and Mary Upton, in 1818, and its history is thus brought within the knowledge of those now living.
West of this Flint Pasture was the Procter fifteen acre lot, the description of which in the deeds and depositions we can now understand. How John Procter became owner of this fifteen acre lot does not appear upon record, but as John Marsh appears, by the depositions of Nathaniel Felton and Zachariah Marsh given above, to have been the owner there originally, we may conjecture that the title came from him by some unrecorded deed or otherwise.
The following deed, dated 5 Nov., 1681, and recorded Book 6, Fol. 48, may throw some light on this question, as it apparently conveys the eight acre lot which, as above mentioned, was conveyed by Anthony Needham to his son-in-law Thomas Gould, in 1705, where John G. Walcott, Jun., now lives.
Joseph Procter of Ipswich conveys to Anthony Needham of Salem "a certain tract of land being the third part of twenty three acres of land (formerly the land of John Herod) lying and being in ye towne of Salem aforesaid, the said twenty three acres of land being bounded on ye northerly side with ye land of ye said Needham, on ye south with ye highway, on ye west with ye land of ye said Anthony Needham, and on ye east with ye land now in ye occupation of John Procter."
Supposing this third part of the twenty-three acres to have been the eight acre lot referred to above, being the only locality that would agree with the description, the land in the "occupation of John Procter" on the east side of the whole "twenty three acres" would be the "Flint Pasture," part of the Downing Farm, which was then, in 1681, in the occupation of John Procter, as tenant. It is therefore quite probable that the "fifteen acre" lot which John Procter owned was the other two thirds part of the "twenty three acres," and that he became possessed of it
in the same way that his brother, Joseph Procter, became possessed of the third part, perhaps in the division of an estate. What the estate was may be ascertained by future investigation.
The first we know positively of the lot in question as being John Procter's is through the record of an action which he brought at the County Court, in 1685, against Steven Fish for nine pounds ten shillings due for rent. Procter was nonsuited. Fish at the same time sued Procter for non delivery of land hired of him by lease March 1st, 1681, (1681-2). The jury found for a delivery of the land according to the lease.
In 1689 John Procter "for my love and parental affection unto my beloved wife Elizabeth Procter and all her children" conveys to certain trustees for their benefit "all my estate for their supply and maintenance and make over and give to them my house and land lying in Salem bounds containing fifteen acres, more or less, bounded with ye land of Anthony Needham northwest and east southerly[D] and south and west with ye common road or highway in part and partly alsoe with land of John Marsh and some land of Thomas Gardner Sen. that comes within the highway." The last words in this description are puzzling and perhaps indicate that the road at the westerly end of the lot ran further to the south than it does to-day.
[D] This probably refers to the way which Needham had to his land over the western end of the lot lying next east of the Procter lot.
The next information is obtained from a deposition by Anthony Needham, Thomas Gould and Isaac Needham, in 1730, taken "in perpetuam rei memoriam" and recorded in the Registry, Book 54, Leaf 246, as follows:—They testify that "they very well knew that Mr. John Procter late of Salem, deceased, possessed in his own right for several years before and untill ninety two[E] a certain tract of land