FOUNDERS OF FORT NO. 4, CHARLESTOWN, NH
From:	Farns10th@aol.com - Janice Farnsworth

Topic:   Cemteries
Source:  History of Charlestown, NH, The Old No. 4 by Rev. Henry
H. Saunderson printed at Claremont, NH 1876

                                               CEMETERIES
The proprietors of No. 4 at a meeting legally held May 1, 1751

"Voted that Capt Stevens, Capt. Spafford and John Hastings be a Committee to
purchase of the owners of some lands or house lotts where they shall think 
best
for a burying place; or if they cannot purchase said lands then to pitch upon 
and
buy out a burying place otherwhere  where they shall think most convenient."

Previous to this time the dead had been principally interred on "Burying 
Hill,"
as it was called, which was the ground lying between the present South Parish
Meeting House Lot and the opposite side of the street.  On this little rise, 
formerly
much higher than now, those who had fallen in defence of the place, or had 
died
of sickness, had found burial.

It had been voted by the proprietors to build their Church there, and near 
the Church, in accordance with the old New England custom, was the appropriate
place for the dead to rest.  Many were buried there, among whom we may number
nearly all the defenders of No. 4, who fell in the first Indian War.  It was 
the design
of the inhabitants to purchase of the owners the front part of some house-lots
lying contiguous to that spot, but probably their committee failed in their 
endeavor
and therefore located their burying-ground where the old portion of the 
Cemetery is
now.  It appears that the Committee did little more than to select the 
grounds and
purchase them, for we hear nothing more of the Burying Ground before 1763 in
which year the town voted that it should be fenced.

After securing their new grounds, Burying Hill ceased to be used for purposes 
of
interment, and the remains of those who had been buried there were ultimately
removed to the new spot. Their number must have been considerable, but I find
no stone erected to the memory of a single one of those first victims of war 
and
sacrifice.  The living had too much to do to defend themselves to have time to
devote to the preparation of monuments for the perpetuation of the memory of
those who had fallen.  So they rest with graves unmarked.

There are a number of stones in the old portion of the Cemetery without any
inscriptions.  It is probable that some of these mark the resting-places of 
persons
who were slain or died of disease in the first decade of the settlement; and 
there
can be little doubt that the spaces in the "Old Grounds" that are without 
stones
are yet thickly strown with the remains of the early inhabitants of the place.
The writer (Rev. Saunderson) of this, while superintending the laying of the
foundation of the "Johnson Monument," as it is called, found a rough, flatish 
stone
about two feet below the surface, inscribed, "Ambrose Tuttel 1757."  The 
inscription
was a mere scratch, and might have been made with any sharp piece of iron, and
yet it remained as plain to be read as when first put into the ground.  As our
excavation was only about three feet it was not deep enough to disturb any 
remains; but we paused as the thought came to us that all those apparently
unoccupied grounds were full of secret graves.

On none of the oldest stones does the date extend back beyond 1756 - sixteen
years after the first settlement of the place.  There are several that bear 
date 
1757, and from that time the number yearly, especially subsequent to 1760
had a rapid increase till considerable numbers were erected with each 
succeeding
year.

To the old Cemetery there have, within a very recent period, been two 
additions:
the one, on the west, extending it to East Street, the other, on the north em-
bracing all the grounds to their present limits.  The earliest burials in the 
first
portion were in 1836, and there were none in the last till quite a number of
years later.

The improvements in the Cemetery which now render it so pleasant, are of
comparatively recent date, having been made within the last quarter of a 
century;
and owe their inception to Henry Hubbard, Jr. Esq., who, many will regret to
learn died at his home in Bedford, VA June 11, 1876.

A call for a public meeting at the hotel was made Feb 7, 1853, signed by Mrs. 
J.
DeForest Richards, Mrs. Emily A. Olcott and Mrs. J. J. Gilchrist, in which an
invitation was extended to all citizens and ladies of the place to assemble 
at a
public tea party, and take into consideration the subject of improving the 
grounds 
of the Cemetery, and to devise means and take measures therefor.  This 
resulted
in a very large attendance, who were fully united in the object in view; and a
Committee was appointed to get up a festival for the whole town on the 
following
4th of July, for the purpose of obtaining means for their intended 
improvements.
At this festival four hundred dollars was the sum obtained, and the following 
persons were appointed a committee to expend it.

Deacon Moses Putnam, Henry Hubbard, Jr., Silas P. Mack, Samuel L. Fletcher
Abram D. Hull, Mrs. J. DeForest Richards, Mrs. Emily A. Olcott, Mrs. Laura 
Cushing, Mrs. Helen J. Tidd and Mrs. Theodosia Evans.

The walks were laid out under the general direction of the committee, and the
evergreens that now so pleasantly shade them were set out by their mutual
agreeement.  Abram D. Hull, Esq., was employed to set out the pines, but the
balsams that are seen in the yaard were set out by Deacon Moses Putnam
and were brought by him from Unity.

I will merely say further that the town now yearly appropriates one hundred 
dollars
for keeping the Cemetery in order.  Money was appropriated in 1870 for 
bringing
a fountain into the enclosure and the selectmen were appointed a committee 
with
others to do it, but for some reason not known to the writer it has never 
been done.

                   CEMETERIES AT THE NORTH PART OF THE TOWN
p.708
The village cemetery was the only burying place in town till 1792, at which 
time
the town purchased and set apart for a burial place the old ground at North
Charlestown.  At this time members of families belonging to the north part of
the town who had been buried in this cemetery, were disinterred and buried 
there.
This continued to be the only cemetery at the north until 1852, when the 
present
one was purchased by the town.  This is a very pleasant spot of elevated 
ground
lying about forty or fifty rods beyond the junction of the River road with 
the main
road leading to Claremont (NH).  It is pleasantly laid out and contains a 
fountain
for which money was appropriated at the same time that the appropriation was 
made for the village Cemetery.  The Cemetery also contains a number of quite
tasteful monuments, among which we may instance those erected to Mr. Jesse
and George Farwell, Eliphalet Bailey, Artimesia Westcott and John Metcalf.
The Walker monument of brown-stone is also a very handsome structure.  The
name of the Cemetery is HOPE HILL and one hundred dollars is yearly 
appropriated for its care by the town.  Much credit it due to Horace Metcalf, 
Esq.,
for many of the improvements connected with this pleasant cemetery.
The following from the stone erected to the memory of Thomas Swan, speaks for
itself:
"Thomas Swan d. Nov 23d 1772 in his 28th year.  Children yet unborn will
reverence his name when they find by his last will he gave the town of 
Charlestown
one hundred pounds, the interest of which to be appropriated to the sole 
purpose
of keeping a school in that part of said town know by the name of the town 
plot."
In connection with this gift came the Park now generally called from the 
donar:
Swan Park.  Little is known of Mr. Swan save that he was a very intelligent 
young
merchant in Charlestown who died early.  He was probably one of the younger
children of Rev. Josiah Swan the 2nd minister of old Dunstable but who after
leaving Dunstable became a celebrated teacher in Lancaster, Mass and in
Walpole, NH.


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