In 1679, when the proposal was made to buy the lands of Seppecan, the court in Plymouth agreed with the purchase, so long as the group could “procure some more substantial men that are prudent sons and of considerable estates”. The court wanted these men to settle with their families in the area. As has been mentioned in previous articles, this group was called the “Proprietors.” Of this group, not all made their homes in Rochester. Some sent their sons to settle on the land, while others sold part or all of their property shares.
In 1694, Benjamin Foster, an original proprietor, sold his entire share to a wealthy and well- educated man, Samuel Prince, of Sandwich. Prince moved with his second wife, the daughter of Governor Hinkley, and his many children to Rochester. In addition, he purchased half of Samuel Lothrop’s proprietary right. He continued to make land purchases and was for several years, Rochester’s largest landowner.
In 1710, he built a large house near a trout stream on the old road from Rochester Center to today’s Marion. He named his home and grounds, Whitehall, after his family’s estate in England. Over time, the house was also known as White House.
Samuel Prince quickly became a prominent and active member of his new community. He did much to promote the general interests of the town, particularly the schools. Prince was on the building committee for the first meetinghouse in 1699. He was a Justice of the Peace, which at the time was an important position in a colonial town. A Justice who received the title of esquire was appointed for a term of 7 years. He could rule on minor claims and offenses as well as administering oaths and performing marriages.
In 1714, Samuel was Rochester’s first representative to the Massachusetts General Court, which was formed in 1692 when England issued a new Provincial Charter, which united Plymouth with Massachusetts. According to records, Prince was paid, “4 shillings a day for his panes.” In 1717, he was empowered to provide the town with a grammar school and a William Griffeth was hired as schoolmaster for a quarter of the year. Often the school session was held at Whitehall.
In 1723, Samuel Prince and most of his family moved to Middleboro and he died there in 1728 at the age of 80. After his death, his Rochester lands along Muddy Brook were contested in court by some of his former neighbors. The Prince family chose to relinquish rights to that land.
For a man of such prominence in his years in Rochester, knowledge of his work and influence have mostly passed out of Rochester history. His large house stood vacant after the family moved away, It is said that during the Revolutionary War, the floorboards were taken up,” to procure materials for making saltpeter for use of the army” and then the house like the memories of Samuel Prince faded away.
By Connie Eshbach