Historic fields and mansions of Middlesex . expan-sion, we are told that this house is doomed. It no longeraccommodates itself to modern ideas, and must fall. The re-gret that the Commonwealth ever parted with, even to a noblecharity, the old mansion-house of the provincial governors wasby no means trifling or inconsiderate. That error might nowbe retrieved by the purchase of the house of the first governorof Massachusetts. Every officer, civil or military, that holds acommission by State authority, derives it in a certain sensefrom Matthew Cradock. He made the first move to erect anindependen
Historic fields and mansions of Middlesex . expan-sion, we are told that this house is doomed. It no longeraccommodates itself to modern ideas, and must fall. The re-gret that the Commonwealth ever parted with, even to a noblecharity, the old mansion-house of the provincial governors wasby no means trifling or inconsiderate. That error might nowbe retrieved by the purchase of the house of the first governorof Massachusetts. Every officer, civil or military, that holds acommission by State authority, derives it in a certain sensefrom Matthew Cradock. He made the first move to erect anindependent community on our shores. This house is hismonument. It should be allowed to stand where it has stoodfor near two hundred and forty years. Its loopholes should berestored, and the whole house set in order and furnished withthe memorials of its, own time. A custodian might be placedthere, and the small fee charged for exhibition be used to defraythe expense. At all events, Medford should see to it thisancient structure is preserved to lees headquarters and vicinity. 141 CHAPTER VII. lees headquarters and vicinity. Night closed around the conquerors way,And lightnings showed the distant hill,Where those who lost that dreadful dayStood few and faint, but fearless still. DESCENDING into the valley between Winter and Pros-pect Hills, any search for traces of the works which existedhere in 1775 — 76 would be fruitless; every vestige had disap-peared fifty years ago. The site of the star fort laid down on themap was a little north of Medford Street and east of WalnutStreet. The structure of the ground shows that there was oncea considerable elevation here, which commanded the approachby the low land between Prospect, Winter, and Ploughed Hills. On the little byway now dignified with the name of Syca-more Street stands the old farm-house which was the headquar-ters for a time of General Charles Lee. Its present occupant isOliver Tufts, whose father, John Tufts, resided there i
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