18th-Century Natick

**“To Have and to Hold…Forever”: An Exhibit of 18th-Century Land Documents**
This virtual exhibit showcases 18th-century land deeds and documents from the Natick Historical Society and Morse Institute Library collections. Acquired by the two institutions throughout the twentieth century, the deeds provide insight into eighteenth-century Natick's physical layout and the community’s complex social and political dynamics.

Natick's Eighteenth-Century Church: A New Church and Covenant, 1701-1729

Natick residents founded a new church in 1729.

Natick's Eighteenth-Century Church: A Place of Spiritual and Political Agency, 1729-1745

Indigenous congregants used the church to protect their political, social, and spiritual interests during the eighteenth century.

Natick's Eighteenth-Century Church: The "Meeting House Wars," 1743-1798

The location of Natick’s meeting house sparked an over 50-year-long debate amongst Natick’s diverse residents.

Ferrit Family

Caesar Ferrit was eighteenth-century Afro-Indigenous resident of Natick. He and two of his sons served during the American Revolutionary War.

Jacob Jonah

In 1787, Jacob Jonah of Natick was penniless, homeless, and in debt. Together, with Lennon Buckland and his wife, Jonah was convicted of theft and forced into slavery.

Old Burial Ground - South Natick

The original one-acre plot for the Old Burial Ground in South Natick is located next to the Eliot Church.

The Revolution Comes to South Natick

The men and women of South Natick supported the American Revolution.

Alexander Quapish

Alexander Quapish (1741-1776) was a Wampanoag veteran of the Revolutionary War who lived in Natick.

The Bigelow Mills in South Natick

Deacon William Bigelow's family established a successful complex of mills on the Charles River in South Natick in the 1770s.

The Eliot Church

The current Eliot Church in South Natick is the fifth house of worship to stand on that spot since 1651.

Historic Houses

A list of surviving historic 18th-century houses still standing in Natick today.

John Jones, the Natick Mapmaker

John Jones held many positions in Natick and inspired the character “Squire Jones” in Harriet Beecher Stowe’s novel, Oldtown Folks.

Plains and Hills, Pathways and Roads

Ancient pathways of the Algonquian Indians navigated the plains and hills of Natick, including Pegun Plain, Broad's Hill and Train's Hill. The patterns are still visible today.