John Roberds Daniel Giles John Folsham Ithial Smith Moses Fifield David Bean John Roberds David Smith Benj Scribner Ebenezer Hutchison Elisha Sanborn James Young Benja Fifield Thomas Scritchet James Gloyd Jon Roberson Petition of the inhabts of the North part of Brentwood about a meeting-house. To his Excell'y Benning Wentworth Esq' Gov" & Comand 'in Chief in & over his Majts Province of New Hampshire And to the Honble his Majties Council, & Representatives In Gen11 Court assembled We the Subscribers Freeholders & Inhabitants of the Northerly part of the parish of Brintwood in the Province aforesaid Do Humbly crave leave of y' Excell'y & hon's to lay this our humble Remonstrance of our distressed circumstances before your Excell'y & Hon's as follows viz. Many of us Living four or five Miles Distant from Exeter meeting House, have attended the Publick Worship of God at that House for many years past, with great Difficulty, & our Familys Encreasing made it much more difficult especially in the Winter Spring and fall of the yeare Wherefore About eight years ago we with Several of the Southerly part of said Parish Erected a House for the Publick Worship of God in the most suitable place as they then tho't and we now do think to Carry on the Publick Worship in And accordingly at our own charge have Carryed on the Same in the Winter, Spring & fall of the yeare ever since as we had for four years, or thereabouts before Erecting said House carryd on the Publick Worship in a Private House Standing neare our Publick Meeting House And about last February was twelve month, the Freeholders and Inhabitants of the Southerly part of Brintwood aforesaid Petitioned the Town of Exeter aforesaid to be set off as a Parish contrary to the will & desire of most of us, & said Town of Exeter Granted their said Petition, notwithstanding many of us Disented therefrom, And their said Petition being Granted, they afterwards applyed to your Excell'y & Hon's for a Charter for said Parish, which was granted them Contrary to our Desier, and greatly to our hurt. And we also having Earnestly Petitioned your Excell'y & Hon" that we might be permitted to Continue to Carry on the Publick Worship of God in our said House, and to be set off by such Boundaries as your Excelly & Hon Should think meet, & to be Exempted from all Charge towards the meeting and ministry in the Southerly p' of Said Parish &c, as by our Petition lying before y Excelly & Hon's in your Honble Court may appear. Which Petition the Honble House of Representatives have seen meet to Dismiss And also your Excell'y & Hon's having appointed a Comittee of four Gen1 two out of Each House to Prefix the place where the meeting House ought to Stand, Three of said Gent have been and made Return but is accounted voyd by your Exell'y & Hon's For that the Comitee did not all Joyn in their Return & for which Reason our Petition was also Dismist. Wherefore our case at present Seems very hard & Difficult, we having been at such cost to Erect our said House and to maintain Preaching in it hitherto & the Minister also who hath hitherto preached to us being at our Earnest desire willing to Continue with us in the Ministry. If your Excelly & Hon will in your great Wisdome take this our Remonstrance of our Difficult Circumstances in our Present Meeting House not being Established & our aforesaid Petition not being Granted & the great Charges and Difficulties we hitherto have and still do Labour under, under your Excelly & Hon's wise Consideration & be pleased to grant us Relief herein as in your Great Wisdom you shall se meet And as in Duty Bound we your Excellys & Hon's most obedient Humble servants shall ever Pray &c Dated at Brintwood June 27th Anno Dom 1743. In the House of Representatives July 1st 1743. The within Petition read & considered on & Voted That Eleazer Russell Esqr Mark Langdon Gent & Noah Barker of Stratham be a Committee to Joyn Such as the Honble the Council shall app' to go to the Parish of Brentwood, and view the Situation of said parish and see whether it will be most convenient for the Inhabitants thereof to be Divided into two Parishes, or whether the whole shall meet at the meeting House already Built for some Limitted time, or to Conclude upon some other method that they shall think to be for the best good of the said P's'h. In order for their being Settled in Peace, and that they make Report to the Gen" ass the third day of the Sitting of the Gen" Ass" at their next Sessions and that the Petitioners be at the charge of the Comittee and that the Petitioners Serve the Select men of Brentwood with a Copy of this Petition & Votes, that they may Notife the Parish of these proceedings and that those that will dispute? what is acted may appear at the day above said. James Jeffry Cle' Assm Eod Die In Council Read and Concurr'd & the above said Comittee hereby Established & Impowered for the End above said Eoda Die Assented to B. WENTWORTH Theodore Atkinson Secy. Province of Hamp' Sep. 221 1743. Pursuant to the within order we have been to the Parish of Brentwood & viewed the same, & Considered the Circumstances thereof & think it best to Continue them at the old meeting House for the tearm of four years. In the House of Representatives 7br the 23d 1743 ELEAZER RUSSELL The above Return read And Voted That the Return be accepted, and that they Continue at the old Meeting House for the Space of four years and at the Expiration thereof, The Major Part of the legal Voters in said parish at that time Shall set the Meeting House for Publick Worship where they think Proper. James Jeffry Clr Ass". In the House of Representatives Decem' 3 1743. Voted That this Petition and all the Proceedings thereon be Dismissed. James Jeffry Cl' Ass Petition of Elisha Sanborn about Brentwood 1745 To the Honble the House of Representatives for the Province of New Hampshire in General assembly conven'd April 2a 1745: The Petition of Elisha Sanborne of the Parish of Brintwood In Said Province Yeoman as agent for said Parish Humbly Shews That the Said Parish was made & Incorporated by an act of the Gen' Assembly made & passed in ye Sixteenth Year of His Majestys Reign by Metes & Bounds Set forth in said act being before part of the old Parish or Town of Exeter. That Since the Said Parish was so Incorporated His Excellency the Governor has been pleased (by & with the advice of the Council) to grant a Charter for Erecting and Incorporating part of the afores parish of Brintwood Into another Parish by the name of Keeneborough whereby great part of the Inhabitants of Brintwood Conceive themselves Discharged from paying Taxes & Doing any other Duty within the Parish of Brintwood & Claim the powers authoritys & Priviledges of a Parish within the Limits given by the said Charter the consequence of which is many persons are doubly tax'd & great Debates & strifes have & are likely to arise. That the Parishioners of Brintwood apprehend that not only their powers authoritys & priviledges are made null if the said Charter be good, but the act of Incorporation aforesaid is also Defeated & Superseeded which greatly affects the Rights & Priviledges of this House & in them all the King's subjects in this Province That the said Parishioners foresee a wide Field of Law opening before them hereby (one of their Number having been already Imprisoned for Rates made in Consequence of the afores Charter) which they Should be glad to avoid if it could be without giving up their Just Rights Wherefore your Petitioner in behalf of his principals prays the advisement of this Honble House in the premises that some scheme may be Pursued In Conjunction with the other Branches of the Legislature as may settle these Disputes (but just beginning) upon such a foundation as is agreeable to the Constitution & on which a lasting peace may be built & Your Petitioner In behalf of his Constituents Shall Ever pray &c ELISHA SANBORN. Remonstrance against Keenborough Patent. Province of N. Hamp To His Excly The Gov" and the Hone the Council May it Please your Ex & Honors On the 24 Day of the last month Elisha Sanborn of yo par ish of Brentwood in s prov. Yeoman as agent for said Parish represented to this House in way of Petition that the said Parish &c (here recite the Petition at large) Which Petition of the said Elisha in Part above recited we have taken into our most mature Consideration together with authenticated copys of the said act and Charter mentioned in said Petition with such other Evidence as the Petitioner has thought fit to lay before this House in support thereof, by which it manifestly appears to us, that there was an act or Law made and past by the Gov Council and representve of this Province dated the day of 17 by which a Part of the Town of Exeter was incorporated into a Parish named of Brintwood by metes and Bounds, and that the Inhabitants within said Bounds, were to duty Parish Duty, ? and receive parish privileges in said Brentwood, and were exonerated from parish Duty in the Parishes whereto they belonged before the Date of said Law: That Discontent soon arose among the Parishioners of s Brentwood about the Place of fixing their meeting House, which occasioned a new Petition to the Governor Council and Gen. assembly dated the day of 17 for a minor Part of said Parishioners prayer, to have the said Parish divided into two Parishes but that which was offered in support thereof appearing frivolous to the General assembly, the said Petition was by them ordered to be dismissed: That afterwards (viz) on the day of 17 The discontented Party petitioned anew to His Exc1 and Council regardless of the General assembly (one Branch of the Legislature) praying again for a Division of sd Brentwood into Two Parishes, which your Ex. and Council (without the Gen' assembly) were pleased to take Cognizance of, and on the day of 17 to grant a Charter under the Province Seal to the said Petitioners, incorporating another Parish named Keenborough by metes and Bounds and exonerating the Inhabitants of said Keenborough from their Parish Duty in Brentwood which they were obliged to do and perform there by Law, which charter so far This House looks upon as an attempt to abrogate and supersede a Law in Part, and thereby an open Usurpation of a Power appertaining to the Gen assy in Conjunction with the Gov' and Coun. and a manifest invasion of the Just rights and Privileges of the People whom we represent, and an Infringem't on the rights of the Parishioners of Brentwood, and an oppression of them in particular, which we think ourselves obliged to take notice of in Duty to His Majesty, in faithfulness to our Constituents and in Justice & Honour to ourselves and to remonstrate against it. We do therefore earnestly request your Excy and Honours, seriously to reconsider this matter, and to recall the Keenborough Grant |