History of Amesbury - Merrill.org

310 HISTORY OF AMESBURY.
The revised constitution of Massachusetts was submitted to
the town May 6th and resulted in four votes in favor and for-
ty-seven against.
Jan. 28th. Rev. David Smith was this day ordained pastor
of the Second church in Amesbury. Dr. Dana preached the
sermon.
There was a tornado in March which did considerable dam-
age in various places and unroofed a part of the Sandy Hill
meeting-house. We take the following from the East parish
collector and treasurer's book :
—
"March 25— 1795. paid to Joseph Bartlett $10 for finding
material and mending the Meeting house when the wind did
unroofe part of said house." Also, "paid Benjamin Swett j£d—
0-0 hired of him to pay for land the meeting house stands
on." Thirty-eight years ago the parish bought the land, but it
was not paid for till this year.
1796.
May 2d. The town met for the purpose of adopting a
memorial to Congress in regard to carrying out the treaty with
Great Britian concerning the fisheries. The memorial was
approved and signed by one hundred and thirty persons who
were present. This is the largest number on record at a town
meeting. There has always been a great deal of interest shown
in the fishing business. It not only brought gain from the sale
of the fish, but kept the carpenters busy in the ship-yards along
the river. It was an important branch of business.
At the May meeting a proposition was brought before the
town to move the Mills bridge down about twenty feet, and it
was approved by the meeting, provided Salisbury joined in the
arrangement. Jonathan Osgood and David Osgood petitioned
in 1753
for leave to move the bridge on their own cost, but
the town would not consent. Their reason for the change was
that it was "difficult to pass said bridge as it now stands with
large teams." Forty-three years later the town virtually acknowl-
edged that the Messrs. Osgood were right.
The selectmen were ordered to apportion the school money
in the districts according to the tax they pay after the new val-
uation is taken, which was ordered at the annual meeting.