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Title: McMurphy, John to Lt. Gov. John Wentworh, 1730
ID6660
CollectionIrish Immigrants in the Land of Canaan. Letters and memoirs from colonial and revolutionary America (1675-1815) [K.A. Miller et al.]
Filecaanan/72
Year1730
SenderMcMurphy, John
Sender Gendermale
Sender Occupationtown clerk
Sender Religionunknown
OriginNew Hampshire, USA
DestinationPortsmouth, New Hampshire, USA
RecipientLt. Gov. John Wentworh
Recipient Gendermale
Relationshipnot acquainted
Source
Archive
Doc. No.
Date
Partial Date
Doc. Type
Logunknown
Word Count568
Genrepetition
Note
TranscriptJohn McMurphy, Town Clerk, and “the Rest of ye Proprietors of Londonderry,” New Hampshire, to Lieutenant Governor John Wentworth, Portsmouth, New Hampshire, 17 March 1730

Honble Sr
You having been So kinde as to Prefere the Petition which Sundry the Inhabitants of this Town in behalf of the Rest Sent you in order to be Laid before His Majes ty and Are Still so good as to offer us your Friendship and Assistance to help us out of the Difficulty we now are Under with respect to the Line between the Town of Haverhill & this Town of Londonderry— And that we make your Honr Sensable of the Hardships & Difficultys we have been in and Still Labour under we beg leave to make you this short Narrative At our first Arrivall in New Engld altho we came in Severall Vessells & Landed in Various parte’s of this Country yet as soon as we had surmounted the difficulties of Our passages which were many & great we Assembled ourselves & petitioned the Govr & Councill of New Hampr for a Tract of Land Lying to the North West of Haverhill which Town of Haverill is govern’d by the Massachusetts Governmt and after the consideration of Govr Shute then Govr of Both New Hampr and the Massachusetts he & the Councill there granted us a Township of Ten Miles Square at the afores Place upon which we run out our Town Bounds & Laid out our first Divisions & with great Expense and Danger being in the Time of the Indian war we cleared great parte of our sd first divition & had Enjoyed the Same for Seven years & Laid out all our substance by building & Improving thereon before Haverhill Town clamed the Same Yet soit is that the Inhabitants of s d Haverhill made great Inroads upon us & Dayly are carrying our people from their Houses & Labour, Cross the river Marrimack to Courtes farr distant in that Gov t & Imprison Judge & Load them with Excessive Charges which besides the Loss of Improvement hath Cost many hundred Pounds, & are dayly perpetrating the Same things We could bear the many scandalous & unjust reflections which they cast upon us by saying we are romans & not good Subjects to his present Majesty being well assured your Hon r well knows to the Contrary haveing many of us Resolutely oppossed both while in our own Country Wittness the Trubles in Ireland at the Comeing in of King William of Blessed memory, our Present Minister & Severall of our People being at the Seige of Derry & had no small shear in that Glorious Defence of Our religion & Country now Sr all that we ask yr Assistance in is that you would Use your Intrest Some how or other to obtain Peace for us that once at Length we may Enjoy the only thing we have Sought Since we came here which we Imagine can be don No Other way than by geting the Line Settled between the two Governmts of the Massachusetts and New Hampr
Dated at Londonderry March ye 17th 1729/30
James McKeen James Reid David Morison William Cochran James Leslie
Matthew Reed John Richay John Macmurphy Clerk
John Barnat John Archbald James Nesmith John Gregg James Moor
Abraham Holms
In the name of the Rest of ye Propriertors of Londonderry