Our Mission
| To Preserve the documents and items of historic value concerning the history of the town of Bartlett, New Hampshire. |
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| About Us |
| Preserving the history of the villages of Bartlett, New Hampshire |
| Bartlett Historical Society |
| PO Box 514, Bartlett, NH 03812 (603) 383-4110 info@bartletthistory.org |
| The town of Bartlett is named for Dr. Josiah Bartlett of Kingston, the first chief executive to bear the name governor, a representative to the Continental Congress, and one of three signers of the Declaration of Independence from New Hampshire. Dr. Bartlett was second to sign the Declaration, placing his signature directly underneath the well-known signature of John Hancock. |
Recently Updated Pages...
| In the first couple of weeks of May 2009 we have up-dated just about every page in the website. Click the links in the left column to explore. |
| Click on select images to see a larger version of the picture |
Dr. Josiah Bartlett
You have found the Bartlett Historical Society
Website. If you don't see what you were
looking for, let us know. YOUR INPUT is
Important.
Website. If you don't see what you were
looking for, let us know. YOUR INPUT is
Important.
Saco River Bridge at the end of River Street in the Village
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| If you have been to the website before, it might be a good idea to press your refresh button as you go to each page to ensure you are seeing the most recent content and not some previous version that may be cached in your computers memory. |
| Current Events |
| The Bartlett Historical Society Presents Life in the Village of Glen In the 1930’s, 1940’s and beyond On Tuesday, June 16, 2009 At 6:30 p.m. with Glen native, John Cannell at the Season’s at Attitash Function Room Route 302, Glen |
| Featuring John’s photo collection of life in Glen during the 1930’s, 1940’s. John will be hosting a Q&A and we will be asking him to tell us about railroading, logging, tourism, the Glen Grange, Glen Grammar school, leisure time, businesses Jonesboro, and all other things growing up in Glen. All BHS programs are free and open to the public. Refreshments will be served. |
-Military Service of the Men &
Women of Bartlett:
Members are celebrating our military
heritage by collecting information on the
military service of the men and women of
Bartlett who have served
our country. Please CLICK HERE for a form
to submit info on your
Bartlett veteran. It will open in a new window.
Women of Bartlett:
Members are celebrating our military
heritage by collecting information on the
military service of the men and women of
Bartlett who have served
our country. Please CLICK HERE for a form
to submit info on your
Bartlett veteran. It will open in a new window.
| Shaw’s Rewards program. Click on the "ON GOING" Tab in the Left Column |
BHS member, Ben
George, spent a great
2008 researching the
town baseball and
softball teams of the
late 1940’s. which
featured the 1948
baseball champs and
the 1949 girl’s softball
team. The booklet is
now available for
purchase at $10.00
per copy plus $2.50 for
postage (if mailing is
requested.) Please
send check made
payable to the Bartlett
Historical Society, PO
Box 514, Bartlett, NH.
George, spent a great
2008 researching the
town baseball and
softball teams of the
late 1940’s. which
featured the 1948
baseball champs and
the 1949 girl’s softball
team. The booklet is
now available for
purchase at $10.00
per copy plus $2.50 for
postage (if mailing is
requested.) Please
send check made
payable to the Bartlett
Historical Society, PO
Box 514, Bartlett, NH.
 | |  |
Mary Bartlett
1734-1789
Wife of Josiah Bartlett
"The wife of Governor Bartlett, the signer, was Mary Bartlett (a cousin), of
Newton, N. H., a lady of excellent character and an ornament to society. She
died in 1789," wrote Levi Bartlett, a descendant of the signer, nearly a century
after her death.
Not much more of her youth than this can be told. Her father, Joseph Bartlett,
was a soldier at Haverhill, in 1707, where he was made captive by the French
and Indians, carried to Canada and held four years.* Mary Bartlett was one of
ten children born to Joseph Bartlett, and she was married to her cousin,
Josiah Bartlett, in January, 1754. He was a rising young physician at the time,
in the town of Kingston, N. H., and had already attracted favorable attention by
reason of his success in the treatment of a throat distemper, known as the
"black canker," which had broken out with uncommon virulence. Mary Bartlett
was then twenty-four years old, an amiable girl, well grown and, for the times,
well educated. For the next ten years, her life was that of the wife of a popular
and prosperous young country doctor. His skill as a practitioner was
accepted. He was democratic, kindly, and fast growing in the esteem of his
fellow citizens. Always a man of strict integrity, sound judgment, and marked
public spirit, he early began to take an active part in public affairs. He was
made a civil magistrate and soon after given command of a regiment of
militia. In 1765, he was chosen representative to the Provincial Legislature
from Kingston. Though Governor Wentworth had appointed him to several
positions of honor and profit, Dr. Bartlett felt called upon, almost from the
first, to oppose vigorously some of the Governor's measures in the
Legislature especially those pertaining to the land grants, a vast system of
official peculation that was one of the great evils of the administrations of
both the Wentworths. By 1774, the aggressions of the Governor, and the
policy of the British Ministry which he was trying to carry out, had grown so
burdensome to the people that Dr. Bartlett and a few other leaders found
themselves in almost open opposition. He was still a member of the
Legislature and in that year we find him at the head of a "Committee of
Correspondence," which was in constant communication with Samuel
Adams and other patriots of Massachusetts and Connecticut. Then Dr.
Bartlett was elected delegate to "a general congress to be held in
Philadelphia." This brought down upon him the wrath of Governor
Wentworth and his Tory adherents. His appointment as Justice of the
Peace was revoked and his commission as Colonel of militia was taken
from him. Soon afterward his house was set on fire and burned to the
ground, after he had received warning to cease his "pernicious activity."
During all this period, Mary Bartlett had been the closest friend and
counselor of her husband. Just as he had consulted her over his troubles as
a young physician, helping to bear the home burdens of his patients and
personal friends in their little community, so now he consulted her about the
greater troubles and dangers that menaced the country. And always she was
the true helpmeet, always the ready and sympathetic friend and judicious
adviser. Her patriotism was as ardent as his and burned with as steady a
flame, and when their home lay in ruins and the family were driven to seek
shelter and safety elsewhere, she took their numerous brood and retired to
their little farm, which she managed thereafter, leaving him free to devote
himself almost entirely to the public business. Between these public duties
Dr. Bartlett found time to rebuild, on the site of his ruined home, a fine
old-style New England mansion, that still stands. In all her letters to her
husband and her children, there is not one word of regret at his course or pity
for herself, left alone to bear the double duties incumbent upon her; no
complaints, only a spirit of loving, helpful sympathy in all his acts.
Mrs. Bartlett died in their new house in Kingston, in July, 1789, and her
death was a great blow to her husband, who was at the time Chief Justice.
The following year he was chosen President of New Hampshire, which office
he held until 1793, when he was elected Governor, the first the
Commonwealth ever had as an independent State. He declined re-election
and died shortly afterward in the sixty-sixth year of his age, broken down,
according to his own declaration, by grief and the double duties and
responsibilities imposed upon him since her death.
Twelve children were born to Dr. and Mrs. Bartlett, of whom eight came to
maturity. Three sons, Levi, Joseph, and Ezra, followed in their father's
footsteps and became eminent physicians, and all three of them took
considerable interest in public affairs, holding not a few positions of honor
and responsibility. Of the daughters, Mary, who married Jonathan Greeley,
Miriam, who married Joseph Calef, Rhoda, who married Reuben True, and
Sarah, who married Dr. Amos Gale, were the only ones to leave descendants.
Source: Wives of the Signers: The Women Behind the Declaration of
Independence, by Harry Clinton Green and Mary Wolcott Green, A.B. (Aledo,
TX: Wallbuilder Press, 1997). Orignaly Published in 1912 as volume 3 of The
Pioneer Mothers of America: A Record of the More Notable Women of the
Early Days of the Country, and Particularly of the Colonial and Revolutionary
Periods (New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons). Pages 10-14. (Some minor spelling
changes may have been made.)
SOURCE: http://colonialhall.com/bartlett/bartlettMary.php
* [From page 149] In 1707, Joseph Bartlett was drafted and sent with others to
Haverhill to defend the town against an expected attack of French and Indians
from Canada. August 29, 1708, about 160 French and 50 Indians attacked the
town and set fire to several buildings. Mr. Bartlett and others were in a
chamber of Captain Wainright's house from the windows of which they fired
upon the enemy. They were informed that their only safety was in surrender.
Mr. Bartlett secreted his gun in the chimney above the fireplace, went down,
asked for quarter, was bound, and carried to Canada where he re-mained a
prisoner until he was redeemed. After a captivity of four years he returned. He
afterward visited Haverhill and found his gun where he had secreted it. It
finally came to his grand nephew, Richard Bartlett of Amesbury, Mass., who
carried it while a soldier in the Revolutionary War. Richard brought the gun
back with him from the Revolution and it was afterward blown to pieces by
some boy celebrating Fourth of July. Levi Bartlett (author of this sketch)
collected the fragments in I879, and riveted, and wired the gun together and
deposited it in the rooms of the New Hampshirc Historical Society where it
may still he seen."
1734-1789
Wife of Josiah Bartlett
"The wife of Governor Bartlett, the signer, was Mary Bartlett (a cousin), of
Newton, N. H., a lady of excellent character and an ornament to society. She
died in 1789," wrote Levi Bartlett, a descendant of the signer, nearly a century
after her death.
Not much more of her youth than this can be told. Her father, Joseph Bartlett,
was a soldier at Haverhill, in 1707, where he was made captive by the French
and Indians, carried to Canada and held four years.* Mary Bartlett was one of
ten children born to Joseph Bartlett, and she was married to her cousin,
Josiah Bartlett, in January, 1754. He was a rising young physician at the time,
in the town of Kingston, N. H., and had already attracted favorable attention by
reason of his success in the treatment of a throat distemper, known as the
"black canker," which had broken out with uncommon virulence. Mary Bartlett
was then twenty-four years old, an amiable girl, well grown and, for the times,
well educated. For the next ten years, her life was that of the wife of a popular
and prosperous young country doctor. His skill as a practitioner was
accepted. He was democratic, kindly, and fast growing in the esteem of his
fellow citizens. Always a man of strict integrity, sound judgment, and marked
public spirit, he early began to take an active part in public affairs. He was
made a civil magistrate and soon after given command of a regiment of
militia. In 1765, he was chosen representative to the Provincial Legislature
from Kingston. Though Governor Wentworth had appointed him to several
positions of honor and profit, Dr. Bartlett felt called upon, almost from the
first, to oppose vigorously some of the Governor's measures in the
Legislature especially those pertaining to the land grants, a vast system of
official peculation that was one of the great evils of the administrations of
both the Wentworths. By 1774, the aggressions of the Governor, and the
policy of the British Ministry which he was trying to carry out, had grown so
burdensome to the people that Dr. Bartlett and a few other leaders found
themselves in almost open opposition. He was still a member of the
Legislature and in that year we find him at the head of a "Committee of
Correspondence," which was in constant communication with Samuel
Adams and other patriots of Massachusetts and Connecticut. Then Dr.
Bartlett was elected delegate to "a general congress to be held in
Philadelphia." This brought down upon him the wrath of Governor
Wentworth and his Tory adherents. His appointment as Justice of the
Peace was revoked and his commission as Colonel of militia was taken
from him. Soon afterward his house was set on fire and burned to the
ground, after he had received warning to cease his "pernicious activity."
During all this period, Mary Bartlett had been the closest friend and
counselor of her husband. Just as he had consulted her over his troubles as
a young physician, helping to bear the home burdens of his patients and
personal friends in their little community, so now he consulted her about the
greater troubles and dangers that menaced the country. And always she was
the true helpmeet, always the ready and sympathetic friend and judicious
adviser. Her patriotism was as ardent as his and burned with as steady a
flame, and when their home lay in ruins and the family were driven to seek
shelter and safety elsewhere, she took their numerous brood and retired to
their little farm, which she managed thereafter, leaving him free to devote
himself almost entirely to the public business. Between these public duties
Dr. Bartlett found time to rebuild, on the site of his ruined home, a fine
old-style New England mansion, that still stands. In all her letters to her
husband and her children, there is not one word of regret at his course or pity
for herself, left alone to bear the double duties incumbent upon her; no
complaints, only a spirit of loving, helpful sympathy in all his acts.
Mrs. Bartlett died in their new house in Kingston, in July, 1789, and her
death was a great blow to her husband, who was at the time Chief Justice.
The following year he was chosen President of New Hampshire, which office
he held until 1793, when he was elected Governor, the first the
Commonwealth ever had as an independent State. He declined re-election
and died shortly afterward in the sixty-sixth year of his age, broken down,
according to his own declaration, by grief and the double duties and
responsibilities imposed upon him since her death.
Twelve children were born to Dr. and Mrs. Bartlett, of whom eight came to
maturity. Three sons, Levi, Joseph, and Ezra, followed in their father's
footsteps and became eminent physicians, and all three of them took
considerable interest in public affairs, holding not a few positions of honor
and responsibility. Of the daughters, Mary, who married Jonathan Greeley,
Miriam, who married Joseph Calef, Rhoda, who married Reuben True, and
Sarah, who married Dr. Amos Gale, were the only ones to leave descendants.
Source: Wives of the Signers: The Women Behind the Declaration of
Independence, by Harry Clinton Green and Mary Wolcott Green, A.B. (Aledo,
TX: Wallbuilder Press, 1997). Orignaly Published in 1912 as volume 3 of The
Pioneer Mothers of America: A Record of the More Notable Women of the
Early Days of the Country, and Particularly of the Colonial and Revolutionary
Periods (New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons). Pages 10-14. (Some minor spelling
changes may have been made.)
SOURCE: http://colonialhall.com/bartlett/bartlettMary.php
* [From page 149] In 1707, Joseph Bartlett was drafted and sent with others to
Haverhill to defend the town against an expected attack of French and Indians
from Canada. August 29, 1708, about 160 French and 50 Indians attacked the
town and set fire to several buildings. Mr. Bartlett and others were in a
chamber of Captain Wainright's house from the windows of which they fired
upon the enemy. They were informed that their only safety was in surrender.
Mr. Bartlett secreted his gun in the chimney above the fireplace, went down,
asked for quarter, was bound, and carried to Canada where he re-mained a
prisoner until he was redeemed. After a captivity of four years he returned. He
afterward visited Haverhill and found his gun where he had secreted it. It
finally came to his grand nephew, Richard Bartlett of Amesbury, Mass., who
carried it while a soldier in the Revolutionary War. Richard brought the gun
back with him from the Revolution and it was afterward blown to pieces by
some boy celebrating Fourth of July. Levi Bartlett (author of this sketch)
collected the fragments in I879, and riveted, and wired the gun together and
deposited it in the rooms of the New Hampshirc Historical Society where it
may still he seen."
Read Dr. Bartlett's Biography HERE
Dr Bartlett's Signature on Declaration of
Independence. About the time of his
signature his home was burned to the
ground by British loyalists,
Dr Bartlett's Signature on Declaration of
Independence. About the time of his
signature his home was burned to the
ground by British loyalists,
