Chapter 27 - Exeter (First Part - Early Settlement, Indian Hostilities, Revolutionary War, Washington's Visit, etc.) from History of Rockingham County, New Hampshire
From: Louise Temples - pc_genie@ix.netcom.com

Source:  History of Rockingham County, New Hampshire and Representative Citizens
          by Charles A. Hazlett, Richmond-Arnold Publishing Co., Chicago, Ill., 1915


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                               CHAPTER XXVII
                                   EXETER

         Geographical-The First Settlement-John Wheelwright and Others-The
         Exeter "Combination" of 1634-Indian Hostilities-Edward Cranfield's
       Despotism-War of the Revolution-The Industries-Prominent Resi-
                  dents-Firmness of Sullivan--Washington Visit.
     
     The town of Exeter lies in the eastern part of the county, and is bounded
as follows: On the north by South Newmarket, on the east by Stratham,
on the south by Hampton, Hampton Falls, Kensington, East Kingston, and
Kingston, and on the west by Brentwood. It is forty miles southeast of Con-
cord and fourteen miles west of Portsmouth. There are stages to Kensington
and East Brentwood, and electric railroad to Amesbury and via Hampton
Beach and Rye to Portsmouth. The surface of the town is generally level and
the soil fertile. The population in 1910 was 4897.
     The earliest permanent settlement of New Hampshire by Europeans was
made at Little Harbor, now within the limits of Rye, and at Dover Point, in
1623. How soon afterwards the more adventurous of the "fishermen and
traders," who constituted the early population there, explored the river as far
upward as the Falls of Squamscott we have no record. There is a distinct
tradition, however, that there were residents in Exeter before the arrival
of Wheelwright and his followers from Massachusetts in 1638. Whether
they were occupying under the deed of the Indian sagamores of 1629 to
Wheelwright, or whether the alleged deed of that date is spurious, are
questions which need not be discussed here.
     Rev. John Wheelwright, a friend and fellow-collegian of Oliver Crom-
well, who had been vicar of Bilsby, in Lincolnshire, England, brought his
family to this country in 1636, landing in Boston. The next year he was
banished from the colony of Massachusetts on account of alleged "anti-
nomian and familistic" religious opinions, and in the spring of 1638 estab-
lished himself, with several persons who were driven from Massachusetts
for the same cause, with a number of his former friends and parishioners from
England, and with others of whom we have no definite previous knowledge,
at the Falls of Squamscott, to which he gave the name of Exeter. Mr.
Wheelwright at once gathered a church here and became its minister. He
also drew up a form of civil government, which was essential for the peace
and good order of the infant settlement, as the laws of Massachusetts were 
not in force here, and New Hampshire had as yet no 1aws. The instrument
drawn by Wheelwright was styled a "combination," and was signed by the
heads of families and inhabitants. The following is a copy of the com-
bination: 

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     Combination at Exeter, 1639.-Whereas it hath pleased the Lord to
move the heart of our dread sovereign Charles, by the grace of God king,
etc., to grant license and liberty to sundry of his subjects to plant themselves
in the western parts America, we, his loyal subjects, brethren in the church
in Exeter, situate and lying upon the river Pascataquacke, with other inhabit-
ants there, considering with ourselves the holy will of God and our own
necessity, that we should not live without wholesome laws and government
among us, of which we are altogether destitute, do in the name of Christ and
in the sight of God combine ourselves together to erect and set up amongst
us such government as shall be to our best discerning agreeable to the will
of God, professing ourselves subjects to our sovereign lord King Charles,
according to the liberties of our English colony of the Massachusetts, and
binding ourselves solemnly by the grace and help of Christ and in his name
and fear to submit ourselves to such godly and Christian laws as are here
established in the realm of England to our best knowledge, and to all other
such laws which shall upon good grounds be made and enacted amongst us
according to God, that we may live quietly and peaceably together in all
godliness and honesty.
     Mo. 5, 4, 1639.

John Wheelwright.                  William Wardhall.
Augustine Storer.                  Robert Smith.
Thomas Wright.                     Robert Seward.
William Wentworth.                 Richard Bulger.
Henry Elkins.                      Christopher Lawson.
George Walton.                     George Barlow.
Samuel Walker.                     Richard Morris.
Thomas Petit.                      Nicholas Needham.
Henry Roby.                        Thomas Wilson.
William Winborne.                  George Rawbone.
Thomas Crawley.                    William Cole.
Christopher Helme.                 Jenness Wall.
Darby Field.                       Thomas Leavitt.
Robert Read.                       Edmund Littlefield.
Edward Rishworth.                  John Cramme.
Francis Matthews.                  Philemon Purmot.
Godfrey Dearborne.                 Thomas Wardhall.

     It was modified after a time, and readopted in its primary form in 1640,
as appears by the original instrument of that date, in the handwriting of
Wheelwright, and signed by him and thirty-four others, now preserved in the
town clerk's office.
     Wheelwright's Church, which was of course a primitive structure and of
small dimensions, was situated on the hill north of the Bliss house, and near
the brick and tile manufactory. It was the fashion of that day to make a
burial-ground of the yard which surrounded the church, and for many years
it has been common to find the bones of the early settlers of Exeter in the clay
excavated for the manufactory. Wheelwright's house is located by tradition

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a little southwest of the church, in the field in rear of the house formerly
occupied by the Misses Rowland. The first minister of Exeter remained here
but about four years, when, upon the extension of the jurisdiction of Massa-
chusetts over the settlements of New Hampshire, he removed, with some of
his warmest supporters, to Wells, in Maine.
     The people of New Hampshire remained under the government of Massa-
chusetts until 1680. During that period Exeter was a place of little political
importance, not being once represented in the "great and general court,"
as were Dover, Portsmouth, and Hampton nearly every year. Yet the material
interests of the people were steadily on the increase here, and there were
valuable accessions to the population.
     When John Cutt was appointed the first governor of the province, Exeter
furnished him one of his ablest councilors in the person of John Gilman.
Then came the eventful period of the Indian hostilities, in which Exeter, being
on the frontier, was for a series of years greatly exposed to the incursions
of the savages. Many of her citizens lost their lives and others were carried
into captivity during this trying period of her history.
     Exeter partook largely of the popular indignation that was aroused in the
province by the tyrannical conduct of Governor Cranfield, and at a later date
was the scene of a rather serious outbreak against the crown officials for
attempting with a high hand to enforce the laws against persons charged with
trespassing upon the forest pines marked for masts for his majesty's navy.
In 1682, Edward Cranfield came to New Hampshire as governor. He soon
exhibited himself in his true colors as a grasping, unprincipled despot. The
people of the province feared and hated him, and when his arbitrary conduct
became intolerable, some of them were so enraged that they actually entered
into a combination for the avowed purpose of overturning the government.
     On the 21st of January, 1683, the little village of Exeter witnessed a strik-
ing spectacle. A dozen horsemen, armed with swords, pistols, and guns, with
a trumpeter, and headed by Edward Gove, a member of the Provincial
Assembly from Hampton, with a drawn sword, rode through the snowy street
of Exeter towards Hampton. A son of Gove and the brothers Wadleigh,
Joseph, John, and Robert, Thomas Rawlins, Mark Baker, and John Sleeper
were undoubtedly of the party, and probably Nathaniel Ladd, Edward Smith,
William Healy, and John Young also. All of them were well known in
Exeter, and the greater part of them were residents, and they made no secret
of their purpose to rise in arms against the tyrannical government of Cranfield.
But it was yet too early for a successful resistance to the arbitrary measures
of a royal government, and when next the good people of Exeter saw their
insurgent townsmen it was after they had been tried and convicted as accom-
plices in the crime of high treason and had been, by direction of the crown,
respited and pardoned.
     Though this lesson failed to teach Cranfield moderation, it showed the
people of Exeter that they must adopt a less hazardous mode of resistance to
the unwarranted acts of the authorities. In the course of the year the gov-
ernor, being disappointed in his designs of making great gains from his office,
resorted to the illegal expedient of taxing the people without the consent of the
Assembly. To John Folsom, constable, was committed the tax against the

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inhabitants of Exeter for collection, but he reported to the governor that the
people refused to pay, on account of the illegality of the assessment. There-
upon the warrant was delivered to the provost-marshal of the province, who
was ordered to collect the taxes or imprison the delinquents. But he found the
duty no sinecure. He first went to the house of Edward Gilman, where he
was met by the wife of Councilor John Gilman, who informed him that "she
had provided a kettle of scalding water for him if he came to her house to
demand any rates." He received at the same time a like hospitable assurance
from the wife of Moses Gilman, and other women took pains to let him
know that they were preparing red-hot spits, so as to give him a warm recep-
tion. Some half a score of the sturdy yeomanry of Hampton, on horseback
and armed with clubs, then made their appearance on the scene, in order to
insure that the marshal and his deputy should receive all due attention; and.
to cap the climax, the Rev. John Cotton, at that time probably officiating as the
clergyman of Exeter, joined the company, "with a club in the hand," the
emergency seeming to justify a resort to carnal weapons. The assembled party
then began good-humoredly but systematically to hustle the marshal and his
deputy up and down the house, and laughingly inquired of them, "What did
they wear at their sides?" alluding to their swords, which were indeed rather
ridiculous appendages on such an occasion. The unfortunate officers soon
betook themselves to the Widow Sewell's hostelry, ostensibly for refreshment;
but their tormenters followed them there, and pushed them about, called them
rogues, took the bridles off their horses, and then turned them loose, and in
short made the place in a thousand ways too hot to hold them. The marshal
at length found that he had brought his wares to a poor market, and in despair
abandoned the attempt to collect illegal taxes in Exeter, which, it is believed,
was never resumed.
     A half-century again elapsed before Exeter witnessed another outbreak of
popular feeling. The sovereigns of England depended much upon their
American colonies for ship timber for the royal navy, and very stringent
laws were enacted against the felling of any pine trees suitable for masts which
stood upon common lands. The surveyor-general of the woods kept a sharp
eye upon all such timber, and marked it with the broad arrow, which denoted
that it pertained to the crown. It may naturally be supposed, however, that the
lumbermen of the frontiers would pay but scanty heed to the regulations which
forbade them to touch the finest growth of the forests. When the surveyor's
back was turned, it is probable that the woodman's axe spared few of the
monarch pines, whether they bore the king's mark or not. The surveyors
could not help suspecting, if they did not know, that the laws were disregarded,
and jealousy and bitter feeling necessarily sprung up on this account between
the king's officers and the inland inhabitants of the province.
     In 1734 David Dunbar was lieutenant-governor and surveyor-general of
New Hampshire. He was arbitrary, having been a soldier, needy and jealous.
He became convinced that the lumbermen of Exeter were cutting about the
mill at Copyhold, now in Brentwood, trees which belonged by law to his royal
master, and determined that he would put a stop to it. Accordingly he paid
a visit to the mill in person, but while he was looking about for evidence of
the violation of the law, he was greatly terrified by shouts and shrieks from the

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surrounding woods, and the discharge of fire-arms nearer than was agreeable.
Dunbar therefore determined that discretion was the better part of valor, and
beat a retreat.
     A few days after, however, he dispatched ten men in a barge up the
river from Portsmouth, with directions to seize and bring off the suspected
timber. The men arrived at the village in the evening, and put up for the
night at the public house kept by Capt. Samuel Gilman on Water Street next
to the town hall. After a part of them were in bed, and while the others
were carousing there at ten o'clock at night, they were suddenly set upon by
a party of men in disguise, who threw some of them out of the windows,
and drove the others out at the doors. The party assailed made for the river
in all haste, but in the mean time the bottom of their barge had been bored
through, the sails cut to pieces or carried away, and the mast hacked down.
They undertook to make their escape in her, but were obliged to return to the
shore and hide until the next day, when they found means to return igno-
miniously to Portsmouth; but a part of them having lost their clothes, were in
a particularly woeful plight.
     The party who were engaged in this act of defiance of the surveyor-
general's authority were from the outskirts of Exeter, then a very large town-
ship, but included men of respectability and standing. Thomas and Nathaniel
Webster, Jonathan, Samuel, and Philip Conner, Trueworthy Dudley, and
Ezekiel Gilman are said to have been among the assailants. They assembled
at the public house kept by Zebulon Giddings, known as the Rowland House,
and there painted their faces and altered their dress so as to defy recognition
were Natick Indians; so it is probable that they adopted a disguise calculated
to give that idea. We do not learn that any further attempt was made to
enforce the mast-tree laws, nor that any punishment was inflicted upon the
parties concerned in this breach of the peace; but Dunbar was so mortified
and enraged that he caused the courts to be taken away from Exeter, and bore
a bitter grudge against the inhabitants so long as he remained in the province.
     The earlier half of the eighteenth century was a severe test of the pluck
and endurance of the inhabitants of New Hampshire. We learn that the
winters were often of unusual length and severity. The labors of the husband-
men met with but scanty returns, and the domestic animals were terribly
reduced in numbers by the extreme cold and the want of food. Exeter must
have suffered greatly in these years, though, as the business of her people
was not exclusively agricultural, she probably escaped with less injury than
some of the neighboring towns.
     After the extension of the settlements of New Hampshire which followed
the close of the French war, there was a time of greater prosperity. Exeter,
during the administration of the last royal governor, was a thriving and
important town. Governor Wentworth, who was fond of parade, encouraged
the formation of a battalion of cadets here, officered by the leading citizens,
and armed and uniformed in the handsomest style, according to the governor's
taste. Some of his Excellency's warmest and most trusted friends were resi-
dents here. But when the first mutterings of the storm that led to revolution
and independence were heard, the men of Exeter ranged themselves at once

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on the side of the colonists; and throughout the times that tried men's souls
this town was the headquarters of the state, in both civil and military matters.
     Revolutionary.- The feeling inspired in the breasts of the people of
Exeter by the oppressive acts of the British Parliament, which led to the
American Revolution, found utterance in a series of patriotic resolutions,
adopted "almost unanimously" at a town meeting in January, 1774. After
specifying, in indignant terms the grievances of the colonists, the town concen-
trated their views into the resolve, "That we are ready on all necessary occa-
sions to risk our lives and fortunes in defence of our rights and liberties."
These were bold words, but they were supported by acts of equal boldness, as
we shall see. The two most obnoxious of the British ministers, Lords North
and Bute, were burnt in effigy in front of the old jail. We can imagine the
exultation of the Liberty Boys at a demonstration so expressive and decisive.
     In September, 1774, when the inhabitants of Boston were reduced to sore
straits by the operation of the Boston Port Bill, our town imposed a tax,
assessed in regular form upon the citizens, and to be enforced by distraint, to
raise money to relieve them. But in December of the same year the men of
Exeter were called upon to put to the proof their principles of resistence to
tyranny, and were found equal to the occasion. A plan was devised among
the bolder leading patriots of the province to seize the arms and ammunition
of Fort William and Mary, at the entrance of the harbor of Portsmouth,
which was then slenderly garrisoned, but which was soon to be fully manned.
     It was arranged that the party which was to proceed down the river, under
the leadership of John Sullivan, John Langdon, and others to make the seizure,
should be supported by a stronger body of men from Exeter, who were to
make their appearance in Portsmouth in season to secure the withdrawal of the
warlike stores in spite of all opposition. Accordingly, a detachment of about
twenty-five armed horsemen, under Nathaniel Folsom, Nicholas Gilman, and
Doctor Giddings, left Exeter in the night fixed for the undertaking, and rode
into Portsmouth about daybreak in the morning. They ordered coffee at the
inn of James Stoodley, who looked with no small astonishment on their martial
array. But they made no allusion to the business which brought them there.
About eight o'clock in the morning, James Hackett, with fifty or sixty of the
bold Exeter boys, on foot, marched into town and took their station at the
haymarket in Portsmouth, where they waited for orders.
     This, of course, created great astonishment, but little information could
be elicited by any inquiries. At nine o'clock Langdon made his appearance at
Stoodley's, and acquainted the party there that the raid was completely suc-
cessful, and that Sullivan was then passing up the river in the boats loaded with
the munitions which had but lately been the dependence of one of His
Majesty's forts, but were ere long to be used against his authority by the
oppressed and indignant colonists.
     Thus, in this first overt armed resistance of America to the British
authority, the men of Exeter took a part. The principal citizens of the town
were open and decided in their determination to oppose the parliamentary
measures. John Phillips, the founder of the academy; a man of learning,
wealth, and cultivation, though little fitted by habit or inclination for strife,
was firm and outspoken for the liberties of America. Nathaniel Folsom, who

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had been distinguished as an officer in the French and Indian wars, and who
was a member of the first Continental Congress, was ready to take up arms
in his country's cause at a moment's notice, and did afterwards render valuable
service as a provincial major-general until he was, by reason of the unworthy
jealousies of others, allowed to be dropped.
     Nicholas Gilman, the trusted friend of the royal governor, was no less
firmly devoted to the defense of popular rights, and with his active and
efficient sons, then just come upon the stage, was a most important and indis-
pensable aid to the cause. He was afterwards the successful manager of the
finances of the infant state, and the stay and staff of President Weare; and
his sons became in their turn favorite and important officers of New Hamp-
shire.
     Enoch Poor had been for some years engaged in ship building in the town,
and. accustomed in the management of men, was ready to tender his best
services in aid of America's, cause. His appointment in the army was
peculiarly fortunate for the country. He became a general of light infantry;
was greatly esteemed by Lafayette and by Washington, and his early death
was deeply lamented.
     James Hackett was also a ship builder, and as such labored for his country
faithfully and well, He was appointed a lieutenant-colonel of one of the
regiments, but his services could not be spared from the coast defenses. He
did, however, serve in Rhode Island on one occasion as an officer in John
Langdon's company of light horse. Such were a few of the leading spirits of
the town as the alarm of war was about to be sounded.
     The Lexington Alarm.-The famous expedition of the British troops from
Boston to Lexington and Concord took place on the 19th of April, 1775. Early
in the evening of that day a flying report of the affair reached Exeter, which
was soon after confirmed by news received from Haverhill that the enemy
was at Lexington, that the country was in arms, and a severe action had
commenced, which was raging when the messenger left to alarm the inland
towns. Our streets were filled with excited men until a late hour at night.
About daybreak an express arrived in town with further and more authentic
intelligence. The bells were immediately rung, and the drums beat to arms.
It happened that three of the leading patriots of the town-N. Folsom, N.
Gi1man, and E. Poor-were absent at Dover, but there were enough others to
determine what part Exeter should take in the emergency. The unanimous
voice was for every man who could possibly be spared to march at once to the
help of our suffering brethren. John T. Gilman, then twenty-one years of age,
was peculiarly active in forwarding the preparations of the Exeter volunteers.
Bullets were cast and cartridges made with all speed, and every one lent a
helping hand. The women encouraged their brothers and sons to offer their
services, and contributed their aid to fit them out for their hurried campaign.
About 9 o'clock in the morning, no less than 108 of the brave boys of
Exeter were paraded at the courthouse (nearly opposite the lower church),
armed and equipped, and ready to march.
"What road shall we take?" "By Haverhill." "Who shall lead us?"
"Captain Hackett." " Are you all ready?" asked Hackett. "Yes," was the
unanimous response. "March!" was the laconic order.

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One who was of that extemporized band of soldiers has left an account
of their march. He says that the men wore sad countenances while taking
leave of their wives and friends at home, but there was no flinching. Once
fairly upon the way, however, their spirits rose, and they soon resumed their
cheerfulness. They had a drum and fife, but no flag, for the Stars and Stripes
were yet in the future. But they were well armed, especially those who had the
bright muskets which Governor Wentworth had taken pains to provide for his
"cadets," little suspecting that they were so soon to be used in rebellion against
his royal master. The Exeter company marched through Haverhill to the
ferry, but found that town in great distress. A destructive fire had raged
there only forty-eight hours before, consuming the finest part of the village;
this, in addition to the intelligence of the commencement of hostilities, was
particularly depressing to the inhabitants. At nightfall they reached Bragg's
Tavern in Andover, and passed the night in that town.
     Resuming their march at an early hour the next morning, they reached
Menotomy at noon, and halted upon the common at Cambridge about 2
o'clock. Here they were taken charge of by some officers; their alarm-post
was assigned them, and two or three rooms in one of the college buildings
were given them for quarters. There they passed the first night of their
military service, without even knapsacks for pillows, and the college floors,
as one of their number quaintly remarked, "as hard as any other floors!"
The next morning the company made choice of officers. James Hackett was
elected captain; John W. Gilman and Nathaniel Gookin, lieutenants; and
John T. Gilman, Gideon Lamson, and Noah Emery, sergeants.
     The company soon after went through their exercises on the common,
and evidently attracted no little attention. The next day a report came that
the British were landing at Chelsea. Captain Hackett had the honor of
being the first to receive marching orders; the company from Londonderry
followed. They marched as far as Medford, where they were met by the
information that the British had reembarked. At Medford they found
N. Folsom and E. Poor, who were going to the headquarters of the army.
General Heath reviewed the New Hampshire troops, and on Sunday Doctor
MacClintock, of Greenland, and Doctor Belknap, of Dover, preached to
them. The Exeter company remained at Cambridge not far from a fort-
night, and were highly complimented by General Heath. Then, the emer-
gency having passed, and arrangements being in progress for forming a
permanent military establishment, they were permitted to return home.
     Exeter had also its committee of correspondence, charged with looking
after the interests of the patriotic cause. An example of the work which
fell to their share may be found in a dingy letter, which is still preserved,
dated at Portsmouth, April 21, 1775, and signed by H. Wentworth, chair-
man, by which the committee of Exeter are informed of "the attack upon
the people of Ipswich," and of the expectation of the arrival of two ships of
war in Portsmouth, and containing a request for "four or five barrels of
powder." On the back of the letter is a receipt by the messenger for four
barrels of powder, which were delivered by N. Gilman and Doctor Giddings,
together with a memorandum of sixty-eight barrels more in the possession
of the friends of liberty in Exeter and the neighboring towns. This powder

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was undoubtedly a part of that which was seized at Fort William and Mary
in December, 1774.
     Highways.-The change in the character of the public highways since
1776 is worthy of special notice. For many years before the Revolution the
lumber trade was the chief business of the town. vast quantities of the
choicest spoils of the forest were brought each year from inland points to
the Exeter landing, a part to be used for the construction of ships here, and
the remainder to be rafted or otherwise transported down the river. The
greater share of the money raised for the repair of the highways was ex-
pended on the roads towards Brentwood and Epping, over which the staple
commodity in which our citizens were so deeply interested was hauled to
tide-water and a market. The result of it was that the other ways were
sadly neglected. Fortunately this was of less consequence from the fact that
most of the travel at that period was upon horseback. The river, too, served
admirably as a public highway in former times between the settlements upon
its banks. So long as people could do their business by means of boats, they
were not so particular about the condition of the roads.
     Navigation.-The basin of the Salt River sixscore years ago presented a
far busier scene than it does today. The channel was then capable of afford-
ing a passage to vessels of considerable size, and ships of from 200 to 500
tons burden were built here, six or eight of them each season, it is said. Sev-
eral vessels were owned here, and made voyages along the coast, and to the
West Indies and Europe. With ships unloading their cargoes at our wharves,
with carpenters and calkers plying their busy trades in our shipyards, and
with long lines of teams dragging the mighty pines to the riverside, the
spectacle must have been full of life and animation. Perhaps something of
the same sort may again be realized when the obstructions to the navigation
of the Squamscot shall be removed. As the Revolution drew nigh the lumber
trade declined, and the business activity of the place diminished. The break-
ing out of hostilities sent some of the most enterprising citizens into the
army; commerce was suspended and shipbuilding was no longer lucrative.
The mechanics became soldiers or sought employment elsewhere, and Exeter,
its limited resources drawn upon to the utmost to sustain the war, looked
forward with anxious hope to the issue that was to bring peace and restore
prosperity.
     In 1776 Exeter could boast but two churches, and those both Congrega-
tional; nor was there either academy or seminary then. But in the article
of public houses a hundred years have probably given us no increase. There
were then two taverns on the east side of the river, and the whole number
was no doubt greater than it is now. This is to be explained by the different
habits of the earlier generation. Auction sales and many kinds of public
business were formerly transacted at the inns, as they were usually called.
They were places where the citizens of all classes used to meet, especially in
the evenings, and the convivial habits of the past age contributed essentially
to their being well patronized.
     Exeter during the period of the Revolution was a place of great resort,
and as those were not days when men could whirl into town from their
homes by the train in the morning, and whirl back again to their own firesides

Page 355

in the evening, nearly every visitor here had to pass a night or two under
the roof of one or another of our hospitable landlords.
     At the close of the Revolution Exeter had but just assumed the position
in the province to which its size and importance entitled it. Forty years
before, the town had become an object of jealousy and dislike to some of the
dignitaries under the crown at Portsmouth, and in consequence thereof had
been tabooed and "left out in the cold," so far as it was in their power to
accomplish it. The last royal governor, John Wentworth, however, was too
sensible and politic to allow his conduct to be influenced by an old grudge.
He took particular pains to conciliate the inhabitants of Exeter, visited the
town repeatedly in much state, formed and commissioned a company of
cadets here, embracing many leading men, as a kind of bodyguard to the
occupant of the gubernatorial office, and established relations of intimacy
with several of the prominent citizens. He labored zealously and conscien-
tiously for the good of the province, and at the same time to uphold the
power of Britain over it. He hoped no doubt that his special friends in
Exeter might adhere to the cause of the crown, as so many of his connec-
tions and dependents in Portsmouth did. But he reckoned without his host.
When the tocsin of war was sounded Exeter might be said to be a unit on
the side of liberty, and the men whom Governor Wentworth had delighted to
honor were the first to declare in favor of their oppressed country.
     Exeter then became, and remained for many years, the capital of the
province and state. The Legislature held its sessions here, and during its
adjournments the committee of safety took its place, and exercised its func-
tions. The courts were again established here, and the town became prac-
tically the headquarters of all military undertakings in which New Hamp-
shire was concerned. And here on the 5th day of January, 1776, was
adopted and put in operation the first written Constitution for popular gov-
ernment of the Revolutionary period. The honor of taking the lead of her
sister colonies in this momentous "new departure" belongs to New Hamp-
shire, and Exeter may well be proud to have been the scene of an occurrence
so interesting and so memorable.
     The Old Powder-House.-The structure in our town which has perhaps
retained its old-time appearance most perfectly for the past century is the
powder-house, situated on the point near the river on the east side. It was
built about 1760, and has apparently undergone little repair since that time.
It probably first held military stores destined £or the French and Indian war,
which, however, terminated before they could have been much needed. A
few years later it was opened, no doubt, to receive a part of the powder cap-
tured by the provincials in the raid, under Sullivan, upon Fort William and
Mary in Portsmouth Harbor in December, 1774. But as powder without
ball hardly met the requirements of the times, the selectmen of Exeter pur-
chased lead for the "town stock" from John Emery, and sent for a further
supply to Portsmouth by Theodore Carlton; employed Thomas Gilman to
"run it into bullets," and finally stored the leaden missiles in a chest, which
Peter Folsom made for the purpose, at a cost of three and sixpence. The
ammunition was dealt out from time to time to other places which stood in
greater need, very sparingly though; for notwithstanding Exeter had a pow-

Page 356

der-mill in 1776, the explosive dust was too precious to be wasted through a
large part of the Revolutionary war. The old powder-house is now some-
what weather-beaten and dilapidated, and perhaps past its usefulness; but
we hope it may be spared, on account of the good service it has done in
former days. May no vandal hand be laid upon it, but may it remain a land-
mark for many years to come!
     The Old Jail.-Another prominent object on the east side, which survived
until a recent date, was the jail, on the spot occupied by the house of Mr.
N. K. Leavitt. It is supposed to have been built about the year 1770, when
the province was divided into counties. It was a wooden structure, of lim-
ited capacity, and at first was surrounded by no exterior fence or wall. It
could not have been a very secure place of confinement for a person of in-
genuity and resources; and indeed more than one prisoner made his escape
from it. The notorious Henry Tufts, who published his memoirs thirty years
afterwards, tells us that he was incarcerated there before the Revolution, and
made his way out without much difficulty. After 1775 the jail became
crowded; not only were the persons in this province suspected of disaffection
to the American cause committed there, but Tories from other jurisdictions,
counterfeiters of the colonial paper money, and deserters and skulkers from
the Continental army. So much apprehension was then felt that the building
was not strong enough to contain its inmates that armed guards were con-
stantly stationed at the door.
     The courthouse, known also as the townhouse and statehouse, stood at
what is now the easterly corner of Front and Court streets, on the site of
the dwelling of the late Mr. Joseph Boardman. The building had formerly
been the meeting-house of the first parish. When it was moved across the
street and devoted to judicial purposes, it was flanked by the stocks and the
whipping-post. Possibly the former instrument of discipline may have dis-
appeared before 1776, but the latter undoubtedly lasted till then. The horse-
thief Tufts was flogged there shortly before that date, unfortunately without
eradicating his inborn propensity to appropriate unlawfully the property of
other people to his own use.
     One of the town schools (for the excellence of which Exeter was early
noted) was long kept in this townhouse. A "grammar school" was likewise
maintained at the expense of the town in 1775-76, under the charge of
Clement Weeks, a room being hired of Samuel Davis for the purpose.
     The town and courthouse was the place of assembly £or the Legislature
of New Hampshire, whence it received the additional name of statehouse.
Its halls in the "times that tried men's souls" continually echoed to the tread
of the wisest and bravest of the dwellers among our granite hills. Sullivan
and Folsom, Stark and Poor, Cilley and Scammell, Dearborn and Reid, in
their military attire of blue and buff, often trailed their swords along its
corridors; while Weare and Langdon, Gilman and Bartlett, Thornton and
Whipple, and a host 0£ other patriots in civil life assembled periodically
within its walls to devise the ways and means for keeping an army in the
field, until the power of Britain was at length broken, and peace crowned
the independence 0£ America.
     The meeting-house of the first parish occupied nearly the same spot which

Page 357

its successor, the present church, does now. But the yard which surrounded
it was then of greater extent, and was filled with substantial stone monu-
ments, bearing inscriptions in memory of the dead who were interred beneath.
A number of years ago those monuments were carefully leveled with the
ground, placed above the bodies they were intended to commemorate, and
thinly covered with earth. The rank grass soon sprang up and obliterated
all traces of the burying-ground. Subsequently the street was widened in
front, and it is understood that the present sidewalk passes over a portion
of what was formerly the churchyard. The good taste and propriety of
these alterations has been questioned by some of the present generation, we
believe; but there is a consolation in the reflection that the memorial stones
were neither destroyed nor removed from their proper locations, so that should
occasion require, the information they contain can at any time hereafter be
made available. A portion of the main floor of the old meeting-house was
left open to all worshipers indiscriminately, except that the men and women
occupied different sides.
     Comparatively few persons had private seats. The privilege of erecting
a pew was highly prized it would appear, for in 1775 the rights to build three
of them in the meeting-house were sold at auction to the highest bidders, and
realized handsome premiums. The services in the religious meetings at that
period were conducted in most respects as in our own day. We no longer
have tithingmen, however, to look after the sleepers and the uneasy youngsters
in sermon time. And we do have church-organs and an abundance of hymn-
books, which our predecessors did not, by reason of which there has been
an essential change in the style and manner of the sacred music. The "pitch
pipe" alone was formerly employed to "set the tune," and in good old Deacon
Brooks' day the hymn in the first church was "deaconed" out, a line at a
time, before it was sung by the choir .
     In 1776 the meeting-house was opened on two occasions of peculiar
interest to the society. The first was on the 14th of March, when funeral
services were performed over the remains of the Rev. Woodbridge Odlin,
who had been the pastor of the church for many years. We learn from a
contemporary record that a great congregation assembled to witness the
solemn ceremony, for the deceased clergyman was highly esteemed. The
other occasion was on the 9th of October, when the Rev. Isaac Mansfield,
of Marblehead, Mass., was ordained as the successor of Mr. Odlin. The
Rev. Messrs. Thayer, of Hampton, Fogg, of Kensington, and Webster and
Noyes, of Salisbury, were present and took part in the exercises.
     Ordinations were great events in the last century, and we read of one
in a town in Massachusetts during the Revolution where the Council during
their session disposed of no less than thirty-eight mugs of flip, twenty-four
mugs of cider, eleven gills of rum bitters, and two mugs of sling! But we
have no reason to suppose that the good clergymen and brethren who assisted
on the occasion referred to in our town found it such thirsty work. On the
contrary, it seems to have been accomplished with all due decorum. It may
be necessary to remind readers of the present day that houses of worship a
hundred years ago contained neither fireplaces, stoves, nor other heating
apparatus. The congregation, so far as temperature was concerned, were

Page 358

not much more comfortable in the winter season in-doors than out. But the
generation of that day was brought up to bear hardships without complaint.
The good mother used to rely upon a few coals in a foot-stove to keep up the
vital heat, and perhaps the youngest child was bundled up so as to be kept
comfortable; but the big boys had to take the severity of the weather seated
on the bare boards, with little protection in the way of extra clothing. It is
a question how large the attendance in our churches would be if the old
fashion of cold rooms were to be resumed. Luckily for the enjoyment as well
as for the size of the congregation, in the matter of conveniences and com-
forts there is no retrogression. Improvements once introduced become neces-
sities; and New England will never go back to cold churches.
     The meeting-house of the first parish had long been. provided with a bell,
and the town books inform us that in 1776 it was daily rung by Pompey Peters
at 1 and 9 o'clock P. M., according to ancient custom, which has also been
continued down to our own day. The present church was not built till more
than twenty years after that date. It has been much admired for its archi-
tectural proportions, and is undoubtedly a fine specimen of the ecclesiastical
edifices of the last century. Having fortunately escaped destruction by fire,
which threatened to consume it, it is to be hoped it may now safely survive
its centennial in perfect strength and condition.
     The other meeting-house in the Exeter of 1776 was that of the second
parish, and stood on the lot now occupied by the house of W. N. Dow. It
was a building of ample size, and had resounded to the voice of the eloquent
Whitefield in former years. The church in the academy yard is its lineal
successor. No other place of religious worship existed in the town a century
ago, unless the few Quakers who lived here and in the vicinity may still have
occasionally held meetings. Twenty years before, they are said to have used
a building which stood upon Front Street, where now the residence of
Doctor Day is, as the place for the dumb devotions. No doubt they here
received occasional visits from itinerant brethren of their sect, who in "good
old colony times" perambulated the whole country, and kept up communica-
tion and interest between the families and communities of Friends in every
section. In the Revolutionary times, however, the peaceful principles of the
Quakers became unpopular, and their numbers here had probably dwindled,
so that it may be doubtful if the small remainder did any acts to attract
public attention.
     The residence of the Rev. Woodbridge Odlin was in Front Street, on or
near the spot where the house of Mr. B. L. Merrill now stands. Mr. Odlin's
father, the Rev. John Odlin, lived there before him, and the Rev. John Clark
occupied the same premises at a still earlier date, and as the Rev. Dr. Isaac
Hurd subsequently passed some forty years of his life in the same place, it
would be difficult, probably, to find another lot of land in New England
which has been the home of successive clergymen for so long a period. The
Rev. Woodbridge Odlin is described as portly in person, and a perfect gentle-
man in his conduct and deportment. He was outspoken in his patriotic sen-
timents.
     The Rev. Daniel Rogers, the pastor of the second parish, was a very
estimable man, and possessed much learning. During the long term of his

Page 359

residence here he kept a daily journal of occurrences, which our local anti-
quaries, a generation ago, greatly relied on as containing materials for the
history of the town that somebody has been always going to write. What
has now become of that journal we know not. Mr. Rogers lived in a house
that formerly stood about where the entrance to Franklin Street now is. It
faced towards Water Street, and was long ago removed to another situation.
     The "great bridge," perhaps the grandfather of the present one, spanned
the river in 1776, as at present. Of course it did not receive its designation
from its abstract magnitude, but by way of distinction from its neighbor,
the "string bridge," which, much less than a century ago, consisted of merely
a single string-piece of timber flanked by a hand-rail, over which only pedes-
trians could pass.
     The next house to the Rev. Mr. Rogers', probably on the west, was that
of "Brigadier" Peter Gilman, as he was universally called. It is still stand-
ing. It was built by Councilor John Gilman, if we may credit tradition, near
two centuries ago, and is undoubtedly the oldest structure in the town. The
main body, which was the original edifice, has its walls composed of squared
logs, making it what was called a garrison house, for protection against the
attacks of the Indians. It was formerly much more quaint in its external
appearance than now; but the interior is still worthy of inspection, as an
example of the primitive domestic architecture of the country. The front
wing is an addition of later date, made by the brigadier.
     Peter Gilman's career extended back to an early period in the history
of Exeter, he having been born in 1703, and as he lived to the good old
age of eighty-five, he witnessed many changes, and in the end very great
improvements, in his native town. He was for a long period a leading citizen.
He had the command of a regiment in the French war and served with
much credit, receiving subsequently the honor of a brigadier-general's com-
mission. For twelve successive years he was speaker of the Assembly of the
Province, and in 1772 and 1773 he was a member of the Governor's Council.
He was undoubtedly inclined to question the expediency of resisting the
royal authority, and in 1775 was required by the Provincial Congress to con-
fine himself to the town of Exeter, and not depart thence without the con-
sent of the proper authorities. But he was evidently not looked upon as a
dangerous foe to liberty, and his scruples appear to have been respected by
those who took the opposite side. His fellow-citizens chose him moderator in
1775, which could hardly have been done if he had been a Tory in the worst
sense of the term. Brigadier Gilman was a great admirer of Whitefield,
and an amusing story is told of the power of the great preacher's eloquence
upon him and others, causing them to roll upon the floor in an agony of
penitence. Another tradition represents him as sending off a press gang,
which had come from Portsmouth to Exeter to seize men for the king's
service, by admonishing them that every individual they took would be rescued
from their hands before they reached Stratham. The brigadier appears to
have stood up manfully for his townsmen, and hence they naturally stood
by him. He was about the only Exeter man of note whose fidelity to the
American cause came early under suspicion.
     At a later period, however, another person who had previously held him-
self out as a zealous Whig was found guilty of the blackest defection. This

Page 360

was Robert Luist Fowle, the printer, whose office in 1776, as he advertised,
was "on the grand country road, near the State House,"-probably on Water
Street not far from the present Court Square. Fowle had been employed
to print the paper money of New Hampshire, and was afterwards suspected,
on very good grounds, of using his press for issuing counterfeits of the same
to be put in circulation by disaffected persons; it being considered a legitimate
way of opposing the popular government to discredit its circulating medium.
Fowle was arrested and held in durance for a time, and apparently under-
took to secure his own safety by betraying his accomplices. Perhaps he was
thought to be playing false in this; for we are informed that he owed his
escape at last to the unfaithfulness of his jailor, whose carriage was believed
one stormy night to have conveyed him away, and he sought refuge within
the British lines.
     The inhabitants of Exeter were almost to a man in favor of resistance
to the oppressive measures of the British Parliament. Conspicuous among
the patriots was Col. Nicholas Gilman, the father of Governor Gilman. At
the commencement of the Revolution he was forty-four years of age, in the
very prime of his powers, a man of resolution, firmness, and sound judgment.
He was largely engaged in business, and was commanding officer of a regi-
ment of militia. He was a great favorite with Governor Wentworth, who
undoubtedly used all his influence to keep him on the side of his royal master,
and it is said never ceased to retain his attachment for him. But Colonel
Gilman occupied no doubtful ground. Early declaring himself on the side
of his country, his counsel and services were eagerly sought for in her behalf
and cheerfully tendered. Money, the sinews of war, was the thing most need-
ful, and he was placed at the head of the fiscal department of the state, where
he accomplished almost as much for New Hampshire as Robert Morris
did for the country. But his efforts were not limited to any narrow sphere.
No plan for the public security or advantage was adopted until it received the
sanction of his approval. President Weare held the chief executive office,
and Nicholas Gilman was his premier. The two sons of Colonel Gilman
who were old enough for the military service took up arms at the beginning
of the Revolutionary struggle. John Taylor, the elder, served in the company
of volunteers who marched to Cambridge on the morning after the first effu-
sion of blood at Lexington and Concord. Afterwards he became an assistant
to his father at home, and rendered invaluable aid to the patriot cause through-
out the war in various capacities. The second son, Nicholas, entered the army
early, and served in it six years and three months. He was assistant adjutant-
general during the latter part of his service, and as such returned an acount
of the prisoners captured on the surrender of Cornwallis at Yorktown.
Nathaniel, the third son of Col. Nicholas Gilman, was but sixteen when
the war began, and did not take part in the fighting, though very desirous to
do so; but he was useful to his father in his manifold employments, and suc-
ceeded him at an early age in his official positions.
     Detachments from Colonel Gilman's regiment were from time to time
called into the field for active duty, and there is no doubt that they received
his supervision there. But it is not known that he served in person during
any campaign, though it is likely that he was from time to time at the front.

Page 361

It is related that he visited Gates' headquarters in 1777 for the purpose of
doing his devoir in aiding to arrest the invading march of Burgoyne, but that
the decisive battle had been fought before his arrival. He probably enjoyed
there the opportunity of witnessing the surrender of an entire British army
to the power of united America, which must have yielded him heartfelt satis-
faction. Colonel Gilman resided, in 1776, in the house afterwards long occu-
pied by Col. Peter Chadwick.
     Gen. Nathaniel Folsom acted an important part in the Revolutionary
drama. A native of Exeter, and descended from one of its most ancient
families, he had been a soldier long before that time. In 1755, at the age of
twenty, he was entrusted with the command of a company in a New Hamp-
shire regiment, raised to serve under Sir William Johnson against Crown
Point, and distinguished himself greatly by his gallantry and good conduct.
He afterwards received promotion in the militia, and in 1774 was in the
commission of the peace, which was then no small honor. He had also been
for several years a member of the Assembly of the Province, and was regarded
as one of the leaders of the popular cause. In 1774 he was chosen one of the
members to represent New Hampshire in the General Congress at Philadel-
phia. Apparently Governor Wentworth hoped to the last that Folsom might
be brought to repent and renew his fealty to the king, for it was not till the
22d of February, 1776, that he cast him off. On that day Folsom had the
honor of receiving a letter of the following tenor:
     "SIR :-I am commanded by his Excellency to acquaint you that he has,
with advice of his Majesty's Council, ordered your name to be erased from
the commission of the peace for the County of Rockingham-that it is done
accordingly, and that you act no more as a justice of the peace for said county.
     "By his Excellency's command,                       Is. RINDGE,
     "Clerk of the Court of General Sessions of the Peace for the County
         of Rockingham."
     The ex-justice did not make himself unhappy over the loss of his commis-
sion, but was undoubtedly glad to be freed from the very semblance of holding
office under the king, or rather, as the phrase then was, under the king's min-
isters, for the Americans commonly believed that his gracious majesty was
at heart very friendly to them, and that his advisers were solely responsible
for every tyrannical act visited upon the colonies. At a later period the pub-
lication of the letters of George III. to Lord North showed that this idea
was totally erroneous, and that the American Revolution was due to the
obstinacy, folly, and despotic notions of the king himself. Colonel Folsom
(for that was his title in the beginning of 1775) was evidently held in the
highest estimation as a military commander, for on the 24th day of May, 
in that year, a month after Lexington, and a month before Bunker Hill, he
received the appointment of major-general of "all the forces raised (by New I
Hampshire) for this and the other American colonies." The province had
then three regiments in the field-Stark's, Poor's, and Reed's.
     General Folsom at once repaired to Cambridge to take the command of
the brigade. Stark complained (without reason) at Folsom being put over
him, and was inclined to despise the authority of this colony, till his native
good sense taught him to act more wisely. The misunderstanding and rivalry

Page 362

between Folsom and Stark, however, prevented the nomination of either as
a general officer on the Continental establishment, and Sullivan was selected
as brigadier from New Hampshire. General Folsom remained in command
of the New Hampshire troops at Cambridge until the adoption of the army,
and the appointment of its commanders by Congress. He then returned
home, but though not again called actively to the field, he was allowed no
respite £rom military or civil employment. He was retained in command
of the militia, Who were continually kept in readiness for active service in
emergencies, and frequently called forth. In the course of the war he was
four years a member of the Committee of Safety; was repeatedly chosen to
the Legislature, and in 1777, and again in 1779, elected a delegate to the
Continental Congress; and in addition to all the rest, was made a judge of
the Court of Common Pleas. There was evidently an incompatibility, or at
least an impropriety, in a single persQn exercising such diverse functions at
the same time, and some exception was taken to it in the Legislature; but a
majority were of the opinion that the occasion justified a departure from
ordinary rules, and the perfect confidence reposed in General Folsom's honesty
and patriotism silenced all criticism. General Folsom lived in a house which
formerly stood where Mr. George Sullivan's residence (now the Squamscot
House) was afterwards built.
     Enoch Poor was one of the most active business men of Exeter when the
war began. He had come here some ten years before from Andover, Mass.,
his native town, and had engaged in trade and ship-building. He showed
himself to be decided, bold, and fitted for command, and as he was an ardent
friend of liberty, he was regarded at an early period as a leader in organizing
resistance to the British authority. He was absent from home when the first
shot was fired at Lexington, but in a very short time was found at Cam-
bridge marshaling the sons of New Hampshire, who at the first note of alarm
had quitted the plow to take up arms in behalf of their imperiled brethren of
Massachusetts Bay. He was at once made colonel of the Second Regiment
of New Hampshire troops, and thence forward until his death shared the for-
tunes of the American army. He was in command of his regiment on the
Canada expedition, and was appointed a brigadier-general in 1777, in which
capacity he did excellent service in Gates' army in the battles which resulted
in the capture of Burgoyne. In Valley Forge he bore his part in the priva-
tions and sufferings of the troops, and at Monmouth he won distinction by
his efforts in retrieving the fortunes of the day, at first imperiled by Lee's
"ill-timed retreat." He accompanied Sullivan in 1779 in his expedition
against the Indians; and in 1780 was put in command of a brigade of light
infantry under the orders of Lafayette, who had a high opinion of him. He
died at Paramus, N. J., on the 8th of September in that year, of fever, after
a short illness.
     General Poor was much esteemed by his brother-officers. Washington
wrote of him in terms of high commendation; and when Lafayette visited
this country, half a century ago, he paid a graceful tribute to his merit, as
well as to that of another distinguished New Hampshire officer, by giving as a
sentiment on a public occasion, "The memory of Light-infantry Poor and
Yorktown Scammell." The residence of General Poor was in the house

Page 363

formerly at the easterly corner of Centre and Water Streets where his widow
continued to live during the fifty years that she survived him. We have,
unfortunately, no portraits of many of the principa1 citizens of Exeter one
hundred years ago. But a likeness of General Poor is still extant. The
tradition is that it was drawn by the accomplished Polish engineer in the
American service, Thaddeus Kosciuszko, upon the fly-leaf of a hymn-book in
church. It represents the general in the Continental uniform, with a cocked-
hat and epaulets. The features are bold and prominent, and we can easily
believe that the original must have been a man of mark.
     Another of the foremost men of that time was Col. John Phillips the
location of whose dwelling has already been described. Though he wore a
military title, he was noted not so much for his warlike as for his civic achieve-
ments. He was, however, the commanding officer of the Exeter Cadets, and
a very well drilled and disciplined corps it was said to be. He was also a
decided friend of his country, it is understood, notwithstanding he took no
active part in public affairs in the Revolution. He was bred to the ministry,
though he was engaged in business as a merchant for the greater part of his
working life. He employed his large accumulations wisely and generously
in promoting the cause of education in this and other states.
     In the house formerly occupied by Mr. John W. Getchell lived Col. James
Hackett in 1776. He had been for some time engaged in ship-building here,
and was a man of enterprise and determination. He was no laggard in evinc-
ing his willingness to enlist in his country's cause, for he was one of the
first to march to the scene of hostilities on the morning after the Concord
fight. The unanimous voice of his fellow-volunteers made him the commander
of the extemporized company, and he acquitted himself well of the trust.
Repeatedly afterwards during the war he was chosen to important military
commands, but his contriving head and skillful hands were so constantly
needed in constructing ships-of-war and flotilla for offensive and defensive
purposes on our coast that he is not known to have served as a soldier in any
campaign, except in Rhode Island, under General Sullivan, in 1778, where he
held the post of lieutenant of a company of light horse, of which no less a
person than John Langdon was captain. Colonel Hackett appears to have
passed much of his time, at a later period, in Portsmouth, where he pursued
the business of ship-building, and on the occasion of Washington's visit to
New Hampshire in 1789 commanded a battalion of artillery, which received
his excellency on his arrival in Portsmouth with a grand salute.
     The same house was years afterwards tenanted by another person, who
filled during the Revolution a still more conspicuous public position. This
was Gen. Nathaniel Peabody, who was in 1774 a physician in Plaistow, prac-
ticing his profession with great success. He was popular and aspiring. He
denounced the usurpations of Britain, at the outset, and is said to have been
the first man in the province to resign the king's commission from political
motives. He was repeatedly chosen to the Legislature, and upon the Com-
mittee of Safety, and was in 1779 and 1780 a delegate to Congress. Besides
these, he held numerous other offices, civil and military, of dignity and
importance. As adjutant-general of the state his only active service, by a
singular coincidence, was in the same Rhode Island campaign in which his

Page 364

predecessor in the habitation, Colonel Hackett, first heard the sounds of actual
conflict. After the war, General Peabody's popularity was undiminished, and
he received frequent testimony of the confidence of his fellow-citizens in the
shape of elections to office. He afterwards removed his residence to Exeter,
where he passed the remainder of his life. Towards the close of his career
he was annoyed by pecuniary troubles, and is said to have become petulant and
rough in his manners. Many stories are yet current of his sharp speeches and
harsh conduct. They furnish an exemplification of the truth of the oft-
quoted words of Shakespeare

                "The evil that men do lives after them,
                 The good is oft interred with their bones."

General Peabody was undoubtedly possessed of ability far above the
average, and rendered valuable service as a legislator to his state and country,
and in his professional capacity to the sick and suffering. We can make
allowance for faults of temper, and even for more serious defects in one who
so stanchly defended the rights of his country in the hour of her sorest trial,
and bore so important a part in laying the foundations of the nation's pros-
perity and greatness.
     Where the town-house now is, Joseph Gilman lived in 1776, in the gambrel-
roofed house which, having been reduced one story in height, now occupies
a place on the north side of Franklin Street. Mr. Gilman was bred to mer-
cantile pursuits, and for several years before the Revolution was a member of
the firm of Folsom, Gilman & Gilman, which did a large business in Exeter,
in trade, in ship-building, and in ventures at sea. A printed shop-bill of the
concern has been preserved, which shows that almost as great a variety of
merchandise found a sale among the good people of the place three or four
generations ago as now. "Crimson, scarlet, and various other color'd Broad
Cloths; scarlet and green Ratteens; scarlet, blue, and green Plushes; crimson,
cloth color'd and black figur'd cotton waistcoat Shapes; Velvet of most colors
for capes; crimson, scarlet, black, blue, green, and cloth color'd Shaloons,"
are all articles which indicate the prevailing taste of that day for bright colored
clothing; a taste which must have rendered an assemblage of ladies and gentle-
men a spectacle much more imposing and pleasing to the eye than a company
attired in the sombre hues, or the white and black, which are prescribed by
more recent fashions.
     Folsom, Gilman & Gilman dealt in hardware also, and in their enumera-
tion of merchandise of this description, we find almost identically the tools
and iron utensils which are advertised by their successors in the same line of
business in 1876. Of course there are more or less Yankee inventions of
modern date, however, which have superseded the older contrivances. The
almost universal use of cooking-stoves, for example, has rendered much of
the apparatus of the old-fashioned fireplaces obsolete; gun-flints are little
in demand since percussion locks were invented; hour-glasses are now mere
matters of curiosity, and "H and HL hinges," thumb-latches, warming-pans,
and shoe and knee-buckles are certainly no longer articles of common use.
Some of the goods are described by names that sound strangely to our modern

Page 365

ears. Tammys and Durants, Dungereens, Tandems, Romalls, and Snail Trim-
mings would be inquired for in vain, we fear, at our dry goods stores; and it is
doubtful whether Firmers, Jobents, Splinter Locks, or Cuttoes would be
recognized under those designations among our dealers in ironmongery.
     In connection with this subject it may be mentioned that another printed
Exeter shop-bill of the ante-Revolutionary period is still extant. It contains
a brief list of the articles to be sold by William Elliott, "at his Shop formerly
occupied by Mr. Peter Coffin, and opposite Peter Gilman, Esq'rs." It indi-
cates that Mr. Elliott's stock in trade was also quite miscellaneous, compris-
ing dry goods, hardware, and groceries.
     Indeed, there was one article under the last head that was then kept by
every trader,-spirituous liquor. Its use was all but universal. We have
already related an incident to show that good men, engaged in a religious
duty, sometimes partook of the enticing cup with freedom. In fact, there
was no occasion of unusual interest, from a christening to a funeral, but must
be observed by a plentiful oblation. The selectmen when they met to transact
the town business repaired to a tavern, where it was convenient to obtain
the means to moisten their clay; and the landlord duly scored the mugs and
bowls of fragrant beverages which they consumed to the account of the
town, and his bill was promptly met at the close of the year. The judges on
their circuit were unable to hold the courts without spirituous refreshment.
We have seen a bill of the "Courts' Expences," of somewhat earlier date
than the era we have been referring to, in which the dinners each day were
supplemented by a liberal number of "Bottels of wine" and "Boules of
punch."
     Mr. William Elliott left his business when the country called for armed
defenders and joined the army. He was adjutant in the regiment of Col.
Nathan Hale in 1777, and at the disastrous fight at Hubbardtown was taken
prisoner. He was probably exchanged subsequently.
     The house of Mr. Joseph Gilman was the place where most of the meet-
ings of the Committee of Safety were held during the war. The Legislature 
was in session more than one-third part of the year 1776, and the committee
nearly the entire residue of the year. It would seem to be a hazardous thing
to delegate to a dozen men the power to arrest, imprison, and release at their
pleasure any of their fellow-citizens of the province. If they had been vin-
dictive, here was ample opportunity to wreak their vengeance; if they had
been rapacious, here were plenty of chances to fill their pockets. Many who
were apprehended by their authority made bitter complaints, of course; but
the action of the Committee of Safety is believed, on the whole, to have been
characterized by much prudence and moderation. They had a great variety
to deal with. Not a few of the men of wealth and position were opposed to
resistance to the British authority. They feared the result of an organized
insurrection against the power and warlike resoUrces of England, and they
preferred to submit to what they considered the small evil of taxation without
representation rather than to incur the hazards of rapine and confiscation
which might come in the train of a rebellion suppressed by force of arms.
These timid souls were treated tenderly, and after a taste of jail-life were

Page 366

allowed to go at large upon giving security for their good behavior. It may
have been one of these who wrote to the committee the following letter:
                                      "Prison in Exeter, 24th Apl. 1776.
"may it Please your Honors,
     "Gratitude being a Duty Incumbent on those who have Receiv'd Favors,
begg Leave to Return your Honors most sincere thanks for the Very Great
Favor you have Done me in admitting me to Bail for the Liberty of this
house and the Yard thereto adjoyning, & am with the utmost Respect, Sin-
cerity & Esteem
                                      "yr Honors most obedient Servant,
                                                             "John Patten.
"The Honorable Committee of Safety."
     As the "liberty of the yard" is alluded to in this letter, a word on the
subject of that ancient legal fiction, as it may be termed, will perhaps not be
void of interest to the people of this age, to whom imprisonment for debt is
happily unknown. In former times, when a man who could not pay what he
owed was liable to compensate for his inability by the loss of his personal
liberty, debtors in many cases could enjoy the privilege of living outside the
jail walls, provided they did not exceed certain limits, which were fixed at
a convenient distance--for a long time 200 rods-from the building in every
direction. In order to secure this advantage, which was obviously a great
relief from actual incarceration, the debtor was obliged to give a bond, with
good sureties, that he would keep within the prison "yard," as the limits were
called. And if he overstepped the line, even for a single inch, his bond was
forfeited, and his sureties were liable to pay the debt.
     A story is told of a debtor in Exeter in the olden times who, being under
bond to confine himself to the jail yard, saw a child who had fallen into the
river struggling for its life at a point just beyond the line which he was
bound not to transcend. His humanity outweighed all other considerations,
and he broke bounds without hesitation and saved the child. It is pleasant to
record that though'the creditor might have extorted his debt from the bonds-
men, for this act of mercy on the part of their principal, he never made the
attempt. If he had forgiven his debtor in full it would have been better
still.
     But some of the Tories who came under the cognizance of the Committee
of Safety were not to be handled with too much tenderness. They were sullen
and vindictive, and ready to do anything to obstruct the progress of popular
government. One of the men concerned with Fowle, the printer, in emitting
counterfeit paper money was of this description. He had occupied a position
of some distinction in the province. It was a bitter humiliation for him to
lie in the jail with common malefactors, but he was too proud and obstinate
to recant the opinions he had often expressed; and so he chafed in confine-
ment, until by the aid of friends without he was enabled to make his escape.
This was the well-known Col. Stephen Holland, of Londonderry. His
influence on those about him must have been rated high, since it was deemed
necessary to imprison his negro man Cato as well as his master. After the
colonel's flight, the committee appear to have issued hand-bills for his appre-
hension, and employed Benjamin Boardman to go express to Boston, "to carry

Page 367

advertisements after the Col, Holland." They turned out to be "after" him
indeed, for he was so far in advance of them that he reached the enemy's
lines in safety. He was banished by a formal act of the General Court, and
his property confiscated.
     Mr. Joseph Gilman was himself chairman of the Committee of Safety
at one period, and held various public trusts during and after the war. His
wife was a woman of thorough education and many accomplishments. His
house appears to have been repeatedly visited by strangers of distinction dur-
ing the Revolution. Some of the high-bred French officers who drew their
swords in behalf of America are said to have expressed their admiration for
the culture and esprit of Mrs. Gilman, as beyond anything they had witnessed
elsewhere in the country. Samuel Adams passed a night at Mr. Gilman's
house in the latter part of 1776, just before the victories at Princeton and
Trenton had relieved the feeling of despondency caused by the prior disasters
to our arms; and all Mrs. Gilman's powers of pleasing were said to have been
exerted to cheer the drooping spirits of the patriot without effect. A military
success was then the only cure £or the gloom of the stern king-hater.
     The dwelling-place of Maj. Jonathan Cass, one of the veterans of the
Revolution, was where the house of Mr. Henry W. Anderson now is. At
the outbreak of the war he was twenty-two years of age, and according to
description was an erect, handsome man, with keen black eyes. He enlisted
in the army as a private soldier, and served until peace was established, having
taken part in most of the principal battles. As early as 1777 his merits pro-
cured him promotion to an ensigncy, and at the close of the war he was a
captain. He then resumed his residence in Exeter for a few years, and his
distinguished son, Lewis Cass, was born here in 1782. About 1790 the father
re-entered the army in command of a company raised £or the defense 0£
the western frontier, and subsequently received the commission of major.
He was so much pleased with the appearance of the western country that he
established his home in Ohio, where he died in 1830.
     Lewis Cass remained in Exeter till he finished his studies at the academy,
and received a diploma, signed by the principal and president of the board of
trustees, certifying his proficiency and good conduct, a copy of which, in his
own youthful handwriting, is still preserved. His career after he quitted the
home of his youth is a matter of familiar history.
     Col. Samuel Folsom, a brother of Gen. Nathaniel Folsom, was a well-
known and respected citizen in 1776. His house was at the easterly corner
of Court Square and Water Street, and is now occupied by the Hon. John
Scammon. It is believed to have been built a year or two before the date
mentioned, probably to replace a former edifice removed or destroyed. Colonel
Folsom kept a public-house, as his widow continued to do many years after
his death. He was lieutenant-colonel of the Exeter Corps of Independent
Cadets, commanded by Col. John Phillips. He was intrusted with much
important business during the Revolution, requiring sound and tried capacity
and devotion to his country's interests.
     After John Langdon, in the midst of the apprehensions excited by the
triumphant incursion of Burgoyne, inspirited the people of New Hampshire,
by the offer of his private property to organize an expedition under General

Page 368

Stark, with the purpose of turning back the invader, Colonel Folsom was
delegated by President Weare, chairman of the Committee of Safety, to visit
General Stark, to convey him money for contingent expenses, to learn how
his expedition was progressing, what articles it stood in need of, and to
"advise with all persons in the service of this state on such things as he thought
needful to forward the business they are engaged in." His confidential and
discretionary mission appears to have been executed to the satisfaction of all
parties; and we know how thoroughly Stark was enabled to perform the part
required of him when he met the enemy at Bennington. A couple of years
afterwards Colonel Folsom was selected by the General Court to discharge
the agreeable duty of presenting in behalf of the state of Col. Joseph Cilley
a pair of pistols which had been the property of Col. Stephen Holland, the
Tory absentee; and the receipt of Colonel Cilley remains to testify that the
commission was duly accomplished. It was at the house of Colonel Folsom
that President George Washington stopped and partook of a collation when he
visited Exeter in his tour through the Eastern States, in the autumn of 1789.
     If time would permit, information could be obtained, no doubt, which
would enable us to fix the residences, and give some account of the services,
of many others of our former townsmen who responded to the call of the
country in the struggle for independence. But the brief space allowed for
the completion of these sketches forbids extended inquiry and research, and
we must be content with recording such fragments of personal history of that
character as are to be collected at short notice.
     Peter Coffin, the predecessor of William Elliot in his store, near the
western extremity of the great bridge, was a major in Col. David Gilman's
regiment. His family name was once familiar here, and his ancestors are
said to have lived in what is now the yard of the academy. An orchard which
belonged to them then bore its fruit on the ground now covered by the
academy.
     The old Exeter family of Robinson was well represented in the Continental
service two of its members holding commissions therein; the one, Caleb
Robinson, as captain, and the other, Noah, as ensign.
     Noah Emery, a name handed down for generations here, was a paymaster
in Col. Isaac Wyman's regiment and commissary. In the latter capacity he
had the charge of a large amount of stores, which tradition says were
housed in a building in Spring Street, familiarly termed "the State's barn."
     Dr. Samuel Tenney was a surgeon in one of the Rhode Island regiments.
He had previously settled in this town, and returned and married a wife here
at the expiration of his service. He was a person of uncommon literary and
scientific attainments, and contributed articles to the publications of the
American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and a topographical account of
Exeter to the Collections of the Massachusetts Historical Society. He felt a
warm interest in political matters also, and was for seven years a representa-
tive in Congress. He was also judge of probate, and was highly respected.
     Another citizen of Exeter who served in the medical department of the
army was Dr. William Parker, Jr. He was a grandson of Judge William
Parker, of Portsmouth, whose father married, it is said, a daughter of the

Page 369

English patrician house of Derby. Doctor Parker died in Exeter of yellow
fever, which he contracted from a patient.
     James McClure was the adjutant of a New Hampshire regiment in the
Continental service.
     Benjamin Boardman performed a tour of duty in the Revolution as the
commanding officer of a company. He was a noted man in the town, and
many years afterwards kept a public-house on the east side of the river.
     Ebenezer Light was a lieutenant for two years or more in the New Hamp-
shire line. His name was once a common one in Exeter, and Light's tavern,
on Tower Hill, was a well-known place of entertainment. But no branch of
the family now remains here, so far as we can ascertain.
     Samuel Brooks, of Exeter, appears to have been quartermaster in Col.
David Gilman's regiment. Whether this was the excellent deacon, who
lived in a house removed to make way for the present Methodist Church,
we are not certain. But if he undertook the duties, it is safe to say that he
made a good quartermaster, for he was a faithful and thorough man. There
is no doubt that he was employed by the Committee of Safety to pay the
New Hampshire troops who were in Arnold's ill-fated expedition against
Quebec. It may interest the reader to learn that the amount paid them, includ-
ing expenses, was 348 pounds seven shillings.
     Ebenezer Clifford, who was quartermaster-sergeant in Colonel Poor's
regiment in 1775, was probably the person who removed hither from Ken-
sington about 1790, and lived in the Brigadier Gilman house until his death.
He was an ingenious mechanic, and constructed a diving-bell, with the aid
of which he is said to have recovered a quantity of silver money from the
wreck of a Spanish or other foreign vessel at the Isles of Shoals. The coin
had suffered during its long submersion a wondrous sea change, and was
found to be covered with some kind of marine incrustation. A portion of
it was placed for safe-keeping in the old Exeter Bank, and when the vault of
that institution was entered and robbed of its valuable contents, about the
year 1828, some of Mr. Clifford's silver pieces were among the spoils. The
story goes that the peculiar appearance of the money afforded the clew by
which the guilty persons were detected.
     It would not be just, in any recital of the services of our townsmen in
the Revolution, to omit to mention the independent company that volunteered
under the command of Capt. John Langdon in 1777, and marched to Sara-
toga to aid in the capture of Burgoyne. The lieutenant of the company was
Col. Nicholas Gilman, and the private soldiers were composed of the solid
men of Exeter, Portsmouth, and Newmarket. Most of them were of mature
age, and many had held military commissions. No roster of the company
is now accessible, but it is known that among the Exeter quota were such
men as Capt. Samuel Gilman, Col. Eliphalet Giddings, Col. Nathaniel Gid-
dings, and Ephraim Robinson, Esq. That citizens of such age and standing
were ready to leave their families and business to shoulder the musket in
defense of their country is proof positive of the pressing nature of the emer-
gency, and of the aboslute necessity then felt that the progress of the hostile
army should be checked, and a substantial triumph gained to the cause of
America. And the momentous consequences which ensued from the capitula-


Page 370

tion of Burgoyne proved that this feeling was founded in reason and a just
appreciation of the situation.
     There were of course not a few other persons in Exeter whose services
were called into requisition in some way by the state authorities.
     John Rice, Esq. (we append the title, because it was not common, though
much valued, in those days), whose house was where the parsonage of the
first parish now is, furnished board and a place of meeting for the Com-
mittee of Safety in the earlier part of the war.
     John Ward Gilman, who lived in the old house on the north side of
Water Street near string bridge, now owned by the electric company, manu-
factured for the newly-formed state a seal, the impression of which, no doubt,
is found upon the commissions of the period. The device was certainly
more appropriate than the ship on the stocks, which for some unknown reason
was subsequently adopted, and is retained on the present seal. It consisted of
the fasces, the emblem of authority, on one side of which was a pine tree and
on the other a fish, in allusion to two of the chief sources of the early pros-
perity of the colony. An appropriate inscription surrounded the whole.
    Theodore Carlton, who appears to have opened a tavern during the war,
had some of Colonel Poor's soldiers quartered there for a time. Men enlisted
for the army in a time of actual hostilities are proverbially not the quietest
of lodgers, and it is not strange that Mr. Carlton found that his premises
sustained some damage. A committee reported thereon that there were "42
squares of glass broke, 2 stairs broke, 6 doors gone, several others broke, and
plaistering broke down in several rooms."
     Capt. Eliphalet Ladd, the father of William Ladd, the "apostle of peace,"
had occasional business with the committee and the Legislature. He was a
man of untiring energy, and did not suffer the war to check his enterprise.
He was engaged in trade on a considerable scale, and built ships and planned
voyages in spite of the enemy's cruisers. He met with heavy losses, but on the
whole was thought to have increased his property during the Revolution.
     We cannot better close these too meagre and desultory notices of our
town and its people at the heroic period when our independence was achieved
than by an outline of the most impressive occurrence that Exeter witnessed
during the eventful year of 1776.
     When the dispute with Britain was begun, it was with no general expecta-
tion that it would result in a severance between the colonies and the mother-
country. The provincials professed perfect loyalty, and assumed self-govern-
ment only during "the present unhappy and unnatural contest with Great
Britain." But as the struggle went on the popular ideas became modified, and
the public came at length to comprehend that it was idle to expect to reunite
ties which the sword had sundered.
     A few sagacious minds had foreseen this from the outset. It is due to the
able leaders of the popular movement in New Hampshire that it should be
generally known that they contemplated the assumption of independence, and
suggested it in an eloquent official letter from their Convention of Delegates
to the Continental Congress as early as the 23d of May, 1775. This is the
first allusion to the subject in any known communication from an organized
body in the country.

Page 371

     As the sentiment of the whole people became gradually ripe for the final
step of separation from Britain, movements were made in the Colonial Legis-
latures looking to that result. In New Hampshire a committee of both houses
reported on the 15th of June, 1776, instructions to "our Delegates in the
Continental Congress to join with the other colonies in declaring the Thirteen
United Colonies a Free and Independent State, solemnly pledging our faith
and honor that we will, on our parts, support the measure with our Lives and
Fortunes."
     From this time forward there was impatience in the breast of every true
friend of liberty to blot out the very memory of subjection, to make way for
the new and glorious career that was opening for the infant nation. The
action of Congress was waited for anxiously, longingly, eagerly. At length
the wished-for moment arrived. An express dashed into the Village of Exeter
bearing a letter addressed to the Convention of New Hampshire, and authen-
ticated by the manly signature of John Hancock. The Legislature had
adjourned, but the president was here, perhaps waiting for the important
missive. It was determined that the contents of the letter, containing the
glad tidings of the Declaration of Independence, should be forthwith pub-
licly read. The honor of pronouncing. for the first time in New Hampshire
the impressive periods of that unequaled production was appropriately
devolved upon John Taylor Gilman. No firing of cannon or ringing of bells
was needed to give eclat to the occasion; the general joy was too sincere and
heartfelt to find expression in noisy demonstrations. Meshech Weare, presi-
dent of the state, Matthew Thornton, who was himself soon to set his hand
to the instrument, General Folsom, and Col. Pierse Long and Ebenezer
Thompson, all members of the Committee of Safety, and tried and true
patriots, were present.
     The news had spread with the speed of lightning through the town. The
farmer dropped his scythe in the swath, the mechanic left his saw in the
kerf, and even the good wife forsook her spinning-wheel, while all gathered
to hear the words which they felt were to give them freedom and a country.
But perhaps there was no one of the audience whose heart was thrilled more
deeply by the immortal Declaration than Col. Nicholas Gilman, the father of
him who read it. He had put his whole life and energy into the cause of
his country; he foresaw that nothing but formal separation from the parent
state would prevent his dearest hopes from going down in darkness; he
welcomed the words which rent the brightest jewel from Britain's crown with
joy and thankfulness unutterable. The reader, from filial as well as patriotic
sensibility, shared his emotion, and there were pauses when the rush of feeling
o'ermastered speech. Exeter has witnessed many returns of the anniversary
of our national birthday, and has listened to the utterances of lips touched
with the living coal of eloquence; but the first reading of the Declaration of
Independence, on the 18th of July, 1776, enchained the attention with a sig-
nificance and power which have never since been paralleled.
     For some years after the close of the Revolutionary war the people were
hardly reconciled to the situation. The times were hard, money was scarce,
and the acquisition of independence had not freed them, as many fancied it
would do, from the restraints of law. Complaints were rife among the people

Page 372
because the Legislature of the state would not authorize the issue of paper
money, which many believed was the panacea for their fiscal troubles. At
length the discontent became so intensified that it took an organized form
among the people of several interior towns in Rockingham County, and on
the morning of September 20, 1786, the rumor reached Exeter that a body
of men were about to enter the town to obtain in one way or another "a
redress of grievances." During the forenoon a great number of persons,
attracted by the report, came into town from the neighboring places, not for
the purpose of joining in any illegal demonstration, but to witness what was
about to take place. The Legislature was in session in the meeting-house,
which stood nearly on the site of the present lower church, while the Supreme
Court was sitting in the court-house, which was on the opposite side of the
street, occupying about the center of what is now the entrance to Court Street.
Between 2 and 3 o'clock in the afternoon the expected assemblage made its
appearance, coming down Front Street. It had been formed into the sem-
blance of a military array at Kingston, and consisted of about two hundred
persons or a little more, about one-half of them on foot and provided with
fire-arms or swords, and the residue following in the rear on horseback and
carrying clubs and whips. They halted near the residence of the late Nathaniel
Gilman, on Front Street, and asked civily for water. They then marched
down the street, and passing over the great bridge turned and came back as
far as the courthouse, which they surrounded, under the mistaken belief
that the Legislature was in session there. Judge Samuel Livermore, who
was upon the bench, sternly ordered that the business should proceed without
pause, and forbade anyone to look from the windows.
     The mob in a few minutes became aware of their mistake, and attempted
to surround the meeting-house. The spectators who were packed somewhat
densely in and about the yard of the church yielded only inch by inch, and
it was an hour or more before the riotous assemblage reached the building.
They then placed guards at the doors and windows, and announced in sub-
stance that they meant to keep the members of the General Court in durance
until they passed a law for the emission of paper money, which should be a
legal tender for debts and taxes. One member only is reported to have
escaped from the building, and he got out of a window. John Sullivan, the
president of the state, was present in the meeting-house,--a man of resolution
and a soldier. He made his appearance before the excited crowd, and said to
them that they "need not expect to frighten him, for he had smelt powder
before." In allusion to the demand which some of them had made for justice
he said, "You ask for justice, and justice you shall have." It was noticeable
that he did not advise the crowd to disperse, however; he undoubtedly felt
that it was better to crush the insurrection in the bud.
     It presently grew towards evening, and the good citizens of Exeter began
to think it was time that a little pressure should be applied to the insurgents.
Agreeably to a suggestion of Col. Nathaniel Gilman, a drum was beaten a
little way off as if a body of soldiers were approaching, while he himself with
his stentorian voice cried out something about "Hackett's artillery." The
mob waited for nothing further, but incontinently took to their heels, and
did not pause till they had reached the outskirts of the village. They passed

Page 373

the night near where the passenger depot of the railroad formerly stood. No
sooner was the village relieved from their presence than effectual steps were
taken to suppress the rising. The Legislature having given the proper
authority, the president at once sent orders into the neighboring towns to
assemble the militia. A volunteer company of the principal citizens of Exeter
was immediately enrolled under the command of Nicholas Gilman, who had
served in the Revolutionary army, and was afterwards a senator of the
United States.
     By the next morning the Village of Exeter was a scene of no small excite-
ment and military display. A large body of troops, horse and foot, were
assembled, and, under the direction of the president and the immediate com-
mand of Gen. Joseph Cilley, they marched with military music to meet the
force of the insurgents, the armed portion of whom were drawn up on the
ridge beyond little river, on the Kingston road.
     The Government column, with the Exeter Volunteer Company holding the
post of honor in the front, moved to within the distance of some forty rods
from the opposing party, when General Cilley, at the head of a small number
of horsemen, dashed forward and across the stream, and by a coup de main
seized and made prisoners of the leaders of the insurgents. The remainder
broke and fled, but were pursued, and quite a m1mber of them captured.
     Joseph French, of Hampstead, James Cochran, of Pembroke, and John
McKean, of Londonderry, were the principal persons engaged in the riotous
demonstration. Some of the prisoners were indicted, others were brought
to a court-martial, and still others were dealt with by ecclesiastical authority,
but while all were pretty thoroughly frightened and very penitent, none of
them were severely punished. The spirit of organized resistance to law and
order received on this occasion a timely and effectual check, and the state
authorities and people of Exeter are entitled to no little credit for their
judicious and spirited conduct. In the afternoon of March 20, 1754, a troop
of about thirty men, on horseback and carrying axes, made their appearance
in Exeter. They came from Canterbury, Contoocook, and the vicinity, and
their purpose was probably pretty well understood in Exeter and throughout
the province.
     Two trading Indians of the St. Francis tribe in Canada, Sabastis and
Plausawa by name, had rendered themselves very obnoxious to the people of
Canterbury and Contoocook the preceding summer. Sabastis had been for-
merly concerned in spiriting away two blacks owned by inhabitants of Canter-
bury, and both Indians not only proclaimed the opinion that there was no
harm in stealing negroes, but threatened and even offered violence to the
wife of a white settler. They indulged in boasts of former deeds of blood-
shed and robbery, and in threats of committing others, until the people were
so alarmed and incensed that they sternly warned them to depart. The
Indians would have done well to heed the admonition, but in complete infatua-
tion they still lingered in the neighborhood, and abated not a jot of their
blustering. Peter Bowen and one Morrill, with whom they were staying, at
length undoubtedly concerted a plan to take their lives. Bowen, who was a
rough and violent man, procured a gallon of rum from Rumford and treated
the Indians to it freely, until they became intoxicated. Meantime his con

Page 374

federates took the opportunity to draw the charges from the Indians' guns,
and then enticed them into the woods, where Bowen slew them almost with-
out resistance.
     Yet so great was the dread and hatred of the Indians which prevailed
throughout the province, and so favorably was the story related for the mur-
derers, that when Bowen and Morrill were indicted for murder and imprisoned
in Portsmouth jail to await their trial, the public sentiment was aroused most
strongly in their behalf. Their trial was fixed for March 21, 1754, and the
cavalcade which appeared in Exeter on the preceding day, as already men-
tioned, was composed of persons who were determined to rescue the accused
persons from imprisonment.
     A few of the people of Exeter are said to have joined the lawless band,
but their names have not survived to our time. The party, thus reinforced,
rode through mud and snow that night to Portsmouth, beat down the doors
of the jail, knocked off the irons from Morrill and Bowen, and set them free.
Rewards were offered by the governor for the rearrest of the prisoners, but
they were never retaken, though they were at their homes again as usual soon
after. Their course was justified by the popular voice, and it was not thought
expedient to molest them or their rescuers. In no very long time the incidents
would have been generally forgotten but for a song which some village
poetaster composed on the occasion, and which preserved the memory of the
transaction, being afterwards commonly sung at the huskings in Exeter.
     Sixteen years afterwards an occurrence of a very different character
aroused the attention of the town. News was brought that George Whitefield,
a preacher of world-wide celebrity, was to address the people of Exeter. It
may easily be supposed that none would willingly lose the opportunity of hear-
ing his eloquent voice. So, although the time appointed was the forenoon of
Saturday (September 29, 1770), almost the entire population thronged to
the church where he was to officiate. The building was not capable of con-
taining the crowd, and Mr. Whitefield determined to address them in the open
air a course he was often compelled to adopt. It is said that he at first essayed
to speak from the meeting-house steps, but the sun shining in his face, he
crossed to the other side of the street, where some boards laid across two
barrels or hogsheads furnished him a stand, from which he preached to his
out-door congregation a discourse nearly two hours in length, from 2 Corin-
thians xiii, 5. This was the last sermon which that eloquent and devoted
minister delivered. He went in the afternoon to Newburyport, Mass., where,
the very next morning, he breathed his last. So that Exeter witnessed the
closing effort in the career of one 0£ the most distinguished divines of the
world, whose name will be held in honor and reverence so long as zeal, piety,
and self-denial shall be known and appreciated.
     Within six years after the death of the earnest and eloquent Whitefield
an immense change had taken place in the opinions, feelings, and situation
of the American colonists. From remonstrances and petitions against the
exactions of the mother-country they had proceeded to open and armed
resistance, and at length to the decisive step of declaring themselves inde-
pendent of the British crown. In June, 1776, the Legislature of New Hamp-
shire instructed her delegates in Congress to join with those of the other

Page 375

colonies in such a measure, and on Thursday, the 18th day of July following,
the Declaration of the thirteen United Colonies of North America, authenti-
cated by the bold signature of John Hancock, reached Exeter by express, hav-
ing been fourteen days on the road from Philadelphia.
     In 1789 Exeter saw another sight not soon to be forgotten by its citizens.
The war was happily concluded, independence won, and, the insufficiency of
the old confederation becoming apparent, a new form of government had been
established. Washington, the savior of his country, had been elected its first
Chief Magistrate, and after the new administration was fairly launched had
set forth on a tour through the northern states. It was known that he was
to leave Portsmouth on the 4th day of November, 1789, for Exeter, and
the good people made their preparations to meet him with a cavalcade of
citizens to escort him into town. But they mistook the hour of his departure
from Portsmouth, or forgot his rigid habits of punctuality, for before the
volunteers were in the saddle Washington made his appearance. He arrived
here before 10 o'clock in the forenoon, accompanied by his secretaries, Colonel
Lear and Major Jackson, and a single servant. Washington rode in an open
carriage, and is said to have worn a drab surtout and military hat. The
street was lined with spectators as he drove up to the door of the residence of
Col. Samuel Folsom, who, as was not unusual among the leading men of
that day, kept a public-house. It was the same dwelling now occupied by
Hon. John Scammon on the easterly corner of Court Square and Water Street.
     It is unnecessary to say that the whole population gathered eagerly to
catch a glimpse of the distinguished visitor. Col. Nicholas Gilman, who had
been an officer of the staff under the commander-in-chief at Yorktown, and
other officers of the Revolution and principal citizens, paid their respects to
Washington, and did the honors of the town. They invited him to remain
and partake of a public dinner, which his arrangements compelled him reluc-
tantly, as his diary informs us, to decline. He, however, accepted a breakfast
or collation at the public-house, on which occasion a young lady related to
Colonel Folsom waited on him at table. His quick eye discovered that she was
not a servant, and tradition informs us that he called her to him, addressed
her a few pleasant words, and kissed her.
     The hour or two of his stay in Exeter were soon over, and he again
resumed his journey by Kingston towards Haverhill, Mass. He was accom-
panied a part of the distance by some of the gentlemen of the town. When he
reached the top of Great Hill he called on his driver to stop, and casting his
eyes back over the wide and charming landscape he remarked in admiring
tones upon its beauty, and with this pleasant word at parting he bade our
town adieu.
     Annexation of Massachusetts.-Two hundred and sixty-two inhabitants
of Exeter petitioned in 1739 to be annexed to Massachusetts. Their names are
on record.

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