Excerpt from An Historical Sketch of Charlestown, in the County of Middlesex, and Commonwealth of Massachusetts: Read to an Assembly of Citizens at the Opening of Washington Hall, Nov; 16, 1813 There are periods in society, as well as in the life of an individual, when it is peculiarly proper, by a review of past occurrences, to trace the progress of improvement, and excite such feelings, as may lead to future usefulness. On this occasion, when we are convened in such auspicious circumstances, and may rationally estimate the advantages of a laudable exertion for ourselves and our posterity, I deem it appropriate to attempt a general sketch of our municipal history, and offer such observations as comport with the design of our present meeting. Among the intrepid advocates of civil and religious freedom, who encountered the dangers of the ocean, and the greater danger of the wilderness, were nine or ten persons, who, in the summer of 1628, travelled by land from Naumkeak, now called Salem, and, under the authority of governour Endicot, constituted this placet an English settlement. They here found an "English thatched house pallisadoed," and occupied by Thomas Walford, a smith by trade, of whom no particular account is preserved. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.