Volume 1

Prefatory Note of the Committee of Publication

Introduction

Ch. I – Boundaries at Different Times; Scenery.

Addition to territory:  New towns:  Outline map:  Hills:  Intervales: River changes:  Springs, lakes, brooks and rivers:  Scenery: Minerals:  Animals:  Trees:  Size of the ponds.

Ch. II – The Purchase and Settlement of Lancaster.

Date of settlement:  Sholan:  Indian camp pasture:  The pioneers:  First two houses:  Liberty of a township:  Division of lots:  Covenant of the planters:  Their names and estates:  Name of the town:  Limited number of settlers:  Suffrage:  Wisdom of the fathers.

Ch. III – Location of the First Settlers; Autonomy of the Town.

Names of the first settlers:  First roads:  Location of the first houses:  The proprieters:  The town not able to govern itself:  The committee, and the selectmen:  Arbitrators:  Major Simon Willard:  Self-government.

Ch. IV – Character of the Settlers; The Natives; The Burning and Massacre.

Religion:  The minister and his position: Education:  Manners and customs:  Character of the people:  The Indians seduced by Philip:  The burning and massacre:  Total ruin of the settlement:  Captivity of Mrs. Rowlandson:  Fate of the Indians.

Ch. V – Rebuilding; King William’s War.

Return of the settlers:  The Rowlandson locker:  Lost records:  Petition to the general court for aid:  The second meeting-house:  Ministers:  King Williams war:  Indian raids:  Massacre of Mr. Whiting and others.

Ch. VI – Indian War; Garrisons; Third Meeting-House; New Territory.

Adjusting taxes:  French and Indian attacks:  Houses burned on George Hill:  Sad death of Rev. Mr. Gardner:  Meeting-house on the Old Common:  Expedition to Port Royal:  Garrisons:  Last act of Indian violence in the town:  Tahanto’s grant.

Ch. VII — Annals; Education; Delegates; Church Covenant.

Extent of the town:  Annals:  Population:  Delegates:  Intelligence of the people:  The minister’s house:  Settlement of Rev. John Prentice:  The church covenant:  Names of male members.

Ch. VIII – New Families; Lancaster Heroes.

Governors of the colony:  Contest about a new grant:  New families:  Town meeting 1719:  King George’s war:  Heroes:  Fairbanks:  Harwell:  The two Willards:  John White:  Petition of Eunice White.

Ch. IX – Swarming Time.

Size of townships:  Town government, at first, a duality:  Bridge over the Penacook:  Road across the Swan swamp to Concord:  Roads:  Schoolmasters Stow and Broughton:  Enlarging the meeting-house:  Seating the meeting-house:  Incorporation of Harvard:  County of Worcester:  Roads and schools:  Bolton becomes a town:  Leominster set off in 1740:  Salary of the minister:  Two meeting-houses:  Chocksett a precinct:  Shrewsbury Leg:  Town officers:  Unstable currency.

Ch. X – Spanish and French and Indian Wars; Fort Dummer.

Walpole opposed to the Spanish war:  Lancaster soldiers lost in the West Indies:  The old French and Indian war:  Lancaster men at the capture of Louisburg:  Col. Samuel Willard:  Raid on Lunenburg:  Fort Drummer:  Col. Josiah Willard:  Soldiers in the service.

Ch. XI – The Church During the Ministry of Rev. John Prentice.

Respect for the ministry:  Rev. John Prentice:  Increase of population:  Tax list of 1751:  Owning the covenant:  Dismissing members to form new churches:   Laxity of morals:  Discipline: Whitefield:  Admission to the church and baptisms:  Names of deacons: Death and character of Mr. Prentice.

Ch. XII – The Last French and Indian War.

French and Indian hostility:  Four expeditions in 1755: French neutrals:  Soldiers at Crown Point:  Battles at Lake George:  Fort Drummer:  Panic in New England:  Small-pox in camp and at home:  Energy of Pitt:  Conquest of Quebec:  Soldiers in the war:  Rejoicing:  Sermon of Rev. John Mellen.

Ch. XIII – Annals, from 1743 to 1776.

Schools:  Roads and bridges:  The river straightened:  Plan of general union:  School districts:  Shrewburg Leg:  Grammar school:  Neck bridge:  Names of town officers:  Population:  State of morals:  Education:  Religious society of young men:  Golden age of the town.

Ch. XIV – Lancaster in the Revolution.

Prelude to the drama:  Grievances:  Resolutions:  Aid for the poor of Boston:  Arming:  The rush to Concord and Lexington:  Lancaster men at Bunker Hill:  Continentals:  Capt. Haskell:  Col. Whitcomb:  The Willards:  Committees of correspondence and of inspections:  Anecdote of Mr. Harrington:  Declaration of Independence:  Paper money:  Fixing the market:  Great drain on the town for men and supplies:  List of soldiers.

Volume 2

Ch. XV – Politics from 1776 to 1800.

The Confederation accepted:  The State Constitution:  State elections:  Shay’s rebellion:  The Consitution of the United States:  The military spirit under Mr. Adams:  Death of Washington and honors to his memory:  Town officers.

Ch. XVI – Set-Off to Shrewsbury; Parish and Town Affairs; Population and Wealth

South end of the town joined to Shrewsbury:  Sterling incorporated in 1781:  Fourth meeting-house enlarged:  Salary of the minister:  Candidates:  Call of Rev. Nathaniel Thayer:  Dogs at meeting:  The poor:  Warning out of town:  Schools and squadrons:  Latin and Greek:  School committee:  Roads and bridges:  Lottery:  The pock-house:  Map of 1795:  New families:  Shakers.

Ch. XVII – The MInistry of Rev. Timothy Harrington.

His testimonials:  Installation:  Legacy to the church:  Election of deacons:  Case of Moses Osgood:  Ann Lee’s influence on some members of the church:  Unconscious change of opinions:  The Bolton case and the pastor’s veto:  Family of Mr. Harrington:  His character and influence:  Low state of morals after the Revolution.

Ch. XVIII – General History of the Town from 1801 to 1843.

Great improvement in dwellings and fields:  Reminiscences of Mr. Flectcher:  Schools:  Bridges:  List of voters:  Annals:  Small-pox:  Opposition to the war with England:  Clintonville:  The artillery go to Boston:  Fifth meeting-house dedication:  The poor:  New religious societies:  Liberty party:  List of town officers:  Education:  Names of the school committees:  Roads and bridges:  Stone abutments:  Arched and iron bridges.

Ch. XIX – The Pastorate of Dr. Thayer.

Long pastorates:  Ordination of Mr. Thayer:  His ancestry and education:  Blessing of father Harrington:  Change in doctrinal views:  New method of receiving members:  Dea. Whiting:  Silver cups:  Members dismissed to other churches:  Deacons:  Lafayete’s reception:  General influence of Dr. Thayer:  Last journey and death:  His views of Christ.

Ch. XX – Town Affairs During the Last Thirty-Five Years.

New departure in politics and religion:  Copying the Records:  New town hall:  Clinton:  Charitable fund:  Bi-centennial celebration:  New almshouse:  Fish culture:  Charles Sumner:  Centennial:  Roads and bridges:  Town officers:  Public schools:  School Committees:  Text books and course of study.

Ch. XXI – The Academy and Other Private Schools.

The Latin grammar school:  Lancaster academy:  Teachers:  Miss E. P. Peabody:  Shareholders:  School of Hon. James G. Carter:  Normal school of Prof. Russell.

Ch. XXII – Private and Public Libraries

The ministers’ libraries:  The Lancaster Library and its proprietors:  School district libraries:  Sunday school libraries:  The agricultural library:  Library Club:  The town library:  Donations by Mr. Thayer:  Memorial hall:  Gifts by Col F. B. Fay and George A. Parker:  The library committee:  The Bancroft Library Fund in honor of Capt. Samuel Ward.

Volume 3

Ch. XXIII – Brief History of the Churches.

The First Congregational or Unitarian church:  The Universalist society:  The Evangelical Congregational church:  The New Jerusalem church:  The Seventh Day Adventist church:  The Catholic church.

Ch. XXIV Business; Associations; Population; Authors and Books

Various kinds of business:  Store corners:  Mills and factories:  Printing and engraving:  Banks and railroads:  Associations:  State Industrial School for Girls:  Population:  Aged people:  Physicians:  Lawyers:  College graduates:  Authors and books.

Ch. XXV – Cemeteries

The Old Burying Ground:  Map of the yard:  The inscriptions:  The Old Common Burying Yard:  The North Lancaster Burying Yard:  The Middle Cemetery:  The North Village Cemetery:  Eastwood Cemetery.

Ch. XXVI – Lancaster in the War of the Rebellion.

Patriotic excitement:  Public meetings:  Volunteers:  Influence of the pulpit and the platform:  Soldiers in the field:  Names of the soldiers:  Ladies’ Soldiers’ Relief Association:  Freedmen’s Aid Society:  The roll of honor:  The names of the dead in Memorial Hall:  The cost of the war:  The death of President Lincoln.

Ch. XXVII – Walks about Town.

Distribution of families:  Citizens of foreign birth:  South Lancaster:  The Old Common:  The Center:  The North Village:  From Deer’s Horns to Ponakin hill.

Errata and Index

List of Illustrations.

Volume 4

• A miscellaneous collection of historical papers and memoranda relating to the history and geography of Lancaster : from its purchase from the Indians AD 1643 to AD 1880.