Information on this page is gathered from several sources though mainly from the History Of Salisbury by John Dearborn.
The movement of colonists and information on the Maloons was gathered from the book found in our library called “From the King’s Plantation to Home Town Heritage: Boscawen and Webster, New Hampshire by Authors, Walter Theo Silver, Linnea Stadig Silver. Also from Historic Salisbury Houses by Paul Shaw, History of Boscawen, and The Dartmouth Conservancy.
Reference to Indian trails comes from past conversations with Professor David Stuart Smith.
References to the Sutton “grain trek” comes from conversation with author and historian Jack Noon.
EARLY TOWN PLANNING
On this broad topic we are exploring why our town looks as it does now, how and why roads, houses and town centers are where they are and why some vanished. It will just scratch the surface as it is an overview and research continues. All researchers and input welcome.
Changes in our town requires deciphering. Old trails became surveyed roads. Population shifted, grew and fell away. Tapping, dams, unforeseen environmental obstacles, changes in industry and commerce, mills proliferating elsewhere, the coming and going of railroads, floods, flood control all changed our town. Traveled roads became unused and seemingly went “private” or perhaps actually did.
A clear explanation would require digging into the town archives to discover how roads went from design to use to disuse and the assumption or actual fact of them ending up as private roads. It is a hot topic as you can well surmise.
When new roads were added it made older ones obsolete. Buildings were moved. Busy town clusters developed and then fell into quieter times. Cemeteries were moved or became remote.
When we look at our town now we think of the Crossroads and Salisbury Heights as “town centers”. The founders did not foresee this layout exactly though they did created a layout that was flexible. They saw the possibility of several town centers, according to the map. It is interesting to note that it’s possible that those that initially drew up the land lot designs may never have set foot in our town. They were from Kingston and Portsmouth.
The earliest map commonly viewed is from 1825. It shows owners of all land lots and the laid out with herringbone patterned lots off three distinct Rangeways that dissected the town into four sections horizontally. The 1825 map however is a mystery because it shows completely intact lots as they were at the beginning. By 1825 there would have been subdivisions of lots. The guess is that it is indeed showing the earliest owners and their lots for clarity about boundaries however that does not why if its a surveying map. The only way to know if the names on the 1825 map are the original proprietors is to get the actual records from the time the first owners were listed for each lot, perhaps from Rockingham County. The town was planned, Kingston NH. or possibly Portsmouth earlier.
The map also shows in each district areas reserved for a minister and school so basically they were thinking that each section of town might have some common center. So the early lines for the range roads from which the lots spread were planned began about 15 years before they were formally built. https://www.salisburyhistoricalsociety.org/old-college-road/
For starters the following is a great introduction to the topic of Range Roads> range_road_handout
DESCRIPTION OF SALISBURY’ S THREE RANGE ROADS
Info from History of Salisbury by John Dearborn 1890:
What are the Rangeways?
- In one town three roads that served as the very earliest access from the earlier River Rd. along the river to the interior of Salisbury for migration. Salisbury went to the river before that section of town became Franklin. It is unclear how much of the North Rangeway was completed.
- Transportation routes across the town from the river to the slopes of Mt. Kearsage and beyond going fairy straight and spaced apart evenly (more less).
- Access points to all the long lots laid out in herringbone patterns abutting at the Range Roads. (Rangeways) The lots went up against each Rangeway (sometimes 2) and access was guaranteed.
- The older New England ideal during the 1600’s in Massachusetts and Connecticut was to keep the settlers together in village lots. New Hampshire planners of towns often repudiated the older ideal and and our town is a good example where lots are laid our broadly across the entire town along the Rangeways.
ORIGINAL SOUTH RANGEWAY
Formally surveyed in 1768 but traveled much earlier.
The South Rangeway follows a fairly straight line from just west of Webster Place in Franklin where it joins the. now rte 127 (going east to west at the the curve in the road of 127 behind the little white cape) shortly before Stirrup Iron Brook. The first lot belonged to Philip Call. This section may now be private not public. More research needed.
The South Rangeway continues westerly straight through the Crossroads of re 127 and rte 4 past Cooks Pond to the junction at Battle Street and Hensmith where it continues straight as Warner Road while 127 (Battle Street) heads south to Webster.
Just before the South Rangeway (also briefly called Warner Road at this point) enters Smith’s Corner in the floodplain (junction of South Rangeway Road and Mills Road/Couchtown Rd) there us Little Road. It was perhaps a trail traveled very early by Native Americans, the earliest settlers to this part of Salisbury. It likely provided access to the meadow area where the Maloons settled very early on. It is also possible they came up Couchtown Rd, also which likelywas barely a trail at the time.
Just before the Tucker Pond area the Rangeway appears to veer right off up into the hills but in actuality it is the Warner Road that veers off southwest to Warner as it is presently constructed. At this point the land that the old South Rangeway is on rises up onto the highlands on the slope of Mt Kearsarge into what was known as the Watson district of Salisbury. This area was once a bit more settled with a schoolhouse. A segment of this road may very well have been traveled by settlers in Perrystown (Sutton) on their way back and forth to the Ebenezer Webster Mill on Punch Brook Road, the best available site to mill their grain for a brief very early period in Sutton’s history.
CENTER RANGEWAY
This Rangeway was in existence prior to 1768 and also a route by which settlers came from the south on the river road past the old fort settlement on the river turning up Punch Brook Rd either to continue on the Center Rangeway up a perilously steep incline too the community on Searle’s Hill or traveed along Easy Street/North Road (Shaw’s Corner) to settlements on North Road.
It would seem the founders intended this to be the main road into Salisbury from the East from the established river road. The road (possibly today’s Punch Brook Road) extends from just north of Webster Place and crosses rte 127 just west of Smiths Corner in Franklin (just west of North Road off rte 127) and is extremely rough on the ascent. It descends from the apex on Searle’s Hill down to Thompson’s Corner (area at the junction of Center Road>New Road, Raccoon Hill Road and Searles Hill Road (Center Rangeway). Searle’s Hill Road is a class 6 town road. In the easterly portion: When the land on Center Rangeway at Searle’s Hill was cleared it caused enormous snow drifting which doomed the main settlement. There was a large meeting house, a parsonage, settlers and a schoolhouse that were essentially largely abandoned by 1790. The church was moved in 1790 to the flatlands first off near Parsons Corner (Whittemore Road & Center Road area) but finally constructed after much debate on the South Rangeway and Old Coach rd. The centers of town had shifted. The plan for Searle’s Hill to be a town center was abandoned by 1790 and the easterly portion of the rangeway, Punch Brook Road (or close to it), from the Shaw’s Corner to the river became less used and finally abandoned.
After Thompson’s Corner (area where Searle’s Hill Rd/Center Rangeway mets New Road) it is called Center Road going towards Ret 4.
East of Route 4 there are sections briefly through someones driveway it seems then continues as Loverein Hill Rd. There is small section of Loverein Hill Road that is public but the remainder to the river, which is not federal owned, is considered by abutters to be private and perhaps the town as well at this point. More research on that issue is needed.
Again, at one time the people of Perrystown (Sutton) for a long time were accustomed to bring their grain over to the Webster mill on Punch Brook which apparently was both a saw mill and grist mill. This would be a direct link however it may be too steep on the west end. Possibly the farmers descended on the South Rangeway (which goes onto to the Merrimack River). At Smith’s Corners they may have gone up Mill Road and then joined the Center Rangeway which goes easterly directly to Ebenezer Webster’s Mill. This Rangeway seems to have been well traveled for a brief time in history which may explain the early dates of one of the houses.
What changed?
Sutton developed its own town center and other routes became more popular to new settlements spring up. The Center Rangeway no longer exists as a fucnitning road in most of the western part of Salisbury.
NORTH RANGEWAY
Never completed, appears to follow the lines of Montgomery Road in the eastern section and a remnant is found off West Salisbury Road and exists as a trail.
The area in between the Rangeways was more or less a bit more evenly spaced than the map suggests.
ACTIVITY AND SETTLEMENT PATTERNS
1734-Boscawen began to be settled in 1734, it soon had a meetinghouse, sawmill, gristmill and ferry across the Merrimack River. A garrison offered protection, but guerrilla attacks during the French and Indian Wars left some dead or carried off. It is likely the Maloons and Beans came to Salisbury from this more interior direction see bel0w 1748
1738- Following the attempts at settlement is a bit messy and best left up to scholars however we do know that in 1738 the town (Bakerstown first name) is first laid out in lots with Proprietors however settlement which was required did not occur including a second attempt.
1740- the River road is laid out as a highway. This is another direction for influx of settlers into Salisbury along the primitive range roads, about 15 years later.
According to John Dearborn p 54 History of Salisbury -Prior to 1754 Eight families lived in the township of Stevenstown ( second name), Several families located near the Fort on the Merrimack near Webster family graveyard route 3.
Pages 291 of History of Salisbury describes the river road along the west bank of Merrimack/Pemi extending up into Coos County.
1748- Approximately, Nathaniel Maloon & Sinkler Bean settle in the western section (crossroads of Mill Road and South Rangeway-Warner Road in the floodplain now) at his time. This tells us that there was likely a 2 directional influx into the township at that time. The road the Maloons migrated up from was called the Province Road which went to Charleston Fort no #4 and was used by Rogers Rangers in the French and Indian Wars. By 1743 10 families lived at Fort NO 5 the northernmost British Settlement along the Connecticut River in NH until the French and Indian Wars in 1754-1763. They either come from their homestead on Province Road (Dublin Lane) in Boscawen on either
The Maloons lived on the Dublin road portion of the Province Road which is part of the zig zag of Little Hill Rd in Boscawen. Contact us for details.
About Province Road courtesy of Soonipi Magazine:
1749- Grant of Stevenstown occurs with Proprietors. When the earlier Proprietors laid out the settlement they did so in lots of 100, 80, 60 and 30 acres and reserving a portion for public roads. Grant did not produce a true settlement.
1753- The proprietors voted to build 4 houses: Stephen Call at the Old fort area on the River
1754 -(Prior) 8 families lived in Salisbury
1753- James Tappan, one of the earliest proprietors of Bakerstown arrives in Stevenstown (Salisbury) and builds his house on NORTH ROAD Road which is still standing and presumably the oldest house in town. North Road is off the old Center Rangeway. This is PRIOR to the formal construction of the Rangeway Roads which tell us some primitive roads exited. 1753 James Tappan settles on North Road but likely just a small road off the center or future North or Center Rangeway? as North Road is not formally built until 1770.History of Salisbury indicates this road was actually a very traveled thoroughfare. Was it from the established river road inland likely via the Center rangeway (Punch Brook Road or close to it, not Smith Hill) to the emerging settlements of east Andover and north into Hill Bristol and Hebron Alexandria as they were being settled.
Likely these settlers must have lived on trails off somewhat rudimentary “trail” roadways.
1753- Approx The Meloon family kidnapped off the SouthRange Road (Flood Plain- Smith’s Corners- Mill Rd) residence by Native Americans.
1758-1760 Henry Morrill resides on Smith Hill Road area. The Rangeways are still not surveyed but apparently are traveled upon form the River Road. Smith Hill road is not formally built until
1760-By 1760 house are appearing at the South Road Village (Crossroads), at the heights Joseph Fifield House 1755, on Loverin Hill Road/ Center rangeway west of now route 4, Humphrey House near tolls, Old College Road junction with the later rte 4. see OLD COLLEGE ROAD
1761- In 1761 the Webster Sawmill is built on Punch Brook near the still “unbuilt” rangeway. This is explained under the Chapter “Stevenstown” in the
1761- Ebenezer Webster Webster moves to Salisbury (Stevenstown) NORTH ROAD
1763- NORTH RANGEWAY surveyed. Only a few sections were ever built.
1763- SOUTH RANGEWAY surveyed by William Calef
1764- in Kingston NH- A committee is established to decide where the Meeting House should be established. The Meeting House on Mt Pisgah (Searle’s Hill) is designated. Ten acres on the North side of Searles Hill is selected.
1765- Prior in an early map of Merrimack Valley there appears to have been located a Meeting House however in 1765 when the people of Stevenstown petitioned Kingston in regards to their settlement they represented that there had built a fort and were about to but a meeting house. It may be they had constructed one of logs previous to this date. There is not reason to believe this had done so the Searle’s Hill Church is regarded as Salisbury’s first church.
By 1767– Tavern at Andrew Pettengills Crossroads
1767- Population of Salisbury is 210
1768- CENTER RANGEWAY ROAD Road fully surveyed though operational before. “Chestnut Cottage” was already built by about 1760- on the Center Rangeway and may have served as a travelers stop heading from the heights to Province Road to Sutton and Charlestown?
1761-1769-Hanover NH and a charter is given for the founding of Dartmouth College.
1770- Grain is transported out of Salisbury to Sutton (Perrysville) for a brief period..
BY 1770-Roads north westerly: Wolfeboro Road is built from Wolfeboro NH to Dartmouth College, Province Road already exists going from Boscawen through Salisbury to Sutton to Fort # 4 Charlestown and the road to Hanover. About OLD COLLEGE ROAD> https://www.salisburyhistoricalsociety.org/old-college-road/
1768- Approx- Meeting House/Church is built with a parsonage. Settlers arrive. 1773 Reverend Searles comes to Mt. Pisgah later known as Searles Hill Salisbury NH, preaches and farms. Has an orchard. 1768-abt 1788
1768- Salisbury is founded and the first meeting is at the home of Andrew Pettengill at what is now The Crossroads. Homes are already built in this area since about 1760.
1769- April 7, 1769 Legal voters for the New town of Salisbury meet at Andrew Pettengill’s Tavern (gray house crossroads) serves as a town Meetinghouse.
1770- NORTH ROAD is formally constructed. starts at Shaws Corner and goes to Andover. According to Dearborn this was the second road to the NORTH country. Perhaps the first being the Merrimack/ Pemi River road. “This was for many years a thoroughfare for the northern section of the country” however families are already settled on north road since 1753
1774 -Cross Rangeway- linking South Rangeway near the Stirrup Iron Pond to the Center Rangeway just west of Salisbury Meeting House on Searle’s Hill. It is barely a trail now. Likely replaced by Bog road.
Bog Road- Cross Rangeway links South Rangeway with the Center Rangeway. Once well traveled.
1775- Deacon Moses Sawyer settles on Center rangeway
1781- Raccoon Hill Road
Date unknown Calef Hill Road– connected to Water Street Boscawen. Date unknown Calef Hill Road-link to Water Street Boscawen likely much earlier. Was this a major road? It seem an older house exsted here and was moved to the South Range Road which had assumed more of a town center.
Mills Road -Center Road Village to West Salisbury- (West Salisbury Road). Both Scribner’s Corner and Smith’s Corner are very early settlements.
Cross Range Road (Hensmith) connects South and Center rangeway from Center Village to Battle Street at the heights HOWEVER it goes by Baptist graveyard not where it is today.
1784- Old College Road plans submitted is planned. See OLD COLLEGE ROAD>
https://www.salisburyhistoricalsociety.org/old-college-road/
1790- Reuben True House/Bell Tavern is built and accommodates travelers on the Fourth Nh Turnpike toll road after 1800..
1804- Fourth NH Turnpike constructed.
1819- Mutton Road off the the junction at the Crossroads- South road Village to Corser Hill to Hopkinton.
Water Street now called Rabbit Road commences near the Academy-note Rte 4 in this section did not exist a the time, and goes to Water Street n Boscawen.
1823-Shaws Corner to north east to Franklin (Rte 127)
1849- the “New Road” now Stirrup Iron Road/Gerrish follows Stirrup Iron Brook down Switch Hill towards the Merrimack River to rte 3- Purpose was to reach the Gerrish Station 1842 , transport and pick up goods & mail.
1869- New Road
1950’s- “The Crank” at the Crossroads is remedied with a small straight extension through the farmlands of Rene Beaudoin into the crossroads junction sometime in the mis 1950″S (1955?).