Smith’s Corner

Smith’s Corner is a crossroad junction of the South Range Road coming from the east leading westerly to Warner, Couchtown Road leading south to Webster, Brook Road/Mill Road leading north to Scribner’s Corner.

Location: https://www.google.com/maps/place/Smiths+Corner,+Salisbury,+NH+03303/@43.3506199,-71.8100981,13z/data=!4m5!3m4!1s0x89e21aed8b4695cb:0x4bfa2da9fd6fb44c!8m2!3d43.3517433!4d-71.790357

This crossroad is now located within the flood basin of the Blackwater Dam in Webster in what is commonly referred to as the Flood Control area. This part of town was disassembled in 1941 by the Army Corps of Engineers during the construction of the Blackwater Dam.

The following information on Smith’s Corners and nearby is from John Dearborn’s History of Salisbury 1890, Paul Shaw’s Salisbury Lost 1992 and Walter Theo & Linnea Silver Home town  Heritage 1997:

• abt 1732 Boscawen historians have locate the original Maloon homestead on Dublin Lane right off the old road later knowx a s Province Road, Boscawen Range Road #1 and it may have been their earliest homestead in the area according to historian Walter Theo Silver.
• 1734 Sinkler Bean is residing in Boscawen
• By 1748 the Maloons were settling just up the road in the meadow along Mill Brook in Salisbury between what would become the South & Center rangeways on Mill brook (closer to South Rangeway) buildings lost. “In Stevenstown the Maloons settled down the brook in the flat land near wear it flows into the Blackwater River. Quite possibly the family selected that land because it hadn’t needed to be cleared. A common pattern in Perrystown and many other before the first settlers had arrived was that beavers had been trapped out of existence beaver meadows. After beaver dams had been breached it took comparatively little effort to convert the drained beaver meadows into pastures, hayfields and cropland.”-Jack Noon manuscript “The Path to Ebenezer Webster’s Mill. (Note -This was actually upstream from their first dwelling and Stevenstown and Perrystown are early names for  Salisbury and Sutton)
• 1754 Maloon family members are kidnapped.
• Abt 1760-1762 While Maloons are kidnapped Edward Scribner (Scribner’s Corner) settles just north of the Maloon homestead on the Center Rangeway
• 1763 North Rangway Surveyed
• 1762 or 1766 Sinkler Bean is residing in the Smith’s Corner area on the South Range Road just a few rods sw of  McAlister’s house later in time. Referred to as second settler west of the Blackwater in Stevenstown (Salisbury) , however Ed Scribner arrived about the same time.
• 1764-1768 Ebenezer Webster establishes his gristmill on Punch Brook in the more eastern part of what was then Salisbury. Between 1770-1790 settlers in  Sutton would travel to Salisbury to have grain milled at Ebenezer Webster’s  Mill (near current “Birthplace” location) likely along the Center rangeway into Scribner’s Corners or via the South Rangeway. Perrystown (Sutton) connected to Salisbury via the Gore Road to Center Rangeway, going westerly.
• 1768 Center Rangeway surveyed by William Calef
• After abt 1770 Phineas Bean son of Sinkler, lived and possibly owned a tavern just west of McAlisters,  South Rangeway between Little Hill Rd and  Smith’s Corner, opposite,  building lost
• 1776 First Bridge over the Backwater River constructed by Nathaniel Maloon & Sinkler,  South Rangeway
• Abt 1776 Moses Sawyer settles at Homestead east of Smith’s Corners, South Rangeway
• 1777 Second Bridge over the Backwater Rover constructed by Iddo Scribner, Center rangeway,
• 1777 Daniel Stevens east of Smith’s Corner, South Rangeway building lost
• Abt 1780 Iddo Scribner settles northside Center road at Scribner”s Corner Center rangeway, Center Rangeway, House burned in 1968
• Abt 1782-/1784 The second early Salisbury School House built by Benaiah Bean. NW corner of Smith’s Corner,South Rangeway, building lost
• Abt 1784 John Smith erects large house and barn at the northeast corner of Smith’s Corners.  He purchased land in this area in 1755. He also was a veteran of Bunker Hill, building lost/disassembled
• Aft 1790 Bean/Smith’s Corner Cemetery Founded
• 1807 Stevens/Sawyer Cemetery South Range road
• Abt 1820 Benjamin Pettengill House,  east side Mill Rd, cross rangeway South & Center Rangeways,  building lost 1930’s
• 1834 Union Meeting House is built corner South Rangeway & Couchtown Rd.
• Bef 1835 McAllister family settles just off Smith’s Corner, operate Blackwater Post office South Rangeway, building lost/disassembled
• Mid 1800’s Phoebe Moody Pettengill House on Maloon lot west of School,  South Rangeway, building lost/disassembled
• Aft abt 1860- Daniel Scribner House sw of Smith’s Corner, South Rangeway, building lost/disassembled
• 1938 Center road Bridge access to Heights washed away, Center Rangeway
• 1941 Union Meeting House disassembled and rebuilt at Eastern States exposition Storrowtown.

 

 

 

Few images remain of Smith’s Corners but the hunt is always on for old family photo albums that may give us additional glimpses into the past. If you have any data or photos to contribute please contact online@salisburyhistoricalsociety.org

McAllister House, built bef 1835, deconstructed 1941

“This house was in the McAllister family for several generations, from before the 1858 tax map until it was sold to the US Government in 1941 for the creation of the basin for the Blackwater Flood control dam”…

“This house served twice as a post office: as the Smith’s Corner Post Office from July 1, 1879 to 1880 with a McAllister, first name not given, as postmaster; and as The Blackwater Post Office from Feb. 2, 1899 to October 31, 1901, with Rhoda McAllister as postmaster. The later was the grandmother of Dorothy Bartlett, the present Salisbury postmaster” dated 1995, by Paul S.Shaw from his book Salisbury Lost.

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Bean Hill/Smith’s Corner Graveyard

Location: The graveyard now commonly referred to as Smith’s Corner Cemetery was actually the Bean or Bean Hill Graveyard though it was not on Bean Hill nor at Smith’s Corner but close to both. It did serve the communities on Bean Hill and the area around Smith’s Corner. The land was donated by Mr. Sinkler Bean. Coming from the east on the Warner Road it is slightly before the junction of  Little Hill and is on the right north side of the road and large fine rocks are part of the cemetery front wall, as it was when the above photo was taken.  Link to Bean, Smith’s Corner Graveyard

The Meloons/Maloons

The Meloons were some of the earliest settlers in what is now Salisbury. In The History of Salisbury by John J. Dearborn 1890, beginning on page 239, there is an account of their trials and tribulations with the native population starting May 11, 1754.

According to John Dearborn regarding the Maloon burial site in Bean/Smith’s Corner graveyard:
“The Maloons are buried at the right hand, just as one enters the gate from the east. They are buried near the eastern wall. No stone marks the resting place of this, the second family in town”.

In 1941, fifty years after the book was published bodies were exhumed by the US Army Corps of Engineers. The old graveyard with tombstones was relocated just north of Maplewood Cemetery rte 4 Salisbury NH, in the northern most section.

By the time of the relocation the earliest Maloon had been deceased for close to 175 years. Every effort was made to remove all remains by the Army Corps of Engineers however after all this time it is unclear if this was entirely possible.

A descendant of an ancestor who assisted in the relocations feels confident all were moved but there remains some question if perhaps the dust of the early Maloons rest there still. They were pioneers with humble burials without markers. Oddly, there is a section of the new graveyard that has no obvious tombstones just rock type markers, perhaps. This appears to be an empty section though this graveyard is said to be full.

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The Union Meeting House

1834-1929

The Union Meeting House was removed prior to the beginning of the disassembly of Smith’s Corners when in 1941 private holdings of land and buildings in the area were sod to the Federal Government for the Blackwater Flood Control Project.  According to Paul S. Shaw it was purchased by Mrs. Storrow in 1929 to be moved to Storrowton at Eastern States Exposition.

There is a high water marker in bronze on the building dated 1936. There was serious flooding in New England in 1936. The Connecticut River in Springfield inundated the entire Exposition area. So it is clear the building had been re erected prior to that time.

For more information with images> Union Meeting House

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The Smith’s Corner School

The image of Smith’s Corner School appears to be taken from a high point from the opposite side of the crossroad. It was possibly taken from the steeple of the Union Meeting House which would date the photo prior to 1929 when the Meeting House was disassembled. The school closed in 1930.

The background portion of the image was contrast enhanced to determine what may be structures on Sawyers Hill, the spur of Mt. Kearsarge.  There was a settlement there called the Watson/Quimby District named after the families who settled there. A schoolhouse and 2 graveyards were also located in that part of our town. At one time the land was cleared for Merino sheep which may be when this summer photo was taken as the visibility is good. It is also possible this area in the photo shows the structures on Kearsarge that were accessible from the Center Range Road (Lovering Hill Road/ Buckhorn Rd, westerly out of Scribner’s Corner).  More information is needed on the actual orientation of the school building to make the determination. Any information is appreciated.

School days Oral Histories>

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Smith’s Corner School images> Images: Smith’s Corner School

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Artillery Practice 1919, 1922-1935

The best description of these events can be found in the book by Larry Sullivan entitled “Mt. Kearsarge History, Stories, Legends and Folktales published by the Warner Historical Society. The book is filled with data and illustrations and is available for loan at the Salisbury Free Library.

The area of Smiths Corners is a flat pastureland with a commanding view of the eastward facing slopes of Mt Kearsarge, notably Sawyer Mt. hence making it a perfect spot for artillery practice.

In 1922 the sparse population of Salisbury was under 390 town wide

Mill Brook

In June 9 & 10 1915, 150 men of the NH Field Artillery of the NH National Guard arrived and camped near Tucker Pond and with them horse drawn artillery arrived. For these 2 days the the Artillery practiced incessant firing into Mt Kearsarge which at the time was largely pastureland.

Again in 1922 the 172nd Field Artillery and the 197th coast artillery arrived in Warner and moved into an encampment near the Smiths Corners area.  They used forty army trucks and then 13 caterpillar tractors to bring soldiers, supplies and WW1 style Howitzer artillery guns.

From 1925-1937 with the exception of 1935 there was an annual artillery practice on the slopes of Mt Kearsarge by the 172nd Field Artillery of the National Guard

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