worship of God at the meeting house at Hampton Town by reason of the distance from it, That there has been for some years past a meeting house erected at North Hill so called in Hampton aforesaid, where there has been preaching at times for some years past, that the charge of Supporting the Preaching there has been carried on by a few, who at the same time have paid the full of all Town Charges, That in many of your Petitioners familys there are six or seven that generally attend the publick worship of God at North Hill meeting House when there is preaching there, when at the same time not more than two or three of them at most, could attend at Town, That your Petitioners are very desirous of having the Public worship of God among them so as they and their familys may constantly attend thereon Wherefore your Petioners Humbly Pray your Excellency the Honorable the Council and House of Representatives in your Great Wisdom and Goodness to take your Petitioners Case under Consideration and to exempt your Petitioners Estates and Polls and the Polls under them ratable, from being rated towards the defreying any part of the Town Rate or Rates of Hampton afores for so long time as the Public Worship of God shall be carryed on and maintained at the said North Hill and your Petitioners as in duty bound shall ever pray &c. John Darbon Daniel marston Samuel dearbon Nathan Samborn John B. Redman [In H. of Rep., September 3, 1738, a hearing was ordered for the next session. In same, November 15, 1738, the parties were heard, and the house "Voted that the Petitioners be Poled off from Hampton old Town, and that their persons families & estates be cleared from paying to the ministry of the old Town, and from any payment to the Widdow of the Late Reverend m' Gookin, and from payment to the Town School so long as they keep and maintain an able orthodox Minister of the Gospell amongst them." The council concurred, with this amendment,-"That they be exonerated from paying to the support of a school at the old Town no longer than they support a writing & reading schoolmaster amongst themselves," and further, that they should not be discharged from paying their proportion of the grant made by Hampton to the widow of Rev. Nathaniel Gookin, who died in 1734. House concurred, and Gov. Belcher "assented." Act passed accordingly, November 17, 1738. The parish thus set off was incorporated as North Hampton November 26, 1742.-ED.] [4-212] [North Hill Parish Declaration, 1739.] To the Revd Ministers whom we have invited to be our mouth in addressing the throne of Grace For direction in the important affairs before Us & to others whom it may concernNorth hill in Hampton May 24th 1739 Rev Sir Seeing there is a misrepresentation of our designs In our present proceedings made to you by our Brethren & neighbours as tho' we were about to Involve them in charge & contention against their wills. These may inform you that our Designs & aims are to set up & support the Gosple among us which we trust will be to the Glory of God & the great advantage of our selves & families And we think we shall be able honourably to support it tho' our numbers be not increas'd. for we trust that God will bless the labour of our hands to enable us to Bear the charges of it as he has heretofore done-And it is not in our design (were it in our power) To bring any into our Society until they are willing Tho' they live never so convenient being sensible that Peace and Unity are what God is well pleased with and what will be our greater comfort & Security than larger numbersThis declaration we make & engage to Stand by and accordingly promise that we will not petition for any Parish line untill the major part within that line shall joyn in the petitionSo desiring your prayers & directions we remain Revd S your humble Servants-Sign'd by [The names are all in one hand on the document.-ED.] [4-214] [Report of Committee concerning Lines between North Hill and the old Parish, 1742.] Whereas we the subscribers with others Being appointed By the Gen' Court at there Sessions on Sept. 17th 1742 To Go To hamton old Town & north Hill Parish and see whether it be Convenient to have a Line Setled between the old Town of hamton & north hill Parish or not If a Line then where to State It, or whether both Ministers shall be paid by one General Rate &c-In pursuence whereof we with Peter Gilman who was also one of Said Comitte mett at sa hamton on october 4th 1742, and viewed both Parishes and heard the arguments used by the agents of sd Parishes, and have Determined as fol°: That we think It most Convenient That the ministers Rates of Both Parishes be Paid by one General Rate. But if the Gen' Court should think Proper It should not be then we are of opinion they have a devideing Line between sa Parishes and that it be as fol: The Line to begin at the Country high way that Leads from Portsm° to hamton one Rod to the Southward of Capt Joseph Taylors new dweling house and from thence to Run on a Strait Line to the Sea Striking the Sea Eighty rods to the Southward of the mouth of the Litle River where it now Emties Into the Sea, & then to begin at the high way afores at the Place where the Line before-mentioned first begun & from thence to Run a Strait Line To the Corner bounds between Exeter and Stratham at hamton Line. That To be the Deviding Line between the two Parishes : which is according to the best of our Jugemts and is Humbly Submited To the Gen' Court as our Report Portsmo Novembr 16th 1742 Jotham Odiorne Majr Part of the acting in ye afair [4-215] [Remonstrance to foregoing Report.] The Humble Petition of Sundry Persons Inhabitants of the Northern Part of the Town of Hampton in said Province Sheweth That your Petitioners have been Informed that the Parishioners of the North Hill Parish so called have Petitioned the General Assembly for a Line of Division between that & the Town or old Parish In pursuance of which a Committee has viewed & Reported their Opinion (which your Petitioners were informed of before) that both ministers should be maintained by one Rate or that a Line should be fixed as set forth in their Return -as to the first part, we humbly conceive it would be Intro ductive of Multiplied Confusions & alltogether Impracticable for any length of time but as that is more Immediately the Concern of the Town we wave it & Refer it to those whose Province it is-But as the proposed Line greatly affects us we beg leave Humbly to Remonstrate That we families & estates will be thereby Comprehended within the North Hill Parish utterly against our Inclinations as well as Interests-That as this Parish was at first erected without our agency we think it Reasonable the charge of it should be supported without our aid and it would be a very hard case (as we conceive) to compel us to contribute to the ease & Conveneiency of others at the Expence of our own or that the wills of our neighbours should abridge or rather Destroy our Liberty & that in direct Contradiction to their own solemn promise That there has not been a Parallel Instance at least within our knowledge but whenever Parishes have been erected those who were unwilling to belong to them have by the Indulgence of the General Court (agreeable to the Example of the Legislature at Home) had leave to continue as they were & were Poll'd off accordingly from the new Parishes which is but just and Reasonable for otherways it would be in the power of a few men frequently in a sort to Tyranize over their neighbours-That the Inconveniency hereby bro't upon us will be greater than those the Petitioners would be under if they were Reduced to their former condition & belong'd to the old Parish or at least equal to them Wherefore we most Humbly pray that this Court would according to their wonted Goodness in Such Cases if a Line shall be Settled let us Poll off Families & Estates from the said North Hill Parish & y Petitions as in duty bound shall ever pray &c. [An act was passed November 30, 1742, incorporating the said North Hill parish into a parish by the name of North Hampton, with the following line between that and Hampton: "Beginning at a great rock in the Highway in Hampton afores between the Dwelling Houses of Caleb Marston & Joseph Towle Jr. which is the first Great rock in the Highway afores to the Southward of the Dwelling House of the widow Mary Levet of Hampton afores Tavernkeeper & running from the afores" Great rock on a strait Line to the Sea at the mouth of the Little river where it now emtieth itself into the Sea-then to begin again at the afores Great rock & to run therefrom on a strait Line to the corner bounds between Stratham & Exeter at Hampton Line." They were to be joined with Hampton for representative, and were to continue to pay their proportion of the grant made to Mrs. Dorothy Gookin.-ED.] [R. 2-38] [Abstract from Dr. Anthony Emery's Memorial, 1757.] The memorial of Anthony Emery of Hampton Humbly Sheweth: That your memorialist by the request of His Excellency, on the eighteenth day of April in ye year 1755 Inlisted himself into his Majestys Service in an expedition against Crown Point, as Chirurgion of Col Joseph Blanchards Regiment. And as Chirurgions wages was not an adequate encouragement for your memorialist to leave his business, His Excellency gave your memorialist a Lieut Commission in Capt. John Moors Company, without which your memorialist would not have gone in s expedition. [Dr. Emery was discharged December 5 following. He claimed pay for a horse broken down in the service, and was allowed £25 out of the money "for the Crown Point Expedition."-ED.] [R. 2-39] [Abstract from Nathan Blake's Petition, addressed to the Governor and Assembly, Jan. 28, 1760.] Most Humbly Sheweth-Nathan Blake of Hampton in the Province aforesaid yeoman that whereas I the petitioner the said Nathan was out in his Majestys Sarvice in the last Sum |