Also referred to as Hassanamisco
Grafton was originally occupied by a tribe of Nipmuck Indians and was called Hassanamisco (place of small stones). In 1671, an English missionary named John Eliot, who preached in Hassanamisco, established an Indian church and school here where the Bible was studied in the Indian language. The church and school were located near the current common. The Native American village was abandoned after King Philip’s War. Today there is an Indian Homestead on Brigham Hill.
In 1724, a group of 39 men and one woman, mainly from Marlborough, Sudbury, Concord, and Stow, presented a petition to the General Court and were granted the right to purchase 7,500 acres of land from Indian owners. The money was to be held in an account under the direction of the General Court for the benefit of the Indians. In 1735, Grafton was established from the Hassanamisco land purchase and named in honor of Charles Fitzroy, Duke of Grafton, and grandson of Charles II.
The present Grafton common was established in 1738. The original 40 proprietors of Grafton voted that four acres of land near the center of the plantation of Hassanamisco were to be set aside as common land and that a meetinghouse, burial ground schoolhouse, and militia training field be situated at this place. The first meetinghouse of the Congregational Puritan settlement was built in 1730 and stood at the center of the common. This meetinghouse remained on the common for 100 years. The cross behind the pulpit in the present Congregational Church is fashioned of timber from this building, which was subsequently demolished. In 1845, a portion of the original Common was fenced, graded, and planted with trees. The present bandstand was built in 1935 by Hollywood filmmakers for a scene in the production of “Ah Wilderness,” which was filmed in Grafton.
Many mills were established by significant sources of water-power. The center of Grafton, however, has no source of waterpower, so the industries were developed on the outskirts, while the center with the original common remained pristine. Six villages were formed near the centers of manufacturing activity and were called: Grafton (center); New England Village (North Grafton); Centerville (Brigham Hill by the river); Farnumsville, Fisherville, and Saundersville (South Grafton). All but Grafton were located by significant water-power.
http://www.grafton-ma.gov/Public_Documents/GraftonMA_WebDocs/about
Ezekiel Johnson (1750-1808) and Rachel Merrifield (1757-1829) – published intentions of marriage. The marriage did not take place.
Joseph Hills (1758-1787) and Esther Ellis Hills Forbush (1758-bef. 1818) (Julia’s parents)
Enoch Forbush (1756-1825) (Julia's stepfather)
Ezekiel Johnson (1773-1848) and Julia Hills (1783-1853)
Joel Hills Johnson born in Grafton 23 March 1802
Grafton Common at Millbury St and Grafton Common
Old Oak Street Burial Ground
Joseph Hills (Julia’s father) is buried here
Enoch Forbush (Julia’s stepfather) is buried here.