History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts - citizen hylbom blog

436 HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY.
territory, Watcrtown has nevertheless continued to
increase in poiiulation, business, and ivealth, the
enterprise of her citizens proving equal to every
emergency.
The first printed description of Watertown is
found in Wood's New EiiglaiuVs Prospect, written
in 1633. He says: "Half a mile westward of
this plantation [Newtown] is Watertown, a place
notliiiig inferior for land, wood, meadow and water
to Xewtownc. AVithin iialf a mile of tliis town is a
great pond whicli is divided iiet ween these two towns,
which divides their bounds northward. A mile
and a half from this town is a fall of fresh Maters
wiiicii convey themselves into tiie ocean tiirongh
Charles River. A little below this fall of waters
the inhabitants of Watertowne have built a wear to
catch fish wherein they take great store of shads
and alewives. In two tides they have gotten
100,000 of those fishes. This is no small benefit
to tlie plantation. Ships of small burthen may
come up to these two towns, but the oyster banks
do bar out the bigger ships."
Edward Johnson's description, twenty years later,
begins with a singular misstatement. " Watertown
is situate," so he writes, "upon one of the
branches of Charles River; a fruitful plot and of
large extent, watered with many pleasant springs
and small rivulets running like veins throughout
her body ; which hath caused her inhabitants to
scatter in such manner that their Sabbath assemblies
prove very tliin if the season favor not, and
hatii made this great town consisting of 160 fami-
lies to shew nothing delightful to the eye in any
place. This town begun by occasion of Sir Richard
Saltonstall who, at his arrival having some store
of cattle and servants they wintered in these parts.
This town abounds in several sorts of fish at their
seasons, bass, shad, alewives, frost-fish, and smelts.
Their iierd of kine and cattle of tiiat kind are about
4.50, with some store of slieep and goats. Tiieir
land ill tillage is near upon 1,800 acres. Their
church is increased to near aljout 250 souls in
church fellowship."
Ou the l;>lh of .lune, lll.'SO, the Arbella, one
of the fleet of seventeen sliips that left England
in that year, bearing Governor Winthro]), Dc])uly-
(iovcrnor Dudlev.'sir Richard Sallonstall, Rev.
]!r Wil>, d olhrrs
ony of Massaclmsells Hay, cast anchor in the har-
l)or of Salein, whilhcr, in 16:>S, a colony liad
governor. In her came, it is believed, no less than
fifteen of the first planters of Watertown. Some
of these emigrants were from the west of England,
but the greater number came from London and its
vicinity. They were Puritan Nonconformists who,
self-exiled from their native land, sought on an unknown
shore that liberty of religious worship which
had -been denied them at home. They came to
stay, and their familiarity with husbancky or some
useful handicraft insured the permanence of their
settlement. A nobler body of men, or one better
equipped physically and morally for the conquest
of a wilderness and the founding of a great state,
the world has never seen.
After reconnoitring the country about the bay for
a more desirable place of settlement, the peninsula of
Charlestown was selected, and thither the emigrants
at once proceeded. Owing, however, to the want
of good water, a portion of them, with Saltonstall
as their leader, accompanied by Mr. Phillips as
their pastor, soon began a settlement about four
miles up Charles River, at first called Sir Richard
Saltonstall's Plantation, but, September 7, by the
court named Watertown, doubtless because it was
so well watered. Watertown was the first of the
inland towns to be settled.
The tract of land lying east, north, and south
of Mount Anburii is undoubtedly the site of the
beginning of the plantation in 1630, and it was
called " the town " at a very early day. It is con-
jectured that the lot of Rev. Mr. Pliillijis, opposite
the Old Bury iiig-G round, a mile from the site of
the colleges, was its centre; that here the first
house of worship was built, and that here the first
burials were made, if any occurred before the ap-
propriation of the old graveyard for the purpose.
On the 30th of May preceding its settlement ten
of the Dorchester emigrants, who had just arrived,
proceeded up the river and landed wliere the United
States Arsenal now stands. It is supposed that
they planted crops here, and hence the name of
Dorchester Fields, by which it was long afterwards
known. Roger Clap, one of the party, says : " We
went up Charles River until tlie river grew nar-
row and shallow, and there we landed our goods
with much labor and toil, the bank being steep;
and night coming on we were informed that there
\v,Tf hanl by us 300 Indians. One Englishnian
dial ciiiild speak their language (mi old planter)
went to them and advised them not to come near
us in the night, and (hey hearkened to his counsel
preceded them, with Captain Joiin Enilicott as its and came not In the morning some of the