Huguenot Settlement - Oxford, MA
Posted by: 
neoc1
N 42° 06.531 W 071° 51.960
19T E 263039 N 4665837
The Huguenot Settlement marker is located on the corner of Main Street, Route 12, and Huguenot Road in Oxford, MA
Waymark Code: WMFXD9
Location: Massachusetts, United States
Date Posted: 12/12/2012
Views: 4
By the 1598 Edict of Nantes, Henry IV of France granted Calvinist Protestants, called Huguenots, substantial rights. The Edict was revoked in October 1685 by King Louis XIV. This led to waves of Huguenot emigration.
Oxford was first settled in 1686 by a group of Huguenots fleeing persecution in France. This original settlement was abandoned after four residents were killed by local Native Americans. A fort was built in 1694 to protect the second settlement from attack. The remains of this Huguenot Fort is on Huguenot Road uphill from this marker.
A marker erected by the Massachusetts Bay Colony Tercentenary Commission point to the remains of the old fort. It is inscribed
1630 - 1930
HUGENOT SETTLEMENT
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UP THIS ROAD ON MAYO'S HILL
ARE THE REMAINS OF A BASTIONED
FORT BUILT BY HUGENOUTS DRIVEN
FROM FRANCE BY THE REVOCATION
OF THE EDICT OF NANTES. THEIR
PROSPEROUS SETTLEMENT WAS
INTERRUPTED BY INDIAN ATTACKS
IN 1696 AND FINALLY ABANDONED
IN 1704.
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MASSACHUSETTS BAY COLONY
TERCENTENARY COMMISSION
Agency Responsible for Placement: Massachusetts Bay Colony Tercentenary Commission
Year Placed: 1930
County: Worcester
City/Town Name: Oxford, MA
Relevant Web Site: [Web Link]
Agency Responsible for Placement (if not in list above): Not listed
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