The Plight of the Peddler

By M.P. Pellicer | Stranger Than Fiction Stories
In 1890, a mystery dating back to 1823 was solved. The revelation disclosed how a murderer escaped justice by dying many years before, but his crime did come to light.

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The Ashland Hotel (once known as the Railroad House) was built across from the train depot in Ashland, Massachusetts c.1920

Ashland, Massachusetts, c.1890

A skeleton was found in basin 5 of the Boston waterworks, which reminded the older inhabitants of Ashland about a gang of cutthroats once terrorizing their little area of Middlesex County. Many believed the bones belonged to a peddler by the name of Judson who disappeared in the spring of 1823.

The skeleton was found on a little hillock under 20 inches of dirt, and the skull was cracked with a 2-inch hole that confirmed the individual had been a victim of foul play.

A piece of tissue paper, cut round and once having been fitted to a hat or cap was found under the skull.

The seeds of the peddler's demise started years before, when John Clement and his sister Patience who went by the name of Patch moved into a house known as the Bixby Place, some time between 1815 and 1818.

The Bixby (Bixbee) House once belonged to a family which settled in the area since the 17th century. Joseph Bixby (1648-1725) farmed the land and was prominent in town affairs. He had 14 children and they continued to live in Ashland.

Later some suspected John Clement and his sister purposely picked the property due to its remoteness deep in the wood, but it was only a 100 feet from the Hopkinton-Ashland Turnpike. Only a cart path ran from the farmhouse to the turnpike, and a small area had been cleared around the house. The townspeople later recalled that little was known about the brother and sister, or where they came from.

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New England peddler c.1885

Soon after the Clements moved there the townspeople of Ashland and Hopkinton heard the sounds of revelry that traveled far and wide on quiet nights. The one-time farm had been turned into a tavern that brought in young men and women from the neighboring farms and villages, as news of the parties held there became well known.

Travelers who stopped at the tavern were given boarding, but none would return.

The tavern soon became the bane of the two towns.

Eventually the couple hired two or three loafers as bouncers to "keep the peace". Before long these men made up a gang that robbed visitors to the tavern who had become too drunk to defend themselves. Afterward many were too ashamed to report the robbery to the authorities. But it seemed that not only robberies were taking place as two or three people disappeared, but the townspeople failed to follow up, and find out if the stories were more than a rumor.

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Peddlers often traveled on lonely roads

However in 1823 a disappearance was reported to the residents of Hopkinton, which convinced them that a murder had been committed. Nothing was done at that time perhaps through the cowardice of the authorities, or belief of collusion between the inhabitants of the tavern and the law, but 8 years later a mob attacked the old house in the night and tore it down with the occupants inside.

In those days farmers' wagons were the principal method of transportation through the smaller towns. Peddlers would wander from Boston and Worcester with heavy packs and return with money-filled pockets. Some of the roads were lonely, with many miles between houses. The Hopkinton-Ashland turnpike was one of the loneliest roads.

From the bridge of the New York and New England railroad on the outskirts of Hopkinton center, to the headquarters of the basin 5 workmen in Ashland, was a distance of about 3 miles. On that route there were 3 residences close together, and the rest of the stretch was pastureland and timber growths. It was along this road that Judson the peddler trudged in 1823. He left Hopkinton in the middle of the afternoon intending to reach Ashland by nightfall, but a storm arose and he stopped at the Clement place.

The peddler was well-known and traded regularly with farmers' wives, which is why the townspeople noticed his disappearance. His movements were retraced, and quickly it was deduced the storm forced him to stop at the Clement house.

When questioned, the proprietor at the house said that the peddler had arrived, but left the next day. The man who made the inquiry found a cap in the wood a short distance from the house. It was later found to belong to the missing peddler, but at that moment the townspeople had no choice but to take Clement's word that the peddler had left his establishment.

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Riding the rail, usually entailed tar and feathering

Later a young man of the village, by the surname of Perkins mentioned he had seen John Clement washing blood from a flannel shirt the night the peddler disappeared. Three years later Perkins died suddenly, supposedly from drinking too much alcohol. Others believed Clement got rid of him because he talked too much and knew about the peddler.

Perkins might have strayed off the path, but he came from a well-known family in town, and his death created a sensation. But again there was no concrete proof again John Clement and his sister, however it was still believed more than ever the peddler had been killed when he visited the tavern.

The hillock where the skeleton was found in 1890 was at the junction of the old Cordiaville and Hopkinton turnpikes and the Doubleday House. It was situated at the junction opposite the bluff. Next to Doubleday's property was a lot of about 3/4 of an acre, which in 1823 was used as pasture by Clement. He knew this piece of land would never by tilled while he rented the property, and the skeleton lay within 3 feet of the lot which was planted every year.

At the time of the murder it would have been impossible to find the body in such a lonely spot. During the time of the peddler's disappearance the townspeople believed he had been buried in the cellar of the house, but none followed up because of the notoriety of the house's occupants.

The end of the Clement house came about in 1831. The deaths of Perkins some time between 1825 and 1830, and the death of a woman named Chloe Temple in 1830, made the residents determined there must be an end to the establishment.

Chloe Temple was said to have been led away by one of the frequenters of the Clement house, and when her reputation became such that she could no longer remain in the town, she went to the house to live. Clement said she had been found dead in her bed, but other said she was discovered on the kitchen floor.

In March of 1831, a party of 10 to 12 disguised men drove to within half a mile of the tavern. They descended on the house which was occupied by Clement, his sister and another man who was able to escape.

A mattress containing Clement was carried out and laid on the grass. Clement was given a "short ride on a rail" and otherwise disciplined, which probably included being tarred and feather. Then the crowd tackled the house. In an hour only kindling wood was left. Dishes, furniture and everything inside was destroyed.

Clement and his sister were told what they had better do, and they did it. For the remainder of their lives they lived respectfully in Hopkinton. They died sometime around 1845, about 22 years after the disappearance of the peddler.

There is nothing to confirm the identity of the skeleton, except it was found a mile and half from the Clement house, and very close to a house occupied in 1829 by a Mr. Doubleday.

So the question begs to be asked, how many more besides the unfortunate peddler met this end after visiting the Clement House, and their bones lay undiscovered somewhere in what used to be a pastureland about 200 years ago?

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