Smith, Leonard Jr., compiler. Cape Cod Library of Local History & Genealogy, Baltimore, MD: Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc. 1992.
Volume 1
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Page 18 - Crowell, Joshua, "Cape Cod Byways," 1935. North Shore Ways of Barnstable - The village of Barnstable, with its abundance of stone walls winding along above a rock-ridged foundation, commands an outlook unique in character and unexcelled in beauty. Sandy Neck, seven miles of irregular glistening dunes forming a giant protecting arm, gives the bay within a distinction and charm which can only be measured by frequent visits with varying ide, cloud, sun and seasonable effects.
One space along the highway presents a beautiful picture, signifying that the few but choice approaches to Barnstable Bay will amply repay investigation.
Of these approaches, beginning at the Yarmouth end of the highway through Barnstable, Keveney Lane is rural and picturesque, Indian Trail compelling but almost too narrow for comfort and Commerce Road has advantages not to be denied. Besides the fact it is a fishing village at the signs at the sandy lanes disclose with gleaming touches of bay and dune in the distance it is primarily a long curving sweep around the edge of thicket, swamp growth, marshes and creek.
Pausing at the bridge over the creek, with the storage plant opposite, we try to locate the ship-yards of the older days, a leading industry here as well as in several other localities on the Cape.
Rendezvous Lane pleasantly meanders to a broad but intimate pastel of bay, done and lighthouse.
Scudder Lane, taken slowly with frequent stops, gives many comprehensive and enthralling vistas of green fields sloping down to the rock-edged but placid bay, landlocked with silver dunes, and the long crescent of the Cape coast pencilled into the distance.
Through West Barnstable, across the Great Marshes spreads the influence of that great beneficent bar.
Knowing that only from the top of Scorton Hill can we complete the panorama, we turn to the left opposite the Great Marshes, and another left turn into a sandy but easy ascent and soon find our horizon enlarged to include not only extensive stretches of countryside on the one hand but on the other an almost unlimited prospect of colorful meadow . . .
Page 71 - Jenkins, Samuel, "The Descendants of John Jenkins," 1930. The first meeting house was erected at Barnstable in 1646; prior to about 1700 this First Church was the only one in town; it had jurisdiction over the whole territory between Sandwich and Yarmouth as well as Mashpee and Falmouth; its location was in all probability, West of the old [page 72] burying ground in Barnstable, opposite the residence of Marcus Harris. After 1700, when the town was divided into two parishes, a church building was erected in West Barnstable and that division was designated the "West Parish in Barnstable."
Page 73 - A group of about ten men would come together for the purpose of establishing a plantation or new settlement. The next step was to appoint a Committee of three or more men to act for the group in receiving the contributions of the members buying the land from the Indians and in closing the bargain with Plymouth Corporation for the desired territory; this concluded the grant was entered ont hte Corporation records. These grants were made, as a rule, to the members of the Committee - acting for a group and stated in form that the grant was mde to three or four persons, named as "fee officers" in trust, to form a society - meaning a corporation - to erect a plantation. The next step taken by the Committee or trustees was to prepare for the settlement so that all the families could occupy the territory at the same time as a measure of security and convenience. A community block house was first erected sufficient in size to accomodate all the families. Supplies were collected and stoed and the Committee then laid out the home sites for the head of each family upon which rude log cabins [less likely log cabins but more likely small houses in the English style; log cabins were introduced by Scandinavian settlers.] were built as quickly as possible; these cabins were built in and around the block house so that it afforded protection in case of attack by the Indians. Later the blockhouse was also used for religious worsip, for Freemen's meetings and general community purposes. Building the homes and getting settled was quickly accomplished. The community life then became more active, the church was organized under the direction of the minister and proprietors meetings were frequently held. . . .
The Cape Cod Indians were quite friendly but blockhouses were erected here in 1643. One at West Barnstable (of which the Indian name was Mos-ke-tuck-et) is to be located by the remains of the stone foundations on the property now owned by Mr. Roger Horton . . . this land originally belonged to the Crockers.
Houses for single families were first put up at Sandwich, Yarmouth and Barnstable in the order named, and a little later in Falmouth.
Page 128 - Hannah, Samuel, "Plymouth Corporation, A Trading Company, Located at Plymouth, A Proprietary Plantation," 1928 - . . . . According to the agreement made with the English capitalists and shipowners, the Pilgrims and settlers could purchaase the English rights in the corporation and in 1627-, 58 men gave a bond to pay a sum agreed upon.
Having secured the patent enlarging their jurisdiction, the purchasers of the corporation found themselves confronted with the difficult problem of meeting their obligation. The Plymouth settlement had incrased in numbers and about 1638 groups began to form wishing to establish new settlements or plantations within the territory controlled by the corporation - accordingly the right to settle and establish new plantations was granted for a money consideration which sums [page 129] would enable the Purchasers to meet their bond. These grants carried with them the obligation to purchase the Indian title to the areas granted.
Thus Sandwich, Barnstable and Yarmouth Plantations were established. About this time there seems to have developed much dissastisfaction as to the governing authority exercised by the corporation, which in fact was only a trading company and without any political or civil control over the plantations beyond Plimoth Plantation.
In order to establish some kind of governmental authority over the entire territory of the colony it was agreed that the purchasers of the corporation should choose definite areas of land for themselves and their children and surrender the remainder of their lands, not then granted and that which they chose for themselves, to the body of Freemen and thus establish a government. This was brought about in 1640 and finally completed several years later.
Page 131 - When the towns separated from the Proprietors, taking the religious function with it, it became in fact a municipal corporation with both the civil and religious functions; later the religious function separated from the town and became the parish or church corporation.
Thus it was the Proprietary Plantation or township which combined the three functions of property ownership and control, th ecivil function and the religious function, became divided into three distinct corporate bodies. . . .
Page 340 - "The Oldest Public Library Building in the United States," nd - . . . oldest public library building in the United States is the town of Barnstable, County of Barnstable, Province of Cape Cod, Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
. . . Mr. Arnold does not allege that Barnstable has the oldest free public library as an institution. He merely says it has the oldest building, and by this the Librarian believes the writer means, more exactly, the oldest building now used - and for a long time used - as a free public library. . . .
The oldest public library building in the United States is the one in Barnstable down on Cape Cod. You would never know from the outside that it is a public library if it were not for the sign, Sturgis Library, over the front door, though you might wonder why evan an old-fashioned dwelling place should have six granite hitching posts along the sidewalk. . . .
The building was the family dwelling of Captain William Sturgis . . . Shortly before his death in 1863, he conveyed to the trustees of the Barnstable public library the house and land of his birthplace, together with the sum of $15,000. The trustees, who, Poole says, were first organized in the same year as the bequest, 1863, had the house altered to suit the wants of a library converting [page 341] a portion into a library hall and fitting up the remaining part as a residence for the librarian.
The house was originally built for the Reverend John Lothrop in 1644, five years after his arrival in Barnstable from Scituate. It followed then the general plan of a New England farmhouse with a hip roof, a big kitchen at th erear in the middle, and with bedroom and shed at either side. One of the front rooms was "sufficiently large to accommodate members of the church at their meetings," and this room today is thte workrrom of the librarian, Miss Elizabeth C. Nye [b. 1867, d. 1960]. It is sixteen feet square with a beamed ceiling and deep, broad window seats. It is furnished with old-fashioned mirrors, rockers and Windsor chairs, has ivy in vases over the fireplace as well as a beautiful photograph of the West Barnstable marshes, and so charming is the room that you would almost think you had strayed into some private library. This room is still unchanged from the Lothrop days, but the rest of the house is much modified. Like a modern lady, the building has lost its hips and is now a two-story colonial house. The kitchen bedroom is transformed into a travel library room and the two stories on the west have been made into the large library hall. This large room is the main library but books overflow into the rest of the house.
The library is homelike to its core.
Page 342 - Lathrop's Sermons are said to be available at the library.
Page 855 - Otis, Amos, "The Lumbert or Lombard Family," 1914 - When Mr. [Rev. John] Lothrop came, Oct. 11, 1639, [to Barnstable] the two churches united, and though there is no record of the union at that time, subsequent records show that Mr. Hull, Mr. Dimmock, Mr. Bursley, William Casely, Thomas Lumbert and other of the first comers, were recognized as members of Mr. Lothrop's church, and consequently that there had been such a union. . . .
His [Thomas Lumbert] house lot was the second west of Rendezvous land, contained twelve acres, and was bounded north by the harbor, east by Thomas Lothrop's lot, south by the highway, and west by the house-lot of Mr. Robert Linnell.
Page 868 - Paine, Josiah. "Eastham & Orleans Historical Papers," 1914 - He [Mr. John Mayo, minister] was at Barnstable in 1639, when Mr. John Lothrop and his company from Scituate arrived, and having been called to the position of "teaching elder" in the church of which Mr. Lothrop was pastor, he was ordained Fast day, April 25, 1640, Mr. Lothrop, Mr. Joseph Hull and Elder Henry Cobb assisting. He continued here in connection with Mr. Lothrop's church for some time, when he went to Nausett, or Eastham, and was employed to conduct religious services . . .
Volume 2
Page 1598 - "The Crowell Families of Yarmouth," Yarmouth Register, May 9, 1850 - Frothingham's History - Another Mr. John Crowe was one of the first settlers of Hartford, Conn., as early as 1639. - He married Elizabeth, only child of Elder William Goodwin of Hartford. They had nine children. - He subsequently removed to Hadley, where he died January 16, 1685, aged about 79 years.
William Crowe of Plymouth was born in 1629, and his will dated Feb. 2, 1683-4 is on the Old Colony Records. He names his three brothers, Samuel, Thomas, and Robert, and sister Mary, wife of John Herbert, all of Coventry, Eng., his uncle John Atwood of Plymouth, and cousin Lydia Rider (wife of Samuel, 3d, and daughter Thomas Tilden, of Marshfield). He does not appear to have been related to the Crowell families of Yarmouth.
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