The History of New Bedford, Bristol County, Massachusetts

Date: [unknown] [unknown]
Location: New Bedford, Bristol, Massachusetts

Other: Massachusetts Sources

The History of New Bedford, Bristol County, Massachusetts

including a history of the old township of Dartmouth and the present townships of Westport, Dartmouth, and Fairhaven, from their settlement to the present time

• by Daniel Ricketson
• published by The Author, New Bedford, 1858

• Source Example:

<span id='Ricketson'>Ricketson, Daniel.''[[Space: The History of New Bedford, Bristol County, Massachusetts| The History of New Bedford, Bristol County, Massachusetts]]'' (Ricketson, New Bedford, 1858)

• Inline Citation Example:

<ref>[[#Ricketson|The History of New Bedford, Bristol County, Massachusetts]]: Page 21</ref>

• WikiTree Profiles that use this source

Available online at these locations:

• https://archive.org/details/historyofnewbedf00rick
• https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/20264/
• https://catalog.hathitrust.org/Record/001262225
• https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_History_of_New_Bedford_Bristol_Count/h8t4AAAAMAAJ?hl=en

Table of Contents

I. The Old Township of Dartmouth— Discovery of the Coast by Bartholomew Gosnold in 1602 — Early Settlement — Deed from the Indian Sachem Massasoit to Governor Bradford and others — The Original Survey of Dartmouth

II. The Indians of Dartmouth — Troubles of the Early Settlers — Order of Court relative to the Support of the Ministry — Difficulty of Enforcing the Same — Origin of the Name of Dartmouth — Ralph Russell, and the Russell Family — Joseph Rotch — Origin of the Name of New Bedford — Early Quakers — Gosnold"s Settlement at Cuttyhunk — Identification of the same by Dr. Belknap — Survey of the Township by Order of King Philip- List of the Original Purchasers

III. Character of the Early Settlers of Dartmouth — Destruction of their Property by the Indians- Order of Court, 1678, for More Compact Settlements — Old Colony Records — Freemen of Dartmouth — Names of the Original Proprietors — Proprietors Records — Old Houses — Indian Relics

IV. The Early Friends or Quakers — First Meeting-House, built in 1699 — Visit of Early English Friends — Joseph Russell, Sen. — Causes of the Decline of the Society of Friends — Record of Meetings — Early Business — Joseph Russell, Jr. — His Ancestor Ralph Russell

V. The First Representative to the Old Colony Court, John Russell—Names of those who had Taken the Oath of Fidelity, 1684 — Old Record — Early Land-Owners — Longevity of Early Inhabitants— First House in the Village of Bedford—First Ship — Her Part in the Boston Tea-Party

VI. The Whale-Fishery- Burke's Tribute to the Early Whalemen - Early Enterprises -The Effects of the Revolution -The Old Ship Rebecca-Anecdote of the Early Strictness of Friends — Relics of Whaling in the Olden Time

VII. The Village of Bedford -Statistics by Abraham Shearman, Jr. — Captain William Gordon's Account of the Invasion by the British Troops during the Revolutionary War- Schedule of Property Destroyed -Anecdote of the Intrepidity of a Woman -First Candle-Works -Causes of Prosperity

VIII. March of the British Troops to Acushnet and Fairhaven- Destruction of Property on the Way-New Bedford and Fairhaven Bridge -Light-House at Clark's Point -The Bedford Bank -Notice of John Pickens, Joseph Ricketson and George Howland — Reflections upon those Times

IX. The Acushnet River, from its Rise to the Harbor of New Bedford -Islands in the River -The Native Indians -The Last of the Wampanoags — Settlement of Fairhaven

X. The Whale-Fishery, continued from Chapter VI — Biographical Sketches-Architecture of Older and More Modern Buildings

XI. Buzzard's Bay -Its Discovery by the Northmen, afterwards by Bartholomew Gosnold — Origin of its Present Name — The Elizabeth Islands — Naushon and the Bowdoin House- Trip to Naushon in 1856

XII. Early Newspapers- Sketches of an Old Ship-Master and Merchant—Old Editors of the New Bedford Press

XIII. Recapitulation in Part of Former Matters — Partial Genealogy of the Russell Family — Old Proprietors — Cases of Longevity

XIV. The Mode of Travelling in Olden Times -Sketches of Two Journeys on Horseback, one of which breaks off rather suddenly —Reminiscences of Old Citizens

XV. Old Settlers— The Original Surveyor of Dartmouth — Genealogical Sketches of several Old Families -Reminiscences of the Indians

XVI. Early Intercourse with England — Letter of Introduction Given to a Merchant of this Place by a Firm in Loudon previous to the Revolutionary War— A Stray Leaf from the Diary of said Merchant — Old Houses — Genealogical Sketches of Old Families — Historical Reminiscences, 195

XVII. An Old Pensioner's Story

XVIII. Preliminary Remarks upon the Mercantile Profession — Views in relation to Mercantile Character — The Value of Probity and Integrity in Commercial Pursuits — Sketches of Two Old Merchants, drawn from life

XIX. The Writer's Views in regard to the Title of his Production — Reminiscences of Elisha Thornton and James Davis. Two Distinguished Ministers of the Society of Friends in New Bedford, and General Remarks upon their Characters and Influence

XX. The Early and Continued Anti-Slavery Character of New Bedford — Biographical Sketch of Capt. Paul Cuffee — Lines Written by Phillis Wheatley

XXI. The Topography of Old Dartmouth, continued from a previous chapter — The Villages in the Vicinity of New Bedford : Russell's Mills, Westport, Smith's Mills, Acushnet, Long Plain, and Padanaram or South Dartmouth Village: with General Observations interspersed

XXII. The Destruction of Property by the British Troops — Extracts from the Official Letters of General Grey, the Commander of the Expedition, to Sir Henry Clinton — Letter of Robert Fanshawe to Sir Henry Clinton — Doctor Dwights Account of the Invasion, during a visit to New Bedford, from information obtained of Judge Pope's Incidental Observations — Additional Account of the same, of a later date, by Judge Pope — Further Reminiscences of the Revolution, from a retired ship-master of Fairhaven

XXIII. Retrospective View— List of Vessels Registered for 1818 and 1819 — State of the Whale-Fishery in 1830— Capture of a British Brig-of-War by the Armed Sloop Providence — The Old Ship Maria — Memorandum of Samuel Rodman, Sen.: Abstract of her Voyages — A Reminiscence of Interest to the Votaries of Mammon — Narrow Escape — The September Gale, and its Effects upon the Shipping of New Bedford

XXIV. Ecclesiastical, Legal, and Medical Reminiscences — Dialectic Society — Fragment Society — New Bedford Lyceum — Friends' Academy — Climate — Public Roads and Streets

XXV. Separate Notices of Westport, Dartmouth, and Fairhaven — Freemen of Dartmouth, 1686 — Warrants of Colonel Samuel Willis for the Impressment of Soldiers — Extracts from the Plymouth Records relative to the Early Affairs of Dartmouth—Further Reminiscences of Naushon — Note relating to the Northmen's Visit to this Coast — Prize Brought into New Bedford by Lieutenant Thomas Truxton, 1776

XXVI. Incorporation Act of New Bedford and Fairhaven as a Township, 1787 — Act of Separation of New Bedford and Fairhaven, 1812 — Orthography of Acushnet — List of the Light- Houses in Buzzard's Bay — Old Advertisement relating to the New Bedford Bridge, from the Columbian Courier, 1798 — First Whaling Voyage to the Pacific Ocean from Nantucket — Notice of Captain William Claghorn — Captain Edmund Gardner's Account of a Portion of his Seafaring Life — The Progress of New Bedford — Statistics of the Whale-Fishery

XXVII. Visit to Cutty hunk and Gosnold's Islet, August 9th, 1858 — Muster-Roll of the Company of Captain Thomas Kempton, 1775 — Additional List of Revolutionary Soldiers of Dartmouth— Lines by Doctor Daniel Hathaway on the Death of Daniel Russell, 1772 — Records from Old Burial-Places — Letter of Jabez Delano, 1727 — Synopsis of the Natural History of this Vicinity — Conclusion