Searle’s Hill

BRIEF HISTORY

Beginning in 1738 and up until the settlement of Searle’s Hill progress to settle this frontier had been slow. By 1767 at a meeting of the Proprietors in Kingston NH a committee was formed to designate where a Meeting House should be located with a subsequent school house and graveyard. It was on Searle’s Hill, on the Center Rangeway. Thus began the development of the Searles Hill community which was our first town like settlement.

At that time and briefly, the Center Rangeway was considered to become the main inland road from the Merrimack River to Mt. Kearsarge and beyond. According to John Dearborn the road was traveled by farmers coming from as far west as Sutton (near New London) to the Ebenezer Webster mill (Daniel Webster Birthplace) on the other side of Searles Hill. While the church was in operation a loyal congregation gathered there. There was a quarry and several farms. Both the Webster homestead and mill and the Meeting House were alone and on the northern most frontier for a time.

By 1790 other areas of town were growing and easier to reach in all weather and it was the beginning of the abandonment of the Searle’s community which was over well before abt 1910 with the fire of the Fraser homestead.

HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE

Records indicate the following for the Searles’ Hill community (John Dearborn’s History of Salisbury NH 1890, deeds and other histories):

  • SIGNAL STATION: The site of an early fire signal station by pioneers warning of Indians and British.
  • SALISBURY’S FIRST MEETING HOUSE: Meeting House 1764 Kingston NH- Proprietors, Deacon Elisha Swett and Jonathan Woodman committee to designated the location. In 1768 it was in construction on ten acres on the north side of Searle’s Hill.  Notables such as Josiah Bartlett of Kingston, signer of the Declaration of Independence and Col Ebenezer Webster of Revolutionary War fame and the father of Daniel Webster attended Service and it is the baptismal site of Daniel Webster. The Church was disassembled abt 1798 and reconstructed at the junction of Rte 4 and 127 in South Road Village Salisbury. Currently exists as Salisbury Congregational Church since Sept 1, 1791
  • SALISBURY’S FIRST PARSONAGE: Northwest of the Meeting House.  Built Approx 1772. After Mr. Searle’s death Dec 1818, the house was occupied by his son Amos Searle until his death in 1831. His sons widow occupied it with her son Daniel Franklin Searle for some years. The house was large, two stores and the lower story extending back and the roof of the main house covering the extension, referred to as a “comb-case roof”.  It was eventually sold and taken down and the timber used in construction of other buildings. (from John Dearborn History of Salisbury)
  • SALISBURY’S FIRST SCHOOL:  Location of the Searle’s Hill School was near the Parsonage, opposite the ten acre Meeting House.  This schoolhouse was constructed of logs and abt 20 feet square. Seating was simply boards long the walls.
  • SALISBURY’S FIRST GRAVEYARD: Location: just EAST of the Meeting House which sat on the ten acre lot according to John Dearborn.  More on the Graveyard: Searle’s Hill Graveyard
  • RESIDENCES OF SEVERAL EARLY PIONEERS: Among the homes were the following:(from John Dearborn History of Salisbury): the Parsonage near or on lot No.17 or 18, William Calef  b. Kingston june  1737, homestead west of the Meeting House resided there until death 1843,  a homestead belonging to Stephen Perrin lot No. 16, Jonathan Calef south end of  lot No 18. home built prior to 1786 building moved in its entirety to Fourth NH Turnpike (rte 4) and destroyed by fire 1886, William Webster Farm (uncle to Daniel) east side and site of granite quarry with exceptional granite possibly lot No 14, John Calef Homestead, west of the Meeting House, opposite the William Calef homestead. He died May 1851. Pictured below. Destroyed by fire approx 1910.

RESEARCH

Research continues. A descendant of Reverend Searle continues to  investigate very old deeds which provide descriptions and locations.  In the History of Salisbury written by John Dearborn in 1890 , Mr. Dearborn chronicles events that established the early community and relative locations for the Meeting House, school, parsonage and graveyard with terms such as “on ten acre lot”, “across from Meeting House” “east of Meeting House” but what we get from deeds thus far is just “top part of lot with graveyard” or terminology like School house lot or 2 Minister’s Lots. As the area was being developed and laid out by Kingston citizens (some of whom became Salisbury residents) an examination of Kingston’s old records would likely show the exact entries which John Dearborn was quoting. To be continued.

Location: Searles Hill Road is part of the old Center Rangeway Road. The Center Rangeway extended from the Merrimack River to the slopes of Mt. Kearsarge. Currently it is known as Loverin Hill east of the Blackwater River, Center Road east of route 4, Searles Hill Road Class 6 Road  (appears to veer off Center Road at Thompson’s Corner) to route 127, then easterly possibly the trail paralleling Smith Hill Rd. or  Punch Brook Road to the Merrimack in what is now Franklin, exiting  close to the Webster Farm. This is the farm settled after the Webster family left the Daniel Webster Birthplace, all Salisbury at the time.  When the land was open one was able to see a very large vista from Searles Hill. Canterbury and the Merrimack River Valley area from the apex, west to Mt. Kearsarge, nw to Ragged Mountain, north to Cardigan Mt and even on a clear day the White Mountains and likely to the east the Belknap Range.

The 1825 map shows the three Range Roads: South range Road, Center Range Road (aka Searles Hill Road in the east, Center in the center and Loverin in the west) and the North Range Road which was not completed. Rte 127 a newer road could be seen veering off form the South Range Road heading to the cross in Franklin.

Exploring Searles Hill, please note:  Searles Hill Road is a Class 6 road and is not maintained by the town. The land is all privately owned as the oldest deeds show including those sections that were once laid out for town use as  such as a Meeting House, School, Parsonage and graveyard. A good portion of the land is posted and requires the permission of the land owner to visit.  As with all areas where remnants of old farms or building once stood there are cellar holes and open dug wells and are not safe. If you are on unposted land or otherwise  please note that all objects or artifacts found belong to the landowner and may be of historical significance and should not be removed.

For more information about on Searle’s Hill:

Searle’s Hill Church 

Reverend Searle Chases the Devil

An article form the Granite Monthly May 1880 written by Walter Harriman includes a detailed description of a journey to Searle Hill in 1875  titled: A Day With the Websters 

Return to Historic Town Settlements Index

 

Fish and Game map showing interesting second road for Searles Hill Rd. Access to interior lots?, the 10 acre common area described? Finding a road maps older than 1825 would be helpful.

 

Map from 1825 oddly showing first owners of lots from ca mid 1700’s but roads shown are correct for 1825.

Recent tax map showing Searle’s Hill lots.