430 Peter Reynolds’ Indenture

    [September 12 1735]

    Know all men by these presents that I Peter Reynolds of North Kingstown in Kings County in the Narraganset Country within the Colony of Road Island and Providence plantations Husbandman am holden and stand firmly bound unto Benjamin Wadsworth President of Harvard College … in the sum of one hundred and thirty pounds currant money … sealed … this twelvth of September anno Domini 1735 …

    The Condition of this obligation is such that if the above bounden Peter Reynolds shal and doth within a year from this time provide all materialls for erect and and finish a good substantial dwelling house on a farm belonging to Harvard College in North Kingstown aforesaid and of said farm in the most convenient place between the Horse yard run and Chepuxet river, said house being of the following dimensions viz. Twenty four feet wide twenty feet in length and ten feet studd, said Reynolds being allowed to get the timber for the frame of said house and the stone for the cellar chimneys and underpining from said Farm, the said House to be planked on the outside with good oak plank and clapboarded with good Cedar Clapboards, the roof to be boarded and shingled with good Cedar shingles, the inside of said house to be ceiled with good pitch pine boards plained and halved or rabitted, The lower and Chamber floors to be layd with good pitch pine boards wel joynted but not plained, with two suitable outside doors and other inside doors as may be needful or convenient, with a partition crost said lower room so as to make two rooms be low, with two windows in each lower room and two windows in the Chamber with three feet of Glass in each window, which are to be sliding lights, Also a suitable stack of Chimney with two smoaks one in each lower room, with a cellar of a suitable depth in length the width of said house and in width as large as the Chimney will allow of, said Cellar to be wel stoned and said house to be wel underpinned, also to make staires into said Cellar and into said Chamber and shelves in the most convenient places in said house with a good brick oven in said Chimney.

    Now if the said Peter Reynolds shal build finish and perfect said house to the turning of the Key and doe and perform wel and workmanlike the several peices of work abovementioned relating to said house with in the time prefixed then this obligation to be void and of none effect otherwise to stand in full force and vertue.

    Signed sealed and delivered in presence of

    David Collson

    Peter Raynolds

    Rebekah Williams

    [Note on back:] When Mr. Reynolds recieves his money for building the House, he’s to recieve £15 more to keep sheep or goats to subdue Brush on the Farm.

    Narragansett Farm Papers, p. 6. Three dots indicate omission of legal phraseology common to such documents.