Old Deed Traced Removal of some old panelling in 1636. After Anne liutchinson during recent renovations at was l> anished from ti1e colony the State Teachers College at because of her religious be­ Lowell revealed a l ong lost liefs ( 1638), he purchased the original document of g reat land belonging to her far.iily local historical si&nificance. in noston--later the location It is the original Indian deed of the Old Corner Sook Store to the northern part o.f Lowel 1, at the corner of 1Ya.shington all of the land once included and School Streets. About in the farms of Samuel Varaijm 1661, apparently retiring from and Edward Colburn. In ·all his life as a &oston merchant, probability it includes the Webb came to Chelmsford and land upon which are built the was the first settler to live Lowell General Hospital and the across the Merrimack River. Lowell Technological Institute. For three years after 1663, he The deed is 295 years old and represented Chelmsford at the was negotiated only five years General Court in Boston; in after the first settlers ar­ 1664, he was authorized to rived in the Merrimack Valley. perfonn marriages in town. In How the document landed be­ 1665, however, he was forced hind the panelling is a mys­ to give up his seat in the tery. No one seems to know General Cou rt, his military where 1 t came from, who was commission and his vote as a the original owner, or by whom freeman, and to give a ~ 100 it was loaned or donated to bond for his future good be­ the college. President O'Leary; havior--al l this because of of the Teachers College, 110uld being convicted of improper be interested to hear from conduct in a Boston tavern. anyone who has any infonnation In 1666, part of the sen­ on the origin and. history of tence was remitted because the document. ~r. John Evered alias Webl> It reads, with the spelling hath payd his fine, and car­ modernized except for proper ried it humbly and submissive­ names, as follows: ly, and under a due sence of Chelmsford, June 28th, 1660 his sinne.' Three years later, These presents witnesseth Webb sold part of his land to that, I, Pointtah-hum, other­ Ruchard Shatswell and Samuel wise called by the English, Varnum of Ipswich. In 1668, John Sagamore, 11 v 1 n g at Mr. Webb died (we are told) Naham-cock upon Merrimack while whale-fishing, and his River; for a valuable consid­ widow sold the estate to John eration by me already received Fairweather. In 1671, Thomas One of the earliest deeds recorded in the Town of Chelmsford. to my full satisfaction and Hinchman sold the Shatswell content 1. e. the full sum of portion of the land which he eight pounds, two shillings, bought of Webb earlier, to • sixpence; have sold, given Edward Coburn. Coburn and Var­ granted and by these presents num, both from Ipswich, were Trend Of Construction In I do give grant, sell enfeoff thus the first actual settlers­ H story and confirm unto John Evered; to follow Webb, and the newly­ It is now well established alias Web and Joseph Rock, both discovered deed referred to that the early settlers did of Boston in the Massachusetts, above is the first transfer of not live in l og cabins as all that broken-up land which land to Webb of this land once supposed. Since the lieth in general patches, to­ which was afterward included Chelmsford people had 11 ved in gether with an orchard, upon in the Coburn and Varnum farms. other towns before coming here one part of the same (which Webb was the first to use the we may assume that they drew land Heth on the northern side name Dracut--a l ocal name on the house-building ex­ of Merrimack River, at Naham­ (Draycote) of his native Wilt­ perience acquired there. For cock, a.nd anext the house of shire in England--for this example, the first settlers in Thomas Hinchman) with all vicinity. Edward Coburn, Jr. Concord scooped out crude titles, privileges and appur­ was killed by the Indians in dugouts in the long ridge now tenances to the same belong­ Brookfield, July 14, 1675; he called Revolutionary Ridge on ings: TO HAVE AND TO HOLD was the son of the first Ed ­ the north side of the road to every part and parcel of the ward Coburn. Lexington . It was a steep same, to them their heirs and nie presence of the old deed slope, and so they could dig 'Hill Jock' Parker !louse: 15:i Boston Road assigns, peaceably to enjoy at the State Teachers' College out an 8' square level with land, with sharply sloping iod date roughly from 1700 to the same without any mo l esta­ is partly explained by word the surface on the down hill roof, central chimney, second 1800 are further developments tion from me or any other by from Miss Mabel Hill of Bil­ side with the bank itself as a story slightly overhanging the of the earlier ones. An excel­ or under me, or from all right lerica, a former teacher at wall in back. A frame of first, and several diamond­ lent and rare example of the claims of any other person the Normal School, who says boards served as the front paned casement windows. When gambrel-roofed type is the whatsoever; unto the aforesa.id that it was a part of a his­ wall . Timbers ran from this more room was needed, the house at 50 Garrison Road, John Evered and Joseph Rock, torical exhibition held there wall to the rear to support a roof's slope was continued South section, owned by Mr s. their heirs and assigns, etc. many years ago , and that it roof piled high with bark and down so that the house had 2 Annie Clarke and occupied ear­ and for the true performance belonged to the Palmer fami ly dirt. Tradition holds that stories in front and one in lier by a succession of per· of all these promises, I, the of Lowell. 'Josiah Richardson's first back. sons well known in our history: said John Sagamore, do engage Colonel Jackson Palmer, shelter was partly formed by and bind myself, my heirs and Houses of the Colonial per- Continued on second page U.S.A. (ret.) , now living in digging into the bank' and it assigns unto the aforesaid Florida, has recently written is probable that he was follow­ John and Joseph, their heirs, to the NEWSWEEKLY as fol lows: ing Concord precedent in do­ executors and assigns, by put­ ~his document was given to so. ~ ting down my hand and seal, me by my mother, the late It was not long (1656) be­ the day and year of our Lord Rowena Hildreth Palmer. He r fore the first sawmill was set above named · mother was a Coburn and we up to provide lumber for frame 0 were both lineal descendants houses, and even earlier, a his · ... mark of Joseph Bradley Varnum, mem­ supi t (in which logs were cut ber of Congress at the time of into boards by two men operat­ John Sagamore the iJeclaration of War against ing a long up-and-down-saw) England, 1812-15.' It was at was located opposite 32 Bart­ Signed sealed and delivered first thought, hJ! continues, lett Street and gave its ear­ in the presence of us that the document was destroyed lier name, Sawpit Hill , to J onathan Danforth when the family home in Lowell what we now know as Bartlett Thomas Hinchman was bu rned ( 1923) but Mrs. Hill. Palmer later r ecalled having The first frame house, it is Since the foregoing was loaned it and so it was pre­ said, was Wm. Fletcher's at written oy President O'Leary, served--to come to light over the end of Crosby Lane where, certain other information has 30 years later. Col. Palmer on Nov. 22, 1654, the first come to light which is he r e described the framed document town meeting was held. We have combined with a few facts minutely and undouutedly it no description of this house, about John Webb and the subse­ will eventually be returned to but we know that the earliest quent owners of this land. him although it i s at pr esent permanen t dwellings in the John Webb came to this coun­ considered State property be­ colony developed from the rec­ try from England in April, cause it was found in a State­ tangular Tudor cottage of Eng- Ho'llP of 11rs. Annie Clari'. of 50 Garrison Rd . , South 1635, and was made a freeman owned building. Construction Perhaps uest known of all is the full 2-storied central Continued from first page chimney house which developed John TUcker, Andrew Betty, Dr. from the preceding. Examples Cengratulations John Betty, B. o. and C. o. Rob­ of these are easily found: the bins and--possibly, about 1659 Josian Richardson house on --built· by Jacob Warren. This Graniteville Road, the Dr . hoose has a short, squat cen­ Jonas Marshall house at 40 tral chimney, now narrowed and Byam Rd. , South section, and lengthened, with a fireplace the old Hodgman house at 75 in each of its three first­ Concord Rd., Center. floor rooms. The Capt. Wm­ Following these came the 2- Fletcher house, now torn down, and 4-chimney houses in wood, •as sillilar. brick, or a combination of CUT FLOWERS - WED DIN G & FUNE.UL WORK Hodqman House at 75 Concord Road, Center.