55 



One Smith formerly lived at a place called the " Old 

 House Field," now owned by Silas Lake. While digging 

 a well, he foun'd what he supposed to be a lump of gold. 

 One day during his absence, a strange gentleman called 

 and requested a drink of cider, which the benevolent mis- 

 tress went to the cellar to draw, leaving the stranger nkmo 

 and the gold lying on the mantel. When she returned, 

 both had unaccountably disappeared, nor were ever seen 

 again. A mysterious circle drawn with chalk on the center 

 of the floor where she left him, was the only vestigo remain 

 ing. The obvious conclusion, with people at that day was> 

 that the Devil had thus stolen their gold. This, of course, 

 is tradition unsupported by other proof. The house stood 

 easterly from Mr. Lake's, on an old way passing by the ok7 

 parsonage, which stood in the " Parsonage Pasture." 



Prichard's Brook is a small stream flowing from Prich- 

 ard's (or Hood's) Pond. It unites with Pye Brook, and 

 comes from Boxford, and the resulting stream continues 

 southeasterly under various names for a considerable dis- 

 tance. The stream then divides ; and one part, turning eas- 

 terly, takes the name of Howlet's Brook, and, passing Per- 

 kin's Mill, falls into Ipswich River. The rest, known as Pea- 

 body's Brook, keeps a southerly course to what was formerly 

 Peabody's Mill, thence, by the name of Mile Brook, to the 

 river. Near the separation of these two streams is an an- 

 cient house, occupied by Wm. Rogers in 1737, and fifty 

 years later by Asahel Smith, a son of Samuel Smith, Esq., 

 Town Clerk. Of the four sons of this Asahel, viz : Samuel, 

 Asahel, Jesse and Joseph, there are some strong reasons 

 for supposing that Joseph was the identical " Jo. Smith " 

 (or the father of him) who founded the sect known as 

 Mormons. 



Monday, January 21, 1861. 



Meeting this evening at 7.30 o'clock. Rev. C. C. Beaman 

 in the Chair. 



Records of preceding meeting read. 



