144 FACTS RELATING TO GROTON, MASSACHUSETTS. 



" place," suck, " at the outlet or mouth of a stream." Thus the name 

 could easily have become Naumuchs or Naumox. Nameaug, or 

 Nameock, from Name-auk, was the Indian name for New London, 

 " fishing place." If this is a place name, I think that on account of 

 the many streams, ponds, etc., in the locality, the root namohs, " fish," 

 which we find all through New England enters into its composition in 

 some way. 



Another possible solution is that the word is derived from Nayseu- 

 mauauk, which would probably signify ''the place where he carries 

 or bears on his shoulders." This same root, in my opinion, appears 

 in the word Manomet, in Plymouth County. Mai, " a path," and 

 Nayeumau, " the place where they carry across on their backs." 



NissiTissiT, a river running through original Groton township. I 

 cannot translate this. 



NoNACOicus, a brook in Ayer, though formerly applied to a tract 

 of land. Sometimes the word is abbreviated to Coicus. In looking 

 over my notes in regard to this name I find that in 1905 I made the 

 following memorandum. Dr. Samuel A. Green found a writing prob- 

 ably relating to this name in a book once loaned by Judge Sevvall ; 

 and on a fiy leaf at the beginning of the book is the following note in 

 Judge Sewall's handwriting ; " Nunacoquis signifies an Indian earthern 

 pot, as Hannah, Hahatau's squaw tells me March 24, 1699, which 

 throws some light on the meaning of an Indian word." George J. 

 Burns, Esq., of Ayer, wrote as follows, " Near the mouth of the Nona- 

 coiocus brook there is a succession of irregular ridges of small hills 

 which surround or enclose various hollows or basins," (Proceedings, 

 Massachusetts Historical Society, 2d series, viii., pp. 209-211.) 

 From this I believe the original diminutive and name may have been 

 Nunae-ohkuk-es-et. Nunae, " dry," ohkuk, " earthern pot," es, di- 

 minutive et, " at or in," " at the small dry earth pots," or possibly 

 " at the small earth pots where water sifts through," derived from 

 Nanah-kinig, a sieve. Nunae-cowaewesuck, or Nunae-koowas, " dry 

 pines." 



NuBANUSSuCK, a pond in Westford. This name must have belonged 

 to the stream which flowed from the pond, as the termination signifies 

 (sank, suck, "outlet "), not to the pond itself. In its present shape it 

 is untranslatable. 



Petaupaukett, a name of pond in the original petition to the gen- 

 eral court for the grant of the town and used in connection with the 

 territory and the neighborhood. It is sometimes written Petapawage 

 and Petapaway. In a letter written to you December 22, 1S77, Dr. 



