Gilead, Me. July 14 (Special) —
Gilead
is one hundred years old today and the event has been celebrated in
great style for so small a town. Her sons and daughters have been
with us, and all have vied with each other in doing honor to the fine
old town that they love so well.
This matter has
been agitated for a long time and it
has been the settled purpose of our people to celebrate the event in as
fine style as possible. They have all hands taken hold with a
will, and the result has been a great success. The expense has
been partly borne by the town, while private contributions have served
to swell the fund to a point where a creditable display could be
assured.
Gilead has
produced noted men and women and there
are historic spots in town. The old Peabody house, built in the
year 1800, still stands in an excellent state of preservation and is
now owned by Mrs. Wm. R. Peabody and used by her as a summer
home. It has always been a family possession, and none of their
assets are held in greater veneration than this stately old time
mansion. A daughter, Ada Louise Peabody, is now the wife of Prof.
A. J. Roberts of Colby University, and this is likewise their summer
home.
Away back in the early days of the last century,
this house was used as a tavern, and the old sign which once swung in
front is still retained as one of the souvenirs of the place. The
house was built by Thomas Peabody and a son of the same name was the
landlord here in 1827. We herewith present a half tone picture of
the old mansion and it will be seen to be an ideal spot to pass the
summer months.
Peabody
Tavern, Gilead, Maine, 1895; courtesy of
Joanne Peabody Stewart
At the first meeting called to form a permanent
organization to have the matter of arrangements for this celebration in
charge, Mr. R. D. Hastings of Auburn was chosen president. While
Mr. Hastings is not exactly a native of Gilead, he is a son by
adoption, having married Miss Ella Josephine Coffin, the accomplished
daughter of Mr. and Mrs. S. A. Coffin of this place. Mr. Hastings
is also a heavy property owner and tax payer of the town and hence his
selection as president of the day has been in excellent taste and
judgment. The other committees chosen were as follows: F. B.
Coffin, secretary.
Executive Committee—H. P. Wheeler, chairman; S. A.
Coffin, E. R. Bennett, Rev. L. M. Bosworth, Albert Bennett, A. D.
Wight, E. T. Peabody, A. A. Newell and Josiah Heath.
Committee on Food—Mrs. John Newell, Mrs. E. R.
Bennett, Mrs. John Richardson, Mrs. G. H. Coffin, Mrs. F. B. Coffin,
Mrs. H. P. Wheeler, Miss Cornelia Bennett, Mrs. A. D. Wight, Mrs. E. T.
Peabody, and Mrs. T. G. Lary.
Music and Parade—Milan Bennett, Bert Harriman,
Herbert Wheeler, R. I. Peabody, L. H. Watson.
Committee on Speakers—H. P. Wheeler, Albert Bennett.
Committee on Sports—A. A. Newell, A. D. Wight,
Josiah Heath.
Reception Committee—Rev. L. M. Bosworth, J. W.
Bennett, Mrs. L. M. Bosworth, Mrs. T. G. Lary.
Early Thursday morning the guests began to
arrive. The morning trains from both directions brought large
delegations, while hundreds of people came in by team from the
surrounding towns.
The reception committee was kept busy in looking
after these visitors and seeing that they were made to feel they were
among friends.
The exercises of the forenoon commenced with the
formation of the parade immediately after the arrival of the Portland
train at eleven o'clock. President R. D. Hastings was master of
ceremonies and acted as marshal of the day. He was in uniform and
finely mounted and did the honors with military precision.
On account of the sparsely settled community no
attempt was made to form a big parade, but nevertheless it was a most
creditable affair. First came the Gilead Cornet Band, led by
Milan Bennett, and the music that they made was most inspiring.
These musicians were followed by all the school children of the town in
line of march. There were some seventy or seventy-five in line,
and dressed as they were in white they made a pretty appearance.
The invited guests stood next in line and these were
very numerous. Old residents of the town were there in numbers,
and they marched as proudly as did their sons and grandchildren.
The Indian rangers and cowboys led by Possum Jack
made one of the features of the day. They were all mounted and,
armed as they were to the teeth, presented a most formidable
appearance. As no one cared to stir them up, no shots were fired
by them and no one was killed. This was very fortunate as from
their wild looks it was evident that they were spoiling for a fight and
at the least provocation would doubtless have opened fire on the crowd.
The line of march was taken up directly to Hastings'
Grove. Here a platform had been erected, tables spread and seats
arranged. After a short social intercourse, Chairman Hastings
rapped to order and a blessing pronounced by Rev. Mr. Bosworth, the
local pastor. It was a fine dinner that the committee had
prepared and it was a big crowd to eat it. Baked beans, cold
meats and condiments were all there, and the dinner hour was one of the
most enjoyable of the day. Reminiscences and old time stories
were indulged in, and many anecdotes were brought out from the hidden
nooks of memory where perchance they had lain for years. It was a
full hour before the banquet closed, and then another hour of social
chat and games followed. The band gave fine music and all went
merry as a marriage bell.
Promptly at two o'clock, President Hastings rapped
to order and said: "Ladies and Gentlemen—As our sires of old were wont
to ask of the Creator Divine guidance in all their undertakings, so we
as worthy sons of worthy sires see fit to open the exercises on this
Memorial Day by asking the Rev. Mr. Bosworth to lead us in prayer."
President Hastings then said: "Ladies and
Gentlemen—Had the executive committee of these centennial day exercises
asked of me the price of pulp wood, spruce dimension, or pine logs,
some who best know me would say they had applied for such information
at a proper source; that a correct and ready reply would be
forthcoming; but when they ask me to preside at their centennial
gathering I can see but one excuse for that selection, which is best
illustrated by an incident which happened in this town some years
ago. Deacon Burbank was crossing the Androscoggin River in a
ferry boat when the rope broke and the boat, the deacon and the
ferryman all went down stream; the deacon fell to his knees and began
to pray, when the ferryman sang out, 'Deacon, I know the Lord is good,
but we have got to do something in this case to save ourselves.'
So, in this celebration, we all have got to take hold and do our part
to make a success of it, and my failings in this position would be more
pronounced and conspicuous than in any other within their gift.
"Gilead since her incorporation has had born to her
many worthy sons and daughters, many of whom have joined the silent
majority, some of whom are still in active life, and your committee had
hoped up to the eleventh hour that many more were to be with us today,
conspicuous among whom is His Honor, Judge Henry Peabody of Portland,
one of the judges of the supreme court of the State of Maine, who at
the last moment was obliged to decline your committee's invitation to
address you today.
"Another instance is that of Prof. John Wight of New
York, who has sailed or is to sail in a short time for foreign parts,
and is unable to be with us.
"But nothing daunted, your committee turned to the
fair daughters referred to above and found that Gilead, through them,
had also as famed a son-in-law as sons; that one of them could and
would be present today, prepared to address you historically about
Gilead from the days of Peabody's Patent to the present time, and it
gives me great pleasure to present to you Prof. Arthur J. Roberts of
Colby University, who will now deliver the address of the day."
Prof. Roberts was received with a volley of applause
that continued for several minutes. This gentleman is no stranger
here. His wife is of the famous Peabody stock of the town, and
here in the old Peabody house their summer months are passed. It
was a pleasure for him to talk on such a theme, and to do this no
better selection could have been made. He is a fine public
speaker, and on this occasion, his address was largely of a historical
nature. In fact, so completely did he cover this field that his
speech deserves to be put into permanent form as a history of the
town. Prof. Roberts' address will be found elsewhere in this
issue.
Then came selections by the Libby Sisters' quartet,
of Gorham, N.H. These gifted young ladies were natives of Gilead,
and it was especially fortunate that they could be present on this
occasion. Prof. Scott White also gave a most pleasing vocal solo
which was greatly appreciated.
The reading of the act of incorporation was by H. P.
Wheeler. This ancient document, with its quaint style of
phraseology, was given in a very fine manner by Mr. Wheeler, and it
made one of the long-to-be-remembered features of the day.
There was more playing by the band, and then
followed short remarks by old residents and visitors. These were
mostly of a reminiscent and congratulatory nature, but were none the
less welcome and appreciated.
The field sports during the day have been numerous
and interesting. There have been ball games, bag, wheelbarrow and
three-leg races, all of which have been closely watched and the victors
applauded. In fact, the entire day has been taken up in a
constant round of excitement, and time has never for a single moment
been without something to instruct or amuse. Scores of people
have visited the fine residence and grounds of Mr. J. W. Bennett, and
these have been received and entertained in the mst hospitable
manner. Mr. Bennett's place is a famous one. He has 3,000
acres of land, the greater part of which is heavily wooded. His
lawn and gardens are very fine, while his house is a museum of art and
antiquity. Here are some rare old linens woven by his mother on a
hand loom in the long ago, and it is unnecessary to say that they are
kept as sacred mementoes. Old china and pewter ware is here in
plenty, and many other objects of interest can be seen in Mr. Bennett's
establishment. All these were kindly shown and each visitor was
made to feel at home.
Residents and guests alike greatly enjoyed the
day. The scenery around this village is especially fine, as this
is located in the foothills of the White Mountains, whose spurs are all
around. Bear Mountain and old Cambo are but a short distance
away, while the location of the little village by the mouth of Wild
River is indeed most charming. It has been a day of general
rejoicing and one that will long be remembered alike by residents and
guests.
[from
the
Lewiston Evening Journal;
Thursday, July 14, 1904]
The
History of Gilead
Address of
Prof. A. J. Roberts
Grand
Trunk Railway station, Gilead, circa 1895
Gilead, Me. July 14 (Special) — The chief feature of the formal program
today, in celebration of the 100th anniversary of the town of Gilead,
was the historical address by Prof. Arthur J. Roberts of Colby
College. Prof. Roberts spoke as follows:
The material progress of the nineteenth century
eclipsed that of any previous century. This progress was notable
throughout the civilized world, but the most extraordinary
manifestations of it were displayed in this country. It was due
primarily to the fact that two hitherto unused natural forces, steam
and electricity, were enlisted in the service of man. These
forces made possible the development of the resources of the world and
furnished the means of distributing the products of mine and mill, of
field and forest, among mankind. Had it not been for the
discovery of the manifold uses of steam and electricity, industrial
operations of almost every sort would still be conducted on a small
scale and with primitive appliances.
The agricultural development of the great middle
West, for example, would have been absolutely impossible had it not
been for steam transportation, which brought the corn field and wheat
field within easy reach of markets 2,000 or 10,000 miles away.
Any of the great industries that flourish today would in such
conditions as obtained a century ago speedily cease to exist.
Unaided either by steam or electricity, ingenuity and inventiveness
could
avail but little. Unless there are still other natural forces, as
yet undiscovered, which may be subdued to man's will and made his
servants, it is safe to predict that the nineteenth century will never
be surpassed in point of relative material advance by any century to
come. It is not at all unlikely that a thousand years from now
men will look back on the century just closed as the era in which the
human race made its most important beginnings of that final and
complete conquest of the material world, which we believe the future is
to bring.
The progress of the nineteenth century in social,
political and religious lines is not so easy to determine.
Perhaps it is too soon to attempt it. We stand too near events to
appreciate their significance. We cannot see the woods for the
trees. As we read of strikes and riots and lynchings, of the
lawlessness of capital and of labor, of regiments of millionaires and
armies of tramps, of bosses and boodlers in politics, of the breaking
down of ancient faiths and the loss of ideals which the fathers
cherished—as we read of all this it sometimes seems as if we were going
backward and not forward. A bit of driftwood caught in a swirling
eddy looks as if it were going up stream, but all the time the
resistless current of the river is bearing it toward the sea. So
what seems to us to be retrogression in the social, political and
religious life of America may be but circling eddies on the surface of
the mighty stream of progress moving steadily onward.
The nineteenth century, and especially the last
third of it, was remarkable for the development of educational
facilities. Colleges and other higher institutions of learning
multiplied and displayed marvelous growth in numbers and wealth.
Increasingly vast sums were spent for the support of common
schools. A longer school year, better trained teachers, ampler
equipment, enriched courses of study—all this, and more besides, the
nineteenth century saw accomplished in the field of public
education. But advance is not everywhere apparent. In this
town, for example, there were, fifty or seventy-five years ago, five or
six schoolhouses full of children; today two schoolhouses have each a
handful. The present buildings and teachers are no doubt better
than those of earlier times, but, after all, there is nothing so
necessary to the success of the schools as plenty of children.
All the modern improvements in education but poorly compensate the
district school for the departed glory of its overflowing numbers.
In 1772 Oliver Peabody and John Peabody, Jr., of
Andover, Mass., and John Bodwell and Samuel Bodwell of Methuen
petitioned the legislature of the province of Massachusetts for
permission to purchase at a fair price and upon reasonable conditions a
tract of land on the Androscoggin River west of Sudbury Canada
(Bethel). One of these petitioners, Capt. John Peabody, fought at
Louisburg and Ticonderoga, and the others may have served in the
provincial army; but it is evident that in their address to the
legislature they did not refer to any services to the province which
should entitle them to special consideration. They wished to buy
the land, probably with no intention of settling upon it themselves,
but for purposes of speculation or for the satisfaction of the land
hunger so common among early New Englanders. The following
transcript from the court records in the Massachusetts archives gives
an abstract of the petition and the reply of the legislature:
June 30, 1772. A Petition of Oliver Peabody
and John Peabody, jun. of Andover, John Bodwell and Samuel Bodwell of
Methuen—
Setting forth—
That there is a Tract of Province Land on
Androscoggin River adjoining to the Westerly part of a township granted
to Capt. Fuller and others, of four miles one way and three miles the
other which is so Situated as that no Township can be now had there so
as to include it. And praying that the same may be granted to
them for such Sum of Money and upon such Conditions as this Court shall
order.
In the House of Representatives. Resolved that
the prayer of this Petition be granted, and that the Petitioners have
liberty to lay out the Land prayed for at the westerly end of a
Township granted to Josiah Richardson, Esq. and others on both sides of
the Androscoggin River as far westward as the Land will admit so as not
to interfere with any former Grant or with private property, and that
they return a plan thereof taken by a Surveyor and Chainman on Oath to
this Court within twelve months from the first day of July 1772 for
confirmation. And that they also give Bond with sufficient
sureties to the Province Treasurer or his successor to settle the same
with fifteen Families, each of which within six years from the return
of the plan to have built a good House of twenty feet by eighteen and
seven feet stud and have cleared for pasturage or tillage five Acres
each; that they also out of the premises grant one hundred Acres for
the first Ordained Protestant Minister, one hundred Acres for the
Ministry and one hundred Acres for the use of a School, within said
Grant; and further that they give Bond with sufficient sureties to the
Treasurer to pay to him or his successor for the use of the Province
such a Sum of Money as the Land to plan shall contain shall amount to,
at the rate of three hundred pounds for a Township of the Contents of
six miles square within one year from the confirmation of the Grant.
In Council, Read and Concurred.
Consented to by the
Governor.
In accordance with the directions of the
legislature, the petitioners prepared such a plan and the following
year presented it for final acceptance and confirmation. The
survey showed that the tract contained a little over 6,000 acres,
besides about 4,000 acres of river and mountain which the petitioners
were not expected to pay for. At the rate fixed by the
legislature, £300 for each six miles square, the purchase price
of what came to be called Peabody's Patent was a little more than
£80, or about $400. The results of the survey, the
conditions of the sale, and the price to be paid are set forth in the
following transcript from the court records:
Saturday
June 19, 1773
In the House of Representatives—
Resolved that the plan annexed of the
contents of six thousand two hundred and twenty-six Acres exclusive of
three thousand nine hundred and fifty six Acres and thirty one pole
contained in Mountains and Rivers, laid out pursuant to a Grant made to
Oliver Peabody and John Peabody Jun. of Andover, John Bodwell and
Samuel Bodwell of Methuen June 27, 1772, lying at the westerly end of a
Township granted to Josiah Richardson Esq. and others, bounded at the
Southwesterly corner with a large high Rock on the eastwardly line of a
Township called Shelburne, thence on said line North eight degrees east
by the needle three hundred and twenty pole to Androscoggin River, then
crossing said River and continuing the same course till eight hundred
and seventy two pole be completed from the Rock aforesaid to a Spruce
tree marked P B, thence East by the needle one thousand six hundred and
fifty four pole to a hemlock tree marked P B, thence South twenty
degrees East three hundred and seventy pole to the Northwest corner of
a Township granted to Josiah Richardson aforesaid, thence on the same
course crossing the westerly end of an Island in said River five
hundred and ninety pole to a Beach tree marked P B, thence West by the
needle over a large mountain two thousand and eighty pole to the Rock
first mentioned, be accepted and hereby is confirmed to the aforesaid
Oliver Peabody, John Peabody, Jun., John Bodwell & Samuel Bodwell
their Heirs and Assigns forever; provided they give Bond with
sufficient sureties to the Province Treasurer or his successor to
settle the same with fifteen families, each of which within six years
from the date hereof to have built a good House of twenty feet by
eighteen and seven feet stud and have cleared for pasturate or tillage
five Acres each; that they also out of the premises grant one hundred
Acres for the first ordained Protestant Minister, one hundred Acres for
the Ministry and one hundred Acres for the use of a School within said
Grant and further that they give Bond with sufficient sureties to the
Treasurer to pay him or his successor for the use of the province the
sum of eighty pounds, one shilling and seven pence within one year from
the date hereof; provided also that it doth not exceed the quantity of
six thousand two hundred and twenty six Acres exclusive of three
thousand nine hundred and fifty six Acres of Mountains and Rivers as
aforesaid nor interfere with any former Grant.
In Council, read and concurred.
Consented to by the Governor.
One very important condition of the sale the
purchasers certainly did not fulfill, [was] that of settling the Patent
within six years with fifteen families. In some way, however,
they managed to hold the land, perhaps by securing an extension of
time; though in either case we should expect to find some entry in the
Massachusetts court records in regard to it. But there is no
reference to Peabody's Patent between 1773, the year of the sale, and
1804, the year of the incorporation of the town. It is perhaps
not unreasonable to suppose that in the political disturbances of the
time the affairs of the province were rather loosely administered, and
that these owners of a wilderness tract were allowed to remain in
undisturbed possession, although they had failed to meet a very
important condition of their purchase.
Gilead,
from the 1880 Atlas of Oxford
County, Maine
In Williamson's
History
of Maine there is an extract from a manuscript letter of Abraham
Burbank, Esq., containing some interesting information about the
earliest settlement of Peabody's Patent. He wrote that the Patent
had in it two families in 1781, but that both the men were killed by
Indians on August 4 of that year. The hostile raid of Canadian
Indians, in the employ of the British, which resulted in the death of
these two pioneer settlers and in the captivity of Segar and the Clarks
of Sudbury Canada is described at length in Segar's autobiographical
pamphlet published at Paris [Maine] in 1823, and reprinted in Lapham's
History of Bethel. Segar says
that on the 3d of August, 1781, there came six Indians armed with guns,
tomahawks and scalping knives. Segar, Lieut. Johnathan Clark and
Capt. Eleazar Twitchell, working together in a clearing, were taken
prisoners by five of these Indians, carried to Clark's house—which was
near by—and securely bound. While the Indians were plundering the
house, the sixth Indian appeared with another prisoner, Capt. Benjamin
Clark. Before the march for Canada was begun, Capt. Twitchell
managed to break away from his captors and successfully eluded
pursuit. The Indians loaded their three captives with the plunder
and with them late in the afternoon started up the valley. When
they had gone two or three miles darkness came on and they were obliged
to camp for the night. What happened the next day in Peabody's
Patent may best be recounted in Segar's own words:
Early in the
morning we were ordered to travel up the river. We came to a
place called Peabody's Patent, now Gilead. We went to a house
owned by Mr. James Pettingill. He was at a little distance from
his house, when we came to it. He was making towards the house,
but, seeing the Indians at the house, he stopped. The Indians
discovered him and called to him to come to them; and he did.
They then searched the house, and they found some sugar and in a tub
some cream. They put the sugar into the tub of cream, and they
fell to eating like hogs, but they gave us none to eat. Mrs.
Pettingill and a number of children were in the house, but they
received no abuse from them. After a short stay here the Indians
told Mr. Pettingill that he must go with them to Canada. He told
them he had no shoes. They searched the house, but they found
none. They then told him that he might tarry at home, but charged
him not to leave the house. We went on, I should suppose, a mile
or more, and we were ordered to stop. Two of the Indians went
back, and soon returned, and Mr. Pettingill with them; we traveled some
distance together. On a sudden, Mr. Pettingill was missing.
I thought they had sent him back; but they killed him about half a mile
from his house. Some days after, his wife discovered his dead
body in the bushes where they had left it. Mr. Joseph Greely
Swan, with several others from Bethel, went and buried him.
Segar goes on to say that after this melancholy
event the party went on to Shelburne, N.H., and visited the house of
Mr. Hope Austin, who had the good fortune not to be at home. They
continued their march for several miles and came to the house of Capt.
Rindge. A man by name of Poor, evidently employed by Capt.
Rindge, was killed and scalped by the Indians as he was on his way to
his work in the field. At this point the party left the
Androscoggin River and started across country for Canada.
Now what conclusions are to be drawn from the letter
of Abraham Burbank and Segar's account of the Indian raid? It
seems clear that of the two men killed by the Indians only one lived in
Peabody's Patent. If there had been any other settler in the
Patent at this time it is reasonable to suppose that the Indians would
have made him a visit, for the habitation of any such settler must have
been in the narrow valley of the Androscoggin, right in the path of the
returning raiders. Segar evidently describes all the visits the
band made on their way up the river, and there was but one in Peabody's
Patent. The fact that Pettingill was buried by men from Sudbury
Canada [Bethel] would seem to prove that after the death of Pettingill
there was no man left in the Patent. It is clear, then, that in
1781 there was but one family in Peabody's Patent and that this Mr.
Pettengill was the first settler in what is now the town of
Gilead. Where he came from, of whom he bought his land, whether
any descendants of his are now living, we do not know. But there
can be no doubt that the first white man to fell the forest and make a
home in this township was this pioneer who met his tragic fate one
summer day a hundred and twenty-three years ago.
The next document relating to Peabody's Patent bears
the date of 1791. It is a plan of the Patent drawn from a survey
made in that year. The land is divided into thirty-six ranges of
about equal area. Three of these are undivided and nine are owned
by a Mr. Garish, to whom the Bodwells had evidently sold their share of
the tract. The remaining twenty-four ranges are assigned to five
Peabodys: to Stephen, six; to Capt. Richard, one; to Richard, six; to
Capt. John, seven; to John, four. It is evident that these are
all non-resident land owners, and it may well be doubted if at this
time—1791—there was a single settler in the Patent. The name of
Garish does not appear among those of the incorporators or in the early
records of the town of Gilead, and the first Peabodys to settle here
were Thomas—son of one of the original patentees—who came from Bridgton
[Maine] in 1798, and Jonathan, who settled here at about the same time
and who with his two sons, Oliver and Amos, was among the incorporators.
Deacon George W. Chapman in his interesting and
valuable autobiographical sketch published in 1867 describes the early
pioneer days in this region. "In February, 1791," he writes,
"when I was eleven years old, my father journeyed to Bethel from
Methuen, Mass., with two two-horse teams, with all his family and
effects, passing through the towns of York, Gorham, Bridgton, Waterford
and Albany. From the latter place there was no traveled road, and
but one horse-team had ever passed over the ground before; and that
one, the same winter, but a short time previous. This route could
not have been traversed in the summer, as we followed the low lands,
ponds and streams, they being frozen and covered with snow. We
found a few families settled along the south banks of the Androscoggin,
in Bethel, all of whom came here on foot, and brought their effects on
horseback, on handsleds, or on their own backs. There were three
families only on the north side of the river, at this time, from Bethel
to the New Hampshire line. . . . My father went to Bethel the
year before, and cleared up a few acres of land, put in some crops, and
built a log house twenty feet square, all in one room, which
constituted the domicile for his whole family for some time, when a
partition was put up to make a sleeping room. This building we
occupied for four or five years, when he built a small frame house with
two rooms. When I was twenty-one years of age I purchased a farm
about four miles further up the river, in the town of Gilead, which I
cleared and cultivated for three years, making my home at my father's.
. . . We were pioneers in that country, and suffered many
hardships, which people of today, in any part of the State of Maine,
know nothing about by experience. There were no roads, making
traveling very tedious and often dangerous, in crossing streams and
rivers. We often had to go fifteen and twenty miles to mill, with
ox teams. Portland, seventy miles distant, was the nearest market
to sell our produce, and buy our supplies, such as salt, tea, molasses,
cotton goods, furniture, lime, etc., requiring four days' travel, and
expenses on the road, which made the avails of a loaded team very small
before we arrived home. The country was infested with bears, and
many an exciting story might be told concerning them. Previous to
our going there, serious conflicts had taken place with the Indians,
and some were straggling about the region for many years.
Sometimes the people were greatly alarmed by the report of a gun, or
other cause, but no injury was actually done by them after we went
there."
In 1800 there were settled in Peabody's Patent
twelve or fifteen families. According to the census of that year,
the population was sixty-eight. In 1804, the number of families
had increased to twenty, and the need of highways and bridges and
schools began to be imperative. The incorporation of the
plantation into a town was necessary to enable its inhabitants to raise
money for these various community uses. The following petition
was presented to the legislature of Massachusetts in 1804:
To the honorable
Senate and House of representatives of the Commonwealth of
Massachusetts in General Court assembled. We your petitioners
inhabitants of Peabody's Patent respectfully represent. That the
Proprietors of sd Patent were not obliged by the conditions of their
Grant to build a House for public Worship nor settle a Minister nor
make or maintain any Public Road through Sd Patent, and we at present
are destitute of all those Priviledges as also of the means of raising
Money for the support of Schools for the education of our Children
which we view of the highest importance not only to ourselves but the
Community at large. The number of our inhabitants does not exceed
twenty Families which extending from one extremity of this Plantation
to the other renders it indispensably necessary that a road be made and
maintained on each side of the Androscoggin River not only for our own
convenience but for the Accomodation of People who are settled above us
on sd River and have no possibility of getting to Sea Port but by
passing through this Plantation. Another Consideration which
calls for our attention to the Roads is to incourage the Travel from
Newhampshire. The Legislature of that State have caused a road to
be made at a great expence from uper Coos on Connecticut River which
leading towards Portland passes through Newhampshire and arrives at the
District of Mane at the Westerly Line of this Plantation At which place
they find their Travel totally impeded and their designs frustrated
which occasions very loud and just complaints which under our present
disorganized situation we are incapable of alleviating. Sd road
in passing through this Plantation will necessarily pass a very rapid
Stream called wild River which at certain seasons of the year rushes
from the Mountains with such impetuosity as to render it impassible in
any manner whatever. A Bridge must of course be erectid over sd
River at an expense that will for several Years require the united
efforts of the Inhabitants and Nonresident Proprietors to
accomplish. Under our numerous embarassments we are induced to
address the Honourable Legislature and lay before them our greavances
with a pleasing hope that they in their Wisdom will think fit to grant
that this Plantation may be incorporated into a Town by the name of
Gilead agreeably to the Plan herewith annexed with all the rights and
priviledges which other Incorporate[d] Towns in this Commonwealth enjoy
and with the Indulgance of being exempted from State and County Taxes
for the term of eight years flatering ourselves that by that Period
that with the smiles of Providence and our own exertions we shall be
enabled in a good measure to discharge our heavy burdens and that our
Population will increase to a degree that will enable us to contribute
our share towards the support of Government. And your petitioners
as in Duty bound shall ever pray.
Thomas
Peabody
Joseph Lary
Joseph Lary Jr.
Jonathan Peabody
Oliver Peabody
Stephen Messer
James Messer
Amos Peabody
Stephen Coffin jun
Isaac Adams
Joseph Blodget
Samuel Wheeler
Samuel Goodnough
James Davison
Michael Connor
David Bradley
John Bennet
Johnathan Blodget
Eliphalet Burbank
John Mason
The petition was
granted, and June 23, 1804, Peabody's Patent became the town of
Gilead. The first town meeting was held October 24, 1804.
Thomas Peabody, Eliphalet Burbank and Isaac Adams were chosen
selectmen. The valuation of the town was assessed at $6065.
There were twenty-five resident tax payers. The tax collector of
Gilead for 1904 must, I am sure, be tempted to wish he had been a
century earlier, for at that first town meeting it was voted "to let
out the collectorship to the lowest bidder at vendue, which was put up
and struck off to Ephraim Wight for nine cents on a dollar." At
the March meeting in 1805 the town voted $36 for the support of
schools, and for several years that was the amount of the annual
appropriation for this purpose.
In 1812, the beginning of war with England gave rise
to rumors of a hostile incursion of Canadian Indians, like that of
1781, and a town meeting was called "to see if the town will take some
measures to defend itself against her Savage Enemy in case of
invasion." It was voted to choose Ephraim Wight as an agent "to
go forth and purchase 20 pounds of powder, 80 pounds of lead and 100
flints for the purpose of defending the town against her Savage Foe."
In the summer of 1811 a special town meeting was
called to see what action the town would take in regard to building a
bridge across Wild River. It was voted at that meeting to build
the bridge and pay for it in neat stock and bread corn. The next
year, 1812, it was thought unwise to build it "under the existing state
of National Affairs." In 1813 the bridge was built. At
every town meeting for a good many years after, the bridge came up for
discussion. Every spring the river showed its resentment at the
efforts made to tame its wildness, and the bridge had to be rebuilt or
repaired every summer. At a town meeting held in 1826 for the
purpose of arranging for a purchase of necessary materials for the
rebuilding of the bridge, the sum of twenty dollars and twenty-five
cents was appropriated for thirty-two gallons of New England rum, and
the next year it was found that fifteen gallons more would be necessary
to complete the bridge. For forty years the Wild River was a
constant source of trouble and expense, but it gave the townspeople
rather frequent opportunities to consume strong drink at public
cost. The growth of temperance sentiment in the town is shown by
the fact that in 1858 when the first prohibitory law was submitted to
the people, every vote in Gilead was recorded in its favor.
The question of separation from Massachusetts was
submitted to the voters of the District of Maine in 1815, in 1816, and
in 1819. Gilead voted each time for separation, though there were
a half dozen voters who steadily opposed it. Eliphaz Chapman was
the town's delegate to the constitutional convention held at Portland
in 1819.
The town had no settled minister until 1828.
It is recorded in the town clerk's records that "A legal town meeting
was held November third, 1828, for the purpose of trying a vote to see
if the town would settle Rev'd Henry White over them as their minister
for five years and they united in voting for his settlement without any
opposition and chose James Burbank, Eliphalet Adams and Timothy Wight a
committee of arrangements at the installment." The amount of the
minister's salary is not given, but in the warrant calling the town
meeting it is stated that Mr. White is to be supported "by having one
hundred dollars paid each year by the Missionary Society and the
remainder by our funds and as before mentioned in our late subscription
paper." The settlement was not renewed by the town and the term
of Mr. White's ministry ended in 1833. He was the only minister
to be settled by the town in the corporate capacity.
In Willey's
Incidents in White Mountain History,
published in [1856], is an interesting sketch of the early religious
life of Gilead. The material for the sketch was evidently
furnished by Rev. Daniel Goodhue, who served as a supply at different
times when there was no settled minister in town. After naming
some of the incorporators of the town, the author writes:
They were all exemplary, good men,
giving a character of energy to the place. They regarded
religious institutions, and helped sustain them by their property and
example. They were a church-going people, always attending the
worship of God on the Sabbath. From the earliest time of its
settlement it has enjoyed more or less steadily the preaching of the
Gospel. Before any Christian church was planted in it, it had a
succession of missionaries, sent from different sources, who were
instrumental of great religious benefit to the people. Among
these were the Rev. Jotham Sewall, or, as he is often called, Father
Sewall, and the Rev. Samuel Hidden of Tamworth. In 1818, as a
result of the great revival in which one or both [of] the heads of
almost every family in town were hopefull converted, a Congregational
church was formed consisting of Melvin Farwell and wife, Abraham
Burbank and wife, Widow Susannah Burbank, Betsey Philbrook, John Mason,
Jr., H. Ingalls, Rhoda Stiles, Mary Peabody, and Ephraim and Seth
Wight. This church sometimes through its own efforts and
sometimes in connection with Shelburne, has had preaching most of the
time since its formation. Its regularly settled pastors have been
Rev. Henry White and Rev. Henry Richardson. Besides these, Rev.
Daniel Goodhue and others have been supplies for different portions of
the time. There is a Methodist church, also, which has been
instrumental of great religious and moral benefit to the place.
There is much that might be written of the later
history of the town. From 1861 to 1865 Gilead showed that the
self-sacrificing spirit of the pioneers was still alive, and sent
almost a third of her men of voting age to the defense of the
Union. In 1872 the suspension bridge across the Androscoggin
River was built and the two halves of the town were cemented
together. The industrial development of the town, the great
changes in the conditions of rural life so notably exemplified here,
the growing recognition of the attractions of Gilead as a place of
summer residence, all deserve the attention of the historian of these
later years. Gilead is today prosperous beyond most farming
communities. It has an honorable past. It faces a bright
future. May we emulate the virtues of those "exemplary good men"
whose work we are celebrating today, that their legacy of moral and
religious energy and strength may be handed on unimpaired to coming
generations.