History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts - citizen hylbom blog

356 HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY.
"the Dutchmen, the Britons, and the Scotchmen,
shouhl be sworn." None of the soldiers from town
were killed in battle, in the French and Indian or
Eevolutionary "War, but some died of disease.
Oidy a few items have been gleaned relative to
the war of 1812-14. There was voted in May,
1812, to each volunteer two dollars down, and
three dollars when called into service; and with
what the government paid to make his wages ten
dollars a montli. In September foUuHing it was
agreed to make the monthly i)ay of the three soldiers
drafted twenty dollars. In tliis w;ir it is believed
none of the town's soldiers were killed in battle.
During the Eebellion of 1801-05 the town
contributed to the Union army one hundred and
forty-three men, whose term of service varied from
one hundred days to three years. Several of the
soldiers gave their lives on the battle-field. 15e-
sides the large bounty paid tiie men, the Ladies'
Aid Society contributed to the sanitary commis-
sion and to some of the town's soldiers more than
$1,000 in necessaries and money.
In 1730 the town ojiposed the taking of a por-
tion of its territory to form the town of Harvard,
giving to the General Court these reasons : Tiiat
the great part of the land was unimprovable ;
that
it would take away one seventh of the ])opulation;
that they were so poor as -to be hardly able to
Mippdi-t their minister, and could not bear the
country charges without the others. But their
[)lca was unavailing. The incorjxiration ot Har-
vard in 17:32 left a'little strip of land west of the
Nashua River belonging to the old town, w liicli for
many years was called Stow Leg; but in 1761 it
was annexed to and forms a part of Shirley. Be-
tween 1773 and 1780 the town four times opposed
the incorporation of a part of her territory into the
district of Boxborough. No particular opposition
was made to the taking of a small slice in 1806 to
hel[) form the town of Hudson, or to the larger |)or-
tiou taken in 1H71 to form the town of Maynanl.
The town voted, July 1, 1776, in favor of a
goverrunent indeprndent of (Ireat I'rilain. .Jan-
uary 23, 177S, a coniinitlce reported in favor of a
confederation of the states " as soon as convenient."
May 2.'), 1778, they voted against tlie form of state
uoveninient. The next year they voted again to do
ncilhin- al.nni Mieh a wvA^wr. 'l!nl Mav 211, I 7SII,
the s,-\,aal arlicirs nf I he >lal,' r(,n~hinn,.n Were
,pally •nil d. ISrsides
other farm products, 19i,000 gallons of milk,
worth $18,250, about four tons of butter, worth
nearly $2,000, and some §8,000 worth of apples
are annually produced.
At Piock Bottom, about 1813, the manufacture
of cotton goods was commenced in a small way by
Silas Jewell. Some years later the works were
purchased by i\Iessrs. Cranston and Hale, and
woollen goods have since been produced. The
mill is now operated by Hon. B. W. Gleason and
Sons, em]jloying seventy-five hands, using 100,000
pounds of wool, and making nearly two hundred
thousand dollars' worth of all-wool flannels yearly.
One of the most noted residents of the town was
Mr. John Greene, who was of great ability, and in
high favor with Oliver Cromwell during the Pro-
tectorate, being a captain of the dock-yard at De|)t-
ford, and clerk of the E\che(|uer. LTpon the
death of Cromwell he came to A'ew England, and
finally, with his sister and her husband, settled in
Stow, where he died and lies buried.
Probably the most distinguished native of the
town was Hon. Henry Gardner (H. C. 1750), son
of Piev. John Gardner, born November 14, 1731.
He represented Stow, in the General Court, most
of the time from 1757 to 1775, and was a member
of the Provincial Congress that met at Salem, Octo-
ber?, 177 I, anil \i as rhnsen treasurer of the province
by that body on the 2Sih of the same month, which
position he held until the adoption of the state
constitution in 1780, when he was elected the first
treasurer of the commonwealth, and continued
in that office during his lifetime. He was also a
member of the Provincial Congress that met at
(Cambridge, February 1, 1775, and at Watertown,
May 31, the same year. He was chosen councillor
Mav 30, 1776, and was re-elected until the new
constiluliiiii 1-1 nilri-('(l him ineligible. He was a
jusliee of I he peace ihroughout the state for sinne
years, and one of the judges of the Court of Com-
nu)u Pleas, for Middlesex County, and one of the
original nu'mbers of the American Academy of Arts
of thai (lay s))nke of liim as "a courageous, uni-
form, industrious ])atriot, and a discreet, humane,
and upright judge." He removed from Stow a
few years ])revious to his death, which took place
October 7, 1782, in the fifty-first year of his age.
lie married, September 21, 177S, Hannah Claiip,
of ilorehester, and was the grandfather of c\-Gov-
eru..rHcurv J.tiardncr.