History of the Town of Fitchburg 1865 Part 12


In the year 1745 or '6 Amos Kimball, and his cousin Ephraim
moved from Bradford into this town.  Amos built the house
where Sam'l Hale now lives, and Ephraim the house on the
Story farm.  They probably owned land down to the river, and
so up the same, including Rollstone.  They built a gristmill
with one run of stones soon after they came here on the
place where the stone factory now stands.  The dam which
they bilt is said to have been not more than forty feet in
length, in consequence of a natural bank, on the south side
of the river, confining the water to a narrow channel at
this place.  This dam was made of log laid across the river,
having "Spoilings" driven in above it.  Almost every year a
freshet would sweep round the south end of the dam and
oblige them to extend it several feet further.

The Kimballs, living at rather too great a distance to take
immediate charge of their mill, they employed on Hodgkins
for tender.  He built for himself a little hut or stall on
the ground between I. Phillips' store and the house below.
This habitation of Hodgkins was the first building with the
exception of the mill erected in what is now the Old City.

At this time Samuel Poole had a garrison -- Capt. Samuel
Hunt, who lived where David Page previously lived, had one
-- there was one at Isaac Gibson's and one at Joseph
Spafford's.

Between the years 1740 and 1750 the Indians did not cease to
keep the inhabitants of the frontier towns, -- and this town
may fairly have been considered as such -- in a state of
constant alarm.  England at this time was waging a war with
France; and their colonists suffered dreadfully from the
incursions and attacks of the savages, who were instigated
by the french in Canada.  (Canada owned Asburnham and/or
Ashby.  Part 11 referring to the road now known as Flat Rock
Road said it, "wound up the hill by Enoch Caldwell's - over
Flat Rock - and thence to what was then the Lunenburg west
line and into Dorchester, Canada." Ken) The French
government paid a large bounty for English scalps, and a
still larger one for English prisoners alive.  Though the
war with France was closed by the treaty of Aix la Chapelle,
in 1748, the dread of Indian deprediations did not cease
till several years after.  Indian scouts were frquently
reported to have been seen -- alarms, many of which
undoubtedly arose from false apprehensions, were excited --
and fears were daily aroused from a consciousness of
insecurity.

In the summer of 1747, a body of Indians made their
appearance within the borders of this town, and committed
several acts of depredation.  As this was the only occasion,
of which we have authentic accounts, that the Indians made
their appearance in this town, as enemies, I have thought
that it would not prove uninteresting to notice the
incursion with some degree of particularity.

There was living at this time, in the neighborhood of
Mr. John Fitch, who then resided upon a spot very near to
the place where the brick house of Oliver Kendall stands, in
Ashby, a certain half-tamed Indian, called Surdody.  This
part of Ashby was then included in Lunenburg.  Mr. Fitch
accidently felled a tree one day onto the wigwam of Surdody,
while the latter was absent on some hunting expedition.
Surdody, on his return home at evening found his dwelling
crushed to the earfh and his wrath was kindled.  Fitch did
not seek him with an apology, or with any offer of
reparation; neither did Surdody request any recompense of or
shower any reproaches opon his white neighbor.  He sought a
recompense more congenial with the Indian disposition.  He
immediately took up his line of march for the north, and
soon laid his grievances before his copper coloured brethern
in Canada.  He described to them the defenceless state of
the whites in this region, and prevailed upon a band of them
to accompany him back upon a laudable expedition of
vengenance and booty.

(to be continued)

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