Caleb Howe

Notes:

On the 27th of June, the most disastrous affair that occurred during the season on Connecticut river, took place at Bridgman's Fort, on Vernon meadow, a short distance below Fort Dummer. On the spot where the original fort stood, which was burned by the Indians in 1747, another of the same name had been erected soon after, and being strongly picketed, was considered as secure as any garrison in the vicinity. It was situated on low ground, near elevated land, from which an easy view of its construction and arrangements might be had. From the manner in which the attack was planned, and from the stra tegy therein displayed, it is supposed that the Indians, availing themselves of the opportunity afforded by the high ground, had previously viewed the place, and by listening at the gate, had discovered the signal by which admittance was gained to
* Hoyt's Indian Wars, pp. 266-269. A full account of this fight is given in Appendix E.

† Some writers have named July 27th, as the day on which this event occurred. Contemporaneous MSS. corroborate the date given in the text

CAPTURE OF BRIDGMAN'S FORT
fort. On the morning of the day in which the attack was made. Caleb How, Hilkiah Grout, Benjamin Gaffield, and two lads, the sons of How, left the fort and went to work in a cornfield, lying near the bank of the river. Returning a little before sunset, they were fired upon by a party of about a dozen Indians, from an ambush near the path. How, who was on horseback with his two sons, received a shot in the thigh, which brought him to the ground. The Indians, on seeing him fall, rushed up, and after piercing him with their spears, scalped him, and leaving him for dead, took his two sons prisoners. Gaffield was drowned in attempting to cross the river, but Grout fortunately escaped.

The families of the sufferers who were in the fort, had heard the firing but were ignorant of its cause. Anxiously awaiting the return of their companions, they heard in the dusk of evening a rapping at the gate, and the tread of feet without. Supposing by the signal which was given that they were to receive friends, they too hastily opened the gate, and to their surprise and anguish, admitted enemies. The three families, consisting of Mrs. Jemima How and her children, Mary and Submit Phips, William, Moses, Squire and Caleb How, and a babe six months old; Mrs. Submit Grout and her children, Hilkiah, Asa, and Martha, and Mrs. Gaffield with her daughter Eunice, fourteen in all, were made prisoners. After plundering and firing the place, the Indians proceeded about a mile and a half and encamped for the night in the woods. The next day they set out, with their prisoners for Crown Point, and after nine days travel reached Lake Champlain. Here the Indians took their canoes, and soon after, the whole party arrived at the place of destination. After remaining at Crown Point about a week, they proceeded down the lake to St. Johns, and ended their march at St. Francis on the river St. Lawrence. Mrs. How, after a series of adventures, was finally redeemed with three of her children, through the intervention of Col. Peter Schuyler, Major, afterwards Gen. Israel Putnam and other gentlemen, who had become interested for her welfare on account of the peculiarity of her sufferings and the patience with which she had borne them. Of the other children, the youngest died, another was given to Governor de Vaudreuil of Canada, and the two remaining ones, who were daughters, were placed in a convent in that province. One of these was afterwards carried to France, where she married a Frenchman named Cron Lewis, and the other was subsequently redeemed.

HISTORY OF EASTERN VERMONT
Mrs. How, who made a journey to Canada for the express purpose of procuring her release. Mrs. How afterwards be came the wife of Amos Tute, who was for several years one of the coroners of Cumberland county. She was buried in Vernon, and her tombstone epitomizes her varied life and exploits, in these words:
Mrs Jemima Tute
Successively Relict of Messrs William Phipps, Caleb Howe & Amos Tute The two first were killed by the Indians Phipps July 5th 1743 Howe June 29th 1755 When Howe was killed, she & her Children Then seven in number Were carried into Captivity The oldest a Daughter went to France And was married to a French Gentleman The youngest was torn from her Breast And perished with Hunger By the aid of some benevolent Gentn And her own personal Heroism She recovered the rest She had two by her last Husband Outlived both him & them And died March 7th 1805 aged 82 Having passed thro more vicissitudes And endured more hardships Than any of her cotemporaries *No more can Savage Foes annoy Nor aught her wide spread Fame Destroy*

ATTACK AT HINSDALE'S FORT
On the morning after the attack on Bridgman's Fort, a party of men found Caleb How still alive, but mortally wounded. He was conveyed to Hinsdale's Fort, on the opposite side of the river, where he soon after expired. He was buried about half a mile from the fort, in the middle of a large field, and a stone erected to his memory is still standing, inscribed with this record. At the close of three years' captivity, Mrs. Gaffield was ran somed and went to England. The fate of her daughter, Eunice, is uncertain. On the 9th of October, 1758, a petition, signed Zadok Hawks, was presented to the General Court of Massa chusetts, praying them to use their influence to obtain the release of Mrs. Grout, the petitioner's sister. At that time, she and her daughter were residing with the French near Montreal, and her two sons were with the Indians at St. Francis. It is probable that their release was not long delayed, as one of the sons a few years later was a resident of Cumberland county.

But this was not the last of the incursions of the enemy. On the 22d of July, at about nine o'clock in the morning, a party of Indians attacked four of the soldiers of Hinsdale's Fort, and three of the settlers residing there, as they were cutting poles for the purpose of picketing the garrison. At the time of the attack they were not more than a hundred rods distant from the fort. Four men were on guard, and three were on the team. They had drawn only one stick when the enemy fired upon them, and having got between them and the fort endeavored to keep them from reaching it. Of the soldiers, John Hardiclay* was killed and scalped on the spot. His body was terribly mangled, both breasts being cut off and the heart laid open. Jonathan Colby was captured, and the two others, Heath

*In the letter of Col. Ebenezer Hinsdell, this name is written Hardway. — N. H. Hist. Coll., v. 254

INSCRIPTION READS In Memory of Mr Caleb How a very Kind Companion who Was Killed by the Indeans June the 27th 1755. in the 32 year Of his age.
Burial: Middle of a field half mile from Fort Hinsdale
Windham County Vermont, USA

Notes:

After the death of Nehemiah father, Samuel Howe,Nehemiah took the estate, and paid off the other heirs. In 1717 when he was 24 years old, he sold the estate in Sudbury, MA, and moved to Framingham, MA.

In 1727 he was a petitioner for the town of Grafton, to which place he moved, and the second town meeting was held in his house 19 April 1728. He was one of the original members of the church, 28 December 1731, and was one of the Selectmen, 1736, school committee, 1736, and was that year paid f4, 1s, 8d. for keeping the school. He was Town Clerk 1736-7-8, assessor 1737, and school committee 1738-9.

In the spring and early summer of 1739, he bought three full township rights in the new town called Great Meadows, NH, the records of those deeds are found at Springfield, MA. In 1739 or 1740 he became one of the early settlers of that town.

The year 1744 brought the Indian war, with all its attending horrers, the settlers were obliged to seek safety and shelter in the forts. On the 11th of October 1745, as he was cutting wood a few rods from the fort, he was surprised by a band on Indians and taken captive before help could reach him. He was taken to Canada, where he was kept a prisoner in Quebec for a year and a half, when he died of prison fever 25 May 1747, just as he was about to be redeemed.

His death was a severe blow to his family, and to the community where he was known, as one of his contemporaries wrote of him, "he was greatly beloved by all who knew him." He was possesed of cultivation and refinement far beyond the ordinary. He kept a journal during his prison life which was of inestimable value, for the many items therin recorded of other captives whose fate otherwise would never have been known. It is also a priceless legacy to his descendants, showing as it does, the beautiful Christion character of one who could endure the severest hardships with a grace and dignity rarely to be found.In 1748 these notes were used to publish "A Narrative of The Captivity of Nehemiah How in 1745-1747" (see title page posted here)

Nehemiah Howe was captured by Indians on 11-Oct-1745, during King George's War, near Putney, VT and taken to Canada where he died 18 months later.
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http://www.fortat4.com/timeline.php

Nehemiah married Margaret Willard in 1715 in Sudbury, Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA. Margaret (daughter of Benjamin Willard and Sarah Lakin) was born in 1696 in Grafton, Worcester, Massachusetts, USA; died on 25 Jan 1758 in Westborough, Worcester, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

The following was taken from the diary of Rev. Ebenezer Parkiman of Westborough, bearing date of 25 Jan 1758.

"We had ye sorrowing tidings of ye wife of Ensign James Miller. She washeretofore ye wife of Mr. Nehemiah How of Grafton, who was carried awaycaptive frem ye grt Meadows. Her maiden name was Willard, daughter of Captain Benjamin Willard, a woman of many virtues; her death is not only a great loss to me and mine, but to all ye place. May ye God of all Grace sanctifie it to me and mine to ye bereaved Ensign (who is under great sufferings by ye palsey) and to all ye Relatives and neighborhood."

Notes:

Bio
Husband of Martha Bent, who grave we could not find. His stone is very small and in the middle of the first section of the grave yard.

Lt. (Col.) Samuel Howe, second son of John and Mary (Jones ) Howe, was a prominent man in both civil and military affairs. He was a carpenter and resided in the hamlet of Lenham, in Sudbury. He held many town offices, and was colonel of a regiment made up of companies from the towns in the vicinity. He was admitted a freeman in Sudbury in 1671, and always resided in his native town. In association with Samuel Gookin, of Cambridge, he purchased a large tract of land from the indians, in what is now Framington, the deed dated May 19, 1682. In 1673 he built a new bridge in the northeast corner of Framingham. He married 1st in Sudbury, June 5, 1663, Martha Bent. She died August 29, 1680 and he married 2nd Sarah Leavitt, widow of Nehemiah Clapp. She was born February 25, 1659. He had 7 children from the 1st marriage and 6 from the 2nd. Most, but not all, are recorded in the vital records of Sudbury.

Family links:
Parents:
Mary Martha Jones Howe (1618 - 1698)

Colonel Samuel Howe
Colonel Samuel Howe on May 31, 1671; "Admitted freeman. He lived in Sudbury, and built the bridge in the north east corner of Framingham in 1673. In 1682 he and Samuel Gookin bought of the Natick Indians, a large tract of about 1700 acres of Framingham lands, which is referred to in local histories as the Gookin and Howe purchase. He was very prominent in the early history of the town as it appears in the local histories, and is spoken of as 'a man of energy and public spirit.' "He served in King Philip's war, in Capt. Nathan Davenport's company, and was an officer in the militia, and his name appears in the lists of those who suffered in the Indian war." [Howe Genealogies - Daniel Waite Howe, NEHGS, pp. 7-8]
He gave to his son David, land in Sudbury on which was built the Red Horse Tavern, later known Howe's Tavern and as the Wayside Inn which remained in his family for four generations

Bio of Samuel Howe
Birth: Oct. 20, 1642
Sudbury
Middlesex County
Massachusetts, USA Death: Apr. 13, 1713
Sudbury
Middlesex County
Massachusetts, USA
Husband of Martha Bent, who grave we could not find. His stone is very small and in the middle of the first section of the grave yard.

Lt. (Col.) Samuel Howe, second son of John and Mary (Jones ) Howe, was a prominent man in both civil and military affairs. He was a carpenter and resided in the hamlet of Lenham, in Sudbury. He held many town offices, and was colonel of a regiment made up of companies from the towns in the vicinity. He was admitted a freeman in Sudbury in 1671, and always resided in his native town. In association with Samuel Gookin, of Cambridge, he purchased a large tract of land from the indians, in what is now Framington, the deed dated May 19, 1682. In 1673 he built a new bridge in the northeast corner of Framingham. He married 1st in Sudbury, June 5, 1663, Martha Bent. She died August 29, 1680 and from this marriage were 7 children:
John Howe, 24 July 1664
Mary Howe, 2 March 1666
Samuel Howe, 19 May 1668
Martha Howe, 9 October 1669
Daniel Howe, 9 October 1772
David Howe, 2 November 1674
Hannah Howe, 6 April 1677.
He married 2nd Sarah Leavitt, widow of Nehemiah Clapp. She was born February 25, 1659 and from this marriage were 6 children:
Elisha Howe, abt 1687
Daniel Howe, 24 February 1690
Nehemiah Howe, Abt 1693
Moses Howe, 27 August 1695
Ebenezer Howe, 1697
Micajah Howe, 22 August 1700.
Not all are recorded in the vital records of Sudbury.


Family links:
Parents:
John How (1620 - 1680)
Mary Martha Jones Howe (1618 - 1698)

Children:
Martha Howe Walker (1669 - 1721)*
Daniel Howe (1689 - 1757)*
Nehemiah Howe (1693 - 1747)*

* Point here for explanation
Burial:
North Cemetery
Wayland
Middlesex County
Massachusetts, USA

Lieutenet married Sarah Leavitt. Sarah (daughter of John Leavitt and Sarah Gilman) was born on 25 Feb 1659 in Hingham, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA; died on 29 May 1726 in Framingham, Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Benjamin married Sarah Lakin in 1690 in Concord, Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA. Sarah (daughter of John Lakin and Mary Bacon) was born on 4 Feb 1661 in Groton, Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA; died on 15 Mar 1740 in Grafton, Worcester, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

John married Mary Martha Jones in 1640 in Marlborough, Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA. Mary was born in 1618 in Sudbury, Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA; died on 9 Sep 1672 in Marlborough, Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

John married Sarah Gilman on 16 Dec 1646 in Hingham, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA. Sarah was born on 19 Jan 1622 in Hingham, Norfolk, England; died on 26 May 1700 in Hingham, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Simon married Mary Dunster in 1652 in Lancaster, Worcester, Massachusetts, USA. Mary was born on 14 Dec 1630 in , , Lancashire, England; died on 28 Dec 1715 in Charlestown, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

John married Mary Bacon in 1658 in Groton, Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA. Mary was born on 18 Feb 1640 in Groton, Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA; died on 22 Oct 1701 in Groton, Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

James married Bridget Rich. Bridget was born in 1596 in North Cerney, Gloucestershire, England; died on 15 Jun 1642 in Stowell, Gloucestershire, , England. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]