l in the passenger-packet, the Governor Sullivan must have been an enjoyable experience.
Protected by iron rules from the danger of collision, undaunted by squalls of wind, realizing that should the craft be capsized he had nothing to do but walk ashore, the traveller speeding along at the leisurely rate of four miles per hour had ample time for observation and reflection.
Seated, in summer under a spacious awning, he traversed the valley of the Mystic skirting the picturesque shores of Mystic pond.
Instead of a blurred landscape, vanishing, ghostlike, ere its features could be fairly distinguished, soft bits of characteristic New England scenery, clear cut as cameos, lingered caressingly on his vision—green meadows, fields riotous with blossomed clover, fragrant orchards and quaint old farmhouses, with a background of low hills wooded to their summits.
Passing under bridges, over rivers, between high embankments and through deep cuttings, floated up-hill by a series of locks, he
ned an act of the General Court authorizing it to take the upper Mystic pond as a water supply, and when that city was annexed to the city offficials presented an alternate plan to discharge into the lower Mystic pond.
This new plan was also opposed by the Medford committee, for ng the purity and remedying the pollution of water supplied from Mystic Pond, so called, by virtue of Acts of 1861 and acts additional and of Winchester into the town of Medford and emptying into the lower Mystic pond at some convenient point near the upper end thereof said city isether natural or artificial, flowing directly or indirectly into Mystic Pond or its headwaters, or into any stream or pond connecting with or discharging into said Mystic Pond, which contains any source of pollution.
The other sections of the act are of no interest to this paperolitan system of sewerage.
After the Metropolitan Water Board was established, Mystic pond was abandoned as a water supply. John H. Hooper.
runs into the pond from the old Fowle and grain mills, north to the point just above the upper pond where the Middlesex canal formerly crossed to the long point (now a part of the Metropolitan park reservation) which reaches out between the upper pond and what is now known as Bacon's.
The squa sachem described that boundary as the south end of Mr. Nowell's land.
A witness, in the suit to be mentioned, described the [southern] as the little brook that runneth from Capt. Cook's mill to Mystic pond.
Col. George Cooke had early built a mill a little above the present site of the old Fowle grain mill and was a man of repute.
He returned to England on the breaking out of the Civil War, was made a colonel under Cromwell and was killed in Ireland in 1652.
Administration of his estate in this country was granted to Henry Dunster, first president of Harvard, and Colonel Cooke's older brother Joseph in 1653.
Some three hundred feet or so above the present dam just where a street [Wate
westward to near Fairfield street. Something of East Arlington and West Somerville is shown beyond the Mystic—whatever came within the eye of the camera.
Mr. Brooks forbore taking the other beautiful view which would have included his own home on Grove street, now utterly gone.
The Brooks and Hall school houses, both now gone, Trinity's first church, the new railway station, then nearly complete, and including the old; a view on High street, one of Boston avenue and another of the lower Mystic pond and dam complete this collection.
How large an edition of this work of Mr. Brooks, certainly the finest comprehensive view of Medford in detail ever published, was issued we cannot say, nor yet by what means or at whose expense.
It may have been privately for his own distribution.
The writer has one of those inscribed West Medford, given him some twelve years ago by one of Mr. Brooks' acquaintances, but was unaware of the existence of the Medford set until the recent acquisition of b
asy of light and shadow over the sleeping town.
Down from the hills to the north, almost to the river bottom, spread the dark forest, the Charlestown wood lots of earlier years, with Pine hill rising in their midst.
Along the Mystic ran the way to the Weirs.
From the cross roads near Cradock's bridge ran the road to Charlestown, and from the same point, later the market place, led the road to Salem.
Between the two lay the river road.
From the road to the Weirs, at some distance from Mystic pond, ran the road around the woods.
Opposite Rock hill the Woburn road branched off to the towns on the north, reached also by the Stoneham road, leading from the Salem highway, up past the great brickyards, where it was lost in the darkness of the wood lots, disturbed only by the lonely howl of a skulking wolf.
Along these highways were gathered most of the houses, but little over a hundred in number, where dwelt less than a thousand townspeople.
Up the road to Menotomy the moonlight fell
arm, which lay, it is believed, at the northern end of the pond near the Winchester of today.
The first Brooks estate, then, was situated on the east side of Mystic pond and east and north of the Mystic river.
The mill referred to stood a few rods below the later bridge at the weirs.
About one hundred acres lay on the south sistate appears to have comprised all the land on the east side of Grove street, and the northern part of that on the west side between Grove street and the upper Mystic pond, as well as the eastern part of the property lying south of High street, including the house which he occupied.
Caleb Brooks died in Medford in 1696.
His rend on the east side of Grove street, from Symmes corner as far south as Slow pond, now Brooks pond, and the land west of this between Grove street and the upper Mystic pond.
On the death of Ebenezer in 1743, his four sons inherited his real estate.
They and their descendants held the property until about the time of the Revolutio
