My memory leads me back over a comparatively brief part of the time
covered by the recollections of the gray haired men and women who are
here present. I was born in this beautiful village; my first hallowed
recollections cluster here; its territory is familiar to me; I know its
people and something of its history, and wherever I go my mind reverts
with pride to this good old town.
It is with great pleasure that I accept the honor of responding to this
toast, and in what I have to say shall not refer to the comparatively
modern generation of Irishmen—Murphy, Brennan, Hamill, Noone, and scores
of others—and their descendants, who have helped to build up this town,
and whose history should be left for a résumé of fifty years hence, but
to those early settlers who came across the ocean, and their
descendants; men who risked all, even life itself, to make this spot a
fit place for the abode of man.
They were composed in a very small part of Scotchmen, Englishmen and
other nationalities, but the essential part of the pioneers of our town,
in fact nearly all of them, were Irishmen, for I assume that where men
were born in Ireland, as they were, where many of their fathers,
perhaps, also, some of their grandfathers were born, they were men who
can unqualifiedly be called Irishmen. Adopt any other standard and a
large part of the inhabitants of Ireland at the time they emigrated
would not be considered Irishmen, and probably few persons in this town
to-day would be considered Americans.
The Scotchmen who came to Ireland, and from whom some of the pioneers of
this town trace their ancestry, landed on that Emerald Isle, as our town
history records it, in 1610, more than a century and a quarter before
their descendants came to this country in 1736. These immigrant
descendants were indeed Irishmen to the manor born, with all the traits,
impulses and characteristics of that people, having, as the Rev. Dr.
Morison said in his centennial address, the “comic humor and pathos of
the Irish,” and to their severe character and habits “another comforter
came in, of Irish parentage; the long countenance became short, the
broad Irish humor began to rise,” etc. Need I ask the indulgence of my
hearers if I occupy a part of the time allotted me in naming some of
these men who were the founders of this town and the inaugurators of
civilization in this section?
Samuel Gordon and wife (Eleanor Mitchell) were born in the County
Tyrone, Ireland, as were also his father and mother; they are all buried
in the old cemetery on the hill. By marriage the blood intermixed with
Holden, Kimball, Barnes, Pierce, Cochran, Dickey, White, Brooks and
Hurd.
William Alld was born in Ireland in 1723, and was one of the early
settlers. The blood mixed by marriage with Swan, Metcalf, Worcester, Way
and Whitten.
John McKean was born in Ballymony, Ireland, in 1714, and was the
ancestor of all the McKeans in this section. His son James lived and
died on the David Blanchard place.
John Ferguson was born in Ireland in 1704, and came to this country with
the Smiths, Wilsons and Littles. The blood infused into Morison, Stuart,
Duncan, Miller, Moore, Evans and Whiting.
George Duncan was born in Ireland and was the ancestor of all of that
name in this section. Shortly after immigrating he married Mary Bell of
Ballymony, and their progeny married into the Taggart, Todd, Black,
McClellan, Moore, Wallace, Wells and Cummings families.
John Swan came from Ireland, and the family mixed by marriage with
Parker, Stuart, Gilchrest, Morse, Caldwell, Alld, Sawyer, Graham,
Chamberlain, Nay, Hoyt, Steele, Hannaford, Moore, Mitchell, Cutter and
White.
Joseph Turner and wife immigrated from Ireland with their sons Thomas,
Joseph and William, who were all born there. The blood by marriage went
into Wellman, Sanders, Shedd, Converse, Nichols, Goodhue, Nutting,
Taggart, Davis and Preston.
John Moore immigrated from Ireland in 1718, and is the ancestor of all
of the same name here. The blood mixed by marriage with Jewett, Priest,
Taggart, Woodward, Smith, Gregg, Dinsmore, Wood, Steele, Turner, Holmes,
Burnham, Jordan and Phelps.
Andrew Todd was born in Ireland in 1697, and married a daughter of John
Moore. Their progeny married with Morison, Miller, Taggart and Brown.
John Smiley, after his marriage, immigrated from Ireland. The blood by
marriage went into Miller, Hovey, Parker, McCoy, Wilson and Leonard.
Abial Sawyer was born in Ireland in 1721, where also his wife was born
in 1726. From them all of the name about here trace their origin,
intermixing by marriage with Gregg, Bailey, Scott, Farnsworth, Howard
and Nichols.
Matthew and James Templeton came from Ireland, and their blood
intermixed by marriage with Holmes, Miller, Robbe, Wilder and McCoy.
William Robbe, both of his wives, and seven children were all born in
Ireland, three generations of the family having lived there. From them
all of the name in town trace their origin. They mixed by marriage with
Taggart, Whittemore, Farnsworth, Mussey, White, Redding, Chapman,
Gowing, Livingston, Morrison, Moore, Follansbee and Swallow.
Thomas Steele was born in Ireland in 1694, and came here in 1718. The
blood mixed by marriage with Gregg, Mitchell, Wilson, Smith, Ramsey,
Swan, Senter, Willey and Rice. With another branch of the Steeles which
emigrated from Ireland was the father of the late John H. Steele,
governor of our state in 1844–’45.
William Wilson immigrated from County Tyrone, Ireland, in 1737, with his
wife, daughter and son Robert, who was born in that county, and
commanded a party of men organized to go to Lexington, armed, as our
town history says, with guns, pitchforks and shillelahs. The blood by
marriage went into Swan, Steele, Johnson, Hunter, Lee, Gibbon, Scott,
Jackson, Sherwood, Fisk and Taintor.
Thomas Davidson immigrated from Ireland with his brother John Davidson
and Matthew Wright. By marriage the blood went into Patrick, Hoar,
Dodge, Clark, Cutter and Nichols.
Thomas Cunningham was a native of Ireland. The blood mixed by marriage
with Robbe, McKean, Treadwell, Hale, Goodhue, Jackson, Caldwell, Porter
and Bishop.
John Wallace came to Londonderry from County Antrim, Ireland, in 1719,
and was the ancestor of the name here. The blood is mixed with Mitchell,
Noone and Spline.
James Gregg emigrated from Ireland to Londonderry in 1718, and was the
ancestor of all of the name in this section. The family intermixed with
Steele, Gibbs, Hutchins, Nelson, Macy and Wright.
William McNee, born in Ireland in 1711, was one of the settlers of the
town. Before he came to this country he married Mary E. Brownley, by
whom he had all his children. His descendants have now reached the
eighth generation, but unfortunately the name is entirely lost. The
first and second generations retained the name, but the third changed it
to Nay. They intermixed with Cunningham, Taggart, Millikin, Swan, Upton,
Weston, Davidson, Turner, Miller, Gilbert, Frost, Buss, Wood, Felt,
Cross, Porter, Jaquith, Vose, Adams, Young, Balch, Perkins and Hapgood.
Nathaniel Holmes (the ancestor of our able orator[7] here to-day and of
all of the name in this section) was born in Coleraine, Ireland, as was
also his father. Thus we have three generations of this family which
lived in Ireland. He was an early settler and by marriage the blood
mixed with Whittemore, Adams, Clement, Swasey, Leach, Kimball, Dickey,
Hall, Griffin, Gregg, Miller, Aiken, Bruce, Sewall, Smith, Newton and
Livingston.
There were two distinct families of Millers in town, remotely related;
the ancestors of both, however, came from Ireland. Back to these people
our president of this day[8] and all of the name hereabouts trace their
ancestry. They intermarried with Patterson, Burns, Campbell, Vickery,
Johnson, Mead, Shipman, Templeton, McFarland, White, Duncan, Davis,
Ropes, Wilkins, Phelps, McCoy, Thompson, Cunningham, Taggart, Gowing,
Clark, Gregg, Holt, Sanderson, Wilder and Scott.
All the Whites in town, including the marshal of this day,[9] are
descendants of Patrick White, who was born in Ireland in 1710. By
marriage they intermixed with Stuart, Shearer, Gregg, Upton, Cram,
Stearns, Carley, Parker, Grant, Dennis, Goodwin, Farmer, Perry, Swan,
Pierce, Fisk, Washburn, Whittemore, Shattuck, Leighton, Burns, Alld,
Grimes, Loring, Holmes, Mitchell, Scott, Cunningham, Lakin, Spafford,
Longley, Kyes and Tenney.
Samuel Morison and wife emigrated from Ireland, leaving their parents,
but taking with them eight children, who were all born there. From them
descended all that family in this section who spell their name with one
r, including our poet of to-day,[10] and the venerable gentleman[11]
whom we are proud to have with us here, who delivered the oration at our
centennial fifty years ago. By marriage their blood went into the
following named families: Steele, Mack, Knight, Johnson, Bassett,
Williams, Mitchell, Smith, Moore, Todd, Wallace, Hale, Graham, Felt,
Wilcox, Holmes, Buxton and Wells.
James Smith, the progenitor of all the Smiths in this section, was from
Ireland. His son Robert was born in Moneymore, Ireland, and with his
four children, John, Sarah, Mary and William, all born near Lough Neagh,
came to this country in 1736. Thus we find that three generations of
this family were from Ireland. Dr. Smith, the historian of our town, was
a descendant of this family. By marriage the blood went into Bell,
McNee, Morison, White, Annan, Dunshee, Fletcher, Smiley, Burns,
McCrillis, Emery, Findley, Pierce, Russell, Barker, Fifield, Cavender,
Walker, Gordon, Fox, Foster, Reynolds, Kilbourne, Jones, Leonard,
Blanchard, Lewis, Cheney and Dearborn.
William Scott immigrated in 1736 from Coleraine, Ireland, where all his
children were born, among them William, who settled here the same year.
This man and his father were Irish, as was also Alexander Scott,
progenitor of another branch which settled here and immigrated at the
same time. From these families sprang every person of the name in town,
among them our efficient toastmaster,[12] and by marriage the blood has
mingled with Cochran, Robbe, Wills, Maxfield, Cummings, Ramsey, Whitney,
Lincoln, Loomis, Gray, Bullard, Jewett, Fuller, Bowers, Orr, Allyn,
Blanchard, Clark and Ramsdell.
This is only a partial list of the Irishmen who were the founders and
builders of Peterborough—which may be completed at some future time. It
could be extended considerably, but sufficient names are here given to
show the nationality of the men to whom this town owes its existence.
All the brief facts here given are taken from the history of this town
and that of Londonderry, N. H.
Thus we see that there are comparatively few persons in town to-day,
with the exception of recent comers, who have not coursing in their
veins the blood of those sturdy Irishmen who made this town what it is,
whose bodies have long since returned to clay in the old cemetery on the
hill, and whose history is the history of the town itself. Long may
their memory be cherished! Long may the pride which exists in such
ancestry be retained! They were brave, honest, manly men, who broke down
the barriers that civilization might enter. Their lot was a life of
hardship; it is ours to enjoy the fruits of their work.
Not only the privations of this cold, uninviting country were theirs to
suffer, but intolerance and bigotry met them at the threshold of the
country to which they were about to bring a blessing. Rev. Dr. Morison,
in his centennial address, said that when the Smiths, Wilsons, Littles
and others arrived, “It was noised about that a pack of Irishmen had
landed.” They were denied even lodgings. Mr. Winship of Lexington, who
extended a welcome to them, however, said, “If this house reached from
here to Charlestown, and I could find such Irish as these, I would have
it filled up with Irish, and none but Irish.”
If there is a town or city in this broad land owing a greater debt of
gratitude to that green isle over the sea than does this town, I know it
not. If there is a place which should extend more earnest and loving
sympathy to Ireland in her struggles, I know not where it is. It was
there that your forefathers and mine were born; there where their infant
feet were directed; there where they were educated in those grand
principles of honesty, sturdy manhood and bravery well fitting them to
become the pioneers of any country, and fortunate it was for that land
toward which they turned their faces.
Here they built their log cabins and shrines to worship God, and reared
families of from eight to sixteen children, for they were people among
whom large families were popular, and the more modern aversion to a
large number of children had not taken possession of those God-fearing
men and women. Happy it was that the duty of populating this country was
theirs, and not that of the present generation, whose disposition to do
this might be doubted. Dr. Smith writes in our town history: “Of the
large and influential families of Todd, Templeton, Swan, Alld, Stuart,
Cunningham, Mitchell, Ritchie, Ferguson and many more, not a single
individual of their family remains in town; and of the large families of
Steele, Robbe, Smith, Morison, Moore and Holmes, their numbers are
greatly lessened, and they are growing less every year.”
In reviewing the character of these men, we should not, as a first
essential, go into an inquiry of how they worshipped God; or what were
their religious or political beliefs; whether Protestant or Catholic,
Whig or Tory. We only ask were they honest men, holding fast to those
principles which they believed right? The answer to this will not bring
the blush of shame upon our cheek, nor the consciousness of regret that
their blood is part and parcel of our bodies. If we follow in their
footsteps in our dealings with men; if we are as honest and courageous
as they; if we do an equal share to make the world better and more
attractive to future generations, we can, when the toil of this life is
over, rest in the secure belief of duty well done.