Worcester County, Massachusetts - Xxxiv, 1889

Its Incorporation as a Town - Jtfl Name - Its Organization - Civil History - Provision for Schools and Relicfioits Privileges - Patriotic Pleasures at ihe Opening of the War of the Revolution - Service in the War - Condition at the close of the Centnr//

By whom the movement was made for the incorporation of Pequoig on Miller's River " into a town is uncertain, but tradition asserts that the petition for this purpose was headed by John Murray, Esq- The same authority informs us that Mr. Murray was a resident of Athol for a number of years before he removed to Rutland, Mass. The charter was granted March 6, 1762, and is recorded in Chapter XX. of "Acts and laws passed by the Great and General

Anno Regni Regis, Georg'ti III., Sevuiido, 1762. Chapter XX. Au act for erfcting the new Plantation called Paj'qnage, in the County of Worcester, into a Town by the Name of Athol. mtereas, it hath been represented to this Court that the inhabitants of tlie Plantation of Payijuage, in the County of Worcester, labour uuder great difficulties by reason of their not being incorporated Into a Town, and are desirous of being so incorporated - Be it thert/ore fiiavted by the Governor, Council aiKl House of Rf^preseulattves, That tliesaid Plantation be, and hereby is, erected into a Town by the Name of Athol, bounded as follows, viz. : Northerly on the Plantations of Hoyasliire and Mount-grace, Westerly on Ervingshire and New Salem, Southerly on Peteraham and the Plantation called Number Six and Easterly on said Number Six ; and that the Inhabitiints thereof be. and hereby are, invested with all the Powers, Privileges and Immunities that the Inhabitants of the Towns within this Provinceare by law vested with. Ari'l be it further enacted, that John Murray, Esipiire, be, and hereby is, directed and empowered to issu* his Warrant directed to some of the principal Inhabitants within said Town requiring them to warn the Inhabitants of said Town qualified to vote in Town .Affairs to assemble at s mie suitable Time and Place in said Town, to choose siicli Officers as are necestsary to manage the Affairs of said Town t Prodded, nevertheless, the Inhabitants of said Town shall pay their proportionahle part of. sucli County and Province Charges as are already assessed in like Mannei", as tbo' this Act had noj been made.

With regard to the name of the town thus created the uniform tradition is that it was named for the second Duke of Athol, a Scottish nobleman, and in part because the scenery of the new town resembles that in the vicinity of Blair Castle, the palatial residence of the Dukes of Athol. The castle is situated in Blair, Scotland, and occupies a beautiful and romantic locality on the southern slope of the Grampian Hills.^

1 It is almost certain that the JoJin Murray, Eacjnire, mentioned in the act of incorporation, was largely responsible for the name under which the plantation was cliartered. Murray, as is well known, is the family name of the Dnkes of Athol or .Athole, aa it is sometimes spelled in Scotland. John Murray, Esq., held proprietors' rights in Pequoig as early ss November, 17G1, ami before the town was incorporated waa owner of 340 acres of land in the township. Later, viz.. in 1762 and 170.'}, he was in possession of 2;iS additional arres - in all 578 acres. The title Esq. is invariably attached tu hirf name upon the records, a distinction accorded to no other proprietor. March 31, 1708, when provision was made for a new allotment, John I^Iurray, Esq., drew No. 19 for the selection of a " pitch " when tlie additional division should be made. How lon^; lie resided in the township before removing to Rutland is uncertain, but, evidently, he was for years the most distinguished man in both places. It will be seen from these statements that it wae eminently proper he should be selected as the moderator of the first towii-meetiiig in Athol.

The following incidents of his life were obtained by the efforts of Rev. Charles P. Lombard, pastor of the First Church in Plymouth Mass., and late pastor of the Second I'nitarian Church of Athol :

Mr. Murray's third wife was Lucretia Chandler. In a genealogy of the Chandler family, collected in ISHU, it is recorded that Col. John Munay "came from Ireland, and it has been supposed with yood reason that he was the youngest and wayward .son of the Duke of Athol, Scotland. He had a plate with the Duke'i^ family arms on it. In the grant of the town of Athol by the Geneial Court, the first name was that of John Murray, who probably gave the name of his ancestral honors to the new town. The ' History of Rutland' says he was too poor when he came ov«r to pay his passage. He lost his wife on the voyage. At first he peddled about the country, and then settled at Rutland as a merchant. Some of the doors of the house of Col. John Murray were used in building the State House of Ohio, by mistake for those of Gen. Rufus Putnam's former residence in Rutland, whose memory (Putnam'sj the people wanted tu honur.

Worcester SS. To George Cutting, of Athol, in the County of Worcester and one of the Principal Inhabitance of Said Town Whare as I the Subscriber, am Impowered bj' act of the Grate and General Cort To Call a meeting of the Inhabitance of the said Town of Athol to Choose Town officera, itc.

These are Therefore In his majesties Name to Require you forth with to Warn and Notifie the Said Inhabitanc of Athol Qualified to vote in Town affairs that they meet at the meeting-House in Said Town of Athol, on Monday, the 29 of this Instant, march, at one of the Clock in the afternoon, then and there to Choose a moderator, Selectmen, Town Clerk, assessors. Town Treasurer, wardins. Constables, Surveyors of Highways, Tythingmen, fence- viewers, Sealers of Leather, Sealers of

"Colonel John Murray was a man of great influence in his vicinity and in the town of Rutland, which he represented many yeare in the General Court of Massachusetts. On election days his house was open to his friends, and the good cheer dispensed free to all from his store, told in his favor at the ballot-box. His wealth, social position anrl political influence made him one of the colonial noblemen, who lived in a style that has passed away in New England. He won, in 1774, appointed by King George III. and Lord Dartmouth, ' Mandamus' Councilor; but he was not sworn into the ottice because a party of about five hundred stanch Whigs, with the Committee of Correspondence, repaired to his house in Rutland and requested him to resign his seat in the Counc:il. He left his house on the 2oth of August, 1774, and lied to Boston, as he stated in his memorial.

" In 1745 he had commanded the provincial troops, in conjunction with the British, against the French. Like must, who at that day held office aiul station from'the royal hand, he gave his influence and support to the cause of the government and his King, which brought down npon him the displeasure of the Whigs. Frank Moore, in his* Diary of the American Revolution,' page 4(i, vol. i,, says, *Col. Murray, of Rutland, one of His Majesty's Council, has been obliged to leave a large estate in the country and repair to Boston to save himself from being handled by the mob, and compelled to resign his seat in the Council,'

" In reference to him and Israel Williams (who was put into a room with a fire, the chimney -tup being covered and the doors closed by the Whigs, and kept there several hours in the smoke), Trumbull, in his iMc- Fiugal, asks the Whig mob -

"In 1776, with his family of six persons, he accompanied the royal army to Halifax. In 1778 he was proscribed and banished, and in 1779 lost his extensive estates under the Conspiracy Act, except one farm, for his son .\lexander. He built a house in Prince William Street, St. John, where he afterwards resided.

"In person he was aboutsix feet three inches high and well-proportioned. The Hon. Robert L. Hazen, member of the Executive Council of New Brunswick, and a grandson of Colonel Murray, h.-is hisportrait by Coi)ley. He ia represented as sitting and in the full dress of a gentleman of the day. There is a hole in the vpig; and the tradition in the fiin)ily is that a party who sought the colonel at his house after the flight, vexed because he had eluded them, vowed they would leave their mark behind them, and accordingly pierced the canvas with a bayonet.

The dead, how sacred ! Sacred is the dust. And Sacred may this marlde long remain. To the memory of John Murray, Esquire, Who was born in Ireland The 22"'i Day of November, 1720, And died in this City, August :J0"', 1794." Miss Ellen Murray, now of Fi'ogmore, St. Helena Island, S. C, sent the following sketch to Rev. Mr. Lombard, copied " from a family account written by our mother, Harriet Letitia Murray:"

*' My husband's grandfather was Colonel Murray, the younger son of a Duke of Athol in Scotland. Becoming displeased with his family, he left his country and sf'ttled in America before the Revolution, He had a large grant of land, and named a town 'Athol.' He had been married thre« times, and with the third wife fled to New Brunswick in the beginning of the war with the mother country. Mr. Hazen, my husband's grandfather on the other side, escjipud with him. In the dark- weights and measures, Field Drivers, Hog-Reaves and all other ordinary Town offices as Towns choose in the month of March annually Here of Fail not and make Return Here of with your Doings here on unto

Given under my Hand and Seal at Rutland in Said County tliis fiftenth day of March, 17G2, in the Second year of his present majesties Reign, &c.

At this meeting, presided over by John Murray, Esq., of Rutland, and held March 29, 1762, the most important town offices were filled as follows :

Selectmen and Assessors, William Oliver, Aaron Smith, John Haven ; Town Treasurer, Nathan Goddard; Wardens, Robert Young, Nathan Goddard; Constable for South Ward, Richard Morton; Constable for North Ward, Ephraim Smith; Surveyors of Highways, Nathan Goddard, John Oliver, Seth Kendall ; Tythingmen, Jesse Kendall and Jotham Death.

No town clerk was chosen at this meeting, nor at the meeting of May 25th of the same year; but the record of the proceedings of the former was signed by John Murray, moderator, and that of the latter by William Oliver, moderator. The first town clerkwas John Haven, who was elected at the annual meeting March 7, 1763. It is not easy to understand the delay in filling this important office.

The town now entered upon its mission as an integral part of the Province of Massachusetts, and assumed the support of the pastor, laid new highways, built new and better bridges, made appropriations for town charges and the support of the schools, and arranged a multitude of other matters for the promotion of the general good.

What the population of the town was at the time of its incorporation is not known, but it could not probably have exceeded three or four hundred, as it was only eight liundred and eighteen when the census was taken in 1790.

From the beginning the custom has generally prevailed of filling the most important offices in this town from the ranks of its most capable citizens, and there has hardly been a time during the space of one hunness of the night they fled to the woods, and only the ladies knew of their hiding-place, and supplied them with food. Afterwards tliey reached SI. John, tlieir properly in Athol, being confiscated. There is LOW in St. John a beautiful picture, by Copley, of Colonel Murray, in satin waistcoat, bag-wig and purple coat. The Revolutionary party entered his house, and not finding him, ran a bayonet through the picture - the jagged rent is still there. A Mrs. English, who visited the Duchess of Athol some thirty or forty years since, was shown in an old chronicle of the family the name of John Thomas Murray, younger son of the family, who, some years before the .\merican Revolution, had quarreled with lii!> family, and securing a grant of land, had settled in New England, and named a town '.Vthol.' " Miss Murray adds, "Some twenty years ago, a gentleman from Athol came to see our mother to secure a quit-claim to a tract of wooded hill land near the town. When the rest of Colonel Murray's property had been sold by the victorious Revolutionary party, this tract was overlooked, and when a dispute arose about it, it was found that by the wills of the three Murrays, we were the rightfiU owners. My mother relused the quit-claim and tried to secure the land, but found it too vexatious and expensive an attempt, and abandoned it."

dred and twenty -five years when men of broad and farreaching views could not be obtained for this purpose. Especially in times of excitement and danger, like the period 1861-65, the services of such men as Calvin Kelton and Nathaniel Richardson were invaluable; and Athol has always had a goodly company of citizens of like ability and patriotism from which to fill the principal public offices. Few realize how largely the prosperity of the town ha.s been due to this circumstance.

March 7, 1763, the town voted " to Rais £13 6s. 8d. to provide a School, and chose Nathan Goddard, Jesse Kendall and John Oliver Committee to hire a school Master, and voted to divide the School Money by the River, and those that live on the south side to have what they pay towards the sum raised, and those that live on the north side to have what they pay towards said sum." This was the first action of the town in relation to schools, and it seems to indicate that the same master was expected to teach on the two sidfs of the river alternately.

As bearing upon the matter of obedience to law, the item following has interest: May 24, 1764, the town " voted to David Twitchel the money that was taken for Fines the last year for Breach of Sabbath."

At the same meeting, under the article relating to providing a school, the town voted to provide a school and to divide the school money as before; also "chose Robert Young, John Oliver and John Farbank, Comitte, to take care of and provide for the school on the south bank of the river, and John Haven, Samuel Morton and Nathan Goddard Committy on the north side." Eight hours were also made to constitute a day's work on the highways.

In 1764 the town voted not to send a representative to the General Court. In 1766 the town voted "to build two School Houses and to reconsider the vote." Then it was voted to divide the town into five " Squadrons," whicli was also reconsidered. Later it was " voted to build two School Houses, one on the West Hill, between Aaron Smith's and Ichabod Dexter's ; the other on East Hill, at the head of Capt. Field Lain (so called); and the above houses are to be built sixteen foot wide, and eighteen foot long, and six foot and half stud." Separate committees were appointed "to set men to work" lor the erection of each house. Later, during the same year, it was " voted to raise £26 13«. -id. to build two school-houses, and that men should be allowed to work out their Raits on the School Houses at two shillings and four pence pr day."

In 1767 a vote was passed to sell the school lands and the ministerial lands, with the consent of the pastor for the latter sale, and to have five pounds and four shillings of the money granted for highways "worked out on the Burying Places."

In 1770, £6 were raised to provide a "stock of amonition lor the town," the people evidently beginning to anticipate the conflict which was soon to arise with the mother country. The same year it was " voted to have a school kepted at the south end of Meeting House hill, and one at the north end; one on the east part of the town ; one at the southwest part; one on West hill, and one on Chestnut hill," "each part to enjoy the benefit of the money they pay for school in}^."

In 1771 it waa voted not to set a new meetinghouse on the site of the old one on The Street, but to place it "between the Slow on John Brooks' lott, near the mill brook, and the little new bridge in said lott, on the east side of the County Road." After a recess of one hour and a half, this action was made more definite by explaining in a vote that the meeting house was to stand " near the southeast corner of corn mill lot (so called), the east side of the road, and said lot now owned by John Brooks, of Lancaster, and is the plot of land next and near a little slow," etc., all of which was doubtless more easily comprehended one hundred and eighteen years ago than it can be by the reader to-day.

The question of dividing the town so that the west part of it might constitute a town by itself, which was submitted to this meeting, was decided in the negative.

A little later, during the same year, it was voted til raise one hundred and twenty pounds to build a meeting-house to be forty-six feet wide and fifty-six long. In July, of the same year, the location of the house was still under discussion, when it was " voted tb prefix a spot to sit a new meeting-house and to sit it within thirty rods north of the place where it was placed in January." The next month the town " voted to refer it [the location] to a Committee that they shall choose to prefix a spot for the inhabitants of Athol to set a meeting-House," and under this vote the committee chosen consisted of " Capt. Oliver Witt, of Paxton ; Capt. Stephen Maynard, of Westborough ; and Col. John Whitcom, of Boldton," doubtless Bolton. The report of this committee, dated January 28, 1772, was in favor of " sitting said Meeting-House on a small rise of land on the west side of the County Road on the north side or adjoining some hewed timber prepared for a house."

This location is supposed to be the one finally adopted, which was upon the north end of what is now the Common, in the Upper Village. From the various measures taken by the town in 1772 it would appear that the erection of the new house on the spot indicated above was commenced and carried forward during the earlier part of that year, although there was not a little dissatisfaction with the doings of the building committee.

the town " Voted to reserve the pew ground on the west side of the pulpit nearest the pulpit for the use of the Ministry." Also "Voted that each man should Pick his pew according to his pay to the meeting-house on his real and personal estate." Also " Voted that each man that draws a pew shall build his own pew." To understand these votes it is to be remembered that a hundred and twenty-five years ago it was customary in our country towns, after the floor of a new church was laid, to sell, usually at auction, what was called the " pew ground," which was a certain space marked ott' for the location of a pew. Generally, at the first sale the parts of the floor adjacent to the walls of the edifice were disposed of, leaving the interior portion to be filled with cheaply constructed seats for such as did not erect or occupy pews. Each one purchasing or drawing pew ground was expected to build his pew at his own expense and in a style agreeable to his taste and the amount of money he could aft'ord for such a purpose. A meeting-house furnished in this manner, as a matter of course, must have presented, for a considerable period, a singular and unsightly appearance with its vacant spaces, long seats and various styles of workmanship. No paint was used to bring the difterent kinds of lumber employed in pew construction to a common color - indeed, no paint at all upon the inside work, excepting upon the pulpit and on the window-casings.

May 19, 1778, the town " Voted to meet in the new meeting-house the first Sabbath Day in July next." In June of the same year the town accepted a plan for pews in the galleries, and " Voted that the selectmen desire Mr. Humfray to preach a lecture in the new meeting-house before the first Siibbath in July next."

During the years in which the location and erection of this house of worship occupied so much of the attention of the people, the work of relocating and building roads and constructing new and better bridges went on uninterruptedly, and, considering the number of the people and the straitened circumstances of many among them, the appropriations made for all public purposes were liberal. Foundations were to be laid and almost everything was to be done, but money was not abundant.

We are now approaching a period when new and most important duties devolved upon the town officers and the entire population of Athol, for the whole Province and the whole people of the thirteen Colonies were beginning to feel the pressure of British encroachments. March 7, 1774, Deacon Aaron Smith, James Stratton, Jr., and James Oliver were chosen selectmen, and July 7th, of the same year, "after very close and serious Debates on what measures were most likely to affect a deliverance from the burdens and oppressions that America in general, and this Province in particular, are laboring under, it was unanimously agreed to enter into a League or

Covenant, binding ourselves to Kenounce the use and consumption of all goods that shall arrive in America from Grate Britain from and after the last day of August next ensuing, untill the act of blocking up the harbor of Boston shall be repealed, and we' restored to the free use and enjoyment of our national and charter rights, or untill other measures shall be adopted by the Body of the people or the General Congress of the Colonies that is soon to meet, that shall be thought more likely to affect a Deliverance." At the same meeting a Committee of Correspondence wiw chosen, consisting of Deacon Aaron Smitli, William Bigelow, Josiah Goddard, Captain John Haven, Ephraim Stock well, James Oliver, Abner Graves, James Stratton, Jr., and Daniel Lamson. The other towns in the county of Worcester having appointed similar committees, a general meeting of these was held in Worcester, August 0, 1774, and continued by adjournment. At this meeting resolutions were passed, expressing true allegiance to His Majesty, George III., declaring that the people of the Colonies should enjoy the same rights as His Majesty's subjects in Great Britain, claiming the right to originate here the laws under which the people of this Province shall live, deprecating the attacks recently made upon their chartered privileges which place their lives and property at the disposal of the British Government, declaring the closing of the Port of Boston a most unjust and cruel act, and then asserting in the plainest language that it was the duty of all Americans, especially of the people of this Province, " to save our money, encourage our own manufactures, and reform our manners" by non-consumption of " Brittish Goods," all of which " will have a tendency to convince our brethren in Britain that more is to be gained in the way of Justice by our friendship and affection than by extortion and arbitrary power."

When these resolutions were read in open townmeeting in Athol, September 2, 1774, they were " accepted and ordered on record." A few days before this action, viz., on August 25th, the town held a very important meeting, and passed unanimously

The 7th is as follows : " Resolved, That if any person shall accept a commission or post of office to serve under the new Establishment (that is, British regulations then going into force), he ought to be looked upon and treated as an enemy to his country ; as he thereby is joined with, and lending a helping hand to those who are endeavoring to enslave us."

In 1774, September 29th, the town " Voted to inlist thirty men, exclusive of officers, to send in case of an alarm," and later, under the same article, they " Voted to have two companies of Militia in the town, and that the division of the aforesaid companies be made by the River." Also " Voted to rais sixteen pounds, Lawful money, to provide a town stock of ammunition.'' William Bigelow was chosen as a delegate to attend a Congress, called to meet at Concord on the second Tuesday of October, 1774, and also to represent the town in the adjourned Provincial Congress, to assemble November 23d of the same year at Cambridge.

On the nth of January, 1775, the town "Voted that we do approve of and adopt the non-importation agreement Recommended by the Continental Congress." At the same meeting a Committee of Inspection was chosen, which consisted of .lohn Haven, James Stratton, Jr., William Bigelow, Deacon Aaron Smith, Hiram Newhall, .losiah Goddard and James Oliver. The business of this committee, according to the warrant under which it was raised, was " to see that the Resolves of the Continental and Provincial Congresses are faithfully observed."

At that stage of the great conflict which was impending, hardly any other town office imposed upon those who held it such grave responsibilities as confronted those Committees of Inspection.

Generally they were composed of men in middle life, men active, energetic, fearless and eminently patriotic. In their respective towns they were expected to maintain a sleepless vigilance over all the interests involved in self-government and the deliverance of the Province and country from British oppression. It ought to be borne in mind that in the beginning of the struggle for liberty and, to a considerable extent, through all the vicissitudes of that

1 Upon the west side of Pleasant Street, and .almost within llie present limits of the Upper Village, there stood the ancient tavern of Atliol, kept in the Uevohltionary times by a man named W'ard. Tradition Buys that he and his family held to the King's party, for whicli reason a guard was stationed at one or more points in tlie vicinity, and als*> iipun the canseway east of tlie tavern, - then the highway from Tlie Street to IJoston was laid from tlie tavern east across tlie swamp that is now covered by Lake Kllis. The object of this guard wjts to discover, if possi- Iile, whether there was any communication between the Ward family and Tories in the eastern parts of the connty. Whether this precautionary measure was followed by any practical results is unknown, but the whule movement shows that at the commencement of tlie war the people of Athol were ready at all luizarils to nuiiutaii] what lln-y deemed their iualienable rights.

contest, there was hardly a town in New England that had not a number of Tories. Some of these were men of property, education and influence, while others were bold adventurers, determined to make money, however much the people generally might sufl^er. Both of these classes needed watching, and the Committees of Inspection were expected to discover and thwart their plans as far as possible. Un-' der the restrictions imposed by the action of the Continental and Provincial Congresses with regard to the non-importation of goods from Great Britain, and tlie abandonment of their use by the people, many were restive, and some of these were ready to sacrifice almost everything for the gratification of their desires. Especially was it deemed hard to be deprived of tea, and the demand for this article led not a few unprincipled men to run great risks in furnishing it secretly to such as would purchase it. Small traders, with bags of tea on horseback, spread themselves over the country, and in almost every town would find some one to aid them in their dishonorable enterprise. The encounters of such men with the Committees of Inspection occasioned very sensational scenes in various places.'

There is a tradition that, influenced Ijy their passion for tea, some even of the patriotic ladies of New England would secretly procure it, and stop up the key holes of their doors while the fragrant herb was steeping over the coals, lest they should be betrayed by tlie well-known vapor.

As the cloud of war became more portentous, tlie people of Athol were found furnishing and equipping soldiers, and supplying provisions for the Continental Army. There was no backwardness, no hesitation, but a noble spirit of self-sacrifice animated them.

If it were possible, a full record of the soldiers that this town furnished during the War of the Revolution should here be presented. It would be pleasant to know to what companies and regiments each of them belonged, under what commanders they fought, in what battles they were engaged, what feats of valor they performed, and how many of them survived the hardships and perils they encountered ; but this cannot be satisfactorily done till months and years shall be spent in sorting and arranging the ancient documents that are in the possession of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. It is to be remembered that during the war, soldiers were often transferred from one

' One uf tlie iiioi^t obnoxious of these Tory peddlers in Soutbwestern New Uanipsliire wus Breed liaclielor, a notorious character, who in ITTlj visited a number of towns to dispose of liis contraband goods. EnronntiTing some members of the Committees of Inspection from Fit/,- William and Marlborough, who were watching for him, Baclielor had tlie temerity to strike Mr. Tucker, one of the Marlborough conunittee, with a club that he carried in hia hand. Mr. Tucker was wounded by the blnw, when the miscreant rode otl" as fust us possible. Being pursued, he was brought back, and the pecuniary benefit derived from his venture w:is very small. A complaint was made out against him and presented tti the tleueral Assembly uf the colony of N'ew Hampshire by the Fitzwilliarii rnmmittee of Insjiectioli, Ijul be s,jon disappeared.

company to another, companies from one regiment to others, regiments from one division to another, and that not unfrequently all the records of these changes were made upon loose scraps of paper. Books of record for military use were few during the Revolutionary VVar.'-

Sir ; - By virtue of an express from Gein'I Warner in which i am Directed to detach every Sixth mau out of my Kegimelit to go to the releaf of our llistressed Breatheren at the westward,

1 do Hearby Direct and Order you fortb-with with-out the Least Delay and with the utmost t'lspatch to Det'ich Every Sixth mau out of the Training Baud and alarm List of your Company for the purpose atibres'd and See that Uiey are actpiipt according to Law with armea ammunition also with Kittles and Cooking utensils. The Selectmen are Jhrected to acquip those that are not acriuiped, you are also to Detach one Corporal. -\nd when you have so Done you are to marcli them to Petersham on inonday the Twenty Eight day of this Instant July to meet on the Pal'aid near the Meeting House in said Town at nine o'clock in the forenoon, you are also to take the command of the mtn Detached from captains Nye, llenery and Lord's Compatiys, Together with your own Detachment. .\nd from s' Petersham yon are to make your Route By the way of Bennington where you are to receive further orders from Colo, dishing, you are to Return me a List of the names of those men Detached from voui Company Inimediately.

This company was in the battle of Bennington, and afterward captured in New Jersey a British detachment, one less in number, without firing a shot. In the terrible conflict of White Plains two of its men were killed who bore the Athol names of Morse and (ioddard. The first pastor of Athol, Rev. James Humphrey, has left this record respecting them : " .Mr. Earl Cutting, their townsman and messmate, was between them when they fell." Tradition adds that one of them, when wounded, leaped over a fence and died ivithout uttering a word.^

The following will throw light on the distribiitiim of the Athol soldiers in the Continental Army, as well as upon the unselfish spirit by which they were actuated in this service. Their wages were paid by the town :

Athol, in the State of Massacliuselts bay ; the men fur the war for the years 177."!, 177l'> .V 1777. Minute men who went to Cambridge were paid >i shillings each :

2 So far as know ii. New Hampshire is the only one of the original thirteen States that has entered systematically and thoroughly upon the work of arranging and printing its an;ient State papers and Revolutionary rolls. Many of these were edited and carried through the press under the suiiervision of the late Rev. Dr. Bonton, of Concord, X. II., while the work upon the old documents of the Revolution is now ably conducted by IIoli. Isaac W. Hauiniond. \ copy of each volume as printed is deposited with the clerk of each town and city.

Stuckwell was the grandfather of the late George Sprague, of .\tliol, who had in his possession, in Isii'.t, the original document from which the order inserted above was copied. The lieutenant of the company was Benjamin Townsend. grandfather of the late Col. Thomas Townsend.

Four months^ men to Dorchester, 49. per month. Two months' men to Tarrytown, 20s. perraontli. Three months' men to " the Jerseys," 20s, per month. Two months' men to Khode Island, Ss. per montli. Six weeks' men to Bennington, 20s. per month. *' Larrum " men to " Williainston," 8 days, Ss. per month. Three months' men to "iSarratogue," 15«. per month. To Fort Edward, 4 weeks, 18s. per month.

It appears from the town records that soldiers were furnished, equipped and paid in like manner through all the years of the war ; and before it ended it was doubtle.s3 true of Athol, as it was of many towns of New England, that nearly every able-bodied man was, at some period of the struggle, enrolled in the army. It may be added that this service embraced, very often, young men who had reached the age of fifteen or sixteen years only. In 1778 more than fifteen hundred pounds were raised at one time to pay wages to the soldiers. The requisitions of the province upon the town for beef and other supplies for the army were cheerfully and, in general, promptly met.

How all these burdens were sustained for so many years without financial ruin it is not easy to understand. Only the strictest economy in household expenses, and untiring industry and frugality on the part of all the people, could have enabled the town to meet such a crisis. It is to be borne in mind that at the close of the war the population at Athol could not have much exceeded five or six hundred. The currency of this, and of the neighboring provinces, had depreciated to such an extent that as many as ninety dollars in paper money were often exchanged for a single dollar in silver. The proposed improvements upon the farms had been seriously interrupted by the absence of so many of the men in the army, while every necessary article manufactured elsewhere, could be purchased only at an enormous price. Athol was then far from any large and regularly supplied market. The people were mostly farmers, but to transport the surplus products of the farm and the forest to market was a slow and expensive process. The hills over which the highways passed - especially on the east and west roads - were long and steep ; and the roads themselves were narrow and poor ; yet the town was, on the whole, prosperous. Before the close of the century it could meet its liabilities, and debt pressed less heavily upon the people. The farms showed signs of permanent improvements ; small manufacturing establishments were projected - if not actually built - upon the banks of the streams, schoolhouses were provided for the several " squadrons," and the range of studies enlarged, while the military spirit was not suffered to die out in the town for want of organizations and public encouragements.