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of good merchantable codfish, to be delivered at Fort James, in New York. Before its incorporation it was known by the name of Middletown.

The precise time when the Congregational church was organized is not known. John Mayhew began to preach at Tisbury in 1673, but was not ordained. Josiah Torrey was ordained in 1701; Nathaniel Hancock in 1727; George Damon in 1760, and was dismissed about 1779. Asa Morse was installed in 1784, and dismissed at his request in 1799. He was succeeded in 1801 by Nymphas Hatch.

There are two churches, 1 Congregationalist and 1 Methodist, situated in West Tisbury, 8 miles and a half from the court-house

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Northern view at Holmes' Hole, East Tisbury.

in Edgartown, and 85 S. S. E. of Boston. At Holmes' Hole, on the north side of the island, is a village, consisting of about 100 dwelling-houses. There are a Methodist and a Baptist church; the last-mentioned was built in 1837. A few houses on the east chop of the harbor fall within the limits of Edgartown. Holmes' Hole is a good harbor. The depth of water is from 8 fathoms to 3; the bottom good holding ground, bluish clay. Several excellent pilots reside near the harbor. Wickataquay Pond communicates with Holmes' Hole by an opening which is only 4 rods wide and 7 feet deep at high water. It is supposed formerly to have been wider and deeper, and to have been a part of the harbor. The pond is 3 miles in length and 1 mile in width, and in several places 40 feet in depth. It is situated on the Edgartown side of the harbor. Newtown Pond, in the south part of Tisbury, is a mile and a half long, and has a natural communication with the sea, through which the tide rises and falls. The largest brooks in the island empty into the head of this pond, not more than 100 rods apart, one running from the west and one from the northwest. A small brook in this town discharges itself into Lam

bert's Cove. The wells in this town, and in other parts of the island, are not deep, the water in them being on a level with the sea. The common depth is from 15 to 20 feet. The water in them is soft and of a good quality, and will wash as well as rain water. The sandy beaches in every part of the island abound with fresh water, which can be obtained by digging a few feet. The surface of this town is mostly level plains. Around Holmes' Hole, however, are hills of moderate elevation, and a range of highland runs on the north side of the town parallel with the sound. Most of the improved land in this township is good and productive.

ESSEX COUNTY.

ESSEX COUNTY, the north-eastern section of Massachusetts, was incorporated as a county in 1643. It is thirty-eight miles long, and twenty-five miles wide; and is more densely populated than any other county of its size in the United States. It has an extensive sea-coast, the line of which is very uneven, being indented with numerous bays, inlets, and harbors. Much of the shore is rough and rocky, but it has here and there a sandy beach. There are also great tracts of salt marsh, which produce large quantities of grass. There are many hills in the county, but no mountains. The soil in many places is hard to cultivate, but is made productive by the industry of the farmers. The principal river in the county is the Merrimac, which rises in New Hampshire; it passes through the northern section, three miles south of the New Hampshire line, and, owing to falls and rapids, is navigable only to Haverhill, about eighteen miles from its mouth. There is in this county a large amount of wealth, and its commerce and fisheries are very extensive. The manufacture of shoes, cloth, and other articles, is carried on to a considerable extent. Courts for the county are held at Salem, Newburyport, and Ipswich. The following is a list of the towns, which are 27 in number.

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In 1800 the population of the county was 61,196; in 1810 it was 71,888; in 1820 it was 74,655; in 1830 it was 82,887; and in 1837 it was 93,689.

AMESBURY.

AMESBURY was formerly a parish in the town of Salisbury, under the name of Salisbury New-Town. It took its name from a town in Wiltshire, England, and in the first records of the town it is written Almsbury. The town was incorporated in 1668. It is six miles in length and three in breadth, and is divided into three sections: West Parish, or Jamaica, the Ferry, and Mills. The Ferry lies at the south-east extremity of the town, at the junction of Powow river with the Merrimac. Its name is derived from the ancient ferry which was established between this part of the town and Newbury. The river alters its course at this point from a north-east to a south-west direction. This was formerly the seat of considerable trade, and many large ships were owned in the place. Ship-building was also carried on extensively on the banks of the river, and some are still yearly launched. Shad and salmon were taken at this place; some are still caught, but they are becoming scarce. The Mills are situated at the north-eastern border of the town, around the lower falls of the Powow, forming a continuous settlement with the north-western village of Salisbury, on the opposite side of the Powow. The width of the river is about 2 rods, and is crossed by a number of bridges. There are 5 dams at the Mills within a space of 50 rods; the aggregate fall of water is 70 feet. The stream is rapid, especially in freshet times, when its descent over the falls presents a beautiful scene. The stream is seldom exhausted; when so, Kimball's Pond has been dammed up, and converted into a reservoir. The canal which forms a communication between the pond and river is nearly an eighth of a mile in length. It has been made more than a century. A part of it forms a tunnel under a high hill, which is considered quite a curiosity. Water power in this place was applied to machinery at an early date. As far back as half a century there was a smeltingfurnace, and much business carried on in the making of various kinds of tools and agricultural implements. Jacob Perkins' machine for cutting and heading nails, which was invented about 1796, was first used in this village. The town is hilly, and much of the natural scenery is of a picturesque character. Whittier, Bear, and the Pond hills, are the most elevated, and the prospect from them is very extensive and romantic. The soil of the town is of an average quality of the other soil in the county. The Amesbury Flannel Manufacturing Company, which was incorporated in 1822, with a capital of $200,000, have two large factories in operation, one of which is for the manufactory of flannels, the other for satinets. The flannel mills have made annually 15,000 pieces of flannels, 46 yards each; the satinet mill, 5,000 pieces of satinet, 25 yards each.

The following is a south-eastern view of what is called the Mills Village, lying in the towns of Salisbury and Amesbury. For many purposes, the people on both sides of the Powow (the dividing line)

act together as one town. The village, in both towns, is supposed to contain about 2,500 inhabitants. There are five churches: 2 Baptist, 1 Congregational, 1 for Friends, and 1 Episcopal. This place is 5 miles from Newburyport, 12 from Haverhill, 20 from Portsmouth, and 40 from Boston. Population of the town, 2,567.

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South-east view of Mills Village, in Salisbury and Amesbury.

One of the signers of the Declaration of Independence, Josiah Bartlett, was a native of this town, and many of his kindred still live in the place. He studied medicine in his native place, and removed to New Hampshire, of which state he held the office of governor for a number of years. He died in 1795.

The first church organized was located at the Ferry. The first pastor, settled in 1672, was Thomas Wells, who died 1734, aged 87. The second pastor was the Rev. Edmund March, of Newbury, who was settled here in 1728. He was succeeded by Rev. Elisha Odin, of Exeter, N. H., who was settled in 1744, and died in 1752. His successor was Thomas Hibbert, of Rowley, who was settled in 1754, and died in 1793. The fifth pastor was Benjamin Bell, settled in 1784, and resigned in 1790; was succeeded by Stephen Hull in 1799, who resigned in 1811. The second Congregational church, located in the west parish, was organized in 1726. The Congregational society of Amesbury and Salisbury was organized in 1831. The Friends have a meeting-house at the Mills village. In Mr. Newhall's Essex Memorial, it is stated, "Most of the people of Amesbury belong to the productive class; very few are raised above the necessity for personal exertion. All are active and industrious, readily find employment, and command good wages. They have been distinguished for their zeal in the cause of temperance. There has not been, for several years, and is not now, a single licensed grocer in town." According to the Statistical Tables published by the state in 1837, there were in the limits of this town 3 woollen mills, having 27 sets of machi

nery; 1,100,000 yards of flannel were manufactured, and 150,000 yards of satinet; value of woollen goods, $425,000; males employed, 118; females, 125; capital invested, $250,000. In the manufacture of chaises, &c., 128 hands were employed, and in the manufacture of shoes and boots, 84 persons.

ANDOVER.

THE exact time of the first settlement of Cochichewick, now Andover, or when the town was first purchased of the Indians, does not distinctly appear. The land was bought of Cutshamache, the sagamore of Massachusetts, by Mr. Woodbridge, in behalf of the inhabitants of Cochichewick. The amount paid was £6 and a coat. Mr. Edmund Faulkner might have assisted Mr. Woodbridge, as there is a tradition that he purchased the town for the settlers. In 1646, the court confirmed this purchase and grant, and the town was incorporated by the name of Andover, from the fact that some of the planters came from Andover, in Hampshire, England. The settlers bought the land of the town, and they were received as commoners or proprietors; and, according to a vote of the town, all householders were considered as proprietors and voters. The first divisions were small lots, few exceeding ten acres. The farms were rendered inconvenient, from the fact that plough land was granted at a distance, in small parcels, on the plains; the same also with swamps and meadow-land, woodland, &c. Much of this inconvenience is felt to this day. There is much obscurity about certain transactions, in consequence of the early records having been destroyed by the Indians. The land was first settled near Cochichewick brook, and upon the Shawshin. Various parts of the town were soon occupied by settlers. The chief settlement was for many years in the neighborhood of the meeting-house and Cochichewick brook, and was called the town.

Most of the first settlers were from England; the names of the following were taken from the town records. They were written in an ancient hand, without date, but probably most of the first settlers were living when they were written. "The names of all the householders in order as they came to town: Mr. Bradstreet, John Osgood, Joseph Parker, Richard Barker, John Stevens, Nicholas Holt, Benjamin Woodbridge, John Frye, Edmund Faulkner, Robert Barnard, Daniel Poor, Nathan Parker, Henry Jaques, John Aslett, Richard Blake, William Ballard, John Lovejoy, Thomas Poor, George Abbot, John Russ, Andrew Allen, Andrew Foster, Thomas Chandler." Part of these brought families with them. The rest were young unmarried men. It is probable that all of these and others were in Andover before 1644. Many followed them in the course of a few years.

The first violence done by the Indians took place April, 19, 1676. They were first discovered by Mr. Ephraim Stevens, not far from

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