[From the unpublished manuscripts of
Caleb Swan.]
Old Mr. Isaac Greenleaf of Medford whose house was where Mr Magoun now lives [1856] is said to have taken a peck of Tom-Cod about 1800—that were frozen stiff and hard, and put them in an upper loft, to eat them as they were wanted.
After a week or two a general thaw came, and on going to get some of the fish for dinner, they were flapping and moving on the floor at a great rate.
This account was common tradition in Medford and generally believed.
Just after the history was published,
Mr. Swan inserted in his copy the following item he had made note of fourteen years before:—
Mr Joseph Swan of
Medford (now here) says that
Mr. Russell of
Medford took this month, from the
Creek between the upper shipyard and Wears Bridge 107,000 alewives at one haul of the net.
As the upper ship-yard of that time was located near the site of the present Winthrop bridge, and as
Mr. Swan always termed a tributary stream as far as the tide raised it a creek, the one he referred to was, doubtless, the Menotomy river.
This is the largest tributary of the
Mystic, has but a slight descent, and is very serpentine in course.
It has for a half century been commonly known as
Alewife brook.
It is highly probable that its present prosaic and diminutive name superceded the former more historic and sonorous one because of the big haul of alewives made by this
Medford fisherman.
It would seem that with the improvements now being made there, it would be well to restore to it its ancient and rightful name.
