Morning journal and courier., 1881-12-10
The senver Ponds.


 To the Editor of the JOURNAL AND COURIER: The first Indian conveyance or transfer ot lands was an agreement entered into between the Quinnipiac and other Indians with The ophilus Eaton, John Davenport and their as- sociates dated November 24th, 1888.
 The next transfer was December 11th ot the same year. The Indians were the party of the first part, and the English Planters, '' so called, were the parties of the second part. The consideration paid the Indians for terri. tory eight miles easterly of the Quinpipiac river, and five miles westerly towards the Hudson river, was Il coats of English truck ing cloth, and 1 coat of English cloth made in English fashion; the Indians reserving certain hunting and fishing rights. They also received at another time 12 more coats of English trucking cloth, 12 hatchets, 12 large spoons, 12 hoes with long handles, 24 knives assorted, cases of French cutlery, including scissors, and 12 porringer kettles.
 It would appear that for the above con- sideration the Indians parted with their Quinnipiac territory on Long Island Sound, measuring eight miles east of that river and four miles west of it, and running northerly towards or into Walingford, an uncertain distance
 Within this territory is the town of New Haven; on purchase, the English planters, ,so- called, laid out what is now the sforiRinal niEe squares," and the various classes of planters were set by themselves, to wit, 'EThe Hartfordshire planters" the "York- shire planters" the Davenport planters. Then such as belonged to the community of MT. Gregson, Mir. French, Mir. Newman, etc. The object of this arrangement was to secure to each class or herd of planters families the benefit of their own social relations, without mixing with others, which clannish and d,exclu- sive social divisions are maintained to this day, and impair, as they did then. unity of ac- tion, purpose and progress.
 There was also set apart section called the tGovernor's Quarter'' and the ''oyster shell fields" and occupied the outlands east of the creek Afterwards the old canaI), and that large corner from Grand street to State street.
 These sections, called quarters" sur rounded New Haven except on the water, and the map shows that the northwest sec ton, then represented by York and Grove streets, and by and between Prospect street and the Yorkshire "querter" to line repre- scented now by Broadway and the Westville road, was left both unnamed and unused, and included the present Beaver Pond'' sec- ton.
 The first division of outlands was the neck and salt meadows out State street way towards Cedar Hill this was in 1640, and the divisions were continued thence to Pros pect street, then, as we have shown, skipped from there to Broadway (omitting the Bea- yer Pond section), then commencing again west of the line of Broadway aud running down through West Haven to the water.
 Finally difficulty arose between what was called tsThe Davenport Planters" and 'sMr. l Tench's Planters, y because the former plant H. kr AAMs- lots, and the latter were not, and this "dis- comfort'' was settled by sequestering out lands lying westerly from Prospect street, to York street, in which were included various COW pastures and the Beaver Pond mead ows'l which then was very different ter ritory than now]. These lands were un- fenced, and were called escoinmons,n y and had been common to all, and were continued as ''commons'' to the Tench planters and their families.
 It is thus seen that the town was divided into nine squares, and there were nine sec- tions or "quarters" of outland, Cbesides the Beaver Pond section, so that each town square had it's outside stqusrter" or section of land for planters uses, and for which they paid stated annual rent for the common expense.''
 1t appears also that there were families or men who were not sproprietors of landn or owners of sshome lots" in the original nine l squares, ana proNlslon Nas 1nsAsS 4OE tAen by common consent or by formal or infor- | nal stdoings'' to the effect that they might use or have the use of land or lands In the { ''conmonsp or Beaver Pond district which | had not been otherwise appropriated.
 The ponds were of no use to anyone the ! lands bordering, as they tlren were, were | wet and cold and so nearly useless that the | planters did not want them. and the s.poor | folks, of that day were allowed to keep | themselves to the use, but could not acquire | jitIe as against the colony or town Tor Sfatel 4 hough peaceable possession for seventeen | years in the case of individual property would.
 The above are rough points from my min lte books and therefore may be subject to Iome irnmateria1 corrections
 B. NoxEs.