Bits n' Pieces from the Historian's Corner
by Sharon Howe
Our Society often receives requests for information on genealogy and local history and this past year has seen a bumper crop, possibly due to people being housebound with the stay-at-home orders. We thought we would share bits and pieces of local history with you from time to time. Recently, we have fielded several questions as to whether Hollis townspeople were slaveowners or whether there were free Black people in the town.
Cicero and Dinah – lingering questions…
Looking back at some of the early U.S. Census data for Hollis, we note that, at various times, there were slaves in Hollis, having been sanctioned by laws of the Colony of New Hampshire until near the end of the Revolutionary War. Our own 1879 Hollis history book by Samuel T. Worcester states that, in 1767, out of a total population of 52,700 in the Colony, 384 were slaves, two of whom were in Hollis. Unfortunately, there is little readily available local information on who either of these souls may have been. However, there is one letter in our collection that may be relevant.
The letter comes from Mary Townsend of Plymouth, NH, when she, in 1976, wrote with a question to Nelson Parkhurst, a longtime Hollis historian. Mary was a descendent of Colonel David Webster who served with distinction in the Revolutionary War. David, after marrying Elizabeth Clough in 1761, lived in Hollis for a short time until 1764 when they, along with a number of other Hollis men and families, moved north to settle the Town of Plymouth, New Hampshire.
Mary’s letter notes, “The Websters are as thick as thieves in this region… I have been asked to speak (at a local meeting) on two Davids, Col. David and his grandson, David Moor Webster. Now I have a problem! I have a loose-leaf notebook in which two or three Websters, cousins, wrote interesting things about their ancestors and relations. They called it ‘Webster Chronicles.’ ” I quote from this:
“I have heard my father (David, grandson of Col. David) tell over and over again the story of his grandmother’s journey to Plymouth. He never varied the few details. His account ran thus: ‘When Col. David Webster had finished his log cabin in Plymouth (1764), he sent his slave *Cisco to bring his wife and baby from Hollis to Plymouth (October 1764). At the New Hampton ford, her horse stumbled and threw Grandmother and her baby into the river. Drying their clothes caused so much delay that they were still a long way from Plymouth when it began to grow so dark that they could not see the trail. They found “the cave” (about a mile and a quarter above our house) and Grandmother and the baby took refuge there. Since one of the horses was white, Grandmother was afraid the Indians might find them, and the slave concealed them among the trees on the bank of the river.
“In the night, the Indians held a powwow on the top of the cave, and Grandmother had to choke the baby almost to death to keep him from crying!
“My father’s story always ended here. I have given it almost verbatim. I think it safe to assume that the party reached Plymouth safely the next day. The baby was Captain David Webster, born November 1763. Cousin Addie says she has been told that, ‘Great grandmother Webster could never speak of this adventure without tears.’ ”
Mary adds, “There are at least three other versions of Mrs. Webster and the baby’s trip from Hollis to Plymouth, one that she came on foot along with her husband and his ox-cart with the furniture, one that she rode along with him on horseback, and the one in Mrs. Spear’s Folk-tales of New Hampshire, in which she rode on horseback alone. I was brought up on the one in the Webster Chronicles and give up this version reluctantly.”
“Someday, if you and Mrs. Parkhurst are in this region, I should be pleased to show you the cave. It is not very impressive and much less so since a big hemlock tree that stood in front of it fell down a few years ago. As children we used to look for Indian relics in the region and never found anything but wood ticks.”
Whether Mr. Parkhurst was able to give Mary Townsend any answers to her questions, we may never know. Often this is the result of many of the inquiries that come our way. Simple answers are hard to come by and the best we can do is offer or uncover ‘bits and pieces’ to add to the story with the hope that, given time, they will tie together and provide a welcome glimpse into the past.
Cicero and Dinah – lingering questions…
Looking back at some of the early U.S. Census data for Hollis, we note that, at various times, there were slaves in Hollis, having been sanctioned by laws of the Colony of New Hampshire until near the end of the Revolutionary War. Our own 1879 Hollis history book by Samuel T. Worcester states that, in 1767, out of a total population of 52,700 in the Colony, 384 were slaves, two of whom were in Hollis. Unfortunately, there is little readily available local information on who either of these souls may have been. However, there is one letter in our collection that may be relevant.
The letter comes from Mary Townsend of Plymouth, NH, when she, in 1976, wrote with a question to Nelson Parkhurst, a longtime Hollis historian. Mary was a descendent of Colonel David Webster who served with distinction in the Revolutionary War. David, after marrying Elizabeth Clough in 1761, lived in Hollis for a short time until 1764 when they, along with a number of other Hollis men and families, moved north to settle the Town of Plymouth, New Hampshire.
Mary’s letter notes, “The Websters are as thick as thieves in this region… I have been asked to speak (at a local meeting) on two Davids, Col. David and his grandson, David Moor Webster. Now I have a problem! I have a loose-leaf notebook in which two or three Websters, cousins, wrote interesting things about their ancestors and relations. They called it ‘Webster Chronicles.’ ” I quote from this:
“I have heard my father (David, grandson of Col. David) tell over and over again the story of his grandmother’s journey to Plymouth. He never varied the few details. His account ran thus: ‘When Col. David Webster had finished his log cabin in Plymouth (1764), he sent his slave *Cisco to bring his wife and baby from Hollis to Plymouth (October 1764). At the New Hampton ford, her horse stumbled and threw Grandmother and her baby into the river. Drying their clothes caused so much delay that they were still a long way from Plymouth when it began to grow so dark that they could not see the trail. They found “the cave” (about a mile and a quarter above our house) and Grandmother and the baby took refuge there. Since one of the horses was white, Grandmother was afraid the Indians might find them, and the slave concealed them among the trees on the bank of the river.
“In the night, the Indians held a powwow on the top of the cave, and Grandmother had to choke the baby almost to death to keep him from crying!
“My father’s story always ended here. I have given it almost verbatim. I think it safe to assume that the party reached Plymouth safely the next day. The baby was Captain David Webster, born November 1763. Cousin Addie says she has been told that, ‘Great grandmother Webster could never speak of this adventure without tears.’ ”
Mary adds, “There are at least three other versions of Mrs. Webster and the baby’s trip from Hollis to Plymouth, one that she came on foot along with her husband and his ox-cart with the furniture, one that she rode along with him on horseback, and the one in Mrs. Spear’s Folk-tales of New Hampshire, in which she rode on horseback alone. I was brought up on the one in the Webster Chronicles and give up this version reluctantly.”
“Someday, if you and Mrs. Parkhurst are in this region, I should be pleased to show you the cave. It is not very impressive and much less so since a big hemlock tree that stood in front of it fell down a few years ago. As children we used to look for Indian relics in the region and never found anything but wood ticks.”
Whether Mr. Parkhurst was able to give Mary Townsend any answers to her questions, we may never know. Often this is the result of many of the inquiries that come our way. Simple answers are hard to come by and the best we can do is offer or uncover ‘bits and pieces’ to add to the story with the hope that, given time, they will tie together and provide a welcome glimpse into the past.