Chapter 55 - Windham from History of Rockingham County, New Hampshire From: Julie Dorfman - dorfmans@mindspring.com Source: History of Rockingham County, New Hampshire and Representative Citizens by Charles A. Hazlett, Richmond-Arnold Publishing Co., Chicago, Ill., 1915 Page 723 CHAPTER LV WINDHAM Geographical-Civil History-Military-Churches-Public Library Windham is bounded on the north by Londonderry and Derry , on the east: by Salem, on the south by Salem and Pelham, on the west by Hudson, Beaver River, or Londonderry. It is thirty-five miles northwest of Boston, Mass., thirty-three southwest of Concord, N. H., ten miles east of Nashua. twelve miles west of Haverhill, Mass., fifteen miles southeast of Manchester, and ten miles northwest of Lawrence, Mass. The population in 1910 was 651. The acreage of the town is 15,754 acres. Gaentake or Beaver River is the principal stream, which flows out of Tsienneto (Shometo) or Beaver Lake, in Derry, and flows through Wind- ham in nearly a southerly direction, and empties into the Merrimac River at Lowell, Mass. There are six lakes, called ponds, namely,-Spruce Pond, Hittititty, Mitchell's, Golden's, Cobbett's, and Policy. Cobbett's Pond is two miles in length, is the second in size, and covers 1,000 acres. It lies in a basin, is beautiful for situation, and from its shore in places rise well-cultivated farms or wooded hills. Policy Pond lies partly in Salem, is the largest in area, and extends over ten hundred and seventeen acres. This is also a lovely sheet of water, and is much frequented by pleasure parties from the cities. Causes for the Settlement.-Windham from 1719 to 1742 was a parish of Londonderry , a part and parcel of that historic town. Consequently the early history of the two towns is indissolubly connected. It will be impossible to speak of the first settlements here and the characters of the settlers with- out speaking of the causes which induced the emigration and settlement of our Scottish ancestors in the wilderness, and of their political and religious influences which aided so powerfully in the development and formation of their minds and characters, giving those characteristics which contributed to the success of the new settlement, to the high honor which has ever been accorded to it, to the remarkable intelligence of its people, and the great influ- ence which has gone out from it during these succeeding generations. The causes were of a politico-religious nature, closely connected with the times in which they lived. During the reign of King James I, of England, a large portion of the six northern counties of Ireland fell to the king, being the sequestered estates of his rebellious Irish subjects. To hold in check the wild and turbulent spirits of his Irish subjects he induced a large emigration of his Scotch countrymen to the Province of Ulster, Ireland. This was in the year 1612. In 1613 the first Presbyterian Church ever established in Ireland was established by these Scotch emigrants at Page 724 Ballycorry , County of Antrim. The Scotch emigrants were stern Presby- terians; the native Irish were ignorant Roman Catholics. They were dif- ferent in blood and in religion. The Scotch settled on the lands from which the Irish had been expelled, and in consequence of this fact, the unlikeness of the races in manners and customs, and of the distinctness in race and religion; a bitter feud existed between them. Marriages were not contracted by representatives of the different nationalities. In 1641 the Catholics massacred over forty thousand Protestants. But a change soon occurred in the government; royalty fell, the protectorate was established, a man was placed at the helm who was both able and willing to protect the Protestants from their enemies. In 1649 the strong arn of Cromwell bore an avenging sword, punished the Catholics, and brought peace to the country . On the accession, in 1660, of Charles II to the throne of England, his brother James (afterwards James II) was appointed viceroy of Scotland. He was a bigoted Catholic, and the Scotch Presbyterians were the legitimate objects of his hate. The fires of persecution were rekindled; the sword was again unsheathed and bathed in the "blood of thousands of slaughtered saints." In consequence of this persecution thousands of the Scotch fled to Ire- land and joined their Protestant countrymen there, and among them were many of the fathers and the mothers of the first settlers of Windham and Londonderry . In 1688-89 occurred the memorable siege of Londonderry, Ireland. Many Scotchmen from Scotland rallied to aid the Scotchmen of Ireland, then residents of that city. The heroic-nature of the defense, celebrated in his- tory, is hardly surpassed in the annals of any people. Many of those who were young at the time of the siege were the sturdy men who came in 1719 and afterward, and helped to found this settlement. They sought in the new world a large degree of religious and political liberty than the old world afforded. They came in manhood's strength, prepared the rude habitations, broke the ground, scattered the grain which the rich and virgin soil would bring forth into abundant harvests. Then the old people came-men who were stalwart and strong during the defense of the city-and shared with them the joys as well as the perils of the new life in the wilderness. Many. letters came direct from the "bonnie blue hills" of Scotland. Such was the nationality and such the education derived in the school of trouble, war, and adversity of the early settlers, and the characteristics thus developed enabled them to triumph over all obstacles in the hard life in the wilderness. From the fact that the early residents were called Scotcb- Irish, on account of a prior abode in Ireland, many have suppOsed that it denoted a mixtttre of Scotch and Irish descent, but st1ch is not the fact. The blood of Scotia and Erin did not flow commingled in the veins of the first emigrants. "They were of Scottish lineage, pure and simple," and the terms Scotch-English or Scotch-Irish, so far as they imply a different than Scotch origin, are a perversion of truth and false to history . First Settlements.-The first settlements in Windham were made near Cemetery Hill as early as 1720, and in the locality called Stone Dam. At the latter place, near Butten's mills, in Pelham, David Grigg and Alexander McCoy, each of Scottish blood, the former of Londonderry, Ireland, the Page 725 latter from the Highlands of Scotland, settled, according to an old record, in 1721. The place was then an unbroken wilderness-no trails or paths through the £orest save as they made them by spotting trees. John Waddell, on the highest point of land near Cemetery Hill, was an early pioneer, and built the first house in. town. In 1723, "Daddy" John Dinsmoor, the emigrant, located on the line between Windham and Londonderry , at what is now known as the Hopkins' farm. He had been an Indian captive, but was released, and came to Londonderry. His father was a native of Crehenmead, Scotland, and he himself was the ancestor of the two governors of that name, of Robert Dinsmoor, the "Rustic Bard," and all the Dinsmoors of Windham. About 1733, Samuel Morison, son of James and grandson of John Morison, of Aberdeenshire, Scotland, located in the range. He was the ancestor of the Morisons of the town arid of the writer. Thomas Morison, his cousin, settled about the same time near him. He afterwards settled in Peterborough. In 1733, Henry Campbell, born in Londonderry, Ireland, son of Daniel of Scotland, settled in the west part of the town, and where his descendants "live unto this day." About this same time Alexander Simpson and Adam Templeton struck for settlement here. John Cochran, also of Scotch b]ood, came in 1730, and upon his farm, which he hewed from the wilderness, his descendants have since lived. Alexander Park and John Annstrong appeared soon after. These are some of the pioneer fathers: William and Robert Thompson, Joseph Waugh, Thomas Quigley, Alexander and James Dunlap, John Kyle, John Morrow, Hugh Graham, John and James Vance, Samuel and William McAdams, James Gilmore, Andrew Armour, John Hopkins, Daniel Clyde, William Thorn, John Stuart, Francis Langlie, Hugh Brown, Samuel Kin- kead, Alexander Ritchie, William Jamison, Nathaniel Hemphill, James Cald- well, and others, who were here in early times, and not a single descendant of anyone of whom bearing their names live in town today. The First Settlers.-Immediately after the first settlement had been made in Londonderry, near what is now Derry East Meeting-house, individuals went out to work in summer upon the more distant glebes and returned to the more populous settlement in the winter. Many of the young men would thus live several years, laboring to provide a home for their future com- panions. Then they went or sometimes sent to Ireland for the brave lass who had consented to cross the wide ocean, braving the dangers of the deep and the perils of the wilderness to meet her stern lord in the forest home. Land was cheap, and John Hopkins bought a large tract for a web of linen cloth. Neighbors were far apart, oftentimes as much as three miles, and it was said "we were obliged to go three miles to borrow a needle, not being able to buy one." Then there were no grist-mills nearer than Haverhill or Andover, Mass.; so the grain was carried upon poles which trailed from the horse's back. They broke their corn into meal by two revolving stones, being a land milt called a cairn. They lived mainly on what could be raised in the ground. They possessed but little wealth, for their lot was cast in a wintry land like their fatherland, Scotland, with a rocky soil. Amid the trials of their lot their character stands out in bold relief. They were not illiterate people. They had received a fair education, many of them in Scotland or Ireland. Page 726 They were stern, uncompromising Presbyterians, and held to their form of worship with great tenacity. They loved intelligence, liberty, and religion. No sacrifices were too great for liberty, no sufferings too severe for their religion, no hardships too extreme to win a home for themselves and their posterity where liberty and true religion, twin sisters, might dwell together, and the domestic virtues might undisturbed shine forth with peculiar brightness. Petitions and Act of Incorporation.-Up to this period the residents of the territory now known as Windham and nearly a third of Salem had been included in the Town of Londonderry. They labored under great difficulties. They were seven miles from either church of Londonderrv. In order to remedy these disadvantages, and to secure a more perfect union among them- selves, forty-seven freeholders, in I747, petitioned for the erection of a new parish to Gov. Benning Wentworth and the Legislature. The act of incor- porating the Town of Windham was passed and assented to by the governor February 12, 1742. The bounds of the town were as follows: "Beginning at the dwelling-house of one John Hopkins of said Londonderry, yoeman, and from thence running on a due west course to Beaver Brook so called, then beginning again at the said house at the place where it began before (so as to have ye said house to ye Northward) and from thence to run on a due east course till it comes to ye easterly line of said Londonderry, thence to run as said line runs till it comes to the southerly boundary of said Lon- donderry, thence to run to the westward as the said boundary runs till it comes to the said brook, and thence to run as the said brook runs until it comes to the place on the said brook where the said west line runs across said brook." There were excepted out of these limits the polls and estates of John Archibald, James Clark, James Morse, John Hopkins, and John Cochran, and their respective families. This exception was a fruitful cause of disorder and litigation for many years, till at last they were legislated intO Windham, where they have since remained. By the provisions of the charter Robert Dinsmoor,Joseph Waugh, and Robert Thompson were author- ized to call a meeting of the inhabitants March 8, 1742. The sun which rose on the morning of February 12, 1742, ushered in a new and brighter day to the people. That day Windham became a town with a legal name, clothed with individuality, possessing the same rights, enjoying the same privileges, and subject to the same burdens and responsi- bilities of other towns in the province. Henceforth the people of this little republic in their congress, where every man was a member, and could and would be heard, were to manage their domestic affairs in their own time, in their own way, and for their own good. First Town-Meeting was holden at 10 o'clock March 8, I742. As Robert Dinsmoor's name stands first on the list of committee, he probably called the meeting to order and presided till Lieut. Samuel Morison was elected moderator. He presided in the first meeting, and in twenty-nine subsequent legal gatherings of the freeholders. First officers chosen were Robert Dins- moor, Joseph Waugh, Robert Thomson, Samuel Morison, William Gregg. selectmen; William Thorn, town clerk; Thomas Morison and John Dinsmoor were chosen inspectors of dears. It was "voted that the. selectman is to provide too staves, one for the Constable, and one for the taything man, and a town book." Page 727 In this simple, plain, direct way, Windham commenced her career as a municipality. The officers worked without pay. In March, 1744, commenced the French and Indian war, which lasted till October, 1748. This town escaped the ravages of the merciless foe, but she shared in the general alarn, and her sons aided in defending other towns in the state from the enemy, and William Campbell, William Gregg, Jr., N. L. Smiley, and William Smiley were scouting as soldiers of Windham in the Merrimac Valley in July, 1745, and other of our soldiers did good service in the war. The year 1752 was one of trouble. There was contention in their annual meeting, one party seceded and held another meeting, and two boards of officers were elected. The proceedings of each meeting were declared illegal by the Legislature. A new meeting was ordered, the vanquished became the victors, and so ended the dual government of the town. This year Windham was dismembered, and about one-third of its terri- tory was annexed to Salem. Windham was so much weakened by this dismembennent that it could no longer support its pastor, Rev. William Johnston, who was dismissed. The Last French and Indian War.-The treaty of peace signed between England and France Ocotober, 1748, was of short duration. In 1754 hostilities commenced anew. It was the conflict of differing civilizations, and did not cease till French-Catholic supremacy was over- thrown in Canada, that province conquered and placed under the domination of the British government. As an integral part of the British empire this town was called upon for sacrifice, to contribute her share for the prosecu- tion of the war, so her sons left the delights of the home and fireside for the sufferings of the march, the duties and privations of the camp, and the perils of the battle-field. Among her soldiers were Samuel Thompson, William Thompson, Hugh Dunlap, Daniel Clyde, and many others too numerous to mention here. In August, 1757, the French and Indians captured Fort William Henry on the north shore of Lake George, in New York, and 3,000 troops sur- rendered, when an infamous massacre of prisoners took place. In a New Hampshire regiment of 200 men, eighty were killed. Windham soldiers were there. Among them was Thomas Dunlap, who was pursued by a savage, who caught him by his queue, and was on the point of braining him with his tomahawk, when Dunlap sprang away, tearing out a large part of the hair from his head, escaped, reached the fort, and was protected by the French. Some fifty-five different men from this, or the same men at different times, served in the course of the "seven years' war." This was a heavy burden on the young settlement, and we can look back with pride upon this military page of ourlocal history, which shines so brightly with self-sacrifice, heroism, and patriotism. The conflict drew to a close, and Great Britain was victorious. The struggle between the two rival powers of Europe for supremacy in America had ceased, and great was the rejoicing of the English colonists. The world advances, is educated, and brought to a higher plane through conflict, suffering, sacrifice, and blood. This conflict had aroused the martial spirit of our people, developed their manhOOd, strengthened their determina- Page 728 tion and resolution, and fitted them for the greater conflict, the grander struggle of the Revolution, which was so rapidly approaching. 1770, Windham helps colonize Belfast, Me. In 1770, a year or two previous, and for several years succeeding, citi- zens of Wlndham settled in Belfast. Among the actual settlers were John Davldson, Deacon John Tufts, and, later, Lieut. James and John Gilman, sons of Col. James Gilman. Owners and proprietors were Alexander Stuart Robert Mcilvaine. At a later date John Cochran, Joseph Ladd, and A. W. Park became residents. The crisis was now on them! The waves of that long contest, the French and Indian war, had hardly lulled themselves to rest before the ominous mutterings of another tempest were distinctly heard. The breezes of the Atlantic brought to American ears the approaching danger. This war was to prove the mettle of our people, to show the stem grit of our citizens. Our men were soldiers by their mode of life in the new settlement. They had seen great exposure in the previous wars. They weighed the issues of the coming contest in the intellectual balances of their minds, and were pre- pared to meet the danger which their conclusion involved. They knew their strength, and were not afraid to use it. They were true in peace and quiet, they were steady and true in the tempest and storm. A company of minute-men was formed, and when the swift courier brought the news of the Lexington alarm, Capt. Joseph Clyde left his field hurriedly, rallied his company, and was gone. The good housewives cooked provisions, loaded them upon the backs of horses, and sent them after the soldiers. The following men enlisted immediately after the Lexingtvn alarm, April 23, 1775: James Caldwell, Samuel Caldwell, John Caldwell, Nathaniel Burrows. May 25, 1775, Lieut. John Dinsmoor was sent a delegate to the County Congress. Committee of Safety, 1775, were George Davidson, Peter Merrin, Robert Hemphill, Samuel Morison, Joseph Smith, John Dinsmoor, James Gilman, Nehemiah Hadley, and William Campbell. June 17, 1775, the battle of Bunker Hill was fought, the cannonading being distinctly heard in Windham. Her sons mingled in the deadly fray, and some had sealed their devotion to American liberty by their death. Tra- dition says five were slain, but the name of only John Collins has come down to us. John Simpson lost a part of his hand, and received a pension. These men were in the Continental service July 8, 1775: William Duty, Charles Amiss, Mark Duty, Alexander Brown, John Jameson, Abram Planet, Jacob Nordy, Moses Morys, Jonathan Thompson, John Kinkeacl, William McIlvain. The legislation of the town was patriotic. It was always in favor of the patriots. Their quotas of men and money were usually promptly furnished When a few citizens wished to be excused from the soldier rates, the town always voted not to excuse them. Ninety-four signed the association test, which was virtually a declaratinn of independence and three refused or neglected to sign. During the whole war our men shared in the joys of the army's triumphs. or in the sadness of its defeats. Fourteen men, at least, from Windham Page 729 were in the battle of Bennington, as follows: in Stark's brigade, Col. Mons Nichol's regiment,. Capt. Daniel Runnell's (or Reynolds') company, who enlisted July 20, 1777, were John Campbell, Samuel Campbell, John Stuart, John Kinkead, John Jameson, Jesse Davidson, James Wilson, Thomas Karr, history of that town. ) In Capt. Jesse Wilson's company, same regiment, were Ensign David Gregg ( afterwards lieutenant) , Samuel Morison, sergeant ( grand father of the writer), Ephraim Kyle, corporal, Alexander Morrow, David Campbell, John Kinkead, John Jameson, John Davidson, James Wilson, Thomas Karr, William Bolton. Casualties.-David Gregg had his thumb shot off. Samuel Morison suffered severely from sunstroke. James Wilson was taken prisoner by a British soldier, and he in turn took his captor captive. John Kinkead was killed. His sad fate and other incidents of the battle have been put in verse by the "Rustic Bard." The success at Bennington was the harbinger of a brighter day. The auspicious morning was at hand when England would be compelled to accord justice to America. The gallant sons of the old Granite State now rallied to join the northern army as men flock to a feast. The British commander was effectually "bottled up," and on the 17th of October, 1777, Burgoyne sur- rendered to General Gates. Windham men helped to swell the ranks of the patriot army, and participated in those battles, and shared in the glories of the victory. Among them, who enlisted September 29th and discharged October 28th, were Col. Isaac Cochran, Sergt. J ames Davidson, Sergt. Eliph- alet I..add, Robert Dinsmoor ("Rustic Bard"), Fifer William McCoy, John Campbell, Alexander Gregg, John Cochran, John Armor, Alexander Simp- son, John Dinsmoor, Daniel McIlvaine, John Williams (Corp. Daniel McIl- vaine was incorrectly credited to Londonderry in Parker's history of that town). In Capt. Joseph Finley's company at Saratoga, which marched from Londonderry, enlisted October I, discharged November 4, 1777, were Adam Dunlap, John McCoy, David Quentin, and William McKeen. These four Windham soldiers are incorrectly credited to Londonderry in Parker's his- tory of that town. War History, 1812-15 and I86I-65.-When the War of the Revolution was over the best of feeling did not exist between England and her late colonies. In 1795 war between the nations was averted by an unpopular treaty. There was an itching on the part of the Government and a portion of the people to reduce the arrogance.of Great Britain, who was mistress of the seas. War at length broke out. It was extremely unpopular in Windham and denounced in unmeasured terms as a wicked, causeless war, and a useless sacrifice of blood and treasure. It is said that only four men in the town voted in favor of the war, and the conditions of the treaty of peace between the nations justified the views of our people. Though bitterly opposed to the war, the following persons were enlisted or drafted for the service, the most, if not all, being stationed at Portsmouth: Benjamin Blanchard, Wil- liam Balch, Robert P. Dinsmoor, Samuel Dinsmoor, Thomas Nesmith, Samuel Davidson, Richard Dow, David Campbell, Alexander Gordon, John B. Hilands, Moses Sargent, Phillip K. Wilds, Rufus Patterson, Stephen E. Blaisdell, Samuel Rowell, Amos Dow, Thomas Moore, David Durrer, Phineas Dan forth, James Simpgon, Samuel Marshall, Aaron Senter, Solomon Corliss, Page 730 John Webster, William Simpson, John Nesrtlith (served in a Massachusetts regiment), Woodbridge Cottle. When the treaty of peace was signed, Decem- her 24, 1814, and ratified by the President, February 17, 1815, there was great rejoicing by all parties. The news of peace was brought from Harbor Hill, Mass., to Windham by Samuel Armor, Esq., who rode up to the houses of people shouting, "Peace, peace, peace !" and with only a word of explana- tion he reined his horse into the highway and was gone to carry joy to other households. So far as this town is concerned, peace reigned for many years. The war with Mexico did not affect us, and not a soldier is known to have gone from the town. But a storm was brewing which would shake to their center the foundations of our national Government. The slaveholders' rebellion was at hand, and the hour would call for sacrifice on the part of our people. Sumter was attacked April 19, 1861. The North sprang to arms. The following list is very nearly correct of the men furnished by the town. Walter Burnham, Asa Bean, Seth N. Huntley, William Wyman, Moses Wyman, James G. Batchelder, Jesse Crowell, Theodore Clark, Joseph R. Everett, Albion K. Goodwin, Horatio Gleason, John Calvin Hill, Samuel Haseltine, John G. Johnson, Lemuel Marden, Moses Myrick, Louis McCon- nihe, Lewis Ripley, James G. Stone, Caleb G. Wiley, Moses Wyman, William Anderson, John G. Bradford, Asa Bean, George W. Colburn, Henry W. Chellis, Horace w. Hunt, Seth N. Huntley, John W. Hall, David B. Fessenden, Micajah B. Kimball, William N. McConnihe, Reuben A. Phillips, James S. Stephens. Carl Albert, Joseph G. Ayers, James Baker, James Brown, C. H. Bach- elder. George W. Durant, Severe L. Duplissis, Albert Fletcher , Charles E. Hanscom, George A. Jackson, Joseph F. Mugot, Elixis Marcotte,Truworthy Norris, Ephraim Plimpton, Wentworth S. Cowan, Thomas Crook, Patrick Hannan, Bernard McCam, Oliver Burns, J ames Murphy, Russell W. Powell. Jasques Dreux, James Brown, Charles Cole, Frederick Otis, James C. Crowell, Charles Fegan, George W. Carr, Whiting R. Ri~hardson, Gilman Jaquitt. James Jones ( colored), Harry Hancock. Seven citizens were drafted and sent substitutes. Eleven citizens voluntarily sent substitutes to the war. The Scotch settlers of Windham were of a stern and rugged type, and clung to the tenets of the Presbyterian Church with an obstinacy hard to surpass. Nor is this surprising when we consider the circumstances of their lives and stock to which they belonged. They were the descendants of the Covenanters. Their fathers had resisted the onslaughts of the Roman Cath- olic and the English Established Church. They hated Popery , and had but little more regard for the English Church. They had struggled on through the troubled years, Dearing aloft the ensign of their faith-to them the only true faith-and their banner the only true standard of the cross. The story of the past was familiar to our first ~ttlers. It was engraved upon "the red-leaved tablets" of their hearts, and that they should cling wIth great tenacity to the faith and form of worship of their fathers is not surprising. The religious side of their characters was strongly developed. They were the followers of John Knox, and exhibited much of the stern, honest, plain, uncompromising spirit of that reformer. This town has been decidedly orthodox from the beginning. Many Page 731 families attended meeting at what is now East Derry. After attending to their morning duties the whole family, even women and children, would walk eight or nine miles to meeting, listen to two long sermons, and then return to their homes, not reaching them till after dark. So they prized the sanctuary, and appreciated and loved dearly the faith in which they trusted. The first religious meetings were holden in barns during the warn season for eleven years, when, in 1753, the first meeting-house was built on the high ground southeast of Cobbett's Pond. Following the custom of the dear old fatherland; the burying-ground stood beside the kirk. Rev. William Johnson received a call, July 12, 1742, to settle here, but was not installed till 1747. His salary was 200 pounds and the use of the parsonage, besides 300 pounds as a settlement. He ordained as ruling elders Nathaniel Hemphill, Samuel Kinkead, and John Kyle. By the dismember- ment of Windham, in 1752, whereby about one-fourth of our territory with its people were annexed to Salem, the society was so weakened that it could not support the minister, and he was dismissed in July, 1752, having been with this people ten years. Rev. John Kinkead was installed October, 1760, with a salary of £1300, old tenor, or about two hundred and sixteen dollars, six pounds making one dollar. He was dismissed in April, 1765. Rev. Simon Williams was ordained in December, 1766, with a salary of about two hundred and thirty~three dollars and thirty-three cents, with a settlement of $200 and the use of the parsonage. He was pastor here for twenty-seven years, dying November 10, 1793. He did a noble work, and his influence lives after him. He established a private academy, which was an important tributary of Dartmouth College. A new church was at the center of the town in 1798. Rev. Samuel Norris was ordained over the church October 9, 1805, and continued as pastor till he was dismissed on account of failing health, in 1826. Rev. Calvin Cutter was installed over the church in April, 1828, and died February 19, 1844. He had previously been settled in Lebanon, N. H., was graduated at Dartmouth College in 1819, at Andover Theological Seminary, 1823. During his ministry the church was built (1834) , and the old house used as the town-house. The latter has at different times been occupied for preaching some three months a year by the Methodists and Unitarians. In 1845, November 5th, Lorin Thayer was ordained over the church, with a salary of $500. Like the most of his predecessors, he continued with his people till death. For over twenty years he continued their pastor, and the disease which terminated in his death, September 19, 1869, was the cause of the dissolution of his pastoral relation with his people, April 25, 1866. He died at the age of fifty four years, and he is buried among us, as are three of his predecessors. He was thrice married, his last wife being Eliza- beth C. Farley, who became closely identified with the society and interest of the people. She survived her husband till March 4, 1878. His ministry was an eminently successful one, and the memory of him and his wife are tenderly cherished by many. January 20, 1868, Joseph Lauman received a call to settle, and he was installed June 2, r868. A parsonage was built in 1868 at an expense of over three thousand dollars. Mr. Lauman's pastorate continued till his resignation. He was dismissed February 6, 1872. Page 732 Rev.,Charles Packard was installed April 29, 1873, at a salary of $800 and the use of the parsonage. The church was thoroughly remodeled in 1874, and rededicated December 29, 1874. The outlay was $2,600. Mr. Packard was born at Backfield, Me., October 14, 1818, graduated at Bowdoin College in 1842, at Bangor Seminary in 1845. As a pastor he was faithful, as a friend he was true, as a citizen he was always upon the right side, and always had the best interests of the people in view. He performed his pastoral duties till January 29, 1881, when the disease which had been upon him culminated in entire prostration, and he died Feb- ruary 20, 1881, and is buried in Farmington, Me. Rev. Joseph Smith Cogswell was born in Boscawen, N. H., October 29, 1836, and was installed over the church December 21, 1881. He was followed by Reverend Mr. Westervelt from 1892-96; Rev. Jas. P. Harper in 1&)8; Rev. Albert Watson, 1899-1910; Reverend Mr. Funk acting pastor in 1912; Rev. Frederick McNeill in 1913; and the Rev. A. L. Dunton the present pastor. Previous to 1800 some of our people were shareholders in a library in Salem, and the books were much read. The first book controlled by the town was in 1800. This was the commencement of the first public or social library, which was incorporated June 7, 1806. It had a constitution, by-laws, and a board of officers annually elected. In 1825 the number of volumes exceeded two hundred-and valuable works. A social library was founded in 1851, numbering over one hundred copies, and was destroyed by fire April 7, 1856. Nesmith Library in Windham.-In 1781 Col. Thomas Nesmith of Lowell bequeathed $3,000 to found and perpetuate a free public library in his native town. It was opened in the town hall on June 24, 1871, with 741 volumes and increased in 1872 to 1,600. In 1898 George W. Armstrong of Brookline, Mass., a native of Windham presented the town with a building for the library. The Armstrong Memorial Building, as it is called, was dedicated January 4, 1899. Bessie Emerson, the librarian, has charge of the 4,000 volumes in the building. The name of the grange is the Windham Grange, P. of H. Our Schools.-The early residents possessed considerable education, hav- ing acquired it in Scotland or in the Scotch settlements in the north of Ireland before their removal here. In accordance with the laws of the province and their own elevated views, provision was immediately made after the settle- ment for the education of the young. Four common schools were sup- ported in Londonderry in 1727, of which Windsor was then a part. Of the earlier schools in town we have no record: the preceding years have borne away all specific knowledge of them. The first school of which we have a positive account was in 1766, and James Aiken was the teacher. He taught a singing-school evenings, and a day-school for the children. N1cholas Sauce, a discharged British soldier, in 1760, of the French and Indian war, after- wards taught for a long time. He was a cruel teacher, as was the custom of those days, yet his scholars owed him a great debt of gratitude for the instruction received from him. Master McKeen was the next teacher in order, and taught about the year 1776. He was a man of fine acquirements and ripe scholarship, but his.mind was not upon his calling, and if he chanced to see a squirrel by the roadside he would catch that squirrel if it took "all summer." Page 733 The schoolhouses were but rude affairs at the best, and often unfit for school purposes, oftentimes the school in summer would be kept in shops or barns. The schoolhouses were wholly discarded in winter and the schools taught in private houses. Family schools were much in vogue, the elder child teaching the younger ones. In one family there were eighteen children who were thus taught. Williams' Academy.-This academy was the most potent influence ever exerted in town for the higher education of our youth. It was taught by Rev. Simon Williams, commencing about 1768, and terminating a short time previous to his death, in 1793. His scholarship was of the highest order, and he was a celebrated teacher while in town and previous to his coming here. Among those whom he fitted for college were Joseph McKeen, first president of Bowdoin College; Rev. Samuel Taggart, the distinguished clergyman and Congressman, of Coleraine, Mass. ; Silas Bolton, M. C., of Salem; and Dr. J ohn Park, editor and physician; Rev. John Goffe; J ohn Dinsmoor ; Silas Dinsmoor, the noted Indian agent; and the elder Governor Samuel Dinsmoor. In the fourth class ( 1773 ) , graduated at Dartmouth College, nearly one- half were fitted for college by Mr. Williams. The school often numbered forty to fifty scholars. Authors, Books, and Pamphlets.-Rev. Simon Williams wrote previous to 1793 an introduction to the American edition, and published Thomas Blackwell's book on "Genuine Revealed Religion." He also published a small book by the presbytery. Rev. Samuel Harris printed in 1816 a sermon on the death of Miss Mary Colby, of Chester; in 1820 the "Memoir of Miss Mary Campbell," of Wind- ham; in 1827-28 two editions of "Questions on Christian Experience and Character ;" also his farewell sermon about 1826. Rev. Loren Thayer wrote a sketch of the Windham Church for the "New Hampshire Church." Deacon Robert Dinsmoor (the "Rustic Bard") printed a volume of his poems, 264 pages, 1828. Leonard A. Morrison compiled in 1881, and placed in the Nesmith Library, the Thanksgiving Sermon of R'ev. Calvin Cutter, 1835; Sermon by Rev. Loren Thayer on the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, May, 1865 ; Centennial Sermon of Rev. Charles Packard, 1876; and a complete set of printed reports of Windham. In 1880 he published 1,100 copies, 470 pages, of his "History of the Morison, or Morrison, Family." In 1882 he re-wrote and condensed this work for "The Highlander ," a magazine printed at Inver- ness, Scotland. He published ( 1882) his complete "History of Windham," 1719-1882. Early Settlers and Later Residents.-David Gregg was one of the earliest settlers. He was bom in Londonderry, Ireland, being the son of John Gregg, born 1655, in that place, and the grandson of Capt. David Gregg, who was in Argylshire, Scotland, and was a captain in army of Cromwell in 1655, and assisted in the conquest of the rebellious subjects in lrela.nd, was a tanner, and received a deed of land in Ireland from CromweU. David Gregg, of Windham, came to Watertown, Mass., in 1712, staying nine years, then came to Windham in 1721, settling in the west part of the town. There were then few if any white inhabitants within ten miles of him, and the woods abounded with game of all sorts. He hewed his farm from Page 734 the wilderness, and after the activities of life were over he found a quiet spot in which to sleep in the old cemetery on the plain. He was the ancestor of the Greggs of Windham. John Cochran came to Londonderry in the autumn of 1720, and perma- nently located in East Windham in 1730, and is the ancestor of the family of that name. He was of unadulterated Scotch blood, the son of John and Elizabeth (Arwjn) Cochran, of Londonderry, Ireland, born there, 1704, and his father shared in the defense of that memorable city against the Catholics in 1688-89. When young Cochran came to Windham (then Londonderry) the country was almost unbroken wilderness, and he displayed great endurance and fortitude amid the hardships and privations of his life. He married his cousin Jenny, daughter of Justice James McKeen, of Londonderry, and died at eighty-four. Their life was long and pleasant together, and side by side they rest in the cemetery on the hill. Alexander Simpson, ancestor of one branch of the Windham family, came to Windham about 1747, and located in the southeast part of the town. He was a weaver, and could do exceedingly fine and nice work, could weave anything "where the warp was strong enough to bear the weight of his beaver hat." He married Janet Templeton, and died December 12, 1788, at sixty- nine years. . James Belton was not one of the earliest settlers, but came about 1753. He was born in Scotland in 1727 or 1728, and died March 18, 1803. He settled in the north part of the town. He became a very active, popular, and influential citizen, was well educated, and became an auctioneer, sur- veyor, and justice of the peace. He filled all the prominent positions in town, and was in 1777 an agent from the State of New Hampshire to the seat of the national Government at Baltimore, and brought to the New England states a large amount of money with which to prosecute the Revolutionary war. He was the father of Hon. Silas Belton, at one time member of Con- gress from New Hampshire. Lieut. Samuel Morison was born in Ireland, at or near Londonderry , was the son of James Morison and Mary Wallace, of that place, emigrants to Londonderry, N. H. in 1719. His grandfather was John Morison, a native of Aberdeenshire, Scotland, who died in Londonderry, N. H., 1736, at the reputed age of one hundred and eight years. Lieut. Samuel Morison came to Londonderry when a lad of fifteen years, and settled in what is now Wind- ham about 1730. He was well educated in Ireland, and became prominent in the little settlement where his lot was cast, often held public positions, was a lieutenant in Massachusetts regiment at Fort Cumberland, Nova Scotia, in 1760, during the French and Indian war. He married Martha Allison. the first female child born in Londonderry, and daughter of Samuel Allison, one of the first sixteen settlers. She was born March 31, 1720, and died December 3, 1761. He died February 11, 1776. He is the ancestor of the Morrisons of the town. Henry Campbell came to Windham in 1733. He was born in London- derry, Ireland, 1697, and married Martha Black in 1717. He was the son of Daniel Campbell, a descendant of Sir John Campbell, of Scotland, Duke of Argyle. Henry Campbell located in the west part of the town, and his descendants still reside upon the ancestral acres. John Dinsmoor, of Scotch blood, came from Londonderry , Ireland. He Page 735 came to Londonderr:y, N. H., in 1723, and is ancestor of the Dinsmoors here. His house was in Londonderry, the front door stone being on the line between the towns. His grandson, William Dinsmoor, was a man of parts, and possessed quite a poetical gift. He was the father of Samuel Dinsmoor , of Keene, governor of New Hampshire, 1831-33. Robert Dinsmoor, the "rustic bard," was born in Windham, October 7, 1757. He wrote much, and generally, when for the press, in verse. He wrote in the Scotch dialect, which was spoken by many in the Scotch settle- ment, and understood by all, and the Scotch brogue has not been so long extinct among the descendants of the Scotch settlers but that some of the younger members of the community have listened to it with pleasure. Among the most eccentric persons who ever resided he,re was F. L. Bis- sell. The most romantic place was his camp, so famous when standing in its glory, and so well remembered since its decay. ********************************************************************** * * * NOTICE: Printing the files within by non-commercial individuals and libraries is encouraged, as long as all notices and submitter information is included. Any other use, including copying files t other sites requires permission from the submitters PRIORto uploading to any other sites. 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