America’s Stonehenge, The Mystery Hill Timeline of Events....500,000 Years B.C.E. to December 2004

Written By: Erik Ferguson | View Original Publication

Reprint courtesy of www.oldnh.com, all rights reserved.

500,000 - 70,000 B.C.E:
(Before Common Era): Glaciers covered and reshaped the land, displacing and depositing boulders, soil, clays, and other debris.

10,000 B.C.E: 
Natives inhabited the Mystery Hill area as the Ice Age receded and glacial ice retreated.

4,000 B.P. (Before Present)
Unknown megalithic builders arrived to construct a 12-acre astronomical stone calendar. At the center of this stone calendar lies a 4.5 ton granite sacrificial table. Inscribed tablets of the ancient Canaanite god Baal/Celtic god Bel have been found on this site. Worshippers of Baal were associated with fertility rites, sun worship, and human sacrifice. Stone monoliths mark astronomical events that were important to people of that time period. Also on this site, which is believed to have been used for religious ceremonies, are numerous stone chambers. Who the exact builders were, why they left, and what happened to them after that are still a mystery, although there are some compelling theories. It is believed that at that time period, a very large body of water, which was fed by the Merrimack River, shored near the Mystery Hill area. This would have made the Mystery Hill area accessible by ships from overseas. It is believed that Phoenicians, Celts, and possibly others came from across the seas and settled here long before the discoveries of Christopher Columbus.

Woodland Age, 2,000 - 300 B.P
Native Americans inhabited The Mystery Hill area. Three Pennacook tribes were known to have inhabited the area. These were the Pawtuckets, the Agawam, and the Pentuckets. Glacial clay deposits at the southern base of the main site were utilized to make pottery. Some pottery fragments that have been found at Mystery Hill are on display at the America's Stonehenge Visitor's Center.

1734
Seth Pattee purchased Mystery Hill property (48 acres). Seth Pattee built a house and barn on Mystery Hill, along with a sawmill at the bottom of the hill, near the Spicket River.

1765
Seth Pattee sold half of his land to his son, Jerediah Pattee. This section of land included the house, barn, and ancient calendar site. This was the western half of the Mystery Hill property.

1770
Seth Pattee sold the other half of his property to other son, Seth Pattee, Jr. This section of land was the eastern half of the Mystery Hill property.

1772
Seth Pattee, Jr. purchased the western half of his father's land from brother, Jerediah Pattee. This gave Seth Pattee, Jr. ownership of the main site area, along with the house and barn.

1779
Seth Pattee, Jr. died of ill health. His wife, Susanna, remarried and moved away from the property along with the children. Mystery Hill was abandoned.

1801
Jonathan Pattee received title for Mystery Hill property from Susanna Corliss. Jonathan Pattee restored the house on Mystery Hill and moved there with his wife, Betsy, to raise a family.

1809
Jonathan Pattee sold property to brother-in-law, Kendal Mallon, due to financial problems. Jonathan Pattee ran into extreme debt as a tax collector due to his collections falling short of projected town revenues.

1809
Kendal Mallon sold property back to Jonathan's wife Betsy Pattee. Two days later, the property was sold back to the family under Betsy Pattee's name.

1825
Marquis de Lafayette was rumored to have visited Mystery Hill to view the ancient ruins. There was a two-hour gap in Marquis de Lafayette's itinerary while touring Massachusetts and New Hampshire. Legend has it that he stopped at Mystery Hill on his way to Derry, NH. It is believed that Lafayette visited the stone ruins at Mystery Hill after having had dinner at a tavern owned by Jonathan Pattee's cousin, Richard Pattee.

1845 -1848
John Leverett removed stones from the Mystery Hill site. To bypass “Quarry Taxes,” many of the stones at the Mystery Hill site were taken by quarrymen. An estimated 10% to 40% of the site was removed. It is believed that most of this stone was taken to Lawrence, MA for the construction of the Lawrence Dam and for street curbing.

1849
Jonathan Pattee Died. Jonathan Pattee’s eldest son, Seth Jonathan Mallon Pattee, inherited the Mystery Hill property.

1863
George Jonathan Pattee sued father, Seth Jonathan Mallon Pattee, for the Mystery Hill property. A will was discovered naming grandson, George Pattee heir to Jonathan Pattee's estates. During the legal dispute, the house was destroyed. The house was said to have been destroyed by fire, but there is no evidence to confirm this.

1863
George Pattee sold the Mystery Hill property to Nathaniel Paul. The Mystery Hill property was used as a resource for lumber for Nathaniel Paul's local mill, and the hill was stripped of all useable lumber. Paul allowed another group of quarrymen to remove stone from the site, taking another 10% to 50% of the stones.

1891
Ebenezer Duston purchased the Mystery Hill site.

1902
Anna McNeil purchased the Mystery Hill site.

Early 1900's
The Mystery Hill site became a picnic area and local attraction.

1927
Fred K. Duston purchased The Mystery Hill site.

1928
Writer, H.P. Lovecraft, visited the Mystery Hill site. Shortly after his visit to Mystery Hill, Lovecraft wrote "The Dunwich Horror," a short story based on the Mystery Hill locale.

1934, August 15
Haverhill Evening Gazette published the first known article about Mystery Hill entitled “Problem for Archeologists.” Frank E. Portors wrote an article describing the chambers of the Mystery Hill site and implied their usage as a hideout for runaway slaves. An interview with 16 year old, Elsie Conley of North Salem NH, was included with this article, who said she believed in the legends about the caves being part of the underground railway system for runaway slaves.

1935
Professor Wilbur H. Siebert named Mystery Hill as an Underground Railroad stop. Although not proven, many believe Jonathan Pattee, or perhaps even his son, Seth to have been Abolitionists who gave slaves refuge on the Underground Railroad. Shackles have been found on the site, which are displayed in the America's Stonehenge Visitor's Center.

1935, October 24
An article about Mystery Hill was published in the Boston Globe entitled “Old Caves at Salem, N.H. Laid to Robbers, Indians.” Written by an anonymous author, this article describes the Mystery Hill caves and suggests that robbers or nomadic Indians may have used the site.

1937
William Brownell Goodwin purchased the Mystery Hill property. Due to his interest in the Vikings, William B. Goodwin bought the property. Realizing that these weren't Viking ruins, Goodwin developed a theory about these being the remains of an Irish Culdee Monk monastery. Goodwin and photographer Malcolm Pearson conducted excavations and searched for artifacts, for which they received national coverage, although Goodwin's theories would soon be disputed. Pearson took many photographs of the Mystery Hill area during his work with Goodwin. Some of these photographs are on display and can be viewed at the America's Stonehenge Visitor's Center.

1938, June 2
An article about Mystery Hill was published by Ken Magazine entitled “Were the Irish First to Find America?” Written by Clay Perry, this article described the Mystery Hill site and promoted Goodwin’s ideas about its having Irish builders. The “sacrificial slab” was mentioned as probably being used for pagan sacrificial rites, or as a winepress, referring to the wild grapes and vines mentioned in the Norse sagas of the Vikings. He referred to the Mystery Hill site as “Stone Village.”

1938, June 19
The Hartford Courant Magazine published an article about Mystery Hill entitled “Stone Village Mystery”. Written by Wesley S. Griswold, this article promoted Goodwin’s theory about the Mystery Hill site being built by Irish Culdee Monks.

1938, July 6
The Berkshire County (NH) Eagle published an article about Mystery Hill entitled “Stone Village Indicates Irish Settled in America Prior to Norsemen”. Written by an anonymous author, this article promoted Goodwin’s theory about the Mystery Hill site being built by Irish Culdee Monks.

1938, July 31
An article about Mystery Hill was published by The Boston Sunday Post, entitled “Irish Stone Temples, 1000 Years Old, Found Here.” Written by Clay Perry, this article further promoted Goodwin’s theory about the Mystery Hill site being built by Irish Culdee Monks. It also describes some of Goodwin’s restorations to the site.

1938
An article about Mystery Hill was published by the New England Quarterly, entitled “Notes with Reference to, and Brief History of the Stone Village Site.” Written by William B. Goodwin, this article described his work and research preformed at his “Stone Village.” Goodwin draws comparisons between the Mystery Hill site and other Old World sites. He also describes two Cairns found nearby and compares them to the Cairns of the Pagan Irish culture. Goodwin further describes his theories about Stone Village being constructed by the Celts and provides a glossary of Celtic nomenclature that would apply to his Stone Village if his theories were to be proven to be correct.

1939, February 25
An article about Mystery Hill was published by The Christian Science Monitor; Boston News, entitled “Rock Huts Indicate Irish Antedated Norsemen in N.E.” Written by Clay Perry, this article draws comparisons between “Stone Village” and the Beehive Huts of Upton and Hopkinton MA, while promoting further Goodwin’s theories about the Irish Culdee Monks connection to the Mystery Hill site.

1939, March 5
An article about Mystery Hill was published by The American Weekly, entitled “Irish in America Long Before Columbus?” Written by an anonymous author, this article describes the Mystery Hill site and touches on some Norse mythology. It describes some theories of who might have built the Stone Village, including Goodwin’s theory of Irish Culdee Monks. The author states the Mystery Hill site as being “the most ancient ruins in Eastern America if not the entire continent.”

1939
Clay Perry wrote a book about the Mystery Hill site, entitled “Underground New England.” Stephen Daye Press, Brattleboro VT, released this book around March 1939. Clay Perry further promoted theories about Irish Monk builders and Stone Village. However, Perry deliberately distorted facts and made claims without having any hard evidence. 

1939, September
An article about Mystery Hill was published by the New England Quarterly, entitled “The ‘Irish Monastery’ at North Salem, NH.” Written by Hugh Hencken, this article disputes Goodwin’s theories and asserts that any skilled quarrymen could have built the Mystery Hill caves, perhaps even the Pattees themselves. He does conclude, however, that evidence pointed towards the caves being built before the Pattees’ arrival, although he was doubtful of Irish or Viking origins. 

1940, November
Hugh Hencken wrote another article in opposition of Goodwin’s theories for Scientific American, entitled “What are Pattee’s Caves?” Again, Hencken disputes Goodwin’s theories about Irish Monks building the Mystery Hill caves, and implies that the Pattee family is responsible for building them.

1941, October 5
An article about Mystery Hill was published by Everybody’s Magazine, entitled: “Records of white men in Worchester County Prior To Norman Conquest.” Written by Margaret Parsons, this article implied that the Mystery Hill site was a relic of the Norse sagas built by the Vikings.

1943, April
An article about Mystery Hill was published by A Capuchin Review – The Cowl, entitled “Some notes on Earliest America.” Written by Helen Hance, this article is mostly about the Norse sagas and tries to place the Mystery Hill site within them.

1943 December
William B. Goodwin wrote a manuscript that was a rebuttal to Hencken’s criticism’s that was never published. In this manuscript, a distraught Goodwin defends his theories, pointing out flaws in Hencken’s arguments.

1945, October 27
An article about Mystery Hill was published by The Christian Science Monitor, entitled “Strangers to America.” Written by Howard P. Hodgman, this article admits that the question of “Who built Mystery Hill?” is unanswerable. 

1946
An article about Mystery Hill was published by the New England Quarterly, entitled “The Ruins of Great Ireland in New England.” Written by William Goodwin, this was a modified version of the article “Notes with Reference to, and Brief History of the Stone Village Site,” published in 1938.

1950
William B. Goodwin died. The Mystery Hill property was left to his partner, Malcolm Pearson.

1955
The Early Sites Foundation leased The Mystery Hill site out for research projects.

1956
Robert E. Stone signed a five-year lease, with the option to buy, for the Mystery Hill property. 

1958
Robert Stone built the Visitor’s Center and opened the Mystery Hill Caves to the public on the Summer Solstice.

1961
Robert Stone purchased Mystery Hill and adjacent property, totaling over 100 acres.

1963
The “Well of Crystals” was discovered. A 22 foot deep well was excavated, a four-foot base of quarried bedrock and a vein of quartz crystals was found.

1965
The purchase of the Mystery Hill site was completed by MHC Inc.

1967
Paths were cut in the trees for the viewing of astronomical events.

1967
Radiocarbon dating research began at Mystery Hill.

1969
Radiocarbon dating of charcoal fragments were determined to be about 3,000 years old.

1969
A large clay-firing pit was discovered. At the southern base of the main site, large clay deposits were found, along with evidence of pottery construction and a large firing pit.

1969
A trench was dug near carbon dated tree stump, where numerous artifacts were discovered. Artifacts were found, not only of settlers and the Patty family, but also of the ancient megalithic builders. These artifacts were determined to be over 3,000 years old.

1960'S/Early 1970's
Much research has been performed on the site regarding the stone astronomical markers. Stone and his associates made discoveries of solar and lunar alignments. In 1973 it was decided that a complete survey of the site would be needed.

1970
Mystery Hill was designated as a NH State Historic Site.

1971
Radiocarbon dating of charcoal fragments were determined to be about 3,500 years old.

1973 Through 1977
A local survey firm was hired to measure and assess all features of the Mystery Hill site. Studies of this survey, using theories of Precession, place the time of construction of this site between 3600 and 1700 B.C.E.

1975
Barry Fell, Marine Biologist and epigrapher translated an engraved stone tablet found on Mystery Hill. This tablet is a dedication to the Canaanite god Baal in Iberian Punic script, it is believed to be engraved by the Phoenicians. Baal worshippers have been associated both with fertility rites, sun worship, and human sacrifice, which could very well explain the presence of the Sacrificial Table and astronomical alignment stones. This tablet can be viewed at the America's Stonehenge Visitor's Center.

1975
Barry Fell translated another engraved tablet. In Ogham script, associated with the Celtic culture, was translated a dedication to the Celtic god Bel. This tablet can also be viewed at the America's Stonehenge Visitor's Center.

1975
The “Beltane Stone” was found. This stone was inscribed with both Ogham script and Roman numerals. Beltane is associated with both Baal and Bel, which is typically celebrated on May 1.

1997
Robert Stone, Al Kayworth, and Dennis Stone discovered a fallen, fourteen-foot monolith. Although fallen and broken into four pieces, this was still recognizable as a monolith and would have been the largest on the site if it were still standing.

1998
Louis Winkler, Astronomy Professor, conducted a study of the stone alignments. His studies indicated not only solar and lunar alignments, but stellar alignments as well.

2001, July
A television broadcast about America’s Stonehenge was aired on The History Channel. A one-hour program about the Mystery Hill site was broadcast on The History Channel entitled “America’s Stonehenge.”

2002, December 3
A television broadcast about America’s Stonehenge was aired on The History Channel. A one hour program about the Mystery Hill site was broadcast on The History Channel entitled “Secret Passages: America’s Stonehenge.”

Present
America's Stonehenge remains open to the public. Research here is ongoing, as well as preservation, yet the site remains open to the public and has something of interest for just about everyone. For information on current fees, programs, hours, and events, visit www.stonehengeusa.com or call America's Stonehenge at 603-893-8300.

I would personally like to thank the Stone Family and the America’s Stonehenge Staff along with Scott Menns of oldnh.com. Without their help and cooperation, this project would not have been possible. If you have any comments you would like to share with me about this article, please send email to the following address: admin@erikferguson.com (email edited to stay current)

Erik Ferguson

Resources:

America's Stonehenge David Goudsward with Robert E. Stone Foreword by Malcolm Pearson Branden Books, Inc Copyright 2003
America's Stonehenge: An Interpretive Guide Joanne Dondero Lambert and Joseph Lambert Sunrise Publications Copyright 1996
The Mystery Hill Source Book 1907-1945 Edited by Richard V. Humphrey Teaparty Books Copyright 1979
Baal By Alan G. Hefner Article created on 03 March 1997; last modified on 11 January 2004. © 1995-2004 Encyclopedia Mythica. All rights reserved.
America’s Stonehenge Time-Line, Events and Land use at Mystery Hill W.E.J. Hinton Jr. Copyright 1988
What’s On? November 21, 2002 Weekly Issue www.whyville.net

America's Stonehenge Staff and America's Stonehenge Visitor's Center

Copyright © 2004-2005 www.oldnh.com

Copyright © 2005 - 2008 Erik Ferguson