46 



welcomed to the ancient town by Prof. Nehemiah Cleaveland, who 

 alluded to the characteristics of the place, particularly to some fea- 

 tures of its histor3\ He spoke of the Indian name of the place, Shene- 

 tcemedy, and said that its unwritten Indian history was of course 

 almost unknown. There were no mounds or cemeteries giving defi- 

 nite memoranda of what the place was prior to the advent of the 

 white race. No Indian relics had been found, excepting a few rude 

 utensils which are frequently dug up, as stone chisels, hammers, arrow- 

 heads, etc., etc. 



The first white settlers came here from Salem and Ipswich, the 

 eai'liest official record bearing date of 1639, when what is now Tops- 

 field was included in Salem Village. In 1042, New Meadows seemed 

 to comprise a portion of Salem Village, and this conflict of boundaries 

 appears to have created a serious dispute, which in witchcraft times 

 had produced the most bitter hatred between the contestants. In the 

 first records of New Meadows it is shown that John Endicott owned 

 500 acres of land in what is now the western part of Topsfield, and a 

 grandson and two of his sons settled here. Simon Bradstreet 

 owned 500 acres in what is now the eastern part of the town, and one 

 of his descendants is still living on the hill. It was through the in- 

 fluence of Mr. Symonds, who came here from Ipswich, that the name 

 of Topsfleld was .adopted, from the parish in England whence he 

 came. The^town was incorporated in 1650. In 1692, Abigail Hobbs 

 of Topsfleld was one of the earliest accusers in the witchcraft prose- 

 cutions, her own parents even being among her victims. Mary Esty 

 of Topsfleld was arrested and released, and again arrested, convicted 

 and executed. B. W. Crowninshield subsequently occupied the 

 house in which Mary Esty had lived. 



Among the old families of Topsfleld we find the names of Gould, 

 Perkins, Peabody, Wildes, Porter, Dwinnells, etc., whose large pos- 

 terity are widely scattered over the country. Mr. Cleaveland claimed 

 that Topsfield was a pleasant town, though not striking. The hills af- 

 ford interesting views of the ocean, of several mountain peaks and of 

 the surrounding towns. Ipswich river runs through Topsfield, and 

 there are several smaller streams. The "mudsills" of some of the 

 brooks had in former times been a fruitful source of dispute and liti- 

 gation. Among the ponds, that known as Pritchard's, or recently as 

 Hood's pond, is most worthy of mention. 



In 1648, Gov. Endicott discovered copper on his farm, and three 

 attempts have, at different periods, been made to render the working 

 productive, but the yield is not sufficient to be profitable. 



Mr. Cleaveland also alluded to some of the old buildings in the 

 town, tracing the ancestry of Joe Smith, of Mormon notoriety, to a 

 house still standing in Topsfield. The house in which Capt. Thos. 



