Direc Чел Cor't. TOWN OF LONDONDERRY. In the warrant for the annual meeting of the town of Londonderry, held March 14, 1905, appears the following article: ART. 6. To see if the town will vote to raise the sum of two hundred dollars ($200) to be expended by the selectmen for printing the early and Proprietors' Records of Londonderry, provided the town of Derry shall vote to raise an equitable amount for the same purpose. On the above article the following action was taken: ART. 6. Upon motion it was voted that the article be adopted. A true record. Attest: WILLIAM H. CROWELL, Town Clerk. A true copy. Attest: WILLIAM H. CROWELL, Town Clerk. TOWN OF WINDHAM. Town warrant, Windham, N. H., March 14, 1905. ART. 4. By request. To see if the town will vote to raise one hundred dollars, to be expended by the selectmen for the printing of early proprietors' records of Londonderry, provided that Londonderry and Derry shall vote to raise equitable amounts for the same purpose. Voted, To raise one hundred dollars for proprietors records, provided Londonderry and Derry do likewise. A true record. Attest: JOHN E. COCHRAN, Town Clerk. A true copy of record. Attest: JOHN E. COCHRAN, Town Clerk. DW. The warrant for the annual town meeting of the town of Derry, N. H., under date of February 25, 1905, contained the following: ART. 10. To see if the town will vote to raise and appropriate the sum of three hundred dollars for the purpose of publishing and preserving the early town records, said appropriation to be conditional upon similar action by the town of Londonderry. At the above annual town meeting, held March 15, 1905, it was voted: ART. 10. Voted to raise and appropriate the sum of three hundred dollars for publishing and preserving the early town records, if the town of Londonderry takes similar action. A true record. Attest: A true copy. Attest: W. H. BENSON, Town Clerk. W. H. BENSON, Town Clerk. STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE. HILLSBOROUGH, SS. I, the undersigned, Chairman of the Publication Committee of the Manchester Historic Association, to whom has been assigned the task of compiling and editing the Early Records of Londonderry, the original township of Londonderry, Windham, and Derry, N. H., certify that the following transcript of the political records included in Volume I, complete, and Volume II as far as page 375, is a true and correct copy. GEORGE WALDO BROWNE. Subscribed and sworn to before me, this tenth day of September, A. D. 1908. HARRY T. LORD, Notary Public. L. S. INTRODUCTION. In finishing the work upon Volume I, Early Records of Londonderry, N. H., it seems fitting that we should give here a few words of explanation and description. The sources from which we have drawn are Volumes I and II of the old town books. The first is devoted to records of town meetings, homesteads, and vital statistics, with a sprinkling of advertisements. About one hundred and seventy-two pages of this book are filled with vital statistics and records of the boundaries of homesteads and outlying lots. The time covered is from 1719 to 1726. Page 60 gives the Articles of Incorporation, followed by a list of the proprietors; then succeed records of roads and earmarks. Reversing the book, it begins with the "First Planting,' April 11, 1719, following with forty-six pages of political records. In addition to these are two pages of records and two of acts given out of chronological order. Volume I contains in all two hundred and twenty-two pages. Much of the writing is faded and difficult to decipher, and the book shows its age. Volume II is written from both sides, with a change of the book at different places between these transcripts, as if the recorders tried to bring the different classifications of subjects together and miscalculated on the space needed by the parts. Thus the three or four classes are mixed and somewhat difficult to separate. The records in this volume extend from 1727 to 1770. This book contains about six hundred and fifty pages, and is in a better state of preservation than the first. In order to bring the political records of the town together, to form a continuous narrative, we have thought best to 9 take these as we found them scattered throughout the books, omitting the transcripts of homesteads, roads, and vital records. To include them all, and in the order, or lack of order in which they were written, we should have had nothing complete or systematized so as to be of easy access. Another volume would comprise all of these and possibly bring the political records to about 1780, thus covering the colonial and revolutionary war periods. It would be difficult to imagine two volumes of early history of greater value. It is only proper to say here that while the greatest care has been taken in deciphering the writing, which has often been read through a magnifying glass, there are places which seem impossible of correct transcription. In a few cases it has been thought safest to insert a question mark, thus (?). The use of capitals is frequently a mooted point, but an attempt has been made to be as uniform as possible. Wherever there has been a doubt the author or person writing the word has been given the benefit of the same. In preparing the index it has been impossible when of the same name to discriminate between father and son. This is noticeably the situation with John Wallace. Usually, where no distinction has been given in the Records, the credit has been placed to that of the name which would indicate the senior member of the family. We have adopted the modern form of spelling the names in the index, with reference in some cases to the spelling as given in the Records. In the body of the work we have tried at all times to reproduce the original in style, spelling, punctuation, and language as near as it is possible on the printed page. The copy and proof have been read as many as five times, by three persons, and is believed to be as correct as it is possible to transcribe a work of this kind. The editor is sorry to find that an error found its way in a footnote on page 157, and the reader is requested to supply James instead of Robert, where mention is made of the decease of Londonderry's first minister. While the first settlers of Londonderry had received from Governor Shute, through their agent, the Rev. William Boyd, assurance that they might have any portion of territory within his jursidiction that they wanted, they came to this country with only a vague idea of the location of their future homes. About seventy-five landed in Boston August 4, 1718, and of these the following broke the wilderness of Nutfield in April, 1719: Rev. James McGregor, Alexander McGregor, Alexander Nichols, James Nichols, James Blair, Alexander Walker, Robert Boyes, Samuel Graves, Joseph Simonds, David Cargill, David Cargill, Jr., Archibald Clendenin, James Nesmith, James Clark, Elias Keyes, John Barnett, James McKeen, James Gregg, James Morrison, John Morrison, Allen Anderson, Thomas Steel, and Robert Weare. The seven last named went to Casco, Me., before coming to Londonderry. To this list of twenty should be added John Goffe, Esq., who acted as agent for the immigrants. It will be noticed that the list of twenty first settlers, as given upon page 22 of this volume, varies slightly from this; but this was made nine months after the first arrival. It is proper to say here that it is impossible to make out this list complete with certainty, though we have given the benefit of Mr. McMurphy's copy, which was made by him before the book had become as worn as it is to-day. The earnest purpose of the first settlers of Londonderry is shown by the fact that within a year a two-story dwelling house was built for the minister. This house was standing not many years ago, occupied by John Morrison, a descendant of the Morrisons who figure in these Records. Within two years a meeting house was built, and less than two years later four school houses, all speaking in unmistakable terms of the sincere devotion to Christian principles of the builders. Within five years this church had two hundred and thirty members. Mills were erected within two years of their settlement, and their owners became the pioneer manufacturers in this country. The manufacture of linen was an important industry in their day. There were no public means provided for the support of the poor, and when one became reduced to poverty through sickness or misfortune he became an |