F29 .G6 P6 Km: &-C C c:c '<^^ i^ C ILIBRARY OF CONGRE^ crccct ^ [FORCE COLLECTION. ^^^-^ ^.6^ fc P^ f ! UNlTEl) STATES OF AMERICA. " Bedford, N. H. S " No. 6, called Southtown,now Templeton, Mas. " No. 7, on Presumscot river, now Gorham, Me. The committee for the township Narraganset No. 7, were Col. Shubael Gorham, Timothy White and Robert Standfort. The township being granted and assigned to the company of Narraganset soldiers, under the command of the late Capt. John Gorham, the grantees immediately took measures to bring for- ward the seitlement of their town. It was determined to make a survey of 120 lots, of 30 acres each for the first division, each grantee was to have one right, estimated at the value of £10. which right was to consist of one 30 acre, one 70 acre, and one 100 acre lot. The General Court of Massachusetts passed an order, authorizing and empowering Col. Shubael Gorham to call the first meeting of the grantees of Narraganset No. 7. It was also voted by the Legislature, that the seven years assigned for the time, in which to perform the settling duties, should be computed from the first day of June 1734, and would consequently end June 1, 1741. In 1734, a survey of part of the town was made ; and in the succeeding year 1735, the thirty acre lots were located, drawn, and confirmed to the * See note A in the AppendLx. 8 several grantees. Several roads were also located and named. Thus was our town prepared for settlement, but as yet, no tree was felled, no habitation for white man erected. One hundred years ago this morning, the sun threw his cheering beams over the unbroken forests of our town ; on the succeeding evening, " the moon walking in brightness," shed her mild rays on a small opening, made by the hand of civilized man ! A hundred years ago this morning, John Phinney, a son of one of the conquerers of the Narragansets ; a descendant of the Pilgrims ; a wanderer from the Old Colony, disembarked from his canoe on the Presumpscot river, with his axe, and a small stock of simple provisions, attended by a son of fourteen years of age, with a design to make a home for himself and family, in this then wilderness, but now large and flourishing town. Having selected a spot for his future dwelling, that son, Ed- mund Phinney (afterwards distinguished, not only in our town, but as a Colonel in the war of the revolution) felled the first tree for settlement. The event is worthy of commemoration. The snows of winter had passed away ; ' the time of the sing- ing of birds had come ;' the trees had put on their fresh and verdant robe, the woodland flowers "Were gay in their young bud and bloom," unpicked and untrampled upon by civilized man. John Phinney, the first settler of Gorham, was the son of Deacon John Phinney of Barnstable, Mass. and was born in that town April 8, (0. S.) 1693. He removed from Barnsta- ble with his wife and five children to Falmouth, (now Pordand) about 1732, he had two children born in Falmouth ; he remov- ed to this town, as has been stated in May 1736. He had three children born in Gorham, viz. Mary Gorham, Colman, and James. Mary Gorham Phinney, daughter of Capt. John Phinney, and Martha his wife was born in August 1736, about three months after the commencement of the settlement. This daugh- ter was the first white child born in Gorham ; she married James Irish, father of Gen. James Irish, and left numerous descendants. She was a professor of the christian religion for seventy years, and during that long period, ever lived an exem- plar)' and devoted christian ; maintaining the domestic relations of daughter, wife, and mother, in a most unexceptionable man- ner ; distinguished for kindness, hospitality, industry and christian cheerfulness ; she was a worthy example for all the numerous daughters, since born around her, and she left behind her, a memory dear to many, and a character worthy the com- mendation of all. This lady died in 1825, at the advanced age of 89 years. Colman Phinney, the second child of Capt. Phinney, born in this town, was killed by the fall of a tree, when about ten years of age ; and James Phinney, the youngest son of Capt. Phinney, was born April 13th (old style) 24ih N. S. 1741. He lived almost to this time, beloved and respected wherever known. We have seen his venerable form moving among us, the patriarch of almost a hundred years ! in a green old age, intelligent and cheerful, in full possession of a sound mind, correct judgment and retentive memory. He enjoyed through life the confidence of his townsmen, and for a long number of years was one of their officers. Captain John Phinney lived here two years before any other white family came ; he lived on land now owned by Edmund Mann, Esq.; the first land cleared was where the orchard now grows ; some Indians had wigwams near by, and for two years Phinney's children had no other play-fellows, than young Indians. During those years Capt. Phinney had to go to Pre- sumpscot lower falls to mill ; he used to transport his corn and provisions in a float on the river, carrying them round the falls at Saccarappa and Amon-Congin, there being no pathway even 2 10 to Portland through the forest. In these fatiguing and dangerous journies to mill, he was frequently assisted by his eldest daugh- ter Elizabeth (who afterwards married Eliphalet Watson). She used to help her father carry his boat round the falls, and assist in rowing and transporting his heavy loads. The second settler of this town was Daniel Mosier, who removed from Falmouth in 1 738. He was the father of James Mosier, who died in 1834, at the age of 99 years and three months. Soon after came Hugh McLellan, from the north of Ireland, and settled near where the vfidow of his son Thomas McLellan now lives ; within a short period from the time of McLellan's coming here, William Pote, William Cotton, Ebenezer Hall, Eliphalet Watson, Clement Harvey, Bartholo- mew Thorn, John Irish, John Ayer* Jacob Hamblen, Benjamin Skillings and others moved into the town as settlers. It required no small share of courage, firmness, and enter- prise to go into the wilderness and commence a settlement at that period. Let us for a moment contemplate the situation of the province of Maine, at the time when Capt. Phinney began the settlement of this town. There were but nine towns, and a few feeble plantations in Maine. Portland, Saco, and Scar- borough, were but just recovering from their recent destruc- tion by the Indians. A second line of townships from the coast had just been located, and were frontier places, all back of them was wilderness. The Indians, though nominally at peace, were discontented, jealous, and meditated revenge for past chastise- ments, and victories obtained over them. In 1690, all the settlements east of Wells were destroyed. In the Indian wars from 1703 to 1713, Maine lost one third of all her population ; and a large proportion of the personal property was destroyed ; through extreme want and suffering, many persons were driven away, never to return. In 1724, the Norridgewocks were broken up ; in 1725, Capt. Lovell and his company killed or dispersed the Pequawket Indians at 11 Fryeburg. In 1736, the whole population of Maine was prob- ably not more than 7000. In 1735 — 6 and 7, the scarlet fever or (as it was usually called) the throat distemper, raged through- out Maine, and more than 500 died with the disease ; in some towns it was peculiarly fatal ; in Scarborough, no one attacked with the distemper recovered. The inhabitants in all the new towns suffered greatly for want of food, clothing, and comforta- ble houses ; while danger from the Indians was constant and pressing. Famine, massacre, and captivity threatened them continually. It required men like the puritans to undertake and carry through the hazardous enterprise of settling new towns among savage beasts, and savage men. The early fathers of Gorham were persons of such characters. The first settlers of our town were from a noble stock ; the direct descendants of the Pilgrims ; almost all the first inhabitants were from the old Colony ; nearly every town on Cape Cod contributed one or more setders for Narraganset No. 7. The greater number however were from Barnstable, Yarmouth and Eastham. The immediate grantees were the conquerors of the famous and far dreaded Indian King Philip. The early inhabitants of Gorham partook largely of the character of their ancestors, the Pilgrims. They were a hardy, enterprising, virtuous race of men ; of indomitable courage — unbending firmness — uncompromising integrity ; sober, indus- trious, frugal, temperate in all things. They were distinguished for enduring fortitude, for open-handed hospitality. It is true they were not eminent for attainments in literature, nor did they make much progress in the sciences : not that they were deficient in talents, but they had not leisure, or opportunity for the cultivation of letters. They did all they could do, and more ihan might have been expected of them to do, in such times, and in their position. In their humble dwellings in the wilder- ness, they had little leisure for the study of books, even if they had possessed them. Their minds were incessantly occupied 13 in devising ways to obtain sustenance and clothing for themselves and families ; and in providing means for defence against artful and revengeful foes. Exhausted with fatigue, and worn with cares and anxieties, could they be expected to attend to the elegancies and blandishments of older, more numerous, and wealthier communities ? They might at this day, be called intolerant in their religious views and practices ; but they were in this respect, like other sects of their age. They were undoubtedly zealous for what they considered to be the truth. A stern and somewhat severe morality prevailed every where among the Puritans ; and it would have been wonderful, if their immediate descendants had not in this respect, been somewhat like their fathers, following their advice, obeying their precepts, and living according to their example. Our puritan fathers felt conscious that religion, virtue and knowledge, were essential to good government, and the permanent welfare of the community ; hence they spared no pains to support the gospel, to inculcate morality in the minds of their children, and to provide means for their education. At the very first meeting of the proprietors of this town, one of their first votes was to provide for preaching and religious instruction. They never forgot the great and momentous object for which the Pilgrims settled in New-England ; religious freedom and liberty oi conscience. They entered the wilderness for purity of religion ; to found a religious commonwealth ; to raise up a pious race. Unlike the Spanish adventurers in South-America, they thirsted not for a career of military glory ; they cherished no extravagant ambition ! They looked not on immeasurable lands with the longing eye of cupidity ; they expected no brilliant success, nor anticipated finding crystal streams, whose sands sparkled with gold ! They sought not the sunny plains and exuberant verdure of the South ! they sought not a clime gay with perennial flowers, with a balmy atmosphere, or Italian 13 skies ! they sought not a land of gold or of spices, of vvhie or of oil. Other and purer wishes were theirs: they expected not a life of luxury and ease. Sanctity of conscience was their great tenet. " Their religion was their life." Rigorous was the climate and hard the soil, where they chose to dwell. Here a countless train of privations and sufferings awaited them, pri- vations and sufferings, that nnight have made the less brave and energetic quail. Cold, and hunger, and fear of midnight slaughter, or cruel captivity by savage bands was their portion ! Under this load of evils, what but a firm belief in the sacred- ness of their cause, and the consolations derived from the sublime truths of Christianity, could have sustained them ? To their religious belief, their exemplary lives, their untiring zeal, and indefatigable industry, are we indebted for the blessings of freedom, plenty and knowledge, now enjoyed by us, their poster- ity. They have left us that, which gold and silver could not buy, which gems and diamonds could not purchase ! How great are our obligations to our brave and virtuous fathers ! how great also, to our noble and heroic mothers, who dwelt here from eighty to one hundred years ago ! Think of the wants, the anxieties, the perils, and the sufferings they endured ! Females of this town, contrast your abundance of food and dress, your quiet homes, and peaceful, feminine pursuits, with their scarcity, when long days and cheerless nights passed with barely provision enough to sustain life ! flying frequently at an hour's warning, from their rude dwellings to garrison ! Setting aside the wheel and the loom, to mount guard as sentinels, to handle the cartridge, or discharge the musket ! Think of the immense sacrifices they made, and consider whether your rich and numerous blessings, having been so dearly purchased, are not to be highly prized.* Though we have often heard of their sufferings, we cannot fully appreciate them ! " Their misery was great ! for months they had neither meat nor bread, and * See note B in the Appendix. 14 often at niglit, they knew not where to get food for the morning! Yet in all their wants and trials, their confidence in the mercy and goodness of God was never shaken. The first sixteen years after the settlement of Gorham, were years of great anxiety and suffering ; the settlers often suffered for food ; at one time all the provision, the family of Capt. Phinney had for some days, was two quarts of boiled w^heat, which had been reserved for seed. At that period all the towns in Maine were obliged to erect and maintain garrisons, or forts, for places of refuge against Indian attacks. These forts were constructed of hewn timber, with palisades of large posts, set deep in the ground, closely together outside the limber, and ten or twelve feet high ; watch- boxes were built on the top of the* walls ; the whole was bullet proof. The fort in Gorham was erected on the thirty acre lot No. 2, a short distance west of the present town house, on what is yet called Fort-hill, and which is the most elevated land in the town. The fort had two six pounder swivels, placed at diagonal corners, for the purpose of defence against the Indians, and to be fired to alarm the neighboring towns of Buxton, Scar- borough and Windham, when savages were discovered in the vicinity. The first meeting of the proprietors held at Gorham, was at the house of Capt. John Phinney, on the 24th of November, 1741. Moses Pearson was chosen moderator, and John Gor- ham clerk. Two days afterwards (Nov. 26) the proprietors voted " that a meeting house be built, for the worship of God, in said town, 36 feet long, 20 feet wide, with 20 feet shed," and fifty shillings on a right was voted in order to erect said meeting house, and to clear a suitable tract of land to set the same upon. On the next Monday, at an adjourned meeting, it was voted, " that twenty rods square be cleared on the west side of the way, called King-street, in order for building a meeting house thereon. So soon and so liberally did the first 15 settlers of Gorham make provision for religious worsliip. At the same meeting four hundred acres of land in the town, was granted to his Excellency, William Shirley, the then colo- nial Governor of Massachusetts ; this grant was located by Mallison's Falls, now called horse-beef falls.* At the same meeting it was also " voted that William Pote, John Phinney and Daniel Mosier, be a committee to lay out a road through the woods, from the end of Gorham-street to Sac- carappa mills." This road is what is now called the old county road, leading from Gorham village by James Phinney's, Daniel and Benjamin Mosier's and the Tyng place, to Saccarappa. In 1743, at a proprietor's meeting, it was " voted to raise sixpence on a right, to pay Daniel Mosier, provided he look out and spot a road direct to Black Point." At the same meeting " 400 acres of land was granted to John Gorham in that corner of the township, adjoining Falmouth and Presumpscot river, he the said Gorham to finish or cause to be finished, the saw mill and grist mill, that he hath already begun in said town- ship on Little river." These were the first mills erected in Gorham. In 1745, what is called the fifth Indian war broke out, and Narraganset No. 7, being a frontier town, was entirely exposed to assaults from the savages ; the few inhabitants were obliged to be on watchful guard day and night ; often compelled to fly to garrison — to labor with arms in their hands ; their crops were frequently injured or destroyed, their fences broken down ; their cows killed, their buildings burned, themselves wounded, killed, or carried captive to Canada. These aggra- vated and repeated distresses disheartened some of the settlers, and they abandoned their fields and houses, and removed to towns less liable to attack ! In Gorham, the people lived for years in a state of painful anxiety ; they were prevented from cultivating their lands, their mills were burned, and the distress- * See note C in the Appendix. 16 ed families shut up in the fort, were in danger of starvation ! At the commencement of the war, there were eighteen famihes in this town ; nine of which moved into the garrison, where they were closely shut up for four years, and they remained dwelling in the fort seven years ; eleven soldiers were furnished by the government of Massachusetts to protect the garrison, and assist the inhabitants in procuring the necessaries of life. The nine families that removed into the fort, where those of Capt. John Phinney, Jacob Hamlen, Daniel Mosier, Hugh McLellan, Clement Harvey, John Reed, Cloutman, Jeremiah Hodgdon and Eliphalet Watson. Those who left the town were William Pote, James Irish, John Eayer, Caleb Cromwell, Ebenezer Hall, William Cotton, Benjamin Skillings and Benjamin Stevens ; eight families. The 19th of April O. S. (corresponding to the 30th April now) was a disastrous day to the little hand of settlers in Gor- ham. On that sad day, one whole family, by the name of Bryant, was cut off by Indian cruelty ! The father and the children slain in a most barbarous manner ; the wife and mother carried away heart broken into captivity ! and two of the most hardy and effective men. Reed and Cloutman, taken prisoners and marched through the woods to Canada ! On that day there were four families that had not removed to the garrison, viz. : Bryant's, Reed's, Cloutman's and McLellan's. Bryant con- templated moving the day preceding the massacre, but conclud- ed to defer it one day longer to complete some family arrangement. They had an infant but two weeks old ; the mother wished for a cradle for her little one, and said if the lather would remain in their dwelling that day and make the cradle, she would risk her scalp one day longer ! That risk was a fatal one ! Early in the morning of the day before named, Bryant and his eldest son went to a field to do some work ; a party of ten Indians were in the town unknown to the inhabi- tants ; the savages divided themselves into five parties, design- 17 ing to surprise the four families above named ; one of these parties fell in with Bryant and his son, and being unable to capture them, they broke Bryant's arm, and then shot him and his son as they were endeavoring to escape to the fort. Bryant was killed on the low ground in the road south of Job Thomes' house. Another division of the Indians proceeded to Bryant's house and murdered and scalped four of his children ! They dashed out the brains of the infant against the fire place. The agonized and frantic mother, feeble and powerless, had to wit- ness the destruction of all that was dear to her heart ! To leave her husband dead in the way, and the mangled bodies of her loved and innocent children in her desolate mansion, and with feelings of bitterness, which none may describe, under the weight of her terrible bereavement, go captive with the destroy- ers of all her earthly happiness, through pathless woods, tangled swamps, and over rugged mountains, to a people, whose lan- guage she could not understand, and who were her enemies and the enemies of her people, kindred and friends ! Reed and Cloutman were met separately by the Indians, and after great resistance were taken and carried to Canada. Some- time afterwards Bartholomew Thorn, a young man, was taken by the Indians, while he was going home from public worship on the Sabbath. The savages kept him several years and then sold him to a French gentleman in Montreal ; after seven years absence he returned. During this Indian war. Col. Edmund Phinney, then a young man, was one evening at a distance from the fort in pursuit of cows, when a party of Indians, who lay in ambush, fired upon him, and four balls struck him, breaking his arm and otherwise severely wounding him ; he however made out to reach the fort and keep his gun. This war of ambuscade, massacre and con- flagration, kept the people in continual terror and agitation ; nor did they feel secure till 1759, when Quebec capitulated to the 3 18 army of Wolfe, and France lost her empire, and with it her influence over the savages in North America. During the war public worship was held in the south-east bastion, or flanker of the fort. After the termination of hostilities, and the fear of Indian assaults was removed, the town began to fill up with settlers, and improvements went forward. The last repairs done to the fort were in 1760, when one shilling and four pence per foot was voted to Hugh McLellan, for stockading the fort with spruce, pine or hemlock posts, 13 feet long and 10 inches diameter, with alining of hewn timber six inches thick. At a proprietors' meeting, held Feb. 26, 1760, it was voted to raise and assess on the several rights of land, X66. 13s. 4d. towards building a meeting-house. ■ That meeting-house was completed in 1764 at an expense of £180. In 1763 the first bridge overPresumpscot river between this town and Windham was erected. The inhabitants increased, and in 1764 the plantation was estimated to contain 340 souls. The town was incorporated by the General Court of Massachusetts Oct. 30, 1764, and was the twentieth town incorporated in Maine. The first town meeting was held in pursuance of a warrant from the Hon. Ste- phen Longfellow, at the meeting-house in Gorham Feb. 18th, 1765 ; at which meeting Capt. John Phinney was chosen mod- erator, Amos Whitney town clerk ; Benjamin Skillings, Amos Whitney and Joseph Weston selectmen, and Edmund Phinney treasurer ; not less than twelve town meetings were held that year, viz. in Feb. 18th, March 12th, March 21st, April 29th, May 16th, May 30th, August 1st, Aug. 10th, Aug. 20th, Sept. 2d, December 12th, and December 19ih. The town was now quiet and flourishing ; but their prosper- ity was soon to be checked by new national difficulties. The trouble between Great Britain and her transatlantic colonies was assuming a serious aspect ; and the town of Gorham enter- Id ed warmly into the contest. As early as September 21,1768, a town meeting was held, and an "agent chosen to go to Boston as soon as may be, to join a convention of agents from other towns in the province, to consult and resolve upon such measures as may most conduce to the safety and welfare of the inhabi- tants of said Province, at this alarming and critical conjuncture." Solomon Lombard, Esq. was chosen agent, and eight days allowed him for going and returning from Boston. When the ambition and cupidity of the British government led them to inflict on our land successive wrongs ; when they attempted to violate the plainest rights, and subvert the dearest privileges of the Colonies ; when the ministry of George III. had become deaf to the imploring voice of mercy and justice, and the patriots of America had determined to resist the un- righteous demands of Old England ; when the blood of the good and the brave had moistened the fields of Lexington and Bunker Hill ; when Charlestown and Portland were but heaps of smoking ruins ; where were found the freemen of Gorham ? Did they prove recreant to the great and sacred cause of lib- erty ? No ! Our peaceful inland town, remote from invasion and the clang of arms, was awake and active in the great con- cern ! She contributed freely and largely of her citizens and her property to the general cause. Our townsmen left their quiet pursuits to mingle in the storm of war ! She sent her sons north and south, and east and west, to fight, and bleed, and die ! She constantly contributed more than her quota of troops for the continental army, besides raising and officering a large com- pany under the command of Capt. Alexander McLellan, who went to Castine (then called Biguyduce) under Gen. Peleg Wadsworth. A large number of Gorham men were also in the Machias expedition. At one period, every third man in Gorham was in the army. Numbers of her soldiers were in most of the principal battles of the revolution. In the engage- raent on Rhode Island in 1778, two men from this town, Paul 20 Whitney and a Mr. Wescott were killed. The good and the brave Col. Edmund Phinney (he who felled the first tree in this town for the purpose of settlement) early had command of a regiment under Washington, and throughout the war conducted himself with great activity, courage, and prudence ; he did much to induce his townsmen to exert themselves to the ut- most, to maintain the war, and secure the independence of the country. In a letter to his father, the aged Capt. John Phinney (the first settler,) Col. P. says, "I am very well and in high spirits, and hope to continue so till every tory is banished this land of liberty, and our rights and privileges are restored." This letter was dated in the army. May 26, 1776, sixty years ago this day. Capt. John Phinney was at this time too far ad- vanced in life to endure the fatigues, of a campaign, but his patri- otic feelings were warm and vigorous, and his sons and his grand- sons went to the war. Besides Col. Edmund Phinney, his brother John Phinney, (the man who planted the first hill of corn in Gorham) and his two only sons, John Phinney 3d, and Ebenezer Phinney, were in the revolutionary army. In fact, almost every man in Gorham was out in the army. Your fa- thers left their homes and families, that were dearer to them than life ; they endured the fatigues and dangers of every cam- paign ; they parted with their hard earned bread to feed their brethren in arms ; at home they maintained the families of ab- sent soldiers. They poured out their precious blood and laid down their lives, in distant States, without murmuring or com- plaint ! They died by the weapons of the enemy — they died by contagious disease — they died by the cold of winter — they died by the heat of summer ! While those who remained at home, devoted their time and talents to the great cause, by noble en- deavors and patriotic resolutions. The preserved records of our town fully bear me out in these assertions. In 1772 the town of Boston had issued circulars to the prin- cipal towns in the Province, requesting the inhabitants "to ex- 21 press their sense of the rights of the Colonists, and the several infractions of those rights." In accordance with this request, a town meeting was held at the meeting-house in Gorham on the last day of December, 1772. Solomon Lombard Esq., who had been the first settled minister of the town, was chosen moderator ; a committee of safety and communication, and to draw up resolves expressive of the sense of the town on the subject matter of the Boston circular, v/as raised ; the com- mittee was composed of nine members, and were Solomon Lombard Esq., Capt. John Phinney, William Gorham Esq., Capt. Edmund Phinney, Elder Nathan Whitney, Caleb Chase, Capt. Briant Morton, Josiah Davis, and Benjamin Skillings. The assembled freemen of Gorham then voted to return thanks to the town of Boston, for their vigilance of our privileges and liberties ; the meeting was adjourned one week. At the ad- journed meeting, January 7, 1773, the following preamble and resolves were reported by the committee, and adopted by the citizens. "We find it is esteemed an argument of terror to a set of the basest of men, who are attempting to enslave us, and who de- sire to wallow in luxury, upon the expense of our earnings, that this country was purchased by the blood of our renowned fore- fathers, who flying from the unrelenting rage of civil and reli- gious tyranny in their native land, settled themselves in this des- olate howling wilderness. But the people of this town of Gor- ham, have an argument still nearer at hand ; not only may we say that we enjoy an inheritance purchased by the blood of our forefathers, but this town was settled at the expense of our oion Blood ! We have those among us, whose blood, streaming from their own wounds, watered the soil from which we earn our bread ! Our ears have heard the infernal yells of the savage, native murderers ! Our eyes have seen our young children weltering in their gore, in our own houses, and our dearest friends carried into captivity by men more savage than the sav- age beasts themselves ! Many of us have been used to earn our daily bread with our weapons in our hands ! We cannot be sup- posed to be fully acquainted with the mysteries of court policy, but we look upon ourselves able to judge so far concerning our rights as men, as christians, and as subjects of the British Gov- ernment, as to declare that we apprehend those rights as settled by the good people of Boston, do belong to us ; and that we look with horror and indignation on their violation. We only add that our old captain is still living, who for many years has been our chief officer, to rally the inhabitants of this town from the plough, or the sickle to defend their wives, their children, and all that was dear to them from the savages ! Many of us have been inured to the fatigue and danger of flying to garrison! Many of our watch-boxes are stiU in being, the timber of our fort is still to be seen ; some of our women have been used to handle the cartridge or load the musket, and the swords we sharpened and brightened for our enemies are not yet grown rusty. Therefore, Resolved, That the people of the town of Gorham are as loyal as any of his Majesty's subjects in Great Britain or the plantations, and hold themselves always in readiness to assist his Majesty, with their lives and fortunes in defence of the rights and privileges of his subjects. Resolved. We apprehend that the grievances of which we justly complain, are owing to the corruptions of the late minis- try in not suffering the repeated petitions and remonstrances from this Province to reach the Royal ear. Resolved. It is clearly the opinion of this town, that the Parliament of Great Britain have no more right to take money from us without our consent, than they have to take money without consent from the inhabitants of France or Spain. Resolved. It is the opinion of this town, that it is better to 23 risk our lives and fortunes in the defence of our rights, civil and religious, than to die by piece meals in slavery ! Resolved, That the foregoing resolves and proceedings be registered in the town clerk's office as a standing memorial of the value that the inhabitants of this town put upon their rights and privileges. At a meeting of the town called to consider of the exigency of public affairs January 25th, 1774 (which meeting was very fully attended) the following among other spirited resolutions were passed. Resolved. That our small possessions, dearly purchased by the hand of labor and the industry of ourselves and our dear ancestors, with the loss of many lives by a barbarous and cruel enemy, are, by the laws of God, nature and the British consti- tution, our own, exclusive of any other claim under heaven. Resolved, That for any Legislative body of men under the British constitution to take, or grant liberty to take any part of our property, or profits, without our consent, is state robbery and ought to be opposed. Resolved, That the tea act in favor of the East India Com- pany to export the same to America, is a deep laid scheme to betray the unweary into the snare, laid to catch and enslave them, and requires the joint vigilance, fortitude, and courage of the thoughtful and brave to oppose in every constitutional way. Resolved, That we, of this town, have such a high relish for liberty, that we all with one heart stand ready sword in hand, to defend and maintain our rights against all attempts to enslave us. Opposing force to force, if drove to the last extremity, which God forbid. After these high toned resolutions were passed, the venerable 24 John Phinney made a motion which was carried, " that if any person of Gorham should contemn, despise or reproach the former, or the present resolves, he shall be deemed, held and adjudged an enemy to his country^ unworthy the company and regard of those who are the professed sons of freedom, and shall be treated as infamous ! In the preamble to these re- solves, the committee say, "we hope and trust the inhabitants of this town will not be induced to part with their privileges/or a little paltry herb drink ! The inhabltantsof this town are in general better qualified to handle their old swords than the wri- ter's pen, and if compelled to dispute for their privileges shall have resort to those solid and weighty arguments, by which they have often carried their point with savage men and savage beasts." Such, citizens of Gorham, was the spirit, such the energy of your fathers. They avowed themselves ready at all times to aid the cause of freedom. They never thought of shrinking In the hour of danger. Their committees of safety and vigilance, in those trying times, were men of great wisdom, sagacity and firmness. They were John and Edmund Phinney (father and son) William Gorham, Bryant Morton, Solomon Lombard, Prince and Joslah Davis, Benjamin Skilllngs, Caleb Chase, Samuel Whitmore and many others. James Phinney was chairman of the selectmen during most of the trying years of the revolution. In September 1774, Solomon Lombard, Esq. was elected from this town a member of the Provincial Congress, and a large committee was raised, of which Nathan Whitney was chairman, to draw up instructions for the Representative, Mr. Lombard ; the instructions were precise and strong and voted by the town. Capt. Bryant Morton was delegate to the third and last Provincial Congress, which sat at Waiertown. At a town meeting held May 20, 1776, the freemen of Gor- ham being generally assembled, voted unanimously, that they would abide by, and with their lives and fortunes support the 25 honorable Congress in the measure, if they think fit for the safety of these United Colonics, to declare themselves indepen- dent of the kingdom of Great Britain. This vote was passed nearly two months before the Declaration of Independence was brought forward in Congress. So early, so constantly and so vigorously did the people of this town manifest their attachment to freedom. In November 1777, the town voted 100 dollars to each voU unteer who would go to reinforce the army of Gen. Washington; and £100 lawful money was raised in a single year in this town to supply the families of absent soldiers. The spirit of patriot- ism in this town never flagged throughout the whole seven year's war. And after peace returned, at a town meeting held May 12th, 1783, " it was voted that no person or persons, who have joined the enemy in the late war against these United States (otherwise called tories) shall be suffered to abide in Gorham."* From the first to the last day of the revolutionary struggle, this town complied, and more than complied with all the requi- sitions of the nation and the state for men, food and clothing for the army. At one time the town raised four hundred dollars for the purchase of beef, and three hundred dollars for the pur- chase of clothing for the army ; and at one town meeting the inhabitants voted £522 13s. Ad. for bounties for soldiers for the continental army — and Capt. Samuel Whitmore, Lieut. Nath'I Frost and Capt. Hart Williams were appointed a committee to obtain the soldiers. Col. Frost was almost Incessantly employed in military ser- vices, as well as in civil offices, during many years of the war ; and it gives great additional interest to our celebration to find him among us in vigorous health, (the oldest man in our towTi) with so many of his venerable associates with him, the patriots- * See note D in the Appendix. 4 2G of the war of oiir Independence. At the latter part of their long and useful lives, they arc receiving the gratitude of the young, and something of the bounty of the government they contributed so largely to establish. It has been already stated that the people of this town made early provision for religious instruction. In 1741, when there were not more than ten or twelve families in Gorham, they set about building a meeting-house. In 1764 a second meeting- house was erected. In 1792, it was voted to enlarge the meet- ing-house thirty feet to the southward. In 1797, it was voted to dispose of the old meeting-house and to build a new one. In 1798, the parish gave the "Corner school class the old meeting-house, provided the said class would build a school house large enough to accommodate the town to do their town business in." In June 1797, the present meeting-house of the First Parish was erected. At the time of raising the same, a melancholy accident occurred — a part of the frame gave way, and two per- sons, Dr. Nathaniel Bowman and Tryon, were killed. In 1828 tliis meeting-house was enlarged, altered, and put into its present form. Until 1790, the First, or Congregational Parish, was the only incorporated religious society in this town. In January 1790, George Thomes and sixty-one others were constituted a separate society, which was denominated the Baptist Society, though before that time many were dissatisfied with Congregational tenets and preaching, and much opposed to paying taxes to support a Congregational minister. Since 1800, a large and respectable society of Methodists have been formed, and there are many persons in town of other denomi- nations. The Free meeting-house was erected in 1821, to be used by any sect. The Methodists have also another house for public worship. The Free-will Baptists and Friends have each one. T he first clergyman employed in Gorham, was a Mr. Ben- 27 jamin Crocker from Cape Cod ; he hired for six months at three pounds ten shillings per week, and preached from Feb. 16th, 1743 to the September following, when he was paid £60 (old tenor, 45 shillings to the dollar). Mr. Crocker graduated at Harvard College in 1713. In September 1750, the proprietors of this town voted to give Mr. Solomon Lombard a call to settle here in the work of the gospel ministry ; his salary was to be £53 6s. Sd. annually, and he received the lots of land reserved for the first settled minister, and the use of the parsonage land during his ministry. Lot No. 67 (the lot where Mr. S. Clarke's farm is) was confirmed to him and his heirs for one of the minister lots. Mr. Lombard was a native of Truro, Cape Cod, and graduated at Harvard College in 1723 ; he was ordained atGorham Dec. 26, 1750 ; one dollar was assessed on each right of land ($120) to defray the expenses of the ordination.* How long Mr. Lombard lived on terms of unanimity with his parishoners, I cannot say ; but in the warrant for a propri- etor's meeting, March 11, 1757, one of the articles in the warrant was, "to enquire into the grounds of the diference betwixt the Rev. Mr. Lombard, and the inhabitants of this town." He was finally dismissed in 1764, and subse- quently united with the Episcopalians. During the ministry of Mr. Lombard there was a schism in the Church, and a Mr. Townsend was ordained pastor over one division of it, April 4, 1759. — The Parish ordained him without the aid of cler- gymen. Capt. Phinney, prayed before the Charge — Capt. Morton gave the Charge, and Mr. Townsend performed the other services. Phinney and Morton were Elders in the church. Mr. Lombard was a man of talents, learning, and sound sense. Soon after his dismissal from the ministry, he was engaged in political life ; he sustained many important offices ; he was a Justice of the Peace, chairman of the committee of safety * See note E in the Appendix. 28 and vigilance in the early days of the Revolution ; — a delegate to the first Colonial Convention ; twice a member of the Pro- vincial Congress ; a delegate to form the Constitution of Mas- sachusetts ; seven years a Representative from Gorham in the Legislature, and afterv^^ards one of the Judges of the C.C. Pleas for the county of Cumberland. A town meeting was held July 12, 1766, "to see what method the town would take in order to the settling of a good learned, orthodox congregational minister among us ; and it was voted to send out Deacon Eliphalet Watson to go after such a minister. Mr. Lombard was succeeded in the ministry by Rev. Josiah Thacher, a native of Lebanon, Connecticut, a graduate of Nevi^-Jersey College. He was settled in Gor- ham in 1767, and after many difficulties with the Parish, he was dismissed in April 1781. And like Mr. Lombard he soon laid aside the title of Reverend, for that of Honorable, and entered deeply into political affairs. He was a Justice of the Peace — eleven years Representative of the town — then a Senator from Cumberland county in the Massachusetts Legis- lature, and subsequently a Judge of the County Court. Rev. Caleb Jewett was the third congregational minister ; he was a native of Newburyport, Mass., and graduated at Dart- mouth College in 1776 ; he was ordained at Gorham, Novem- ber 5, 1783 ; he was dismissed September 8th, 1800. Jere- miah Noyes was his successor ; he was from Newburyport — graduated at Dartmouth College 1799 — Ordained at Gorham, November 16th,and died January 15th, 1807. One condition of Mr. Noyes' settlement was, that he should lake a dismission whenever two-thirds of the legal voters of the Parish, at a le- gal meeting, held for that purpose,should request it ; six months' notice to be given. Asa Rand was next ordained over the first Parish in Gorham, January 18th, 1809. He was a native of Rindge, N. H., graduated at Dartmouth College 1806, and dismissed from his 29 pastoral charge June 12ih, 1822 ; he became afterwards editor of a religious newspaper in Portland, then at Boston, and sub- sequently at Lowell, Massachusetts. Rev. Thaddeus Pome- roy, from South-Hampton, Mass., succeeded Mr. Rand, as pastor of the first Parish — and still remains in that relation. Dr. Stephen Swett was the first physician in this town ; he was from Exeter, N. H., and was a prominent man in town affairs in the time of the revolution, and was surgeon in Col. Phinney's regiment, and in several battles. Dr. Jeremiah Barker succeeded him ; he afterwards removed to Falmouth ; subsequently he married the vi^idow of Judge Gorham, returned to this town, and died here in 1835, at the age of 84 years. Dr. Nathaniel Bowman was the third physician ; he gradu- ated at Harvard College in 1786, and was killed by the fall of the meeting-house frame, as before stated. Dr. Dudley Fol- som, from Exeter, N. H., Drs. Charles Kittridge, Asa Ad- ams, William_Thorndike, Dr. Seayer, Elihu Baxter, William H. Peabody, Nelson H. Carey, and John Pierce have been practising physicians in town. John P. Little, from Littleton, Mass. a graduate of Brown University, first opened an office in this town in 1801 for the practice of law; Peter Thacher, Samuel Whitmore, Barrett Potter, Jacob S. Smith, Joseph Adams, J. Pierce, Thomas J. Goodwin, and Elijah Hayes, have since been counsellors at law in Gorham. The first Innholder licensed in Gorham was Caleb Chase in 1770 ; then Samuel Premiss in 1776 ; Cary McLellan in 1779 ; and many others since. Till 1789, there was but one militia company in Gorham ; in that year two companies were formed out of the old one ; a third company was afterward formed ; and since, companies of cavalry, light infantry, and riflemen have been organized. The people of this town have not been inattentive to the sub- ject of education. Before the incorporation of the town, the 30 proprietors and inhabitants made provision for schools. At the first town meeting in March 1765, JE40 was voted for schools. At that period only one public school was kept in town. In 1768, the "town voted to improve Mr. John Greene as school master till the money tax is expended." In each of the years 1806—1807, £550 ($1833,33) was raised for schools ; in 1808, $666,66 ; in 1809, $1000 ; in 1812, $1500. Gorham Academy was incorporated by the Legislature of Massachusetts March 5th, 1803, being the seventh Academy incorporated in Maine. 11,520 acres of land was granted by the General Court of Massachusetts for its endowment, June 20, 1803 — $2500 was contributed by the citizens of Gorham and the vicinity ; and in 1804 ihe town voted $400 in aid of the institution. The land granted by the State is in the town of Woodstock, Oxford County, and was sold by the Trustees for $10,000. The Academy went into operation September 1806. Its first Preceptor was Reuben Nason, a native of Dover, N. H. ; he graduated at Harvard College in 1802. Mr. Nason had charge of the Academy till January 1810, when he settled at Freeport as minister of the Congregational Socie- ty in that town ; he again took charge of Gorham Academy in September 1815, and continued Principal of the same till August 1834 ; he then removed to Clarkson, N. Y. and died suddenly at that place in January 1835. Charles Cofiin, Asa Redington jr., and William White, were Preceptors from 1810 to 1815. In 1834, John V. Beane was Principal — and Amos Brown is at present at the head of the Institution.* The principal burying ground in the town is the old cemetry in the Village, which was given to the town by Mr. Jacob Hamlen in 1770, and contains one half acre of land. In this place most of the early settlers and many of the distinguished men who have lived in Gorham, have been buried. * See note F in the Appendix. 31 Ever since the termination of the Indian wars, the town has been constantly increasing in wealth and population, and at the present time has more than 3000 inhabitants. It is one of the best agricultural towns in the State, having little or no waste land, and has important factories of cotton, woolen, leather, starch, and gunpowder. If the healthiness of a place is to be ascertained by the age to which its people Hve, then will this town be adjudged to be one of great salubrity ; it is believed that no town in Maine has contained so many aged people in proportion to its population, as Gorham. The early setders especially were remarkable for their longevity. The first settler, Capt. John Phinney and his wife Martha, both died at the age of eighty-seven years ; their sons, Col. Edmund Phinney lived to be 85 — John Phinney 83 — James Phinney 94 — their daughter, Mary Gorham Irish, 89.* When the census of 1830 was taken, there were living in Gorham 68 persons between the ages of 70 and 80 years ; 32 between 80 and 90 ; and 6 over 90 years of age. The deaths in Gorham have been in late years about one in one hundred of the population, about 30 annually. Though in 1832, when the scarlet fever prevailed extensively, and was very fatal, 56 persons died in town, 29 of whom died by that malady, f From the time of the incorporation of the town in 1764 to the separation of Maine from Massachusetts, four Judges of the courts have lived in Gorham, and she had four senators and fifteen representatives in the Legislature of Massachusetts. The senators were the Hon. Josiah Thacher, Stephen Longfellow, Lothrop Lewis and James Irish. | Col. Phinney, Judge Longfellow, Judge Gorham, Caleb Chase, Capt. Briant Morton, Capt. Hart Williams, Amos Whitney, Solomon Lombard, Hon. Josiah Thacher and Lo- * See note G in the Appendix. f See note H in the Appendix. t See note I in the Appendix. 32 tlirop Lewis, were for many years ihe leading men in town, and managed its most important concerns. But I detain you too long, it is time that I should close. I have thus, fellow-citizens, endeavored to trace a portion of the history of our town, to exhibit the deeds and character of its first settlers. They are not present to join in our celebration ; they have all passed away to be here no more — " Each in his narrow cell forever laid, The rude fore-fathers of the hamlet sleep." And we are permitted to reap in peace and joy the fields they planted in sorrow and in blood ! It is but just to speak of their worth ; it is but grateful to cherish the memory of their virtues. They were a peculiar set of men, remarkable for their love of freedom, for firmness and decision of character. Their spring time of life was passed in hardships, dangers and difficulties of no common magnitude. They were mostly agriculturists, hard working, sober, honest citizens. They had not the advantages of literary education, but they acquired knowledge enough of letters to fit them for the more important duties of townsmen and citizens. They had not studied in the schools of eloquence, but they spoke in plain and forcible language " the words of truth and soberness." They abhorred disguise and were above dissimulation. They were just, and therefore respected ; vir- tuous, and beloved ; hospitable, and esteemed ; pious, and worthy to be imitated. They had no predilections, or personal interests that they were not willing to sacrifice on the altars of duty and patriotism. Liberty and religious freedom were the great objects of their pursuit ; these they resolved to have at any hazard ; these they gained and left to their posterity. Let those now living see to it, that they transmit the precious bequest to their children. APPENDIX. J^ote A — page 7. Of the 120 persons composing Capt. Gorham's company in the Narraganset fight, 40 were from Barnstable, 39 from Yar- mouth, 22 from Eastham, 7 from Sandwich, 6 from Duxbury, 3 from Plymouth, 2 from Abington, and 1 from Scituate. Mte B—page 13. The wives and daughters of the first settlers of Gorham shared in all the toils and wants of their husbands and fathers ; they used to labor in the field, carry burdenS) go to mill, and aid in defence of their property. One time when most of the men were away, the Indians attacked the fort, and the wife of Hugh McLellan rallied the women in the garrison, shut the gates, mounted the walls, fired upon the Indians, and by her courage and activity baffled the enemy till succour arrived. J\ote C — page 15. Horse-beef falls between Gorham and Windham, or Pre- sumpscot river, were formerly called Mallison's falls, after Mr. Joseph Mallison, to whom the General Court of Massachusetts made a grant of 200 acres of land, and the falls adjoining before the town of Gorham was granted. In 1741, Samuel Waldo, Esq. owned the Mallison tract. JSTote D — page 25. This vote was not enforced, for the Hon. William Tyng, who was sheriff of Cumberland county from 1767 to 1775, and who then resided in Portland, adhered to the British interest ; 34 he fled to St. John, New-Brunswick, and was made Chief Jus- tice of the Court of Common Pleas in Nova Scotia. In 1793, he removed to Gorham, and was a British loyalist, and received a British pension to the time of his death, which occurred in Dec. 1807 ; he was a gentleman of urbanity, hospitable, ex- emplary and highly respected. Mte E— pa«-e 27. The accounts of those who made preparation for the ordina- tion of Mr. Lombard, are curious, as showing the value of articles and prices of services at that period, Dec. 1750. Some of these charges are the following : 1 barrel of flour £14 7^. 6i. 29 lbs sugar jE8 14s. 3 bushels of apples 2 8 1 tea pot 1 10 2 barrels of cider 9 4 gallons of rum 5 4 2 gallons of brandy 5 2 bsh'ls cranberries 2 1 bottle of vinegar 5 ' 1 lb. of tea 10 2 cheeses Qd per lb. 1 lb. of ginger 2 54 1-2 lbs. of pork 7dperlb. — 6 gals, molasses 2s8d per gal. 6 candles Is 3 geese 3 \-2d. per lb. 1 oz. of nutmegs \M. 4 oz. of pepper 6(/. 8 fowls 36s. 1-2 bushel of onions and 1-2 bushel of pota- toes. Two bushels of cranberries to half a bushel of potatoes, would at this day seem disproportionate, and the rum, brandy and cider would hardly be expected at an ordination dinner. JVofe ¥—page 30. Within the last year an effort has been made to increase the funds and enlarge the operations of the academy, by establishing a female seminary of the highest order, and a department for the better qualification of primary school teachers ; more than $20,000 have been subscribed for these purposes ; a large brick edifice for the female seminary is now being erected. There are at present, three male and one female teacher attach- ed to the institution. MteG—page 31. In addition to thePhinney family before named, the follow. 35 ing named persons have attained a great age. Dennis LareVi an earlier settler from the South of Ireland, died here in 179G, aged 102 years. Mr. Larey was a soldier in two Indian wars ; he was at the taking of Lanisburg in 1745, under Gen. Waldo, and at the second capture in 1758, and at the fall of Quebec 1759. Patience Larey, the wife of Dennis Larey, died in 1809, aged 90 years. Eliphalet Watson, - - - aged 98 years. Mr. Whitney, an early settler, died in 1804, aged 89 years. Susannah Cobb, died in 1807 ag ed 95 years Mr. Haynes, (( 1811 ' ' 90 Mrs. Stone, u 1812 ' ' 90 Mrs. Gates, (C 1813 ' ' 90 Prince Davis, 11 1819 ' ' 96 Kerenhappuch Brackett 1820 ' ' 98 Jedediah Lombard, 1820 ' ' 92 William Files, 1823 ' ' 95 David Harding, 1828 ' ' 97 Catharine Cloutman, 1832 ' ' 91 Thomas Irish, 1832 ' ' 94yrs. and 8 mts. Uriah Nason, 1833 ' ' 91 Jedediah Cobb, 1833 ' ' 91 Hannah Ross, 1833 ' ' 98 Jonathan Sturgis, 1834 ' ' 91 James Mosier, 1834 ' ' 99yrs. and 3 mts. James Phinney, 1834 ' ' 94 John Watson, 1834 ' ' 93 Mte U—page 31. The number ofdeaths in Gorham in 1830, were 32 ; in 1831, 36 :in 1832, 56; in 1833,37; in 1834, 37, and in 1835,28. JVote I — page 31. Solomon Lombard was representative from Gorham 7 years. Wentworth Stewart 2 years. Briant Morton, 3 years ; also a delegate to the Provincial Congress. Edmund Phinney, 3 years ; also delegate to the convention at Concord 1779. Jo- siah Thacher, 1 1 years, afterwards Senator and Judge. Stephen Longfellow, 8 years, afterwards Senator and Judge. Lothrop Lewis, 13 years, afterwards Senator and Judge. David Hard- ingjr. 12 years. Dudley Folsom 4 years. James Codman 3 years. Tappan Robie 6 years. Samuel Stephenson 2 years. Joseph Adams 1 year, and James Irish 1 year. Since the separation of Maine from Massachusetts, the town has been represented in the Legislature of this State, succes- sively by Lothrop Lewis, Seward Merrill, Samuel Stephenson, Clark Dyer, Edmund Man, Joseph Hamlen 3d, Josiah Pierce, William E. Files and Charles Hunt. The delegates from Gorham to the Convention to form the Constitution of Maine, were Lothrop Lewis, James Irish, and Joseph Adams. ^ mSl^^ 3S>^ > ^ "■:>] ^ '5>'*\ ^^^^SD ^ " :3E> w^ ^^ ^ ^ Oi> :>» ^^^ 3 ^, m ^^^%mmm LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 013 983 724 1 5:^ > 'i^^-^ '^i^J- p^^ :>:^.^..-^ :::^ii .^"^f^rx^