Londonderry Tales: Glimpses Into Londonderry, New Hampshire's Past

By Sandy Dahlfred

Wild animals, crazy weather, gold seekers, eccentric citizens, ghosts, murder and mayhem – the town of Londonderry, New Hampshire has seen it all in its nearly 300 year history. This book highlights some of the events from the town’s past – all special to Londonderry citizens but relatable to anyone who has grown up in New England or who has an interest in what life was like in early Small Town, America.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lulu.com
• Release date: Oct 6, 2019
• ISBN: 9780359951680

Book preview

Londonderry Tales: Glimpses Into Londonderry, New Hampshire's Past

Londonderry Tales: Glimpses Into Londonderry, New Hampshire’s Past

Sandy Dahlfred

2017

Copyright © 2017 by Sandy Dahlfred

All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the author.

Print ISBN 978-1-365-71372-9

Ebook ISBN 978-0-359-95168-0

Disclaimer: Although every effort has been made to ensure that the information in this book is correct, the author acknowledges that errors may exist and assumes no liability to any party for any loss, damage, or disruption caused by such errors.

Cover photo: Pick Your Own Apples booth at Sunnycrest Farm in Londonderry.

All photos by the author unless otherwise noted.

Introduction

What can I say about the town of Londonderry, New Hampshire, that hasn’t already been said? Well, Londonderry has been around for a long time, so there’s no shortage of things to say and stories to relate. Many authors have taken advantage of this wealth of material and as a result, many fine books have been written about the town’s history. All of the titles of those works appear in the bibliography of this one because of course, I couldn’t have written these tales without them. However, this isn’t meant to be a history book, but as the title indicates, a collection of glimpses into various aspects of our town’s past.

I moved to Londonderry eleven years ago. I’ve been a history buff for a long time and have always limited my interests to the local level. I learned many years ago that there’s no such thing as a dull town. Every place has its fascinating tidbits, its exceptional people (both good and bad), its highlights, lowlights, and its mysteries. My goal, since I began writing these stories back in 2008, was to find topics that would appeal to everyone, not just the history enthusiast. I hope that some of you who are reading these words are proof of my success.

The first chapter of this book, Londonderry in the Old Days, goes back almost to the beginning, the beginning being the year 1719 when Londonderry, originally called Nutfield, was first settled. Nutfield/Londonderry’s experiences paralleled those of other New England settlements – its citizens tamed the land, educated their children, punished their delinquents, sent men to war, endured weather disasters and personal tragedies, built an economy, became mobile, and eventually, dealt with growing pains. But as folks do everywhere, Londonderry citizens did these things in their own way. This chapter describes some of our early challenges and gives us some insight into the lifestyle of the people back in our fledgling years.

People have always found ways to get around, even if by today’s standards those ways would be considered painfully slow. From multi-hour trips in a stagecoach just to travel a few miles, to the dizzying speed of a superhighway, Londonderry’s history contains it all. The second chapter, Londonderry on the Move, highlights the various ways people not only moved around within the town’s borders, but also how folks arrived, left, and simply passed through.

Every town has its special people and places. The third and fourth chapters, Londonderry’s Special People and Londonderry’s Special Places, expand the definition of the word special and showcase some of the citizens and locations that have made Londonderry what it is today. These citizens are not necessarily celebrities, nor are the places vacation destinations, since these, in my opinion, are not what make a town special. For example, when the Alan B. Shepard Highway – what we know as Route 93 - came through town in 1963, Londonderry’s population exploded. The town was no longer the quaint little berg it had been and it took on a new character, that of a pleasant and attractive suburb within easy commute of several major cities. The story, Ela Hill, describes this transition through the eyes of a young boy who lived it.

We might not like to admit it, but every town, no matter how small, charming, or remote, has its less than desirable characters. The fifth chapter, Londonderry’s Bad Guys (and Gals), contains stories of some of Londonderry’s rogues, the crimes they committed, and the consequences they suffered (if any). Since the beginning of time, villains have found ways of harming people and robbing them of their hard-earned money and possessions. It’s interesting to observe how methods have changed – or stayed the same - over the decades and centuries.

The sixth chapter, Londonderry’s Mysteries, describes some of the town’s curious happenings, legends as well as puzzles which will most likely never be solved. Did a local woman really give birth to healthy quintuplets way back in 1841? What’s the real story of the young woman who disappeared for nearly a month and then mysteriously reappeared as though nothing had happened? Do ghosts inhabit our cemeteries?

The final chapter, Londonderry Tales, is a collection of stories covering various themes. Some are taken from news items and concern isolated incidents, such as that of the woman who committed suicide because of her husband’s jealousy. Others consider broader subjects like how Londonderry is affected every four years when the nation selects a new president.

Londonderry is approaching its 300th birthday. That’s three centuries of life lived by thousands of people within a few square miles. Their stories are buried in layers of time and we need to do a little digging in order to discover them. This book is my attempt at uncovering these nuggets and sharing them with all of you. I hope you see them as the treasures they are.

Londonderry in the Old Days

Farm animals that wandered away from their pastures were kept at the

Town Pound until their owners were able to retrieve them by paying a fine

to the Poundkeeper. This Pound is located on Mammoth Road.

Here in New England, the character is strong and unshakable.

~ Norman Rockwell, New England Artist

Let us never forget that the cultivation of the earth is the most important labor of man. When tillage begins, other arts follow. The farmers, therefore, are the founders of civilization.

~ Daniel Webster, New Hampshire Statesman

In the Wild

Whenever I hear about a local bear or moose sighting, I think about how things must have been in the old days. Although such sightings would have been more common, some were still newsworthy. In old town history books, you’ll find several stories about bears and bear hunts. One hunt that occurred here in 1807 took 50 men and three days to accomplish the killing of its 200 pound quarry. Back then, of course, the meat of the beast was valuable and necessary for survival.

The History of Rockingham County describes the wild animals that Londonderry’s early settlers encountered, including bears, deer, and wolves. Bounties were paid on wolves’ heads and farmers had to bring their sheep in every night to protect them from these creatures. Other critters, like the 30 pound hedgehog killed by resident Joseph Annis in 1866, also populated our community long after the first Europeans arrived. If you look around, you’ll see places that are named after the animals that once roamed them - Moose Hill, Musquash (the Native American name for muskrat) Conservation Area, and Beaver Rock, for example.

Knowing that there are bears in these parts doesn’t keep me out of the woods. I assume the beasts want less to do with me than I with them. But in the old days when wild creatures were more numerous, a little fear of the woods would have been a healthy thing. One Miss Perkins, in Early Londonderry, tells how it was her job as a child to carry letters to the Post Office to mail to her Civil War soldier dad. Although she bravely carried out this errand, she claimed that a greater coward never walked. Among the many things she feared on these treks (such as ghosts) were wild animals, as stories were always circulating about large cats roaming the area. Perhaps she’d even heard the tale from 1798 about Major Gregg’s daughter, who was attacked by a large wildcat while out in her own yard. The screams of the girl and her siblings weren’t enough to scare the animal away and it actually entered their home, forcing the family to flee. It was believed that the cat had been driven from the forest by fire and hunger.

In September of 1868, another wild animal story made the newspaper. A boar had been roaming Londonderry’s woods since the previous spring and it took 40 men to finally capture it. It may surprise some to learn that, according to a Union Leader article in 2011, wild pigs continue to make nuisances of themselves in our state. The current population, which started out as escapees from hunting parks, fare well in the wild and their numbers are increasing. The animals eat everything in sight, including endangered plant species, and are able to destroy a lawn or fragile habitat in mere hours. Not surprisingly, there is much concern about the effect these animals are having on the environment.

A browse of local newspapers over recent years will net several stories about the increase of black bears in New Hampshire. Personally, I’m glad that these and other beasts still dwell among us. It’s tempting to try to entice wildlife with food in order to get closer looks, and even careless storage of garbage outside can attract an unwanted visitor, but the Fish and Game Department reminds us that a fed bear is a dead bear. We need to let them continue to fend for themselves in the wild or we’re asking for trouble for us and for them.

In the Classroom

It ain’t like the old days. We hear this remark in