Dukes County, Massachusetts - The whole text, 1911 (part 13 of 15)

The succeeding decade, 1 859-1 869, is merely a continued story of the marvellous growth and enduring features of this famous camp ground. The attraction of this beautiful oak grove had left its impress on the memory of all who had ever visited it, and as their number yearly increased the loveliness of the location and the possibilities of the island as a summer home became more generally known to thousands of people from all parts of New England. The original religious purpose of the meeting gradually found a strong competitor in the desire and custom of many of the campers to make a prolonged stay before and after the meeting for social and personal enjoyment. The grove, which seemed a hallowed fane to many, soon began

'This committee consisted of Preston Bennett of Providence, Henry Tobey of Falmouth, Isaiah D. Pease of Edgartown and five clergymen, including the Presiding Elder of the district. This meeting still remained distinctively a Methodist affair.

^In 1855 the officers had begun negotiations looking to the purchase of the camp ground, but "such were the terms named by the proprietors that the committee recommended not to purchase." As aptly said in another place, it was "an institution," the like of which was not in all New England.

to ring with the laughter of happy children and resound to the shouts of exuberant youth spending their vacation days here. Permanent cottages began to be built about 1859, the first one of which was erected by Perez Mason of Fall River in that year. From that time on these buildings increased with each recurring meeting, and the grove began to take on the semblance of a settlement in the wilderness. About 1865 the noble oaks which had afforded shade for the campers began to succumb to the effect of this kind of occupancy of the soil from whence they derived nourishment, and one by one they slowly died. The crowds became enormous as the years passed, reaching twenty thousand on Sundays, and much injury was inflicted on the trees under those conditions. A number were cut down in a decayed condition at the amphitheatre, and the seats beneath were shaded by an awning of sail cloth containing over three thousand yards of canvas. In the outskirts of the camp ground boarding houses and restaurants sprang up like weeds, while now and then peddlers, hawkers and street fakirs would attempt to ply their trade from tents or booths erected outside the lines of the sacred territory. As time went on the original character of the meeting was lost in the hurly burly of such thronging thousands, most of whom came for a "day off" and were prepared to have it in one way or another. The days of prayer and meditation had passed away and the season of elaboration and bustle had superseded. Nor was this the only change in the character of the "institution." Heretofore it had been exclusively a Methodistic concern, but one by one preachers of other orthodox denominations would be heard frorii the pulpit. The first of these "jvas a Presbyterian clergyman in 1858, but the principal faith of these outsiders was Baptist, of whom we shall hear more in later years.

This situation had its logical sequence. The demand for land for building purposes followed, and the organization of promoters of real estate interests came as a necessity. The - first of these companies was composed of the leaders of these meetings, the "Martha's Vineyard Methodist Camp Meeting Association," so called, which received its charter from the Massachusetts legislature in i860. The incorporators were twenty-four in number: Jeremiah Pease, Henry Bradley,

Willet, James D. Butler, H. S. White, and William B. Lawton. The property which they controlled was that known as the "Camp Ground" south of Squash Meadow pond, bounded easterly by Circuit avenue and westerly by a line drawn southerly through Sunset lake.

In 1866 a number of gentlemen, with the intent of making a summer home for their families and developing the place as a resort, purchased the territory lying between the land of the Martha's Vineyard Camp Meeting Association and the sea. These persons became incorporated in 1868 under the name of the "Oak Bluffs Land and Wharf Co." Their grounds were laid out in lots and avenues, reserving many acres for public parks. Restrictions as to the sale and use of these lots protected the residents from disreputable surroundings. This property began at the present harbor jetty, thence along the beach to a point opposite the head of Farm pond; thence crossing the head of Farm pond to Sea View avenue, and along this thoroughfare to the first named point.

In 1868 the Martha's Vineyard Camp Meeting Association, finding itself precluded from the extension of its grounds in an easterly direction, and feeling the necessity of securing room for future growth before it should be surrounded by private corporations, over which it could exercise no control, purchased a tract across the pond. There was considerable opposition to this as a financial speculation and a prospective burden for the association, and after consideration this tract w^as transferred to private parties who had consented to assume the purchase. These gentlemen having been joined by several laymen and clergymen of the Methodist church, perfected an organization called "The Vineyard Grove Company" and in 1870 it was incorporated. Capt. William H. Phillips of Ta^unton w^as its first president, and Rev. J. D. King the agent. Additional land was purchased until more than two hundred acres were held by it from the pond to the lighthouse on East Chop, and all east of Kedron avenue. Roads, parks, circles, drives and plank walks were laid out and a wharf constructed for the convenience of landing by large steamboats or smaller craft. It was adopted by the Camp fleeting Association as its official landing. A hotel was soon erected and this section of the town began to grow rapidly. The board walk skirting the pond, 3,500 feet in length, fifteen feet wide, containing nearly 200,000 feet of plank, was lined each summer with booths and ''bazaars" and became for a while the central promenade for the throngs of visitors every afternoon and evening.

Various other tracts to the northwest of this property were exploited in the following years: Belle view Heights and Sunset Heights and bordering on the Lagoon came Bay View and Lagoon Heights. Other sections felt the stimulating effect of this feverish growth, and plots of land called by the fanciful names of Green Meadow, Forest Hill, Oak Grove, Harbor Heights, Prospect Heights, Sea View Hill, Grove Dale and Ocean View found ready purchasers at equally fancy prices. Up to 1872 the "boom" was continuous and genuine, and upwards of a million dollars must have been expended in improvements made by the various companies and promoters. The panic of 1872-3, however, put a stop to this excitement, and property values fell and real estate languished. In time this condition righted itself and since then the growth has been steady and normal.

Almost on identical dates with the formation of the Methodist Society here the local Baptists organized the Oak Bluffs' Baptist Church, April 13, 1877, at a meeting held in the Worth Building (so called) on Circuit avenue. Irregular meetings had been held in this place for a number of months previous to this date under the spiritual guidance of Rev. George F. Lewis of the Vineyard Haven society. Fourteen members presented letters of recommendation from various churches and became the founders of this society, viz: Zebina E. Berry and wife, Worcester, Mass.; Samuel N. Davis and wife, Rhoda N. Linton and Electa Wadsworth, Vineyard Haven; Job H. Gorham, North Tisbury; Tristram Cleveland and wife, Lucy P. Smith and Thomas H. Norton, Edgartown; and Mrs. Henry T. Luce from a defunct church. Zebina Berry was chosen deacon, and Job H. Gorham, clerk of the new society. Ten additional persons were baptized on the first Sunday following, and the society has been in a prosperous condition ever since, a period of thirty-three years. Services were held in various places during the early days, houses, halls, etc., until July of the following year (1878), when the present house of worship, situated on the corner of Pequot avenue and Grove street, was completed at a cost of about $3,000, exclusive of labor donated by the members. It was dedicated the following month during the sessions of the Baptist camp meeting that year, and through the efforts of the Camp Meeting Association and the summer residents the balance of the debt on the structure was cancelled and the church was made free of incumbrance prior to its consecration. This support has been continued annually in the same generous way to meet the current expenses. Mr. C. B. Erwin, of New Britain, donated the bell, and later, by will, left a legacy to the society to enable it to maintain services. Six deacons have served since the establishment of the organization: Tristram Cleveland, Samuel N. Davis, Shubael L. Norton, Alonzo Pike, William H. Davis and Job H. Gorham.

Since the formation of the society 151 persons have been enrolled, of whom 41 have died, 29 transferred, and 13 dropped, leaving 68 as the present membership. In 1905 the church building was enlarged and improved at a cost of over $1,000. The present deacon, and clerk (Lucy P. Smith) are the only survivors of the constituent membership gathered in 1877 under the ministrations of Rev. Mr. Lewis. The succession in the pastorate has been as follows: Geo. F, Reid, of Edgartown, supply, 1879-80; Jesse Coker, of Vineyard Haven, supply, 1880-1; Thomas W. Crudgintor, 1882-4; O. W. Kimball, 1884-9; Alfred Fairbrother, 1889-91; J. E. Dinsmore, 1892; E. D. Mason, 1892-4; George W. Fuller, 1895-7; Ernest W. Dow, 1897-9; F. F. Thayer, 1899-1900; George W. Fuller, 1900-02; S. A. Dyke, 1902-07; George F.Newhall, 1908 (present incumbent).

The local society of this denomination is the outgrowth of the general camp-meeting spirit in which the Methodists have been such a prominent factor. On April 15, 1877, the Rev. J. D. King organized a "class" with about forty members at a meeting held at the residence of Capt. Joseph Dias. This w^as the beginning of the present society, but as there was no meeting-house available for them, Sunday and other weekly services were held in a small public hall over the offices of the

Cottage City Star. On June 3, 1877, the members entered into a formal organization, and the Rev. G. M. Hamlen was appointed first pastor and held the office for three years. It was a period of activity and enthusiasm, and during his pastorate Trinity M. E. church was erected at a cost of about $10,000, located on Trinity circle. Since that date Grace chapel, adjoining the church, and a parsonage have been added to the facilities for denominational work. The society numbers 73 members at the present time. The succession in the pastorate has been as follows

The Rojian Catholic Church

Between the years 1872 and 1880 a large number of the Catholic denomination were found in this vicinity during the summer months without any chance of attending service. A few of these persons, seeing the need, and desiring to keep in touch with their church, took steps which led to services being held from time to time at a private residence. Among this number was a Mr. Henry Magetts, a poor man, who lived as a butler in the family of a lady who spent her summers here. Mr. Magetts, seeing the need of a suitable place of worship, decided to purchase a lot of land and give it for the benefit of the Catholics of Martha's Vineyard, and the lot now occupied by the little Church of the Sacred Heart was purchased.

At that time the Rev. Fr. McMahon was the parish priest of St. Lawrence Church, New Bedford. It was to him, it is understood, that Henry Magetts gave the deed of land, as well as a sum of money to begin the building of the church. When Fr. McMahon was made bishop of Hartford he was succeeded by the Rev. H. J. Smith, the present pastor of that church, in whose parish this Vineyard mission belongs.

1896 mass was said here only during the two months, July and August. During the time of Fr. Smith's charge, the interior was plastered, the building was clapboarded, a new gallery erected and a new platform- for the altar, as well as carpets and dressing table, were supplied. In 1896 the church came under the direction of the Rev. Fr. Neares of St. John the Baptist parish, and his assistants.

Fr. Martins, one of the assistants, did much to beautify the church. During his administration a tower was erected and a fine bell placed there. Mr. John Murphy of Roxbury at this time presented the church with the stations of the cross, a set of white vestments and an altar lamp, Miss Dolan of New York giving the statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Fr. Neares had built a new altar and put in new pews and a furnace.

It has been customary in the winter to have mass on the third Sunday of each month, and the children have attended a Sunday school under the superintendency of Miss Maria J. Golding and her assistants. Mass is now said each Sunday, which is attended by the church members from all parts of the island. The resident pastor now (1906) is the Rev. Patrick E. INIcGee, a native of New Bedford and a graduate of Holy Cross, Worcester, and of the American College at Rome. He assumed charge of this parish mission in February, 1903.

In 1882 the leading spirits in the Summer Colony, desirous of maintaining religious services under the ritual of the Protestant Episcopal church, organized a society for this purpose and adopted the name of Trinity Episcopal Church. While it was nominally of this sect, yet it had no official relations with the Massachusetts diocese, to which it should belong, and it is, to all intents and purposes, an independent society using the name of Episcopal because the services conform to the ritual of that denomination and its pastoral supply is always taken from the ministry of that church. The Rev. Dr. J. W. Shackleford of New York City and attached to the diocese of New York was its first pastoral supply, and for many years returned to guide its summer services. It has never been anything beyond a vacation church for the summer visitors, and is open only about three months of each year. The liberahty of summer tourists and the non-resident members enables the management to provide attractive musical artists drafted from metropolitan choirs to render the vocal parts of the church ritual, and the singing has always been one of the features of this anomalous church, v^hich survives without any affiliation in the denomination to which it nominally belongs. At a meeting held Aug. 25, 1883, the building committee reported that it had completed its duty, and the church building was free from debt. The following named persons were then elected as trustees of the society to attend to its secular affairs: J. J. Crane, M. D., J. C. Carey, John M. Crane, all of New York; H. A. Tucker, M. D., Brooklyn, N. Y.; Col. Nicholas Van Slyck, Providence; Holder M. Brownell, New Bedford, and A. J. Burgess of Cottage City. The value of the church building and lot when ready for occupancy was about $5,000, and it has had considerable interior improvements since then. The last report of its communicants gave the number as twenty.

Union Chapel

Certain of the summer residents, not identified with either of the preceding denominations, organized the Oak Bluffs Christian Union Association, in 1880, for the purpose of providing religious services which should be undenominational in character. This body erected a meeting-house which they called Union Chapel, at a cost of about $6,000, and it was opened for service by the late Rev. S. F. Upham, D. D., who for many years after preached the first sermon annually at the beginning of the summer. The musical portion of the services has always been a distinguishing feature, the talent being drawn from the many celebrated singers who make this town their mecca during the vacation period.

The earliest reference to educational matters in this section is to be found in 1755, when Peter Norton, Henry Luce and Malatiah Davis were chosen a committee ''to determine where the school shall be keept in the farm neck."^ This was then a part of the school system of Edgartown, and these arrangements were made to accommodate the pupils of the

Sanchacantacket and Eastville districts. It is not known where the school-house was located, if one existed at that time, as it is doubtful if any were built so early. Owing to the scattered settlements of Farm neck it is probable that a "moving" school was kept in this section and held in private houses. In 1775 it was voted to hire two schoolmasters, and the town was divided into two districts, and school-houses for each were decided upon. Ichabod Wiswall (1704-82) was probably the first teacher in this district, called the North West and later Homes Hole district, and the usual "tradition" verifies this.^ The earliest school-house known was situated about thirty rods southeasterly from a dwelling house on the site where the residence of Isaac W. Norton now stands. In 1 771 such a school building existed in the "North West division" and provision was made for its repair and the hiring of a master.^ In 1776 the school committee for this division was Ebenezer Smith, Samuel Smith and Ebenezer Norton. At this date no settled policy in regard to the maintenance of schools in this section seems to have been adopted, and the records give but little information as to the actual conditions of its educational facilities. The money raised for schools varying from year to year was divided proportionately, and the

^The town voted, in 1782, to sell this school-house to the highest bidder, the proceeds to be applied "for the use of a school" (Edg. Rec, II, 8). district committees were empowered to spend it in buUding or hiring school-houses or teachers as each saw fit.^ In 1795 Shubael Davis, Ichabod Norton and Samuel Smith, 3rd, were the committeemen for the Homes Hole division. Small appropriations only were available prior to 1810, probably less than $100 annually for this section, and it need not be estimated how much could be done with this amount of money.

The rapid growth of the town, following the Camp Meeting period, necessitated the construction of school houses to accommodate the increasing population, A new building was provided for Eastville at a cost of $850, and another for the Highland section at a cost of $2,300. In 1880 these two schools housed seventy-five scholars, and at that time $700 was allotted for the expenses of maintaining same, two teachers being employed. The appropriations for schools for this district of Edgartown was one of the subjects for the annual wrangle of the taxpayers prior to division of the town - each side claiming that injustice was done in the allotments. The amounts expended in 1810, which we have seen to be about $100 per annum, are an example in contrast to the conditions existing now.

Settlement At Major'S Cove The Line Of Norton Magnates

The acquisition of land about this inlet of Sanchacantackett pond began with a purchase of some meadow by Nicholas Norton, at an unknown date, of Thomas Sissetom, one of the petty chiefs of that region.^ The transaction is not of record, and the deed is not now known to be in existence.* It was about the "Wading Place," probably in the vicinity

'In 1800 the entire appropriation for schools was but $300, to be divided among four districts. In 1802 it was but $200, and in 1S04 it was increased to $350. In 1816 only $150 was appropriated. In 1825 the money was divided by the number of scholars in each division. In 1832 the sum of $450 was appropriated for schools.

^Inhis will Norton bequeaths to son Joseph "a tract of land lying at Sanjacantacket joyning to the mill Creke which I bought of Mr. Sam," but the town records give Sissetom. Perhaps there were two purchases.

^Information of Medical Director, B. H. Kidder, U. S. N., who states that he had seen the deed, and that it was taken to Boone, Iowa, by this deceased brother, I. N. Kidder, and lost after his death, in 1878.

of Miober's bridge, and was held by him in the same way that many tracts of land were found to be in the posession of the whites, by a private purchase of the natives' "rights." This meadow was thus described in the records:

The abovesaid land v.-as Layd out at the head of the swamp near Mr Boults farm taking Beginning at a Oak marked by a fut path at the head of the swamp which Joyns to the wading place and runneth in its Southern Line By the said Path towards Wil Lays Plain about 73 Poles; and from said Tree westerly to an old stump on a hill near the old Path that goes to homes hole: which stump is distant from the said tree about 50 poles: and from said stump southwesterly seventy three Poles to a tree marked on the side of an hill; from thence crossing over at the fore said path to a marked tree about seventy poles. ^

On Jan. 28, 1684, he had "liberty granted to him to purchase a piece of land that lieth against his meadow at Sanchacantackett."^ This was the beginning of the long and extensive ownership of territory by this family in that section. On Sept. 20, 1686, Matthew Mayhew, as patentee sold one hundred acres at the "Wading Place," which took its first bound mark on the southeast, at Miober's bridge, and for over two centuries "Bolt's Farm" has been a local landmark in that vicinity. Boult sold it in 1 703 to Israel Daggett, and it finally came into the possession of Joseph Norton, and has ever since been a part of that ancient inheritance.^ It is probable that Nicholas Norton utilized the small brook which runs from a marsh into Sanchacantacket pond for a mill site, as the remains of a dam are still visible, and there are references to it in the early deeds of that region.* There is no evidence that he resided here, and it is probable that he never did. By his will, 1690, he gave "all my meadow at Sanjacantick" to his son Benjamin, upon certain conditions, which it is quite certain he fulfilled, as in 1726, this property was sold to James* Pease, who in turn disposed of it to Matthew Norton in 1731, and on the same day Matthew sold it to Ebenezer Norton.^

*This brook separates the farms of Henry Constant Norton and B. H. Kidder. There was a mill here, according to tradition, for grinding oak bark for tanning purposes; and as it is surmised that Nicholas Norton was a tanner, the tradition probably has some foundation.

1652, and it is supposed that he built his house here about 1700, perhaps when his son Joseph, Junior, on his marriage, succeeded to the father's house on the Mill path. The new house built by Joseph at Major's cove was about ninety rods northwest of Miober's bridge, and about eight rods northeast of the road, and a part of it was standing one hundred and fifty years later. He was the first of a long line of local magnates who ruled in this domain for two centuries. He was easily one of the most distinguished citizens of Edgartown during his lifetime. Although politically opposed to the ruling family, yet he surmounted these difficult conditions, and held the highest offices in the gift of the government. He was connected with the "Dutch Rebellion" in 1673, but in 1675 had been forgiven, and was made marshall, constable and water bailiff, of the General Court. He was chosen overseer (selectmen), 1682; county commissioner, 1684, 1686, 1695; proprietors' agent, 1687; and when the island came under the Massachusetts jurisdiction, he was recommended to Sir William Phipps, by Simon Athearn, as "being a man of Curag(e) & a good Estate," and the Governor appointed him marshall in 1692, on this recommendation. He was appointed justice of the King's Bench, 1695, ^^d was generally known thereafter as Justice Norton, in the records, although he held the place but a few years. He was again high sheriff in 1699, a position with which he is more particularly identified, one as dignified in those times as that of judge. A number of stories are told of his commanding influence over the Indians, who held him in great awe, on account of his majestic figure and his fearlessness. He lived to the ripe old age of 89 years and ten months, dying Jan. 30, 1742, leaving a large estate. Among the personal effects he bequeathed to his son Ebenezer was a "silver tankard," from which may have been sipped that seductive potion of choice rum which was served to the committee on the bounds of Sanchacantackett. This son succeeded him in the possession of the ancestral acres at Major's Cove.^

Ebenezer Norton, born about 1691, was the second to occupy this property, and built himself a house about half way between Miober's bridge and the homestead of his father, probably about 171 5, when he married, and during his oc-

*Dukes Probate, III, 139. This tankard descended to Peter, son of Ebenezer, who bequeathed it to his son Ebenezer (1741-1805), who went to Maine and it is probably an heirloom among his descendants (ibid., VII, 203).

cupancy of the place until his death, April ii, 1769, he added a part of Felix neck and some outlying land to the original estate. His life seemed to run in less public channels, and but little is found about him on the records. He was selectman, 1738; school committee, 1738, 1739, 1742, 1745, and was prominently identified with the affairs of the church during his lifetime. It is stated by descendants that he was a lieutenant of the militia. It is related that when on his dying bed he saw the winding sheet, which had been prepared for him in advance, bleaching on the lawn in view of his bedchamber. The family hogs were noticed by him rooting around this piece of fine linen, and he called out to the astonished family, "Drive those hogs away from my winding sheet! It will not be fit to bury the Devil in!" He had two sons, Eliakim, the elder, and Peter; and the legendary lore, which is thick about this family and its paternal acres, gives us the further tale of a disagreement which these two brothers had about a cosset lamb, and that Eliakim gathered up his personal belongings, and went to a "far country" settling at the North shore. The younger brother remained at home.^

Peter Norton, third of the line, was born Sept. 9, 1718, and renewed in his person the martial spirit of his grandfather, Joseph. His house, probably erected about 1740 when he married, was situated a few rods west of that built by his grandfather, and from it could be seen, in his day, the curling smoke rising from thirty wigwams of the Sanchacantacketts. His property by gradual increase bordered the entire western cove of the great pond, and for him it received the name of Major's Cove, which it has ever since borne. Peter Norton was of a military turn of thought, and in 1756 was captain of the Edgartown company, and on Aug. 8, 1761, was commissioned as Major of the Dukes County regiment, raised during the French and Indian wars.^ Like his father he was interested in the schools, and served on the school committee many years. When the Revolution broke out he was too old to enter that war, but acted upon committees to prepare for the defence of the town. He was commissioned high sheriff, Oct. 24, 1776, by the Provincial authorities, and held the

'The slight value of "tradition" is illustrated by this legend, for it is of record that Eliakim and Peter Norton together bought several pieces of property in Chickemmoo in 1747 and 1748, which would seem to dispose of the reason alleged for Eliakim's departure from the paternal roof at the age of thirty because of a quarrel over a pet lamb (Dukes Deeds, VIII, 12, 13).

position for many years/ When the Baptist sect came to the island after the Revolution, Major Peter became identified with it, and was, by reason of his commanding influence, a leading light in that church. He died Feb. 3, 1792.^ Five of his sons removed to Maine, and the family homestead fell in 1792 to Ichabod, his youngest son but one.

Ichabod Norton, born Dec. 17, 1762, inherited the northern half of his father's estate, the southern portion having been alienated during the lifetime of his father. He remained a bachelor inheritance gradually growing in value by judicious investments, through many years, aided by few personal wants, he became the wealthiest man of his time upon the island. His property was largely in real estate, both here and in Maine, in vessels, and in mortgages, and these conditions of thrift and simple personal habits gave rise to the most conflicting stories, both of his wealth and of his miserly habits. The truth probably lies between the two extremes, for while it was true that he lived in a house that had all the signs of dilapidation about it and the surrounding premises; did not keep a carriage,

'This appointment was made upon the recommendation of Chief Justice Joseph Mayhew, who said that Norton preferred to be a Colonel of the militia (Mass. Archives, CXCIV, 20S).

because, as he said, he had to keep a dozen for others, referring to those used by his debtors; exacted the last dollar on notes and mortgages, and all the added attributes of a "close" man, yet it is conceded on the other hand, that he gave much privately to charity, in his own way; was just to the deserving poor; always had a kind word for children and was merciful to all the animal kind. His habits were formed in youth, as he said, from a need for economical living, and being a bachelor, his life at best was a narrow one, which turned for its companionship to a ''fool nigger" named Harry, or as the absurd individual explained his full name, John Harry Monus John Peter Tobirus Peter Toskirus Peter Tubal Cain. Whence he came no one knew, but for fifty years he presided in the kitchen of "Uncle" Ichabod, and became one of the characters of the neighborhood. He was a confirmed monomaniac on the subject of wars and martial matters, though perfectly harmless, and his conversation was largely a confabulation of historical gibberish, which led those who knew him to believe he had been in the service of England, probably in the naval forces. He pretended to be in communication with individuals below the surface of the earth, and if halted by a question he would mysteriously repeat it, in a solemn manner, and turn his ear to the earth for the answer. Prompt news servite was always to be had, for Harry would answer in a few seconds, "Admiral Hawke fought 'em sir, and has taken forty ships," or some such trivial mummery. There is an excavation on the Ichabod Norton place as large as a good sized cellar, made by him, still known as "Harry's Hole." When he planted melons he would put an old iron pot in the middle of the patch, "for a model for the melons," he would explain.

No refining influence of wife or children came into the life of this lonely man, Ichabod Norton, yet he was very human, and could find it to his taste to cause a legend to be put over his fireplace: "Deal justly, love mercy, walk humbly," and doubtless he tried in his contracted homeless life to do all these three things, and probably succeeded in each of the requirements.^ His will, dated Sept. 28, 1843, and proven Oct. 18, 1847, is probably the longest on record in the County registry, containing bequests to about all of his relatives, many friends

^"Reformation" John Adams gives this picture of Ichabod Norton: - "He has but few of the comforts of this life and lives on coarse food. We ate, prayed and wept over him. He gave us two dollars tribute money." (Autobiography, p. 451.)

and a charitable legacy. At this time there were fiftytwo of the grandchildren of his father living, and all were remembered, presumably. After his death, the farm was further sub-divided, and the long line of local magnates was broken.^

Isaac Norton, elder brother of Joseph, and probably the eldest son of Nicholas Norton, also became one of the early landed proprietors and residents of the Sanchacantacket region, finally settling on the north side of Major's Cove. His first investment was about Squash meadow, with several others, in 1683, and on Jan. 28, 1684, he was granted a lot on the south side of Tacloiash's field. ^ About 1688 or 1689 he bought the Indian "rights" to the fertile little neck, since called Pecoy, of Ezekiel Pauknessimmun,^ and this he added to a lot previously bought of Maquaine, in 1685, "in consideration of an iron pot and other goods."^

House Of The Five Isaacs

He built his house on the north side of the W'Quahti-pog pond, a commanding position, perhaps soon after the purchase, and thus becomes, next to Joseph Daggett, the earliest settler in this region, on Ogkeshkuppe neck. This house was given to his son Isaac (37) in 1713, and he in turn deeded it, in 1 72 1, to the third Isaac (113). Isaac, Jr. had sons Isaac, Stephen, Henry, and Shubael, of whom the first two were bachelors, and lived according to tradition in the east half of the house, and Shubael, the married brother, in the other with his family. By will the shares of the unmarried brothers went to the fourth Isaac, son of Shubael, and he was in turn succeeded by the fifth and last of the name to live in this house of notable family history.^

'Many of the facts about him have been obtained from a biographical sketch of Ichabod Norton prepared for the press by James Athearn Jones, of West Tisbury, and published in pamphlet form for private distribution, in 1S48, by the executor. It was intended as a vindication of Mr. Norton. The historical portion, purporting to give a sketch of his ancestors, is painful in its errors. It does not seem possible to crowd more mis-statements into a few pages devoted to the early generations of Norton s than there appears.

*Ibid., Ill, 25. When the neck was divided these purchases were confirmed to him, but he was obliged to make restitution to the other owners of the six-and-twenty shares.

Settlement At Onkaw And Quinniaaimuk

The extreme northern end of the eastermost chop became a settlement apart and distinctive before the i8th century. The nearest settlers were at Major's cove and Farm pond, and a stretch of several miles separated them from their neighbors. This locality, next to Chappaquiddick, was the last stand of the Indians of the town, and during the following century and a half the smoke from their wigwams rising skyward could be seen from any house in this region.

The sachem Wampamog, in 1669, gave the first tract of land here in severalty to the sisters, Alice and Keziah Sessetom. In the quaint language of the native the sachem deeded to them a tract "at the place called Quannaamuk":

It is the will of me Wampamog that the eldest called Ales Setum should have the breadth of twenty-five rods and that she that is called Keziah Setum should have the breadth of fifteen rods: both these to have same wedth now said at the pond and so upward as far as Daggetts bounds: I, Wompamog say this is firmly and of right theirs because I have divided this quantity of land to them, even to Ales and Keziah Setum, the daughters of Thomas Setum: it is theirs I say and all their oft'spring for ever: or if they fale, to go to their kindred: may they in peace enjoy this land for ever for I will never alter this nor shall any that defend my Sachemship do this; but let these peacefully enjoy the said land even Ales and Keziah.^

It will be recalled that this Alice Sissetom (or Setum) was the Vineyard Pocahontas, the Indian wife of Joseph Daggett. Part of this land subsequently descended to Daggett's daughters, Esther and Alice, the half breeds.^

The First Settlement

There were various early purchases by the whites in this region, Richard Sarson in 1686, Thomas West in 1692, and Isaac and Thomas Norton and Robert Cathcart in 1698, but it is not believed they had houses there.

Edward Cottle, Jr. was the first person who lived at Onkaw, the ancient inheritance of his wife's Indian grandmother, Alice Sissetom. He was there as early as 1695, ''where he had a dwelling house," and he may be reckoned as the

^See Court Records, 1690; Joseph Daggett vs. Jacob Norton and James Pease, Jr., suit for trespass with verdict for plaintiff. In 1698 a tract forty rods wide, same quantity as given by Wampamog was sold at public vendue to Jacob Norton. This may be the identical land.

first settler of the region subsequently known as Eastville.^ Here he was surrounded by Indians of the Sanchacantacket tribe, of which tribe his children were quadroons. It is probable that he was the sole resident of the English race in this place for the ensuing twenty-five years.

Benjamin Smith of Edgartown had been granted, in 1704, a tract of thirty acres, and although he did not settle here he bequeathed it with other property here to his two sons, Thomas and Ebenezer, and the latter settled on the land (now The Highlands) about 1725 and it became an inheritance to succeeding Ebenezers of this family for several generations.^ A new settler, in the person of John Cunningham, came to Eastville in 1725 and bought land of Cottle at various times^ for the ensuing ten years until his death, and he was followed by another stranger, John Cousins, about 1730, who acquired land in the same vicinity. Theophilus Pease and Thomas Claghorn moved up here from Edgartown at the same time and settled in Eastville. A third stranger, Malatiah Davis, made the first of his many purchases here in 1744, and his descendents for several generations were identified with the httle settlement. He was followed by David Davis in 1759, another stranger to the Vineyard, and not known to be related to the earlier Davis residents. These two families resided here for the next century, intermarried and became specially identified with this settlement.

This was a neighborhood full of the romance of the sea, and these new settlers brought to it the additional mystery of family "skeletons" from other regions, as will become detailed in the sketches of their lives. The men of this little hamlet got their living from the deep in all lines of endeavor, and not the least of their sources of supply was that seemingly ghoulish business of wrecking, of profiting by the unfortunate deodants of the storms and tides of the Vineyard sound. Whether justly or in humor this place was known in local parlance as the "Barbary Coast," in token of the avocation of most of its people, and many weird tales are told of the hard bargains driven with luckless skippers who had drifted on the treacherous shoals of these waters.

So far as is known, the first individuals here professing to be Methodists, were two colored persons, John Saunders and his wife. They had been slaves in the state of Virginia. By extraordinary efforts and rigid economy they had been enabled to purchase their freedom. They set out in a vessel bound to some port in Massachusetts, which stopping for some cause in Homes Hole harbor, these persons concluded to land at Eastville. They arrived in 1787 and remained in this vicinity several years. John, being an exhorter (having as is understood held this position among his fellow slaves) preached occasionally to the people of color, at "Farm Neck." It is represented that he was highly esteemed by them, but it does not appear that any society was formed as a result of his labors. In 1792, Saunders removed to the adjacent island of Chappaquiddick, where there was also a settlement of colored people, where his wife having died, he remarried, and where he also died in 1795.^ In the early part of the same year of Saunders' decease, 1795, the justly celebrated Jesse Lee, the pioneer of Methodism in New England, visited Martha's Vineyard. This settlement was the second place he visited and the following entry appears in his journal relating to the event:

It may be presumed that the host of Lee was a convert to the new doctrine, as in those days of religious intolerance itinerant preachers would not be entertained by those of other denominations. There is, however, nothing of record to show any establishment of regular services here following the visit of this pioneer. The ministers assigned to the Vineyard circuit

^For some of the facts in this sketch of early Methodism the author is indebted to the kindness of Mrs. Fanny A. Deane, of Edgartown, who loaned the manuscript of a "Centennial address" prepared by her father, Rev. Hebron S. Vincent, and delivered, in 1884, before one of the annual gatherings of that denomination at Cottage City.

^There was an impression, although not a very prevalent one that at sometime late in the eighteenth century, Dr. Thomas Coke, afterwards Bishop, stopped in a partially wrecked vessel at Homes Hole, when passing along the coast. But of the correctness of this tradition there is no substantial evidence. Following him in all his nine voyages to America, there is nothing to indicate that he ever came to our island under any circumstances.

probably held meetings here, and one of the earliest, if not the first, to embrace the faith and teachings of this sect was Joseph Linton, whose house was used for the public services. In 1 82 1 a "class" was in existence, and the itinerant for that year makes numerous references to meetings which he conducted on ''the east side of the harbor."^ Private houses continued to be used until about 1840, when a small structure was built on the old road leading to Cottage City.^ The leading spirit in this local mission at this time was "Uncle" Jeremiah Pease who drove up from Edgartown every Sunday for years and preached in this rude structure," without money and without price." His only reward was a bountiful dinner at "Brother" Linton's, after service. In 1842 the Rev. John Adams notes in his journal a visit to Eastville after an absence of twenty years and adds: "I preached in the httle Methodist house to twenty-four hearers." This may be an indication of the numerical strength of the society at that date.

The development of the annual camp meeting services about this time and the growth of the settlement about Squash Meadow pond, which subsequently became known as Oak Bluffs, resulted in the abandonment of the building and the discontinuance of services here. After a fitful career this little meeting house passed into the hands of the Ladies Aid Society of the M. E. Church of Cottage City. In 1888 the disused building was purchased by Mr. T. W. Chapman, who moved it to the Vineyard Highlands, where it forms the main part of the house now occupied by his daughter. It still shows the remains of hand hewn shingles and hand-wrought nails on its roof.

From all the information obtainable it is not understood that there was any organized church of this denomination in this settlement. The persons holding that belief, resident here, were members of the societies already formed in Tisbury or Edgartown, and merely joined in a temporary manner for convenience of worship.^ Services were held in private

'One of the earliest members of this church was "Daddy" Richardson. His views were characteristically expressed when he said that "Nobody could be baptized in a pint porringer."

houses before 1840, usually conducted by a lay member. About 1845 ^ small edifice was erected by Mr. Obed l^uce from the contributions of the worshippers and their friends, aided by volunteer labor. It was built on the old road leading from Eastville to Cottage City, on land owned by Mr. Shaw Norris, who gave the use of it, free of rent. Itinerant preachers of this denomination held services here from time to time to supplement the regular supply of the laity. Jesse Pease was an early preacher, followed by Tristram Cleveland, Solomon Athearn, and John Mayhew. This chapel was a small unpainted structure without ornamentation. The passing away of these laborers and the improved church privileges at the Wesleyan Grove camp ground caused the abandonment of this primitive structure and the services of these earnest lay exhorters.

The abandoned edifice was sold by the surviving members to Benjamin A. Norton, who dismantled it and hauled it to North Tisbury, where it forms the main portion of his house.

The only public houses in this town, prior to the growth of Oak Bluffs, in the last half century were situated at Eastville. This place was a hamlet made up mostly of taverns and ship chandlers' shops, where the seafaring man was accustomed to tarry voluntarily, or by force of circumstances. East Indiamen, with their rich cargoes, anchored off this compact village awaiting orders from Boston or Salem, or to recruit their stores with fresh supplies of food and raiment. Beef, mutton, poultry, vegetables, corn, rye and other island produce found a ready sale, for cash, or in exchange for rum, sugar, coffee and other "foreign" luxuries. It was the custom in those early days for the captains and crews of these ships from foreign ports to remain on shore while in the harbor, and these homely taverns gave ample entertainment, with their hyge fireplaces, bountiful kitchens and general good cheer. An itinerant tailoress or a cobbler was usually within call to make or repair a depleted outfit, and the housewife, aided by an Indian woman and some of her older daughters, managed this motley household without friction or loss of dignity.

Thomas Claghorn 1730-83; who was succeeded by his widSw, Susannah Claghorn, 1784-6; John Cunningham, 1 731-2; John Cousins, 1731-65; Thomas Pease, Jr., 1751-87; David Davis, 1759-67; who v/as succeeded by his widow, Sarah Davis, 1768-87; Ebenezer Smith, 1786-1806;^ Malatiah Davis, 1 798-1 806. Most of these taverns were in one neighborhood, convenient for the shipping interests, which furnished the most of their patronage. That they were the scenes of jolHty at night when ''Jack" came ashore is evident from what we know of their character. John Cousins was indicted in 1733 "for sufering Disorders in suffering fidhng, singing

Now The Oliver Linton House

& Dancing" in his tavern, but the jury acquitted him. The subsequent owners of these houses continued the business of tavern keeping till about the middle of the last century. One still survives, the Eastville Inn (1907), as a last relic of this

'It was at the tavern of Ebenezer Smith, during the War of 1812, that Captain James Lawrence, U.S.N., was a frequent guest. During one of these visits, in 1814, a son was born, who was given the name of James Lawrence in honor of this distinguished officer. It is stated that the gallant sailor made a present to his namesake, besides cutting off a gold button from his coat as a token of the event. This boy was the late Capt. James Lawrence Smith of Vineyard Haven.

the New England shores. Then, as now, the sick or disabled sailor was put ashore here for care and treatment, and at the period which we are considering he was ''boarded out" at one house or another under the supervision of the local physician. It was often impossible to obtain shelter for them when they were suffering from contagious diseases, for it must be remembered that small pox was then a prevalent scourge, as the practice of vaccination had not become established in this country. The Vineyard had suffered from it in 1738, in consequence of an epidemic introduced by a sick sailor who was put ashore at Homes' Hole in December of that year. No shelter could be obtained for him, and he was sent back again to the vessel, which was bound for Boston, where the man was detained at quarantine until he recovered [Records, Selectmen of Boston, 1738, vol. xv., p. S8]. Several persons died in this epidemic, including the local physician, Dr. Matthews, and many families had two and three of these cases at one time in their houses. Doubtless this incident was repeated often during the last century, and the danger of promiscuous "boarding out" of sick sailors, the inhumanity of turning them away when sick with contagious diseases, stimulated the leading citizens to meet the necessity of establishing a marine hospital at Homes' Hole. The following memorial was presented to the General Court in January, 1798:

The memorial of the Subscribers Justices of the Court of Common Pleas and General Sess. of the Peace in Duke's County shows that they from a sence of their Duty and out of Humanity to their fellow men think it Highly Necessary that a Hospitle should be built on the Island of Martha's Vineyard for the Reception of Such Sick Seafaring men as frequently arrive at the harbour of Holms hole with the Small Pox and other Contagious Distempers who cannot always git received on Shore by reason of the great Difficulty in gitting houses theefor. We should further Suggest that the West side of Holmes-hole Harbour would be much the most Convenient place for such a Building.

In less than a month favorable action was taken by the General Court upon this memorial, and on February 17, the following order was passed:

Resolved. For the reason set forth in said memorial, that an hospital shall be built on the Island of Martha's Vineyard at or near the harbour of Holmes Hole, for the reception of such sick persons as may arrive there from sea, that the same shall be erected at the discretion and under the direction of his Excellency the Governor of this Commonwealth, and that his Excellency be requested to appoint some suitable agent or agents for the purpose of carrying this resolve into effect, and that there be allowed and paid out of the public Treasury, a sum not exceeding seven hundred dollars, to defray the expense thereof/

In accordance with the authority vested in him by this resolve, the Governor, Increase Sumner, appointed two agents for superintending the construction of the hospital, viz:

Council Chamber, Boston, Feby. 17, 1798. In pursuance to the above Resolve, I do hereby appoint James Athearn, Esq., of Tisbury, and Beriah Norton, Esq., of Edgartown, agents for the purpose of carrying this Resolve into effect and the said agents are hereby directed to make a return of their doings to me as soon as they can conveniently. (Council Files, 1798).

Notwithstanding the petition asked the General Court to locate the hospital on the west side of the harbor (now Vineyard Haven), the agents purchased one half acre of land bordering on the Lagoon (then a part of Edgartown) of Malatiah Davis, Esq., of Edgartown.^ From the widow Jane Smith and her son Ebenezer they bought a "low double" house then standing on the Highlands of East Chop for the sum of $210, and from the testimony of an aged man, the grandson of Malatiah Davis, we learn that this house was moved across the fields and set in place upon the site selected.

The account printed below gives the complete expenses of the commissioners, and shows that they were a little over a year completing their task. The account is especially remarkable, however, from the fact that the building was constructed within the appropriation.

^Paying therefor $25.00, and the deed conveying the property to Peleg Coffin, Treasurer and Receiver General of the Commonwealth is recorded in the County registry, Vol. XIII, folio 538.

By Cash reed, of Peleg Coffin, Treasurer, by Warrant from the Governor Agreeable to a Resolve of the General Court Past in Febury Last $700 .00

This building was put to immediate use, and adjoining it a little cemetery was early begun by a local physician who had the charge of the institution. A well preserved slate stone records the following epitaph to the memory of probably the first sailor who died in the hospital : ^

Memory Of Samuel Lockwood

Unfortunately no records of the hospital are known to be extant, and nothing remains of a period so far back, excepting some few accounts and letters about the years 1826 to 1830 in the files of the Custom House. By that time, however, the old hospital had been abandoned as such, according to the memory of an old resident (Mr. Ichabod Luce), who thinks that it was occupied as far back as 1824 by an old fisherman (one ''Daddy" Richardson), as a residence. Others confirm this evidence that it was abandoned as a hospital after a number of years, and after the death of Richardson it remained unoccupied and later was razed to the ground.^ An old cellar, which still marks its site, and near by a few grave stones, moss covered and out of plumb, are the only existing memorials of the first hospital for sailors built upon the Vineyard, and the second in the United States, specially designed for the sailor in his days of sickness, the pioneer of the system of Marine Hospitals which, for nearly a century, has ministered to his wants. ^

^There is also a stone in this enclosure to the memory of John Gates, of Portsmouth, N. H., "who died at sea April 30, 1828, aged 44." It bears a masonic emblem.

^George ("Daddy") Richardson was remarkable for his memory of the Scriptures, and many believed he could repeat the whole Bible as he never hesitated to give without error any chapter called for. He knitted seines and presumably acted as nurse in the hospital.

'The honor of its possession belongs to the State of Virginia, which, Dec. 20, 1787 passed a law establishing a marine hospital and authorizing the appointment of a commission by the Governor to select a site in the town of Washington, County of Norfolk, Virginia (Hening's "Statutes at Large," Vol. XII, p. 494). In the "New Hampshire Spy" of Nov. 4, 1788, there will be found a letter from Norfolk, under date of Sept. 24, 1788, which contains a paragraph relating to the laying of the corner-stone of this hospital. It was completed the next year and in 180 1 sold to the United States.

The Strange Story Of John Cousens

Over the early settlement of this hamlet the mysterious advent of John Cousens, and his selection of the Vineyard as his permanent home, casts a romantic shadow. To begin with his antecedents and progenitors we must go far away to the Spanish main for a background, and as far back as 1667, see the beginning of his complex ancestry. Capt. William Sanford, an English master mariner, commanding the Pink ''Susannah," lay at anchor in the River Surinam, Dutch Guiana, and on March 27 of the year mentioned, married Sarah Whartman on board his craft. The next year he came to New Jersey, bought a large tract of land at New Barbadoes and settled down to the life of a gentleman planter. Here was born to him a daughter, Grace, who grew to womanhood, and when this period arrived there came to the Province of New York to rule it as the Royal Governor, Richard Earl of Bellomont, sent over by King William and Queen Mary. In his suite of officials was Barne Cosens of London, who came as secretary to the Earl and served as Clerk of the Provincial Council. He was the second son of John and Mary (Barne) Cosens of the parish of St. Clement Danes, London, born about 1674, and while it is not known that his father's people were specially prominent, it can be said that the Barnes were of high social standing in the English metropolis. Three of them had served as Lord Mayor of London within the century before the birth of Barne Cosens, and a number of them enjoyed the honors of knighthood. On April 28, 1697, this favored member of the Royal Governor's entourage led Grace Sanford to the altar, and we may assume for the present that there was the usual domestic bliss following the union. At all events three children were born to Barne and Grace (Sanford) Cosens, Mary, John (1700), and Sarah, and then trouble ensued between the parents. What it was we cannot say, but Barne Cosens evidently considered it necessary to leave on public record his last words of condemnation of his wife and the mother of his offspring. After the death of Bellomont, in 1 70 1, Barne Cosens remained in office under his successor and served as Escheator General for three years, and then shortly after returned to England, never to revisit these shores. Before he sailed away he drew up his will, Dec. 5, 1706, as "about to take a voyage to England," and after making bequests to his three children added the provision regarding his wife that she

"shall not on any acco't whatsoever have or obtain Letters of Administration of my will or of my estate or have anything to doe with the education of my children or any of them."^ Barne Cosens left this stigma on his family escutcheon and went home to die. He deceased between that date and late in 1709, when the widow Grace, "of the Cittie of New York widow and Rehct of Barney Cousens," made her last will and testament. In it she bequeathed to her daughters ''all that my one Third part of my Late husbands estate which ought of Right to belong unto me;" and to her son John is devised the sum of £50, besides other amounts to relatives.^ She survived until 1 721, when her will was probated, and the only son had arrived at his majority. Shortly after he had left the opportunities and advantages of the American metropolis, and before 1725 we find him hidden from the world in the little hamlet on the west shore of Homes Hole.^ Why did this scion of these gentle families so closely associated with the ofhcial court circles of England come to this distant isle of the sea and make it his home ? Was it to obtain forgetfulness and oblivion for some family skeleton ? We may never know, but the rest of his life is an open book. He married, about 1725, Jemima (102), daughter of Thomas and Hepsibah (Skiff) Norton, and thereafter the couple lived at Eastville, where three daughters were born to them. John Cousens kept a tavern, as was the fashion in those days, for over thirty years, until his death, which occurred Nov. i, 1765, in the 65th year of his age, and his wife survived him scarcely four years. His daughter Mary married Moses Ogden of Elizabeth, New Jersey, and from her descend many distinguished families of New York, including Pierrepont Edwards, Governor and Senator Edwards of Connecticut, the wife of Eli Whitney the inventor, and John Cosens Ogden, the author and divine. The next daughter, Anne Frances, married Colonel Beriah Norton, and Sarah the third daughter, married David Davis of Eastville. John Cousens was not a tavern keeper nor a wrecker by birth or association, and his life of exile on the Vineyard, away from kith and kin, doubtless conceals some strange secret. It is doubtful if anything more definite will ever be knoM-n which can throw further light on the subject. The moss-grown slate over his grave tells us but little, but we can believe that it marks the last resting place of a descendant of the Lords Mayor of London/ Surely a strange story for this sedate island.

The Wendell-Da Vises

Another family of New York origin, possibly related to the Cousens of the same state, became settlers of Eastville about 1750, and for several generations were identified with it. The first of the name in this country is said by family tradition to have been Barne or Barney Davis, a surveyor, who settled in Albany, N. Y., and left a son, Thomas. The further tradition is that this Thomas married Catherine Wendell, but it is evident that the tradition is partially wrong, as the records do not bear out the statement. Catherine, daughter of Evert Jansen and Maritje (Abrahamse) Wendell of Albany, born 1667, married Thomas Millington in 1699, and had among others Mayeke (Mary), baptized April 28, 1700, and she is the one who probably married Thomas Davis. This merely places Catherine Wendell one generation back. Thomas and Mary (Millington) Davis had two sons baptized in Albany, Thomas, Aug. 26, 1722, and David, Sept. 13, 1724, and shortly after the family of seven children removed to North Carolina. They settled at Yeopim on Albemarle Sound in that state, where the two boys, Thomas and David, lived until they were brought North, about 1737, to Plymouth, Mass., to be educated. Thomas remained in Plymouth, married there and became the ancestor of a distinguished family, including Judge John Davis and William T. Davis, the historian of his native town. David later settled on the Vineyard at Eastville, where he engaged in the occupation of pilot until his death in 1768, being lost in Boston bay in a storm. He married Sarah, daughter of John Cousens, Oct. 3, 1750, and two of his children, bearing the names of Wendell and Sanford, and their descendants perpetuate the names of their paternal and maternal ancestors to this day.

Descendants of the sons and daughters who remained in North Carolina are to be found in that State, as well as in Virginia, Kentucky and Tennessee. The name, however, has become almost extinct upon the Vineyard.

*The town clerks, parsons and stonecutters of Edgartown, and all who had to record the unusual name of his grandson, Barne Cosens Norton, struggled hard to make it Barnabas, thinking it was a contraction of the biblical name. It is probable the name was pronounced in two syllables.

Col. Malatiah Davis

'M^&TtdA^^^^'^ name in Eastville, of which Malatiah was the progenitor, is not related, as far as known, to the Wendell-Davises who settled here about the same time. It is said that Malatiah came here before 1740 from Falmouth, but it is possible that Falmouth, England is meant, and that he entered the employ of Thomas Butler in the tannery business of the latter. Davis was then about twenty-three years old (born about 171 7), and soon after this he married Jemima Dunham (131), by whom he had eight children. He was prosperous and thrifty in business and became a man of prominence in the community, a large land holder and a leader in town affairs. He was identified with the militia. Ensign in 1761, Lieutenant 1765, and was known as ''Colonel" in later life, probably through his promotion to that rank. He died Jan. 9, 1795, in the 79th year of his age. His son Malatiah married Mary Cousens Davis of the other family, and thus united the two houses of Davis in Eastville.

Samuel Norris

The first known ancestor of this family, long distinguished in the annals of Eastville, was Samuel Norris, a carpenter of Freetown, 1715, Dighton, 1720, and Bristol, 1721, whose wife was Rebecca [Howes?]. She died in the latter place March 3, 1745, leaving a son Thomas (b. 1726) among others. This Thomas married Patience, daughter of Thomas Harlock, August II, 1 751, in Bristol, and soon after removed to the Vineyard, settling at Edgartown. He was in the French and Indian wars, 1759-60 and died April 10, 1775, aged 49 years. He left eight children of whom Samuel, born 1753, settled in Eastville, married Lucy, daughter of James and Rebecca (Butler) Shaw, and is the ancestor of one of the ablest men ever credited to this town in its recent public life, the Hon. Howes Norris, thrice senator from the Cape District.

Separation From Edgartown Early Sentiment For Independence

The remoteness of Eastville from the village of Edgartown contained the germ of the idea of an independent existence of this part of the town when it should become numerically strong enough to demand this privilege. About 1825, as told by older residents of Eastville, this sentiment took concrete form in an agitation for a separation from the parent town; but no definite details are obtainable, as the matter never proceeded to the point of specific action. The little hamlet did not then have sufficient population nor valuation to justify its establishment as an independent community; and it is probable that the movement was designed to influence some pending controversies between the two sections of the town. Doubtless the northern section suffered then from lack of its share of the town appropriations, as was the case in later years, when it grew to the proportions of a possible township. The growth of the summer resort around the Squash Meadow region following the development of the campmeetings, and the general increase of a resident population in that section, accentuated the idea of future autonomy. This took definite form about 1872, when the residents of Eastville and the newer settlement at Vineyard Grove joined together in a campaign for separation from Edgartown. The residents of Eastville, when they were almost the only permanent population of Farm Neck, had no natural affiliations binding them to the old town. They had no decent roads, nor school houses, and felt neglected by the voters of the older village in the distribution of annual favors at town meetings. They were a hopeless and helpless minority, comprising not more than fifteen families, and they chafed under the yoke. It was seven miles by a sandy road to the post office, the town hall and a good school house. As a result of these conditions they traded and received their mail at Homes Hole, and all their interests were in this association with the people of that settlement. The men of Eastville were the original inspirers of every sentiment for a division of the town, and as the feeling for independence grew, its leaders were always found there. It is apparent that the majority of voters of Edgartown village paid but scant attention to these continued murmurs of discontent, and thus annually piled up arguments in favor of a separation by their treatment of this section of the town.

The Fight For Separation

On the date above given (1872) a Representative to the General Court, understood to be favorable to division, was elected through the influence of the people of Eastville, and a petition for separation was circulated among the residents of the northern section of the town. The people of the old village countered this move with a remonstrance against separation, and induced such a considerable number of the nonresident tax payers of Vineyard Grove to sign it, that the petitioners for the new town found it the better policy to defer action at that time. The agitation, however, was kept up continuously, and in the few following years the ranks of the divisionists were recruited from this same non-resident element which had been employed against them previously. No improvement in the relations of the two sections ensued even at this juncture ; and such favors in the way of improvements as could be obtained from Edgartown were either grudgingly bestowed or forced by appeals to their sense of justice.

The men most active in the north part of the old town in the various movements for a division were Howes Norris, Ichabod Norton Luce, Joseph Dias, Otis Foss and Samuel Butler. These men finally enlisted the support of nearly all of the non-residents who were incorporated into a separate committee of thirty to carry on the battle. Oliver Ames of Easton, who then owned a fine summer residence at Oak Bluffs, was chairman of this committee of non-residents, and at that time he was yet only a private citizen of large wealth and influence in the business world. When the battle was found to be a strongly contested engagement, and after two successive defeats of the petitioners, Mr. Ames said he "guessed he would go to the Senate to help out," and he did. This divisional fight was undoubtedly the inspiration of his entry into political life, and this service as Senator was the prelude to his promotion to the offices of Lieutenant-Governor and Governor of this Commonwealth.

Among the many non-residents, who devoted much time and effort during the several years of leglisative battling before success was finally reached, were Hon. Nathaniel Wales of Stoughton, at first a Senator and later of the Governor's Council; Hon. Edward B. Gillette of Westfield, a prominent attorney and a director in the Boston and Albany Railroad; Hon. William N. Sage of Rochester, N. Y.; Captain John S. Damrell of Boston, and Mr. N. Sumner Myrick of the same city, then a correspondent of the Boston Herald and a young attorney at law. These and other non-residents proved to be a most efficient factor in the campaign, as their interest and influence ramified throughout all portions of the state, and they were able to appeal to the sources of public influence which affected the opinions of the legislators.

The Causes Of The Trouble

In the statements which follow, detailing the complaints of the petitioners for separation, the author is not expressing his views of the merits of the controversy, but paraphrasing the language of those who entertained these grievances against the dominant authorities of Edgartown. The advocates of division were first aroused to action by the continuous neglect of the interests of their section, both in respect to a share in the civil honors in town management, and m the refusal to provide the ordinary necessities of decent roads and good schools for a growing community. Edgartown village profited by the rapid and unusual increase of taxable improved property in the Camp- INIeeting grounds when permanent residences began to dot the landscape, and nothing was given in return to the new community. As an instance of this almost fatuitous disregard for the convenience of the citizens of the north end of the town, may be cited the refusal to build a bridge across the narrow channel emptying the Lagoon. The people residing in this section had no outlet to the westward towns on the Vineyard except by water, while a mile only separated them from the village of Vineyard Haven, where they could have convenient mail facilities and the other benefits that a large settlement affords. Requests for appropriations to build this connecting link w^ere repeatedly voted down. At last the petitioners took the matter to the General Court in the form of a bill compelling the county commissioners to build the bridge, and the responsible leaders of the Edgartown interests fought the measure with great earnestness, but without success. Another instance of this nature was the refusal to build a road through the farms along the Eastville shore, until the residents of that section gave the town bonds that it should not cost the town anything. Temahigon avenue, which runs from the Eastville Inn to New York avenue, and New York avenue itself, two of the finest roads in the present town, were only obtained by the guarantee on the basis above mentioned, of the people of Eastvifle to the town of Edgartown.

the old town interests projected the present Beach road which should connect them with the new settlement at Oak Bluffs. As usual a short-sighted policy was adopted in the construction of" this highway. While competent contractors offered to build a macadam road for $40,000, the Edgartown leaders pushed through a vote to employ none but townspeople in this work and a common dirt road was finally completed at an expense of nearly $60,000. But the object of preventing the citizens of the northern section from going by road to another section of the island had been accomplished. Nor was this wasteful financiering the only ground of complaint with respect to money matters. The old town voted $15,000 more to build a railroad parallel to this Beach road, which could be of no possible benefit to any other section of the town, and it proved to be a total loss, as an investment.

The Story Oe The Struggle

For three successive years, 1878, 1879 and 1880, these petitioners for division took their case to the General Court for relief. They were represented by Hon. Charles R. Train, while the old town entrusted its case to the Hon. Selwyn Z. Bowman. With such able counsel on both sides, and the prominent men interested throughout the state among the non-resident petitioners, the case became one of the most noted town division contests ever threshed out in the history of the Commonwealth. The struggle developed exceedingly bitter feelings betwTen the people of the two sections, and before its close the petitioners had practically abandoned attendance at town meetings because of the personal ill-treatment which they claim to have received at the hands of their opponents. Charges and counter charges of dishonesty in the financial management of the town were freely made, and the motives of each side were impugned as selfish or dishonest. The case of the remonstrants was one of general and particular denial of every complaint set forth by the petitioners. Figures taken from the town reports were employed by both sides with equal facility to establish opposite contentions; and amid this arithmetical maze of percentages, the average person might well flounder in his efforts to deduce the real truth from their diametric arguments. The remonstrants claimed that the debt of the town was due to improvements made for the benefit of the new section, and that it would be unjust to the old town to be burdened with a moiety of it, as after the separation an undue proportion of taxable property would be taken into the new town. It appeared from an analysis of the property interests of the petitioners, that, while numerically strong, they represented at first a minority of the taxable realty. This element of non-resident petitioners, while potentially valuable from a political standpoint, constituted a hazardous asset as an argument for division. It can readily be seen that the division of Edgartown was not their concern legally, as they were not voters, and the propriety of their appearance was seriously questioned as a matter of public policy, by the many not immediately interested in the matter. The counsel for the remonstrants dealt with this feature in vigorous terms, and practically demanded their entire exclusion from the case in the interests of justice. He used this circumstance with great effect in an appeal to the sentiment of fair play, picturing the hundreds of wealthy and influential nonresidents throughout the state engaged in a combination against the poor, defenceless island community, struggling against disruption and despoilment.

As was inevitable, this contest entered into the local politics of the Vineyard as a whole, and the elections of the representative to the General Court in the years 1878-80, inclusive, were fought out on the issue of division. In 1878 and 1879 Captain Benjamin Clough of Tisbury was chosen as an opponent of division through the votes of Edgartown and her friends in other sections of the island. This position of advantage accrued to the benefit of the old town in the legislative struggles of those two years, as Captain Clough succeeded in defeating all the active work carried on by the petitioners throughout the state. As representative of the local interests of his district the Vineyard member exercised a controlling influence on a subject which was purely a local affair, in accordance with the unwritten law and custom of the legislature. For the third and last time the contestants waged the usual preliminary skirmish in the election of a new representative to sit in the General Court of 1880, and, after a spirited campaign, Stephen Flanders of Chilmark, an avowed friend of the petitioners, was the successful candidate. The strategic advantage was now with the divisionists, and the influence of the local representative would be against the old town. The tide had turned, but both sides returned to the arena undismayed by previous defeats and the recent election. The old arguments were repeated in favor and the old replies were flung back without much change. The General Court lent a favorable ear, and on February 17, 1880, the Bill incorporating the new town became a law.

At the first meeting of the voters of the new town of Cottage City, in March, 1880, the following named persons were chosen as its officials for the ensuing year:

William H. Davis, Frederick U. Ripley, Otis Foss, Selectmen, Assessors and Overseers of the Poor; Oliver E. Linton, Town Clerk; Joseph Dias, Town Treasurer and Collector of Taxes; Oliver E. Linton, Henry C. Norton, Phoebe A. Norton, School Committee; Edward H. Hatfield, Shubael H. Norton, Albert A. Bosworth, Board of Health.

Its valuation was $1,197,435, with 1,058 taxable buildings, including 15 hotels. It then stood as 142 among the 306 towns in the state, as regards valuation.

The name of the new town became a bone of contention during the agitation. The summer residents in various portions of the proposed town desired to give it the name of the section in which each lived. The post office had been called Vineyard Grove and Oak Bluffs at different periods, and the people residing at the Highlands and about the Camp Meeting Grounds favored the former name, while the residents of Oak Bluffs insisted on the retention of this title. Both sides were unyielding in this matter, and the dispute threatened to disorganize the divisionists. At this juncture the Hon. H. A. Blood, a former Mayor of Fitchburg, Mass., and a summer resident, suggested the compromise name which was finally adopted. As general manager of the Fitchburg Railroad he had designated this locality in his advertising matter for summer travelers as the "Cottage City of America," and the suggestion was made by him to the leaders that the new town be called Cottage City. He claimed that through his extensive exploitation of this nam.e throughout the country it was already known as Cottage City to hundreds of summer visitors, and that it would be good policy to adopt it officially.

For a long time the bitterness engendered by the struggle remained, but at this date, a generation after the events above narrated, it can be said that both sections are happier, less

Name Changed To Oak Bluffs

The baptismal name of this town never gave entire satisfaction to many of the residents. In many respects it was a ridiculous pretence to call a very small town a city and it gave strangers an erroneous impression which became the source of humorous comment whenever mentioned seriously. To reverse the name it would sound equally senseless to speak of the City of Cottage Town. This sentiment grew in strength from year to year and when, in 1906, it was proposed to give the place a dignified name scarcely any opposition was manifested. The large consensus of opinion was in favor of the earlier title of the place, Oak Bluffs, and on Jan. 25, 1907, the General Court incorporated the town of Cottage City under the new name.

^It is related, as an instance of the animosities aroused, that on an early visit to Edgartown after the bill was passed, one of the principal leaders from Eastville was greeted with a chorus of groans and other uncomplimentary demonstrations from people who had hastily gathered on learning of his presence in the town. They aligned themselves on both sides of the street, the principal thoroughfare of the town, and continued this hostile serenade until his business was completed and he had departed for his home.

There is one lighthouse in the town, situated on the highlands of East Chop. It was built in 1869 by the late Capt. Silas Daggett of Vineyard Haven as a private enterprise. His project had the financial support of marine insurance companies, steamship lines and coastwise commercial interests making use of this great waterway of travel. Anticipating the final disposal of it to the general government he completed the tower, maintained it for a period until its transfer was accomplished. This is probably one of the few instances of such an undertaking on our coast, but the energetic promoter thought that governments moved too deliberately and he went ahead with his project, trusting in subsequent reimbursement. It is a flashing red light.

The tower is circular in form, with a railed gallery around the lantern. The bluff on which it stands is about seventyfive feet above sea level, and in the period 1845-187 1 it had receded about seventy-five feet as a result of erosion by wave action, a rate of nearly three feet per annum.

Post Office

The growth of the annual summer population following the establishment of the camp meetings resulted in the necessity for mail facilities, and in 1870 a post office was established with the designation of Vineyard Grove. This was changed, March 25, 1878, to Oak Bluffs, and almost immediately after, June II, 1878, changed back to its original name. After the incorporation of the town as Cottage City the name was altered March 30, 1880, to that of the new town, and remained so until Feb. 28, 1907, when it was called Oak Bluffs post office.

The following named persons have served in the office of postmaster: Sirson P. Coffin, commissioned March 7, 1870; Charles M. Vincent, July 19, 1871; Frances P. Vincent, May 13, 1873; Henry C. Norton, May 10, 1888; Charles L. Scranton, Sept. 6, 1889 (present incumbent).

There is no public building for the accommodation of the post office in Oak Bluffs, and the postmaster has always established his quarters in rented buildings. For the greater part of the time since 1870 the ofiSce has been located on Circuit Avenue.

The first newspaper established in the town was the Cottage City Star, which was started by Hon. Howes Norris, in 1879, as editor and pubHsher. It was printed in a four-page blanket-sheet form and printed local news from all the island towns, but made a specialty of Cottage City happenings. It was a weekly issue during the greater part of the year, but when the tourist season was on, a semi-weekly issue was published. The office was located at No. i Commonwealth square. This paper existed for six years, and was sold to Charles Strahan, a Southerner by birth and a Confederate soldier during the Civil War, formerly of Baltimore and New Orleans. He had been attracted to Oak Bluffs because he had found it of great beneficial value to his health, and made it his home for the next ten years, during which time he conducted this paper on lines similar to the Gazette of Edgartown, but the name was changed by him to Martha's Vineyard Herald. He continued as editor and publisher until September, 1900, when he disposed of the plant to Elmer E. I^anders of Cottage City and William E. Doane of Taunton. In April, 1902, Mr. Doane retired from the firm, and Mr. Landers continues its publication as surviving partner. The office of publication has been from the beginning at the Herald building, on Circuit avenue. It is issued weekly, except in July and August, when a semi-weekly edition is issued.

As this town grew up it came to have a conglomeration of boarding houses and hotels for the accommodation of the summer visitors, and it would be an unnecessary task to attempt an enumeration of all the houses utilized as public taverns. It will suffice to enumerate the larger and more pretentious hotels which have maintained a continued existence for many years. They comprise the following:

(E. H. Fennessy), Central House (Fuller and Field), and the Sea View House (Louis Frenkel). This last named hotel was by far the most famous of all, being the largest and best located. Built and furnished at a cost of over one hundred thousand dollars, with over an hundred guest rooms, spacious dining hall, broad verandah, and situated on the shore at the head of Steamboat wharf, overlooking the arrival and departure of the thousands who came annually, it was, during its existence, the social centre for the "Smart set" which gradually came to measure up in numbers with those who flocked hither for religious reasons. It was burned Sept. 24, 1892, just at the end of the tourist season and was never rebuilt. Efforts were made from time to time to interest capitalists in a plan to provide a successor to it, but the disaster came at a time when the abnormal "boom" of Cottage City had subsided, and the demand for such an elaborate hostelry had passed with the turn of the tide. The existing hotels have enlarged and improved their capacity, and are fully able to provide for the travelers who seek temporary lodgings and board.

This town has not had, with one exception, a practitioner of medicine who devoted his entire time to the residents of Oak Bluffs. The summer season created a demand for the temporary services of physicians, and the practitioners of Tisbury and Edgartown, Doctors Butler and Lane of the former place, and Doctors Walker and Worth of the latter place, have maintained offices here during the tourist season. In latter years permanent offices the year round have been established by them.

William Leach, M. D., the exception above noted, was a well known and highly respected physician of the Vineyard for many years. He was born in the town of Kittery, Me., Sept. 23, 1825, received his elementary education in the district school, and fitted for college in the New Market, N. H., academy. He then turned his attention to the study of medicine, entering, in 1852, the medical department of Harvard University, from which he was graduated in 1856. After practising in Boston, till 1863, he came to Martha's Vineyard and resided here continuously, engaged in the successful practice of his profession, at first in Vineyard Haven, and in the later years of his life exclusively in Oak Bluffs. He died March 31, 1903, nearly four score years of age. He was a member of the Martha's Vineyard Lodge, A. F. & A. M., of the Vineyard Haven Lodge, No. 228, I. O. O. F., and of the Massachusetts Medical Society.

There are three burial grounds in the town, the "Cottage City", which contains the oldest grave stone, 1759; the "Farm Neck," whose earliest stone is 1764, and the small ground near Old House pond, where the earliest stone bears the date of 181 6.

Grand Army Of The Republic

The veterans of the Civil War residing on the Vineyard formed a Post of this organization in 1890, w'th headquarters at Oak Bluffs. It was christened Henry Clay Wade Post, No. 201, of the Department of Massachusetts, in honor of that gallant naval officer who died at Pensacola. Henry W. Coye of Vineyard Haven was its first Commander, serving for five years in that office. The Post has enrolled about fifty veterans on its roster, and meets the first and third Thursdays of each month in G. A. R. hall on Circuit avenue. It is assisted in its work of fraternal care of the sick and needy of its members by the Woman's Relief Corps, an auxiliary organization.

The Martha'S Vineyard Summer Institute

This institution was another unique feature of this unique town. Established in 1878 as a normal school for teachers, its object was to afford special instruction in advanced studies, scientific and literary, to teachers who desire to combine such work with their weeks of rest and recreation. The professors in the various departments were those who held high place in institutions of learning in all parts of the country, and, like the students, combine this work with their play. A large, fine building, known as Agassiz hall, built in 1882, was specially designed and built for the business of this summer school, and during July and August for about five weeks it was a busy place. Hundreds of teachers availed themselves of the opportunity, and nearly every state and territory has been represented among its pupils. It had a dormitory and dining halls for the accommodation of the students. The number of the latter had increased from 75 in 1878 to over seven hundred in 1896, and a corps of forty instructors comprised its faculty. Col. Homer

B. Sprague was its first President (1878-82), and he was succeeded by Prof. William J. Rolfe, the well-known Shakesperean critic (1882-7), and Col. William A. Mowry, Ph.D., LL.D. (i 887-1 905). The Institute v/as disbanded in 1905 and its charter surrendered.

Present Statistics Of The New Town

Since its incorporation as Cottage City this township has passed through thirty years of exaggerated and normal periods of growth. At the time of its change to Oak Bluffs (1908) the following statistics taken from the assessors' books show its material condition. Personal estate assessed, $143,375; real estate assessed, $1,806,075, of which two-thirds is held by non-residents; total tax assessed, $38,520, including tax on 293 polls. Acres of land, 3,423; dwelling houses, 1,126; horses, 108; cows, 100; tax payers, 1454, including no who pay poll tax only. It will be seen upon comparison with the statistics of the other towns that although the youngest community, it has the largest valuation and raises the greatest tax on the Vineyard.

Annals Of Gay Head

The discovery and christening of this peninsula has a definite date, in 1602, and an authentic sponsor in the person of Bartholomew Gosnold. "The four and twentieth of May," wrote the journalist of that voyager, after they had left Nomans Land, "we set sail and doubled the cape of another island next unto this, which we called Dover Cliff, and then came into a fair sound." The resemblance of this remarkable headland to the famous high chalky cliffs at Dover on the English channel, ' doubtless suggested to Gosnold and his companions the appropriation of the name for these new-found cliffs of like character. This name, however, did not survive the pages of Gosnold's journal, and it remained for later comers to apply a name to it of their own conception. Some time before 1662 it was "called . . . by the English Gayhead," and this name has lasted as its title ever since. ^ This name, of course, was given to it as descriptive of the gaily colored cliffs seen from the west when approaching the island from the sea.

Under a resolve of the General Court, approved March 9, 1855, three commissioners, appointed by the Governor to establish a boundary between the Indian lands on Gay Head and the lands of the white inhabitants of Chilmark, determined upon the following lines:

Beginning at a rock on Nicodemus' Neck, on Squibnocket pond, thence due south across marsh and beach to the sea. From the same rock S. 55 E, across Squibnocket pond to a rock on Hillman's Point, so called; thence N. 10^° E, crossing said pond to the southern end of a stone wall on Nashawaqueedsee, which parteth that neck from Gay Head; thence N. 25° E, three rods, by said wall; thence N. 47^° E. sixty-seven rods, by said wall; thence N. 26° E. three and three-quarter rods, by said wall to its northern end, by Menamsha pond. Thence N. 51^° E. crossing said Menamsha pond, in the direction of a rock upon Pease's Point, so called distant about four hundred and fifty rods, until it strikes the middle of the channel or outlet from said pond to the Sound; then by the middle of the said channel as the same now is, or hereafter may be, - the said channel being somewhat subject to change - unto the Vineyard Sound/

The stone wall referred to has been the dividing line between Nashaquitsa and Gay Head for nearly two centuries. It was first set up in 1714, shortly after "The Corporation" acquired control of the land.^ The other lines are modern.

There is very little accurate material at hand for a resume of the population of this town, except within recent years. The inhabitants being of Indian extraction and of a roving disposition, gave but little concern to the census takers before the 19th century. In 1698 there were 260 souls reported as attending church services at Gay Head.^ There were fiftyeight houses on Gay Head neck in 171 2 (Sewall). In 1747 the guardians of the Indians stated that they were "in number about one hundred & twelve, men women and children,"* a decrease which is not understood, as shortly before 1786 they numbered 203,^ and in 1790 there were reported to be 276 Indians living in the peninsula,^ In 1806 a traveler, visiting the island, states their number to have been 240 that year,^ In 1838 there were 235 residents in the town.^ In i860 an official report states there were 46 families actually resident, comprising 204 souls, of whom 106 were male and 98 female. In addition to these there were 49 persons of the Gay Head "tribe" living elsewhere, temporarily, but claiming tribal rights, making a total of 253 belonging to the town by birth

^House Document, No. 48, pp. 8-9. Report of the Commissioners, John Vinson, Asa R. Nye and J. Whelden Hohnes. A previous commission had run a division line about 1830 between Gay Head and Squibnocket, but no record of it remains.

*Mass. Arch., XXXI, 550. There may be an error of 100 in the count. The report states: "the number of houses at Gayhead is 28; we compute four persons to a house which is 112, and of these about 19 Labouring men."

Since the incorporation of the town four national censuses give the following figures: 1870, 160 persons; 1880, 161; 1890, 139; and 1900, 173. The state census of 1905 showed a population of 178.

Aquiniuh (1662). - This name as applied to Gay Head, is composed of the words, Ukque-adene-auke, or Acquiy adene-auke, meaning "land under the hill," perhaps referring to the shore under Gay Head itself.

Kugh-tuh-quich-e-wutt (1681). - This is the Indian name for the narrow neck of land joining Nashaquitsa and Gay Head. Kuh-kuh-equht-wutt, or Kuh-tuh-que-i-yeu-ut, means "at the going up," as of a hill, and probably refers to the topography of that region, the ascent to the Gay Head plateau. A variation used in 1687 was Catackutcho (Deeds, IV, 128).

Mash-atan-auke. - This aboriginal name has been curiously corrupted into "Shot and Arrow" and "Shot Nigher" hill! It is a compound word, meaning the "great hill land," descriptive of the hilly character of the neck.

Wanummusit. - This name occurs but once (1681) in the records, without any indication of its exact locality. It marked the terminal point of the sachemship of Metaark, starting from Nashaquitsa, and may refer to the Gay Head cliff.