born and reared in the immediate
neighborhood and who died at her residence in Boxford in
1884 at the age of ninety-seven years, said the house was
destroyed before her remembrance. But the old-fashioned
dark red roses, that used to grow in the garden, still spring
up and bloom in the hay- field.
268.
Kesidence of George Reynolds.— Mr. George Rey-
nolds built his house in 187-, and has since resided in it.
269.
Residence of D. L. Reynolds. — Mr. Daniel Lakeman
Reynolds' farm was the Sherwin place. Ebenezer Sherwin
from Linebrook parish, Ipswich, came to Boxford about
1695, probably with his parents. He died in 1712. By
his wife Susanna, he had children, Hannah, Jonathan and
Ebenezer.
Ebenezer Sherwin, jr., was born in 1705-6, and married
Hephzibah Cole in 1726. They had eight children born
here, Ebenezer, John, Susanna, Elnathan, Samson, Mar-
tha, Silas, and Hephzibah. In 1747, he sold the farm to
Samuel Runnells of Bradford, and removed to Dunstable.
Samuel Runnells resided here. He was born about 1674
at Port Royal, Nova Scotia, and came to Bradford, where
he married Abigail Middleton about 1700.
244 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
Mr. D:miel L. Reynolds built his residence about 18-.
He was a son of Theodore Reynolds, who lived in No. 256.
270.
Micajah Kimball Cellar. — Near the Perry house in
"West Boxford on the Bradford line, stood the Kimball
house. It is said that on this place lived Thomas Kimball,
who was slain by the Indians May 3, 1676, and his wife
and five children, Joannah, Thomas, Joseph, Priscilla and
John, carried away into captivity. The wife and children
returned home on the thirteenth of the following month.
The age of John, the youngest of these children, was but
six months. The well to this house was rilled up by the
owner of the lot, Mr. George W. Chadwick, about 1845.
The house has been gone for a century, probably.
271.
Kimball Cellar. — On the town line near Little pond
was an old Kimball house. It stood about three rods
from house No. 270. It is supposed by some people to
have been built by the grandfather of the late Micajah
Kimball, who lived in it. It was a long one-story house
at first, but raised to two stories by David Kimball,
father of the late Micajah, about 1780. In making this
change, tradition says that the first cut nails used in this
vicinity were driven. Another tradition is, that, in 1796,
or the next year, Micajah Kimball, who then owned the
place, raised the house to two stories. Mr. Kimball was a
carpenter, and, it is said, worked in the erection of the
Bradford and Haverhill bridge at that time, and carried
home enough of cut nails, that had just come into use, to
remodel his house with.
Micajah was a son of David and Abigail Kimball and
was born in Bradford Nov. 14, 1765. He had two brothers,
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 245
Benjamin, born Aug. 28, 1765( ?) , and Nicholas, bora Sept.
28, 1763. Micajah's father died early in this century,
and the house continued to be occupied by Micajah and
his wife until they became a charge to the town, about 1842,
when it came into the possession of Mr. Chadwick's family.
Micajah's sister Hannah and her daughter Sarah, who were
both born here, remained some time after the removal of
Micajah, and they too became town charges about 1847 or
1848.
The house was then occupied by Francis C. Whittier
(who moved from No. 276) for some years, until he re-
moved to the Peabody house (No. 278) about 1849. It
was taken down by Mr. George W. Chadwick in 1882.
272.
The Perry Cellar. — The Perry house was built by
Benjamin Kimball in 1821. Mr. Kimball married Betsey
Pritchard of Bradford in 1819, and had two children born
here, Elizabeth and Benjamin.
John W. Perry lived here a number of years, and the
family then removed to Bradford, where one of the sons,
Benjamin G., was town clerk, and treasurer and collector.
The place was latterly occupied for three years by Eu-
nice, widow of the late Capt. Jonathan Chadwick of Brad-
ford. Mrs. Chadwick died in 1879 at Mr. D. M. Cole's,
whose wife was her daughter, and with whom she lived
the last few months of her life. The house was then taken
down.
273.
Residence of G. W. Chadwick. — In Mr. George W.
Chadwick's front yard stood a house, built by his mother
in 1830. She was Eunice, a daughter of Dea. John Day
(see No. 274). She was born in Bradford in 1799, and
32
246 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
married Jonathan Chadwick, a sea-captain, who was a son
of Joseph Chadwick, Esq., in whose house he resided at
the time of his death in 1830. George W. Chadwick and
his brothers were born there. His sister Eunice was born
in 1830 in Mr. Charles Perley's house (No. 274), in
which her mother's father lived, and to which her mother
removed after her husband's death, and lived until she built
the house mentioned at the beginning of this article. She
moved into it in December, ]830.
Mrs. Chadwick lived here until 1856, then two years at
North Andover with her sister Mrs. Harriet D. Brown,
then came back to Box ford and lived at the Perry house,
No. 272, which see.
Mr. G. W. Chadwick built his house in 1856, and
h:is occupied it ever since, all his children having been
born there.
274.
Residence of Charles Perley. — The farm of Mr.
Charles Perley of West Box ford belonged to Samuel Kim-
ball about 1790. Mr. Kimball was a son of Ephraim and
Hannah (Potter) Kimball, and was born in Boxford in
1744. His parents removed to Shrewsbury, when Samuel
was about eighteen. He stayed behind, and marrying
Anna Webster of Haverhill, in 1768, settled on this place.
His wife died here May 6, 1778, leaving one child, Anna,
who died in 1794, unmarried, at the age of twenty-three.
Mr. Kimball married, secondly, Elizabeth (Gage),
widow of Benjamin Cole of Boxford in September, 1778.
Mr. Kimball and his wife first belonged to the Bradford
church, and in the spring of 1779, were dismissed from that
tot lie Second church in Boxford. Mr. Kimball died Sept. 7,
1 71)0, at the age of forty-rive. By his second wife, he was
the father of another child, Elizabeth, who was born in
1779. This daughter married Dr. William Gage, and con-
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 247
tinned to reside here with the mother until 1805, when they
sold the farm to John Day, jr., of Bradford. The family
removed from town. Dr. Gage has descendants now oc-
cupying important stations. One of them, Dr. William H.
Gage, a grandson, was assistant physician at the Taunton
insane asylum, and another is a superintendent of schools
in the District of Columbia.
The old house stood a little to the left of the lane lead-
ing up to the west end of Mr. Perley's barn.
Mr. Chadwick says he cannot remember the old house,
but some of the out-buildings were standing in his younger
days, about 1833-35.
Mr. Day removed to this farm, where he lived during
the remainder of his long life, and most of his children were
born in this old house. His wife was Mary, daughter of
Bradstreet Tyler, who lived at No. 279. Their first living
child was Eunice, who was the mother of Mr. George W.
Chadwick, and she was born at Ward hill, in Bradford,
where her father then lived, in 1799. Mr. Day erected
Mr. Perley's house in 1830, or shortly before. He was a
deacon of the Second church from 1814 to 1848, and died
in 1868, at the great age of ninety-one years and seven
months. He was a son of John and Elizabeth (Ingersol)
Day, and was born in Bradford in 1776.
After Deacon Day's death, his son John became the owner
of the place. He was born and always resided here, and
was accidentally killed in his mill in 1879. He was dis-
tinguished for his modesty, ingenuity and good farming.
Since Mr. Day's death, his son-in-law, Mr. Pcrley, has
been in possession of the farm.
275.
John Hovey Cellar. — Toward the North Andover
line from Mr. Charles Perley's residence (No. 274), in a
248 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
pleasant, picturesque valley, some distance in at the right
hand side of the road, is an old cellar where a family of
Hoveys lived.
The house was probably built by John Hovey, nephew
to Luke Hovey, the first of the name to settle in Box ford
(see No. 255) , and son of John and Mary Hovey. He was
born in Topsfield Aug. 27, 1699, married Mary in
1725, and probably immediately settled on this farm.
They had six children, four daughters and two sons, John
and Richard. The father died in 1778, aged seventy-eight,
and the mother in the same year, six months later, at the
age of seventy-seven.
The son Richard, born in 1733, resided on this place. He
was a great beekeeper. His brother John probably erected
the Parker house (No. 276). Richard married Sarah
Wood of Andover in 1757, and had eight children.
His son John Hovey was born in 1770, and was a twin
with Betty. Twins are apt to bepindling, but this case
was a great exception. Mr. Hovey was a strong man of
great endurance. He would carry a grist of two bushels
of corn on his back to the mill at North Andover, a good
two miles away. He would also bring his peat from the
meadow in the same way in two-bushel creels. Of his great
peach orchard, two ancient trees yet remain. John Hovey
married Hannah Weed of Haverhill in 1796, and became
the father of Richard, Moses, and other children. He was
living here in 1820, but probably survived but a short time
after that date.
The house was gone shortly after 1820. It was two
stories in height, about 32 x 24 feet, and had one of the
large old-fashioned chimneys. The place is now owned by
Dea. Nathaniel Gage of North Andover. His grandfather
Gage first spread plaster in this vicinity, on this place as
a fertilizer.
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 249
276.
Parker Cellar. — Towards the North Andover line
from No. 275, and on the same side of the road in Mr.
Nathaniel Gage's field, stood the Parker house, which was
doubtless built by John, son of John and Mary Hovey, who
was born in No. 275, in 1727. He married, first, Marcy
Jackson of Rowley in 1753 ; she died in childbirth, probably
in 1755, at the age of twenty-four. He married, sec-
ondly, Mary Cole in 1757, by whom he probably had no
children. His only child was Marcy, born in 1755. She
married William Parker of Andover in 1781, and they re-
sided on the place. They had eight children, the first
seven of them being baptized at their house on one day,
Aug. 15, 1797. The parents had been admitted to the
church here the June before. William, the oldest child,
on the day of his baptism, "was admitted to ye ordinance
of the chh, upon condition of considering himself under
the watch and subject to the discipline of the church." He
was but fifteen years of age ; very young indeed to become
connected with the church in those times. They had three
sons and five daughters — William, Abigail, Hannah, Es-
ther, Mary, Susanna, John and Benjamin.
Mr. Parker either died or removed from the town in
1826, as he is taxed for the place and not for his poll that
year. His sons Benjamin and John were taxed here for
the last time in 1825.
Mr. Parker had a remarkable dream, which, unlike most,
came to pass to the letter. A man seemed to appear to him
near the barn (which is yet standing) and told him that he
would lose his whole family, naming them in the order they
would die, the family then consisting of his wife and the
four youngest children. The dream was fulfilled soon
after.
250 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
In 1827, Aaron Henry came hereto live. He was away
1831-1833, here the next year, and from 1835 to 1843,
inclusive, was taxed for the farm. He removed in 1844 to
Bradford. He went to Springfield soon after, and was in
trade there, then to Holyoke, and afterward to Charlton,
Mass., where he died in 1858. His widow died at Chic-
opee, in July, 1883. Their three sons, William, Parker
and John C, lived here probably, during the interval when
Mr. Henry was away, 1831-1833.
John Thompson lived herein 1845, andFrancis C. Whit-
tier soon after, subsequently moving to the Kimball house,
No. 270.
The house was taken down about 1853, and a part of the
lumber was used in building a house on Ward hill, in
Bradford, now owned by John Richardson. The house
was two stories in height and measured about 32x28 feet,
being finished with dado boards. It faced the west, and the
chimney was in the middle. The well was about three rods
south of the house.
John Day bought the farm about 1853, and took the
house down. About four years later he sold to Dea.
Daniel K. Gage. It is now owned by Dea. Nathaniel
Gage.
277.
Warren Perley Cellar. — About 1850, John Day, jr.,
built a house for Warren Perley near No. 276. Mr. Per-
ley lived in it two or three years, and then removed to
Bradford, where he now resides. After his removal, it
was sold by Mr. Day to Joshua Ellis of Ward hill, Brad-
ford, whence it was removed by twenty-eight yoke of oxen.
It measured 32x16 feet, and had an ell.
278.
The Hanson Cellar.— The old black house that lately
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 251
stood near the residence of Mr. Geo. B. Austin, was known
as the Hanson house ; why, we do not know. This house was
probably built by a Mr. Hovey. Esther Hovey married
Peabody, which gave it the name of the Peabody
house. It came to Mr. Peabody's son Daniel, after the
death of his parents, and he died while dressing to be
married to Sally, daughter of Abraham Tyler.
Francis C. Whittier moved from No. 270 to this house
about 1849 ; and after living here two or three years moved
to his new house No. 258.
THE RUINED HOUSE.
"Gloom is around thy lonely hearth,
silent house, once filled with mirth."
Mrs. Hemans.
"0 lonely ruin, that erewhile didst lift
Thy time-worn frame against the tempest's shock,
But met it firmly, e'en as breasts the wave
In its wild wrath, the surge-repelling rock,—
"Lonely and silent,— silent ! no, a voice
Comes from the wakened echoes of the past,
Through the dim vista of departed years,
I see their lengthened shadows broadly cast.
"Gay sounds of mirth were in those dim, old walls,
In those bright days when time went lightly by,
There were glad voices round the pleasant hearth,
And love beamed kindly from th' approving eye.
"Then childhood's careless glee in merry shout,
And pleasant song in joyous strain were poured,
Old age was tended with endearing care,
And friends were bidden to the welcome board.
"They parted, and all desolate and lone
Thou stood'st awhile, like them to pass away,
And I a moment muse beside the spot
That saw thee slowly yielding to decay."
252
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
279.
B. Tyler House.— The house near Mr. George B. Aus-
tin's residence was formerly owned by Bradstreet Tyler.
It descended to his daughter, and her heirs sold it many
years ago to Mr. Austin, who still owns it. It is a tene-
ment house.
280.
Residence of G. B. Austin. — The house of Mr.
George B. Austin was built by Bradstreet Tyler about
1800. He died in 185-, and the farm descended to his
daughter Charlotte, who had married Charles Pearl. After
Mr. Pearl's death, his widow married Mr. Austin, who
bought the farm in 1879, and ha since resided upon it.
281.
Residence of Mrs. J. P. Cole.— The residence of
Mrs. Joseph P. Cole was built by Mr. Caleb M. Cole in
the winter of 1854-55. Mr. Cole bought the land, one
half acre, of Bradstreet Tyler in October, 1854, and sold
it with the house thereon in March, 1855, to Joseph P.
Cole, whose widow has owned it since his death.
282.
Residence of J. W. Chadwick.— Dea. Joshua T. Day
bought the place now in the possession of Mr. James War-
ren Chadwick in 18—, and died in 1875. Shortly after-
ward the place was purchased by Mr. Chadwick, who has
made the farm one of the most productive in New Eng-
land.
283.
Ivory Hovey Cellar.— Near the brook, on the west
side of the road between the houses of Mr. J. Warren Chad,
wick and the late Asa Kimball, stood an old Hovey house.
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 253
It was erected by Luke Hovey, who settled at No 255, and
he and his wife spent the last few years of their lives here.
Mr. Hovey died in 1751, and this place then came into the
possession of his son Joseph Hovey, who was horn at No.
255, in 1712. He married Rebecca Stickney of Bradford in
1744, and resided here. He was a deacon of the church in
thisparish from 1759 till his death, which occurred in 1785,
when he was seventy-three years of age. His wife died in
1788. Their children were, Dolly, who married Samuel
Clark of Danvers. Joseph, who lived here awhile, and then
settled at No. 289. Lucy, who married Thomas Cross of
Bradford. Ivory, who lived on the homestead. Lois, who
died at the age of six years. Rebecca, who married Amos
Perley. Amos. Lois, who married Amos Gage. Thomas.
Joseph Hovey was succeeded on the place by his two
sons, Joseph and Ivory. Joseph was born in 1746 ; and
he married Mary Porter in 1773. In November, 1790, he
was the lucky owner of ticket Mo. 760 in the fifth-class
of the state lottery, which drew a prize of a thousand dollars.
With this money he wisely purchased farm No. 289, to
which he removed.
Ivory Hovey, the other son, continued to reside on the
homestead. He was born in 1750 ; married Lucy Peabody
in 1772, and lived here until his death. He became a cap-
tain in the militia, and was also an officer in the war of the
Revolution. He died in 1832, at the age of eighty-two,
and in the death column of the Salem Gazette of the next
week appeared the following obituary notice: —
"In Boxford, August 27, Capt. Ivory Hovey, aged 82 Aii ardent
patriot and revolutionary soldier — who was in the hottest of the bat-
tle of Bunker Hill — sustained theofficeof orderly Sergeant under ('apt.
Robinson in the trying scenes in New Jersey and Long Island— was in
the battle of Trenton and distinguished himself at sundry times by
many fearless and heroic deeds — was a man of noble and generous
heart — an obliging personal friend, and an active friend of humanity."
33
254 THE DWELLING8 OF BOXrORD.
Captain Hovey had several children, one of whom,
Charles, removed to Warren, Me., in 1803, and established
the tanning business there, being joined two years later
by his brother Ivory.
A few years after Captain Hovey 's death, there remained
no vestige of this home, but the narcissus of the old gar-
den, which still springs up near the brook.
284.
Joseph Wood Cellar. — Between the houses of Mr. J.
Warren Chadwick and the late Asa Kimball on the same
side of the road, and reached by a lane, was the dwelling of
"Granny Wood." This was probably the home of Daniel
Wood, son of Dr. David Wood, who willed to Daniel in
1744 a farm bought of Nathaniel Peabody. Daniel was born
in 1706, and married Sarah Peabody in 1731. They had
three sons and four daughters. The eldest son and second
child was Joseph, who was born in 1734. He married, in
1753, Mary, or Molly (as she was generally called), Var-
num of what is now North Andover, and from the district
called Pilferville. Joseph Wood died in 1801.
His wife had the notoriety of being the first to bring
tomatoes into this neighborhood, about 1809. She called
them Jacobins, from the political opinions of the person of
whom she obtained them. She used to go to Salem to
market on horse-buck, and it is said she, through her horse,
first brought to this place that farmer's pest known as
white- weed, or by whatever name it may be called.
Granny Wood was a good neighbor, and beloved by all
for her kind disposition. Her nick-name vvas"for-ti-knavv,"
a favorite expression of hers, and a contraction possibly of
''far as I know." She used to relate with glee how, once
when she was riding to Salem horseback, she saw a bird fly
from its nest. She dismounted, took the nest, which had
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 255
three young birds in it, and on getting to Salem sold nest
and birdlings for three coppers.
The children of Mr. Wood were as follows : —
1. Josiah, horn in 1754, was a revolutionary soldier,
and at last lived in New York state. 2. Sarah, born in 1757,
married Joseph Carleton, who lived in No. 85. 3. Judith,
born in 1759, lived in North Andover. 4. Joseph died
at the age of thirteen months. 5. Deborah married John
Buckminster, who lived in No. 256, and died here in 1804.
6. Daniel was born in 1765. 7. Nathan, born in 1767,
was a shoe-maker, and lived in Salem. He had several
daughters and one son, the latter having deformed hands.
8. Joseph lived on the place with his parents. 9. Fanny,
born new year's day, 1774, married George Underwood of
Salem in 1799, and lived in that town. Their children
were, Sally, who was the originator of the expression, com-
mon in this neighborhood, "too tough to die," because
granny was seventy-five years old and still alive ; Joseph ;
and Fanny.
Mr. Wood's son Joseph always lived at home. He was
born in 1770, and married Polly, daughter of Runnells
Foster in 1796. She was a pretty woman. Of their
children, Mary died of a fever, at the age ot ten; Isaac
disappeared, and at last turned up at Saybrook, Conn. ; and
Deborah, who was brought up by her aunt Judith Wood
in North Andover, still resides in Boxford, at the age of
nearly ninety.
Joseph Wood had a rosebush, which bore white double
blossoms. This was the original of several in the neigh-
borhood. He used to train his that he might gather the
flowers from the second-story window.
The barn here stood in the field for some years after the
house was gone; and there were quince bushes near the
cellar.
256 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
285.
Asa Kimball House. — The residence of the late Asa
Kimball was built by James Carleton in 1846. Mr. Kim-
ball lived here many years, and died about 1885. His
widow has since resided here.
286.
Moses Hale Cellar. — Across the street from the res-
idence of the late Daniel Wood was an old cellar. The
house that stood here was built by Pelatiah Lakeman,
probably about 1767, the time of Mi-. Lakeman's marriage
with Eunice Barker of Andover. He was a son of William
and Susannah Lakeman, and was born in Boxford in 1742.
His father came from Ipswich about 1731. Pelatiah had
six children born here, Nathan, Daniel, Jedediah, Isaac,
Stephen and Betty. The family moved out of the West
parish in 1780-81, and in 1793 were dismissed from the
church here to the Second church in Exeter, N. H. His
father William Lakeman lived until 1739 in the old Pearl
house, No. 259.
Jan. 3, 1777, this place was owned by Job Tyler (whose
wife was Elizabeth), who had probably lived in No. 218.
On the date named, he sold this place to the Rev. Moses
Hale, for £240, and removed to Rindge, N. H. There
were then thirty-two acres of land, a house, barn and shop.
Mr. Hale lived here. He was born in Rowley, Feb. 19,
1749. He was a son of Rev. Moses Hale of Newbury, a
graduate of Harvard college in 1771, and was settled over
the Second church in 1774. Mr. Hale married Elizabeth,
daughter of Col. Stephen Emery of Newbury (now West
Newbury), about a year after his ordination, and his father
thus records the event in his diary : "Dec. 28, 1775.
Fair ; moderate and pleasant for ye season. We were at
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 257
Col. Emery's p. m., married my son Moses," etc. They
had five children. Mrs. Hale died in April, 1785, and Mr.
Hale followed her in May of the following year. Mr. Hale's
epitaph is as follows : —
"In the dark caverns of the fflent Tomb,
The old, the young, the gay, all ages come.
Here lies inter r'd the Prieft in fable urn ;
Here meet his flock & each to duft return.
Thefe iron gates no more fhall e'er be burft,
Till heav'ns command fhall wake the fleeping duft,
And then Creations vaft, immenfe fhall rise,
And men with Angels throng th' etherial fkies.
The God of Nature thus from heav'n hath fpoke,
Nor Men nor Angels can his word revoke.
It muft be fo ! then let my foul refign,
And be prepared for his will divine."
The following is Mrs. Hale's epitaph :—
"Daughters of Eve of every age draw near
Drop o'er this hallow'd urn the friendly tear
Here lies Y e Pious Prudent cheerful Kind
An active, vigorous Yet a Gentle Mind
How Bright her virtues in Domeftic life
The Careful Parent & the faithful Wife
But what Sacred Peace what joy Serene
Graced & Perfumed her dying words & mien
With all Y e Chriftian Speaking in her Eyes
She bids this World adiue & Gains her native Skies."
After Mr. Hale's death the place came into the posses-
sion of Lemuel Wood, father of the late venerable Daniel
Wood. Mr. Wood died in 1819, at the age of seventy-
seven. He had seven children, the sixth of whom was
Daniel, who was born here Feb. 10, 1793. The house
was afterward used as a school-house, from about 1836, by
Miss Eveline Reynolds, who titled young ladies for teach-
ing. She generally had about twenty-five scholars. The
house was taken down about 1845.
287.
Daniel Wood House.— The late venerable Daniel Wood
258 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXPORD.
built his residence in the summer of 1820, hut it was not
occupied till the following April. In 1835, he built on the
back part. In 1849, he made some repairs, and in 185G
shingled, clapboarded and painted the house, and added
the pediment. In 1880, he put in the modern windows of
four panes each, and the next year painted both outside and
inside of the house. Mr. Wood was a son of Lemuel
Wood, who lived across the street, in No. 286. He died
in 1888 at the age of ninety-six, being until a few months
before his decease as hale and hearty as in his prime.
His son, William Hale Wood, always lived at home, and
died in 1891 at the age of sixty-seven, leaving a widow.
He was town clerk during the years of the Rebellion, and
tilled other public offices.
288.
A. P. Hovey House. — The house lately occupied by
Mr. Albert P. Hovey was built by himself in 1885. He
moved from this house to No. 233.
289.
Barker Free School. — Where the residence of the
principal of the Barker free school stands, was formerly
the Clark house. William Clark, who was probably its
builder, came from Reading, and bought the land in 1705.
lie married Jean and had a son John born here in
1712, who died at two years of age. Mr. Clark was a
weaver by trade. About 1730, he sold the place to Dr.
David Wood. Shortly after, he became a pauper, and was
boarded out in different families until he died at the house of
Benjamin Porter, Feb. 8, 1742-43, being treated by Dr.
Benjamin Foster. The place was occupied from 1733 by
Dr. Wood's son David, to whom he gave the farm in his
will which was proved in 1744.
David Wood was born in 1709, married Matey Pea-
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 259
body ( ?) in 1733, and died in 1785, at the age of seventy-
five. His widow was living in 1791. His children were,
Huldah, who was of Box ford and unmarried in 1791 ;
Mary, who married James Boynton, and lived across the
street; Mercy, who died in 1753, at the age of* twelve;
Irene, who died in 1753, at the age of four; and David,
who died in 1762 at the age of eight. Irene died the next
day after Mercy. In 1791, the heirs sold this place to
Joseph Hovey, and removed to Methnen.
Joseph Hovey was a son of Joseph and Rebecca (Stick-
ney) Hovey, and was born at No. 255 in 1746. He mar-
ried, in 1773, Mary Porter, who died in 1819. They had
eight children, the youngest of whom, Thomas Stickney
Hovey, born here in 1792, resided on the place. He was
the father of Mr. Albert P. Hovey, and the last resident
of this farm. Mr. Hovey's widow still resides in town.
The house has been down for some ten years.
The Barker free school buildings were erected in 1888,
and the two principals who have lived in the house have
been Stephen Cutter Clark and N. B. Sargent.
290.
J. Boynton Cellar. — On the opposite side of the road
from Xo. 289 was an old cellar, over which stood the house
in which resided dames Boynton, who was killed at the bat-
tle of Blinker Hill in 1775. He was a son of Nathan Boyn-
ton of what is now Georgetown, and was born there in
1739. He married Mary, daughter of David Wood of Box-
ford in 1763. They had live children. It is said that the
musket he used on the dayof his death is preserved in some
museum. Of the house we know nothing more. Mr.
Boyutou's family removed to Methuen about 1780.
291.
Residence of N. K. Fowler. — The house of Mr. Na-
260 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
than K. Fowler was erected by a man named Chadwick
about 17 — . Before 1817 this place belonged to Moses
Chadwick. The land, three acres, and buildings were set
off to George H. Ingersoll of Charlestown, N. H., on an
execution against Chadwick. He sold it to Daniel Adams,
who lived at No. 239, in 1817. In 1823, Mr. Adams
sold to Hannah Dale of Boxford, single woman.
William R. Kimball, Esq., owned and occupied this
house many years previous to the death of his first wife,
and made extensive repairs on it about 1850. Mr. Fow-
ler has lived here many years.
292.
Dr. Foster Cellar. — A short distance north of the late
residence of Mr. Albert P. Hovey is the site of the house
of Dr. Benjamin Foster. Dr. Foster was born in Ipswich in
1700, being son of Benjamin and Ann Foster. His father
was born in Ipswich in 1670, removed to Boxford from
Topsfield in 1720, and had two children born here. Mr.
Foster was a weaver by trade, and probably lived on this
place. He removed to Billenca about 1729, and died at
Lunenburg in 1735. Dr. Foster, the son, married Lydia
Burbank in 1730, and by her he had several children, Caleb,
Benjamin, Asa (these three, all they then had, died of the
throat distemper in the fall of 1736, within a space of
thirty-seven days, being aged five, three and one year re-
spectively), Lydia, who married Jonathan Woodbury of
Salem, N. H., in 1758, and Hannah, who died at the age
of ten years. Jan. 17, 17(50, his wife died of the small-
pox : and he married, the following year, widow Sarah Low
of Ipswich. He died, of the asthma, Dec. 19, 1775, at
the age of seventy-rive. Felt, in his History of Ipswich,
says of him: "He had been in the practice of his profes-
sion over fifty years, was a distinguished botanist, and a
successful and skillful physician."
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 261
The following obituary notice of Doctor Foster appeared
in the Essex Gazette, in its issue of Jan. 18-25, 1776 :—
"Ipfwich, Dec. 23, 1775. Laft Tuefday evening died fuddenly of an
afthmatic complaint, and yefterday were decently interred the remains
of, Dr. Benjamin Fostkr. He feemed to be one of thofe genmfes
defigned by nature for the practice of the medical art. In this em-
ployment he fignalized himfelf by his uncommon fuccefs, for upwards
of fifty years. In confequence of his extenfive fkill in Botany he made
ufe chiefly of the Materia Medica of our own climate. He had a com-
prehenfive undemanding of the animal economy; and had not only a
thorough knowledge of the caufe diagnofticks, and prognofticks of a
diftemper; and could accurately diftinguifh one difeafe from another;
but was alfo moft ready in his application of the moft fuitable and
proper remedies ; fo that he was at once a moft fkillful, able, and fuc-
cefsful phyfician; and the many feeble and infirm fubjects in this and
the neighbouring towns muft fincerely lament his lofs. He was up-
wards of 70 years of age."
Dr. Foster must have had a second son by the name of
Benjamin, who survived him; as, April 21, 1777, Benja-
min Foster of Boxford (who in his deed mentions no occu-
pation), conveyed the homestead to Samuel Porter of
Boxford, cordwainer, for £20. The description of the
property, as given in the deed, is as follows : "bounded
beginning at the northeaft corner of the Rev d
M r Hales land thence running up the hill as the fence
now ftands on the fide of the road to Deacon Chadwicks
land, thence northwefterly on s d Chadwicks line to the
pond, thence northeafterly on the pond to M r Hale's land
& fo on f 1 Hales line as the fence now ftands to the first
mentioned bounds together with the houfe & barn now
ftanding on s d land containing about two acres & an half."
Mr. Porter sold the place the following year, for £60, to
John Barker, 3d, of Andover, yeoman. In 1781, Mr.
Barker sold out to Rev. Moses Hale who owned the ad-
joining homestead. The house and barn had probably
been taken down by Mr. Barker, as they are mentioned
in the deed to him, but in the deed he gives to Mr. Hale
34
2G2 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD.
no mention is made of them, and the consideration paid by
Mr. Hale was only £13, 10s. The lot was afterward
identified as a part of the homelot of Mr. Hale, who lived
at No. 280.
293.
M. Chadwick House. — The house vacated six years
ago by Mr. Albert P. Hovey, near Mr. N. K. Fowler's,
was a building used as a store by Benjamin Pearl, which
stood where Mrs. William P. Cole's house now stands. It
was eventually purchased by Moses Chadwick, then living
at Mr. Fowler's house, who moved it to its present site, and
modeled it into a house. Mr. Chadwick's widow afterward
married Turner, and died about 1853. Samuel Green-
wood, who afterward lived there, made additions to the barn.
Mr. N. K. Fowler and others, beside Mr. Hovey, also lived
there.
294.
N. K. Fowler's Tenement House. — The building in
which the free school was at first located was finished oil"
for a house by Mr. N. K. Fowler, some eleven years ago,
and we believe it had been used as a house in some stage
of its existence.
295.
Residence of C. E. Park. — The residence of Rev. Cal-
vin Emmonds Park was built by Mr. James Carleton for the
Second parish in 1845. The L was afterward built by Cle-
ment & Abbott of Andover. The house was purchased the
following year, and has since been occupied, by Mr. Park.
He was a son of Rev. Calvin Park of Providence, U. I.,
where he was born in 1811, and was settled as colleague
with Dr. Eaton in 184(>, coming from a pastorate of six
years at Waterville, Me. His son Charles is a clergyman,
THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFORD. 263
and was for several years a missionary in India, being now
settled in the ministry in Connecticut. Mr. Park resigned
in 1859, but continued his residence here, teaching a pri-
vate school. He is a brother of Professor Park of the
Andover Theological Seminary.
296.
T. W. Dunn Cellar. — About where the West-parish
public library building stands were two buildings, one a
dwelling-house, the other a blacksmith's shop. Moses Chad-
wick lived in the house, and worked at the trade of a black-
smith in the shop. He was a son of David and Sarah Chad-
wick, and was born in 1767. He married Sarah Sargent in
1789, and had five children, Mary, Sally, Dane, Permelia
and Moses, who died in 1806. He sold his land, house,
blacksmith's shop and his "trading shop," which stood on
land of Moses Porter, in 1797, to Phineas Cole of Brad-
ford. There was one acre of land. This afterward came
into the possession of Benjamin Pearl, who built the resi-
dence of Mrs. Wm. R. Cole. Subsequently, the place was
owned by Thomas W. Dunn. At last, some one set fire
to the buildings, and they, with their contents, were totally
destroyed.
297.
M. Chadwick Cellar. — At the east end of Mr. John
I. Ladd's residence, near the highway, stood a two-story
building, which was owned and occupied by Moses Chad-
wick, who had lived at No. 296. In a part of the house
Mr. Chadwick kept a store. The store was afterward kept
by Albert Hervey, and later by Stephen Peabody. It was
subsequently owned by Ephraim Foster, who, at his death
in 1835, gave the Foster school fund to the parish ; and
eventually came into the possession of Mis. Hovey, the
owner of Xo. 242, who took the building down in 187.').
264 THE DWELLINGS OF BOXFOED.
298.
Residence of John Cass. — Mr. John Cuss, who had
been living at No. 162, built his present home in 1891.
He is a son of Mr. Thomas Cass of Topsfield, and a
farmer.
INDEX.
Abbott. 100, 262.
Academy, 105, 163.
Accident-, 6.31. 53, 78, 121,
162, 172, 23s, 247.
Adams, 5, 12, 25, 26, 33, 37,
73, 77, S5-87, 92, 97, 99,
162,165, 183,203,208,212-
215,242,260.
Daniel, 97, 213, 214, 260.
D. Lewis, 97.
Edwin S., 208, 213.
Isaac, 85.
Israel, 87.
Dea. John, 165.
Joseph, 26.
Joseph I! , 97.
Sam'l, 165, 183.
Advertisements, 72. 77, 160,
194, 223.
Albany, N. Y.. 114. 203.
Alcott', 54, 101, 103, 150.
Rev. Win. P., 51, 10!.
Alden, 207.
Alexander, N T . Y., 26.
Allen, Prof. Frederic D.,
104, in:,.
Almshouse, L6. 73.82, 179.
Ambrose, David, 97.
America, 166.
Ames, l'.io-lit:;, 196, 197, 207,
223. Sec Karnes.
John, 196.
Jonathan, 191.
Joseph, 191.
Rebecca, 191.
Robert, mi.
Amesbury, Mass., 39, 222.
Amherst, Mass., 132.
N. II., 64, 65, 212.
A in in ii, 199.
Anderson, 204, 207, 208
Chas. R., 204.
Roberl B., 207.
Andover, Me., 20, 10.
Mass., 3,20, 2K, 36, I!, 53,
r,r,, 63, 75, 82, 83.
'.111. in, 100, lor,, 106, 124.
151, 154, 172, IT:;. 177.
JTs, 180, 1,-1. 186-189,
195, 197-199, -Jo,, 207,
211, 222-22;.. -221. 22S,
230. 236, 212, 2is, 249,
250, 201-20:;,
Andre, 240.
Andrew, l-aac W., 221, 238.
Gov. John A., 128,221.
Jonathan, 221.
Andrews, 32, 46, 50-52, 09,
107, 116-118, 122, 121,
125, 127-1-2!). 131. 133,
142. 146, 15S. 160, 100,
171, ISO, 187,221.
Asa. 52.
Daniel, 115, 131.
Dean, 115.
Jacob, 116, 128. 133.
James, 160, 171.
John, 50, 124.
Dr. John, 171.
Joseph, 50.
Mehitable, 187.
Nathan, 124. 125, 171.
Robert, 121, 127,221.
Sam'l, 125.
Tims.. 158.
\Vm. M., 46.
Andros, 131.
Anecdotes, 12, 37, 12:;, 125,
111, 102.
Angouleme, 135.
Aquitaine, 135.
Arnold, 239.
Arrington, Walter 11., 13.
Artist'; I'H'. 218.
Arundel, Me., 232.
Ashby, Mass., 200.
Ashford, Conn.. '.19, 21:;.
A sington, Bng., 00.
Atheling, 135.
Atherton, 155, 176, ITS, 187.
Prof. Ceo. W., 155, 178.
Otis, 155.
Win. II., 170.
Alkius N. II., 68.
Auburn, X. Y., 01
Auctions, ;.' 109, 117, 10:;.
Augusta, Me., 102, 103, 129,
L30, 101.
Austin, 229, 251, 252.
Geo. B., 252.
Averill, 54, 150, 159, 169,
170.
Elijah, 109.
John, 54, I .9.
Joseph, ir.o.
Aver, 201
107-109, II':, 189,202.
s Prank, L08.
Sam'l N., n>;. bis, no, L89.
Bacon, ', ;, L07.227, 234, 235.
Abigail, io7.
John, 227, 235.
Bacon, Dr. Josiah.234,235.
Zachariah, 234.
Badger, Wm. J„ 47.
Bagley, l»:i.
Bailey, John G., 7.
Baker, 15.22,201, 231, 233.
John, 201.
Balch, 10, 75.
Cornelius, 16.
P.ald hill, 136.
Baldpate hill, 75, 194.
P.ald win. 23, 87.
Eben S., 23.
P.ald win, .Me., 204.
Ballon, Murray R., 76, 80.
Baltimore, Md., 129.
Bansror, .Me., 32, 59, 103,
198.
Barbers, 53, 133.
Barker, 03, 82, 88, 100, 187,
198 2IS, 222, 225. 227,
22S, 211, 213, 250, 25S.
259, 261.
Charlotte. 21S.
Henry, 222.
Isaac, 225, 228.
John, 22s. 2oi.
Jonathan T., 222.
Barker Free School, 258,
259. 2^2.
Barnard, 31 35
Panics. 11, 19, 21. 37, 10, 41.
43.44, 70. 101,231.
Benj. s., u.
Phineas, 10, 11.
Phincas W.. 40, ! 1
Barnstead, N. II., 217.
Barre, Ml . 101.
Bartlett, Dr. Cyrus K., 149.
Dr. Joseph K , 113. 149.
B itavia, III.. 203.
l'. itchelder, 68, 70, 79, so,
163, 105. 100, 238.
Edward G., 80.
Jacob, 79.
John Q.. 80.
Sam'l II., so.
Baxter. 87.
134.
. I ■:. E., 220.
Bears, 142.
Beam
Beaufet, An old, 169.
203.
Belfast, Me., 203.
Bennington, \ I . SO, 64.
Bentley, Jas., 179.
(265)
266
INDEX.
Bentlev, John, 177, 179.
Berlin, Vt., 28, 63.
Berry, 107, 170, 186, 187.
Amos, 187.
Horace, 187.
Bethel, Me., 129, 145.
Bevcrlv, Mass.,!), 111. 24, 03.
73, 84. 162, 164, 169, 170,
177, 18!).
Bible, An old, 230
Biddeford, Me., 202.
Billerica, Mass., 29, 260.
Bixhv, 2. 8,9, 14, (JO. 7S. 105,
107, 114, 115, 136, 158,
159, 183.
Daniel, 2, 8, 9.
George, 60.
Gideon, 00,158.
Hasket, 14.
Jonathan. 114.
Joseph, 60.
Sam'l, 105.
Stephen A., 105.
Black, 43, 44, 188.
Daniel, 44.
James, 43, 188.
Blackburn, Geo., 177-179.
Blacksmiths, 14, 15, 40, 51,
61,62, 69, 72, 107-109,
116, 117, 162, 195, 207,
208, 219, 220, 263.
Blaine, 103.
Blaisdell, 25.
John S., 25.
Blake, 90, 193, 196, 197, 223.
Geo.. L96.
Bligh, ,146.
Blindness, 70, 83, 123.
Bliss, 203.
Blissville, N.B., 9.
Blood. 203.
Blue Hill, Me., 84.
Bly, Win., 7. 00.
Boardman, is, id.
Daniel, 18, 19.
Bod well, II, 72,82, 224.
Daniel, 72.
L. Warwick, 11.
Nelson, 82.
Bokenson, 3.
Bolton, Mass., 51,122.
Bonaparte, 217.
Booth, 146.
Win., 146.
Boscawen, N. II., 72.
Boston, Me. 31.
Mass., 23.34,36, 45,46,61,
00, os, 72, so, s;, 88, '.'0.
94,104, 105, 110,111,130,
111, 119. 163, 165, loo,
L69, 170, 174, ITS, 193,
198, 205, 219. 221, 235,
2:;o, ^;;>, 211.
Bound out, 211.
Bowers. 72.
Boxford, Eng., 127.
Mass., 1-201.
Washington Guards, 150.
Boynton, 170, 259.
Jas.. 259.
Braekett, 131.
Bradford, Mass., 8, 32, 50,
71. 71. S3, ss, 89. 93. 97,
132, 102, 170, 185, lot;.
200, 202, 207. 210, 21.',
211. 210, 220, 231. 234.
230, 242-245, 217. 250,
253, 263.
P.radshaw, 203.
Bradstreet, 25, 70, 137, 110,
lis, i.-,s, 200.
Billy, 200.
Moses, 70.
Bremner, Rev. David, L83,
184.
Bridge builder, 196.
Bridges. 1."., 10.
Josiah, 1").
Bridgton, Me., 9. 10, 20,
100, 122, 150, 100.
Briggs, Rev. Isaac, 156, 157,
104. 105.
Orchard, 150.
Brighton. N. V., 144.
British Provinces, 17.
Brookfleld. Mass.. 78, 132.
Brooklvn, N. Y.. 58, 86, 87,
122."
Broughton, 135.
Brown, 50, 59. 75, 100, 109,
134, lid, 186, 2oi. 2n ;.
207, 217, 230-232, 230.
246.
, 146.
Albert, 58, 104.
Allied, 109.
Cornelius, 236.
John, 100.180,217.
John W.. 200.
Joseph, 204.
Sam'l, 50.
Bryant. 171.
Buck, 223.
Buekmaster. See Buckmin-
Buckminster, 217, 232-211,
255.
John, 232-234.
Buffalo, N. Y.. 132.
Buford, X. B., 9.
Bunker, Klisha G., 101. 102,
107, 217.
Biirbank,2U, 260.
Ebenezer, 211.
Burgoyne, 123.
Burkbee, 85.
Burn ham, 51, 70, 7'.), no.
120, 122, 105,227, 228.
Nath'l, 51.
Rufus, 70, 79.
.sell), 227.
Burpee, 12, .
Buswell, 3:1,50. 57. no
John. 56.
.Sam'l. 50.
Butchers, 11,40. 43. 68, loo,
104,217.
Butler, is;,
Butman, 21, 40, 56, 57, 104
David. 57.
John, 24.
Matthew, 24.
Butman, Thos.. in.
Buxton, Me., 42, 198.
Byam, 179.
Byfield Parish, Ma>s., 17.
22, 25. 71, 71, 102.
Caesar, 199.
Calais, Ale., 204.
Calcutta. India. 17.
Calligan, . 185.
Cambridge, Ms., 19.29, lit.
Camp Stanton, 23. 37.
Canada, 97,202. 208, 21'.).
Candace, 199.
Candia, X. II.. 21. 68.
Cane, An old. 177.
Canmore, 135.
Canterbury, X. II., 190.
Cape Ami, 52.
Cape Horn, 241.
( larey, Lawrence, 222.
Caiieton, 63, 87,88, 179, 203,
204, 200, 207, 214. 215,
226, 22s, 229, 231, 230,
255, 250, 202.
Amos, 201.
James, 204, 200.
Joseph, 88.
Leonard, 88.
Kebecca W., 229.
Robert, 200.
Sam'l |l. , 88.
Carpenters, n, 51. 70, 71,
107, 108, 110, 123-125,
13:;, 134. 140, 101, 173,
174, 170, 189, 197, 200,
204, 213, 215. 218,
2 01.241.
Carriage building. 18.
Cass, 158, 2oi.
John. 158, 204.
Cemeteries. 30.
Ate dent. Ot.
Harmony, 19. 24. 37. 3!).
40, 48, 75. 78.
Centenarians, 20. 39, 03.
Chadwick. si, 167, 197. 202,
207, 221. 233, 244-247,
252, 251, 260-263.
Mrs. Eunice, 215. 246.
Geo. W.. 215, 210.
Jas. W.,252.
Mo>es. 200. 202, 203.
Thos., 221.
Chan, Her, 121,211.
Chapman. 7. 39. 40, 72. 79.
69, 92, 118, 127, 134.
Daniel 39.
Edward A., 118.
lonathan, 7.
Charlemont, Ms., 132.
Charleston, S.C., 233.
Charlestown, Ms., 18, 15,
119, 173, 179.
\. 11., 260.
Chase, 204, 208, 213.
I- rank W., 204.
Chatham, Ms., 105.
Cheese. 23.
INDEX.
267
Chelmsford, Ms., 25, ITS.
Cheney, Leander II.. 154.
Cheraw Co., S. C, 84.
Cherry Valley, N. V., 240.
Chester, N. i'l.. 32,44, 159,
164.
Chicopee, Ms., 250.
Church, 9.
Churches,
First, 12, 23, 44,58, 65, OS,
78, 106. 108-110, 113,119,
130, 132, 156, 167.
Second, 44. 86, 197, 200,
221, 225, 237, 247. 249,
■J.-)!;. 262.
Third, 105-107.
Chute, 21. 22.
Jas. ,21.
Cider, 59, 99.
Clark, 5, 32.41, 73. 75, 114,
183, 253. 258. 259.
Sam'l, 41. 73.
Stephen C, 259.
Win., 258.
Cleaveland, 4, 9, 11. 238.
Jas. P., 4, 9-11.
Win. N., 10.
Wm. P., 11, 238.
Cleaves, 9.
Clement, 208,213, 218,262.
Sam'l W., 208, 213, 218.
Clergymen, 16, 21, 54, 07,
68, 73, 77, 93, 103, 100,
108-111, 145,140,105, 184.
190, 193. 195, 201, 206,
221, 222, 227, 228, 256,
257, 202, 263.
Clifton, 104.
Clinton, Ms., 76.
Clothing, 21. 23, 86.
Clough. 24.
Daniel, 21.
Chill'. 208.
Cobum. 178,234,239.
David, 234, -239.
Jas., 234, 239.
Justus, 177, 178.
Cocheco, N. 11., 166.
Collin, 202,203.
Coggin, Hev. Win. S., 106,
108, 150.
Cogswell, 11.
Col burn. 83.
Cole. 84, 155-157, 159, 180,
1S9, 208. 211, 212, 218,
2211, 231, 234. 213. 215,
246,249, 252, 202, 203.
Caleb M., 212, 252.
David M., 231.
Ephraim !•'., L89.
.John, 211.
John K ., 155.
Joseph i'., 252.
Manly, 212.
Phineas, 208.
Sam'l, 211,212.
Simeon, 212.
Win. K., 189.
Mrs. U in. K , 218.
"Colleges," "The," 175.
Collyer, Mrs. Chas., 147.
1 olutan, 22.
Conant, 26,112,113,116, 117
Conant, Daniel W.. 112.
Concord. Ms., 42, 71.
N. II., 82.
Condon, Thos., 184.
Congress, Provincial, 5,
34.
Connecticut, 203.
Constantinople, Turkey,
•20:;.
Cook, 62.
Coopers, 12, 14, 16. 57, 60,
158, 169, 177, 200. 211,
239.
Corinth, Me.. 66.
Coshocton, O., 26.
Cotton, 193.
Crane, 22.
Creasey, 196.
Creels, 248.
Crombie, 234.
Crooked pond, 134.
Cross, 49,253.
Crowninshield, 220.
Crown Point, 114.
Cumberland Co., Me., 203.
Cummings, 56, 76, 79, 113,
151, 153, 174, 175, 178.
Jacob, 151, 174.
Sylvester, 76.
Thos., 151.
Cunningham, Joshua W.,
179, 185.
Curious Stone, 225.
Currier, 18, 212.
Curtis, 132, 134-139, 142-146,
148, 151, 152, 164, 189,
196.
Ebenezer, 132.
Francis, 142.
Geo. W., 143.
Jas., 143, 146.
John, 143.
Justin, 139.
Zaccheus, 137.
Zachariah, 134.
Cushing, 89. 193, 194.
Rev. John, 193.
John, 193, 194.
Dacey, Jeremiah, 81, 82.
Dado boards, 250.
Dale, 70, 159, 172, 260.
Osgood, 159.
Sam'l, 172.
Danbury, N. II., 234.
Danvers, Ms., 12, 18,32,33,
16, 50, 57. 63, 64, 71, 79.
100, 101, 108, 113, 130,
131, 133, 131. 110, 147,
151. 152, 157, 161, 104,
171, 182, 183,227,253.
Darling, , 20.
Dai I mouth, Ma . 167.
Davis, 32, 58, 70, 101, 104
114, 213. 2M. 225, 220
'22S
Moses, 21 1.
Paul ('., 70
lol. lol.
Day, 214, 215, 234, 245,247
"250.
Day. Isaac C, 214, 215.
John, 245, 247.
John T., 215.
Joshua T., 231, 252.
Deal mutes, 195.
Deaths, accidental. etc., 6,
20. 31. 32, 35.45. 48,53,
68, 72, 73,78,84,88, 121,
159, 162, 172, 174, 220,
■»'>S, 229. 233-235, 238,
241,247,251,259.
De Bevoise, Kev. Gabriel
H., 228.
Deerlield, N. H., 231.
Delft ware, 241.
Delfthaven. 241.
Denmark, 77.
Me., 198.
Denver, Col., 104.
Deny, N. II., 214, 233.
Dewksbury, 109.
Dickinson, 61, 182.
Diseases, etc., 27, 29,31,38,
54, 83, 87, 95, 117, 167,
179, 237,260.
District ol Columbia, 247.
Dixmont, Me., 198.
Dodge, 151, 104, 169, 188,
238.
Geo. S., 238.
Nicholas, 169.
Doherty, Geo., 211, 212.
Dole, 3, 205.
Greenleaf, 205.
Dollot, Sylvester, 70, 71.
79.
Dorchester, Ms., 166.
Dorman, 40, 48, 51-54, 82,
83, 94, 104, 116-120, 122-
124, 140, 114, 176, 186,
187, 232.
Ancill, 104, 118.
Elijah, 54.
Ephraim, 54.
Jabez, 232.
John, 40, 119.
John S., 118.
Moses, 121.
Nath'l, 122.
Sam'l, 53.
Timothy, 116, 119, 122.
123.
Dover, N. H., 166.
Dow, Win.. 13.
Doweling, 236.
Dowen, 210, 211.
Mrs. Mary, 210.
Dream, A, 249.
Dresser, ■">. 20, 21. 40, 61, 62,
109, 170. 182, 180.
Daniel, 01.
John, 01.
Nathan, 62.
Tlln.s,, 40.
Win W., 109, 170.
Duffy, Patrick, 208.
Dummer, 17.
Dunbarton, N. H., 82, 39.
235.
Dunn, Thos. W.. 20:;.
Dunnell. See Dtvinntlls.
mm table, Ms., 213.
Durant, Thoa. W., 208,219,
268
INDEX.
Dwinnells, 51, 116, 125, 150.
160. 173, L75-177.
Elijah. 160, 173.
Jacob. 51, 175,
Thos.. 125.
Dyer, 203.
Eames. See Ames.
Joseph, 223.
Nathan, 223.
Earl, 146.
East An. lover. Me., 17(1.
Eastman, 93.
Easty, 16, 134.
Jacob, Hi.
Eaton, 32, 70. 93, 162, 221,
■2-22. 227, 262.
Rev. Peter, 221, 262.
Edward I., 1:15.
Egypt, 217.
Elliott, 1, 130, 150, 185, L86.
Jas. A., 185.
Stephen, 150.
Ellis. 250.
Elmira, N. V , 203.
Emerson. 31, 32, 74, 100, 108,
112, 133, 171, 17M.
Benj., 31.
Rufus W., 74, 108, 171.
Emery, 0."., 156, 157, 17:;. 227,
256, 257.
John, 157.
Joshua, 227.
Stephen, 157.
"Emery's Gate," 157.
Endico'tt, 148.
Joseuh, 148.
Zerubbabel, lis.
England, 16, 145. li
English, 231, 210.
Epitaphs. <;, 24, 30, 30, 41,
43. 70, 78, 79, 86, 94, 115,
172, 180, 222, 2:;7, 257.
Epping, N. II.. 242.
Esney, 71.
Essex Co., Ms., 136,166, 223.
231.
Exeter, N. 11., 10,
256.
Fabens, 101.
Factory, ( otton, 177-17'.*.
Match, 170.
Pagan, Law rence, 88.
Fairfax, Vt., 64.
"Fair Rosamond," 26.
Farley, 07.
Farnham, 106, 198, 220.
Will., 220.
Faulkner, 181.
Fegan, John, 7.
Felt, 260.
Felton, 182.
Fires, l, 12, 14,22,27. :;2. :;:;.
37,48. 71,95, 99, 106, 109,
128, 131, 145, 156, 227,
229, 231, 203.
Fish Brook, 1 17, 205.
Fisk, 132, 143, 185.
Amos, 143.
Joseph li., 185.
i- isk, sam'l, 132.
Fitzalan, 135
Fletcher, 71, 174,200.
Jas.. 200.
Hint, 126, 114, Is.!.
Flora, 207.
Fogg. Oliver!;.. 7.
Foi i 1 dward, 114.
Washington, 77.
Fort Wayne, Ind., 22.
Foster, 51, 60, 81, 89, 94, 95
98, 105, 110,113, 110, 119
124, 126,*48, 149. I53-155
104. 105, 167, 172, 173
178-182, 186, 195, 197
T.iO, 204, 2i 0,21(i. 215, 21 7
225,227,230,232,238.255
25s, 260, 261, 203.
Benj., 200.
Dr. Benj., 200.
David, 51.
Dudley. 195.
Ephraim, 215.
Geo. W., 182.
Israel. 05.
J. Edwards, 95,
Jeremiah. 180.
J. dm, 180.
John F.. 105.
Jonathan, 04, 95.
Joseph. Iso.
Oliver, 225.
Peres, 178.
Phineas, 126.
Polly, 204.
Richard, 154.
Richaid A.. 154.
Richard K., 154.
Sum'l, in.
Simeon, 199.
Timothy, 186.
Wm.. li:;, in;.
Zebediah, 195.
Fowler, 20. 80, 00. 215, 250,
200, 262.
Nathan K., 259, 260, 262.
Sam'l, 89.
Stephen K.. 00.
Foxboro', Ms., 178.
Frame, Andrew, 133, 134.
Fiance. 135, 100.
Frankfort. Me., 66.
Frazier, 58.
Freeman. Miss Alice, 166.
Tiinon. 207.
French, Benj., 95, ill, 122,
200.
Elvin, 111.
Joshua 115.
Walter. 157.
French Neutrals, 71.
Friend, 7. 8, 20.
John, 21;.
Frost, J. B., 204.
Five, 75, 110, 124, 156, 157.
' It 0, 224.
[saac, 119.
Sam'l A , 150.
Fi yeburg, Me., 84.
Fuller, 108, ill, 140. 147,140,
153.
Thos., 147.
Funerals, 48, 52, 159.
Gape, 50, 106,231, 246-250,
253.
Roscoe W.. 100.
Dr. Wm.. 210.
Galbraith, 10:;.
Gallop, 134-136.
Thos., 131130.
Galloway. 21.
Gammell, Kev. Sereno D..
54.
Gardens, Old. 213, 254,255.
Gardner, Chas. W., 47.
General < ourt, 3-5, 2:;. 34-
36, 41, 45. 47, 08, 70. 86,
05, 1(18. 121,150, 161, 100,
237.
Geneva, Switzerland, 50.
Georgetown, Ms., 6, 12. 15,
10, 20. 22. 24, 27, 32, 33,
41, 5:;. 56, 5s, i.l, 62, 66,
70. 71, 73. 75, 70. 81-83,
85. 96, 08, 118. 156, 172.
101. 202, 204, 210. 213,
215. 219, 220, 234, 259.
Gerry, 170.
<;iit>', 2:,. 08. 115.
Cillis. Daniel S.. 157, 159.
Gilman. 64.
Gloucester, Ms., 138, loo.
Goddard, 203.
Goodale, sam'l, 10.
LGoodridge. 8, 58. 59, 03. 83,
89, 03. 137.
Benj., 59, 137.
Sam'l, 58.
Goodwin, Geo., 117.
Wm., 124.
Goshen, Conn.. 29.
Gould, 1,8, 33,52,68-60,100,
111, 117, 121, 125-133,
136, 137, 130-140,140-152,
155, 15:i, 162, 164, 171.
172. 186, 188.
Amos, lio.
Andrews 143.
Cornelius, 132. 151.
Daniel, 50, 136.
Eben s., 139.
Elisha, loi.
Jacob, 130, 144.
Gen. Jacob, 144.
John. 120, 130, 140, 152.
Joseph, 130.
Mary A. B., 59.
Mosee, 129.
.Mrs. Rebecca, 159.
Robert, 1.
Samuel, 131, 132.
Solomon, 125.
Stephen, 128, 152.
Thos., 130. 171.
Zaccbeus, 143.
Gragg, 88.
Reuben, 88.
Grave-diggers, 52, 56.
(■raves, 137, 230.
(.lay. 177. 178.
Greencastle, Ind.. 2.
Greenleaf, 201, 233.
, 201.
Greenslip, 10.
Greenwood. Sam'l, 202,
Groce, Sam'l, 221.
INDEX.
269
Groton, Ms., 30, 159, 203.
Groveland, Ms., 93, 96, 156,
165,2(1,208,210,213,215,
217, 235, 230. 239.
Grover, 129, 142.
Leonard. 129.
Groveton, Va., 84.
Gunnison, Win., 7, 49, 50.
Gurley, 67, 09, 117, 163. 170,
ISO, 181.
E.Choate, 170.
E. Scidmore, 69.
Richard F., 181.
Sam'l 1'.. 180.
Win.. 117, 163.
Hale, 1-3,6-9, 13,14, 44-47,
65, 73, 78, 84, 101, 103,
118, 124, 102, 178, 183,
188, 215, 236, 250, 257,
261, 202.
Benj.P., 215.
Isaac, 6.
John, 7, 44-47.
Joseph, 7, 13, 14, 45.
itev. Moses, 256.
Sarah S., 118.
Dr. Win,, 101.
Hall, 237.
Ham. Mrs. Laura. 96.
Hamilton, Ms., 165.
Hammond, 47, 117.
Stephen, 117.
Hampden, Me.. 161.
Hampstead, N. II.. 13.
Hanover, Ms., 100.
Hanson, . 250, 251.
Hardi, 135.
Hardy, 27. 28. 84,97, 212.
Chandler B., 27.
Harriman, 26, 61, 150. 165,
194, 199,200,204,205,215,
218-22H, 229.
Daniel, 205.
Daniel F.. 204, 205.
Geo., 105.
Geo. A., 205.
Jeremiah, 194, 199.
John G., 220.
U 111. F.. 220.
Wm. II.. 156.
Hani.-. 02. 144. 170. 182,204.
Gilnian, 170.
Lucy, -Jot.
Harrison, 102.
Hartford, Conn., 203.
Vt..28.
Hartland, Conn., 64,
Hartwick, N. Y.. 64.
Harvard, Ms.. L10.
Haunted houses, etc. I ().">,
162.
Havanali. Annv of the, 26.
Haverhill. M>.,"7. 8, 27, 31-
:;:;, 70, 7:;, 81, 82, B9 94
96, 99, 181 202, 203, 210-
212,219,221,223,229,230,
244, 210, 248.
N. 11., 93, Ml.
Hawaii, 240.
Hayes, Junius D., 76.
Hayward, 02, 156, 157, 159,
178, 187.
Aug. A., 150, 157,187.
Jabez, 17^.
Hazeltine, 85. 89.
Hazen, 20. 21. 25, 28, 29.
40, 100.
Edward, 29.
Israel, 25.
Jacob, 20.
John, 25.
Thos., 28.
Heard. Oil.
Heath. Ms., 132.
Hemans, 251.
Henly, Alonzo J., 220.
Henniker, N. H., 107, 190. I
Henry, 20:.. 215, 250.
Aaron, 250.
Win.. 205, 215.
Henrv I, II, III, 135.
Hermits, 1. 27.
Herrick, 37, 00, 61,64, 60,
94, 122. 140,148. 151,158.
104, 175. 197, 228.
Edmund, 151, 104, 175.
Israel, 01.
John, 00, 158.
Wm. A., Esq., 01;.
Wm. H., 01.
Hervcy. 263.
Hessians, 09.
Hill, Abraham, 185.
Hilliard, 102.
Hills, 31.
Hillsboro', N. II , 64, 128,
146, 152.
Hilton, (has. (.. 96.
Hobart, 30, 31.
Holden, .las., 185, 186.
Josenh, 1, 186.
Holden, .Ms., 14 63.
Holland (surname), 111.
(place), 135,233.
Hollis, N. H., 8, 30.
Holmes, 230.
Holt, 149.
Holyoke, 95, Ml. 105, 109-
111, 132.
Rev. Elizur, llo.
Sam'l, 111.
Holyoke, Ms., 250.
Honolulu, S. I., 240.
Hood, 49, 50, 53, 70, 74.
Bern'., 49.
David w. de la F.. 71.
Hooker, 203.
Hooper, Ebenezer I... 136,
137.
Hopkinton, N. ll., 170 190.
Homer. 210, -II.
Hotel Landei
Placidia, 46.
Redington, 168, 169.
Houghton, 110.
HouTd, Jules, 7.
Hovev. 7, 203,209, 217, 220,
229-231, 217 249 J51 254,
268 260, 262, 203.
, 261.
Alheri P., 209, 220, 268,
262.
Ivorv, 253,251.
Hovey, John, 248, 249.
Joseph, 253, 259.
Luke, 230,231, 252.253.
Orvdle L., 217.
Richard, 248.
Thos. S., 259.
Howard, 135.
Howe, 2. 3, 7-9. 20, 39, 40,
56, 65, 95, 104, 106-108,
113, 110, 124, 125, 131,
158, 179.
Abraham P., 7, 125.
Edward, 2, loo.
Fred A., 50.
Leverett S., 2.
Solomon W.. 110.
WillardP., 179.
Wm. A., 8, 107.
Wm. P. , 108.
Wm. W.,2.
Ilowlett, 28.
Hubbard, Rev. Chas. I...
200.
Hudson, Geo., 204.
Hunting, 238.
Huntoon, Albert G., 131.
Hurlbutt, Albert G., 47.
HllBSey, Franklin, 182.
lies, 145, 140.
Jacob. 140.
Wm., 145.
Illustrations, 4, 15, 17, 18
42. 55. 85, 91, 121, 10,s
109. 209, 210, 224.
Ilslev, 98.
India, 17.28,263.
Indiana, 22.
Indians, 18. 22, 58, 0:;, 07
190, 237, 240, 214,
Ingalls, 204.
Ingersol, 247, 200.
Inventors, 65, 199.
[pswich, Ms., 2, 10, is, 20
21, 29, 3.3, 39, 44. 45, 47
48, oo. 119, 122, 123, 127
144. 147, 151-153, 107
174, ls2, 212, 230, 242
243, -'50,200, 261.
Ireland (surname), 186.
(place), 82.
Iron works, 131, 177.
Jackman, 96.
Jackson. 8, 51, 52, 111. 119,
123, 210.
Joshua, 51.
Jacksonville, Fla.. 64.
Jaffrey, N. II. 68.
Jail, 242.
I 18 49, oo, 122.
Hem \, p.i.
Joseph H.,
Jaque . Fran i.
in, 200. 209.
Jo 'ph N , 71.
Jay, v v., oi.
Jeffersoi
Jenkins, 161,204, 206.
Sam'l, 204.
8am'] w.,200.
270
INDEX.
Jennings, 217.
Jewett, 20, 21, -24, 69.
Ezekiel,21.
Thos., 21.
John, I:!;"), 109.
Johnson, 7:5. 77, 105. L39,
L81, 198, 201, 223, 239.
, 139.
Sewall T., 73.
Jones, 20;!.
Kalcr, Cornelius, 184.
Edmund, 185.
Kamehameha, 240.
Kay, 202.
Keene, X. II., 54. 210.
Kendall, Rev. Robert It.,
54.
Kennett, Henry K., 74, 152
John T., 19.
Kenney, 107, 117, 170,180.
Benj., loT.
Dexter, 117, 180.
Kent, Jacob, 7.
Keyes, 41, 56.
Wm. P., 41.
Kilbourn, 34, ls2.
Kilhun, 11. 13,20,22,23,32,
33, 43, 61, 68, si. 97, L26,
147-153, 165, 107, 188-190,
201.
, 149, 150.
Chester. 20, 22. 2.'!.
Ebeuezer, 152.
Geo. B., 149.
John, 1 is.
Joseph, 32.
Oliver, 151.
Oliver 1'., lss.
Sam'l, 119.
Thos., 147, 148. 153.
Thos. 1'., 11. 13.
Win. E., 22,23, 105.
Killingly . Conn., 11.
Kimball,5, 12, 17, :J0, 58, 77,
80, si, 89, 92, 93, 95-97,
107-109, 125. 150, [54,
158, 161, 109, 170-17S,
L82 Is.",, ls7, 1S8, 190,
191, 194. 195, 197, 198,
201, 200-208. 214.219-222.
230, 231, 2:!7, 241-210,
250.252. 254, 250. 200.
, 190.
Aaron. 170, 183.
Amos, L95
Asa, 1ST, 256.
Benj., 245.
Chas. P., 96.
I taniel, 97.
David, 182,244.
Bbenezer, 5s, 80.
Edmund, 221.
Enoch, L88.
Bphraim, 177.
Jacob, 158.
Jefferson, 107.
John, 92, 187.
Jonathan, so.
Josiah. 36, is::.
Lucy S., 93.
Micajab, 244.
Kimball, Moody, 188.
Moses, 93.
Nathan, 89, 9.;. L69.
Richard. 187.
Samuel, 9:., 184, 210.
Stephen, 89.
Thos., 241.
Win. 11., 10S.
Win. II.. 200, 200.
King, 5. 202.
"King David," 57.
Kin. sm a 11, 107, 242.
Knapp, , 2:;.
Knight, 14, 75.
Jacob, it.
Knowlt 119, 212. 213.
Col. Thos. 213.
Wm.. 212.
La. Id, 215,217. 263.
Ezekiel, 217.
John I., 217.
Lake, 18,47, 121. 135, 142.
Earns, 18.
S. Page, 47.
Lake Champlain. 2.'!'.).
George, 00.
Reynor, 74.
Lakeman, 230, 250.
I'elatiah, 256.
Wm., 230, 250.
Lambert, 45.
Lamson, 132.
Lan ;aster, Ms., 1 10.
Lander, 103.
Lane. 139, 140,207.
Willard, 207.
Lang. 170.
Langley, 121.
Lapeer, Mich.. 04.
Laporte, Frank. 7.
Lamed, 1 .0.
Lathrop, 170.
Lawrence, .Ms., 30, 88, 97.
222, 228, 229.
Lawyers, 0. 12, 17, 01, 66,
87, 10.2.
Leach, 179, 217.
Leaded panes. 94, 140.
Leavenworth, 106.
Leaver, 211.
Leavitt, Joseph, 40.
Lebanon, Conn.. 85.
Legacies, 12. 65, 68, 73.
Lelian. Dennis, 1S4, 185.
Thos., 185.
Leighton, John J., 97.
Leominster. Ms., i
Letters, Old, 120, 139, 140,
232.
Lexington, Ms., 33, 31, 52,
87, 140.
Libraries, etc., 68, 107,235.
Lightning, 22, 113. 115, L62.
Linebrook Parish. Ip-
swich, Ms., 2. 3:1. 11.
96, ISO, 191,243.
Liquor, 18, 235.
Literary people, 17, 20, 01.
103.
Little, Elbridge, 219,220.
Lofty, Jacob. 1 1.
London, Eng., 75, 107.
Londonderry, X. II., 52.
173. 198.*
Long. 02, LSI, ISO.
Nath'l, 02. iso.
Long 1-l.ind. N. V.,253.
Lord, 17.
Lottery ticket, 253.
London, X. H.,78, 98.
Louisiana, 00.
Love, 57.
l.ovejov. 170.
Lowe, '2, 5, 44, 47, 48, 100,
100-108, 117, 118, 202.
235. 200.
Nathan, 47, 48.
Solomon, 47.
Solomon \\\, 107, 108.
William, 48, 106, 118.
Lowell, Ms.. 87. Ill, 119,
217.
Lufkin,214.
Ltiminus, 152.
Lunenburg, Ms., (JO, 122,
132, 230, 200.
Lyman, 100.
Lyme, Conn., 25.
Lyndsboro', N.H., 170.
Lynn, Ms., 0. 45. 80, 90, 97,
117, 172, 211.
Machias, Me. ,204.
Macoon, 114.
Madison, Ind.. 22.
Maine, 5, in, 12, 17,32, 45,
46,118, 134, 140. 159, loo.
162, 179, 190, 199, 202.
221.
Maiden, Ms.. 100.
Manhattan, Kas., 203.
Mansfield, .Ms., 1.55.
Marblehead, Ms., 40, 126,
137, L84.
Maiden, Alvin, 32.
Francis, 27, 28, 30-32.
Mare pond, 210.
Market woman, 0, 254.
Markman, 203.
Mai ston, 134.
Martin, 74, 193.
Jonathan, 74.
Martinique, W. I.. 232.
Masons. 19.31, 107, 134,110.
Massachusetts, it, 45, 00,
12S, 219. 221. 228.
Masurv. Thos. 1;.. 25-27.
Matthews, 52. 54, 163, 104.
Joseph, 52.
Wm. C . 163.
Mattocks, 203.
Maugerville, X. B., 9, 65.
McCiibe, John, 88.
Mclntire, its.
McKenzie, Sam'l, 47.
McLaughlin, Benj., 96.
John C, 112.
Mei.. .hi. Rev. Jas., 201;.
McVicker, 203.
Meacham, 129.
Mears, 87, 21s.
Meraassir, 155.
Merchants, 202, 221, 236.
INDEX.
271
Merriam, 235.
Morrill, 8, 13, 204, 213, "239.
Geo. B., 13.
Jesse, 213.
Stephen, '213.
Win., 204.
Merrimac, Ms., 222.
X. II., 198.
Mersay, 81.
Messenger, 90.
Metcalf, Greenleaf W., 74-
76.
Methnen, Ms., 16, 72, 73,7!),
80, 82, 94, 151. 104, 18(5,
189, 203, 205, 200, 229,
23S, 259.
Michigan, 59.
.Middleton. 243.
Middleton, Ms., 54, 114, 115,
126, 133, 131, 137, 144,
146, 151, 153, 164, 165,
169-171, 174. 177.
X. II., 97.
Mighill. 16,71,73,
David DeW. C, 73.
Militia, 2, 4, 5, 10, 18,29,
37, 45, 47, 52. 72. 73, 78,
86. 87, 90, 140, 144, 162,
166, 184, 198, 199. 203,
210, 224, 234, 253.
Miller's Corners, X. Y., 4.5.
Milliken, 243.
Mills, 47, 4s, 61, 63, 66, 77,
131, 154, 158, 177-179,
236.
Milwaukee, Wis., 203.
Ministers, Foreign, 202.
Mitchell, 225. 229-231.
Daniel, 229, 231.
Mitchell's pond, 225. 230.
Mont Vernon, X. H., 65,
152.
Moore, Prof. Chas. H
Dennison, 181.
Morrill, 154.
Morris, Albert, 218.
Morse, 32, 74, 206, 209, 210,
214.
Chas. E., 74.
Gardner 8., 209.
Samuel, 210.
Mortimer, Caleb, 69.
Caleb E.. 185.
Moseley, 166.
Moulton, Henry, l':0.
Joseph W.. 119.
Valorus V.', 238.
Mowbray, 135.
Mugford, 184.
Mulatto, 210.
Munday, U'nt. 11., 1 lo, 117.
Murder, 191.
Murphy, Michael, 212, 213
Musicians, 2, 14, 53, 111
210, 213.
Nails, First cut, 244.
Naples, Me., 10.
Xason, .las., 97.
Jas. II., 223, 226,229.
John II., 205.
Natick, Ms., 68, 96, 111.
L9.
Negroes, 199, 200, 207.
Nelson, 26, 27, 96, 182, 232,
236.
Albert, 27.
"Nelson's Great Farm,"
232, 236.
New Brunswick, 9, 10, 49,
65.
Newbury, Ms., 3, 22, 25, 26,
32, 45, 58, 59, 83, 89, 93,
97, 114, 132, 135, 157, 162,
164, 187, 199, 227, 230,
256.
Newburvport, Ms., 46,73,
78, 102, 159, 162-164, 178,
202, 221, 231, 233.
New England, 3, 117, 135.
Xew Gloucester, Me., 195.
Newhall, Henry, 109.
Wm., 204.
New Hampshire, 6, 8, 19,
21, 30, 66, 109, 132, 217,
232.
Xew Haven, Conn., 179,
199, 2 is.
New Ipswich, N. H., 41, 63.
New Jersey, 1, 253.
Newmarch, 151, 174.
New Orleans, La., 66.
Newport, Me., 198.
New Portland, Me., 66.
New York, 82, 237, 240, 241,
255.
X. Y., 10, 79, 122, 203.
Nims, 132.
Norcross, 45.
North Atidover, Ms., 9, 97,
107, 109, 150, 196, 200,
20S, 214, 215, 217, 220,
224, 228, 238, 246-249,
254, 255.
Northev, Abijah, 221.
North Yarmouth, Me., 194.
Norton, 16.
Norton, Ms., ITS.
Norwalk, O., 64.
Norwich, Conn., 25, 28.
Norwood, I. Walter, 107-
109.
Nottingham-west, N. H.,
234, 2;;').
Notur, 200.
. is, 132, 164, 199,204.
Daniel. Is.
Warren, 201.
Nurse, 32. 33, 130.
Daniel, 32.
Obituaries. 34, 35, 78, 101,
120, 121, 127, 150. 171,
171, 222, 220, 25:;, 261.
'•Ocean h him-," 200, 204.
Oliver, 75.
Oniville, B. I., 155.
Osgood, 3, 158, 242.
< )m ii. An old, 74.
Oxford, Ms., 132.
Palmer, 62, 105, 168, 165-
107, 100.
Asher C. 104.
Palmer, Prof. Geo. H., 163,
165.
John, 196.
Julius A., 166.
Panama, Isthmus of, 241.
Park, 202, 263.
Hev. Calvin E., 202.
Parker, 81, 200, 204, 206,
209, 210, 214, 248, 249.
Aaron L., 206, 210.
Jacob C, 209, 214.
Thos. B , 204.
Wm., '240.
Parkhurst, Frank L., 176.
John. 176, 179, 180.
J. Wm., ISO.
Parsonages,
East parish, 54, 109, 110.
West parish, 206.
Parsons, B. Ford, 96.
Patten, Geo. M., 74-76.
Paulet, 135.
Payson, 71, 152.
Peabody, 3, 9, 14, 15, 17, 37-
40, 47, 49, 53, 57, 63, 65-
69, 75, 79, 81, 83,194, 95,
101, 105, 106, 111, 115,
117, 120, 124, 130, 134,
136, 137, 144, 147-150,
152,1 154, 15S, 159, 102-
170, 177-180, 182, ISO,
186, 193, 198, 232, 237,
238, 212, 243, 245, 251,
253, 254, 258, 203.
, 251.
Rev. Albert B., 68.
Artemas, 115.
Asa. 115.
Benj , 238.
Benj. F., 238.
Bimsley, 150.
Chas., ioi, loo.
Daniel, 251.
David, 100, 212.
Ebenezer, 237, 243.
Elisha B..1S2.
Jacob, 166, 169.
Jas. M., 150.
John, 1.5. 17, 166, 167.
Joseph, 69, 117.
Lucy, 163.
.Moses, 107.
Oliver, 134, 150.
Oliver T.. 65.
Richard, 66.
Samuel, 66, 68, 117, 159,
183.
Samuel I'., 182.
Stephen, oo, os, 104.
Thomas, 242.
William, 07. loo.
Peabody, Ms., 122, 156,222,
226.
Pearl, 84, 155, 197, 200-202,
201, 206, 218, 220, 229,
200, 20.!. 200-230, 241,
252, 250, 202, 263.
Benjamin, 263,
Edward K.,201.
George, 237.
John, 220, 287.
John M.. 220.
1 Peter, 201.
272
INDEX.
Pear), Richard, 236.
■Simeon, 218.
Pearsons.101, 163, 169, 1ST.
i ornelius, 161, 163.
Jonathan. 163.
Peat, 2-48.
Pecatonica, 111., 113.
Pelliam, N. 11., 208.
Pemberton, 99. 186.
Pembroke, N. 11.. 63.
Pennsylvania, 155, ITS.
Perkins, 25,28-31,38,50, 72.
76, 88,114, 1-26, 146, 152,
157, 170, 171.
Elbridge, 76.
Jacob, 2!).
John, I 16.
Nathaniel, 29.
Stephen. 88.
Perley, 3-7, 9-20. 22, 23, .lo-
ss, 35, 39-45, 49, 50, 52,
53, 58, 62, 64. 611-76, 07.
100, 101, 104, 10S, 110,
112, 113. 115, 117, 118,
123, 126, 132, 158, 161-
164, Ki7, 169-171, L80,
188, 101, 104, 197, 201,
219. 22(1, 212, 2;;:.. 246,
247, 250, 253.
Aaron, 10. 11.
Abraham, 73.
Albeit. 70.
Amos, 17,20,40. 42.
Artemas W., 12.
Asa, 4, 5.
Augustus M., 70.
Benjamin, 32.
Charles, 15, 17, 74, 118,
246. 247.
Elbridge, L9, 235.
Eliphalet, 75, ,0.
Francis, 71.
Frederic, 113.
George, L64, L70.
Benry, 52, 70.
Humphrey, 15.
Hon. Ira, 6.
Isaac, 31 .
Jacob, 16,32,74, 161, 201.
Jesse, 19, 117.
John, 7, 19.
John ]■:.. 235.
Leonard, 1 13.
Mary A., 58, 108.
Moody, 33. 97. 126.
Moses, 75.
Nathaniel, 11.
Parker B.,50.
Phinea , I'.
Putnam. 112.
Samuel, 5, 72, L70, 180,
188.
Solomon, 5il.
Stephen. 132.
Stephen P., 73.
'Hi,, mas,:;, 9-11, 20,22.
Warren, 250.
William, 16, 73.
William B„ 220.
Perry, 196, 214 -246.
John W., 215.
Peine, 110.
Pest-house, 30, 31, 38.
Philadelphia, Pa., 170.
Phillips, 10, 177-179, 203.
Samuel 177.
J'hillis, 57, 199.
Physicians, 6, 29, II. 15. 61,
66, 73, 76, 77, 80, 86, L01,
103, 107, 144, 147, 149,
153, 171, 202, 211, 227,
234, 235. 246, 247.
Piekard, 53, 62, 63, 182,
1S3.
James, 182.
Otis, 5.3.
Samuel. Is:;.
Thomas. 182.
Pickett, 102.
Pierce, 157.201.
Abraham T , 157.
Key. Charles M., 201.
Pike. 122, 219, 220.
Pillershire (or Pilferville) ,
North Andover, Ms..
215, 251.
Pillsbuiy, 23t».
Pinder, 212
Pingree, Parker P., 74.
Pinkham, 36, 102.
Pitts, Warren B., 96.
1'lainlield. Conn.. 134.
Plaisiow, N. H.. 193.
Plantagenet, 135.
Plaster, 248.
Platteville, Wis., 81.
Plaits. 8.
Plattsburg, Mo., 204.
Pleasant Mountain Gore,
York Co., Me., 199.
Plymouth, Ms., 77.
X. II., 30.
Politics, lii2.
Pompey, 199.
Poor, 81, 83, 89, 93, 19S.
Pope, 149-151. 167.
Joseph N\. 150.
Porter. 5. 59, 88, 101, 151,
153, 196-199,202-207,218,
221, 231, 253, 25s, 25:),
261, 26 :.
Asa. 202.
Benjamin, 197.
Jonathan J.. 201.
Moses, 202.
Rllfus, 198, 218.
Tyler, 198.
William. 203. 234.
Porter's Mill-. 204.
Fort Hudson, La., 97.
Portland. Me.. 10. 84, 198,
199. 202, 203, 22s.
Porto Kico, 42.
Porl Royal, N. s., 243.
POSt-OfficeS, etc., 30, 47, 56,
101.
Potash works, i ,; i •
Potter, 11. Ttj, 216.
Jacob s., 76.
Powder-horns, 174, L77.
Powers, ill.
Pratt, loc
Preston, 81.
Price, 46, is.
Frichard, 41. 42. 245.
Paul, 41.
Prince, 140.
Professors, 2, 19, 106. 163,
105.
Provence, France, 135.
Providence, R. I., 100, 155,
262.
Public bouses, 23, 36, 46,
79, 113, 158, 159, 205,
207, 208, 217.
Publishment of Ruth Bus-
well. 57.
Putnam, 3, 9, 11, 71, 73,
152, 161, 213.
Gen. Israel, 3, 9, 11.
Moses, 161.
Pye brook, 127.
Qn aides. 159.
Quebec, Can.. 239. 240.
Quimby, 1.3.
Railroad. 46.
Randall. 59.
Rea. 105, 176, 177.
Jeremiah, 105.
Jonathan Fryc. 177.
Joshua, 177.
William, 177.
Reading, Ms., 17, 71, 106.
137. 144. 148, 149, 162.
170. 221. 236, 258.
Redington. 78, 153,151. 15s.
101, 169.
Abraham, 161, 169.
Thomas, 158.
Reed, 13, 213.
Tobias, 13.
Reid. 106.
Removal id' Houses, 14. 16,
32. 62, 65. 6S, 107, 163,
ISO. 182, 201, 21S. 251'.
Reynolds, 93, no, 189,228,
231, 234, 239-244, 257.
■_>!_>.
Daniel L.,243, 211.
Enos, 239.
George, 213.
Harriet, 241.
R. Eveline, 241, 257.
Sara'l, 213.
Stephen, 239.
Theodore, 234.
Wm„ 119.
Rhodes, 173.
Richards, 27.
Richardson, 4. 250.
Richmond, Va., 29.
Kicker, . 126.
'•Ridges," The, I, 186.
Rifle, Peabody, 65.
Kludge, N. II'., 56. 87, 146,
157. 256.
Roads, 27, 131, 152.
Roads, old, 27, 131,152.
Robertson, 106.
Robinson, 71, S3, 205, 223-
228, 239, 253.
Aaron, 227.
Benjamin, 225, 239.
Francis P., 205.
John, 224-227.
[NDEX.
273
Robinson, Joseph, 22 '>.
Rochester, N. v., in.
Rogers, 110
Benj., 110.
Rev. John, 110.
Rokes, Meander, 205, 200.
Rome, Italy, 90.
Roof-ladder, 99.
Room-paper, etc., 217, 218.
Ross, 213-215.
Harrison <>.. 215.
Wm.,214, 215.
Rowe, Rev. Sam'l, 194-196.
Rowley, .Ms.. 3, 8. 20-23,25,
■21,'-:*, 33, 34, 51, 52, 61-
63, 71, 72, 75, 76, 78, 82,
85. 86. 88, 96, 98, 99, 114,
119, 123, 124, 1-27, 172,
182, 183, 189, 194, 196,
199, 200, 212, '234, 236,
249, 256.
Rowley-Canada, 63.
Roxbiirv. Ms., 52, 178, 179.
231.
Runaways, 160, 194.
Run (1 let f, 17, 104.
Mrs. Abigail, 17. 104.
Runnells. sec Reynolds.
Rush pond, 230.
Russ, Moses 1.".. 52, 53.
Russell. 69. 109, 118. 119.
129, 137, 170, 179,228.
Arthur L., 119.
Daniel. 109, 118,119.
Jas., 137.
Leander, 69.
Peabody, 137,
Sabine, 202.
Safford, 148.
.Sailor-, 17, 23, 72, 00, 92,
101, 134, 137, 148, 160,
232, 233, 240, 241.
Salem, Ms., 3, 10, 23, 24. 27.
34, 35, 51, 71, lol, 104,
106, 108, 114, 115, 120,
120. 127. 137, 142, 146,
151. 159, 164, 165, 169,
170, 174, 183, 191, 192,
104, 221-223, 225-227.
231, 25:;-255.
N. II.. 02. 108, 207, 208,
260.
N. V., oi.
Salisbury, Ms., 56, 60, 89,
151, 193
Sanborn, 107.
nton, N. II., 170.
San Diego, 1 al., 103.
Sand\ 3,
Saratoga, \. Y., 240.
Sargent, L98, 229, 250. 263.
Moses, 220.
N. B., 259.
Savage.37,39 11,51,74, 123.
Johnson, 39.
Win.. J . 41, 71.
Savannah. Ga., 28.
Savory, 1 leo. T., L3.
Sawyer, 7, 26, 146, 147, L52,
153. 175, 184, 185
!> . Geo. w .. 117.
Jas. B., 117.
Sawyer, John, 7, 153.
Thos., 147.
Will., 185.
Saybrook, Conn., 255.
Sayward, .John S., 58. 102,
" 103.
Scales, 180, 10O.
Jas., 181).
Scarborough, Me., 202.
Schenectady, N. Y., 144.
Scl Is, etc., 30, 35, 38, 68,
10 , 145, 162, 166, 107,
171, 184,257-259,262,263.
Scientific Imerican, 199.
Scotland, 135.
Sebago, Me., L98.
Sessions, 14, 188, 211, 242.
Josiah, 241.
Settlements, New, 63, 65.
•'Shaven-crown" hill, 81.
Sheep, 211.
Sheffield, Ms., 114.
Shelburne, Ms., 132.
shepherd, 7.
Sheriff, 63.
Sherman, 28.
Sherwin, 107, 108, 232, 243.
Ebenezer, 24.!.
Shirley, Wm. II., 125, 126.
Shirley, .Ms., 132.
Shoe-manufacturing, 2, 7,
45, 46, K), 107, 109.
Shrewsbury. Ms., 246.
Sias, John, 00.
Saml., 05.
Simmons, 51, 60. 210.
Joseph, 00.
Mrs. Lydia, 51.
Simson, 194.
Sin, David Wood's, 98.
Singing school, 21.'!.
Skidby, Yorkshire, Eng..
236.
Sleigh, A, 70.
Smith, 11. 48-50, 70. 81, 103,
114, 110. 122, 126, 127,
134, 139, 150, Hil, 172,
173. 175, 212, 211, 218.
Abraham, 134.
Calvin. 127.
Chas., 150.
Elias, 172.
Geo., 11.
Jacob, 49, 121;.
John, is, 11,1, 17:!.
Molly, 139, no. 175.
Nath'l, L26.
Richard, 218.
Walter, 127.
Whipple I.. 127.
Smoker, \. 110.
Snelling. 210, .-11.
Mark. Jin.
Solart,
ville. Ms., 170.
South bYamingham, Ms.,
:;7.
Spafard, so.
Spain, 166.
Spencer, N. 5
spill, t, Nath'l G., 57,65 67,
109
Spofford, 20, 36-38, 12, 00,
78, so, si, s:;-s7. 00, 08,
00, Is:;. 194, 195, 205,206,
208. 21;:, 227, 228,230.
A a n 01, 84.
Alden, 200.
Amos, 81.
Renj., 4 2.
Chas. A.. 81.
Frederick, 81.
II. Merritt, 84.
Israel F., 85.
Mrs. Julia A. M., 20s.
Parker. 36.
Paul, 104.
Richard. 0s.
Sam'l, 8.3,22s.
Stephen, 81.
Thus., s4. 85.
Spoon, White's, 117.
Springer, 83.
Springfield, Ms., 45, 111,
250.
N. II.. 121).
Vt., 63.
States, etc., 36, M2, 225.
Stanstead, Can., 219.
Stanton. 37.
Stark, 30,31.
Start, Ceo., 16.
Steel, 105.
Stetson, Chas. A., 09, 101.
Geo., 101.
Seth, loo. 101.
Stevens, 32. 33,37.41. 10.5s,
5:1, 69, 107, 113, 104. 105.
223.
Amos, 41, 10, 107.
Chas. C, 32, 33, 37.
Dr. Francis J., 58, 59.
Sam'l, 113.
Stevens' pond, 00.
Stevenson. Burpy, 179.
Stewart, 71.
Stickney, 56, 62-65, si. 83,
00. 120. 253, 250.
Ancil, 01.
Jedediah, 64.
Jo ('I'll- 01.
Sam'l. 01.
Stile-. 40, 51, 50, 65. IP;. 132,
153-157. 172, 18(1, 181,
186, 105. 207, 230.
, I5C, 207.
Asa. 51 155.
(Ims., 2311.
Edmund. 151.
Elijah, 239.
Ezra, 181.
111. 181.
John, 40, 51, no. 151, 155,
Simeon, 155.
Timothy, 181.
Mile.' K ri ve
8t. Louis, Mo., 203.
Stone, 151. 164, 221.
Orrln, 164.
Stone house. 225.
Stonington, ( lonn , 13 1 .
Stores, I, 7. 33, 56, 101, 104,
123, 176, 206,219, 21
18, 19, 67, 10". 227.
274
INDEX.
Stowe. Yt., 8, 170.
St. Peter, Minn., 149.
Stratham, N. n . 68.
Strout, Peter, 71, 108, ioo.
Sudbury, Ms.. 134.
Suicides, 71, 80, 100, 175,
•2:;.-).
Sullivan, 32, 205, 215, 240.
Henry C, 205.
Summers'^ orth, N. II.. 82.
Suncook, N. II., 99.
Sun-mark, 20.
Surveyor, 69.
Swan, 21.
Swanzey, N. II , 17.
Swett. 222.
Sword-, Old, 177, 225.
Symmes, Rev. Tlios., 109,
110.
Symonds, Is. 41, 05, 124, 120,
128 i.;o, 133.134, 130, lis,
lid. 162, 170, 187.
Benj., IS.
John, 128.
Joseph, 1-29, 130, 162.
Nath'l, 133.
Sam'l, 129.
Stephen, 130, 133.
Tailors, 16,35, 160,173.
Tamsiu. 199.
Tanneries, 48, 71.
Tarbow 129, 1(11.
Taungeiul. Fng., 179.
Taunton. Ms.. 56, 227, 217.
Taylor, 102, 234.
Temple, N. II ., 63.
Templeton, M<., 80.
Tennessee, 64.
Tewksbury, Ms., 108.
Theft, 71, 77, 125, 211, 242.
Thomas, 133, 208.
Fred, 208.
Thompson, 148, 250.
John, 250.
Thownes, 170.
Thunder showers, 227. 231.
Thurston, 22.
Thwing, 85, 87, 218.
Chas. A., 87.
Tibbetts, ('has. V, , 117.
Ticonderoga, N. Y., 52, 00.
Tidds, 27, 75.
Tim on (Freeman), 207.
Todd, 23, 1(15, 106, 165.
Win. (i.. 23. 106, 105.
Tomatoes, 254.
Tomb, Gen. Lowe's, is.
Topeka, Kas., 203.
Topsfield, Ms , :;. 9, 10, 12.
13, 16-18, 20, 21. 25. 28,
29, 31-3:. :;7, 38, 49. 50,
5:;, 54, 59. ci), 67, 7:;, 75,
70. 79, 111, 117, 119, 122,
12 1 120, 128 134, 136, 137,
139 lio. lis, 151, 152, i;,.-),
158, I id, 101, 171. 17."..
174, iso. is;;, is;,, iss.201,
205, 219, 220, 230. 232,
200, 201.
Tories, 05, 75, 202.
Towle. Sam'l, 129.
Towne, 9. 16, 50, 05, 74, 96,
118, 125, 132, 139, 150,
157, 100,10,1. lo:'.,104,170,
172470,178, ISO, 198,203,
205.
Albert II., 46.
Asa. 17.:.
Ezra, 9i;.
Henry A., 174.
Jacob, 71.
John, 17.",, 171.
John N., 56.
Nathan. 156, 104.
Sam'l, 174
Sam'l II.. 163.
Solomon, 172.
Town hall. 105, 106.
Town meetings, 113.
Trask, 152.
Trees, 5, 52, 67, 93, 155, 211.
Trenton, N. J.. 253.
Troy, N. Y., 213.
Tufts, 118.
Wm., I Is.
Turner, 202.
Tuttle, 107.
Twisden, John B.. 102.
J. Thos.. 172.
Sam'l, 100, 171, 172.
Win., 163.
Twitohell, Geo. W., 126,1128,
129, 131.
Twombly, 45.
Tyler, 37, 38, 03, 04, 70, 71,
81-81, 87, 90, 92, 90-99,
128, 193, 195JL97, 200-202.
204, 214, 217, 235, 247.
251, 252, 250.
Abraham, 81.
Asa, 98.
Bert, 128.
Bradstreet, 96, 97, 200,
235, 252.
Flint, 97.
Gideon, 90.
Job, 193, 200, 201, 250.
John, 90, 92.
Joseph s., 70, 90.
Moses, 90
Stephen, 200.
Wm., 81.
Tylney, 135.
Tyngsborough, Ms., 40.
Umbrella, First, 233.
Underwood, 2.",;,.
United Mates, 196.
Upper Ashuelot, N. II.,
210.
Uptack road. 218.
Upton, lis.
Valley Forjye, Pa., 225.
Varnum, 232, 254.
Verden, III., 65.
Vermont, 34, 59, 137.
Vienna, Me., 198.
Vinegar, 23.
Virginia, 132.
Waehila. Kas., 87.
Wallingford, 25, 26, 29, 90.
Benj., 25.
Wallis, 223.
Walpole, N. II., 228.
Waltham, Ms., 31. 13, 228.
Warner, N. II., 107.
Warning oul of Town, 13G.
Warren. 31, 30, 181.
donas. 3'',.
Warren, Me., 251.
Wars, 233.
King Philip's, 135.
French and Indian, 94,
114. 14s. 171.
French, 30, 224.
Revolution, .-), 14, 10, 29,
30, 33, 34, 40,41, 52,64,
r,0, 69 71. 73. 75, 77,78,
87. 88. 03, 119. 123, 139,
110, US, 152, 157, 174,
202, 213. 221, 237, 239,
240. 253. 255. 250.
War of 1812, SI. 102,146,
149.
Rebellion, 2s, 37, 45, 79,
so. 84, 97, 117, 198, 206,
210.235.
Washburn, 203.
Washington, 150, 213, 225.
Washington, D. C, 5, 59,
103.
Wataga, 111., 203.
Waterford, Me., 194.
Watertown, Ms., 34.
Waterville, Me., 161, 198,
202.
Watson, 14, 45, 47.
Wm., 44.
Weare, N. H., 94.
\\ ebster, 1ST, 188. 211,236,
237, 240.
Jas. II., 237.
John R., 188.
Weed, 24s.
Wellfleet, Ms., 103.
Wells, 101. 11:;, 10:;.
Daniel, 104, [63.
Wellsville, \. v.. 203.
Wenham, Ms., 10, 00, 03,
lis, 151, 152, 160, 164,
197, 202. 230.
Wentworth, 202.
Westford, Ms., 71, 170.
Westminster, Yt., 8, 59.
Wesl Newbury, Ms., 10.
IS. 250.
Weston, X. Y., 198.
Wheeler, 135.
Whipple, 56.
White, 05, 117. 101.
Wm., n;4.
Whiteweed, 254.
Whitney, lid.
Whittemore, 101, 103.
, 103.
Jas., 101.
Whittier, Francis C, 230,,
215,250. 251.
Levi <;., 2eii.
Marshall P.. 236.
"Widgen pond," 123.
Wildes, 14, 10, 40, 76, 146,
205.
INDEX.
275
Wildes. Ezra, 14,40, 146.
Zebulon, 14.
Wilkin s, 81, 124, 153.
Willard, . 205.
Willet, 1(14.
John, 134.
Williams, 34, 134, 220.
John, 134.
Willis, Joseph, 177. 17'.'.
Willis' woods, 17.">.
Wilmarlh. 215, 238.
Wilmington, Ms., 87, 14S.
Wilson, 62, '.i7.
Elijah, 62.
Wilton. Me., 44.
Winch, Chas. P., 87.
Winchendon, Ms., 52, 122.
Windham, Conn., 77.
Winslow, Erving, 165.
Winter Hill, 52, 119, 120.
Winthrop, Me., L98.
Witcher, 20, 40, 191.
Witham, Daniel, 212.
Woburn,Ms.,77, 170.
Wolfsboro'. N. H., 108.
j Wolves, 14-.'.
Wood. Ki, 22, 29, 30, 33 36,
3840, 61, 63, 69, 70, 75-
79, 80-90, 92, 98-10(1, 136,
159, 162, 106, 171, 176,
184, 186, 187, 190, 193,
196, 197, -201, 211, 225,
•-!;;•-•. 233,248,254-259.
Hon. Aaron, 'V.UiG.
Daniel. 09, 254,257.
David. 78, 258.
Dr. David, 29, 01, 76, 25S.
Enoch, 92.
Hannah, 69.
Jacob, 99.
John, 69.
John T., 92, 201.
Jonathan, 77.
Joseph, 254, 255.
Lemuel, 257.
Mrs. Lydia, :?4.
Mrs. Margaret, 39.
Moses, 100.
Nathan, 99.
Wood, Solomon, 09.
Thos., :18.
Win. II., 258.
Woodbridge, Cal., 9.
Woodbury, 70, 104, 222,
200.
Benj , 220.
Josiab, 104.
Woodman, John, 14.
Woods, Timothy, 185.
Woodwovth, 207.
Worcester Co., Ms., 128.
Woster, 230.
Wright, 24, 88.
Win.. 88.
Wyatt, oo, 195.
Isaac, 195.
Wyman, 32.
Wyoming, 111., 64.
York, Me., 114, 105.
Yorkshire, Eng., 179.
Young, 162, 103.
Jeremiah, 102.
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