Milton School Districts – 1806

By Muriel Bristol | April 13, 2025

Milton had Rochester School Districts already when it was still the Northeast Parish of Rochester, and those districts seem to have been continued when Milton initially became its own town in 1802. (It elected nine District School Committees in 1804).

There would have been a one-room schoolhouse in each School District. (Two at least of the ultimate nine District schoolhouses are still extant, although they are likely not the original buildings).

There were no Kindergarten or High School students (These are relatively modern innovations). Nor were there any school levels or “grades,” as such. (Grades were first used in the “graded” Milton Grammar School of 1893 (see Milton Grammar School Principals – 1893-14). Student ages would correspond with what are now termed the First through the Eighth grades. After that most students would have entered the workforce, usually on the family farm, or apprenticed in a trade. Some students went right from being a student to being the teacher. (Lewis W. Nute taught in a Milton school before embarking on his business career in Boston, MA).

Miss Sophia Cushing taught initially at Plummer’s Ridge in 1797-98 and then, just before these School Districts were newly delineated, at Milton Three Ponds. She was aged only about thirteen or fourteen years of age when she first taught in Rochester and only about fifteen or sixteen years of age when she first taught at Plummer’s Ridge. She would remember her experiences there in her 1854 autobiography (see Milton Teacher of 1796-1805).

Some few students – those intending to enter one of the “learned professions” – would have gone on to study further in some out-of-town private academy or institute prior to attending college. (The Milton Classical Institute would become available for this locally in or around 1867). More advanced books than basic “readers” might be borrowed at this time, by subscription, at the Rochester Social Library and, after 1822, at the Milton Social Library.

Each School District had its own elected three-person district School Committee. They would have been responsible for the schoolhouse, firewood for its pot-bellied stove, schoolbooks (see Milton’s Arithmetic Textbooks of 1878), slates, etc., and the hiring of a teacher, which might have included also lodging for that teacher. Each school district would have its own tax assessment and school tax to fund those expenses, thus the names of the taxpayers and lot numbers of their properties.

In December 1806, an appointed four-man Town Committee reported its definition (or redefinition) of five School Districts. District One would seem to have been situated or centered on what is now known as Plummer’s Ridge, District Two at West Milton, District Three at Milton Mills, District Four at South Milton, and District Five at Milton Three Ponds.

We the undersigned, a Committee appointed to divide the Town of Milton into School Districts, do hereby agree upon the following division, Viz.

Joseph Plumer’s District No. 1 to contain the following Inhabitants, also the following lots of Land, Viz. Persons Names. Thomas Appleby, Willm Appleby, Willm Adams, Moses Chamberlin, David Corson, Saml W. Cate, Fredrick Cate, Daniel Door, Jona Door, John Door, John Fifield, Ens. James C. Hayes, Lieut E. Horn, John Hart, Stephen Jennis, Capt. Levi Jones, Benja Miller, Henry Miller, John Mills, Thomas Nutter, Capt. B. Plumer, Joseph Plumer, Barnabas Palmer, Will Palmer, Esq., John Palmer, Enoch Plumer, Dudley Palmer, Beniah Colbey, John Remick, John D. Remick, James Roberts, Benja Scates, John Scates, Ephm Twombly, Gershm Wentworth, Otis Wentworth, Paul Wentworth, Caleb Wingate, David Wallingford, Gilbert Perkins, Wid. A. Hanson, John McDuffee. Lots of Land. No. 38, 37, 36, 35, 34, 33, 32, 31, 30, 29, 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86, 87, 88, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 69, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 67, 61, 63, in 3rd Division, and 119, 120, 121, in the 4th Division.

Lieut J. Nute’s District No. 2 Contains the following Inhabitants and Lotts of Land, Viz. Samuel Bragdon, Daniel Hayes, Jur, Theodore Ham, Daniel Hayes, Esq., Ezekiel Hayes, Ichabod Hayes, Stephen Jenkins, Stephen Jenkins, Jur, Ebenr Jones, John Jenkins, Richard Monson, Lt. D. Monson, Saml Nute, Lt. Jotham Nute, Nicholas Nute, Ens. E. Twombly, James Varney, Wid. Mary Varney, Benja Varney, Lemuel Varney, Aron Varney, James Varney, Jur, Edmund Varney, Richard Walker, Joseph Walker, Ebenr Wingate, John Twombly, Aron Wentworth. Lots of land. No. 53, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86, 87, 98, 100, & two third of 101, & 1 third of 88, in 2nd division & lotts No. 6 & 8 in 3rd division & lotts No. 64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 78, 79, 80 & 81 in the fourth division.

Paul Jewett Esq.’s District No. 3 Contains the following Inhabitants and lotts of Land, Viz. Joseph Berry, Will Berry, Francis Berry, James Berry, Isaac Brackett, Ens. W. Corson, Saml Chatman, Beniah Door, Nathl Dearborn, Joseph Dearborn, Enoch Farnham, Nathl Gilman, Jeremiah Goodwin, Humphry Goodwin, Daniel Grant, Peter Grant, George Hoyt, Paul Jewett, Esq., Nat Jewett, Reuben Jones, Nathan Jones, Joseph Libby, James Merrow, Mark Miller, Jur, Bartholomew Miller, Hatevil Nutter, Will S. Nutter, John Nutter, Joseph Rines, Henry Rines, Henry Rines, Jur, John Remick, Jur, Thomas Remick, Henry Rollins, John Smith, Aron Witham, John Witham, Josiah Witham, Obediah Witham, Edmd Witham, Amos Witham, Peter Copp. Lotts of Land ~ No. 40, 39, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 75, 76, 77, 78, & 79, in third division, & lott No. 122 in 4th division.

Dudley Burnham’s District No. 4 Contains the following Inhabitants & Lotts of Land, Viz. Persons names. Dudley Burnham, Enoch Bunker, Ebenr Corson, Robert Corson, Jeremiah Cook, Joseph Cook, John Drew, Moses Downs, James Goodwin, Jonathan How, Robert Mathews, Will Mathews, John Meserve, Enoch Wingate, Amos Place, Francis Nute, Saml Nute, Jur, Otis Pinkham, Oliver Peavey, Shubel Roberts, Ephm Plumer, John Twombly, Jur, Will Tuttle, Saml Wentworth, Daniel Wentworth, Caleb Wakeham, Jona Wakeham, Benja Wakeham, Ephm Wakeham, Ichabod Wentworth, Enoch Wentworth. Lotts of Land. No. 97, 99, & 1 third of No. 101, in 2nd division, & lotts No. 5, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 89, 90, 91, 92, 93, 94, 95, 96, 97, 98, & one half of No. 18, in third division.

John Fishe’s District No. 5 Contains the following Inhabitants and lotts of Land, Viz. Persons Names. Wentworth Cook, John Downs, Gershom Downs, Aron Downs, Ens. John Fish, Benja Foss, Will Foss, Wentworth Door, Clemt Hayes, Nicholas Hartford, Jotham Ham, Will Hatch, Peletiah Hanscom, John Hansom, John B. Hartford, Lieut. Gilman Jewett, Ens. Will Jones, Will W. Lord, Will Lord, Robert McGeoch, Jona Pinkham, Nathl Pinkham, Saml Palmer, Lemuel Ricker, Jerediah Ricker, Saml Ricker, John Ricker, Ebenr Ricker, Timo Ricker, Timo Roberts, Saml Twombly, Saml Twombly Jur, John Wentworth, Saml S. Wentworth, David Wentworth, James Wentworth, Stephen Wentworth, Isaac Worster, Thomas Wentworth, Josiah Willey, Widow Gerrish. Lotts of Land. No. 94, 95, 96, 89, 90 & two thirds of No. 88 in 2nd divn & lotts No. 66, 68, 62, 60, 65, 64, 20, 21, 22, 19, & ½ of No. 18, in third division, & lotts No. 113, 114, 115, 116, 117, 118, & 52, in 4th division.

Dated at Milton this first day of December 1806. Levi Jones, William Palmer, Saml S. Wentworth, Jotham Nute.

True Coppy attest Gilman Jewett Town Clerk.

The Second, Third, and Fourth Divisions designations associated with the land lot numbers represent successive divisions of “common land.” When a town, such as Rochester, was chartered, its original settlers received original grants of chartered land.

(Original grants of chartered frontier land were sometimes given to veterans of various wars and conflicts. Such grants might bear the name of the town from which those veterans served. For instance, New Boston, NH, from Boston, MA; New Durham, NH, from Durham, NH, and New Ipswich, NH, from Ipswich, MA. Many such namesake land grants were later renamed or subdivided, as Milton being separated out of Rochester, NH. For instance, New Marblehead, ME, was renamed as Windham, ME).

Granted land not initially set out for original settlers was reserved as “common” land, to which those settlers had reserved rights as “commoners.” Over time, successive divisions of that land might be made until there was little or no undivided land remaining. (One hopes to find someday the accompanying map associated with these lot numbers).

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References:

Wikipedia. (2018, October 31). Common School. Retrieved from en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_school

Wikipedia. (2018, October 21). Normal School. Retrieved from en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Normal_school