South Windham: Indian Trails and Settlements

Jon Carpenter provided me with this cool Indian trail map of New Hampshire. It clearly shows the major Pawtucket trail which ran through Windham. Its course ran past Big Island Pond from the north Windham line near today’s Route 28 then past the head of Cobbett’s Pond near Indian Rock; then continuing  down between Cobbett’s Pond and Canobie Lake nearly following the path of Range Road. It continued its course north-south on the eastern side of Golden Brook, crossing the Pelham line.  This trail continued into Massachusetts to the falls at Lowell, where Chief Passaconaway held court in the summer months. It seems probable that this was the trail that the Greggs were following when the young boy John Gregg was slaughtered by Indians. Not only did this well used trail pass through Windham, there were also settlements here where the Indians burned the forests in order to plant the three sisters; corn squash and beans. This trail helps to explain the large numbers of Indian artifacts found in town including a 3,000 year old plow near Rock Pond.