Hayward’s United States Gazetteer (1853) page 322

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322    COUNTIES, CITIES, TOWNS, VILLAGES, &c.,

Colonel Moultrie. The garrison lost only 10
men in the conflict, and had but 22 wounded:
while the British suffered a loss of nearly 200 in
killed and wounded. This was on the 28th of
June, 1776. On the 17th of May, 1780, the
British having again attacked the city by sea
and land, it was surrendered into their hands,
but was evacuated by them in 1782.

Charleston, Va., c. h. Jefferson co. 168 miles
N. from Richmond.

Charleston, Vt., Orleans co. The principal
stream in this town is Clyde River. There are
some falls of consequence on this stream, particu-
larly the Great Falls, where the descent is more
than 100 feet in 40 rods, but its current is gener-
ally slow. The alluvial flats along this stream
are extensive, but generally too low and wet for
cultivation. In the S. E. part of the township
are 1000 acres of bog meadow, in a body, upon
this river. There are several considerable ponds.
Echo Pond, the most important, is in the north-
ern part, and was named by General J. Whitelaw,
on account of the succession of echoes which are
usually heard when any sound is produced in its
vicinity. It is a mile and a half long, and half a
mile wide. The other pond of most consequence
is called Pension Pond. These ponds abound in
fish. There are 2 small villages situated upon
Clyde River, about 6 miles apart, designated
as East Charleston and West Charleston. The
soil is a rich loam, and produces good crops. 54
miles N. E. from Montpelier.

Charlestown, la., c. h. Clarke co. 100 miles S.
S. E. from Indianapolis.

Charlestown. City and seaport of Massachu-
setts; situated on the N. side of Charles Riv-
er, at its mouth, opposite Boston. It is built on
a peninsula, extending about one mile in a south-
easterly direction, between the estuary formed by
the mouth of the Mystic River on the N. E.,
and Charles River and the harbor of Boston
on the S. and S. E. It is connected with
Somerville by a narrow neck of land, and with
Boston, Chelsea, and Malden by bridges. The
settlement of Charlestown was earlier by two
years than that of Boston. In the year 1628, as
the early history informs us, “ Six or seven
persons, with the consent of Governor Endicott,
travelled from Naumkeag (Salem) through the
woods westward, and came to a neck of land be-
tween Mystic and Charles Rivers, called Mishaw-
um. It was full of Indians; and with the uncon-
strained consent of their chief, they settled there."
The way for such a favorable reception had been
prepared before them by the usefulness to the In-
dians of one white person, Thomas Walford, a
blacksmith, who had built a cottage on the pen-
insula. Governor Winthrop, and the company
who came into the colony with him, in 1630, first
settled at Charlestown, but soon after removed
over the river to the peninsula of Boston. The
place was named in honor of Charles I., the reign-
ing sovereign of England at that time. The nat-
ural surface of the peninsula of Charlestown is
uneven, rising on the E. into the two hills called
Bunker Hill and Breed's Hill; and the summits
and slopes of these elevations have afforded beau-
tiful sites for the laying out of portions of the city.
There is one great thoroughfare running from
Market Square, near the point where the bridges
come over from Boston, over the whole length of
the peninsula to the neck ; and from this on either
side streets are laid out at various angles leading
through different sections of the city. Streets also
diverge from Market Square on either side of the
main street. The streets are generally wide and
airy, and many of them are pleasantly shaded
with trees of a recent growth. It is neatly built,
and contains many elegant public and private
edifices. Many of the merchants and other busi-
ness men of Boston reside here. The population
in
1850, was 17,216.

Charlestown is memorable for its sacrifices in
the cause of American independence. Bunker
Hill is celebrated as the spot where the first reg-
ular battle was fought, on the 17th of June, 1775,
between the provincial and the British troops, in
the war of the revolution. In this battle, the
British had 1054 men slain, among whom was a
large number of commissioned officers. The
Americans, whose whole force did not exceed 1500
men, had 145 killed and 304 wounded. Among
the former was
Major Generae Warren, at
that time president of the Colonial Congress; who,
in the true spirit of heroic patriotism which had
long animated his course, bravely volunteered to
serve his country in this eminent post of danger.
Early in the action, Charlestown was set on fire
by the enemy, and a general conflagration ensued.
On the site of the battle, and near the spot where
Warren fell, a grand commemorative monument
has been erected; which is an obelisk of hewn
granite, 30 feet square at the base, 15 feet square
at the top, and 221 feet in height. Its founda-
tions, which are 62 feet above the level of the
sea, are laid 12 ‘feet under ground, and 50 feet
square. The corner stone was laid by the venera-
ble Marquis de Lafayette, on the 17 th of June,
1825, when an address was delivered by Hon.
Daniel Webster. The work was completed July
23,1842, and on the 17th of June, 1843, its com-
pletion and the anniversary of the battle was
commemorated in a splendid manner. An ad-
dress was delivered, on the ground, as before, by
Hon. Daniel Webster, in presence of the Presi-
dent of the United States, several of the heads of
department, and an immense concourse of citi-
zens. The monument is ascended within by a
circular flight of 294 steps, to the chamber imme-
diately beneath the apex, from the windows of
which a view is had almost equal to that from the
State House in Boston. In this chamber are seen
two brass cannon, named
Hancock and Adams,
which were used in the battle; on each of which
is the following inscription: —

“ SACRED TO LIBERTY.

“ This is one of the four cannons, which con-
stituted the whole train of field artillery possessed
by the British colonies of Nortli America, at
the commencement of the war, on the 19th of
April, 1775. This cannon and its fellow, belong-
ing to a number of citizens of Boston, were used
in many engagements during the war. The other
two, the property of the government of Massa-
chusetts, were taken by the enemy. — By order of
the United States, in Congress assembled. May
19, 1788."

The monument stands in the centre of a square
on Bunker Hill, containing nearly six acres, and
enclosed by a massive iron fence. The natural
surface of the ground is in part preserved, upon
which some lineaments of the old breastwork are
still discernible — a soil which will be ever dear
to the bosom of the patriot, and to the friends of
liberty throughout the world.




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