Historical Visitation of Andover

1863 ~ Part Two

    After leaving Mr. Hayward's, the road winds around the southern side of the hill and Mr. Goldsmith's is reached. He is sick, so did not stop there.  William Mears, who is in 14th Regt., Co. H., occupies the place where his father lived since marriage, and was born there  Sept. 29, 1831. He married Almira H., daughter of Samuel and Martha (Hodgdon) Pearce, who was born in South Berwick, ME, July 2, 1831. Children, Walter Badger, b. Dec. 10, 1852; Emily, b. Aug. 2, 1855; Martha, b. Apr. 6, 1857; William Henry, b. Nov. 26, 1859.

    Moses Mears, shoemaker, resides in the next house, which he built in 1855 on his father's land. He was born June 11, 1827; married, 1st, Rebecca Elder, b. St. Albans, ME., and d. May 10, 1859, aged 33 years; mar. 2d, Hannah Ring, born Deerfield, NH, May 1836. Children: Lily Augusta, d. young; Adeline Augusta, b. Mar. 7, 1850; Phebe Ann, b. Aug. 8, 1852; Joshua, b. Apr. 6, 1853; Ella Rebecca, d. young. Mr. Mears' mother resides in his family, and his father, Zebadiah Mears, was son of Samuel and Rebecca (Brown) Mears, b. Dracut, 1766, and d. May 10, 1850; mar. 1st, Eliza Butters, of Andover, by whom he had Zebadiah, Eliza, Mehitable, Daniel, Harriet, Adeline, Emily, Warren; mar. 2d, Sarah, dau. John and Esther (Furbush) Wood, b. Andover, Mar. 4, 1803, by whom he had Sarah, b. Jan. 11, 1822, mar. William P. Tucker; Walter, b. Nov. 26, 1824, mar. Amelia Veasey, and d. Aug. 1849, leaving children, James, Walter, and Alfred; Moses, b. June 11, 1827; Louisa Frances, b. May  10, 1829, mar. Jeremiah Elwell, resides Springfield, and has children, Louisa and Edward Albert and Nellie; William; Clarissa Badger, b. Feb. 11, 1834, mar. James C. Knight, resides Stoneham, and has children, Emma, Lizzie and William Emery; Milton, b. Mar. 28, 1837, mar. Susan Fellows, resides North Andover, and has children, Franklin, Mary Ann and Alfred Cutler; Albert Francis, b. Sept. 18, 1839, mar. Mary Anna, dau. Franklin and Abby (Lyman) Toogood, b. Chester, MA., Mar. 20, 1843; Joshua B., d. young. Old Mrs. Mears' husband came from Wilmington, where he resided when his first two children were born. He bought the land of Jonathan Abbott, grandfather of Stephen D. Abbott.     

    Called on Mr. William, son of Robert and Lydia Allen, who was born in Tewksbury on Jan. 18, 1828, and who says he has resided here since Apr. 11, 1853. Bennet was here this year. John Caldwell Starks, the butcher, and others, have lived here. Marland owned it at one time. There was formerly a place north of Allen's where Black Lucy lived. Mr. Allen's father died when he was very young and his mother was daughter of Russell Mears. Mrs.  Rebecca Allen was born in Wilmington, Jan. 28, 1826. Their child, Mary Jane, was born Feb. 9, 1854. Samuel Eames works for them. 

    Called on Thomas Baker Poor in Ballardvale, who says he came here from the place now occupied by Wyman Gleason, near Marland's mill on the road from Andover to Lawrence. His father, Daniel Poor, built the house and also built the house in which he resided in 1836. They commenced digging for a house on the Plain and when digging a well got down fifty feet, left it one night and in the morning their picks, bars, etc., were buried. Poor, Blanchard & Co. bought of Esquire Rogers the mill privilege and laid the foundation of one-half of the present brick mill for a paper mill, the eastern end, but before the mill was finished they formed a new company called the Ballardvale Co., which was composed of Daniel Poor, Abel Blanchard, John Marland and Ab. J. Gould. Mr. Poor died in 1846, Blanchard sold out and is now in New York, John Marland left about 1853 and resides on High St., Andover, and Thomas B. Poor entered the Company about 1838 and left in 1862.  Others who have been connected with  the Company are Daniel Poor, jr., Lawrence Whittaker, Andrew Scott, Archibald Scott, Moses Barnes, Joshua Ballard, son of Capt. Francis Cogswell and Charles Barnard. J. Putnam Bradlee, is the principal owner now. 

    The wooded building was built about 1844 and was originally used for cotton and worsted manufacturing. The machinery was all imported and this factory was the first place in America where delaine was made, about 1845. It was manufactured later in Hookset by the same company, of which John Marland was agent, and this company also carried  the business here, started the same work at Pacific Mill, Lawrence. the stone building was built by John Marland and others, and locomotives were manufactured here, as well as shoes, and carriages. One Tyre, who manufactured shoes here, now has a factory in South Andover. 

    The Whipple File Co., which makes machine cut files, is the first successful concern of this sort in the world. It was established in 1859, when he firm purchased the building, and it was run by steam by two engines of sixty horse power each. It is a most wonderful enterprise and its success is largely due to the energy of William P. Pierce, Esq., a Boston dry goods merchant, the son of Jacob Willard Pierce of Newburyport. The capital stock of the company is now $200,000 and over three hundred men and boys are employed there. This is the only place in the world where files are cut by machinery, and much money has been lost in England in experiments, all declaring it to be impossible to manufacture them in this way. Whipple, the investor, is now residing in Cambridge, MA., but while he invented the cutting, there have been added to the process rolling and grinding by an entirely new method. The development of this enterprise bids fair to make Ballardvale, which has long languished in obscurity, a Sheffield of America. The company is about to establish steel works to manufacture the steel, a building 200 x 75 feet being in process of construction. About 300 dozen a per day are turned out and in a short time 2000 dozen a per day of saw or three-quarter taper files will be the output. The operation of the horse rasp machine alone will strike the observer as one of the greatest curiosities, almost eclipsing the wood screw invention. The workmen are paid partly by the day, ten hours, and partly by the piece, and the majority come from Andover. At the present time there are thirty-two patents connected with the business. One of their machines grinds 500 dozen three quarter taper files per day. They make their own machines, and cut about three tons of steel per day. Each days work is sent to the sales room at 34 Kilby St., Boston, and the demand is greater than can be supplied.

    Charles Stewart has a restorator, which is run by Samuel Fish. He has been in the business since Dec. 20, 1862, in the basement of Mrs. Scott's building. Hugh O'Donnell has kept the Lafayette bowling saloon since Jan., 1863, in the Alley house, which was built by Benjamin Burtt about 1848, opposite the district schoolhouse.

    Butchers: James O'Donnell of Wilmington has run a cart into Ballardvale since 1858; W. D. Stark resides here and has had a stall since 1854, but began to drive a cart here since 1843; the Baileys of North Andover came here previous to that time.

    Bakers: Moody Russell drives for Simms of Lawrence twice a week and Mr. Scripture from Lowell every Monday; Albert Bond goes through once a fortnight.

    Fish dealers: Daniel Mears, River st., for several years and Joseph Russell in Scotland district about three years.

    Blacksmith, David Poland; carpenters, Milton Moore, and those who work in the file factory; West India goods, Andrew Morrison; postmaster, I. O. Blunt; milk dealers, Dea. Dascomb, Herman P. Chandler, and since 1852, Henry E. Haywood. 

    Called upon Dea. Gould and Capt. J. Ballard. The latter says that Black Lucy Foster was given to Mrs. Job Foster, who married, second, a Chandler, and who left Black Lucy an acre of land about twenty rods from the brook. Lucy's house was built about 1815 and she resided there until about 1845. She died about 1850, aged about 70 years. In the winter of 1838-39, Capt. Ballard hired the saw-mill at Ballardvale. 

    Ballardvale post office was established about 1844 or 45 and Wm. Colder was the first postmaster.

    Called on John Marland who said the flannel factory was completed in 1835, and the firm consisted of Gould, Newman and others, with a capital of $32,000. Mr. Marland bought half of the stock and in 1836 the capital was doubled. They received all the gold medals for eighteen years.

    Called on Mr. Goldsmith. Thomas C. Foster was born here. Mr. Goldsmith bought the house of Apthorp a little before he was married, and Levi Trull moved out at that time. Mr. Goldsmith was the son of Isaac and Patty (Burnham) of Dunbarton, and grandson of William, and was born on Feb. 25, 1803, where Mr. Caldwell resides on the turnpike. Mrs. Goldsmith is Lydia, daughter of Joseph and Hannah (Burnham) Favour, a cousin of Mr. Goldsmith, who was born in Weare, NH., on Oct. 11, 1801. Child; Maria Lucinda, b. here Jan. 26, 1838. They also have two children that they have had since they were young, namely, George Henry Goldsmith, who came from Tewksbury on May 8, 1853, and Abby Cordelia Goldsmith, daughter of William Henman, who was born in Waterford, ME., May 27, 1849 and came here in 1853. Benjamin Abbott was here in 1839-43 and John Trampleasure, now in the Vale, was here Sept. 1845-1848.

    Called on James Connell, farmer for Mr. Ellis. His wife says they have resided there since the spring of 1861, having removed from Concord, MA. He was born in Paisley, Scotland, about 1830, the son of William Connell, and came to America on July 4, 1859. Mrs. Connell was born in Glasgow, Scotland, about 1835, the daughter of Robert and Amelia (Shields) McDermott, and came to America with her husband. Children: William, b. Concord, Oct. 16, 1859; Robert, b. Concord, Feb. 1, 1861; James Andrew, b. Andover, June 26, 1862. Timothy Lynch lived here previous to Connell, and then went to Dr. Whiting's.

    Called on Mrs. John Edwin Farnham, who says that they have resided in this house since June, 1858, and came from the house where Shaw, the superintendent, now resides, that is, the cottage below Ellis's. They had resided  there three years and it was there that they first began to keep house. Mr. Farnham was born in South Andover, on Dec. 20, 1826, and his father was a conductor who was killed on the railroad. Edwin Farnham, the father, was the son of Dea. Jedediah and Susanna (Johnson) Farnham and was b. Aug. 4, 1800, and d. Mar. 13, 1841. His wife, Martha Jane Farnham was the daughter of Robert Clemons and granddaughter of Capt. John and Priscilla Clemons, born in Tyngsboro, NH., on Nov. 2, 1834. Children: Frances, b. Jan. 29, 1855; Susan Levina, b. Dec. 9, 1856; Mary Gertrude, b. May 7, 1858; Morris Damon, b. June 12, 1860; Nellie Davis, b. June 21, 1862. 

    Before the Farnhams came to this house, a Mr. Kelley from Wilmington lived here, who afterward went to Lynn. Mrs. Farnham's father also resided here, 1856-57, when he removed to Scituate. He came from Brentwood, NH., and had charge of the station all the time the road ran past the house on the opposite side where Donnel now resides. After the road was removed to the Vale, he kept a boarding house, near the factory counting room, which is now cut up into tenements. This house belongs to the Ballardvale company and it is understood that it was a stable in the factory yard; then it was used as a dye house and removed on to the plain and has been used for the clerk of the factory. Mr. Dorr, a clerk, lived there, and Joseph Hall, a native of Boston, also occupied it. He married a rich lady in New Orleans and afterward died on his was to California. 

    Called at Mr. Charles Spofford's. His wife, Helen Frances, says they moved into this house after Davis moved out, in Oct., 1862 from West Amesbury. He was a machinist in the file factory, and was born in Andover in 1831, the son of Solomon Spofford. Mrs. Spofford was daughter of Humphrey and Sarah (Peaslee) Nichols, and was born in west Amesbury on June 7, 1835. Children: John Edward, b. in Groveland, Aug. 30, 1855; Florence Nichols, b. in West Amesbury, Apr. 3, 1862. Norman Macomber boards here. He came from Richmond, ME., originally, but from Boston to Ballardvale in Oct., 1862. His wife was Adeline, daughter of Henry Thurston.

On May 11, went to Ballardvale and called on T. B. Poor. Joseph Clark was a trader and occupied the two story building close to the bridge, now owned  by Wm. H. Putnam. He went to Lowell. He also at one time had a store near the school house in what is called the Pierson house, owned by the Ballardvale company. He came probably from Tewksbury.

     William S. Dole kept store with Andrew B. Stimpson on the eastern corner of the bridge, in a building that was erected by John Marland. They sold the business to Calder, who ran it until he sold to Samuel Southwick & Son. In 1860, the latter removed their goods to Lawrence. 

    Isaac O. Blunt has kept the post office since Sept. 6, 1853, and William Calder previous to that, in whose store it was kept. Commenced to run the  cars on the west side of the river, July 4, 1848. There has been a flag station since the trains ran to Andover, tended by Mr. Clement, and Mr. Densmore, George Foster ran an express, 1849-54, and also John A. Griffin, who sold out before he died and moved to North Andover. I. A. Farley, who is now steward for the seminary, ran it until I. O. Blunt took charge of it, Sept. 1852, and in 1852, Farley sold to Cooper, who is now in Lawrence. He soon sold to Kilham, and A. H. Brown had run it since 1858.

    Abel Blanchard kept the Ballardvale House, which was the old Ballard house with a large addition owned by the Ballardvale Company, for about two years from Feb., 1851. Others who had had charge of it are Mr. Weston at Lowell, Mr. Rider of Boston, Hiram Hill of Boston and William Beadle, who came from Rochester, NH, Dec. 25, 1839, and is now there. 

    Charles Frye, the shoe dealer in Lawrence, in company with Osgood, son of Dea. Dascomb, who is now in California, commenced trade in a building of the same shape and size of that in which Blunt's store is located. They continued until the building and goods were mysteriously burned in 1849. John S. Haskins from South Andover, clerk for old John Derby and Benjamin, his son, started a store in the new building and kept it until W. H. and G. N. Burtt, sons of Jedediah, at Hackett's Pond, took it. Benjamin Dearborn and William H. Burt, started a store in a building now owned by the Whipple File Co., near the schoolhouse building. Dearborn had been a mason in Ballardvale and had come from Epping, NH. He soon returned to his trade and went to Saugus. W. H. Burt is now at work for Shattuck & Co., South Lawrence, and G. N. Burt is in the meat and provision business in Lowell. 

    About the same time Southwick left, the Ballardvale Company fitted up a store in the brick building close to the bridge, which goods they alter sold to Blunt and turned  the building into tenements. Joshua Milton Blunt, son of Samuel P., of Andover, commenced to keep store where he is now in the autumn of 1860. He served his apprenticeship with Albert Abbott. Andrew Morrison, who now owns the building, was a gardener from Scotland. Israel W. Putnam of Andover also had a store here. He was formerly employed in the mill, and his store was in the building now occupied by Andrew Morrison and he continued until William Morrison came here. Andrew Stimpson's widow kept a millinery store. She married John Flint, president of the Andover bank, and the business was carried on by R. M. Wilford, who came from Oberlin, Ohio, and went to South Danvers. William Fletcher was in it a while and John Morrison took the business in Sept. 1858.

    Gilbert Barnard, who was in the shoe business in Andover, built a shop now vacant, on Main St., next below Blunt's store, and had a man keep a stock of boots and shoes there for three or four years about 1845-50. Richard Pinch, who is now in the west, occupied the small building standing near by the bridge, which was afterwards used as a beer shop.

    James Walton, and English wool sorter, went into the shoe business about 1856 with Archibald Scott, a boss weaver from Scotland, in the basement of the building now occupied by Fisk and owned by widow Jeannette M. Scott, Archibald's mother. Scott afterwards went to Globe village, Southbridge, and died. J. W. Barnard of South Andover, bought them out and put in Alexander Robb to run the business, 1856-7, but there has not been any shop of that kind here since. 

    The first livery stable was run by Arthur N. Bean, in a building that he erected near the hotel, and which is now used by Stark as a slaughter house. James Wheeler, whose father was proprietor of the Mansion House in South Andover, had a stable at the Ballardvale House about the time Bean commenced, that is, Nov. 1847. After he closed up, Bean occupied that place until he built the present stable in May, 1857. He keeps from ten to twenty-five horses.

    Timothy Saunders of Tewksbury was the first blacksmith. He occupied a machine shop that his brother Ziba Saunders bought  of the Ballardvale company and removed to River street. He ran this business from 1835 to 1837, when he took David Bland, who had worked for him four months, into partnership. David Poland built his shop about 1850 on land that was then owned by Ezra Pray and he is now the only blacksmith in the place. James Perkins took Saunders' business, and he later went to Tewksbury and was succeeded by William Ross.

    John Frye and Henry Abbott built a tannery about 1860, tanning and dresing lace leather for a belting, but left in the spring of 1863.

    Mr. Clark says that Timothy Ballard's mother was sister to old Nehemiah Abbott who owned a part of the mill. Both the saw and the grist mills were burned about 1815, but were rebuilt. Mr. Clark's father was born in Tewksbury and was descended from Richard, whose family settled in Watertown. His grandfather was Nathaniel, son probably of Benjamin and he married Molly Wyman. Children : Nathaniel, who had Nathaniel and Hannah by his first marriage, and married, second, a Whitmore; Peter, who married a Kittredge, and died in Tewksbury; John, who died in the French war or before he reached home; Mary, who married a Gray and had Moses and John, and married, second, Jesse Holt and had Mary and Hannah; Hannah, married a Marshall and settled in Kingsbury; Benjamin, married, and has a granddaughter, Mrs. Mann, living; William, who married Rebecca Ballard, settled where Pillsbury now resides, near Mr. N. Clark's and later went to Coos, where he died; Abijah, the youngest child, was b. in Tewksbury May 11, 1742, and d. May 24, 1818; mar. Hannah, dau. Eben Abbott, who was b. Jan. 27, 1752 and died July 24, 1816. They settled on the place where their son Nathan now resides, which he bought of Nehemiah Abbott. Children: Hannah, b.  Aug. 12, 1778, mar. Nathaniel Hayward of Reading; Abijah, b. Aug. 3, 1780, d. unmarried in New York state; John, b. July 20, 1782, mar. Lydia, wid. Samuel Upton and dau. Aaron Frost of Tewksbury and settled in Carlisle; Nathan, b. May 16, 1784, mar. Persis, dau. Isaac and Persis (Stevens) Farnum, b. North Andover, Mar. 6, 1799, have always resided on the place, and their children are Nathan Franklin, b. May 8, 1824 and Martha Ann, b. July 5, 1828, mar. Elbridge Gerry Hall of CT., resided in California; Lydia, b. July 17, 1788, mar. Nathan, s. Benjamin and Phebe (Chandler) Ames, deputy sheriff of Lincoln Co., residing at Bath, ME., and later New York, and died Apr. 1851, leaving children William Jenks, Mary C., Isaac, Margaret W. and Julia; Mary, b. Nov. 25, 1790.

    Nehemiah Abbott, who now resides with Mr. Bradley Pearson's in West Andover, is a grandson of Nehemiah Abbott who owned the mill in Ballardvale. Nathaniel Holt first occupied the house at the fork of the road about 1800, then Levi Trull, Augustus Harraden of Wilmington, Jonathan Abbott, and Samuel Burr. The flannel factory if operated by Josiah P. Bradley of Boston, with 175 to 200 hands, mostly Scotch, English and Irish. The delaine business stopped about 1850, and they now manufacture between five and ten hundred thousand yards per year. An engine is used when the water is low in the autumn. Pay day at the file factory was the second Monday of the month and at the time Louis Weil has for a year or more come over from North Andover to sell clothing. Nicholas Tuttle, who was connected with the file factory, died Apr. 25, 1863, at New Orleans. He came from Effingham, NH., to North Andover, where he lived thirty years, and enlisted in Co. B., 50th Regiment. Louis Weil married his daughter. 

    Called on Rev. Mr. Green who says that the society is called the Ballardvale Union Society and has had preaching since about 1848. One Dec. 31, 1854, the church organized with fifty members and on Apr. 1, 1855, Rev. Henry Solomon Green, who had been preaching since Sept. 1850, settled here. This was the year when a freshet broke the reservoir at Foster's Pond, the water rising so that it was four feet high on the damn, breaking the latter so that the mill was obliged to stop a month or two. Mr. Green was settled in Lynnfield over twelve years, and until he came here a Methodist preacher filled the office. He owns his house and planted an orchard  on the north side about 1855. His father was born in England and his mother was a Broad from Scotland, and they both died when he was very young, having located in Boston.

    Mr. Bean trades in horses and within six years has bought about three hundred from Canada and Vermont. Hector P. Lynn, who kept a tailor's shop, built the shop which John Morrison now owns, in 1847, where he also lived. After a trip to California, he occupied the store until Wilford came in, but has since been in Lawrence. Joseph Brown, the only harness maker in Ballardvale has been here since 1843. He came from Mason, NH., but he and his brother, the expressman, were born in Danvers. Asa H. Brown has been in the express business since Apr. 1857.

    The schoolhouse that was burned was built in 1847 and stood one year. The Methodist church was built in 1851, the society first holding meetings in depot hall. The Episcopal church was organized about 1848. 

    John Ellis was the son of John and Elizabeth (Swetmore) Ellis, and was born in Hanley, Stratfordshire, Eng., May 24, 1819. His grandfather was Valentine Ellis and his mother was daughter of George Swetmore. He came from Stone, Stratfordshire, End., to Montreal in 1842, where he remained until 1847 and then came to Boston. He has been here since Aug. 1864 and has officiated at the Methodist church sine 1860. His wife was Elizabeth, daughter of Joseph Lawton, and granddaughter of Joseph and Elizabeth (Ellis) Lawton, and was born in Stone, Stratfordshire, Eng., July 10, 1818. Mrs. Ellis' mother was Elizabeth, daughter of James and Elizabeth (Bostock) Nichols. 

    James Holmes is one of the oldest residents from England. He resides near the church and is now in England, buying machinery and worsted for the Pacific mills. Others are Thomas Kating, wool washer, Robert Stott, spinner, and Henry Bingham, warp dresser. When Mr. Walton first came to Ballardvale, the white boarding house was full of Yankee boarders. Hayman was a painter about 1850, who came from Salem and went to California from Ballardvale.

    June 18th, after breakfast at Benjamin Stevens' where I stayed overnight. Capt. Ballard says that Caesar Dole, the colored man who once lived beyond Valpey's many years ago lived on Rattlesnake Hill road. His children were Elsie, who died unmarried in the almshouse and Dudley, who also died unmarried. 

    Called on Capt. Foster who says that his uncle William Foster owned the place where Goldsmith now resides and his father, Timothy Foster, lived there when he was born. Mr. Foster's father's brother's, Joseph and William, lived in Boston and Cambridge. Harrison Grey Otis married two of William's daughters. 

    Asa A. Abbott says that Andrew Allen owned and lived on land that bordered one a bridle way that ran down from near Dr. Whiting's house to meet the bridle way to the plain. This was sold to Ephraim Abbott in 1707 by the widow Elizabeth Allen and her children, Elizabeth, Andrew and Sarah. Andrew Foster's land bounded it, as also did Flagg's meadow, on the west of the way to Robert Russell's meadow. After Ephraim Abbott died, his son Daniel, a blacksmith, resided there until he died, without children, and his heirs, who were his brothers and sisters, sold the place. Some of the brothers settled in Amherst and New Ipswich, NH. Benjamin Holt bought a part of it and it is now owned by Nathan B. Holt. Some of the old garden is owned by Sylvester Abbott, including an old bell pear tree; on every old farm there was a bell swash and winter pear-tree. About eight rods northwest of the old garden are two mounds which are said to be the graves of an Indian chief and his squaw. The house was on the part that was bought by Asa Abbott, who married Daniel's sister, Elizabeth, and it was hired by one Johnson. Then it was moved off about 1790, one part across the meadow to make the lower part of Goldsmith's house, and the other part to the turnpike, and was used as a schoolhouse until about 1803, when the red schoolhouse was built. A woman by the name of Russell cut her throat west of the garden on the Allen place. 

    A. A. Abbott says that Benjamin Holt lived on the Whiting place with his nephew Henry, son of Joseph. The Allen house was haunted. Benjamin Holt saw a whole lot of evil spirits, after it was made into a schoolhouse. Between Bronnell's or Goldsmith's house and Isaac Goldsmith's residence and about thirty rods from Bronnell's is where Pomp Lovejoy, a colored man, slave of Capt. William Lovejoy, who was bought in Boston when about nine years old, lived. Dea. Lovejoy owned the land and gave Pomp his liberty.  Pomp lived in the old house until it burned about 1773, then his neighbors and friends built a new one for him, which he occupied until he died at the age of 102. His wife whose name was Rose Coburn, died soon after aged about 90. They had no children. Pomp assisted in slaughtering, drove a baker's cart, and officiated with the fiddle at social gatherings on election days. This part of William Lovejoy's place went to Capt. Henry Abbott's wife, and now William Phillips Foster owns it. There formerly was a tobacco press near the house. 

    As one enters Woburn street, between the houses of Daniel P. Abbott and Oliver H. Perry, the first house is the residence of Elijah Brownell, owned by Asa Goldsmith, a brother of Isaac. It was built by Nathan Goldsmith, his brother, about 1835. The first place on Rattlesnake hill mill road is where John Dunlap lived between the hills in the triangle on the road and the path that goes to the mill. An old grist mill which was out of use as long ago as 1805, was here and the building was afterward removed to Stephen D. Abbott's and occupied as a woodhouse. Next comes the Butter's house owned now by William R. Boynton, and the land joins Caldwell's farm. Benjamin Butters, who once resided in the old house at Manning's place, built this and resided in it until he died. 

    Stayed at A. A. Abbott's until after dinner, then went down to Ballardvale and up to Nathan Clark's where Mrs. Mann was visiting and she said that she cooked the first meal eaten by the workmen on the mills. 

    Eben H. Bickford went to board with Mr. Ballard in 1814. He came from Salem and had graduated from Harvard and studied law, but did not practice. He has traveled in Europe and Asia and all over the United States. Mrs. Scott is the next oldest resident in the Vale, and Mrs. Gilman Davis, who was visiting at Mrs. Clark's, the next. William Ferguson's two children were the only ones in the village when Mrs. Mann came, Oct. 1831, but now there are three schools. Daniel Poor, sr., and Abel Blanchard started the foundation for a paper mill, but John Marland came home from England and they changed their plan, Blanchard selling out. John Marland was the principal member of the firm. Daniel Poor, sr., built the first dwelling house. Whittaker from England, who was an overseer in the finishing room of the flannel, lived first in the brick house, the smallest near the factory and the first one in the village. Mr. Whittaker is a very large man and now lives in Saugus. One Barron lived in one part about the time Mr. Whittaker did, who came from England and is now in the west with his daughter. She was Sally Lord, and her mother married a Howard for her second husband. The widow of Alexander Morrison, a Scotchman, now resides there, also one Holmes and Walter Murray, who married daughters of Mrs. Morrison reside there.

     John Trampleasure resided in the third house, which was built for one Scot. He was an overseer in a weaving room, and bought the house soon after it was built and occupied it until about two years before he died. His widow now resides there. After the railroad was brought through the village, this house was moved back a foot and a basement put in.

    Took a walk toward the Wilmington line and came to the old cellar where the Joseph Foster house stood on the east side of the street, just out of sight of Mr. Allen's house. Then past the brook that comes from Fosters pond and into the woods, and past the path down to the pond, to a level road there the Eame's and Pearson's reside. On returning, entered the road near Rattlesnake hill, which runs northeasterly  making an acute angle with this. On the easterly side is the mill dam where the grist mill, formerly stood, which has been raised to hold water for the Ballardvale Company and it now contains many more acres that the fifty covered by the original pond. From this height can be seen the winding course of the brook from the pond around one side of the hill, nearly to Chandlers bridge. Over the pine woods can be seen the tops of some of the buildings in Ballardvale, the roof  of the old South church and some of the buildings on the turnpike south of Seminary hill and in Wilmington, but south and west is a dense forest.

To be continued ....

SOURCE : Essex Institute Historical Collections, Volume XLIV pages 50-64, pub. 1912

Stories transcribed by JAS 2005. Pages copyright 2004-2008 I cannot vouch for the authenticity of the data contained in these stories. All spelling or dating  errors occur in original record and will not be corrected.