in the article by Dr. Bond, settled itself by 1635 into the limits of an area embracing the present towns of Watertown, Waltham, Weston, the largest part of Lincoln, and that part of Cambridge lying east of Mount Auburn Cemetery, between Fresh Pond and Charles river. Watertown later was one of the smallest townships in the State, having been reduced by repeated excisions to its present dimensions.

In Watertown, where there was comparatively more room when the settlement was made, the lands were distributed in homestalls and homelots. These were collectively called the small lots and they were scattered over nearly the whole of the present territory of Watertown. There were within these limits a few tracts of land, of uncertain dimensions, called commons, devoted to the common use or benefit. With them was the meeting-house lot of forty acres, called sometimes the meeting-house common. A small lot on the river was reserved for a public landing. With a few exceptions of grants by the court, the lots appear to have all been granted and allotted by the freemen of the town. It is probable that none of those allotted to the first planters exceeded sixteen acres, and they varied from this to one acre, their average being probably about five or six acres.

Next followed the general grants of lands, called the great dividends, the land being divided into four divisions, each division being 160 rods in breadth. Another name for these four divisions was "the squadrons." These divisions began next to the small lots, and thus began the nuclei of the later farms.

Dr. Bond names the following houses as standing in the year 1855: The Nathaniel Bright house, built in the latter part of the seventeenth century, and in 1855 probably the oldest one in the town, its descent as to ownership passing through four Nathaniel Brights to Samuel Bright, and later to Nathaniel Francis Bright. It had an immense chimney in the centre, and was of the sort described by older writers as of "two stories in front and one story in rear." The house of Captain Abraham Browne, with the exception of the ancient "Nathaniel Bright" house, was probably in 1855 considered older than any other in the town. Concerning this house Dr. Bond said, "The 'new part', next the road, was built and occupied by Captain Abraham Browne, when he relinquished the old or south part to the use of his son Samuel." For a view of this house, see Bond's "Watertown", p. †126.

Authorities: Bond, Henry, "Genealogies of the Families and Descendants of the Early Settlers of Watertown", 1855; second edition, 1860. Francis, Convers, "Historical Sketch of Watertown", 1830. Harris, W. T., "Epitaphs from the old Burying-ground in Watertown", 1869. Nelson, C. A., in his "Waltham, Past and Present", gives an historical sketch of Watertown, 1630-1738. Watertown, "Centennial Celebration", 1876; "Watertown Records" (first and second books of town proceedings, etc.) 1894; same (third book of town proceedings) 1900; same (fourth book, ditto) 1904; same (precinct affairs, etc.) 1906. Whitney, S. F., "Historical Sketch of Watertown" (275th anniversary) 1906.

WATERTOWN-ANCIENT HOUSES

BY MARGARET L. SEARS

Authorities: Article by Mr. William H. Savage, in "New England Magazine", April, 1892, called, "Annals of an Ancient Parish". Scrap Book, by Rev. Mr. Rand. Mr. Alberto Haynes.

The Coolidge House was kept by Nathaniel Coolidge from 1764 to 1770, and afterwards by "Widow Coolidge", during the Revolutionary times. Washington spent the night here on his way to take command of the Continental forces about Boston. He wrote: "We lodged in this place (Watertown) at the house of Widow Coolidge, near the Bridge, and a very indifferent one it is".

The Brown House on Main street, near Hersom, is probably the oldest house in Watertown, and was built in 1623. Abraham Brown was one of the early settlers, and was a trusted and useful citizen and land surveyor. The house is occupied by his descendants. The inner walls are of brick. Jonathan Brown was a representative of the town in Provincial Congress.

The Marshall Fowle House-formerly stood on Mount Auburn street, corner of Marshall street, and was removed to Marshall street. Rumor says that General Warren slept here the night before the battle of Bunker Hill. Martha Washington came here "in high state in her own carriage and four, her colored postilions arrayed in gorgeous liveries, making Mount Auburn street the scene of a right royal parade. At the Fowle House, Mrs. Warren received and entertained her for two hours, when she proceeded to the Headquarters of the army at Cambridge". The Cochrane House was built about 1725, and is on the river road, known as the Waltham road. Some of the wounded at the Concord fight were taken here April 19, 1775.

The birthplace of Ann Whitney, the sculptress, has been removed to Water street. Ann Whitney made the statue of Leif Ericson, and belonged to the same family as Eli Whitney, maker of the cotton gin. The latter was of Watertown stock. The house is now inhabited by the poorer classes.

The Bemis House was built before the Revolution. The boy Nathaniel Bemis, and other boys, helped themselves to the first guns they could find and went to the battle of Lexington, without being enrolled. Theodore N. Russell, of the United States Arsenal, formerly occupied the house.

The Segar House was built by Elizabeth Segar, in 1794. Connected with it in the rear is an extensive brick shop where in 1820 the New England Lace Company had their factory. The street was called Lace Factory Lane. In 1823 the factory was removed to Ipswich. The originators of the factory, with their workmen, came from Nottingham, England, as their factory there had been broken up by those who were opposed to lace being made by machinery, instead of by hand, under the Heathcote patent. Subsequently the property belonged to Stephen Perry, and was the boyhood home of William Stevens Perry, Episcopal bishop of Iowa. In this house the first services of that denomination in Newton and the parish of Grace Church were organized.

The Bird Tavern on the point of land between Belmont and Main streets, near Mount Auburn Station, is over two hundred years old, and was for many years the residence of Joseph and Horace Bird. In Revolutionary times it was known as the Richardson Tavern, and later as Bird's and Bellows'. The interior was quaint and rambling, and included a ball room and large old-fashioned fireplaces. It is now an apartment house.

The Cushing Mansion is one of the notable houses of Watertown, and was built in 1844 and 1845. Mr. James Sharp furnished the mansion and Mr. Cushing sent him to Europe to purchase part of the furniture.

The Haunted House owned by General Winthrop.

MEDFORD

A distinct municipality from its early congeners, Charlestown and Cambridge, since 1630, Medford was first known as Mistick, which as early as 1631 was named by its early settlers Meadford. Its first settlement was evidently attempted in 1630, and that year is gernrally given as the date of its formal establishment. Governor Matthew Cradock, the first governor of Massachusetts Bay Colony, started a plantation there as early as that date, for the purpose of fishing and to plant and cultivate the soil. The town records, however, go no further back than 1673, and the previous pages are lost. The greater part of Medford was owned by Cradock, and its situation in regard to its title as a town was accounted "peculiar" even by the General Court. Ship-building was early introduced upon the Mistick river, and this industry was a source of prosperity and honor to Medford from about 1800 to 1873. To Governor John Winthrop belongs the honor of building the first ship whose keel was laid in the Massachusetts Colony, and that vessel was built on the banks of the Mistick, probably not far from the Governor's house at the Ten Hills. It was called the "Blessing of the Bay", and launched July 4, 1631. Another feature of the place was brick making; another was ardent spirits. The plantation at Medford flourished until 1641, when the majority of the Cradock planters sought other fields, and the number left were so few and poor that it was difficult to maintain the town. It was not, under these conditions, practicable for the town to maintain a church till 1713.

In view of the original and unusual conditions of its settlement, it was never incorporated a town. Although some speak of it as incorporated in 1630, that is an error. After 1715 its numbers increased, and its population performed its part in the different wars of the eighteenth century. A view of the principal street in 1839 shows many buildings of the provincial character, many of them of the pre-Revolutionary period. A large number of these houses still remain in Medford, and form a characteristic feature of the place. One hundred years ago it was a small town still, numbering about one hundred houses, "pleasantly situated", near to which was the fine "country seat belonging to Isaac Royall", it being at that date "one of the grandest in North America." To-day it is a lively and progressive city, with a population of nearly twenty-one thousand inhabitants.

For many years the most direct route of land travel from the north to Boston was through the town of Medford and over Mistick Bridge. The amount of travel was large and taverns in Medford were plenty, and many of them of high reputation, even as early as 1686, when the famous John Dunton visited one of them and commented on its excellent provisions for his welfare and entertainment. In other respects, in that year there was little else remarkable to be

The Royall House, or rather its original part, according to John H. Hooper, an authority on Medford homesteads, was built as a residence for the tenants of Governor Winthrop's Ten Hills Farm, during the lifetime, it is supposed, of the governor, hence its title to priority in order of erection to all others in the limits of Medford. This original part was of brick and two stories in height, and is now the front part of the present structure. The original was essentially a six-room house. The two end and rear walls are still standing. The front wall was replaced by the present wooden front. The estate where the house is was a part of the Ten Hills Farm, and its line of descent from Winthrop was through Lieutenant-Governor John Usher, through his wife Elizabeth Lidgett Usher. The Ushers came here to live in 1697, and here Mr. Usher died in 1726. His heirs conveyed to Isaac Royall, Senior, 1732; he resided in the house from 1737 to 1739, when he died. His son Isaac Royall succeeded him. The son became a colonel, and took great interest in Medford, but, being a Tory, left his home April 16, 1775, never to return. He died in England in 1781. His estate was confiscated by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, and his mansion was the favorite quarters of American army officers during the siege of Boston, 1775-76.

Next in interest in Medford is the Wellington farm-house, so called, on the farm first granted to Rev. John Wilson by the General Court in 1634,-house built about 1637-38, and now standing. The successive owners have been Thomas Blanchard, George and Nathaniel Blanchard, Captain Wymond Bradbury, a mariner, 1795, Isaac and James Wellington, 1819, and it is still in the Wellington family, and in a good state of preservation.

Next in interest is the Peter Tufts house, commonly known as the Cradock House, on land which was once a part of the Cradock plantation. In 1677 Richard Russell sold the property adjacent to Peter Tufts. In 1680 Tufts sold to his son Captain Peter Tufts half of the Russell purchase, but without the buildings. Mr. Hooper claims, for various reasons, that the brick house known generally as the Cradock house was built in 1680, by Captain Peter Tufts. The house retains its original shape, and is now kept in the best possible repair.

Next is the Major Jonathan Wade house-sometimes called by a misnomer the Garrison House-now standing in perfect repair. Richard Russell sold the land to Jonathan Wade, Senior, in 1661. Wade died in 1683, and the lot descended to his son Jonathan. On the land acquired by the second Jonathan Wade was an old tenement supposed to be the original Cradock house, which was occupied by Major Jonathan Wade until his new brick house was finished. Thus the Wade house was on a part of the original Cradock grant. The date of the building of the present brick house is set between the years 1683, when Mr. Wade, Senior, died, and 1689, when Mr. Wade, Junior, the Major Wade, died. It is supposed that the main building in its outward form remains substantially the same as it was originally.

Other old houses in Medford, mentioned by Mr. Hooper, are the Seccomb house, built in 1756, and still standing. Thomas Seccomb was its first owner. It was a dwelling-house until about the year 1866, when it became a hotel. It is now owned by General Lawrence, and is

occupied as offices by the city of Medford. The Andrew Hall house, the life of whose first owner covered the period from 1698 to 1750. Andrew Hall was succeeded by his widow, Abigail Hall. Here Captain Isaac Hall, the captain of the Medford minute-men, lived in 1775. The Richard Hall house was probably built by Andrew Hall, father of Richard. It was owned by Richard at the time of his decease. It still retains its original shape. The Job Richardson house, an old gambrel roof house, on the south side of Mistick river, was built about 1731. The Samuel Train house dates from 1747. The Jonathan Watson house stands on land bought by Mr. Watson about 1738, the house being erected soon afterwards. The John Jenks house, south of the river, has existed from about 1752. The Jonathan Brooks house, a fine specimen of the old gambrel roof style, was built in 1768, when Jonathan Bradshaw, Junior, sold to Jonathan Patten, a small piece of land "with a frame covered with boards." Patten sold to Thomas Brooks, Junior, who sold to Jonathan Brooks, in 1791. The estate The estate is still in the Brooks' name.

The Rev. Charles Brooks, in his "History of Medford" (1855), names the following old houses, which were standing at that time, but not now: Rev. Mr. Turell's house; Gorham Brooks's house; the "old dilapidated mansion" of Dr. Simon Tufts, "one of the oldest and best specimens of the second fashion which prevailed in New England." It had three stories in front, and the large roof behind descended so as to allow of only one story in the rear. There was one enormous chimney in the centre of the building. The Governor Brooks house was a newer specimen of the same model. The next fashion, introduced as an improvement upon these, was the broken or "gambrel-roofed" houses, many of which still remain (Brooks, p. 50). The John Whitmore house, 1680-1840, (illustrated in Brooks's "History", p. 217) was a gambrelroofed structure of the wooden type.

Authorities: Brooks, Charles, "History of the Town of Medford", 1855; and same, brought down to 1885, by J. M. Usher, 1886. "Medford Historical Register", 1898, etc. "Medford, Past and Present" (275th anniversary of Medford) 1905. Wild, H. T., "Medford in the Revolution", 1903.

CAMBRIDGE

Cambridge, the original shire town of Middlesex county, though now small in territorial extent, like most ancient townships, has had great enlargement and dimunition in its boundary lines. At first it was merely a fortified place, small in area, where houses were erected in 1631, surrounded by a palisado, and it was called "The New Town." In the course of a few years an enlargement of its territory was granted, which included Brookline, Brighton, and Newtown. This grant was afterwards forfeited, but that part of it which was afterwards Brighton and Newton held good. In 1638 the General Court ordered that Newtown be henceforth called Cambridge, no other act of incorporation being found on record.

It had hitherto been agreed that Newtown bounds should run eight miles into the country "from their meeting-house." This grant embraced the territory now included in Arlington, and the principal part, perhaps the whole, of Lexington. Later Billerica, parts of Bedford and Carlisle, a part of Tewksbury or of Chelmsford, or of both, were added. This was its full size, about thirty-five miles in length, wide at each extremity, not more than one mile wide in the central part, where the original settlement was made, and where most of the inhabitants resided. Such it was in 1651, extending from Dedham to the Merrimack river; the village compact within itself, with some straggling houses outside; that part of Dedham, which now constitutes the town of Needham, was the southerly bound.

In 1655 Billerica was separated from Cambridge. In 1688 Newton was separated from the old town. In 1713 Lexington was incorporated, and separated from Cambridge. Later losses of territory were those of West Cambridge, now Arlington, in 1807, and Brighton in the same year. Cambridge was then reduced to its present limits substantially, and its incorporation as a city apparently settled all difficulties for a long time to come.