Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1940-12-19
MONTGOMERY
III SIDELICHTS
By ELSIE WHITE HA1NEs

By ELSIE WHITE HAINEs
The remark of an acquaintance
that their home on Rock Creek had
been a part Of "Clean Drinking
brought to mind that during the
early immortal days of Maryland
there was in this section, that is
now Montgomery County, only one
Manor - and that was Clean
Drinking.
We do not know the extent of
this manor-but a manor consisted
of at least three thousand acres,
we are told. Later part of this
manor was patented to John Coats
(Oct. LIST, 1699) about TOO acres,
still later, Walter C. Jones erected
mill on this survey = located by
the Jones Mill Road = and we read
in an old 1880 paper that there was
at that time a stone with his cpl
taph, somewhat defaced by time
but still legible:
Here lies the body and bones
Of old Walter C. Jones;
By his not thinking
He lost Clean Drinking
And by his shallow pate
He lost his vast estate.
Our acquaintance had been told
of a stone = now buried = with
an inscription, and said she was
going to try to have it uncovered.
Montgomery County, as you
know was created in 1776 = di-
vided into five districts in 1898
and in 1921 the lines were laid
off anew - we thought you would
be interested in this first descrip-
tion of Cracklin district - which
included Gaithersburg and Olney
districts too, at that time:
Beginning at Mersberger's old
mill on the Patuxent, and running
down the Patuxent to the mouth of
Rawlings River; then running up
said river to the mouth of Reeds
branch, from thence to the pole
bridge near where Cyrus, a black
man, formerly kept a blacksmith
shop; then with small road, leav-
ing the house formerly owned by
Surratt Dickerson, on the right,
until it intersects the road passing
in front of Mrs. Magruder's house,
at the corner of her fence;
Thence with said road, leaving
the house where the late Capt.
Benz. Ricketts, did live on the right,
until it intersects the Bladensburg
road at the lower end of the said
Ricketts, plantation;
Then with the road through the
place where Zadok Ricketts, once
lived, to the head waters of Muddy
Branch; then down said branch to
the Georgetown Road;
Then with the said road to Mid
dlebrook Mills on Seneca; then up
Seneca to the head thereof; then
with straight line by Darnell's
spring to the main road, and then
with said road until it intersects
road leading by Benz. Benton's,
thence with the road TO the begin
ming" Now is that not perfectly
clear? Or it it?
Among the earliest settlers OF
Cracklin district - we have seen
listed: John Banks, BENZ. Walling-
ford, BENZ. Penn, and Higson Belt
- these were followed by the
Griffiths, Darbys, Mackalls, Cath
ers, Neels, Allnutts, Bells, Plum
mers, Popes, Riggs, Warhelds,
Bowmans, Stewards, Crawfords,
and the Waters.
/Higson Belt was a large land
owner in the Laytonsville neigh
borhood, Spring Garden having
been granted him in 1888 = DR..
Richard Waters, a surgeon in
Revolutionary war, came frnm
Prince Georges and purchased
Spring Garden at the close OF the
war, described at that time as a
large estate, on road from Goshen
to Gaithersburg.
We are told by William Waters
who made the inventory of arch
ives for Montgomery County re-
Gently, and who is direct descend