262 History of Hingham. 



longing to Major Thaxter's company, is as follows ; the men 

 were probably on some detail away from the fort : — 



Johnson Anderson, Benjamin Joy, 



James Caunidy, Stephen Randall, 



Joseph Dwelly, Freeman Smith, 



James Hayward, Joshua Bates. 



Another account gives the name of Townsend Smith. 



To these lists there should be added a list of invalids, whom 

 Lieutenant Blake reported as belonuinu; to Uimrham and able to 

 march, and who were probably members of Thaxter's company. 

 The date is June, 1757, and it is not unlikely that these men were 

 at Fort William Henry and included in the surrender. It would 

 appear from Knight Sprague's account that a large proportion of 

 the company were murdered, and this may explain the fact that 

 little more appears to he known concerning them. They were 

 as follows : — 



George Phillips, Benjamin Sampson. 



Moses Bradbury, Reuben Donnells, 



James Bunker, Dennis Morrison, 



James Brayman, Samuel Winchester. 



Major Samuel Thaxter, scarcely less famous than his able 

 grandfather Col. Samuel Thaxter, was a brave soldier as well as 

 a prominent and trusted citizen in civil affairs. He was reported 

 in Hingham as having lost his life in the massacre which followed 

 the surrender, and a funeral sermon was preached by Dr. Gay. 

 After the sermon Mr. Caleb Bates was engaged in driving his 

 cows at Hockley, when whom should he meet but the Major him- 

 self coming home on horseback. Throwing up both hands in 

 astonishment, Mr. Bates exclaimed, " Good God, Major, is that 

 you ? Why, we have just buried you ! " 



Major Thaxter was a quick-tempered and kind-hearted man. 

 On one occasion he got into considerable trouble by killing some 

 of his neighbors' dogs, who were worrying deer driven into the 

 town by a severe storm. He had a number of children, among 

 them Dr. Gridley Thaxter, doubtless named after his old colonel, 

 who served with credit in the Revolutionary army. The Thaxter 

 home was on North Street ; and not far from him, after the war, 

 came to live his old commander, Gen. John Winslow, and his lieu- 

 tenant, Joseph Blake. General Winslow resided until his death 

 on Main Street, where is now the house of Mr. John Sidors. The 

 church-bells tolled when his body was removed to Marshfield. Lieu- 

 tenant Blake lived where the Bassett house is, opposite the Old 

 Meeting-house on Main Street; his son Joshua was a lieutenant 

 in the United States navy. We can imagine that these three old 

 veterans spent many an hour together in the after years, recalling 

 the stirring events of the last French and Indian war. 



