On 28 September 1838, 100 years after the settlement of their small town, the current citizens and some past residents gathered to celebrate the centennial of Goshen, Connecticut. On that day, Grant Powers stood before them and addressed them concerning the history of their fine village. This pamphlet is that history in its published form, which was done the following year and at the request of the town proprietors.
The Principal authorities, consulted in support of this address by Mr. Powers were: Mather’s Magnalia; Trumbull’s History of Connecticut; Marshall’s Life of Washington; Historical Collections of Connecticut; Town Records; Dea. Lewis M. Norton; and Old men of the town.
Now, the way “Old” was written above [being capitalized] was the way it was published and I’m not certain what Old Grant or the Old Proprietors were trying to imply…
In his long discourse Grant takes the villages back in time to the founding of Goshen and the 50 original proprietors. He explains how 53 slips of paper were cut and marked 1-53, the papers each representing one share of the first 50 acres of land to each proprietor were placed in a hat. Each proprietor drew a number out and that was the order they could choose their town lot. The three remaining lots were designated for the parsonage, a second for the support of the minister, and a third for the support of the schools. Powers would eventually bring the history forward to 1745 and explain how the town looked at that junction in time. Who lived where?
Source
Powers, Grant, An address delivered to the people of Goshen, Connecticut at their first centennial celebration, September 28, 1838, Hartford : E. Geer, 1839.