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Heritage Commission - Articles of Danville History


    People
      Clarence Collins ... A Man For His Times
         January 3, 2006
        Sometimes one person with forward-looking vision, a solid base of business acumen and a keen sense of civic responsibility can significantly alter and improve the course of events for a town. Danville was fortunate to produce such a man. He thrived during the last quarter of the 19th century and the first quarter of the 20th century. His name was Clarence Collins. His deeds and accomplishments don't rank in importance with such visionaries as Thomas Edison or Bill Gates, but he did alter the path of Danville from an agrarian based economy mired solidly in the 19th century to a town that slowly but steadily eased into the industrial age. He and his cousin Herbert almost single-handedly brought a new prosperity to Danville.
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      DANVILLE AND MOSES EATON
         April 19, 2005
        The post-Revolutionary years to the mid 1840's was the heyday for New England wall stenciling. Imported French wallpaper had become high fashion for affluent families, but what became the art of wall stenciling filled the void for those of more meager means. Intricate and fancy French designs were copied by some, but the most popular and lasting stencils of the period were the simple, yet elegant patterns of Moses Eaton and his son Moses, Jr., which have become the standard for wall stencilers today.
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      FRANCES COLBY
         January 8, 2000
        Frances Blake Cronk Colby, now in her 89th year, is the last to carry the mantle of the Colby name in Danville, continuing the charitable works and good deeds that have been characteristic of the Colbys in Danville for the past 260 years. Frances came to Danville and became a member of the historical Colby family when she and Alden Colby, both widowed, married on Christmas Eve in 1954. Alden owned and ran the Colby finish lumber mill at that time, and Frances, true to her industrious spirit, took woodworking classes in order to be able to take full advantage of the opportunities having a lumber mill in the family could offer. The result was several well-crafted pieces of furniture that still adorn her small home on, where else but, Colby Road in Danville.
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      RUFUS PORTER
      HISTORIC FOLK ART DISCOVERED IN DANVILLE HOME
         August 12, 2003
        Imagine starting the task of stripping old paint and wallpaper from your living room walls and discovering rare, historic folk art murals painted on the plaster beneath. That's what happened to Jack and Ann Howland in the early 1980's after they purchased the impressive federal style house at 207 Main Street just across from the Danville Town Hall. They researched and determined the murals were painted by Rufus Porter, the renowned 19th century itinerant painter, probably sometime in the 1820's when the property was owned by the Dimond family. One cannot help but wonder if Mr. Dimond was encouraged to engage him to paint these murals from Porter's advertisement in the "Haverhill Gazette" in April of 1821. It read … "portraits done in his hotel room at Mr. Brown's Tavern"; or "Those who request it will be waited on at their respective places of abode."
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      FAMILY'S LEGACIES SPAN 200 YEARS
      The Page/Peaslee Family
         July 27, 1999
        One can only imagine the emotions that flowed through Jabez Page as he made his way from Salisbury, Massachusetts to the woods of Kingston in 1734. Settlements were few and scattered, travel was difficult and Indians still roamed about. Yet over the next 200 years Jabez Page and his descendants farmed and worked their lands, helped their community and left Danville with a wealth of memories and legacies.
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      PETER & DEBORAH MEIGS
         June 18, 2002
        If you were looking for historical information about Danville, or Hawke as it was known prior to 1836, your best bet to get accurate facts would be from Peter and Deborah Meigs. Pete and Deb are president and secretary/treasurer, respectively, of The Hawke Historical Society, an organization founded in 1969 by a group of dedicated, history-minded Danville residents. The defining history of the town, The History of Danville. New Hampshire, first privately published in 1975, was the result of the early efforts of this group, as Ruth Rich, the author, was the founder and first president of The Hawke Historical Society. Both Pete and Deb are charter members.
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      THE EATON LEGACY
         April 16, 2002
        The sprawling, restored Georgian Colonial at 41 Olde Road in Danville could probably share some historical yarns with us if it cared to. For more than a century it was known as the Eaton house, and dates back to the late 1700's when it was the home of Jabez Eaton, one of Danville's (then Hawke), first District Highway Surveyors. A District Highway Surveyor was the precursor to the Road Agent of today. The Surveyor's duties of road construction and maintenance were similar to those of today if you can draw such a comparison to what that would have entailed two centuries ago. Early town records show that in 1797 the selectmen provided Eaton a list of property owners with a highway tax indicated for each. It was his responsibility to collect the highway tax or to arrange for the person to work out the tax. It was so stipulated, that he was to allow "48 cents a day for an able bodied man with his providing for himself a suitable too or tools and 48 cents per day for a yoke of oxen, 48 cents per day for a plow and 24 cents per day for a cart and wheels."
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      THE "SPIRITS" OF DANVILLE
         August 2, 2005
        In the earliest of Colonial times the consumption of wine and beer by the general population was readily accepted. The fear of contagion and disease from contaminated water sources that was so prevalent in the "old country" made water a non-preferred, if not unpopular libation. Colonists concocted their beverages from what was readily available to them. In the northeast it was berries and fruits that were prevalent and most frequently used. Of the fruits used it could be expected that apples would be the most popular. Apple "cyder" was pressed following the fall harvest, and kept in barrels in cool root cellars for use during the year. It would ferment, or harden, and become more and more potent as it aged into what we know today as applejack, or hard cider.
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      THE WEBSTER CONNECTION
         February 2, 2002
        One of Danville's prominent families lived at the comer of Route 111A and Sandown Road for over 100 years. Nathaniel Webster, the great grandson of Benjamin Webster, the first recorded white male child born in the town of Kingston (1701), and who is believed to be the Benjamin Webster who subsequently became one of the 27 men to build and convey the Old Meeting House to the town of Hawke (Danville), married Sarah Lovering in 1821. Sarah, known throughout her life as Sally, was the stepdaughter of Captain Elisha Hook of Poplin (Fremont), and with the marriage came the home at the comer of Sandown Road. It isn't known for sure when the house was constructed, but it is believed that it started life in the mid 1700's as a half cape, which became the kitchen ell when a full cape was added to the south side of the structure. Town historians believed the cape was built in 1790. This was probably the configuration of the home that Nathaniel and Sally moved into in 1821.
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    Places
      Danville Town Hall - The Next Steps
         February 25, 2003
        On March 11th Danville residents will have the opportunity to help decide what the next steps should be for the second floor of the Town Hall. A warrant article will be on the ballot to see if the town will allocate $1,500 to help pay for a professional preservation architectural study that will offer appropriate potential uses for the now unused second floor.
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      SPECIAL PROTECTION FOR A SPECIAL PLACE
         March 2, 1999
        On March 9, 1999 the voters of Danville will have an opportunity to decide whether to designate a special historic area of town as an historic district. A number of the sites in this area were significant to the establishment of Hawke (Danville's original name until 1836) as a daughter town of Kingston. Some of the highlights include the following:
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      THE BEST VIEW IN DANVILLE?
         June 19, 2001
        One of Danville's oldest homes may have one of the town's most stunning views, but it has only had this distinction for the last twenty years or so, give or take. The house is located at 70 Sandown Road on the north side of the hill as you head west from Route 111A. It was most recently known as Orchard Hill Farm, owned by John and Elizabeth McKenna, and is just a stone's throw from the highest recorded elevation in Rockingham County. The view offers a northern vista of Mt. Pawtuckaway and the Pawtuckaway State Park, and on a clear day extends for more than 80 miles. Although the house has been on this property since the early 1700's, it has not always been on the exact spot it sits today, and has not always had this spectacular view. In 1760 the property was owned by Gideon Sawyer, who is buried in Ye Olde Cemetery on Route 111A. It stayed in the Sawyer family for at least a century, passing to the Sanborn family, and eventually to Clyde Hennigar, a Massachusetts businessman who used it as a country retreat.
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      THE LEGENDS AND MYSTERY OF TUCKERTOWN
         September 14, 1999
        One of the town's earliest roads was Tucker Road, today known as "Tuckertown." Its entrance is on Main Street (Route 111A) across from the Meeting House. It stretches westerly through Danville to the Sandown town line. In 1766 Tuckertown Road was the first official road layout by the town's Selectmen, just six years after the town had separated from Kingston and gained its independence. Legend tells us that an early settlement known as Tuckertown sprang up along Tucker Road and this little village would become the site of one of the town's greatest tragedies.
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      What Were Town Pounds?
         August 1, 2000
        Many people drive by unusual stone structures like these as they meander through main streets of old towns that dot the New England countryside. These structures tend to spark curiosity and imagination, especially when they are marked in some way with a date or sign indicating historical significance. Some wonder if they are the ruins of an outbuilding or the foundation of an old home. Unless one digs deeply into New England history, however, the purpose and significance of "the Town Pound" can remain a mystery.
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    Things
      A New Barn for an Old House
         April 4, 2006
        When you have restored and updated an old home steeped in local community history, all the while taking pains to maintain the original architectural integrity and charm, adding a significant storage building to the property can present a challenge. The home is located at 33 Pine Street in Danville, and is owned by Joe and Denise Luna, who are responsible for the restoration. Local sources believe the house dates back to the early 1800's, although it is not known who built it. Older Danville residents recall a very large barn, long since demolished, that was originally part of the property. The land where the barn stood has now been subdivided, and is no longer part of the same parcel.
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      DANVILLE & NH'S STATE FLOWER: THE PURPLE LILAC
         January 13, 2000
        Did you know a Danville resident was responsible for the purple lilac becoming New Hampshire's state flower?
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      DANVILLE & THE NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES
         November 28, 2000
        It is not widely known that aside from the Old Meeting House on Route 111A Danville is home to two more structures that have been accepted as sites worthy of listing by the National Register of Historic Places. The National Park Service of the Department of the Interior determines eligibility for this honor after a detailed and rigorous application is considered. Before application can be made to the National Park Service, the Division of Historical Resources of the state where the site is located must first determine if criteria is met for national consideration. If it is decided that at least one of the four criteria necessary for listing is present, then the application process may begin.
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      DANVILLE & THE NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES II
         January 23, 2001
        It is not widely known that aside from the Old Meeting House on Route 111A, Danville is home to two more structures that have been accepted as sites worthy of listing by the National Register of Historic Places. The National Park Service of the Department of the Interior determines eligibility for this honor after a detailed and rigorous application is considered. Before application can be made to the National Park Service, the Division of Historical Resources of the state where the site is located must first determine if criteria is met for national consideration. If it is decided that at least one of the four criteria necessary for listing is present, then the application process may begin.
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      Danville Town Hall - The Next Steps
         February 25, 2003
        On March 11th Danville residents will have the opportunity to help decide what the next steps should be for the second floor of the Town Hall. A warrant article will be on the ballot to see if the town will allocate $1,500 to help pay for a professional preservation architectural study that will offer appropriate potential uses for the now unused second floor.
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      DANVILLE'S LITTLE RED SCHOOLHOUSES
         MARCH 28, 2000
        Among the historic resources that dot Danville's landscape are the two one-room Little Red Schoolhouses on Main Street.
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      DANVILLE'S "PARSONAGE LANDS"
      A COMMUNITY TREASURE SPANNING THE CENTURIES
         May 8, 2001
        The Town of Danville is fortunate to have two very special parcels of land that are a direct link to the lives of the early residents who helped establish this community in 1760.
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      NORTH DANVILLE UNION CHURCH
         July 7, 1998
        On Beach Plain Road in Danville, just off Route 111A, sits the historic Union Church in the center of old North Danville. Not much has changed at the church that was organized by the Union Religious Society in 1850. In such a rural area as North Danville in the mid-eighteen hundreds, no one group had enough support to build their own church. Consequently, the Freewill Baptists, Methodists and Congregationalists formed a "union" to build a place of worship. Original shareholders financed the building at $25 each, and the pews were auctioned off for as much as $6. Back at the time the church was being built, selling pews was a common way for a congregation to raise money. The original pews sit just as they did 150 years ago with the names of the families that first owned them on their backs.
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      THE DANVILLE GRANGE
         November 4, 2003
        Danville Grange #187, or more officially the Order of Patrons of Husbandry, has been a mainstay of Danville for 111 years now. For the first sixty years, give or take a decade or two, it could be said it was the focal point of much of the social life that existed in our small rural town. The annual fall fairs and picnics were anticipated with relish. The square dances, talent shows, whist parties, quilting bees, and such were high on a social calendar that hadn't yet been tainted by radio, television, or even telephones. In the era of clubs and fraternal lodges the Grange was a centerpiece of the culture of Danville.
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      THE DANVILLE HERITAGE COMMISSION
         June 9, 1998
        HERITAGE is defined in Webster's Unabridged Dictionary as "something handed down from one's ancestors or the past, as a characteristic, a culture, tradition, etc."
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      THE HOOK HOUSE ENDURES!
         December 1, 1998
        Pam and Steve Einarson were looking for their first home-- an existing house with some "uniqueness" that they could fix up or one they could build. On the Internet Steve found an ad for the Humprey Hook House on Beach Plain Road in Danville, described as a "diamond in the rough". When they arrived to see the house, Danville's rural setting appealed to them immediately . Pam felt the house had potential and Steve was impressed with the features of the house.
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      The Humphrey Hook House
      WHY SHOULD THIS HOUSE BE SAVED?
         October 27, 1998
        This question was asked by lots of folks in the fall of 1996 after the house and its surrounding acreage was purchased for a development of new homes. Initial plans included demolition of the house but those plans would change. This is a story about how people can work together to preserve the heritage and character that makes a community unique.
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      THE JOHN PAGE DIARY
         May 11, 2004
        The Reverend John Page was the first and only permanent pastor of the new parish of Hawke (Danville) created by royal decree in 1760. He served from 1763, shortly after his ordination from Harvard University, until he died in 1782. He conducted services in the historic Old Meeting House on Route 111A, and lived next door with his family in what is now the Stafford home, then known as "the parsonage." John married Mary Stevens in 1764 and fathered nine children in the 19 years he lived in Hawke (Danville).
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      THE MAPS OF DANVILLE
         June 8, 1999
        As you leave the Danville Town Hall, you might take a minute or two to check out the historical chronology of the town's land owners as depicted by four recently hung maps, two on each side of the front doors. They span the period from 1759 to 1922, and are computer enhanced copies of reproductions of the hand drawn originals. Modern technology allowed the four maps, all of different size, to be scanned and reproduced to a common size so they could be matted and framed with the same dimensions.
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      THE OLDE MEETING HOUSE
         August 4, 1998
        Driving north past the center to town, Danville's Main Street narrows slightly and begins its meandering path through North Danville toward the Fremont town line. A leisurely drive north on Main Street will allow intermittent views into Danville's history. One can see various older homes, original stone walls, the old Town Pound dating back to 1802 on the left, and the Little Red Schoolhouse dating back to 1834 on the right. The town's historical showpiece, however, is found in North Danville, directly across Main Street from old Tuckertown Road.
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      THE SARGENT COOPERAGE
         April 6, 2004
        When traveling east on Beach Plain Road from Route 111A in Danville you may have noticed a small red building just across the street from the old Union Church. It is the Samuel & Peter Sargent Cooperage Shop, and represents a look back in time to a chapter in Danville's industrial history. It is now owned and maintained by the Village Improvement and Red Schoolhouse Historical Society of North Danville, Inc., a small civic group founded in 1893 to improve the appearance of North Danville. However, the tiny shop started life about 1850 just up the hill a ways on the Samuel Sargent homestead (599 Main St.), now known as Elm Farm, and currently listed in The National Register of Historic Places.
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Note: The material available on this website, while believed to be accurate, is provided for informational purposes only. For the most recent official version of any document, please contact the town offices of Danville, New Hampshire, during business hours.

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