Sandy’s Stories

“No community within the limits of New Hampshire has exerted a wider or happier influence in shaping the destinies and advancing the honor of the State, than Londonderry.” This quote was taken from one of New Hampshire’s town histories – not the History of Londonderry by Reverend Edward Parker, but rather, the History of New Boston by Elliott Cogswell, written in 1864. New Boston, you see, like many other inland towns in the state, was settled by men from Londonderry. Some of these names – Smith, Cochran, McNeil, McAlister, Wilson, Boyce – might sound familiar to history buffs in both towns. After the settlement of the new town, the two communities maintained a close relationship with each other. New Boston’s installing sermon was preached by Londonderry’s Reverend David MacGregor. Londonderry farmers often brought their cattle to New Boston to partake of that town’s lush and nutritious grasslands, while citizens of New Boston sent their children to Londonderry schools. Another quote from New Boston’s history reads, “Of New Boston it may be said, more emphatically than of any other town, she was the child of Londonderry.”

Original settlement isn’t the only connection between the two places. General John Stark, claimed by Londonderry as a native son (having been born here in 1728), played a major role in New Boston’s history. As you may know, Stark was famous for winning the Battle of Bennington during the Revolutionary War. At that battle, he captured two brass cannons, one of which he named after his wife, Molly. Some say the New Boston Militia was gifted this cannon as a reward for its part in this successful battle. Others say they simply took it home. In any event, the cannon is one of New Boston’s most prized possessions. It’s taken out and fired every year during the town’s Fourth of July Celebration, New Boston’s answer to Old Home Day. 

New Boston’s possession of the cannon has been fraught with problems over the years. It seems that other municipalities felt that the town didn’t deserve this special prize. Dunbarton, for example, felt that they should have it because Molly Stark was born there. Manchester felt that they should have it because General Stark spent part of his adulthood there. Goffstown felt that they should have it because…….. well, just because they wanted it. Some of these outsiders actually attempted to steal the cannon, and the New Boston citizens had to take measures to prevent this. One such measure was to hide the cannon at the bottom of a mill pond. (Another version of this story says it was hidden at the bottom of the Piscataquog River, which runs through the town.) Things got so bad that the New Boston Militia, which had been disbanded, was re-formed in 1938 for the sole purpose of protecting the cannon. 

Well, at some point, the town’s citizens wanted to display and use their precious possession, so the cannon was liberated from its watery home. However, to deter thievery, it’s always been kept separate from its wheeled base. By separate, I mean that the cannon is stored in one place (the Historical Society Museum), while the base is stored elsewhere. (It’s a secret.) I happen to have personal experience with “Old Molly.” As a resident of New Boston in 2004, I was working on the town’s Images of America book. The committee wanted to get a close-up picture of the engraving on the cannon. To this end, we acquired a photographer and brought him to the museum to take the photos. He informed us that he could get a much better view of the engraving if the cannon, which was lying on a wooden bed made especially for it, was turned just slightly toward him. Sounded easy enough. There were three of us working at the museum that day so we attempted to twist the cannon within its bed to better reveal the engraving. HA! We couldn’t budge it. Shortly after, a strapping young man entered the museum on business of his own, so we solicited his help, but again, no dice. The young man knew some folks at the Fire Department, so he called them for assistance. Two hefty firefighters came along, and all of the men (we women gave up and stayed out of the way) tried to move the cannon. It moved not a hair! At that point, the firemen decided to fetch the hoist that’s used on the Fourth of July to place the cannon on its base for firing at the celebration. Success! With the hoist, they were able to turn the cannon the tiny fraction of an inch that the photographer needed to do his job. So let this tale be a warning to anyone who might still be thinking of making off with the Molly Stark cannon – it ain’t happening! Incidentally, I never saw any evidence that Londonderry felt entitled to the cannon, but why not? Stark was our native son!