History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts - citizen hylbom blog

the neighboring towns, especially Groton, began to
appropriate the land. In 1682 the County Court
of Middlesex appointed a committee " to run the
ancient bounds of Nashobey," who reported that
Groton had taken into their bounds nearly half the
Indian plantation ; also that the northwest corner of
Nashobah had, according to the statement of Gro-
ton men, encroached on their town to the extent of
three hundred and fifty acres.
June 15, 1686, Colonel Peter Bulkley of Con-
cord and Major Tiiomas Henchman of Chelmsford
bought of Keehonowsquaw, daughter of Jolui
Tahattawan, and other Indians, for the sum of
£70, one half of Nashobah plantation, lying on
the east side. It was laid out in the following
Jaimary by Jonathan Danforth, whose plan shows
the whole plantation. It was a nearly square
quadrilateral, bounded northerly by Groton, east-
erly by Chelmsford, southerly by Concord, westerly
by Stow, the sides being about four miles in length :
its position may be determined by the four corners.
" This jiarcell of land is bowidid by Concord Town bounds soutkmard two
mil: ; three quarters, eastward by Chelmsford bounds three mile .^ a halfe,
/- Northmard by good" Robbins .ypeligg laurance, two mile, westward bounded
by y remainder ofNashoba plantation three mile .f- a halfe, ,} something more,
^ this last line runs southv 7 degr. ^ J east, there being '2 maples marked R
for y N. JF corner ^- a red-oak mark't Hfor the south west comer.
Explanation. — The dotted lines show the original plan; the straight
lines the present bounds.
which were, as nearly as can be ascertained, the
present comer on Brown Hill, a pine-tree near the
house of the late Barnabas Dodge, the southwest
end of Nagog Pond, and a point in the neighborhood
of Boxborough town-house. Previous to
LITTLETON. 45
this the Indians had sold a part of the plantation,
lying nortli of the Bulkley and Henchman tract,
to Peleg Lawrence and Eobert Bobbins of Gro-
ton. These sales did not (as some have assumed)
jom the land to the towns in which the purchasers
lived.
That the fertile meadows of Nashobah should lie
unclaimed was, as before intimated, too much for
the itching palms of the neighboring people of Con-
cord, Chelmsford, Stow, and Lancaster, who first
severally, and then jointly, petitioned the General
Court for parts or the whole of the land, urging
various and weighty reasons why they sliould have
it, not the least of wliich was that Groton people,
who were quietly appropriating, without leave or
hcense, all they could lay hands on, were getting
more than their share. An investigating com-
mittee, appointed in answer to the joint petition,
reported, November 2, 1711, the bounds of the
plantation about the same as laid down by Jona-
than Danforth in 1686, and stated that Groton had
" run into Nashobah so as to take out near one
half and the bigest part of the meadows.'^ They
further state that the plantation contained about
seven thousand nine hundred and forty acres.
They recommended that the place be made a town-
ship, with some addition from Concord and
Chelmsford, stating that there were already five
families settled in Groton's claim, ten in the re-
mainder of the plantation, and three on Powers'
farm, adjoining.
. The few surviving Indian proprietors, nearly all
of whom lived in Natick, had then sold the re-
mainder of tlieir land ; one half, a strip about a
mile wide and four miles long, having been pur-
chased by Walter Powers of Concord, May 9,
1694, for £15; and the other half, of the same
dimensions, by Josiah Whitcomb of Lancaster,
May 10, 1701.
The following act of incorporation was passed
by the General Court Tuesday, November 2, 1714
(0. S.) : " Upon consideration of the sev" Petitions
& Claims relating to the Land called Nashoba
Land. Ordered, That the said Nashoba Land be
made a Township with the Addition of such adjoining
Lands of the Neighboring Towns whose
owners shall Petition for that end & this Court
shall think fit to grant. That y= s" Nashoba
Lands having been long since Purchased of y°
Indians by M' Bulkley & Hinchman one halfe,
the otlier halfe by Wlietcomb & Powers, that y°
s* Purchase be confirmed to v* Children of v° s**