Henry B. Worth Papers Pertaining to old Dartmouth Last updated: 16 Oct 2020 1 All Contents are part of the collection of: and Transcribed by: Bob Maker & Max Isaksen & Majorie Orman Compiled and edited by: Max Isaksen 2 Table of Contents: Page Henry Barnard Worth Biography 5 Colonial Old Dartmouth (pre 1775) Old Comers 6 The First Settlers of Dartmouth and Where They Located (ODHS #39) 8 Howard’s Brook (ye old burying point) 15 The Highway to Neck (what is now Acushnet) 19 John Cook’s House and Garrison 22 The Original Farms between Fort Phenix and the Head of the Acushnet River 23 Fairhaven, Ancient 27 Early Land Owners of Fairhaven Village (Rotch Farm) 35 Oxford Village (ODHS #43) 38 Fairhaven (originally untitled) 45 Fort Phoenix 55 Head of Westport and Its Founders (ODHS #21) 58 Coxet 65 The Homesteads at Apponegansett Before 1710 74 Russell’s Mills History 79 Smith Mills History (ODHS #20) 105 Pogansett Pond and the West Side of Town 122 Padan-Aram History 136 What Dartmouth Families were Presbyterians 157 Difference between Pilgrams and Puritans 159 Bridges of Old Dartmouth 163 The Effect of the King Philip War in Dartmouth 168 Quaker Emigrations from Dartmouth Before 1900 172 Hix’s Bridge and the Handy House (ODHS #36) 173 Crow Island, Palmer’s Island & Pope’s Island 176 Roads and Boundaries (of old Dartmouth) 178 Post Revolutionary War (1775+) Dartmouth in the Revolution 182 Dartmouth in the Revolutionary War 187 British Raid, 1778 205 Fort Phoenix 227 New Bedford Wealthy Men 231 New Bedford Street Names 240 3 Bridges and Wharves (of Fairhaven) 242 Houses Ten Ancient Homes (ODHS #3) 245 The Development of the Colonial Dwelling Houses 249 The Development of the Dwelling-House in Old Dartmouth 252 Taunton lecture 262 Businesses Iron Mills in Old Dartmouth 272 Lotteries, Intoxicating Liquors & Grocery Stores 275 Other Henry H. Rogers 293 The Thomas Taber Story 296 Indian names & Language (Compilation) 299 Editorial Decisions The tasks of transcribing Henry Worth’s documents presents significant challenges. Some of his documents are manuscripts, some typescripts, and some a combination. Some texts are essentially finished products, while others are drafts, rough notes, or even simple lists. Worth himself made many corrections and alterations. He sometimes crossed out words, sentences, or entire sections of text. He added new text between lines or in the margins, horizontally and/or vertically, and sometimes added significant amounts of text at the bottom of a page, circled and with an arrow indicating where it was to be inserted. Occasionally he pasted paper with new text on it directly over the old. He wrote in both pen and pencil, and he also typed. All of this combines to make a strictly linear transcription impossible. Misc. Notes Worth maps are in my opinion are taken from the Field books of Benjamin Crane, a surveyor commissioned by the proprietors of Dartmouth to survey and record property boundaries throughout old Dartmouth. Crane surveyed these lands between 1710 and 1721. In 1910, Benjamin Crane’s Field Notes books were photographed, transcribed, and published by the New Bedford Free Public Library. 4 Henry Barnard Worth Born: 1858 in Brooklyn, NY; from an old Nantucket family Died: 1923 The son of Calvin G. Worth of Nantucket, Massachusetts, was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1858. After attending school in Nantucket and later at Amherst College, he taught school for four years. In 1885, he passed his bar exam and began practicing law in New Bedford, MA, specializing in real estate law and devoting his spare time to historical and genealogical research. He was an active member of the Old Dartmouth Historical Society, contributing numerous articles to the Society's published historical sketches, as well as serving as secretary of the organization from 1913 until his death in 1923. Occupation: Henry was and went to Amherst College then studied for the bar,” “When he passed the bar, he moved to New Bedford and became a lawyer specializing in real estate law. Specializing in real estate meant that he spent a lot of time looking at old deeds and wills.” (said Bob Maker / Historian) Mr. Worth was a title search lawyer whose business gave him an intimate knowledge of the Registry of Deeds and Court Records and whose hobby was the History of the Area. At least one of his papers was published by the old Dartmouth Historical Society. 5 Old Comers Dartmouth proprietors who did not settle in Dartmouth. Proprietor’s name Sold share Date George Morton “ - ac 1627 A Thomas Morton “ - ac 1627 A Moses Simons “ ac 1627 Came in 1628 F Constant Southworth “ - Came in 1628 - Myles Standish “ M ac 1627 M Stephen Tracy “ - ac 1627 A Sarah Warren “ - Richard Waren in M ac 1627 M William Bradford “ M ac 1627 M John Alden “ M ac 1627 M Robert Bartlett “ - ac 1627 A John Howland “ M ac 1627 M (½ share) William Bassett “ - a.c. 1627 (½ share) Sarah Brewster “ - ac 1627 William Brewster in way of M (½ share) town Edward Bumpass “ - Share disappeared ac 1627 F Samuel Cuthbert “ - ac 1627 A Edward Dotye “ M M John Dunham “ - - - Francis Eaton “ M ac 1627 M John Faunce “ - ac 1627 F Edward Holman “ - ac 1627 A James Hurst “ - - - William Collyer “ - Came in 1633 - (½ share) 6 Proprietors who did settle in Dartmouth – Or their descendants. Francis Sprague, daughter Dorcas married Ralph Earl a.c. 1627 A George Soule, sons George and Nathaniel settled in Dartmouth a.c. 1627 M John Shaw, sons John and James settled in Dartmouth a.c. 1627 Henry Sampson, sons Stephen, John and James lived in Dartmouth a.c. 1627 M Joshua Pratt, Daughter Hannah married William Spooner. Lived in Dartmouth a.c. 1627 A William Palmer, lived in Dartmouth, killed by Indians. Sons later moved to Little Compton a.c. 1627 F + Mrs. Sarah Jenne. This share went to children Samuel Jenney and Sarah (Jenney) wife of Thomas Pope. She was ___ John a.c. 1627 A Manasseh Kempton went to a descendant of a settler a.c. 1627 F Philip Delano son Jonathan became a settler a.c. 1627 F Samuel Hix went to Dartmouth a.c. 1627 F + Francis Cook } share went to son John infant. Also to William Manassas. a.c. 1627 M + John Cook } daughter of John married Arthur Hathaway. a.c. 1627 M + Peter Brown, Daughter Mary married Ephraim Tinkham. John Tinkham (Mary’s son) an inhabitant in 1694 a.c. 1627 M 7 The First Settlers of Dartmouth and Where They Located OLD DARTMOUTH HISTORICAL SKETCH # 39 In colonial times when a new settlement was to be established, explorers were sent in advance to investigate the region, and determine where it would be most advantageous to locate the residential center. They would build some sort of rude structure either a log cabin, a stone house, or a cave dug in the hillside and this would suffice for a habitation until they were able to erect separate dwellings for each family. This common house was also used for the storage of property that required protection. It is now proposed to indicate who were the first settlers in ancient Dartmouth, when they arrived, and the locality which they selected as their first abode. The grant made by Plymouth colony to the thirty-six original purchasers took place in March, 1652, and no settlement had then been formed. The situation at that date, in reference to the Indians, is important to consider. If a circle be described with the Fairhaven bridge as a center and a radius of about twenty miles in length, it would pass through all the nearest English settlements of that period. Where the Buzzards Bay canal joins one bay with the other was the village of Manomet. Northwest was Namasket, which is now the town of Middleboro; further west was Cohannet now known as Taunton, and still further in line of the circle was Rehoboth and other places on Narragansett Bay. None of these villages were strong enough to render any assistance to the settlers on the Acushnet River. An additional menace was the fact that within this circle was a line of Indian villages that would surround any settlement at Cushena. The shellfish at Sippican and the famous fishing grounds at Apponegansett attracted the Indians to these shores in the summer, while the lakes and forests at the north furnished all they required for winter homes. During the King Philip War, in Dartmouth alone, one hundred and sixty Indians surrendered to the English, and it plainly appeared that the Red Men constituted a desperate element of danger in that region. Under such circumstances the only safety for the English would be to flee to some stockade near the shore where they could remain until assistance arrived from Plymouth, or they could escape upon the sea. Appreciating these possible contingencies, the pioneers generally selected as the location of the residential center of sea coast towns, a place where there was a good spring, convenient fishing and where the land would provide food and shelter and a place in which they could locate their habitations, which could be defended against attack or which would furnish safety until they could escape to other communities. An ideal location would be a neck connected to the mainland by a narrow isthmus in order that the approach could easily be watched. Pucateest Neck in Tiverton, was an early settlement and contained in a high degree, all the necessary requirements. Sconticut Neck had no satisfactory fresh water supply nor land suitable for cultivation and was not selected. A legend has been printed that in 1652 one Ralph Russell came to Dartmouth and established an iron forge at Russell’s Mills.