Bristol County, Massachusetts - Chapter 20, 1883

Chapter 20

" To all Christian people to whom these presents shall come: - I, Philip, alias Metacum, Chief Sachem of Pokanoket, in the colony of New Plymouth, in New England, for and in consideration of one hundred and forty-three pounds in current pay, to my content, to me in hand paid before the sealing and delivery hereof by William Brenton, Esq., James Walker, William Harvey, Walter Deane, Richard Williams, ami John Richmond, all of the town of Taunton, in the colony aboresaid, wherewith I, the said Philip, alias Metacum, do acknowledge myself fully satisfied, contented, and paid, and thereof, and of every part and parcel thereof, do hereby exonorate, acquit, discharge, and release the said William Brenton, James Walker, William Harvey, Walter Beam', Richard Williams, and John Richmond, their heirs, executors, administrators, and assigns forever; have given, granted, bargained, sold, enfeoffed, aliened, and confirmed, and do by these presents fully, freely, and absolutely give, grant, bargain, sell, enfeoff, alien, make over, and confirm unto the said grantees, to them and their associates, and to their and every of their heirs, executioners, administrators, and assigns forever a certain tract of land situate, lying, and being southwardly from the town of Taunton aforesaid, containing three English miles one way and four English miles the other way, beginning at the Three-Mile River (so called), alias Nomesticomok, and is from the said river to range three miles south and by west, and from the extent of the three miles to range four miles west and by north from the Great River (so called) into the woods, and from the extent of that four miles to range north and by east until it meet with the ancient hounds of Taunton aforesaid, and bounded eastwardly with the aforesaid Great River, with all timber and wood, meadow, creeks, coves, springs, ponds, mines, minerals, and all and singula]- the privileges, easements, commodities, appurtenances, and immunities of what kind soever thereunto belonging or in any way appertaining, and, in particular, the privilege of the said Great River for the navigation of any sort of vessels, bigger or lesser, and all other the privileges thereof.

" To have and to hold the said tract of land and all and every the privileges and appurtenances as is before expressed, and all the right, title, and interest which he, the said Philip, alias Metacum, now bath, or can or may hereafter have, either by himself or his heirs, executors, administrators, assigns, or successors unto them, the said grantees, and their associates, and to their and any of their heirs, executors, administrators, and assigns, and unto the proper use and behoof of them forever, to lie holden according to the tenor of East Greenwich, in His Majesty's county of Kent, in free socage, and not in capita, nor by knight's service ; and the said Philip doth for himself, his heirs, executors, administrators, successors, and assigns hereby utterly disclaim and renounce all former right, title, interest, or demand in or unto the said tract or any part or parcel thereof, or to anything thereunto belonging, and doth, by these presents, acknowledge the above bargained premises to be the true and proper estate of the said grantees and their associates, their heirs, executors, administrators, and assigns; and the said Philip, alias Metac.im, doth further for himself, his heirs, executors, administrators, successors, and assigns promise and engage with and unto the said grantees and their associates and to their and every of their heirs, executors, administrators, and assigns that lie, the said Philip, alias Metacum, is the true, sole, and proper owner of the said tract of land and of every part thereof, and of all and every of the easements, privileges, and commodities thereunto belonging, immediately before the sealing and delivery hereof, and hath in himself good right and lawful authority to alienate and sell the same, and that the said land, with the privileges and appurtenances aforesaid, is fair and clear, and fairly and clearly acquitted and discharged from all former gifts, grants, bargains, sales, forfeitures, attachments, judgments, executions, mortgages, and incumbrances whatsoever, from the beginning of the world to this day, and the said bargained premises to warrant and defend from or against any person or persons claiming, or that shall or may hereafter claim, any right, title, or interest in or unto the same, or any part or parcel thereof, from, by, or under him, the said Philip, alias Metacum, or his heirs, executors, administrators, successors, or assignees, whereby the grantees and their associates, or either of them, or either of their heirs, executors, administrators, and assigns shall or may be ejected or evicted out of the same, or any part thereof, or molested in the quiet and peaceable possession and enjoyment thereof; and further, the said Philip, alias Metacum, doth for himself, his heirs, executors, administrators, successors, and assigns covenant and promise to, and with the said grantees and their associates and their and every of their heirs, executors, administrators, and assigns that be, the said Philip, alias Metacum, upon reasonable and lawful demand shall and will do and perform, or cause to be done and performed, any and all such further act or acts, whether by acknowledging this deed of sale or any other kind whatsoever that shall or may be for the more fully completing and confirming the aforebargained premises unto the said grantees and their associates and to their and every of their heirs, executors, administrators, and assigns according to the true intent hereof and the colony aforesaid.

" In witness whereof, I, the said Philip, alias Metacum, to these presents have put my hand and seal, the twenty-eighth day of September, anno domini one thousand six hundred and seventy-two, and in the twenty-fourth year of our Sovereign, Charles the Second, King of Great Britain, France, and Ireland.

"This deed is recorded according to order of Nathaniel Morton, secretary to the court for the jurisdiction of New Plymouth, for the great book of records, enrolled folio 227."

The deed of the other strip of land, one mile wide and four miles in length from east to west, lying below and adjoining the first tract, was signed by Philip, Oct. 1, 1672. The consideration was forty-seven pounds, and the land was conveyed to Constant Southworth, treasurer of Plymouth Colony, who immediately transferred all his right to the committee of the associates already mentioned. It will be noticed that the British monarchs still kept up their unfounded claim to dominion over France. Charles II. is designated in the deed king of Great Britain, France, and Ireland, about as preposterous a claim as it would be for Queen Victoria to style herself queen of Great Britain, the United States, and Ireland.

The old record-book of the proprietors of the South Purchase, from which these documents are copied, is an ancient-looking affair, bound in untanned hogskin, and having leather strings to tie the covers together. Some of the writing in it is very clear and legible, and some is written in a cramped hand, difficult to decipher. The ink used was excellent in quality, and is as black as jet after the lapse of more than two hundred years. The making of good black ink appears to be a lost art.

" The Committee's Declaration of, or deed, to their Associates. - This present writing declareth to all to whom it may concern, that whereas, the honoured Court of Plymouth, in New England, granted to James Walker, Senior, and John Richmond, of Taunton, in the colony of Plymouth aforesaid, in order to purchase a tract of land of the Indians for the free inhabitants of the Township of Taunton aforesaid, as by the records of the said Court it may more fully appear, the above said tract of land is lying and being on the west side of Taunton Great River, so-called, and for the better managing of the said purchase, the free inhabitants of Taunton aforesaid James Walker and John Richmond, William Brenton, Esquire, Lieut. George Macey, Richard Williams, Walter Deane, and William Harvey, all of them inhabitants of Taunton aforesaid, as a committee to act for and in the behalf of the free inhabitants of Taunton aforesaid, that whatsoever this above-named committee or the major part of them should do in or respecting the premises, should stand firm and good as by the records of the town may at large appear, the abovenamed committee obtaining deeds for the above-said tract of land, under the hands and seals of the right proprietors thereof to be to the abovesaid committee and their associates, and to their heirs, executors, and assigns, the said committee declaring under their hands who might be their full associates in all respects whatsoever, in the said tracts of land named in the said deeds from Philip Sachem, alias Metacum, and Mr. Constant Southworth, treasurer for the Colony aforesaid, dated the 28th day of September, 1672, and the other deed the 1st day of October in the year 1672, upon conditions inserted in the records of the said town, bearing date the 6th of December, 1672, as by the records of the said town may appear. Now, we, the abovesaid Committee do by these presents declare that those men whose names are underwritten, and none but those are fully associated, and as fully, completely, and firmly interested and entitled in the above said tract of laud, specified in the above-named deeds, as this above-named Committee whose names are inserted in the said deeds, and as equally interested as it is already laid out by lott, and in that part of the abovesaid lands which shall be hereafter divided by lott, firm, and free to them and to their heirs, executors, and assigns forever, acknowledging these and none but these, have performed all conditions specified in the said declaration bearing date December the Gth, 1672, as aforesaid ; in confirmation hereof we, the major part of the above said Committee, have set our hands under the names of the associates this 18th day of March, 1683-84."

"This 30th of December, 1684, the Associates above named have by vote chosen John Richmond and John Hathaway to see this writing signed, sealed, and delivered before a magistrate, and also to see it recorded in the Court Roles at Plymouth.

" George M:icey, James Walker, Walter Deane, and John Richmond, being the major part of the Committee above mentioned, appeared the 20th of March, 1684, and acknowledged this instrument to be their act and deed, before

When the lots were surveyed seven roads were laid out, running westerly from the river two miles into the woods, and there was a town-lauding at the riverend of each road. Afterwards roads were laid out running north and south. The red-oak appears to have been a common tree on the banks of the river at that time, for several of the town-landings are indicated by lines running to or from red-oak trees. In one of the documents of that time the Segreganset River is called the Sequeteganet. Muddy Cove had the same name then as now, as did also Broad Cove.

The name of Walker has been a conspicuous one j in the annals of this town. In 1635 two brothers, James and William Walker, came to this country from England. James was born in 1619. He married Elizabeth Phillips, settled in Taunton, and was one of the proprietors of the South Purchase. They had five children who survived them, - James, Peter, Eleazer, Hester, and Deborah. James' second wife was Sarah Revv, widow of Edward Rew. She was the daughter of John Richmond, of Taunton. James Walker died Feb. 15, 1691, aged seventy-three. According to the history of the Walker family, written some years ago by Rev. J. B. R. Walker, of Holyoke, Mass., James was an extensive land-owner, and was also interested in an iron-works and a saw-mill. He was one of the six proprietors of Assonet Neck, was one of the selectmen of Taunton for eight years, and was a deputy to the Plymouth Court for sixteen years. He was evidently a man of sagacity and public spirit. His son James, born in 1676, died in 1718, married Bethsheba Brooks, of Rehoboth. They had six sons and five daughters. He lived at the weir in Taunton, and kept a public-house. In his will he left to his son David " two lower lots in Dighton, where he now dwells," and to his son Josiah three upper lots in Dighton.

Peter Walker, son of the first James, born in 1649, died in 1711, was an iron dealer and manufacturer, in company with James Philips. In his will the names of three sons and three daughters are mentioned. The inventory amounted to seven hundred and fiftyone pounds, including "homestead, with housing, orchard, with little island joining to Nicholas Stevens', his mill, with all the land belonging to the farm, being four hundred acres." According to the Walker historian, Peter's iron-works were on this island, which is formed by the division of Three-Mile River at North Dighton. Peter Walker lived in the first house north of the Three-Mile River on the road from Taunton to Dighton. It is now owned and occupied by Stephen Pierce, Esq. It was remodeled in the early part of this century.

Hester, daughter of the first James Walker, born in 1650, died in 1696, married Joseph Wood (afterwards Atwood), of Taunton. They were the ancestors of the Atwoods of Taunton and Dighton. Their children were Joseph, born in 1681, died Sept. 26, 1724, married Mary Read, and was a representative in the General Court from Dighton in 1729 (his daughter Hannah married Thomas Rose, of Dighton), John and Ephraim. Ephraim Atwood, son of Joseph, married Ruth, daughter of Col. Sylvester Richmond, and he represented Dighton in the General Court in 1718. He was town clerk for several years, as was his father Joseph before him. Ephraim and Ruth's children were Silvester, born in 1725 ; Ruth, born in 1727 ; Ephraim, born in 1737, and Joanna, born after her father's death.

Deborah Walker, daughter of the first James, of Taunton, married George Gooding. He settled in the South Purchase in 1678, being one of the earliest settlers.

ried Sarah, daughter of John Richmond, of Taunton. He lived west of Three-Mile River, in Dighton. His will gives the names of four sons and one daughter. James Walker's third son, Nathan, born in 1677, died in 1747, lived in Dighton. He married Abigail Richmond, of Taunton, and they had six children.

James Walker, the third of that name, had a son David, who died in 1765. He was twice married, and he lived on the farm that was south of the one now owned by the heirs of Charles W. Green. It formerly belonged to Seth Austin. David was a member of the Legislature in 1721 and again in 1745. He was one of the selectmen in 1732, and he held a captain's commission in the militia. He had nine children.

The third James Walker's son, Josiah, died in 1749. He married Mary, daughter of George and Deborah Gooding. His father left him three upper lots in Dighton. He had four children.

Peter Walker, son of the first James, had a son, born in 1692 and died in 1752. He married Mercy Richmond. He resided in Taunton, and had no children. In his will he gave " to my kinsman, Elisha Walker, son of my brother James, deceased, and to Eleazer Walker, grandson of my brother Peter, all the lands in Dighton, excepting twenty acres given to Josiah Richmond, and if either Elisha or Eleazer die without issue, then to Nathan Walker, son of Nathan, and if he die without issue, then to the next of my kin, and not to go out of the Walkers for all generations." His homestead was near the burialplace which he gave for the use of his kindred, and which contains the oldest inscription in Taunton.

Among the prominent individuals bearing the name of Walker in this town was Dr. George Walker, son of Col. Elnathau by his third wife. He was born Sept. 7, 1761, and died Oct. 13, 1844. He married Thankful Burt, daughter of David. She died in 1837, aged seventy-two years. George- Walker was about fourteen when his father died, and he then removed to Middleborough with his mother. When the Revolutionary war broke out he was drafted into the army. He was in Capt. Edward Blake's company, and served in Rhode Island. After the war he studied medicine, bought the homestead of his father, and removed there in 1792. He practiced medicine in Dighton for nearly fifty years, and frequently served the town as selectman and assessor. He was also a representative to the General Court for several years. He was pensioned for his service in the war. He held a justice's commission for nearly forty years. He was considered a very skillful physician and an estimable man. His son George was also prominent in Dighton and Taunton affairs. He was a land surveyor, and represented Taunton in the General Court for several years.

Another prominent man in town ati'airs was Nehemiah Walker, son of Elijah, born in 1769, died May 7, 1856, aged eighty-seven. He married, in 1796, Elizabeth Frances, who died in 1847, in her seventyfirst year. Nehemiah resided in the northwest part of the town, was a farmer, and was selectman for several years, and represented the town in the Legislature eight years. He exerted a large influence in town affairs. He had eight children.

The foregoing are only a few names culled from the many Walkers who have resided in this town. " The name Walker," says Lower in his " Surnames," "signified either (Anglo-Saxon, wealcere) a fuller or an officer whose duty consisted in walking over or inspecting a certain space of forest ground. In the north of England a fulling-mill is still called a walkmill." There was another forest officer, a " ryder," who superintended the walkers. He was mounted, and his supervision extended over a large district.

The following correspondence from the American Silk Journal, published in New York, one of the editors of which, Mr. Byron Rose, is a native of Dighton, will need no explanation :

" Dear Sir, - The proposed dress for Mrs. Garfield is by no means tho first of entirely American growth and manufacture, those Philadelphia ladies to the contrary notwithstanding. One hundred and fifty years ago we made must of our cloth of wool and flax, and in Connecticut a considerable amount of silk. From the years 1800 to 1812, my mother lived in Mansfield, Conn., where she was employed in raising silkworms, reeling the silk, 'dyeing the same, etc. At that time only sewing-silk was made from the smooth threads, as reeled from the cocoons, the great ends and floss, or tow, as some called it, was made into cloth, stocking-yarn, etc. The rough silk amounted to about one-third of the whole. Iu 1812 my father and mother were married and settled in Bristol, R. I. Finding mulberry-trees there, she, in 1813, sent to Connecticut and obtained silk-worm eggs, and made from the cocoons raised from them the first silk ever made in the State of Rhode Island. In 1826 my parents moved to Dighton, and in my personal remembrance, from 1830 for many years, silk made by my family, who raised the mulberry-trees, silk-worms, cocoons, and all, was a common thing

" It is safe to say that of the tons of silk that were grown in this country, nearly one-third was made into homespun cloth. My mother made silk for herself from 1813 to 1857, a period of forty-four years. I myself have had pantaloons and vests made from silk we grew, but, though I 'did walk in silk attire,' I derived, so far as I can remember, but little pleasure therefrom, for the voracity of the worms compelled me, as a boy, in all sorts of weather to gather leaves for them to eat.

" Dear Sir, - Mrs. Rescome Hart took the first silk-worms to Dighton, planted the mulberry-trees upon which they fed, and raised the cocoons. From the worms which Mrs. Hart gave my grandmother (Mrs. Silas Talbot), who was also a resident of Dighton, were raised the cocoons from which she carded, spun, and wove, then had colored and watered, the dress of which you have been informed, and a piece of which I enclose herewith. It was made from the tow of the silk. Mrs. Hart and Mrs. Talbot also made a large amount of very nice sewing-silk. My grandmother's dress must have been made between forty and fifty years ago, and the assertion that the proposed dress for Mrs. Garfield is the first American silk dress, in both culture and manufacture, is certainly open

As Dighton initiated the culture and manufacture of silk in this State, it would seem a very appropriate place in which to carry on its manufacture, at least, on a large scale, and in which to build up a thriving village devoted to the business, like that of South Manchester, in Connecticut. Land is cheap here, there are good facilities for reaching the markets, and

Dighton in the "War of the Rebellion. - With scarcely an exception the people of this town were intensely loyal to the Union cause during the war of the Rebellion, and responded promptly to the several calls of the government for men. The following men were in 1861 and 1862 mustered into the Seventh Regiment, Col. Couch commanding, most of them for three years: Daniel D. Andrews, Henry C. Talbot. Elhanan Ingalls, James E. Rawson, Augustus F. Gammons, Frank Rose, Gustavus Fisher, Frederick Wink, Frank Wink, Daniel Edson, Jr. (quartermaster), George R. Ingalls, George T. McLane, Leonard Hathaway, Benjamin F. Williams (corporal), William Martin, John W. Pitts, James L. Gay, William E. Walker, George Perry, George T. Briggs, William O. Brown, George R. Trafton, Henry H. Jones, Isaac Hathaway, Henry E. Reed, William Hathaway, James H. Luther.

The bounty paid at that time was fifteen dollars. Five of the above-named men deserted, viz., Henry C. Talbot, Elhanan Ingalls (afterwards re-enlisted in New York; was wounded and discharged), Frank Rose, Frederick Wink, and Frank Wink. Of the others, Augustus F. Gammons was discharged and re-enlisted in 1864 in the Veteran Reserve Corps ; Leonard Hathaway was promoted to first lieutenant ; John H. Pitts re-enlisted in 1864 ; James L. Gay died Aug. 29, 1862. William E. Walker re-enlisted in 1864, was taken prisoner in front of Richmond, and after six months' imprisonment was discharged ; George T. Briggs re-enlisted in 1864 ; Henry H. Jones died ; Isaac Hathaway and Henry E. Reed re-enlisted in 1864 in the Veteran Reserve Corps, United States Army ; the bounty of those that enlisted in this corps was four hundred and fifty dollars.

The following-named mea enlisted for three years in the Eleventh Rhode Island Regiment : Oliver Jones, Orlando Fales, Phineas M. Pratt, and Dennis Flatry.

Charles T. Jones enlisted in the Forty-third Massachusetts ; was taken prisoner and imprisoned for six months at Andersonville ; he escaped in November, 1864.

The following enlisted in Rhode Island regiments : John Garroll, Third Rhode Island ; Nathaniel Brown (promoted to colonel, and died at Port Royal) ; Frederick L. Brown, son of Col. Brown, enlisted in the Third Rhode Island ; William Pratt and George H. Stratton, in the Third Rhode Island ; John O. Marvel, in the Fifteenth Connecticut ; Ebenezer L. Briggs, in the First Rhode Island ; Edward P. Lincoln and Calvin M. Perkins, in the Thirty-third Massachusetts ; Benjamin P. Jones, in the Fortieth Massachusetts

(was mustered in Sept. 3, 1862; he died of fever in the hospital at Bermuda Hundred, Va., Jan. 9, 1865) ; Benjamin P. Jones, Jr., John G. Walker (died in the service), Joseph Spencer, Thomas A. Briggs, Edward B. Marvel, Albert Dunlap, Martin F. Kinney, Henry R. Briggs, Horace N. White, E. Bradford Gay, Edward E. Wade (killed in battle May 20, 1864), Samuel B. Westcoat, Hodijah Baylies, James L. Spooner, Daniel Fish, and John A. Briggs, all enlisted in the Fortieth Massachusetts (bounty, three hundred and twenty-five dollars) ; Joseph H. Chace and Frederick W. Shaw, in the Seventh Massachusetts, June 11, 1861 ; Robert Crossman, Herbert A. Chace (discharged March 27, 1863), Nathan O. Walker, Edwin Haskins, George A. Walker, Josiah L. Horton, Oliver H. Briggs, Henry N. GofF, L. C. Smith, Adam Wink, Albert S. Pratt, John Williams, Baylies R. Chace, Sylvanus D. Jones, Alvin C. Lincoln, Henry A. Williams, Samuel Hardy, Henry M. Westcoat, William H. Belden, Nathaniel M. Babbitt, James O. Reed, Stephen N. Smith, Charles H. Talbot, Charles H. Briggs, Edwin Chace, and James M. Evans were mustered into the Ninth Massachusetts Sept. 23, 1863 (bounty, two hundred dollars) ; Henry F. Root, Arthur A. Hathaway, Andrew C. Pratt, George L. Walker, George S. Whitmarsh (died at Readville), Oliver Jones, Truman S. Gay, and Oliver H. Briggs were mustered into the Fifty-eighth Massachusetts Regiment in 1864.

The following-named men served in the navy : George W. Cobb (2), Benjamin Cobb, Jr., Thomas A. Spencer, Joseph W. Spencer, Josiah T. Horton, John Walmsley, Henry B. Jones, George E. Pierce, and William T. Blake.

According to the records there were ninety-five men who served in the army from Dighton, and nine in the navy, or a total of one hundred and four. The large debt contracted by the town for war purposes has been entirely paid off, but no memorial has yet been erected to the memory of those who died in the service of the government.

The following article from the New York Times of Dec. 15, 1853, concerning a native and former resident of Dighton, explains itself. It was received too late to be inserted in the body of this sketch, and is therefore placed in the appendix. A sister of Capt. Pendleton is still living in this town :

"A Hero Who has Gone - The Bravery and Humanity which made Capt. Charles B. Pendleton known. - The recent death of Capt. Charles B. Pendleton, who died at his residence in Brooklyn on Christmas, and was buried at Cypress Hills on Wednesday, recalls to the minds of all old New Yorkers the loss of the steamship 'San Francisco' in 1853, one of the most terrible ocean calamities on record in this country, by which over two hundred and fifty lives were lost. Capt. Pendleton was a native of Massachusetts, having been born in Dighton, April 24, 1816. He went to sea when a lad, and gradually, by perseverance, energy, and untiring labor, worked his way up from the position of ' monkey,' as the boys on sailing vessels were called in those days, to that of master of the packet-ship ' Lucy Thompson,' which was so long and favorably known in the trade between this city and Liverpool. Capt. Pendleton commanded this ship for fourteen years, until 1862, when he abandoned the sea and entered into business as a partner in the firm of John W.

Mason & Co., importers and commission merchants, at No. 43 Broadway. In this business Capt. Pendleton continued to the day of hi> death. He leaves a widow and three daughters.

"It was while in command of the 'Lucy Thompson,' in 1853, that public attention was first called to ('apt. Pendleton by his rescue of some of the passengers of the ill-fated 'San Francisco,' and especially by his manner of extending his aid. The 'San Francisco' was a new steamship, owned by Mr. Aspinwall, and built especially for the California trade. She was of two thousand five hundred tons burthen, and was regarded as one of the finest steamers that ever sailed from this port. She started on her first voyage from New York Dec. 21, 185:5, having on board about six hundred souls, including officers and crew. Among the passengers were eight companies of the Thirtieth Regiment United States Artillery, comprising about five hundred men, bound for California, under command of Col. William Gates, and a number of ladies and children composing the families of the officers of the regiment. The ' San Francisco' sailed with fine weather and good prospects for an excellent voyage, but on December 27th, when only three days out of port, a terrific gale was encountered, and the new steamship proved to he totally unmanageable in the heavy seas. On the first day of the storm her masts went by the board, and one hundred men were swept overboard and lost by one powerful sea. For five days she labored in the rolling waves, threatening at every moment to founder, and each day a number of unfortunates were swept into the sea and drowned. To add to the horrors of the situation the sailors began to drink heavily, plundering the stores of the purser, and all discipline was at an end on the steamship. The cholera also broke out on the dismantled vessel, and scores were prostrated by this scourge, so that there seemed to be only one choice for all, - death bydrowningor destruction by the fell disease. On December 20th, however, the bark ' Kilbey;' Capt. Lowe, was spoken, and she took off upward of a hundred of the passengers. Two days later the' Three Bells,' Capt. Creighton, who died a short time ago, rescued another lot, and on Jan. 2, 1854, the 'Antarctic,' Capt. Stouffer, took the remainder of the passengers from the sinking ship, which soon after sank beneath the waves.

" The ' Kilbey," when she took the passengers from the ' San Francisco,' was herself in distress. She had been out forty-eight days, was short of provisions, and had only one cask of water to serve out to her own crew and the strangers. Capt. Murray, however, thought it probable that he would meet some vessel soon which would relieve him of his charge, and he refused to leave the men to die on the 'San Francisco.' For fifteen days the 'Kilbey' sped along, meeting no ship and encountering heavy gales, which split her sails and almost dismantled her, while her provisions had been reduced to such a low ebb that for nearly ten days a handful of parched corn was all that could be allowed to each person on board. Hope of deliverance had well-nigh fled, when, on January loth, the 'Lucy Thompson,' Capt. Pendleton, was sighted, and, in answer to the signal of distress shown by the ' Kilbey,' lay to, although a terrific gale was blowing and the sea ran dangerously high. Capt. Pendleton sent a boat to the 'Kilbey,' and on ascertaining the condition of things on i the vessel offered to take on the ' Lucy Thompson' one hundred of the passengers of the 'San Francisco,' and to furnish provisions to the ' Kilbey.' It was a matter of great difficulty and danger to transfer the passengers with the heavy sea running, but the work was safely done, and tin- two vessels proceeded on their way, the 'Kilbey' to Boston, and the ' Lucy Thompson' to this port. Col. Gates, as soon as he boarded the 1 Lucy Thompson,' sent his quartermaster to Capt. Pendleton to assure him that he should be paid well for his rescue of the United States offind Boldiers. To this the captain replied that he had done only his duty, and he could not think of taking money for saving human life. Capt. Pendleton continued to hold this noble view of his duty to the day of his death, refusing to put in any claim for payment against the government, although be was frequently urged to do so by his friends, and although his officers and men all filed claims and were duly paid for their - The 'Lucy Thompson' arrived here with the rescued igera Jan. 15, 1854, and Capt. Pendleton, with the other captains of the vessels who had taken the people from the 'San Francisco,' were the and dollars for a testimonial to be given to the captains, and at a public dinner Capt. Pendleton was presented with a handsome service of plate, valued at two thousand dollars. This was inscribed, ' Presented by the merchants and citizens of New York to Capt. C. B. Pendleton, of the ship " Lucy Thompson," as a testimonial of the appreciation of his humane and g illant efforts in assisting to save the passengers and crew of the steamship " San Francisco" after the terrific gale of the 24th December, 1853.' The citizens of Boston also sent to Capt. Pendleton a handsome silver pitcher, and from Philadelphia came a purse of two hundred and fifty dollars. This money he invested in a picture descriptive of the rescue of the passengers, painted by Walters, the Liverpool artist Iu after-years the house of ('apt. Pendleton was often the scene of reunions of the rescued passengers of the 'San Francisco.'"

Selectmen Of Dighton

In the preparation of these pages the sources from which information has been obtained have been so various, and the individuals to whom the writer is under obligations so numerous, that only a few of them can be mentioned here, and he can only extend to the great majority, collectively, his sincere thanks. Among those not already mentioned to whom he is indebted are Hon. Henry Williams, of Taunton; Gen. E. W. Pierce, of Freetown ; C. A. Reed, Esq., of Taunton ; and H. W. Hart and G. E. Gooding, Esqs., of North Dighton. Mr. W. R. Taylor, of Bristol, R. I. ; Rev. L. Kinney (historical sketch of Baptist Church) ; and also the pastors and clerks of several of the religious societies for the loan of records.