Holyoke High School - Annual Yearbook (Holyoke, MA)

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were to follow. These men erected a crude structure on the west side of the Connecticut River in a meadow which, because of their action there, was subsequently called Nhouse meadow. However, when Pynchon came with his family to settle, the site was aban- doned for another on the opposite side of the river. One reason for the change was that the west bank of the river, and particularly the meadow, was subject to overflow of the river. The reason given by Pynchon to Governor Winthrop for the abandonment of the site was the following: I am now preparing to goe to the bay and have settled upon a planta- tion at Agawamg and cannot fhere the letter is tornb . . . for the best ground at Agawam is so incombred with Indians what I shall loose half the benefit yearly, and am compel- led to plant on the opposite side to avoid trespassing thereon. Agawam .was the name given the west bank of the river. Pynchon and his family, and other settlers from Roxbury and their families, located themselves on the east bank of the river at the site of present-day Springfield. On July, 1636, two of the ancient Indians of Agaam, or Agawam, for themselves and other Indians who claimed ownership of the lands, deeded a large tract of land on both sides of the river to William Pynchon, Henry Smith, and .Iehu Burr, and their associates. The land included most of the city of Spring- field. The deed stated: It is agreed between the Com- mucke and the Matauchan Ancient Indians of Agaam for and in the name of all other Indians . . . to and with William Pynchon, Henry Smith, and .Iehu Burr, their heirs and associates, to trucke and sell that ground and meadows or lands on the East side of the Quinnecticut River called Usquaiok fthe end of the landD and Nayasset Cwhere there is a corner reaching about four or five miles in length from the north end of Massakauke, the great meadow, up to the Chickuppe Riverb. For this deed Pynchon and his associates paid a consideration which was satisfactory to the Indians.

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Settlement of Area In the England of the early 1600's religious toleration was scarce. Many peoples had to emigrate from England to America to establish communities free of religious struggle. In 1620 such people formed a company for the uplant- ing, ruling, ordering and governing of New England in America. They chose John Win- throp as governor. Soon, William Pynchon, prompted by the desire for wealth and religious freedom, joined the group. It was not until 1629, however, that the company received a charter by royal patent. The company, by this time called the Massa- chusetts Bay Company, was to found a civil colony for the development of land. It was a Puritan group. Yet it was not until the Cam- bridge Agreement was signed on August 26, 1629, that the group could actually emigrate to New England. This agreement provided for certain English gentlemen and their families to emigrate to New England, and carried with it full powers of government which could le- gally be transferred across the sea. The group was ready to set sail. William Pynchon was appointed a magistrate and assistant of the Massachusetts Bay Colony and accompanied Governor Winthrop in his passage to America. Governor Winthrop's ship arrived in June. 1630, at Salem. William Pynchon settled in Roxbury. The settlers remained peacefully in the Eastern part of the state, chiefly concerned with the support of family and church and with the building of towns and cities. They were not very interested in developing the western area for two reasons: it was their policy not to open land to promiscuous settlement, and although the local Indians had not bothered them, they were still not certain they could trust all the surrounding tribes. The visit of an Indian sachem fchiefb to Governor Winthrop in 1633 encouraged the settlement of the district which is presently Springfield. The desire for wealth through fur trading tempted Pynchon to move westward. In 1635 he received the consent of the General Court of the Massachusetts Bay Colony to re- move to the area of the Connecticut River, a river which had only been known to the English since 1631. He dispatched John Cable and John Woodstock to the Connecticut Valley to build a house and to prepare for settlers who

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Although the settlers now owned both sides of the river, they remained at the new settle- ment on the east bank. The fact that the west bank was victim to heavy spring floods dis- couraged its settlement. Also the Agaams had one of the area's largest Indian camps on the west side. The settlers, still attempting to es- tablish themselves, could not afford any strained relations with them. In 1637 the Pequot War was fought throughout the set- tlements of New England. It was started by Indians who feared the increasing settlement of the whites. The unmistakable menace of the Pequots forced Pynchon to cooperate against them. Safety required that the settlers live near each other, and prevented locating on the'west bank of the river. Nonetheless, the neighboring Indians taught the English many of their customs and were instrumental in the rapid settlement of the area. It was difficult to develop individual farmsteads in outlying districts because many tribes of Indians overran the area, and the set- flers had to contend with unfriendly Indians as well as the neighboring, friendly Indians. Through peaceful bargaining the settlers and the Indians developed close relations. The Indians sold beaver and other furs to Pynchon and in return purchased from him such goods as Pynchon kept in store to suit their needs: '4He, Pynchon, had been so prudent as to ac- quire, from sources unknown, bushels of loose wampum shells Cfrom which beads are madelf' At the time Pynchon had the exclu- sive privilege of trading with the Indians. His fur trade represented the only commercial in- tercourse between Springfield, Boston, and London. A few years after Springfield was settled, two scouting parties were dispatched to explore the region to the north. Elizur Holyoke, one of the early settlers of Springfield and Pyn- chon's son-in-law, commanded one party along the east bank of the Connecticut River while Rowland Thomas led the party along the west bank. ,Eventually both parties ar- rived at a place later known as Rock Ferry where they were able to converse across the river. The explorers christened the mountains on the east side of the river 'LHolyoke and those on the west Thomas.,, In 1650 the boundaries of Springfield em- braced nearly all the territory lying within the towns of Springfield, West Springfield, Wil- 9